Chicken, Spinach, Egg Noodle Casserole

After a seven week hiatus from trying new recipes, I finally made something new to post.  I was very worried that the sauce wouldn't thicken up, and it really didn't get that thick, so I wonder if my roux (butter and flour) didn't thicken enough.  I added more flavorings to the sauce: Italian seasoning, black pepper, parsley and no-salt seasoning (with onion and garlic being the top two seasonings.)  I also added more spinach, less pasta and no breadcrumbs.  It reminded me of fettuccine Alfredo.

6 Tablespoons unsalted butter (4 T for roux, 2 T for breadcrumbs)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups whole milk
1 cup sour cream
12 oz. egg noodles [I used 8 oz, measured on a scale]
5 oz. chopped baby spinach [I used 2 cups chopped spinach]
2 cups cooked cubed chicken or rotisserie chicken
4 slices sandwich bread
salt and black pepper
[Italian seasoning]
[Parsley]
[garlic/onion seasoning]

Boil water and cook egg noodles according to directions.  For sauce, melt 4 T. butter in a medium sauce pan until melted, whisk in flour until bubbly and thick (not brown.)  Slowly add the milk, let simmer and whisk until thickened.  Remove from heat, add the seasonings to taste and stir in the sour cream.  Mix the chopped spinach and chopped chicken into the sauce.  Combine with the drained noodles and pour into a 9x13 baking dish.  Sprinkle on bread crumbs (made from the 4 slices sandwich bread and 2 T butter.)  Add additional butter on top.  Bake in a 400 degree oven for 8 to 10 minutes until breadcrumbs are golden and the sauce is bubbly.  Cool for five minutes before serving.  [I covered the casserole with foil and let it bake for 20 minutes; however, I wonder if I needed to cover it at all even without breadcrumbs.]

Source: Real Simple Recipes.  "Chicken, Spinach, and Noodle Casserole".  27. March 2012.

Kugel {Jewish casserole}

At my friend's wedding reception, they served a traditional Jewish dish with eggs, cottage cheese, egg noodles, and peaches/pineapples (other fruits).  I didn't catch the name, but I wanted to try to make it myself.  At home I immediately searched for the ingredients and found out that it's called Kugel.  I searched for a recipe that I thought would taste most like the one at the wedding.  This is what I found, and tonight I tried it.  It tastes similar but not exact, and now I know how I want to vary it for the future (namely, more eggs and fewer noodles).

Peach Noodle Kugle
1 lb broad egg noodle
[1 stick] butter
4 eggs, lightly beaten
[3/4 cup] sugar
1 tsp salt
1 pint (2 cups) small curd cottage cheese
1 pint (2 cups) sour cream
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp nut butter flavoring {didn't use}
1 large can (28 oz) peaches, cut into pieces (reserve some juice for later)
OR 1 can (8 oz) crushed pineapple, with its juice
apricot preserves

Boil water in a medium saucepan, cook pasta for 7-9 minutes.  Drain and pour into a large mixing bowl.  Add butter, beaten eggs, sugar, salt, cottage cheese, sour cream, vanilla and peaches.  Stir and pour into a greased 13x9 baking dish.  Optionally (because I didn't do this, this time) thin out some apricot preserves with peach juice, spoon onto the top of the dish, spreading evenly with the bottom of a spoon.  Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

*Some notes: first, I would like to find a recipe with more eggs and less pasta.  I would like to try mixing pineapple and peaches.  I'm not sure if you need to cover it in the oven because the top of the dish had darkened pasta (could be solved by adding a cover like the preserves).  I like the fragrance and the taste (especially from the cheese, eggs, and fruit, not so much from the pasta).  It's a sweet dish that makes a great alternative for get togethers and holidays.


Other links to try: Pineapple Noodle Kugle and Top 10 Kugel Recipes

Easy Mini Quiche

I made these for a friend's visit last Friday (the 10th), and as the recipe's name promise, they are easy.  I made them in silicone muffin cup and they came out very easily.  Thanks to Amber for saying they have good flavor! ;)

wheat bread slices
onion, grated [of course I only had dried onions ;)]
1/2 cup cheese
1 cup milk
4 eggs
1 tsp dry mustard
pinch black pepper
[add garlic salt, onion powder, Italian seasoning, Parsley, paprika]

Grease muffin tin.  Use a round cookie cutter, or a knife, to cut out bread to fit in the bottom of the muffin tin cups. Add cheese to each muffin cup.  Whisk together the eggs, milk, onion, mustard and spices/herbs.  Pour in each muffin cup, 3/4 full.  Bake in a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes.  Check for doneness.

Recipe adapted from "Easy Mini Quiche Recipe".  Allrecipes.com.

Chili Biscuit Bake

I found this recipe in the Taste of Home cookbook and thought it was something that I would actually make.  It came together really well, except that the baking dish over flowed with too much chili, and some of the biscuits were not baked through in the center.

1 lb ground beef [ground turkey]
1 medium onion, chopped
1 can (14-1/2 oz) stewed tomatoes, cut up
1 pkg (10 oz) frozen mixed vegetables [I used 1 can of corn and 2 cans of beans (kidney and black) hence the overflowing]
1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
*flavor for taste: chili powder, taco seasoning, black pepper, onion/garlic powder, etc

Biscuits:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1-1/2 tsp baking powder
2 T shortening
2/3 cup milk
1 tsp prepared mustard
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese, divided

In a skillet, cook beef or turkey and onion until cooked through, drain extra grease.  Add flavorings.  Stir in tomatoes, vegetables, beans and tomato sauce.  Pour into a prepared 11x7x2 baking dish.  Cover and baked at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.  Meanwhile, combine flour and baking powder in a bowl.  Cut in shortening until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  With a fork, incorporate milk and mustard and stir until it forms a soft dough.  Add six Tablespoons of cheese.  Drop onto the top of hot chili casserole.  Bake uncovered for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown; sprinkle with remaining cheese.

 made June 29th

Source: Brenden, Darlene.  Taste of Home Annual Recipes.  "Ground Beef Biscuit Stew".  Ed. Michelle Brett.  Greendale, WI: Taste of Home Books, 2007. 68-69.

Grean bean rice casserole

I grew up on this casserole.  I have just added more stuff-- I even hesitated naming it "Kitchen sink casserole."  It's a good stand by if I don't know what to make or have chicken leftovers.

1 can cream of chicken soup
1 1/2 cups Minute Rice {I originally used 1 cup, but I think a little extra rice is better}
1 cup water (approximate)
diced cooked chicken (this could be 1 to 2 cups.  I've used leftover rotisserie and even canned at times.)
1 can green beans {or fresh, of course!}
1 can corn
shredded cheese (optional)
Seasonings like:
dried onion
garlic powder
onion powder
Italian seasoning
dried Parsley
paprika
black pepper
salt

Add ingredients in a 9x13 baking dish and mix in the seasonings and water to incorporate.  Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.  Top with Parmesan cheese, if desired.

Enchilada "Lasagna"

This isn't a new idea, I have made this before.  I only had two tortillas, leftover from enchiladas, so I layered a baking dish (9x13) like a lasagna by using traditional enchilada ingredients:

1. Enchilada sauce:
In a small saucepan, whisk together 1 T oil and 1 T flour.  When it's mixed and bubbly, add 2-3 T chili powder.  To that roux, add 3/4 cup tomato sauce and whisk.  Add about 3/4 cup water during the duration of cooking (of the chicken and preparing the cottage cheese mixture.)

2. Tortilla:
Tear to the layer over the sauce

3. Diced chicken in taco seasoning:
Dice cooked chicken (I like to use rotisserie chicken as a shortcut), and place in a skillet.  Add 1 package taco seasoning (or 1/4 cup) and 3/4 cup water.  Mix with a spatula until thickened and incorporated.

4. Cottage cheese mixed with sour cream:
Stir together 1 cup cottage cheese and 1 cup sour cream and grind in some black pepper while you're at it, too.

5. Shredded cheese
(your favorite kind for enchiladas)

and repeat the layers once more beginning with another tortilla.  After those layers, pour on the rest of the enchilada sauce and more shredded cheese.  I also had some black olives in the fridge, so I cut those up and tossed them on top. 

Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees.

Mashed potato casserole

With some leftover ham from Thanksgiving and leftover mashed potatoes from Thanksgiving weekend, I decided to get rid of them all by making a casserole.  The great thing about this idea is that anything that complements potatoes would work well in the casserole.  I started out by layering the mashed potatoes, mozzarella cheese, chopped ham and topping it with more cheese.  I decided to amp up the flavor a bit by mixing garlic powder, onion powder and dried parsley with the potatoes (also stir in some milk if they need moistened.)  After that I decided to mix it all together instead of doing a layer-thing.  Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 20 minutes, then broil on low for 4-5 minutes to brown the top.

T's Chicken & Rice

Thomas made dinner tonight.  This isn't new-- but he came up with this idea without my input.  He combined 1 cup uncooked rice (parboiled) with 1 can cream of mushroom soup with roasted garlic, and 1 can chicken broth, Italian seasoning, dried onion and smoked paprika.  Let sit (20 minutes) while preparing 1.5 lb chicken breast tenderloins then sprinkle salt and poultry seasoning on the chicken.  Layer the 9x13 baking dish with rice mixture and chicken.  Okay, I lied, my contribution was adding the carrot sticks.  Bake in a 375 degree oven for 1 hour, remove foil cover from dish 10 minutes before to let the sauce thicken. 

Chicken Divan

Chicken Divan has intimidated me for a couple of years now.  After reading the low-fat recipe from Set for Life, I decided to give it a try.  This recipe isn't intimidating at all.  But of course, with Thomas and I, we rarely follow a recipe to a T.  We mixed the rice, soup mixture and chicken together (instead of layering them separately) and just layered the asparagus.  It was pretty scrumptious!

2 (10-oz) packages frozen broccoli or asparagus spears
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 cup sour cream, low fat
2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp curry powder (optional)
1 (10-3/4 oz) can cream of chicken soup, low fat
2 cups cooked brown rice [we used half parboil and half brown]
2 cups cooked and cubed chicken or turkey breast
2 slices whole wheat bread [we omitted]
2 T Parmesan cheese

Slightly cook broccoli [or asparagus.]*  Mix buttermilk, sour cream, lemon juice, and soup.  In large baking dish, layer half the soup mixture, rice, chicken and [vegetables].  Top with remaining soup mixture.  For bread crumbs, place bread and cheese in a blender and pulse until fine.  Sprinkle over the top.  Cover and bake for 25 minutes in a 350 degree oven.  Uncover and bake five more minute or until hot and bubbly.

From: Merrill, Jane P. and Karen M. Sunderland. "Chicken Divan."  Set for Life. Salt Lake City, UT: Sunrise Publishers, 1995. 164.

*{Tips: to microwave, place frozen packages of vegetables on paper towel and cook on high for 3-4 minutes.  Cook asparagus thoroughly as I only cooked them on the stove for a couple of minutes and they were still crunchy after 25 minutes in the oven.  To microwave the entire casserole, cover with plastic wrap and cook at 70% power for 12 to 15 minutes or until done.}

October 21, 2011

Chicken Divan with french beans

This time I mixed the sauce with minute rice, layered half the sauce, chicken (from rotisserie), green beans, and the remaining sauce. Top with Parmesan cheese (of course Thomas added lots more!)

Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes {au Gratin}

Have I covered all the possible potato dishes in that title?  Scalloped potatoes are good, but I'm a big sucker for cheese, so I had to cheat and add cheese.  This recipe is sort of my own-- a concoction of a couple of different recipes.  Potatoes are versatile, so just imagine the possibilities! 

First thinly cut 1 pound of potatoes.  I used red potatoes this time around.

For the sauce, melt 1-2 Tablespoon butter in a saucepan.  Mix in an onion or dried onions.  To make the roux add 2 T flour, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning and Parmesan cheese (all to taste). Pour 1-1/4 cups milk all at once and whisk well.  At first I kept the heat on medium low until I figured out that turning up the heat to medium high will get the sauce thick and bubbly in no time.  I do like to keep stirring it so the milk doesn't burn on the bottom.

Layer half the sliced potatoes in a greased casserole dish (8x8), cover with half the sauce and repeat.  Cut two slices of (wheat) bread into 1-inch cubes.  Cover the top of the dish with bread cubes and 1/2-1 cup shredded cheese.

Bake for 1 hour in a 350 degree oven or until done.

Inspired by Better Homes and Gardens and Set for Life.

Broccoli-Cauliflower Bake {BH&G}

Here's a tasty side or main dish!

4 cups broccoli florets (fresh or frozen)
3 cups cauliflower (fresh or frozen)
1 (10-3/4 oz) can condensed cream of mushroom soup or cream of chicken
3 oz American cheese or process Swiss chess, torn
1 T dried minced onion
1/2 tsp dried basil, thyme or marjoram, crushed (I use Italian seasoning)
3/4 cup soft bread crumbs (1 slice)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Mix soup, cheese, onion and herbs in a small saucepan over medium heat.  Either cook diced broccoli and cauliflower or pour frozen broccoli and cauliflower and layer them in a 1-1/2 quart dish (my 8x8 dish did the trick.)  Mix together the vegetables and sauce.  Melt 1 tablespoon of butter and mix with bread crumbs.  Sprinkle over the dish.  If you used fresh vegetables, bake for 15 minutes.  If you used frozen vegetables, bake for 30-35 minutes.

{Better Homes & Gardens. DeMoines, IA: Meredith Corporation, 2002. 12th ed. 514.}

A Becky "Breakfast" Casserole

Last night for dinner I wanted to use up the 1/2 pound of Jimmy Dean's Natural sausage.  I was reminiscing about a delicious [fattening] egg casserole that my mom would sometimes make with sausage, hash browns, and of course egg.  I was also thinking back to the frittata that I made for my brother and his (at the time) fiancee from the top of my head.  Here is a picture of what I made them:

Frittata, Sunrise drink and orange crescent rolls

Ah-- memory lane!  I can't believe that was almost four years ago.

So I love doing egg casseroles and frittatas! When I started making my dinner creation, I had no idea what the end product would be.  I first browned the sausage in a skillet.  Then I started to think about adding either bread or potatoes.  I remembered how much I love potatoes with egg (as seen as above!), so I put four red potatoes in the microwave.  After the potatoes finished cooking through, I took them out of the microwave.  I was going to grate them, but both my graters aren't with me right now.  So I came to the conclusion of just cubing the potatoes and frying them with the sausage.

Add salt, pepper and Italian Seasoning as you fry the sausage and potatoes. 

Onto the egg mixture.  I used five eggs, but if you're feeding a larger group, you'll need 10 to 12 eggs and a 9x13 baking dish.  I whisked five eggs, splash of milk (at least 1 T), Dijon mustard (2 tsp), parsley, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, salt, pepper and 1/4 bag of frozen vegetables (using  my favorite California blend).  I've turned into a "dash" of this and a "pinch" of that kind-a-cook, so sorry for not having exact measurements.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Lightly grease an 8x8 pan with nonstick spray.  Transfer the potato-sausage mixture into the baking dish. 

Pour the egg mixture over the sausage and potatoes. 

Sprinkle cheese (mozzarella) on top.  Bake for 45 minutes or until egg is cooked through. 

I thoroughly enjoyed my egg casserole.  It was reminiscent of my favorite egg casserole or frittata without as much work.  Loved it!

Becky "Breakfast" Casserole
8x8 pan
nonstick spray
1/2 pound sausage (like Jimmy Dean)
4 red potatoes
chopped onion, optional
at least 1 tsp. Italian Seasoning
Salt, dash
Black Pepper, to taste
5 eggs
1 T milk (at least)
2 tsp. Dijon mustard
Add about:
1 tsp. paprika
2 tsp. parsley
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp. salt (at most)
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1/4 bag of frozen vegetables, optional
1/4 cup shredded cheese

Lightly spray an 8x8 baking dish with nonstick spray.  Cook 4 potatoes in the microwave.  In the meantime start browning sausage and onion.  Add chopped potatoes and fry together.  Sprinkle Italian Seasoning, dash of salt and black pepper over mixture until potatoes and sausage have a nice covering of seasonings over them.  In a mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, mustard (Dijon), paprika, parsley, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, black pepper, and frozen vegetables.  Transfer meat and potatoes into the baking dish.  Pour egg mixture over the sausage and potatoes.  Sprinkle cheese on top.  Bake uncovered in a 375 degree oven for 45 minutes, or until egg is set.

An original Becky recipe

Tuna and Rice Quiche

If you like a good tuna casserole and want something different, you will probably want to try this.  It has a lot of healthy ingredients with brown rice, vegetables and a few eggs.  It has the traditional tuna and cheese, too. 

1 10-ounce package frozen chopped broccoli
1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice
1/2 cup finely shredded cheese [I used in a total 1 cup of mozzarella]
3 eggs
1/3 cup skim milk
1/4 teaspoon salt [I substituted garlic salt]
1 6-ounce can water-packed tuna, drained

In a mixing bowl, combine brown rice, 1/4 cup (or more) cheese, and 1 egg.  Pour rice mixture into a 9-inch baking- or quiche dish.  Spread the mixture over the bottom of the dish, like a crust.  Heat broccoli in the microwave according to package's cooking instructions. Layer drained broccoli and tuna over the crust.  Using the same mixing bowl for the rice mixture, whisk the two eggs, milk, salt and remaining cheese.  Pour egg mixture over broccoli and tuna.  Cover and bake for 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Recipe from Set for Life. Merrill, Jane P. and Karen M. Sunderland.  "Tuna and Rice Quiche".  Salt Lake: Sunrise, 1995.  Method altered by Becky.

Good ol' new green bean casserole

Taking the standard green bean casserole + changing it a little = Thomas' favorite!  This recipe is adapted from Classy Green Bean Casserole found on www.allrecipes.com.  Here are the changes: 1. I used fresh green beans, 2. I used 1/2 cup of non fat plain yogurt instead of sour cream, and 3.  I used breadcrumbs instead of French onions.

I made it a heartier, one dish meal by adding chicken

Ingredients

1 pound of green beans (or 3 cans)
1/2 cup sour cream or plain yogurt
1 can cream of mushroom soup
Diced chicken or turkey (optional)
1 tsp (approx) garlic salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
Lots of Italian seasoning and Parsley
1 T melted butter
1/2 cup of crushed crackers or breadcrumbs

Directions
Wash and cook green beans.  In an 8x8 pan (or 2 quart dish), mix cream of mushroom soup and yogurt.  Stir in green beans, salt and pepper and seasonings until incorporated.  Make your own breadcrumbs or smash crackers, adding the melted butter.  Top casserole with (slightly) buttery bread topping.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes.

Are you curious about my drink?
Rooibus Raspberry Soda
Basically combine 2 cups Rooibus tea, stir in a little sugar or honey (we just stocked up on some more in Germany, so we're good to go!) with 2 cups raspberry juice; however, I used grape juice and 2 cups sparkling water.  Chill.

Pasta Primavera

It feels like spring already (but there a few storms in the forecast). So why not a bit of spring in dinner? I got this recipe at Snow College from one of my lab partners in my cooking class.

1/2 lb mostaccioli pasta (I didn't use that type)
3/4 c chopped broccoli florets
2 sliced carrots
1 chopped green onion stalk
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1/3 c water1/4 c Parmesan cheese
1 c cooked and cubed chicken or turkey
1 c. grated cheese (didn't use that much)

Boil pasta according to package directions, but add broccoli, carrots and green onion to the boiling water/pasta during the last five minutes of cooking time. Drain and put back into the original cooking pot.  Meanwhile in a saucepan, mix together cream of chicken soup, water, Parmesan cheese and chicken; stir occasionally until smooth and thickened. Stir the sauce with the pasta and vegetables. Pour into an 8x8 baking pan and top with grated cheese. Cover with foil and place in a 350 degree oven for 20-30 minutes.

Kitchen Hint: Here are tips on how to cook pasta. On other tips about pasta, see: http://whatscookingamerica.net/Pasta_Rice_Main/pasta.htm