It is one thing to try to live up to your own mother’s standard of her favorite recipes that you grew up on as a child. It is entirely different to take on a recipe from your mother-in-law. They sure make the mother-in-law out to be some sort of villain for some reason. I don’t know how I got so dang lucky but my own mother-in-law is the most kind, sweetest mother-in-law I could have ever dreamed of! Even though this is the case, I will admit that it is still quite intimidating to make her most beloved and perfect recipe my husband grew up on.

These are the meals that brought him comfort as a child and I just really wanted to nail the recipe and for it to taste exactly as good as he remembered. It is not something to be taken lightly to take on your mother-in-law‘s most prized recipe.


However, desperate quarantine times call for desperate measures. My husband’s work life is very affected from everything that is going on right now and he is virtually exhausted at the end of every day. So what better way to bring him comfort than his most favorite meal that his mom used to make? I asked my her for the recipe and she explained it to me over Marco Polo, because of course she has this baby memorized. {I actually highly recommend asking family members for their favorite recipes over Marco Polo or maybe even by leaving a voicemail. It was a cute way to see her express her joy and give me special insider tips through a video rather than just writing the recipe down on paper.}

The recipe is called “Lion House Chicken” named after this chicken dish served at The Lion House, a restaurant in Salt Lake City. It is broccoli and diced chicken and is covered in a delicious, creamy sauce and topped with a nice, hefty layer of shredded cheddar. She would usually serve it over rice and usually had rolls on the side with some sort of veggie.


The only “tweaks” I made were that my husband LOVES the sauce so I doubled the sauce :) and made my “can of cream of chicken” from scratch because of food allergies in the family (and not surprising, making it from scratch makes it taste even better!). You can totally use regular cans of cream of chicken for convenience or preference though--no problem.

The meal was an absolute SMASHING success!! My kids could not get enough and my mother in law called us right before the meal, right after, and even asked the kids about it again the next day. She and I were both thrilled it is going to be a new staple for the next generation of Richardsons :) My husband truly seemed so happy to be eating his favorite cozy meal and that made my heart so happy.


I don’t know why I was a little intimidated to make this beloved recipe, but I certainly shouldn’t have been. I should have started making it years ago! Are there any recipes from your spouse’s side of the family you love to make or plan to make soon? I challenge you to get out there and make one of these family recipes you haven’t made before and I hope it will become a new family favorite for years to come.



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