Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole--Definitely One to Keep on Hand

Have you ever had a stubborn cold, or an upper respiratory infection that won't go away in the usual five day time frame? I've had one for over a week. Tired of the sniffles and the whiffles, I decided to take the proverbial chicken (albeit a tiny one) by the wings yesterday. I stewed a whole chicken, infused with garlic, to create a medicinal broth for my own version of a non-pharmeceutical prescription. The soup was delicious, but I had about two and one half cups of herb and garlic infused chicken meat remaining.

What to do with it? I thought about making a chicken pot pie, but I wasn't in the mood for the same savory flavor. I thought about a chicken salad, but there was just too much...chicken...for one of those, as much as I love chicken salad.

So, I decided on a Chicken Cordon Bleu casserole I like to stay away from condensed soups and anything else that is pre-made (too much salt, too many ingredients that I can't pronounce--it calls out the skeptic in me). I looked at several recipes, and based on the tastes of my family, I came up with the following. And goodness if this "hot dish" wasn't quite wonderful.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole
4-6 servings

Ingredients:
2 to 3 cups of cooked and diced chicken
8 oz. ham, finely chopped
6 thin slices of good quality Swiss Cheese
1 oz. freshly, finely grated Parmesan cheese (1/4 cup)

3/4 cup Panko bread crumbs
1/2 tsp. dried parsley
1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbsp. melted butter

Sauce:
1 and 3/4 cup milk
1 and 1/2 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tsp. prepared Dijon mustard
1 tsp. onion flakes
1/2 tsp. dried parsley
1/2 tsp. Kosher salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 clove minced garlic

3 Tbsp. butter
3 Tbsp. flour

1/2 cup sour cream

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place diced chicken in an even layer in a greased/buttered 8x8 glass baking dish, set aside.
3. Sauce preparation: Whisk together milk, lemon juice, mustard, onion flakes, parsley, salt, pepper, and minced garlic.
4. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Sautee garlic for a couple of minutes in butter. Add flour and cook stirring constantly for 1 minute. Whisk in milk mixture, then cook stirring constantly until mixture just begins to gently boil and has thickened. Remove from heat, stir in sour cream.
5. Pour mixture evenly over chicken.
6. Add ham over sauce then place Swiss slices and Parmesan cheese evenly over ham layer.
7. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together Panko bread crumbs, 1/2 tsp dried parsley, 1/8 tsp pepper then toss with melted butter until coated evenly.
8. Top with bread crumb mixture evenly over cheese layer.
9. Bake casserole in preheated oven for 45 minutes until golden brown on top. Serve warm.