Beef Noodle Casserole

This casserole is very simple and packed with flavor! I've made it twice now and Dave and I both enjoyed it very much! I found the recipe on a blog called Dining Alone. I've tried a number of recipes from this blog and they never disappoint. Since the recipe is only meant to serve 3 I would probably double it next time to have leftovers for lunch. There wasn't a need to make any modifications, but if I'm being honest...I used quite a bit more than 1/4 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese:)


Beef Noodle Casserole

2 cups uncooked egg noodles
1/2 pound lean ground beef
1 can (8-ounces) tomato sauce
1/4 cup chopped green onions
1/4 cup canned chopped green chilies
1 small garlic clove, minced
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sour cream
2 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup shredded part skim mozzarella cheese (I used more like 3/4 cup)

Directions
Cook noodles according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Stir in the tomato sauce, onions, chilies, garlic and salt. In a small bowl, combine sour cream and cream cheese. Drain noodles.

Place 1/2 cup beef mixture in a 1-qt baking dish coated with cooking spray (I used a 1 and 1/2 qt dish and it worked just fine). Layer with half of the noodles, cream cheese mixture and cheese. Spread 1/2 cup beef mixture over cheese; repeat layers. Spoon remaining beef mixture over top. Top with shredded mozzarella cheese. Cover and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until bubbly. Uncover for the last 5 minutes to brown cheese on tip. Yield: 3 servings

Philly Cheesesteak Mac and Cheese = Sooo good

This recipe is amazing, but as you can tell by the ingredients it is NOT healthy...at all! It is great if you are looking for a comforting and delicious meal on a night when you feel like splurging. It's TOTALLY worth the extra calories! I cut this recipe in half and it made more than enough for 2 people. We even had leftovers, but they didn't last long because Dave loved this dish:) I found the recipe here on Krista's Kitchen. She says she adapted it from a Rachel Ray recipe.

Philly Cheesesteak Mac and Cheese (this is the FULL recipe, remember I cut mine in half)

Ingredients
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 large onions, thinly sliced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pound cavatappi-shaped pasta
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk
2 cups shredded provolone
1 cup shredded Swiss
1/2 cup broth (chicken, beef, vegetable)
1 pkg Steak Umms slices, roughly chopped
1/4 cup parsley, chopped (I opted not to put parsley on mine)

Preparation

• Place a large pot of salted water over high heat and bring it to a boil.
• Once the water boils, cook the cavatappi to al dente according to package directions. Once the pasta has finished cooking, drain it and return it to the pot it was cooked in.
• While the pasta is cooking, place a large skillet over medium-high heat with 2 turns of the pan of EVOO, about 2 tablespoons. Add the onions to the pan and top them with a lid or piece of aluminum foil for 2-3 minutes, just to get them cooking. Remove the lid or aluminum foil and continue cooking the onions until tender and lightly caramelized, 8-10 minutes.
• While the onions are caramelizing, melt the butter over medium-high heat in a medium-size pot. Sprinkle the flour over the melted butter and cook the mixture for about 1 minute. Whisk the milk into the butter-flour mixture slowly and bring up to a bubble to thicken. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the shredded cheese. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and reserve.
• To the skillet with the onions, add the broth and the Steak Umms. Cook until the meat is no longer pink.
• Add the cheese sauce and the onion-beef mixture to the pot with the drained pasta and toss everything to combine. Transfer to a casserole dish. Top with additional cheese and parsley. Broil until the cheese is melted and bubbly.

Tater Tot Casserole

I found this recipe on Cooking Claire's blog a few weeks ago and starred it in my googl reader to make at some point down the line. Well last night was the night! I never had or even heard of Tater Tot Casserole, but having a fond memory of Tater Tots from those wonderful public school lunches growing up, I knew it had to be good!

I was unsure (again) whether or not I was supposed to brown the ground beef first, but after googling other Tater Tot Casserole recipes I noticed that many of them don't brown the beef first--so I didn't either. I also used deli sliced cheddar cheese (as suggested) rather than shredded. All in all it turned out pretty yummy and was very simple to make. Dave said he liked it too even though he had to take it to go since I got a late start cooking (I got sucked into updating my blog:)) and he had to be at work on the film set by 10pm.

Even though this version was good, next time I would brown the beef in a skillet first, just to make it more crumbly and also to drain off the fat (it was a little greasy). I also think I would layer it in the order of beef, soup, cheese, taters rather than what this recipe calls for which is beef, cheese, soup, taters. The beef really didn't get to meld with the mushroom soup because the cheese was reating a barier and I think the flavor would have been better if the soup and the beef had cooked together. But that's just me...and what do I know?:)

Here is the recipe from last night:


Tater Tot Casserole

• 1 lb groung beef
• Salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder
• Cheddar cheese--sliced or shredded
• I can cream of mushroom soup
• Frozen Tater Tots

Directions

In an 11x7 pan, crumble or spread ground beef. Sprinkle salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder on top of beef. Cover with sliced or shredded cheddar cheese (NOT American cheese...real cheddar). Spread can of cream of mushroom soup over the cheese layer (this can be tricky business if you've used shredded cheese). Top wtih tater tots. Cover with foil. Bake at 350 for 1-1/2 to 2 hours, uncovering for last 30 minutes. Or bake at 375 for one hour, uncovering for last 30 minutes.