Bonanza!

Woo hoo! Made a dent in my food collection tonight by making chili for dinner. Off the shelves came 3 cans of beans: Pintos, San Antonio (combo of pintos and red kidney) and Ranch Style pintos with jalapenos; 1 can diced tomatoes with onion, 1 can Rotel tomatoes with green chilies, 1 small can tomato sauce and 1 packet of chili seasoning. The freezer is also minus a pound of ground beef. All items were purchased at the discount grocery (DGS).

A word about my favorite little store. It doesn't have cooled produce displays such as we see in chain supermarkets. In fact, it doesn't always have produce at all. When there is produce, it is in delivery boxes stacked against the front wall. So, I never know if there will be produce and if there is, I never know what it will be. That's the fun of it---every visit is like a treasure hunt! Sometimes the produce has seen better days, other times it is perfect and sometimes in-between---and frequently it is organic. We are currently working our way through a flat (12 clam shell containers) of beautiful big blackberries: $0.79 per 6-oz container.

Hadn't made this squash casserole in quite some time but it was a big hit at our Thanksgiving dinner this year.

SQUASH AND STUFFING BAKE

2 lb. yellow squash

1 c. (or so) grated carrot

1 onion, chopped

1 can cream of chicken soup

16 oz. sour cream

1 pkg. Stove Top stuffing (corn bread)

1/2 stick butter (melted)

Salt & pepper to taste

Slice squash 1/4" thick and cover with salted water in saucepan; cook until just tender. Drain well (I leave it in a colander in the sink for 15 min., or so). For the carrots (which are mainly for color), I buy a pkg. of shredded carrot in the salad-fixings area of the produce section. Microwave carrots in some water until tender (6 min. in my old microwave---less time in a newer one) and drain well. In large mixing bowl, combine well the onion, soup, and sour cream. Fold in carrots, then gently fold in squash. Pour into a large (13" x 9" or 3-quart) baking dish. In a med. bowl, toss the contents of the stuffing package with the melted butter until stuffing is well moistened. Scatter evenly over top of casserole. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until bubbly and topping is golden.