Smoked Sausage & Pasta Casserole

Last night's dinner was wonderful. It had a few of my favorite things all rolled into one. Let's just start by saying, I love casseroles. Most of the cooking in one or two dishes and you have time to wash the prep dishes while its baking. Also, only one serving platter and its the same dish you baked it in. Then, we are brought to one of my biggest ingredient obsessions which is CHEESE!!! If you've read my blog for a little, you have to know my love affair with carbs (potato or pasta, I'm not picky) and CHEESE which is, more often than not, an ingredient in most casseroles!!! This casserole also contains two lesser known loves of mine, smoked sausage and FRONIONS!! I usually use turkey smoked sausage but used regular for this recipe. Also, I now know from this recipe that there is such a thing as Cheddar french-fried onions. I must find these things however, I made this recipe last minute so I just used the original variety that I had in my pantry and just added some cheddar along with the mozzarella cheese. This one was a hit, including the day after!


Smoked Sausage & Pasta Casserole
Adapted from Taste of Home

2 c. uncooked farfalle pasta,
       (original calls for penne)
1 lb. smoked sausage, cut into 1/4" slices
       (I cut the slices in half moons)
1.5 c. 2% milk
1 can (10 3/4 oz) condensed cream of
        celery soup, undiluted
        (I used cream of mushroom)
1.5 c. french-fried onions, divided
0.75 c. shredded mozzarella cheese,
         divided
0.5 c. shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1 c. frozen peas



Cook pasta 1-2 minutes shy of package directions to allow for a little sauce absorption during baking. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, brown sausage over medium heat for 5 min.; drain. In small bowl, combine the two cheeses. In a large bowl, combine milk and soup. Stir in about 0.5 c. onions, 0.5 c. (heaping) of the cheese mixture, peas and sauteed sausage. Drain pasta; combine with sausage mixture.

Transfer to a greased 13" x 9" baking dish. Cover and bake at 375F for 25 - 30 min or until bubbly. Sprinkle with remaining onions and cheese. Bake, uncovered, 3 - 5 min longer or until cheese is melted.

ENJOY!


**Sharing on Melt in Your Mouth Monday & Jam Hand's Recipe Sharing Monday**

Cooking on a Budget: Slow Cooker Roast Beef & Oven Baked Parmesan Potatoes

Today's post is all about cooking on a budget! Things have been, for several reasons, a little tight in our budget this month. My husband and I both working for a college dining service and, therefore, hit times where our finances get a little tighter due to lack of work when the students leave campus. This month was one of them for us. So, I used a couple key strategies to making it through. First off, I bought things on sale. The main place I check for this is in the meat section. The reason I start there is because that's usually where my menu planning has to start. So, why not look to the sales to base my recipes off of. Plus, I can get the best deals there a lot of times since the protein and fresh produce are usually the bulk of my grocery bill. I am blessed to have a large pantry and upright freezer so, I often buy in bulk or take advantage of 'buy one, get one' offers. Getting two anything for the price of one is awesome on any budget. I scored a great deal on an Angus beef bottom round roast so I knew I was either going to slow roast it in the oven or put my slow cooker to work. This is another budget saver. Cuts of meat that you would roast take a little longer and a little planning, but they are tougher pieces of meat and therefore cheaper. With a little TLC and taking the time to slow roast it, you can do wonderful things taking a 'tough' piece of meat and making it incredibly tender.

The other thing I took advantage of this week was shopping in my own pantry. I purposely didn't find a recipe and make a list and go shopping for that recipe as I usually would. I, instead, used what I had and found and tweaked a recipe to work for me and what I had on hand. Just so happens, since I was off that day, when trying to figure out what to serve with it, I was able to do the same with the side dish. I took a suggestion from a Facebook friend, thanks again Nicole, and luckily, I had all the ingredients on hand. This helps my budget in a few ways. First, I'm not spending more money on product when I already have useable product on hand. Second, considering the closest grocery store is 15 minutes away and gas is $3.49+ a gallon in this area, I didn't make an extra run to pick up something I didn't have. Third, I avoided the impulse buying that inevitably occurs once I get in the store.

I'd also like to share with you a site that I came across this week and that is Foodily.com. I'm extremely excited to have found this site and I think it may be my best friend in finding recipes to accommodate my budget in the future. It allows you to enter in ingredients you have and ones you DON'T have or don't want to use and then searches all over the web for you. So you can easily get ideas for recipes for the food you already have, or don't have.

In short, with a little time searching for sales and the perfect recipes, and a little creativity adding this ingredient or taking another out, you CAN cook dinner TONIGHT! Also, use your networking. Facebook, is not used, in my eyes, for purely socializing. Yes, it's great reconnecting with old friends and being able to reach out to people so easily, but it's also a place for finding recipes and sharing recipes amongst others cooking at home just like you! So, enough of me rambling, here is my latest recipe for Slow Cooker Roast Beef adapted from a few other recipes found mostly at http://www.cooks.com/ and, for the side, Parmesan Baked Potatoes made as recommended by a friend.

Slow Cooker Roast Beef (with Carrots, Mushrooms, & Tomatoes)
Adapted from many recipes, mostly from http://www.cooks.com/

2-4 lb. any cut of beef for roasting
1/4-1/2 cup flour
3 Tbsp. olive oil
1 pkg. dry onion soup mix
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
8 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup (I used low sodium variety)
1 lb. baby carrots

Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Coat roast in flour and sear roast in olive oil, turning on all sides to brown. Meanwhile, mix the soup mix, tomatoes, mushrooms, and soup in the slow cooker. Once browned on all sides, set roast into mix in slow cooker and spoon some of the mixture over the top of the roast. Add carrots along the sides of the roast. Cook on low for 8 to 10 hours.

 Parmesan Baked Potatoes

6-8 Tbsp. butter
1/2-1 cup grated parmesan
About 2 1/2 lbs. any potatoes, I used Red Potato
Salt & Pepper (or other seasoning), to taste

Preheat oven to 350F. While oven preheats, place butter in a 13x9-in baking dish and put in the oven for a few minutes just to melt the butter. Wash and slice potatoes into 1/4" rounds, leaving peal on. Sprinkle half of the cheese all over the melted butter in the bottom of the pan. Layer half of the potatoes in pan. Season liberally with salt and pepper. (Next time I'd like to also try garlic powder or Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb seasoning or other spices to kick it up just a little bit. Don't get me wrong, very yummy as is but I'm married to an Italian and we LOVE garlic!) Layer the other half of the potato slices. Sprinkle with remainder of the cheese and season, again, with salt and pepper. Bake in preheated oven until tender and golden (but not browned). This will depend on your choice of potatoes. The red potatoes took about 40 to 45 min.

ENJOY!




Red Potato

An A+ and a Needs Improvement

I've got two recipes for you today. The first is one that was delicious smelling while baking but, when I tasted it, it let me down. It's not that it was awful and I needed to dispose of it immediately. I don't know that I'd even say I'm going to throw the recipe in the trash bin. It just wasn't up to par. (Stay tuned in this post though, because the second recipe is definately worth EVERYONE trying!)

A note about this recipe: I originally found this recipe in one of those recipe magazine/booklets that they have in the grocery check out aisle that was put out specifically by Stove Top Stuffing. The recipe in there didn't not contain veggies and so that is how I made it. I have found several reprinted recipes since then that does contain veggies including the actual Stove Top website. That is the copy of the recipe I am posting here because I think it would be delicious and definately adds a little nutrients to the dish but you can easily remove these and serve a veggie on the side.

Stove Top Stuffing Easy Chicken Bake

http://brands.kraftfoods.com/stovetop/hearty-meals/easy-chicken-bake/

1 pkg (6 oz) Stove Top Stuffing Mix for Chicken

1 1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 in. bite-size pieces

1 can (10 3/4 oz) condensed cream of chicken (or mushroom) soup, undiluted

1/3 cup sour cream (may want to consider using a light sour cream)

1 bag (16 oz) frozen mixed vegetables, thawed, drained (give or take as you prefer)

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Prepare stuffing mix as directed on package and set aside.
2. Mix chicken, soup, sourcream and vegetables in 13x9 in baking dish and top with stuffing. (The recipe I used called to put the chicken down and then pour the soup mix over top and then top with stuffing mix. Other recipes I've seen directed you to mix chicken with 1 c. of veggies and then, again, top with soup and then stuffing.)
3. Bake 30 min or until chicken is cooked through.

The second recipe for posting today is a Tangy Pork Roast made in the slow cooker. This one, as I said, is definately a keeper. It was so tender and had a wonderful flavor. As the title says, it had a tang to it, but there was also this sweet in the background. I served it with Fontina Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes and Green Bean Casserole. (Thank you to Green Giant and their frozen boxed sauced vegetables for the casserole.) This meal was absolute heaven on a plate to me. My two year old son also gobbled it down. He even wanted a second helping of the pork which he doesn't normally ask for seconds of the protein. I WILL be making this one again.

Tangy Slow Cooker Pork Roast
http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/tangy-slow-cooker-pork-roast/Detail.aspx

1 large onion, sliced

2 1/2 lb boneless pork loin roast - (I used a regular petite pork roast, not a loin roast.)

1 cup hot water

1/4 cup white sugar

3 Tbsp. red wine vinegar

2 Tbsp. soy sauce

1 Tbsp. ketchup

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

A couple dashes hot pepper sauce, or to taste

1. Arrange onion slices evenly over the bottom of the slow cooker, and then place the roast on top of the onion. In a bowl, mix together water, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, ketchup, black pepper, salt, garlic powder, and hot sauce; pour over roast.
2. Cover and cook on Low for 6 to 8 hours OR on High for 3 or 4 hours. (I choose the low and slow versions which tends to give a slightly more tender finished product.)

Something else I want to touch base on in this post is sales. I know I've mentioned it before but I think, as a mother and wife, it is partly my duty to save as much money as I can. Both these meals were products of using the sales flyer. It really does pay off to look through your local flyers and to clip coupons. Both the proteins used here were bought on sale. In addition, the side vegetables were bought with a coupons AND on sale. The stuffing mix was bought with a coupon. The potatoes were on sale. If you don't buy your local Sunday paper (which is the issue that usually contains both the sales papers and coupons) you can usually grab a copy of the flyer in the front vestibule of your local grocery store. Swing by a couple days in advance and take it home to plan your week's menu around the sales. Also, alot of the websites (such as Green Giant, Pillsbury, Kraft, and many others offer printable coupons on their website or join a coupon website where you can get endless deals.) I see it this way; there are lots of benefits to taking a little extra time to do things to save money including having a little extra money to buy that dress you were eyeing up in your favorite store window or an extra book to read to your child at night. Especially in this economy, who couldn't use a little extra cash.

Whether you look for the deals out there or not, I hope you all take the time to cook for your friends and family and try these meals and enjoy them as much as we did or more!

Happy Eating!