- I made my mom’s vegetable casserole for the first time in 10 years.
- The recipe includes three types of vegetables, fried onions, and water chestnuts.
- Casseroles are an easy, cheap, and super tasty option for people who don’t have a lot of money or time.
I’ve never been a fan of casseroles, except for my mom’s recipe with fried onions and melted cheese.
This vegetable casserole recipe has been in my family for at least three generations, since my grandmother passed it down to my mother. My mother followed that recipe faithfully for years, but she later added her own secret ingredient: water chestnuts.
“Water chestnuts add great texture and crunch,” she says, adding that the neutral flavor doesn’t overpower the other ingredients.
It’s been about 10 years since I tasted her casserole recipe, and with the holidays cutting into everyone’s time and money, I thought I’d share the joy.
Keep reading to learn how to make Amy’s melty veggie casserole.
Combine all ingredients in a bowl.
First, combine thawed vegetables, soup, 1/2 cup Swiss cheese, sour cream, pepper, green pepper, water chestnuts, and 1/2 fried onion in a large bowl.
Some ingredients are optional, such as bell peppers and water chestnuts, but we encourage you to experiment. Bell peppers add sweet flavor to savory casseroles, while water chestnuts add texture and crunch to a soggy texture.
I’ve made many recipes online, but this is one of the easiest and most satisfying I’ve tried.
from deviled eggs cinnamon roll, Over the past few years, I’ve spent a lot of time in the kitchen experimenting with different recipes. This casserole recipe is foolproof for two reasons: time and taste.
This casserole is perfect for people who want a home-cooked meal but don’t have time to spend all night in the kitchen. Aside from her 35 minutes in the oven, my mom’s casserole took her 10 minutes to assemble without any problems.
When it comes to flavor, my favorite parts as a kid were Swiss cheese, fried onions, and water chestnuts. Not much has changed since I became an adult, but this time I discovered a new appreciation for pimento. Pimentos are sweet and add extra flavor to casseroles.
I also understood why my mother didn’t add salt to her recipes. At first I thought it was for health reasons, which may actually be the case, but there is way too much salt in fried onions, so adding extra is too much. The mellow flavors of Swiss cheese, water chestnut, and sour cream offset the saltiness and balanced the flavors.
It’s been 10 years since I last had this casserole and I won’t make the same mistake again.