Tag: shelf cooking

Recipes and Cooking

Ravioli Lasagna with Leftover Tomato Bisque

Brandi C

Ravioli Lasagna with Leftover Tomato Bisque

Ravioli Lasagna with Leftover Tomato Bisque

Ravioli Lasagna with Leftover Tomato Bisque is something that I made this past week that was super easy and utilized leftovers. I am not one to waste food. Typically, my family doesn’t mind eating leftovers, so I’m pretty lucky in that department. We are doing some shelf-cooking and so I used (mainly) what I had on hand. I did have to go out and buy some fresh cheese filled ravioli. This is what I made but I am going to add in here what I will do the next time because it sounds good.

What I Actually Cooked

First, I utilized the bacon and fire roasted tomato bisque that I had leftover from a couple of nights ago. I could have just eaten it up, as soup again, but I wanted something a bit different. In my 13×9 greased dish, I put a layer of the fresh cheese filled ravioli, then the sauce, mozzarella, and repeated those layers. I cooked that, covered, at 350 for about 30 minutes. Then, I took the cover off and baked for another 10 minutes. I let it set for about 5 minutes before serving. It was delicious.

What I Will Do Next Time

This is where I get excited! Taking something I threw together to see if it would work and then expounding on it to make it even better. That way, I have 3 recipes in my arsenal of goodness. I have the tomato bisque, the easy ravioli bake, and then the adult version of that ravioli bake. Makes my heart happy.

I would like brown up some ground beef with garlic, onion, Italian seasoning, and my seasoning. Drain that off. In that same skillet, I would cook up some fresh portobello mushrooms, chopped up spinach, and some peppers (red, orange, and yellow). Add the meat back to that skillet and incorporate all of that together and then add your leftover soup to heat it all through.

In that greased 13×9 dish (oven set to 350 to preheat), layer a bit of the sauce on the bottom, then your ravioli (get 2 bags), then more of the sauce. Next add some mozzarella, fresh parmesan to the top and repeat the layers ending with the cheese. Cover and bake for the same time frame as before.

Does that not sound sublime??!!

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Recipes and Cooking

Mystery Meat and Croquettes

Brandi C

Mystery Meat and Croquettes

Mystery Meat and Croquettes

In an effort to get to the bottom of the freezer, we discovered three bags of meat. So, two bags were identifiable and then other not so much. Our Mystery Meat and Croquettes will give us at least three or four meals because of how much it made.

Taking a Gander in my Freezer

As I was trying to get my groove back on this Friday morning, I hurried to check the freezer and pull out the bags of meat that were in question. Now, my husband didn’t know what any of the bags were, so I was going in blind. While my granddaughter was playing, I scurried out to the garage and found the three gallon sized baggies and a 1/2 bag of yeast rolls.

Score.

Once in the house, I pulled out my instant pot. I normally do not use it on the crockpot function because I don’t believe it works so well. However, my crockpot was dirty and my other one has seen better days, so I had no option. Completely frozen, I put in the mystery meat. From the looks of it, it was stew meat but from the smell of it, it was deer. I never cook deer meat. Ever. My son-in-law kills them and cooks it but not me. He does throw things in my freezer from time to time. Once, I opened it and an entire hind quarter was staring at me.

Texting the Man Child

I texted him and he said it could have been him, it could be deer meat, it could be something else. Really, zero help. So, I got a cup of water in their and set the crockpot function on low for about eight hours. He said if it was deer meat, to cook it low and slow to get the gamey taste out and to soften it up.

Whatever.

I mean, that’s what I did because I do not like to waste or throw food away. Whilst his daughter was running about my feet, I gagged a bit while I fit this all in the instant pot. The smell was not my favorite. Once the lid was on, I really didn’t think about it anymore.

Onto the Other Two Bags

One baggie had leftover ham in it. The other baggie, I sort of giggled at when I started looking closer. On the bottom of the bag were two slices of ham. However, the rest of the bag had turkey. I am guessing this was leftover Thanksgiving meat from my mom’s house because I rarely cook turkey. It just is never moist (you are welcome, Susan for using that word).

I let them thaw out while I pondered what on earth I could do to make it work. While I was pondering, I was cleaning my house. Again, it’s Friday and I typically clean the house on Friday. I have been so busy lately that I clean when I have the chance. Today, I cleaned around my girl baby (best helper ever).

Cleaning Out the Fridge and Pantry

I finally tackled the pantry and pulled out all the bits and pieces that I didn’t even know I had. For next week, I will do something with this huge bag of tortilla chips. It was a little bag and about a 1/2 bag but I combined them and now they need to go in something.

Nacho night? Maybe. I dunno yet.

There was a couple of good sized onions and one weenie one. I set it out to use. There was also two little bags of instant garlic mashed potatoes. Gluten free, so I pulled those out. Once I was in the fridge, I found a zucchini that needed to be eaten, a tiny bag of green onions, a bit of cheddar…really, just a little bit of this and a little bit of that in all the places.

Croquettes it is (well, my version of it anyway).

Croquette Recipe

Leftover ham

Leftover turkey

Zucchini

Onion

Green onions

Cheddar

Minced garlic

Butter

3 eggs

Gluten Free Flour

Italian Seasoning

Seasoning Mix

Parsley

Mashed Potatoes (I used Instant Idahoan Garlic Mashed Potatoes)

Directions

First, I got my water started for the garlic mashed potatoes. Once that was boiling, I through in the instant potatoes, mixed, and set aside. Then, I got a huge mixing bowl out and cut up my meat into small pieces. There was a lot of meat (hence using three eggs to bind it). I added the chopped up onion and green onions. Also, I added in the minced garlic and seasoning. I did not heavily use my seasoning mix because the ham was pretty salty and so were the mashed potatoes. From there, I added the cheddar and mashed potatoes.

I had to leave to pick a kid up, so I covered that and it just hung out in the bowl while I was being mom. When I got home, it was cool enough to add in the eggs. If you add those eggs in with the hot mashed potatoes they will scramble up and that is not what you want.

Assembling the Croquettes

Once all of this was done, I got my hands in there (gross) and mixed it well. Like a meatloaf, do not overmix this stuff. I got a plate out and put my gf flour on it. While I was patting away, I was melting a pat of butter in a nonstick pan. I could fit seven croquettes in my skillet. Let them cook for about four minutes (or until golden brown) on each side. I had a lot of meat, so it made about 28. We ate it tonight, will probably eat it tomorrow night with some corn and leftover rolls. I also got a bag and will be freezing some for next week. Cook once, an ample amount, and eat that night and freeze for another night. Key to frugal living and shelf-cooking.

What I Will Add if I Make This Again

Next time, I will cut up some fresh mushrooms, a bigger onion, and some spinach. I could be wild and add in some cream cheese. Honestly, I wanted to add in the rest of the Feta cheese but didn’t want to waste it if these sucked. They didn’t suck, so I might add that next time. Oh, a mushroom sauce or brown sauce would be good over it. The possibilities are endless.

As for the Mystery Meat

My son-in-law checked it and it is definitely deer. He said to keep on cooking it and then decide what to do. I have a person I know that is super sweet and she lives on deer meat. When I saw her today, I asked her what she thought. She said to drain it, season it, and then pour bbq sauce over and make sandwiches. Easy enough. So, currently, that meat is marinating in the bbq sauce and I will reheat it tomorrow for lunch and then for meals on Sunday.

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Recipes and Cooking

Chopped Up Angel Wings with a Side of Manna

Brandi C

Chopped Up Angel Wings with a Side of Manna

Chopped Up Angel Wings with a Side of Manna
Photo by Karolina Grabowska on Pexels.com

This past week, I am working through the last of my freezer meals. I pulled out a few and last nights was “phenomenal” according to my husband and children. Tonight we had ham and hashbrown casserole but the winner was the glazed sweet potatoes. My husband stated that the meal consisted of Chopped Up Angel Wings with a Side of Manna. So, without further ado.

Cheesy Mexican Chicken (Chopped Up Angel Wings)

Chicken

Cream of chicken

Cheddar

1/2 c. milk

Taco Seasoning

3 c. corn chips

Butter

Seasoning Mix

You can use any type of chicken you have on hand (canned, breasts, thighs, etc.) but make sure you cube it into bite sized pieces and cook well. I sauteed mine up in butter. Place in a greased 13×9 dish once it is finished cooking.

In a bowl, mix the soup, 1 1/2 c. cheese, milk, seasoning mix, and taco seasoning. Spoon this over the cooked chicken and top with corn chips and the rest of the cheese. From this point, I did cover mine well and froze it. I thawed it out from that point.

Now, the corn chips that were placed, frozen, and thawed were a soggy mess. I baked it at 375 for about 30 minutes and tasted it. It was not my jam. So, I stirred up those nasty little things into the chicken, added some more cheddar, and crushed up a 1/2 bag of doritos. I got that back in the oven to melt the cheese.

Still wasn’t to my liking, so I added more seasoning mix (I really don’t think I seasoned it when I made it to freeze) and I added more taco seasoning. This time, I stirred all that up (including the doritos on top) and topped it with a bit more cheddar. Baked it for 10 minutes and that is when the angels starting singing. Bart topped his with sour cream, I topped mine with some green onions. We lapped the dish up and there were not leftovers.

Winner winner!

Glazed Sweet Potatoes (Manna)

2 cans (18 ozs. each) sweet potatoes, drained

1/4 c. butter

Syrup, 1/4 c.

1/4 c. brown sugar

Cinnamon, 1/4 tsp.

Place sweet potatoes in a greased 13×9 dish. In a pan, combine the butter, syrup, brown sugar and cinnamon. This needs to be brought to a boil. Pour over sweet potatoes and bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes.

*I did not originally bake mine. Mine was covered tightly, marked, and placed in the freezer. I thawed it out and baked from there.

Recipes and Cooking

Chicken Fajita Casserole

Brandi C

Chicken Fajita Casserole

Chicken Fajita Casserole

Let’s take a break from the heavy topics and talk about food!

This Chicken Fajita Casserole is not only easy but completely customizable. The recipe fills a 13×9 dish, but you can easily cut it in half if you’re cooking for fewer people. I made a few adjustments along the way, and I’ll share exactly what I used—you can tweak it to fit your preferences!

Now, let’s talk about the real challenge—my husband is not a fan of Mexican food. Well, let me clarify—he’s not a fan when I cook it. Meanwhile, everyone else in my house loves it, so I sneak it in when I can. This week, I focused on shelf-cooking, trying to use up what I already had before restocking. With grocery prices skyrocketing, I’m constantly torn between stocking up and making do with what’s on hand.

Since I already had all the ingredients for this dish, it was the perfect choice. Plus, it comes together quickly! I even made some homemade tortilla chips from leftover tortillas. I simply cut them into triangles, tossed them with oil, chili powder, and sea salt, then baked them at 350°F for about 5 minutes. You could also serve this casserole with store-bought tortilla chips or rice.

Ingredients

Seasoning Blend for Chicken & Veggies

  • 2 1/2 tsp. chili powder
  • 1 tsp. cumin
  • 1 tsp. sea salt
  • 1 tsp. black pepper
  • 1/2 tsp. paprika
  • 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
  • 1/4 tsp. onion powder
  • 1/4 tsp. oregano
  • 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

(Should I admit now that I never measure anything? Ever? I’m spitballing these measurements just for you!)

Chicken Fajita Casserole Ingredients

  • 1 bag frozen chicken fajita strips (thawed & chopped)
  • 1 orange bell pepper (sliced)
  • 1 yellow bell pepper (sliced)
  • 1 zucchini (sliced)
  • Fresh portobello mushrooms (sliced)
  • 1 small onion (sliced)
  • 2 cloves garlic (minced)
  • 1 stick butter (or oil)
  • 1 block cream cheese
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • Shredded cheddar cheese

Step 1: Marinate the Chicken & Veggies

I cut my pre-cooked chicken fajita strips into bite-sized pieces and tossed them into a large bowl. Then, I added the sliced bell peppers, zucchini, mushrooms, onion, and garlic.

Next, I sprinkled the seasoning blend over the top, put the lid on the bowl, and shook it up until everything was well coated. I let it marinate in the fridge for about 30 minutes—next time, I’ll let it sit for at least an hour to really soak up the flavors.

Step 2: Sauté Everything

I heated a cast iron skillet over medium heat, melted 1/2 stick of butter, and added my chicken and veggie mixture. I let it cook slowly, stirring occasionally.

To help tenderize the veggies, I added another 1/2 stick of butter and covered the pan with a cookie sheet. Since the chicken was already pre-cooked, I just focused on getting that perfect sautéed texture for the veggies.

Step 3: Assemble & Bake

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F.
  • Grease a 13×9 baking dish and spread the cooked chicken and veggies evenly across the bottom.
  • In a separate bowl, mix 1/2 cup sour cream with 1 block of cream cheese. Spread this creamy mixture over the top of the chicken and veggies.
  • Sprinkle shredded cheddar cheese on top.
  • Bake for 20 minutes until everything is heated through and the cheese is melted and bubbly.

Let it sit for a couple of minutes before serving—this helps the flavors settle and keeps the juices from running everywhere.

Final Thoughts

This casserole was a hit! Even Bart didn’t complain (too much). It’s packed with flavor, easy to make, and great for using up what’s already in your kitchen.

If you try it, let me know how you tweak it to fit your family’s taste! And if you’re into meal prepping, consider making an extra batch to freeze for later—it reheats beautifully.

Enjoy!

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Recipes and Cooking

Spaghetti Carbonara

Brandi C

Spaghetti Carbonara

Easy Spaghetti Carbonara – A Shelf-Cooking Favorite

Spaghetti Carbonara is a simple, satisfying dish that comes together with just a handful of ingredients. It’s the perfect shelf-cooking pasta recipe, using staples I always keep on hand. To round out the meal, I like to serve it with garlic cheese bread and a Caesar salad—quick, easy, and delicious.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. pasta (I used linguine)
  • Seasoning mix (your favorite blend)
  • 3 room-temperature eggs
  • Bacon (reserve 3 Tbsp. of bacon grease)
  • Fresh mushrooms (sliced)
  • 1 large onion (sliced)
  • 2 cloves garlic (minced)
  • Parmesan cheese (a generous amount)
  • Reserved pasta water (about 2 ladles)

(Want to mix things up? Try adding sautéed bell peppers or spinach for extra flavor!)

Directions

Cook the Bacon & Veggies

  • Cook the bacon until crispy, then remove and crumble.
  • In the same pan, sauté garlic, mushrooms, and onions in the reserved bacon grease until soft. (Spinach would also be a great addition here!) Remove from heat and set aside.

Prepare the Egg Mixture

  • Crack 3 room-temperature eggs into a bowl and lightly beat them.
  • Ladle about 2 scoops of hot, starchy pasta water into the eggs, whisking constantly. This helps temper the eggs, so they don’t scramble when added to the pasta.

Cook the Pasta

  • Boil linguine (or your pasta of choice) in salted water until al dente.
  • Drain the pasta and return it to the pot while it’s still hot.

Bring It All Together

  • Add 3 Tbsp. of reserved bacon grease and the sautéed vegetables to the pasta.
  • Use tongs to toss everything together, evenly coating the noodles.
  • Slowly pour in the egg mixture, continuously tossing the pasta to create a silky sauce.
  • Add lots of Parmesan cheese, stirring until fully incorporated.
  • Finally, mix in the crumbled bacon and serve immediately!

Final Thoughts

This meal was so freaking good and ridiculously easy to make. My family loved it. If you want a vegetarian option, just skip the bacon (though in my house, that’s not happening). I may experiment with turkey bacon next time for a slightly lighter version.

After 30 years of cooking, I’ll admit—some nights, I am just over it. The inspiration runs dry, and I find myself staring at the fridge with zero motivation. That’s why I’ve started writing down my favorite recipes and tweaking them to fit my family’s tastes.

Originally, I found this dish in a Rachael Ray cookbook back when I was obsessed with collecting cookbooks. Now? They just sit on my shelf collecting dust. Maybe it’s time to dust them off and find some new inspiration!

The beauty of cooking is making a recipe your own—adjusting flavors, swapping ingredients, and creating something that works for your family. So, grab your pantry staples and give this one a try! You won’t regret it. 🍝

Recipes and Cooking

Shelf-Cooking Co-Vid19 Style

Brandi C

Shelf-Cooking Co-Vid19 Style

Shelf-Cooking Co-Vid19 Style

Shelf-Cooking Co-Vid19 Style. With Co-Vid19 rearing its ugly head, I have not been out of the house. I lied. Twice. I have been out twice. Both of these times have been to take H to treatment in Nashville. So, grocery shopping is through pick-up, when my son works (at a grocery store) or my husband picks it up. Also, the school has been bringing food, for the week, for three kids. That helps tremendously.

Yet

There are some things my kids will not eat by themselves. Now, they are not picky eaters, but they prefer it to be cooked in something. So, I’ve been separating the breakfast foods, lunch foods, snacks, and fruit. They eat all the breakfast stuff throughout the week. Also, they eat most of the lunch food throughout the week. Yet, there are things like raw broccoli and cherry tomatoes that they will not eat unless I use them another way.

I do not waste food.

Plain and simple. I am not a short-order cook and do not throw things away. That is how I was raised, and that is how I raise my kids. With all that being said, I stockpile the carrots. For one, my kids do eat those. Secondly, I can cut those suckers and put them in any casserole. Thirdly, carrot bread or carrot cake. Yes, please. Fourthly, soup. Put them in any soup. Fifthly (I’m starting to giggle now because what do I do when I get up to tenthly? Is that even a word?), put them in a saute pan with some butter and brown sugar. It’s a good thing.

Next up, cherry tomatoes. Once I have a baggie, I give them to one of my older daughters, who both love them. Also, I juice them for chili or soup. I chop them up and saute them in any pasta dish. You can do a multitude of things with those things.

Now, onto this recipe and broccoli. My big girls love raw broccoli. Sadly, my other five kids do not. My son-in-law calls them “the trees of the devil.” He is a bit extra. You can make broccoli soup or Chicken and Broccoli Braid. Also, you can use it to make beef and broccoli stir fry—lots of things.

Odds and Ends

Today, however, I had a 1/2 bag of many things. N had brought home some leftover hamburgers and cooked bacon from work. I had a couple of bags of this and a bag of that. Then there was a 1/2 a bag of another thing. I put all those together, and I made 2 casseroles. Honestly, I didn’t think it would make that much. I’m cooking one casserole for tonight and freezing the other for another night. We also have leftover breadsticks from the pizza we ordered last night, so that is a side dish. I think I have a couple of cans of corn. Voila. Dinner is served.

Beef, Broccoli, & Extras Casserole

Two # ground beef

onion

garlic

seasoning mix

Worcestershire sauce

Brown all of this together, drain if needed.

In a 13×9 dish, grease it (preheat the oven to 350). On the bottom of the dish, place the meat mixture.

Step 2

Now, this is what I had on hand. Tweak this to what you have. Just have fun with it. If it sucks, you will remember what not to add!

2 c. chopped fresh spinach

carton of fresh mushrooms, chopped

fresh broccoli, chopped

cooked bacon, chopped

Cheddar cheese

Layer each of these components on your meat mixture.

Step 3

In a bowl, add 2 cans of cream of mushroom (can use chicken or celery) and 16 oz sour cream. Once combined, spread over casserole.

Next up, add cheddar cheese (any cheese will do, this is what I had).

Lastly, I had a 1/2 bag of leftover tater tots. I lined them on top. I wanted to get rid of the bag, mainly because I had no potatoes to cook up.

Bake at 350 for about 40 minutes, cover, and uncover for another 12 minutes until your tater tots are done. Now, I did not pre-blanch or steamed my broccoli. I was afraid it would get mushy.

On freezing this dish, I did not cook it first…again, the broccoli issue.

Other Options

Now, you can change up your cheese. Also, you can add in zucchini, squash, cauliflower, or carrots. You can change up your soups. Instead of tater tots, use instant or regular mashed potatoes to put on top. If you don’t want to do that, add egg noodles or rice at the bottom of the dish. The sky is the limit.

 

Recipes and Cooking

Cheesy Chicken Alfredo Lasagna

Brandi C

Cheesy Chicken Alfredo Lasagna

I started making just a cheesy type of lasagna, and then my brain started thinking. This quarantine has forced me to do more shelf cooking, which I do. It has also got me thinking outside of the box. So, I came up with a Cheesy Chicken Alfredo Lasagna. It was good!

Cheesy Chicken Alfredo Lasagna

2 packages of no-boil lasagna noodles (you can use the kind you boil, I don’t enjoy that)

2 packets of Ranch Mix

3 cans of evaporated milk

2 cans of canned chicken, drained and broken up with a fork. (I might use a 3rd can the next time)

1 jar of Alfredo sauce (you can make this homemade though)

Seasoning

Nutritional yeast (optional)

Fresh Spinach, cut up

Cheddar

Mozzarella

Parmesan

Directions

Combine your evaporated milk, ranch, seasoning, and nutritional yeast in a saucepan. I stirred that well and brought it up to a boil. Then, I added the alfredo sauce. I stirred until that was good and combined. It allowed it to thicken a bit. Once combined, I added the canned chicken.

In a greased 13×9 dish, place a bit of sauce on the bottom. Then, I layered the no-boil noodles—next, more of the sauce, mozzarella, and cheddar. Then sprinkle with parmesan and add a layer of fresh Spinach. Continue layering until you end with the sauce and cheeses.

Baking

Bake, uncovered, at 350 for about 30 minutes. Then take out and take a knife around the edge of the pan to make sure the noodles are soaked. I put mine back in for another 10 minutes. You could cover it at this time if you want to keep it from burning. This is done to ensure that the noodles are cooked through.

Pull out and sit for about 10 minutes before cutting to help the lasagna set up correctly.

 

Recipes and Cooking

Shelf Cooking At Its Finest

Brandi C

Shelf Cooking At Its FinestNow I have run out of things to organize SO now we are at Shelf Cooking At Its Finest.  The thought of freezer cooking for a month has been flitting through my mind.  Sadly, that can also be expensive.

Being Proactive

One of the first things I do to keep costs down is to shop in my pantry/fridge/freezers. While grading papers, Big Daddy did a sweep of everything I could use to help put together a meal.

I must say that we do buy a cow every year. Our time to get the meat is coming, and I am so thankful. We are running low, but still, we have a good enough supply to get us through at least 2 mths.

Surprise Surprise

I was pleasantly surprised to see the list that he had. As a bonus, I had a freezer meal already cooked up and frozen! It is incredible how much food I buy because I don’t realize that I had it in the first place. To me, that is not being a good steward of what my husband brings home.

I See You

I see these people who have the philosophy that if you need one can of food, buy 3. One can use now and the other 2 for later use. They stockpile groceries. That is a good idea, but what if you don’t have the money? In theory, I would love to do this. I probably could. Maybe, someday, I will have a plethora of canned veggies, frozen veggies, and such. For now, I do what I can when I can.

My Great Find

Upon looking at the list, I came up with 14 meals! That is shelf cooking! Wow. I do have to get a few things at the grocery, but my list is very tiny. I am stoked. When he inventoried the meat situation, we found that we had 7 roasts left. These must be used up before our meat comes in later this month.

I have a Plan

I plan to put the roasts from the freezer in the outside fridge to thaw out. Once that is done, I will cook up all the roasts. We will have roast/potatoes for supper the day I do this. That way, I know that dinner will be made for that night. The rest, however, we will shred up, and I will come up with about 14 more meals to freeze.

My Goal

I aim to cook up the 14 meals I have on hand and freeze those. Then, I will do up 14 more meals from the roasts. Those will be frozen too. Since I have to buy very little, I will go one step further. I have room in my budget to choose some recipes I will have to buy groceries to make. My goal is to double those recipes and freeze the rest.

In Total

I will have 42 frozen meals. How freaking fantastic is that? I believe I will make some fruit bread, pancakes, and omelet cups to freeze for the kids. I would make some yogurt if I were wild, but I’m not that wild.

Challenge

I challenge you to search through your pantry/fridge/freezer. Take a good inventory, and then cook as much as you can within the parameters of what you have on hand. You will have to go to the grocery for some things, but keep your menu doable and straightforward. Quickly, that grocery bill can be cut in 1/2. Last week, I spent $70 on groceries and $30 on misc things (nonfood things). My regular grocery budget is $500 per month. I spent about $300 last month alone. This is a $200 savings that I can add towards the debt train.

Oh, the Things I Will Cook and the Money I will Save.

 

Recipes and Cooking

Healthy Chicken and Rice Recipe

Brandi C

Healthy Chicken and Rice Recipe

Let me say that there is SO much you can add to this! When I make this again, and I will, there are several things that I will add. The reason why I didn’t this time is that I am “shelf” cooking. We desperately needed to go to the grocery, so I used what I had on hand.

I will put “optional” on each thing I will use next time. The recipe can be loaded up with veggies and goodness. There was one mistake that I made. I put the rice in raw, which did not cook well. This is a technique that I use with Easy Brunzi Baseball Casserole. That always works well. However, I had to add more chicken broth, cover, and cook it longer this time.

Lesson learned.

Healthy Chicken and Rice Casserole

Use 3 chicken breasts (I cooked these in 1 c. of water, with seasoning and minced onions in my instant pot). Once it was cooked, I cut it up into chunks. I used 1.5 c. of the chicken stock. Next time, I will use 2 cups of chicken stock.

In a big bowl, I put all my chicken, broth, 1 can of cream of chicken, a block of cream cheese, seasoning mix, 2 packets of the dry ranch, 1 c. rice (COOK THAT FIRST), and some cheddar.

Next time, I will add 1 steamed bag of cauliflower rice, possibly broccoli, fresh mushrooms, and chopped-up spinach. Oh, that would be so good.

I put all of that in a greased 13×9 dish. The topping was 2 sleeves of ritz crackers with some butter in them. I ran that through the food processor. Spread that over the top of the casserole and add a bit more cheddar.

Cook at 350 for 30 minutes, covered. Then, I uncovered it for about 20 minutes. It was delicious.

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