The alarm went off at 6:03 this morning. John told me to sleep in. At first I thought it was a great idea and planned to go to Zumba tonight. But, my mind was already awake. I tried to go back to sleep for 10 minutes and just couldn’t. I hopped out of bed, threw on my workout clothes and went to the gym. Note: It was freezing and raining, and now I’m remembering why I struggle living in Chicago during the colder months, which typically take up a good 75% of the year.
Anyway, I’ve been meaning to kick my own butt in the gym since I’ve realized I rarely do and completed Kristin’s 3-2-1 treadmill workout. If you haven’t seen her blog, check it out! It’s one of my favorites! I made a few speed changes (no shock there), so mine looked like this, at 1% incline:
- Minute 0-1, Speed 4.0
- Minute 1-3, Speed 6.0
- Minute 3-5, Speed 6.2
- Minute 5-8, Speed 6.3
- Minute 8-10, Speed 6.7
- Minute 10-11, Speed 7.0
- Repeat minutes 5-11 three more times
- Minute 29-32, Speed 4.0
- Minute 32-35, Speed 6.3
- Total Distance: 3.5 miles
I loved this workout! I was pushing myself and definitely worked up a sweat. Oh, and about two minutes into my run I saw in the reflection that my shirt was on backwards again! Seriously, who does this?!? I just left it until I finished my run and turned it around before doing some abs 🙂
Now, on to one of my most recent creations in the kitchen. Get ready to drool.
I cannot say enough about Gina’s recipe for Lightened Up Chicken Divan. To be honest, I don’t even know what chicken divan is…but it looks like a casserole and that was enough to send me running to the grocery for ingredients to make this bad boy.
Casseroles have such a bad wrap…and rightfully so. (Pause: I just looked up whether I should say bad rap or bad wrap. Turns out, it’s bad rap (with an “r”). A bad wrap (with a “w”) is just a sandwich wrap that’s not very good. But, I think “bad wrap” is more appropriate for a food and health blog, so I’m using it.) Most of them are loaded with fat, salt, cream, butter, flour, etc. And that’s what makes them so good! But I tell you, this has loads of flavor, is completely filling, could feed an army (okay, so it only lasted for two nights in our house…for two of us) and is healthy!
Hallelujah! Let’s eat!
To get started, season four chicken breasts and grill until just about cooked through. About five minutes on each side. Cut into bite size strips.
And now, let’s talk blanching. Raise your hand if you know what this means? Good for you, smartypants. I had heard of blanching but had never actually done it until now. Basically, you boil your vegetable (in this case, broccoli) for 2 or 3 minutes and then drench it in cold water to stop it from cooking. Check it out…my first blanch!
Isn’t it beautiful?
Now you’ll want to get started making the sauce. Oooh the sauce! Rich, cheesy, creamy…
Heat a medium skillet and add the oil and butter. Once the butter is melted, add the garlic and onions. Sprinkle in the flour and whisk until smooth. Stir in the broth, milk and wine and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and load on the cheese (well, half of the cheese). Stir. Mmmmm. It’s perfect!
In a 9 x 13 pan, put the broccoli in the bottom. Cover with half of the sauce.
Then, add the chicken and add the remaining sauce. Add the remaining mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs on top. I’m giddy just typing this post!
Bake for 30 minutes and devour.
And, if you’re like me, your plate will look like this when you’re finished.
Mom, aren’t you proud of where my fork is? Four o’clock. I still have good manners 🙂
I hope you enjoy this as much as I did. John requested it for dinner again this week!
Recipe:
Ingredients:
- 1-1/2 lbs broccoli (3 large heads) chopped
- 24 oz boneless skinless chicken breasts (or 18 oz cooked)
- salt and fresh ground pepper
- 1 tbsp butter
- 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 2 tbsp shallots, minced (onions would work too)
- 4 tbsp flour
- 1 cup fat free chicken broth
- 1 cup fat free milk
- 2 oz dry sherry (white wine would work)
- 6 oz shredded reduced-fat mozzarella (original recipe calls for swiss)
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1/4 cup seasoned whole wheat breadcrumbs
- cooking spray
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a 9 x 13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.
Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Using a grill pan or Forman grill, saute chicken on medium-low heat on both sides until browned, and just about cooked through, about 5 minutes on each side. Remove from heat and transfer chicken to a cutting board. When cooled, slice chicken into bite sized pieces.
Heat a medium skillet on medium heat. Add the butter and oil until melted and then add garlic and shallots. Sprinkle the flour and whisk until smooth. Stir in broth, milk and sherry and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in half of the mozzarella cheese. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Arrange the broccoli in a casserole dish and pour half of the sauce over the broccoli. Arrange the chicken on top and cover with remaining sauce. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella cheese, grated parmesan and top with breadcrumbs. Spray a little oil on top.
Bake 30 minutes, serve hot.
———————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————–
Have you ever noticed you were wearing a piece of clothing the wrong way? What did you do about it? Leave it and make a fashion statement or change it?
Yum yum yum!! This recipe looks fantastic. I love the combination of white wine and the two different kinds of cheeses!
[…] Comments « Chicken Divan = Chicken Divine […]
Ooo this casserole looks DIVINE! 😉 Hope you have a great week!
[…] My leg soreness has finally started to subside. After work I went to the gym and completed the 3-2-1 treadmill workout I’ve become obsessed with and rolled out my quads and hamstrings with a foam roller. I really […]
Thank you for the recipe, Mollie!! I made it tonight and added rigatoni. It was pretty easy and turned out great! My next mission is the pumpkin cookies! 🙂 Can’t wait to read about other new recipes. Hope you are doing well!!