Saturday, November 6, 2010

Chicken and Chips Casserole, Orange-Grapefruit Pinwheel Salad, Extra-quick Butter Sticks, Mint Brownies

[1972]

Since our apartment dates back to the 40's or something, our time traveling this week took us to our same apartment, but in the 70's! That is why the background looks the same, despite the automatic wardrobe adjustment circuit. I feel sure whoever is living in our apartment in the 70's will not mind that we used their kitchen, especially as we left them brownies.

IMG_4631.jpg picture by seshet27


IMG_4629.jpg picture by seshet27

Tuna and Chips Casserole
2 cans (10 1/2 oz. each) cream of mushroom soup
1 cup milk
2 cans (7 oz. each) tuna, drained and flaked
2 1/2 cups crushed potato chips
2 cups (1 lb can) cooked green peas, drained

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. (mod.). Empty soup into 2-qt. baking dish. Add milk and mix well. Add tuna, 2 cups potato chips, and peas; mix lightly. Sprinkle remaining potato chips over top. Bake 25 min., until heated through. 6 to 8 servings.

Planned-over Meal? This dish, reheated the next day, tastes just as good.

Chicken and Chips Casserole
Make Tuna and Chips Casserole (above)--except substitute cream of chicken soup for mushroom soup and use 2 cups cubed cooked chicken for the tuna.


IMG_4621.jpg picture by seshet27

Orange-Grapefruit Pinwheel Salad
Arrange orange and grapefruit sections alternately in pinwheel pattern on lettuce [dang it, I forgot to put it on lettuce!] on each salad plate. Garnish center with sprig of deep green garnish (watercress, mint, parsley). Pass Ruby Red Dressing.
IMG_4626.jpg picture by seshet27

Ruby Red Dressing
1/2 cup currant jelly
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tbsp. lemon juice
dash of salt
few drops of onion juice

Beat jelly with fork until smooth. Add remaining ingredients; beat again until smooth. Makes 3/4 cup.


IMG_4638.jpg picture by seshet27

Extra-Quick Butter Sticks
Heat oven to 450 degrees F. (hot). Melt 1/4 cup butter. Pour half into a square pan, 8 x 8 x 2". Roll unbaked biscuits from 1 can refrigerated biscuits, twisting to about 8" lengths. Place in pan. Pour rest of butter over tops. Sprinkle with caraway, poppy, celery, or sesame seeds. Bake 8 to 10 min., or until golden brown. Let stand in pan about 2 min. to absorb butter. Makes 10 sticks.

Leftover Butter Sticks? Wrap in foil; reheat in 375 degree oven for 20 min.


Mint Brownies
Prepare batter using 1 pkg. (15.5 oz.) regular fudge brownie mix adding 1/4 tsp. peppermint flavoring.


Verdict:

Chicken and Chips Casserole: This has got to be the trashiest casserole of all time! I did the chicken option as Husband is not a fan of tuna, but I did use canned chicken, so I feel I should get points for that. I also used frozen peas instead of canned, because baked canned peas are terrible and I just can't be having with that. Trashy as it was though... it was pretty good. It isn't worth the amazing amount of potato chips, but good. Don't serve this to someone with heart disease, but it's worth a try if you're in the mood for something trashy.

Orange-Grapefruit Pinwheel: Look how pretty! I might just keep this on file for when I feel fancy in the future. I made the dressing out of plum jam instead of currant, and it was pretty good actually. It sweetened up the grapefruit a little. If I did it again, I'd just do the jam instead of mixing it with other things though.

Extra-quick Butter Sticks: Oh my lands. These are fantastic. A whole half-stick of butter melted in there! Husband looooooved these. A lot. Really a lot. Look how they glisten!

IMG_4617.jpg picture by seshet27

Mint Brownies: How have I never thought of putting mint flavoring into brownies before? This is a brilliant idea!

Overall: Oh my golly gracious. Individually, all these were good. Most of them were great. Together, they are an unholy abomination of potato chips, melted butter, jam, and brownies. It isn't that they are bad together, it is that each one of them is so... much, that it is overwhelming. I could only finish half a brownie by the end. Husband happily nabbed the rest of my brownie and stuffed it in his mouth, only to sadly remark that it had turned to ashes in his mouth, so great had been the consumption of potato chips, melted butter (rather a lot, in his case!), jam, and brownie.

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

I remember the Tuna and Chips casserole! Mint in brownies are yummy!!! Where did you get your dress!!! That is sooo 70's. I love it!

Your blog is so much fun!!!

Jenny Jo said...

The standard tuna casserole at our house was cream of mushroom soup, tuna, peas, cashews, and noodles. Tuna Noodle Casserole.

Jana said...

Meg (?)- Mint brownies sure are yummy. And of course, the automatic wardrobe adjustment circuit on my time machine took care of the dress. ;D

Jenny Jo- I like tuna noodle casserole! You've got to melt cheese on top though. Mmmmmm...

Nonna said...

Oh, you really took me back in time today Jana. You look so cute in that 70's outfit too! I was a newlywed in 1972 and I remember this cookbook. I think it might be in a box up in our attic !

I also am not a fan of tuna ( detest it actually ) and calling that casserole trashy would have been fine with me. It's a joke in our family that I never served tuna casserole to anyone ever, even when everyone else thought it was a good idea !!!

Also, when I was a young woman, I learned to make those bread sticks for our Stake President's monthly dinner for all the Bishops and their wives... which are really yummy !

Jana said...

Thanks, N.B.! Glad I could take you along on my time traveling. :D I am curious though, as to what the circumstances of everyone wanting you to make tuna casserole would be!

The breadsticks WERE pretty great. Sigh. How come most everything that good is sooooo bad? It doesn't seem fair.

Kathleen said...

I am totally making butter sticks next time you come over for dinner.

Nonna said...

I never cooked my family seafood. it makes me ill to smell it cooking or eating it. Whenever someone needed a meal brought in, my Hubs would say, "Hey, why don't you make them a nice Tuna Casserole ?" Then he'd just wait for the disgusted look on my face and my smart retort. He loves fish of any kind and I can't stand seafood.

As for the bread sticks, floating in butter is my idea of heaven !
The worst day of my life as far as seafood goes was when I volunteered at the church cannery and that day, we were cleaning and canning tuna fresh off the boat...icky oooweeeeeee !

Since tuna was often one of the few proteins that stored pretty well in food storage supplies, it was used often as a cheap meal to bring to pot luck dinners or other life occasions needing a meal.

Jana said...

Sweet, butter sticks for me! Not bread sticks, no. BUTTER sticks.

Nonna, Nonna, Nonna. Salmon is one of the best foods in the world. It makes me sad when people cannot appreciate it, but then happy because then there is more salmon for me. Mmmm. So thank you. :D

The thought of cleaning fish makes me want to vomit, and I even like fish. Ick.

Nonna said...

LOL Jana, be happy and it's a deal... you can have all the pounds of salmon or any other seafood I DON'T eat while here on earth and we will leave all the fish cleaning to others for sure...makes me want to vomit too.

When my Hubs goes fishing, he must clean it outside and cooks it outside on the grill in a foil package...no fish smells in my house !!!

Jana said...

It is a deal! :D

SometimesKate said...

No, the trashiest tuna casserole is mine own, which is a box of mac & cheese, a handful of frozen peas or mixed veggies, a tin of tuna, and crushed chips.

And while I know you don't do alcohol, my super fudgy secrete recipe chocolate mint Irish Creme brownies are very tasty.

Jana said...

Wow, that IS trashy! I'd eat it.