Handmade by Hoffy: Mom's Carrot Casserole

As a child I didn't like vegetables very much. My Mom would try to disguise them any way she could so I would eat them. But, as I got older and because of Mom taking the time to make veggies delicious, I became a huge fan of any kind of veggie. The one thing she would always say to me, is just try one, if you don't like it, you don't have to eat them. Fast forward to me becoming a Mom. Like my Mom, I would say the same thing to my kids. Amazingly enough, my kids also became big fans of any kind of veggie.

The one veggie she made that I really didn't like was asparagus. We always had asparagus in a can. If you have ever had them out of can, you know what I mean. They were very mushy. Once again when I started cooking I purchased raw asparagus and cooked them in a microwave. My husband loves veggies, but would rather eat them raw instead of cooked. I also had to use my Mom's saying when cooking new veggies for him...I would say the same thing...just eat one, if you don't like it, you don't have to eat them. He had never had asparagus growing up and once he tasted mine he loved them. Now we have asparagus all the time. I cook it to crisp tender and the microwave makes them perfect.

Now back to Mom's carrot casserole. I wouldn't say that carrots are my favorite, but with this recipe they are absolutely delicious. My Mom has been gone for many years and all I had for the recipe was ingredients with no measurements, no baking time, no nothing. So I recreated her recipe the best that I could. You would think that in this day and age this recipe could be found on the internet. Well, no such luck, although I came across one that was pretty close. My recipe doesn't call for onion or celery. But, I might try that one in the future. When you add onion and celery to anything, it gives the veggies more flavor. Actually, if you think about it, carrots, celery and onion are natural teammates. The French call this combination Mirepoix. When making soups, like chicken noodle, I always use carrots, onions and celery. The combination wakes up the flavor of the soup. So I am adding both recipes and I'll let you be the judge.

What you will need for Mom's Carrot Casserole...

3 cups carrots (cooked) - I used baby carrots, but sliced works well also
3-5 slices of bacon (diced and fried crisp)
1 medium green bell pepper (chopped)
1 can tomato soup
2 T. water
4 T. vinegar
1 T. sugar
1/4 cup chopped parsley
salt and pepper to taste

Please note that my Mom's recipe did not include celery or onion. I've seen a few other recipes like this one except they have onion and celery. My Mom's recipe didn't call for them. I have added the recipe that contains celery and onion at the bottom of this post. I haven't tried it, but I'm sure it's very good...but I like my Mom's recipe best!

Let's Make Mom's Carrot Casserole...

First you will need to cook the carrots. It usually takes about 10 minutes after they boil to soften them up.

Next combine the tomato soup, cooked bacon, diced green pepper, water, vinegar and sugar and mix well.

Next, you will combine the tomato soup mixture to the cooked carrots. Once mixed place the mixture in a casserole dish and cover. Bake in a 350° preheated oven for 40 minutes.

And here is Mom's Carrot Casserole... If you have picky veggie people in your family, I think this casserole will change their minds about carrots.

We just had Mom's carrot casserole the other night with meat loaf and augratin potatoes. It was a great comfort food dinner.

Mom's Carrot Casserole Recipe...

Ingredients:

3 cups carrots (cooked) - I used baby carrots, but sliced works well also
3-5 slices of bacon (diced and fried crisp)
1 medium green bell pepper (chopped)
1 can tomato soup
2 T. water
4 T. cider vinegar
1 T. sugar
1/4 cup chopped parsley
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Cook carrots in boiling water until tender.
Chop bacon and fry to crisp
Dice green pepper and place bacon and green pepper in a bowl
Add can of tomato soup, 2 T. water, 4 T. cider vinegar, 1 T. sugar, and chopped parsley to bacon and green pepper and mix.
Add in the carrots.
Salt and pepper to taste
Bake at 350° for 40 minutes (covered)

One Final Thought...

That's it for today...I do hope you try this recipe especially for those picky veggie eaters. Remember to say to them, just try one, if you don't like it you don't have to eat it...a great saying to change minds on eating their veggies...But, I have a feeling they will love them!