Spicy Baked Rotini Casserole

It is another cold and dreary day out side and I wanted something that would warm and fill us up. Its the perfect day for a casserole.

I love making casseroles in the winter months, they are a great way to warm up and you can put almost anything in them. They freeze really well and makes lots of left overs for lunches as well.

So today I made spicy baked rotini casserole. I made a roaster full so I would have some to freeze and some for my hubby to take to work with him. Here is what you will need. 

6 cups large rotini noodles cooked
1 8 oz. can of tomato paste
1 8 oz. can of prepared pasta sauce
1 large can of diced tomatoes
1 LB ground beef
1 LB ground mild Italian sausage
1 onion diced
1 cup diced mushroom
1 teaspoon minced rosemary
1 teaspoon fresh pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon curry
1 teaspoon basil
1 teaspoon thyme
1 diced jalapenos

Start by boiling some salted water in your stock pot. Once it is at a rolling boil add your noodles.

Stir the noodles every so often. I like them to be tender but not quite soft.

While the noodles are doing their thing, get your veggies ready.

You can use pickled jalapenos if you want. That is what I used today.

Once you have drained your noodles, set them aside. Add your ground beef and sausage in a large skillet throw in your veggies and your spices.

Scramble fry the meat until it is completely done, and there is no pink, remove from heat and drain well. 

Mix your noodles and your meat mixture in a large roasting pan. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Then in a large bowl mix your pasta sauce, your tomatoes, and your tomato paste whisk it together.
Then pour over your noodle mixture, then fold it into your noodle mixture until completely coated. 

Place your roaster in a hot oven (350 degrees) and bake covered for 30 minutes.  Remove from the oven and sprinkle 2 cups of mozzarella generously over the top. (If you like it cheesy like we do, use more) Place back in oven and bake for 10 more minutes. 

Remove from heat and let rest covered for 10 minutes.  Serve with garlic bread or salad.

This makes a large amount and will feed a crowd. It freezes great and is even better the next day. If you dont want to make this much just reduce the amounts.

I hope you try it. Let me know in the comments how it turned out.

Home made Broccoli Cheese Soup

 Have you ever had one of "those" days,  You know the kind, the kind where no matter what something just doesn't work out? I am having a day like that. 

It is going to storm here in Nova Scotia tomorrow and as I had some free time I decided I would prepare some yummy soup to stave off the cold and snow.

Broccoli Cheese soup in fact. Here is the thing about broccoli cheese soup, it is wonderful thick and creamy. It is easy peasy to make. But here is the thing,- it cooks FAST. Like really really fast. Because of this I didn't get many pictures, I was busy making sure it didn't stick as it bubbled and thickened. 

But I did get a few so you will get the idea

Here is what you will need

3 good sized heads of fresh broccoli
1 diced onion
2 Cups of milk
2-3 Cups of sharp cheddar cheese
1 Cup of chicken stock
1 stick of butter about a half a cup
Half a cup of flour
2 Table spoons of fresh pepper
1 Teaspoon of salt

I start with the broccoli, if you don't have fresh you can use one package of frozen.

 Dice your broccoli and onion up any way you like, I like some chunks in mine so I chop it kind of big. (if you don't like onion you can leave it out if you like)

Now go grab a stock pot and melt your butter in there.

Once your butter is all melted toss in your veggies and stir them around, what you are going for here is bright green broccoli and your onion just starting to turn translucent.

Once your veggies are nice and bright, toss in your flour and stir that around, quickly add in your chicken stock, milk and seasonings.

Now here is the part where things get going quick, I find you have to stir constantly or it will start to burn, so stir, and stir and stir some more, every so often check the tenderness of your broccoli, once it tender remove your pot from the heat. (It should also be fairly thick at this point as well. If you find it too thick, just add a couple of splashes of chicken stock to thin it to your desired consistency)

This is the point where picture taking was all but forgotten :(

Now I use and emulsion blender to do my blending, if you don't have one you can use a blender but never fill your blender more than half, Hot liquid expands and you don't want it to explode all over your kitchen and you. Or you can use a potato masher if you are really energetic, I am not. I used the emulsion blender.

Now its time to add the cheese, place your pot back on the heat (medium low at this point) and stir in almost all of your cheese ( save a little for garnish later). Stir until the cheese is thoroughly melted.  Remove your pot from the heat and let rest for 5-10 minutes. 

Then its ready to serve ( I remembered to take pictures at this point) sprinkle some of the cheese for garnish on top and enjoy!

This makes about 6 servings and as for freezing truthfully it has never lasted long enough in our home to find out!

If you try it let me know how it turns out in the comments below!

Oven Roasted Spaghetti Sauce

The very first meal I ever made when I was cooking on my own was spaghetti. All those years ago I really didn't know what I was doing but over the years it has remained a staple in my home.  I have tweaked my recipe and thrown in a few twists of my own since then and it is now a real family favorite. On cold blustery days I make oven roasted Spaghetti, There is just something about your old favorite, hot and bubbly out of the oven with that slightly different roasted for hours flavor. It is very easy to make, In fact if you can make spaghetti on the stove top, you can make this.

Here is what you will need:

1.5 lbs of cooked ground beef
1 can of diced tomatoes
1 can of tomato paste
1 bottle of your favorite prepared tomato sauce
1 onion diced
1 Cup of chopped mushroom
2 Cups of your favorite bell peppers
2 Tablespoons of olive oil
1.5 Teaspoons of garlic powder (or 2 cloves minced)
1 Teaspoon of fresh minced rosemary (about two stems)
1 Teaspoon of dried or fresh basil
 .5 Teaspoon of salt
1 Teaspoon of fresh ground pepper
1 Cup of grated parmesan (optional)

First prepare all of your veggies

I like my veggies kind of chunky but you can chop them as fine as you like.

Once you have them all chopped, add them to your frying pan with your olive oil and saute them until the onion is translucent and the veggies are just starting to soften. throw in a sprinkling of salt and some basil if you like (please excuse my frying pan Its old and has served me well but it will never look new again)

Once they are ready take those out and set them aside. Prepare your ground beef add your spices  (make sure it is cooked completely, drain it well.

Then add the beef and the veggies and your can of tomatoes and the juice to a large bowl.

Then add your tomato paste and mix it all up, then add your favorite sauce (if you have some you made from scratch then you are a queen and you should use that, me I use prepared sauce)

Once you have everything mixed up, it should look like this

At this point you can also add a cup of grated parmesan if you have it, if you don't want to you can leave it out. Then grab an oven crock or roaster and pour your lovely sauce in. I used this wonderful bean crock my mom gave me years ago, I have made so many wonderful meals in this thing.

Then you cover it up and pop it in the oven on 300 for about 4 hours, give it a stir every 45 minutes or so, it will darken and thicken, after about four hours spoon some over hot pasta and enjoy!

Its perfect for a cold blustery day, serve it with some hot buttered rolls or garlic bread. Its divine! 

This freezes really well, you can freeze some during the preparation if you think you have too much or after it is roasted. This recipe makes enough for a family of five but if you want less you can just reduce it if you like.

I hope you enjoy, let me know in the comments if you try it and like it.

Welcome to my kitchen

Hi there,

Welcome! I love to cook and I am told often that my recipes are pretty good, so I thought I would share them with you. Most are family recipes that I grew up with and now make for my own family and friends. In the past 20 years of cooking for my family some of them have evolved to be completely my own. I hope you enjoy and feel free to let me know what you think.

Keep watch over the next few days for some yummy creations, come and join me and lets eat!