Casseroles and a Little Early Thanksgiving

 Baked Macaroni and Cheese made by Andrea

1 (8 oz) package elbow macaroni
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
2 cups milk
1 1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1 1/2 cup monterey jack ceese, grated
bread crumbs to cover the top

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Cook macaroni according to package directions; drain.  Melt butter in a medium saucepan.  Remove from heat.  Stir in flour, salt, and pepper until smooth.  Gradually stir in the milk.  Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.  Reduce heat and simmer 1 more minute.  Remove from heat.  Stir in cheese and macaroni.  Top with bread crumbs.  Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown

Spaghetti Pie made by Connie

1 lb. spaghetti
4 strips bacon, chopped
1 large red onion (10 to 12 oz) finely chopped
1 container (15 oz) part-skim ricotta cheese
4 large eggs
2 cups reduced-fat milk (2%)
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (ground red)
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
salt
2 cups frozen pease.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cook spaghetti according to package directions.  Meanwhile, in a 12 inch skillet, cook bacon on medium for 6-8 minutes until criisp.  With slotted spoon transfer to paper towels to drain.  To the fat in the pan, add onion.  Cook 4 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally.  While onion cooks, in a very large bowl, whisk ricotta, eggs, milk, cayenne, half of Parmesan, and 1/4 tsp. salt.  Drain spaghetti well.  Stir into ricotta mixture along with peas, bacon, and onion.  Spread in even layer in a 3 quart shallow baking dish.  Sprinkle remaining Parmesan on top.  Bake for 30-35 minutes or until set.

 Holiday Potato Bake made by Connie

6 large baking potatoes, peeled and cut
1/4 cup butter
1 cup choppped green onions
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups milk
2 cups (8 oz) shredded extra sharp Cheddar cheese, divided
2 tsp. salt
1 (12 oz) jar roasted red bell peppers, drained and finely chopped
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
2 large eggs, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 385 degrees.  Cook potatoes in boiling water to cover for 15 to 20 mins or until tender.  Drain well.  Meanwhile, melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat, add green onions and garlic.  Saute 5 minutes until tender.  Combine potatoes and green onion mixture using a potato masher.  Add milk, 1 cup cheese, salt, and red peppers and mash.  Spoon into a lightly greased 13 x 9 baking dish.  Top with remaining 1 cup cheese.  Bake at 375 degrees for 45-50 minutes or until brown and bubbly.

 Slow Cooker Chicken, Rice and Broccoli Casserole made by Mary Ann

2 (10-3/4 oz) cans of cream of celery soup, divided
fresh sliced mushrooms
1 bag frozen broccoli
2-3 whole boneless, skinless chicken breasts, uncooked and cubed
1 Tbsp. dry onion soup mix
1/2 soup can water

Spray inside of slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray.  Combine 1 can of soup, mushrooms, and rice in greased slow cooker.  Stir until well blended.  Add frozen broccoli.  Lay chicken on top.  Pour 1 can of soup over all.  Sprinkle with onion soup mix.  Add 1/2 soup can of water.  Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours or until both chicken and rice are fully cooked, but not dry.

 Sweet Potato Casserole made by Lori

2 cans of sweet potatoes or yams
4 Tbsp. melted butter
1 beaten egg
1 cup dark Karo corn syrup
1 bag mini marshmallows

Drain the fuile off the potatoes and place in a casserole.  Mix the melted butter, beaten egg, and the corn syrup.  Pour over the sweet potatoes and top with the marshmallows.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

 Campbells Tuna and Noodle Casserole made by Sandi

2 (10.75 oz) cans Campbells Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 cup milk
2 cups frozen peas
2 (10 oz) cans tuna, drained
4 cups hot cooked medium egg noodles
2 Tbsp. dry bread crumbs
1 Tbsp. butter, melted

Stir soup, milk, peas, tuna and noodles in a 3 quart casserole.  Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes or until hot.  Stir.  Mix bread crumbs with butter in bowl and sprinkle over the tuna mixture.  Bake for 5 minutes more. 

Turkey Cake made by Andrea

1 Chocolate Cake Mix
Chocolate Frosting
1 Package Stella D'Oro Margherite Cookies
1 Package Pepperidge Farm Milano Cookies
1 package Archway Lemon Cookies
1 Stell D'Oro Breakfast Cookie
Confectioners Sugar
Milk
Sprinkles of different colors
Peanut M&M's
Candy Corn for the mouth
Mini M&M for eye
chocolate jimmies for eyelashes
Gummy Worm for Waddle

Make cake mix as directed on box in a round pans.  Save one layer for another cake at another time.  Put cake toward the bottom of a large round serving platter.  Frost with chocolate frosting of your choice (you can make it or buy canned).  Dip the Milano's and Margherite Cookies in a glaze made from Confectioners Sugar and Milk or watered down vanilla frosting.  Dip into sprinkles to coat well.  Let t hem dry a little before assembling the cake.  You can use your imagination on the colors you want the turkey to be.  Place the cookies in a fan shape around the turkey.  The outer layer is the lemon cookies, then the Margherites, and then the Milanos right up to the layer cake.  Put M&M's on the lemon cookies.  For the face use the Breakfast cookie on top of a lemon cookie and again add M&M's (see picture).  Trim the bottom of the cake with more M&M's.  Put a mini M&M for the eye and use the jimmies to make eyelashes.  Place the waddle and then add a piece of candy corn for the mouth.  Now you are ready for lots of oohs and aahs. 

October means Halloween

Happy Halloween from the Lovely Lunch Ladies.  We had our Halloween party early which is good because here in Cleveland we had Hurricane Sandy hit our Lake Erie shoreline.  Many are still without power and there was lots of damage from falling trees and high water.  We are glad we were able to celebrate and wish all those suffering from this tragedy that lives will return to normal soon.  

Snake Appetizer Sandwiches made by Stacey

Use frozen bread dough sheets cut in half longways  and then added to each other to create a long skinny piece.  You can use your favorite fillings but this is what I used.  One was made with roast beef (thin sliced), provolone cheese and horseradish.  The other was made with mozzarella and sun dried tomatoes and pesto.  Roll up the sides to make a snake and curl the tail.  Use black olives for the eyes and roasted red pepper for the tongue.  Use an egg white wash colored green, red, and yellow to color the snake skin.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. 

Veggie Platter made by Andrea

Baby carrots

Cucumber

Broccoli

Black Olives

 

Use a round platter and fill it with baby carrots.  Use a small bunch of broccoli for the stem.   Arrange black olives to form triangles for the eyes and nose.  Cut a cucumber in thin slices and cut in half to make the mouth. 

Checkerboard Cheese Platter made by Diane

White Bread

Cheddar Cheese Spread

Cream Cheese

Chopped Olives

Spread  cheese on half of your bread.  On the other half spread the cream cheese and top with the chopped olives.  Cut into squares and arrange in a checkerboard pattern on a platter.  You can improvise with any cheeses that you want as long as they contrast. 

Cheese Pumpkin Appetizers made by Kathy

8 Tbsp. smoked Cheddar cold-pack cheese food (from 8 oz container, well chilled)

2 tsp. finely chopped peanuts

4 butter flavored pretzel spindles or sticks, broken in half

16 tiny pieces fresh parsley leaves, 

Line a small serving platter with waxed paper.  For each pumpkin, roll a level Tbsp. of cold-pack cheese food into a ball and plate on the plate.  Refrigerate for 10 to 15 minutes for easier handling.  With the end of a toothpick, draw ridges around the balls to look like the lines on a pumpkin.  Dip bottoms of the cheese balls in the chopped peanuts.  Just before serving, insert pretzel halves into the cheese balls for the pumpkin stems.  Decorate with parsley for the leaves.  Store in the refrigerator.

Holiday Stuffed Pumpkin made by Diane

a handsome pumpkin about 10" diameter with a solid stem attached

2 cups short-grain brown rice or brown basmati rice

1 cup other whole grains (2/3 cup wild rice and 1/3 cup barley is our standard, but any grain with a different texture from rice-like millet or wheat berries will be fine)

2 tsp. olive oil

1/2 cup chopped onion 

3/4 cup cup chopped celery

1 or 2 cups sliced apples

sweet red pepper, chopped finely (optional)

1 tsp. dried safe - or more to taste

1/2 tsp. dried thyme

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp. ground cloves

1 to 2 cups cooked garbanzos (or kidney beans or any other mild bean that won't fall apart during baking) or a package of tofu diced very finely or crumbled

1 cup peeled and sliced roasted chestnuts

1/2 cup raisins, sultanas, or fresh cranberries

1/2 cup chopped almonds or filberts or pine nuts or butternuts

1/4 cup chopped parsley

1 tsp. soy sauce or 3 Tbsp. frozen concentrated orange juice (depends on if you like sweet or savory)

grated black pepper to taste

maple syrup or cranberry sauce or a fruit chutney

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Carefully cut the top off the pumpkin with a knife angled toward the center of the pumpkin so the lid won't fall in when baked.  Clean the seeds and strings out of the center of the pumpkin (wash seeds and save for toasted pumpkin seeds), put a couple of Tbsp. of water into it, oil the cut edges of both pumpkin and its lid, and bake both parts on a baking sheet for about 40 minutes or until the pumpkin is quite soft when poked with a fork.  While the pumpkin is baking, cook the grains as usual.  Saute the onion until translucent, then add the apples, celery, chestnuts, herbs and spices, and cook until the apples are just starting to get soft.  (add a bit of water if needed).  Mix in the beans or tofu, raisins, nuts, parsley, soy or orange, and sweet red pepper and heat gently.  Add the grains and mix well.  When the pumpkin is baked, stuff it.  Replace the  lid tightly.  Lower the oven temp to 350 degrees and bake on a baking sheet for about 30 more minutes, or longer if the stuffing was not hot when the pumpkin was stuffed.  Bring the pumpkin to the table and enjoy a new tradition.  Hand someone a pot holder and let them remove the lid.  You will probably get a big puff of steam.  Serve the stuffing with a slice of pumpkin topped with a bit of maple syrup, cranberry sauce, or fruit chutney. 

Chicken with Mushrooms and Cheese made by Lori

Chicken Breasts - pounded thin

Margarine

Egg - beaten

Bread Crumbs

Mushrooms

Cheddar Cheese - shredded

Saute the chicken in margarine.  Dip the chicken into the egg and then the bread crumbs.   After chicken is seared lay it in a pan.  Layer the mushrooms and shredded cheddar cheese on top and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. 

Asian Chicken Wings made by Kathy

3 lbs. chicken wings

1/3 cup soy sauce

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

2 Tbsp. chili sauce

1/2 cup honey

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. grated fresh ginger

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 tsp. ground red pepper (cayenne), optional

Wash the chicken wings and pat dry.  Remove and discard the wing tips.  Separate each wing into 2 pieces by bending the 2 parts backward, then cutting through at the joint with a sharp knife.  Place in an airtight container.  Mix the remaining ingredients and pour the marinade over the wings.  Cover and refrigerate overnight, turning occasionally.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Arrange the chicken wings on a foil-lined pan.  Brush with marinade and bake for 25 minutes.  Turn the wings, brush with marinade, and bake for 25 minutes longer. 

Festive Jello with Pudding made by Sandie

Sandie likes to combine various flavors of jello and vanilla pudding to make this pretty trifle.  Use your imagination to make it look like the holiday.  Here she used orange jello, mandarin oranges, red jello, and pineapple inspired by fall colors.  Just layer the jello and pudding letting the layers set before adding the next.

Cheesecake Cupcakes made into a Cupcake Graveyard  made by Andrea

For the cupcakes use a chocolate or white cake mix and follow the directions on the package.  I used white for these.  

Filling:

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 egg

1/3 cup sugar

dash salt

6 oz. chocolate chips

Mix the first 4 ingredients until smooth and then stir in the chocolate chips.

Fill the cupcake liners 1/3 full, then add a layer of the cheesecake filling, and then top with more cake mix making sure to cover completely.  Follow the cake mix directions to bake.

One Bowl Chocolate Frosting:

2 cups sifted powdered sugar

1/4 cup butter, softened

1 Tbsp. milk

1 tsp. vanilla

1/8 tsp. salt

1 egg

2 envelopes (2 oz) Nestle Choco-Bake

In a bowl combine the powdered sugar, butter, milk, vanilla and salt; beat until creamy.  Beat in the egg.  Blend in the Choco-bake and mix well.  

To make the graveyard sprinkle on crushed Oreo cookies to form the dirt.  Use a Pepperidge Farm Milano cookie for the tombstone and write R I P with black decorator tube.   Gently insert into the frosted cupcake. 

Witches Hats made by Andrea

Fudge Striped Cookies

Hershey Kisses

Chocolate Frosting

Sprinkles

Place a fudge striped cookie upside down on a platter and add a small bank of chocolate frosting around the opening.  Place a Hershey kiss on the top and then add some sprinkles to form a band around the hat.  I then sprinkled the whole cookie lightly with orange colored sugar.