Mexironi and Cheese

Although I’m pretty sure this dish probably falls into the casserole category, since Hubby and Seeley are both casserole-phobes, I will avoid using the dreaded c word.  To be fair, I think cans of crap thrown into a dish and baked, ruined that word for a lot of people.  Call it what you will, it’s easy and tasty, and that’s what matters. 

Here’s what you’ll need:

• ½ lb. pasta
• ½ lb. ground beef
• ½ onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 Tablespoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 cup diced tomatoes
• 2 Tablespoons green chilies  
• 4 oz. cream cheese
• 1 cup grated cheese
• 2 Tablespoons sliced green onions
• 2 Tablespoons chopped cilantro
• ½ cup water 

Since this recipe uses half of a lot of things (½ lb. pasta and meat, ½ of an onion, ½ can of tomatoes and green chilies, and ½ pkg. of cream cheese) it is very easily doubled.  It makes quite a lot, though, so just be sure you have a large enough vessel for it.

First up, get your pasta boiling.  Cook it according to the package directions, minus 2 minutes, then drain it and rinse it with cold water.  You want it to be a little underdone because it will soften up more during the baking process.  I used one called mezzi rigatoni, which is basically half length rigatoni, but any large-ish pasta will work.  Next, place a tablespoon of oil and the onion in a pan over medium heat. 

Sprinkle on ½ teaspoon salt, and cook the onion until it’s translucent, then add the garlic. 

Cook that for another minute or two, and then add the ground beef. 

Break that up with your spatula as it cooks.  When it’s browned, sprinkle on the chili powder and cumin.  (I use extra lean beef, but if you use something with a higher fat content, you’ll want to drain any excess rendered fat first.)

Stir that in and add the tomatoes. 

After those come the chilies. 

Stir that all together then reduce the heat a bit and pop a lid on for about 10 minutes.  Stir every couple of minutes to make sure it doesn’t burn. 

During that time, cut your cream cheese into cubes.  After the 10 minutes, turn off the heat and add the cream cheese. 

It will slowly melt as you stir it in.  (I know, it doesn’t really look that pretty at this stage, but trust me, it gets better.)

Add ½ cup grated cheese along with the green onions and cilantro.  Because cass… I mean dinners like this… are meant to be easy, I used pregrated cheese.   

Once all of that is incorporated, it’ll be a bit on the thick side.

Stir in ½ cup hot water.  There, that’s better. 

Add your cooked pasta.  Oops.  See what I mean about a large enough vessel.  Imagine if I had doubled it. 

Stir that together.  Somehow I managed it without making too much of a mess. 

Pour the whole thing into a buttered baking dish.  A 9x13 works great. 

Spread it around and cover with foil.  Now, at this point, you can go ahead and bake it, or you can make it ahead of time up to this point, refrigerate it, and continue on from here when you’re ready.  Preheat the oven to 350°.  Bake, covered, for 25 minutes.  (if it’s been refrigerated, add 10-15 minutes)  Uncover, and sprinkle on the remaining half cup of cheese. 

Back into the oven for 15 minutes.  By then it should be nice and bubbly and just starting to brown on top. 

Sprinkle with a bit of fresh cilantro and dig in.  Even if you have casserole haters in your family, give this a try.  I bet they’ll like it.  Hubby even had seconds! 

What was the best/worst casserole you grew up on? 

Dinner Rolls

Dinner rolls.  They couldn’t really have a more mundane name, but in reality, they are anything but.  There aren’t many things in life better than a fresh, hot, roll.  You can spread butter on them, or eat them with soup, or pile on some of your fresh baked Easter ham to make fabulous little sammiches.  I grew up eating my mom’s homemade rolls.  They were always the best, and we all loved them.  She usually makes potato rolls, though, which call for things like mashed potato and scalded milk.  Well, I’m way too lazy for that, so here is my simplified version. 

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 1 ½ cup warm water
• 1 Tablespoon sugar
• 1 pkg yeast
• 3 ½ cups flour
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 3 Tablespoons butter

Place the sugar in your mixing bowl and pour over the water.  The temperature of the water should be about like a nice warm bath would be. 

Swirl that around to dissolve the sugar, and then sprinkle on the yeast. 

Walk away for 5 – 10 minutes, or until you start to see active signs of life.

Add 2 cups of flour to the water. 

Mix that until it just comes together.

Add the butter, and mix for about a minute or so. 

Add the remaining flour, as well as the salt, and switch to the dough hook. (if you’re using a stand mixer) If you’re not using a stand mixer, work the flour in as best you can with a wooden spoon, and then switch to kneading by hand.  If you are using a mixer, allow it to knead the dough on medium low speed for 5 minutes or so. 

While that’s doing its thing, go ahead and butter a large bowl. 

If you happen to have a butter wrapper on hand, it is the easiest way to do that.  My friend Elise just passed on a little tip.  She says you can stack them in the freezer, and then just pull them out when you need them.  That’s a great tip, but with my brain, I’m likely to remember it just after I’ve dropped the butter wrapper in the trash. 

At this point your dough should be nice and smooth, but still a bit sticky. 

Flour your hands, and then move it to the bowl, flipping it over so that both sides have butter on them. 

Cover that with a damp kitchen towel and leave it to rise. 

Depending on the temperature of your house, it will probably need somewhere between 45 and 90 minutes.  Most likely, it’ll take about an hour.  You want it to basically double in size. 

Dump the dough out onto a floured surface and poke it with your knuckles to get rid of the largest bubbles. 

Divide the dough in half and set one piece aside. 

Cut the half you’re working with into 9 equal-ish pieces. 

Flatten each piece into a disc shape. 

Then fold all the edges into the center to form something resembling a ball. 

Put it down on the work surface, place your hand loosely over the top like a cage, and move it in small circles.  This will pull everything tight and make a nice ball. 

Place the ball into the prepared pan and repeat with the rest of the dough pieces. 

If you need more than 9 rolls now, go ahead and do the same with the other half.  Personally, I’d prefer to save them for another night to save me some time.  In that case, roll them into balls the same as you did the others, but place them with a bit of space between them on a floured, parchment lined, sheet pan, then pop that into the freezer for a few hours.  When they’re frozen solid, go ahead and drop them into a freezer bag.  Then when you’re ready, go ahead and continue from this point.  Just remember it will take a bit longer because they have to thaw before they’ll rise. 

Allow the rolls to rise until they’re nice and puffy.  Probably another hour or so.  When they’re getting close to that size, go ahead and preheat the oven to 350°.  

When they’re ready, bake them for about 25 minutes.  They should be nice and golden on top and if you tap on them, they’ll sound hollow. 

Remove them from the pan immediately.  If you want them to be pretty, brush them with a little butter, and they’ll be shiny and gorgeous.

They really do need a better name.  Look at that beauty! 

What’s your favorite thing to do with a roll?