Not My Mother's Turkey Broccoli Casserole

When the hubs called me this morning for my daily "Good Morning" call, he said he'd seen a commercial for pancakes on the TV at work and he was now in the mood for pancakes.  I asked if he wanted a breakfast-dinner (breakfast food for dinner) so he could get his pancake fix and he heartily said yes.  As I set out some bacon to thaw, I realized that, although I enjoy me some pancakes, I was not in the mood for them today.  I know B will want the breakfast-dinner, too, so.....what to make for me....

Chicken Broccoli Casserole!

I LOVE Chicken Broccoli Casserole but the hubs and B would be fine and dandy if they never had it again.  The hubs is prejudiced against casseroles.  He thinks of casseroles as all being the same from his childhood -  weeks worth of leftovers thrown together in a dish and covered with some kind of salty, gross-looking sauce the masks what's in there.  He's come a long way in the last 16 years with me.  I finally got him to let me make a Chicken Pot Pie earlier this year and he loves it.  But he is NOT budging on my Chicken Broccoli Casserole!  LOL!  That's fine; I let this one slide because then I get to eat it all myself.

It's a dish that my mom made, but she called it Turkey Broccoli Casserole because she only made it a couple of times a year with the leftovers from a holiday turkey.  I didn't like it as a child.  Part of that was because I was a picky eater and my mom catered to that in her kids and part of it was the way she made her casserole.  As the name suggests, there is broccoli in it.  My mom would by the cardboard box of frozen broccoli spears, set them out to thaw, boil them once they were thawed and then they baked for another hour inside the casserole.  By the time her casserole came out of the over, the broccoli was not recognizable (it wasn't even green anymore) and it smelled awful!  This was surprising, since my mom is an excellent cook and pasted her love of pleasing others through food to me.  But we all are allowed an Achilles' heel.  Until 2 year ago, I could not make simple boiled rice or mashed potatoes!

I call my version Chicken Broccoli Casserole, because I make it several times a year and mostly with chicken.  I use frozen broccoli flowerets and add them to the casserole frozen.  They will thaw and cook enough while baking in the oven.  I've posted my recipe, here, if you're interested.

Gotta go!  The timer just went off!  (I could not wait until dinner time to cook it!)