Sunday, January 13, 2008

Calling All Cooks

Casseroles are the mainstay of the cheap cook's arsenal. You take a little bit of meat and stretch it out to feed an army. Luckily, my family loves them. However, I feel like we are in a slump.

I want some new recipes. Sure, there are hundreds of thousands out there on the internet, but I want some that are tried and true. I'd much rather have ideas from actual kitchens (like yours) than that of a search engine.

Sure....I could just find recipes, but who knows how they will turn out? I don't want to subject my kiddos to endless auditions until I find one that works.

We currently have chicken, ground beef, tuna, crab meat and tuna in my pantry/freezer. I am pretty well equipped with rice, bread crumbs, and all other "basics" of casserole making.

So, if you would be so kind, leave me some recipes/ideas in the comments. Thanks in advance for all of your wonderful help!

14 comments:

Kayla said...

LOVE casseroles!! Here's one the fam here enjoys:

http://armyoffivekitchen.blogspot.com/2007/03/chili-cheese-dog-bake.html

Jasmine's Journey said...

Besides lasagna and enchiladas I don't really do casseroles. I will be looking forward to some suggestions along with you. ;)

Rebecca said...

Chicken Pot Pie
I cook 2-3 season chicken breasts in the crock pot with 1 can of chicken broth on low all day.
*Defrost in the microwave, 1 bag frozen broccoli, 1 bag frozen carrots, 1 bag frozen corn (you can use any type of frozen veggies you have.
*take chicken out of crock pot and shred. Add 2 cans cream of mushroom soup to the chicken broth.
*Place defrosted veggies, 2 cans sliced white potatoes, chicken in a 13-9 baking dish. Stir in soup/broth mixture.
*Mix 1 cup milk with 1 cup flour. Stir in 1 stick melted butter and pour over casserole. Bake at 350 for 1 hour.

anita said...

Well, here's one for your tuna...the amounts aren't exact...just whatever looks good and have on hand is what I usually use!
boil a small bag of egg noodles
add:
a can of tuna
a can of peas or box of frozen peas, or peas and carrots is fine, too
a can or two of cream/mushroom soup with a little bit of milk added
salt and pepper

stir it all up, put it in a casserole dish. top with shredded cheese, bread crumbs, crushed crackers, whatever you have on hand.
bake at 350 for about 25-30 minutes.

jennifer said...

here's a super easy, super frugal one that we all love...
brown hamburger meat ( your choice how much), drain fat, transfer to a big pot ( with lid), add 4 cups water, 3 beef boullion cubes, one tsp onion powder, one tsp salt, 1 1/2 tablespoons Mrs. Dash or any other "season all" type of seasoning, and 1 1/2 cups white rice. Bring to boil then lower heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Can add frozen veg of choice during last 10 minutes but I usually do veg separate. Variation: substitute chicken for hamburger meat and chicken boullion for beef boullion cubes. Enjoy.. this is very tasty !!

Anonymous said...

Sounds like tuna casserole to me! Or I do something called Beefy Mac. Just brown the beef with some chopped onion. Add two cans of chopped tomatoes, a few handfuls of uncooked macaroni, about 1/2 cup of water, a few italian seasonings. Simmer with lid until mac is cooked. Add some shredded cheese. My kids LOVE it.

Anonymous said...

Here is my all time favorite Chicken rolls n rice casserole. The cost is 3.77 for the dish, and easily feeds 6. Its really kid friendly too!

2 boneless skinless chicken breast-$1.16
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded-$.72
1 cup rice- $.05 (use instant, but regular works too)
1/2 cup water -Free
1 can cream of mushroom-$.68
1/2 cup sour cream- $.32
1 2.8oz can of french fried onion (my DD HATES onions, but has never complained about these)-$ .84
1/4 tea salt- pennies

cut raw chicken into bite size chunks, place in casserole dish.
top chicken with shredded cheese

in a seperate bowl combine remaining ingredients. No need to overmix. reserve about 1/4 can of onions.

bake at 350 covered for 55 min.

remove cover, sprinkle remaining onions on top, cook for 5 min more.

Add a salad or veggie, Enjoy!

Anonymous said...

oops, I forgot to say, top the chicken with the mix...sorry.

mrswoodchuck said...

This one is a family favorite. It's called cattle clatter hash and came from a friend of my mom many years ago.

1 lb hamburger
1 onion
2 T chili powder
1 t salt
1 can tomato sauce
6 oz dry pasta
1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 cups grated cheddar cheese

Brown hamburger with onion. Mix in chili powder, salt & tomato sauce and let simmer for 20 minutes. Cook pasta.

Mix hamburger and pasta in casserole pan.

Top with grated cheese (I think over the years I've lightened the cheese up a lot) and top with soup.

Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

Note: This sounds weird, I know. But I have a picky eater daughter who won't eat spicy foods and won't eat much of anything for that matter, but she will eat this.

Sheree said...

Corned Beef Casserole

a corned beef brisket (3-5 lbs)
Toss brisket in crockpot in the morning and cook on low til it falls apart (i pick out all the fat when its done and shred it)

Take a casserole pan and spray it with no-stick spray, Toss in the following:
Shredded corn beef brisket
1 bag or two cans of sourKraut
cubed rye bread
1/2 to 1 bottle of Thousand Island dressing. Mix up and top with shredded Swiss cheese and you have a quick and easy casserole. Now, how can you keep that frugal? Corned beef brisket often goes on sale for less than $1.39 a pound, get a small brisket (i usually pay less than $3 for one), get the bread from the day old bread store or make your own, the dressing you can get with coupons for free, and the cheese you have to watch sales for. Sometimes I mix Swiss with Mozz to stretch it. Its delish, and frugal (especially if you cook from your pantry).

Kris said...

My brother likes this one, and he doesn't eat anything that doesn't have the words "hot wings" in it:

http://cheaphealthygood.blogspot.com/
2007/11/casserole-ing-with-it-
bruschetta.html

(Sorry about splitting up the URL. If you cut and paste, it should be okay.)

Happy casseroling!

Anonymous said...

Okay girl - here it goes - I stretch - and I am known to make a
'DOLLA HOLLA'! Tonight - and at least once a week, I make "ZITI" - easy - Simple:
1 pound ground turkey/beef - brown it - heavy on the garlic powder/bits of onion/you know what I mean -
In a huge pot boil water - add rogitini or penne pasta -
break out jar of ragu or best value spaghetti sauce - stir in to 'well done' meat -
Get out a steal or glass long dish for baking - break out the shredded cheese bags in the fridge -
Dump done past in baking dish - add tomato sauce mixture -stir about cheese in there - the finally top with cheese - cover with tin foil - bake at 375 for 20 minutes - till you see it bubbling... it lasts so long and your fam will be sooooooo happy -
try variations with zuchinni instead of meat --- YUMMY!

Anonymous said...

I'm probably too late for you to take notice of this recipe but I just found your blog...

This is a really great, low cost, lentil soup that I made this weekend & everyone loved it. It makes a big pot.

Drizzle a little olive oil in bottom of a dutch oven. Chop up one medium onion & add it to the pot. Peel & chop 2 carrots, 2 celery stocks, & 2 cloves of garlic. Add them to the pot & cook about 5 minuts. Add 1 14oz. can of diced tomatoes & let cook down a couple of minutes. Then add 11 cups of chicken broth (I found the 4 cup boxes at the dollar store but I know you could use water & boullion as well) Add 1 3/4 cup lentils & 3 or 4 sprigs of thyme. Let cook 30 minutes then add 2/3 cup elbow macaroni. Cook another 10 minutes or till tender.

texasmcvays said...

Pasta Casserole
16 ounces dry fusilli/spiral pasta
1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
2 green bell peppers, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
48 ounces canned tomato sauce
4 ounces pepperoni sausage, sliced
2 cups shredded Italian cheese blend
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
In a skillet over medium heat, brown the ground beef until no pink shows; drain.
Combine in a 9x13 inch casserole dish: pasta, ground beef, bell pepper, onion, tomato sauce and pepperoni; blend well. Top with shredded cheese.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until cheese is melted and casserole is heated through.

Mexican Casserole
1 bag tortilla chips
1 can enchilada sauce
1 can rotel diced tomatoes
1 16 oz package cheddar cheese
1# hamburger meat
Brown hambur meat then drain. Stir enchilada sauce, rotel & cream of mushroom soup together. In 9X13” pan layer tortilla chips on the bottom then pour hamburger mixture over the chips then top with cheese cook on 350* until starts to bubble- appx 30 min.

Chuck Wagon Casserole
(Pampered Chef)
½ cup onion chopped
½ cup green bell pepper chopped
1# lean ground beef
1 can chili beans in sauce
¾ bbq sauce
½ tspn salt
1 package corn muffing mix
1 can Mexican style corn

Pre heat oven to 400*. Brown ground beef, bell pepper and onion over medium heat until the beef is no longer pink. Stir in chili beans, bbq sauce and salt. Prepare the corn muffin mix according to the box; add the Mexican corn. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown.
Easy Beef Casserole
1# ground beef
¼ teaspoon salt
½ package frozen mixed vegetables
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
½ package seasoned potatoes
cook ground beef . layer vegetables, soup and cheese over ground beef and top with potatoes. Bake casserole at 400* for 30 minutes or until the potatoes are golden.
Pizza Swiss Steak
Southern Living
½ cup all purpose flour
2 t salt
¼ t pepper
1 ½ to 2# cube steak cut into bite size pieces
2 T vegetable oil
1 medium onion halved and sliced
1 medium size green bell pepper chopped
1 4oz can sliced mushrooms drained
1 15 oz can pizza sauce
1 8oz can basic garlic tomato sauce
½ cup shredded mozzerlla cheese
Combine first 3 ingrdeients and dredge steak in flour mixture. Brown steak in batches in hot oil in a large skilled over high heat for 1-2 minutes on each side. Remove steak from skillet and place in a lightly greased 9X13 inch baking dish. Saute sliced onion chopped bell pepper and mushrooms in skilled over medium high heat 5 minutes or until tender. Add pizza and tomato sauce es and simmer 15 minutes; pour over steak. Bake 350* for 45 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle with cheese; bake 15 minutes or until cheese melts.
Keith’s Favorite Chicken Sour Cream Casserole
¼ cup melted margarine
2 cups crushed Ritz crackers
6 whole chicken breasts cooked and cut into small pieces
1 8oz carton of sour cream
1 can cream of chicken soup
¼ cup chicken broth
Combine margarine and crackers and blend well. Spoon ½ the crumbs into shallow 2 qt casserole and cover with chicken. Combine sour cream, soup, broths, salt and pepper and mix well. Pour over chicken and top with remaining cracker crumb mixture. Bake uncovered at 350* for 20-25 minutes.
ROTEL "KING RANCH CHICKEN"
1/4 cup margarine
1 med. green bell pepper, chopped
1 med. onion, chopped
1 can (10-3/4 oz.) condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 can (10-3/4 oz.) condensed cream of chicken soup (I vary this recipe,
by using 2 cans of the cream of chicken, versus using the mushroom
soup)
1 can (10 oz.) Extra Hot or Milder Ro-tel
2 cups cubed cooked chicken
12 corn tortillas, torn into bite-sized pieces (I end up using more
than this, about 18)
2 cups (8 oz) shredded cheddar cheese

In a large saucepan, cook pepper and onion in melted margarine, until
tender-about 5 min. Add soup (s), Rotel and chicken, stirring until
well blended. In a 13x9x2-inch baking pan, alternately layer tortillas,
soup mixture and then cheese, repeating for 3 layers, ending with cheese.
Bake 40 min. or until hot and bubbling. Serves 8

Swiss Chicken Casserole
6 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
6 slices Swiss cheese
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1/4 cup milk
2 cups herb-seasoned stuffing mix
1/4 cup butter
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Arrange chicken in a greased 12 x 8 x 2 baking dish. Top with Swiss cheese slices.
Combine soup and milk and stir well. Spoon mixture over chicken and sprinkle with stuffing mix. Drizzle butter or margarine over crumbs.
Cover and bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 50 minutes. Enjoy!

Here's a few of mine.I am working on a cookbook to give as gifts to college students (we live in a college town and many young ladies come to fellowship, I'm too poor for all the graduation gifts I need to buy!)and friends!

Rejoice,
Kyle