Jessica Makes Dinner: Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole

This recipe is from Southern Living's December 2011 issue. It's especially awesome because it makes enough for TWO casseroles! One to eat now, and one to put in your freezer to pull out on some frazzled Wednesday when you are too busy to make dinner. It's also dressed-up enough to entertain with. Some notes and tips:

Don't be scared of the butter. It's only 3 Tbsp in TWO big casseroles, so per serving, the butter content is, like, microscopic.
For the bread crumbs, I had just hollowed out a loaf of sourdough to make a bread bowl, so I took the scooped out bread and pulsed in the food processor for a few seconds, and it made perfect, soft crumbs. Another way I've done this is tearing up regular slices of bread and pulsing in the processor. Or, you could always use store bought bread crumbs. I've never tried panko in this, but go for it if that's what you've got on hand.
For the chicken, I cooked two lbs of boneless skinless chicken breast in the crock pot in water on high for six hours. Then I removed from the crock pot and shredded/chopped. It made about five cups.
When you're ready to use the casserole you've frozen, let stand at room temperature for 1 hour. Toast almonds. Bake casserole covered at 350 for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake 1 hour or until thoroughly heated. Then top with 1 cup cheese and almonds. Bake 5 minutes more.

Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole

1 (2.25 oz) package sliced almonds
2 (6.2 oz) packages Uncle Ben's quick cooking long grain and wild rice mix
2 medium onions, chopped
4 celery ribs, chopped (I left this out)
3 Tbsp butter
5 cups chopped cooked chicken
2 cans cream of mushroom soup (I use the low fat, low sodium version)
2 (8 oz) cans chopped water chestnuts, drained
1 (8 oz) container sour cream (I use reduced fat)
1 cup skim milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
4 cups shredded cheddar ( I use 2%)
2 cups soft fresh bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350. Bake half the almonds in a single layer 5 minutes until toasted and fragrant, stirring halfway through. Prepare rice according to package instructions (there are special instructions on the box for preparing both boxes at once).