Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

We tried a new recipe tonight in our house...and it was a winner! It's always nice when you try new things and they don't taste low-fat and healthy! I had a hard time remembering that this was a Weight Watcher friendly recipe.

Here's what you'll need: chicken breast, lean ham slices, sliced Swiss cheese, light butter, whole wheat flour, skim milk, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, paprika, black pepper, Panko breadcrumbs & garlic powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat a 9x13 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray, set aside.

For the Sauce: Melt butter in a large sauce pan. Whisk flour into flour, slowly start adding milk, whisking to avoid lumps. Stir until sauce begins to thicken. Mix together the lemon juice, Dijon mustard, paprika and pepper; slowly add to sauce mixture. Bring sauce to a simmer, stirring continuously, until desired thickness has been reached (I didn't let mine thicken as much  as I should have).

Layer the chicken, ham, Swiss cheese and sauce mixture in your pan.

In a small sauce pan, melt butter, then stir in the Panko crumbs, garlic powder and pepper. Top casserole with Panko mixture.

Bake for 35 minutes, top will be golden brown. Enjoy!

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

Adapted from: Skinny Mom

Serves: 8, 1-cup servings, 9 Weight Watcher Points Plus

Ingredients

Casserole:

• 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and cubed
• 8 oz fat-free lean ham slices
• 10 thinly sliced Swiss cheese

Sauce:

• 4 tbsp light butter
• 4 tbsp whole wheat flour
• 3 1/4 cups skim milk
• 1 lemon, juiced (aprox. 2 Tbsp)
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/4 tsp black pepper

Topping:

• 1/4 cup light butter
• 1 1/2 cups Panko breadcrumbs
• 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray, set aside.
2. For the sauce, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour, slowly add the milk while whisking to avoid lumps. Stir until sauce begins to thicken (around 10 minutes or so). Mix together lemon juice, Dijon mustard, paprika and pepper, and slowly add to sauce mixture. Bring to a low simmer, continue stirring until sauce has reached desired thickness.
3. Layer chicken, ham slices, Swiss cheese and sauce mixture.
4. For topping, melt butter in a small sauce pan. Remove from heat, stir in Panko breadcrumbs, garlic powder and pepper. Spread evenly over top of sauce mixture.
5. Bake for 35 minutes...topping with turn a golden brown.