Pizza Chicken

When I was pretty little, my mom was trying to figure out what to make for dinner. She saw the tomato sauce, and she saw chicken. She decided to get creative and put the two ingredients together. While she was still trying to figure out what else to put in it, my dad told her he was craving cabbage. That really got her creative juices flowing which then became a family childhood favorite. When she served it, my siblings and I immediately called it Pizza Chicken, even though it is nothing like pizza. The name stuck, and a new tradition was born. For the first time, this original family recipe will be available to the public. This was actually my first time making it, and the first time my mom and I wrote the recipe down on paper. It was so fun working in the kitchen with my mom giving me instructions on our family favorite. Now I can pass it down to my own children. You will need:

1 Large onion (chopped)
1 Large green pepper (chopped)
2- 13 oz cans of large mushrooms (keep juice)
2- 15 oz cans of tomato sauce
3 Cups Shredded Mozzarella
5 lbs Chicken without skin (to absorb flavor)

Seasonings (all to taste):
Salt
Black pepper
Italian herb blend
Minced Garlic

Directions
Grease electric skillet. Place chicken in a single layer in the skillet. Don't cook yet. In a separate bowl, mix onions, green peppers, mushrooms with juice, and tomato sauce. Fill empty tomato sauce can half way with water. Poor water back and forth between both sauce cans to get the remaining sauce. Poor tomato water in the bowl with the vegetables. Add spices to taste in the bowl. spoon part of the sauce mixture onto the chicken just enough to cover . Cut cabbage in half. remove core. Cut each half in quarters or smaller leaving wedges in tacked. Remove loose leaves . If desired, roll loose leaves together to add in (note: loose leaves will turn to mush if in the sauce by itself) . Place wedges and rolls in a single layer on top of the chicken. cover cabbage with the remaining sauce mixture. Cover. Turn skillet on to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Cook until chicken is done. turn off the skillet. Add cheese on top, cover back up until cheese is melted.

This recipe makes 20 servings. We have a large family, so we have to make a lot. But for those who are cooking for one or a few, all you need to do is use the desired amount of each ingredient. There is no magic trick to adapting this recipe for smaller or larger amounts. That is what I love about "to taste" recipes. I love how easy pizza chicken is to make! If you are only making enough for one person, you only need one wedge or one roll of cabbage...unless you love cabbage and want more. The picture below is me with the pizza chicken already half way gone!

 Nutritional Value:

Calories:               184
Total Fats                 4 g            6%
     Sat Fats               2 g           10%
Cholesterol             59 mg       20 %
Sodium                 719 mg       30 %
Total Carb                8 g            2%
     Dietary fiber        4 g          11%
     Sugars                 4 g
Protein                    28 g           50%
Potassium                                   5%
Vit A                                          6%
Calcium                                    14%
Folic Acid                                   2%
Vit C                                          43%
Iron                                              2%

This recipe include protein, vegetables, fruit (tomatoes), and dairy. The food group that is missing is grains. Our favorite side dish is rice (especially rice with cream cheese and mushrooms mixed in it...shhh...don't tell anyone if that isn't considered healthy ;) ). If you want to make it healthier, then just do plain rice. We love to drizzle the sauce on top of the rice. This dish could probably use more fruit as well. Any fruit would do (how about a fruit salad?), or even a homemade fruit smoothie.

Pizza chicken is an excellent source of protein which is a building block for just about every cell in your body to help grow hair, finger nails, build and repair tissues. Protein is a building block for bones, muscles, cartilage, skin and blood. Pizza Chicken is also an excellent source of Vitamin C which helps protect our bodies from immune system deficiencies, cardiovascular disease, prenatal health problems, eye disease, and skin wrinkling. It can help boost our immune system when we are sick. This recipe is a good source of calcium (if you need to have it dairy free, the calcium value significantly decreases to 2%). Calcium is crucial for for bone strength, bone growth, and preventing osteoporosis. It can also help maintain heart rhythm, muscle function, and more. Even though this delicious recipe doesn't go over the sodium limit, I feel the sodium is a little high for one meal.

I hope you all enjoy my mom's family famous pizza chicken recipe! Enjoy!

Paxson, S.