Doin' Some Cookin'... Green Bean Casserole, Hashbrown Casserole, and Garlic Mashed Potatoes

I've been out of my mom's house for 10+ years, I've been a mom for 6 years, and in that time I haven't been responsible for making Christmas dinner. For the holidays we would travel to Ohio for two weeks. Being a houseguest meant I wasn't expected in the kitchen. These were women who ran their kitchens with no other hands stirring the pot but expected you to pull up a girl and stir the pot with you mouth and join in the gossip. But... times have changed and now it's spent at home in Texas, and somewhat alone since I have to share Little Man. Don't feel bad for me though. I'm in the middle of enjoying 11 days of an empty nest with 6 of those being working days and two back to back 4 day weekends. The 4 day weekends was a gift enough to help recharge my batteries... definitely experienced burnout by the end of the year.

Little Man was set to be picked up around noon by his dad and wanting to do the traditional Christmas festivities I made sure we would cover everything.

On Christmas Eve we got into our cozy clothes, drove around town checking out the Christmas lights, watched Christmas movies, made hot chocolate, and tracked Santa's flight. Once he made it to New York Little Man knew that meant it was time to fall asleep before Santa's arrival at our place.

Christmas morning we opened presents, had biscuits and gravy for breakfast, played with his new toys, and then had our Christmas dinner before he had to go.

There are some dishes we've come to expect for Christmas: Smoked Ham, Green Bean Casserole, Hashbrown Casserole, Garlic Mashed Potatoes, and rolls.

Slapping myself a high five here! I recreated the Christmas classics in under an hour. It wasn't perfect and I will need to continue searching for the right recipes but it was still delicious. Part of that was me rushing to get dinner on the table in time and not following directions correctly. I didn't realize the green beans needed to be cooked ahead of time so they had a slight crunch, I enjoyed it this way surprisingly but not what I was expecting, the store was out of the french fried onions, ugh! the part I crave, and my mashed potatoes were not as creamy as we prefer.

The one recipe that will appear on the menu next year is the Hashbrown Casserole but may add bacon and some diced jalapeño peppers to spice things up. This was exactly what I was craving for Christmas dinner and the perfect comfort food dish.

Looking forward to continue setting certain expectations for Little Man and making the holidays super special for him.

Green Bean Casserole

Adapted From: Campbell's Kitchen

Makes 6 Servings

Stars of the Show:

• 1 can (10 3/4 oz) condensed cream of mushroom soup
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• dash of black pepper
• 4 cups green beans

And Action:

Stir the soup, milk, soy sauce, black pepper, and green beans in a casserole dish. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Enjoy!

Hashbrown Casserole

Adapted From: The Loveless Cafe

Makes 6 Servings

Stars of the Show:

• 1 (30 oz) bag shredded hash browns
• 1 tbsp onion powder
• 1 (8 oz) bag shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 (10 3/4 oz) can cream of chicken soup
• 1 (16 oz) container sour cream
• salt and pepper, to taste

And Action:

Mix all ingredients well in a well greased casserole dish covered with foil. Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove cover and return to oven for 30 minutes until brown. Enjoy!

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Adapted From: Martha Stewart

Makes 8 Servings

Stars of the Show:

• 4 lbs red skinned potatoes, peeled and cut into quarters
• garlic powder, to taste
• sea salt, to taste
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1/2 cup butter

And Action:

In a large pot boil water, add the potatoes, and add 1 tbsp salt. 

Return to a boil; reduce heat and simmer for 25-30 minutes. 

Drain the potatoes and return to the pot to dry them out about 1-2 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Add the milk, butter, garlic powder, and salt. Mash until smooth. Enjoy!