Chicken & Broccoli Casserole

This is one of my long time favorites.

4 cups cooked broccoli florets(thawed)

1 1/2 cups cubed cooked chicken

1 can (10 3/4 ounces)  Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup

1/3 cup milk

2 tablespoons dry bread crumbs

1 tablespoon butter, melted

• Place the broccoli and chicken into a 9-inch pie plate.
• Stir the soup and milk in a small bowl.  Pour the soup mixture over the broccoli and chicken.   Stir the bread crumbs and butter in a small bowl.  Sprinkle the bread crumbs mixture over the cheese.
• Bake at 450°F. for 20 minutes or until the chicken mixture is hot and bubbling.

If you like you can top this mixture with cheese prior to adding the bread crumbs.

You can also use cream of mushroom soup instead of cream of chicken for a slightly different flavor.

This can be served alone or over/with rice or noodles.  I like it just fine by itself.

Thawing the broccoli should ensure that it's soft enough after cooking for the listed time.  If you prefer your broccoli with a little more crunch to it you can cook this with the broccoli still frozen (but I'd add about 10 extra minutes).

Open Faced Hamburgers

This is a recipe that I grew up with. To be honest everyone outside of my family that I've tried to get to eat it has turned their nose up to it, but it's GOOD.  I promise.... it's also easy.

1 lb ground beef
1 can of pork & beans (pork removed)
2 slices of american cheese (or 1/2 cup of cheese of your choice)
1 tbs red pepper season salt.
1/2 tbs chili powder

Brown ground beef.  Drain. Stir in season salt.  Add pork & beans and stir.  Top with cheese and allow to melt, mixing the cheese into the mixture.

Serve over hamburger bun or bread.

Carrot Coconut Muffins

I got this recipe from Sandra Lee on the Food Network, and added a little to it.  The coconut in this recipe gives you that shredded carrot consistency that you enjoy in a good carrot cake.  Adding the ground nuts gives you the nutty flavor without worry of having that large piece of carrot that you might not be able to chew (or that might get stuck in braces).

Canola oil cooking spray
1 (19-ounce) box  apple cinnamon muffin mix (I used Fiber One muffin mix for the extra fiber)
4 (4-ounce) jars pureed organic carrot baby food
1/4 cup apple juice
2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
1/2 cup of ground pecans

Use cooking spray to grease standard 12 muffin muffin pan.  Preheat Oven to 400.
Mix all other ingredients together in a large bowl.
Scoop mixture into muffin cups to fill about 2/3 full.  Put muffin pan in oven and bake for 18 to 20 minutes (checking at 18 minutes).

Taco Soup

2 lbs ground beef
2 cups diced onion
1 cans black beans
2 can kidney beans
1 can corn
1 can mexican stewed tomatoes
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can rotel
2 cans diced green chiles
1 can black olives, drained
1 can mushrooms, drained
1 package taco seasoning
1 packed ranch dressing mix

Optional:
1 chopped red pepper
1 chopped green pepper




Brown ground beef.  Add all other items, stir.  Bring to boil, then allow to simmer for 2 hours.


Serve with tortilla chips (I use the Scoops chips like a spoon), cheddar cheese and sour cream.

Peanut Butter Bread Pudding

This recipe can be adapted in so many different ways to be almost limitless in variety.  I use a double fiber bread in my recipe (but you don't have to) providing me with the level of fiber that I need and am unable to get when restricted to soft foods.


6 pieces of bread (again I use a double fiber bread)
1 cup of peanut butter (I use Smuckers all natural, no sugar added).
1 cup of milk
2 eggs
1/2 cup of sugar
1 tbs cinnamon
1 tbs vanilla


Make 3 peanut butter sandwiches.  Put on aluminum foil and set in oven while it preheats to 350.  Check after a couple of minutes to see if the bread feels toasted.  If so, flip the sandwiches, to toast the other side.

While sandwiches are toasting mix remaining ingredients and remaining peanut butter together in large bowl.

Once the sandwiches feel toasted, remove them from the oven and cut them into 1 inch squares.  Add the sandwich pieces into the mixture and stir well to make sure they are good and coated.

Empty entire bowl into a small casserole dish.  Cover and bake for 20 minutes at 350.  After the 20 minutes, remove the cover and bake for an additional 10 minutes.

This can be served hot as it is or add some chocolate sauce/ syrup or even some jelly.

Options (any of the below can be added to the mixture prior to cooking):
1/2 cup chocolate chips
2 sliced bananas
1 Cup Marshmallow Cream
1/2 Cup Cocoa