Today is Halloween. Here in the US it is a celebration that rivals even Christmas. This year the neighborhood voted again to do the Trunk-or-Treat. So we are off the hook for passing out candy at home and instead are headed to saintvi’s house to hand out candy there! As for being scared (because that seems the required emotional state on Halloween), I’ve just had a scary experience with the internet this last weekend. I don’t know about you but I’m just about ready to swear off internet recipes. My goal of trying a new recipe every month has been on track. I was flipping through my cookbook collection when I happened upon a recipe that had some strange ingredients so I looked them up on the internet (normal course of action, right?) and then tumbled down the recipe rabbit hole. What I ended up with was once again a “quick and easy” recipe. The title was Chicken Lasagna. Who doesn’t like a quick lasagna?? I wrote down the recipe and headed to the kitchen. All the other new recipes I had considered required spices and ingredients I didn’t have on hand (or had ever heard of as well). But I had everything needed for this one – which I took as a sign.
Chicken Lasagna
1 1/2 c. cottage cheese
1 1/2 c. sour cream
12 oz. pasta – cooked and drained
1 1/2 c. diced chicken
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
2 T. dehydrated diced onion
1 t. garlic powder
1 package chopped spinach – thawed and drained
1 c. Parmesan cheese
Mix together all the ingredients except the parmesan cheese. Dump into a buttered casserole and top with the Parmesan cheese. Bake for 30 – 40 minutes until top is slightly golden. Serve hot.
This was bland. This was tasteless. This was NOT lasagna. However it was easy. The new title for this recipe according to Sparky is “Chicken Pasta Bake”. Sparky decided that I should try again but with alterations to improve the flavor. On our plates I added salt and pepper to taste. Stirred in some pesto. Added a dollop of tomato based spaghetti sauce on top… Much improved!
Next time I’ll use radiatore or rotini as the pasta instead of a mishmash of odds and ends (fettuccini, penne, spaghetti, and a handful of gemelli). I’ll mix in some spices (oregano, pepper, and a little salt) along with a couple tablespoons of basil pesto with the sour cream, chicken, and cottage cheese and instead of tossing in the pasta I’ll layer everything in the casserole. I’ll sprinkle some Parmesan cheese as a layer and top the whole thing with spaghetti sauce. Next time it will be “Easy Chicken Lasagna” or at least closer to what the title insinuates!
A Different Perspective 
I’ve also encountered many bland recipes through the years. We used to cut recipes from magazines/newspapers/etc … and it seemed that certain sources specialized in quick, easy, and bland. Happy Halloween, Muri!
LikeLike
Happy Halloween to you Frank! This one was such a disappointment. Being the eternal optimist, I will probably try another recipe from this source (this was the first time I was duped)!
LikeLiked by 1 person
lol – I didn’t think anything with Worcesterhire Sauce in could be bland, but you have proved me wrong. Welcome to my world. Anything served in this country comes bland unless it’s a triple hot Indian dish. More luck next time.
LikeLike
Thanks Barbara! I can’t do triple hot as I’m a spice wimp but I do like flavor… and this one was severely lacking!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Val, I am like you! The first time it is completely by the book(or video/internet), if it doesn’t turn out good, I add my tweaks and change the recipe according to our palate.
Happy Halloween! Have fun.
LikeLike
Thanks Punam! I am a trusting soul and thought this would be good – and now we are going to try again with some definite alterations. I am tenacious and I WILL make this recipe work!! hehe!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hurray for tenacity! You are welcome.
LikeLike
Thanks Punam! I’m patient and tenacious… a double threat!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Welcome again! I would call it double *treat*! 😀❤️
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hehe! 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh, yes, I have had recipes from the internet, magazines and cookbooks that sounded/looked yummy, but fell short of what the tastebuds expected. I’ve learned to season more (I have way too many spices and herbs) than the recipes calls for when it seems lacking in print. Sometimes I add wine, stock or a sauce to make things better. That being said, any recipe that requires too much “fixing,” usually isn’t made again. On to the next recipe!
LikeLike
I would have ditched this one but Sparky felt it deserved another try and if he wants something “doctored” I’m more than willing to play mad scientist in the kitchen!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m glad you had ideas for improvement, and that it turned into a lively discussion between you and Sparky. Recipe fixes can be fun topics :).
LikeLike
Thanks Dodi! Sparky usually just eats what I make. He will every now and again ask for a particular dish but he isn’t picky. For him to say its tasteless means it is really without flavor… He did enjoy the “fix” and we’ll give it another try sometime in the future. He is a traditionalist when it comes to pasta and tomato sauce. So by adding spaghetti sauce it made it 100% better in his opinion!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Bland is the worst. I would definitely add tomato sauce, oregano, basil, and use ricotta instead of cottage cheese. Sometimes things take time to absorb their flavors though. I’ve often found things taste better after sitting in the refrigerator for 24 hours and being reheated. (K)
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hehe! Yeah but there was nothing positive in the wait… It was still bland!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve tried so many times recipes from the internet and it would always turn out bad…plus of course i am not a good cook..🤭 happy halloween Val.
LikeLike
Ha! I think you don’t give yourself enough credit! No one has starved at your house so I suspect you are a better cook than you think! The internet has some suspect recipes. I’ve usually been lucky but this time it was a dud. Happy Halloween to you Mich!
LikeLiked by 1 person
It does sound a bit bland and I like what you’re planning to add to the recipe. It should give it some much needed flavour.
LikeLike
Thanks Matt! It was much better after a few additions. Sparky thinks it would be a good after Thanksgiving recipe and substitute turkey for chicken…
LikeLiked by 1 person
I recommend pesto and béchamel sauce. Sparky’s onto something with the turkey
LikeLike
That sounds delicious but Sparky is not a fan of white sauces or pesto really. He wants that tomato based sauce on his pasta! Anyway, the turkey is definitely a go as far as I’m concerned. It is always tough to figure out innovative ways to use it up!
LikeLiked by 1 person
“Bon appétit”
Love ❤
Michel
LikeLike
Thank-you Michel! ❤ !
LikeLike
Pat on the back for giving a new recipe a go as so many of a certain vintage seem to lose interest in experimenting with food. Meal times have always been a big thing in my life for both the food and social interaction. I own more table clothes than shoes! My tummy doesn’t seem to deal with rich foods as well these days, though neither do I tolerate the bland. Food has to be interesting in flavour or I don’t bother. Don’t stop playing in all endeavours, Muri !
LikeLike
Thanks bunches for the encouragement! I am trying not to fall into a food rut! I used to make out a weekly menu on 3×5 cards and I kept them in a file box. After about 3 years I’d randomly select a card and make those meals again. I discovered that I had several meals that were my “go to” and repeated them ad nauseum. It was at that moment I decided to venture out and try new recipes. Now I have about 50 recipes that are “in the rotation” and hoping to increase that number… If I were to leave it to Sparky, we’d have spaghetti with marinara sauce once a week!
LikeLike
Some people like bland. I never realized how bland my mother cooked until I started eating away from home and discovering all of these wonderful flavors. My father never even tried a Mexican restaurant until he was in his 80’s after my mother died – he loved guacamole! My mother would never go. But yes, I”m constantly looking ar recipes and trying to figure out which ones are worth trying.
LikeLike
Hehe! I was brought up with a wide gastronomic experience… It has only been in my old age that my intolerance for spice has reared its head! Glad you were brave enough to try some different foods!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I stopped sitting in the dark and waiting for Godot, or anyone, to show up at Home Base on Halloween, about three years ago. I help out at the American Legion Post now, and at least we get some children and teens coming by for treats. As for lasagna, I am a purist-and prefer to devote several hours to the sauce, meat browning and lasagne noodle boiling.
LikeLike
I like lasagna but I’d just as soon let someone else put it together…
LikeLiked by 1 person