I don’t know about you, but I love grocery shopping. I know, I know, most people hate it and look upon it as just another annoying chore they have to get done. However, I love picking out ingredients for foods that will soon be on the menu, looking around for the best prices, and feeling the satisfaction of loading up the refrigerator with my prizes when I get home.
Therefore, I’m sure you’ll understand that I get excited when I see awesome sales at my local grocery store – especially if the sale saves a significant amount of money, is for a product I use fairly often, and will keep for quite a while on the shelf. As it so happens, this is exactly what happened last time I went shopping! Campbell’s soups were on sale, and I stocked up on “Healthy Request” cream of chicken, mushroom, celery, and a few others.
As you have probably already guessed, then, today’s recipe features soup as one of the main ingredients! This rich tasting chicken vegetable casserole is what my mom would refer to as “comfort food,” perfect for any night you’re in the mood for a simple, homey dish to enjoy. It’s loaded with veggies and low-fat ingredients, making it quite healthy, but all the ingredients are so inexpensive and it tastes so delicious that you’d never know!
Creamy Chicken Vegetable Casserole
You will need:
- 4 boneless skinless chicken thighs, halved (or 3 large boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 8 pieces total)
- 1 can low-fat or “Healthy Request” cream of celery soup
- 1 can low-fat or “Healthy Request” cream of mushroom soup
- ½ cup skim milk
- 3 cups frozen mixed vegetables
- 2 cups frozen broccoli
- 1 cup frozen lima beans
- 1 tsp. poultry seasoning
- 4 oz. reduced fat cheddar cheese, grated
- 3 liter (or slightly larger) baking dish
(Click here for the printable PDF version of this recipe!)
Assemble your ingredients, and preheat the oven to 350°.
Place all the frozen vegetables in a large microwavable bowl, and microwave for 2-3 minutes to thaw them. (Although I used mixed vegetables, broccoli, and lima beans, you can use whatever kind of frozen vegetables you have on hand – just make sure that they add up to 6 cups veggies in total.)
Dump the cans of soup, milk, and poultry seasoning in with the vegetables, and mix all the ingredients together well.
Pour into the baking dish, and add the chicken pieces.
Push the chicken pieces down into the veggie mixture, covering completely.
Cover the dish, and bake for 1 hour (or until the chicken pieces no longer look at all pink when they’re cut into).
After an hour, take the dish out of the oven and top with the grated cheese. Bake an additional 10-12 minutes uncovered, until the cheese is melted and just starting to get brown.
Serve up the casserole, giving each person 1 piece of chicken along with a heaping serving of vegetables.
This recipe makes 8 generous portions, and works quite well as leftovers too. Enjoy this luscious dish that is guaranteed to satisfy!
The Sunny Cook 