Old Fashioned Chicken Divan Food

OLD TIME CHICKEN DIVAN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add broccoli, and cook until just tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Drain and rinse well with cold water to chill. Place drained broccoli into a 9x13 inch baking dish and set aside.
• Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour, and cook, whisking constantly, until the flour begins to turn from white, to a pale beige, about 3 minutes. Whisk in sherry, chicken broth, and heavy cream until smooth. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 5 minutes; season with salt and pepper.
• Pour half of the hot cream sauce over the broccoli and top with chicken slices. Stir Parmesan cheese into the remaining sauce, and pour over the chicken slices. Sprinkle top with extra cheese, if desired.
• Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes or until heated through, then broil for a few minutes until top has turned golden brown.

OLD-FASHIONED CHICKEN DIVAN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter a 9X13 glass dish or shallow casserole.
• In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat and add flour. Stir for one minute.
• Add the broth and milk gradually until the sauce is thickened.
• Add half of the cheese and the worcestershire sauce. Stir until the cheese melts and remove from heat.
• Place the broccoli in the prepared pan or dish and sprinkle the remaining cheese over it.
• Place the chicken slices evenly over the cheese.
• Bake about 30 minutes, or until slightly bubbly and golden brown.

TRADITIONAL CHICKEN DIVAN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325.
• Steam broccoli for 5 minutes until crisp-tender. Alternatively, place broccoli in a shallow bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Microwave for 2-5 minutes (depending on the strength of your microwave) until crisp-tender. Drain in colander.
• In a medium frying pan, saute chicken breasts in olive oil until lightly browned, about 4-5 minutes per side. Remove from heat and drain on paper towls.
• In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Whisk in flour and cook for 1-2 minutes to eliminate the taste of raw flour. Then gradually whisk in chicken broth, sherry and milk or half and half, until incorporated. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer until the sauce is the consistency you desire. Add just a dash of nutmeg. Add 3/4 of the cheese blend and whisk until combined. Add salt and pepper to taste.
• In a 9x13 dish arrange chicken breasts (either whole or sliced) and broccoli. Pour sauce over top and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Cover with aluminum foil. Make several slits in the aluminum foil to allow the steam to escape.
• Note: At this point, the dish can be frozen or refrigerated.
• Bake in the oven for 30-45 minutes, taking off the aluminum foil for the last 10.

1960'S CHICKEN DIVAN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9x13 baking dish.
• Cook fresh broccoli by steaming or boiling until fork tender. (if using frozen, cook as the package directs until fork tender and heated through) Line bottom of baking dish with the broccoli.
• To make the sauce: Melt butter in a sauce pan over medium heat. Add the flour and wisk with the butter for 1 minute. Add the cream or milk slowly wisking constantly.
• Add a tablespoon of the cream sauce to the beaten egg yolks and stir. Then add the egg mixture to the sauce pan. Add lemon juice. Season with salt and cayenne pepper.
• Slice the cooked chicken breasts across the grain thinly into bite sized pieces. Place the chicken evenly over the broccoli. Pour sauce over and then top with grated cheese.
• Bake for 20 minues until starting to bubble.