Recipe: Chicken & Broccoli Casserole in a Sweet Potato Squash Shell

As promised here's the recipe for Chicken & Broccoli Casserole. Instructions for the "in a Sweet Potato Squash Shell" follow the recipe.

CHICKEN AND BROCCOLI CASSEROLE

4 chicken breasts

Salted water (to cover chicken)

10 oz broccoli spears, cooked and drained

1 C celery, cut in large chunks

½ C mayonnaise (preferably homemade—see recipes in Basics section)

2 Tbsp onion, chopped

½ Tbsp lemon juice

10 ½ oz can condensed cream of chicken soup

½ stick butter crackers (like Ritz)

4 oz mushrooms, chopped

Cook chicken in boiling salted water with celery until done, and drain. Preheat oven to 350^o. Line cooked broccoli spears in bottom of a greased casserole. Remove skin and bones form chicken, chop into bite-sized pieces, chop celery, and combine with mayonnaise, onion, lemon juice, cream of chicken soup, and mushrooms, mixing well. Pour mixture over broccoli in casserole and bake 25 minutes. Melt butter, combine with crumbled crackers, spread evenly over top of casserole, and return to oven for 5 minutes. 

Instructions for preparing the squash below the fold.

 

The large white squash is a Tennessee sweet potato pumpkin squash

Mr. Big Food cut the bottom 1/3 from a Tennessee sweet potato pumpkin squash. (Lots of information on the squash and its heritage at the link.) He also cut a sliver off the end so it would sit upright. 

He then parboiled it in water to cover for about 15 minutes. Drain. Fill with casserole and proceed with the recipe.

To serve, simply scoop out some squash along with the casserole.  

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We had a hard decision to make as we were enjoying this dish. Taste-wise, it deserves to be an entry in the soup contest. But it's not a soup or a stew. We considered opening up the contest to other categories. But in the end we agreed-- at least I hope we agreed-- that the soup contest should be a soup contest. Otherwise, this casserole would be a contender. 

Soup posts:
http://bigfoodetc.blogspot.com/2011/11/best-fall-soup-contest-winner-1.html
http://bigfoodetc.blogspot.com/2011/11/beer-cheese-broccoli-soup.html
http://bigfoodetc.blogspot.com/2011/11/best-fall-soup-contest-winner.html
http://bigfoodetc.blogspot.com/2011/11/slower-cooker-potatoe-cheese-soup-with.html