Quick Pantry Casserole

Even someone who loves to cook sometimes gets stuck. Last night I defrosted a dinner for ourselves that I cooked months ago and froze. It didn't freeze well. I'm not sure why, it was a chicken/lemon/spinach dish but the chicken was a weird texture. It wasn't dated so perhaps it was just in the freezer too long. Date your freezer food!!!

Anyway, it was "hungry" time and my planned out dinner wasn't working. I was boiling pasta (that I thought I was going to serve with the chicken/lemon/spinach dish); so I came up with a super quick pantry casserole. Sorry, no photo because at the time I was just trying to get dinner on the table as fast as possible!

Quick Pantry Casserole

6-8 oz pasta (I used fettuccine)
1 small can of peas
1 can of canned turkey or chicken meat
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
1/2 tsp thyme
dash of garlic powder
3/4 cup of bread crumbs (I'm in love with Panko Bread Crumbs!)
2 tbsp butter
1/8 cup Parmesan cheese

Boil Pasta. Open can of turkey or chicken meat and drain and rinse thoroughly to get rid of the "canned" taste. Put in a 9x9 casserole dish and break up with a fork. Add condensed soup, and seasonings. Mix together really well. Add about half the can of peas (frozen would work too, but heat them in the microwave.) When pasta is done, drain and mix in with the soup, meat and peas. In a small bowl, melt the butter. Add the bread crumbs and Parmesan. Layer the breadcrumbs on top and broil on high until browned.

Do not add salt to this dish, believe me with all the canned products and the Parmesan cheese it is salty enough! I wouldn't eat this way every night, but it was a quick and easy last minute supper. Serve with a side salad and you are set to go! Serves 4.
-Amanda