It's winter. The sky is a constant dreary gray and there is a chill in the air that just won't go away. The kitchen so warm and welcoming in the spring, summer and fall has cooled a little and doesn't seem to call quite so loudly. I've been cooking yes, some of my favorites, favorites that I've shared with you before and so haven't found the need to re-post them. I've tried a couple of new things, and taken pictures so that I can share when it comes time. However I've noticed that it has been some time since I posted last and so today I will renew my cooking/blogging vigor and get back on the bandwagon.
I'll kick off by sharing what I thought of the Rachael Ray Casserole dish I recently received for review from csnstores.com. When I received the package and opened it the first thing that came to mind was that I really liked the color very rich and right in line with my kitchen decor. I decided I would cook with it that very same night.
The first dish I made was swiss steaks. They turned out lovely, just the way they were supposed to. When it came to removing the casserole from the oven I realized that it has a flat bottom, much different than most of my casserole dishes which all have a slightly concave bottom. Wow, I really like that feature. The flat bottom allowed it to sit very nicely on top of the stove coils as well as the trivet on the table. With my other casseroles I'm always fighting their urge to tip a little if not exactly centered on a surface. I didn't have to do that at all with this dish. The handles are also nice and big and rather than on the sides of the dish, they are on top... which in my clumsy hands means I'm less likely to get burnt. Another thing I like is that the lid is recessed a little rather than sitting on top so if I happen to tilt the dish the lid won't just fall off, a problem I have with my other dishes.
I cooked with the casserole dish again a couple of nights later. This time I was doing a leftover makeover. Something I've been doing a lot of lately and am enjoying the challenge of. For this meal I had some leftover brown rice and chicken from the night before.
I decided to whip up some cheese sauce using Bette Hagman's "Cream Soup Base" that I have premixed and some cheddar. I tossed in some broccoli, chopped up the chicken added a little salt and pepper and mixed it and the sauce all in with the rice and baked it for 30 minutes at 375 topping it with some shredded cheddar and crushed potato chips (ruffle variety) halfway through successfully turning leftovers into a really tasty casserole.
Leftover Makeover - Brown rice and chicken casserole.
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