Category Archives: Casseroles

Casseroles, Crock pot, Slow cooker

Crock pot: Creamy chicken & corn

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Apparently this post is brought to you by the letter C. 
This is just something I came up with to continue using up things in the pantry and freezer, mixed with a love of Crock Pot cooking ease. If you’ve kept up on posts, you know I recently moved and have one huge box full of canned things as well as a shelf in the freezer I’m trying to eat my way through before I move to my next place in a few weeks… Anyways, so this recipe used up two cans and some chicken, as well as a box of rice. And it tasted great! (In case you’re concerned about that…)
Ingredients:
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 cup milk
1 cup corn (or other frozen veggie)
1 box rice side or 1 cup rice cooked
Frozen chicken – I used drumsticks because that’s what I found first. Thighs would work, as well as breasts or a whole chicken, just use another can of soup and extra milk for sauce if you use more than about 8 oz.

 Step 1: Spray the inner lining of the slow cooker. Add the soup and milk, mix together. Add the corn and chicken, cover and cook on low 6 hours or high 4+. I wouldn’t recommend less than 4 hours on high for frozen chicken, you want to make sure its cooked through and not get Salmonella poisoning. And Crock pots nearly never burn so feel free to leave it on low for a good long while.

Step 2: Before serving, cook your rice. You could use any of those $1 rice sides that go on sale regularly, or plain rice cooked. Add spices or extra veggies, soy sauce, sriracha, whatever you like to flavor the rice. Then put the chicken on top and pour on a scoop of corn cream sauce. The sauce is thick and creamy and the sweetness of the corn went perfectly with the wild rice I chose to serve it over. Delightful.

(Disclaimer: My boyfriend actually did the crock pot cooking part! So any guys reading, take note! You can use this simple recipe to impress the heck out of a new flame or long-time love with next to no effort on your part. Crock pots are culinary wonders for the cooking impaired, busy and/or lazy person.)

Casseroles, Crock pot, Healthy, Slow cooker

Crock pot: pork chops & veggie rice casserole

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I openly praise slow cookers all the time for their many qualities. Here is yet another perfect example of a recipe that took me a matter of minutes to prep, then the machine did all the work for me throughout the day so that I came home to a lovely smelling house and a hot meal.

Ingredients:
2 large pork chops (or a small roast)
1 chicken bouillon cube
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 cups water
1 cup milk
1 cup rice
1 cup frozen or fresh chopped veggies of your choice
2 tbsp garlic powder

I also made asparagus on the side. Just put 1 tbsp oil, 2tbsp lemon juice & some sea salt in a pan, and heat over medium until the asparagus starts to blacken and is soft yet firm.

 Step 1: As you can see, I like just taking out pre-frozen meat to use in the crock pot. I took out 2 pork chops I’d bought and frozen weeks earlier. Put the bouillon, corn starch and spices in the crock pot. Add the water and mix well.

 Step 2: Add the rice and veggies and mix into the watery spice mix. Place pork chops on top and cover. Cook on high 4 hours or low 6-8. Give it a good stir once if you can midday.

 The pork chops got so tender the meat literally just fell off the bone. So the small chunks of pork just got mixed into the rice for a casserole.

Since you know what ingredients you put in and can control what/how much vegetables go into this casserole, it is quite healthy. You could make it vegetarian or vegan easily too. Use tofu, add beans, etc. I might try brown rice next time too. Maybe throw in some tomato sauce too. Go crazy.

Casseroles, Comfort food

Tuna Noodle Casserole

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Simple and filling, tuna noodle casserole has been a mainstay throughout my childhood. With very few ingredients, it is a great fall-back weeknight dinner for when I don’t feel like cooking something extravagant. And it also is a great dorm food, believe it or not. I used to make a super-poor version as an undergrad student all the time! You can use a microwave and a pack of Ramen noodles to make delicious tuna noodle casserole. Just heat the noodles in the microwave for 5 minutes, let cool a bit and drain. Add a can of drained tuna and a can of cream of mushroom, mix it up and enjoy! If you get the soup on sale it can cost less than a dollar. This is the grown-up version, bulked up with extra veggies and baked to a crispy finish!

Ingredients:
1/2 pack egg noodles
2 cans tuna, drained
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 celery rib, diced
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup peas & carrots
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
Garlic salt

Step 1: Open & drain the tuna, mix it in a bowl with the cream of mushroom soup.

Step 2: Boil the noodles for ~8 minutes. Add the diced celery in the last 5 minutes of cooking. Drain the noodles and celery.

Step 3: Mix the noodles into the tuna mush, and add the peas & carrots.

Step 4: Spray an 8×8 casserole dish and pour the mixture into it. Add the 1/2 cup milk and let it sink in.

Step 5: Sprinkle the breadcrumbs and garlic salt on top.

Step 6: Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, or until bubbly and golden brown on top.

Makes roughly 4 1 1/2 cup servings. Warm and homey, this is a great easy dinner. You can add whatever veggies you feel like, or dried onion and other spices.

Casseroles, Comfort food

Extra Creamy Ham & Scalloped Potatoes

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So I had bought a small chunk of ham for sandwiches, and still had a few slices left. I wanted to use them up, and I also had some potatoes, of course my first thought was ham & scalloped potatoes! It’s one of my favorite baked dishes, and sounded like a good idea. In order to get my boyfriend to eat it, I added his favorite ingredient: sour cream. To rationalize it to myself as healthy, I added veggies: green onion and corn.
Ingrdients:
2 small potatoes, peeled and sliced thin
1/4 cup flour
1 cup ham, cubed
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
1/2 container sour cream
1/2 cup corn
1/4 cup sliced green onion
Natures Seasoning, or salt & pepper to taste
Step 1: Peel the potatoes and slice as thinly as possible. Lay half in the bottom of a greased 8×8 dish. Sprinkle the flour and seasoning over them.

 Step 2: Layer on the diced ham. Spread a thin layer of sour cream, sprinkle in some green onion and corn kernels.

 Step 3: Repeat potato, ham, sour cream and veggie layers.

 Step 4: Cover with the rest of the sour cream & cheddar cheese. Pour in the milk.

 Step 5: Cover with aluminum foil, bake at 350 for 1 1/2 hours. Uncover, bake another 15-20 minutes, until browned and bubbly.

 Step 6: Serve and enjoy!

This is a perfect hot & hearty full meal for cold fall/winter days. Great for after major holidays too, when ham goes on sale!

Casseroles, Healthy

Easy chicken, rice & veggie casserole

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For a day when you want to spend minimal time cooking, but want something hot, filling and delicious. It takes only minutes to prepare, then you just stick it in the oven and forget about it for a while. It is also extremely versatile, since you can use any mixture of frozen or fresh veggies.

Ingredients:
1 boneless skinless chicken breast, diced in 1in cubes
1 cup water
1/2 cup milk
3/4 cup jasmine rice (or any kind)
1 bag frozen mixed vegetables
1 cup salsa
~1/4 cup shredded cheese

Step 1: Dice chicken (and veggies if using fresh, make about 2-3 cups worth).
Step 2: In a greased 9×9 casserole dish, add all ingredients and mix well. Bake, uncovered at 375 for 90 mintues or 400 for 1 hour. Rice & chicken should be fully cooked. If crunchy or chicken is still pink, bake 20 minutes longer.

Super simple, and delicious. I used a mix that included beans, so I’m sure the protein & fiber was a bit higher, but so were the calories. But it’s worth it for 2 tasty dinners plus lunch the next day!
As always, to make it vegetarian don’t use chicken, and for vegan use veggie stock instead of milk and omit the cheese.

Nutritional Info
  • Servings Per Recipe: 3
  • Amount Per Serving: ~1 cup
  • Calories: 280.2
  • Total Fat: 5.6 g
  • Cholesterol: 57.8 mg
  • Sodium: 544.4 mg
  • Total Carbs: 31.4 g
  • Dietary Fiber: 5.3 g
  • Protein: 27.1 g

http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=2253930

Casseroles, Crock pot, Main Dishes

Easy Slow Cooker Chicken & Rice Casserole

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Slow cookers are amazing, because you just put dinner in, go off to work or class, and come home to a fresh hot meal. I had a busy day planned, so I decided to use up some freezer food and make dinner a snap: I would make chicken casserole in the Crock Pot.
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Ingredients:
  • 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • 1 bag frozen vegetables
  • 1 cup rice
  • 1 can cream of chicken soup
  • 1/2 cup water
  • Seasonings (Nature’s, black pepper and garlic)
Step 1: Put the chicken on the bottom of the sprayed pot.
Step 2: Mix rice & water, pour in.
Step 3: Cover with cream of chicken soup.
Step 4: Add the frozen veggies.
Then just cover tightly and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Make sure the chicken is cooked all the way through before serving. Makes about 4 servings. Simple, cheap, quick. Enjoy!
Casseroles, Crock pot, Main Dishes

Stuffed pepper casserole

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If you’ve been following along, you know I love stuffed pepper. You also know I love my crock pot. Stuffed peppers in the crock pot tend to come out a little mushy, so I decided to try making a casserole instead of leaving the peppers whole. They get cut into tiny pieces when you eat it anyways right?
Ingredients:
4 large red bell peppers
1.5 lb ground beef
1.5 cups rice
1.5 cups chicken broth
1 can tomato sauce
Garlic, italian spices, pepper, salt
Step 1: First cut the peppers into small chunks and line the crock pot.

Step 2: Then add the chicken broth to the rice and cook, following directions for the type of rice you use… the chicken broth just gives it more flavor, if you’re watching your sodium you can omit it.

Step 3: While that’s cooking, brown the ground beef.

Step 4: Then mix the rice, sauce and beef together. Pour over the peppers. I actually added 1/2 a chopped onion to the beef to give it more flavor. Season with whatever spices you like.

Step 5: Cook on low for 1 -2 hours and enjoy!