Creamy Chicken and Noodle Casserole with Spinach and Mushrooms

Last week when I was looking for an idea for some sort of dinner that could be prepared ahead of time and then baked, the author of the blog Savory Safari suggested this recipe for Chicken, Spinach, and Mushroom Casserole. I put it my list of things to make this week.


I made several changes to her original recipe - seasoned and cooked my own chicken instead of using rotisserie chicken, omitted the bacon, and added garlic (of course!). Also, I saved some time by cooking the chicken on Sunday while doing some other things in the kitchen. My version of the recipe is below.

Ingredients

• 2 boneless chicken breasts
• For the chicken: white truffle oil, dried thyme, white pepper, salt, paprika
• 1/2 pound egg noodles
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 10 oz. mushrooms
• 1/2 white onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, pressed
• 3 large handfuls of fresh baby spinach, roughly chopped
• Pinch of dried thyme
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup grated cheeses; I used Asiago as well as a Italian blend in the bag - mozzarella, provolone, and asiago
• Bread crumbs for the topping, about 1/2 c
• Salt and pepper
  

Directions

• Drizzle some white truffle oil onto the chicken breasts and season lightly with the thyme, white pepper, salt, and paprika. Pan fry until golden brown and cooked through. I did this step the day before I was planning on making this casserole. When I was ready to cook, I roughly chopped the chicken into bite sized pieces.
• Cook the egg noodles; drain and set aside. Run some cold water over them and toss with olive oil to keep them from sticking.
• Preheat your oven to 400
• Heat olive oil in a large skillet
• Add onions and garlic; saute 3-4 minutes
• Add mushrooms and cook 5-6 minutes
• Add wine and let simmer until it has absorbed
• Add the chicken broth, salt, pepper, and pinch of thyme. Let simmer until it has absorbed.
• Turn heat to low and add the cream. Stir and let cook until it comes to a light simmer.
• Mix in 3/4 of the cheeses
• Transfer noodles to a baking dish; add chicken and mix. Pour cream/mushroom mixture over noodles, add the spinach, and stir until everything is combined/coated.
• Top with bread crumbs and the rest of the cheeses.
• Bake, covered, on 400 for 20 minutes. Remove the cover and turn on the broiler for 2-3 minutes until golden brown.

Jon and I really enjoyed this. It was so different from our usual spicy, garlicky dinners!! I think this would even be good without the chicken for a creamy noodle-veggie casserole. Looking forward to leftovers tomorrow - casseroles make the BEST leftovers!