Eat What You Have Days 4-8

Turkey, a photo by powerpig set-ups on Flickr.

Sorry for the delay.  I had every intention of catching everyone up on our pantry project 2 days ago.  I picked up the laptop, logged on, and completely forgot why in the world I had gotten on there in the first place!  It came to me this morning and, well, here I am.

On Friday, the 4th, we had smoked sausage with spinach, red onion, and homemade mac and cheese.  On Saturday , the 5th, we celebrated my Mother-in-law's birthday with dinner at my sister & brother-in-law's house.  We typically get carry out on Sundays, so we picked up a Papa Murphy's pizza.  Using a $3 off coupon from a fund raising card sold by our eldest's football team, it cost us about $11 and we had enough left over to feed 2 of us on leftover night (the 8th). This all makes me sound like a cheater, so here is the recipe from last night:

Chicken and dressing casserole

ingredients:

1 1/2- 2lbs boneless skinless chicken breast

salt and pepper

1 tsp dried basil

3 Tbsp butter, divided

2 Tbsp vegetable oil, divided

3 stalks celery, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

1 tsp dried parsley

8 cups cubed white bread

3 1/2 c chicken broth

1 tsp rubbed sage

3 1/2 Tbsp flour

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Place chicken breast in a pot and just cover with water.  Add salt, pepper, and basil to water.  Bring to a boil and boil until cooked through. (I often use this when I've forgotten to lay meat out early enough.  Not only do you get the chicken cooked, but you get some broth!) Remove chicken from broth and cut into chunks. Reserve broth.  Add chicken chunks and one Tbsp vegetable oil to a skillet and cook over med-high until browned, about 4-6 minutes.  Sprinkle with flour and stir to cover.  Add 1 1/2c chicken broth to skillet and stir until thickened and bubbly.  Pour into the bottom of a lightly greased 9 x 12 pan.

2. Melt one Tbsp of butter with one Tbsp of vegetable oil in a large skillet; Add the celery, onion, and parsley and cook over med-high heat until tender, about 8-10 minutes.  Remove from heat; add bread cubes and 2 cups of reserved broth; gently stir to combine.  Spread evenly on top of chicken mixture and dot with remaining butter.  Bake at 425 until dressing is browned and casserole is bubbly, about 20-25 minutes.


My guys like this served with mashed sweet potatoes.  I peel, cube, and boil 4lbs of sweet potatoes until they can be easily pierced with a fork.  I drain them and place them in my stand mixer (a hand mixer works, too) with a stick of butter, a cup a light brown sugar, and a Tbsp of cinnamon.  This really should be a dessert!