BBQ Pepper Jack Chicken and Brown Rice Casserole is a great way to use leftover chicken and brown rice!
There’s a small window of opportunity when someone gets good and hungry enough that even the pickiest of eaters will be willing to try new foods. Now, this isn’t usually something you can make happen, but when circumstances cause it to be there’s no harm in taking full advantage of the situation, right? (I think many parents can relate!)
In high school I used to babysit a couple of little boys at the end of our street. One was about five and the other three, and surprisingly, the three year old was a veggie fiend and the five year old wouldn’t touch dinner unless it was a pb&j, cut into triangles and crusts trimmed off, thank you very much.
The parents told me to just make the older son a sandwich every night, but the three year old got real food, usually leftover from a homemade family dinner; things like meatloaf with mashed potatoes, spaghetti with meatballs, and pot roast with gravy and mixed veggies. Now, one night we had been out at the park so we were a little late coming home for dinner. The younger guy crashed as soon as we got home and while I was putting him to bed, the older one went to the kitchen and chowed down on his little brother’s BBQ chicken. “You can tell my mom I guess I do like BBQ chicken!” he told me with a shrug. I told his mom and suddenly late trips to the park became a weekly thing, and eventually the little guy grew out of his extreme pickiness. And I always think of him with a smile when I make BBQ chicken.
If you’re a fan of BBQ, you’ll love this casserole. I whipped up a quick three-ingredient creamy sauce with GO VEGGIE Vegan Classic Plain Cream Cheese, which gives this sauce its creaminess (and it’s non-GMO verified!), GO VEGGIE Lactose and Soy Free Pepper Jack Deli Slices for a hint of heat (you can bump up the heat factor by adding hot sauce or cayenne to taste if you like!), and BBQ sauce (use whatever your favorite sauce is). Both of these GO VEGGIE products are gluten and lactose-free, and have less fat than regular cheese.
This dish is easy to put together because it makes good use of leftover chicken (or turkey) as well as leftover brown rice, and it basically babysits itself in the oven. It’s a fun way to reinvent leftovers and you can even make it a couple days ahead so dinner is all set for a busy night later in the week.
We all have a few tricks up our sleeves…how do you get picky eaters to try new things?
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more to oil the dish
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 bell peppers (any colors you like), seeds removed and chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 3 cups cooked brown rice
- 2 cups cooked, shredded chicken (rotisserie chicken or leftover turkey both work great here)
- 1 (8 oz/227 g) tub GO VEGGIE Vegan Classic Plain Cream Cheese
- ¾ cup (180 ml) BBQ sauce
- 8 slices GO VEGGIE Lactose and Soy Free Pepper Jack Deli Slices, chopped
- Fresh chopped cilantro, parsley, or scallion
- Preheat the oven to 375F; lightly oil an 8 by 8-inch casserole dish with olive oil.
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium to medium-high heat; add the onion and bell peppers and cook until softened but not browned, about 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more, stirring constantly.
- While the onions and peppers cook, make the sauce. Add the cream cheese and BBQ sauce to a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Once it’s hot, add the chopped pepper jack deli slices and whisk until melted. Turn off the heat and set aside for now.
- Stir together the onion/pepper mixture, salt, black pepper, brown rice, chicken, and ¾ cup of the sauce in a large bowl; pour it into the prepared casserole dish, spread it out evenly, and pour the remaining sauce on top.
- Cover the dish with foil and bake until bubbling, about 30 minutes (remove the cover during the last 10 minutes).
- Serve with the fresh herbs sprinkled on top.
: : GIVEAWAY : :
I’m thrilled to bring you a giveaway of GO VEGGIE products and other cool stuff (thank you, GO VEGGIE!). GO VEGGIE cheesy alternatives are great for people who can’t or don’t eat regular cheese for whatever reason. All GO VEGGIE products are lactose-free and gluten-free. Their shreds have no cholesterol and no saturated fat, and 50% less fat and 50% more calcium than regular cheddar. (You can read more about how GO VEGGIE compares with regular cheese and cheese alternatives here.) I’m telling you, if you thought cheese was a thing of the past in your life, GO VEGGIE is a game-changer.
For this giveaway, GO VEGGIE is providing the following prize pack to one lucky winner:
- One $50 gift card to Target
- Four GO VEGGIE free product coupons
- One GO VEGGIE tote bag
- One GO VEGGIE pen
- One GO VEGGIE keychain
To participate in this giveaway, just leave a comment on this post telling me your all-time favorite cheesy recipe.
For extra entries, you can do any of the following (please leave a separate comment for each):
- Tell me what GO VEGGIE product you can’t wait to try if you win.
- Tell me your cooking style. Maybe it’s low and slow, or maybe you’re all about 20-minute meals, or maybe you like to batch cook on the weekend. Whatever it is, I want to know!
- Like An Edible Mosaic on Facebook.
- Like GO VEGGIE on Facebook.
- Share this post on any of your social media accounts (such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Instagram) and tag @AnEdibleMosaic and @GoVeggieFoods.
You do not need to have a blog to enter this giveaway. For shipping purposes, this giveaway is only open to U.S. residents. This giveaway ends on October 24, 2016 at 11:59 PM EST. Once the giveaway ends, the winner will be randomly chosen and notified via email. The winner will have three business days to respond with his or her mailing information, otherwise a new winner will be randomly chosen. Good luck to all!
Disclosure: I received the GO VEGGIE products that I used in this recipe for free and they are providing the prizes for this giveaway; I also received compensation for this post. I am happy for the opportunity to share brands that I believe in with my readers, and I hope you enjoy my recipe. As always, opinions stated are my own.
My favorite is mac & cheese!
shared https://www.pinterest.com/pin/251779435397353256/
I Like GO VEGGIE on Facebook.
I Like An Edible Mosaic on Facebook.
I like to cook so there’s leftovers for another night.
I’d like to try the Go Veggie cream cheese.
I’d like to try the Go Veggie vegan parmesan.
I liked an edible mosaic on Facebook as Dawn Monroe
I don’t mind spending time cooking if we don’t have plans.
My favorite cheesy meal is my moms recipe for cheesy chicken and rice.
tweeted
https://twitter.com/thomasmurphy40/status/790733856857067520
I Like GO VEGGIE on Facebook as Thomas Murphy
I Like An Edible Mosaic on Facebook as Thomas Murphy
I like to cook easy and simple things.
I want to try the GO VEGGIE Vegan Classic Plain Cream Cheese