Cheeseburger and Fries Casserole

Cheeseburger and Fries Casserole
Recipe adapted from Lauren’s Kitchen
Makes 4 Servings

1 pound 96/4 ground beef
¼ tsp salt and pepper
¼ tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 can condensed cheddar cheese soup
8 tbsp fat-free sour cream
8 oz. frozen French fries
2 oz. 75% Cabot reduced fat cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 375. Bake french fries on baking sheet for 10 minutes while preparing beef. In a skillet over medium heat, brown beef in half of Worcestershire sauce. Cook, stirring occasionally until beef is no longer pink. Drain excess grease, and add seasonings and remaining sauce. Return to heat, and stir in the cheese soup and sour cream until blended. Heat through, 3 minutes, and remove from stove. Transfer to an 8x8 inch baking dish. Cover the ground beef mixture with a layer of partially cooked French fries. Bake for 10  minutes. Remove casserole from oven and sprinkle cheese on top. Return to the oven and bake until cheese has melted, 5 minutes.

Nutritional Information: 403 calories, 26 carbs, 17 fat grams and 31 protein grams.

Review: It really tasted like a cheeseburger! I loved the recipe, the Worcestershire sauce went a long way and the dish was super cheesy and creamy. I worried about how it would reheat, but while the fries did lose their crispiness, it wasn't mushy like I'd feared! The serving size filled me up, and it's definitely a fun, childlike dish. I wouldn't make it for guests (it's just too silly of a dish!), but would definitely make it again for us and think it would be a great meal for kiddos.

One serving!

Cheesy Chicken Broccoli & Rice Bake

Cheesy Chicken Broccoli & Rice Bake
Found on Meet the Dubien’s
Makes 4 Servings

1 can condensed cheddar cheese soup
1 can water
3 oz. shredded cheddar cheese, plus additional for topping if desired
1 cup uncooked regular white long-grain rice
2 cups broccoli florets, chopped small
16 oz. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, raw/defrosted
salt and pepper to taste
¼ cup Italian Panko bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 375. Whisk together soup and water in a large bowl until there are no lumps. Add shredded cheese, broccoli and rice and mix well. Stir in salt and pepper. Place raw chicken in a square baking dish and add soup/rice mixture. Sprinkle bread crumbs on top. Cover with foil. Bake for 55 minutes or until chicken is cooked.

Nutritional Information: 435 calories, 48 carbs, 6 fat grams and 39 protein grams.

Review: Cheesy is right! The cheese soup with shredded cheese made a great sauce that went well with the rice and broccoli. I loved that this one pot meal cooked the chicken and the rice in the baking dish - awesome! The bread crumbs also added a nice crunchy kick. This was easy to put together, and great for pre-cooking as I could make other meals on the stovetop while this one baked! We'll be having this again for sure - it reheated well, too!

Whole pan of yumminess

Slowcooker Mac & Cheese Recipe

Picture coming soon!

Slowcooker Mac & Cheese Recipe

Recipe closely based off of Paula Deen's recipe

1 cup fat-free milk (she used full fat)
¾ tsp dry mustard (she used less)
1 tsp salt (she used less)
4 tbsp light butter with canola oil (she used full fat)
1/2 cup fat-free sour cream (she used full fat)
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can campbell’s Cheddar cheese soup
3 eggs, beaten
2 cups grated sharp Cheddar cheese (next time i'll try light)
1 16-oz. box elbow macaroni (she used less)
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Boil macaroni in a 2 quart saucepan in plenty of water until tender, about 8 minutes. Drain. In a medium saucepan, mix butter and cheese. Stir until cheese melts. In a slow cooker sprayed with nonstick cooking spray, combine cheese/butter mixture and add sour cream, soup, salt, milk, mustard and pepper and stir well. Add eggs. Then add drained macaroni and stir again. Set the slow cooker on low setting and cook for 3 hours, stirring occasionally.

Nutritional Information: whole recipe: 3,293 calories, 395 carbs, 228 fat grams and 137 protein grams. Makes 20 "side" servings: 165 calories, 20 carbs, 12 fat grams and 7 protein grams; Makes 10 "large" servings: 329 calories, 40 carbs, 23 fat grams and 14 protein grams.

Review: Amazing. It really is. It looks like old school mac & cheese and tastes absolutely sinful. It makes a big batch - would be perfect for a get together, a Thanksgiving sidedish, etc. The fat is way too high, but I didn't want to risk changing the recipe any more for the first time I made it! I think you could probably do light though which would really impact the fat. I need to make this again to take a picture, so I'll try it with light cheese!

Slowcooker Chicken Mac and Cheese

Slowcooker Chicken Mac and Cheese

Inspired by About.com
Makes 4 Servings

1 pound chicken
salt and pepper, to taste
garlic powder, to taste
1 can fat-free cream of chicken soup
1 can condensed cheddar cheese soup
8 oz. Macaroni

Rinse chicken and sprinkle with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Mix undiluted soup and pour over chicken in a Crock Pot. Cook on high 3 hours. After three hours, remove chicken, shred it, and add in noodles. Cook on high for 20 minutes until noodles soften.

Nutritional Information: 437 calories, 56 carbs, 7 fat grams and 36 protein grams.

Review: We both REALLY liked this one. I liked that it wasn't soupy but was very flavorful. It reminded me a bit of bacon ranch slowcooker chicken, except more on the cheesy side. I definitely liked the shredded chicken and it was fun cooking the noodles in the slowcooker, rather than separate. This recipe will be made again - probably soon!!