Simple Seasonal

Healthy Seasonal Recipes Inspired by Your Local Farm and CSA

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Recipes
  • How-To
  • Farm to Table
  • Playing With Food
  • Contact

Light Chicken Quinoa Divan

April 23, 2015 By Rachel 15 Comments

Share10
Pin30
Tweet
Yum88
Share
Flip
128 Shares

chicken-divan

Sometimes a person just needs a healthy meal that they can pull out of the freezer and pop into the oven. Over the next few days I’m going to need that kind of meal every night, because we’re moving! My husband and I bought our first little starter home and we’re both so happy, but with all the excitement of a big life event like moving into a new home, making a healthy dinner easily becomes a hassle. For that, I am armed and ready with freezer meals!

One of my favorite freezer-friendly meals is chicken divan. Although it’s a little bit of work to assemble, when made in large batches and then frozen, it’s a big time saver. Unfortunately, the traditional chicken divan recipe gets its amazing richness in part from none else than lots of mayo (not healthy). I have also seen recipes that replace the mayo with canned soups, which contain tons of sodium and artificial ingredients (also not healthy). This got me thinking about how I could make one of my favorite freezer-friendly (but unhealthy) dishes better for my family, and after experimenting with a few batches, I came up with today’s recipe for Light Chicken Quinoa Divan. It still maintains it’s rich deliciousness, while being considerably lighter. In addition, I added a healthy whole grain, which also fills hungry moving-day bellies!

Light Chicken Quinoa Divan

Serves: 6

Prep Time: 35 minutes                Cook Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 C quinoa
  • 2 C water
  • 6 C broccoli florets
  • 1 1/2 lb chicken breast
  • 1 Tbsp plus 1 tsp olive oil
  • 1 C extra sharp cheddar cheese
  • 1 C freshly grated parmesan cheese
  • 2 Tbsp flour (or 2 Tbsp of arrowroot flour if avoiding gluten)
  • 2/3 C white wine
  • 1/2 C chicken broth
  • 1 C milk
  • 1 1/2 C light sour cream
  • 1/4 C lemon juice
  • 2 Tbsp plus 2 tsp yellow curry
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  • olive oil cooking spray

Directions

1. Like many casseroles, this one involves prepping a bunch of ingredients, mixing them together, and then baking the dish with delicious results. To begin, rinse the quinoa, place it in a sauce pan with 2 C of water, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling, cover, reduce heat to medium-low, simmer, and allow it to cook until all of the water is absorbed. This will take about 12 minutes. Note that it’s important to rinse your quinoa before cooking, otherwise it may have a slightly bitter flavor.

quinoa

2. While your quinoa is cooking, cut your broccoli, place it in a pot so that it’s submerged in water, bring to a boil, and boil for 2 minutes. You will then drain off the hot water and submerge the broccoli in cold water until your are ready to use it. This will make it so the broccoli is not under-cooked or mushy in your casserole, but just right.

broccoli

3. After you have the quinoa simmering and have begun bringing the broccoli up to a boil, cube your chicken breast into bite-sized pieces and brown over medium-high heat with 1 tsp of olive oil. You’re just browning, so your chicken shouldn’t cook through (no nibbling!).

chicken

4. At this point, your quinoa is just about ready to remove from the heat. Fluff with a fork and set aside. Your broccoli is also ready to place into a cold water bath. Set both aside until you’re ready to assemble your casserole.

5. Shred 1 cup each of extra sharp cheddar cheese and fresh parmesan.

cabot-cheese

6. All of your filling is now prepped, so it’s time to prepare the sauce that makes this recipe so delicious. First, Place 1 Tbsp of olive oil in a saucepan and heat over medium heat for 1 minute. Next, add 2 Tbsp of flour (or arrowroot flour), mix together, and cook for 1 minute. Now add 2/3 C of white wine and 1/2 C of chicken broth and whisk in with the flour and oil mixture. Bring the sauce to a simmer, continuously whisking, and simmer until the sauce has thickened. Add 1 cup of milk and continue whisking until the sauce begins to simmer again, and then immediately remove from the heat. Finally, mix in the sour cream, lemon juice, yellow curry and salt.

sauce

7. In a large mixing bowl, fold together all of your ingredients: quinoa, broccoli, chicken, shredded cheese, and your sauce.

mixing-casserole

8. Once combined, place your casserole mixture into a baking dish that has been sprayed with olive oil cooking spray.

filling-casserole

9. Bake uncovered at 400º F for 35-40 minutes or until the casserole is bubbling all the way through. Allow the dish to rest for 5 minutes before serving.

chicken-divan-casserole

 

serving-chicken-divan

Light Chicken Quinoa Divan
 
Print
Prep time
35 mins
Cook time
40 mins
Total time
1 hour 15 mins
 
Light Chicken Quinoa Divan has the richness of the recipe that inspired it, but is lightened-up and also freezer-friendly!
Author: Rachel Hanawalt
Recipe type: Entrees
Cuisine: American
Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • 1 C quinoa
  • 2 C water
  • 6 C broccoli florets
  • 1½ lb chicken breast
  • 1 Tbsp plus 1 tsp olive oil
  • 1 C extra sharp cheddar cheese
  • 1 C freshly grated parmesan cheese
  • 2 Tbsp flour (or 2 Tbsp of arrowroot flour if avoiding gluten)
  • ⅔ C white wine
  • ½ C chicken broth
  • 1 C milk
  • 1½ C light sour cream
  • ¼ C lemon juice
  • 2 Tbsp plus 2 tsp yellow curry
  • ¼ tsp sea salt
  • olive oil cooking spray
Instructions
  1. Like many casseroles, this one involves prepping a bunch of ingredients, mixing them together, and then baking the dish with delicious results. To begin, rinse the quinoa, place it in a sauce pan with 2 C of water, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling, cover, reduce heat to medium-low, simmer, and allow it to cook until all of the water is absorbed. This will take about 12 minutes. Note that it's important to rinse your quinoa before cooking, otherwise it may have a slightly bitter flavor.
  2. While your quinoa is cooking, cut your broccoli, place it in a pot so that it's submerged in water, bring to a boil, and boil for 2 minutes. You will then drain off the hot water and submerge the broccoli in cold water until your are ready to use it. This will make it so the broccoli is not under-cooked or mushy in your casserole, but just right.
  3. After you have the quinoa simmering and have begun bringing the broccoli up to a boil, cube your chicken breast into bite-sized pieces and brown over medium-high heat with 1 tsp of olive oil. You're just browning, so your chicken shouldn't cook through (no nibbling!).
  4. At this point, your quinoa is just about ready to remove from the heat. Fluff with a fork and set aside. Your broccoli is also ready to place into a cold water bath. Set both aside until you're ready to assemble your casserole.
  5. Shred 1 cup each of extra sharp cheddar cheese and fresh parmesan.
  6. All of your filling is now prepped, so it's time to prepare the sauce that makes this recipe so delicious. First, Place 1 Tbsp of olive oil in a saucepan and heat over medium heat for 1 minute. Next, add 2 Tbsp of flour (or arrowroot flour), mix together, and cook for 1 minute. Now add ⅔ C of white wine and ½ C of chicken broth and whisk in with the flour and oil mixture. Bring the sauce to a simmer, continuously whisking, and simmer until the sauce has thickened. Add 1 cup of milk and continue whisking until the sauce begins to simmer again, and then immediately remove from the heat. Finally, mix in the sour cream, lemon juice, yellow curry and salt.
  7. In a large mixing bowl, fold together all of your ingredients: quinoa, broccoli, chicken, shredded cheese, and your sauce.
  8. Once combined, place your casserole mixture into a baking dish that has been sprayed with olive oil cooking spray.
  9. Bake uncovered at 400º F for 35-40 minutes or until the casserole is bubbling all the way through. Allow the dish to rest for 5 minutes before serving.
3.3.3077

 

Get Your Next Meal In Your Inbox!

Enter your email address to get the latest recipes and relevant seasonal content on the blog!

I agree to have my personal information transfered to AWeber ( more information )

I will never give away, trade, or sell your email address. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Share10
Pin30
Tweet
Yum88
Share
Flip
128 Shares

Filed Under: Entrees, Recipes Tagged With: Broccoli, Casserole, cheese, Chicken, Creamy, Freezer-Friendly, Gluten-Free, Light, Make Ahead, Quinoa, Recipe Remake

« Chili Dog Chili
Loaded Sweet Potato Nachos »

Comments

  1. cristie @ Little Big H says

    July 17, 2015 at 9:14 am

    I absolutely love quinoa so I will definitely be trying this one. I’m pinning it now.

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      July 18, 2015 at 12:24 pm

      Thanks for pinning! Quinoa is one of my favorite grains. I have to be careful not to over use it!

      Reply
  2. Kathryn Doherty says

    July 17, 2015 at 1:52 pm

    Love this lightened up version of chicken divan – and that it’s all real foods (not mixes)! We moved at the beginning of the year and definitely made a dent in my freezer stash of dinners. Both during the packing and unpacking phases. It was all I could manage but made such a difference having healthy, homemade meals to nourish us.

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      July 18, 2015 at 12:25 pm

      I’m all about the freezer meals! I work a couple of weekends a month, so it’s so helpful to have something healthy that my husband can just pop into the oven!

      Reply
  3. J @ A Hot Southern Mess says

    July 17, 2015 at 2:43 pm

    Oh yum! I like how you lightened up the recipe a bit. It sounds and looks delightful! I’m starting to drool right now! Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      July 18, 2015 at 10:24 pm

      I try to eat healthy, but some dishes “unhealthy” dishes I’m not quite willing to give-up, so I have fun lightening them up!

      Reply
  4. Deepika@EasyBabyMeals says

    July 17, 2015 at 2:47 pm

    Love this recipe. I will make this for my family soon. 🙂

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      July 18, 2015 at 10:25 pm

      Thanks Deepika!

      Reply
  5. Anna @ Sunny Side Ups says

    July 17, 2015 at 7:25 pm

    Oooo….I’m all about quinoa everything, and this dish looks absolutely heavenly! :)Can’t wait to try it out! Pinned!

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      July 18, 2015 at 10:25 pm

      Thanks for pinning!

      Reply
  6. Dawn @ Words Of Deliciousness says

    July 19, 2015 at 10:51 pm

    I love the combination of ingredients in this dish. I am always looking for recipes with quinoa, I will have to try this one.

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      July 20, 2015 at 8:26 am

      Thanks Dawn! I’m always looking for ways to sneak whole grains into meals for my family!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Light Chicken Quinoa Divan from Simple Seasonal - Yum Goggle says:
    April 26, 2015 at 7:10 pm

    […] GET THE RECIPE […]

    Reply
  2. 35 Comforting Chicken Dinner Recipes - Flour On My Face says:
    February 11, 2016 at 8:16 am

    […] Light Chicken Quinoa Divan […]

    Reply
  3. Freezer English Muffin Mini Pizzas says:
    April 17, 2017 at 12:41 am

    […] Light Chicken Quinoa Divan […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Hi, I'm Rachel! Welcome to Simple Seasonal, a resource for simple, healthful, and delicious recipes that help you make the most of seasonal produce from your local farmer's market, CSA, or home garden. Simple Seasonal is committed to a whole foods diet. With an occasional cookie... ;)


Recipes in Your Inbox!

Sign up to get free updates!

Search

Connect With Us

  • Bloglovin
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Connect With Us!

If you're active on social media, you'll find Simple Seasonal there as well. Feel free to connect, share, and say hello!

  • Bloglovin
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Discover Winter Recipes

Gummy Bear Mocktails
Southern Fried Apples
Scalloped and Candied Sweet Potatoes and Apples
Instant Pot Mongolian Beef and Green Beans
Crock-Pot Vegetable Chili

Discover Winter Recipes

Quick and Easy Kale
Fiesta Chopped Chipotle Kale Salad
Hot Toddy Cocktail
broccoli rabe and chicken pasta bowl
Cranberry Vinaigrette
Valentine's Tea Party Sandwiches

Copyright © 2023 · Simple Seasonal · Privacy Policy · ↑ Back to top

Privacy Policy