I was the Happy Homemaker yesterday afternoon. For those of you not old enough to remember, Betty White played the Happy Homemaker on the Mary Tyler Moore Show. She showed how to cook and do things around the house on television, and chased men when not on the set. I did the former, not the latter, in case you are interested. And no, I don't make this stuff up!

I made up four luscious chicken casseroles yesterday. One is a chicken and dressing casserole. I found the recipe on a stuffing package, but changed it to make it a little healthier. I cook a whole chicken in the Crockpot with vegetables so I have a delicious broth. I then take the meat off the chicken and shred or cut it up for casseroles. The chicken and dressing is the chicken, dressing, cut up celery, spices, and enough chicken broth to make it really moist.

Another recipe is a new one -- it's a lemon chicken recipe. I tried it last week and it was a hit. I will tell you I didn't make as much as the recipe calls for because it's really a lot of casserole, but here is the recipe:

Lemon Chicken and Rice

1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
Zest of 2 lemons
1 cup broth – chicken or vegetable
1 cup long grain rice, cooked
1 pound cooked chicken breast, cut into ½ inch pieces
Juice of 4 lemons, reserved

Preheat oven to 400

Place the onions, mustard, olive oil, lemon zest and broth in a bowl and whisk together. Put rice in a 2 ¼ quart or larger casserole dish. Add the mixture to rice and make sure all the rice is coated. Add the chicken and mix well. Pour the lemon juice over the mixture. Bake covered, for 50 minutes and uncover and bake 10-15 minutes.

Let stand 5-10 minutes before serving.


I roasted some vegetables: zucchini, squash, onion, celery, carrots, and green pepper with olive oil and some spices, and I used them for two other casseroles. One is a chicken and pasta casserole and the other is a homemade chicken pot pie.

I also snapped and cooked green beans in my homemade chicken broth and baked a loaf of herb bread. Other than cutting up some fruit for a fruit salad, the biggest share of my cooking is done for most of the week. I think I would have made the Happy Homemaker proud.

Watch out, Betty White!