Tater-Topped Casserole

Happy Belated Thanksgiving! Or at least to those who have already celebrated. Adam and I definitely fit in the category of having not celebrated turkey day yet. My brother-in-law and I both have the unfortunate habit of working in the healthcare field -- he had to work yesterday, and I have to work today (and then we'll drive down to their house).

It definitely did not feel like Thanksgiving yesterday. I mean, there was no turkey (though we did have some Turkey Stick, which is awesome), no mashed potatoes, no rolls, nothing. Okay, I shouldn't say nothing. Adam and I did have some beef tenderloin, but that is for another post.

Today's recipe looked so scrumptious in the Kraft Foods magazine. I hadn't had tater tots in years, even though I love their crunchy outsides and soft squishy innards. So I had some high hopes for this recipe. And well, it fell just a little bit short.

Tater-Topped Casserole

Kraft Foods

1 lb. ground beef
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 can (10-3/4 oz.) condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/4 cup milk
1 cup frozen mixed vegetables
1 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
1 lb. (1/2 of 32-oz. pkg.) frozen bite-size seasoned potato nuggets

HEAT oven to 375ºF. Brown meat with onions in large skillet, stirring occasionally; drain. Spoon into 2-qt. casserole dish.

MIX soup and milk; pour over meat mixture. Top with layers of vegetables, cheese and potatoes.

BAKE 45 min. or until potatoes are golden brown and casserole is heated through.

Serves: 6

It was a pretty simple meal to put together, but through that simplicity, it really lacked a lot of flavor. This dish definitely warranted a healthy dose of pepper mixed in, or maybe some other kinds of seasonings. As is, it definitely fits into the "comfort foods" category. Maybe with some help on the seasonings, it could move up in my ratings.

Nutrition Facts
Amount per serving
Calories 433	Calories from fat 186
% Daily Value
Total Fat 20.7g	32%
Saturated Fat 8.0g	40%
Cholesterol 88mg	29%
Sodium 873mg	36%
Total Carbs 30.2g	10%
Dietary Fiber 3.4g	14%
Sugars 3.0g
Protein 31.4g
Vitamin A 30%	Vitamin C 11%
Calcium 18%	Iron 22%

One-Dish Chicken and Kielbasa Rice

So I'm going to be upfront about this whole "one-dish" thing -- it's really not. It's more of a two-dish recipe. (A medium saucepan and a large skillet if you don't believe me.) Which was really kind of disappointing, as I was looking forward to the one dish, as Adam likes to complain that I try and use every dish we own. I'm such a sucker for less work... or maybe I'm just lazy. ;)

The one-dish aspect wasn't the only reason I chose this recipe. I've never used kielbasa before, and honestly, I was kind of disappointed. I was hoping for something a little more spicy. I guess I was thinking it was more like sausage. Well, I must say, now I know.

One-Dish Chicken and Kielbasa Rice

From: Cooking Light, December 2006

2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1/8 teaspoon ground turmeric
8 ounces turkey kielbasa, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 cups long-grain parboiled rice (such as Uncle Ben's)
2 teaspoons olive oil
8 ounces skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 cup prechopped onion
1 cup prechopped green bell pepper
1/2 cup frozen green peas
1/4 cup sliced pitted stuffed manzanilla (or green) olives (I omitted)
1 tablespoon bottled minced garlic

Combine the first 3 ingredients in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil. Stir in rice. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat; let stand for 5 minutes.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add chicken pieces; cook 2 minutes or until browned, stirring occasionally. Add onion and bell pepper; sauté 4 minutes or until tender. Stir in peas, sliced olives, and garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add rice mixture; cook 1 minute or until thoroughly heated, stirring constantly.

Serves: 4

Adam and I were fairly disappointed in this dish. It went together and cooked up pretty quick and easy (it was in the superfast section), but it just didn't have much flavor. It kind of just tasted like rice, peppers, peas, and kielbasa, how much of each depended on what was in your bite. Nothing really tied it together and blended the flavors.

We probably wouldn't make this dish again:

Nutrition Facts
Amount per serving
Calories 536	Calories from fat 87
% Daily Value
Total Fat 9.7g	15%
Saturated Fat 2.3g	11%
Trans Fat 0.0g
Cholesterol 47mg	16%
Sodium 872mg	36%
Total Carbs 82.4g	27%
Dietary Fiber 3.1g	13%
Sugars 4.4g
Protein 29.5g
Vitamin A 17%	Vitamin C 66%
Calcium 4%	Iron 29%

Mini Pumpkin Pies

Of course, I couldn't let such a thing as a "dating anniversary" (do those even exist after you're married?) go by without making a dessert. Or at least use it as an excuse to make a dessert. I had been craving pumpkin pie, the entire end of October. I knew Thanksgiving was coming up in about a month, and nothing says "fall" and "comfort food" like pumpkin pie.

Well, I wanted to switch it up just a little bit and not make the one big pie, instead, I used my small little cake pans to make 4 little guys. Honestly, I didn't mess with the recipe... I've always been a Libby's pumpkin pie kid, and I still love it. Why mess with a good thing?

Mini Pumpkin Pies

From: verybestbaking.com

4 (1-cup vol each) 4-inch diameter mini-pie shells
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2 large eggs
1 can (15 oz.) LIBBY'S® 100% Pure Pumpkin
1 can (12 fl. oz.) NESTLÉ® CARNATION® Evaporated Milk

PREHEAT oven to 425° F.

MIX sugar, salt, cinnamon, ginger and cloves in small bowl. Beat eggs lightly in large bowl. Stir in pumpkin and sugar-spice mixture. Gradually stir in evaporated milk.

POUR into shells.

BAKE for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350° F.; bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack for 2 hours. Serve immediately or refrigerate. (Do not freeze as this may cause filling to separate from the crust.)

NOTE: May use refrigerated or homemade single pie crust to make 4 mini-pie shells. Lay rim of mini-pie pan on rolled out dough. Cut circle 1/2-inch larger than mini-pie to allow for dough to form fluted edge.

Makes: 4 pies

I actually am more a fan of the regular sized pie. While these do happen to be little and cute, I really do enjoy the crust on the bottom of the pan, and this size just cuts down on it. Kind of a bummer.

But still, it is pumpkin pie and still overall delicious.

Nutrition Facts - Per Pie
Amount per serving
Calories 465	Calories from fat 160
% Daily Value
Total Fat 17.8g	27%
Saturated Fat 7.2g	36%
Trans Fat 0.0g
Cholesterol 133mg	44%
Sodium 554mg	23%
Total Carbs 67.2g	22%
Dietary Fiber 3.9g	15%
Sugars 50.5g
Protein 12.1g
Vitamin A 338%	Vitamin C 11%
Calcium 29%	Iron 16%

Pork with Ancho Chile Rub and Raspberry Glaze

Back on the 4th, I decided to make an extra special dinner for Adam and I. After all, we had just cross the 4 year mark for being together. :)

As you can tell by most of my posts, we eat a lot of chicken. A lot. I figured it was time to switch things up a little bit and try making some pork instead. I'm usually not a fan of pork chops. It usually brings up memories of pork soaking in some form of gravy in the crockpot all day. Not my favorite.

So pan-frying the pork rather than slow-cooking it was a definite improvement for me. However, I was a bit wary, and I knew it was super easy to dry pork out when cooking it.

Pork with Ancho Chile Rub and Raspberry Glaze

From: Cooking Light, August 2007

2 teaspoons ancho chile powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
4 (6-ounce) bone-in center-cut pork chops (about 1/2 inch thick)
Cooking spray
1/4 cup fat-free, less-sodium beef broth
2 tablespoons seedless raspberry preserves

Combine first 3 ingredients in a small bowl, stirring well. Rub spice mixture evenly over pork. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add pork to pan, and cook 3 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Remove from pan, and keep warm.

Add broth to pan, and cook for 30 seconds, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Increase heat to medium-high. Add preserves to pan; cook 1 minute or until slightly thick, stirring constantly with a whisk. Brush pork with glaze.

Serves: 4

This recipe was listed in the quick and easy section on myrecipes.com, and it was definitely was that. For my first time making pork chops, they turned out halfway decent and not overly dry. I just wish I would have reduced the raspberry glaze a little more to give it a stronger flavor.

I would say this recipe was:

Nutrition Facts
Amount per serving
Calories 394	Calories from fat 257
% Daily Value
Total Fat 28.5g	44%
Saturated Fat 10.6g	53%
Trans Fat 0.1g
Cholesterol 98mg	33%
Sodium 411mg	17%
Total Carbs 7.2g	2%
Protein 25.7g
Vitamin A 8%	Vitamin C 3%
Calcium 4%	Iron 7%

Ham, Spinach, and Sun-Dried Tomato Calzones

Everybody loves quick and easy meals, especially when they are super tasty. This recipe definitely fits the bill.

I was getting a little tired of chicken -- it does seem like we have it quite an awful lot. I happened to be looking through the quick and easy section on Cooking Light's website, hoping to find some quick recipes for those days I just didn't feel like cooking, and I ran across these calzones. They seemed easy enough to throw together, and there wasn't a lot of prep involved (perfect).

Ham, Spinach, and Sun-Dried Tomato Calzones

From: Cooking Light

1 cup part-skim ricotta
3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon fennel seed, crushed
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained, and squeezed dry
3 ounces lean ham, chopped
6 oil-packed sun-dried tomato halves, drained and chopped
1 (13.8-ounce) can refrigerated pizza crust dough
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 450°.

Combine first 9 ingredients.

Divide dough evenly into 5 pieces; pat each dough piece into a 5-inch circle. Spoon about 1/2 cup spinach mixture onto half of each circle, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Fold dough over filling until edges almost meet. Bring bottom edge over top edge; crimp edges of dough with fingers to form a rim. Place calzones on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 450° for 14 minutes or until browned.

Serves: 5

True to its classification, these were super easy and super quick to throw together. And yes, they were definitely tasty.

I used the Pillsbury Pizza Dough (it was the only stuff I could really find), and I'm not sure I'd use it again. I think homemade dough would make these really awesome. Anybody have any good recipes?

Nutrition Facts
Amount per serving
Calories 555	Calories from fat 304
% Daily Value
Total Fat 33.8g	52%
Saturated Fat 11.6g	58%
Trans Fat 0.0g
Cholesterol 37mg	12%
Sodium 834mg	35%
Total Carbs 41.8g	14%
Dietary Fiber 4.9g	20%
Sugars 2.6g
Protein 22.0g
Vitamin A 125%	Vitamin C 42%
Calcium 39%	Iron 24%

Mascarpone Mac n' Cheese

I am absolutely in love with my Google Reader as of late. (As if you couldn't tell, the last few recipes have been found on it.) But the way I look at it, if someone else liked it, then there's a pretty good chance that I will too. :)

Adam and I love macaroni and cheese. He is still very partial to the blue box, but after a little experimenting, I think these new recipes are pulling me away from the Kraft version. I found this on Elizabeth's Cooking Experiments -- and it's actually one she come up with herself, which is pretty cool.

Mascarpone Mac & cheese

From: Elizabeth's Cooking Experiments

3/4 lb elbow macaroni

2 TBSP butter

8 oz mascarpone cheese, softened

3/4 cup grated Fontina cheese (I used Fontinella)

Peppered bacon, cooked and crumbled

Béchamel

3 TBP butter

3/4 cup milk

3/4 cup heavy cream

1/8 tsp pepper

1/2 - 3/4 tsp salt

3 TBSP flour

Boil noodles to al dente. Drain & set aside.

Meanwhile, prepare the béchamel by melting the butter in a medium saucepan. Add milk & cream. Whisk in remaining ingredients and simmer until slightly thickened.

In another saucepan or medium skillet, melt 2 TBSP butter. Once melted, add mascarpone cheese and whisk until melted and smooth. Add the fontina and mix until smooth.

Add the noodles to the cheese mixture and stir until well mixed. Add the béchamel and mix until it reaches your desired level of creaminess. Season to taste with salt & pepper.

Serves: 6

Once again, I threw in a little bit of bacon to satiate Adam, but in this case it worked out really really well. I ended up using most of the bechamel sauce as I like my stuff pretty creamy, although I feel like it took away a little bit from the cheese flavor.

Irregardless, this recipe was still really good!

Nutrition Facts
Amount per serving
Calories 597	Calories from fat 303
% Daily Value
Total Fat 33.7g	52%
Saturated Fat 18.4g	92%
Trans Fat 0.0g
Cholesterol 104mg	35%
Sodium 860mg	36%
Total Carbs 48.8g	16%
Dietary Fiber 1.9g	8%
Sugars 3.4g
Protein 23.9g
Vitamin A 17%	Vitamin C 0%
Calcium 22%	Iron 14%

Pittsburgh Pierogies

Pierogies. What the heck are those? That was definitely my first thought when I heard of these things. I remember walking through the grocery store and seeing a sign in the frozen food section labeled "Pierogies."

Back in August, we had both Adam and my parents out to visit us during the same weekend. While we were out eating, I saw pierogies on the appetizer menu, and suggested trying them since "apparently" they're a big thing in Pittsburgh. And they weren't bad.

Then in October, I ran across a homemade recipe for pierogies from Brown-Eyed Baker on my Reader. A couple weeks later I decided to give it the good ol' college try.

They're actually fairly time consuming (well at the least the dough is), but not overly difficult to make.

Homemade Pittsburgh Pierogies

(Adapted from Columbus Foodie)

Yield: About 2 dozen large pierogi

2 cups flour, plus extra for kneading and rolling dough

½ teaspoon salt

1 large egg

½ cup sour cream

¼ cup butter, softened and cut into small pieces

Butter and onions for sauteing (lots of onions)

Ingredients for filling of your choice (Potato & Cheese filling recipe below)

Pierogi Dough

To prepare the pierogi dough, mix together the flour and salt. Beat the egg, then add all at once to the flour mixture. Add the ½ cup sour cream and the softened butter pieces and work until the dough loses most of its stickiness (about 5-7 minutes). You can use a food processor with a dough hook for this, but be careful not to overbeat. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for 20-30 minutes or overnight; the dough can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Prepare the Pierogies

Roll the pierogi dough on a floured board or countertop until 1/16″ thick. Cut circles of dough (2″ for small pierogies and 3-3½″ for large pierogies) with a cookie cutter or drinking glass. Place a small ball of filling (about a tablespoon) on each dough round and fold the dough over, forming a semi-circle. Press the edges together with the tines of a fork.

Boil the pierogies a few at a time in a large pot of water. They are done when they float to the top (about 8-10 minutes). Rinse in cool water and let dry.

Saute sliced onions in butter in a large pan until onions are soft. Then add pierogies and pan fry until lightly crispy.

Potato, Cheese & Onion Filling

1 lb red potatoes

¼ of a large onion, finely chopped

2 oz. cheddar cheese, finely grated

Salt & pepper

Peel and boil potatoes until soft. While the potatoes are boiling, saute onion in butter until soft and translucent. Mash the potatoes with the sauted onions and grated cheddar cheese, adding salt and pepper to taste. You can also add some fresh parsley, bacon bits, or other enhancements if you desire. Let the potato mixture cool and then form into 1″ balls.

Homemade Pierogi Tips (according to Brown-Eyed Baker):
If you are having a hard time getting the edges to stick together, you may have too much flour in the dough. Add a little water to help get a good seal.

If you don’t want to cook all of the pierogies right away, you can refrigerate them (uncooked) for several days or freeze them for up to several months.

Serves: 6 (4 pierogies each)

So I didn't make enough onions to saute with the pierogies at the end, and they're actually a really crucial part of the flavor, so I would suggest making lots of onions.

While the pierogies "as-is" were really good, I think adding crumbled bacon would just put these over the top.

Nutrition Facts
Amount per serving
Calories 408	Calories from fat 180
% Daily Value
Total Fat 20.0g	31%
Saturated Fat 12.1g	61%
Cholesterol 84mg	28%
Sodium 390mg	16%
Total Carbs 47.2g	16%
Dietary Fiber 2.9g	11%
Sugars 2.1g
Protein 10.1g
Vitamin A 12%	Vitamin C 14%
Calcium 12%	Iron 15%