Man Cave Cuisine

We named this dish lovingly as a tongue-in-cheek homage to my mother’s casserole she bakes and gives to families who have experienced a loss.  In the great tradition of cooking a homemade dish and giving it to the suffering family, this has been her go-to staple and I am now passing it on to you!  Also, at the end is a few notes on how it has changed into quick and easy dish for our family and some ideas on how to kick it up a notch ManCave-Style!!

This is a basic 1-2-3 punch casserole with Cheese, Noodles, and some meat, and a few other ingredients.

What you’ll need:

• 1 lb skinless boneless chicken breasts boiled & shredded
• 1 12oz bag of egg noodles, cooked to package directions
• 1 can cream of chicken soup
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 8oz sour cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• Topping:
• 1 stick butter
• 4 pieces dry toast

Preheat oven to 350.  mix all ingredients except for topping and pour into 16×9 lightly greased casserole dish.  Break toast into pieces pieces and lay on top of casserole.  Melt stick of butter and pour over top.  Bake for 30 mins.

So as I said, this was mom’s classic recipe.  At home, we spruced it up a little to give it a few more layers and a bit healthier:

• 1 lb skinless boneless chicken breasts boiled & shredded (sometimes we use canned chicken in a pinch)
• 1 12oz bag of egg noodles, cooked al dente
• 1 can cream of chicken soup
• 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 bag frozen peas, thawed
• 1 8oz sour cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• salt/pepper
• Topping:
• Olive Oil Cooking Spray
• 6 pieces dry toast

Same directions except this time add the thawed peas and season with salt and pepper.  Also, after spreading the toast pieces on top, lightly spray (or drizzle) with some olive oil.  Bake for 30 mins on 350 as before.

Now for the ManCave version (the above was just for reference or a baseline for your own basic casserole)!

• 1 lb skinless boneless chicken breasts boiled & shredded
• 3 pieces bacon
• 1 12oz bag of egg noodles, cooked al dente
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup
• 1 onion coarsely chopped
• 3 stalks celery, coarsely chopped
• 3 carrots, coarsely chopped
• 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 bag frozen peas, thawed
• 1 cup chopped mushrooms
• 1/2 cup chopped shallots
• 1 8oz sour cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 cloves garlic (whole)
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme
• Topping:
• Olive Oil Cooking Spray
• 6 pieces dry toast cut into 1/4 inch squares
• salt
• fresh ground pepper

Directions:

1. In a large stock pot, bring whole chicken breasts to a boil with onions, celery, carrots, bay leaves, garlic, and thyme.  Reduce heat after 10 minutes and simmer for an additional 1 hour while occasionally skimming off fat and “gunk” off the top, until chicken is cooked through.
2. Remove chicken and set aside.  Strain stock with a fine mesh strainer into another pot using only the liquid and bring to a boil again.  Add egg noodles and cook til al dente.
3. In a skillet, cook bacon until crispy, pat dry on a paper towel, and then chop bacon finely.
4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Shred chicken and combine in a large mixing bowl with bacon, noodles, cream of mushroom soup, chopped mushrooms, shallots, peas, sour cream, milk, Italian Seasoning, and cayenne pepper.
5. In a greased cooking dish, spread the mixture evenly.  Add the toast pieces and lightly spray with cooking oil.
6. Season the top with salt and fresh ground pepper.
7. Bake for 30 minutes on 350, serve and enjoy!!!

Brian

Love cooking, love eating even more! Favorite foods are Cajun and Italian! One of these days Cavan and Alex will be able to cook as good as me!

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