Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

I like chicken cordon bleu and use to buy those premade versions of it from the freezer section when I was working.  They didn't take very to bake and were pretty good when I first started buying them.  But this casserole is so much better and it didn't take too long to make.  The longest thing was the baking time.  You could throw it in the oven and then help the kids with homework while it is baking.

There is one shortcut you can make with this.  The original recipe called for rotisserie chicken.  I had some rather large chicken breast that I wanted to use.  I just cooked them ahead of time.  I know some people will cook chicken or ground beef and then freeze it in portion sizes for their family to cut out some of the prep time when cooking.  I haven't started doing that yet, but I might try it next year.  I also made half of this recipe.  So I will be giving you the half measurements.

I chopped up the two chicken breast and layered the pieces on the bottom of a 9x9 casserole dish.

Then I chopped up deli honey ham.  This was the Hillshire Farms lunch meat that you find in the little boxes.  It is what I had.

Layer that on top of the chicken.

Then layer swiss cheese on top of the ham.  My husband said I could put more cheese next time.

Now for the sauce.  Start with 2 Tablespoons butter in a saucepan.  Melt the butter.

When the butter is melted add 2 Tablespoons flour to make a roux.

Nice and smooth.

Measure about 1 a little over 1/2 cups of milk.

Add the milk to the roux.

Add 1 Tablespoon lemon juice.

1/2 Tablespoon Dijon mustard

1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika.  I didn't have smoked so just used regular.

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon white pepper.  I didn't have white pepper either.

Whisk well.  Let it get almost to boiling.

While the sauce is cooking, melt 3 Tablespoons of butter.

Add 3/4 cup Panko bread crumbs

About 1/2 teaspoon seasoning salt

3/4 teaspoon dried parsley.  Mix well.  This is the crunchy topping.

Pour the sauce over the cheese.  Spread it out over the whole casserole.

It will melt the cheese a little bit.

Then start spreading the topping around the casserole.

When it is completely covered place in a preheated 350 oven.  Bake for 45 minutes.

Fresh from the oven.  The crunchy topping is really good.

It needs to sit for a few minutes to let the sauce set.


Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole Recipe

2-3 cups chopped chicken
deli ham
Swiss cheese
2 Tablespoons butter
2 Tablespoons flour
1 3/4 cup milk
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon papper

Topping
3 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup Panko bread crumbs
1/2 teaspoon seasoning salt
3/4 teaspoon dried parsley

Preheat oven to 350  Bake for 45 minutes.