Easy Shrimp Casserole

Easy Shrimp Casserole

3 cups medium noodles

1 can cream of shrimp soup

¾ cup of milk

¼ cup diced celery

1 tbsp green onions

¼ tsp salt

1/3 cup shredded natural cheddar cheese

1 cup cooked shrimp

¼ cup chow mein noodles

Cook noodles according to directions; drain. Combine soup with milk, mayonnaise, celery, onion and salt. Mix well. Stir in cheese, shrimp and cooked noodles. Turn into a 1 ½ quart casserole. Bake uncovered in 350 degree oven for 30-35 mins. Top with chow mein noodles. Bake 10 minutes longer.

Yield: 6 servings.

Submitted by Dawn Jacobsen of Madison, WI

Blogger's Note: Good luck finding cream of shrimp soup. I substituted cream of mushroom soup, and I think it made a better dish. Shrimp have a powerful taste, and to add more shrimp flavoring could have made the dish a smidge on the gross side. Also, I upped the amount of shrimp to 1 ½ cups to make up for the lack of cream of shrimp.

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This is an extremely easy recipe to make. I think it’s interesting to note that this dish is meant to serve six people. That says something about the proportions of a pre-McDonaldized nation. We had a glass of wine with some brie goat cheese followed by a simple green salad while the casserole was baking. While serving it I made a very conscious effort to serve smaller portions and I’m really happy I did. I can only speak for myself, but I was full the rest of the night. Even after a few cocktails with a friend.

Homorific pre-meal munching aside, this dish really reminded me of what my mom made as a child. Granted, shrimp was probably a little on the fancy side for Sharon, but I do remember eating a lot of casseroles as a child. Not to mention, you don’t have to fight a kid to eat creamy artery claughing goodness.

With that said. there isn’t a whole lot about this dish that is healthy, but with few minor changes it can become slightly better for you; like using fat free mayo (which I did).

American "Chow Mein"

American "Chow Mein"

1 lb. hamburger

1 cup chopped onion

2 cups chopped celery

1/3 cup soy sauce

1 cup uncooked rice

1 can cream of chicken or mushroom soup

1 can water

Brown hamburger and add to other ingredients in baking dish. Bake 1 hour in a moderate over, stirring occasionally . It may need additional water. Serve with chow mein noodles.

A very good main dish for supper or lunch.

Submitted by Mrs. Edith Anderson of Clayton, WI

Blogger's Note: I opted for cream of chicken on this. It seemed a good choice to offset the darkness of the soy sauce. We used Southern Tsunami brand soy sauce but would also recommend Kikkoman, which is brewed in Wisconsin (Check it out here). I also set a 20 minute timer in order to stir it occasionally. I found this worked very well.

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This was incredibly easy to make. chop up a few things and throw it in a casserole dish. It doesn't get much easier. The ingredients are easy to find, easy to use. The hardest part of the dish was browning the hamburger.

This is what it looked like before baking. Pretty gross.

Once it was finished and served for dinner, we were quite disappointed. It was bland, mushy, brown and unappetizing. Although the concoction was edible, we both agreed that the fate of the leftovers was up in the air. Most likely they will end up in the garbage disposal. This was the worst of casseroles. WE HOPE! There are a lot more to go, and we may not yet have plumbed the depths of casseroledom.

The finished product