Chicken and Asparagus Casserole

I saw this over at BooMama's, and it sounds good! Except for the mushrooms. I'll be leaving those out.


Chicken and Asparagus Casserole

1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 cup butter (you can use a little less if you’d like. I say go big or go home.)(that's BooMama's opinion)
1 (8 ounce) jar sliced mushrooms, drained
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 (5 ounce) can evaporated milk
8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon Accent
2 tablespoons chopped pimiento, drained
6 chicken breasts, cooked and cut into bite-size pieces
2 (15 ounce) cans green asparagus spears
1/2 cup slivered almonds

Preheat oven to 350.

In a skillet, saute’ onion butter until tender. Add remaining ingredients except chicken, asparagus and almonds.

In a lightly greased 13 x 9-inch baking dish, layer half of chicken, 1 can asparagus and half of sauce. Repeat layers, ending with sauce. Top with almonds.

Bake 30 minutes or until bubbly. Do not add liquid, even if it looks dry. Freezes well.

Ladybug Cake

I'm starting to gather ideas for Ladybug's first birthday cake. Found this on Betty Crocker.

Ladybug Cake

Delight your little ones with this cute-as-a-bug cake. All you need are cake, frosting and a few cookies and candies.

Prep Time:35 min
Start to Finish:2 hr 15 min
Makes:8 servings

1 box Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® yellow or white cake mix
Water, vegetable oil and eggs called for on cake mix box
1 container Betty Crocker® Whipped fluffy white frosting
2 chocolate wafer cookies
1 large red gumdrop
Red and black shoestring licorice
Red sugar
Large black gumdrops

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Generously grease or spray bottoms only of 1 1/2-quart round casserole or heatproof bowl and bottom only of 8x4-inch loaf pan.
2.Make cake batter as directed on cake mix box. Pour half of the batter into casserole; pour remaining batter into loaf pan.
3.Bake 38 to 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes. Run knife around sides of casserole and loaf pan to loosen cakes; remove from casserole and pan to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 1 hour. Wrap and freeze loaf cake for another use.
4.Place cake, rounded side up, on serving plate. Frost with frosting. Make face on side of cake, using cookies for eyes, red gumdrop slice for nose, red shoestring licorice for mouth and black shoestring licorice for eyebrows and antennae. Sprinkle red sugar over cake to within 2 inches from curved edge of face. Place black gumdrop slices on cake for spots. Store loosely covered.

High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): Follow High Altitude directions on cake mix box for making batter.

Nutrition Information
1 Serving: Calories 610 (Calories from Fat 230); Total Fat 25g (Saturated Fat 7g, Trans Fat 4g); Cholesterol 80mg; Sodium 510mg; Total Carbohydrate 91g (Dietary Fiber 0g, Sugars 60g); Protein 4g Percent Daily Value*: Vitamin A 2%; Vitamin C 0%; Calcium 10%; Iron 8% Exchanges: 1 Starch; 5 Other Carbohydrate; 0 Vegetable; 5 Fat Carbohydrate Choices: 6 *Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Granola Bars

I saw this recipe yesterday on Overwhelmed with Joy! I definitely want to try this, so I am copying this for my own archives. This is from the Food Network.

I love having snack bars for when we have to grab something quick on our way out of the house. Can't wait to try this! And I think my homemade Crockpot Granola will work great in this recipe!

For more Saturday Stirrings recipes, click on over to It Coulda Been Worse.

Granola Bars

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons packed light-brown sugar

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter

3 cups low-fat granola mix (not cereal)

1/2 cup sweetened flake coconut

1/2 cup golden raisins

3/4 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup slivered almonds

Combine brown sugar, honey, vanilla and butter in a medium-size saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Lower heat; simmer 2 minutes or until sugar is dissolved. Cool.

Meanwhile, combine granola, coconut, raisins, 1/2 cup chocolate chips and almonds in a large bowl.

Stir brown sugar mixture into granola mixture. Spread in a 13 by 9 by 2-inch baking pan. Press remaining chocolate chips into top. Refrigerate 2 hours or until completely cooled. Cut into bars.

Vegetable Pizza

Today's theme for Random Recipes hosted by Pam at Random Thoughts is appetizer and/or drink recipes.

When we get together with Hubby's family, which is sometimes once a month, we have started sharing appetizers and finger foods instead of a full meal. There is a lot of variety, and I don't feel like I overeat when it's just finger foods. (Maybe I'm fooling myself?)

This is one of my favorite appetizers. I love making this for large groups, like a Super Bowl Party or New Year's Eve get-together.

Vegetable Pizza

PREP TIME 30 Min
READY IN 1 Hr

INGREDIENTS
2 (8 ounce) packages refrigerated crescent rolls
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup mayonnaise
1 (1 ounce) package dry Ranch-style dressing mix
1 cup fresh broccoli, chopped
1 cup chopped tomatoes
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 cup chopped cauliflower
1 cup shredded carrots
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
Roll out the crescent roll dough onto a 9x13 inch baking sheet, and pinch together edges to form the pizza crust.
Bake crust for 12 minutes in the preheated oven. Once finished cooking, remove crust from oven and let cool 15 minutes without removing it from the baking sheet.
In a small mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, mayonnaise, and dry Ranch dressing. Spread the mixture over the cooled crust. Arrange broccoli, tomato, green bell pepper, cauliflower, shredded carrots, and Cheddar cheese over the cream cheese layer. Chill for one hour, slice and serve.

Campbell's Chessy Chicken and Rice Casserole

Campbell's® Cheesy Chicken & Rice Casserole
From: Campbell's Kitchen
Prep: 5 minutesBake: 50 minutes
Stand: 10 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients:
1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Campbell's® Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup (Regular or 98% Fat Free)
1 1/3 cups water
3/4 cup uncooked regular long-grain white rice
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
2 cups frozen mixed vegetables
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts halves
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions:
Stir the soup, water, rice, onion powder, black pepper and vegetables in an 11 x 8-inch (2-quart) shallow baking dish.
Top with the chicken. Season the chicken as desired. Cover.
Bake at 375°F. for 50 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the rice is tender. Top with cheese. Let casserole stand for 10 minutes. Stir rice before serving.

Try It Alfredo: Use 1/4 cup grated Parmesan for Cheddar cheese. Add 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese with soup. Use broccoli flowerets for vegetables. Top chicken with remaining Parmesan cheese.

Trim It Down: Use Campbell's® 98% Fat Free Cream of Chicken Soup instead of regular soup and use low fat cheese instead of regular cheese.

Mexican: In place of onion powder and pepper use 1 teaspoon chili powder. Substitute Mexican cheese blend for Cheddar.

Italian: In place of onion powder and pepper use 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning, crushed. Substitute 1/3 cup shredded Parmesan for Cheddar.

Veggie Patties

I haven't tried this one yet, but I hope to soon! This sounds like a good way to sneak veggies onto someone's plate, whether it be a picky toddler, veggie-despising spouse, or yourself!

And check out out other Saturday Stirrings participants at It Coulda' Been Worse.

VEGGIE PATTIES
Can be served as a side or a main dish. Make a large batch and freeze for future meals.

2 tablespoon olive oil
1 potato, grated
1 medium carrot, grated
1 sweet potato, grated
1 zucchini, grated
1/4 cup broccoli, finely chopped
2 tablespoons flour (can use wheat)
Salt & pepper

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder (optional)

Grate the potato, carrot, sweet potato and zucchini.

Place in a bowl with broccoli and mix well.

Squeeze out as much liquid as possible by taking a handful of the veggie mix and squeezing it over sink.

Add flour, salt & pepper and garlic powder to the squeezed vegetables. Mix well.

Set pan on medium heat and add olive oil.

With hands, make patties about the 2 to 3 inches in diameter and add to pan.

Cook for about 5-7 minutes on each side until patties are crisp and golden brown.
Serve warm.

Egg and Sausage Muffins

For those parents out there, how do get your kiddos involved with kitchen duty? Our little isn't old enough to be put to work yet, but I am storing up lots of ideas. One of my favorite parenting resources is Parenting. Their recipes include hints on how the kiddos can be involved.

Don't forget to check out other Saturday Stirrings recipes at It Coulda' Been Worse.

UPDATE: I add cooked spinach to each muffin cup before adding the egg mixture. A yummy and healthy addition!

Egg and Sausage Muffins
By Rosemary Black, Parenting


Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 7 minutes

Bake time: 12 to 15 minutes

Yield: 6 Servings

Cooking spray

1⁄2 of a 12-oz package of bulk turkey or pork sausage meat, thawed

8 eggs

1⁄4 cup low-fat milk

1⁄4 tsp salt, or to taste

Pinch of black pepper

6 English muffins

2 tomatoes

1. Preheat oven to 350F and spray a 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray.

2. In a large skillet, brown the sausage until it's crispy, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as it cooks. Cool slightly, and crumble into small chunks.

3. In a medium mixing bowl, beat eggs and milk together. Add salt and pepper, and stir in crumbled sausage.

4. Ladle mixture into prepared muffin cups. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until set. Let cool, then loosen gently and remove to a plate.

5. Split and toast the English muffins. Cut tomatoes into about 12 thin slices. Place a slice on each toasted muffin half, and top with an egg-sausage muffin. Serve hot, 2 per person.

How kids can help: Crack and beat the eggs; measure ingredients

Per Serving: 308 calories, 13 g fat (3 g saturated), 710 mg sodium, 300 mg cholesterol

Philly Cheesesteak Crockpot Lasagna

I have two really great crockpot lasagna recipes. "Regular" lasagna and chicken & veggie lasagna. After enjoying these two creations several times, Hubby suggested that I develop a Philly Cheesesteak Lasagna recipe as well. So Hubby is the inspiration, and I gave the perspiration. Actually, it wasn't too difficult. I used a large soup pot to cook the steak ums in so that I would only have one extra pot to wash.

This my very own creation - enjoy!

Also, don't forget to check out Pam's blog for more Random Recipes!

Philly Cheesesteak Crockpot Lasagna

Ingredients:

1 pkg oven ready (no boil) lasagna noodles

8 steak ums (1/2 pkg)

1 large white onion, sliced

1 large green bell pepper, sliced

2 cans Cheddar cheese soup

3 soup cans milk (I use skim)

1 1/2 cups Monterrey jack cheese, shredded

1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded

Directions:

1. Cook steak ums one at a time in a large soup pot. Reserve steak ums on a plate until all are finished.

2. Add a little bit of olive oil to the pot and saute onions and peppers. When they are soft, add steak ums.

3. Pour Cheddar cheese soup and milk into the pot and stir to combine. Heat through, add salt and pepper to taste.

4. Assemble layers in your crockpot. I was able to make 4 layers in my 6 qt crock. Use a one cup measure or ladle to spoon a small amount of "sauce" into bottom of crock. Then add a layer of noodles, breaking noodles to fit as needed. Add a layer of sauce with meat, peppers, and onions, then a layer of shredded cheese. Continue layering, with the last layer being shredded cheese.

5. Set crockpot to low and cook for 6-8 hours. Check noodles for doneness.

This made 8 servings for us and we are a family of big eaters. I debuted this recipe for my mom, my in-laws, and Hubby, and they all loved it.

Coffee Cake

This is the BEST coffee cake EVER! I used the butter recipe yellow cake mix. I could have eaten the whole thing! Fortunately, I wrapped up half of it to put in the freezer.

For more Saturday Stirrings recipes, visit It Coulda' Been Worse. DeeDee is taking the day off due to bad mock-amole. DeeDee, I'm so sorry that the "best" Mexican restaurant in your area is Chili's. We've got some serious good Mexican eateries here, if you're in the mood for a road trip!

1 Box Yellow Cake Mix (plus ingredients on back of box)

2 Sticks cold salted butter

2 1/4 Cups flour

1 1/2 Tablespoons cinnamon

1 ¾ Cups sugar

1 1/2 Tablespoons vanilla

Powdered sugar (for dusting)

PREHEAT oven to 350.

PREPARE cake mixe in large bowl according to directions on box. Spray 9X13 pan with non-stick spray. Pour batter into pan. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until center is just barely set.

WHILE cakes are baking, prepare crumb topping. In large bowl of electric mixer combine, butter, flour, cinnamon, sugar and vanilla until all crumbly.

IMMEDIATELY after cake is removed from oven, break crumb topping into marble size pieces with fingers, sprinkling over top. Put back in oven and bake an additional 10-15 minutes (topping will begin to look a little less wet/raw). Let cool fully then dust with powdered sugar, using a sieve.

CUT into squares and serve.