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Macro-Friendly Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

A surprisingly lighter and high protein take on a classic dish!

Ingredients

For the Bake

  • ~ 1.5 lbs raw chicken breast (mine was 644 g)
  • 4 ounces deli ham, roughly chopped (112 g. I used Kirkland extra lean ham)
  • 5 slices light Swiss Cheese, with each slice cut into four pieces (Jarlsberg was the brand I used)
  • 670 g spaghetti squash, cooked

For the Topping

  • 30 g Italian bread crumbs (I used the Great Value brand)
  • 1/2 T melted butter (7 g)

For the Sauce

  • 2 T butter (28 g)
  • 2 T flour (15 g)
  • 480 g 1 % milk ( 2 cups)
  • 1 T lemon juice, or more to taste
  • 1.5 T Dijon Mustard
  • 1/4 tsp paprika
  • 1/2 tsp salt, or more, to taste
  • freshly cracked pepper, to taste

Instructions

  • First prepare the spaghetti squash. Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Cut the spaghetti squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Place the spaghetti squash flat side down onto a baking sheet or 9X13 pan. Bake in a preheated oven for 40 minutes or until it is tender. After it has cooled, use a fork to pull strands of spaghetti squash and set aside.
  • While the spaghetti squash is baking, cook the raw chicken until no pink remains. You can do this with whatever method you prefer. I used my air fryer (360 degrees for about 20 minutes, but will vary depending on the thickness of your chicken breast) . After the chicken is cooked, dice it into bite-sized pieces.
  • Preheat an oven to 350 degrees.
  • For the sauce, begin by melting the butter over medium heat. Once it is melted, sprinkle the flour on top. Whisk the flour into the butter mixture and keep whisking for about 2 minutes to help cook out the raw flour taste. Do not allow the mixture to brown.
  • After the 2 minutes, slowly stir in the milk, whisking to combine. Continue whisking until all the flour is incorporated into the milk. Allow the sauce to cook over medium heat, stirring very frequently, until the mixture begins to bubble and thicken.
  • After the mixture begins to bubble and thicken, turn the heat down to low. Add in the lemon juice, dijon mustard, salt, paprika, and pepper, whisking to evenly combine. Taste and add additional salt and pepper or lemon juice as necessary. I usually do add more of each of these! Turn off heat.
  • In a large bowl, combine cooked spaghetti squash strands, diced chicken, diced ham, and the sauce. Stir until completely combined.
  • Spray a medium-sized casserole dish with cooking spray. Add in the spaghetti squash mixture evenly in the baking dish. Evenly lay out the swiss cheese in the casserole dish.
  • In a small bowl, melt the additional butter in a microwave for about 10-15 seconds. Add in the breadcrumbs and stir to evenly incorporate them into the butter. Sprinkle the buttered breadcrumbs over the cheese layer evenly.
  • Bake in a preheated oven for about 30 minutes, or until bubbly all over and beginning to brown. Allow to rest for 15 minutes for the casserole to thicken. Serve and enjoy!

Notes

Macros for 1/6 of the dish are rouned to 10F/19C/36P and 311 calories. 
 
To find the recipe on MyFitnessPal, search for "How We Macro Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole."