Country Turkey Casserole

Your guests will think you worked for hours in the kitchen!  

They'd never guess how quick and easy this recipe is . . . one of those semi-homemade meals that I love so much.  Of course it includes Campbell's Soup, which is the best secret I have for semi-homemade cooking.

You can also use your leftovers or substitute a store-bought rotisserie chicken for the turkey.  Since I love broccoli and corn so much, I would consider including them in my meal.  Substitute whatever you like!

Low fat or no fat items can also be used.  One of my greatest discoveries has been generic no fat half and half that I substitute for milk or heavy cream.  I can't tell the difference . . . really!

The recipe and photo originated from Campbell Kitchens, but my source was the website Recipe Lion. Check out both websites for quick and delicious meals!

Serves: 5 (about 1 3/4 cups each)

Preparation Time: 10 min

Cooking Time: 25 min

Ingredients

1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Campbell's® Condensed Cream of Celery Soup 

1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Campbell's® Condensed Cream of Potato Soup

1 cup milk

1/4 teaspoon dried thyme leaves, crushed

1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

4 cups cooked cut-up vegetables (use a combination of cut green beans and sliced carrots)

2 cups cubed cooked turkey or chicken

4 cups prepared Pepperidge Farm® Herb Seasoned Stuffing

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Stir the soups, milk, thyme, black pepper, vegetables and turkey in a 3-quart shallow baking dish. Spoon the stuffing over the turkey mixture.

Bake for 25 minutes or until the stuffing is golden brown.

Chili's Copycat Cajun Chicken Pasta

Doesn't it look delicious?

I love the pairing of chicken and pasta for the economic

 value of a delicious meal.  Make this restaurant quality meal

 at home for a fraction of what you would spend for your

 family meal at Chili's.  

Add a salad and some good bread for the perfect meal!

Ingredients: 

• 2 chicken breasts, boneless skinless 
• 4 teaspoons cajun seasoning 
• 4 tablespoons butter or margarine 
• 3 cups heavy cream 
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper seasoning 
• 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon black pepper 
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder 
• 8 ounces penne pasta, cooked and drained 
• 2 roma tomatoes, diced 
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, fresh shredded, to taste 

Directions: 

Slightly moisten chicken with water. 

In a large resealable plastic bag, shake chicken and cajun seasoning until chicken is thoroughly coated. 

In large skillet, saute chicken in 2 tablespoons butter, over medium heat, turning whenever necessary. 

When chicken is about half-way done, grab a second skillet and combine heavy cream, 2 tablespoons butter, and remainder of seasonings over medium heat, stirring occasionally. 

When cream mixture begins to bubble, add the pasta and turn off heat. Stir well. 

When chicken is cooked through, place on cutting board and slice into strips. 

Spoon pasta and sauce onto large serving plates (2) and top with chicken, diced tomatoes, and Parmesan.

Photo Source
Recipe Source

Lemon Ricotta Crepes

This recipe will be a totally new experience for me . . .

I've never made crepes before!

The Captain and I are thrilled that our lemon and

lime trees are vigorously producing fruit!  I'm

especially excited about a new citrus tree putting

out fruit . . . the seeds came from some

delicious little lemons from a friend's yard.

You guessed it . . . I'm on the lookout for recipes

using lemons and limes!!

Ingredients

• 1 1/2  cups  whole milk
• 4  large eggs
• 1  cup  all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
• 3  tablespoons  unsalted butter, melted, plus more for the skillet
• 1/4  teaspoon  kosher salt
• 1/2  teaspoon  finely grated lemon zest plus 2 teaspoons lemon juice, plus 1 thinly sliced lemon
• 1/2  cup  plus 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1  cup  ricotta
• 1  tablespoon  honey, plus more for serving

Directions

1. In a blender, blend the milk, eggs, flour, butter, salt, lemon juice, and 1 tablespoon of the sugar until very foamy, about 1 minute. Transfer to the refrigerator and let rest, at least 30 minutes and up to 1 day.
2. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, boil 1/2 cup of water and the remaining ½ cup of sugar, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Add the lemon slices and simmer until tender and translucent, 5 to 7 minutes; let cool.
3. Wipe a medium nonstick skillet with butter and heat over medium heat. Add ¼ cup of the crepe batter and swirl the skillet so the batter completely covers the bottom of the pan. Cook until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Gently loosen the edge of the crepe with a spatula and, using your fingers, flip the crepe. Continue to cook until cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes more. Transfer to a plate. (Don’t be disappointed if the first crepe does not come out well; the batter makes enough for 13.) Repeat with the remaining batter.
4. In a small bowl, combine the lemon zest, ricotta, and honey. Dividing evenly, spread the ricotta mixture on the crepes (about 1 tablespoon each) and roll up. Serve topped with the lemon slices and drizzled with additional honey.

Source:  Real Simple
By Charlyne Mattox , April, 2012
Photo Credit: José Picayo

Nikki's Homemade Refried Beans

This recipe originated from Nikki's mom!  

We love refried beans and this recipe seems

 very easy to make . . . love crock pot cooking!

HOMEMADE REFRIED BEANS

**These proportions are assuming you have a large crock pot- 5 qt**

Put about 2 inches (about 3 cups) of dry pinto beans into crock-pot.   (Wash and rinse beans first)
Fill crock-pot nearly to the top with water

ADD:
5 chicken bouillon cubes
1 Tbsp. garlic salt
1/2 medium sweet onion (Don’t chop up onion, just put half of onion on beans)

Cook on high until beans are soft.  (stir occasionally during cooking process.  You may have to add more water as beans absorb water.)

Strain beans or pour off juice, saving the juice in a separate bowl.

Add  1/2 cup of butter and a small amount of juice that beans cooked in.

Use a hand blender to mash beans.

Add juice and blend to obtain desired consistency.  You want to leave beans a little runny as they will set up quite fast.

Check out Nikki's blog, Chef In Training for more awesome recipes!