Retro Recipes with Chicken

These recipes never heard of the food pyramid, or the nutritional enlightment.  They remain ignorant of the food police.  Both are cheap (when chicken is on sale, as it usually is) and tasty and make delicious leftovers. 


I got the recipe for "Chicken Little" at my first job in Northbrook, Illinois in the early 80's.  I loved to make it for my family, because the little kids scarfed it down and asked for more.  Rich?  Yeah.  Simple ingredients that you do not have to shop all day for. 


Chicken Little: 


1 stick butter;1 cup uncooked rice; 1 medium onion, chopped; 2 cans chicken broth; 2 lbs.  (approx) small chicken pieces. 
Process:  Melt butter.  Pour into a 9 x 13 inch glass baking dish.  Add rice, onion and broth.  Lay chicken pieces on rice mixture.  Bake uncovered one hour @ 350 degrees.  Serves 4.  
If you want to gussy it up, sprinkle with parsley or rosemary or thyme.  
Easy as pie, no, easier. 


Chicken-Cashew Casserole.  My mom made this and it always tasted so good to me as a kid.  I think it dates to the early sixties, maybe earlier--that age of Campbell's soup creation.  The only change I make is to use fresh mushrooms.  I always thought I hated mushrooms until I tried fresh ones and discovered they weren't the slimy things out of a jar/can that I found so disgusting. 


Stew 1 whole chicken.   Do not stew the little bag(s) of giblets that come inside the chicken.  No indeed.  If you don't know how to stew a chicken, look it up. 
Mix one small diced onion, a cup diced celery, 1/4 cup diced green pepper, 3/4 cup uncooked rice, 1 can mushroom soup, 1 can cream of chicken soup, 2 cups chicken broth (from the stewing will work) and 1 can whole mushrooms (substitute fresh, please!)  
Mix in  the  stewed now skinless chicken which you have in the meantime removed from the bone and cut into small chunks.  This whole business (chicken, veggies and soups)  goes into a 2 quart casserole with a lid. Make sure to stir until everything is nicely mixed.
Bake covered for 1 hour 10 minutes at 350 degrees F.  Remove from oven and sprinkle 1 cup cashews on top.  Bake 20 minutes more, uncovered.  Serves about six.  It is hard to stop eating this.  Just tastes so good.  
If you are a nervous cook, buy a rotisserie chicken and remove the skin (I recommend eating it) and take the meat off the bones and cut up.  Proceed with the recipe. 


In the midwest, these recipes would be called chicken hot dish.  And remember, canned mushrooms are the devil's spawn.