Javanese Recipe

I wanted to share one of my favorite recipes with you, that I requested my Mom to make and was in my freezer, until last night when I made it for Travis and I.  It's called "Javanese" and is a recipe that I made for my family in High School, after my youth Pastor's wife had us overfor  dinner and introduced it to me for the first time.  Maybe that's one of the reasons I love it too...Gotta love those youth Pastor's wives!!  Anyway, my family quickly fell in love with it and it has become one of our family staples.  Also, it's one of those meals that I make for guests because it acommodates all kinds of eaters.  For the adventurous eaters, it's full of great toppings and lots of flavor and for those a little more "picky", it can be edited down to just chicken and rice.  Travis and I have differing ways of eating it.  I eat it with all the toppings and I couldn't imagine it any other way, but he eats it with about half the toppings.  I also like it because it's very easy to eat as leftovers the next day.  Sometimes I take the extra chicken mixture and serve it over mashed potatoes with biscuits or I take the extra toppings and make nachos.  Anyway, here it is:

You'll need a pan of instant rice, or if you have a rice cooker, that's even better!  Just make enough for the size of your crowd.  I usually make this last, so that it's fresh and hot.

On top of the rice, scoop some of this chicken mixture.  You'll need cooked, shredded chicken to simmer with cream of chicken, cream of celery, and chicken broth.  You can use as much or as little as you like, depending on how many people you have and how thick you like it.  For Travis and I, I use one can of each and this is how much it makes.  When my Mom made this for me, she cooked and shredded the chicken, then froze it, and I added it to the soups.  She just bought all the toppings ahead of time for me, so I wouldn't have to go to the store...she's the best!

After you layer your rice and chicken, you'll need to start adding toppings.  I always start with shredded cheese and then add the things pictured below:  coconut, tomatoes, green pepper and green onion, pineapple, and toasted almonds.

I know that sounds like such an odd combo, but trust me when I tell you, it is AMAZING all together!!  It's kind of a great mixture of cold, hot, sweet, tangy, and savory....Seriously, it's really good when you combine it all together. 

If you prefer, the final topping is a scoop of crunchy chinese noodles.  I personally think the almonds are enough "crunch" but Travis and my family love to add the noodles, so I'd be in trouble if I didn't mention and picture them!

This is what the finished product looks like.  It's one of those colorful meals that looks good on a white plate or a colored one too.  I always show people what the finished thing looks like, because otherwise it's hard for people to wrap their minds around combining all of that!  Think of it like you would a taco salad.  Layers people, layers!!  I would love to hear if you make this...It is ALWAYS a crowd pleaser and I KNOW you will absolutely LOVE It if you try it!