Tasty Tuesday - Turkey Tetrazinni

An old family recipe that I haven't tried to make without Mom's help, but made it just fine yesterday :)

Cleaned up the recipe a bit; originally it came from Joy of Cooking. Thanks to my sister for typing and sending it to me!

Chicken or Turkey Tetrazzini

 6-8 servings

{Ingredients}

 3 ½ pounds chicken parts or 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast or turkey breast cutlets or tenders
 1 3/4 to 2 cups chicken stock
 8 oz spaghetti, macaroni, or egg noodles

4 Tablespoons (1/2 stick) +   1 ½ Tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups whole milk, half-and-half, or light cream
 2 to 3 Tablespoons sherry (optional)
Several drops of lemon juice
Salt and ground pepper
2 to 3 pinches of freshly grated nutmeg
8 oz mushrooms, sliced (about 2 1/3 cups)
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

{Directions}

• Place the chicken in a Dutch oven. Add chicken stock. Pour in just enough water to cover pieces. Chicken parts may require as much as 3 cups water to be covered, while boneless, skinless breasts may not need any at all.
• Bring to a simmer over high heat, then reduce the heat so that the poaching liquid barely bubbles.
  Partially cover and cook until the meat releases clear juices when pierced with a fork, 25 to 30 minutes for chicken parts, 8 to 12 minutes for boneless, skinless chicken or turkey breast.
• Remove the meat from the stock and let stand until cool enough to handle. If using chicken parts, remove and discard the skin and bones. Cut or shred the meat into bite-size pieces. Skim the fat from the stock with a spoon.
• Position the rack in the center of the over. Preheat the oven to 400 F, Butter a 13 x 9-inch baking pan or other shallow baking dish.
  Cook noodles until tender in a large pot of boiling water.
• Melt 4 Tablespoons butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and whisk until smooth.
• Cook, whisking constantly, for 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat. Add 2 cups of the chicken stock and whisk until smooth. Whisk in milk.
• Increase the heat to medium and bring the mixture just to simmer, whisking constantly. Remove the pan from the heat, scrape the inside of the saucepan with a wooden spoon or heatproof rubber spatula, and whisk vigorously to break up any lumps.
• Return the pan to the heat and, whisking, bring to a simmer and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the cooked poultry along with sherry.
• Cook for 1 minute more. Remove from heat and season to taste with lemon juice,  salt, pepper, and freshly grated nutmeg.
• Heat 1 ½ Tablespoons unsalted butter in a medium skillet over medium-high heat until the foam begins to subside. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring, until tender, about 5 minutes. Stir the mushrooms into the creamed chicken.  
• Drain the pasta well, then stir into the chicken mixture along with Parmesan. 
• Bake until the sauce is bubbly and the cheese is golden brown, 25 to 35 minutes.

~S