Cracker Barrel Chicken Casserole (Copy Cat)

When taking car trips and we need to stop for a bite to eat, we tend to favor well known chain restaurants.
Part of it is the comfort factor when in a strange place, part of it is fear of the unknown. At a chain, you know what will be on the menu. No question if there is something the kids will eat, or if you will like what is available.

During one trip either coming from the south to the north, or vice versa, we stopped at a Cracker Barrel. None us wanted anything super heavy, so we all ordered the soup and half sandwich.

Never have we waited so long for our food! Other than, maybe, the sandwiches, this should all be ready made and set to go. After almost an hour, the sandwiches came, but not the soup.
After we (finally) found our waitress and flagged her down, come to find out, they were out of soup.
Gah!

By that time we were tired, frustrated, and still hungry.
The manager came out to talk to us. He was more than apologetic about what happened. Obviously it was a major communication issue between the kitchen and the waitresses.

He gave us a couple of appetizers, dessert, and filled my parent's coffee thermos. All at no cost to us.
As far as we are concerned, he went above and beyond to make sure we remembered this visit as a good one.

That happened oh-so-many years ago, but the memory still remains.
I still visit Cracker Barrel and enjoy myself!
When I saw this Copy Kat recipe, I knew we had to try it.

Ingredients:

Crust

1 Cup yellow cornmeal

⅓ Cup flour

1 ½ Tsp baking powder

1 Tbsp sugar

½ Tsp salt

½ Tsp baking soda

2 Tbsp vegetable oil

¾ Cup buttermilk

1 Egg

½ Cup butter (melted)

Chicken FIlling

2 ½ Cups cooked chicken breast (cut into bite sized pieces)

¼ Cup yellow onion (chopped)

½ Cup celery (sliced thin)

1 Tsp salt

¼ Tsp pepper

1 Can cream of chicken soup

1 ¾ Cup chicken broth

2 Tbsp butter

Directions:

Crust

1. Mix all together (except ½ cup melted butter) in mixing bowl until smooth

2. Pour into a greased 8x8 inch baking pan

3. Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes

4. Let cool completely

5. Crumble cornbread and toss with melted butter

Casserole

1. In a sauce pan on medium low heat, add butter, celery, and onions. Cook until translucent.

2. Add chicken broth, cream of chicken soup, salt, and pepper

3. Stir until soup is dissolved completely

4. Add chicken and blend until mixture reaches a low simmer

5. Cook for 5 minutes and remove from heat

6. Place chicken mixture in a 2 ½ quart buttered casserole dish

7. Spoon cornbread over the top of the casserole

8. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes

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Cornbread Ingredients

And butter too...

Chicken filling...

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