In a large bowl, thoroughly mix Miracle Whip, sour cream, both soups, seasonings and hot sauce. Then add chicken, rice, broccoli and 1/2 cup of the cheddar cheese. Toss together thoroughly to combine.

Pour into a 9 x 13 baking dish that has been lightly greased. Spread evenly. Top with the last 1/4 cup of cheddar cheese and sprinkle a thin but even coating of panko crumbs on the top, about 1/2 cup. Dot with the 2 tablespoons of butter.

Bake for 35-40 minutes.

Notes:
- You can substitute 10 ounces of frozen broccoli if you like.
- You most definitely can prepare the chicken the same day if you wish. I season mine with some season salt and poultry seasoning and either grill or cook in a skillet over medium heat until cooked through. Depending on the thickness of the chicken this will take at least 5 minutes per side; or until juices run clear.

1. Add the pepitas with 2 cups of the cold water to a bowl. Allow them to soak for 3 hours.
2. Drain and rinse the soaked pepitas.
3. Add the pepitas into the jar of a blender with 1 cup of fresh water and the salt. Blend until smooth. If the sauce seems a little thick, add a little more water and continue pulsing until the desired consistency is achieved.
4. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Stir before using.

For the enchiladas:

1. Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise and remove the ends. Peel the eggplant if desired (it’s a preference thing), and cut it into about ¾ inch thick slices. Lay the eggplant slices in a single layer on some sheets of paper towel. Sprinkle about 1 teaspoon of salt over the top of all (not each) of the eggplant slices. Allow that to sit for about 15 minutes, then turn the slices over and sprinkle another teaspoon of salt over all of the slices. Salting helps to remove any bitterness from the eggplant.
2. Meanwhile in a medium skillet combine the onions, 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, sugar and a pinch of salt. Cook over medium high heat to start, stirring occasionally. When the onions are translucent turn the heat down to medium. Add the garlic and oregano. Cook stirring until the onions are a golden caramel color, about 15 minutes longer. Remove skillet from the heat and set to the side.
3. Preheat the broiler and make sure you have a rack in the middle setting.
4. Rinse the salt off of the eggplant and blot dry.
5. Lay the sliced eggplant and the red bell pepper on a rimmed sheet pan. Brush (or mist) both sides of the vegetables with olive oil and season with a little salt and pepper. Put the pan under the broiler on the middle rack. When the veggies are brown (5 to 7 minutes) turn them over and brown the other side. Keep an eye on them once you flip them. When browned to your liking remove pan from the oven.
6. Pull most of the charred skin off of the red peppers. Cut the peppers and the eggplant into about ½ inch dice.
7. In a large bowl combine the diced eggplant and peppers, the caramelized onions, ¾ cup of the pepita cream sauce and the cilantro (or flat leaf parsley). Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper if needed.
8. Turn the oven on to 350 F.
9. Coat the bottom of a 13 x 9 x 2 inch baking dish with some of red the enchilada sauce.
10. Put about 1/3 cup of the filling down the center a warmed tortilla. Roll the tortilla around the filling (like a tube) and place it seam side down in the baking dish. Repeat with the remaining tortillas, lining them up next to each other down the center of the baking dish.
11. Pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the enchiladas.
12. Tent a sheet of aluminum foil over the dish and bake for about 15 minutes. Then remove the foil and bake for a further 15 to 20 minutes, just until the enchiladas are hot.
13. Remove from the oven, and serve with more pepita cream and garnish with pepita seeds.

Notes: In place of the pepita cream sauce you may use cheese. I would suggest adding about 1/3 cup of Pecorino Romano cheese for the filling, and about ¾ cup of Monterey jack cheese over the top.

If using canned enchilada sauce go ahead and use two ten ounce cans in their entirety, there’s no point in wasting the extra sauce.

Turn on oven to 350 F.

In a large pan, pan fry ground beef, onion, and green peppers over medium-high heat until beef is brown. Drain the grease from the beef mixture. Return pan to medium heat, and add garlic, diced tomatoes, chili powder, cumin, paprika, cayanne, salt, pepper, and pasta cooking water. Mix well to combine and allow to simmer for 5 minutes or until slightly thicker. You want the “sauce” to be fairly loose so the casserole does not dry out in the oven. Add the drained black beans, Mexi-corn and pasta. Stir well to completely combine, and allow to heat through.

At this point, you can either make two 9×13″ casseroles and freeze one, or make one 11×17″ casserole for a larger group of people. If you are making the 9×13″ pans, top the one you are about to bake with 2 cups of shredded cheese, and leave the other plain to be frozen. If you are making the 11×17 pan, top with all 4 cups of shredded cheese.

Place pan in oven and bake for 30 minutes or until the cheese is melty and golden brown. Serve with your choice of garnishes. Enjoy!

Place the sausage in a large pot and cover with water, about 1 inch. Bring the water and sausages to a boil and let them cook for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, cut the cauliflower into florets, place in a 9×13 pan, and toss with the olive oil, salt and pepper. Pour the marinara and water over the cauliflower. When the sausage is done boiling, nestle the links into the cauliflower, place the whole dish in the oven and roast for 25 minutes at 450ºF, turning the sausage halfway through. Serve hot!

For the base:
1. Coarsely chop the celery, carrots and onions.
2. In a saute pan, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat and saute the mixture of celery, carrots and onions along with the garlic and seasoning (salt and pepper) for 10 minutes.
3. Add the tomato puree. (You can make your own tomato puree or use canned but I use canned because it’s so easy and available).
4. Add the sprig of fresh thyme and 1 pinch of herbs de Provence. (herbs de Provence is simply a mixture of dried savory, fennel, basil, thyme and lavender).
5. Cook in the pan for another 10 minutes then remove pan from stove and allow to cool.
6. Upon cooling, put the mixture into a food processor and puree until the consistency is smooth.
7. In a circular 2.5 quart oven safe baking dish, make a layer at the bottom of the pan evenly so that the sauce covers just the bottom and is not on the side.
8. Let that sit while you make the top layer.

For the top layer:
1. Slice the zucchini, yellow squash and 2 Roma tomatoes into thin medallions.
2. Layer the 3 vegetables in sequential order in a spiral (place them lightly) around the outer layer of the pan then work your way in towards the center. This is the portion that you can use your creativity and form different patterns on top of your dish but make sure to completely cover the top leaving no spots where the bottom layer is showing.
3. Drizzle the olive oil evenly on top of the ratatouille and garnish with the chopped parsley.
4. Cover the dish with the lid or aluminum foil and place in the oven to cook for 3 hours and 20 minutes.
5. After cooking for 3 hours and 20 minutes, remove the lid or foil and bake again with the top off at 350 F for 20 more minutes to crisp up the top.
6. Then remove the dish from the oven and set it on a rack. Let it cool for 10 minutes before serving.

To garnish and serve:
1. Garnish with freshly grated Parmesan cheese and serve with fresh ciabatta bread that is drizzled with olive oil. Enjoy!

Pour two cans of enchilada sauce into a medium, round plastic container and set aside. Set up your area like an assembly line..

Using a 9 x 13 cake or casserole pan, pour the remaining 1/2 can of enchilada sauce into the pan and spread to cover bottom. Dip a corn tortilla into the bowl of enchilada sauce to completely cover tortilla and lay it in the pan. It takes 6 tortillas per layer so repeat this process for 5 more tortillas.

Then add 1/2 of the meat mixture and spread evenly over the tortillas. Add 1 cup of cheese over the top, then repeat the layers with 6 more dipped tortillas, the rest of the meat and 1 cup of cheese.

Add the last layer of dipped tortillas and spread the last cup of cheese on top. You can pour remaining sauce over the top if you like. Place casserole pan on a large cookie sheet to prevent spills in the oven!

Cook in the oven for 30 to 45 minutes or until cheese is deep golden brown and bubbly. Then remove the pan from the oven and set it on a wire rack. Let casserole set for about 15 minutes then cut into 12 squares and serve with refried beans and Spanish rice for the perfect Mexican dinner even the kids will eat!

You can also add the beans and rice to the layers to make a one dish meal! Leftover chicken can also be used instead of hamburger. Just shred the chicken and add the onion and taco seasoning with 1/2 cup of water and cook in skillet for about 10 minutes. Drain any excess liquid and add sauce. Layer the same as above.

Pour the white wine into the sauté pan and stir. Allow the wine to reduce by at least half before adding the tomato puree, oregano, cinnamon, 1 teaspoon nutmeg, and 1 teaspoon allspice. Bring the sauce to a simmer and allow to simmer for 20-30 minutes or until the sauce is quite thick. Remove pan from heat and set aside.

While the tomato sauce is simmering, fill a stock pot with water and bring to a boil. Then add the pasta. Cook the pasta as per the directions on the packaging except cut back the time by 1-2 minutes so that your noodles don’t overcook when you get to the baking step.

While the pasta is cooking begin preparing the béchamel sauce by melting 1/4 cup of the butter in a large sauté pan on medium heat. Once melted, slowly add the flour, whisking continuously to fully incorporate the fat and flour to make a roux. Continue whisking for 2-3 minutes to cook out the raw flour taste. Slowly add the milk to the roux, again whisking continuously. Add the ½ teaspoon of nutmeg and allspice to the béchamel and let the mixture cook for 5 minutes. Remove pan from the heat.

Place the egg yolks in a small bowl, and while mixing them continuously, slowly add a tablespoon of the béchamel to the yolks at a time. Do this 4 or 5 times to temper the eggs. Then add the egg mixture to the pan with the rest of the béchamel and whisk to combine fully. Set aside. Note: Do not dump the yolks directly into the hot béchamel sauce without tempering them first or else you will end up with scrambled eggs.

Preheat your oven to 375 F. Once the pasta is cooked, remove the stock pot from heat and drain the pasta in a colander. Set the hot stock pot aside and place the remaining 1/4 cup of butter into it. Once butter is melted, add the ziti along with the reserved egg whites. Toss to combine but be careful not to break the noodles.

To assemble the pastitsio, in a 13 by 9 Pyrex baking dish, apply a layer of cooking spray so that the food does not adhere to the dish. Then, spread the ziti across the bottom of the dish, being sure to evenly distribute the noodles. Then, place the tomato sauce over the top of the ziti. Top the tomato sauce with the béchamel, making sure that the entire dish is covered.

Sprinkle with freshly grated Parmesan cheese on top. Place dish in the oven, uncovered, for 45 minutes or until the cheese and béchamel sauce start to brown slightly. Remove pan from oven and set it on a rack. Allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.

In a large skillet add oil, onions, and garlic and let the mixture bloom over medium high heat for 2 minutes. Add in chicken stock and bring to simmer. Once simmering, add in all spices, carrot, pepper, and farro, cover and simmer.

Let it cook according to the farro package directions, until farro is tender. Once farro is cooked, turn heat off and add in tomatoes and 3/4 cup Asiago cheese.

Pour farro mixture into the baking dish. Top with remaining 3/4 cup Asiago and mozzarella cheese. Top everything with broccolini slices.

Bake, uncovered for 25 minutes, until cheese is golden brown and bubbly. Enjoy!

Puree the cauliflower with ¼ cup of the cooking liquid in a blender or food processor until smooth. (Obviously, you can add a little more cooking liquid if necessary.) Pour the puree into a bowl and season with salt and white pepper to taste.

Preheat the oven to 375 F.

While your cauliflower is simmering, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large cast iron skillet. Add the onions, carrot, green beans and garlic. Sauté for 5 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Add the frozen peas and cook for 1 more minute. Add the ground turkey to the vegetables. Cook for about 5 minutes, breaking up the meat with a spatula, until the turkey is no longer pink. Mix the tomato paste into the turkey and vegetables and allow it to cook for 1 minute before adding the soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, paprika, cayenne (if using) and vegetable stock. Allow it to simmer for 5 minutes.

Divide the turkey mixture among 4 medium-size (12 ounce) ramekins or oven safe bowls. If you don’t have ramekins, it’s not the end of the world. You can make one large pie in a baking dish. Top each ramekin with the cauliflower puree and sprinkle with about ½ teaspoon grated Parmesan cheese. If using ramekins place them on a baking sheet before putting them in the oven.

Bake your shepherd’s pie(s) for 15 minutes. If you are making one large pie, bake it for 25 minutes. Serve hot.

Add the chopped roasted red bell pepper, minced garlic, paprika, oregano, turmeric, salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes and rice. Stir everything to combine, and then add the water. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat, cover, and allow to cook for about 30 minutes until the rice is tender.

Remove from the heat, stir in the frozen peas, replace the lid and let the pot sit off the heat for 5-10 minutes. Serve hot!