CHICKEN, BROCCOLI, AND RICE CASSEROLE

 1 small onion, chopped

1 cup brown rice, rinsed and drained
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon salt
⅛ teaspoon pepper
2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 cup water
1 pound broccoli, cut into small pieces (4-5 cups)
½ cup plain Greek yogurt
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 cup grated cheddar cheese

Combine onion and rice in bottom of slow cooker. Place chicken on top and sprinkle with the garlic powder, thyme, salt and pepper. Pour in chicken broth and water.
Cook on low heat for 6 hours, or on high heat for 3 hours.
Transfer chicken to a cutting board and chop into bite-size pieces (or shred it in the slow cooker). Stir chicken back into the rice mixture in the slow cooker.
Place broccoli on top of chicken and rice; do not stir in. (This will steam the broccoli.) Continue cooking on high for about 1 hour, until broccoli is crisp-tender. Alternatively, you can steam the broccoli in the microwave and then add it to the casserole. See directions below.*

Turn slow cooker off. Stir in Greek yogurt, Parmesan and cheddar. Serve.

*If you don’t want to have to do the step of adding the broccoli to the slow cooker an hour before the casserole is cooked (or you won’t be home to do so), you can steam the broccoli in the microwave. This will also keep the broccoli a nice bright green color, if that is important to you.  Here’s what you’ll do:
1. After step 1 in the recipe, cook the chicken and rice for 7-8 hours on low, or 3 ½-4 hours on high, until completely cooked.
2. When the chicken and rice are done, chop the chicken into bite-size pieces and stir it back in to the rice in the slow cooker.
3. Steam the broccoli: place broccoli and 1-2 inches water in a microwave-safe bowl; cover with plastic wrap. Cook on high heat for 3-4 minutes, until broccoli is crisp-tender. Drain. Stir broccoli into the slow cooker mixture, followed by the Greek yogurt and cheeses. Serve.

Note: This recipe is from fellow blogger Kristine's Kitchen. She recommends you do not use white rice or double this recipe as it does not adapt well.