Thursday, November 5, 2009

Baked Ziti


This recipe was soooo yummy. It's a must try. I found this on another person's blog and thought I would give it a try. I would do a few things differently so I'll post her recipe and then a few of my own added suggestions.


1lb ground beef
1 cup onion (chopped)
2 garlic cloves (minced)
1 (32 ounce) jar meatless spaghetti sauce
1 cup chicken broth
1 teaspoon oregano
1 (16 oz) package ziti pasta (cooked and drained)
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large skillet add ground beef, onions and garlic. Cook over medium high heat stirring frequently until the beef is browned. Stir in spaghetti sauce, chicken broth and oregano. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

2. Stir in 1 cup of sauce into the cooked ziti noodles. Spoon ½ of the ziti mixture into a 13×9” baking dish. Sprinkle 1 ½ cups mozzarella cheese and ½ cup parmesan cheese over the top of the ziti mixture. Top with 2 cups of the sauce, then add remaining ziti mixture and top that with the remaining sauce.

3. Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes remove from oven, uncover and sprinkle the top with the remaining mozzarella and parmesan cheese. Return to over and bake for 10 minutes or until the cheese has melted.

*I would definitely add more garlic to this recipe and SALT and PEPPER. It needs an added kick. You could even do the minced garlic like it calls for and then add 1-2 tsp. garlic salt and 1-2 tsp. pepper. Also, an Italian Cheese blend would go perfectly with this dish.

Newlywed Chicken Casserole

For some they may refer to this dish as Poppy Seed Chicken. Well, not me. I like to call it Newlywed Chicken Casserole. Why, you might ask?
Well, when I was first married I didn't know how to cook a single thing. Okay, with the exception of scrambled eggs. That's it. So, I agonized at the thought of "fulfilling my newlywed roles" by having to cook anything. That's when I stumbled onto this recipe and it has become a family favorite that is a MUST have in everyone's recipe box. Still to this day, every time I make it, it reminds me of the newlywed times and how much we grew to love this dish. ENJOY!!

4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts boiled and cubed
1 (16 oz.) container sour cream
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 sleeves from a 16 oz. box of Ritz crackers crumbled (approx. 2 cups)
1/2 stick of butter, melted
1-2 tbsp. poppyseeds


In a medium bowl, combine cooked chicken, sour cream, and soup. Place in a casserole dish. In a small bowl combine crackers, poppyseeds, and butter. Sprinkle over top of chicken mixture.
Cook in a 350* preheated oven for approximately 30 minutes.