One Pot Bacon Cheeseburger Casserole

When I first started reading food blogs back in, dear God, 2008-ish, one of the blogs I read was Closet Cooking. Always good writing and fantastic photos and the recipes, well, I used one that I had saved on Pinterest for tonight's dinner. One-Pot Bacon Cheeseburger Casserole. One pot, yeah!!! Bacon, always a good thing. 

Easy to make and loved the flavors. Applause from the other side of the table.

I cut the recipe in half for Chris and me. Click here for the original recipe.

Ingredients-
4 strips bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 pound ground beef
1 small onion, diced
1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 (4-ounce) can tomato sauce (I had just enough marinara sauce in the fridge)
1 cups beef broth
2 tbsp ketchup
1/2 tablespoon yellow mustard
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
4 ounces pasta 
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

Method- 
Cook the bacon in a large pan over medium heat, about 5-7 minutes, set aside on paper towels to drain and drain the grease from the pan.

Cook the ground beef and onion in the same pan over medium-high heat, about 5-7 minutes, and drain any excess grease.

Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, broth, ketchup, mustard, Worcestershire, sauce, and pasta, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer covered until the pasta is al dente tender, about 15 minutes.

Season with salt and pepper to taste, sprinkle on the cheese, and simmer, covered, until the cheese has melted, about 2-3 minutes, and serve garnished with the bacon.

Taco Casserole

Thank you for this recipe Martha Stewart!

I got home at 6pm and had dinner on the table by 6:45pm. One frying pan and one baking dish. Taco Casserole from Martha Stewart recipe can be found here.

I did make a couple of changes the recipe. I sauteed the beef, peppers, and onions together. All at the same time. No harm is done.

And for the next time, do not use Nacho Chips. Use Fritos. Yes, Fritos.

Baked Quinoa and Chicken Parmesan

We love this casserole. I put it together Sunday night after dinner. The chicken was from the Roasted Chicken. I used a marinara sauce that I had made Sunday morning. And I even made the quinoa earlier on Sunday. All Chris had to do was pop it in the oven. Not only was it a delicious meal, it was a super easy clean up.

The recipe comes from Elly Says Opa! The only change I made was to use homemade Marinara Sauce instead of the canned tomato sauce.

Baked Quinoa and Chicken Parmesan, From Elly Says Opa! (with my variations)

Ingredients -
1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced (Did not add this)

2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar

1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce (Used Marinara Sauce)

1 (15 oz.) can diced tomatoes (I used Fire Roasted Tomatoes, love these)

1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

basil and oregano, to taste

1 cup quinoa

2 cups water or broth
 (I used water)
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken, cooked* and cut into bite sized pieces

2/3 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided

2 Tbsp. grated Parmesan or Romano cheese

2 Tbsp. breadcrumbs (optional)

2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Method -
Preheat the oven to 375 and spray a 2 qt. baking dish with cooking oil.

Make the sauce:

Heat a large skillet over medium heat, and add the oil. Stir in the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until tender, 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 30-60 seconds.  Add the balsamic vinegar, scraping anything off the bottom of the pan, and cook until it’s almost fully absorbed.
Add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, red pepper flakes, basil, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a low boil, and then simmer while you prepare the rest of the meal.

Make the quinoa:

Place the quinoa in a mesh strainer, and rinse with cold water for about 2 minutes.
Place the quinoa and water or broth in a small sauce pan and bring to a boil (if using water, you may want to add a little salt). Cover with a lid, reduce the heat, and simmer until cooked, about 20-25 minutes.

Assembly:

In a large bowl, combine the quinoa and chicken with the sauce and mix thoroughly.
Place half the mixture in the baking dish, and sprinkle with 1/3 cup of the mozzarella cheese.
Top with the remaining quinoa mixture. Sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella cheese, and the Parmesan. Add the breadcrumbs, if using.
Cover with foil and bake for about 15 minutes. Remove foil and continue to bake until cheese is lightly browned and bubbly, about 10 more minutes.
Sprinkle with parsley (and additional Parmesan) before serving, if desired.

Baked Quinoa and Chicken Parmesan

Kind of a crazy day so not a lot of words except one - delicious! 

Quinoa is a perfect substitute for pasta. 

We both enjoyed this and it was so easy to make.

If you try this you will not be disappointed.

Click here for the recipe.

Baked Pastina Casserole

This recipe is a favorite of ours. It is from Giada De Laurentiis Everyday Pasta.

Chris and I love this recipe and my dad likes it too.  As I was getting ready to type the recipe I thought... perhaps it's online. And it was! At the FoodNetwork site. Here is the link. And there is a video for the recipe on the FoodNetwork site! And I can submit this for Cookbook Sunday.

  

Happy Feast of St Joseph! Did you have a Zeppole today?