Recipe Review: Healthy Brown Rice Broccoli Chicken Cheese Bake |

By hmorris31

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 lbs fresh broccoli, chopped into bite size pieces (frozen broccoli works too, just cook it to your liking and then drain it very well)
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1/2 cup milk
• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 2 teaspoons black pepper
• 1/2 -1 tsp salt (depending on how salty the chicken stock is)
• 1 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded (reserve 1/2 cup of cheddar as the topping)
• 1/2 cup Parmesan
• 2-3 cups cooked brown rice (follow the directions on the package, add salt to boiling water for extra flavor)
• 2 cups cooked chicken, cubed

Details

Servings 1
Adapted from thedomesticlady.com

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 375°.

Place broccoli in a microwave safe container with 1/4 inch of water. Cover and microwave for 3-4 minutes on high.

Drain the broccoli immediately and rinse with cold water. Set aside to drain completely.

Heat 3 tablespoons of oil in a large skillet over medium heat.

Add chopped onion to the skillet and saute for 3 minutes, then add garlic and continue to saute another minute.

Add the flour to the hot skillet, mix with the onion and garlic, and continue stirring constantly for 1 minute.

Pour the chicken stock and milk into the skillet. Allow the sauce to thickened for 3-5 minutes, stirring constantly.

Once the sauce starts to thicken, add mustard, black pepper, salt and the cheeses .

When the cheeses have melted into the sauce add the broccoli and mix well. Set aside.

Grease a casserole dish and layer cooked rice and then the chicken.

Pour the broccoli sauce mixture over the top of the chicken.

Option#1 Top with the reserved 1/2 cup of cheddar, cover and bake for 25 minutes at 375°. Remove cover and bake an additional 5 minutes until the top starts to brown slightly. ***If the dish seems a little dry sprinkle with a little water before baking.

Option#2 This is a great make ahead dish. You can refrigerate it up to two days before baking it or freeze it up to a month. Let it completely thaw before following the instructions in option #1.