Found this in my grandmother's recipe box written on a stained index card. She served it at every holiday dinner for decades.

This oven baked 5-ingredient chicken Romanoff is the kind of casserole you’d find written in blue ink on a yellowed index card, a little grease stain in one corner and a thumbprint of paprika on the back. My grandmother served a pan just like this at every holiday dinner for decades, tucked in alongside the ham or turkey. It’s simple, creamy chicken and noodles under a bubbling, golden cheese top—nothing fancy, just that comforting Midwestern church-supper style that fills the house with a smell everyone recognizes and drifts you right back to childhood.

Serve this chicken Romanoff straight from the oven with a big spoon, letting everyone dig into those cheesy noodles while the top is still bubbling. It’s lovely with buttered green peas or green beans, a crisp lettuce salad with a tangy dressing to cut the richness, and soft dinner rolls to swipe through the creamy sauce left in the dish. For holidays, it sits nicely beside roast turkey or ham, mashed potatoes, and cranberries, and the leftovers reheat well for an easy next-day lunch.

Servings: 6

8 oz wide egg noodles (about 1/2 of a 16 oz bag)

Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Lightly grease a 2-quart oval baking dish or similar casserole dish so the noodles don’t stick.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the egg noodles and cook just until al dente, about 6–7 minutes or according to package directions. Drain well and set aside; you don’t want extra water thinning the sauce.

While the noodles cook, in a large mixing bowl stir together the sour cream and condensed cream of chicken soup until smooth and well blended. This is your creamy base, just like Grandma would mix by hand with a wooden spoon.

Add the cooked chicken to the sour cream mixture and stir to coat the pieces evenly. Fold in 1 cup of the shredded cheddar cheese, reserving the remaining 1 cup for the top.

Gently add the drained noodles to the bowl and toss everything together until the noodles and chicken are evenly coated with the creamy sauce. Take your time so you don’t break up the noodles too much.

Spoon the mixture into the prepared baking dish, spreading it into an even layer so it bakes uniformly and browns nicely on top.

Sprinkle the remaining 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese evenly over the top of the casserole, covering as much of the surface as you can for a good golden crust.

Place the baking dish on the middle rack of the preheated oven and bake for 30–35 minutes, or until the casserole is bubbling around the edges and the cheese on top is melted, golden, and starting to brown in spots.

Let the casserole rest on the counter for about 5–10 minutes before serving. This helps it set up a bit so you can lift out nice cheesy scoops with a large spoon or fork, just like that forkful on a holiday table decades ago.

You can make this recipe your own while keeping the spirit of that old stained card. For a little color and sweetness, fold in 1–2 cups of thawed frozen peas and carrots or mixed vegetables with the chicken. If you prefer a milder flavor, use half sour cream and half plain Greek yogurt; for extra richness, stir in a small handful of grated Parmesan with the cheddar. Swap cream of chicken soup for cream of mushroom or cream of celery if that’s what you keep in the pantry, and use Monterey Jack, Colby, or a blend instead of cheddar. Leftover holiday turkey works beautifully in place of the chicken. To make it ahead, assemble the casserole, cover tightly, and refrigerate up to 24 hours; when baking from cold, add 5–10 minutes to the oven time and check that it’s hot and bubbly in the center. For food safety, always start with fully cooked chicken that’s been cooled and stored properly (refrigerated within 2 hours of cooking and used within 3–4 days), and keep sour cream and cheese chilled until you’re ready to mix. If you’re using pre-cooked rotisserie chicken, remove the meat from the bones promptly and discard the skin if it’s been sitting out on the counter. Leftovers should be cooled, covered, and refrigerated within 2 hours and eaten within 3 days; reheat individual portions until steaming hot all the way through.