Ingredients:

For Chicken:

1 whole Chicken (you know I love a good organic chicken… what can I say?)

1 small onion quartered

2 stalks celery

1 stockpot full of water

For the Casserole:

3 cups Cooked Chicken

1 16 oz package uncooked Spaghetti, Broken In half

1 stick of butter

1 cup diced mushrooms

1/2 cup Finely Diced Green Pepper

1 cup Finely Diced Onion

2 Tablespoons flour (whole wheat is fine)

1 1/2 cups cream or half and half

2 1/2 cups Grated Cheddar Cheese

1 jar (4 Ounce) Diced Pimentos, Drained

2 15 oz can diced tomatoes (or one 15 oz can of tomato sauce)

1 cup reserved chicken broth From pot

1/8 teaspoon (to 1/4 Teaspoon) Cayenne Pepper (optional)

Salt And Pepper, to taste

1 1/2 cup Additional Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese

If you are not fond of tomato chunks in your casserole (I have one picky eater that feels this way), here is what the sauce looks like if you use tomato sauce instead of diced tomatoes. It is really good this way as well. It is creamy and a little tomatoey; but more creamy than tomatoey.

To Freeze

I like to cook up 2 chickens at a time, and then double or triple the recipe, freezing a couple extra meals for the freezer, and freezing any extra chicken in ziplocks for a quick meal or two. For this recipe, I cooked two chickens and was able to put a couple of meals in the freezer for when Elizabeth and Winston get here, next week, send one over to Steve’s Mom, and make a large pan for tomorrow, as well as freeze some extra chicken meat, and chicken broth for later. Undercook the pasta when you are going to freeze it, so that it does not get too soft when defrosted and cooked in the oven. Defrost in the refrigerator the night or morning before cooking, then follow instructions as usual.