Let’s talk about casseroles

This is a particularly comfort food type casserole. It is one the few dishes in which I will use Jiffy cornbread, but it actually works wonderfully in this dish from flavor and texture profiles.

CHICKEN AND CORNBREAD CASSEROLE

2 small fryers (or a comparable amount of boneless skinless breasts (4 is usually enough unless they are small) and/or thighs)- I remove the skin before making cooking the chicken, but most often, I use boneless skinless breasts and/or thighs-it’s easier)
2 t salt
1 t pepper
1 bay leaf (I use 2 usually, at least)
1 rib celery, chopped (I use more.)
1/2 c chopped onion (I use more.)
6 T margarine (I use butter)
1/3 c flour
2 cups chicken broth ( you may need more than this to cover the chicken)
1 cup evaporated milk
Tabasco and Lea and Perrin to taste
1 box Jiffy cornbread mix, mixed per directions on box.

Boil chicken, salt, pepper, bay leaf, celery and onion in chicken broth until chicken is just tender. Drain, but save the stock. Debone and chop chicken.

Melt margarine; blend in the flour, but do not brown. Add 2 cups of the reserved stock slowly, including a good bit of the chopped veggies. Stir while adding the stock and continue while adding the evap. milk. Stir until smooth and thickened. Add the chicken and check the seasoning, adding the Tabasco and Lea & Perrin.

Pour hot creamed chicken into a 3 quart casserole dish and cover evenly with the cornbread batter. Bake for about 25 minutes or until top is golden brown and cornbread is cooked through.

*****Personally, I like a lot of sauce and I will make 1 ½ to 2 times the sauce to the chicken.

*****If you make the creamed chicken early or the day before, then you should warm it in the microwave or cover it with some foil and start heating the casserole in the oven until it’s hot (this is what I do) before pouring the batter over it. Otherwise, the cornbread will cook before the chicken mixture is fully warmed.

*****I like to cook this in individual dishes like a pot pie, but if you do this, remember to spread the cornbread mixture thin. It thickens and gets heavy as it cooks, causing some of the cream mixture to overflow. Make sure to sit the dishes on a baking sheet, which I usually cover with foil for easy clean up.

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Let’s talk about casseroles
Trying to think of some new recipes to try. Preferably casserole type recipes for weeknight family meals.

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as a side note, i just tried a few different casserole recipes, but none really came out that good.

then someone clued me in that not all ovens cook the same, especially the new ones, so i had to up my recipe temps from 350 to 400 and then they all came out great.

so if the casseroles come out watery or anything like that, try raising the cooking temps.

i like this one done with either crawfish or shrimp, both ways taste great. but the original recipe called for 350 oven temps and they came out watery until i increased it to 400. also my family doesnt like pepper so i swapped the rotel tomatoes and chilies with a can of regular diced tomatoes

Crawfish or Shrimp with Rice Casserole

INGREDIENTS

2 lbs crawfish tails or shrimp
1 can French onion soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can diced tomatoes
1 cup raw white rice (makes 2 cups of cooked rice)
1 stick of butter, melted
1 large green bell pepper (chopped)
1 medium large yellow onion (chopped)
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 cup (2 stalks) celery (chopped)
1 level teaspoon salt
1 level teaspoon pepper
1 - 8 oz bags (2 cups) grated monterey jack and cheddar cheese


DIRECTIONS

First boil the rice for 20 minutes, then dump in strainer to let it cool.

Add chopped veggies to a pan with the butter and sauté until onions turn clear.

Mix all remaining ingredients together, except for the cheese, and pour the mixture into a large greased baking pan or casserole dish.

Bake in preheated oven at 400 degrees for 45 minutes.

Remove from oven and sprinkle the cheeses evenly over the casserole.

Return to preheated oven at 400 degrees and bake for 15 minutes more.

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Here’s a link to Minnesota Hot Dish, not necessarily the best, but we make it about once a year for something different.
Minnesota Hot Dish

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Sounds interesting. I bet it would work with using cornbread batter instead of tater tots. Throw in some chopped jalapenos and diced onions too. Turns into a Shepard's pie kind of thing.

Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Bake


Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 Tablespoon minced rosemary
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tablespoons olive oil
Juice from one lemon
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
3–4 cups baby spinach, roughly chopped
1/4 cup carrot, string cut
1/2 cup mushrooms, cleaned and diced into 1/2 inch pieces
1 (17.5 oz) package pre-made gnocchi

Cream Sauce:

2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tablespoon shallot, fine dice
3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups whole milk
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Pinch of grated nutmeg
1 tbsp minced rosemary
1 1/2 cups grated Gruyere Cheese
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Chopped fresh parsley, for garnish

Directions:

Marinate chicken: In a medium bowl, mix together chicken breasts with rosemary, 3 garlic, olive oil and lemon. Cover and let marinate for 30 minutes.

Cook gnocchi: Cook gnocchi according to package directions. Drain in a colander and set aside until casserole assembly.

Once the chicken is marinated, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper and sear on both sides, until golden brown, about 4-5 minutes per side – to an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. Remove chicken thighs and pull apart.

Add 2 Tablespoons butter, carrots and mushrooms to pan and cook until tender, then add spinach and cook until wilted. Remove vegetables and deglaze pan with a splash of dry white wine. Reduce the wine slightly and remove from the pan, adding to the set aside vegetables.

Make the cream sauce: Melt the butter in the pan used to cook the chicken and vegetables over medium heat. Add minced garlic, shallot, and cook until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. Whisk in flour and cook for 1-2 minutes. Gradually whisk in milk. With constant whisking, cook the sauce for 2-3 minutes. Stir in cayenne pepper, nutmeg, rosemary, and grated Gruyere cheese until slightly thickened. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper, to taste.

Assemble the casserole: In a suitable sized skillet, add chicken, carrots and spinach, top with cooked gnocchi and cream sauce. Gently stir together.

Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 25-30 minutes, until chicken is cooked through and the sides are bubbling. Serve hot, garnished with parsley if desired.

Cheese, Spinach, Sausage and Egg Casserole

Ingredients:

1 lb tube of breakfast sausage
1 bag frozen chopped spinach (16 oz), or fresh
2 tsp Garlic Powder
2 tsp Onion Powder
Salt/Pepper to taste
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
12 eggs
1/2 c heavy cream
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 c ricotta cheese

Directions:

Sauté sausage until browned, breaking it up as you go (drain away fat).

Add spinach and sauté until moisture goes away.

Add salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, and pepper flakes. Set aside until it cools off a bit.

Beat eggs with the heavy cream and cheeses until all combined.

Mix the sausage mixture into the egg mixture and pour into a greased 9x9 (or 8x8) pan.

Bake at 350 F for 45-60 minutes until browned and firm.

Chicken Cheese Noodle Bake

Ingredients

1 package (16 ounces) spaghetti, broken
2 medium onions, chopped
1 medium green pepper, chopped
1 medium sweet red pepper, chopped
1/2 cup butter, cubed
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups 2% milk
4 cups cubed cooked chicken
1 can (10-3/4 ounces) condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1 can (10-3/4 ounces) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 cup sour cream
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°. Cook spaghetti according to package directions.

Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, saute onions and peppers in butter until tender. Stir in flour until blended; gradually add milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in chicken, soups, sour cream, celery salt and pepper.

Drain spaghetti; add to sauce mixture and toss to coat. Transfer to 2 greased 11x7-in. baking dishes.

Sprinkle with cheeses. Cover and bake 20 minutes. Uncover and bake 5-10 minutes longer or until bubbly.

Freeze option: Cover and freeze unbaked casseroles up to 3 months. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight. Remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Preheat oven to 350°. Cover casserole with foil; bake as directed, increasing covered time to 40 minutes or until heated through and a thermometer inserted in center reads 165°. Uncover; bake 5-10 minutes longer or until bubbly.

My fav shrimp and eggplant. To me they’re all the same except two main ingredients . The seasoning and proper bread crumb to onion mix ratio with the right amount of liquid. Makes it or kills it.

Moore

1 lb ground meat
1/2 Green onions, chopped
1 tsp Minced garlic
Onion powder
Chili seasoning
1 lb egg noodles
1 can corn
1 10 oz can tomato sauce
1 lb shredded mild cheddar

Boil noodles and drain
Brown off ground meat, green onion, minced garlic, drain

In a large mixing bowl, combine noodles, meat mixture, tomato sauce. Stir. Drain corn and add to bowl. Give a few shakes of chili powder and onion powder. Stir.

Spray a 9x13 Pyrex, then fill with half of mixture.. Too off with half the cheese, then repeat with other half of mixture and top that with other half of cheese.

Cover with aluminum foil, Bake 15 min at 350.

Easy Mexican Casserole(the kids simply call it dip)

1.5 lb ground beef
1 can pinto beans strainer
1 small can diced green chiles strained
1 pkt taco seasoning
1 pint sour cream
2 cups grated cheese(I generally grate sharp cheddar)

Brown ground beef and strain. Add beans and chiles along with taco seasoning in pot, mix and simmer. Spray 13x9 Pyrex and add mixture….level it out. Spread sour cream evenly on top of meat mixture and then add grated cheese on top.

Bake in oven about 15 -20 minutes uncovered at about 400. Serve on flour tortillas or dip with tortilla or corn chips.

The sour cream and melted cheese add moisture so to keep it from being too runny, you want to eliminate any moisture from the meat, beans, chiles mix.