For years, Mom made a casserole featuring turkey and broccoli smothered in canned cream of mushroom soup, cheese, and breadcrumbs--also known as "Turkey Divan." It was good, and everyone liked it. That was before the "canned soup is evil" message. Now, I make the casserole, but I've altered it to fit our lifestyle changes (i.e., avoiding a lot of sodium and other things in canned soups). I also sometimes use the air fryer to avoid heating up the oven (the heat index in northern Virginia has been over 100 degrees for the past couple of weeks, so that air fryer has really come in handy!). The air fryer casserole is quick to assemble and cooks in about six minutes. It's also a great way to use up leftover turkey and broccoli if you have any. What you end up with is a "meal in a dish" that's tasty, reasonably nutritious, and fast--truly a "comfort casserole," albeit in individual serving dishes.
Air Fryer Turkey Divan -- Serves 3 or 4
2-3 cups of chopped, cooked turkey (I use leftover rotisserie-seasoned turkey breast)
12 ounces of broccoli, cooked (you can microwave the frozen, "steamable" package if
you want)
1 cup of shredded cheddar or Monterey-Jack cheese, divided
1/4 cup of flour
2 cups of low-fat milk
1/4 teaspoon of salt
2-3 tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon of pepper
Paprika
Spritz 3-4 small baking dishes (whatever will fit in your air fryer--I use 4-inch square dishes) with nonstick cooking spray. Divide the cooked broccoli among the dishes, then sprinkle a little cheese (about 2 tablespoons, total) on the broccoli in each dish. Divide the turkey among the dishes and sprinkle a little cheese on top of it (about 2 tablespoons, total). Put the flour in a 4-quart measure and microwave it for three minutes, stirring it every 30-60 seconds. After you've "cooked" the flour, whisk in the milk and salt. Microwave the mixture for 4-5 minutes until it thickens, whisking it after a minute, then every 30 seconds. After the sauce has thickened, whisk in the Parmesan and the pepper. Pour the sauce over the turkey/cheese/broccoli in the dishes, dividing the sauce evenly. Sprinkle the remaining cheese evenly over the sauce in each dish. Sprinkle on a bit of paprika. Put one mini casserole in the air fryer and cook it at 320 degrees for 5-6 minutes or until bubbly and the cheese has melted. Repeat the cooking process with the remaining casseroles. Let them cool a little before serving them.
