Chicken Broccoli Casserole with Ritz Crackers
This broccoli cheese chicken casserole with Ritz crackers is one of the easiest weeknight dinner recipes! This upgraded version of the classic uses a homemade cheese sauce instead of Velveeta cheese and canned soup!
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 387kcal
Ingredients
Cheese Sauce
- 1 TBS butter
- 1 TBS flour
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
- 1 sprinkle paprika
- 1 cup milk
- 1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese
Casserole
- 16 oz boneless skinless chicken breasts cooked and cubed
- 2 cups fresh broccoli steamed and chopped
- ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 sleeve Ritz crackers crushed to large crumbs either by hand or in a zipper top bag
- 1 TBS butter melted
Instructions
Cheese Sauce
- Melt 1 TBs butter in saucepan over low heat. Once bubbly, add flour, salt, pepper, and paprika. Stir until combined.1 TBS butter, 1 TBS flour, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, 1 sprinkle paprika
- Cook over low heat for one minute then add in milk and stir. Heat until mixture is boiling, stirring continually.1 cup milk
- Once milk boils, boil for another minute before adding 1 1/2 cups shredded cheese.1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- Stir until completely melted and remove from heat.
Casserole
- Spray 9x13 casserole dish all over with non-stick spray.
- Add half of your broccoli and half of your chicken into the prepared casserole dish. Mix together into one single layer.16 oz boneless skinless chicken breasts, 2 cups fresh broccoli
- Top chicken and broccoli layer with half of your cheese sauce, making sure to cover the entire chicken layer with cheese.
- Sprinkle half of your cracker crumbs over the cheese layer.1 sleeve Ritz crackers
- Repeat so you have two "layers" of casserole, like a lasagna.
- Top final layer with the other 1/2 cup of shredded cheese.1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- Melt the other 1 tablespoon of butter in the microwave and pour over the top of the casserole.1 TBS butter
- Bake casserole at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until the top cheese is melted and the cracker crumbs are browned (but not burnt).
Notes
Use diced up rotisserie chicken to make this even faster!
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days!
Nutrition
Calories: 387kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 29g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Cholesterol: 110mg | Sodium: 347mg | Potassium: 329mg | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 855IU | Vitamin C: 28.3mg | Calcium: 340mg | Iron: 1.2mg