Chicken Broccoli Bake

I came across this pin on pinterest and knew I had to make it. I love myself a good casserole, and I especially liked this one because it didn't require any canned soups or other highly processed ingredients.

It all starts with some fresh broccoli, chicken and a creamy cheesy sauce, topped off with a buttery cracker and poppy seed mix. Tell me that doesn't sound delicious.

This would be a great recipe to make ahead and then pop in the oven at dinner time.

Now, you can go get the original recipe here from Get off Your Butt and Bake. I did make a few minor changes, though, so my recipe is below. But let's be honest, the credit for this delicious recipe, really belongs to Jonna from the aforementioned (ooh. big word) blog.

Chicken Broccoli Bake
{serves 4-6}

Ingredients:
3/4 lb fresh broccoli, blanched, or steamed for 2 minutes
2 large chicken breasts, cooked and diced
3 cups shredded cheese, divided (cheddar would be great, but I just used what I had on hand)
2/3 cup unsalted butter, melted, divided in half
1/4 cup. cornstarch, dissolved in 1/2 cup COLD Water
1/3 cup Chicken Broth
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 Cups milk
50 Ritz crackers (about 1 1/3 tubes), crushed
1 tbsp poppy seeds

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 13 x 9 pan and layer chicken and broccoli in pan.

Combine corn starch, chicken broth, 1/3 cup of the melted butter, salt, pepper and milk in saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly. Continue to cook until sauce has thickened. Reduce heat to low and stir in 1 1/2 cups of cheese until melted. Pour sauce over chicken and broccoli. Top with remaining cheese.

Mix together remaining 1/3 cup melted butter, poppy seeds and crushed crackers. Sprinkle over entire mixture.

Bake for about 30 minutes. Serve and enjoy!

To reheat any leftovers, cover pan with aluminum foil and bake in 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes, or until warm. I would not recommend reheating in the microwave.

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Vietnamese Noodle Salad

I made this salad. I told my husband it was "Asian Noodle Salad". 

Why? Because I knew just the word "Vietnamese" would scare him. Turns out I didn't fool him.

I even gave him chicken instead of tofu! It didn't work- he only ate about half of his bowl. I ended up making him a quesadilla. True story.

Good news though was that I loved it. And so did the friend who came over for dinner.
Lots of veggies. Yummy grilled tofu. So good.

Want to make it? Find the recipe here, on Shutterbean!

Creamy Pasta with Sausage, Tomatoes and Greens

This is one of those dinners that was born out of pure chance.

I had leftover sausage and marscapone cheese. They desperately needed to be used. The result? This deliciousness. I made it up as I went, which even I'm impressed by. {if you ask my mom, she'll say this a talent I get from her}

{serves four}
Ingredients:
1/2 lb pasta (I used gemelli, but rotini, fusili or penne would work well too)
1/2 cup reserved pasta water
1 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 medium onion, coarsely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup chopped red pepper
1/2 lb. mild italian sausage
1/2 cup shredded parmesan
4 oz. marscapone cheese
handful of cherry tomatoes, halved
2 cups spinach/arugula mix (using one or the other would work as well)
salt & pepper to taste

Preparation:
Bring large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package directions. Remember to reserve about 1/2 cup of the pasta water for the sauce.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in large saute pan over medium heat. Add onions and garlic. Remove sausage from casing and crumble into pan. Cook for 5 minutes. Add bell peppers. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally until onions are translucent.

Next, add marscapone, parmesan and 1/4 cup of the reserved pasta water to the pan. Stir together until well blended, then bring to a boil, stirring often. Lower heat and let simmer for approx 5 minutes, or until desired consistency. (tip: if the sauce is too dry, add a little more pasta water. too watery? cook for longer or use some corn starch).

Add in cooked pasta, tomatoes, spinach, arugula, salt and pepper. Cover with lid for about one minute to allow greens to wilt slightly. And you're done!

Serve topped with shredded parmesan.