Chicken Casserole

Chicken Casserole by meals.com you might want to halve this recipe

4 lbs chicken breasts (I like to keep cooked chicken in the freezer)
8 oz sliced cooked mushrooms, drained
16 oz sour cream
2 cans cream chicken soup
1 1/2 pkg Club crackers
4 c shredded Mozzarella and cheddar cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350. Cook chicken until done.
2. In separate pan mix sour cream, mushrooms, and soup and bring to a slight boil. Add chopped chicken.
3. In 13x10, (or 2 smaller dishes if you are going to freeze some) layer with 1/2 of the crackers*, 1/2 of the cheese, and the soup mixture. Add another layer of cheese and top with crackers.
4. Bake 35-45 minutes.

*Do not put crackers in the dish you are going to freeze. Add those to the top just before cooking.

Note 5-8-10 This made so much I think next time I'll divide it into 3 8x8 containers and freeze 2! That's just because leftovers sit in our fridge until they can be used as science experiments.

Lasagna

There is a story behind this lasagna that I'll never forget.
I had been dating my husband for 3 months and he offered to prepare this dish for me. I had my house on the market and would often throw a basket of odds and ends in the oven to declutter the counter before a quick showing. Little did I know that it wasn't common to look inside an oven before turning it on. Pretty soon the house was filled with smoke and I was quickly on the phone getting another debit card. Thank goodness I didn't throw the loaf of bread in there!

Lasagna by Cathy Lowe Food Network.com
10 lasagna noodles
12 oz ricotta
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 c Parmesan, grated
12 oz mozzarella, shredded (I think it needed more, but you can never have enough cheese)
3 c Meat Sauce*

1. Prepare noodles as instructed on the package. Drain. In a medium bowl, combine ricotta, egg, 1/2 c Parmesan, salt and pepper.
2. Spread 3/4 c meat sauce in bottom of 9x13 baking dish. Lay 3 noodles in pan and spread with ricotta mixture. Sprinkle with the mozzarella and top with meat sauce.
3. Top with remaining mozzarella and 1/2 c Parmesan. Bake for 45 minutes or until bubbly at 375. Remove from oven and let lasagna stand for 15 minutes.

Penne Pasta Bake

Penne Pasta Bake
16 oz penne pasta
1 lb lean ground beef
1 clove garlic, peeled and chopped
28 oz tomato-based pasta sauce
6 oz ricotta cheese
1/2 c grated parmesan cheese

1. Prepare pasta according to directions; drain.
2. Preheat oven to 300.
3. In a large skillet brown ground beef with garlic until no longer pink, about 10 minutes; drain.
4. Add pasta sauce and ricotta cheese; stir to blend. Transfer to a large casserole dish. Stir in pasta. bake, covered, for 10 mnutes. Uncover and sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top. bake another 5 minutes until gold and bubbly.

8 servings