Chicken-tot Casserole

Ingredients:

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken

1 can mushroom soup

1/2 small onion, chopped

1 rib celery, chopped

1 bag frozen tater tots 

1/4-1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

Cut raw chicken into bite-sized pieces. Pan fry with a small amount of olive oil until cooked through.  Salt and pepper can be added in this phase for added flavor.  Add onions and celery, and remove from heat when onions are translucent.  This was a prepare-ahead meal, so at this point, I allowed the chicken and veggies to cool. You could also prepare and bake right away. 

Spray an 8 x 8 baking dish with Pam, and add the chicken. Try to make it as even as possible. Spread mushroom soup evenly over chicken. (Feel free to add milk or broth to make more gravy, but I thought it was perfect without additional liquid). 

Next, completely cover chicken and soup with a layer of tots. Sprinkle cheese on top of the tots. 

Cover with foil and bake at 350 for about 25 minutes. Then remove foil and increase heat to 375. Bake until the tater tots are golden and crispy. Serves 4-5. 

Notes: Good freezer-meal option (thaw first), make early-bake later, or prepare at meal time. Just be aware that frozen tots will extend baking time. For big families, double the recipe and use a 9 x 13 baking dish. Buy gluten free and dairy free products for an allergy-friendly meal. 

31 Pins: Day 29

Pinned this one a while ago and have been wanting to try it out.  The bridal party had a large serving plate to sign at my cousin's bridal shower and I believe another cousin's wife did this with her kiddos.  I was going to get some dishes/mugs at the dollar store, but ended up having just what I needed right here at home... thank goodness, because this hurricane weather is getting pretty crazy!

Original pin:

The original pin led me to an Etsy shop with some cute gifts.  I googled "baked sharpie mugs" and came up with this link for directions.

As you can see, I collect mugs and tea cups.

Found these beauties at an antique store in town for 10 cents a piece a few years back.

They look the same but have different manufacturers.  The one on the left has a bull on it. :D

I found a big mug/bowl so E could get in on the action.

We tried different colors and metallics.  The gold and silver were pretty dull, but the bronze worked nicely.

 I was having trouble deciding what to write or draw, and Josh suggested making one for coffee and one for tea.  I did not like the idea at first (this is normal), but then it started to make sense.  Normally, I pour myself a nice, big mug of coffee in the morning.  But, by the time I get to the second half it is freezing cold.  I thought, if I use a smaller cup and let the coffee sit on the warmer while I drink that, then I can have another small cup (that is HOT) when I am ready!  {They say you should not reheat coffee for whatever reason.} 

I baked them in the oven while we were making supper.  Those are asparagus on the top rack (drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with kosher salt).

You can see the big mug below on the bottom rack.  I figured, why not save some energy??

The site I found mentioned that using the dishwasher was out because the marker did not seem to hold up in there.  So, I will be hand washing.  And if it comes off, I can just redo it and add more.