chicken oh-lay!

this one has the makings of mormon culture-lore all over it, but just like funeral potatoes, it's soooo tasty! and like all traditional mormon recipes, it contains both cream of mushroom AND cream of chicken. but don't let that turn you off (christanne) because this is one you will make over and over again. many thanks to my sister (in-law) neela for making this for the annual 4th of july festivities all those years ago. i haven't been the same since.

like most casseroles, this can be made in a crock pot or baked in the oven. today i had every intention of going the crock route, but between buying my eldest his summer wardrobe and playing with friends, there was no time for trifles like starting dinner early. so when i got home i threw it all together and tossed it in the oven. an hour later, voila! yummy cheesy yumminess. (i halved mine and it was plllllenty for all of us. the full recipe feeds about 87 people. not really, but you get the idea.)

chicken ole

1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 tablespoon minced onion (optional)
1 7 oz can green chile salsa (salsa verde)
1 cup sour cream
12 (or more) corn tortillas, torn into 10 pieces each
4 cups shredded chicken or turkey
1 lb (or however much you want) shredded cheddar cheese

lightly grease sides and bottom of slow cooker (or casserole dish and preheat oven to 450). combine soups, salsa, sour cream and onion in a bowl. start with a thin layer of cheese in the bottom of the dish - this gets browned and crunchy. it's the best part. then arrange alternating layers of tortillas, chicken, soup mixture and cheese. you can divide it into 3 or four layers. your final layer should be the soup mixture and then the cheese is added the last few minutes of cooking. cook 4 to 5 hours on low in the crock pot or covered for 1 hour in the oven. if you like crunchy browned sides, bake it at least an hour, checking after 45 minutes to make sure the sides aren't burning. when they are just the perfect brownness, remove from heat source and sprinkle with cheese. dish it up and love it!