Food In Many Forms

We had our first dusting of snow last week, which means it's casserole season. Baked ziti, lasagna and baked macaroni and cheese bring me comfort on cold days. They give me an excuse to heat up the house, and stand in the warm kitchen for most of the evening.   At the store the other day, I came to the blog to find a ziti recipe, and was surprised to find nothing I had actually tried myself. I had wanted to try out a recipe a while back, but never actually did it. So, I found a new recipe, and adapted it to my preferences. I used a penne pasta with added flax seeds that was absolutely delicious the night I made it, but not as great after a few days. Next time I want to see how it works with a true whole wheat pasta, or one of the new high protein lentil, quinoa or chickpea pasta options that are coming out.  Baked Ziti with Meat Sauce Serves 4-6 Ingredients 1 1/3 lb ground turkey, 93% 2 tsp Italian seasoning 1 tsp salt 1/4 tsp ground black pepper 4 cl...

We are all busy, and forget to shop on occasion. We run out of fresh meat and vegetables, and are tempted to eat out, eat a tub of ice cream, or skip dinner altogether. This meal is full of pantry staples that you can always have on hand and does not fail to satisfy! If you are feeling extravagant, add an extra 1/2 cup of shredded cheese to the tuna mixture, in addition to the cheese on top.  Recipe Makes 4 servings Cook the egg noodles, and combine the following ingredients in the saucepan: 6 oz yolk-free egg noodles 2 5 oz cans chunk light tuna 2 8.5 oz cans mixed vegetables, ex. Essential Everyday No Salt Added Mixed Vegetables with Carrots, Potatoes, Celery, Peas, Green Beans, Lima Beans 2 Tbsp Gulden's Spicy Mustard 2 Tbsp Nasaya Vegan Mayonnaise Ground pepper, to taste Spread the tuna mixture in an 8 x 8 pyrex pan, and cover in: 1/2 cup shredded 3-cheese blend, ex. Fontina, Asiago, Parmesan Bake in a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes. ...

Don't let it's looks deceive you, this Turkey Noodle Casserole is pure delicious-ness. The peppers gave it a nice little kick without being overwhelming. Now if you like a little heat, you could probably use two or three chipotle peppers with no problem, but I liked it with just one. Doing the recipe analysis for this recipe, I was shocked how many calories 1 cup of cheese can have (about 400 calories for the brand I chose)! It's easy to forget at the grocery store that the cheese is all made with whole milk, unless it says otherwise. I feel especially silly for buying whole milk cheese, since I know 2% tastes exactly the same . Just making that simple switch could save you around 120 calories in this recipe and 12 g of fat ! Turkey Noodle Casserole (Serves 6) Ingredients 1/4 cup canola oil, plus more for preparing the pan 10 ounces rigatoni or other shaped pasta 1 medium onion, diced 3 large garlic cloves, minced 1 teaspoon taco seasoning 1 teaspoon drie...

I learned recently that Americans eat an average of 28 pounds of cheese every year . I think I am giving America a run for its money this week with all my cheesy nachos, cheese-filled quiche and cheesy zucchini. I just need to make cheesy grits and I'll have covered breakfast, lunch and dinner with delicious cheese.  This recipe is what I would call and "fiber and fat" recipe, because if I was making this for food service class, 70% of the calories would come from fat and I would be in trouble. Luckily. I am not in class, and I can drizzle olive oil and sprinkle cheese to my heart's content ! Slice up pre-cooked polenta and zucchini . Get the polenta slices nice and crispy, cooking it on medium with olive oil, Italian seasonings , and garlic powder . Cook the zucchini separately in the same way, until soft. Place the crispy polenta slices on the bottom of a casserole dish. Layer zucchini on top. Sprinkle  Parmesan  and Mozzarella cheeses on top. Bake at ...

When my hubby had a sore throat, this was a real treat because it was smooth going down and easy to swallow. I thought it was a little bland, but some freshly ground pepper gave it a nice little kick. Ingredients 1/3 cup olive oil, plus more for baking dishes Coarse salt and ground pepper 1 pound wide egg noodles 2 red bell peppers (ribs and seeds removed), thinly sliced 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 5 cups whole milk 4 cans (6 ounces each) tuna in olive oil, drained 1 can (14 ounces) artichoke hearts, drained and thickly sliced 5 scallions, thinly sliced 1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan Directions Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly oil two 8-inch square (or other shallow 2-quart) baking dishes. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook noodles until 2 minutes short of al dente; drain, and return to pot. Meanwhile, in a 5-quart Dutch oven or heavy pot, heat oil over medium. Add bell peppers; season with salt and pepper. Cook until crisp-tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Add flour and cook, stirri...

It's starting to get cold outside, and food that sticks to your insides are starting to look more appealing. Paula Deen's Shrimp and Wild Rice Casserole was just what I needed to warm me up before going out for Halloween! (Just a few alterations) Ingredients 1 (8-ounce) package wild rice 1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined 1 teaspoons butter 1/2 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped 1/2 onion, chopped 1 (10 3/4-ounce can) condensed cream of potato soup 1/4 cup freshly grated Pepper Jack Cheese Salt and pepper Directions 1. Cook the rice. 1/4 wild rice, 3/4 basmati rice with 2 1/4 cups water for 45 minutes. 2. Cook the onions, peppers, and shrimp together with a teaspoon of butter. 3. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. 4. In a large bowl, combine the rice, soup, 1/4 cup of cheese,shrimp and vegetables. Add salt and pepper, to taste. Mix well. 5. Spray a 9-inch square aluminum cake pan or an 11 by 7-inch glasscasserole dish with vegetable spray. Place the mixture in the pan a...

It turned out great but I disobeyed my own rule of halving the fat (AKA mayonnaise) so I will have to try it again with less mayo and see how it changes things! And yes it is in a pyrex pie plate - nothing was clean! Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

I decided to make dinner tonight so I can have leftovers for the rest of the week. This was the only recipe on the food network site but I was suprised how many vegetables they try to sneak in. I approve. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/eating-well/tuna-noodle-casserole-recipe/index.html Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

I was really buying into the Clean Eating Diet  - a diet of unprocessed, unhydrogenated, simple foods, full of whole grains and a wide variety of fruits and vegetables. The  magazine   called to me, as food magazines do in the grocery store, but it was not until now that I had the opportunity to test any of the recipes out. Maybe I picked a really boring recipe or something - Squash and Chicken Casserole - but it really needed a lot more "Oomph". Of course, I ate it anyways, but I really wish I could find that dish that everyone loves, is healthy,  looks marginally impressive and I can get right every time. Just compare the recipe from Clean Eating -  a healthy version of a "Georgia Church Picnic" Classic - to a version of the real thing: Healthy Squash & Chicken Casserole Chicken Yellow Squash Casserole 10 slices whole wheat bread Olive oil cooking spray 1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced 3 medium y...