Tuna Noodle Casseroles

Sorry Julie! The only way I've made pork chops is following the directions on the Shake-n-Bake box! You told me you grill yours and the only suggestion I can come up with is to cook a few extra and use it in Choo Choo Train Fried Rice. That would be yummy! But the wonderful class by Heather Hinckley on making a roux inspired me to try and make my tried and true Tuna Noodle Casserole with a roux instead of with canned soups! Here's the original recipe--you'll notice it's easily halved for a smaller version and very food storage friendly.



Tuna Noodle Casserole

2 cups macaroni
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup milk
2 cans tuna, drained
1-2 cups frozen peas (optional)
grated cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook macaroni according to package directions. Drain. Mix in soup, milk, tuna, and peas. Pour into a large casserole dish (9x13). Grate cheese and sprinkle over top of casserole. Bake for 25-30 minutes.

There you have it! Easy peasy and very kid friendly. This was Jeff's favorite dinner. But after cooking it for twenty years I got a bee under my bonnet and decided I wanted to avoid some of the ingredients in commercially canned soups. So I tried to create a roux version. I looked here for guidance. I think it taste's better than the original, but it takes a whole lot longer to make, and there are more dishes to clean. But if I keep practicing I'll eventually be able to have the roux done by the time the noodles are cooked, and maybe I'll be able say this one's easy peasy too!

Tuna Noodle Casserole (made with a roux)

5 Tablespoons butter, divided
2 cups macaroni
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped (to make it more kid friendly, grate the onion)
1 stalk celery, finely chopped (to make it more kid friendly, leave it out)
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/3 cup chopped crimini mushrooms
1/4 cup flour
2 cups whole milk
salt and pepper to taste
2 cans tuna, drained and flaked
1 cup frozen peas
cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook macaroni according to package directions. Drain.

Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a skillet over medium-low heat and cook onion and celery until translucent. Increase heat to medium-high and mix in mushrooms. Continue to cook and stir 5 minutes, or until most of the liquid has evaporated. Add the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds. Remove from heat.

Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a medium saucepan, and whisk in flour until smooth. Gradually whisk in milk, and continue cooking for about 5 minutes, until sauce is smooth and slightly thickened. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in tuna, peas, mushroom mixture and cooked macaroni. Pour the entire mixture into a 9x13 pan (I've always used glass pans and never had a problem with the casserole sticking. If you do, try buttering it first.). Sprinkle generously with cheddar cheese.

Bake for 25 minutes or until bubbly.

Baguette Bread

Submitted by Julie Twitchell

I forgot to post this with all the other bread recipes from last week. This was my first attempt at making this recipe. It was not quite what I expected. I expected a crunchy crust and this was soft. It is a good recipe though. My family really liked it. When I make it again, I will cut back a little on the salt. Here is where I found this recipe. Their picture is much prettier than mine. They have a ton of recipes.

• 1 1/2 Cup warm water
• 1 1/2 TB dry yeast (2 pkg)
• 2 tsp. sugar
• 3 1/4 Cup flour
• 2 tsp. salt(I think I would cut back to 1 1/2)

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. In a small bowl, mix the warm water with the yeast and sugar. Let it sit for about 5 minutes--foam should form on the top.
3. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour and salt. Gradually add the yeast mixture. Mix until the dough becomes a smooth ball and knead for 5 minutes. You can also use a Kitchen Aid with the dough hook for 5 minutes.
4. Cut dough in half and then shape into 2 baguettes. To make them smooth and pretty, roll each half of dough into rectangles and roll up lengthwise. Pinch the edges to seal and place on lightly greased cookie sheet( or silpat) with seam down. Cover and let rise for 30 minutes.
5. With a sharp serrated knife, gently make a slash down the length of each baguette. This will give it that authentic look. Pour water in a cookie sheet and place it on the bottom rack of the oven. Bake the bread for 15 minutes. Half way through, brush the bread with melted butter. Be very careful opening the oven door. That is a lot of heat and steam. I actually thought I had singed my eyelashes. Thank goodness I did not. Just open the door for 5 seconds before pulling the pan out to butter.

Cook's Note: My dough was really too sticky to roll out like the recipe states. I think next time, I will add just a little bit more flour in the beginning. And my slash down the center didn't go very deep. Maybe it would have worked better if the dough wasn't so sticky. I might just leave that part out next time:)

Eclair Cake

Submitted by Julie Twitchell

I found this recipe about a month ago. I have been dying to try it. I love eclairs but they are way too much work. This recipe is really quite simple. My husband is not a chocolate fan, but he had 2 pieces tonight.

• 1 stick of butter
• 1 Cup water
• 1 Cup flour
• 4 eggs

On the stove, melt the butter. Whisk in the water and then the flour. Once incorporated, add the eggs. Once well mixed, pour into a greased cookie sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 23-25 minutes. Then let completely cool.

• 2 small pkg. instant vanilla pudding
• 8 ounces of cream cheese(softened)
• 3 Cups milk

Mix together all the ingredients. Let set in a fridge for about 30 minutes. Then remove and spread on cooled eclair.

• 1 small container of Cool Whip

Spread over pudding mixture.

• 1/2 Cup chocolate chips (I used milk, but I am sure you could use semi sweet)
• 3 TB milk
• 2 TB butter
• 1 Cup powdered sugar

Melt in a microwavable bowl the chocolate chips and butter. Then stir in the milk and powdered sugar. Once well incorporated, drizzle on top of the whip cream. Put in the fridge for at least 1 hour before serving. Enjoy!

Cook's Note: I definately think you could half the recipe. Just use a 9 x 13 pan instead of a cookie sheet. I think next time I make it, I will use two 9 x 13 pans so I can cover it without messing up the top. It would transport better that way too.

No Knead Bread (Artisan Bread)

Submitted by Julie Twitchell

Do any of you like artisan bread? At our house, we love it. Tyler LOVES it. We buy it at Costco, then freeze it so we can have it whenever we want. Nothing like the crust. Well, Tyler decided on Saturday morning that he wanted artisan bread for his Father's Day dinner. I did not want to go to Costco on a Saturday.(I hate that place on Saturday with 4 kids) So I found this recipe and thought I would give it a try. Results--we won't be buying Costco bread anymore. This stuff is so yummy. I figure the cost of this bread was less than 25 cents. Can't beat that. Tyler has already requested it for his birthday dinner.

This recipe was in the NY Times back in 2006.

Time: about 1 1/2 hours plus 14-20 hours of rising

3 Cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
1/2 tsp. instant yeast
1 1/4 tsp. salt
cornmeal or wheat bran as needed
1 5/8 cup water

1. In a large bowl, combine flour, yeast and salt. Add water and stir until blended. The dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rise at least 12 hours, preferably about 18 hours, at warm room temperature (about 70 degrees).


2. Dough is ready when its' surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.


3. Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton towel(not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Put dough seam side down and let rise for about 2 hours. When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.


4. At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6-8 quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is okay. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15-30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.

(This is all that is left of a very large round loaf. The kids loved it too.)

Cook's Note: I started my dough Saturday night around 9:00 p.m. We ate it Sunday around 6:00 p.m. I don't have a cast iron or ceramic pot, so I used my regular soup pot. It is not oven proof, but I learned from Rachel Ray that if you cover the handles with tin foil, it will work. So I did it and it really did work. I think I will buy some smaller pots. Then I can make two loafs, one to eat now and one to freeze for another time.

Pizza Dough

Submitted by Jenny Hodges

For 13 inch round or 9 x 13 inch pan

1 TB yeast
2 1/2 Cup flour
1 Cup water
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. sugar
2 tsp. oil

For 15 inch round or cookie sheet

1 1/2 TB yeast
3 3/4 Cup flour
1 1/2 Cup water
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. sugar
1 TB oil

Dissolve yeast in warm water (105 degrees). Let stand 5 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients and knead until elastic and easy to work with. Place dough on floured surface, cover and let rest for 15 minutes. Roll and stretch dough to the size of the pan. Oil the pan bottom and sides with vegetable oil and place dough in pan. Top for pizza or bread sticks. Cook about 25 minutes or until bottom is browned in a 350 degree oven.

Multigrain Bread

Submitted by Jenny Hodges

2 1/2 Cup water
1 TB yeast
3 TB honey
1 TB dough enhancer
2 TB vital wheat gluten
2 1/4 tsp. salt
2 Cup white flour
1 1/2 Cup 4 grain cereal mix (from Honeyville grain--contains oats, barley, rye and wheat)
3 1/2 Cup whole wheat flour

1. Place warm water (feels like a hot bath) in a mixing bowl. Add yeast and honey; let sit until frothy. Add dough enhancer, wheat gluten, lecithin, and two cups of flour. Mix with a wooden spoon or your mixer.
2. Add salt and two more cups of flour; mix.
3. Slowly add remaining flour till the dough is just a little bit sticky (note you may not need all the flour, or you may need more). Continue kneading in your mixer adding a little bit of flour, or knead the dough on a lightly floured surface for 8-10 minutes till smooth and elastic (if using a stand mixer--knead with a dough hook for 5-6 minutes).
4. Place dough into a lightly oiled bowl. Spray the top of the dough with an oil spray or shortening. Cover bowl with a clean damp dish towel or plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place for about 1 hour.
5. Pour out onto a lightly floured surface. Cut dough in half. Shape dough into 2 rectangles the length of a 5 x 9 loaf pan. Roll the dough like a jelly roll being sure to lightly press with each rotation of the dough. Pinch the seam closed with your fingers.
6. Place into two greased 5 x 9 loaf pans. Cover with a dish towel or plastic wrap and allow to rise till double in bulk; about 45-60 minutes.
7. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 30-35 minutes. When you tap the bottom of the loaf it sounds hollow. Remove from pans and cool on a wire rack.