Easy Chicken Tetrazzini

Some time has past since I last posted, and for that I apologize. My life has gotten a bit in the way of my cooking and blogging. My job, where I actually make a living, picked up considerably and has really cut into my personal time, dang it! If I could cook and blog about it all day I would be one very happy old woman. But, alas, I have to make some money in order to cook the food. This may be one of those lessons in how to better organize my time. And I suppose sleep is highly overrated. So, I am going to try to do better...promise.

On to the food. I love the versatility of chicken. It probably adorns our plates at least 3 times a week. I mean, my gosh, it can be baked, fried, broiled, boiled, stir fried, used in soup, salads, casseroles, stews, and its bones used for stock. How good is that?! When whole chickens are on sale I always purchase at least 3. None of it ever goes to waste. I also keep packages of breasts and thighs on hand. I am positive there is more chicken in my freezer than any other type of meat. It even beats out ground beef! That being said, you will probably always see more chicken recipes on this blog than beef, pork or fish.

Now, the recipe. This chicken tetrazzini recipe is probably the best I have run across. It's easy, flavorful and creamy. I found it in the Farm Journal's Great Home Cooking in America. This cookbook is devoted to tracing many of the recipes we use today to our immigrant forefathers. This particular recipe, of course, is attributed to Italian immigrants, although I read somewhere that this really isn't an Italian dish. Oh, well, tastes great anyway. And it is really a great family friendly recipe. Kids even like this!

Ingredients

6 TBS. butter

6TBS. flour

3/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

2 cups half and half

1/2 cup white wine

1/2 cup chicken broth

3 cups cubed cooked chicken

1 8 oz. can mushrooms (stems and pieces) you can certainly use fresh

1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper

12 oz. spaghetti cooked and drained(reserve 1/4 cup cooking water)

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Melt butter in 3 qt. saucepan. Blend in flour, salt and pepper. Add half and half and chicken broth; cook, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil. Remove from heat. Stir in chicken, mushrooms, and peppers. Toss gently with drained spaghetti and reserved cooking water. Turn into greased 3 qt. casserole dish. Top with cheese. Bake in 350 degree oven 30 minutes.

Notes: This could not be any more simple. It's a great mid week dish for a family meal. Add salad, veggie and bread and you are set. My hubby has been making tetrazzini for ever, using a specific recipe. I actually had him make this one and he declared it much better than the one he had been making. So there's an official endorsement. Enjoy!

Mac and Cheese...The Ultimate Comfort Food

This is definitely NOT low carb. But sometimes one just has to indulge. There is nothing better, as far as I am concerned, when all the world seems to have gone to hell in a hand basket, than piping hot homemade mac and cheese. The stuff from the box is just pathetic when compared to the real stuff. When I was growing up my mom would make mac and cheese as a side dish to go with baked fish, usually perch or cod, and I really looked forward to the mac and cheese. The next day I would even eat it cold right out of the fridge. You certainly can't do that with the boxed mac and cheese. Now, I have to admit that for convenience sake I would use the boxed kind for my kids and to make into casseroles. But these days, I don't even buy the stuff. And you really have to love the versatility of mac and cheese. You can use just about any type of cheese, add meats, make it cheap or expensive. It's just a great dish to have in your repetoire. And so here's my version.

Mac and Cheese

8 oz. any short pasta cooked to just shy of al dente I used rotini
4 TBS. butter
4 TBS. flour
2 cups milk
4 oz. sharp cheddar grated
4 oz. Velveeta cubed
4 slices Swiss (I was adding ham so I thought "why not some Swiss." I had some for sandwiches)
1 tsp. dry mustard
dash of hot pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste
2-3 cups cubed ham
1 cup dry bread crumbs
3 TBS. melted butter
a palm full of smoked paprika

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 2 quart casserole dish with Pam. Melt butter in a large saucepan. Whisk in flour and let cook for 3 or 4 minutes. Add the milk, whisking to break down any lumps. Stir constantly until the sauce thickens. I usually do this over a medium heat. Don't be tempted to increase the heat or you run the risk of scorching the milk. Once the sauce has thickened stir in the salt, pepper, pepper flakes, and mustard. Then stir in the cheese. Turn heat to low and keep stirring until all the cheese has melted. Remove from heat. Mix the cheese sauce, pasta and cheese together either in a large bowl or, if your casserole dish is big enough, you can mix it together in that.

Now, for a crunchy topping! At Christmas, I bought loaves of French bread that I let set out to get stale. Then I cubed them and let them get even more stale. I used this for my stuffing and froze what was left. I pulled outt enough to make a cup of bread crumbs and pulsed the cubed bread in my processer. I then added the melted butter and paprika and sprinkled it over the mac and cheese. Bake for 30 minutes until bubbly. Mmm, mmm, mmm. Comfort food! Enjoy!

Spaghetti "Squash" Pie

I have made traditional spaghetti pie for, oh, I don't know, about 25 years. It has always been one of my favorites. With my new found love of spaghetti squash, I thought, hmmm, why not try substituting the squash for the pasta. Couldn't think of a reason not to try it. It actually worked pretty well. I didn't have to do a lot of adjusting and the end result was quite tasty.

Spaghetti Squash Pie

1/2 cooked and shredded spaghetti squash
2 TBS. butter
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 well beaten eggs
1 lb. ground beef
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 chopped green or red pepper
2 gloves garlic grated or pressed
1 cup canned diced tomatoes
1 6 oz. can tomato paste
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup cottage cheese
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

After the squash has been prepared place it in a bowl, stir in butter, add Parmesan cheese and eggs. Press the mixture into a crust in a greased (I spray with butter flavored Pam) pie pan. In a skillet saute onion, peppers, and garlic in a little olive oil. Add ground beef and cook until browned. Drain. Stir in tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar, oregano, and salt. Heat through. Spread cottage cheese on top of the squash crust. Fill pie with tomato mixture. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese (I used sliced fresh mozzarella cheese). Bake uncovered at 350 degree for 30 minutes.

Let sit for 5 or 10 minutes before slicing. Now the big difference from the pasta pie is that the squash pie doesn't quite slice as nicely. But it is still yummy! Hubby really liked it. Serve with a salad and a crusty bread and you have a great supper. Enjoy!

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

And I'm back. Hubby's surgery basically didn't work out and so now he will start treatment for the cancer. And life goes on. Cooking and working on this blog is good therapy for me so I'm going to get back to work here.

I've decided to change things around a little. Nothing huge. I have just decided I should give the recipes names. Looking for specific recipes should not be a treasure hunt (although I think these are treasures). Through the coming weeks I will go back and edit my posts to reflect the names of the dishes I am posting. Sound like a plan?

Today's dish is a twist on one of my family's favorites. I have been making Green Chicken Enchiladas for about 35 years, slowly improving on it over the years. The one thing I find really time consuming is rolling the enchiladas. When one considers how my hubby dishes them up it is really an exercise in futility. So I have begun layering them instead. Much easier to dish up and just as tasty. And another one of those great budget stretching comfort dishes.

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

Sauce
2 cans cream of chicken soup
2 cups salsa verde, either purchased or homemade
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. dried cilantro
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. chipotle chili powder

Mix the above ingredients together in a saucepan and heat through.

2 TBS. olive oil
2 TBS. butter
1 small diced onion
1 4 oz. can diced green chilies
4 cups cooked chopped chicken
1 tsp. cumin
1-2 tsp. dried cilantro
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp. turmeric
16-18 corn tortillas
3-4 cups shredded cheese...cheddar, monterey jack, or combination of the two
sour cream

In a large skillet melt the butter and oil together. Add the onions and cook for 10 to 15 minutes until onion is fairly caramelized. Add the can of chilies and cook for another 2 minutes or so. Add the chicken and spices and heat through...about 5 minutes. On the subject of the chicken...I like to use leftover chicken. I will freeze leftovers until I have enough to make a casserole. The night before I made the casserole I had made a rotisserie chicken in the crockpot and used the meat from that for this dish. I also freeze the carcass after I strip it to make chicken stock at a later date. In light of the current economic situation I feel obligated to make use of everything.

Back to the casserole.

In a small skillet heat a small amount of oil and quickly heat each tortilla in the oil...just a few seconds on each side. You want the tortillas to stay flexible. Drain on paper towels.

In the bottom of a 9x13 inch casserole dish spread about 1/2 cup of the sauce. Lay out 6 of the tortillas in the dish. Top with half the chicken mixture, then 1/3 of the sauce and 1/3 of the cheese. Layer 6 more tortillas, the other half of the chicken, 1/3 of the sauce and 1/3 of the cheese. Top with remaining sauce and then cheese. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes until the casserole is all melty and bubbly. Top each serving with a dollop of sour cream. This is really Mmm! Mmm! Good! Enjoy!

What Do You Mean...Budget? Tater Tot Casserole

Since times are getting a little tough for many people, and it appears that it may last for awhile, I started thinking about how to cut expenses. Food is often one of the first places we start. One of the websites I follow, Simply Recipes, posted about this and it inspired me to look at my own cooking habits. I actually was pretty good at feeding a family of 6 on a shoestring for years. Then as the kids began to leave home, I was able to be a bit more extravagant. The last few years I have really gone all out with my cooking. Haute cuisine isn't my cup of tea, but I did get a bit fancier. For awhile we subscribed to cable, and I lived on the sumptuousness of the Food Network. I learned so many new things about cooking from Rachel, Paula, Giada, Tyler, and the rest. Sadly, cable is one of the cuts we've made, so now I search PBS for cooking shows, and devour Rachel and Martha on network television. And I pick up cooking magazines and peruse the internet for cooking sites. Gotta love the internet! So now, I will try to take the many lessons I have learned and apply them to budget cooking.

One of my methods for keeping a tight control on the grocery budget years ago was to make a weekly menu and then make my purchases accordingly. But I have totally lost sight of that little technique. I have for the last few years just peered into the pantry to see what I "wanted" not what I "needed." So, new resolution...plan, plan, plan. When I was planning meals ahead I seldom had to make extra trips to the store. Over the last several years it seems as though I have been going daily. And do you ever just pick up the one thing you go after? I think not. I can end up spending 3 times what I should have. As of this weekend (I go shopping mostly on the weekends just so I can fight the crowds...good for getting out hostile aggression) I am going to plan the work and work the plan. I'll keep you posted on how that goes.

As we all try to curb our lifestyles a bit, I will give tips that I find useful and links that have recipes and ideas. Today's link is the Simply Recipes one from above. She also has several links that are great for this. I checked them all out and actually bookmarked them. With a little researching you all will be able to help yourselves cut some corners.

Now...FOOD! I find that often those cost cutting recipes are comfort foods in disguise. With all the kids around I did a fare share of casseroles. One of their favorites was "Tator Tot Casserole." I mean, really, who doesn't like tator tots. The following is my version and I have now idea where it came from. I've been making it for over 30 years and my kids still like it.

Ingredients

2 cups cooked rice (I use brown rice)
1 cup chopped onion
1 large clove grated garlic
EVOO
1 lb. ground meat (beef, chicken, turkey, pork, mixture....knock yourself out)
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 box frozen peas
2 cans cream of chicken soup (you can use the healthy stuff)
1 cup milk
approximately 1 lb. tator tots or tator rounds (I accidently picked up a bag of the rounds instead of the tots but they worked fine) enough to cover the top
1 cup grated cheddar cheese

Saute the onions and garlic in EVOO. When tender add the ground meat and brown. Add the oregano and cook for about a minute. Drain off any excess water and grease. In a large bowl mix together the meat, rice, peas, soup, and milk. Spread in a 9x13 casserole dish. I usually spray my dish with a cooking spray just to be on the safe side. Top with the tots and finally sprinkle the cheese over the tots. Bake at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes. Yummmmm.

There are so many ways that this can be changed. The veggies are purely based on preference. I just really like rice and peas together, but I have seen green beans in this also. Any cream soup can be substituted. So do whatever floats your boat and take comfort in eating with your family.
Enjoy!

New Age Chicken and Dumplings

I had originally planned to post a different recipe this weekend, but after making it I decided it needed some more tweaking. It is a really delish dish, but it just needs some refinement. Now you have something to look forward to.

Instead you are getting my take on a recipe Jessica Simpson made for Rachel Ray on TV last month. This is incredibly easy to make and quite flavorful. And on a chilly autumn night very comforting. Boy, with the world in the mess it is right now we could all use some comforting.

Ingredients

3 cans crescent rolls (use the Pillsbury. I initially was going to make this a few days ago with some Walmart brand rolls and ended up throwing the rolls out. Sometimes you just have to use name brands.)

12 oz. cream cheese softened

1/2 cup sour cream

1 TBS. minced chives

2 TBS. minced parsley

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. salt

2 cans chicken breast meat (I get the 6 pack from Costco) you could also use 2 cups of cooked chopped chicken

1 can cream of chicken soup

Pre-heat oven to 400 degreees. In a bowl mix cream cheese and sour cream until smooth. Add in chives, parsley, onion and garlic powders and salt. Mix well. Fold in chicken.

Open the crescent rolls. Stretch each one a little and then put a small spoonful of the chicken mixture in the middle of the roll.

Roll it into a little pillow.

Place in a 9x13 casserole dish. I sprayed mine with some canola oil spray. Use 2 of the cans of rolls. That will fill your dish. You should have a cup or so of the mixture left. Add the can of cream of chicken soup to this, and then spread that sauce over the top of the little pillows. If you don't feel you have enough of the chicken mixture left you can either add sour cream to the soup or another can of soup. It's whatever you prefer. Now take that final roll of crecsent rolls and cut them into strips and lattice them on top of the sauce. Bake for 40 minutes. If the lattice begins to brown too much cover with foil.

This turned out very yummy. Even my son who still has to everything blended threw some in the blender. Both he and my hubby said it was blog worthy and said it definitely needs to be repeated. So, Enjoy!