Last Minute Tortilla Bake

 

 

 

 

 

The other day my husband mentioned, in passing, that our daughter and her family were coming over that evening.  I had no plans for supper and no time to go to the store so I threw this dish together "on the fly."  It's not super amazing or anything, but it was tasty and filling and I was able to feed the 6 of us--which included my two grandsons, ages 4 and 2--from items I had at home.  Don't you love throwing things together and having them magically turn into a meal?

 

Ingredients:

12 corn tortillas

rotisserie chicken (left over from a previous meal)

Colby Jack Cheese

Salsa Verde (Herdez is a great brand, in the Hispanic Food section of your grocery store)

Purple bell  peppers (we picked these up at a local farmers' market and I thought they would be a fun garnish)

 

1.  Spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray.

 

2.  Cover bottom of dish with 6 corn tortillas, chop or chunk the chicken and spread over the tortillas, spoon desired amount of salsa over top, and sprinkle with about half a cup or more of cheese.  Repeat layers one more time and sprinkle with purple bell pepper strips.

 

3.  Bake 30 minutes at 350 F., or until cheese is melted and tortillas are crispy on the edges.

 

I served this with a big bowl of cut up watermelon, stir-fried zucchini with Mediterranean seasoning, and a Roasted Corn Blend that I found at Sam's in the frozen vegetable section.  I stir-fried that with some olive oil.  Yummy.

Chicken Cordon-Bleu Casserole

I love this casserole, I especially love that it doesn't have any condensed soups in it!

6 cooked chicken breast
      -I bake mine in the oven @ 350 for about 40 min, the first 20 of which the pan is covered.
6 slices cooked ham
6 slices Swiss cheese
4 Tbsp. butter
4 Tbsp. flour
2 Cups milk
1/4 tsp thyme (I use my Penzeys Poultry Seasoning in place of this and love it)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 beaten egg
1/4 cup breadcrumbs
1 Tbsp. melted butter

Place the chicken breast in a 9X13 baking pan.  Place the ham on top of the chicken and the Swiss cheese on top of the ham.  In a mixing bowl combine milk, thyme, salt, pepper, and egg.  In a medium sauce pan melt the butter then add the flour and whisk until smooth.  Add milk mixture and cook on medium heat until thick and bubbly.  Pour over the chicken/ham/cheese evenly.  Sprinkle the bread crumbs on top then drizzle the butter over the bread crumbs.  Cook at 350 for about 30 mins.  Serve over rice.

Source: My amazing friend Kym Wood

Chicken & Broccoli Casserole

I got this great recipe from a good friend named Ginni.  I do things differently with it from time to time, but it is still basically the same. Its all good.  You can not go wrong with this one. Its simple, tastes great, comforting, and all in one dish!  Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 box Chicken Flavored Stovetop Stuffing Mix. Prepared according to package directions.
3 chicken breasts, cooked the way you like it (I grill it.) chopped into bite sized pieces
1 head of broccoli, cleaned and cooked until it looses some of the crunch, cut into bite sized pieces.
1 can cream of chicken
1 can cream of mushroom
1 cup water, or milk
salt
pepper
Swiss cheese slices

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray your baking dish. I use an 11x7 size dish. Spread out your Chicken flavored Stovetop Stuffing on the bottom of the baking dish.  I usually spoon in the stuffing and then wit  a wet spoon I spread it out a bit until the bottom of the dish is covered.  Sprinkle the chicken over the stuffing evenly.   Sprinkle the broccoli over the chicken. then in a separate bowl pour in the cream of chicken and the cream of mushroom soup. add the cup of water and stir until incorporated. Continue to add water until the mixture is pourable. Pour the mixture over the casserole. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Lay swiss cheese slices over the top of the casserole. Bake at 375 for about 25-30 minutes. Watch that the cheese doesn't brown too much. You can always turn it down or cover it with tin foil.


Original recipe by Ginni White

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

    Who doesn't love a good old Mac n' Cheese? I certainly haven't met anyone who doesn't! This is supposedly the original version of the recipe that Thomas Jefferson brought back from Europe along with the first Macaroni machine. Feel free to fact check me on this. 

Macaroni and Cheese

1/2 lb Macaroni

1 Tbsp butter

1 egg

3 cups cheddar cheese

1 cup milk

1 tsp salt

1 tsp dry mustard

1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Pinch of Paprika

Cook macaroni, add butter, 1/2 to 3/4 of the cheese to hot macaroni. Mix. To make milk mixture warm milk (not too hot), add egg, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and salt. Put pasta in 13x9 inch baking dish. Pour milk mixture over pasta. Top with remaining cheese (or extra if desired). Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. 

Optional: top with buttered cracker crumbs or panko.

Source: Kim Anderson

Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole

YUM! YUM!  Everyone likes this casserole.  It's easy to make and easy to eat! LOL!

2- 12 ounce bags frozen, shredded hashbrowns, thawed (at least 30 minutes)
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 cup of diced deli ham
1/2 - 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, or your favorite kind of cheese!
6 large eggs
1 cup evaporated milk
salt
pepper


     Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Squeeze moisture out of thawed potatoes then put them in a large bowl. Pour melted butter over potatoes and stir well until combined. Pour the potatoes into an ungreased 9x13 casserole dish, and press them to make a crust. I press them up the sides of the dish also.
     Bake until the potatoes start to brown around the edges, at least 10 minutes.
     Into a big bowl add the eggs, the milk, salt and pepper.
     Remove the potatoes from the oven. Sprinkle the diced ham over the  potatoes, then sprinkle the cheese over the ham. Pour the egg mixture over the cheese and ham.
     Bake for about 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown on top.

Crock Pot Mac and Cheese

This is probably the recipe I get asked for more than any other. It is heavenly! If you like creamy, cheesy, gooey mac and cheese, this recipe is for you! The youth at church ask me to bring it to every pot luck dinner, and they scrape the pot clean! 

Crock Pot Mac and Cheese

Ingredients:

4 cups dry macaroni noodles

1/2 cup butter, melted

2 cans evaporated milk (you can use regular milk if you don't have this)

3 cups milk (Ok, I never measure this...I just add it until it looks almost right. See photo and note below.)

4 eggs, beaten

8 cups shredded cheese (I personally like the shredded Mexican Blend, but sharp cheddar is yummy too.)

Salt and pepper to taste 

Directions:

1. Cook macaroni noodles in salted water until done. Drain off water and put into crock pot.

2. Pour in melted butter, evaporated milk (or a few cups of milk), beaten eggs, salt and pepper. Stir until mixed.

3. Add about 6-7 cups of the shredded cheese. (You want to save a cup or two to spread over the top.) Mix in the cheese and add a few more cups of milk. Keep adding a little milk until you have it just right. You know you have enough milk when you pull back the noodles, and you can see milk a little below the surface. See photo. I have never measured the milk, because this is how my grandma and mom taught me to do it. : )

4. Put a cup or two of shredded cheese over the top of the mixture and cover with lid.

5. Cook on HIGH for 45 minutes to 1 hour (until it's nice and hot), and then turn it to LOW or WARM for another few hours. In my crock pot, if I leave it on LOW, it will burn the edges and overcook it, so I turn it down to WARM. It's done when the milk and eggs are absorbed and set.

6. Enjoy every last bite of this delicious macaroni and cheese! 

Notes:

1. This recipe makes enough to fill a huge 6 quart crock pot. If you have a smaller crock pot, you might want to half the recipe. You can also cook a half recipe in a casserole dish in the oven. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. It's done when the milk and eggs are absorbed and set. Some people like to take the foil off and let it bake uncovered for about 10 minutes so the cheese gets crusty. I like creamy and melty cheese, so I keep mine covered the whole time.

2. You can use whatever cheese you like, and as much or as little as you like. I have a friend who puts in some Velveeta cheese, although I would never do that because I am crazy over cheddar cheese. My point is, use your favorite cheese and make it your own!

3. I often make it without the evaporated milk and just use 2% milk or whatever I have in the fridge. I've even used reconstituted powdered milk and it turned out great. 

Source: I have made this for years and years and cannot remember when or why I first made it, or who might have given me the idea. All I know is that it is the best mac and cheese I have ever had!

Six Layer Casserole

This is one of the recipes that I got from my Mom years ago and I pulled it out of my family cookbook the other day to fix sometime soon.  Sometime soon is today, but we will be eating a late supper.  This has to cook an hour and a half. I really like it because it is simple, good food.  I also took this as an opportunity to use some of my food storage items--the celery and the bell pepper.  I have both of these in my pantry in dehydrated form, so after re-hydrating according to the package directions, I was able to use them in my casserole.  I substituted Mixed Bell Peppers for the minced green pepper.  I will just give you the basic ingredient list so that you can make this the first time from fresh vegetables.

Ingredients:
2 cups sliced raw potatoes (I used red potatoes, unpeeled, to save time)
2 cups chopped celery 
1 lb. lean ground beef, browned
1/2 cup sliced onion
1 cup minced green pepper
2 cups cooked tomatoes, drained
2 tsp. salt
  pepper, to taste

1.  Grease a 2 quart casserole dish.
2.  Layer potatoes, celery, beef, onion, and green pepper.
3.  Combine tomatoes, salt, and pepper and spoon over top.
4.  Cover and bake about 1 1/2 hours at 350 F.

Source: Pat Brew, Greenville, NC.

Homemade Chicken Pot Pie

I was thinking of giving you a recipe for a diet soup that I love, but then I thought that everyone should know how to make a delicious homemade pot pie for those days that you need a little comfort food! The diet soup can wait for another day!

I make these in batches of 4 and freeze them, and then I have something quick to pull out of the oven for dinner on a busy day. My kids LOVE these! People ask me how many one will feed, and here is my answer: It will feed me 7-8 servings, but it will feed my son Curtis, who is 16, only 2 servings. It would definitely feed 4 really hungry normal people who are not teenage boys.  (smile).

Homemade Chicken Pot Pies

Ingredients:

4 frozen pie shells (or you can make homemade crust)

4 cups cooked, diced chicken

1 large can cream of chicken soup (or 2 small cans - about 20 oz)

1 8 oz package cream cheese, softened

1 1/2 cups baby carrots cut into slices

1 cup frozen peas

1/4 cup (or more) diced onions

4 cups potatoes, diced 

1 can of corn (or some frozen corn)

2 chicken bouillon cubes (or 1 if you like less salt)

2 boxes of roll out top crust (This will give you 4 top crusts) I recommend Pillsbury brand - or you can make homemade

1/2 cup flour and 1/2 cup water

1/2 tsp of Poultry Seasoning (or  a little Thyme, Oregano and Sage)

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Put the diced potatoes, carrots and onions in a pot. Cover with water. Add the bouillon cube and some salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes are done...but not mushy and falling apart.

2. In a small bowl, add 1/2 cup flour to 1/2 cup of water and mix with a fork until smooth. Pour this slowly into boiling pot of vegetables while stirring briskly. This will thicken the water that the vegetables are cooking in. Turn off heat and let it cool down a bit.

3. In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth with a hand mixer. Add in the cream of chicken soup and poultry seasoning. Mix until well blended. Add the chicken, corn, peas, and the cooked potato/carrot/onion mixture. Mix all ingredients together until well blended.

4. Add this delicious mixture to the pie shells, dividing mixture evenly between the 4 pie shells.

5. Roll out your crust onto the counter. (Cut a heart in the center for a vent hole if you would like - it's so cute!) Place the crust on top of the pie. Fold under the extra crust as neatly as possible around the edges. Then pinch the edge of the crust to seal. If you have no idea how to to that, look up a tutorial. It is so hard to explain in words. But it is easy to do, and everyone has their own way of making their crust edge pretty. 

6. If you did not cut a heart into the center of the crust, cut a few vent holes into the top crust. Just take a knife and make a few small cuts.

7. At this point, I put a square of wax paper on top of the pie, then cover with foil and put in the freezer. I suppose you could skip the wax paper if you don't have any.

8. If you want to bake one right away, bake it at 375 degrees for 30 - 45 minutes, depending on how dark you like your crust.

9. When baking from frozen, bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

YOU ARE GOING TO LOVE THESE CHICKEN POT PIES!

Notes: 

1. Kids love to help make these! And they love eating them too!

2. These are perfect to have on hand when you need to take someone a dinner, or when you forgot to plan dinner for your own family.

3. We made these for a fund raiser at church to help earn money for girls camp. We sold LOTS of them and people liked them very much!

Source: Adapted from my friend Becky Robinson, Rock Hill, SC.

Chopstick Tuna Casserole

In case you don't know this, I love retro.  I went back to the 60s for this recipe that my Mom used to make for us.  I don't know how often we had it but when I was looking through some of her old recipes one day, I saw it and added it to my collection.  When we were compiling a family recipe book I included this one in it.  I don't make it very often because M doesn't like the word casserole and it has celery in it, which is actually one of my favorite parts, along with the cashews.  Well, there just isn't any ingredient that isn't good in this dish.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I do, and guess what?  It's low fat and healthy.  You can use the healthier version of Cream of Mushroom soup and it is still yummy.

Ingredients:
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup
2 cups chow mein noodles
1 can tuna, drained and flaked
1 cup sliced celery
1/2 cup toasted cashews
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup water
Dash of pepper

1.  Combine soup and water in a medium bowl.
2.  Add 1 cup chow mein noodles, dash of pepper and remaining ingredients.  Toss lightly; turn into square baking dish.
3.  Sprinkle with remaining noodles.  Bake at 375 for 30 minutes.  Enjoy the aroma coming from your oven as this bakes.  Seriously.  Mouth watering.



Source:  Patricia D. Brew

Zucchini Bake

I know we JUST had a zucchini bake posted here but, sometimes options are good, no?  I tried this recipe for the first time today and thought it was delicious and comforting.  Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:
4-5 small zucchinis (up to 15 oz) unpeeled and coarsely grated*
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 packet Canadian bacon (6 oz or to taste) finely chopped**
1 cup grated cheddar cheese, packed
1 heaping cup self rising flour***
1/3-1/2 cup oil
5 eggs lightly beaten
salt and pepper to taste

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a small or medium size baking dish (size will determine baking time).
2.  Mix all ingredients in a large bowl.  Pour into greased baking dish.
3.  Bake 30-40 minutes for a medium or shallow dish.  Today we used a small deep dish and it took 1 hour.  Zucchini bake is done when brown on top and skewer inserted comes out clean.  Can be served hot or cold.

Entertaining?  Garnish with tomato slices or fresh chopped parsley!

*The smaller zucchinis will make the dish greener due to more skin.
**You can use ham or bacon as well.  If you use bacon you may need to adjust the oil.
*** If you don't have self rising flour use 1 cup flour, 1 tsp. baking powder and 1/4 tsp. salt

Source:  My Australian friend

Beefaroni

It's 5 o'clock. You have no idea what to make for dinner. You go to your pantry to see what you can throw together. Chances are, you have everything for this meal. 

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground beef

16 oz. elbow macaroni

24 oz. jar pasta sauce

6 oz. can tomato paste

2 1/2 C. shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

1. Crumble ground beef into skillet, brown and drain.

2. While meat is browning, bring water to boil and cook pasta (about 8 minutes). Drain.

3. Add meat to the pasta. Pour in pasta sauce and tomato paste. Stir.

4. Place in a greased 9x13 casserole. Top with cheddar cheese. 

5. Cook at 350 for 30 minutes or until cheese is melted and sides are bubbly. 

If you're like me and have a small family to feed, then simply freeze half of this recipe and enjoy it later!

(This is only half the recipe, I froze the other half!)

Lazy Lasagna

This is actually a baked ziti recipe, but at my house it has been dubbed "Lazy Lasagna." Who wants to spend all that time carefully layering delicate noodles and filling? Not Me! This tastes just like a lasagna. In fact, take this basic recipe and mix in your favorite lasagna veggies for real kick! You could try zucchini, yellow squash, mushrooms, and/or peppers. This is a great make-ahead dish and can be frozen for a future dinner.

Servings: 6-8

Ingredients:

1 lb. bag or box of uncooked ziti

15 oz. ricotta cheese

3 C. shredded mozzarella, divided

28 oz. jar spaghetti sauce

1/2 C. parmesan cheese

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Cook the ziti as directed on the package. Place ziti in a large bowl. Add ricotta cheese and 1 1/2 cups mozzarella. Grease a 9 x 13 casserole dish. Spread half the spaghetti sauce on the bottom of the pan. Add the ziti mixture and cover with remaining sauce. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and the remaining mozzarella. Bake covered with foil for 20-30 min. Remove foil and bake another 5-10 minutes til cheese is bubbly on top.

Chicken & Dressing Casserole

This is one of my favorite comfort casseroles and it's a big favorite when you invite missionaries over to eat supper.  Our's just left a bit ago and I am surprised that there are leftovers.  They put a major munch on this!

Ingredients:

5 chicken breasts    (or 2 fryers or use 3 boneless, skinless breasts (cooked) and use packaged chicken broth)                         

1 regular (14oz.) package Pepperidge Farm Herb Dressing Mix (reserve 1/4 cup)

2 cans cream of chicken soup (I used the low fat version and didn't notice any difference in taste!)

2 soup cans of chicken stock

1 stick butter or margarine

2 eggs 

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 cup milk

1.  Simmer chicken until tender.  Save stock and strain.  Let chicken cool; remove bones and cut into bite-size chunks.

2.  Combine soup, stock and butter in pan and bring to a boil.  Remove from heat.  Add black pepper.

3.  In a slightly greased 9x13 pan, layer half of dry dressing mix, half of chicken and half the soup mixture (about 2 1/2 to 3 cups soup mixture).  Repeat layers.  

4.  Beat eggs in milk and pour over top of casserole.  Sprinkle reserved dressing over top.

5.  Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.  Serves 10.

This is great served with cranberry sauce and green beans, I mean,  if you just needed to know...

Source: My mom, Pat Brew, in our first edition of the Brew Family Cookbook.

Ham, Cheddar and Red Onion Bread Pudding

That's right, it's a savory bread pudding! You could serve this during a brunch or have it for dinner. I served this to some kids I was babysitting, and they gobbled it up and asked for seconds (they did pick out the onions, but hey, I still count it as a win)! Here's the recipe:

Serves: 6

Ingredients:

Oil for the dish

4 large eggs

1 1/2 C. whole milk

1 T. Dijon mustard

1/8 tsp freshly grated or ground nutmeg

2 tsp. Kosher salt

1 tsp. pepper

1 12 oz. loaf French or Italian bread, cut into 1-in. pieces

1 small red onion, cut into 1/4-in.-thick wedges (go ahead and leave the layers together, imagine you are slicing an apple)

1 crisp, tart apple, cut into 1/4-in.-thick wedges (the original recipe calls for a red apple like gala or braeburn, but we found it to not have much flavor after baking, so try a tart apple like granny smith.)

4 oz. sliced ham, torn into pieces (I bought a packaged ham steak, so the ham was nice a thick)

2 C. shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Oil a 2 1/2- 3 quart baking dish.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, mustard, nutmeg, 1 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. pepper.

3. Add the bread and let sit, tossing occasionally, for about 5 minutes.

Before soaking:

After soaking:

4. Fold the onion, apple, ham, cheese and the rest of the salt and pepper into the bread mixture.

5.Transfer to the prepared baking dish. Cover with foil or lid. Bake 30 minutes then remove foil or lid. Bake another 15-20 minutes until set (a knife inserted in the center comes out clean) and top is browned.

Source: adapted from Women's Day Magazine

Hungry Jack Casserole

I made this hearty dish for a "Girls Night In" I hosted a few weeks ago and everyone seemed to like it (because a few actually said so). I recommend sides that go well with BBQ--like broccoli slaw and potato salad.

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground beef

1 t salt

16-oz. can pork and beans

3/4 C Kraft BBQ sauce

2 T brown sugar

1 T instant minced onion (I used dehydrated)

1 can flaky biscuits

1 C grated cheese (I used cheddar)

1. Preheat oven to 375. Brown beef; drain. (Remember not to pour the grease down your sink!)

2. Stir in salt, beans, BBQ sauce, sugar, and onion. Heat until bubbly; pour into a 2-quart casserole dish.

3. Cut biscuits in half. Place cut side down around edge of casserole.

4. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake until biscuits are golden (20-30 minutes).

Source: my mom

Sausage and Rice Skillet

Inspired by one of my mother-in-law's recipes with Sausage and Minnesota grown wild rice...I came up with this little ditty that took me a total of 30 minutes to put together.  We like these throw-it-all-in-the-skillet deals.  Makes clean-up a cinch!  

Ingredients:
1 lb regular ground sausage (I used Jimmy Dean...it is the best)
1/4 c chopped onion or 1T dried onion (I'm a HUGE fan of dried onion)
1 can of Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 package of Birds Eye Steamfresh Brown and Wild rice with Broccoli and Carrots, prepared
8oz can of water chestnuts, drained and chopped (added for a little optional crunch)
1/2 c beef broth
pepper to taste

1. Brown the sausage with onion, add soup, steamed rice and water chestnuts.  
2. Add beef broth a little at a time for a creamier consistency.  
3. Add pepper to taste
4. Heat through and serve!  

Chicken Vegetable Casserole

Tonight for supper I decided to try a meal from food storage.  I get automatic shipments of foods from THRIVE.  I really want to make this work for our family. I have the THRIVE cookbook so that I can use and rotate the foods in normal use.  This recipe is from that cookbook.  

Sprinkle a little dill weed on it for color and flavor!



Ingredients:

I cup THRIVE Chopped Chicken (freeze dried)

4 cups THRIVE Egg Noodle Pasta

1/2 cup THRIVE Sweet Corn (freeze dried--I don't have this yet so I used canned corn on hand)

1/2 cup THRIVE Celery (freeze dried)

1/2 cup THRIVE Carrot Dices (I used dehydrated carrot dices canned previously)

1 tablespoon THRIVE Chopped Onions (freeze dried--I used dehydrated minced onions canned previously) 

1 teaspoon THRIVE Iodized Salt (I used salt on hand)

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon dried thyme

2 cups THRIVE Classic Gravy (see recipe below)

1/4 cup THRIVE Powdered Milk, rehydrated (3/4 tablespoon powder + 1/4 cup water--I used previously canned non-fat dehydrated powdered milk)

1 cup Parmesan, shredded

1.  In a small bowl, cover chicken dices with warm water.  Let sit for 5-10 minutes or until softened and rehydrated.  Drain.

2.  Preheat oven to 350 F.

3.  In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook egg noodle pasta according to directions on can.  Drain noodles, then toss with gravy and milk in a large bowl with the vegetables and onion until completely coated.  Add salt, garlic powder, and thyme.

4.  Toss mixture with chicken and stir to combine.  Pour into casserole dish (I used a 9 x 13) and top with 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese.

5.  Cover casserole with foil and bake at 350 F for 20 minutes, or until bubbly.  Take off foil and top with remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese.  Bake an additional 15 minutes.

THRIVE Classic Gravy

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons butter (I used 5 tablespoons from two partial sticks so that I could use them up)

1 cup THRIVE Powdered Milk,dry (I used non-fat powdered milk on hand)

1/4 cup THRIVE White Flour (I used all-purpose flour on hand)

3 cups water 

3 teaspoons THRIVE Chicken Bouillon

3/4 teaspoon THRIVE Iodized Salt (I used salt on hand)

3/4 teaspoon pepper

1.  In a medium saucepan, melt butter.  Whisk in powdered milk and flour.  

2.  Gradually add the water to the powdered milk mixture and whisk in the chicken bouillon.

3.  Add salt and pepper and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until gravy is thickened and smooth.  Remove from heat.

Source:  Shelf Reliance THRIVE Cookbook

Best Liz-agna Ever

I first had this lasagna when the Activity Day girls of our ward had a daddy/daughter dinner. It was the best lasagna I had ever tasted in my whole entire life and I wasn't the only one raving about it. (Don't let the picture scare you. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of the finished product in the dish before digging in for dinner with family and the missionaries, so this is a reheated portion that I had later. And the flavors are even better the second time around!)

Ingredients:

2 lbs. ground Italian sausage

1 clove garlic, minced

1 T = 1 t crushed (preferably fresh) basil

2 t anise seed - anise seed is the flavoring used for black licorice. I found it at Food Lion but not at our Wal-Mart. (Don't worry, the lasagna won't taste like black licorice!)

2 1-lb. cans stewed tomatoes

2 6-oz. cans tomato paste

9 oz. water (fill one of the 6-oz. tomato paste cans 1-and-a-half times)

olive oil, to taste

9 oven-ready lasagna noodles

3 eggs

4 C cottage cheese

3/4 C grated Italian blend or Parmesan cheese

3 T parsley flakes

1/2 t salt

1 t pepper

2 lbs. grated mozzarella cheese

fresh spinach (opt.)

1. Brown meat and drain grease. Add next 6 ingredients. Add a little olive oil to this tomato sauce for extra flavor. As you stir to combine, break up the large tomato pieces with a wooden spoon. Simmer uncovered 1-2 hours.

2. In a separate bowl, beat eggs, add cottage cheese, Parmesan cheese (or Italian cheese blend), parsley flakes, salt, and pepper.

3. Preheat oven to 375.

4. Brush the lasagna noodles generously with olive oil (otherwise they don't soften properly).

5. In a 9x13 glass casserole dish {actually I would use a larger one if you have it, like I did, because it will be full to the brim and could boil over} greased with olive oil, layer ingredients--beginning with half the cottage cheese filling, noodles, half the meat/tomato sauce, spinach, and mozzarella cheese. Repeat. Use the spatula that you probably used for spreading the ingredients to tuck the top edges in a bit (to help avoid boiling over). If made in advance this is easily frozen.

6. In case the lasagna still boils over (like mine, despite the tucking and using a larger dish), put a cookie sheet lined with foil under the dish in the stove. Bake at 365 for 30 minutes, 45 if cold. Let stand before serving. Serves 10-12.

The original recipe does the layering differently. It has you put the noodles down first, then, "half the cottage cheese filling, add layer of fresh spinach, add layer of mozzarella cheese, and half the meat sauce. Repeat." I did follow the instructions of the original recipe (besides adding the extra mozzarella on top), but it gave me some noodles that didn't cook all the way (despite following its instruction to generously grease the noodles with olive oil). I figure the layering I've provided should help with that. Who knows, maybe you won't even need to add olive oil to the noodles. Let me know how it works for you!

Source: my friend Liz. C. (hence the name "Liz-agna") made this for the afore-mentioned activity; she got the recipe from her mother

Deep Dish Chicken Pot Pie

The crust of this is really good and flaky. The inside is creamy! This is some good stuff!

Crust:
2 c. all -purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt
2/3c butter or margarine
1/4 c. cold water

Filling:
2 -1/2 c cooked, cubed chicken
2 c fresh or frozen peas
1/4 c finely chopped onion
3 med. slice carrots
2 med. potatoes, peeled, cubed

Sauce:
3 Tbsp butter or margarine
3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 c. half- and- half
1/2 c chicken broth
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
Milk

Heat oven to 375 degrees. For the crust, stir together flour and salt. Cut in butter until crumbly; with fork mix in water. Divide dough into 2/3 and 1/3 portions. Set aside 1/3 dough. Roll 2/3 dough into 14 " circle 1/8 " thick. Gently fit into 3 qt deep dish casserole; set aside.

In large bowl combine all filling ingredients; set aside.

In saucepan melt butter, stir in flour. Cook over med high heat, stirring occasionally, until hot and bubbly (3-4 min) Whisk in half- and-half, chicken broth, 1/2 tsp salt and pepper. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens (3-5 min). Stir hot sauce into filling; spoon into prepared pie crust. Roll reserved dough into 10" circle 1/8" thick. Place on top of pie. Flute edges to seal. Make 3 small slits in top crust; lightly brush top with milk. Bake for 50 to 60 min. or until golden brown.

recipe: Land O Lakes Treasury of Country Recipes

Cheesy Potatoes

This dish was served at a Relief Society activity in my mom's ward several years ago. Although it was delicious as is, I have made a few changes in both ingredients and preparation. It can be a main dish (with ham) or a side dish (without ham).

1/2 stick (4 Tbsp) butter
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 pt light sour cream
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 Tbsp onion powder
1 to 1 1/2 cup cubed ham (optional)
1/2 to 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
~2 lb. bag of frozen hash browns

1. Melt and mix the butter, soup and sour cream in a large pot over medium heat. Stir until smooth.



2. Add the ham (optional), cheese, onion powder, salt and pepper. Heat through, stirring often.



3. Stir in the hash browns until covered with the soup mixture.



4. Transfer to a 9x13 baking dish, coated with cooking spray.



5. Bake in the oven for 50 to 60 minutes.



[The original recipe called for southern-style hash browns, although I prefer to use the shredded. Use the longer cooking time for the southern-style potatoes; the shredded hash browns take less time to cook through.]

Source: Adapted from a family friend's recipe