While staying with my Brother and SIL in Michigan, Barb made this delicious chicken casserole. It was one of those times when the family needed to be elsewhere for other obligations and Barb had the foresight to put together the main components of it so that we could pull it together when we needed to. The chicken and the ham were assembled ahead of time and the cheese was added to it. All we had to do later was to make the sauce and topping and put it in the oven.
I have blogged about Chicken Cordon Bleu before. Here is my favorite recipe for the real thing. The only bad thing about the real thing is that it is not crowd friendly. Sometimes you just don’t have time to roll and assemble individual chicken packages for lots of people. We had lots of people on the evening in question and this was the perfect solution. It has all of the good flavor of chicken cordon bleu but is easy to dish up for a crowd. Everyone loved it from the kids to my picky Brother. (Sorry Bill, but you are kind of set in your ways about food.)
So thanks Barb for the recipe. The original recipe called for cheddar cheese and both Barb and I agreed that Swiss made more sense. We had it with Cheddar the first time, but this time I used Swiss and the results were great. There are some interesting ingredients in the recipe; dill weed, dry mustard, nutmeg and walnuts, but they all work together to make a great casserole. And if you have followed this blog for awhile you know that I have a problem with most chicken casseroles. This one is a winner.
David and I will be traveling for the next few weeks. He is leaving on Saturday on his two week motorcycle trip out West with stops at a few Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives when he can. You can follow him on his blog on my sidebar. I am spending a long weekend in Atlanta with one of the Biker Babes. We hope to shop, eat good food, and take in the ambiance of Atlanta. Let me know if you have any suggestions about where to go and things to do. Then I will be going to Cary, NC to spend time with family. But I will be blogging. I have a new camera, so I am looking forward to improving my skills. We will see. Stay tuned.
CHICKEN CORDON BLEU CASSEROLE
6 cups cubed, fully cooked chicken
3 cups cubed, fully cooked ham
1 cup shredded Swiss cheese ( Or cheddar if you prefer )
1 cup chopped onions
1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup flour
2 cups heavy cream
1 tsp to 1 Tbsp dill weed
1/8 tsp. dry mustard
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
Topping:
1 cup dry breadcrumbs
3 Tbls melted butter
1/4 to 1 tsp dill weed
1/4 cup shredded Swiss cheese
1/4 to 1/2 cup choppped walnuts
1. In large bowl, combine chicken, ham and cheese.
2. In saucepan, saute onions in butter until tender. Add flour. Stir to form a paste and cook for a few minutes.
3. Over low heat, gradually add cream stirring constantly. Bring to a boil and add dill, mustard and nutmeg and mix well. Remove from heat.
4. Butter a 9 X 13 inch casserole and add chicken mixture. Top with cream mixture and mix gently.
5. In the large mixing bowl, toss together bread crumbs, butter and dill. Stir in cheese and walnuts. Sprinkle on top of casserole.
6 Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until bubbly and brown.
Penny, This looks so good!! I did a similar version last week in a bread bowl!! When you are in Cary I wish you would stop by my store in Apex … The Pineapple Tea Room!! I would love to meet you.
That really looks like a keeper. I read off the ingredients to my husband and he said- “yeah, you need to make that”. That’s always a good sign. he’s a lot like Bill.
Penny, that looks really great. Now, enjoy your time in Atlanta, but safe travels to the hubby. The weather out here in the West is supposed to be PERFECT for the next 2 weeks.
Have a great time – and thank you for this recipe. I love a casserole that can be a stand-in for a labour intensive family favorite….like a cabbage roll casserole recipe I have that is as good as the real thing, but perfect for when one is short of time.
I like chicken cordon bleu, I like all of these ingredients, I like casseroles, I think we need to make this – it looks and sounds delicious.
I love casserole and this one is a keeper. Enjoy your travel and I will be making this recipe soon to bring to my son’s; thank you for sharing.
Rita
This casserole sounds so tasty. I bet this would be great over a baked potato, too. Have a great trip.
Oh, My. All the best of both worlds—and none of that fiddling about with individual portions at the last minute.
There’s just something about the scent of a warm, bubbly casserole with its topping of buttery crumbs or cheese or both—those just make the welcome warmer. And having it done ahead of time, all ready for the baking, is a good feeling of accomplishment and preparation.
I’m awaiting the first cool Fall night for our own long-time chicken casserole to be baking as the evening draws down.
Have a wonderful trip!!
What a great idea Penny. You’re right. It’s not usually crowd friendly. Enjoy your trip to Atlanta. If you are staying anywhere near Marietta, Harry’s is a fabulous food store.
Sam
Hi Penny
My husband isn’t a big casserole fan, but this one looks good. Maybe I’ll try it out on him. I hope you have fun while you’re away.
Rhondi
Oh yes, that does sound rather good! I love Chicken Cordon Bleu – without the work!
Sounds wonderful!!! Another to try – by the way what kind of casserole dish is that? I love it! Penny hope you had a great time in Atlanta!!!
Take care & thank you for your encouragement!
Lara
As I was reading down the page, I started to worry there would be no pictures of what it looked like inside. Whew! What a relief! Looks delicious. Time for me to hit CTRL + P!
This is a wonderful crowd pleaser and even better because it can be put together ahead of time. Did I mention that it is a comforting dish too? Great dish. Thanks for sharing.
You’re right, Penny, this is much more crowd-friendly than the “real” Chicken Cordon Bleu. I like the swiss cheese too..I love casseroles like this on busy nights.
Hope your hubby has a safe trip and that you have fun in Atlanta.
This looks delicious. I love a casserole when it cools down and I am craving warm comfy food!
Thanks for the advice over on my site… I am considering a bed of fried sweet potato strings with a small crescent of gravy (and more gravy available on the side).
Sure you can’t visit on Saturday… I could use a sous chef