A Great Meal Train Go-To
Image courtesy of Better Home and Gardens.
Casserole. A notorious go-to when it comes to bringing people food. When it comes to casseroles there are so many different types and recipes for them, aside from the secret family recipe or one you tried once and liked. As you continue reading, you will get a review about what a meal train is and examples of some of the various casseroles out there.
What are Meal Trains?
Come along for the ride.
Creamy and cheesy with a dash of protein, how can you say no to trying the rotisserie chicken and cheese potato casserole seen above? For the recipe and a few other delicious suggestions, we recommend you visit Moms Dinner. Image courtesy of Moms Dinner.
Before getting into the various types of great casseroles for meal trains that one can make, we wanted to review what a meal train is and its significance. If you have followed our posts, please skim this section and continue reading. However, for those unfamiliar with a meal train, we encourage you to continue.
Meal trains are typically assembled by friends and family of an individual going through a critical time. When it comes to organizing a meal train, you will need to find a way to keep things organized so that the recipient doesn’t end up with an overwhelming amount of food that will go to waste.
Next comes assembling one; aside from finding individuals to participate in the food train, you should consider how you plan to organize it. In some cases, the good old paper sign-up sheet goes well, but for a support network to stay instantly connected and updated, an online planning platform is a much better option. Organizing support online allows the community to coordinate when they will provide meals and care, and also to see what is being contributed by others so they don’t overwhelm the recipient with too much of the same food.
When doing this, it is also essential to add a variety of foods that can be frozen as well as heated right away. Consider providing a card or note with instructions on how long to reheat or cook the food so that the recipient doesn’t have to guess and knows when the food they have received is best eaten. For more information on assembling and determining what to contribute to a meal train, check out our Best Meal Train Ideas article.
Let’s dive into some of the various casseroles and how they can be made for any particular meal of the day. By the time you finish reading through, we hope that you have an idea or two of what kind of casseroles you may consider making for the next meal train that you participate in.
Casseroles Galore
So many different types to choose from!
Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and desserts, oh my! How does one choose which to use with so many different casserole recipes? Image courtesy of Martha Stewart.
There’s a casserole out there for everyone’s taste, so we’ll share ideas in each of the following categories: breakfast, lunch, dinner, and, yes, even dessert casseroles.
Breakfast
Arguably the most important meal of the day. Below are some of our favorite breakfast casserole ideas, and links to their recipes.
Crescent Roll Casserole
It is hard to beat the delicious Crescent Roll Casserole presented above. Image courtesy of iheartnaptime.
This recipe from iheartnaptime can be prepped the night before and baked in the morning. That makes this the perfect meal train dish to drop off the with dinner, so your loved ones can have an easy breakfast the following morning.
Biscuit Egg Casserole
This biscuit egg casserole looks so good that it will leave you wanting more! Image courtesy of Lil’ Luna
This cheesy biscuit, egg, and sausage casserole is quick to throw together and doesn’t require any overnight chilling. Tell your loved one to preheat the oven, throw together your ingredients, and head out the door to deliver your breakfast meal train casserole.
Sausage Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole
If you enjoy ordering hash browns with your eggs while out to eat, then this is the perfect casserole for you to make! Image courtesy of Meaningful Eats.
This delicious casserole from Meaningful Eats is a make-ahead dish with the added bonus of being gluten-free.
Lunch and Dinner
These casseroles can be filling and fueling for lunch or dinner.
Meat Lovers’ Pizza Casserole
Pizza or pasta, can’t decide? Then we highly recommend that you try making the meat lovers’ pizza casserole; get the best of both worlds! Image courtesy of CD Kitchen.
All your favorite pizza flavors in a delicious casserole.
Chicken and Potato Casserole
Image courtesy of CD Kitchen.
A hearty casserole that works great with fresh or frozen ingredients.
Easy Baked Ziti
A fresh and delicious baked pasta. Image courtesy of The Pioneer Woman
This baked pasta dish is bursting with fresh ingredients and can be made up to two days in advance. Perfect to send along with another meal train dinner drop-off to keep your loved one fed for days.
Dessert
We don’t know about the rest of you, but this is perhaps the most exciting casserole to learn about today. Who knew there was a thing such as a dessert casserole? This is an excellent element to remember if you want to contribute something fun and different to a meal train.
Chocolate Lasagna
To all our chocolate lovers out there, we can promise that this Chocolate (No bake dessert) will blow all your minds. Easy to make and a delicious treat. Image courtesy of NatashasKitchen.
Oreos and cool whip join forces in this decadent no-bake dessert by Natasha’s Kitchen.
Classic Bread Pudding with Vanilla Sauce
Raisins or chocolate, what would you mix into your bread pudding casserole? Image courtesy of All Things Mama.
A rich, creamy, decadent classic.
Cookie Monster Casserole
Who doesn’t like cookies? Image courtesy of Warner Discovers.
Chips Ahoy cookies and a touch of blue make this a super fun dessert casserole, thanks to Warner Discovers.
We hope that you have some ideas for casseroles for meal trains you may be a part of. We want to thank you for taking the time to read through and see the different types of casseroles and how they make for an easy meal to impact friends’ and families’ lives. Need to start a meal train of your own? Get started with Give InKind.
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