Not that I would begrudge you for turning Candy Cane Snowball Cookies and 2 Ingredient Homemade Hot Chocolate into dinner by any means, but I find that priming my cookie intake with a hearty, healthy meal like this seasonal spin on chicken and wild rice casserole helps the sweets settle more pleasantly. Further, this chicken and wild rice casserole is wildly delicious—as in, I can’t promise you leftovers, even though you are definitely going to want them for lunch the next day and the day after that and next week too. I brought a big pan of this chicken and wild rice casserole with butternut squash and cranberries to dinner at a friend’s, and between the four of us, we ate every last scrap, minus the proverbial final few bites that every native Midwesterner is too polite to claim for his or her own. Thus, I ate those last three bites on our drive home. No shame. Chicken and wild rice casserole with butternut squash and cranberries is irresistible healthy comfort food at its finest (just like this Chicken and Rice Casserole). If you are looking for an ultra gooey, cream-of-no-one-knows-what chicken and wild rice casserole, I am afraid this isn’t it. If you are looking for a dinner recipe that’s cozy, wholly satisfying, and healthy enough to leave you wiggle room for that Frosted Cream Cheese Sugar Cookie afterwards, chicken and wild rice casserole is the one.
Ingredients for a Healthy Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole
Let’s examine the exciting happenings inside our casserole dish:
Chewy, nutty wild rice brings the whole grain goodness and fill-you-up prowess.Sweet chunks of butternut squash add creaminess and earthly sweetness.Chicken is diggin’ the hang out time with it’s wintertime BFF, wild rice. Plus, lean protein = extra healthy satisfaction.Cranberries get all sassy with their sweet tang.Parmesan cheese melts over all, making the casserole gooey and nutty and just plain wonderful.
A sprinkle of savory thyme, and we have just about every cold-weather ingredient I adore coming together into a dynamite healthy dinner that I plan to serve again and again. It doesn’t always work out this well to throw all of your favorite seasonal foods together in a single dish and watch what happens, but this golden time, it did, and I couldn’t be happier. For other delicious butternut squash recipe ideas, check out my list of Healthy Butternut Squash Recipes.
More Easy and Hearty Casserole Recipes
Broccoli Rice CasseroleHealthy Green Bean CasseroleHealthy Sweet Potato CasseroleBrussels Sprouts Mac and CheeseSpaghetti Squash CasseroleBrussels Sprouts GratinHealthy Butternut Squash Casserole with Sausage and Sage Breadcrumbs
Tools Used to Make This Recipe
Sturdy metal measuring cups and measuring spoonsBraiser for sautéing3 quart casserole baking dish
