Mother kept three special occasion menus in her recipe file, listing everything that should be brought to the table, right down to the pickles and olives. Her Chicken Tetrazzini was on the card entitled "Preacher Menu". The two other menu cards? One was Thanksgiving and the other Christmas. These two cards were nearly identical in their offerings, probably because the family became more vocal in what was most anticipated during the holidays, and as her children scattered, the holidays at her table became "either/or" affairs ... either Thanksgiving, or Christmas; hence the twin cards.Chicken Tetrazzini
Ingredients:
4 lb. hen, cooked and chopped**
1 pkg. egg noodles [size unspecified], cooked
2 bell peppers, chopped
1 cup chopped celery
1 can pimentoes (size not specified... but quite small, as I remember)
1 can mushroom soup
1 large (or 2 small) can(s) button mushrooms
1 and 1/2 pints chicken broth
salt & pepper to tatste
bread crumbs, for topping
Instructions:
Place all in greased casserole dishes. Cover with bread crumbs and bake 30 minutes to an hour. Makes quite a bit and freezes well.
**[Alternately, you could use de-boned chicken breasts for the meat. Mother got to where she would do that rather than using a whole hen. The results were essentially the same. Though if you want dark meat, you should get some thigh meat.]
