Italian Delight

I got this recipe from my cousin who in turn got it from my Aunt who says there was a note on the original recipe that it came from my Great Aunt Florence Martin from Boston in the 1930's.

I have, of course, revised the recipe to my taste and time schedule.

This is a delicious casserole that has become a family favorite around here!

Shepherd's Pie

You don't know how much I LOVE Shepherd's Pie!

And I LOVE that it can be made in individual ramekins or in a large baking dish.  I've been on a "what can I make in a ramekin" kick lately and this worked perfectly.

To me it has the makings of the perfect meal.  Meat, Veg, and Taters!

Quiche Cups (crust-less)

I have been trying to come up with easy and nutritious breakfast foods to put in the hands of my family before they all head out in different directions every morning.

I also want something I can warm up and send with them instead of a granola bar on their way out the door.

I usually only cook Breakfast Casseroles, Quiche's, Breakfast Burritos, etc. on the weekends because I need the time to prep it, cook it, and serve it.

Cheesy Stuffed Shells

Don't you just love ooey gooey cheesy dinners that can be made in under 45 minutes?  I sure do and these Cheesy Stuffed Shells fall right into that category.

Breakfast Casserole

A couple of weekends ago I was in the mood for making a breakfast casserole.  But like usual I didn't think of it the night before and prepare and refrigerate it.  Then I remembered seeing this recipe on my Creative Thursday Link party from What's Cooking, Love? and decided to give it a try.  It was the easiest and tastiest breakfast casserole to ever come out of my oven.  No more cooking and prepping the night before.  You just get up in the morning and in about 1 hour total you have a steaming hot delicious breakfast casserole.

Here's what you need:

1 tube crescent rolls

7 eggs (I use extra large)

1 lb. package of Jimmy Dean sausage, cooked 

1/2 cup half & half

1 cup Monterey Jack cheese, grated

1 cup cheddar cheese, grated

1-1/2 cups frozen hash browns (I used mine still frozen, but defrosted works too)

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1-/4 - 1/2 tsp. black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spray a 9 x 13 with cooking spray and unroll the crescent rolls into the bottom, pinching the seams to seal the rolls together, set aside.

 

Brown the sausage until it is now longer pink.

 

When the sausage is cooked drain off any fat and sprinkle over the crescent rolls.

In a bowl mix the eggs and half & half until mixed well then add the baking powder, salt, pepper, and hash browns and mix well.

 

Next pour the egg mixture over the sausage.  Making sure it is evenly distributed.

Sprinkle the cheeses over the top evenly.

 

Bake for 40 - 45 minutes or until the eggs are set in the center.  Should be golden brown when done.

 

Let the casserole sit for a few minutes before cutting.   Makes a great breakfast, brunch, or even dinner dish.

Serves 8-10

Enjoy!

Here's the handy printable - Breakfast Casserole 

recipe adapted from What's Cooking, Love? 

You can find me each week linking up to these wonderful blogs.

Cheeseburger Tater Tot Casserole

I am always on the lookout for a new casserole so when I bought some tater tots, which I haven't bought in years, the other day I decided to use them to make a casserole.

I looked through my recipe box and decided that my All American Cheeseburger Ring would be delicious to turn into a casserole.  It was a total hit and was extremely easy and delicious.

Homemade Hamburger Helper

One of my all time favorite meals to prepare and eat is my Homemade Hamburger Helper.  This is a take off of those boxed things they sell in the stores, but much healthier because it's from scratch.  

Chicken Pesto Pasta Bake

Lately I have tried several recipes that include chicken, some sort of pasta and a sauce and none of them were great.

So I decided to create my own and this is what I came up with last night.

I love pesto so it was a given that this recipe be a chicken pesto dish.

Baked Tortellini Casserole

If you like Lasagna, and we love it here, but don't always have the time you have to try this super easy super yummy creation.  I whipped this up as an after school snack for my kids last week when they had a bunch of friends over and I didn't want them just mowing through all the chips and cookies.  I fine tuned it and made it for dinner last night and everyone raved about it.  Not the best pictures but the taste was terrific!

Here's what you need:

20 oz. fresh tortellini or ravioli ( I use Buitoni and I mix Chicken and Cheese tortellini)
1 - 1 Lb. 8 oz. jar marinara (I use Ragu)
1 Tbl. Italian Seasoning
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 cup. Mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 cup. Italian mix cheese, shredded (I use a store bought bag of Italian 5 cheese pre shredded)
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 9 x 13 with cooking spray and set aside.

Bring a large stockpot filled with water to a boil and add the tortellini.  Boil for 4 minutes, just to par cook.

Drain the pasta and put into the bottom of the baking dish.  

In another bowl pour the marinara sauce and the seasonings and mix to incorporate.   When I emptied the jar into the bowl I added approximately 1/4 cup water just to rinse the jar and added it to the sauce.

Pour pasta sauce over the tortellini and stir to combine.

 

Layer the cheese over the pasta and bake for 30 minutes, uncovered.

 

The top should be golden and bubbly when done.

Serve with warm french bread and veggies or salad.   YUM!

Serves 6

Enjoy!

Here's the handy printable - Baked Tortellini Casserole

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

As many of you know I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Mexican food.  I also love to make Chicken Enchiladas, but don't always find the time to do so.  Today was just such a day.  Royce and I went to see the new Mission Impossible (great movie by the way) and I really wanted to make Chicken Enchiladas but by the time we got home and had picked up the kids it was already 3:30.  So I thought why not make it into a casserole?  So that's what I did, and you know what?  It was so yummy that we don't even have any leftovers!  Yea me!  Give it a try and let me know what you think.

The picture doesn't do it justice.  It was SUPER AWESOME YUMMY!

Here's what you need:

2 skinless/boneless chicken breasts, cubed into 1/2 inch pieces

1 - 2 Tbl canola oil

1/4 cup yellow onion, diced

1 can cream of chicken soup

8 oz. sour cream (I use a light sour cream and it's always fine)

1-1/2 cups green chile enchilada sauce (I use Las Palmas)

3 cups Monterey Jack cheese, shredded

1 - 4oz can diced mild green chilies

1 - 2.25 oz. can sliced olives (or if you already have them open about 1/4 cup)

8 - 10  5 inch corn tortillas, cut into 4 strips each (I always use white corn, just a personal preference)

In a large skillet place 1 - 2 Tablespoons of canola oil and heat on med-hi.  When oil is hot add chicken and cook until almost done; about 7 minutes, stirring a couple of times.  Add onion and cook until chicken is done, about 3 more minutes.  

Add the cream of chicken soup, sour cream,  green enchilada sauce, and the diced green chilies.  Stir until combined.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  

In the bottom of a 2 quart baking dish, or a 9 x 13 pour a couple of spoonfuls of the sauce (without the chicken) to lightly coat the bottom.    

 

Start the layering by arranging the tortilla strips so that the whole bottom is covered.  (I cut the tortillas into strips because they are easier to use that way.)

 

Next layer is a couple of ladle's of sauce, then a couple handfuls of cheese, then half the sliced olives.

 

Repeat until all the sauce is used up.  I got three layers but only used the olives on the first two, finishing with the cheese.

 

Cover and bake for 30 minutes.  Then uncover and continue baking an additional 15 minutes.  The casserole should be bubbly and golden when done.

And maybe just a little messy looking.  But don't let that fool ya!  It was super yummy and easy peasy to make.  Just use a big ol" serving spoon to serve with.

Enjoy!

Serves - 6    unless you have teenage boys in the house then you might be lucky to feed 5.

~Hugs~

Michelle

Here's the handy printable - Chicken Enchilada Casserole