Broccoli Chicken Casserole

We were looking for a solid, non-carbo heavy casserole. (Carol informs me that she has been telling me for years about casseroles that fit this bill, but apparently I just now have caught on!).

This is a pretty standard casserole with some simple variations - thighs instead of breasts for some added flavor, simmering in broth not water, Progresso instead of Campbell's, and since that is not condensed we add some stuffing to soak up some of the soup and make the final casserole less watery.

Ingredients

• 1 lb of chicken (4 breast halves or 4 thighs)
• 2 pounds of broccoli florets, steamed
• 1 (18 ounce) can Progresso cream of mushroom soup
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1 cup dry stuffing mix
• 1 cup breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup of butter

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Boil chicken until tender in broth. Then shred or cut into bite size pieces.
3. Meanwhile, steam broccoli until crisp but tender.
4. In a small bowl mix together the soup, stuffing and mayonnaise. Set aside.
5. In a 9x13 inch baking dish layer the chicken, broccoli, and soup mixture.
6. Bake uncovered in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes.
7. In the last 10 minutes, saute 1 cup of breadcrumbs in 1/4 cup of butter.
8. Top the casserole with breadcrumbs and bake for 10 minutes more.

Homemade Cream of Tomato Soup

We both have a strong memory of comfort food built around cream of tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. And after cold, windy days like today (our annual Farm Open House, 45 F in a gusty 20 mph wind), we need a bit of super-warm comfort.

The trick with this recipe is not to fall back on making Campbell's instead. It does take about 30 minutes of simmering, but it is worth it. We use our own quarts of tomato puree from the year before. The tomatoes are all gone by then, but I have 14 oz cans of Muir Glen diced tomatoes handy to give it some texture.

The 30 minute simmering time is to allow the basil time to get well-mixed.

And finally, we don't buy cream this way (unless it is going into whipped cream). So I used 1/2 cup of whole milk - not from the store which may have some cream removed, but absolutely fresh off the udder, whole goat milk. The cream there is part of the allure of the texture and gives a nice floor to the sweet tomato flavor.

"Tastes like summer."

Ingredients

• 1 quart of tomato puree, hopefully your own
• 4 medium sized tomatoes, diced OR 14 oz canned diced tomatoes
• 1 Tbsp of dried basil OR 10-15 fresh basil leaves (best)
• 1 broth cube (I used Herb-Ox vegetable bouillon cubes)
• 1/2 cup heavy cream OR 1/2 cup whole milk w/ cream

Steps

1. Add the quart of puree, the diced tomatoes, broth cube and the basil to a medium sized pot. Bring to a fast simmer then down to a low simmer. Hold there for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Once the 30 minutes are up, turn off the heat and stir in the cream/whole milk and serve immediately hot.
3. While the soup is simmering, you might as well start making grilled cheese sandwiches!

Serves 4.