F-in' Casserole

I apologize for the crass recipe title, but there's a story to go with that.  I used to just call this casserole, "Macaroni Casserole," but when I told the story that I'm about to share with you to my sister in law, Lucille, she re-named it "F-in' Casserole."

Rocky and I closed escrow in May of this year.  Rocky's dad and his wife came out to help us put down our laminate and with some other things that we couldn't do by ourselves.  Well, to put it nicely, my MIL is a little "off."  Seriously and literally special.  I've made this casserole many times before and have gotten compliments and requests for it.  Before the two of them arrived from Texas, I pre-made a double batch of the casserole to save time because I figured that with working and the house, we'd be pretty busy and I wouldn't have a whole lot of time to prepare dinners.  The first night, she refused to eat any.  She clamped her mouth shut and dodged the spoon like a freakin' two year old just because she felt like being difficult.  The second night she actually ate some--about 3 bites before asking to be excused.

This brings us to the 3rd night.  I got off work in Murrieta and hadn't decided what to make for dinner.  Rocky, my sister (who was being a lifesaver by helping to start tape-off for painting), Rocky's dad and Rhonda (my MIL) were at our house working on stuff.  I called Rocky to talk to him about dinner.  It was a short conversation and I knew what I was going to make.  As soon as I got off the phone with Rocky, my sister called me.  "Erin.  Don't make casserole tonight!"  "I wasn't going to make casserole!"  "Oh, okay.  Yeah, Rhonda overheard Rocky talking to you about dinner and yelled down, 'I don't want no more F@#$in' casserole!  I can't stand no more casserole!'"  And there you have it ... F-in' Casserole was born.  So without any further ado, the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 1 (7.25 oz) package macaroni and cheese
• 1 (10.75 oz) can condensed cream of celery or broccoli soup, undiluted
• 2 (6 oz) cans chicken, drained and flaked
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 1/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1/2-3/4 cup each frozen peas, carrots, corn (however much you want, really)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Prepare macaroni and cheese according to package directions.
3. Stir in 1/4 cup cheese, soup, chicken, milk and vegetables.
4. Pour into greased 2-qt. baking dish.
5. Sprinkle with 1 cup cheese if desired.
6. Bake, uncovered, for 20-30 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20

Ready In: 30 minutes

Yields: 4 servings