Creamy Chicken-Cheesy Casserole

The recipe and Directions are given down below.

I often make this casserole (or something similar to it), cover and refrigerate it in its baking dish overnight, cut it into "blocks" and then put those "blocks" into individual food containers like this...

I snap a cover on them and stick 'em into the freezer for at least a few hours.  After they are frozen enough to keep their shape, I vacuum seal and label  each "frozen block" for a very quick individual meal for one,... or a few.  (There's probably enough in each container to serve two.)  Up front, this might sound like a bunch of work, but... "meal blocks" like this can taste SO good when thawed, and reheated!  And,... they are SO convenient!  

This especially works well for when a casserole is large, but the family is small.  It beats eating the same  meal over and over until it's gone--  or, even worse, seeing it go to waste in the refrigerator.

If you want to see how I do this, check along the right side of this blog and look under "Labels".  I have a heading called "GADGETS I LIKE" and I show how I do this with my vacuum sealer.

INGREDIENTS:

• 8 oz. dry medium egg noodles, prepared according to package directions (the same amount of cooked macaroni noodles also work for this.)
• 1/2 cup (4 tablespoons) butter.
• 6 long stalks celery, very finely chopped (include leaves).
• 1 cup (1 medium) onion, chopped.
• 1 pound cooked chicken, chopped into chunks (rotisserie chicken works great).
• 2 cans of 10 oz. cream of chicken soup, not diluted.
• 1 can (12 oz.) evaporated milk (NOT condensed milk).
• 2 cups grated (8 ounces) cheddar cheese of your choice.
• 1 cup (or 1 small package) of frozen green beans OR peas OR mixed vegetables OR ???.
• 2/3 cup crushed potato chips, optional.  (I usually do not add these, because I seldom have any here.)

DIRECTIONS:

• Cook the noodles. Drain.
• While the noodles are cooking, combine the butter, celery and onion in a rather large pan and saute until just tender (about five minutes?).
• Add the cooked/drained noodles.
• Preheat oven to 350-degrees.
• Add the following:  Chicken meat, cream of chicken soup that's first  been smoothly blended together with the evaporated milk, grated cheese, and frozen vegetables of your choice.  Stir until everything is well mixed/blended together.  Pour into greased/sprayed 9x13-inch baking dish.  

                              

• Top with crushed potato chips (optional).  If you don't use potato chips, you can sprinkle a little bit of extra cheese over the top during the last five minutes of baking.
• Bake uncovered at 350-degrees for about 35 minutes, or until top is a light golden brown.  "Kinda sorta" like this...

Below:  I think we had three separate rain 

showers yesterday-- with sunshine in between!  

This makes for plenty of "mow the lawn" work.

Rhubarb-Strawberry Cobbler (gluten-free)

Here is something that's easy to put together 

and bake when the rhubarb and 

strawberry season collide (mesh?).

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 pound fresh rhubarb, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 3 slightly heaping cups).  NEVER EVER use ANY part of the rhubarb leaves!
• 1 pound fresh strawberries (1 quart?), thickly sliced.
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar.  (Add one more tablespoon if you prefer more "sweetness".)
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon corn starch.  (You could use same amount of wheat flour OR all-purpose white flour as the thickener IF you do not need this recipe to be gluten-free.)

-----

• 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats.
• 1 cup almond meal flour.
• 1/3 cup sliced almonds.
• 2/3 cup  sugar.  (I use half white, half brown.)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt.
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger.

-----

• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 2 egg whites, slightly beaten.
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon vanilla, optional.

DIRECTIONS:

• Preheat the oven to 350-degrees.
• Place the rhubarb and strawberries into a medium-sized bowl.   After mixing the sugar and corn starch together very well, dump it over the rhubarb and strawberries...stir well, to coat evenly.  Put this sugared mixture into a 10-inch oven proof dish OR a round skillet (I used my 10" cast iron frying pan.)
• In a medium bowl, mix together the oats, almond meal flour, sliced almonds, sugar(s), and ginger. Add the slightly beaten egg whites and melted butter.  Stir together until blended evenly.
• Spread the "dough" mixture evenly over the fruit mixture. Using a teaspoon, I took little dabs of the sticky mixture and plopped them on top of the sugared fruit layer, staying about 1/2" away from the edges of the dish, then evened it out a bit more.  Like this...

Above:  Just for "because", I put some more sliced almonds on top before sticking it into the oven.

• Bake in 350-degree for about 35-40 minutes.  It's done when the rhubarb can be seen bubbling around the edge and the topping is crisp and lightly golden like this... 

• Allow the cobbler to rest for about 5 minutes before serving.  Enjoy this while it's still hot or at room temperature.  

 Enjoy it "naked" like this....

OR, "dressed up" like this...

Through the years, I've found this basic recipe also works with other fruit-- including pitted cherries, blueberries, peaches, etc.  (For juicier fruit, just adjust the amount of "thickener" you add.)

OR, ...you can do a computer search (google?) and find a good recipe for Apple Crisp or Fruit Crisp to get the directions for a topping YOU like better and take it from there.

Polish Reuben Noodle Casserole (w/Sauerkraut)

Years back, I was drawn to this recipe for two reasons-- the egg noodles do not have to be cooked ahead of time, and... I LIKE SAUERKRAUT!!!!

INGREDIENTS:  

2 of 15-16 oz. cans sauerkraut, slightly rinsed and drained.
1 of 8 oz. package UNcooked medium width egg noodles.
............
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
1 and 1/3 cups milk
1 tablespoon prepared mustard
1/2 cup chopped onion (1 medium onion)
...........
1 and 1/2 pounds Polish sausage (OR Lite Kielbasa), cut into 1/2" slices.
2 cups shredded Swiss cheese (or 8 oz. Swiss Cheese slices)
...........
3/4 cup whole wheat bread crumbs.
2 tablespoons butter, melted.

DIRECTIONS:

• Preheat oven to 350-degrees.
• Grease or spray a 9x13-inch baking dish. 
• Spread the sauerkraut over bottom of the baking dish.
• Top with UNcooked egg noodles.
• Mix together the cream of mushroom soup, milk, prepared mustard, and chopped onion.  Stir until well blended.  Spoon this evenly over the top of the egg noodles.
• Next, top with slices of sausage.
• Add the layer of Swiss cheese.
• Combine crumbs and melted butter in a small bowl; sprinkle over top. 
• Cover dish tightly with aluminum foil.
• Bake at 350-degrees for 1 hour, or until noodles are tender.

I'm often asked for this recipe whenever I 
take this casserole to pot luck 

doings, -- just yesterday, it happened again.