Italian Casserole

I really look forward to Fiesta Friday every week! Don’t you?! I love getting to celebrate with you and enjoy all the wonderful things you all bring!

Yay for Fiesta Friday! And yay for Angie and this week’s co-hosts (Selma from Selma’s Table and Jhuls from The Not So Creative Cook) who make this party happen each week!

So, what am I bringing to the party? Well I hope this isn’t too disappointing to all my fellow sweet toothers (a new word I made up 😉 ), but I am actually not bringing a dessert this week! I know, I am shocked too! So unlike me! In fact, it almost seems wrong somehow. 🙂

That said, I think you all will be pleasantly surprised with how delicious this gluten free, low-glycemic Italian casserole is! Dig in, and if you are like me, you will have to come back for seconds!

It was my first time at making a homemade red sauce. It was quite fun actually. I just kept experimenting with it…putting in a little bit of this and a lot a bit of that. My hubby and I both absolutely loved it! Honestly, I am already thinking about how I could use this sauce next! “More please, more!” is what my tummy is saying. 😀

I was so excited to use the basil off of my basil plant for the first time! So fun!

I mixed fresh basil and Parmesan cheese in with the quinoa flour to make the crust.

Here is the dough, the first layer of the casserole, all spread out evenly.

This is the homemade sauce I made…sweet with a spicy kick to it.

Layered on top of the crust, I put chicken and then Parmesan cheese.

And then to complete the dish, homemade sauce and more Parmesan cheese.

• Servings: 10-12
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*Created by Lori at Creating Beauty in the Kitchen

• 3 cups quinoa flour
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup fresh shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1 cup water
• 2 really large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 5 cloves of garlic, pressed or minced
• 1/2 cup diced yellow onion
• 1 can tomato paste
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• Lots of fresh basil, chopped into small pieces
• 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp coconut milk
• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
• Black pepper
• 5 tsp honey
• 1 tbsp olive oil

• In a large saucepan, combine the tomato paste, diced tomatoes, coconut milk, basil, honey, black pepper, and crushed red pepper. Let cook on medium heat.
• Meanwhile, in a small skillet, saute the onions and garlic with some olive oil. When they are finished, add them into your red sauce and let it continue to cook. If medium starts to get too high, then turn the temperature down some.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• In a mixing bowl, combine the flour with the softened butter. Mix until it forms clumps. Add in the Parmesan cheese, along with some chopped up basil. Slowly add in the cup of water. At this point, I just started using my hands to mix it well and make it into a nice dough texture.
• Grease a 9 x 12 baking dish and spread the dough out in it.
• Put it in the oven for 15-20 minutes.
• As your sauce and crust are cooking, cut the chicken into small chunks. Next, cook them in a skillet until cooked through and slightly browned.
• When the crust is ready, take it out of the oven and layer the chicken over it.
• Take your shredded cheese and sprinkle it over the chicken.
• Add the sauce (by this point my sauce had cooked for more than an hour, letting all the flavors soak in.
• Sprinkle more shredded Parmesan cheese over the top.
• Put it back in the oven and cook for 20-25 minutes.

Okay, now to the really impressive part….I cleaned as I went! 🙂 The kitchen (including the floor) is just as clean as before I cooked this meal….woohoo! 😀