Crouton Hotdish

FINALLY!!  Life has slowed down a bit now that the holidays are over and I get back to some blogging!  I made this quite some time ago and promised on my facebook page to post it... well here it is.  Better late than never, huh?  Anywhoo... this is good old 'Lutheran Lady Hotdish'.  Yep - we had it at a potluck at church and I tracked down the creator and asked for the recipe.  We have a small congregation in a country church, so it's not hard to find out who made what.  Usually we know each other's bowls/serving dishes.  This is so easy your kids could practically make it.  Really - flatten the hamburger into the dish, throw some veggies on top and dump on the soup topping.  So simple and so yummy. 


Crouton Hotdish

Ingredients:
1 1/2 to 2 pounds ground beef (whichever amount you happen to have on hand)
1 package croutons - I believe they come in about 10 oz - or so - boxes/bags
1 cup celery, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
1/4 lb butter
1 cup water
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of celery soup

Instructions:
Flatten hamburger (uncooked) in the bottom of a 9x13 pan and layer croutons on top.  Cover the hamburger well with them.  In a saucepan mix together and heat butter, celery, onion & water until butter is melted.  Pour over hamburger and croutons.  Blend soups in a separate bowl and pour over top of mixture.  You will have to spread it around to even it out.  Bake 1 hour at 350.  Turn off oven and let stand an additional 15 minutes.