Healthy Cheesy Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole

This cheesy chicken broccoli rice casserole recipe is a healthy version of the classic with NO cream of anything soup. Comfort food you can feel good about!

Author: thelawstudentswife.com

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour, 5 minutes

Yield: 1 2-quart casserole

Serving Size: Serves 6

Ingredients

•1 3/4 cups low sodium chicken broth

•2 cups instant brown rice

•1 pound broccoli florets, chopped into bite-sized pieces

•1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

•1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, chopped into bite-sized pieces

•3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided

•3/4 teaspoon garlic powder, divided

•1/2 teaspoon black pepper, divided

•2 tablespoons flour

•2 cups milk, divided (I used skim)

•3 tablespoons Dijon mustard

•1/3 cup non-fat plain Greek yogurt

•1 1/2 cups reduced-fat shredded cheddar cheese, divided (about 6 ounces)

Directions

►Place rack in center of oven and preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly coat a 9-inch square, deep baking dish or a 2-quart casserole dish with cooking spray.

►Bring chicken broth to a boil in a large pot, then add rice. Return to boil, add broccoli to the top of the pot, then cover, reduce heat to low, and let cook 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit, covered, for an additional 5 minutes.

►Meanwhile, heat extra virgin olive oil in Dutch oven or large deep pot over medium-high heat. 

►Add chicken, season with 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Sauté until cooked through and no longer pink in the center, about 4 to 6 minutes, then remove to a plate and set aside. Being careful not to burn yourself, wipe the pot clean with a paper towel.

►Reduce heat to medium. In a small bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together the flour and 1/2 cup milk. Pour the mixture into the pot, then add remaining 11/2 cups milk. Cook mixture, stirring constantly until thickened, 7-10 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and whisk in Dijon, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. 

►Once combined, stir in the Greek yogurt and 1 cup of the shredded cheese until smooth.

►Add the rice and broccoli mixture and the reserved chicken to with cheese sauce, stirring gently to coat. Spoon the mixture the prepared dish and top with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. 

►Bake 25 minutes until hot and bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes, then serve.

Notes

This dish is easily customizable to your tastes and the season. Feel free to swap the rice for prepared farro, quinoa, or another whole grain (adjust the quantity and cooking time accordingly), the chicken for white beans, or the broccoli for any sautéed vegetable of your choice. The entire dish can be prepared up to the point of baking two days in advance. Let dish stand at room temperature for 30 minutes, then bake as directed.

Feta Dill Chicken Salad

Feta Dill Chicken Salad is tangy, creamy, and packed with salty feta and sweet red peppers. Try it for your next BBQ or picnic!

Author: Devour-blog.com

Prep time: 5 mins

Ingredients

•½ cup light mayo

•¼ cup light sour cream

•1 clove garlic, finely chopped or crushed

•1 tablespoon dried dill weed (or 3 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped)

•1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

•¼ teaspoon coarse salt

•¼ teaspoon black pepper

•2 and ½ cups chopped cooked chicken (I used just about one whole supermarket rotisserie chicken, light and dark meat but no skin)

•½ cup feta, crumbled

•½ of a red pepper, finely chopped (about ½ cup)

•Buns, bread, wraps, or lettuce leaves, for serving (as desired)

Directions

►In a medium bowl, combine mayo, sour cream, garlic, dill, vinegar, salt and pepper. 

►Stir in chicken and feta to combine. 

►Let sit at least 1 hour before serving; stir in red pepper just before you serve the salad (unless you don’t mind pink it turning pink!).

►Serve as desired on bread, buns, wraps or lettuce leaves. Salad can be made ahead, and will keep in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.

Baked Teriyaki Chicken

Baked dishes are a lot healthier than fried. This is a favorite chicken recipe made healthier! Moist on the inside and teriyaki glazed on the outside. Simple and quick recipe. I hope you enjoy this yummy healthy recipe. 

Ingredients

•4 medium chicken breasts

•1 teaspoon sesame seeds

For the sauce:

•1 Tbsp cornstarch

•1 Tbsp cold water

•½ cup soy sauce

•½ cup sugar

•¼ cup apple cider vinegar

•1-2 garlic cloves

•1 teaspoon ground ginger

•½ teaspoon black pepper 

Directions:

►In a small saucepan combine together 1 Tablespoon of cornstarch, 1 Tablespoon cold water, 1/2 cup soy sauce, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar, 1-2 minced garlic cloves, 1 Teaspoon of ground ginger, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper and whisk until all the ingredients are well blended.  Cook on low heat, stirring often, until the sauce bubbles and thickens.  Remove from heat and set aside.

►Wash and dry the chicken breasts.  If your chicken breast are small, leave them as they are, if they’re large like mine, cut each breast in half.  Place pieces of chicken between a plastic wrap and flatten each piece by using a flat side of a meat tenderizer.

►Place chicken breasts on a greased baking dish.  Brush chicken with the sauce, then turn over and brush the other side.

►Bake at 425 degrees F for 15-20 minutes, and then take the dish out, flip the chicken over and bake for another 15-20 minutes.  Brush with sauce every 5-10 minutes while baking.  This will create a beautiful glaze on the top of the chicken.

►Before serving, slice each chicken breast and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.

Enjoy this simple Teriyaki Chicken dish with white rice and steamed vegetables of your choice!

This recipe was adapted from imagecooking

Chicken & Bean Tostadas

One of my favorite things about these Chicken & Bean Tostadas is that it is easy to cook the chicken and do all the chopping early in the day. Reheat the chicken while you are completing steps 5 and 6 and you’ve got dinner on the table in less than 15 minutes.

Author: mamabalance

Ingredients

•2 teaspoons gluten free flour

•2 teaspoons chili powder

•1 teaspoon smoked paprika

•1 teaspoon ground cumin

•1/2 teaspoon sea salt

•1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast, cubed

•1/2 teaspoon minced garlic

•1 1/2 cups chicken broth

•2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

Dressing

•1/4 cup Greek yogurt

•2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

•2 teaspoons lime zest

•1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce

•1/4 cup chopped cilantro

•4 cloves garlic, minced

Tostadas

•6 organic corn tortillas (I use these quinoa corn tortillas)

•1 1/2 cups organic refried beans, heated

•3 ounces Monterey Jack cheese

•3 cups shredded cabbage

•1 tomato, seeded and chopped

•1 avocado, halved pitted and peeled

Instructions

►Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

►In a small bowl combine flour, chili powder, paprika, cumin and salt.

►Spray a stock pot with oil and add chicken. 

►Cook until browned. Add garlic and spice mixture and cook for one more minute, stirring often. 

►Add broth and vinegar and stir well. Bring to a boil then lower the heat to medium low. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from heat. 

►Using a slotted spoon, transfer chicken to a plate and shred. (Reserve liquid for reheating if desired.)

►Meanwhile, combine dressing ingredients in food pressor and process until smooth. 

►Refrigerate until ready to use.

►Spray both sides of tortillas well with olive oil and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 5 minutes. 

►Flip and bake for an additional 5 minutes, or until just starting to crisp.

►Spread refried beans on tortillas and top with cheese. Return to oven and cook until cheese melts. 

►Top with chicken, cabbage, tomato, avocado and a dollop of dressing and serve.

Baked Mozzarella Chicken Rolls

 

This dish looks just wonderful!! So here’s how things happen. You first roll that spinach with a little ricotta and Parmesan cheese inside a piece of chicken.

Hold on to it cause it might try to slip away from ya or the spinach might come sneaking out the edges. Come on, now. Commit to not losing any of that yummy, creamy filling. Roll the whole thing in egg whites and seasoned whole wheat bread crumbs. I will not send the food police if you use white bread crumbs, but forget health benefits – the whole wheat crumbs have a rich brown color that makes the whole thing pop. Worth it.

At this point you’re going to ask: am I doing this right? If you’re making a total mess, then yes.

Arrange all 8 of the chicken pieces in a normal sized pan. If I was making this for a real family, I’d have put the other three in the sides of this little pan. But I was cooking for a food blog and got all weird about turning a few pieces sideways. #psycho

Hey! They’re cute! And you’re a mess. Go wash your hands.

While the chicken bakes, cut a few slices of fresh Mozzarella. Fresh, peeps. I mean the stuff that’s pure white, sold in big hunks, completely mild and delicious, and melts like a dream.

If you don’t eat a few extra pieces of cheese during this step you are a not human :D

Ding! Chicken’s done. Top it with sauce and cheese and melt it to give it the final crown of Mozzarella glory.

Final step: fresh basil.

Layer the leaves, roll them up into a tight bundle, and cut thin slices at a vertical slant to make “ribbons.” Sprinkle the ribbons over the whole pan of melty, cheesy, baked Mozzarella chicken rolls and watch the color party happen right in front of your eyes.

Serves: 8

Author: pinch of yum
Ingredients

• 2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts (8 4-ounce pieces)
• 1 cup whole wheat Italian style bread crumbs
• 6 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, divided
• 5 ounces fresh baby spinach
• 1 clove minced garlic and olive oil for sauteeing
• ½ cup part-skim ricotta cheese
• ⅓ cup beaten egg whites (I used something similar to Egg Beaters)
• 3 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced
• 1 cup marinara sauce
• fresh basil for topping

Instructions

Prepare the chicken:

Cut the chicken into 8 pieces and pound the pieces until they are thin (for quick cooking) and have expanded in surface area (for more filling). Place the breadcrumbs in a shallow bowl with 2 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese and set aside.

Prepare the filling:

Chop the spinach and saute it with the garlic and just a drizzle of olive oil for 2-3 minutes or until just barely wilted. Combine the sauteed spinach with the ricotta, Parmesan cheese, and 2-3 tablespoons of the egg whites. Place the remaining egg whites in a separate shallow bowl and set aside.

Assemble the chicken:

Oil the bottom of a large baking dish and preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Place one piece of chicken on a flat working surface. Put a spoonful of ricotta-spinach filling right in the middle and roll the chicken up so that the edges meet to form a “seam”. Dip the entire chicken roll in egg whites, and then roll it in the breadcrumbs. Place in a baking dish, seam side down. Repeat for the remaining 7 pieces of chicken. Bake for 25 minutes.

Finishing touches:

After 25 minutes, the chicken should be cooked through (white on the inside) and browned on the top. Cover the chicken with the marinara sauce and slices of fresh Mozzarella. Bake for another 3-5 minutes or until cheese is melting. Sprinkle with fresh basil.

NOTES

Don’t try to cram all the pieces too close together because if the sides are touching each other, they won’t get crispy. Leaving a little space between each piece allows the breadcrumbs to bake, brown, and crispify perfectly =)

Nutritional Facts

Calories 264 

Fat 9g 

Carbs 11g 

Protein 33g 

Lighter Chicken Parmesan.

An Italian classic, lightened up. Baking the cutlet as opposed to frying really lightens this dish up while remaining moist and full of flavor.

Chicken Tamale Pie Recipe.

Chicken recipes are always popular and easy to make. Try this easy chicken tamale pie that is inspired by traditional Mexican recipes for tamales.