Crock Pot Turkey and Rice Casserole

This is a great, comfort food, quick and easy kind of meal! We probably pull the crockpot almost once a week, especially now that I'm being better about planning menus ahead of time. I just love the convenience of being able to "set it and forget it", especially with my long days away from home at work, it's wonderful to be able to walk in the door and dinner is ready to serve up and enjoy!

I saw this one over at Erin's blog, Table for 7, and knew it would be a good one for us. Not too many ingredients, all things we have on hand and enjoy, and definitely a cozy, comfort-food kind of meal; and easy to tweak to your personal tastes and preferences!

I added cheese to this one, because I like cheese. Period. We actually sprinkled a small handful over each dish after plating it up, but I think it would work well to add it for the last half hour of cooking, in the crock pot, to give it time to melt all the way around.

I also thought this could use just a little more liquid/creaminess, or maybe a little less rice and would tweak the amounts the next time I made this. I would probably add another can of soup, or just reduce the rice by about 1/2 a cup. I like rice casseroles to have a bit of a creamy texture to them personally - but that's not to say this wasn't REALLY good just as it was. It reheats very well too! We used corn as our frozen veggie to add in, and it worked well in this dish. I'd use mixed veggies for some different colors and textures next time. This is a terrific recipe to have on hand!

Crock Pot Cheesy Turkey and Rice Casserole slightly adapted from Table for 7

Ingredients

2 10-oz cans cream of or mushroom soup (can use cream of chicken if preferred)
3 cups water
3 cups uncooked long grain rice
1 cup chopped celery
3 cups cooked turkey, cubed or shredded (can use chicken if preferred)
2 cups frozen vegetables of your choice
1 tsp dry poultry seasoning
1 TBS dried minced onion
1-2 cups shredded cheddar cheese.

Directions

1. If you're using a crock pot that isn't non-stick, spray with cooking spray. Combine soup and water. Mix well.  Pour into crock pot. 
2. Add all remaining ingredients, except cheese, to crock pot.  Stir and then cover and cook on low for  6-7 hours (or on high for 3-3 1/2 hours), until rice is cooked through, but still slightly firm and not mushy. Add cheese over the top of the casserole dish for the last 30 minutes of cooking, or until melted.