Archive for the ‘CASSEROLES’ Category
Stuffing Casserole
A wonderful twist on stuffing. I made this on 21 Nov 2018 and it is delicious. You can use left over stuffing from a previous meal, 3 cups, or you can make a box of Stove Top stuffing, which also makes 3 cups. Or in my case, I made homemade Stove Top stuffing (it's easy!) Link to the Shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 3 cups bread stuffing, (Shortcut)
- 1 cup milk
- 1/2 cup whipping cream, or evaporated milk
- 3 eggs
- 2/3 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- black pepper, as desired
- 1/4 teaspoon dried sage
- 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
Instructions
- For the stuffing, if you made a large batch previously and have 3 cups left over, you can use that. You can also prepare a box of Stove Top stuffing, which will also yield 3 cups. You can also use the shortcut listed below to make your own Stove Top stuffing.
- Preheat your oven to 180 C (350 F). Grease a 9x9 baking dish with butter. Add the stuffing to the dish.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the remaining ingredients except the cheese. Pour over the stuffing, then sprinkle the cheese evenly over the top.
- Place in the oven and bake for 40-45 minutes or until the casserole is browned and set. To check the set, insert a toothpick in the center and when it comes out clean, it is set. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes.
- Slice into 9 squares and serve as a side dish
- Or even as a filling dish on its own with a vegetable side dish.
Notes
Low cost.
Shortcut: Stove Top Stuffing.
Recipe adapted from Just A Pinch Recipe Club, Bonnie O, and the original recipe is here.
United States.
United States.
Egg Casserole
This is an excellent casserole, and can be changed in any way you like. Consider this a guide, change the ham for bacon or sausage, the peppers for say mushrooms, you get the idea, change it each time you make this, or come up with your signature dish.
Ingredients
- 9 eggs
- 1/2 cup whipping cream, or evaporated milk
- 1 onion, finely diced
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 1/2 cups Cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 1/2 cups ham, diced
- 1/2 cup green bell pepper, diced, or red bell pepper
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 200 C (400 F). Grease a 9x9 casserole dish with butter.
- Heat the butter in a non stick pan on medium heat, and when melted, add the onion and cook until softened. Remove from pan and allow to cool. (I used Shimeji mushrooms so I cooked those with the onion.)
- Important note if adding items such as bacon or sausage or even mushrooms. Bacon and sausage needs to be fully cooked prior to using. For mushrooms, cook to release the water and soften up. Let the cooked items cool before using.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the eggs and cream. Whisk well.
- Add your other ingredients to the eggs and stir to mix.
- Pour into the prepared baking dish, bake for 30-35 minutes or until a butter knife inserted into the center, comes out clean. Goal is to cook until the eggs are just set, if over cooked, the eggs will lose their fluffiness.
- Serve with sides of your choice.
Notes
Low cost.
Inspired by Spend With Pennies and the link to this recipe is here.
United States.
United States.
Hamburger Casserole IV
As you can tell by the name, this is the 4th variant of this classic American comfort dish. A complete meal, beef, vegetables, and pasta. On my to cook and taste list, real soon. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 170 grams dry egg noodles, (6 oz)
- 500 grams ground beef, (1 lb)
- 1 small onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
- 1 cup frozen mixed vegetables
- 1 1/2 cups pasta sauce, Shortcut
- 1 1/2 cups whole peeled tomatoes, drained, chopped, save the juice to drink later
- salt and pepper, to taste, as desired
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 2 cups Cheddar cheese, shredded, divided
Instructions
- Cook the egg noodles in a pot of boiling water until just tender, then drain and rinse.
- While the water is heating for the noodles, go ahead and preheat your oven to 190 C (375 F). Get out a 2 1/2 quart baking dish. I will verify the dimensions for a baking dish for this as well.
- Also while the water is heating for the noodles, go ahead and brown the beef, onion, and garlic in a large non stick pan or pot. When browned and cooked through, drain any fat.
- Add the pasta sauce, tomatoes, vegetables, oregano, basil, and season with salt and pepper as desired, to taste. Simmer to let the flavors blend together for about 3 to 4 minutes.
- Add the drained egg noodles and 1 cup of cheese. Mix then pour into the baking dish and spread out evenly.
- Top with the remaining 1 cup of cheese. Bake for 20-22 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbly.
- Serve.
Notes
I will price this when I get beef again. For now, I will say low cost per serving.
Shortcut: Pasta Sauce.
Inspired by Spend With Pennies and the link to this recipe is here.
United States.
United States.
Beef Casserole
The idea for this comes from a good friend in Thailand, and it turned out much better than expected, and the family loved it!
Ingredients
- 3 cups bowtie pasta, or any bite size pasta
- 500 grams ground beef, (1 lb)
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 8 small Shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and sliced
- 1 jar Artisan 3 Cheese Pasta Sauce, Prego, 411 gram jar
- 2-3 cups Cheddar cheese, shredded
- panko breadcrumbs, as needed
- salt and pepper, as desired
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 200 C (400 F). Grease a 9x13 baking dish lightly with butter.
- Cook the pasta in a pot of boiling salted water until just tender. Drain and add pasta to the baking dish. While the pasta is cooking, heat a non stick pan and brown the ground beef, drain and add to the baking dish.
- Add the mushrooms, peas, and cheese pasta sauce to the baking dish.
- Mix together. Season with salt and pepper as desired.
- Spread the mixture out evenly and sprinkle the shredded cheese on the top, use as much cheese as you like.
- Add some panko on top of the cheese.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the casserole is bubbly and the top is golden brown.
- Serve and enjoy.
Notes
The cheese sauce, in Thailand, is available from Lazada if you reside outside of a major city, cost is 178 Baht for a jar, which is not bad, it is a very good sauce. The Cheddar cheese will use 1 200 gram block, about 180 Baht. For 8 servings, this is about $1.36 per serving.
Recipe inspired by good friend, Kurt Hammerschmidt.
Thailand.
Thailand.
Breakfast Sausage Casserole
This casserole is wide open to changes, and it is delicious! What I like to do is make breakfast for dinner so this worked out very well. Instead of breakfast sausage, think bacon or ham. Link to the Shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 4 slices sandwich bread, white or wheat is fine
- 500 grams bulk breakfast sausage, (Shortcut)
- 6 eggs
- 2 cups milk
- 1 tablespoon prepared yellow mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup Sharp Cheddar cheese, grated
Instructions
- Heat a large non stick pan, when hot, add the bulk sausage, break it up with the your spatula, brown it until no more pink is visible. Drain well and set aside. If using bacon, fry that to crispy, drain on paper towels and crumble it up. If using cooked ham, cube that.
- Preheat your oven to 180 C (350 F) and grease a 7x11 baking dish with butter or spray with an olive oil mister.
- Tear up the bread into small pieces and place in the baking dish, spread them out evenly.
- Spread the sausage, bacon, or ham, on the bread.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk the eggs, then add the milk, mustard, salt, and pepper. Whisk until combined.
- Pour the egg mixture over the sausage in the baking dish.
- Sprinkle the cheese on top of the casserole.
- Place in the oven uncovered and bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until set in the middle, check with a toothpick.
- When done, remove from the oven, let the casserole rest 5 minutes. The casserole will be puffed up a bit, it will collapse down after 5 minutes.
- Slice.
- Serve and enjoy.
Notes
This is low cost if making the breakfast sausage yourself.
Shortcuts: Breakfast Sausage, Jimmy Dean Sausage.
Variants: 1. Replace the sausage with cubed ham or cooked and crumbled bacon. 2. Replace the Cheddar with Monterey Jack. 3. Add chopped mushrooms.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Broccoli & Ham Cheese Casserole
Almost went into a food coma just adding this. I am a fan of a good, or any, mac & cheese, and broccoli with cheese is a bonus, then add ham, wow! Homemade cheese sauce, always a bonus. On my to cook list. And this is versatile, read the variants. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 340 grams dry macaroni, (12 oz)
- 1/4 cup butter, 1/4 block, (1/2 stick)
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup cream, heavy, whipping, or light
- 1/2 teaspoon mustard powder
- 2 cups Sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 cup Gruyere cheese, shredded, or Jarlsberg, Gouda, or Cheddar
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
- 3 cups broccoli florets, plus stem, the stem is just as good
- 2 cups cooked ham, cubed
For the Topping
- 1 cup bread crumbs, OR make from a shortcut
- 1 tablespoon butter, melted
- 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 200 C (400 F). Get out a 9x13 baking dish and grease that with butter, set the dish aside.
- Cook pasta in a pot of boiling salted water, add the broccoli during the last 2 minutes of cooking the pasta to make them tender yet crisp. Drain the pasta and broccoli under cold water to stop the cooking.
- In a large sauce pan, melt the butter. When melted, whisk in the flour and allow to cook for 2 minutes, while whisking. Slowly whisk in the cream of your choice, plus the milk, onion and mustard powders. Continue to whisk until thickened. Remove from heat and stir in the cheeses until melted, there, you just made a cheese sauce.
- Add the drained pasta and broccoli to a large mixing bowl, mix in the ham, then mix in the cheese sauce. Pour the mixture in the prepared baking dish.
- Mix together the Topping ingredients and sprinkle over the baking dish.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until just heated through. Do not over cook this, that advice comes from the author of the recipe, so best to pay attention to that.
Notes
I will price this when I get ham again in the city. For now, I will say Fair cost per serving based on the cheeses used.
Shortcut: Breadcrumbs.
Variants: 1. Use cheeses of your choice.
Inspired by Spend With Pennies and the link to this recipe is here.
United States.
United States.
Sinfully Delicious Chicken Casserole
This comes from a good friend and is highly recommended, and it certainly sounds delicious! I made this on 5 July 2018, and now I highly recommend this! The use of the Shortcuts is highly recommend. Links to the shortcuts are listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken, see Step 1
- 1 can condensed cream of chicken soup, OR make from a shortcut
- 1 can condensed cream of celery soup, OR make from a shortcut
- 1 cup sour cream, OR make from a shortcut
- onion powder, to taste
- 1 box Stove Top stuffing, chicken flavored, OR make from a shortcut
Instructions
- For the chicken, 1. You can use a whole chicken or 2 kilos (4 lbs) of pieces, think bone in skin on quarters separated, and breasts. 2. You can boil it or pressure cook it, pressure cooked will be used by me. Either way, once the chicken is cooked, leave it in the pot with the broth to cool to give you juicy chicken. Shortcuts are in the Recipe Notes section.
- Once the chicken is cooked, remove the skin, bones, cartilage, and shred, place evenly in the bottom of a casserole dish.
- Preheat your oven to 180 C (350 F).
- In a large bowl, add the soups, sour cream, and onion powder as desired. Whisk to combine. Here I have the chicken ready, the soups (homemade) mixed, and the stuffing (homemade) ready to assemble.
- Prepare the stuffing according to the directions on the package.
- Pour the soup mixture evenly over the chicken.
- Spread the stuffing evenly over the top of the casserole. Bake for 45 minutes.
- Let rest for 5 minutes,
- Serve and enjoy.
Notes
The whole chicken will cost about 150 Baht. For 6 servings, this is about 78 cents per serving.
Shortcuts: Pressure Cooked Whole Chicken, Quick Chicken Broth, Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup, Condensed Cream of Celery Soup, Sour Cream, Stove Top Stuffing.
Recipe provided by good friend, Tim Payton.
United States.
United States.
Tuna Casserole IV
This comes from a good friend in Thailand and is highly recommended. I like the use of the cheese pasta sauce. I made this on 27 June 2018, outstanding! Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 3-4 cups bow tie pasta, or any bite size pasta
- 2-3 cans tuna, drained, or 1 - 1 1/2 cups fresh cooked
- 1/2 can corn nibblets, or 3/4 cup fresh cooked
- 1 jar Artisan 3 Cheese Pasta Sauce, 411 gram jar
- 1-2 cups Cheddar cheese, shredded
- salt and pepper, as desired
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 200 C (400 F). Spray a 9x13 baking dish with olive oil.
- Cook the pasta in a pot of boiling salted water until just tender. Drain and add pasta to the baking dish.
- Add the tuna, corn, cheese pasta sauce and mix together well. Season with salt and pepper as desired.
- Spread the mixture out evenly and sprinkle the shredded cheese on the top, use as much cheese as you like.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the casserole is bubbly.
- Serve and enjoy.
Notes
The cheese sauce, in Thailand, is available from Lazada if you reside outside of a major city, cost is 178 Baht for a jar, which is not bad, it is a very good sauce. The Cheddar cheese will use 1/2 of a 200 gram block, about 90 Baht for that. For 6 servings, this is about $1.40 per serving.
Shortcuts: Fresh Tuna, Fresh Corn (Pressure Cooker).
Variants: 1. Use peas in place of the corn. 2. Use the higher quantities of Cheddar and tuna (highly recommended). 3. Add some sauteed onions. 4. Add some sauteed diced red bell pepper. 5. (Highly recommended.) Use the following measurements: 10 oz / 285 g dry bow tie pasta, 22 oz / 624 g jar Prego Homestyle Alfredo Sauce, 3 cups of shredded Cheddar cheese, 1 standard can of peas, I made this combination on 4 Aug 2019 and it was perfect.
Recipe and variants 3-4 provided by good friend, Kurt Hammerschmidt.
Thailand.
Thailand.
Beef & Bean Casserole
This sounds like a really good casserole, quick and easy to make. And as a bonus, a cornbread topping. On my to cook list. The time for prep or cook does not include the time to cook the pinto beans. This is a 3 step process, 1. cook beans, 2. prepare other items on stove top in a pot, 3. bake in the oven. Links to the shortcuts are listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 2 cups dry Pinto beans, cooked and drained, Shortcut
- 500 grams ground beef, (1 lb)
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 clove garlic, smashed and minced
- 1 fresh Jalapeno pepper, seeded, finely chopped
- 2 cups tomato sauce, Shortcut
- 1 medium tomato, chopped, or 2-3 plum tomatoes
- 1 cup Cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 box Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix, Shortcut
- 1 egg
- â…“ cup milk
Instructions
- First order of business, need to get those pinto beans cooked, use what ever method you prefer, stove top, slow cooker, or my preferred way is the pressure cooker. Drain and set the beans aside.
- Preheat your oven to 200° C (400° F).
- In a large pot, cook the ground beef, onion, and garlic, break up the beef as you cook, when browned and cooked through, drain the fat then add the cooked beans, jalapeno, tomato and tomato sauce, and mix together.
- Pour mixture into a heat proof baking dish and spread out evenly. I will guess a 7x11 or 9x13, and I will clarify this when I make it.
- Mix together the Jiffy mix, egg, and milk, pour over the meat and bean mixture.
- Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes or until the cornbread is lightly browned.
- Serve. I would serve this with mashed potatoes or a nice green salad.
Notes
Low cost.
Shortcuts: Pinto Beans (Pressure Cooker), Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix, Tomato Sauce.
Oyster Casserole
I bought a quart of fresh oyster meat on 3 Jun and decided to make this. This is easy and delicious. Link to the shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
- 4 cups oyster meat, rinsed and drained well, (2 pints / 1 quart)
- â…“ cup extra light olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, smashed and finely minced
- â…“ cup fresh parsley, chopped
- 2 cups Italian breadcrumbs, Shortcut
- ¼ cup lemon or lime juice
- 6 spring onions, sliced, white and green parts
- â…“ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 200° C (400° F). Grease a 9x13 baking dish with butter. This is the container that oyster meat comes in at Tesco, I will verify the amount of containers needed when I make this. I think there is 1 cup of oyster meat in a container, and these cost 49 Baht ($1.53) each.
- Here is the oyster meat, in brine, from local fishermen, and they deliver as well. Each bag has 2 cups (1 pint) of oyster meat, drained, these cost 50 Baht ($1.56) each. You can see the savings by buying from a local fisherman, and these are fresh as well.
- In a mixing bowl, add the olive oil, garlic, parsley, breadcrumbs, and lime or lemon juice, mix together.
- Add the oysters to the dish and spread out to an even layer.
- Spread the breadcrumb mixture evenly over the oysters.
- Sprinkle on the cheese.
- Sprinkle on the spring onion.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the topping browned.
- Serve with a side or two of your choice. Enjoy.
Notes
I used a quart of oyster meat, drained, from a local fisherman, cost was 100 Baht. For 6 servings, this is about 52 cents per serving.
Shortcut: Italian Breadcrumbs.