Creamy White Chicken, Artichoke and Asparagus Lasagna

I found this recipe from Kraft on Pinterest. I made it last night for dinner adding asparagus to the original recipe. Puppy Daddy and Sister Ruth agreed that it is absolutely delicious! Yes, it is as creamy and cheesy as it looks!













Ingredients
2 cups boneless skinless chicken breast, cooked and shredded
1 (14 ounce) can artichoke hearts, chopped

1 1/2 asparagus, cut in two inch slices and cooked for 2 minutes in the microwave on high

1/2 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes
1 (8 ounce) package KRAFT Shredded Mozzarella Cheese with a Touch of PHILADELPHIA, divided
1/2 cup KRAFT Grated Parmesan Cheese
2 (8 ounce) packages PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
1 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 cup basil, chopped
12 lasagna noodles, cooked or 12 no cook lasagna noodles

 

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Combine chicken, artichokes, asparagus, tomatoes, 1 cup mozzarella and Parmesan. Beat cream cheese, milk, and garlic powder with mixer until well blended; stir in 2 tablespoons basil. Mix half with the chicken mixture.

 

4. Bake 25 min. or until heated through. Sprinkle with remaining basil. Let stand 5 min. before cutting to serve.

The Wednesday Mac and Cheese Challenge

Over 25 years ago Puppy Daddy and I unknowingly started a lifelong tradition. At that time and for some 20 years to follow, Puppy Daddy directed church choirs that rehearsed on Wednesday nights. We would never get home until after 9:00 and needed a quick, easy dinner.  Somehow we settled on macaroni and cheese, and tuna fish sandwiches. Even since Puppy Daddy retired from directing choirs six years ago, he still insists on this comfort meal every Wednesday. The tuna sandwiches have varied over the years from simple white bread, tuna and mayo to tuna melts with a variety of ingredients. The macaroni and cheese however has mostly stayed the same, Kraft Sharp Cheddar Deluxe.

Well, now I'm giving myself a new challenge, a new homemade Mac & Cheese recipe every Wednesday. There is a  restriction, however.  I know this is southern sacriledge, but we don't like baked macaroni and cheese. So I'm looking for stovetop recipes only. If you have any suggestions please post them as comments. I'm anxious to get started. I'll keep you posted on the results.

Slow Cooker French Dip Sandwiches

Sister Ruth arrived yesterday. Yippee! I knew I wanted to serve something easy for dinner so that we could spend the entire afternoon chatting and giggling. This recipe was perfect. It takes less than 5 minutes to get into the slow cooker and less than 10 minutes to get on the plate when you're ready to eat. Besides that it is delicious!

 

 

Ingredients

 

1 1/2 lb pot roast

3 - 4 cups beef broth or beef stock

1 package onion soup mix

1 medium onion sliced

slice provolone cheese

hoagie rolls

 

 

 

Directions

 

Put pot roast in slow cooker. Add enough beef broth to just cover the roast. Sprinkle onion soup mix over roast. Cover with sliced onion. Cook on low for 8 to 10 hours.

 

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Remove roast from slow cooker and shred. (It will be falling apart.) Fill sliced hoagie rolls with meat and onions. Drizzle with a bit of the broth. Cover with provolone cheese and heat sandwiches until cheese melts. Serve with broth for dipping.

Sausage, Cranberry and Pecan Stuffing

It's Thanksgiving week, and I'm so exited that Sister Ruth is flying in from North Carolina tomorrow. She'll be staying here at the "Bayless' Bed and Breakfast, Where You Make Your Own!" We will have Thanksgiving Dinner at my dad's house with about 20 people. As I think it should be, everyone is bringing something. Sister Ruth (who is a great cook) and I were assigned stuffing. When I asked her if she had a good recipe, she told me she had never made stuffing before. We joked about making "Stove Top" to see if anyone would notice! Of course that won't happen, so I've picked out this recipe which is a combination of several that I've researched.

Now, of course I've been watching the Food Network Chefs preparing Thanksgiving recipes and they all say to use day old bread, or to make your own cornbread and dry it out. That seems like a lot of extra work to me.  So, I'm trusting my grandmother Mimi Bates, who was one of the best cooks ever! She always used Pepperidge Farm stuffing doctored up with her own ingredients and it was always delicious, so that's what I'm doing. I'm using the country style, but here are several different bread choices including white, wheat and cornbread. Pick your favorite or combine them. Since I'm not making the stuffing until Thursday, there won't be any pictures until then, but I encourage you to try this recipe.

Ingredients
1 lb Italian sausage (follow link to make your own)
1/2 cup butter, divided
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
2 clove crushed garlic
1 12 oz package of Pepperidge Farm Stuffing, your choice of bread types
1 egg, beaten
1 1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 cup dried cranberries
1 - 2 cups chicken or turkey broth
1 TB poultry seasoning
2 TB fresh parsley, chopped
salt and pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Cook sausage in a large heavy skillet over moderately high heat, stirring and breaking up large lumps, until no longer pink, about 5 minutes, then transfer with a slotted spoon to a large bowl.

Add 1/4 cup butter to fat remaining in skillet and cook onions, stirring, until softened, about 7 minutes. Add celery, and garlic and cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Transfer to bowl with sausage and stir in bread, egg, pecans, cranberries, poultry seasoning, and parsley. Add up to 2 cups of broth depending on how moist you like your stuffing. Then add salt and pepper to taste

Transfer stuffing to a buttered 3 to 4 quart shallow baking dish and put slices of the rest of the butter on top. Cover with foil and bake in middle of oven 30 minutes, then uncover and bake until bread is golden and stuffing is heated through, 20 to 25 minutes more.

 

Yield: 10 servings

Mr. Free Stuff

Who doesn't love free stuff? If you do then this website mrfreestuff.com is for you. You can all kinds of links for coupons as well as stuff that will be mailed to you. I especially like the recipe link that includes 3 pages of of online, electronic and printed cookbooks. Check it out!

Spinach and Sausage Stuffed Shells

Cookbooks, I adore them. My book shelves are packed with them. I love collecting them. I love reading them. One of the first cookbooks I owned is The Frugal Gourmet Cooks with Wine. I methodically cooked my way through this book and still refer to it often. It has notes throughout, stains on the pages of my favorite recipes and is falling apart. If you ask Puppy Daddy what meal of mine is his favorite, I can guarantee it is this one. It is nothing like any stuffed shells you have ever eaten. It's certainly cheesy, but it's also filled with Italian sausage and spinach with lots of garlic and lemon. I encourage you to try it very soon!


Ingredients
1 lb large shells
1 10 oz package of chopped frozen spinach, thawed and water squeezed out
1/2 lb Italian sausage (Follow link to make your own.)
1/2 lb small curd cottage cheese, drained
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 tsp oregano
1 egg, beaten
2 cups marinara sauce
2 cups coarsely grated mozzarella

Directions
Boil the pasta until firm but tender. Rinse in cold water and drain.

Saute the sausage and break up into small pieces.  Mix with the drained spinach, drained cottage cheese, garlic, lemon juice, grated cheese, salt, pepper and oregano. Stir in the beaten egg.

Stuff the shells with the above mixture and place in a greased baking dish. Top with marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese.

Bake at 300 degrees until all is hot and cheese melted, about 20 minutes.

Sausage and Tapenade Pasta

Arriving home late and hungry with no plan for dinner for me means looking through the fridge and pantry to figure out what I can throw together. This has led and to some of my best and worst recipes. This one is a keeper. The magic in this combination is the olive tapenade or olive salad. You can get a really great olive salad at the Saturday Morning Market from Jays Marketplace. It's an easy meal and you can switch out many of the ingredients for what you have on hand.

 

Ingredients

2 TB olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 lb Italian sausage
1 can diced tomatoes with juices
1/4 cup olive tapenade or olive salad
1/2 lb pasta of your choice
salt
Parmesan cheese

Directions
In a large skillet brown onion and sausage in olive oil, breaking sausage into small pieces. Meanwhile bring water to a boil in a large pot. Salt water and add pasta. Cook according to package directions. After sausage and onions are browned add tomatoes with juices and olive tapenade or spread. When pasta is finished cooking drain and add to sauce. Serve with grated Parmesan cheese.