Divine Chicken Divan

OK, if you follow Two Chums everyday, by now you’ve realized this is “Chicken Week”.  Today is the third installment in a week long line up of simple and tasty things you can make for dinner using chicken.  Today it is Chicken Divan:)
 According to the Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America “”Casserole cookery has been around since prehistoric times, when it was discovered that cooking food slowly in a tightly covered clay vessel softened fibrous meats and blended succulent juices…With the addition or subtractions of leftovers or inexpensive cuts of meat, the casserole is flexible and economical in terms of both ingredients and effort. The classic casserole, a French dish, was originally made with a mound of cooked rice. Fannie Meritt Farmer’s Boston Cooking School Cook Book (1896) had one casserole recipe, for Casserole of Rice and Meat, to be steamed for forty-five minutes and served with tomato sauce. In the twentieth century, casseroles took on a distinctive American identity. During the depression of the 1890s, the economic casserole provided a welcome way to stretch meat, fish, and poultry. Certain items were also scarce during World War I and leftovers were turned into casserole meals. The same was true during the Great Depression of the 1930s.”

We all know that casseroles are a great way to stretch your dollar.   That’s why they were invented in the first place.  And most of us have a favorite from childhood that our mother or some other significant person in our lives always made and that feels like comfort food to us.   While they were really popular in the 1950’s, they became far less so in the 70’s and were seen as less than sophisticated.  But like most things, if you wait long enough they come back into fashion.  I think this is true of casseroles now, especially with people being very aware of their food bills, but still wanting to serve nutritious and tasty food to their families.   As we said, most of us have an emotional, “comfort food” association to one casserole or another and so we keep trying new ones, hoping to find something tasty that will save some time and money and that we can feel good about feeding to those we love.

We are offering just such a casserole recipe today.  It is certainly not a new one, but it is a really delicious version of an old classic. We hope if you try it you will think so too, and that you will create some “comfort food memories” of your own for your family.  Those are the very things that abundant living are made of 🙂

Chicken Divan

2-4 chicken breasts or thighs
3 cups of cooked rice, white or brown rice
1 large bunch of broccoli, cut up and cooked
2 cups of mayonnaise
juice of 3 lemons
1 Tablespoon curry powder
1 lb. sharp cheddar cheese grated

Creating this dish is just a matter of layering.  It can be done in one large casserole dish or, for a bit more elegant presentation, it can be made in smaller casserole dishes to make individual servings.

Either way you will want to first butter the bottom of the baking dish so that things don’t stick while baking.  Next spoon in the cooked rice as the bottom layer.

On top of the rice add the broccoli.  It can be cooked by steaming it or cooking it in the microwave.  To microwave the broccoli place it in a glass dish or bowl and cover with a damp paper towel.  Microwave using the “fresh vegetable” setting or on ‘high’ for 1 minute.  It will probably still feel firm but don’t worry, as the casserole bakes the broccoli will continue cooking.

Next comes the chicken.  The chicken can be cut in strips or in chunks, whichever you prefer.  However you decide to  cut it, saute the chicken in butter until browned.

Remove the cooked chicken* from pan and cover the broccoli with the chicken.

Stir together the mayonnaise, the lemon juice and the curry powder.

Pour sauce over the layers.

Top with cheddar cheese.  Bake in  350 degree oven for 30 minutes.  Serve with a green salad and fresh French Bread and feel the comfort of a hot, yummy casserole 🙂

* You can also use leftover chicken as long as it doesn’t have a distinctive sauce on it, or use store bought rotisserie chicken.