Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

Traditional chicken cordon bleu is ham and swiss wrapped in chicken with a crispy coating and sauce. I made this much easier version of it in casserole form for Sunday supper and it was a big hit - the traditional way isn't terribly time consuming, but layering everything in a pan is definitely faster and you get the same flavors so I will be adding this to my repeat recipe file for the future!

This is a Ree Drummond (the Pioneer Woman) recipe, I pretty much followed it but I did make extra sauce by increasing the butter another 2 T. and using 3 cups milk - taste and add additional mustard and cayenne if needed - and I added another 1/2 cup cheese. The other changes are I shredded the chicken instead of cubing it; and doubled the panko crumbs based on reviews. Yum! 

• 6 T. salted butter
• 2 cups small-cubed ham
• 1 1/4 cups grated swiss cheese
• 1 1/4 cups grated monterey jack cheese 
• 4 cooked boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into cubes
• 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups milk
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 2 T. Dijon mustard
• 1/2 t. cayenne
• kosher salt and ground black pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 350'. Grease a 9x13-inch baking dish with 1 T. butter.

2. Put the ham on a paper towel-lined plate and microwave for about 3 minutes to reduce the moisture content, Mix together the swiss and monterey jack cheese in a bowl. 

3. Put about a third of the chicken in a layer in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Top with half the ham. Sprinkle over 1/4 cup of the mixed cheese, Repeat 1 more time, then finish with a layer of chicken.

4. Melt the remaining 5 T. butter in a a skillet over medium heat. Put the panko in a bowl, pouring half of the melted butter, mix well and set aside. 

5. Add the flour to the remaining butter in the skillet and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, whisking out any lumps. Whisk in the milk, broth, dijon and cayenne and let it cook until it begins to thicken. Remove from the heat and stir in 1 cup of the cheese until melted. Season with salt and pepper.

6. Pour the sauce over the casserole. Sprinkle over the remaining 1 cup cheese, then the panko mix. Bake until the top is browned and the casserole is bubbling, 25-30 minutes. 

6 servings

recipe, more photos and info found here at Food Network

I know my pics aren't great! We served it with flavored rice and a tossed salad. 

2.20.24: tt dusting woodwork

2.20.23: stationery folder #1

2.20.22: 🔥 week 8

2.20.21: grapefruit cocktail

2.20.20: TBT french dressing

2.20.19:  rainy day casserole 

2.20.18: unfinished project day

2.20.17: make a mason jar salt pourer

2.20.16: lucky cat martini

Kid Friendly St. Patrick's Day Jello Cups

Mickey found this fun idea and asked if anyone wants to make them for Georgie's daycare St. Patrick's day party - ok well these seem super easy and I'd be happy to make them for her! I'll update with my own picture after I make them, in the meantime here is the idea in case you also want to make them.

I didn't look for actual instructions but it seems straightforward enough - I'll make green jello and pour into clear cups; after it sets up add 2 small squirts of redi-whip and add a rainbow Airhead candy strip. Cute, right?! 

2.19.24: painted plate

2.19.23: 🔥 week 8

2.19.22: shrimp étouffée 

2.19.21: oatmeal banana energy bars by Jen

2.19.20: double chocolate mousse torte

2.19.19: tt: deviled egg cover 

2.19.18: macrame wall hanging (and Sarge "helping me")

2.19.17: cornmeal crusted chicken

2.19.16: kid craft - decorate notebooks

Tip-sy Tuesday: Fridge/Freezer Odor

Yesterday I shared that our fridge quit working and how disgusting it smelled (click here for that post) - the repairman gave me a tip that worked pretty good, it took a few days but it's 90% better than it was. He said to put bowls of whole coffee beans and bowls of baking soda in the fridge and freezer and it would help to absorb the odor - I knew about baking soda but not the coffee beans and I figured we had nothing to lose other than 14 bucks worth of coffee beans. 

The first few days the fridge smelled like the foul odor mixed with coffee, but a week later it mostly smells like just coffee. Like the repair guy said today when he opened the door "well at least we aren't gagging now" hahaha. There is a tiny hint of odor if I really try to find it, but at first smell it's just coffee. Once we get the fridge repaired he says the fan running will make the rest of the smell go away. 

I should have taken pictures before we cleaned a lot of it out, but here's a bit of what we found (trust me when I say it was 1000 times worse than this and we couldn't keep the door open for more than a few seconds before needing to take a break!):

Catching Up!

Well I just disappeared again for a whole week - sorry 'bout that. Short story is that we drove to our winter campground last Tuesday and things have been a mess since we got here! Refrigerator quit, who knows when, and it was the most disgusting thing ever - honestly I thought I was going to be sick from the smell!! Truly awful. We had so much work to do outside to clean things up, the association here has been threatening to fine us for not maintaining things up to their standards and until we got down here in person I thought they were just being picky but nope - they were right! The place is overgrown, dirty, weedy, trashy...all the bad stuff LOL. 

I said it was going to be a short story but I made it longer than necessary to just tell you that I have not had any time to blog anything! 

The fridge repairman had to order a part and came out today (we've been living out of our car cooler for a week!), the new part instantly shorted out and now he needs to reorder the part and another part that is bad causing the first part to short out. Insert eye roll. We are planning to come home in a couple days and I really hope the parts make it here in time! 

Ok, I'm done bellyaching! And if all goes well I'll be blogging tomorrow instead of complaining. HA!! 

this was me last Tuesday 😂

2.17.24: words

2.17.23: random acts of kindness re-run

2.17.22: random acts of kindness day

2.17.21: banana pudding tart 

2.17.20: make a paper gift box

2.17.19: 🔥 week 7

2.17.18: nail art

2.17.17: coincidentally, it's how to do ombre nail art!

2.17.16: making paper crowns

🔥 Around the Campfire (week 7)

Dear Campers ~ 

Here's a quick recap in case you missed anything at camp last week (a whole lot of 'what happened on this day in years past'!):

Posts ~

2/9:  🔥 week 6

2/10: Valentine kiss mice 

2/11: thru the years

2/12: thru the years

2/13: thru the years 

2/14: thru the years 

2/15: thru the years 

That's it for this week! See you next week for more projects, crafts, recipes, whatever we can think of to make at camp - bye :)

Sincerely ~

Jill

camp counselor

2.16.24: crustless quiche for Georgia

2.16.23: baked chicken with bacon bottom and wild rice

2.16.22: baked crispy chicken and potatoes

2.16.21: tip-sy tuesday: cast iron broccoli

2.16.20: 🔥week 7

2.16.19: walking taco bowl

2.16.18: flower centerpiece by Brooke

2.16.17: zucchini tots 

2.16.16: Sheryl's lemon cake

2/15 ~ Thru the Years

I missed blogging the rest of this week - click here to read a little of what's been keeping me away from making stuff! Here's a look back at what happened on this date thru the years: 

2.15.24: LeDonna's stuffed chicken 

2.15.23: cheesy grits with greens

2.15.22: storing felt

2.15.21: air fryer chicken legs by Jen

2.15.20: tuna artichoke salad

2.15.19: self-tanning tips

2.15.18: clary sage bath salts 

2.15.17: glazed lemon cookies

2.15.16: enjoy the little things  paper project

2/14 ~ Thru the Years

I missed blogging the rest of this week - click here to read a little of what's been keeping me away from making stuff! Here's a look back at what happened on this date thru the years: 

2.14.23: perler bead valentine hearts

2.14.23: TT household uses for lemons

2.14.22: red velvet cookies

2.14.21: 🔥week 7

2.14.20: wine glass lamp shade

2.14.18: dried cranberry and chocolate cookies

2.14.17: flower heart by Julie

2.14.16: tuna over nice (basically a Nicoise salad)

2/13 ~ Thru the Years

I missed blogging the rest of this week - click here to read a little of what's been keeping me away from making stuff! Here's a look back at what happened on this date thru the years: 

2.13.24: tt make a larger ziplock baggie 

2.13.23: mini paper gift box

2.13.22: 🔥 week 7

2.13.21: valentine bubble tree 

2.13.20: hot dog heart

2.13.19: asian style meatballs with sweet chili sauce

2.13.18: shrimp cocktail in a wine glass

2.13.17: heart suncatcher

2.13.16: wine label for Valentine's day gifts

2/12 ~ Thru the Years

I missed blogging the rest of this week - click here to read a little of what's been keeping me away from making stuff! Here's a look back at what happened on this date thru the years: 

2.12.24: lady bug oreos 

2.12.23: 🔥 week 7

2.12.22: pinwheel icebox cookies

2.12.21: triple berry muffins

2.12.20: yarn heart

2.12.19: add a pin to pearls

2.12.18: Valentine ball jar vase and candleholder

2.12.17: goat cheese tart

2.12.16: Brooke and Sydney make 'cootie catchers'

2/11 ~ Thru the Years

I missed blogging the rest of this week - click here to read a little of what's been keeping me away from making stuff! Here's a look back at what happened on this date thru the years:

2.11.24: 🔥 week 6

2.11.23: creamy mushroom spinach chicken pasta

2.11.22: wine cork x and o

2.11.21: pasta sauce with meat and eggs

2.11.20: how to make an origami heart

2.11.19: make an ear crawler

2.11.18: confetti heart picks

2.11.17: blueberry jilly's jam

2.11.16: valentine nail art