Chicken Manicotti

This recipe was taken from the Taste of Home magazine and can be frozen and saved for up to one month. The recipe actually makes 2 dishes with one being frozen for later use. I found that it fed our family, so if you have more than a family of 4 you may want to cook both dishes at once.

Ingredients:

Garlic Powder
1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast
16 uncooked manicotti shells
2 jars of speghetti sauce (kept separate)
1 pound bulk Italian sausage, cooked and drained
1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced (I omitted these when I made the dish)
shredded mozzarella cheese
2/3 cups water, divided

Directions:

1. Cut chicken into 1 inch strips
2. Sprinkle garlic powder over chicken
3. Stuff chicken into manicotti shells
4. Spread about 1 1/2 cups of spaghetti sauce in 2 greased 13 x 9 baking dishes
5. Place 8 manicotti shells in each dish
6. Sprinkle with sausage and mushrooms
7. Pour remaining spaghetti sauce over the top of the shells
8. Sprinkle mozzerella over the sauce
9. Drizzle water around the edge of each dish
10. Cover and bake one casserole at 375 for 65-70 minutes or until pasta is tender and juices run clear
11. Cover and freeze the remaining casserole for up to 1 month.

To use frozen casserole:
Thaw in the refrigerator. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Bake as directed .

*Note*
I Chose to sprinkle more mozzarella on the top of the dish when it came out of the over, so the cheese was freshly melted.