Creamy Veggie Casserole

So rich, so good, so comforting! There can be many variations of this dish depending on what veggies you have on hand and whatever cheese you happen to have. It calls for pimentos but if I don't have any I will sub with chopped tomatoes or red pepper or sun dried tomato, etc... The staples for the sauce are cream of anything soup. This time I used cream of mushroom with garlic (so far my fav) but you can use any cream soup. Then there is a 1/4 cup of mayo to make it extra creamy, then shredded cheese and the juice of one fresh lemon. Of course I have to splash a little white wine in there to give it that extra rich flavor! :) The casserole can be eaten alone or served over rice. Add a fresh green salad and you have a delicious, healthy vegetarian meal. For you carnivores you made add chopped cooked chicken or even shrimp! It's super easy and super yummy!

Recipe: (This is how I made today's variation)

3 crowns of Broccoli (cut up and steamed till tender crisp)
1 large Carrot (sliced and steamed till tender crisp)
2 yellow summer squash (sliced and steamed till tender crisp)

Note: I've used cauliflower before which is very good!

Place steamed (drained) Veggies in a cake pan evenly spread out.

Sauce:
2 cans of Campbell's Cream of Mushroom w/garlic soup
1 small jar of chopped Pimentos
1/2 cup white wine (optional)
1 cup shredded cheese (I used crumbled feta today because that's all I had)
1/4 cup of mayonnaise
Juice of 1 lemon
2 tsp curry powder (optional)
salt and pepper

Mix sauce together and spread evenly over the top of veggies.
Bake uncovered in a preheated 350 degree oven for 35 minutes.
Prepare any type of rice according to package directions.
Serve Veggies over rice... add a fresh green salad on the side and you have a fabulous dinner!

Harvest 3 Bean Vegetarian Chili

Fall is in the air! It was a little foggy this morning and very cool outside so I decided to make a 3 bean vegetarian chili! Placed all the ingredients in the crockpot and six hours later... Yummy!

Three Bean Vegetarian Chili

1 med. yellow onion chopped

4 cloves garlic minced

½ green bell pepper chopped

½ red bell pepper chopped

1 small jalapeño pepper chopped

1 large carrot thinly sliced

1 large stalk celery thinly sliced

2 yellow squashes cut into thick (bite size) chunks

1 small can of corn

1 28oz can of diced tomatoes

2 14.5 oz cans of tomato sauce

1 11.5oz can of V8 vegetable juice

1 14.5oz can of chili beans with spices (I used S&W)

1 14.5oz can of white (cannelloni) beans (drained)

1 14.5oz can of black beans (drained)

1 Tbsp dried oregano

2 Tbsp chili powder

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1 tsp sugar

1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp soy sauce

½ tsp salt

½ tsp of ground black pepper

¼ tsp cumin

¼ cup of red wine (optional)

Place all ingredients in crockpot and stir together.

Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Serve each bowl topped with grated cheese, sour cream and fresh herbs of your choice and a fresh squeeze of lime juice on top for added flavor!

Makes 8-10 servings

Summer Time Veggies and Farmer's Market!

We're having an amazingly mild summer here in Northern California! One of my favoritie things to do every Saturday morning is go to the Farmer's Market here in Morgan Hill. I live downtown so it's literally right around the corner!

I had $20 bucks in my pocket so this is what I got! Aren't they beautiful? I laid them all out on my kitchen table and took this picture. Love all the colors of nature up against my red table!

Last night I made this simple, fresh green bean salad which I will probably eat with grilled salmon tonight, ahhhh! Delish and.... cheap chic!!!

Marinated Green Bean Salad

1 pound of fresh green beans (rinsed, trimmed and cut)
1 cup of cherry tomatoes (rinsed and cut in half)
1 small sweet white onion (cut into thin slivers) Purple onion works well too
1/2 cup balsamic vinaigrette salad dressing (I used Newman's own)

Boil a pot of water and toss in the beans. Let them cook about 3 minutes. Then drain them and rinse with cool water. Place them in a bowl (a pretty bowl is best, lol) with the tomatoes, onions and dressing. Mix to coat with the salad dressing. Refrigerate over night. I re-toss them a couple of more times through out the night to make sure all the beans get marinated well. So crispy, so light, so healthy! Goes well with any meal! Enjoy! :)