Cheesy Chicken Lasagna Recipe - Cooking With Rebecca

Tweaked and updated as the first entry on my new site, CookingWithRebecca.com, this lasagna was yummy for supper one early Fall 2020 evening.

The original story, in 2012:

This one isn’t even out of the oven yet, but I know it’s going to be a keeper! I like how it’s different than anything I make … in fact, for years I have resorted to Stouffer’s Lasagna because when I have a coupon and it’s on sale, I really can’t make it for less than I can buy a prepared one.

But recently, I have become a fan of Vegetable Lasagna, using long slices of zucchini in place of the noodles; and today, I tried this Chicken Lasagna with a creamy Ranch dressing sauce.

I added veggies to mine…just can’t pass up an opportunity to add some good nutrition, especially when a delectable sauce will liven up broccoli and cauliflower. And I also cut the recipe in half and used an 8″ square pan, knowing that our smaller family didn’t need huge amounts of lasagna. But I kept the sauce full size to have enough liquid to cook those lasagna noodles. No need to pre-cook that! Here’s what I did:

Cheesy Chicken Lasagna

2 (12 oz) cans evaporated milk (not fat-free)
1/2 (1 oz) pkg. dry Ranch dressing mix (I saved the rest of the envelope for next time)
1 1/2 C. cubed, cooked, chicken
1/8 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp salt
6 lasagna noodles

1 1/2 to 2 C mozzarella cheese, grated
6-8 large florets broccoli (about 2 cups once it’s chopped later)
6-8 large florets cauliflower (about 2 cups once it’s chopped later)Prep Ahead:

Cook the chicken and set aside. Better yet, pull some batch-cooked chicken from your freezer and thaw it for this project. I usually add some seasonings when cooking chicken for a recipe — salt and pepper, garlic powder, parsley flakes, onion flakes, paprika — any or all, about 1/2 teaspoon for each boneless chicken breast.

Steam large pieces of broccoli and cauliflower until crisp/tender, then chop into small pieces. I did this early in the day, then cracked a window and diffused some orange essential oil to get rid of the smell. My bowl of prepared veggies just sat in the fridge until pre-dinner assembly time.

Assemble the Lasagna:
Combine evaporated milk (don’t use fat-free version) and Ranch dressing in a saucepan. Heat over low heat, stirring frequently until dry ingredients are dissolved. Simmer, uncovered, 25 minutes (don’t do any less), stirring frequently.

Use this simmering time to clean up the kitchen. Wash dishes, set the table, put away groceries.

In an 8×8 pan, layer a drizzle of the sauce (cover the bottom of the pan), 1/3 of the lasagna noodles (that’s 2 of them, each snapped off-center for three rows of noodles), half of the veggies and chicken, and 1/2 c cheese. Repeat layers again: some sauce, noodles, chicken and veggies, and cheese. Top with another covering of sauce, a final layer of noodles, and a sprinkling of cheese, and the rest of the sauce over that.

Bake:

Cover with foil. Place pan on a baking sheet, because it’s full with that whole amount of sauce. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Let rest 10 minutes before serving.

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