Grits & Greens Casserole

People who have bought CSA shares before and joked about the kale weren't playing. My first CSA box arrived with a LOT of leafy greens, including a big bunch of kale. Fortunately, I had starred some recipes for using all of that kale, including this casserole.

Bacon has magical powers. Just a few slices really makes this dish and cuts some of the bitterness of the greens. The grits have just enough cheese in them to seem creamy. And you can prepare this casserole up to a day ahead of time. We ate this with some sliced andouille chicken sausage.

Grits & Greens Casserole
source: Eating Well via A Year in the Kitchen
Yields 6 servings

Ingredients

* 4 slices bacon, chopped (optional)
* 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
* 1 small onion, diced
* 4 cloves garlic, minced
* 2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth, divided
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 16 cups chopped collard greens or kale, stems removed (about 1 large bunch, 1 1/2-2 pounds)
* 2 cups water, plus more as needed
* 1 cup grits (not instant)
* 3/4 cup shredded extra-sharp Cheddar cheese, divided
* 1/4 cup prepared salsa
* 1 large egg, lightly beaten

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Coat an 8-inch-square baking dish with cooking spray.
2. Place bacon (if using) in a large Dutch oven. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until crispy, 4 to 6 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Pour off the bacon fat.
3. Return the pot to medium-low heat; add oil, onion and garlic and cook, stirring often, until fragrant and starting to brown in spots, 2 to 8 minutes (cooking time will be quicker if you started with bacon). Add 1 cup broth and salt; bring to a boil over high heat. Add collards (or kale); stir until wilted down to about one-third the volume and bright green, 1 to 2 minutes. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until tender, 18 to 20 minutes. Adjust heat during cooking to maintain a simmer, and add water, 1/4 cup at a time, if the pan seems dry.
4. Meanwhile, bring 2 cups water and the remaining 1 cup broth to a boil in a large saucepan. Pour in grits in a steady stream, whisking constantly. Bring to a simmer, whisking constantly. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, whisking often, until thick, about 5 minutes. Combine 1/2 cup cheese, salsa and egg in a small bowl. Remove the grits from the heat and quickly stir in the cheese mixture until combined.
5. Working quickly, spread about half the grits in the prepared baking dish. Top with greens, spreading evenly. Spread the remaining grits over the greens. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup cheese and the reserved bacon (if using).
6. Bake the casserole until hot and bubbling, about 20 minutes. Let stand for about 10 minutes before serving.

Nutritional Info
Per serving: 226 calories; 8 g fat (3 g sat, 2 g mono); 50 mg cholesterol; 31 g carbohydrates; 0 g added sugars; 11 g protein; 4 g fiber; 473 mg sodium; 335 mg potassium.

Chilaquiles Casserole

If there is one genre of food that I constantly find myself attracted to making, it's the "healthy Mexican-inspired casserole." Luckily, there are tons of recipes and variations on recipes of this sort, and, while I have the few that I make over and over again, I have yet to grow tired of experimenting. This version used grated zucchini, which intrigued me, and also provided a use for some enchilada sauce that had been sitting in my pantry for a while. The enchilada sauce adds most of the flavor and heat, though you could add bell peppers, jalapenos, or any other kind of vegetable or pepper to this casserole without any problem. I cut down the cheese by a 1/4 cup, and it was plenty cheesy. This will also make for great leftovers, if not a great picture.

Chilaquiles Casserole
source: Eating Well

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 medium zucchini, grated
• 1 19-ounce can black beans, rinsed (or a 15-oz can, whatever is available)
  
• 1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained
• 1 1/2 cups corn, frozen (thawed) or fresh
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 12 corn tortillas, quartered
• 1 19-ounce can mild red or green enchilada sauce
• 1 1/4 cups shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese (I used 1 cup of full-fat Cheddar cheese)
  

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly coat a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.
2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring often, until starting to brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in zucchini, beans, tomatoes, corn, cumin and salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are heated through, about 3 minutes.
3. Scatter half the tortilla pieces in the pan. Top with half the vegetable mixture, half the enchilada sauce and half the cheese. Repeat with one more layer of tortillas, vegetables, sauce and cheese. Cover with foil.
4. Bake the casserole for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until the casserole is bubbling around the edges and the cheese is melted, about 10 minutes more.

French Toast Casserole

As I've mentioned before, because Joe's schedule is so crazy, we've developed ways of really cherishing the time that we get to spend together. And when we both have the day off, I let him sleep in, and then we have a nice breakfast. For a long time, this meant breakfast tacos, but I'm trying to branch out a little.

I was flipping through the cookbooks I have, but nothing was catching my eye until I saw this. Not to mention that I had all of the ingredients on hand: I just had to make some bread the day before. You can prep it the night before, then all you have to do is stick it in the oven. I prepped it that morning, and after I put it in the oven, I hopped right back in our warm bed with the cats! We knew it was time to get up when the cinnamon came wafting into our bedroom from the kitchen. What a low-stress breakfast!

Those was just enough for the two of us, and I found myself wishing I had a little bacon or sausage alongside it.

French Toast Casserole
source: The Little Big Book of Comfort Food

Ingredients
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tbsp melted butter
1 tsp cinnamon, divided
1 apple, peeled, cored, and sliced
2 tbsp raisins
1/3 of a 1 lb loaf of French bread, sliced
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup chopped pecans (I used walnuts.)

Directions

1. Mix together the brown sugar, the melted butter, and 1/4 tsp of the cinnamon. Add the apple slices and raisins; stir to coat. Pour into a greased baking dish. Arrange the bread slices in an even layer over the apple-raisin mixture.
2. Whisk together the eggs, milk, vanilla, and remaining cinnamon. Pour over the bread, covering it evenly so that all slices are soaking in the liquid. Top with chopped pecans. Cover with aluminum foil and refrigerate overnight.
3. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Remove the dish from the refrigerator while the oven heats. Bake, covered, for 40 minutes. Remove the cover and bake for an additional 5 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
   

Chicken Tamale Casserole

This was seriously good, definitely a recipe that I will make again. Sometimes it's really nice to have recipes where I can come home, mix stuff together, and then read the mail or talk to Joe while it bakes, and that is exactly what I did last night. Plus, it was pretty chilly yesterday, and neither Joe nor I are quite used to the cold, so this was a good reminder of our time in Texas. And on a chilly day, who doesn't want a casserole or stew or chili?

I chopped up a fresh jalapeno in addition to the green chiles for the cornbread, and next time I might do too. It certainly wasn't bland, but a little more heat would not be unwelcome. I was going to serve this with some sauteed corn and salsa, but I had less corn than I thought. A corn and black bean salad or some pinto beans would go perfectly alongside this.

Chicken Tamale Casserole
(source: Cooking Light via Elizabeth's Edible Experience)
Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients

• 1 cup (4 ounces) preshredded 4-cheese Mexican blend cheese, divided
• 1/3 cup fat-free milk
• 1/4 cup egg substitute (I used one egg.)
  
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 1 (14 3/4-ounce) can cream-style corn (I used normal corn.)
  
• 1 (8.5-ounce) box corn muffin mix (such as Martha White) (Or Jiffy! Joe and I had a long conversation about Jiffy corn muffin mix. It's been around since the '30s!)
  
• 1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chiles, drained
• Cooking spray
• 1 (10-ounce) can red enchilada sauce (such as Old El Paso)
• 2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast
• 1/2 cup fat-free sour cream

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 400°.

2. Combine 1/4 cup cheese and next 7 ingredients (through chiles) in a large bowl, stirring just until moist. Pour mixture into a 13 x 9–inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.

3. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until set. Pierce entire surface liberally with a fork; pour enchilada sauce over top. Top with chicken; sprinkle with remaining 3/4 cup cheese. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until cheese melts. Remove from oven; let stand 5 minutes. Cut into 8 pieces; top each serving with 1 tablespoon sour cream.

Calories: 354 (36% from fat)

Fat: 14.1g (sat 7.1g,mono 3.3g,poly 1.2g)

Protein: 18.9g

Carbohydrate: 36.3g

Fiber: 2.5g

Cholesterol: 58mg

Iron: 1.7mg

Sodium: 620mg

Calcium: 179mg

Sausage Bean Casserole

This dinner was surprisingly flavorful. I'm not sure why I expected that it wouldn't be; it just seemed like there wasn't a strong flavor profile when I was making it. I really like the idea of casseroles, but with most of them having a base of pasta or rice, they're just too starchy to have on a regular basis. Cooking Light to the rescue, yet again. This casserole has a base of beans! Ingenious! I followed Brooke's lead and threw some spinach in there for a little green.

This is another great weeknight meal that doesn't require a lot of time or energy and yet tastes like you spent all day in the kitchen. And it makes plenty of leftovers for lunch the next day.

Sausage and Bean Casserole
source: Cooking Light via Brooke

Ingredients

Cooking spray
1 cup chopped onion (about 1 medium)
1 (16-ounce) package light smoked turkey sausage (such as Hillshire Farm), cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices (I used a 14 oz package because that's what was on sale.)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 (16-ounce) cans cannellini beans or other white beans, rinsed and drained
1 bay leaf
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper (optional) (I used a 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper.)
3 (1-ounce) slices white bread (I used pre-made breadcrumbs.)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (I omitted.)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375°.
Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion and turkey sausage to pan; sauté for 5 minutes or until browned. Add garlic, and sauté for 2 minutes. Stir in chicken broth, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Stir in 2 tablespoons brown sugar, tomato paste, dried thyme, freshly ground black pepper, cannellini beans, and bay leaf. Add ground red pepper, if desired. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. (I don't have a Dutch oven, so I cooked the mixture in a stockpot and then transfered it to a 9x13 Pyrex dish to bake.)
Place bread in a food processor, and pulse 10 times or until coarse crumbs measure 1 1/2 cups.
Sprinkle breadcrumbs evenly over bean mixture, and lightly coat with cooking spray. Bake at 375° for 15 minutes or until browned. Discard bay leaf. Sprinkle with parsley.

Yields: 8 servings

Calories: 205 (14% from fat), Fat: 3.3g (sat 1.1g,mono 0.1g,poly 0.5g), Protein: 12.1g, Carbohydrate: 30g, Fiber: 4.4g, Cholesterol: 25mg, Iron: 2.7mg, Sodium: 823mg, Calcium: 77mg

My Favorite Mexican Chicken Casserole

As many brides-to-be do, I was feeling like I should lose a little weight before the Big Day. My weight had been slowly inching upward for a while, and I thought I could look better. After some internet sleuthing, I joined Sparkpeople.com. It's a free website that includes community boards, health and fitness articles, a food diary system, and an exercise diary system in addition to many more features. With Sparkpeople, I lost 20 pounds before the wedding and felt and looked great. Sparkpeople also has a sister site called Sparkrecipes which I frequently browse for simple healthy meals such as this one.

Last week I did pulled pork in the slow-cooker and had a ton of leftovers. I didn't want to eat that many pulled pork sandwiches, so I decided to get creative. I subbed in the pork for the shredded chicken in this recipe, and it was delicious. The pork contributed a lot more flavor than the chicken would have.


Ingredients:
- 1.5 cups crushed lite Tostitos
- 1 lb shredded cooked chicken meat (I subbed shredded pork)
- 1 can (15.5 oz) garbanzo beans, drained
- 1 can (15.5 oz) kidney beans, drained
- 1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
- 1 cup prepared salsa
- 1 cup chopped red onion
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves (I subbed parsley)
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 6 oz reduced fat shredded 4-cheese mexican cheese
- 6 oz fat-free shredded cheddar cheese (I omitted. It didn't need that much cheese.)

Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F). Grease a 13x9 inch baking dish, then scatter the crushed tortilla chips evenly on the bottom.
- Combine chicken, beans, tomato sauce, salsa, onion, cilantro, garlic, salt & pepper in a bowl.
- Place half the mixture evenly in a baking dish. Combine the cheeses, then sprinkle half over the mixture.
- Cover with the remaining half of the chicken mixture and sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top.
- Bake for 30 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

I served with some fat-free sour cream and a side salad with Dijon vinaigrette.

recipe from here