Weeknight Cooking: Chicken Spaghetti

In the Pioneer Woman's cute introduction to this recipe, Ree Drummond claims that this is the only casserole that her husband (referred to as Marlboro Man -- a real cowboy) and family will really eat.  Because, as she goes on, it is a bit complicated and shows signs of both diced red and green, the family calls it "Mexican Chicken," although that's not really what it is at all.  "There's a lot of 'stuff' in this

casserole, but the way I ensure widespread acceptance and bliss by those I serve it to is to keep everything diced very small and to season it adequately."  What she is referring to is the 4 oz jar of

diced pimientos, onion, Lawry's seasoning, green peppers, and cayenne in addition to the main ingredients.

While I was looking at all these ingredients, I too thought the same thing – I was on a time budget and I realized there was way more in this recipe than needed to be.  I slowly visualized reducing the recipe down to its bare, but best, essentials: good chicken, thin spaghetti, two cans of mushroom soup, some cheese, put it together, ensuring a good pre-bake consistency, and simply let it bake for a bit.  So I pan fried a batch of chicken thighs seasoned with a garlic pepper grill salt to give the dish its 'hits' of potent flavor.  From there I boiled the noodles in chicken stock to add to the casserole essence; also adding

some stock to two cans of cream of mushroom sauce in a bowl.  I tossed in some salt, the chicken, – now cut up into good bite size pieces – the pasta (al dente) and enough cheese to create a meshing sauce.  20 minutes in the oven and these very simple ingredients come out hearty but not rich or spicy.  I think Ree Drummond was right on track with a good family friendly casserole, but once the kids see little red squares of red and green, watch out!  Simplify further and its like gravy, chicken, and pasta.  Add a veggie on the side, and its a repeater.