Proof That Most Things in This Life Are Better in a Casserole Dish

FNK GRILLED CHEESEANDTOMATO CASSEROLE Food Network Kitchen Food Network Unsalted Butter, White Bread, Cheddar Cheese, Swiss Cheese, Parmesan, Cherry or Grape Tomatoes, HalfandHalf, Mayonnaise, Eggs, Parsley

FNK GRILLED CHEESEANDTOMATO CASSEROLE Food Network Kitchen Food Network Unsalted Butter, White Bread, Cheddar Cheese, Swiss Cheese, Parmesan, Cherry or Grape Tomatoes, HalfandHalf, Mayonnaise, Eggs, Parsley

Photo by: Matt Armendariz ©2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved

Matt Armendariz, 2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved

When you’re not donning finger-warming mittens in the great outdoors, you should be wearing mitts inside — to pull bubbling, piping hot casseroles out from the oven. These one-vessel, feed-a-crowd favorites cozy up the whole family in one fell swoop.

If you’re asking us, the limits to attaining true casserole bliss are boundless, extending way beyond the tuna casserole, lasagnas and breakfast casseroles we load up on all season long. Get a load of our favorite unexpected casserole creations.

Grilled Cheese

Slathered in butter, grilled until toasty and oh-so melty in the middle, a classic grilled cheese is a comfort-food win when it’s prepped on the stove, especially with a steamy bowl of tomato soup by its side. But layering all of the components into a cheesy Grilled Cheese-and-Tomato Casserole means you can do it for a crowd — and wow them with this mind-boggling concept.

Photo by: Brian Kennedy ©2013, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved

Brian Kennedy, 2013, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved

Jalapeno Poppers

The hollowed-out, fried-and-stuffed favorite aren’t just good in their innately “poppable” form. Using the key ingredients — cream cheese, bread crumbs, more cheese and, of course, jalapenos — to make Creamy Jalapeno Popper Mac and Cheese means that this snack graduates from bar bite to full-fledged meal dreamboat.

Photo by: Brian Kennedy ©2013, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved

Brian Kennedy, 2013, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved

Spaghetti

A tangle of spaghetti on your plate is a near-perfect food — or so you thought before this Baked Spaghetti came into your life. When sauced-up pasta is piled into a casserole dish, blanketed with cheese and slid into a hot oven, the result is a lasagna-esque mash-up that’s cheesy, somewhat crusty and next-level comforting.

Photo by: Brian Kennedy ©2013, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved

Brian Kennedy, 2013, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved

French Toast

The curative qualities of morning comfort food don’t always translate when making it involves standing over a hot stove, hungry as you feed the rest of the people in your clan. Food Network Kitchen’s berry-filled Coconut-Almond French Toast Casserole solves this problem like that (*snaps fingers emphatically*), by piling all of the good stuff into the casserole dish, drowning it in custard and letting the oven work its magic.

FNK FRENCH ONION SOUP CASSEROLE Food Network Kitchen Food Network Unsalted Butter, Olive Oil, Yellow Onions, Celery, Bay Leaves, Thyme, Allpurpose Flour, Beef Broth, White Wine, Baguette, Gruyere Cheese

FNK FRENCH ONION SOUP CASSEROLE Food Network Kitchen Food Network Unsalted Butter, Olive Oil, Yellow Onions, Celery, Bay Leaves, Thyme, Allpurpose Flour, Beef Broth, White Wine, Baguette, Gruyere Cheese

Photo by: Matt Armendariz ©2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved

Matt Armendariz, 2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved

Soup

Even if you take the soup out of soup, you still get all the warming qualities of real-deal comfort food. Don’t get where we’re going with this? This low-liquid French Onion Soup Casserole is inspired by the rich, bubbling-cheese-topped classic, and it actually makes more a seriously killer side dish.

Looking for more comfort? Make your way over here.

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