Cheddar-Bacon-Horseradish Dip

I can’t believe I haven’t posted this dip before. It is one of my family’s favorite things. I think the name says enough, so I’ll just stop right here.

Ingredients:

½ pound of bacon

1/3 cup chopped onion

1 cup mayonnaise

1 cup sour cream

¼ cup horseradish

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Chopped green onions  and additional crumbled bacon for garnish (optional)

Directions:

Cook the bacon in a skillet until crisp. Drain the bacon on a paper towel lined plate and drain off all but 1 Tablespoon of the drippings.

Add the chopped onion to the drippings in the skillet and cook until just translucent. Let cool slightly.

In a mixing bowl, stir together the mayo, sour cream, horseradish and cheddar cheese. Crumble the bacon and throw that into the bowl along with the cooked onions.

This dip is great right after it is made, warmed up or even cold.

Corn chips seem to be the preferred dipper, by the way. 

Easy Chicken Noodle Casserole

Whether it is baked ziti, shepherd’s pie, lasagna or even homemade mac and cheese, casseroles are one of the most comforting foods around. This chicken noodle casserole is easy, feeds a crowd and tastes amazing. Note: I just put a really large skinless, boneless chicken breast and two skinless, boneless chicken thighs in a pot with a box of chicken stock and poached them for 20 minutes, which gave me both the chicken and the stock, but a store bought rotisserie chicken and boxed broth will cut down on prep time.

Ingredients:

1 can (10.5 ounces) condensed cream of chicken soup

1 can (10.5 ounces) condensed cream of mushroom soup (or can sub another can of cream of chicken)

½ cup sour cream

1 cup milk

1 cup chicken stock

1 heaping teaspoon poultry seasoning

Freshly cracked black pepper, optional

1 (10 ounce) package of frozen mixed vegetables (you don’t even need to thaw)

6 ounces dry, wide egg noodles, cooked according to package directions and drained

3 cups cooked, diced chicken

¼ cup butter, melted

1 sleeve of round, buttery crackers (about 28 crackers), crushed

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 2 ½ or 3 quart baking dish (a 13 by 9 inch pan will work just fine) with cooking spray, place it on a cookie sheet (to prevent spill over) and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the soups, sour cream, milk, chicken stock and poultry seasoning (as well as black pepper, if using). Stir in the mixed vegetables, cooked and drained egg noodles and diced chicken. Pour this mixture into your prepared baking dish.

Combine the melted butter and crushed crackers and spread over the top of the casserole.

Bake on the middle oven rack for 35 minutes or until the top is golden and the sides are bubbling.