Chicken Asparagus Casserole

This is a casserole that I make every year during the holidays.  My mom always made this. It's one of those recipes that is a tradition.   My mom always boiled a big hen for the chicken broth for noodles and gravy. She would have all this meat left from the chicken and one year she found this recipe and made it to use up the chicken and it became such a hit with our family that she continued to do it year after year.  We had around 30 people at that time for holiday dinners so you couldn't have too much food.  I do not have that many people for holiday dinners and we have too much food.  Every year, I try to cut back on the amount of food that I prepare and my family is always saying "well you have to make this or that" so I never cut back.  We always have leftovers and I have started putting a lot of the food in the freezer and it does great.  You can freeze this casserole and it does great.  Just set it out to unthaw and then warm it up at 350 for about 45 minutes or until it's warmed through and it taste great.

This casserole is rich and all you need to go with it is a salad.

4 cans cut asparagus
Meat from one cooked chicken, cut in bite size pieces
1 cup mayonnaise
2 cups cream of chicken soup
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
11/2 cups of mild cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup of bread crumbs
1 tablespoon of butter

Cook asparagus and drain.  Arrange the asparagus in the bottom of a baking dish.  Place chicken on top of asparagus.  Combine soup, mayonnaise and lemon juice and cover top of chicken with this mixture.  Put shredded cheddar cheese on top of mayo mixture.  Then melt butter and stir in bread crumbs.  When bread crumbs have absorbed the butter and become crumbly, sprinkle over the top of the cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

Quote

Love yourself so much that you don't allow selfish people to take advantage of you.
                                                                                              author unknown

Spinach Quiche and Waldorf Salad

This salad and quiche is a wonderful combination.  This is my mom's Waldorf salad recipe and it is so good.  I haven't made the salad for years and we had this for dinner one night recently and Gary went on and on about how good it was and that I needed to make it more often.  He was right, it really is a great salad and I do need to make it more often.  It pairs well with a lot of things.  It just hasn't been on my radar for a while. 
This is a great brunch combo just add a coffee cake, small cinnamon rolls, blueberry scone or muffin and you will be set.  This is all very rich and believe me this is all you need.

Waldorf Salad
4-5 Fuji or Gala apples (or your favorite Pink Lady is also good) you could add a couple of Granny Smith for a mixture of red and green color
3-4 stalks celery, diced
11/2 cups pecans, roughly diced
1-2 cups miniature marshmallows
Dressing:
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
Whisk together and pour over apple mixture.  The dressing I make from memory.  You can add a little more sugar if that's not sweet enough and also a little more milk if it is too thick.  You can put fresh lemon juice on the apples to keep them from turning and I usually add the dressing right before serving.

Spinach quiche
One nine inch unbaked pie shell.
1 pound lean bacon, fry bacon and crumble
1 white onion, diced
2 cups heavy cream, warmed
4 eggs
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 pound Swiss cheese, grated
1/2 pound Monterey Jack cheese, cut into 1 inch cubes
white pepper (I always use black, never have white on hand)
parmesan cheese
2 cups of baby spinach cut into pieces

I use a glass nine inch pie dish.  If you use aluminum pie plates this will make 2 pies.  After you fry the bacon, remove most of the grease leave one tablespoon and add the one tablespoon of butter and saute onions until transparent.  Layer unbaked pie shell with bacon and then onions, cubes cheese and then the grated Swiss on top. Sprinkle generously with Parmesan cheese and pepper to taste.  Beat eggs into warm cream and add spinach and pour over top.  Bake for 10 minutes at 450 degrees and then 15 minutes at 350.  Cool 10 minutes before slicing.
I cook my quiche in the glass dish for 10 minutes at 450 then 30 to 40 minutes at 350.  It's thicker when you make one pie and it takes a little longer.  It will firm up after it cools a little.

Leftover Roast Beef Sandwich

When I bake a rump roast this is a wonderful way to use the leftovers.  This sandwich is really great and it sure doesn't taste leftover.

It is very simple, just saute some green and red bell peppers along with one onion.  When these are tender set aside.  You could use ciabata bread or a good crisp French roll.  Toast the roll let it cool a little and put on plain mayonnaise or add some basil pesto to the mayo if you have some on hand.  Put on both sides of the roll and put on slices of roast beef and top with your sauted peppers and onions.
Also, you can take one cup on water and add one beef bouillon cube to it and place over medium heat.  When this liquid starts to boil add your slices of roast beef and let this simmer for about 5 minutes.  It really warms up the meat and I think it taste better than added cold slice beef to the sandwich. 
This is how I cook a rump roast and it has wonderful flavor.  I always wash off roast under cool running water and pat dry with paper towel.  Place roast on heavy duty foil.  I put salt and pepper to taste as well as garlic powder.  Then I put on one package of onion soup mix.  If I cooking a 4-6 pound roast I will use 2 packages of onion soup mix.  I don't always do this but you can also slice fresh mushrooms along the sides of the roast. It makes a wonderful mushroom gravy.  I bring the foil up over the sides and crimp it at the top and one end.  The end that is open, I will add about 2-3 cups of water and then close that end of the foil.  I bake the roast at 325 degrees for about 4 hours for a 2-3 pound roast.  If the roast is 4-6 pounds I cook it about 5 1/2 hours. I turn off the oven and let the roast cool down for about 45 minutes.  I've really noticed a difference in the tenderness of the roast when I do this.  Then take the roast out put on a platter and make your gravy.
I make gravy by mixing flour and water together to make a somewhat runny paste.  I empty the broth from the foil into a pan and put the pan on medium heat.  Pour in your flour mixture and stir with a whisk until it thickens.  It turns out great every time and he gravy has wonderful flavor from the soup mix.  It may need a little more salt.  Just taste and see what you think.

Andrea Bocelli

This is pretty interesting.  My last post was about being thankful for hearing and I'm about to tell you of the wonderful Andrea Bocelli concert we attended in Dallas several weeks ago. 

This was another heart's desire for me.  Andrea Bocelli is one of my favorite performers.  After seeing him on T.V. performing a concert in Central Park and one in Tuscany, that was on my list.....I had to see him in person.  We didn't get the concert in Central Park or Tuscany but we did get an unseasonably warm December evening in Dallas.  Great dinner and then the concert.  It was beautiful!  Many times I just sat with my eyes closed listening to how beautiful the music was.  He had a woman violinist who was great as well as two women who separately sang with him at various times and they both had amazing voices.  The range and the force behind their voices was moving.  You could feel their emotions in their music.  Andrea had five encores.  He was so gracious to keep coming back and singing one more time.

Gary became a fan!  He loves the song "Nessun dorma" that Bocelli sang and it is not only playing in his office but I will hear him singing the ending of the song at the top of his lungs.  So funny!  He had a singing part in a play in grade school and he has always told me he missed his calling to be a singer.  (laughing out loud) He makes life fun and enjoyable.   We had a wonderful time and it will always be a memorable and cherished evening.

"Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything."                                                Plato