#799: Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole

 

I've had this recipe booked on my Pinterest board for over a year now.  I don't know why I keep avoiding making this recipe.  It was actually quite easy, especially when you use leftover chicken from a whole chicken (made in the crockpot).  The hardest part of this recipe is to make the wild rice, which took an hour on the stove.  But I only used half of what I made so the rest is in the freezer for next time.  (Did you know you can freeze cooked rice?!).  I definitely altered this recipe and used WAY less chicken and cheese than it called for.  I'm sure the original recipe would have been better but I was going for healthier (and I didn't want that much chicken in my rice). 

This is really good.  I am really looking forward to lunch again tomorrow and at school.  The oven gives the rice a nice crispy texture and really lets the flavors meld together.  I only got 3 servings out of my batch though, but that's okay. 

1 tablespoon plus 1 tsp olive oil (I omitted)

1 small onion, diced

1 cup mushrooms, sliced

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 pound chicken breasts (about 2), boneless, skinless, cut into 1/2 inch pieces (I used 3 oz of leftover shredded chicken)

1/2 cup sour cream (I used 4 tbsp reduced fat)

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (plus additional for sprinkling on top) (I used 1/2 c in the recipe and omitted the additional cheese for the topping)

3 cups cooked wild rice (I used 1 cup cooked)

  

Preheat oven to 350 F.  Place 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat and cook the onions for 2 minutes.  Add the mushrooms, season with 1/2 tsp of salt and cook another 4 minutes or until the mushrooms are tender and the onions are translucent.  Remove the mushroom mixture and place in a bowl.  (Since my chicken was already cooked, I just threw everything else together at this point).  Heat 1 tsp of oil in the sauté pan and cook the chicken, garlic powder and remaining 1/2 tsp of salt for 3 minutes or until cooked through.  Combine all the ingredients together, place in an 8 x 8 inch baking dish and sprinkle with additional shredded cheese.  Bake for 20 minutes.

My version was 16 ww+ pts for the entire 8x8 pan.