Ratatouille Bake

So, I got an eggplant in my Italian themed Veggie Lover Pack with my last Bountiful Basket and have not yet figured out what to do with it...well, until now! Found this great recipe on Allrecipes.com and I'm gonna go for it! I'll take my own picture and update the post once I've made it and of course gobbled it all up! It's what's for dinner tonight!!



Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
2 cups peeled and diced eggplant
2 cups chopped zucchini
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 (8 ounce) package frozen cheese ravioli
3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C); spray a 2 1/2-quart baking dish with cooking spray.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat; cook and stir the garlic, onion, and eggplant with the garlic until the vegetables have begun to soften, about 8 minutes. Stir in the zucchini, bell pepper, tomatoes, basil, parsley, salt, and black pepper; bring the mixture to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes.
3. Cook the frozen ravioli as directed on the package; drain. Spread the cooked ravioli in a layer into the bottom of the prepared baking dish; spoon the hot vegetables over the ravioli. Sprinkle with the cheese.
4. Bake in the preheated oven until the casserole is bubbling and the cheese is melted, about 20 minutes.

Squash & Potato Gratin

This came up on the Bountiful Baskets Blog the other day and I am extremely eager to try it! It might just be what's for dinner tonight!! (I'll put my own picture up once I've made it!)

Theirs.

Mine. Not so pretty. I may have used too many veggies and

Mozzarella instead of Monterrey Jack. It was still yummy though!!

 Ingredients

• 2 medium yellow summer squash
• 1 pound red or russet potatoes
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 8 oz of Monterrey Jack
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 tsp. dried basil

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a 1 1/2 to 2 quart casserole dish.
2. Slice the squash and potatoes very, very thin. (Mandolin slicer would be perfect)
3. Place 1/3 of the squash and potato slices into the bottom of the pan. Layering them by alternating squash and potato but you could just spread them evenly.
4. Season with some salt and pepper and half of the cheese.
5. Repeat the layering with a 1/3 of the veggies, seasoning with S&P and sprinkling with cheese.
6. Finish the gratin by layering the final veggies on top and seasoning with S&P
7. Pour the milk over the dish then top with parmesan cheese.
8. Bake for 30 minutes covered then uncover and finish baking for 15 minutes.

Cheesy Ham & Noodle Bake

I got this recipe from a new friend that just moved to the area and I have to say we absolutely LOVE it! We've made it a couple of times and I just need to post it here so I don't have to keep trying to dig it up each week!

1 package egg noddles - cooked
1T butter
1 medium onion chopped
1 can cream of chicken
1 cup sour cream
1/3c milk
8oz Velveeta - cubed
2 1/2c diced ham
1c broccoli

Preheat the oven to 350*. Coat a 9x13 baking dish with non stick cooking spray. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the onion & cook until tender. Add the soup, sour cream, milk & cheese. Heat & stir occasionally until the cheese is melted. Gently stir in the ham, broccoli & noodles. Pour into the baking dish. Bake for 35 minutes or until hot & bubbly.

Homestead Breakfast Casserole

Ingredients:
8 slices of bread, cubed
1 lb. breakfast sausage, fried and drained
6 eggs
2 c. milk
1/4 c. butter
1/2 tsp. dried mustard
1 lb. grated cheese
1/2 tsp. salt
1 chopped onion

Directions:
Place bread in bottom of a casserole dish. In a bowl, beat eggs, then add milk, onions, salt, and mustard. Sprinkle sausage and cheese over the bread. Slice butter over the cheese and pour the egg mixture over the top.
Bake for 45 minutes at 325 degrees.

TaterTot Hotdish

This is my version of this North Dakota delicacy. Nice for a super quick put-together meal.

Ingredients:

1 small bag of frozen mixed vegetables or 1 can of mixed vegetables
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
2lbs ground beef or turkey
1 cup French's fried onions
1 can milk (use the soup can to measure)
1 small bag tater tots

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Brown and season meat. Once cooked transfer to 9x13 baking pan. Add vegetables and fried onions to meat and mix. In a small bowl mix cream of mushroom soup and milk to thin out the soup just enough to make it pourable. Pour 1/2 of the soup mixture over the meat/veggies/onions. (You may pour all of it over the meat/veggie mix if you choose.) Pour tater tots over meat/veggies/onions. Sometimes it is easier to organize them on top. Then pour the remainder of soup mixture over tater tots if you chose to do half on the meat and half on top.

Bake for 45min-1hr. Tater tots should be nice golden brown.

Melly's Mac & Cheese

I have no clue how to make mac & cheese NOT out of a box. So, Melly as usual is here to rescue me! Here's her recipe so I don't lose it!

Ingredients:

elbow macaroni (cooked as usual)

shredded cheese (I usually use a combination of cheddar and colby jack

1 c. milk

1 egg

salt and pepper

a few pats of butter (about 5)

Directions:

I put a layer of elbow macaroni, then a layer of cheese, then another layer of macaroni and another layer of cheese. Then I beat the egg in a mixing cup and add the milk to 1 c. Sprinkle in salt and pepper and stir. Then pour egg mixture over the top of the layered macaroni and cheese. Top with pats of butter. Bake @ 350 degrees for about 45 minutes.

Amber's Italian Gringo Lasagna

This concoction I came up with at the spur of the moment in an effort to use up some of the chili I had made.

Ingredients:

1 batch of Foster's Famous Gringo Chilie
1 package of lasagna
4 cups colby/jack cheese

1. Make your chili and boil the lasagna until al dente.
2. In a 9x13 pan layer as follows: lasagna, chili, cheese. This usually makes 3-4 layers. Do whatever you are happy with and that won't overflow in your oven. This is kind of the dump method, not real rocket science!
3. Top with chili and cheese. You will have a lot of chili left over. Freeze or make freeto pies another day, take your pick!
4. Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes.

If you'd like to change it up a bit you could layer with corn tortillas as well. Haven't tried it yet but am planning on it in the near future.

Chicken Broccoli Delight

Someone shared this on an email group I belong to. It sounded pretty tasty so I wanted to make sure I saved it!
1 pkg frozen broccoli cuts, thawed
3 1/2 cups cooked cubed chicken
2 cans cream of chicken soup undiluted
1 cup mayonaise
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon curry powder ( i am going to use garlic powder this time)
2 cups shredded chddar cheese
1 cup (about 25) butter crackers like Ritz

In 9x13in pan layer broccoli and chicken. Combine soup, mayonaise, lemon juice, and curry. Pour over chicken. Sprinkle w/ cheese and cracker crumbs. Bake @350 for 1 hr.

Tuna Noodle Casserole

1 package Egg Noodles
1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup
1/2 can Milk
1-2 cans of Tuna
6 slices of American Cheese
1 can Vegetables (I like to use green beans or peas & carrots)
Bread Crumbs
1/4 cup Butter

Boil egg noodles until done. Mix together soup, tuna, milk and vegetables. In casserole dish, layer half of the noodles noodles , butter, 3 slices of cheese and half of the tuna mix, then again with the other half of the ingredients. Top with bread crumbs and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.