Creamy Mushroom Basil Spaghetti Squash Casserole

We have been receiving quite a few spaghetti squash from Derek’s Aunt Verna and Uncle Glen.  I am always looking for new recipes and have found a few winners this fall.  I like the creamy, toasty crunch that this one packs.

Ingredients:

• 2 small to medium spaghetti squash
• olive oil for sauteeing
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 8 oz. fresh, sliced mushrooms
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 3/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
• 1 cup seasoned panko bread crumbs
• 3 T butter, melted

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Halve spaghetti squash and place cut side down on buttered baking sheet.  Bake for 40 minutes or until tender.  Cool to the point of being able to handle, remove and discard seeds, then shred pulp gently with a fork so that strands resemble spaghetti noodles.  Place strands in a greased casserole dish, discarding shell.  Do not turn off oven.

While squash is baking, heat oil over medium heat and saute onion, mushroom, and basil until vegetables are just tender.  Stir sour cream and onion mixture into squash.  Gently mix in the parmesan cheese.  Combine the panko and melted butter and top casserole evenly with buttered crumbs.

Bake uncovered for 15 minutes.  Serve hot, creamy, and toasty!

Recipe inspired by allrecipes.com.

Photo by me, MyLittleFoodSpot.com

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Chicken Fajitas

I remember, growing up, that chicken fajitas were a big deal.  Not only were they a welcome break from the Hamburger Helper lasagna, meatloaf, and grilled chicken (all of which I love, by the way), but when mom made chicken fajitas, we felt like royalty.  Now that I’m (sort of) all grown up, I enjoy this sizzling entree at restaurants from time to time, but every once in a while you gotta MAKE something that just says, “WOW!  We are special.”

Serve with spicy cheesy refried beans and a garden salad.

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• Salt
• 2 T canola, safflower, peanut or grapeseed oil (a high smoke point oil)
• 1 large onion, sliced lengthwise (root to tip) into 1/4-inch strips
• 3 bell peppers of various colors, sliced into 1/4-inch strips

Marinade

• 2 T lime juice
• 3 T olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 jalapeno, seeded and minced
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Extras

• 8-12 flour tortillas
• Taco sauce
• Sliced avocado
• Sour cream
• Shredded cheese
• Thinly sliced iceberg lettuce dressed lightly with salt and cider vinegar

Combine the marinade ingredients in a Ziploc bag.  Add the chicken, shake well to cover, and let marinate at room temperature for 1 hour.  This can be prepared in advance and marinated in the refrigerator for up to 8 hours, but allow to sit at room temperature for an hour before cooking.

Remove the chicken from the marinade and wipe off excess marinade.  Sprinkle the chicken pieces with salt.

Heat a large cast iron frying pan on high heat for 1 to 2 minutes.  Add a tablespoon of canola oil to the pan and, once the oil begins to smoke, carefully add the chicken breast pieces.  Work in batches, if necessary.  Allow the chicken to sear for 2-3 minutes then turn the pieces over and allow the second side to sear for another 2-3 minutes.

Stack seared chicken on a cutting board and cover with aluminum foil to retain heat and finish cooking as you saute the peppers and onions.

Add another tablespoon of canola oil to the pan and, once the oil begins to smoke, carefully add the onions and peppers to the pan.  Using a metal spatula scrape up the leftover browned bits from the chicken and stir to coat the onions and peppers with the oil and brown bits.  Evenly spread the onions and peppers in the pan.  Leave them to sear undisturbed for 2 minutes, allowing them to blacken a bit.  Stir and continue to cook for another 2 minutes.

If chicken is not quite cooked through, place it back in the pan for a minute or two.  Slice the chicken against the grain into strips and serve at once with the peppers and onions, some warm tortillas, and your favorite toppings.  I opt for diced tomatoes or a good pico de gallo, guacamole and shredded cheese.

Recipe inspired by simplyrecipes.com

Photos by me, My Little Food Spot

Creamy Ham Casserole

It’s certainly not low-fat (lots of “cream” ingredients), nor is it a true favorite of Derek’s or mine, but it’s pretty good and is great for serving to little ones.  It is an especially good beginning finger food for eight month old Henry, just learning to feed himself.

Ingredients

• 4 ounces kluski noodles, cooked according to package directions
• 2 cups chopped, cooked ham
• 1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
• 1/4 cup diced onion
• 1/4 cup sliced celery
• 1 T vegetable oil
• 10 oz. can cream of mushroom soup
• 8 oz. sour cream
• 1/2 cup (2 oz.) shredded colby jack cheese

Cook ham, pepper, onion and celery in oil in a large skillet over medium heat for five minutes, stirring often.  Remove from heat; stir in soup, sour cream, and cooked pasta.  Spoon into a lightly greased 1 1/2 quart casserole dish.

Cover and bake at 350 for 25 minutes.  Sprinkle with cheese and bake, uncovered for five more minutes.  Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Recipe by Southern Living: Easy Weeknight Favorites

Photos by me, My Little Food Spot

Chocolate Vanilla Swirl Cheesecake

I must say, for something chock full of buttery Oreos, cream cheese and sour cream, it was pretty good.  (I did use fat-free sour cream…that makes it healthy, right)?  I immensely enjoyed licking out the bowl and the beaters.

Ingredients

• 20 OREO Cookies, crushed (about 2 cups)
• 3 Tbsp.  butter, melted
• 4 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
• 1 cup  sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 cup  BREAKSTONE’S or KNUDSEN Sour Cream
• 4 eggs
• 6 squares  BAKER’S Semi-Sweet Chocolate, melted, cooled

Preparation

HEAT oven to 325°F. Mix cookie crumbs and butter; press onto bottom of foil-lined 13×9-inch pan. Bake 10 min.

BEAT cream cheese, sugar and vanilla in large bowl with mixer until well blended. Add sour cream; mix well. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing after each just until blended.

RESERVE 1 cup batter. Stir chocolate into remaining batter; pour over crust. Top with spoonfuls of reserved plain batter.

SWIRL batters with knife. Bake 40 min. or until center is almost set. Cool. Refrigerate 4 hours.

Recipe and photo by kraftfoods.com

Creamy Chipotle Black Bean Dip

Ingredients

• 1/2  cup  sour cream
• 1/2  cup  prepared black bean dip
• 1  teaspoon  minced chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
• 1  teaspoon  adobo sauce from can
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt

 

Stir together all ingredients. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

Yields 1 cup

 

Recipe from SouthernLiving.com

Chicken with Chilaquiles and Salsa Verde

 

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sour cream
• 3 to 4 tablespoons milk
• 1 3/4 cups Mexican salsa verde such as Desert Pepper Trading Company or Frontera (sometimes called tomatillo sauce; from a 16-oz jar)
• 1 3/4 cups (14 fl oz) reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 2 1/2 to 3 cups coarsely shredded cooked chicken (from a 2-lb rotisserie chicken, skin removed)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 6 cups coarsely crushed tortilla chips (not low-fat, baked, or flavored; from a 16-oz bag) plus broken chips remaining in bag (about 1 cup)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1. Stir together sour cream and just enough milk to get a thick pourable consistency.
2. Bring salsa and broth to a boil in a 5- to 6-quart heavy pot over moderately high heat. Add chicken, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring, until chicken is heated through, 1 to 2 minutes, then stir in 6 cups tortilla chips and cook until chips are softened (but not mushy), about 1 minute.
3. Transfer chilaquiles to a large platter. Sprinkle with cilantro, and 1 cup broken chips and serve immediately, with thinned sour cream on the side.

Photo by me, MyLittleFoodSpot

Knorr Spinach Dip

Ingredients:

• 10 oz frozen, chopped spinach, thawed and drained
• 16 oz sour cream
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1.4 oz packet Knorr Vegetable Soup and Recipe Mix
• 8 oz can water chestnuts, drained and chopped
• 3  green onions, chopped

 

Mix all ingredients and chill at least 2 hours.  Serve with crackers, veggies or chunks of bread.