Tomato, Broccoli & Mozzarella Pasta Casserole

Tomato, Broccoli & Mozzarella Pasta Casserole serves 6

http://www.thekitchn.com/recipe-tomato-broccoli-mozzare-153919

12 ounces farfalle pasta (I used rotini)
1 pound broccoli florets, frozen or fresh
3 large ripe tomatoes, divided
3/4 pound onion, diced (I sauteed these ahead of time so they wouldn't be crunchy)
4 garlic cloves, very finely minced
One 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained
3/4 cup chopped basil leaves, divided
1/2 pound fresh full-fat mozzarella, divided
3 large eggs
1 cup cottage cheese (4% milkfat or greater)
1 lemon, juiced
3/4 cup grated Parmesan, divided
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper

Heat the oven to 375°F and lightly grease a 9x13-inch casserole dish with olive oil. Heat a large pot of water to boiling and salt generously. Add the farfalle and cook for 11 minutes or until barely al dente. Drain and return to the pot.

Steam the broccoli in the microwave or in a steamer basket on the stovetop, just until tender. Drain thoroughly and chop roughly into bite-sized florets. Toss with the cooked pasta. Chop two of the tomatoes into rough pieces, and add them to the pasta. Stir in the chopped onion and minced garlic, along with the drained chickpeas, and 1/2 cup of the chopped basil. Tear about 2/3 of the fresh mozzarella into thumbnail-sized chunks and fold this into the pasta mixture.

Whisk the eggs with the cottage cheese and lemon juice. Stir in 1/2 cup of Parmesan. Stir this liquid into the pasta mixture until well combined. Stir in the salt and pepper.
Spread the pasta in the prepared baking dish. Slice the remaining tomato into half-moons and arrange on top of the pasta. Tear the rest of the mozarella into bits and scatter between the rows of tomato slices. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese on top, and drizzle with olive oil.

Bake for 35 minutes or until the cheese on top has melted and the casserole is bubbling. Remove from the oven and immediately sprinkle the remaining chopped basil over top. Let stand for a few more minutes before serving.

I haven't cooked this from frozen, but we did eat it the day I assembled these.  It was good, but the pasta is a bit overcooked!  SORRY!  I also read a lot of reviews on the website and decided to saute the onions ahead of time so as not to be eating them crunchy.  All the veggies I used were from our local farmshare or from our very own little garden!  Next time I'd add more tomatoes.  Enjoy!

Recipes from Meal Swaps #1 and #2

Mom's Slow Cooker Chili
(from http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2013/02/10-slow-cooker-freezer-meals-in-less.html)

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef (you could also use ground turkey)

1 onion, diced

2 (14 oz) cans diced tomatoes

1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce

1/4 cup ketchup or chili sauce

1/4 cup water

1 (15 oz) can dark red kidney beans

1 packet chili seasoning mix

3 stalks celery, chopped

2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 Tablespoon sugar

Directions:

Brown ground beef with chopped onion. While they are browning, combine all other ingredients in resealable gallon-sized freezer bag. When the browned hamburger and onion has cooled down, add it to the rest of the ingredients in the freezer bag and zip closed.

When ready to eat, remove from freezer and thaw in fridge for 24 hours. Cook on HIGH for 3-4 hours or LOW for 7-8 hours. Top with shredded cheese and crackers or Frito's corn chips.

Chickpea Curry

(adapted from CHICKEN CURRY from mamaandbabylove.com/2011/04/05/freezer-cooking-with-slow-cooker-recipes/)

 

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 4 tablespoons curry powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1.5-2 pounds chicken thighs, or breasts, cut into 1 inch pieces (I substituted 2 cans lo-sodium chickpeas)
• 2 cups chopped peeled sweet potatoes
• 2 cups baby carrots
• 2 cup coarsely chopped mango or 2 cans of chopped mango
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 zucchini chopped, about one cup
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups chicken stock, 1 cup per bag - make your own 
• .5 cup raisins (for garnish)
• .5 cup peanuts or cashews (for garnish)

Instructions

1. Divide everything into two separate one gallon freezer bags, shake it up, seal, label and put in the freeze
2. To cook, take out of freezer and set on counter for about 30 minutes, then dump contents of bag into slow cooker. Cook on high for 4 hours, or low for 8 hours
3. If you want, you can add 1/2 cup of chicken stock to have more sauce, but the liquid from the frozen meat and vegetables melting should give you enough liquid to work with

Every slow cooker is different, so just watch yours the first time you make it.

 

Extra tips:

 

  I have to tell you, I was so excited to try this recipe out.  The ingredients are 'whole foods', the food in the bags was so beautiful... it had to be good, right?  Well, I was disappointed that it was bland -- it definitely would have been better with about 1 teaspoon salt added.  Maybe it was the lo-sodium chicken stock I used?  And when we made it, I forgot to add the garnish at the end, so maybe that would have helped.  Anyway, I will try others of her recipes in the future because I like the idea of using minimally processed foods.  

 

  The other thing I didn't realize until looking into making swap meal #3, was that recipes from mamaandbabylove are meant to make 12 servings!  No wonder she said to divide it up into 2 bags!  And no wonder it easily fed my family of 2 adults and 3 kids + 4 adults we had for company + leftovers!  Keep this in mind if you use her recipes in the future!

 

  This is why I say I'm still getting the hang of this serving-size thing.  The sixsistersstuff site doesn't mention how many servings their recipes make (and I haven't made my own chili yet, so I still don't know from experience...), so that is a fore-warning for swap #3 recipe from me (beef stew): I hope it makes at least 6 servings! Everytime I just follow a recipe it has been a stab in the dark as to the serving sizes, so this is my official and last apology for the craziness of my meal sizes!

 

OK!  That's it!