Chicken Divan

I had some broccoli in the fridge the other day and had just unfrozen a very large chicken breast, so I was thinking about what to do with them. I faintly recalled a recipe from my youth (though I am not certain my mother actually made it; I may have just read about it) using those ingredients, and with a little trial and error found some recipes on Google. Now the traditional recipes all seem to call for cream of mushroom soup, and some also include mayonnaise (!!), but I thought I could make a good enough version with a béchamel sauce, with some parmesan on top. So I did, and it was pretty good comfort food, much needed in these times.

Next time I will blanch the broccoli only for a minute, instead of the 4 minutes I did, since it cooks quite a bit when the dish is in the oven. I cut the chicken breast into several thin pieces then floured them and browned in butter and olive oil. I also sautéed 3-4 large mushrooms and then deglazed the pan with 2-3 Tb of sherry. I layered the broccoli, chicken and mushrooms in a gratin dish and poured the béchamel on top—made with about a cup of milk and ¼ cup of heavy cream. Then sprinkled parmesan on top and baked for 25-30 minutes. This could also be done with a firm fleshed fish, such as halibut, and it’s similar to my halibut Florentine, but with broccoli instead of spinach.