Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

Ross and I tried a new meal for Easter dinner. It was chicken cordon bleu casserole and it was very good! I like to watch The Pioneer Woman's cooking show and saw it on there one day. I thought it sounded pretty good and looked easy to make, so we tried it. It's fairly easy to make and turned out very good. It's rich, though, so a little goes a long way! I followed The Pioneer Woman's recipe, but looked up variations of it, too. Some recipes said to mix in rice or egg noodles and I thought about that, but decided not to. I did, however, make a side of rice and served the casserole on a scoop of rice. As a leftover meal I made some egg noodles and served the casserole over egg noodles. This was definitely not as good as the rice. The rice gives it a little texture that compliments the casserole very well. Here's the recipe I used, in case you want to try it!

Ingredients

• 
  
  6 tablespoons salted butter
• 
  

  2 cups small-cubed ham
• 
  
  1 1/4 cups grated Swiss cheese
• 
  
  1 1/4 cups grated Monterey Jack cheese
• 
  
  4 cooked boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes
• 
  
  1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 
  
  1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 
  
  2 cups milk
• 
  
  1 cup chicken broth
• 
  
  2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 
  
  1/2 teaspoon cayenne
• 
  
  Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with 1 tablespoon butter.
Put the ham on a paper towel-lined plate and microwave for about 3 minutes to reduce the moisture content. Mix together the Swiss and Monterey Jack cheese in a bowl.

Put about a third of chicken in a layer in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Top with half the ham. Sprinkle over 1/4 cup of the mixed cheese. Repeat 1 more time, then finish with a layer of chicken.

Melt the remaining 5 tablespoons butter in a skillet over medium heat. Put the panko in a bowl, pour in half of the melted butter, mix well and set aside.

Add the flour to the remaining butter in the skillet and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, whisking out any lumps. Whisk in the milk, broth, Dijon and cayenne and let it cook until it begins to thicken. Remove from the heat and stir in 1 cup of the cheese until melted. Season with salt and pepper.

Pour the sauce over the casserole. Sprinkle over the remaining 1 cup cheese, then the panko mix. Bake until the top is browned and the casserole is bubbling, 25 to 30 minutes.

Recipe courtesy of Ree Drummond