Ha, I had the same dilemma this weekend, wanted to make "chicken divan" but didn't really know how. Googled some recipes and then realized it was going to be really tough as I didn't have chicken broth (not critical) OR white wine (pretty critical). I ended up improvising with a white sauce, onions, mushrooms and some leftover turkey gravy for a poultry taste. Lemon juice instead of wine. Added cheddar and parmesean for the cheese factor. It was good but the rice got mushy. BF liked it so next time I am going to try this recipe from my Cook's Illustrated "Cover & Bake" cookbook. P.S. Frankly I think some of their fussing is over the top and not necessary. Yes, slightly undercook the rice but I cut up the chicken and sauteed it until more or less done and it was OK. Also steamed the broccoli in the microwave. Chicken Divan Casserole from "Cooks Illustrated Cover & Bake" cookbook, America's Test Kitchen, Brookline MA, 2004. Topping: 1 cup slivered or whole blanched almonds (adjust grinding time depending on which you use, almonds should be pieces, not fine powder) 3 sliced white sandwich bread, torn into quarters 2 TBLSP melted butter, unsalted Process almonds in a food processor fitted with the steel blade until coarsely ground, 5-10 seconds. Add the bread and butter and process to a unformly coarse crumb, about six 1-second pulses. Set the this aside. Filling: Salt to taste 1 med. bunch broccoli (~ 1.5 lbs.), florets trimmed to 1 inch pieces, stalks peeled and chopped medium sized. 1 TBLSP olive oil 1 med. onion, minced 1 1/2 cups long grain white rice (I never use white rice) 3 1/2 cups water (or broth, IMHO) 4 TBLSP unsalted butter 1/4 cup all purpose flour 2 cups low sodium chicken broth 3/4 cup heavy cream (I almost always use half and half) 6 oz. sharp cheddar, grated (~ 2 cups) 1 oz. Parmesean cheese, grated (~1/2 cup) 1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper 2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of excess fat 1 lemon cut into wedges Note: splash of white wine, just IMHO. Steam or parboil broccoli for 1 minute. Season with salt. If parboiling, season the water with salt. Can also do in the microwave, make them just below done. In a large saucepan or dutch oven, add the oil and put on med. heat until oil is shimmering. Add the onion, broccoli stems, and 1/2 tsp. salt. (Frankly I'd add mushrooms and garlic too!). Cook until softened, about 7 minutes. Add the rice and cook stirring to coat the grains with oil, for about 1 min. Add the water and bring to a simmer. Cover, turn the heat to low, and cook until the water is absorbed and the rice is just tender. (16 min. for white rice, longer for brown). Meanwhile, melt the butter in a small saucepan over med. heat. Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, until golden, about 1 min. Slowly whisk in the chicken broth and cream; bring to a simmer, whisking often. (Here's where I'd add a splash of white wine). Off the heat, whisk in the cheeses, and cayenne until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and set aside until ready to use. Preheat overn to 400 degrees. Spread the cooked rice into a 9 x 13 inch baking dish or casserole, and arrange the broccoli florets in an even layer over the rice. Take the chicken cutlets and cut them in half widthwise (you want them very thin) and then cut these thin slices in half lengthwise, (you're making chicken "shingles"). Layer the chicken, slightly overlapping shingle-style across the broccoli, so that all the broccoli gets covered by chicken. Otherwise, according to these fussbudgets the exposed broccoli with get overdone/dried out. Pour about 2 cups of sauce over the chicken and sprinkle with the bread crumb topping. Bake until the chicken is cooked through and the edges are bubbling, 30-35 min. Cool for 10 minutes. Serve with lemon wedges, passing the remaining sauce separately. Note: I've never made this so I might just sear the chicken breasts in EVOO before shingling them just in case, since I can't seem to get chicken to cook well in my oven. But they are so thin, probably not really necessary. Overcooked chicken will get rubbery. Anyhow, I think they are on to something with this layering technique, since when I made it I just glopped everything together and smooshed it into a casserole and topped with parm. I did this mostly because I was very short on chicken, I didn't have near as much as that recipe above calls for, so I cut mine up into little chunks and added them to the rice. Oh, and I added spinach to the rice mixture too.

I've had the GEFU in my Amazon cart but just can't seem to commit. I only want something for a few dishes like a rice vermicelli miso soup and some Vietnamese dishes. Maybe a cucumber salad when i tire of the usual slices and chunks and wet smooshie gratings. It is small, fits in a drawer easily. Works like a big pencil sharpener. Some like it, some do not. At least the price is way down now. Just tired of gadgets and plastic junk, : ) Here is a link that might be useful: gefu spiral slicer

I use various cheeses. My favorites are fontina, monterey jacks, cheddars (sharp especially for us), gouda, edam, gruyere, mozzarella, parmesan, romano, and provolone. I have melted asiago once and it came out okay too. The trick is to make your white sauce first and then add the cheese as the milk warms in small chunks or shred it. Stir contantly and don't whisk it, just easy stirs. Velvety sauce everytime is my experience. If you aren't making a sauce, or adding it to other ingredients, then almost anything will do I would think, but fresh cheeses like goat cheese can separate on you, I've had that happen once. Most cheese have a huge fat content and have salt. The fatter the cheese, usually the easier it melts I would think. We eat a LOT of cheese in our family, but we like it fresh cut or in a sauce best. Cheddar and mozzarella are the basic toppings for pizza or like tuna melts. Our favorite cheeses for macaroni and cheeses when I do it homemade is a mixture. I will do tomato sauces or white sauce based cheese sauces based on what tag ends of cheese, or cheese I need to use are in the fridge. Fontina is a favorite white cheese around here for melting. And, I think I forgot plain swiss in my list. But, baby swiss to nice ripe swiss cheese always tastes good mixed with beef. Try fontina cheese mixed in with ground veal, and don't forget to use feta cheese with lamb!!

I am quite intrigued by this idea. I wonder if you could carefully do it on just half the island (obviously the top would have a seam) so for example the seating area could be a different height if needed.