Casserole Creations

Canned soups used as "cooking sauces" led to all manner of bland-flavored, overly salty casseroles. All those casseroles began to taste the same, like undiluted mushroom soup.

These days, casseroles are apt to be called comfort food, but it's all just down-home cooking.

Here are two hearty, oven-baked dishes with a difference from the old days of canned-soup casseroles. They might restore casseroles' good name. These recipes use fresh ingredients and Tabasco for a spicy casserole twist.

These are based on fresh vegetables, they're not overly complicated and the flavors are cranked up with red-hot Tabasco sauce in the N'Awlins-style eggplant casserole and green-chile sauce in the bratwurst-cabbage bake.

To hold down the fat content of the eggplant slices, which are layered with bottled spaghetti sauce, mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses, broiling is the pre-cooking method of choice. Whenever eggplant slices are sauteed, they soak up oil like little sponges. Broiling is the better method; besides, the oven must be heated anyway; just switch from broiling to 400 degrees.

This recipe directs that the slices be arrayed on a baking sheet and merely brushed with olive oil blended with Tabasco sauce. A total of about six minutes of broiling on both sides does the trick. The eggplant slices are tenderized and browned even before they are layered with the other ingredients.

If you love bratwurst, the cabbage casserole is the one to try. Brown some links and bake them up in a shredded-cabbage casserole with onion and a tart chopped apple.

For a little extra zip, blend the cabbage mixture with a small can of sauerkraut, rinsed, drained and snipped into shorter lengths.

(Recipes adapted from the McIlhenny Company of Avery Island, La.)

N'Awlins Eggplant Parmigiana

Ingredients:

1-1/2 Tbs. Tabasco brand pepper sauce, divided
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 large eggplant, about 1-1/4 lb.
one 26-oz. jar marinara sauce
12 oz. shredded mozzarella (3 cups)
1/2 cup Italian parsley, coarsely chopped (or blend of curly parsley and fresh basil)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preparation:

Combine 1 tablespoon of Tabasco with the olive oil in a small bowl. Cut eggplant into 15 slices after trimming the ends. Arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet. Brush with hot sauce and oil. Broil 3 inches from heat for 3 minutes. Turn over and brush with remaining oil mixture. Broil 2 or 3 minutes. Switch oven to 400-degrees setting.

Combine bottled spaghetti sauce and remaining 1/2 tablespoon Tabasco in medium bowl. In a separate bowl, mix together mozzarella, herbs and Parmesan. Arrange a single layer of broiled eggplant on bottom of a lightly greased 2-quart casserole or 9-inch square baking pan. Spread with 1/3 of sauce and cheese mixtures. Repeat layers. Bake uncovered for 15 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Serving tip: Have French bread on the side to cool the Tabasco heat of the dish.

Prep time: 35 mins.; Baking time: 15 mins.

Yield: 4 servings

Cabbage Bratwurst Casserole

Ingredients:

3 Tbs. vegetable oil
6 bratwurst or knockwurst
1 medium onion, sliced
4 cups shredded green cabbage, not cut too fine
1 or 2 tart apples, cored, diced
1 tsp. caraway seeds
1 Tbs. Tabasco green-pepper sauce
1 cup chicken stock

Preparation:

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Pierce sausages with fork. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat; add bratwurst and brown on all sides. Remove links from pan. Add onion and cabbage; cook 4 or 5 minutes, stirring often. Add apple, caraway seeds, green hot sauce, chicken stock and bratwurst. Heat to boiling over high heat. Cover; place in oven and bake for 20 minutes or until cabbage is tender.

Serving tip: Bake russet potatoes on same oven rack. Place the pierced, greased potatoes in 20 minutes at 400 degrees. Add casserole for another 20 minutes and serve together.

Prep time: 25 mins.

Yield: 6 servings