Good Ol' Broccoli Chicken Casserole

My sister is my hero. 
She has stuck by my side through the worst situations possible.  She lectures me like no other--and she continues to punch me in the arm to show me that she's the Alpha in our relationship [haa!]  But, she loves me.  And that's the truth.  We have a decade of years between us, and I have learned a lot from her. 
She loved to come up with fun creations in the kitchen..one of them being homemade pancakes. Well...that wasn't really her shining moment.  But who hasn't had one of those??  But one thing was an instant hit! 

Broccoli Chicken Casserole.

[TO BUY]
Foil (always have this handy!!)
Frozen tatertots (1 lb)
Frozen broccoli (1 lb)
1 can of Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 bag of finely shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1-10 oz can of cooked chicken (or 2-5oz cans)
1 Large can of Crispy French Fried Onions (stuff you use to top a greenbean casserole!)

Here's the end result.  And here's how you get there:

Get your ingredients!! For all of you busy people with families, or a college student that needs to whip something up--this is the way to go :o)

Add in 1 lb of the tatertots, 1 lb of the broccoli, the canned chicken (make sure to drain out the juices first), whole can of cream of mushroom soup--then ADD in 1/2 can of water (using the same cream of mushroom can) You can also sprinkle in some of the cheese if you want.

That's how its gonna look when mixed together.



Spray the 9x13 cooking dish with cooking spray, then add in the casserole filling.

Use the whole bag of shredded cheese :)

Layer the entire top with French's fried onion. The more the merrier! Cover tightly with foil (poke some holes in the foil to vent out steam) Bake @ 400 degrees for 1 hour.



When there is 15 mins left on the timer, open the oven and remove the foil. This will help the top will crisp up.

The fried onion on top will turn a nice golden brown.. its smells incredible! Let it sit out for 20 mins before serving. (This meal is also GREAT reheated)

ENJOY!

Let's start with a nice comfort food.

This one of my favorite Go-To meals--especially if I am feeding a crowd.

Roast N' Noodles.

I was introduced to this meal a couple years ago.  I was visiting one of my best friend's, Brittany, in Nashville, TN.  Her mother, Li Ann invited us over for dinner.  This was by far Brittany's favorite meal.  I remember the first time I tasted it.  I was like, did that really just happen? It was nothing fancy, but the combination was mind blowing.  I took the ingredients, and tweeked it up a bit.  TPham style.

[TO BUY]
2lb roast (that will serve up to 5-6 people)
Egg noodles
"Mashed potatoes" (insta-mash...whatever works for you. If you're making it yourself, buy: milk, butter, and sour cream)
Salt/Pepper/Garlic powder
Beef flavor Bouillon cubes
Lipton Brand--Beefy Onion flavor or Onion flavor
1 medium onion, sliced (yellow or white onion works)

This is your end result. And this is how you get there:

Start by making a beef broth. I like using flavor (beef) cubes, it saves more $$. Buying regular beef stock is expensive, and you have to use it up fairly quickly before it spoils. With this, you get 64 cubes in a little jar. It's 1 cube for every 1 cup of boiling water. I used 8 cups of boiling water..therefore I used 8 cubes, Duh! ;)

You now made your very own beef stock/broth!

To kick up the flavor notch, I added in the Lipton brand Beefy Onion seasoning!

You can buy any roast at your local grocery store. I just try to find a good cut that's reasonable in price. This piece of meat is just over 2lbs. I just used salt, pepper, and garlic powder to season the meat. Don't be shy with the seasoning!

Spray pan down w cooking spray. Heat pan on High. (We are trying sear the meat quickly so it browns) Then place the meat in the heated pan.

Since the pan is pretty darn hot, its not necessary to brown it for a long time. Maybe after a minute, check it out. This color is good.

Keep Browning the sides

Have some good strong kitchen tongs handy for a heavier piece of meat! You wanna brown all of the sides, so holding the meat upright will do the trick.

If you're making this meal, you better own one of these in your kitchen!

Slice up an onion and place at the bottom of the crock pot. Veggies take longer to cook, so that's why it should be closer to the "heat'. But also its gives a cushion for the beef and brings out more flavor!

Feel free to add a little bit of broth to the onion to give extra cushioning! (But its not necessary)

Place the beef on top of the onions

Pour broth in--just enough to cover the top of meat

Like this! (then cover with the lid, obviously!) Reserve the rest of the broth for later use in this recipe. Put it away in a container and refrigerate it until needed.

Cook on LOW for 8 hours. It's really important to NOT remove the lid for the first 4 hours!

After about 8 hours of cooking, its ready! People will LOVE the aroma when walking into your house!

Take the beef out of the crock pot. It will fall apart, but that's the goal!!

Use a fork (or whatever) to shred up the meat. You know its cooked perfectly when it just falls apart!

Perfectly shredded roast

You are now ready to cook your noodles. I LOVE cooking the noodles with the beef broth!! Tastes sooo much better! Use the broth from the crock pot.. it has all the yummy beef flavor soaked in. Also add in the rest of the broth reserved from earlier. Boil before adding in noodles.

Egg Noodles are the BEST with this meal

Add in as many noodles as you want, just don't over flow it. And there is no need to add in salt--the broth is salty enough on its own. Cook for about 10 mins, or until al dente.

For those who don't have time to peel and boil potatoes, yet want something better than the insta-mash stuff...this works great! It's already peeled and cubed! 10 mins in the microwave, that's it!

Add in: butter (about 1/2 a stick), sour cream (a few blobs), milk (add a little at a time until you find the consistency of YOUR liking) , salt and pepper to taste. Use a hand held blender to mix

Perfectly whipped :o) Now, I was taught to serve this meal in layers...
Mashed potatoes for the bottom layer, noodles for the second layer, and top it off with the beef. Dee-Lish!!
ENJOY!

Hello Blog World!!

This is my first time blogging, so I'm excited!

The GOAL of this blog site: Show people step-by-step on how to prepare and present a meal--with lots of details and pictures!

I am not a Chef, by any means. 
But, I can sure make food *with love*.. (cheesy...I know. But it's true)

Many of these recipes are my own, but some are from really creative people who posted their own creations online.  Unfortunately, I have seen many where they just offer a list of ingredients, and bullet points on how to make it.  Some of the "ways to do things" are pretty much foreign to me!  I am a visual person, and I am also very detailed.  I like knowing what things mean and how its supposed to look just in case I am WAY off!

I hope this is helpful!! ENJOY!