Creamy Chicken Enchilada Casserole

 I love following the Stay at Home Chef on Instagram.  Rachel is awesome and her recipes and always very doable and so yummy.  

Enjoy this new recipe.  I used Costco rotisserie chicken which made it super easy.  I thought the avocado cream sauce was fabulous.  Easy, yummy - what more could you want.  My gluten-free friends will love this! Also, I don't like things very hot so I used mild salsa and a half of a fresh jalapeño. 

Please visit Rachel's Stay at Home Chef - she has a video of the recipe!  She is great!

Creamy Chicken Enchilada Casserole (adapted from the Stay at Home Chef)

Rice

1 cup long grain white rice ( I used basmati)

2 cups chicken broth

1/2 tsp cumin, chili power and salt

Make the rice by combining 1 cup rice, 2 cups chicken broth and spices in a medium saucepan.  Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes or until all liquid is absorbed.  Fluff with a fork and set aside. 

Sauce

While rice is cooking, make the sauce:

8 oz salsa verde (I used mild)

2 medium avocados (I used three small)

1/2 cup sour cream

1 medium jalapeño, optional (I used half of one)

1/2 tsp cumin

Make the sauce by blending 8 oz sour cream the pitted avocados, the jalapeño and a 1/2 tsp of cumin.  Use an immersion blender or a regular blender and blend until smooth. 

Casserole

4 cups shredded/diced cooked Chicken (I used rotisserie chicken)

corn tortillas

4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (I did a combination of Monterey Jack/Mozzerella - used what I had)

In a mixing bowl, toss the 4 cups of cooked chicken with a few spoonfuls of sauce, just to lightly coat chicken.  Preheat the oven to 375.  Lightly grease a 9x13 baking dish.  Spread a think layer of sauce on the bottom of the dish.  Cover the bottom with tortillas, cutting them in half as needed to fit. Spread a portion of the avocado sauce over tortillas, Sprinkle with a light layer of cheese. Spoon 1/2 of the cooked rice over the base, followed by half of the chicken.  Sprinkle with more cheese. Top with another layer of tortillas and spread sauce on top. Sprinkle with cheese. Repeat with remaining rice and chicken. Top with final layer of tortillas, another with remaining sauce and top with another sprinkling of cheese.  Bake uncovered 25-30 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly. 

Printable version

 I thought I would share a new recipe I found over at Mary's Whole Life.  I have followed Mary on Instagram for quite some time and made many of her recipes. I look forward to trying her Creamy Shrimp and Sausage Pasta soon.  She eats gluten free but always shares possible substitutions. 

This Creamy Boursin Chicken Bake was so easy and so yummy.  It truly took me about five minutes to put it together.  I did throw in a little spinach at the end for more veggies.  We chose to use regular thin spaghetti instead of the spaghetti squash.  My hubby raved on about this new dish.  A friend made it with spaghetti squash and loved it. Another friend made it with penne pasta and also loved it. 

This is right out of the oven before I shredded the chicken and added the pesto, spinach and pasta and mixed it all up. 

Creamy Boursin Chicken Bake (adapted from Mary's Whole Life)

4 thinly sliced boneless chicken breasts

1 pkg Boursin garlic & herb cheese (can sub Kite Hill cream cheese for dairy free)

1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes

2 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 tsp salt or more to taste

1/2 tsp pepper

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp Italian seasoning

1/2 cup jarred Pesto

Preheat the oven to 400.  Drizzle a little of the olive oil in the bottom of the pan. Add the Boursin cheese to the center of the pan.  Place the chicken breasts and tomatoes around the Boursin cheese.  Sprinkle with the rest of the olive oil.  Season all with the salt, pepper, garlic powder and Italian seasoning. 

If you are using spaghetti squash, cut the squash in half around the smaller middle, scoop out the seeds and place cut side down on a one baking sheet.  Put the squash the the chicken in the oven at the same time and bake for 40 minutes. If preparing pasta, start boiling your water about 20 minutes in to the chicken cooking. 

After 40 minutes, use two forks and shred the chicken in the same dish and add in the spinach, pesto and pasta.  Mix all together with the Boursin cheese.  Serve warm with shredded parmesan cheese and extra salt/pepper if needed.

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