Food

I took a trip last night to the prairie, met up with "friend in my head" the Pioneer Woman and came home with the most scrumptious dinner.

Last evening I truly felt like a Pioneer Woman or at least like the woman from the old Jean Nate commercial - "I Can Bring Home the Bacon..." (MD Thanks for catching my "oops" - it was Enjoli that brought home the bacon)

(Don't act like you forgot about Jean Nate)



But I digress...On the agenda last night was changing my headlight bulb (no clue on how to get it done but I figured it out with help from "the son"), blow-dry, straighten and curl my hair, do homework, wash a load of clothes, pick up the house, watch Medium (one of the best shows ever - Patricia Arquette is a "BEST friend in my head") and of course cook a nutritious, good-tasting meal for "the son".
(HHMM...And people wonder why I want to run away from home sometimes.)


As soon as I finished my role as "grease monkey", I raced to the kitchen on my nightly hunt. You know the one. "What to cook? What to cook?" It's a common thread felt throughout the world from Park Avenue to the Sahara. On one hand I had most of a leftover roasted chicken, and in the other hand nothing/nada. HHHHMMM? Then it struck me. I remembered seeing a recipe on Pioneer Woman Cooks website that "the son" just might enjoy. At the computer, I realized that I was in luck, having most of the ingredients needed to make Chicken Spaghetti. Being a Minnesotan, born and bred, I love casseroles, so this was right up my alley. I whipped it up in no time at all and let me tell you...YYYYYYUUUUUUUMMMMMMMMMMMMMYYYYYYY!!!!!

Here is the recipe. Check out the link for pictures and play by play instructions. The only modifications I made were I used left over roasted chicken, canned chicken broth and I didn't have any pimentos. (Now hopefully, "the son" won't completely devour the left-overs before I get home tonight)

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/06/chicken_spaghet/

Pioneer Woman Chicken Spaghetti
2 cups cooked chicken
2 cans Cream of Mushroom soup
2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup finely diced green pepper
1/2 cup finely diced onion
1 -4 oz jar diced pimentos, drained
3 cups dry spaghetti, broken into two inch pieces
2 cups reserved chicken broth from pot
1 teaspoon Lawry’s Seasoned Salt
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon Cayenne pepper
Salt & Pepper to taste
1 additional cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

Cook 1 cut up fryer and pick out the meat to make two cups. Cook spaghetti in same chicken broth until al dente. Do not overcook. When spaghetti is cooked, combine with remaining ingredients except additional 1 cup sharp cheddar. Place mixture in casserole pan and top with remaining sharp cheddar. Cover and freeze up to six months, cover and refrigerate up to two days, or bake immediately: 350 degrees for 45 minutes until bubbly. (If the cheese on top starts to get too cooked, cover with foil.)