Poppy Seed Chicken

     What would I do without pinterest?  It is a very ending supply of delicious recipes (and a few that aren't so great) all in one easy location.  I don't have to remember which of my 50 cookbooks I was flipping through last week when I found something I might want to make for dinner tonight.  This particular recipe comes from The Girl Who Ate Everything, one of the blogs I really like.  It was pretty good, although I must say it was too buttery for my liking.  Next time I make it, I will definitely cut the amount of butter in half.

5 cups chicken, cooked and shredded
1 cup sour cream
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. celery salt
1 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. lemon juice
¼ tsp. pepper
2 cups crushed Ritz crackers (about 1½ sleeves)
½ cup butter, melted (I thought this was way too much, next time I will try ¼ cup)
1 tbsp. poppy seeds

     Preheat oven to 350°.  Place the shredded chicken in the bottom of a 9 x 13 casserole dish.  In a medium bowl, combine the sour cream, soup, Worcestershire sauce, celery salt, garlic powder, lemon juice, and pepper.  Pour the mixture over top of the chicken.  Crush the crackers and mix together with the butter and poppy seeds.  Pour over top of the sour cream mixture.  Bake for 30 minutes.  Makes 8 servings.

Nutritional information per serving:  397 calories, 21 grams of fat, 23 carbohydrates, 31 grams of protein, 1 gram of fiber.  **Calculated using reduced fat sour cream, healthy request soup, and only ¼ cup of butter.**

Enchilada Casserole

     Although I love Mexican food, I have never been too keen on enchiladas.  But since I was struggling to decide what to make for dinner this week, I handed my husband a cookbook and told him to pick something that looked good.  When he selected the enchilada casserole recipe I sort of wanted to cringe, but getting his input on what sounds good for dinner is usually difficult and I was just happy he was making a decision (one less I have to make)!  So after I slightly adapted the recipe from my Taste of Home cookbook, here is what we had for dinner last night!

1½ lbs. ground beef

1 large onion, chopped (I shouldn't even need to say this anymore, but I left this out!)

¾ cup water

1 package taco seasoning

¼ tsp. garlic powder

2-3 cups salsa, divided

10 flour tortillas (8 inches), cut into ¾ inch strips

1 cup sour cream

2 cans corn, drained

4 cups Mexican blend cheese

     In a large skillet, cook beef (and onion) over medium high heat until no longer pink, then drain excess fat.  Stir in water, taco seasoning, and garlic powder.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes.  Place ½ cup of salsa into the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish.  Layer with ½ the tortilla strips and then another ½ cup of salsa.  Next layer 1 can of corn, the meat mixture, and then the other can of corn.  Top with sour cream.  Place the remaining tortilla strips over the sour cream.  Next spread the remaining salsa (about 1 cup) over the tortillas.  Lastly, top with 4 cups of cheese.  Cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes at 350°.  Uncover and bake for 5-10 more minutes.  Makes 10 servings.

   Note: The original recipe suggests making this recipe in two 8 x 8 baking dishes, one for now and one for later.  Before cooking, you can cover and freeze for 1 month, then thaw in the refrigerator for 24 hours.  Remove from the refrigerator about 30 minutes before baking.  Use the above directions for cooking.

Country Chicken Casserole

      I remember making this quite a few years back for the first time.  My husband (then boyfriend) was living with his cousin and I was trying to make them a good meal!  But of course I messed it up! I didn't read in the instructions that the vegetables were supposed to be cooked, and I just threw them in the casserole still frozen.  Needless to say we ended up eating Dominoes pizza for dinner.  But after moving to Texas, I was brave enough to try the recipe again and this time it was delicious.  I have made it quite a few times since and it is always a hit.

1 can cream of potato soup

1 can cream of celery soup

1 cup milk

¼ dried thyme leaves, crushed (optional, I usually don't have it so I don't use it!)

1/8 tsp. ground black pepper

4 cups frozen mixed vegetables (about 2 bags)

2 cups cooked chicken (I used some of the baked chicken I had frozen and just thawed before making)

4 cups Pepperidge Farm herb seasoned stuffing

1 14.5 oz. can of chicken broth (the recipe actually calls for water, but I think it tastes better with broth)

4 tbsp. butter

     Cook the vegetables according to the package.  Preheat the oven to 400°.  In a 9 x 13 baking dish, mix together the soups, milk, thyme, black pepper, vegetables, and chicken.  Melt the butter in a medium sized saucepan.  Remove saucepan from heat and gently stir in the stuffing and broth.  Spoon the stuffing over the chicken mixture.  Bake for 25 minutes or until hot. Makes about 6 servings.