Chicken Salsa Verde Bake

At the reception after the funeral last week, we were thankful that many people brought or sent food for the family. One of the dishes that came to us was this chicken salsa verde by Rachael Ray. I actually didn't try any, as I was too full from other food, but when I was at my mom's a few days later, we ate the leftovers. I knew immediately that we'd have to make this for ourselves soon!

This casserole has great Mexican flavors and the salsa verde gives the dish a perfect amount of heat. It's also pretty darn easy to throw together (especially if you cook and shred the chicken in advance), which is always a plus.

I made some adaptations to the original recipe, following partially what was done by whoever made us this dish, and also taking the advice of some of the reviews on Rachael Ray's site. My adapted version is below. Oh, and another great thing about this meal--it can feed quite the crowd! And if you don't have a crowd, you'll have plenty of leftovers (which we love in this house!).

This recipe is easily adaptable to suit your tastes--you can subsitute the chicken or some of the beans for more veggies, such as zucchini, mushrooms, or bell peppers. As long as you keep the ratio of chicken/beans/veggies to salsa/sour cream relatively the same, I don't think you can really go wrong!

Chicken Salsa Verde Bake
(Source: Adapted from Rachael Ray)

Ingredients:
- 1 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breasts
- 2 (16 oz.) jars salsa verde
- 1 (15 oz.) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 (15 oz.) can cannellini beans, rinses and drained
- 1 (15 oz.) can corn, drained
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 1 cup sour cream
- 3 cups crushed tortilla chips (we used baked tortilla chips)
- 1 (8 oz.) bag shredded Mexican-style cheese

Directions:
1. Boil chicken breasts for 20 minutes. Drain. Shred chicken pieces. (You can do this in advance--we did it the night before to save time.)

2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, combine the shredded chicken, salsa, beans, corn, onion and sour cream.

3. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Scatter 1 cup tortilla chips on the bottom and top with half of the chicken mixture and half of the cheese. Repeat the layers and cover with the remaining 1 cup tortilla chips. Bake until the cheese is bubbly, about 30 minutes.