The Best Casserole Cookbook Ever (73 page)

2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

2 cups shredded low-fat Cheddar cheese

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cup grated Parmesan cheese

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to
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pound sliced pepperoni (optional)

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1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Lightly oil a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
   
2. Cook the macaroni in boiling salted water according to package directions and drain.
   
3. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown the beef, breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Add the oregano, basil, salt, onion, and green pepper (if using).
   
4. Spread out the cooked macaroni in the baking dish and top with the meat in an even layer. Drizzle with the tomato sauce and sprinkle the top with the mozzarella and Cheddar cheeses. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the casserole is bubbly. Top with the Parmesan and the pepperoni (if desired).
   

This is really a very cheesy meat pie with a pizza-flavored filling. For the filling, you can choose the same ingredients as your favorite pizza toppings. In place of the Italian sausage, you could use ground beef, but in that case, be sure to season the filling more liberally.

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1 pound bulk Italian pork sausage (mild or medium)

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teaspoon fennel seeds (optional)

1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

4 recipes
Flaky Pastry
, combined into 2 large balls and refrigerated for 30 minutes

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

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1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
   
2. In a medium skillet, cook the sausage, stirring, over medium heat for about 10 minutes, until thoroughly cooked. Drain any excess fat. Stir in the fennel seeds (if using), tomato sauce, and Italian seasoning.
   
3. Roll out one ball of the pastry into a rectangle about 10 by 14 inches. Transfer to a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. The pastry should cover the bottom and come
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   inch up the sides of the dish.
   
4. Spread out the sausage mixture over the pastry and sprinkle with the cheese.
   
5. Roll out the remaining ball of pastry so it’s a little bit smaller, about 9 by 12 inches, and lay it over the top of the filling. Crimp the edges and cut a few slits in the top to let steam escape. Sprinkle with the sesame seeds and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the dough is golden brown. Cut into squares to serve.
   

If your kids object to anything spicy, you can omit the chili powder. But you never know. We have a granddaughter who declared one day, “I like spicy!” For busy days, you can assemble this ahead of time, refrigerate it, and then pop it in the oven when you get home.

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1 pound extra-lean ground beef

1 medium onion, chopped

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 can (14 ounces) stewed tomatoes with their juice

1 cup water

1
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cups rotini (spiral pasta)

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1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
   
2. Brown the beef in a large ovenproof skillet with a lid or in a Dutch oven, breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Add the onion, chili powder, and salt, and cook over medium-high heat for 5 to 10 minutes, until the beef is no longer pink. Stir in the tomatoes with their juice, water, and rotini. (At this point you can cover and refrigerate overnight. Add 10 minutes to the baking time.)
   
3. Cover and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the pasta is cooked.
   

The German word streusel means “to sprinkle” or “strew.” Here, the streusel forms a crunchy topping for baked apples. This popular dessert is also known as “apple crisp.”

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FOR THE STREUSEL TOPPING:

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cup all-purpose flour

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cup light or dark packed brown sugar

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cup butter, plus extra for the dish

FOR THE FRUIT FILLING:

8 cups sliced apples (about 3 pounds)

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cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

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teaspoon ground nutmeg

Whipped cream for serving

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1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a shallow 1
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   -quart casserole.
   
2. To make the topping: In a large bowl, mix the flour and brown sugar. With a pastry blender, cut the
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   cup butter into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside.
   
3. To make the fruit filling: Put the sliced apples in a large bowl and toss with the granulated sugar, flour, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Spread in an even layer in the buttered casserole.
   
4. Sprinkle the topping over the apples, patting it down evenly. Bake, uncovered, for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until the apples are tender and juices bubble around the edge and the topping is browned. Serve warm or at room temperature with whipped cream.
   

Baked mixed dried fruit is a wintertime favorite, and star anise gives it a pleasant licorice flavor and aroma. Star anise is a small, dark brown seed pod shaped like an eight-pointed star.

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1 package (12 ounces) mixed dried fruit

1 cup golden raisins

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cup sugar

3 cups white wine, white grape juice, or water

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

Zest and juice of 1 orange

1 stick cinnamon, 3 inches long

3 whole star anise pods

Whipped cream or sour cream for serving

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1. Preheat the oven to 300°F.
   
2. Combine the mixed fruit, raisins, sugar, and wine or water in a 2-quart casserole.
   
3. Place the zest on the fruit mixture. Add the cinnamon stick and star anise pods. Pour the juice over the fruit.
   
4. Bake, covered, for 1
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   hours. Remove and discard the zest, cinnamon stick, and star anise pods. Serve warm with whipped cream or sour cream.
   

Rhubarb, also known as “pie plant,” is the unsung hero of American cooks, an effortlessly grown vegetable (botanically speaking), which offers its thick, juicy stalks from early spring through June. Estelle Woods Wilcox’s New Buckeye Cookbook, published in 1883, advises the reader to “bake the rhubarb in a deep bean pot with a cover, using a teacupful of sugar to each quart of pie plant to make a superior sauce.” Covering the rhubarb while it bakes doubles the baking time, but preserves more of the aroma and flavor of the fruit. I personally like to add a chunk of peeled fresh ginger to the rhubarb. Serve over ice cream or topped with whipped cream.

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4 cups rhubarb, cut into 1-inch slices

1 cup sugar

1 piece fresh ginger, 1 inch long

Ice cream or whipped cream for serving

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1. Preheat the oven to 325°F.
   
2. Combine the rhubarb, sugar, and ginger in a 1
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   -quart casserole or a bean pot with a cover. Cover and bake for 1 hour, or until the rhubarb is stewed and soft. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream.
   

Fruits that are in season at the same time often have a natural affinity for one another. Such is the case with blueberries and peaches.

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cup (1 stick) butter, melted, plus extra for the dish

5 cups combined blueberries and diced peaches

2 tablespoons plus 1
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cups sugar

1 tablespoon
tapioca flour

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teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

5 slices day-old bread, crusts removed

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 large eggs, beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

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teaspoon salt

Whipped cream or ice cream for serving

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1. Butter a 9-inch square glass baking dish generously. Spread the fruit evenly over the bottom of the dish. Mix the 2 tablespoons sugar, tapioca flour, and cinnamon and sprinkle evenly over the fruit. Drizzle with the lemon juice.
   
2. Arrange the bread over the top of the fruit, cutting it as needed to fit the pan.
   
3. Whisk the 1
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   cups sugar, flour, eggs, the
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   cup butter, vanilla, and salt together in a medium bowl and pour over the bread layer evenly. Let sit for 15 minutes.
   
4. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350°F.
   
5. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, until the custard is set and golden and the fruit is bubbly around the edges. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream.
   

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NOTE:
Tapioca flour is available in the natural foods section of most supermarkets.

This dessert is perfect for a chilly evening. Like all cobblers, it is topped with a biscuit-like pastry. There are two old-fashioned desserts with quirky names that are variations on the same theme—grunts and slumps. A grunt was made in colonial days with berries and dough, which were cooked in a Dutch oven hanging over an open fire. The name “grunt” presumably came from the sound the fruit made as it bubbled and grunted beneath the biscuit-like topping. Likewise, a slump was made by dropping a soft, biscuit-like dough onto bubbling fruit. The dessert had a tendency to slump on the plate, hence its name. Louisa Mae Alcott was especially fond of slumps made with apples.

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FOR THE COBBLER TOPPING:

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons sugar

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teaspoons baking powder

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teaspoon salt

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cup cold butter, plus extra for the dish

1 egg

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cup milk

FOR THE FRUIT LAYER:

1
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pounds cooking apples