Chicken Spaghetti

I know. I did not like the sound of this. Not at all. BUT - one of my favorite bloggers/Food Network celebs The Pioneer Woman recently made this recipe on her FN show and she swore that her husband, her kids and even she LOVED this recipe.

I'm willing to take a chance on that. This picture is after my family (6 of us) dished up our first servings - so the pic is half of what the recipe makes. EVERYBODY went back for second servings. 2 of my girls went back for 3rds. Who knew?

I made this during the day knowing that I had to coach soccer practice from 5-7 this evening. I made it, covered it in foil and put it in the fridge until we were ready to eat. Yes - we didn't get to eat until 7:45 - BUT - it was worth it with all the compliments and Yummy noises around the table. You can find the original recipe HERE - I made a few changes to mine.

Chicken Spaghetti

• 2 cups Cooked Chicken *I bought a 2 lb pack of Rotisserie chicken from Costco. I used about 1/3 of the package and cut it into bite sized pieces. 
• 3 cups Dry Spaghetti, Broken Into Two Inch Pieces *Costco Garafalo 17.6 oz
• 2 cans Cream Of Mushroom Soup
• 2 cups Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese *Costco Colby and Monterey Jack blend
• 1/4 cup Finely Diced Green Pepper *Red and yellow peppers - for fun
• 1/4 cup Finely Diced Onion
• 1 jar (4 Ounce) Diced Pimentos, Drained - NOPE - I bought them and tried them - had each of my kids try them and just no. 
• 2 cups Reserved Chicken Broth From Pot *stock from the box
• 1 teaspoon Lawry's Seasoned Salt
• 1/8 teaspoon (to 1/4 Teaspoon) Cayenne Pepper
• Salt And Pepper, to taste
• 1 cup Additional Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese *Colby and Monterey Jack blend

Instructions

So - if you are a cheater like me - cook spaghetti in water 2 minutes less than the package directions. Drain pasta and add a couple TBSP of butter to keep the pasta from sticking together. 

Combine all ingredients except chicken and spaghetti and whisk until well incorporated. Add chicken and spaghetti and mix until incorporated. Put mixture in a 9x13 casserole pan and top with remaining cheese. Cook at 350 for 45 minutes or read PW's suggestions on freezing or making ahead.