Creamy Chicken-and-Rice Casserole

Ingredients

• 10.8 ounce cream of mushroom soup undiluted reduced-fat reduced-sodium canned
• 0.3 cup multigrain crackers crushed ( 6 crackers)
• 0.5 teaspoon garlic powder 
• 1 tablespoon butter 
• 1 tablespoon butter melted
• 1 cup pre mushrooms fresh
• 0.8 cup nonfat cream sour
• 0.3 teaspoon pepper 
• 0.5 teaspoon poppy seeds 
• 6.9 ounce one-third-less-salt chicken-flavored rice-and-vermicelli mix with chicken broth and herbs
• 1.5 pounds skinned cut into bite-sized pieces
• 2.3 cups water hot

Equipment

• bowl
• frying pan
• paper towels
• oven

Directions

1. Cook rice mix in a large nonstick skillet according to package directions, using 1 tablespoon margarine and 2 1/4 cups hot water.
2. Remove mixture from skillet; set aside. Wipe skillet with a paper towel.
3. Coat the skillet with cooking spray, and place over high heat until hot.
4. Add chicken, mushrooms, and garlic powder; saut 6 minutes or until chicken loses its pink color.
5. Combine rice mixture, chicken mixture, sour cream, pepper, and soup in a bowl; stir well. Spoon mixture into a 2-quart casserole coated with cooking spray.
6. Combine cracker crumbs, margarine, and poppy seeds; stir well, and sprinkle over chicken mixture.
7. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes or until thoroughly heated.
8. Make-Ahead Tips: You can assemble the casserole ahead of time, omitting the cracker-crumb mixture; cover and chill in the refrigerator or freeze (thaw frozen casserole overnight in refrigerator).
9. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes; top with cracker-crumb mixture, and bake as directed.