Grams Made Pizza Casserole

When Nick was in primary school, the class made cookbooks for Mother's Day gifts. As part of the assignment, each child listed their mom's favorite foods. This was not a problem for Nick. He only put two items on the list of my favorite foods ... pizza and chocolate. And may I say that he was spot on. Those are still my two favorite foods.

Grandad and Grams both love pizza. When we heard the story this week about the lady who was saved by her pizza delivery person, I thought to myself "that could be us." We used to order pizza every Thursday night. We would watch Survivor and eat pizza. We ordered the same pizza with such regularity that, on the rare week we didn't order, the pizza delivery guy would tell us the next week that he had been worried about us. We've given that up, although we do occasionally still order a pizza. We try to eat something a little healthier.

This week, when Thursday rolled around, I had my Thursday night pizza craving.  Then when I checked my computer I saw a recipe for an Italian casserole in my inbox. Both of these combined made me decide to come up with a recipe for a pizza flavored casserole.

Pizza Casserole

2 cups uncooked Rotelle pasta
½ pound mild Italian sausage
1 package sliced Pepperoni
1 package (8 ounces) Velveeta
2 cups grated Italian blend cheese
1 can sliced black olives
2 jars (8 ounces) pizza sauce
1 can sliced mushrooms

Cook pasta according to package directions.

Spray a 9” x 12” casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray and spread half of one jar of pizza sauce in the bottom of the pan.

While the pasta is cooking, remove sausage casing and brown the sausage in a skillet with a little olive oil. Add mushrooms in the last few minutes of browning. Drain.

Cube the Velveeta and cut half of the Pepperoni slices into quarters.

Drain pasta and return to pan. Stir in Velveeta, olives, sausage-mushroom mixture, the quartered Pepperoni, one cup of the grated cheese, and the rest of the pizza sauce.

Pour the pasta mixture into the casserole dish and top with remaining cheese. Spread the remaining slices of Pepperoni over the top like a pizza. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes.

I used Pepperoni, Italian Sausage, mushrooms and black olives because those are our favorite pizza toppings. You can substitute your favorite toppings for any of these.  


This turned out to be so delicious that I'm definitely making it next time Our Little Princess visits.

Grams Made One-Dish Dinner Scramble

Grams has made this one-dish dinner a couple of times now. It's quick, easy, high in protein, and delicious. Grandad really likes it. I especially like that it doesn't make a big mess in the kitchen and you can throw it together in just a few minutes. I got this recipe from Food.com. The original recipe called for scallions, but I don't keep them on hand so I substituted onions.

1 lb ground turkey breast
1/2 of a sweet onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 (4 ounce) can mushroom stems and pieces, drained
1 (10 ounce) bag frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
5 eggs
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup salsa

Cook turkey in a little olive oil over medium high heat in a skillet, stirring occasionally, until the meat is almost done, about 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in scallions, red pepper, mushrooms and spinach.

Cook, stirring, for about 3 minutes. Reduce heat to medium.

In a separate bowl, beat eggs with the garlic salt and pepper. Stir the eggs into the skillet with the meat and vegetables. Cook, stirring until the eggs are firm and cooked through, about 5 minutes.

Stir in salsa and serve.

Grams Made Pumpkin & Sausage Soup

Grams woke to a rainy day and rain-cooled temperatures in the seventies this morning. It feels a little like autumn has arrived. I know that I'm only dreaming. The cooler weather is only the result of the overcast skies. As soon as the sun comes out it'll be back in the nineties. But this respite from the heat motivated me to make soup.

This is a low-carb pumpkin and sausage soup recipe. Warning: low carb does not mean low fat! I've had this recipe a couple of years and, I'm sorry, I don't remember where I got it. I've altered it a little. The original called for five cups of chicken broth, but I reduced it to two because I like the soup thicker.

16 ounces country-style breakfast sausage
½ cup onions, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced
15 ounces pumpkin, canned
1 can low sodium chicken broth
½ cup heavy cream
½ cup sour cream
½ cup water

Over medium heat brown the sausage breaking into small bits. Drain fat. Add the onion, garlic, Italian seasoning and mushrooms and sauté until vegetables are cooked.

Add the canned pumpkin and the broth, stirring to mix well. Cook at a low simmer for 20-30 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in heavy cream, sour cream and water.

Servings: 8

Notes: Per 1-cup serving: 376 calories. 15 grams protein, 32 grams fat (14 saturated) and 9 grams carbohydrate (2 grams dietary fiber).

Grams Made Chicken Spaghetti

When Grams was growing up, my mom used to make a dish she called Chicken Spaghetti.  It's an understatement to say I was not fond of it.  I hated it so much that I pretty much refused to eat it.  Since then, just the mention of Chicken Spaghetti makes my appetite disappear.  I'm 55 years old and I haven't eaten Chicken Spaghetti in at least 40 years.  That's how much I didn't like it. 

Last week at my book club, the hostess announced that she made Chicken Spaghetti.  I was kind of stricken with fear at the thought of eating it.  I really didn't expect to like it, but it was delicious.  I liked it so much that I came home, looked up the recipe, and made it myself just two days later. 

This is a Paula Deen recipe.  Her recipe called for 3 1/2 cups of cooked chicken and a teaspoon of salt.  I used a rotisserie chicken and I omitted the salt.  Be aware that this makes 10-12 generous servings.  This is going to be my new "go to" dish for pot luck dinners. 

2 Tablespoons butter
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
1 (14-ounce) can chicken broth
1 (10.75-ounce) can cream of mushroom soup (reduced sodium)
1 (10.75-ounce) can cream of chicken soup (reduced sodium)
1 (10-ounce) can diced tomatoes with green chilies, drained
1 (4.25-ounce) can chopped black olives, drained
1 (4-ounce) jar sliced mushrooms, drained
½ cup sour cream
1 rotisserie chicken, de-boned and torn into small pieces
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
1 (16-ounce) package angel hair pasta, cooked according to package directions
¾ cup Panko (Japanese bread crumbs)
1 tablespoon butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 13x9-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. In a large skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add onion and celery; cook for 4 to 5 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.

If your skillet is big enough add broth, soups, tomatoes, olives, mushrooms and sour cream. Stir in chicken and cheese. Add pasta, tossing gently to coat. Spoon mixture into prepared baking dish.  (If your skillet is not big enough, use a big mixing bowl.)

In a small bowl, combine bread crumbs and melted butter. Sprinkle evenly over casserole. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until hot and bubbly. Serve immediately.

Grams Made Tropical Ham and Pineapple Kebobs

This recipe is great for dinner and it makes a beautiful "party food." Even kids like it.

3 Tablespoons brown sugar (I use brown sugar Splenda)
2 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 pound full cooked ham, cut into 1 inch cubes
1 (15 ounce) can pineapple, drained
2 medium green peppers, cut into 1 inch chunks
24 medium mushrooms, cleaned
Salt and pepper

In a medium bowl, combine brown sugar, vinegar, oil, soy sauce and mustard. Thread ham, pineapple, green pepper and mushrooms alternately on skewers. Lightly oil grill and heat to medium high heat. Grill skewers, basting liberally with brown sugar mixture, 8-10 minutes, turning and basting until nicely browned and glazed. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Serves 4.