Gluten-Free Creamy Chicken Casserole is so easy to make! Swiss cheese, buttery breadcrumbs, and a creamy sauce made with a quick homemade gluten-free cream of condensed soup and apple juice.
After I shared the recipe for gluten-free cream of condensed soup I've been looking for ways to use it. Growing up my family never cooked with canned cream of condensed soup, so I don't have that favorite childhood casserole that I was dying to make.
We were visiting with family and I asked one of my sister-in-laws what her favorite recipes using cream of condensed soup were. Immediately she told me about this gluten-free creamy chicken casserole recipe that had been given to her by a friend from church.
The way she described it made my mouth water! And it sounded so easy to make. You just mix cream of condensed soup with apple juice concentrate and pour it over some chicken topped with Swiss cheese. Then sprinkle some bread crumbs on top and drizzle them with butter. Bake it and viola, you now have delicious gluten-free creamy chicken casserole! Just serve it over some rice, or even your favorite gluten-free pasta.
As you cut into the chicken to take your first bite you and hear the crunch of the buttery breadcrumbs and see the gooey melted Swiss cheese ooze over the chicken. The chicken is so moist! And the creamy sauce, OH THE SAUCE! Slightly sweet, but in a pleasant savory way, not a "this should be dessert" way. The apple juice adds such a unique crisp flavor to the creamy homemade cream of condensed soup.
You can use less, or more apple juice concentrate to adjust the "apple-y-ness" of the sauce. Half a cup of apple juice concentrate made it slightly sweet and quite "apple-y." I loved the apple flavor, but if you want to play it safe use just a quarter cup of apple juice concentrate the first time you make it. You'll want to add more the next time you make it. Because there will be a next time!
The original recipe used herb stuffing mix sprinkled over the top, but I chose breadcrumbs because it is much easier to find, or make, gluten-free breadcrumbs. I used some store-bought pre-seasoned gluten-free breadcrumbs that I found at the store this time, but I often make my own breadcrumbs. In fact, I think this is the first time I've ever bought breadcrumbs. We always made them when I was growing up and so I have always made my own.
My favorite trick is to use leftover gluten-free waffles and run them through the grater attachment on my mixer or food processor. It gives me just the perfect crumbs! If you are using homemade or un-seasoned breadcrumbs see the note for seasoning them. Be sure that whatever gluten-free breadcrumbs you use, they are dry and crisp so you get the toasted buttery coating on the top.
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