Chicken Casserole So Tantalizing You’ll forget You Are Eating At Home.

I love the fact that I can make this ahead and have it ready to pop into the oven so when dinner is served, there isn’t a mess to worry about cleaning after the plates are empty.

Pair this dish with your favorite steamed vegetables and a side salad for a classic dinner.

This is what our friend and fellow food blogger, Melissa Howell, wrote about her recipe.

“Imagine my rapture when I discovered this Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole! No stuffing and rolling chicken. No toothpicks. No breading falling off and cheese melting out of stuffed pieces of chicken. Just layers of chicken, ham, and cheese with a creamy, white sauce. It is magical.”

So grab your apron and let’s cook up something fantastic! And if you don’t want to cook up chicken, pick up an already cooked rotisserie chicken from Costco or your favorite grocery store.

Ingredients

For the Casserole

• 5-6 cups cooked, shredded chicken
• 1/2 lb. thinly sliced Oscar Meyer deli ham, any variety
• 1/4 lb. thinly sliced Kraft Swiss Cheese, or 2 cups shredded mozzarella or provolone cheese

For the White Sauce

• 4 Tbsp. Land O Lakes butter
• 4 Tbsp. Gold Medal flour
• 3 cups whole milk
• 2 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp. French’s Dijon mustard
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. smoked paprika
• 1/4 tsp. pepper

For the Topping

• 2 cups Panko breadcrumbs
• 5 Tbsp. Land O Lakes butter, melted
• 1/2 tsp. seasoning salt
• 1/2 tsp. poultry seasoning
• 1/2 tsp.McCormick lemon pepper

Instructions

For the Casserole

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Butter or lightly spray a 9×13 baking dish.
3. Put shredded chicken evenly in the bottom of the baking dish.
4. Sprinkle the ham over the top of the chicken.
5. Lay the slices of cheese over the ham, or sprinkle the shredded cheese over the ham.

For the White Sauce

1. Melt the butter in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat.
2. Once the butter is melted, add the flour all at once and stir to make a roux. Pronounced RU.  (It will look like thick paste).
3. Once it is smooth and bubbly, slowly pour in the milk while stirring quickly or using a whisk to make a smooth sauce.
4. Continue to cook over medium heat, constantly stirring, until the sauce thickens.
5. Add the lemon juice, mustard, salt, paprika, and pepper.
6. Bring the sauce barely to a boil and then remove from the heat.
7. Pour over the chicken, ham, and cheese.

For the Topping

1. Melt the butter in the microwave in a medium-sized bowl. Loosely cover the bowl to keep the butter from spattering.
2. Remove the bowl from the microwave and mix in the Panko, seasoning salt, poultry seasoning, and lemon pepper.
3. Sprinkle over the top of the casserole.
4. Bake uncovered for 45 minutes. Let cool for 10-15 minutes before serving.

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Quick tip: Double this recipe and put one pan in the freezer to eat later! Cook once..eat twice!Thanks again to

 Recipe and photo courtesy of Melissa Howell  and Julie’s Eats & Treats.