Recipe': Che's Veggie-Mex Casserole

Che's Veggie-Mex Casserole

My wife- Cherilyn- finally got here from The Philippines back in June. After a year of going through Immigration processes, she finally stepped off the plane into Standiford Field Airport in Louisville, KY, back on June 20th. As you can imagine, I was ecstatic. Needless to say, her being here is part of the reason why I haven't posted anything in the past 3 months. We have been busy getting her everything she needs to acclimate to life here in the U.S., as well as getting to know each other again after a year apart.

And in the past 2 months we have slowly gone from me doing all the cooking, to cooking together, to her cooking most of the weekday meals, and me doing the weekends. But even with a lot of the meals she has been cooking, I usually give her quick snapshots of instructions on what to cook and how. Cherilyn is not afraid to tell anybody that one of the reasons she married me was because of my cooking. Her mother was worried for a long time that her lack of culinary skill would never get her a husband, so Cherilyn knew that in addition to finding a blue-eyed man, he had to be a good cook, too. Lucky me! But her mother need not worry, because Cherilyn has done an excellent job keeping my belly full of wonderful food. And for nearly every recipe I give her, she adds her own twist to it in the end that makes it even better. Luckily, Cherilyn has embraced the idea of experimentation in the kitchen, which is the foundation of the "Lupicurean" way.

So, it was no surprise to me that when I told her last night, "tomorrow for dinner, make whatever you want, be creative, have fun with it", she put together a wonderful vegetarian casserole that is pocketbook friendly, easy to make, and absolutely delicious. And that is what I present to my readers today, a wonderful "poor-man's casserole", if you will: Che's Veggie-Mex Casserole.

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup Egg Noodles
• 1 Cup Macaroni
• 1 Small Can Tomato Sauce
• ½ Small Can Black Olives
• 1-2 Cups Broccoli Crowns
• 4 Fresh Mushrooms, Sliced
• ½ Cup Wolf’s Veggie Gruel
• ½  Tbs. Garlic Powder
• ½ Tbs. Oregano
• ½ Tbs. Basil
• 1 Tbs. Mayo
• 1 Tsp. Fresh Ground Pepper
• 1 Tsp. Salt
• ½ - 1 Cup Mexican Style Shredded Cheese

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350°

Bring the egg noodles and macaroni to a boil in a pot until cooked al dente. Drain noodles, then pour into a large bowl. Add tomato sauce, olives, broccoli, mushrooms, veggie gruel, spices and mayo to the pasta. Stir all ingredients thoroughly until well mixed. Pour mix into a greased, glass baking pan. Layer the cheese over the top of the casserole.  Bake 25-30 minutes. Serves 2-3.

"Bon Appetit!"