BBQ Chicken Zucchini Noodle Casserole

Mar 08, 2015 in main dish, recipes, bbq, chicken, gluten free, healthy, low carb, popular, spiralizer, zucchini. Read the original on: Julie's Eats & Treats

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BBQ Chicken Zucchini Noodle Casserole ~ Gluten free, low carb and protein packed with zucchini noodles and Greek yogurt! Great for healthy weeknight dinners!

This BBQ Chicken Casserole is made gluten free, low carb and protein packed with zucchini noodles and Greek yogurt! Great for healthy weeknight dinners!

Zoodle, do the zoodle. Zoodle, do the zoodle danceeeeee.

If you have kids, you know what the above sentence is in reference too.Â And, if you donâ€™t have kids, you should probably go and watch â€œPb & J Otterâ€ to know what Iâ€™m talkinâ€™ about.

And, yes, I DO NOT have kids, and I know that show. I enjoy spending my time watching cartoon otters dance around my TV screen.

You can judge me.

Anyway.

Contrary to what I might have led you to believe, we are not talking about otters or anything to do with peanut butter and Jelly today.

BUT, we are talking about zoodles.Â Do you know what that is?

A zucchini, made into a NOODLE. Otherwise known as the most fun word to say EVER.

And one of the most fun things for your taste buds to plant into when theyâ€™re mixed with creamy Greek yogurt, Smokey BBQ Sauce and ALL THE CHEESE.

And, really, thatâ€™s ABOUT IT.

This bake you guys. Itâ€™s so easy.

E-Z like I am not even going to type the whole word, because you can MAKE IT in less time than that would take.

That might be a slight exaggeration. BUT, you understand me.

In fact itâ€™s evenÂ SO easy that I MIGHT have made this for the last 4 days straight because I didnâ€™t even want to think about creating something new and exciting when something old was still making my taste buds RAISE DA ROOF.

Hint: I did.

To make this here zucchini noodle casserole (that just so happens to be grain free, low carb and protein packed! WHATWHAT.) youâ€™ll be using that ohsocoolandfresh thing that is popping up all ovah the interwebz: the spiralizer.

BUT, if you havenâ€™t jumped on that bandwagon, just use your mandolin. Youâ€™ll still be cool.

Then youâ€™re going to dry those zoodlies out in your oven. DO NOT. I REPEAT. DO NOT skip this step.

I did once. <â€“ Never again.Â Unless you like your casseroles to go for a swim before you eat them.

Zucchinis, you guys, have A LOT of water. You needa get rid oâ€™ that, cappesh?

Good.

Once youâ€™ve done that, youâ€™re ALMOST to the finish line! Just gently heat some Greek yogurt (<3) your favorite BBQ sauce and CHEESE in a pot until its smooth and ohsocreamy.

Mix it up with your zoodles, some cilantro and VOILA.Â A nutrit-a-licious dinner that even your kids will love.

I know we established I donâ€™t HAVE kids. BUT, I have a husband.

Same thang

Make it. Eat it.Â And embrace the general feelings of goodness and health that typically does not accompany this kinda comfort food nums.

BBQ Chicken Zucchini Noodle Casserole

Prep Time: 45 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

4 Small Zucchinis (about 6 cups spiralized)
Salt
Â½ Cup Plain, Non-fat Greek yogurt
Â½ Cup BBQ sauce, of choice + additional for drizzling
1 Â½ Cups Reduced-fat Cheddar Cheese, grated and divided
1 Cup Shredded chicken breast (leftover rotisserie chicken works great here!)
Â½ Cup Cilantro, roughly chopped + additional for garnish
Pepper

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 200 degrees and line two baking sheets with paper towl.
Using the 3mm blade, spiralize your zucchinis. Divide the zucchini noodles between the two baking sheets in a flat layer. Sprinkle evenly with salt.
Bake the zucchini noodles in the oven for 40 minutes to dry them out. Once cooked, cover with paper towel and press out any excess moisture. Repeat once more with an additional paper towel. Set aside.
Bring your oven up to 375 degrees and place the Greek yogurt, BBQ sauce and 1 cup of cheese in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook until the cheese just begins to break down and look melty and â€œstringy,â€ about 8-10 minutes, whisking regularly. *
While the cheese melts, toss together the shredded chicken breast, cilantro and dried zucchini noodles into a large bowl. Lightly cut up the mixture up with a fork and knife to make it easier to evenly mix, as well as cut, once cooked.
Once the cheese has begun to melt, pour the sauce over the zucchini noodle mixture and season with a pinch of pepper. Mix well until the sauce evenly coats all the noodles.
Spread the casserole into a casserole dish and bake for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and bake until golden brown and bubble, about 20-25 more minutes.
Once cooked, let the casserole cool for 20 minutes (donâ€™t skip this!) to let it set and absorb some of the water.**
Cut and drizzle with extra BBQ sauce and cilantro, if desired. DEVOUR.

Notes

* The cheese will not become totally smooth, which is totally ok. You donâ€™t want to over-cook the yogurt and cause it to curdle. ** I made this a few times and sometimes there was a little bit of water left in the bottom of my dish once cooled. If this happens just cut and plate the first piece and then lightly tip the dish so the liquid pools in the corner and blot any excess liquid with a paper towel.

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http://www.julieseatsandtreats.com/2015/03/bbq-chicken-zucchini-noodle-casserole/

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