Quick Casserole

Saturday, August 18, 2007

Quick Casserole Current mood: full Tonight I needed to use up some meat and vegetables in the fridge, and I need things that are quick and pretty easy. (I picked two very simple recipes, but even so by the time I could sit down my feet were KILLING me). I ended up with a squash casserole (a standard of mine- my grandmother's recipe) and a 50s-era ground beef casserole, which I spruced up a little. We haven't tasted the squash casserole yet, but the ground beef casserole was a big hit! Littleman kept whining that he didn't waaant casserole. . . but when he tasted it, he happily ate the whole bowl. (Sweetcheeks, of course, just gobbled it right up and had seconds. . . geez, that kid can eat!) Littleman told me that it was "kind of like chicken pot pie" - which, I can tell you, is high praise indeed! LOL. Ground Beef Casserole (including my changes) 1/2 lb. ground beef (I used chuck) 1/2 lb. ground bison 1 small onion, chopped fine 1 clove garlic, minced 2 tsp. olive oil 2 cans cream of chicken soup (did I mention I found this recipe in an old church fundraiser cookbook?) 1/2 can kernel corn, with liquid 1/2 can green beans, with liquid (the recipe simply called for one can mixed veggies, but I didn't have one) approx. 1/2 cup chopped fresh celery approx. 1 cup fresh sweet bell peppers (I used red and green) chopped fine 1 pkg. beef or chicken flavored Ramen noodles (I used beef) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. - Heat oil in a large skillet. Add onion and garlic, saute until softened. - Add ground meat. Just brown the meat- it's not necessary to cook it through. - Meanwhile, break apart dry Ramen noodles into a casserole dish. Lightly sprinkle in just a touch of the seasoning packet, and discard the rest. - Add the cream of chicken soup and the rest of the vegetables to the Ramen noodles. - Dump the meat, onion and garlic mixture into the casserole dish with the noodles and veggies and mix all ingredients well. - Bake in the 350 degree oven for one hour. Enjoy!