My favorite 9x13 meals

I love 9x13 dinners. Meatloaf, casseroles, lasagna, baked pastas, the list goes on. I love that I can make them whenever and pop them in the oven an hour before dinner time. I love that the oven warms my kitchen up when its 20 degrees out. I love that I have enough left over for lunch the next day....usually. Im always looking for new recipes. Here are a few of my favorites.

Meat Loaf

2 lbs of ground beef
3 tsp salt
1/2 bag of westpacks seasoning blend
2 eggs
1 and 1/2 cans of diced tomatoes with liquid
1 C quick oats

mix it together and form it into a loaf. Top it with a mixture of 1/3 c brown sugar, 2/3 C ketchup, 1 1/2 tsp mustard.

375 for 1 hour


Chicken Tetrazzini

Put water on to boil for your pasta and in a skillet (please do not use a non stick skillet for this) add a good 3 or 4 tbsp of olive oil. Salt and pepper 3 bonless skinless chicken breasts. Dont hold back on the salt either, you will want to sprinkle on a good 1 1/2 tsp. of salt. Pop those babies in your skillet, flip them over in about 8 min. You will know when they are done because they will not stick to the bottom of the pan anymore. Same thing with the other side. When they are done, toss them in a bowl to cool down a bit. Add linguini to your boiling water cook until it is done the way you like it. I prefer my a little firm. To that hot skillet, add a 1/2 c of white zinfandel, 1 8oz package of button mushrooms all chopped up, and 1/2 onion (chopped). While those do their thing, shread your chicken in a big bowl. Add two jars of alfrado sauce, the juice of 1 lemon, one can of quartered artichoke hearts. Drain your pasta, and toss it together with all that yummy stuff in the bowl. Dump it into your 13x9. It would be good just like that, but I go a bit further and add a crumb topping. Topping: mixture of 1/2 an envelope of saltine crackers, a good handfull of parmesan, 1 tsp thyme, 1 tsp parsley, and 3 tbsp melted butter. Bake that in the oven for 30 min at 400 degrees. You can make that up a couple days ahead of time if you want, and just bake it sometime during the week when you really dont want to cook.


I'll add some more soon. Im trying out a shepards pie with venison tonight.

You know what? I cant keep this all about meals. One of my favorite 9x13's is my banana pudding.

I get the big box of jello vanilla pudding. The one that calls for 3 C of milk. Stir in 1/2 of an 8oz tub of cool whip. In your 9x13 place a layer of vanilla wafers, a layer of sliced bananas (sliced a good 1/2 inch thick) Pour 1/2 of your pudding mixture over that. Repete, then top with the rest of the cool whip. Let it chill out in the fridge untill you are ready for it. I prefer it the next day, but that doesnt keep me from eating it as soon as I'm done.

i love MEATLOAF

but i've never tried to make my own...

man oh man im feeling hungry now, so i've gotta try and make this

tomorrow because it's pretty cold where i am and im sure this would go

down a treat. yum yum.

one question; what's in westpacks seasoning? im not sure its available

where i am.

Its chopped onions and bell peppers in the frozen veggie section. I think there is some celery in there too. Im sure you will be able to find it. If not, be sure to tell the cashier they will make sure to order it. Its super handy. If you cant find it, chop up one onion, and one red bell pepper.



[edit on 16-1-2008 by mrsdudara]

im not sure they will, im in london, maybe its not exported here?

but i can get a pepper and an onion and celery too.

many thanks and i'll let you know how it goes.

My favorite 9X13 meal is enchiladas. I take a shortcut by not rolling each individual one. I layer it (like lasagna). It is really fast and tastes the same as if you rolled each one separately.

Ooooh yummy, ive never tried making them myself. Can you share your recipe???

We do burritos. I stuff them with beans, browned ground beef, cheese and black olives, then top them all off with a ton of cheese and bake them for about 20 min.

I've only had enchiladas at restraunts, but would love to try them at home.

Oh another one of my favorites is chicken and rice casserole.

Layer your 9x13 with
2 C cooked rice
1 can of french style green beans
Sprinkle garlic salt and pepper
a layer of shreaded chicken
pour a misture of 1 can cream of mushroom soup mixed with 1/2 can milk, 2tbsp mayo, and 1tsp mustard over that.
Top with either sliced velveta or shreaded colby jack.

Bake 350 for 30min.

Here's my Cajun Chicken n Rice

4 boneless chicken breasts about 1 inch or thicker
2 cups frozen broccoli
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp black pepper
2 tsp cajun seasoning
4 cups instant white rice
1 stick butter
1-2 cups shredded cheese (Your choice, I prefer mexican mix or cheddar)

Preheat oven to 350F
Filet the chicken to make 8 pieces, fry with stick of butter in skillet, covering with some cajun and black pepper
Cook rice as directed, adding measured pepper, cajun, and paprika before the rice absorbs the water
when the rice is cooked, stir in the frozen broccoli and spread in the 13x9, placing chicken on top.
Pour butter and juices from skillet over the rice, top with shredded cheese and put in oven for about 20-30 minutes.

Serve and enjoy. I made this tonight, and everybody loves it. I came up with the recipe a couple weeks ago. My wife took some to work and everybody loved the smell of it. It feeds a family of four, with a little left over for the next days lunch.