What's For Dinner?

      Not much is as scary as wildfire and this time last year we were having wildfires left and right... From today's Amarillo newspaper...."Last year started with fires ravaging Mesilla Park, Palisades and Lake Tanglewood on Feb. 27, charring 25,500 acres and destroying 70 homes. The year ended with more than 85,000 acres blackened in Potter and Randall counties and 83 homes consumed by wildfire. The local cost of fighting all that fire was about $1.1 million."  The three areas mentioned are very small communities, just outside of Amarillo. Lake Tanglewood is probably the farthest from city limits, about 11 miles.   I have already blogged about the kennel that burned last year.  The kennel is rebuilding right now.  Some of those poor people who lost everything they owned when the 83 homes burned have rebuilt in the same places.  The newspaper and local news have been reminding us to be prepared and to be careful as this is the time of year when we have such high winds and everything is dry.    I have blogged about 72 hour kits for humans and for pets and I hope everyone has one.  You just never know.  You guys stay safe.

     For dinner tonight I made a cheap comfort food recipe....and it just takes one pan

Tomatoes and Macaroni

• In a large dutch oven cook a box of Barilla Bow Tie Pasta (or shells, noodles, whatever shape you like)according to pkg directions, drain.
• In that same pot saute a cup or more of diced onion in oleo until onions are translucent
• Add one 28 oz can of diced tomatoes with juice, heat until boiling.Add the cooked pasta 
• stir until pasta is blended with tomatoes and heated.  Sprinkle with pepper. 

My daughter just called me for another recipe we really like and it too is fairly inexpensive considering the number of servings it makes.  I could eat the entire pan...  I got the recipe from my mom or sister I think and I don't know where they got it.  I don't know what it is called so for 40 years or so I have called it

Dried Onion Soup Chicken

In a large dutch oven mix and warm just until heated & well blended:

• 2 cups of Minute Rice, dry not prepared
• Cream of Celery Soup
• Cream of Mushroom Soup
• 2 soup cans of water
• 1 pkg of Dried Onion Soup Mix
• pour into a 9 x 11 inch casserole dish sprayed with nonstick spray
• lay salt & peppered boneless, skinless chicken breasts on top
• melt 1 stick of oleo and pour over chicken pieces
• bake at 350 degrees until chicken is done.  I can't tell you how long because what I have written down is one hour but that was for using whole pieces of chicken with bones and I much prefer the boneless, skinless chicken breasts.