Kendra's Kampfire

Red and Green Stuffed Shells

Ingredients:

-1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

-1/2 Whole Onion, Diced

-1 Clove Garlic, Minced

-10 ounces, weight Fresh Baby Spinach

-4 Tablespoons Butter

-1/4 cup All-purpose Flour

-2-1/2 cups Whole Milk, More If Needed

-2 Tablespoons Chopped Basil

-2 Tablespoons Chopped Parsley

-Salt And Pepper, to taste

-30 ounces, weight Whole Milk Ricotta Cheese

-1 Jar of Marinara Sauce

-1 cup Grated Parmesan Cheese, Plus More For Sprinkling

-1 whole Large Egg

-12 ounces, weight Jumbo Pasta Shells (25 To 30 Shells) Cooked Until Slightly Firmer Than Al Dente

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, and saute until the onion starts to soften, about 4 minutes. Add the spinach and cook, stirring continuously, until it's slightly wilted, about 2 minutes. Remove the spinach from the pan and let it cool slightly, then place it inside a few paper towels and squeeze out as much liquid as you can. Give it a rough chop and set it aside.

Turn the heat to medium-low, then, in the same skillet, melt the butter and sprinkle the flour over the top. Whisk it together to make a roux, then cook it for a minute or two. Slowly add the milk, whisking out lumps as you go, and cook it until the white sauce is thickened, 4 to 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and stir in half the basil, half the parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. Add another 1/4 cup milk if the white sauce is too thick. Taste and adjust the seasonings. 

In a separate bowl, mix together the ricotta, Parmesan, egg, the rest of the basil, the rest of the parsley, and salt and pepper to taste until combined. Stir in the chopped spinach mixture.

To assemble the shells, use a spoon to fill the pasta shells with the cheese mixture. Place the shells seam side down in a 9 x 13 casserole dish or disposable foil baking pan. Pour the marinara evenly over the shells, then ladle the white sauce over the marinara in a zig-zag/line design. Finally, sprinkle with more Parmesan. 

Bake it in a preheated 375 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes, until hot and bubbly.

***To freeze, cover the unbaked shells tightly with heavy foil and freeze for up to 6 months. To bake the frozen casserole, place it in a 375 degree oven for 1 1/2 hours, then uncover and continue baking for 10 to 30 minutes, depending on how frozen it was. 
OR
***Thaw the pan in the fridge for 24 to 48 hours, then bake as directed.

French Toast Casserole

This is the perfect breakfast for a lazy Saturday morning. Or in our case, Thanksgiving morning! I made this last year for Mike and I am officially making it a tradition for our family. I mean, you make it the night before, pop it in the oven a few while your coffee is brewing, and voila! You have a comfy cozy breakfast to chow down on while you're watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Shopping List

1 loaf French bread, torn into bite-size pieces

6 eggs

1 1/2 cups half and half

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1 cup brown sugar, packed

1 cup chopped pecans (optional)

powdered sugar (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Arrange bread in a lightly greased 9 x 13 inch baking pan; set aside

Beat to ether next 6 ingredients, pour over bread. Cover and refrigerate overnight

The next morning, take the butter, maple syrup, brown sugar and pecans and mix them together in a bowl to a crumbly mix. Spread mix over casserole as your topping and bake for 45 to 55 minutes. (Check after about 30 minutes and if it's getting too brown on top, cover with foil and continue cooking)

Dust with powdered sugar and let stand 5 minutes before serving

Enjoy!!!

This recipe holds a special place in my heart. When I was little, before everyone was growing up and getting married, we used to have huge family holidays, so naturally we needed lots of appetizers. So my Papa would always make his famous ham rolls, and I was known to hammer down on more than my fair share. So now that he has passed away, every time I eat them, I think of him, so I wanted to share this recipe with all of you because they come from so much love! 

Shopping List: 

1 jar dill pickle spears

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened at room temperature

3 (1/2 lb) package thinly sliced ham

Spread a thin layer of cream cheese on a slice of meat

Put one pickle on the ham slice and roll up

Continue to do this to make as many ham rolls as you desire

See!! So easy! These are perfect if you are wanting to bring an appetizer to a party, and trust me, they are always a crowd favorite! 

Hellooo! I wanted to share this recipe with ya'll because it is one of my absolute favorites! Every year when we were younger, my mom would always cook us our favorite meal for our Birthday Dinner, and friends, this was my pick every.single.year. 

It is the epitome of comfy, cozy and is seriously yummy! And super simple too!

Shopping List:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1/3 cup sour cream

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 box chicken stuffing mix

EVOO

Salt and Pepper to taste

Salt and pepper the chicken, then brown the breasts on both sides in the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet

While the chicken is browning, mix the soup and sour cream together in a small bowl. Make the stovetop stuffing as directed on the package

Once the chicken is browned on both sides, pour the soup and sour cream mixture on top of the chicken and top with the stuffing

Cover and simmer until done (probably around 30 minutes depending on how thick the breasts are)

That's it! You're done! Happy Cooking!

Trust me, it's yummy in your tummy

Hello! Today totally felt like Fall, so I whipped up a quick and cozy dinner for our fam. It was so tasty I decided to share it with all of you wonderful people!!

Mexican Risotto

Shopping List: 

1 cup Arborio rice

2 quartz chicken stock (not broth, stock)

1 bell pepper (any color) chopped

3-6 (depending on your love for garlic, my hubby loooves it) chopped garlic cloves

1 tablespoon Cumin

2 teaspoon ground Coriander

1 cup frozen corn

1/2-1 cup shredded monterey jack cheese

1 bunch of green onions, chopped

EVOO and salt and pepper

This meal will take you about 30 minutes from start to finish. I know Risotto gets a bad wrap for being difficult, but don't worry, it's super easy!!

In a large stock pot, bring chicken stock up to low simmer (not boiling, just a simmer)

In a separate pan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat, add bell peppers and sauté 6-7 minutes. Add in garlic and cook an additional minute. Stir in rice for another minute.

Add cumin and coriander. Stir.

At this point, take a ladle and add 1 cup of your hot stock to the rice. Stir constantly for a minute or so. As the liquid evaporates, the rice will become super starchy and delicious. Stir pretty often, adding stock every time the majority of the liquid evaporates. You will continue doing this for about 18 minutes. Add stock, wait for it to evaporate and add more. This will cause the risotto to fluff up and look creamy (yes, without using any cream!) Most recipes for tell you to stir continuously, but not this one! You don't need to. Just stir it around every few minutes and you will be golden.

After the rice is tender, stir in frozen corn and continue cooking another 3-4 minutes. Stir in cheese, season with salt and pepper to taste and top with green onions. 

That's it! Super Simple! This is a super tasty and homey meal, and I know you will love it! Shout out to Mix and Match Mama for this recipe!!