Shipwrecked

I made a casserole the other day. It sure is casserole, crock pot, dutch oven weather around here. The leaves are starting to cover the ground. We turned on our heat and took our fleece jackets out of the closet. My nose and feet are cold when I go to bed.

This casserole surprised me. Honestly, I chose it because of the name and the fact I could use my food processor to slice everything up. It's easy to make and can be a really healthy dinner if you use brown rice and lean turkey. There are a bunch of versions online but this one is from the book Hot dish heaven : classic casseroles from Midwest Kitchens by Ann L. Burckhardt. I found it while browsing the library shelves after story time. (btw, why is story time only 6 weeks long? As soon as the parents and babies start to recognize each other, it's over. Don't worry...the next session starts in January! Really, does it take that much work for the children's librarian to get together a 20 minute program for babies once a week? If it does, someone please tell me why!)

Back to the food. I prepared all the ingredients and brought out my round 2.5 quart casserole dish. I started the layers and decided there was was way too many fillings to stuff into this dish. The recipe calls for one 2 quart dish. I ended up using two round dishes - a 2.5 and a 1.5. Another option might be using an 8 1/2 x 11 glass dish. I am pretty happy though because now I have a casserole in the freezer for another night.

Shipwreck Casserole

1 medium onion, chopped or sliced thin
2-3 medium potatoes, diced, grated or thin sliced
2 carrots, grated or thin sliced
1 lb regular or lean ground meat or turkey, raw, crumbled
1/3 c. uncooked white or brown rice
1-2 ribs celery, sliced
1 can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
salt and pepper to taste
1 can tomato soup
1 c. water

Heat oven to 350 degrees. (325 for glass casserole)
Layer the vegetables, meat, rice and beans in the order given in a 2 quart casserole, seasoning each layer lightly with salt and pepper. Stir soup and water together and pour over the layered ingredients. Cover and bake for 1.5 hours. Use a fork to test vegetables for doneness.

my baby eats!

Over the past week we have had some big milestones. Not only did William start eating solids he also got his first tooth! So far he's eaten rice cereal and pumpkin. You're supposed to wait four days before introducing a new food so that if the baby has an allergic reaction you'll know what it's from. Tommorow he gets to try something new...apples? bananas? avacado? It's so much fun watching him taste things for the first time. So far he's taken to it like a champ. Below are the frozen pumpkin cubes he's been eating.