Chicken Penne Casserole

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs

½ cup chopped onion

½ cup chopped red pepper

½ cup chopped green pepper

1 tsp. dried basil

1 tsp. oregano

1 tsp. parsley flakes

½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

1 T. oil

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 ½ cups uncooked penne pasta

14 ½ oz. diced tomatoes, undrained

3 T. tomato paste

¾ cup chicken broth

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

½ cup grated Romano or parmesan cheese

Directions:  In a large sauce pan with oil, sauté chicken, onion, peppers and 

seasonings until the chicken is no longer pink.  Add garlic and cook one minute 

longer.  Cook penne pasta according to package directions.  

Meanwhile, mix tomato paste and diced tomatoes.  Add tomato mixture to chicken 

mixture.  Stir in chicken broth.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat.  Cover and simmer for 

10-15 minutes or until slightly thickened.  

Drain pasta.  Toss with chicken mixture.  Spoon half the mixture into a greased 2 

quart baking dish.  Sprinkle with half the cheeses.  Repeat layers.  Cover.  Bake at 

350 degrees for 30 minutes.  Uncover; bake 15-20 minutes longer.

Comment:  Also works well with left over chicken or with chicken pulled from roast 

chicken.

Spicy Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork

3 onions, peeled, quartered

1 whole pork butt (pork shoulder roast)

Salt & Pepper

1 can chipotle chiles in adobe sauce

1 can green chiles sauce

2 cans Dr. Pepper (or 1 Dr. Pepper and 1 Coke)

4 T. brown sugar

Directions:  Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Place quartered onions in the bottom of a 

dutch oven.  Place the pork butt on top of the onions (fat side up) and add salt and 

pepper to taste. Pour the chile sauces over the top.  Pour the soda over the chiles.  

Add the brown sugar to the liquid, stirring slightly to combine.  Cover the pot and 

cook for at least six hours.  When it is done, the roast will be dark and fork-tender.  

If the pork does not easily pull apart with forks, return to oven in 30-minute intervals 

until done.  Remove the roast from the pot and shred it completely. 

Skim the fat off the remaining liquid.  Return meat to pot.    

Comment:  This is so easy and so delicious!

Enchiladas

3 T. vegetable oil  

2 T. flour

1 tsp. garlic powder  

1 onion, chopped

1 small can green chilies  

5 T. chili powder

24 oz.  tomato paste  

2 cups water

1 pkg. tortillas  

16 oz. sharp cheddar

2 lb. browned hamburger  

Salsa

Sour cream

Directions:  To make sauce, combine onion, garlic and vegetable oil in a sauce pan 

and sauté until onion is soft.  Add flour and chili powder; blend.  Add tomato paste, 

green chilies, and water.  Simmer until thicken.

Brown hamburger.  Shred cheese.

To make enchiladas:  Grease baking pan.  Spread a few spoonfuls of sauce on 

bottom to ensure tortillas do not stick.  Place heaping spoonful of hamburger and 

handful of shredded cheese in middle of tortilla.  Add some sauce.  Roll up tortilla 

and place in pan.

When all tortillas are in the pan, pour remaining sauce over top.  Cover with 

aluminum foil.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.  Remove foil and add remaining 

cheese.  Return to oven until cheese melts.  Serve with salsa and sour cream.

Comment:  Fantastic.  Add taco ships and Spanish rice and you’ve got a great meal.  

San substitute shredded chicken for hamburger.  I generally dice another onion and 

brown with the hamburger.

Becky’s Lasagna

2 lb. ground beef

18 oz. tomato paste

2 T. basil

¼ cup red wine

Garlic Powder, to taste

1 tsp. salt

2 one-lb. cans tomatoes

Water

1 lb. lasagna noodles

1 large container large-curd cottage cheese (may use Ricotta cheese or combination of two cheeses)

2 eggs

1 tsp. pepper

½ cup Parmesan cheese

2 T. parsley flakes

2 lbs. Mozzarella cheese

Directions:  Use very large lasagna pan.  Combine tomato paste, tomatoes, wine, basil, salt, and garlic powder in pot.  Simmer.  Add water if appears too thick. Brown the ground beef.  Cook the noodles.  In a bowl, combine cottage cheese, eggs, Parmesan cheese, parsley, salt, and pepper.Make the lasagna.  Put a small amount of sauce on bottom of greased lasagna pan.  

Then layer as follows: 

• 1/3 noodles, cheese mixture, sauce, mozzarella cheese.
• 1/3 noodles, hamburger, sauce, mozzarella cheese
• 1/3 noodles, sauce

Make a tent of foil (I wrap the entire pan in foil to catch the sauce that steams out).  Bake 50 minutes at 350 degrees.  Open foil.  Add top layer of mozzarella cheese.  Close foil.  Bake 10 more minutes.  Let stand 10 minutes before serving.  If you do not let it stand, it will not firm up enough to cut pieces.

Comment:  This is half of Becky Sensky’s original recipe.  It is delicious, and still a large batch.

Lazarus Chicken Salad

2 cups cooked chicken, cut into 2” pieces (easier, and

more flavorful, to just pull apart a roasted chicken

from the grocery store) 

2 cups coarsely diced celery

1 pint pecans

1 pint Lazarus Chicken Salad Dressing

Dressing:

½ cup flour ½ cup sugar

2 tsp. dry mustard 1 T. salt

1 tsp. paprika 2 cups milk

1 cup hot vinegar + 3 parts mayonnaise

¼ cup beaten egg yolk

Directions:  Make Dressing first.  Thoroughly mix flour, sugar, dry mustard, salt, 

and paprika.  Add to milk and cook in a double boiler until thickens.  Add hot 

vinegar and continue to cook 10 minutes.  Add a little of the hot mixture to the egg 

yolk (to keep it from becoming scrambled eggs when added).   Add eggs to hot 

mixture and cook 10 minutes longer.  Chill.  Before using, blend one-part dressing to 

three parts mayonnaise.

Mix together chicken, celery and pecans (as well as your optional ingredients like 

onions, fruit).  Add Dressing and toss gently.  Better if it can be refrigerated for a 

few hours for flavors to blend.

Comment:  Makes more dressing than needed. The dressing really is the base.  A 

touch of curry powder kicks it up. The salad can be made even better by adding green onion and then cut fruit like apples or grapes or mandarin oranges.