Three hearty casseroles for a cozy winter’s meal

Recipes that appear in Idea Alley have not been tested by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

Joe Riddle shares this trio of casseroles.

Three Cheese Tortellini

1 (12.5-ounce) bag frozen tortellini

3 tablespoons butter, divided use

1 cup bread crumbs

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 onion, chopped

4 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 cup milk

2 teaspoons dried basil, divided use

Salt and ground black pepper

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1 cup cottage cheese

½ cup shredded parmesan cheese

1 ½ cups frozen peas

Heat oven to 375 degrees. In large pot, boil tortellini in salted water according to package instructions. Drain and transfer to a greased 2-quart casserole dish.

In large skillet, melt butter. Reserve 1 tablespoon and mix with bread crumbs in small bowl. Set aside.

To the remaining butter in the skillet, add garlic and onion and cook over medium heat until onion is softened. Sprinkle with flour and cook, stirring for 1 minute.

Gradually stir in milk along with 1 teaspoon of the basil; add salt and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring until thickened. Remove from heat and stir in mozzarella, cottage cheese and parmesan until smooth. Pour over tortellini in casserole dish. Rinse peas in hot water and stir into casserole.

Stir remaining teaspoon basil into bread crumb mixture and sprinkle over casserole.

Bake for 20 to 30 minutes or until bubbly.

Makes 8 servings.

Riddle says this recipe was given to him by a former Democrat-Gazette photographer. He has made it for Thanksgiving dinner several times.

Spinach Casserole

1 package dried onion soup mix

2 (16-ounce) bags frozen chopped spinach

2 cans beef broth 8 tablespoons butter, divided use

1 (8-ounce) block cream cheese, softened

1 onion, chopped

2 (6-ounce) cans mushroom pieces

Stuffing mix, (quantity not given)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine onion soup mix, frozen spinach and beef broth in saucepan; thaw and simmer for about 10 minutes; drain well.

While spinach in simmering, cream together 6 tablespoons of the butter and softened or melted cream cheese. Fold in chopped onion, mushrooms and drained spinach mixture to the butter/cream cheese blend.

Coat a casserole dish with butter or oil. Spread mixture in casserole dish — you want a rather small, deep casserole dish because it works best when the mixture is 2 to 3 inches deep.

Top the entire mixture with stuffing mix. Just to cover. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and pour of the top the stuffing mix.

Bake covered at 350 for 45 minutes or until bubbly. Remove lid and bake until topping is browned.

This recipe comes from Riddle’s friend Rebecca Ballard who usually makes it for family get-togethers. He tweaked it a bit from the original.

Broccoli Rice Casserole

2 cups basmati rice

10 tablespoons butter, divided use

4 cups chicken stock

1 teaspoon garlic salt or to taste

1 teaspoon black pepper or to taste

20 ounces fresh or frozen broccoli, steamed but leave crisp

1 large onion, chopped (frozen is OK)

8 ribs celery, chopped (frozen is OK)

1 large bell pepper, chopped (frozen is OK)

1 (10-ounce) can button mushrooms, sliced, drained

2 cans cream of mushroom or cream of celery soup (Riddle uses one of each)

1 pound processed cheese such as Velveeta, cut into cubes

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Saute uncooked rice in 2 tablespoons butter until golden in saucepan. Add chicken stock, garlic salt and pepper and stir, bringing to boil. Cover and turn heat to simmer for 20 minutes.

Steam broccoli in large saucepan. In large skillet, saute vegetables in 1 stick butter until done. Mix broccoli, vegetables, cooked rice, soup and cheeses together in a large bowl until cheese softens. The mixture should be a little soupy. Pour into 2 8-inch casserole dishes and bake 30 minutes at 350 or until lightly browned and bubbly.