Recipe | Chicken Divan Casserole

      Nothing says comfort food better than a casserole.  There's something about a meal that is baked in the oven that tastes extra good!  With the cooler weather here I have been making some old and new recipes for the boys.  I was looking for a poultry dish in "Old Faithful" and came across the 'Chicken Divan' recipe.  We all love the ingredients in it and looked like an easy recipe to prepare.  And it is!  The recipe calls for 10 ounces of cooked chicken.   So I'm thinking that this is a recipe for left-over chicken.   I bought a pound chicken tenderloins to cook in advance of preparing the casserole.  My boys like a lot of meat.  I simply cooked the chicken in olive oil with 1 medium chopped onion, 1 garlic clove minced, salt and pepper.  While the chicken was cooling, I prepped the casserole dish with the broccoli and prepared the cheese sauce.

Chicken Divan

Adapted from "Old Faithful"  my  Old-school Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book

1  12 oz. package frozen broccoli florets thawed
1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 cup whole milk
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup Pinot Grigio
1/3 cup shredded Swiss cheese
1 pound cooked chicken cut in cubes
1/4 cup plain bread crumbs
1/4 grated Parmesan cheese
Paprika

1 package Near East Coucous with toasted pine nuts
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley for garnish

Arrange thawed broccoli spears on the bottom of a casserole dish.  For the sauce, in a saucepan melt butter, stir in flour, nutmeg, salt, and pepper.  Stir mixture until it starts to simmer.  Add milk and broth all at once.  Cook and stir till bubbly; continue cooking 1 to 2 minutes.  Stir in wine.  Add Swiss cheese; stir till melted.
      Pour half the sauce over broccoli.  Top with chicken.  Pour remaining sauce over all.  Sprinkle with bread crumbs, parmesan, and paprika.  Bake in 350* oven for 25 minutes or until heated through.

       I cooked couscous according to the package directions while the Chicken Divan was in the oven.  Both Keith and Erich loved this meal!  It's been a while since Erich has had broccoli, and I wasn't sure how receptive he would be.  He actually asked for seconds!   I will definitely be making this again soon.

                             Time to get back to housework------ the never ending chore!
                                                           
                                                                  ~Marcie