Recipe Background
A creamy noodle casserole, perfect for using pantry staples, brings nostalgia and comfort.
I remember the first time I made this noodle casserole vividly. It was the day my youngest sister had just moved into her first apartment after college. She called me in a bit of a panic, worried about hosting a few friends with limited resources and kitchen skills. The pantry was a chaotic blend of staples and some randomness, but I assured her we could make it work with the few cans of cream of chicken soup and a package of wide egg noodles she had on hand. With some freshly shredded cheddar and just enough frozen peas and carrots to keep things colorful, we were set.
Standing in her tiny, barely-used kitchen, I chopped a small yellow onion and some celery stalks, hoping to add a bit of freshness and crunch. This dish needed to be creamy and comforting, so we played with the seasonings: ground black pepper and a pinch of kosher salt did the trick. As it baked, the smell of buttery crushed crackers mingling with the cheesy noodles filled the space. Sliding it out of the oven, I showed her how a sprinkle of parsley could turn almost anything into something intriguing. That night, she discovered that a great meal could come from the simplest ingredients.
One tip that really made it sing was to let it rest for a good five minutes before serving. This way, the flavors had a moment to meld and the slices came out clean and cohesive. Watching her friends dig in, it became clear that this dish wasn’t just about feeding the stomach; it was about warming the heart. Even now, whenever I whip up this casserole, I think back to that evening and the joy of creating something special from what was available.
Ingredients
- 2 (10.5-ounce) cans cream of chicken soup
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese shredded
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups chicken boneless and skinless, cooked and shredded
- 1/2 small yellow onion finely chopped
- 2 stalks celery finely chopped
- 1 (12-ounce) bag frozen peas and carrots mix thawed
- 1 (12-ounce) package wide egg noodles cooked
- 1 1/2 cups butter crackers coarsely crushed
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- parsley to taste, chopped, for garnish
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Grease a 13x9-inch baking dish.
- In a large bowl, add the cream of chicken soup, the milk, the cheese, the pepper, and the salt and stir to combine.
- Stir the shredded chicken, the onion, the celery, and the peas and carrots mix into the soup mixture.
- Gently fold the cooked noodles into the chicken mixture.
- Pour the noodle mixture into the prepared baking dish and evenly spread it out.
- In a medium bowl, add the cracker crumbs and the melted butter and stir to combine.
- Sprinkle the cracker mixture over the casserole.
- Bake the casserole until it is heated through and the cracker topping has lightly browned, about 30-35 minutes.
- Serve the casserole garnished with the parsley.
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