Cheesy "Casserioli*"

*made up word courtesy of Clara at iheartfoodforthought*

This casserole is courtesy of iheartfoodforthought's wonderful cooking blog. As soon as I saw her pictures, I knew I had to make this!! I have never been a fan of Alfredo sauce, especially any from a jar...but as Clara says in her post, this will make you a scratch-made Alfredo convert! I sooooo wish you could smell the wonderful aroma of this homemade sauce, then when it was cooking away in the oven, you could have floated away on a cloud of garlicky-saucey goodness...

Oh, and it was super easy as well!! Be sure to add this to your must-make list, and Clara's blog to your favorites! :)

INGREDIENTS

2 lbs pre-packaged 4-cheese ravioli, cooked &drained
2 cups frozen broccoli florets, defrosted
1-1/2 cups pre-cooked chicken strips, diced
alfredo sauce (recipe follows) - you could substitute jar sauce here, but....don't. Just don't.
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup mozzarella cheese, divided
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1 tbsp butter

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.

Coat the bottom of a 9×13 glass baking dish with a thin layer of alfredo sauce. In a medium bowl, gently fold the ravioli, broccoli, chicken, garlic, alfredo sauce, 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese until combined.

Place mixture into baking dish & top with 1/2 cup mozzarella & parmesan cheese. (I probably used more...)

Cut the butter into small pieces & scatter on top of the cheese. Bake for 20 minutes or until cheese is hot & bubbly. Set to broil for additional 5 minutes if you want it more toasty, which I do recommend!

Alfredo Sauce
Recipe from RecipeZaar

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
2 garlic clove, minced
2 cups heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon white pepper (I used black, tasted fine)
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
3/4 cup mozzarella cheese

INSTRUCTIONS

Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium/low heat. Add the garlic, cream, white pepper & bring mixture to a simmer. Stir often. Add the parmesan cheese & simmer sauce for 8-10 minutes or until sauce has thickened & is smooth.

When sauce has thickened add the mozzarella cheese & stir until smooth. STIR FREQUENTLY.