I am posting this recipe as part of the Frugal Food Series: Chicken.
When Yankee Bill and I got married we had to plan the entire event from Alabama where we were stationed to be held in NY-actually in the very town we now live in. Due to the distances, all of the key players were not present until right before the wedding.
My MIL and oldest sister got together and planned a wedding shower for me that was held just 2 days before the wedding 
One of the gifts I got was a recipe file from Yankee Bill’s Grandmother-Happy.* Inside the file were her favorite personal recipes.
I didn’t get around to trying the recipe for Chicken Divan until Princess was born. At that point my MIL came to visit and made dinner most nights while I was in a newborn induced fog. She pulled this recipe out one night and made it. Yum!
Photo by JonK via Flickr.comNote: This is not my photo & doesn’t look exactly like my recipe turns out.
1 Lrg family size package frozen broccoli spears
2 1/2 lbs of chicken, cut and deboned after cooking
1 Can cream of chicken soup
1 TBS lemon juice
1/3 C Mayonnaise
1/3 C chicken broth
1/2 C Sour Cream
1/2 C Parmesan cheese
paprika
Defrost broccoli.
Combine soup, lemon juice, mayo, broth and sour cream.
Place chicken in a greased pan. Arrange broccoli over the top. Pour soup mixture over all.
Sprinkle top with Parmesan cheese and paprika.
Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. You could probably start with uncooked chicken and frozen broccoli and then bake for 45 min to an hour-I haven’t tried it so you would have to check periodically till done.
Recipes like this are fairly forgiving. If you don’t have sour cream, add some unflavored yogurt, or double one of the other ingredients. Or you could just leave it out and thin the mixture with some milk. Sure, it won’t taste quite the same, but it will still be good.
To make this even more frugal you could make your own cream of soup.
Photo by Coffeefloat via Flickr.com
2 C Powdered Milk
3/4 C Corn Starch
1/4 C Chicken Bullion Granules
2 TBS Onion Flakes (dry)
1 tsp Basil
1 tsp Garlic Powder
1/2 tsp Pepper
2 TBS dry celery flakes (optional)
Mix everything together and store in a airtight, dry container.
To use: Shake mix well, then combine 1/3 cup mix with 1 1/4 C cool tap water. Stir and bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil for 1 full minute. Remove from heat and use in any recipe calling for 1 can “Cream Of” soup.
Note: Happy is not an internet inspired nickname. She actually got that name when she was a child and still uses it. Once someone sent a letter to our town addressed to simply “Happy” with no street address, only the town and zip. She got the letter.
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Yum!! Sounds really good (looks it too)!
I also want to invite you to participate in the first edition of the The Carnival of Home Preserving that will be posted at Laura Williams’ Musings on Monday July 14th.
http://laurawilliamsmusings.blogspot.com/2008/07/introducing-carnival-of-home-preserving.html
It is a Carnival to Share Recipes and How-To’s for Canning, Freezing, Dehydrating (drying), and Root Cellaring of Fruits, Vegetables, and Herbs.
Deadline to Submit: every Sunday at 2pm EST
Carnival is to be posted by that Monday on the respective Host’s blog.
Link To Submit Post: Blog Carnival Submission
http://blogcarnival.com/bc/submit_4663.html
Everyone is welcome to join in.
Laura
That Cream of Something recipe is awesome!! How many times have I gone to the cupboards to get a Cream of something soup and had none!?!?!? That will never happen again!
Laura-I’m taking a look at the carnival. I’d love to participate.
Carolyn-Glad this recipe is helpful to you. I don’t do as many “cream of” casseroles in the summer, but this fall I’m making a big batch of this to keep in the cupboard.
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