Creamy Chicken & Broccoli Bake {Gluten Free}

I was going through my Recipe Index one chilly night last week, looking for something comforting and easy to make for dinner with leftover chicken. I had forgotten all about this recipe! I thought perhaps you had too, so I thought I’d republish it. I’ve updated a few things but it is still every bit as delish.

Also, the salad I picture with it (that was mentioned in the comments) is simply spring greens, goat cheese, cranberries, red onion and balsamic vinaigrette. It is SO good.

originally posted 1/24/12

This recipe is reminiscent of the casseroles I used to eat as a kid. It’s the ultimate comfort food for me, but I wanted to find a chicken and broccoli casserole that didn’t use Cream of Chemical Soup. It takes a bit longer because you have to make a roux but it’s so much better for you! (And tastes better too.)

You start by making a roux. I used a half a stick of butter and 1/4 cup brown rice flour. If you aren’t gluten-free, then you can use any flour you have on hand.

First melt the butter and then dump the flour in.

Whisk it up.

A typical roux just uses milk as the liquid, but I wanted to recreate that Cream of Chicken flavor, so I used a half cup chicken stock and a cup of milk. Considering all the other dairy in this meal, next time I’ll probably reverse that.

Homemade chicken stock is so nutritious, but canned will work fine too.

Whisk it till it’s nice and thick and bubbly — about 10 minutes. Then cover and set aside. That is your “Cream of Chicken Soup”.

I had a couple cups of shredded chicken left over from a roast chicken. How yummy does that look!?

And I boiled up a 10-oz bag of broccoli.

Meanwhile I shredded 8 oz cheddar and folded most of it into the “Cream of Chicken Soup”. I saved out some for the topping. I also added sour cream and mayonaise, some dry sherry and also Worcestershire. Yeah, it isn’t exactly what you might call a low-cal meal.

Here you can also add salt and pepper to taste.

Then I put it all together in a casserole dish and spread the leftover cheese on top.

After about 30 minutes in a 400-degree oven, it was bubbly and yummy and lightly brown on top.

Served with a side salad, it was quite delicious. It WAS very creamy and rich, so if that’s not your thing, you’ll want to bypass this one. I, on the other hand, LIVE for creamy and rich so I enjoyed it quite a lot!

I think it could have used more broccoli and chicken, or less sauce, so I adjusted my measurements below to work for a bigger pan, as in the original recipe.

What’s your favorite comfort food meal???