Chicken Pot Pie Casserole

First off, thank you Aunt Jemima!! This past week Christopher and I have apparently had the hankering for pancakes. It started off with butterscotch pancakes, and then Chris decided he'd go with the chocolate chip pancakes this morning. Can I just make a side note for anyone reading this?

Begin sidenote: YES, Chris and I can eat butterscotch and chocolate chip pancakes and still lose weight. That is the gloriousness that is Weight Watchers.

Moving on.

Well, after making pancakes several times, I noticed this magnificent looking recipe on the back of the box. You know what I really love? Stumbling onto a recipe and finding that I just so happen to have all of the ingredients in the kitchen already. So, after a few hours and Chris asking "So.. what do you want for dinner?", I figured we'd give the Chicken Pot Pie Casserole a go. I realize at the moment I have yet to really start creating my own recipes...

One must first crawl before she can walk. And walk before she can run. Let's start with learning the basics first then, shall we?

So here we have it ladies and gentlemen, your featured presentation.

For 6 servings, I spent less than $5. For those of you who didn't know, that equals win.

Yields: 6 servings   Pts+ Value: 5/serving.
Ingredients: 
Filling
1 bag (16 oz.) frozen vegetable medley (I used broccoli, carrots, and cauliflower), thawed.
2 chicken breasts, cubed and cooked (approx 6 oz).
1 can (10 oz) 98% fat free, condensed, cream of chicken soup
1 cup of milk (I used 2%)
1/4 cup Aunt Jemima Buttermilk complete pancake and waffle mix
pepper to taste
Topping
1 cup Aunt Jemima Buttermilk complete pancake and waffle mix
1 cup water
parsley, rosemary, and/or basil to taste

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400. Combine veggies and chicken in a large skillet. In a medium bowl, whisk together the soup, milk, and 1/4 cup of pancake mix until smooth. Add this mixture to the skillet with the chicken and veggies. Heat on medium until mixture bubbles, stirring occasionally. Pour into a 2 quart casserole dish (don't forget to spray it!)

For the topping, whisk together the remaining cup of pancake mix, water, and herbs. Pour evenly over the filling mixture. Bake 30-35 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Let stand for 5 minutes so the filling can set up a bit.

Before getting popped in the oven. I was a little worried about the topping and filling mixing together, but they didn't. Yay, science!

Now... you may have noticed my jumbo chicken and cheese muffins pictured in the original post? yes? no? Ok, well if you haven't, they're pretty nommy. But this casserole was seriously the simplest yet most filling thing! Christopher loved it. I loved it. It was a hit, and didn't break the bank what-so-ever.

 

In the future I plan on incorporating a budgeting aspect along with the cooking aspect. Chris and I are trying to get a budget worked out to help save for the wedding (and for life events in general I suppose). I've noticed we have been a little... frivolous? with our grocery spending, so I'm trying to cut back where I can without meals that are boring, and without our waistlines expanding.  Update on that part of our lives tomorrow!