Enjoy Your Favorites | Classic Macaroni and Cheese Casserole Baked In a Water Bath

Our good friend Jean  shared her fabulous favorite homemade classic Macaroni and Cheese Casserole recipe bake that she serves at her annual buffet during the Christmas and New Year holiday season. You can make this Bistro mac and cheese anytime of year for Sunday Dinner or any gathering ! It's wonderful to call it dinner on a cold winter's day or night. Works up great for all of the holidays.

Macaroni and Cheese Casserole

It's one of the best mac & cheese recipes to serve at a buffet, because it can be cut into squares.  It's very firm and not runny, and can easily be served on your good dinnerware or serving plates, or even festive paper or plastic plates.

My husband and I had been boating enthusiasts for many years, and bought our first boat about 1 week after we got back from our honeymoon. We still get together with our good friends from the marina that we would travel with.

Try this classic macaroni and cheese casserole recipe baked in a water bath and make it one of your family favorites!  The grandkids always enjoy it and your children will too! 

You can turn this from a brunch side dish into a frugal meal, simply by adding some ham or tuna fish!

Go upscale and make a bistro mac and cheese using a wonderful cheese such as Smoked Gouda or Swiss Gruyere.

This old-fashioned comfort food mac and cheese sets up  in a water bath. Anything made the old-fashioned way is really worth the effort!

Wear a fun Handmade Face Mask from Moomettes when out grocery shopping! 

Kitchen cleaning is easy with these Crochet Handmade Dishcloths from my Moomettes Crochet Shop!

Classic Macaroni & Cheese Casserole Baked In a Water Bath

1 1/4 cup scalded milk
3/4 cup soft bread crumbs (broken in pieces)
3 tbl butter
1 1/2 cup cooked elbow macaroni
tsp salt
1/2 lb grated Vermont Cabot sharp cheddar cheese
2 well beaten eggs

Pour scalded milk over bread crumbs.
Combine with butter, macaroni, salt, cheese, eggs.
Mix together.
Place in buttered flat 8 x 8 pan (if using oblong, increase recipe).
Top with breadcrumbs
Sprinkle with paprika.
To cook: put pan in water bath (broiler pan); 1/2 - 1" water (important)
Bake 375 for 45 minutes. To reheat - till warm and bubbly.

© Frugal New England Kitchen

Easy Cheese Potato Soup | Winter Soup | Homemade Soup Recipe

On a cold winter day nothing warms a body like a fresh pot of soup, and, nothing warms the cook’s heart like an easy dish to prepare! This delicious homemade creamy Cheesy Potato Soup recipe makes everyone happy.

Winter Soups

As a frugal easy supper, I often serve my family homemade soups for dinner.  Add a loaf of homemade bread from scratch, such as my Dilly Bread recipe, or a loaf of bread made in the breadmaker and you have a nice easy, quick meal.

You can put soup in a crockpot to simmer all day or wait until dinner time and whip it up in a hurry.

Change the toppings in each person’s bowl to make this recipe their own. You might try spinach and onions or tomatoes and croutons and the kids will like extra bacon.

Wear a Handmade Face Mask from Moomettes when out grocery shopping!

Easy kitchen clean up with these Handmade Dishcloths from Moomettes Creations Shop !

Enjoy!

Easy Homemade Cheesy Potato Soup

8 medium potatoes
1 large or 2 small Vidalia onions
1 package of John Morrell center cut bacon
1/8 cup of Pillsbury all-purpose flour
1 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk
8oz Velveeta cheese
1 Tablespoon of Lawry’s seasoned salt
1 Tablespoon of black pepper

Heat a large pot on the stove over medium heat. As the pot is heating, cut the bacon into bite size pieces. Once the pot is hot, add the bacon pieces, stirring often until brown.
While the bacon is cooking, peel and chop the onion and potatoes. Make sure your potatoes are cut into bite size pieces. Set aside for later use.
Once the bacon is crispy, add the onions and stir. You want them to be semi-translucent and tender, not fried to a crisp.
When the onions are tender, add your flour and mix until the grease is absorbed; making a paste. This will help thicken the soup and ensure it has great flavor. If your bacon made a lot of grease, you may want to drain some of it off before adding the flour.
Pour the potatoes into the pot with the bacon, onion and flour.
Add just enough hot water to cover the potatoes.
Pour in the can of evaporated milk. This will help make your soup extra creamy. Add the seasoned salt and pepper and give it a good stir.
Depending on the size box of Velveeta Cheese you bought, you’ll want to cut about ¼ block of the large 32oz box of cheese or ½ of a small 16oz box into cubes. You can adjust the amount you use if you prefer a more or less cheesy taste.
Put cubes of Velveeta into a bowl with about 1 teaspoon of water. Microwave the cheese on high, stirring every 20 seconds, until it is creamy.
If you diced the cheese small enough, you could just add them directly to the soup, but I tend to use larger chunks so microwaving them first means they all melt completely.
Add melted Velveeta to the pot, and bring to a simmer. Let the soup simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Adjust the seasonings to taste.
Sprinkle shredded cheddar cheese over the top of each bowl before serving.

© Frugal New England Kitchen

Fire Roasted Red Pepper Soup Recipe | Tomato Soup

A satisfying simple meal for winter is to have a big pot of soup simmering on the back burner.  If you like roasted red peppers and or tomato soup, this will knock your socks off.

A few years ago I took an adult-education culinary course at our local high school with one of my sister-in-laws.  We learned how  to roast peppers in the oven.  It's really easy!

One of the culinary tips I learned was to place the roasted sweet peppers into a brown paper bag or sack for about 15 minutes to let them rest.  The skins will be very easy to peel off. You can make roasted garlic the same way.

I have another sister-in-law who enjoys roasting vegetables on her gas grill all year long.

Some of my favorite fall and winter soups to make are split pea soup with ham and vegetable beef barley.

Try substituting some Asiago cheese in place of the Parmesan cheese, and add some carrots and celery to this easy soup recipe if you'd like.

Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Soup

This is a great recipe and it is fairly easy to make. If you do not feel like roasting your vegetables you can use canned. It will not be as delicious, but it will work in a pinch / time crunch.


Easy clean up with Handmade Dish Cloths from Moomettes Crochet Shop!

Fire Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Soup

1.5 lbs of Red Peppers
l lb Fresh Tomatoes
1 large Onion
4 cloves Garlic
1 tablespoon Tomato paste
1 1/2 quarts Chicken stock
1 teaspoon Fresh Basil
1 pinch of thyme and 1 pinch of oregano
1/2 cup of grated Parmesan Cheese
1 Tablespoon Olive oil
Salt and Pepper

Cut the tomatoes in half, and do the same with the peppers, cut the onion into quarters, and remove skin from garlic cloves and brush all with olive oil.
Place all in the oven on a large metal grates for good air circulation and bake with the flesh side down. If you do not have the metal grates use a roasting pan, but remove the moisture from the veggies often so you will not braise them in the oven. Roast in a 200-250 degree oven for about 20- 30 minutes, if you are using larger vegetables it may take longer than the suggested time. Cook them until the tomato and pepper skins start to wilt and brown. If the garlic and onion start to get too brown remove them and let the tomato and pepper continue to roast.
Remove from roasting pan, and put the vegetables into a bowl, cover with saran wrap and allow to rest for about 10-15 minutes. The steam from the roasted veggies will make them easier to peel.You will want to peel and puree your roasted veggie mix at this time. An immersion blender works the best but a stand alone blender will work also. Puree the mixture well to end up with a better finished product.
In a soup pot you will add chicken stock, herbs, your pureed vegetables, and cook at a simmer for about 30-45 minutes to allow all of the flavors to bloom.
Before you are ready to serve add the grated Parmesan cheese and stir it to a smooth consistency. If you have fresh herbs you may add them for garnish when you place the soup into your serving bowls. You may serve hot or cold.
If you wish to serve cold chill for several hours in the fridge or create an ice bath to set your hot soup into to chill it down. You will need to adjust the seasonings regardless of how you serve them right before you serve yourself and or guest.
You may also add heavy cream and a pinch of sugar for extra flavor if you don't mind the calories.



© Frugal New England Kitchen

Source: Chef Shelley Pogue