Casserole Weekend

I love casseroles and made one Sunday morning and turned around and made another Sunday afternoon - very out of the ordinary - but no complaints here. Used a chub of the free sausage from the bro n law to make a breakfast casserole that absolutely rocked. This sausage is so fat it looks like it all fat but if you keep browning it it will finally turn out pretty good. After browning a lb of it, I removed it from the pan with a slotted spoon to a paper towel lined plate. Wiped out the pan, added evoo and sauteed some onions, garlic, tomatoes, and mushrooms, starting with the onions. Buttered a narrow but deep casserole dish and added sausage first then onion mixture, then 6 seasoned and beaten eggs. Topped with cheese and baked till eggs were set and top browned and bubbly. Served with hard toast and hot yellow pepper.

After recovering from eating way too much casserole and enjoying that lil cigar and with a few chores out of the way, it was time for another casserole. I love throwing this stuff together - it's just whatever stikes your fancy and is on hand and no going to the store either. Pulled pork BBQ sounded like a good place to start and I had plenty so about a lb and 1/2 went into the bottom of a buttered casserole dish followed by some New Mexico Hatch Chili Peppers (Thanks Vern), heavy cream, thick layer of mashed potatoes, sprinkling of smoked paprika, and shredded cheddar cheese. These casseroles both turned out great and it is fun just to make your own recipe as you go sometimes.