Boomers Grew Up Eating This Chicken And Broccoli Dish That's Seemingly Escaped Today's Dinner Tables

There are plenty of retro cozy meals that boomers love. We might look back on them and wonder why they're no longer popular. Take, for instance, tuna casserole, old-school Shake 'N' Bake chicken, and one dinner that was easy to put together for a hearty, comforting meal: chicken Divan.

If you're not familiar with it, then maybe you're too young to remember it, but chicken Divan still deserves a spot at the dinner table in the 21st century. It's loaded with chicken, a creamy sauce, and broccoli and features a crumbled cracker topping, but there are plenty of variations in terms of the exact ingredients you can use. The dish's origin story starts in New York City at the Divan Parisien Restaurant in Hotel Chatham (which is no longer open). It was first made in the early 1900s as a skillet dish but developed into more of a hearty casserole through the years. It's a perfect dinner to throw together in a pinch using store-bought ingredients, or you can spend a little extra time making everything from scratch.

Put simply, chicken Divan is made by sauteing chicken and vegetables, then folding in the ingredients for the cream sauce, and topping it with cheese and crackers before baking it in a casserole dish. In addition to the broccoli, saute a few other veggies and aromatics like celery and onions as the chicken cooks. To avoid the chopping, grab frozen, pre-chopped vegetables. You can make the creamy sauce base with three simple ingredients: cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and milk, which creates the perfect blend of rich and tangy flavors. If you want to keep it simpler or shrink that grocery list, you can get away with using just a good jarred Alfredo sauce instead. It will be a little richer without the tang, but it's a solid substitute. 

While the typical recipe calls for the creamy chicken and vegetable mixture to be topped with a cheesy, crispy topping. For the cheese, make it more decadent by adding a blend of cheddar and Gruyère, get some salt in there with fresh Parmesan, or make it especially gooey and melty with a blend of cheddar and American cheese. For the crispy component, mix crushed crackers (many recipes call for Ritz) with butter and sprinkle over the top, or you can use breadcrumbs instead if you prefer. Then, bake and savor the nostalgia in every bite.