Cheesy Chicken and Rice

My mom is a huge chicken fan. We have chicken a LOT for dinner, much to my father's dismay, but I don't mind it. As for me, I LOVE rice! Not just because of my ethnicity either haha. So what better combination of the two than a chicken and rice? most people have heard of it and had it in one form or another, and I decided to try it for myself! I took from various recipes that I found online and then put my own spin on it. So here is my version of a cheesy chicken and rice (with a little spice!)
Ingredients
4-5 chicken tenders (dont forget to defrost them!)
about 1 1/2 - 2 cups instant white rice
chicken broth
water
shredded cheese
1/2 to 1 broccoli floret (small and cut up)
1 can cream of mushroom soup (or cream of chicken soup)
bacon bits (optional)
salt/pepper
garlic powder
cayenne pepper

Assembly
First preheat the oven to about 300-320 degrees. I then started with cooking the white rice. Instead of the traditional way where you boil the water first add the rice and let it sit, I combined water, chicken stock, and the rice together at once. Adding a pinch of salt I covered the pot and let it cook on about medium.  When it is nice and fluffy and the liquid is mostly evaporated, turn the heat down to low. Add in the soup, chopped up broccoli, bacon bits, and some shredded cheese. Stir well. I also added a little bit more chicken stock to give it some moisture to work with. After it's well mixed, put the top back on and let it keep warm while you cook the chicken. I hadn't defrosted the chicken (silly me) so I had to wait a bit for the meat to defrost. Lesson being, make sure your chicken is defrosted first haha. When it was defrosted I sprayed a frying pan with some non-stick spray, seasoned the chicken tenders with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper, and cook until they are no longer pink inside (check by cutting into them and making sure!). After they're done check on your rice, turn off the heat and give it a good stir. Next pour the rice mixture into the bottom of your cooking dish, spreading it evenly. Top the rice with the chicken tenders and add a layer of shredded cheese on top. Put this in the oven on the middle rack for about 5 mins. Pull out, and serve!

Final Thoughts
This is quick and simple! I'm pretty sure it didn't take me longer than maybe a half hour to finish and it tastes GREAT! The cayenne gave the chicken a nice bit of spicy kick to it when you bite into it. Always remember you can change the quantities of things to make more or less, and this will make a great simple dish to impress with! Have fun! Happy eats! : )