Creamy Green Chile & Chicken Casserole

Creamy, cheesy and just the right amount of spicy

I admit, I am still intimidated with cooking gluten-free for my family at times.  After a few months of safe grilled meats and veggies, we were missing our casseroles and slow cooker meals.  We love Mexican inspired recipes.  Who can resist flavor and cheesy goodness?
I have several favorite gluten-free recipe sites and I came across a version of a Green Chile & Chicken Casserole from Kalyn's Kitchen.  I tweaked it a little and the results were fantastic!

The key to this casserole is mixing in the cream cheese and sour cream into the enchilada sauce.  This really cuts the heat and makes it super family friendly (and creamy!).  If you don't want to poach chicken, I recommend shredding a whole rotisserie chicken to replace it.  This fed my hungry crew of four adults and two children with just a serving left over.  

If you are gluten free, be sure to check the chile sauce.  Many brands use wheat as a thickener.  We used La Victoria, which is a mainstream brand that can be found in your grocery store.

Slice up your chicken to cook it faster, but not too thin or it will be dry

Coat the tortillas in the sauce before layering

Tortillas first

Add the chicken

Top with sauce and cheese - yum!

Creamy Green Chile & Chicken Casserole

• 2-3lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts
• bay leaf
• 1 tsp. granulated garlic
• 1 tsp. salt
• 28oz can and 15oz can of green chile enchilada sauce
• 4oz low-fat cream cheese
• 1/3cup sour cream
• 2 cups grated low-fat mozzarella
• 12 corn tortillas

Serves 12.

Oven 375 degrees

To poach chicken:

Trim chicken of fat and cut breasts into thirds. Place in medium pot with cold water, granulated garlic and salt.  Bring to simmer and check after 10mins.  If still pink, cook five more minutes.  Drain and set aside.  Once cool enough to handle, use two forks to shred meat or use knife to dice into small pieces.

To make enchilada sauce:

Empty both cans of sauce into saucepan, bring to simmer and let reduce for about 10 minutes.  Add cream cheese and sour cream and stir to combine thoroughly.

To assemble casserole:

Bottom layer is six corn tortillas.  Dip each tortilla into sauce mixture and layer to cover bottom of large 9"x13" casserole pan.  Top with 1/2 of the chicken, then 1 1/2 cups of sauce and 1 cup of cheese.

Repeat for the next layer, dipped tortillas, chicken, rest of sauce and top with cheese.

Bake for approximately 40-45minutes uncovered, until bubbly and cheese is golden brown.  Let cool for 10-15minutes and then slice into 12 servings.

A sure sign of a successful family dinner