Chicken Cordon Bleu Bake

   Thank you for your patience.  There has been a lot of change at my house...but here is a new recipe!  I've never tried this before but it's a combination of lots of my favorite foods.  That can't possibly be bad.  Everything is precooked and then assembled.  That makes this a great meal to bring to a friend.  It will be easy to heat and serve without fear of serving undercooked chicken.

Ingredients:

2 Lg chicken breasts                                6.77
2 boxes long grain and wild rice                2.14
2-3 thick slices of smoked deli ham          5.14
20 oz frozen broccoli florets                     1.98
2 small cans
or 2/3 large can cream of chicken soup     1.79
8 oz light sour cream                                1.00
juice from one lemon                                  .50
8oz Monterrey jack cheese                      1.88

Directions:

Poach the chicken on low heat in water on the stove.  This will take about an hour, so you can do a few chores around the house while this cooks.   Prepare the rice according to the box directions.  Dice the ham into small squares and set aside.  Open the broccoli and cut off any extra stalks.  In a small mixing bowl stir together the cream of chicken soup and sour cream.  Add pepper to taste and squeeze in half the lemon.  Give the sauce a taste.  If you like a little more zing squeeze in the other half of the lemon.  Lastly grate the Monterrey jack cheese and set aside.  Now you are ready to assemble. 

            Put one third of the long grain and wild rice into each of 3 8x8" pans. 

                                    Next add 1/3 of the broccoli to each pan.

                              Now add 1/3 of the chopped cooked chicken to each pan.

     

The next layer will be the ham.  Sprinkle the ham evenly into three pans.

                                 Spoon the sauce evenly over the pans.

                                                 Lastly sprinkle the pans with the cheese. 

   Cover all three pans with foil.  Label two pans and freezer for later.  They should say Chicken Cordon Bleu Bake 350 degrees for 40 minutes.  Put the third pan in the oven just to heat through and melt the cheese.   Bake 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes. 

I was able to make three pans for $7.07 each.  Here are a few ideas for substitutions.  If you do not have the time to poach the chicken and cook the rice, then buy a large rotisserie chicken and precooked microwavable rice.  If you are not a cream of chicken soup fan then you can omit it completely and just squeeze the lemon on the chicken and cover with cheese.  I prefer broccoli for this dish, but feel free to add any veggies that your family enjoys.  Asparagus or peas would be great in this.  If you do not want your veggies mixed in then you can serve this with a large salad on the side.  Also I don't enjoy Swiss cheese, but shredded Swiss would be more traditional with the Cordon Bleu flavors instead of Monterrey jack.

Now for the verdict....It was fabulous!  My husband gave this one two thumbs up!  We think you should try this soon. 

Enjoy!
Christie aka Keeza