Seafood Pea-Ista Salad

Since we have afternoon church this year, every fourth Sunday is a linger longer. I love it! I don't have to actually plan a meal, but just have to make some food. For some reason that is just so much easier for me. I have decided that making cupboard project recipes is a great way to try some out because we don't have to it forever. Like this one. I've had it waiting since the very first time I got recipes and have never made it because of the ingredients. The next recipe also was for the linger- longer.

*Kathy Lewis from Murchison, Texas was the second place winner at the Black-Eyed Pea Jamboree (who knew?) in Athens, Texas.

Makes 4-6 servings

1/2 cup mayonnaise or salad dressing
1/4 cup zesty Italian salad dressing
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
2 cups canned green or yellow black-eyed peas, rinsed
8 ounces corkscrew (rotini) pasta, cooked, rinsed, and drained
1 1/2 cups chopped imitation crabmeat (about 8 ounces)
1 cup broccoli flowerets, partially cooked
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1/2 cup chopped tomato
1/4 cup sliced green onions

Combine mayonnaise, Italian salad dressing add cheese in large bowl; blend well. Add peas, pasta, imitation crabmeat, broccoli, pepper, tomato and onions; toss gently to mix. Cover; refrigerate at least two hours.

There is a little note that states, "When pasta is served with legumes all the essential amino acids are present, making it a good choice for a vegetarian meal."

I was skeptical about the crab and the black-eyed peas. It got rave reviews from people one of which said it was a great use of beans. Big Chubb LOVED it because of the crab. It was okay, but i will probably never make it again. I stared at the bean aisle in Wal-Mart for about 5 minutes trying to find those dang black-eyed peas.

Not related to food at all, here is a picture of the front of our house.

I'm hoping to eventually get shutters for the two smaller windows in the same plum color. Someday when we have extra money it might happen. And, a house down the street sold for $130,000. When we eventually move I'm hoping we can get the same type of deal :)

Tommy's Ham Casserole

Here is yet another leftover ham recipe.  I found something incredibly similar on pinterest, but it called for a roux instead of cream of mushroom soup.  Personally, I would have made the pinterest recipe instead because of that, but didn't for the sake of the blog. Once again, sorry, no picture.

Tommy's Ham Casserole
from allrecipes

2 c cubed or shredded ham
3 c cooked macaroni
3/4 c shredded cheddar cheese
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/2 can milk
1/4 c dried bread crumbs

1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Ina  casserole, combine the ham, macaroni, cheese, soup, and milk.  Mix together well.
3. Bake, covered, at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.  Uncover, top with bread crumbs, and bake, uncovered, for ten more minutes.

It was better than I thought it would be.  It didn't looked very appetizing and I know I would have preferred a homemade sauce more, but it was okay.

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Monday was not a fun day for us. It started out with a very hopeful interview near Indy and ended with the car being towed all the way back to Muncie many hours after it broke down.  We got back at 5:00 and I needed to make dinner still.  Luckily, this recipe was so easy I could still whip it up with the little energy I had left. And I knew it would be good, because it comes from Mary Murray.

Baked Macaroni and Cheese
Mary Murray

I did not use macaroni, just rotini I had hanging around

Serves 5-6
8 oz Macaroni, cooked
1 lb. Container cottage cheese
3/4 c sour cream
8 oz pkg. Shredded cheddar cheese
1 egg, beaten
1 t salt
1/8 t pepper

Combine all ingredients in a 1.5 quart casserole dish.  Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

Yeah, we liked it. It's not your traditional macaroni and cheese with lots of cheddar cheese, but is more like a delicious pasta casserole.  Um, yum. It's not healthy by any means, but still good every once in a while.

This random picture shows the little kid's personality. After many trips to Wal-Mart where she carried this ball around the entire store, we spent a whopping $2 to buy it for her. She wouldn't even let it go to drive home.

Chowder Macaroni Bake

I have a pamphlet from Campbell's Chunky Soups called Quick &Easy Hearty Dishes. Each one features a Campbell's Chunky Soup.

Here's a grand way to please macaroni fans--the addition of Clam Chowder is a bright new idea.

1 can (19 ounces) Campbell's Chunky Clam Chowder Soup
1 1/2 cups cooked elbow macaroni
1 can (about 8  ounces) tomatoes, chopped and drained
1 cup shredder Cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon dry mustard

In a 1 1/2-quart shallow baking dish (10x6x2"), combine soup, macaroni, tomatoes, 1/2 cup Cheddar cheese, Parmesan cheese and dry mustard. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes or until hot; stir. Top with remaining cheese; heat until cheese melts. Makes about 4 cups.

Well, where should I start. It came together easy. That is about the best thing I can say for the recipe. I had a blonde moment and put in a whole can, 15 ounces, of diced tomatoes. It did nothing for the recipe. I am not a fan of chunky soups, and clam chowder is not even close to one I can stand. I started with low expectations and they were met pretty low.

Big Chubb said it was weird, but still ate it and the leftovers for lunch the next day. Little Chubb wouldn't touch it. I ate a helping to form an opinion.

We will never eat this again, and I do not look forward to the rest of the recipes in this booklet.

Cincinnati Chili

I've been wanting to make this for a long time.  Since Muncie is only a couple hours from Cincy, there are some Skyline Chili restaurants around the area and we've talked about how adding cinnamon makes them so different.  The Cannon Center served it and none of my friends ever liked it, but I did.  Spaghetti is not a favorite in our house, but I thought the extra flavor and spice would be a happy change and it was.  We had it with a nice seven layer salad, which will be the feature food on the blog in a few days.

Cincinnati Chili
from McCormick

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 55 minutes

Ingredients:
1.5 lbs. ground beef
1 c onion, chopped
Cincinnati Spice Blend:
2 T chili powder
1 t garlic powder
1 t cinnamon
1/2 t allspice
2 t sugar
1/2 t salt

1 can tomato sauce
2 c water
8 oz cooked spaghetti
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 -1 c cheddar cheese
1/2 c chopped onion

Directions:
1.  Cook ground beef and onion in large saucepan over medium-high heat until beef is no longer pink.  Drain.
2.  Add spice blend, tomato sauce, and water.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes (do not cover), stirring occasionally.
3.  Serve chili over spaghetti.  Top with kidney beans, shredded cheese, and chopped onion as desired.

It was good.  I don't know if I would call it a favorite, but it was really very good.  The husband liked it way more than plain old spaghetti, the kid had a lot of fun eating long strings of noodles, and everyone thought it was very filling.  I only used one pound of meat, and it will still give us leftovers for days.  I would recommend it, but it just might not be your cup of tea.

Debbie's Salad

From Mary Murray

1 c. oil
1 c. white vinegar
1 c. sugar
1 pkg. Good Seasons Zesty Italian Dressing mix
1 lb. package rotini pasta, cooked
red onion, sliced green pepper, chopped olives, cheese cubes all to taste

Combine dressing ingredients. Toss pasta with desired amount of remaining ingredients. Add dressing to taste; blend well and chill.

I had been wanting to make this for a long time, and yesterdays linger longer at church was the perfect opportunity. It was a good pasta salad. The dressing is a sweet dressing, but the sweetness was evened out by the green pepper and red onion. The Big Chubb and I both liked it. I wish I would have had more cheese to put in, but it was fine with what I had.

Big Chubb asked if I was sure I wanted to make a Cupboard Recipe for the potluck without knowing how it would turn out. I reassured him that it would be fine because any recipe from Mary was bound to be good. And, it was.

Tuna Florentine Casserole

"The true taste of Italy comes alive in this superb tuna casserole. Delightful mix of spinach, tender noodles and tune bakes with onions, mushroom soup and topped with Swiss cheese." --Chicken of the Sea

Ingredients:
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 tablespoons butter or 2 tablespoons margarine
1 (10 3/4 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
8 ounces sour cream
1/2 cup milk
1 tablespoon lemon juice
3/4 teaspoon seasoning salt
1/8 teaspoon ground thyme
1/8 teaspoon dry mustard
1 dash ground pepper
4 ounces noodles or 4 ounces macaroni, cooked and drained
10 ounces frozen chopped spinach, defrosted,drained and squeezed dry
1 (6 ounce) can chunk light chunk tuna in water, drained and flaked
4 ounces shredded swiss cheese
1/2 teaspoon paprika

Directions:
Preheat oven 350°F. Grease a 1 1/2-quart shallow baking dish. In medium saucepan cook onion in butter until transparent. Add soup, sour cream, milk, lemon juice, seasoned salt, thyme, dry mustard and pepper and mix well. Stir in noodles and spinach. Place half the noodle mixture into prepared baking dish.
Cover with tuna and half the cheese. Repeat with remaining noodle mixture and cheese and sprinkle with paprika. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until edges are bubbly. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

We all thought this was gross. I was going to mark it as a fail, but I had the leftovers the next day, and somehow the flavors melded for the better and the weird bite from the lemon juice was gone. I still don't recommended making it unless you really are a big fan of goopy tuna, spinach, lemon juice, dairy products, and condensed soup casserole.

Nutty Cheese Tortellini

This is a Taste of Home recipe that I've been wanting to try. I've been putting off making it because it's more expensive than our normal dinner fare, but I finally got the stuff for it.

Ingredients

1 package (9 ounces) refrigerated cheese tortellini
1/2 cup butter, cubed
1/2 cup minced fresh parsley (I used dried)
1/3 cup chopped walnuts, toasted
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
Coarsely ground pepper to taste

Directions

Cook tortellini according to package directions; drain and keep warm. In the same pan, melt butter. Stir in the tortellini, parsley and walnuts; toss to coat. Sprinkle with cheese and pepper. Yield: 3 servings.

Originally published as Nutty Cheese Tortellini in Taste of Home February/March 2008, p54

Favorite! I'm glad because I haven't had many really good main dish Cupboard Project recipes. It was fast to put together, and the flavors went really well together. I normally think tortellini isn't worth buying because most of the filling flavor is overpowered with other stuff in the recipe (especially with marinara sauce), but that wasn't the case. The mild flavor of nuts and parsley worked well. I used half the butter, and it was still plenty. Next time I will probably only use 2-3 tablespoons. And toasting the walnuts definitely was worth the effort. Not recommended for nut-haters. C (who likes some nuts) carefully picked around the walnuts and spit out any mouthfuls where a nut snuck in.

Gnocchi with Zucchini Ribbons and Parsley Brown Butter

Brooke just threw up all over me.  Actually, all over everything--the floor, her beloved teddy, the couch, herself, my hair, and down my shirt.  We finally got everything cleaned up and the smell of vomit lingers in my nose.  Needless to say, food does not sound very appetizing right this moment.  Good thing I had already cleaned up this tasty dinner.

Gnocchi with Zucchini Ribbons and Parsley Brown Butter
from eatingwell.com

I used whole wheat gnocchi

Ingredients

• 1 pound fresh or frozen gnocchi
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 medium shallots, chopped
• 1 pound zucchini, (about 3 small), very thinly sliced lengthwise (see Tip)
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

Preparation

1. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Cook gnocchi until they float, 3 to 5 minutes or according to package directions. Drain.
2. Meanwhile, melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook until the butter is beginning to brown, about 2 minutes. Add shallots and zucchini and cook, stirring often, until softened, 2 to 3 minutes. Add tomatoes, salt, nutmeg and pepper and continue cooking, stirring often, until the tomatoes are just starting to break down, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in Parmesan and parsley. Add the gnocchi and toss to coat. Serve immediately.

Well, I love this meal.  Jacob doesn't like zucchini, so he wasn't a big fan, but he ate it graciously.  Brooke wouldn't touch the zucchini with a ten foot pole (side note--I'm never going to get my zucchini week with a family that doesn't like zucchini), she already dislikes tomatoes, and she thought the gnocchi had a weird texture, so she kept putting it in her mouth, then spitting it right back out.  My only issue was the nutmeg.  Maybe it's my altered taste buds, but I felt like I put too much in.  Anyway, I'm looking forward to eating leftovers for lunch tomorrow.  I highly recommend this to anyone who wants a quick, tasty dinner. 

Untitled Shrimp and Pasta Stuff

This was a splurge dish, sort of. I bought the shrimp from Smith's, where there was a lousy selection. I opted for the 12 oz bag of salad shrimp over the next step up, which cost $13(!). They were small, but still tasted like shrimp!

Ingredients
6 ounces fettuccine and/or spinach fettuccine, cooked

\

12 ounces fresh or frozen peeled and deveined shrimp
2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms
1 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil or cooking oil
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 tablespoon instant chicken bouillon granules
1 tablespoon snipped fresh basil
1 1/2 teaspoons snipped fresh oregano
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup snipped fresh parsley

Directions
1. Thaw shrimp, if frozen. Halve lengthwise; set aside.
2. Cook pasta according to package directions; drain.
3. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan cook mushrooms, onion, and garlic in hot oil until onion is tender but not brown. Combine wine, bouillon granules, basil, oregano, cornstarch, and pepper. Add to saucepan. Cook and stir until bubbly.
4. Add shrimp to wine mixture. Cover and simmer about 2 minutes or until shrimp turn opaque. Stir in tomatoes and heat through. Add shrimp mixture, cheese, and parsley to hot pasta; toss to coat pasta. Makes 4 servings.

Make-ahead tip: Shell and devein shrimp, chop the vegetables, and snip the herbs; cover and chill separately up to 4 hours. Cook pasta and assemble as above.

Brian and I agreed that this tasted good, but there was something missing. It needed something to hold everything together, and the sauce was too thin to do that. If you are going to splurge and buy shrimp, don't use it in this recipe.

Easy Ham and Noodles

This is what was for dinner last night.   Easy Ham and Noodles

Rated: Submitted By: BOBKAT2000 Photo By: GodivaGirl Prep Time: 10 Minutes Cook Time: 30 Minutes Ready In: 40 Minutes Servings: 4

"Leftover ham gets a second chance to please your palate in this simple casserole of egg noodles, Cheddar cheese and cream of mushroom soup. Add sweet green peas for color and flavor."

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked egg noodles 1 cup cubed, cooked ham 1/2 cup cubed Cheddar cheese

1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup 1/2 (10.75 ounce) can milk

Directions:

1.	Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2.	Place the noodles, ham, cheese, soup and milk in a 9x9 inch casserole dish and mix well.
3.	Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 25 to 30 minutes.

I have been nesting and one thing that has been driving me crazy is our freezers (and pantry, but that is another story). I found some leftover ham I had frozen from our New Year's ham this year, so I thought "why not make this while the temperature is below 70 degrees."  It was okay. The printed version I had said it had been scaled to 8 servings, which I should have paid attention to and halved the recipe. I didn't, and I think I may have not cooked quite enough noodles because it was pretty saucy. I added some peas from a partially used bag to get it out of the freezer, too. Little Chubb took a break from his food strike and ate quite a bit of it. Big Chubb didn't like the fact that there was no flavoring besides the ham and cream of mushroom soups. He has high hopes for some onions or garlic or something else next time we eat it.

Tomato Beef Bake

As a preface, since being pregnant I have had low tolerance for foods that have an odor. Especially onions and green peppers. Last summer we got some awesome deals on them so I froze a whole bunch to use throughout the year. Convenient and thrifty, yes. But, our freezers have smelled like green peppers and onions for months and nothing gets rid of the smell. After working at veg prep I also cannot stand the smell of soy sauce, so this recipe had quite low expectations from my end.

Tomato Beef Bake

6 ounces medium sized egg noodles
1 lb ground beef
1 medium onion chunked
2 garlic cloves minced
3 medium tomatoes chunked
1 medium green pepper chunked
1/4 cup Kikkoman soy sauce

Cook noodles in boiling water according to package directions, omitting salt; drain. Brown beef with onion and garlic; cook until onion is translucent. Add remaining 3 ingredients; stir to combine. Bring to boil and cook only until tomatoes are heated through. Stir in noodles; turn into 2-qt baking dish. Bake, uncovered, in preheated 35o F. oven 20 minutes.

Big Chubb and I were surprised because it turned out to be quite palatable. There was not much in the way of sauciness to it, which made it a little strange, but it tasted good. It was also pretty quick and easy to make. We had it with sauted zucchini to remind us that eventually we will have weather above freezing.

We will probably eat this again. It seems that it could be quite versatile and one could use ground turkey and whole wheat noodles to make it healthier.

Four-Cheese Chicken Fettuccine

Four-Cheese Chicken Fettuccine

TOTAL TIME: Prep: 20 min. Bake: 30 min. MAKES: 6-8 servings

Ingredients
8 ounces uncooked fettuccine
1 can (10-3/4 ounces) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, cubed
1 jar (4-1/2 ounces) sliced mushrooms, drained
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup butter
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese
2-1/2 cups cubed cooked chicken
TOPPING:
1/3 cup seasoned bread crumbs
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 to 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Directions
Cook fettuccine according to package directions.
Meanwhile, in a large kettle, combine the soup, cream cheese, mushrooms, cream, butter and garlic powder. Stir in cheeses; cook and stir until melted. Add chicken; heat through. Drain fettuccine; add to the sauce.
Transfer to a shallow greased 2-1/2-qt. baking dish. Combine topping ingredients; sprinkle over chicken mixture. Cover and bake at 350° for 25 minutes. Uncover; bake 5-10 minutes longer or until golden brown. Yield: 6-8 servings.

I thought this would be better than it was. It wasn't bad, I just apparently had too high expectations. One change I made that might have made a difference was substituting mild cheddar for the Swiss cheese. I just had most of the other ingredients and thought it would be the closest I would ever get to having all the stuff to make it. I also used a whole pound of pasta since I didn't have mushrooms and probably used  less chicken than called for, so there seemed to be a lot of sauce for only 8 ounces of pasta.

Brian really likes dishes like this--heavy on the carbs and light on the veggies. I thought it was fine, but not worth the unhealthiness and expensiveness of the ingredients. I froze half of it before baking, and the half that I baked fed us for two meals.

Chicken (Turkey) Tetrazinni

Thanks to Jan for finding more recipes to give me because I was getting a little stuck on the recipes I had. This one is definitely an old recipe. You'll see why.

Chicken (Turkey) Tetrazinni

1 hen (or about 3 cups turkey)
2 pounds spaghetti
4 cans cream of mushroom soup
1 cup chopped celery
2 green peppers, chopped
4 small cloves garlic (or garlic powder)
4 medium onions, chopped
1/2 cup chopped almonds (optional)

Boil hen until tender. Cut in chunks. Cook spaghetti in broth until tender. Tenderize vegetables in a little oil. Add to the spaghetti. Add the meat and mushroom soup. Add the almonds and salt and pepper to taste. Pour into casserole. Cover with grated cheese. Bake in moderate oven 30-40 minutes.
PS what is a moderate oven? I guessed at 350.
 
(Don't drain all of spaghetti--it's better when it is moist.)

Serves 8-10 with seconds. Makes a big batch--I freeze half and serve another time.

Submitted by Rena Roberts.

Well, no that I have thoroughly read the recipe I have discovered I didn't quite make the recipe correctly. I guess that is what happens when you get stranded in town after finishing grocery shopping because the brakes on your car lock up. Oh well. It still tasted ok. Though the Little Chubber decided it was more fun to fling the spaghetti around on his fork than it was to eat it.

Our biggest complaint was that it was bland. But, since I forgot to add the garlic and didn't read the part about salt and pepper to taste I think that might be why it was bland. I also opted to not include the almonds. I don't care for nuts in casseroles. Big Chubb also said that the celery seemed to give it a strange taste. I have used other recipes for this before, and we both agreed it was a better recipe.

I also halved the recipe. Big Chubb is a BIG eater, but I knew that even he couldn't make a dent on the whole recipe. Plus, a whole hen? 4 medium onions? 4 cans of cream of mushroom? One 9x13 was plenty more than enough for us. In fact, it will conveniently be served for dinner again tonight. Glad dinner is done (minus a veggie).

Stove Top Mac-n-Cheese ala Alton Brown

Before Christmas, I was looking for a pretty quick homey dish to make, and this one was the winner.

Ingredients

1/2 pound elbow macaroni
4 tablespoons butter
2 eggs
6 ounces evaporated milk
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Fresh black pepper
3/4 teaspoon dry mustard
10 ounces sharp cheddar, shredded

Directions

In a large pot of boiling, salted water cook the pasta to al dente and drain. Return to the pot and melt in the butter. Toss to coat.

Whisk together the eggs, milk, hot sauce, salt, pepper, and mustard. Stir into the pasta and add the cheese. Over low heat continue to stir for 3 minutes or until creamy.

It was pretty easy to make. I had to run to the school and get Ben and Russell, so I cooked the macaroni, tossed it with the butter and then mixed the next set of ingredients together. Then when we got back 5 minutes later, I mixed finished the recipe.

I cooked it a little longer just to make sure that the eggs got cooked. We all liked it. The consistency was just what I wanted, and the taste was almost just what I wanted. I would add less/different hot sauce if I made it again.

I know it isn't the awesome mac-n-cheese recipe Mom loves, but it was pretty darn close (and used less cheese).

Macaroni a la King

I don't have a whole lot of meal recipes from Mom. It's mostly breads and other baked goods. But, I pulled this little 3x5 card out and decided I would give it a try. It had no name or instructions or measurements on parts.

1 c. mac
2 T butter
3/4 c. celery
pepper
onion
soup
milk 1/3 c.
1 c. cheese
1/4 t. salt
nutmeg

I took my liberties with this recipe since that was all I was given. Here is what I did.

Cook macaroni according to directions on box. While that is cooking chop up celery, onion, and green pepper. When macaroni is done, drain and put in greased 8x8 pan. Melt butter, and saute vegetables. Add 1 can cream of chicken soup and milk, and stir until heated through. Take off heat and add cheese, salt and nutmeg. Pour on top of macaroni. Sprinkle with a little more cheese (because more cheese makes it better). Cover with foil and keep in fridge until ready to eat. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Cook until heated through and bubbly.

This actually turned out better than I expected! Ben said it was delicious and ate all that remained once everybody else had some. We both agreed that the celery flavor was the predominant flavor of the dish. I would leave it out, but Ben liked it. And, I realized afterwards that it probably meant black pepper instead of green pepper. It just added another vegetable and helped cancel out some of the celery taste. I used both co-jack and mozzarella cheese and used more than one cup (because it makes things better).

The only reason why it sat in the fridge overnight was because we ended up just eating dinner at Girl's Camp when I went to pick Ben up. They made pizzas by spreading coals on the gravel driveway, placing pop cans with water in the coals, rested the pizza pans on the pop cans, and covered it with a box (I think lined with foil). It worked pretty well, but the leftover pizzas we had were mostly bread with very few toppings on top.

And, finally, not a cupboard recipe, but a delicious recipe that everyone should know about, we had this plum raspberry upside down cake from Martha. It is so yummy! Ben always looks forward to it every summer when the plums and berries and in season.

I accidentally whipped the cream into almost butter (by hand!).

Chicken Tetrazzini

Chicken Tetrazzini from Taste of Home

Prep: 15 min. Bake: 30 min. Yield: 8 Servings

Ingredients
2 cups sliced mushrooms
1/4 cup butter, cubed
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup half-and-half cream
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon pepper
3 tablespoons white wine or chicken broth, optional
3 cups cubed cooked chicken
8 ounces spaghetti, cooked and drained
3/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions
In a large skillet, cook mushrooms in butter until tender. Stir in flour; gradually add the chicken broth. Bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from the heat; stir in the cream, parsley, salt, nutmeg, pepper, and wine if desired. Fold in the chicken and spaghetti.
Turn into a greased 3-qt. baking dish; sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 30 minutes or until heated through. Yield: 8 servings.
Nutritional Facts
1 serving (1 cup) equals 258 calories, 13 g fat (6 g saturated fat), 71 mg cholesterol, 763 mg sodium, 13 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 21 g protein.

I made this for our Fast Sunday dinner. It was pretty good. I like the nutmeg in it. It isn't all that healthy, but it has the benefit of being healthier than normal cream-based tetrazzini recipes. I really wanted to add vegetables, but I refrained in the name of sticking to the recipe. I used a can of mushrooms and I highly doubt I put 3 cups of chicken in. I might have added one. And I used Camille's whole milk instead of half and half. I'll probably make it again, but in the future I'll throw in some vegetables--maybe broccoli or spinach.

I always cringe when I see the serving sizes of these things. We ate half of this recipe. Then again, we were breaking our fast, and all we had with it was a small salad.