Creamy chicken and broccoli bake
45 min · 59 g protein · 486 cals / serving
Shredded chicken breast and a big bag of broccoli folded through a tangy sauce of cream cheese, Greek yogurt, mustard and sharp cheddar, then baked under more cheddar and parmesan until it bubbles and browns. The cheesy casserole without the rice or the canned soup, and it reheats like it was made that day.
Ingredients
- 2 lb frozen florets frozen chopped broccoli, or fresh florets, microwaved 4 minutes
Sauce
- 3 1/2 oz light cream cheese, softened
- 3/4 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 2 cloves garlic, grated
- 1 pinch salt, more to taste; rotisserie chicken is already salted
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 cup grated cheddar cheese, sharp, divided
- 3 1/2 cups shredded roasted chicken breast, cooked chicken breast: about 3 breasts poached or roasted, or the breast meat of 2 rotisserie chickens (skin off)
- 1/4 cup onion, very finely chopped
- 3 tbsp grated parmesan
- 1/2 tsp paprika
Steps
- Heat the oven to 400°F. Microwave the broccoli in a covered bowl for 6–8 minutes, until thawed and just tender, then tip it into a colander and press out the water with the back of a spoon; watery broccoli thins the sauce.
- In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth, then whisk in the yogurt, broth, mustard, garlic, salt and pepper. Stir in half the cheddar.
- Fold in the chicken, broccoli and onion until everything is coated, and spread it in a 2.5-litre (9 × 9-inch or 7 × 11-inch) baking dish.
- Scatter the rest of the cheddar, the parmesan and the paprika over the top. Bake 20–25 minutes, until bubbling at the edges and golden on top, then rest 5 minutes before serving. It keeps 4 days in the fridge; reheat portions covered in the microwave, or the dish in a 350°F oven for 20 minutes.
Good to know
Can I make it ahead and bake it later?
Yes. Assemble it, cover and refrigerate up to a day, and bake it from cold for 30–35 minutes, until hot in the middle (165°F).
Can I use a whole rotisserie chicken?
Yes: one bird, white and dark meat together with the skin off, gives about the 500 g you need, at about 67 instead of 72. Taste before adding any salt, because rotisserie meat is brined.
Can I make it lighter still?
Reduced-fat cheddar melts almost as well here, at about 76 instead of 72.
Per
- Calories
- 107
- Protein
- (50%)
- 13 g
- Fat
- (39%)
- 5 g
- Carbohydrates
- (11%)
- 4 g
- of which sugar
- 1 g
- Fiber
- 2 g
- Sodium
- 168 mg
More meals
Computed from the ingredients with our published formula, not yet kitchen-tested. General guidance, not medical advice. Talk to your prescriber. How
As written, 1945 kcal goes into the pot and 1969 g of ingredients comes out as about 1810 g of food: 107 kcal per 100 g. Cooking moves water and energy density is the score's biggest lever, so the dish is scored as cooked, not as an average of its parts. Every ingredient links to its food page, with the same data and score. The label's percentages are each macronutrient's share of the calories. The full formula.