Sunday, February 17, 2013

Broccoli and Cheese Quinoa Casserole


So after having just posted that I'm not a huge casserole person, I've made a liar of myself and gone on a bit of a casserole binge.  I'm not sure if it's the weather, or the weather, or the weather or just the fact that I've been craving melted cheesy things recently.  With nary a can of cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup in sight, I may just rethink my stance on casseroles. 

This particular casserole is a take on the broccoli, cheese and casserole.  I've swapped out a chicken broth base in place of the canned soup and swapped out quinoa for the rice.  I left the cheese in full force.  The result is a casserole that is full of big cheesy bites of chicken and broccoli and is every bit as comforting as the original casserole.







Broccoli and Cheese Quinoa Casserole

Ingredients:
2 cups cooked quinoa
2 cups cubed cooked chicken
2  12 oz pkgs frozen chopped broccoli
3 tbsp butter
1/4 cup flour
1 15 oz can chicken broth
1/4 tsp dry mustard
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup evaporated milk
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, preferably sharp
1/4 cup greek yogurt
1/4 cup sour cream

Directions:
  1. Preheat oven to 375
  2. Heat large oven proof skillet over medium heat.  Melt butter, and stir in flour.  Cook for 3 minutes stirring constantly.
  3. Whisk in can of chicken broth and whisk continuously until mixture is thick and begins to bubble.  Add milk, garlic powder, mustard powder, salt and pepper and mix well.  
  4. Turn off heat and add 1 1/3 cup shredded cheese as well as the yogurt and sour cream. Stir until smooth and cheese is melted.  
  5. Add cooked quinoa, broccoli and chicken to skillet, stir well to combine.  
  6. Spread casserole around pan, smooth top and sprinkle with remaining cheese. 
  7. Bake for 20 minutes covered until cheese is completely melted.  

11 comments:

Lila said...

Yummo! My kids will eat this up I'm sure and I like that it uses quinoa and no campbells soup! I love this!

Lila said...

I’ll have to try this. I never loved casseroles until I had one that mother in law made without soup in it and I loved it. My kids will eat almost anytihng with cheese so am going to try this recipe this week. Looks good!

Lila said...

I love looking at all the foods you make and many are more exotic or unique than my family will eat, but I still love to look. This is something that I think they will eat and I love the broccoli and quinoa is healthy for them!

Lila said...

This looks so good and like exactly what I want to eat today. I have always unabashedly loved casseroles – and I started loving them even more once I began adding a bit of extra cheese and yogurt. I'm making this for dinner tonight!

Lila said...

My sisters favorite is the rice and chicken and broccoli bake. I'm going to surprise her with this when she comes over next time. She's been trying to eat more healthier and I think she will like the qunoia version!

Ellie said...

I made this for dinner last night and the kids gobbled it right up. It was so yummy and way better than the kind made with cream of chicken soup. I'll be adding this to our dinner rotations now!

Monica said...

Mmmm looks good. Casseroles and crock pots are my dinner saviors after work. Who wants spend all this time cooking after a long day?

Lila said...

We've been substituting quinoa for rice a lot lately. So yummy!

Lila said...

I made this for our big Sunday lunch today and the hubs and the kids snarfed it all down and even had seconds. Thanks for such a yummy recipe!

Lila said...

Yummy, yummy! I cannot wait to try this for my family!

Lila said...

I made this this week and it was Y-U-M-M-O!!!! The kids loved it and my husband, while picking out the broccoli did eat quinoa which I've never been able to get him to eat. Thank you for sharing!