Crunchy Spinach Casserole

This is what I'm making for our Thanksgiving dressing.  I have made it several years and LOVE it.  EM just discovered that he liked it last Thanksgiving, darn.  I have tried to modify the recipe to make it more healthy, but you cannot omit the butter (I tried).  I'll put my modifications below.  You know that spinach dip you eat at parties when you'd like to drop your chips and just dig your spoon in and stuff it in your mouth?  Or lay down and roll in it?  That's what this tastes like.

(For my family, I love Grandmother's dressing and can make it, but no one here is interested.  I'll just have to wait for a big family gathering for my next GM dressing.)

Crunchy Spinach Casserole

from A Taste of Georgia

Oven:  325 degrees for 20-30 minutes                      Yield:  8 servings

30 oz. frozen chopped spinach                              
8 oz. + 3 oz. package cream cheese (use separately, I use reduced fat)
1/2 + 1/2 stick butter (do not omit)
juice of 2 lemons
salt (I omit)
black  pepper
ground nutmeg
1/2 cup dairy sour cream (I use reduced fat)
1 1/2 cups dry herb stuffing mix

     Cook the spinach according to package directions.  I use the microwave.  Drain very thoroughly.
     Combine in a saucepan the 8 oz. package of cream cheese, 1/2 stick of butter, all but 1 teaspoon of the lemon juice, salt, black pepper, lots of ground nutmeg, and drained spinach (or do like me and do it in the microwave).   Stir until smooth and divide in half, set aside.
     In a separate bowl, combine the 3 oz. of cream cheese, 1/2 cup sour cream, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, and white pepper.  Stir until smooth.
     Place half of the spinach mixture in a well-buttered 2 quart casserole.  Top with all the cream cheese mixture.  Add the second half of the spinach mixture.
     Sprinkle the stuffing mix over the top and drizzle over the stuffing the remaining 1/2 stick of melted butter (you must do this!)
     Bake casserole at 325 degrees for 20-30 minutes or until bubbly and brown on top.

Amazing Two-Ingredient Cupcakes

I found this on the Internet.  Mix, with a mixer, one box of cake mix with one can of pumpkin puree.  That's all!  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.  The batter will be thicker than typical cake batter.  You can prepare it like drop cookies or spoon it into a muffin pan.  I tried it both ways and the muffin-style were very velvety.  Spice cake mix was recommended, but I used chocolate.  I have a chocolate chip pumpkin cookie recipe that we like, so I knew it would be good.  The chocolate-pumpkin cupcakes turned out red, like red velvet cake.  Yum!

P.S. I've learned this is a Weight Watchers' recipe.  Also, don't try in in a cake pan or bundt pan.  It does not cook evenly.  The smaller portions sizes of a cookie or cupcake must work better.

Wonderful Weekend!

 Let me tell you, that amazing woman who DID NOT HAVE A JOB this summer, has disappeared.  I love being off in the summers and pretending I’m retired.  The house stays clean, especially more so as AT gets older.  I cook.   I create.  I read.  I blog.  I smile when I go to bed because I don’t have to get up in the morning.

That woman has disappeared.

I am ashamed to tell you how often I do not cook.  My house is undone.  I stare at projects.  I let the frig get empty.  I smile on Saturdays and don’t do as much as I should.  At this time of year, if I cook and clean the kitchen, I consider myself gifted!

Now, to change the subject, weeks ago, I had an amazing weekend with my mom and two sisters.  (My mom is my editor and has corrected some of my writing with rules that I did not know.  If you see typos, they are MINE, not hers).  It was a significant birthday for my youngest sister.  My middle sister came up with this plan.  We met in Little Rock and stayed at a bed and breakfast.  So. Much. Fun!  We ate, shopped, and talked and talked.  We saw the Designing Women house, the Governor’s Mansion, and many other grand homes.  Our B & B
(http://www.rosemontoflittlerock.com/) was in the Designing Women house neighborhood.   This was the first time that AT had declined to go on a big trip with me.  Sniff, sniff!  But I adjusted and enjoyed my five-hour solitary drive to Little Rock. 

At one point, when all the ladies were in the same car for the first time, I clapped my hands in joy.  My sister said, “That’s just what Mother did when we left home.”  The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree!  A later fun moment was when my mom said the trip made her feel so young.  On Saturday afternoon while we were at the River Market, one sister said, “Maybe we should go back and rest.  Maybe Mother would if we did.”  So I said, “I think I could go take a nap.”  Mother burst forth, “You can take a nap when you get back home!”  So much for slowing down for her!

Unexpectedly, Saturday revealed itself to be a theme day.  We went to the Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site.  Go to  http://www.nps.gov/chsc/index.htm for more information.  Then, that night, we all saw the movie The Help for the first time.  I was awed by the day, by the heroes at Central High School and by the heroes portrayed in the movie.   So many heroes have passed before me.  I have never been called to that level of service.  I wondered all day how I would measure up under those circumstances.  Since we pass through Little Rock several times a year, I plan for EM and AT to see the site also.  Although you can spend longer, it is possible to get a good sample of what the historic site offers in an hour or so.

Lucky Bean Soup

Now I am blogging, instead of cooking beans or straightening the house.  This is my favorite bean soup recipe.  Maybe I’ll get up and start some beans next.  I received this recipe at my wedding shower from Rachel and have used it many times.  Now that I look at it, there is no list of ingredients.  I know Rachel included a list.  She gave me a pint jar of mixed dried beans with the recipe attached.  So without the list of ingredients, we'll have to make do.  You just measure out a pint jar or several handfuls of mixed beans, like I do.  It will work, I promise you.

Lucky Bean Soup

Wash beans and cover with water.  Add 1 Tbs. salt and soak at least 3 hours.  Put the beans in 2 quarts of water and let boil slowly in soup pot two to three hours.

Add precooked sausage sliced or ham pieces and 1 large onion and cook two to three hours more.

(Now this is what makes it special! – do not omit, you Jerry-riggers!)  Add 1-can tomatoes, 2 Tbs. lemon juice and 1 Tbs. Worchester sauce.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Serve over rice or cornbread.

Sun-Dried Tomato Breakfast Casserole

Here is the Egg and Sun-Dried Tomato Breakfast Casserole that I brought to school recently.  I’ve had some requests for the recipe.  I love sun-dried tomatoes and knew there would be a breakfast casserole recipe on the Internet.  I just Goggled  “sun-dried tomato breakfast casserole” and this popped up.  Magic!  I also did a little Jerry-rigging and I’ll include that also.  I doubled the recipe to take to school.  I think a single recipe would have worked because I brought some home.  You can find this recipe yourself at youvegotsupper.com. 

Notes:  Walmart does not always stock sun-dried tomatoes.  This time I bought, and substituted, sun-dried tomato spread.  I thought it worked fine.  I substituted ¾ cup of milk + ¼ cup of butter for the whipping cream which I didn’t get home from the store.  Now I see on the Internet, that I could have substituted more Half N Half.  I thought the recipe was too rich with the butter.  Next time, I would try putting a layer of frozen hashed brown potatoes under the custard-like casserole.

Ingredients

1 lb. sausage

¼ c. shallots, chopped (I substituted onions)

2 gloves garlic, minced (I used powdered garlic)

½ c. sun-dried tomatoes, chopped

4 tbsp. parsley (fresh), chopped (I omitted)

5 large eggs

3 large egg yolks (I just used 6 eggs for the whole recipe)

1 c. half n half (I used fat-free)

1 c. whipping cream

2 cups mozzarella cheese, grated

½ tsp. salt

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Butter 13X9X2 inch baking dish.  Sauté sausage over medium heat until brown and cooked through, breaking into small pieces.  (I did this step in the microwave). 

2.  Add shallots and garlic.  Sauté until softened. 

3.  Add sun-dried tomatoes and 2 T. parsley.  Stir 1 minute.  Spread sausage mixture in prepared dish.  You can make this one-day ahead.  (I did it the night before and assembled that morning.)

4.  Whisk eggs, egg yolks, Half N Half, whipping cream, 1 ½ cups cheese, and salt in a large bowl.  Pour egg mixture over sausage mixture in prepared dish.  Sprinkle with remaining ½ c. cheese and 2 T. parsley.

5.  Bake until top of casserole is golden brown and knife inserted the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes.  Let stand 5 minutes before service.