Tater Tot Casserole

I didn't know tater tot casserole was a thing, but after this experiment, it might become a meal that we have every once in awhile, when we get that craving for a very yummy comfort food dish.  I used a bunch of different recipes and combined them to create this one.  I was only a little bit nervous about mostly winging it, but I took confidence in knowing what Zak and I both like and what would taste good and I'm proud to say that this was a big hit!  It was very easy to make and tasted great the next day, too!

1 lb. ground beef
1/4 c. onions, minced
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. seasoned salt
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 lb. tater tots (around 50)
2/3 c. frozen peas
2/3 c. frozen corn
1 1/2 c. cheese

1.  Brown meat with onions.  Add spices.
2.  Add in soups and veggies, cook until warmed through.
3.  Defrost tots in a shallow bowl in the microwave for 1 - 2 minutes.
4.  Layer a 9"x13" casserole dish with half of the soup mixture, half of the tater tots, 1/2 c. cheese; repeat.  Sprinkle remaining cheese on top.
5.  Cook for about 25 minutes at 350 degrees.

before cooking

after baking

sure it may not look super pretty, but it hit the spot!

Skillet Cheesy Chicken Rice

We really liked this recipe and it was so easy and satisfying, definitely a comfort food type of meal.  It was so quick to throw together after a long day at work, which is always a good thing.

1/2 Tbl. oil
1 1/4 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 can (10.75 oz.) Campbell's Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup
1 1/2 c. water
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 c. uncooked regular long-grain white rice
12 oz. frozen bag mixed veggies (ours had corn, green beans, carrots & peas)
3/4 c. shredded cheese

1.  Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the chicken and cook for 10 minutes, or until well browned on both sides.  Season with salt & pepper to taste, remove from skillet once completely cooked.
2.  Stir in soup, water, spices, rice into skillet and heat to a boil.  Reduce heat to low and cover and cook for 15 minutes, stirring once.
3.  Stir in vegetables and return chicken to skillet.  Sprinkle with cheese; cover and cook for 5 minutes or until cooked through and rice is tender.

Slow-Baked Mac & Cheese

I love macaroni and cheese, it's a total guilty pleasure and comfort food.  I try not to make it too often since I've been watching my calorie intake and trying to eat better/less.  But I've been doing well lately, and wanted to try a new recipe/version of mac & cheese, and I found this one.  I was skeptical, because it's a slow-cooker recipe, but decided to give it a shot.  To be honest, it wasn't everything I hoped it'd be, but it was still really good, and an interesting take on the ol' mac & cheese.  To our disappointment, along the bottom edges it got crusty and brown.  But the middle turned out fine.  Next time I might add breadcrumbs and experiment with different spices, I just went with normal salt, pepper & added onion powder.  Overall, not bad, it was definitely fun to try!

1 1/2 c. milk
12 oz. can evaporated milk (I used skim; evaporated milk apparently keeps the egg & milk from curdling)
1/4 c. unsalted butter, melted & cooled to room temperature
3 eggs
1/2 tsp. salt
3 c. shredded cheese (I used 2 cups colby jack blend, 1 cup mozzarella)
8 oz. (1/2 lb.) elbow macaroni, par cooked & drained (only cook for about 5 mins until tender but not completely cooked)
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese
pepper & other spices to taste

1.  Spray the inside of slow-cooker with cooking spray.  Cook the pasta for about 5 minutes--don't cook all the way.
2.  Combine butter and eggs in slow-cooker.  Slowly add in milk, salt, evaporated milk and whisk until smooth.
3.  Add shredded cheese (not the Parmesan) and pasta.  Sprinkle with pepper and other spices.  Gently stir with a spatula to coat evenly.
4.  Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top.  Cover and cook on HIGH for 30 minutes.
5.  Change temperature to LOW and cook for 2 - 2 1/2 hours, until middle is set and pasta is tender.  It can sit in the slow-cooker for 30 minutes on the warm setting before serving.

I didn't get amazing pictures, but here is what I got.

right before serving

so cheesy! 

Nutritional Facts
servings per recipe: 6
amount per serving

Calories: 493.1
Total Fat: 27 g
Saturated Fat: 14.9 g
Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.9 g
Monounsaturated Fat: 4.1 g
Cholesterol: 166.5 mg
Sodium: 767 mg
Potassium: 137.9 mg
Total Carbohydrate: 36.3 g
Dietary Fiber: 1.3 g
Sugar: 7.8 g
Protein: 27.2 g
Vitamin A: 23.1 %
Vitamin C: --
Calcium: 61.5 %
Iron: 2.6 % 

Macaroni & Cheese (Kraft Knockoff)

I will admit that I kind of love Kraft mac & cheese (the best is the 3 cheese shells, ohh). Sometimes you just need some comfort food and it hits the spot. The other day while Zak was at work, I had a craving for it, but seeing as how I was stranded at home and it was cold and rainy outside, I opted not to walk to the store to get a box of it. So I looked online and found a good 'taste-a-like' of it. It was super easy, and pretty tasty!

2 quarts water

1 Tbl. salt

2 c. uncooked elbow (or shell, whatever) macaroni

2 Tbl. butter

1/2 lb. cheese, grated (about 2 cups)

1 tsp. cornstarch

2 tsp. flour

1 c. milk

1/2 tsp. lemon juice

1/4 c. ham, chopped into 1/4 inc. cubes (I didn't have ham when I made this, so I opted it out, but I'm sure it's good in it)

black pepper

onion salt

1. In a medium bowl, mix corn starch in with cheese, so that it's coated (this helps cheese from getting too stringy).

2. Bring water and salt to a boil, add pasta and cook 7 or so minutes, drain when finished.

3. While pasta is cooking, prepare the sauce by melting butter in a large saucepan on medium heat.

4. Whisk in the flour; slowly dribble in the milk and continue to whisk until the sauce is smooth.

5. Slowly add in the cheese and whisk until smooth. Stir in the lemon juice.

6. Add in the cooked, drained macaroni and ham. Sprinkle in pepper and onion salt.

'Sour Cream Noodle Bake' / 'Easy Lasagna'

I found this recipe through stumbleupon, and couldn't pass it up. It's from the website thepioneerwoman.com. I haven't made up my mind about the site yet, but the post about this recipe was kind of cute. Right as I started making this last night, I realized I didn't have enough for the full recipe. Luckily, I did have enough for half, and it turned out just fine. I added in some extra seasonings and used lowfat/light sour scream & cottage cheese. And it fit an 8"x8" pan, making 6 pieces in all.

Here is the original recipe, which I cut in half, more or less.

1 lb. ground chuck (ground beef worked fine)
1 15-oz. can tomato sauce
1/2 tsp. salt
8 oz. egg noodles
1/2 c. sour cream
1 1/4 c. cottage cheese
1/4 c. - 1/2 c. green onions
1 c. cheese
black pepper
optional seasonings: onion powder, red pepper flakes, garlic salt

1. Brown meat in large skillet, drain and add in tomato sauce, salt & pepper. Simmer while preparing other ingredients.
2. Cook noodles; drain and set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, combine sour cream and cottage cheese; mix to combine. Add in pepper, noodles and green onions (to taste). Add in other optional seasonings until it tastes good.
4. To assemble, place half of the noodles in the pan. Add half of the meat mixture on top, followed by half of the cheese. Repeat the layers.
5. Bake for 20 minutes (or until cheese melts) at 350-degrees.





Nutritional Facts
servings per recipe: 12
amount per serving

Calories: 234.2
Total Fat: 10.8 g
Saturated Fat: 4.8 g
Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.5 g
Monounsaturated Fat: 3.1 g
Cholesterol: 58.2 mg
Sodium: 400.5 mg
Potassium: 322.4 mg
Total Carbohydrate: 18.7 g
Dietary Fiber: 1.1 g
Sugar: 3.4 g
Protein: 15.6 g
Vitamin A: 6.81 %
Vitamin C: 5.2 %
Calcium: 10.5 %
Iron: 11.2 %

Homemade Cheeseburger Macaroni Hamburger Helper

I don't recall having Hamburger Helper for dinner growing up, so I will cite my first memory of having it within the last year, when Zak had me buy a few boxes of it. I didn't mind it, and it's certainly easy to make after a long day at work or school, so we would have it now and then. Yesterday I got a craving for it, but decided to see if I could find a comparable recipe and make it without the box and its packages flavors. So I went to food.com (previously recipezaar, I'm not fond of their new site) and found a few recipes I'd like to try. The one below is what I made last night and was pretty tasty. I may add a bit of sour cream to get it creamier and/or some more spices.

1/2 - 1 lb. lean ground beef
1 c. hot water (boiled first then measured)
2 c. milk
1 1/2 c. elbow macaroni
1 c. cheese

'Sauce Packet'
1 Tbl. cornstarch
2 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. onion powder (1 tsp. minced onion & 1/2 tsp. garlic powder is a good substitute)
1 tsp. garlic
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. sugar

1. Brown ground beef in large skillet, drain.
2. Add hot water, milk, pasta & 'sauce packet' ingredients.
3. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat & simmer 12 minutes or until pasta is tender.
4. In the last few minutes, add cheese, stir & recover.
5. When pasta is tender and cheese melted, remove from heat.
6. Let stand about 5 minutes, sauce will thicken.
7. Top with additional cheese if desired.

with the flash on, doesn't look as appetizing as it really is

without flash

Lasagna

I have always loved lasagna. My cousin Matt who is a year older than me, and I would always 'fight' over who would have lasagna for their birthday dinner as children. His birthday is in November, mine is a month later, so we figured we couldn't have lasagna twice in two months. That doesn't quite make sense now, but that's how I remember it. Tonight I decided to make lasagna for no reason at all, just felt like it would be delicious. My mom's recipe is simple and delicious and tonight I only halved the recipe, but I'll post the entire recipe for those who are cooking for more than two people.

1 lb. ground beef
3/4 c. chopped onion (opt.)
16 oz. small curd cottage cheese
1 lb. shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 c. parmesan cheese
1 lb. box lasagna noodles
1 jar prepared spaghetti sauce (Prego) [I used Ragu tonight and added: minced garlic, salt, oregano and basil from my plant until it tasted great]

1. In a large skillet, brown beef & onion. When browned, add spaghetti sauce and simmer until noodles are mostly done cooking.
2. Add cooked noodles (following the directions on the box) to rapidly boiling water. Make sure to be careful so they don't break! Cook until soft but still firm - not too tender.
3. In a 9"x13" pan, spread about 1/2 c. of the sauce. Alternate layers as follows: lasagna, sauce, cottage cheese, mozzarella and parmesan cheese; ending with sauce, mozzarella and parmesan cheese.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes until lightly browned and bubbly. Allow to stand 10 minutes before cutting into squares & serving.

about to start assembling

finished layering, about to go into the oven

delicious layers

yum!

Mac & Cheese

I didn't grow up having homemade mac & cheese that often, but I decided enough was enough and that I would try making it! I found this basic recipe that turned out pretty good.

3 c. macaroni, cooked
1 1/2 c. milk
2 1/2 c. cheese
1/3 c. butter
1/2 tsp. onion salt (or garlic salt)
1/2 tsp. seasoning salt
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
pepper
salt
breadcrumbs (I have and use Italian style)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Cook macaroni noodles.
3. Heat milk, cheese and butter together until it resembles a sauce.
4. Add noodles and cheese sauce to the dish being used to cook it in (I use a 2 qt. round casserole dish with lid).
5. Add spices, continue to mix.
6. Add breadcrumbs and extra cheese, if desired, to top.
7. Cook for 30 minutes.