Hearty Chicken & Noodle Casserole

This was very easy to make. When I added the cheese at the end I also topped it with some bread crumbs and put it under the broiler for a minute to brown the top. Great one dish meal for busy weeknights.

I first made this last month; I was looking for easy casserole recipes to stock my parent's freezer after my mom broke her hip, and a co-worker recommended this. So I assembled and immediately froze into 4 single-portion tupperwares. I never tasted it and didn't plan to make it again b/c I'm usually not a fan of recipes containg cream of *something* soup and frozen veggies. Well, my mom called me up last week and RAVED about it and asked for the recipe. So I had to try it for myself, and knew it froze well :-) so made a double* batch (*more than double chicken, veggies, pasta and cheese) and divided between 3 8x8 sized containers. 2 I froze and 1 I cooked for dinner. It was a big hit! DH gave it a 5, boys gave it a 4, but I definately give it a 5 for taste and especially ease of prep. For veggies I used a bag of 'chinese' vegetables. If you're not a huge fan of soupy casseroles -do what I did and increase the amount of the other ingredients by 50% or so. I added the cheddar cheese right from the beginning and cooked covered for the 1st 20 minutes, then needed 15 minutes more to heat through. To freeze: mix cooled chicken and pasta with the other ingredients and stir in the frozen veggies at the last minute. Top with cheese and freeze immediately. (This way the veggies won't partially defrost only be to frozen again.)

First of all I am giving this 5 stars because it is quick and easy and tastes good. I have never been able to make a decent chicken or tuna and noodle casserole till now. I used Healthy Request Cream of Chicken soup and skim milk, that's what I had on hand and thought it would give a deeper chicken flavor. I also did something I never do, I used a 13oz. can of good quality chunk white chicken. I used good quality hearty egg noodles and didn't use any more water than necessary to cook them and added Better Than Bouillon to the water to infuse those egg noodles with some flavor. I also use a little more noodles than called for. I grated my own parmesan cheese and on the advise of others added some cheese in the casserole. Someone also mentioned sour cream, I had about 2 T. left in a container so I threw that in to compensate for the skim milk :) I goofed and added the cheese on top from the beginning, not a problem and did not over brown. A few people complained about the veggies not being done so I microwaved them for 3 minutes before adding. This was great and I will be making it again! This is simple, tasty comfort food at it's best! I have a cabinet full of spices and seasoning and cook all types of cuisines from around the world but sometimes simple is best. If you are one of those who thought this recipe was bland then taste it and start adding till it suits your taste before you bake it. Personally, I wouldn't change a thing except the soup but that's personal preference.

The reviews were right. This was very fast and very good. I didn't have cream of mushroom soup so I used cream of chicken. I also had a bit of leftover mashed potatoes and added those. Delish! Also I had a bit of leftover grated mozz cheese and added that into the mixture. Made it extra cheesy. Turned out great. Everyone went back for seconds and thirds!

Delicious and easy. I used a 13 oz. can of white chicken (which I shredded ) and about 1/8 cup of shredded (sharp) cheese with the parmesan. I baked the casserole 20 min. and added 1/2 cup of shredded sharp cheese and baked another 5 min.. I, also, microwaved the frozen vegetables until tender before adding to the casserole. I hope the casserole freezes well as I plan to freeze some portions for later. Thanks for sharing!