Mom always made this when we had company for Sunday lunch.  The dish gets it’s name from the baking time - 1 1/2 hours - stick it in and forget it!

Forgotten Chicken

1 1/2 cups uncooked rice (not quick cooking)
1/2 cups milk
2 cans cream soup (I use cream of mushroom)
4 ounces sliced mushrooms
4-6 chicken breasts
1/2 envelope dry onion soup mix

In a medium saucepan, heat rice, milk, soup and mushrooms.  Pour into a buttered 9×13 pan.  Arrange chicken over rice mixture, sprinkle with dry soup mix.  Cover and bake at 350 for 1 1/2 hours.

Another easy recipe from Mom (cheesy variation mine)…

Crockpot Mushroom Chicken

1-2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1-2 cans cream of mushroom soup

Cook on low 6-8 hours or until chicken falls apart.  Serve over hot white rice.  To make it cheesy, add 1 can of cheddar cheese soup to the above and serve over wide egg noodles or rotini.

Skillet method:  Brown chicken in skillet, add soup, cover and simmer about 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. 

To make it cheesy, add some cheese whiz.  To make it like alfredo, add some cream (I use fat free half & half) and some shredded parmesan cheese.

Serves 2.

My family loves a good, hearty chicken casserole.  Let me rephrase that.  I love to cook casseroles because they’re easy, don’t dirty alot of dishes, and I can double them to freeze.

When I haven’t planned ahead and want to pull something together, I find it helpful to keep cooked chicken on hand.  Here’s what you can do:

Put as much boneless, skinless chicken breast (fresh or frozen) as your crockpot will hold.  Add 2-3 cans chicken broth, some water to cover meat and a bay leaf or two.  Turn the crockpot on low and let it sit all day.

After about 8 hours, drain, cool and shred the chicken and put in 2 cup portions in sandwich bags, and freeze. 

Save the broth, too!  Strain through a coffee filter to get any stray chunks or pieces of fat.  Cover and put in the refrigerator over night to let any fat rise to the top.  The next day, skim off fat with a spoon.  Pour 2 cup servings into sandwich bags.  The next time you need a can of chicken broth, you’ve got seasoned broth in 2 cup servings you can pull out of the freezer!

Once again, Mom comes through with a great recipe! 

Chicken Divine

2-3 cups cooked shredded chicken
2 (10 oz) packages frozen broccoli
3/4 cup mayonnaise
2 cans cream soup (I use cream of mushroom)
1 Tbs. lemon juice
1/4 cup dry white wine or chicken broth
1/2 tsp. curry powder

Cook broccoli according to package directions.  Grease (non-stick spray is fine) 9×13 pan, lay broccoli in bottom.  Spread chicken on top.  Combine the rest of the ingredients, pour over broccoli and chicken. 

Mix 1 cup each of shredded cheddar and mozzarella cheeses with 1/2 cup breadcrumbs.  Melt 3-4 Tbs. butter (or enough to moisten mixture), mix in the breadcrumbs and cheese.  Spread over the top of the casserole.

Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes or until cooked through & bubbly around edges.

Serves 6-8. 

This doubles nicely - bake one and freeze one!  Or, if you are just serving 2-4, this can be put in 2 - 9″ square pans (freeze one).

Freezing instructions:  Thaw completely, bake as directed.

I found a variation of this this on the Weight Watchers site years ago.  It has become a winter staple in our house.

Chicken Sweet Potato Soup

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1″ chunks
2 (14.5 oz) cans diced tomatoes with green chiles (undrained) *
2 (14.5 oz) cans chicken broth **
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp cumin
1 1/2 cups frozen corn

This can either be done in the crockpot or stovetop.  For crockpot, cut the chicken into 1″ cubes, cook all ingredients but corn  on low setting for about 6 hours.  Stir in frozen corn for the last 30 minutes of cooking.

For stovetop, I simmer everything (except corn) together with the chicken uncut, then shred the meat when it’s cooked through and return it to the pot (we like the texture of shredded chicken vs. cubed).   This takes about 20 - 30 min on a low boil.  Then add the frozen corn and simmer until corn is heated - about 5 minutes.

*You can substitute plain diced tomatoes for the spicy ones to cut down on the heat.  For a mild soup, just use 2 cans plain diced tomatoes, or tomatoes with italian seasoning.

**Depending on the amount of the sweet potatoes, broth can be adjusted. I just add broth until it has a good ratio of liquid to chicken/sweet potatoes.

Ladle into bowls, sprinkle with mozzarella, cheddar or mexican blend shredded cheese. 

Serves 6-8.

Here’s another one I found on AllRecipes.com, and have modified it to suit our taste.

Spinach Parmesan Chicken

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup bread crumbs
1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, pounded thin
2 Tbs butter
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
dash salt
dash pepper
2 Tbs all-purpose flour
1 cup skim milk
1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained

Combine cheese, bread crumbs and seasoning in a large ziploc bag.  Moisten chicken with a little water, put chicken in bag (one breast at a time), seal and shake to coat.  Reserve remaining coating for a topping.

Lay chicken in 9×13 baking pan that has been sprayed with non-stick spray.

In a medium saucepan, melt butter, saute garlic until softened.  Add salt, pepper and flour, whisk to make paste.  Slowly add milk and simmer, whisking until thick and bubbly.  Stir in spinach.

Pour mixture over chicken, top with remaining cheese/bread crumb mixture.  Bake at 350 for 20 - 30 minutes until chicken is cooked through.

Serves 4 (or, if the chicken breasts are large, they can be cut in half to serve 8).

When you’re tired of turkey sandwiches after Thanksgiving, this is a great way to use the leftover turkey.  This recipe comes from my sister Kathy.

Chicken or Turkey Corn Chowder

3-4 Tbs butter
1/2 cup flour
dash salt
dash pepper
1 can corn, drained
2 cans chicken broth
1 can evaporated milk
1-2 cups cold cooked rice
fresh mushrooms
water chestnuts
leftover cooked chicken or turkey

Melt butter in large saucepan or dutch oven.  Add flour, salt and pepper, whisk to make paste.  Add chicken broth, simmer until thickened and bubbly, whisking often.  Add everything else, simmer until warmed through.

I’m not sure how many servings there are, I’ll post that next time I make it!

My neighbor made this for a Christmas Eve get-together, and I had to have the recipe!  I’ve also found it on AllRecipes.com, and made a few modifications to suit my taste.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

2 cups cooked shredded chicken
2 blocks cream cheese (8 oz), softened
1 cup ranch dressing
1 cup buffalo wing sauce (or to taste)

Mix everything but chicken until smooth.  Stir in chicken.   Heat in microwave, pour in serving bowl.  Mixture will be a little runny, it won’t set.  Serve with celery sticks and tortilla chips.  Great for a football party!

I found this in a Weight Watchers cookbook. It’s very easy, you can double or triple this for a crowd, and you’d never know it was “diet!”

Easy chicken BBQ

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken
1 can diet soda
1 cup ketchup
dash garlic powder

Simmer all ingredients until chicken is cooked through. Shred chicken with 2 forks. Simmer a few minutes more until chicken is coated and sauce thickens. Serve on buns (this is even good on whole wheat buns for a “diet” meal).

Serves 4 (makes 4 sandwiches).

Freezing instructions: Freeze leftovers, thaw and reheat!

Another one from my best recipe resource - Mom!

Turkey Apple Meatballs

1 lb ground turkey
1/2 cup shredded apple (about 1 med apple)
dash garlic powder
1 cup apple jelly
1/4 cup brown mustard

Combine turkey, apples and garlic powder. Roll into golf ball size balls. Cook in skillet in a little oil until browned on all sides and done in the middle (about 4 min per side). If meatballs are too large, you can bake them in a 400 oven after browning until done in the middle (about 8-10 min). Combine apple jelly and mustard, pour in pan. Simmer a few minutes until thick and bubbly. Serve over hot white rice.

Serves 4 (makes about 24 meatballs).