Category Archives: Casseroles

What Can a Cookie Do?

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It’s Girl Scout cookie time! As Cookie Manager for our daughter’s troop, I’m having a hard time keeping certain varieties in stock. Truly, these little boxes of sinful goodness sell out as soon as I get a new supply.

“If only seed were as to easy to sell as Girl Scout cookies!” I’ve said to myself on more than one occasion. “These little cookies practically sell themselves.”

It made me wonder what we could learn from the Girl Scouts’ cookie sales program. Here are the top five reasons I believe the Girl Scout Cookies NOW! program is so successful:

  1. Limited time offer
  2. Unique products
  3. Instant gratification
  4. Return/repeat customers
  5. A great sales pitch with practice overcoming objections

Girl Scout cookies are only available for a limited amount of time (January 13 – March 4, 2012) and only from troop members, who either call customers on the phone or make door-to-door sales. Each of the eight varieties is unique, and you certainly can’t whip up a batch at home. (There’s a good reason the recipe is called “Mock Thin Mints”.)

Speaking of Thin Mints… The only cookie that outsells Thin Mints is Oreo®, which are available 365 days a year from nearly every grocer and big box store nationwide.

New to our area this year, cookies are delivered at the time of sale. There’s instant gratification because you can treat yourself to a cookie as soon as the Scout walks out your front door. Plus, customers can order early and reorder often! You no longer need to ration your intake or freeze surplus quantities until March since there is nearly a two-month sales period this year.

If you dare say “no” to the friendly Scout who rings your door bell and asks you to buy cookies, be prepared. (Remember, that’s the Girl Scout motto, after all!) These girls have been trained to overcome objections, and they’ve had plenty of practice – about 80 years’ worth.

The first recorded Girl Scouts cookie sale was 1917, and the organization itself is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2012. Founded in 1912 by Juliette Gordon Low, Girl Scouts of the United States of America’s membership has grown from 18 members in Savannah, Georgia, to nearly 4 million members throughout the United States in more than 90 countries.

In honor of the Girl Scouts’ birthplace in Savannah, today I’m featuring a recipe from another Savannah resident. A meal at Paula Deen’s restaurant was a highlight when several members of the West Fork Girl Scouts traveled to Savannah last summer.

Treat your family to a home-cooked chicken dinner this weekend, and open a box of Girl Scout cookies for dessert. You can eat the whole box and still have time to reorder yet this sales season. :)

What’s your favorite Girl Scout cookie? Cast your vote on our Facebook poll today.

Lady and Sons’ Chicken in Wine Sauce, courtesy Paula Deen

Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 45 min
Level: Easy
Serves: 4 servings

Ingredients:

  • 4 large skinless boneless chicken breasts
  • 4 tablespoons butter, melted, plus more for casserole
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 6 ounces (about 8 slices) Swiss cheese
  • 1 (10 3/4-ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
  • 1/4 cup white wine
  • 1 cup herb-flavored stuffing mix, crushed

Directions:

  • Preheat the oven to 350° F.
  • Add the chicken to a shallow buttered casserole and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Layer the cheese slices on top.
  • In a medium bowl, add the soup and the wine, season with salt and pepper and pour over the cheese. Sprinkle stuffing mix on top and drizzle with melted butter.
  • Bake for 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve.

Cook’s Note: If desired, use more butter.

I’d like to add my own note, as well. I’d recommend putting at least 6, if not 8, chicken breasts in your casserole dish because there is plenty of stuffing to go around. Experiment and see how you like it best. I’d appreciate it if you’d share your opinion on what works best with me. I’m still experimenting myself!

Inside or Out, Children Want to Help

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As a child, the highlight of making the 45-minute trip to visit my paternal grandmother in Howard County, Iowa, was a chance to drive around the beautiful countryside and watch the Amish tend to their livestock and care for their crops. I was intrigued by their commitment to family and their sense of duty.

Each member of the family plays a part in the family’s economic survival, says Dr. John Hostetler in his book, Amish Society. He writes:

“Like most parents in American society, the Amish recognize the teen period as critical. The Amish family needs the help of its teen-age child more than the typical American family, and the child feels the family’s need of him. The young person who works on the farm can understand and feel the contribution he is making to his family.”

On a farm, your work directly affects you and your family. You are a member of this company (the family), and you have your job responsibilities. In simple terms, the cows have to be fed and milked so that food and shelter can be provided for the family. Your paycheck comes daily in the form of food, clothing, shelter and affection.

Children see their parents working hard every day and children want to help… I once saw a four-year-old Amish boy cry when he could not go along and help father in the field.

Amish children are needed to help inside the house, too. When a family has eight or nine children, there is a lot of food to be prepared. It’s no wonder that Amish women often get together for a frolic, or a work event that combines socializing with a practical goal. Common frolics include quilting, canning, pie baking and apple sauce making.

Like the Amish, we can get a group of girlfriends together. A simple frolic can help us make multiple meals in short order while enjoying some “girl time.” That’s essentially what I did in September by hosting “Cook Once for a Bunch.” You could do something similar in your home, community center or even in your church’s kitchen – with friends or even your family.

Many recipes are simple enough for young children to make. Start by putting a new twist on Tator Tot Casserole from Freezer Chics, which one of my friends made when we got together in September. During this same get together, I picked up my new “go to” recipe for lasagna. I like this lasagna so much that I’m going to take it Sunday for our community’s annual Boy Scout Thanksgiving potluck. With browned hamburger in my freezer, prep time will be 15 minutes or less! That means I’ll have time to cut up veggies for this adorable Turkey Relish Tray, as well as organize this “notable” Turkey Craft.

Thanksgiving reminds me that I’m so thankful for family, friendships, food and freedom. (Notice that “football” doesn’t top my list.) I’m hopeful that I might enjoy a little quiet time right after dinner on Thanksgiving Day. Perhaps I’ll get a chance to curl up with a novel by one of my favorite Amish authors, Wanda Brunstetter or Beverly Lewis. Reading will remind me how much I really need some girl time. That will make me think about a frolic, which will prompt me to email my friends about a date to “Cook Once for a Bunch.” Yes, my wheels are already turning!

Recipe Details: Go-To Lasagna

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb. hamburger, browned & drained
  • 1, 24-oz. jar spaghetti sauce (Traditional Prego® is our family’s favorite)
  • 1 1/2 c. cottage cheese
  • 2 c. mozzarella cheese
  • 1 c. water
  • Oven-ready lasagna noodles

Directions:
Mix hamburger with spaghetti sauce and heat. In a 9×13 pan, layer: dry noodles, meat mixture, cottage cheese and mozzarella. Repeat layers three times. Then pour the water around the edges. Cover pan with tin foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. Remove from oven and let set 10 minutes.

COOK’S TIP: Assemble the night before for a quick and easy weeknight supper. This recipe also freezes well.

Cook Once for a Bunch!

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Sticking with this month’s “pumpkin theme” for our recipes, today I’d like to share with you the amazing Pumpkin Cake Roll that Kaitlyn Bartling made when we got together a few weeks ago. I love this recipe because it’s delicious, looks gourmet but is actually quite easy to make.

Confession time: I have to admit that I never would’ve tried making a Pumpkin Cake Roll without Kaitlyn there to walk me through the steps. Now I’m looking forward to making it again soon, along with her wonderful Cheesy Chicken & Rice Casserole.

Cheesy Chicken & Rice is just one of the five new recipes I collected last month when I invited a group of ladies into my kitchen to “Cook Once for a Bunch.” I believe Kaitlyn actually coined this phrase to describe what happens when you get a group of friends together and prepare meals for the freezer.

Each participant brought copies of her recipe, along with enough ingredients to make that recipe six times. Then we set up an assembly line and put together meals in a matter of minutes. It helped that each person took the time to either pre-cook and cube chicken or brown hamburger ahead of time. In less than five hours, I had six different meals prepped for the freezer plus my friends had done all of my dishes and put them away. (How great is that? Kitchen cleanup is on my list of “things I really don’t enjoy.”) Some ladies chose to put the casseroles into two, 8×8 pans, which allowed them to have 12 freezer-ready meals.

Whether you’re a working wife, a farmer’s wife or stay-at-home mom, freezer-ready meals make dinner a snap. Kaitlyn, for example, enjoyed getting together before harvest began. This way she can heat up a good meal for her family without spending a lot of time in the kitchen during the busy harvest season.

What’s your favorite freezer-ready meal?

P.S. We featured Kaitlyn’s family and her recipe for Stuffed Pork Chops last October during our National Pork Month celebration. It’s a recipe worth repeating. :)

PUMPKIN CAKE ROLL

Ingredients:

  • 3 eggs
  • 1 c. sugar
  • 2/3 c. pumpkin puree
  • 1 tsp. lemon
  • Âľ c. flour
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 2 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1 tsp. ginger
  • ½ tsp. nutmeg
  • ½ tsp. salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°. Beat eggs on high for 5 minutes, gradually beating in sugar. Stir in pumpkin and lemon.

Combine flour with remaining dry ingredients. Then fold into pumpkin mixture. Spread into well greased jelly roll pan, lined with wax or parchment paper.

Bake for 10-15 minutes. Loosen edges and then turn out on flour sack towel. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, roll and let cool. Unroll and then fill. Reroll and wrap in plastic wrap. Keep chilled. This recipe also freezes well.

Filling:

  • 1 c. powdered sugar
  • 6 oz. cream cheese
  • 4 T. butter
  • ½ tsp. vanilla

Beat all ingredients together until fluffy.

COOK’S NOTE: I serve one roll for Thanksgiving dinner and then take the second roll out for our family to enjoy on Christmas Eve.

Wild & Cheesy Chicken

  • 1, 6-oz. box of long grain & wild rice with herbs, spices & seasoning packet
  • 2 T. butter
  • ½ c. celery, diced
  • ½ c. onion, chopped
  • 4 oz. fresh mushrooms, chopped
  • 2/3 c. milk
  • 1, 10.5-oz. can Cream of Mushroom Soup
  • 2 c. cooked chicken
  • 1 c. shredded cheddar

Cook rice according to package. Melt butter and sautĂ© celery, onion & mushrooms until tender. Mix everything together and pour into buttered casserole or 9×13 pan. Bake 30 minutes at 425° if unfrozen. Bake at 350° for 90 minutes to 2 hours and leave almonds off until last 30 minutes. Great casserole to serve for company!