The Plucky Housewives

I am always on the hunt for a good, quick casserole recipe.  I also am a buffalo chicken wing lover, so when I saw this recipe, I thought, what the heck, lets give it a try!  No fail today, this was success, through and through. Of course, I have to change it up a bit, right?  Right. So my tips for this one: I use chicken thighs instead of breasts.  As a general rule of thumb, for that matter.  They have more flavor, cook quicker and on the cheaper side. I tried it with both blue cheese and ranch dressing.  I prefer the blue cheese.   BUT, if you are NOT a blue cheese fan, use the ranch! Use your favorite hot sauce.  I use Louisiana. Celery salt is a great addition to this recipe.   However, it's not critical.   You will need a little salt and pepper when you serve. PANKO bread crumbs really make the difference.  Moisten them with the butter.  Again, it adds flavor and helps to crisp up the bread crumbs for a nic...

Creamy Chicken Rollups 1 can of Pillsbury Big & Buttery Crescent Rolls SAUCE 1 (10-3/4 oz) can cream of chicken soup 1 c grated Velveeta Con Queso Cheese 1/2 c heavy cream FILLING 6 oz softened cream cheese 4 T softened butter 1 t garlic salt 1/2 c fine chopped green onions 1 can chopped jalapenos 2 larged cooked chicken breasts (I cook them during the day in the crockpot, while at work with some salt, pepper and onion) 1 c grated Velveeta Con Queso Cheese 1/2 t Lawry's Seasoning Salt 1/2 t fresh cracked pepper 4 T mayonnaise 2 C grated pepper jack cheese Mix chicken soup, 1 c Velveeta Con Queso cheese and heavy cream in a small bowl.   Pour the mix into a 9 x 13 glass baking dish.   In a medium bowl, combine cream cheese, butter, garlic salt, onions, jalapenos, chicken, Con Queso cheese, seasoning salt, pepper and mayonnaise.  Mix completely until well-combined. Open crescent roll package and pull apart the indivi...

So the official name is Lahanodolmades Avgolemono (Cabbage rolls with egg Lemon Sauce).  I love it.  My hubbie liked the cabbage rolls, but is still not converted to the lemon sauce yet.  Its easy, great with the kids help (they love to stuff and roll cabbage leaves) and it cooks on top of the stove and not in the oven, so nice for the spring, summer months as well.  The lemon sauce makes it lighter for this time of year too.  Greek Stuffed Cabbage Rolls with Lemon-Egg Sauce (Lahanodolmades Avgolemono) 2 pounds sweet Italian sausage (seasoned ground lamb sausage is good too) 2 eggs, slightly beaten 3/4 c risotto rice (uncooked) 2 T dried dill or 3 T fresh dill, chopped 1-1/2 t fresh ground sea salt 1 t fresh ground black pepper 1 T fresh dill 1 med onion, chopped fine 1 T olive oil 1 T water 100 g pine nut, coarsely chopped 2 medium sized tomatoes, shredded 3 T fresh chopped Italian parsley 3/4 c olive oil 1 onion sliced, thin 3 med...

My mother, dear Arlene, made this chicken and rice casserole often, and I mean often.  I swear we had it once a week, at least.   It wasn't until I was a single parent that I really understood why it was such a staple.  It was easy, it fed a lot of people (and there were a lot of us) and it tasted pretty good.   It was one of her signature dishes - well signature casseroles.  She even included it a family cookbook put together many years ago by my cousin Todd.   However, the recipe in the family cookbook, just never was right.   Something was off.   Night before last, my daughter called and wanted me to remind her how to make the casserole.  I rattled off the process and thought, ya know, I need to work this all out, cause it just doesn't work that way and here I am perpetuating a not so very good recipe.  Last night, I went to work on figuring out what the issue was with this recipe and what I could do to make it really good. Mind you...

Our new page - Family Favorites has a recipe listed.  Joy's Casserole.  Check it out and enjoy!

Scallops:  They are shell fish.  Their name comes from the French word, escalope, meaning “shell”.  There are two types of scallops most commonly used in cooking – bay and sea scallops.  Bay scallops are smaller (about the circumference of a quarter) , while seas scallops are larger.  Nutritionally, scallops are an excellent source of quite a few vitamins and minerals.  They are high in protein, vitamin B12, phosphorus, magnesium, potassium and omega 3 fatty acids – so a great food for heart health! Nutritional Data for Scallops So here are some interesting pieces of trivia about the scallops:  Scalloped potatoes borrowed their name from the scallop.  The word scalloped originally was a reference to any type of seafood cooked in a cream sauce and served in their shell.  For the designers out their, a scalloped edge is a reference back to the scallops shell and its wavy edge pattern.  I fell in love with scallops when I went to Car...

Sweet Renee - Inspired Corn Pudding I have to pay hommage to a friend of mine for this recipe.  When I was frantically searching for a different sort of corn recipe, she gave me a corn souffle/pudding recipe and much of this one is lifted and inspired by hers.  She is a dear foodie as well, having her own business in the Chicago area, called "Sweet Renee's".   Ill post her brownie recipe later, talk about a sweet chocolate brownie to die for.  But anyway, on to the corn pudding... 1 lb. thick sliced hickory smoked peppered bacon 2- 10 oz. pack of frozen corn OR 5-6 ears of fresh corn 1/2 c onion (chopped fine) 1 c green and red bell peppers (chopped) 4 TBS butter 4 TBS plain flour 2 t salt 1 t paprika 1/2 t mustard powder 1/4 t black pepper (to taste) 1-1/2 cups whole milk (1/2 and 1/2 if you want more soufflé consistency).   2 egg slightly beaten. 1 cup Ritz/Club (buttery) cracker crumbs 3 TBS butter Preheat oven to 350 degrees while mixing up casserole....