Blueberry Yum Yum

Blueberry Yum Yum
2 c. blueberries
1/4 c water
2 c. sugar–divided
1/4 c. cornstarch
3 tbsp. water
1 c flour
1/2 c. softened butter
1 c. finely chopped pecans
1-8oz. package of cream cheese (softened)
1 pint heavy whipping cream


Combine blueberries, 1 c. sugar and 1/4 c. water in a saucepan, cook over low heat until berries are soft. Combine cornstarch and 3 tbsp. water in a small bowl, stir well. Add mixture to blueberries, cook stirring constantly until thickened. Set aside to cool. Combine flour, butter, and pecans in a bowl, mix well to make dough. Press dough evenly into a 9×13 inch pan. Bake at 350F for 20 minutes, let cool. Combine cream cheese and 1 c. sugar, beat until smooth. Whip cream until stiff, fold into cream cheese mixture. Spread topping evenly over cooled crust. Pour blueberry mixture evenly over topping and refrigerate. Cut into squares and serve.

This may be my new favorite dessert...  I could have eaten the whole pan.

For the crust, it was a little difficult to press the dough on to the bottom of that huge pan with the softened butter. It might help to let the dough sit in the fridge for a few minutes to set up a little. Or flour your hands to keep it from sticking to your hands. I didn't think it would be enough for this entire dessert but it was just perfect! This would be good with a graham cracker crust too. Mmm.

It was fun making my own blueberry sauce but you could definitely buy a can of  blueberry pie filling for this to save time.

Yummy!!!! This gets 5 stars from me!

Baked Spaghetti

Baked Spaghetti
1 lb ground beef, browned and drained
1 c. chopped onion
1 c. chopped green pepper
1 T. butter
1 quart tomatoes with liquid (1 28 oz. can diced tomates)
1 can sliced ripe olives, drained
12 oz. spaghetti, cooked and drained (about 2 cups dry, broken spaghetti, loosely packed)
2 c. shredded cheddar cheese (8 oz)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/4 c. water
1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese

In a large skillet, sautee onion and green pepper in butter until tender. Add tomatoes, olives, oregano and beef. Simmer uncovered for 10 minutes.

Place half of the spaghetti in greased 9x13 in. baking dish. Top with half of the vegetable mixture, sprinkle with 1 c. cheese. Repeat layers. Mix the soup and water until smooth; pout over the casserole. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake, uncovered at 350F for 30 minutes or until heated through.

Makes 12 servings

Ahhh. This is comfort food for me. This is one of my favorite meals that my mom makes. It made me think of her and miss her! (Hi, mom!) Enjoy!!!

Easy Chicken Pot Pie

Easy Chicken Pot Pie

1 bag (1 lb) frozen mixed vegetables, thawed, drained
1 cup diced cooked chicken
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 cup original Bisquick mix
1/2 cup milk
1 egg

1. Heat oven to 400F. In ungreased 2-quart casserole dish, mix vegetables, chicken and soup until blended.
2. Stir remaining ingredients in medium bowl with wire whisk or fork until blended. Pour over chicken mixture.
3. Bake uncovered about 30 minutes or until crust is golden brown. 6 servings.

This was so easy to put together. I found this recipe on a box of Bisquick and was immediately inspired to try it. AND we already had everything we needed for it so no need to go to the grocery store! Even better. I will be honest, though, and this is probably just my pregnant body speaking, that it lacked a little bit of flavor to me. I felt like the sauce needed to be more than just the soup. Like it needed some sour cream or something to give it a little more flavor. Everyone else seemed to like it just fine, though. So, enjoy!

Chicken and Broccoli Casserole

Chicken and Broccoli Casserole

6 boneless chicken breasts (about 1 pound)
broccoli - fresh
2 cans cream of chicken soup
Parmesan cheese
cheddar cheese, grated
1 cup milk
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup miracle whip
4 teaspoons lemon juice

Boil chicken in water. Then cook broccoli until tender (crisp).
Spread broccoli over bottom of 9x13 baking dish. Cut up (or shred) chicken and place it on top of the broccoli.
Combine soup, milk, mayo and miracle whip. Heat in saucepan until warm. Remove from heat and add cheddar cheese and lemon juice. Stir until cheese melts.

Pour sauce over chicken and broccoli. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil and bake @ 350F for 30 minutes; then uncover and bake an additional 30 minutes.

I liked this recipe. A good go-to one, I think. I did, however, make a few changes.

1. We didn't have any mayonnaise and I didn't want to buy a whole jar of it just for one recipe. So I substituted with 1 cup of sour cream instead of the mayo and miracle whip.
2. I bought frozen chopped broccoli. I ended up cooking about 5 cups, which I thought was a lot. I would double that. So that would be a big family sized bag of broccoli or maybe 2 heads of fresh broccoli or something.
3. This recipe didn't say how much cheddar cheese to use. I ended up using about 1 1/2 to 2 cups of cheese. Probably didn't need that much, but I like cheese :)
4. We didn't have any lemon juice either. But I did find a whole lemon in the fridge. So I used my Food Network knowledge to juice a lemon. Microwave for about 10 seconds. Roll lemon on counter to release juices. Cut lemon in half width-wise and squeeze. This used the juice of half a lemon. 

Also, I didn't really feel like this was a one dish meal. I still felt hungry and like it needed something else. It was also a little runny so I'm wondering if this isn't supposed to go on top of rice or noodles or something. Or maybe adding more broccoli would fix that problem. I'm not sure. Enjoy!