Deviled Chicken Divan

This is a variation of the chicken with mustard sauce I made last week. OCT didn't like the mustard sauce but I think it has room for improvement. Hence, I decided to give it another chance. With some disguise of course, by adding broccoli, hot sauce and Gruyere cheese as Rachel Ray suggested.

A brand new chicken dish was born! Without OCT noticed they were one of the same dish. Chicken with Mustard Sauce

4 6-ounce boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1 Tbsp. fresh thyme leaves, chopped (from 4 sprigs)
Juice of 1 lemon
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)
3/4 cup chicken stock or broth
3 super-heaping Tbsp. good quality Dijon mustard
3 super-heaping Tbsp. sour cream

Season the chicken with the thyme, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat with the EVOO. Add the seasoned chicken breasts and cook for 5 to 6 minutes on each side, or until cooked through. Remove the chicken from the pan and cover with the foil. Turn up the heat on the skillet to high and add the chicken stock and mustard, whisking to combine. Bring up to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for 3 minutes.

Whisk in the sour cream and continue to cook until slightly thickened, about 2 more minutes. Serve the sauce over the chicken and accompany with a simple salad and something to sop up the sauce, like couscous or bread.

VARIATIONS:

Deviled Chicken Divan

Add:
2 10-ounce boxes frozen broccoli spears
A few pieces of lemon peel
2 tsp. hot sauce
2 cups shredded Gruyere or Swiss cheese such as Emmentaler

Cook the broccoli in boiling water in a shallow pan with the lemon peel. Cook to just heat through—you want the broccoli spears to retain their bright color. Drain well.

Preheat the broiler.

Prepare the chicken and sauce as directed in the master recipe, adding the hot sauce to the finished sauce (to "devil" it). Place the cooked chicken breasts and broccoli in a shallow casserole and top with the deviled sauce and the cheese. Broil until the cheese is brown and bubbly. Serve with crusty bread.