Casserole Crazy

Well....it's Monday again. This is both good and bad. Good....because I definitely need some consistency with a dash of normalcy thrown in for good measure. Bad because....well...I need to sleep about two more days to make up for all the sleep I lost over the weekend. But if you have to have a Monday.....this last weekend was a great lead in.

So it is raining out and making me feel very fallish once again (even though it feels to be about 80+ degrees outside). In the fall I think of comfort foods and to me....comfort foods  a lot of times come in the form of casseroles. Casseroles are favorites because there are so many concoctions and variations to any one recipe that you can have a little culinary fun. Prep time for a casserole (depending on type) is usually anywhere from 5 minutes to 30 minutes and bake time is usually anywhere from 30 min. to an hour. Casseroles can usually be prepped the night before or the morning of and then hit the oven as soon as you hit the door in the evening. Once baked....add a side dish/veggie/bread/salad and you have an easy meal with leftovers for the next day. So get ready folks....cause this is how I get casserole crazy!

My first casserole is one that was sort of suggested to  me by my mother in law and then after tweaking it.....became one of my family favorites. It is called Cabbage Casserole. Its origins began with the original Cabbage Rolls. My family loved them but for the kids.....they were just too messy and if you didn't get the cabbage cooked just right.....it either fell apart or was too tough to cut. My mother in law showed me a casserole where instead of rolling the meat and rice....you layered it with the cabbage. I took it one step further and used shredded cabbage. It is less mess (boiling the cabbage, etc.) and it gives a bit of a crunch. So here is my version of Cabbage Casserole

1lb ground beef browned
1/2 a medium onion diced and cooked with beef (may also use onion flakes to equal a 1/2 med. onion....about a tablespoon or so)
1 1/2 a large cabbage (red or green) finely chopped (coleslaw consistency) or 1 bag of already chopped coleslaw
1 giant can of tomato soup
Instant rice about 4 servings prepared according to box directions
Season salt to taste
Cracker or bread crumbs
1 TBSP of butter/margarine to dot the top with
Prepare your rice and brown your beef and onion. In a 5 qt. baking dish with a lid spray the bottom and sides with Pam. In another bowl mix the can of tomato soup with about 1/2 a can of milk or water. Whisk until smooth. In a large bowl big enough to hold all ingredients, add the rice, beef mixture and soup. Mix until all ingredients are thoroughly incorporated. Then add the finely chopped cabbage and fold it into the mixture until it is thoroughly incorporated. Add Season Salt mix again and then put all ingredients into the sprayed baking dish. Cover with cracker or bread crumbs and dot the top with butter/margarine. Bake covered for 30-45 min. at 350 degrees. This casserole is so good and because the cabbage is not as evident as in cabbage rolls....kids tend to want to eat it more. Add a salad and crusty bread and this just screams fall in a dish.

This next casserole is one of my mom's that I also tweaked a bit. It started as her own version of scalloped potatoes, but with a bit of this and that magic....it goes from a side dish to a main dish with just a few additions. This is an awesome choice for the family that is all about the meat and potatoes.
Mom's Scalloped Potatoes and Such

5 lbs med. potatoes microwaved in skins until almost soft.
1 reg. size box of Velveeta cheese
1 lg. onion thinly sliced
Milk
Your choice of 1lb of any of the following: diced ham, browned ground beef, browned sausage, sliced polish sausage, shredded roast beef or diced pork steak (have also added pepperoni....but that is an acquired taste).

Spray your 5 qt. baking dish with with pan spray. Peel your almost done microwaved potatoes and cut into thin slices. Cut your box of Velveeta into thin slices. Begin layering. Start with a layer of potatoes, then a layer of cheese, then onion, then meat. Then start the process over. Your last layer should be meat and then cover the top with cheese. You should still have a little room at the top. Take milk....about 1/2 to 1 cup and pour over entire casserole and down sides. Cover with lid and bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour. This casserole is wonderful straight out of the over and even better as leftovers on day two. I have also added green beans or corn into the mix to change it up a bit. I usually mix them with the meat and layer them with the meat. With the added veggies you can add bread and have an entire meal or you can add a side dish or salad. Yummy!

So this is how I get casserole crazy. Believe me....there are tons more that I have up my sleeve and in my many, many, many.........cookbooks, but these rank amongst my favorites. If you give them a try....let me know what you think and if you have your own casserole idea to add.....please do so. I can always use knew ideas.

Time to get this Monday started. Hope you all have a wonderful. Happy Monday!