Salsa Chicken Rice Casserole

 Hi! I guess I'm on a roll because I don't think i'll usually be cooking things so frequently.  But! I'm pleased to say that this meal turned out AMAZING.  Two thumbs up! It is actually the second time i've made it, and it is just as good the second time.  I think one of the best things about this meal for me and Evan is that it is a lot of food which means a lot of left overs.  And it reheats wonderfully.  It is pretty easy prep, but it does take about an hour to get your meal.  Worth it!
Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

1 1/3 cups uncooked white rice 2 2/3 cups water 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup 1 onion, chopped 1 1/2 cups mild salsa

Directions:

1.	Place rice and water in a saucepan, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes.
2.	Meanwhile, place chicken breast halves into a large saucepan, and fill the pan with water. Bring to a boil, and cook for 20 minutes, or until done. Remove chicken from water. When cool enough to handle, cut meat into bite-size pieces.
3.	Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
4.	In a medium bowl, combine Monterey Jack and Cheddar cheeses. In a separate bowl, mix together cream of chicken soup, cream of mushroom soup, onion, and salsa. Layer 1/2 of the rice, 1/2 of the chicken, 1/2 of the soup and salsa mixture, and 1/2 of the cheese mixture in prepared dish. Repeat layers, ending with cheese.
5.	Bake in preheated oven for about 40 minutes, or until bubbly.

So, first of all I came from a family that steered clear of onions.  So my personal preference is to have less onions if possible.  I used 1/2 of an onion for this meal and it tasted great!  Also, the first time I made it I made as written and it seemed to be a lot of unnecessary dirty pans.  So this time I made it like this: I put the chicken in the skillet with the onion and browned them both at the same time. This also helps to make sure the onions are not crunchy! Then I added the salsa and soups to the chicken and simmered till chicken was done.  As far as the rice and cheeses go, I did those the same and layered the same.  I always like my chicken done in the skillet if possible.  Boiled chicken seems to get very chewy in my opinion.  The first time I made this, I didn't have a whole thing of salsa, so I used about 1 cup of salsa, and I didn't see a big taste difference.  Improvising works well with a recipe like this! This recipe can feed up to 6 people or in our case, 2 with a whole schlode of leftovers!!

I don't know if anybody has tried the previous basil chicken pasta recipe but *warning* it uses garlic, and my hands have smelled like garlic ever since.  I have washed my hands too many times, and I even shampooed my hair twice to no avail.  I love using garlic in recipes, but if my hands have to smell like this, Evan is never going to want to be near me! So I have 

Helpful Hint #3 - to remove the garlic smell from your hands, rub your hands with any stainless steel utensil!! It works!!! Baking Soda also works (no surprise there...)

Fun Fun! Thanks for reading!