Tuna Tetrazzini Casserole

I know, I know... Tuna Noodles is probably one of the easiest things in the world to make, right?

Well, it seems that every time I think I shouldn't blog about something that seems to boring or simple, I am surprised at the response it gets.

When my kids were little and they asked what was for dinner, and I answered Tuna Casserole, they always asked "Where are you going tonight?" 

It is my usual fall back for making something ahead that is easy, everyone loves, and I can put it in the oven and skedaddle out the door!

So, when they ask, and I am at home they are surprised.

Nice to keep them on their toes.

This is one meal where there is rarely ever leftovers.

My kids (and hubby) LOVE it.

Not sure how you make yours, but this is how I make mine! 

Tuna Tetrazzini Casserole

12 oz Macaroni or other pasta.

4 oz can of mushrooms (I usually use two because we love our 'shrooms around here!)

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1- 7 oz can albacore tuna, drained

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

(about) 2 cups crushed potato chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and prepare your casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray.

Cook pasta, drain and rinse.

Combine pasta with all of the ingredients, except chips.

Pour into casserole dish, and top with potato chips.

Bake for 30 minutes uncovered.

*If you like peas or black olives either are GREAT in this.  We are a family divided on these, so I omit them.

Enjoy!

Shrimp Pad Thai Wonder Pot

A couple of weeks ago I tried a dish that I had been wanting to for some time now called 

The Italian Wonder Pot.

Ever see the commercials for V8?

The ones where they smack themselves in the head?

That's how I felt after I had made this so simple, so delicious meal for the first time!

WHY?!?!?

Why, had I waited SO LONG?!?!

Well, it only got me to thinking more and more about how to switch it up, how to make other versions.  

I looked on Pinterest, and on google to see what I could see and both of them made me thinking 

THAI!

I found this original recipe for One Pot Wonder Thai Peanut Pasta at apronstringsblog.com

Then after I looked a bit, I found another blogger, Hungry Hannah, that switched up this same recipe and made it her own, she called it Easy One-Pot Pad Thai.  I pretty much looked at both of them, and used a little of each.

You don't need to add meat to this at all, but I love shrimp in my pad Thai, so I went that route.
You could also add chicken if you wanted, or just leave it the way it is!

Shrimp Pad Thai Wonder Pot

12 ounces linguine pasta

32 ounces of chicken stock (or vegetable)

1 medium sized onion, sliced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup water

1 red bell pepper, sliced (about 1- 1 1/2 cups)

1 1/2 cups matchstick carrots (I bought a bag of already shredded carrots, worked great!)

1 Tablespoon ginger paste, or the same fresh grated

tops of 3 green onions (shallots), divided

1 1/2 cup salted roasted peanuts, slightly chopped, divided

1 pound shrimp, cleaned, optional

1 cup cilantro, slightly chopped, divided

1/2- 1 cup bean sprouts

2 Tablespoons soy sauce

2 Tablespoons Peanut Butter

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (more if your prefer it spicier) 

1 1/2 Tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon sesame oil

1 1/2 teaspoons red curry paste

2 Tablespoons fresh squeezed lime juice

Fresh lime, sliced for serving

In a large pot, pour water and chicken stock.

To this add the following: pasta, onion, garlic, bell pepper,  carrots,  3/4 of both shallots and cilantro, (reserve some for serving) 1 cup of peanuts, (reserve rest for serving) soy sauce, peanut butter, red pepper flakes, honey, sesame oil, curry paste and lime juice.

Place lid on pot and turn on high.  Let it come to a boil, give it a stir, and reduce to a simmer.

Cover and cook for about 6 minutes.

(stir every couple minutes, so nothing sticks.)

Dump in shrimp and bean sprouts, stir and cover, let it cook for about 6 minutes more, until shrimp are steamed, and pasta is cooked.

There will be a small amount of sauce in the bottom.

Serve topped with remaining shallots, cilantro and peanuts, with a lime slice to squeeze if desired.

If you are adding chicken, you would most likely want to add it at the beginning to make sure it's cooked properly.  I have not tried it with chicken, but if I do, I will amend this recipe.

Enjoy!


Shared at Marvelous Monday Link Up at Cooking on the Front Burner

The Italian Wonder Pot

It's got to be too good to be true, right?

Right?

You add uncooked pasta to some fresh and some canned ingredients, 

throw some spices in, stick the lid on

and in 20 minutes, you have dinner?

It's got to be too good to be true.

But it's NOT!!

I see things like this on Pinterest, and I am skeptical.

Then I hear that people try them and they WORK!!

Well, I wanna try too!!!!

(insert whiny 3 year old voice here)

 So I DID!!

and holy pasta batman!

IT WORKED!

This was AMAZING.

We LOVED it!!

This has been all over Pinterest, and from what I can gather, it originated as a Martha Stewart recipe.  If I got that wrong, someone correct me, because I want to give credit where credit is due on this fast, easy and delicious meal! It seems everyone changes it up just a smidgen to their own liking.

I loved how it turned out, but next time, I will add artichokes!

Italian Wonder Pot

1 - 12 ounce box of pasta, I used spaghetti, broken in half to fit in pot better

2 Tablespoons olive oil

2-3 cups fresh spinach slightly chopped

1 medium sized onion, sliced

32 ounces of broth, I used chicken broth or you can use vegetable

2 - 14.5 ounces cans diced tomatoes, (NOT drained)

1/2 Tablespoon dried basil, or fresh

1/2 Tablespoon dried oregano

4 cloves minced garlic

1/4-1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Place all ingredients in your pot.

Make sure to give it a stir so the liquid covers the pasta and veggies.

Place a lid on your pot and cook, on your stove, on high until it begins a rapid boil.

Uncover and turn flame to medium.

Continue cooking for 15 minutes more, pasta will absorb the liquid.

Stir occasionally so pasta doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.

DO NOT DRAIN.

Serve, top it with a little fresh grated Parmesan cheese.

Salmon & Shrimp with Lemon Caper Sauce

Raise your hand if you love seafood!

Well, chances are I guess if you're reading a post for Salmon & Shrimp with Lemon Caper Sauce, 

you might.

OR maybe you love somebody that does?

This dish will make them love you all the more!

This is a creamy slightly tangy sauce that pairs wonderfully with salmon.

The night I photographed it, we had shrimp, too.

But we are having it again, tonight, and it's just the salmon! 

It has a gorgeous presentation, it would be super pretty for a dinner party or like us 

on a Monday night! 

I like to serve it with a side of rice, or garlic mashed potatoes and veggies.

Salmon & Shrimp with Lemon Caper Sauce

4-6 - 5 ounce Salmon Fillets

24-30 Shrimp, peeled and cooked (I buy them that way)

1 Tablespoon Olive oil

Caper Sauce:

2 Tablespoons butter

1 clove minced garlic

2 Tablespoons capers

1 Tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon water

2 Tablespoons white wine

juice of 1/2 lemon, (about 1 Tablespoon) *Save the rest for garnish if desired

1 cup cream 

1 cup chicken broth

In a skillet, over medium heat, melt butter with garlic.

Add wine and cook off alcohol for a couple of minutes.

 Whisk in the cornstarch mixture. 

Add wine, lemon juice and capers.

Whisk in broth, it will begin to thicken.

Add cream and stir.

Pour into bowl and set aside.

In a skillet over medium heat, drizzle olive oil, add Salmon Fillets.

Cook for 7-8 minutes and flip them.  Cook on that side for 7-8 minutes more.

If you want to add the shrimp, do so in about the last 2-3 minutes.  They are just getting warmed up.

Plate your fish, and while the skillet is still warm, add the sauce back in, and give it a stir to get it hot again.

Pour over the fillets, serve remaining on side.

Potato Cheddar Soup

I have made this recipe for YEARS!
I cut it out of some flyer that I received in the mail, and have long since forgotten where it came from.

I was never a fan of potato soup as a kid, but this one had me sold.
I think it's the tang of the cheese and sour cream that makes it different?
That and I LOVE celery!

Serve it with some crusty sourdough bread and life just.got.good.

Enjoy!

Potato Cheddar Soup

4 stalks of celery, chopped

1 cup Julianned carrots

2 small onion, diced

4 potatoes, cubed

4 Tablespoons butter

32 oz Chicken broth or a little more, make sure you cover the veggies

3 cans cream of potato soup

16 ounces sour cream

2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded, divided

salt and pepper to taste

In your soup pot, melt butter.  Add the celery and onion and saute for about 5-7 minutes.

Add potatoes and carrots, cover with chicken broth, cover and simmer for about 25 minutes, or until your veggies are your desired tenderness.  ( I like mine a little firmer)

Add to this your cream of potato soup and sour cream, combine.

Add 1 cup of cheddar, stir.

Soup is done!

Top with more shredded cheddar, and serve with a warm piece of crusty sour dough bread!

I have made this in the crock pot.  Cook veggies in broth on low all day, add cream ingredients when you get home, stir and serve!

Broccoli, Rice and Cheese Casserole

My Mom makes this every year for Christmas dinner.  

I know there are many variations, but this one is BY FAR my favorite!

I love making this when we have ham, it just accompanies it so well!!

The recipe you see above is a doubled version of the one I am posting.  We had it for a big family dinner and served it with steak and a salad.  Yum!!

Broccoli, Rice and Cheese Casserole

2 boxes of chopped frozen broccoli

1 onion finely chopped

1 8 ounce jar of cheese whiz

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can cream of chicken soup

1/2 soup can of milk

1 cup uncooked minute rice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Heat all of the ingredients over the stove and pour into a greased caserole dish.

Bake for 1 1/2 hours.

Spinach & Artichoke Alfredo Pizza

I have had this pinned for a while now, and thought it would be better on my table then stuck in my computer!!

Thanks to the two bite club for sharing this!

Spinach, Artichoke and Alfredo Pizza

1 cup of cream
1 stick butter
2 Tablespoons of cream cheese
3/4 cup Parmesan Romano cheese
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese
6 ounces fresh spinach, chopped
1 can artichoke hearts, rinsed, dried and chopped

Your favorite pizza crust.

This makes a big pizza full of toppings.  Otherwise you can make two smaller ones with less toppings.

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.  I always pre-bake my pizza crusts, just for a little bit, take them out before they start to brown.
In a saucepan on your stove, combine cream, butter and cream cheese until smooth.
Stir in Parmesan/Romano cheese and garlic powder, continue to stir and cook for about 15 minutes.

Place spinach in a skillet with about a tablespoon of water and saute to wilt the spinach.
 Remove the spinach and place in a towel, pat all of the liquid out of the spinach.
Add to sauce.
Spread creamy mixture over your crust, top with artichokes and mozzarella cheese.

Bake for 15 minutes or until cheese turns golden brown.

Let stand for a few minutes before cutting and serving.,

Bean, Cheese and Onion Enchiladas

While I was planning my Valentine Luncheon this year, I planned to make my cheesy beef enchiladas.

Then...

I realized, that it would be on a Friday during Lent.

So, I decided to use my base recipe for them, and turn them into bean, cheese and onion.

They turned out AMAZING!!

pictured here with chili rellenos

RECIPE HERE

Bean, Cheese and Onion Enchiladas

1 can of refried beans mixed with 1/4 cup milk

1 two cup package of Mexican blend shredded cheese

1 small onion diced

1 package (8 qty) large flour tortillas

1 large can (14 ounce size) Old El Paso Enchilada Sauce

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spray a 9x13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.

Spread about 2 Tablespoons of enchilada sauce on a tortilla.

Do the same (2 Tablespoons, or a good pinch) of cheese

Evenly divide beans and onions between the 8 tortillas, rolling up enchilada style.

Place in pan.

Pour remaining sauce and cheese over the top. 

Cover with non-stick foil and bake for 30 minutes covered.

Uncover and bake an additional 5 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.

Chili Rellenos

When planning my Valentine luncheon this year, I didn't take into consideration that it fell on

 a Friday during Lent.

Out of all of my friends attending, only three weren't Catholic, and out of those three, one was a vegetarian!!

I did make some white chicken enchiladas, but everything else was meatless.

I had wanted to try this Chili Relleno recipe for a long time.

a photo of my plate!!

When I moved out, I had sat and copied many of my Mom's recipes.  

(this was a long time ago...)

I have transferred this recipe from book to book my whole adult life, and I have never made it?

(why??)

So when I was telling my Mom that I was going to make these, she said,

 "really? I forgot how much I liked those?" 

She hadn't made them in eons either!

Well, they got RAVE reviews at the party!!

And they were so simple!!

I LOVE green chilies, don't you?

Chili Rellenos

3 - 4ounce cans of WHOLE green chilies

3 eggs

1 cup milk

1/4 cup flour

8 ounce package of Monterey Jack Cheese, shredded

salt, to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 2quart casserole with non-stick cooking spray.

Drain chilies, spread them out flat and remove any seeds.

Whisk the eggs, milk, salt and flour together, set aside.

Line the bottom of the casserole with half of the chilies.

Top with half of the cheese.

Add the other half of the chilies, top with cheese.

Pour egg mixture over the top and bake for 40-45 minutes, until they slightly brown on top and eggs are cooked.

Fire Roasted Tomato Soup

Fire Roasted Tomato Soup

Last Friday night I celebrated January birthdays with "the girls."  

I have already shared with you the yummy orange cake that we had for dessert.

For dinner we did soup, salad and bread.

I LOVE Paradise Cafe's Fire Roasted Tomato soup.  It's one of my favorite places to have lunch.

So, I decided  to try and find a copy cat recipe for it.

I searched and searched and compared, and the recipe that I settled on was from a fellow blogger at 

{the cottage nest}.

topped with sour cream and tortilla strips

I think I was most excited to use my soup tureen. My Mom gave this to me for Christmas years ago. 

It sits up on my kitchen soffett, and gets dusted, but rarely used.

my white porcelain soup tureen

When I got it down and washed it up to take to the dinner, my youngest daughter 

(who doesn't miss a thing!)

Says "hey wait!  You never use that for us!!" 

Guess I will have to break out the good stuff every once in a while! :)

Fire Roasted Tomato Soup

adapted from {the cottage nest}

1 large onion, diced

6 cloves garlic, minced

Olive oil for sauteing

2- 28 ounce cans of *San Marzano whole tomatoes

1- 28 ounce can of *Muir Glen Organic fire roasted tomatoes

2 - 8 ounce cans of tomato sauce

2 - 6 ounce cans of tomato paste 

2 - 32 ounce containers of chicken stock

3 teaspoons of sea salt

1 teaspoon of white pepper

4 cups milk (I used Vitamin D)

tortilla strips

sour cream

Saute onions and garlic in olive oil until translucent.  Add tomatoes, paste, sauce and chicken stock.

Bring to boil, cover and reduce heat and simmer for about 30 minutes. 

Remove from heat and puree in a blender until tomatoes are desired consistency.

Add milk and seasonings and cook for another 15 minutes on low.

Serve topped with tortilla strips (the ones that you find for salads) and sour cream.

I suggest a crusty bread, too!!

* I found the San Marzano tomatoes and the Muir Glen tomatoes at Super Target.

Broccoli Cheese Soup

My kids LOVE to go to Panera Bread. 

My oldest daughter loves their broccoli cheese soup and french baguette.

She's a soup eater like her Mom. 

So, one day I decided I was going to create my own recipe for it, and it was so similar, it was a hit!

This is one of the requests I always get for "soup night" on Halloween.

I always make at least two kinds, if not three, and the grandparents come over for dinner, 

and I usually have extra kids here too.  

It's great, because I make all of them in the morning, and line my crock pots up on the counter.

After the parties at school, we rush home to get ready again for trick or treating.  

It's nice to have it all ready so that as people come and go, they can just eat when they want. 

It's also quite nice on those cold trick or treat nights to come home and have another bowl and warm up!

I have mentioned before how difficult I find it to photograph soup, so I hope you just trust me when I say that this is really yummy.

It only becomes better when you have some nice crusty bread to dip in it!

broccoli cheese soup

My Own Broccoli Cheese Soup

3-4 potatoes peeled and cubed

6 stalks of celery, chopped

1 small onion, chopped

3 T butter

1 - 32 ounce chicken stock

2 - 16 ounce packages of frozen chopped broccoli

1 - 16 ounce jar cheese whiz

1 can cream of potato soup

2 cans cream of celery soup

1 - 8 ounce container sour cream

(no calories!?!?  yea right.)

Saute your onion and celery in butter until soft.  Add potatoes and chicken stock and simmer covered until potatoes are soft.  (20-30 minutes)

Add broccoli, simmer about 15 minutes more.

With a potato masher, mash vegetables until they are small.  Add to this the rest of the ingredients, 

stir and warm until ready to eat.

In the Crock Pot:

This recipe is also easy in the crock pot. When I make it in the crock pot I cook the veggies until they are soft and mash-able in the chicken stock. (on low all day) 

About 30 minutes before dinner, mash, and add cream based ingredients, warm and serve.

This, was one of three soups I made for Halloween when the Grandparents
came over before trick-or-treating.

the twins with their grandparents

trick-or -treat!

We have a tradition at our house on Halloween.  Ever since my kids were little, when they sorted through their Halloween candy, they got to chose their favorite kinds, and keep that.  The rest goes in our Halloween candy cauldron for the Halloween Witch.

She comes while they are sleeping to take that candy and leave a small toy in it's place.  She needs lots of candy to keep her teeth rotten!

my little 80's girl sorting her candy

you can bet my little WWE Superstar, John Cena, didn't part with that Mountain Dew!

This year, our little Josie lost a tooth at her Halloween party eating a caramel apple.  

So, not only did the Halloween Witch come, so did the tooth fairy!

Josie was very concerned they would come at the same time.  

She was certain they would most likely NOT get along!

Turns out, if their paths crossed, things went well! 

;)

Not your Normal Tortilla Soup

When I was little we had some neighbors that lived across the street.  They were stationed at Offutt Air force base, and had been stationed all over the world. 

One thing I remember about the Mom was that she was a fabulous cook!  

My Mom got this recipe for tortilla soup from her, and this is the tortilla soup that I grew up on.

I thought all tortilla soup tasted like this one, until I grew up and had the more 

creamy based ones with chicken.

This is more of a spicy tomato based soup, seasoned with green chilies, chili powder and cumin.

It'll warm your bones right up!!

Perfect for Halloween, or a blustery Midwest day like today. 

I made this as well as homemade chicken noodle, and broccoli cheese for Halloween night.  

I will be having some leftover tortilla soup for lunch today, who wants to join me?

I am such a soup eater. I never get tired of it!

But the one thing about putting it on a blog, is that the photo never does it justice.

You'll just have to trust me on this, okay?

not your normal tortilla soup

Tortilla Soup

2 small onions, chopped

2 small cans of diced green chilies

4 cloves garlic minced

4 T vegetable oil

2, 14.5 ounce cans diced tomatoes

3 beef and 3 chicken bouillon cubes

3 cups of water

3 cups of tomato juice

2 t. ground cumin

2 t. chili powder

2 t. salt

1/4 t. white pepper

4 t. Worcestershire sauce

2 T. bottled steak sauce

6 corn tortillas, cut in strips

shredded cheddar cheese

Saute onion, chilies and garlic in oil until soft. (about 5 minutes)

Add tomatoes, bouillon, water, juice, spices and sauces. 

Bring soup to a boil, lower heat and simmer covered for one hour. 

(or you can make this in your crock pot. After sauteing, add this mixture to others in your crock pot and cook on low all day)

Before serving add corn tortilla strips and 1/2 cup of cheese, simmer 10 minutes more.

Serve topped with cheddar cheese.

Shrimp and Crab Pasta with Apple Dumplings for Dessert

the table is set

So, you may have heard, that yesterday, my husband and I celebrated our 20th Wedding anniversary. 

It is so hard to believe that we have been married THAT long.  

Just goes to show you that life goes by in an instant, doesn't it?

here we were 20 years ago

We actually went out for a special dinner over the past weekend.  When you have four kids and a special date falls during the week, you make the best of it!  

So, on the actual date we celebrated at home with our kids.

I made one of our family's most requested meals.

It looks very pretty, and it's actually really quick to make.

shrimp and crab pasta

Like many things that I make, I just shake stuff in there until it tastes good.  But yesterday I measured and wrote down what I actually used, here is the recipe:

Shrimp and Crab Pasta

3-4 T. Olive oil

2 t. Mrs. Dash Tomato, Basil and Garlic

1 stick of butter, divided

1- 14oz size can of diced tomatoes

1 clove garlic, minced

sea salt to taste

1/2 cup onion, diced a little large

12 oz of cooked and tail removed shrimp

8 oz of imitation crab meat (or the real thing if you are lucky to have that close to you!!)

1 1/2 boxes of thick spaghetti (or other pasta choice)

fresh Parmesan cheese

Boil your pasta and drain it, set aside. 

In a skillet, add 3 T of olive oil, 1/2 stick of butter, Mrs. Dash and garlic. On a medium heat, melt butter and spices together.  Add to this your shrimp, your crab and onion.  Saute for about 2-3 minutes. Add tomatoes, juice and all. Sprinkle with sea salt to taste. Warm through.  Add pasta and remaining butter, toss.  When butter is melted and pasta is warm, place in a pasta bowl and top with fresh Parmesan cheese.

For dessert I tried a recipe I saw online last week from The Country Cook. The recipe was for Apple Dumplings.  Holy cow were they simple, and yummy!! 

 I served them with a cinnamon apple dumpling ice cream.  

They were a treat!

the country cook's apple dumplings - RECIPE HERE

So, time flies by, so enjoy what you do every day, or at least try to.  Spend it with the ones that you love and some good food, and life will be good.

here we are today

thought I would share my gorgeous roses I received yesterday

Pasta Pomodoro

I don't know about you, but where I live, the tomatoes are just WONDERFUL this year! I know it's been hot, but I have still been super blessed to get a huge crop of "maters this year.  Er...well, when I say "I,"  I actually mean,  "my Mom" has!! She is such a sweetheart, she shares with me on a regular basis, but she also decided to take a trip to the East coast to see my Aunt, and asked me to "check her plants" for her while she was gone.  They are weighed down with GORGEOUS tomatoes!! (so many, I even left her a whole bunch! ;)

Now, I am really not much of a caner.  But I can eat fresh tomatoes until I have sores in my mouth! So this week, I have been eating them like crazy!! Tonight for dinner I made a really easy dish, and  thought that I would share with you. I love "naked pasta," it's my favorite. toss it in some garlic, basil and olive oil, maybe some butter, and I am a happy camper.  So, tonight, that's just how I prepared the spaghetti noodles, but I made a pomodoro tomato topping for with it.

pomodoro pasta

I am going to tell you the EASY way to do this, and if you don't want to let the secret out, find a labor intensive recipe and fib!! ;)

I found this stuff in the spice aisle made by McCormick, called "Perfect Pinch." I believe it's their version of a Mrs. Dash? Any who... they have a basil and garlic flavor. All I did was about 90 minutes before I cooked the pasta, I diced up fresh tomatoes, and sprinkled that spice with a little sea salt (both of them to taste) added a little bit of olive oil and put it in the fridge. The longer it sits, the more flavor it will have. 

After you cook your pasta, drain it and rinse it.  To it add butter or Olive oil or a little of both, a little garlic and basil and toss it. Place the warm pasta on the plate and top it with the chilled pomodoro tomatoes. (it tastes good with the tomatoes warm, too!)

I served it with an Italian crusty bread, it was so good.  It's a great summer, or anytime really dinner.

Also, it's a perfect meatless pasta dish.