A Non-Eggy Egg Casserole

There's something about me you should know. I am a little bit of a freak of nature. (You might have figured that out already.) I rarely do anything the way everyone else does it. Or if a food is really super popular, I probably don't like it. Take mayonnaise for example. Who doesn't like mayo? Me. That's who. Blech. Or Deviled Eggs. Or Egg Casserole.

So when my "other moms" (aka my mother's long time best friends) threw my wedding shower brunch, they had a dilemma. What in the world were they going to serve? Egg Casserole is the norm at these sorts of functions. And of course, Haley doesn't eat them (seriously, who doesn't like egg casserole, that's just weird)! Have no fear! TO brought this lovely concoction. I had tried it once before at some other get together right before the shower, and loved it. It was the perfect solution. She was kind enough to include the recipe in my shower book too :).

Sweet Girl's Shower Casserole

(Well, I had to give it a proper name didn't I, T??? :-P)

From T.O.

16 eggs

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup Evaporated milk

1/4 cup butter

6 slices of bacon, browned

4.5 oz jar of dried beef

2 cans cream of chicken soup

3 cups milk

1/2 cup flour

1/2 tsp onion powder

2 cups shredded cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Scramble first 4 ingredients and set aside.

Mix flour and onion powder with soup. Add milk and cook in skillet for about 5-10 minutes, or until bubbling. Cut up meat and crumble into mixture.

Spray 9x13 pan with cooking spray. Pour in scrambled eggs. Sprinkle with 1 cup shredded cheese. Pour gravy mixture over eggs and cheese. Top with 1 more cup cheese. Bake for 45-50 minutes.

Lazy Saturday

Until graduation, I had worked every single Saturday for the past 2.5 years. It was great money, and great experience, but no one likes working their weekend away. Now that I'm working full time during the week, I finally get to have some time to myself on the weekend. Still, my Saturdays are usually packed full. I'm always running around--I often go home on the weekends, especially if J. has drill. And lately, if I don't go north, then my weekends have been swamped with moving.

Today I've just been lazy. We had several Scrubs reruns on our DVR, and even though it's almost 3, I'm still in my PJs! Gotta love it :)! Jordan was craving soup, so I decided to throw together his favorite. The last time I made this soup, he ate 3 bowls in one sitting! That time though, I was anxious to try out my new "boat motor." This time, I left the potatoes chunky, so the soup was MUCH heartier. Perfect for a cuddly fall day!

I got the base for this recipe from one of my favorite B-town moms. I added cheese and fresh herbs, and took out potato flakes, but the main recipe was all D. This is also another one of those recipes where I throw in whatever I have around. Use whatever spices or herbs sound good to you. I used dill today, but I would keep that to a minimum. It was good but a bit strong for this soup.

Cheesy Potato Soup

Adapted from D.S.'s Recipe

3 Idaho Potatoes, diced (I leave peels on, it's up to you really)

4 Tbsp butter

1/2 yellow onion, diced

3 medium carrots, diced

1/4 cup flour

1 pint boiling water

1/8 cup chicken bouillon (You could use 1 pint chicken stock instead of water and bouillon)

1 cup heavy cream

1 cup milk

1/4 tsp Tabasco sauce

1/4 tsp Worcestershire Sauce

1/4 tsp nutmeg

Salt, pepper, garlic powder, to taste

Fresh herbs of your choice (I recommend parsley, basil, rosemary, and thyme)

1 1/2 cup cheese (Cheddar usually, but smoked gouda would be good, or anything sharp and meltable)

In large pot, cover potatoes in water. Bring to boil, then simmer for 20 minutes.

Melt butter in stockpot over medium heat. Add onions and carrots, saute for 10 minutes.

Add flour to onions and butter and cook for four to five minutes, stirring until flour is absorbed.

In a small bowl, combine water and chicken bouillon. Stir until no lumps remain.

Add to onion mixture.

Add milk and cream, stirring until smooth and lightly thickened.

Add Tabasco, Worcestershire, spices, and herbs.

Reduce heat to med. low, and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally to keep milk from scalding.

Drain potatoes, then put back in pot to let them steam out a little bit before adding to soup.

Turn the heat under the soup off, but leave pan on warm burner. Add cheese a handful at a time to the soup, stirring each handful all the way in before adding the next.

Mash the potatoes a little bit to break them down, then carefully add them to the soup.

Serve!

Stay tuned and you might get a treat later this evening...

Cheesy Baked Tortellini and Garlic Cheese Bread

J. told me today when I was home for lunch that he was craving alfredo. I wasn't feeling that, instead I decided to make a tomato cream sauce. He never knows what is going to taste good anyway hehe! This was great Italian-style comfort food. Simple, but delicious! Great for a quiet night at home. The only thing that irritated me about this meal was that the two recipes called for two different oven temperatures. However, we only left the bread in for about 5 minutes, so I think it would be ok at 350.

Cheesy Baked Tortellini

Adapted From Lovestoeat Weblog

Olive Oil

1 cup marinara sauce

1 cup cream

1/3 cup mascarpone cheese

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1/4 cup chopped basil

1 tsp dried thyme

1 lb cheese tortellini

2 oz thinly sliced fresh mozzarella

1/2 cup grated Parmesan

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil an 8 by 8 by 2 inch baking dish (I used a 1 qt Corelle dish).

Whisk the sauce, cream, mascarpone cheese, and herbs in a large bowl.

Cook the tortellini in boiling salted water until just tender, about 2 minutes. Drain. Add to the sauce and toss to coat.

Add the tortellini mixture to the prepared baking dish. Top with mozzarella and Parmesan.

Bake until sauce bubbles and cheeses on top melt and just brown, about 30-40 minutes.

Garlic Cheese Bread

Adapted from Pioneer Woman

8 slices white bread (PW called for French Bread but I didn't have any)

1/4 stick butter

1/4 cup cheddar cheese, grated

1/4 cup Monterey jack cheese, grated

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup Mayo

1 green onion, minced

Dash of salt

1 clove garlic, minced

Mix cheeses with mayo and onion. Add salt to taste and set aside.

Melt 1/4 of the butter in skillet and add 1/4 of the garlic.

Place 2 slices bread in the skillet, swirling to soak up the butter and garlic. Allow bread to toast in the skillet, removing garlic if it starts to get too brown. (I didn't do this, and it did taste a little burnt.)

Repeat with remaining butter, garlic and bread.

Spread cheese mixture on bread and bake in 425 degree oven for 10 minutes (again, I think you could use a 350 degree oven for 5-10 minutes), until cheese is hot and bubbly.

Served this with Yellow Tail Merlot (Jordan drank some kind of weird beer *shakes head*)