This isn't like your mother used to make! This casserole has great fresh flavor and no added fat. This is a recipe I adapted by Martha Stewart. She cut out the use of high fat and sodium canned soups. Go Martha! I just cut back on the use of olive oil in the recipe and used 1% milk instead of whole milk.
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless
chicken breast halves (about 2 large)
- Kosher salt and freshly
ground black pepper
2 teaspoons
EVOO (Martha's recipe 5 tablespoons)
1 leek, white and
pale green parts only, coarsely chopped and rinsed well
1 celery stalk, cut into 1/2-inch dice
10 ounces
crimini mushrooms, halved if large (I used a 10 oz bag of thickly sliced)
3 tablespoon flour
3 tablespoons sherry
2 1/4 cups store-bought low-sodium and 98% fat free chicken broth
3/4 cup 1% milk (Martha uses whole milk)
1 dried bay leaf
8 slices dense
multigrain bread, crusts removed, slices cut into triangles
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/3 cup finely grated
Parmesan cheese (1 ounce)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Season chicken with salt and
peeper on both sides. Heat 1 teaspoon (2 T) oil in saute pan over medium-high heat. Cook
chicken until golden brown on 1 side, 3 to 4 minutes. Flip, reduce heat to medium, and cook until cooked through, about 10 minutes more. Transfer chicken to a plate, and return pan, with
drippings, to medium heat.
Heat remaining 1 teaspoon (3T) oil in pan. Add leek, celery, mushrooms, and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are golden brown and tender, 8 to 10 minutes. (Reduce heat
if vegetables brown to quickly.) Stir in flour, and cook, stirring often, for 2 minutes. Add sherry, stock, milk, and bay leaf, and cook, scraping up
browned bits from bottom, until thickened, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Discard bay leaf.
I was watching President Obama's speech at the Democratic retreat while cooking last night
Arrange bread on bottom of a 2-quart oval baking dish (I sprayed with nonstick cooking spray first), overlapping slices
slightly. spoon half of the vegetables and sauce over bread. Slice chicken crosswise ,1/2-inch thick, and arrange on bread. Top with any
accumulated juices from chicken. Spread remaining
vegetables and sauce over chicken, sprinkle with parsley and Parmesan cheese, and bake until golden brown and bubbling, 25 to 30 minutes. Let stand for 15 minutes before serving.
Note" The hearty
multigrain bread works best in this casserole. It will maintain its texture unlike a softer white-bread loaf, which may become gummy. The bread beautifully absorbs the flavors of the chicken, pan juices, and fresh
crimini.
Enjoy with no guilt!
To make two entrees: Slice 1 zucchini, chop 2 Roma tomatoes and clean 4 to 8 green onions, saving the white and mostly pale green parts for the recipe.
Cut heavy duty foil into 12 to 15 inch long pieces. One per entree. Drizzle a a little EVOO on the center of each piece of foil and place a boneless, skinless chicken breast on each. Spread each breast with a tablespoon of pesto. Pile the half of each veggie on each chicken breast, starting with zucchini and ending with green onions.
Spread another 2 to 3 tablespoons of pesto on top of each one. Bring foil up and seal top then sides to make a leak proof packet. Place packets on a baking sheet and bake in a preheated 355 degree F oven for about 35 to 40 minutes. (You can also cook these on your grill using indirect method, grill preheated to medium. Close grill when cooking for about 25 minutes.
When finished cooking, carefully open each packet. There is a lot of steam, be careful. It created lovely juice when cooking. I removed from packets and served a top steamed brown rice. Buon Appetito!
