Taco Casserole

Tonight I made Aunt Jamina's Taco Casserole.  Daughter #1 loves Tacos, so I thought she would enjoy this.  I altered the recipe, of course.  I added a can of drained kidney beans and 1/3c -1/2c of taco sauce.  It looked really dry when I mixed it up, the taco sauce helped.

Food photography is not as easy as you would think! 

Anyway, it turned out pretty good.  Both of the girls ate it, and the added beans made it heartier.  Very quick and easy to make.  I would definitely make it again.

Chicken Alfredo Casserole

Over the weekend a case of Shingles has crept up.  The kitchen has seen very little action.  I did make an altered version of the Pillsbury Chicken Alfredo Biscuit Casserole.  It turned out pretty good. 

I added crushed red pepper and garlic.  I also didn't have ready made biscuits, so those are from scratch.  You may not be aware of this, but I came a cornbread girl not a biscuit girl!  But that's a conversation for another time.

Sweetie Pie said the casserole needed less chicken and less broccoli and double the alfredo sauce!    Don't know if I will make it again!

Happy cooking
Caren

Pasta Salad

It is way too early to be up and cooking.  But since I wasn't sleeping, I thought it would be a good time to make my Sweetie Pie's favorite lunch for work.  Cold Pasta Salad. (I don't east cold pasta, but he loves it!)  Everything can be adjusted to personal taste.

Perfect Lunch Pasta Salad

Serves: 4-6
Time 15 min.

1 box of tri-colored pasta (16 oz)
1/3 of a bottle of Balsamic Vinaigrette
1 small tomato or 12 cherry tomatoes, diced
4 green onions, trimmed, and diced (green and white part)
2 carrots, peeled and diced
12 green olives, chopped
1/2 Parmesan cheese
1/2 can of water packed artichoke hearts, chopped


1) Boil pasta for 5 mins.  According to Sweetie, firm pasta is best.
2) Rinse pasta in cold water to stop the cooking.  Pour into medium bowl.  Pour Vinaigrette over pasta.
3) Add all ingredients and stir well.
4) Place in refrigerator until ready to eat.
5) Serve cold.

This is a great salad to take to work.

Happy Cooking,
Caren

Menu for the Week

I just returned from the grocery store, and spent way too much money!  I've made the menu for the week, some meals will actually have enough for two nights.  I'm hoping to make it until next Tuesday or Wednesday.

Monday:  Boxed Red Beans and rice with spicy sausage added
                Fresh Cornbread

Tuesday:  Chicken Alfredo (Semi-homemade)
                French Bread
                Fresh Broccoli

Wednesday:  Altered Taco Casserole

Thursday:  Stir-fry
                 Boxed Egg Rolls (i made them once, never again!)
                 Jasmine Rice

Friday:  Crock Pot Special

Saturday: Chicken Salad Sandwiches
                soup

Sunday:  Braised Pork chops
             Fresh  Broccoli
              Glazed Carrots

Cookie of the week: Spice Cookies
 Assuming all goes well and nothing bizarre happerns  we should have plenty to eat!

Happy Cooking
Caren

Hello

Hello, bloggers. This is my first post as a food blogger. I am not a "foodie", I like to cook, and I love to eat. I have two picky eaters to feed, so that has limited my menu. I have more cookbooks than necessary, and find new ones I need everyday.
My schedule limits my "real cooking". Most of what I do now falls into the category of Just throwing things together. My hope is to get back into real cooking and baking.
This morning my nephew called asking for Deviled Eggs, he's 12. Who can refuse that. So here we go....

Deviled Eggs (basic recipe)
4 boiled eggs
3 Tbls. mayo
1 tsp. Mustard
1/8 - 1/4 tsp. salt
dash black pepper
paprika

1. Take eggs and peel them.

2. Slice eggs along the long way, pop out the yolk into a bowl. Set
the whites into a tray.

3. Using a fork or pastry cutter break the yolks into small pieces. A
food processor works well for this.

4. Add all ingredients, except for paprika. Stir well.

5. Use a small spoon, or pastry bag, to fill egg white cavities with
the yolk mixture.

6. Sprinkle paprika over each egg. Chill before eating, overnight is
great. It gives the flavors a chance to meld.

This is only the beginning. From here any number of mix-in's can be added. Pickles, onions, anchovies, etc... Half of these eggs had
Cayenne pepper added to them. They were really good.
In my cookbook I have measurements for up to 24 eggs. They are always going to family gatherings.
Happy Cooking
Caren