Chicken Lasagna

This creamy, cheesy, chicken lasagna was a huge hit with my family. They couldn't get enough! I found this recipe on Better Than Burgers, a blog with tons of yummy recipes cooked up by a pretty mother-daughter team, Julie and Dayna. I knew that my family would eat this, because there's not one thing in here that they don't like, but I had no idea how much they would enjoy it.

It was really simple to make too! I started by melting a couple of tablespoons of butter in a skillet. Then I added a pound of so of cut up boneless, skinless chicken breast and 2-3 cloves of minced garlic. I cooked the chicken just until it was no longer pink and removed it from the skillet.

Then I combined 2 cans of cream of chicken soup, a block of light cream cheese, 2 cups of light sour cream, and skim milk in the skillet. Because I only had oven ready (no boil) noodles, I also stirred in around a cup of water to soften up those noodles. Stir the ingredients together and bring them to a boil. Then, reduce to a simmer and stir the chicken back in to the mixture.

I built the lasagna by spreading some sauce on the bottom of a 9 X 13 inch baking dish, followed by noodles, then cheese. I repeated until the sauce was gone and the pan was full, ending with sauce and then cheese. If you're using "regular" lasagna noodles for this recipe, just cook them according to the package directions before using. Put the baking dish into a 350 degree oven and bake it for 20-25 minutes (a little longer if you're using oven ready noodles) until it's all hot and bubbly and melty. : )

As I said above, this dinner was a huge hit! I sprinkled some Italian spices over the top for garnish.

Chicken Lasagna adapted from Better Than Burgers

2-3 cloves minced garlic
2 T. butter (use the real stuff)
1 to 1- 1/2 lbs. chicken breast, cubed into small pieces
2 cans cream chicken soup
1-8 oz light cream cheese
2 c. light sour cream
1 c. skim milk
1 box lasagna noodles prepared according to package instructions
3-4 c. grated Monterrey Jack cheese
1-2 c. shredded Swiss cheese
Italian spice or dipping spices, for sprinkling over the top (optional)

In a large frying pan saute chicken and garlic in melted butter until the chicken is no longer pink. Removed chicken and keep warm.

Add cream soup, cream cheese, sour cream, and milk, to the skillet. Stir until ingredients melt and thicken slightly. Add chicken and continue to stir. Turn heat down and simmer for 2-3 minutes.

Spread a thin layer of sauce in a 9x13 baking dish. Then layer noodles, then cream sauce with chicken, then cheese. Continue to repeat until your pan is full, ending with cheese on top. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

Notes: I used oven ready lasagna noodles for this recipe for the first time ever. I read up about them and discovered that you need to add a little extra liquid (in this case either broth or water) and cook the dish a little longer. I think I cooked mine about 10-15 minutes longer. I was pleased with the result and would use oven ready lasagna noodles again.

You could make this a day ahead or even make it and freeze it for a quick dinner later. Give it a try!