Kickasserole!

A million years ago, when Ira gave me that incredible Le Creuset casserole pan, I asked for submissions for your favorite casserole recipes. I sort of got caught up in so many different food projects, time got away from me. Paltry as this excuse sounds, please be rest assured, casseroles remain at the top of my list of fav foods to eat on a busy night. We got a lot of great submissions, and I want to thank everyone who participated. One submission however stuck out not only because of its great recipe but by is sensational headline grabbing name. May I present you with Wendy Petrosky's submission;

The Kick-Asserole!

• 1 container(7oz) of pesto
• 14 oz raditore(or rotini) pasta cooked and drained (I like whole wheat)
• 2 cups cooked chicken breast (pre-cooked in package)
• 1 can cream of chicken soup
• 14.5oz can Hunt's diced tomatoes w/roasted garlic
• 2/3 cup feta cheese
• 14oz can quartered artichoke hearts (rinse)
• 1/2 cup parmesan for top

Combine all ingredients (except parmesan) in large bowl,leaving artichokes last and lightly tossed in. Spoon mixture into lightly greased baking dish. Sprinkle with parmesan.

Bake @ 350 for 35-40 minutes.

All measurements are approximate, and sometimes I add a couple of cloves of chopped garlic, extra tomatoes, etc. As with all casseroles, it tastes even better the next day after you re-heat it.

Thanks Wendy! I made this and it was soooo awesome! It was tasty, easy and so quick, it went from zero to kick ass in less then 15 minutes prep time!



My notes: I had some raw chicken breast in the freezer so I cooked up to substitute for the pre-cooked package. I also added some bread crumbs to the top to give some added crunchiness. To finish the meal off, I made a quick garlic bread and we were ready to go. This casserole is kickassa-rolin into my cookbook!

A Favorite Thanksgiving Dish: Cheesy Onion Casserole

Since Thanksgiving is only a week away, I wanted to share a couple of my favorite family recipes. As you can maybe imagine, Thanksgiving is one of my family's favorite holidays. My Mom always does it up big. Last year for a group of 11 people, my parents prepared a Turduckin and rotisseried a 14 lb Turkey. Thanksgiving is a day of total hedonism where we gorge ourselves silly and have enough left overs for an army!



Cheesy Onion Casserole, a family favorite, is so delicious the left overs are always fought over and my Mom has to evenly and judiciously distribute. No Thanksgiving is complete without a casserole and this one is literally as easy to make as it is to eat!

Cheesy Onion Casserole

• 2-3 Tbs butter or margerine
• 3 large sweet onions or 4 medium white or yellow onions
• 2 c. shredded swiss cheese (8 oz.)
• 1 can cream of chicken soup, undiluted**
• 2/3 c. milk
• 1 tsp. soy sauce
• 8 or so slices of French bread
  

Slice onions. Know any tricks not to cry while cutting onions? I whistle which works pretty well, but you need a lot of onions for this recipe. Any ideas??



Melt butter in a saute pan over medium heat, and add onions. Saute onions until clear, a little brown is ok. In a shallow 2 qt. casserole pan, layer onions, 2/3 of cheese and pepper to taste.

In a sauce pan, heat soup, milk, and soy sauce, stirring to blend. Pour soup mixture in a casserole and stir gently to mix. Top with bread slices. Bake at 350 uncovered for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, top of bread should be nice and toasted.



Push bread slices under the sauce and top with the remaining cheese.



Bake for 15 more minutes and you are done!



Sooo good!

**You can make this vegetarian by substituting cream of mushroom soup instead of cream of chicken.