Oriental Beef and Noodles

This super easy recipe is courtesy of my good friend Colleen. When it comes to making dinner, there's nothing I love more than tossing a few things into the crockpot and leaving it at that. This recipe requires so little work that you can throw it together in even the tightest time crunch. I made a few minor changes to the recipe. I'd heard talk that the veggies tend to disintegrate in the crockpot, so I held off and added mine around lunchtime to see if that helped. And it did - somewhat. My carrots and water chestnuts held their shape, but I still lost my broccoli! I also could not find plain ramen noodles so I used Chinese rice noodles and they were fine.

This dinner smelled amazing as it cooked and tasted just as good - like an authentic stir fry. Joe and I both really enjoyed it.

Oriental Beef and Noodles

1 (16 ounce) package frozen stir fry vegetables
2 - 2 1/2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into 1" cubes
1 (12 ounce) bottle stir-fry sauce, any flavor
1/2 cup water
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 (3 ounce) packages ramen noodles, broken
1/4 cup green onions, chopped (I omitted)

Coat a 4 quart slow cooker with cooking spray. Place frozen vegetables in the bottom and top with stew meat. In a medium bowl, stir together stir-fry sauce, water, and red pepper. Pour over stew meat and vegetables in cooker.

Cover and cook on low for 9-10 hours or on high for 4 1/2-5 hours (I recommend low, it will help to break the meat down more).

At the end of cooking time, discard spice packets from ramen noodles. Stir noodles and green onions into meat mixture. Cover and let stand 10 minutes more. Stir before serving. This can be kept on warm for 1-2 hours.

Cheeseburger Pasta

It's Velveeta, versus cheddar! Our Velveeta, melts much better. Cheddar's lumpy, cheddar's oily. It runs off of your plate onto to your doily!

Does anyone but me remember that jingle? It must be, oh, 15 years old by now? But it's always what pops into my head when I hear "Velveeta." I've actually never cooked with Velveeta before. I guess I've just never had cause to. But when I spotted this quick and simple recipe on my good friend Lauren's blog I decided it was time to grab some Velveeta.

Upon spotting the Velveeta on the counter when I was making dinner, Joe got super excited and told me how his dad used to buy it all the time when he was a kid and how much he'd loved it. He asked for a piece to snack on, then promptly declared it to be not nearly as good as he remembered. Isn't that always the way? But being that I had no fond childhood memories involving processed cheese, I found it to be quite tasty. And I loved it in this pasta! This was a lot like hamburger helper, but with more flavor and way less sodium and chemicals. I found myself sneaking bites of the leftovers from the pan as I was cleaning up from dinner, so it was definitely a winner. Kids are sure to love this too!

Cheeseburger Pasta

1 lb ground turkey breast
1 onion, diced
2 3/4 cups water
1/3 cup ketchup
1T mustard
2 cups elbow mac, uncooked
4 oz reduced fat Velveeta, cubed

Brown meat in a large skillet, drain.

Add water, ketchup, onion powder and mix well.

Bring to a boil and add mac. Simmer on med-low heat, covered, for 8-10 minutes (until pasta tender).

Stir in Velveeta and cook until melted, stirring occasionally.

Ranch Ham 'N' Cheese Pasta

While I've only recently expanded my culinary world to include pork tenderloin and pulled pork, the ham sandwich has always been a favorite of mine - I love me some deli ham. This Ranch Ham 'N' Cheese Pasta caught my eye because it uses ham, and I knew that Joe would like it because he is a fan of anything that includes sour cream. I found this recipe in Taste of Home Healthy Cooking magazine. I bought the magazine on a whim a few years ago and still make recipes from it often. The recipes are quick, low-fat and unique - I never would have thought the combination of flavors in this pasta would work, but they do! This pasta is fantastic - creamy and cheesy with a fantastic tangy taste. Plus, it came together in about 20 minutes, which was an added bonus!

I did make a few changes to the original recipe. I used only 8 ounces of pasta since just Joe and I were eating this. However I left all the other measurements the same and felt I still had a perfect pasta to sauce ratio. I left out the dill because I didn't have any, and also left out the Parmesan cheese because I felt the pasta just didn't need it.

Ranch Ham 'N' Cheese Pasta

1 package (16 ounces) penne pasta
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 cup fat-free milk
2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon salt-free lemon-pepper seasoning
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon dried minced onion
1/2 teaspoon dill weed
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 cup (8 ounces) reduced-fat sour cream
2 cups cubed fully cooked lean ham
1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded reduced-fat Mexican cheese blend
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions; drain. In a Dutch oven, melt butter; whisk in flour until smooth. Gradually add milk and seasonings. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.
Reduce heat; fold in sour cream until blended. Add ham and pasta; cook and stir until heated through. Remove from the heat; stir in Mexican cheese blend until melted. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Yield: 10 servings.

Nutritional Analysis: 1 cup equals 306 calories, 9 g fat (5 g saturated fat), 27 mg cholesterol, 612 mg sodium, 38 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 20 g protein.

Turkey Goulash

Charlie and Lily keep me pretty darn busy all day, so I don't have much time to peruse other food blogs like I used to. Thanks to the recent purchase of my beloved BlackBerry Curve, however, I am now able to quickly browse through my Google Reader here and there to search for new recipes. One blog that I always read is Fake Ginger. I love Amanda's recipes, her funny and honest description of things, and her ability to cook or bake something new almost daily while caring for two small children. I found this turkey goulash recipe on Amanda's blog recently and immediately printed it out. It sounded quick, hearty and tasty so I was eager to make it. I had planned to cook this during the babies' afternoon nap today, but I am in the midst of reading The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and decided that I would rather devote my small amount of free time to that today rather than standing over the stove. So I modified this recipe for the crockpot. I took 10 minutes to throw it together in the morning and had a hot, delicious dinner simmering away while I read. My changes are below - check out Amanda's blog for the original!

Turkey Goulash

1 teaspoon olive oil
1 pound ground turkey
1 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups water
1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups elbow macaroni or small shells

Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Saute turkey, onion, and garlic until turkey is cooked through and onion is soft. Place turkey mixture in crockpot and add water, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, Italian seasoning, soy sauce, bay leaf, black pepper, and salt. Cook on low 6-8 hours. Add pasta, stir well and replace lid for 10 mintues or until pasta is tender. Remove bay leaf before serving.

Creamy Orzo with Chicken and Feta

It's been awhile since I've cooked anything new. Since time is so limited these days I've been turning to quick and easy old favorites. But recently several new recipes have caught my eye and I'm determined to try them out. This delicious orzo dish is the first. I found this on Confections of a Foodie Bride's blog and bookmarked it immediately. It had a bunch of my favorite things - orzo, sun-dried tomatoes, cheese - and required very little prep work. Sold! The only change I made was to use feta in place of goat cheese. Joe does the shopping and I was afraid that if I asked him to buy goat cheese he'd balk and refuse to eat this dish, so I went with the more familiar feta. This meal was delicious! I loved the creamy orzo combined with the tangy tomatoes and cheese. This will definitely be added to the "quick and easy old favorites" list!

Creamy Orzo with Chicken and Feta

1 lb orzo
1 lb chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
6 oz feta or goat cheese, crumbled
2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
Juice of half a lemon (about 2 teaspoons)
4 cups chicken broth
3/4 cup water
2 tbsp unsalted butter, divided
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper
3/4 cup Parmesan, grated
3/4 cup Panko

Preheat oven to 400. Add orzo, chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, thyme, lemon juice and feta to a 2.5 - 3 quart baking dish. Bring chicken broth, water, 1 tbsp butter, salt and pepper to a boil on the stove. Pour into baking dish, stirring slightly to mix. Bake for 30 minutes.

Mix Parmesan and Panko. Melt remaining 1 tbsp butter and mix into Parmesan and Panko mixture. Sprinkle mixture on top of orzo dish and and bake for 7-10 minutes more until bubbly. Let sit 5 minutes before serving.

Pasta Bake with Sausage, Spinach and Beans

I'll admit it - I was naive. Before I had my babies, I totally used to judge women who said that they didn't have time to do things once they had their babies. Women who said that they couldn't find the time to work out? "Please!" I'd think. "You can totally get up early and exercise, or do it at night after the kids go to bed." Um, yeah, right. I now know that when you spend half the night up soothing and feeding babies the last thing you want to do is get up at 5:30 am and work out. There is also no way that you have the energy for a workout at 8:00 pm once the babies are finally in bed. I also used to laugh at women who said they had no time to cook once they had their babies. "Ha!" I thought. "You can't find half an hour a day to throw dinner together?!?" Um, no, on many days, you can't. For the past few months Joe and I have been living on takeout, standby crockpot recipes, frozen salmon filets with tater tots and meals kindly provided by family members. Luckily, as the babies get a little older we have more of a routine established and I have managed to find time to cook some decent dinners recently.

The first thing that I was eager to try came from the Cook Yourself Thin cookbook. This spring while I was on bedrest, Cook Yourself Thin aired every day at 5:00 and 5:30 on Lifetime. Since I wasn't allowed to leave the couch, I watched it religiously. I always thought that the recipes looked great and I vowed that I would get the cookbook once I had the babies. The book was under the Christmas tree for me this year, and this recipe for Pasta Bake with Sausage, Spinach and Beans was the first I tried. I made a few changes - I used spinach instead of the broccoli the recipe called for because Joe dislikes spinach less than he dislikes broccoli, and I used a sun-dried tomato and mozzarella chicken sausage in place of the turkey sausage.

This pasta was really, really good! I love the addition of the beans, and it was deliciously creamy with a nice crunchy crust on top. I'm anxious to try more recipes from the cookbook as soon as I get another chance!

(Blogger hates me right now and won't let me copy the recipe to this post, so please use the direct link until I can get it pasted!

The reasons for my lack of cooking - Charlie and Lily, 7 months old!

Lemon Pepper Shrimp Scampi

Another winner from the My Recipes Dinner Tonight emails that I received. John had offered to cook for us and I had a bag of shrimp in my freezer so I forwarded this recipe to him. It sounded quick and easy - and delicious - and it was! I love orzo and this dish was creamy and buttery and just plain good!

Lemon Pepper Shrimp Scampi

1 cup uncooked orzo
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
7 teaspoons unsalted butter, divided
1 1/2 pounds peeled and deveined jumbo shrimp
2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Cook orzo according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain. Place orzo in a medium bowl. Stir in parsley and 1/4 teaspoon salt; cover and keep warm.

While orzo cooks, melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle shrimp with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Add half of shrimp to pan; sauté 2 minutes or until almost done. Transfer shrimp to a plate. Melt 1 teaspoon butter in pan. Add remaining shrimp to pan; sauté 2 minutes or until almost done. Transfer to plate.

Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter in pan. Add garlic to pan; cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Stir in shrimp, juice, and pepper; cook 1 minute or until shrimp are done.

A new post! Tortellini Salad

Can you believe it? I have a new post! Well, kind of new. This is a modified version of this pasta salad, but it's so good I thought it was worth posting again!

I made this tortellini salad for our most recent girls get together with Lauren, Sarah and Colleen. (Jenn and Katie, you were missed!). We went with a brunch theme this time, so I thought this tortellini salad would fit right in. And it went great with Colleen's awesome chicken salad, Sarah's amazing salad and Lauren's decadent stuffed French toast. (See Lauren's blog post for all the yummy details of our goodies!) This salad is super easy to throw together (it really requires no real cooking - shhhhhh) and is perfect for the soon-to-be-arriving warmer weather!

Tortellini Salad

2 bags frozen tri-color tortellini
1 can sliced black olives
1/2 jar roasted red peppers, chopped
1/2 jar artichoke hearts, chopped
1 ball fresh mozzarella, cubed
2 cups bottled sun-dried tomato dressing

Cook tortellini according to package directions. Place in bowl and toss with 1 cup dressing. Allow to cool. Toss in all other ingredients and additional 1/2 cup of dressing. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Just before serving, toss with the final 1/2 cup dressing.

A gift of baked ziti

Our next door neighbors recently brought home their new baby boy. I wanted to bring them something for the occassion and figured that food would be the most practical gift for the new parents. I decided to make them a pan of baked ziti for a quick and easy dinner, and I also whipped up some chocolate chip muffins. The muffins were from a mix, so no recipe, but this ziti was from scratch. I have tons of ziti recipes floating around, but I decided this time to just use the one on the back of the San Giorgio pasta box. I made one pan for my neighbors and kept one pan for Joe and I to enjoy. This ziti was really good. So gooey and creamy - I just love ricotta! Our neighbors were very happy with the food and I was happy to get to fuss over the cute little baby!

Baked Ziti

1 box ziti, uncooked
1 jar spaghetti sauce
1 3/4 cups ricotta cheese (15 oz)
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (8 oz)
1 Tbsp parsley
1 egg
1 Tsp oregano
1/2 Tsp garlic powder
1/2 Tsp salt
1/4 Tsp black pepper
3 Tbsp Parmesan cheese

Heat oven to 375°F. Cook pasta according to package directions for 9 minutes; drain. In large bowl, stir together hot pasta, 1-1/2 cups spaghetti sauce, ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, parsley, egg, oregano, garlic powder, salt and pepper. In 13×9 x 2-inch baking dish, spoon pasta mixture; top with remaining 1-1/2 cups sauce. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese; cover with foil. Bake 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

Birthday Mac and Cheese

My mother-in-law Anne's birthday is today so on Monday evening we had the family over to celebrate. I made thyme-coated pork loin and a salad, my brother-in-law John's girlfriend Rebecca made corn muffins and John and Rebecca made Classic Macaroni and Cheese from Cook's Illustrated. They had made this recipe before and raved about it, so I asked them to recreate it for dinner.

John and Rebecca adding the cheese....mmmm.

This macaroni and cheese was fantastic! It was gooey and creamy with just the right amount of flavor. A definite hit!

Classic Macaroni and Cheese

Bread Crumb Topping:
6 slices white sandwich bread (good-quality, about 6 ounces), torn into rough pieces
3 tablespoons unsalted butter (cold), cut into 6 pieces

Pasta and Cheese:
1 pound elbow macaroni
1 tablespoon salt
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
6 tablespoons flour
1 1/2 teaspoons powdered mustard
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
5 cups milk
8 ounces Monterey Jack cheese , shredded (2 cups)
8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese , shredded (2 cups)
1 teaspoon salt

For the bread crumbs: Pulse bread and butter in food processor until crumbs are no larger than 1/8 inch, ten to fifteen 1-second pulses. Set aside.

For the pasta and cheese: Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat broiler. Bring 4 quarts water to boil in Dutch oven over high heat. Add macaroni and 1 tablespoon salt; cook until pasta is tender. Drain pasta and set aside in colander.

In now-empty Dutch oven, heat butter over medium-high heat until foaming. Add flour, mustard, and cayenne (if using) and whisk well to combine. Continue whisking until mixture becomes fragrant and deepens in color, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in milk; bring mixture to boil, whisking constantly (mixture must reach full boil to fully thicken). Reduce heat to medium and simmer, whisking occasionally, until thickened to consistency of heavy cream, about 5 minutes. Off heat, whisk in cheeses and 1 teaspoon salt until cheeses are fully melted. Add pasta and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is steaming and heated through, about 6 minutes.

Transfer mixture to broiler-safe 9-by 13-inch baking dish and sprinkle evenly with bread crumbs. Broil until crumbs are deep golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes, rotating pan if necessary for even browning. Cool about 5 minutes, then serve.

Creamy Cajun Shrimp Linguine

Last week frozen shrimp was on sale at the grocery store so I snagged a bag. My favorite way to enjoy shrimp is with pasta, and I'm always looking for new recipes to try. I saw this one on my friend Colleen's blog and thought it looked perfect. Not only was this pasta delicious but it was very easy to make. I followed Colleen's modifications - I used fat free half and half and roasted red peppers, plus I chose turkey bacon instead of regular. I left out the mushrooms because Joe doesn't like them and I wasn't really in the mood for them.

I found that I really didn't have much sauce after I'd followed the recipe, so I added about another 1/4 cup of half and half and an extra shake of Cajun seasoning. I still would have liked it a little saucier, but it was delicious nonetheless. And Joe preferred it the way it was so it ended up working out just fine. This pasta is creamy and delicious, with just the right amount of kick. I hope shrimp is on sale again soon!

Creamy Cajun Shrimp Linguine

8 ounces uncooked linguine
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
about 6 slices bacon or turkey bacon, cooked and chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
1 (8 ounce) package presliced mushrooms (I omitted)
7 ounce jar roasted red peppers, drained and sliced or 1 large red pepper, chopped
2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup half-and-half
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

Bring medium pot of water to boil. Add linguine and cook 5 minutes. Add shrimp to pot and cook 3 more minutes. Drain and keep warm.Melt butter in large skillet. Add roasted red peppers and mushrooms; saute 4 minutes or until moisture evaporates. Add flour, seasoning, and salt to pan; saute 30 seconds. Stir in half-and-half; cook one minute or more until sauce thickens, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add pasta mixture, bacon, and parsley to pan; stirring to combine.

Hamburger Noodle Casserole

Tonight's dinner was another yummy recipe from the Taste of Home Comfort Food Diet magazine. This lightened hamburger noodle casserole is sort of a homemade hamburger helper, but much tastier! The addition of ricotta, sour cream and cream cheese make it nice and gooey and the egg noodles keep it from being too much like a baked ziti. I made a few changes to the recipe - I used only 4 ounces of cream cheese but a cup and half of ricotta (I used fat free), omitted the onion, used whole wheat egg noodles and used shredded mozzarella in place of the cheddar. This was a nice, simple comforting recipe - and it makes a ton so you can enjoy the leftovers another a night!

Hamburger Noodle Casserole

5 cups uncooked egg noodles
1-1/2 pounds lean ground beef
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cans (8 ounces each) tomato sauce
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 package (8 ounces) reduced-fat cream cheese
1 cup reduced-fat ricotta cheese
1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream
3 green onions, thinly sliced, divided
2/3 cup shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese

Cook noodles according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, cook beef and garlic until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the tomato sauce, sugar, salt and pepper; heat through. Drain noodles; stir into beef mixture. In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese, ricotta cheese and sour cream until blended. Stir in half of the onions. Spoon half of the noodle mixture into a 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish coated with cooking spray. Top with cheese mixture and remaining noodle mixture. Cover and bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with cheddar cheese. Bake 5-10 minutes longer or until heated through and cheese is melted. Sprinkle with remaining onions.

Cheesy Tomato Chicken Skillet

Joe and I are typically fans of chicken pasta dishes, so this Kraft recipe from Julie's blog caught my eye immediately. It looked delicious and seemed quick and easy. I whipped this up for dinner Friday night and we weren't disappointed with it all! I made a few modifications (reflected below) to the original recipe. I added sliced baby portabella mushrooms for reason other than I like mushrooms and liked the idea of adding another veggie to the dish, and, like Julie, I used a 15 ounce can of diced tomatoes instead of fresh. To lighten it up a bit I used skim milk, Healthy Request soup and just a small handful of mozzarella as opposed to a full cup, and I added a variety of seasonings to liven it up. I cooked this in a deep pasta pot rather than a skillet to avoid splatter so mine was a little saucier than I think was intended, but we like a lot of sauce so it was good - all the better to dip breadsticks in ;) Joe and I both really liked this - it's a great hearty and comforting meal in a snap.

Cheesy Tomato Chicken Skillet

2 cups of pasta
3/4 lbs chicken, cut into pieces
1 can Healthy Request cream of chicken soup
1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 1/2 cup of milk
1 tbsp dried basil
1 tbsp dried oregano
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella

Cook the pasta as directed. Heat 10 inch skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken & cook thoroughly. Reduce heat to medium; stir in soup, tomatoes, milk and seasonings. Stir in cooked pasta. Cook about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally until bubbly & heated through. Sprinkle with cheese. Reduce heat, cover & let stand about 5 minutes.

Taco Pasta Bake

Okay, now I'm starting to feel like kind of a stalker. This is another recipe from my friend Colleen's blog. What can I say, we like the same types of food! This one has actually been on my menu for a few weeks now but for one reason or another kept getting bumped off. I finally got to make it tonight and I'm glad I did. Joe LOVED this. He's definitely a "simpler is better" kind of guy when it comes to dinner, so this was right up his alley. Simple or not, this is a yummy dinner. Nice and creamy and comforting. As with all my meals, I did my best to make this a little healthier. I used extra lean ground beef, whole wheat penne, reduced fat sour cream, about half of the cheddar cheese called for and fat-free cream cheese. (I firmly believe that fat-free cream cheese should never be eaten on its own or used in a dip, but mixed with sour cream in a dish like this it's acceptable!) Joe, John and I ate almost the entire pan of this, so you know it was good! Give it a try when you need an easy and comforting dinner.

Taco Bake

servings1 lb ground beef or turkey
1 packet taco seasoning
15-ounce can tomato sauce
8 ounces medium shell pasta (I used a full lb of penne)
8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
1 cup sour cream
8 ounces shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Brown ground beef, drain. Add taco seasoning and tomato sauce. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 20 minutes.In the meantime, cook pasta according to directions. Drain.Mix softened cream cheese and sour cream in separate bowl. Spray bottom of 9x13 pan. Put pasta in bottom of pan. Spread cream cheese mixture over pasta. Spoon ground meat mixture over this. Sprinkle shredded cheese on top.Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Let cool 15 minutes before serving.

Creamy Stove-Top Macaroni and Cheese

Only a few months ago I was celebrating the fact that I finally found an awesome, creamy mac and cheese recipe. Yet for some reason, on Sunday I felt inclined to try out yet another macaroni and cheese recipe that I had in my recipe binder. This one comes from Cooking Light and I've had it for so long that I felt it was time to give it a shot. This was okay, but I wish I had stuck with the other recipe. The mac and cheese was creamy, but tasted bland to me. Which was surprising, since it had Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce and garlic in it - plus I also added some red pepper flakes. The mustard and cream cheese flavors seemed to be the most prominent. While this wasn't bad, I wasn't in love with it either - it was just missing something. It's good to try new things, but I think I'll be sticking with the other mac and cheese from now on!

Creamy Stove-Top Macaroni and Cheese

4 cups uncooked medium elbow macaroni
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 1/4 cups fat-free milk
1/4 cup (2 ounces) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, softened
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon bottled minced garlic
1 1/4 cups (5 ounces) shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain and set aside.
While pasta cooks, place flour, salt, and pepper in a large saucepan. Add milk, stirring with a whisk until well blended. Drop cream cheese by teaspoonfuls into milk mixture; bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Reduce heat; simmer 2 minutes or until thick and cream cheese melts, stirring occasionally. Stir in mustard, Worcestershire, and garlic; simmer 1 minute. Remove from heat. Add cheddar cheese, stirring until cheese melts. Combine pasta and cheese sauce in a large bowl; toss well.

Turkey-Spinach Lasagna

There are many versions of turkey-spinach lasagna floating around, but this is the one that found its way into my recipe binder. I printed this recipe a few years ago from the Cooking Light website MyRecipes.com and last night was the second time I've made the dish. Our friends Jamie and Dave were coming over for dinner and I wanted something warm and comforting for a cold November night. Plus Jamie and Dave are both fans of turkey and spinach, so I knew this would be perfect. I made a few changes to the original recipe. I used fat free ricotta in place of the cottage cheese because, while I love cottage cheese on its own I find it strange in pasta dishes. I also added some more spices - red pepper flakes to the turkey as it browned and garlic powder and oregano to the cheese and spinach mixture. I used no-boil lasagna noodles and they were perfect. The lasagna came out perfectly set, creamy and delicious. A great comfort food meal!

Turkey-Spinach Lasagna

Cooking spray
1 pound ground turkey breast
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 (26-ounce) jars low-fat marinara sauce
1 (16-ounce) carton fat-free ricotta
1/4 cup egg substitute
1/4 cup (1 ounce) preshredded fresh Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon oregano
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
8 cooked lasagna noodles
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350°.
Coat a large skillet with cooking spray, and place over medium-high heat until hot. Add turkey, onion,red pepper flakes and garlic; cook until meat is browned, stirring to crumble. Add 5 3/4 cups marinara sauce; cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat.
Combine ricotta cheese, egg substitute, Parmesan, parsley, pepper, garlic powder, oregano and spinach; stir well. Spread remaining marinara sauce in bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange 4 noodles over marinara; top with cottage cheese mixture and half of the mozzarella.


Spoon half of the turkey mixture over the mozzarella. Arrange the remaining noodles over turkey mixture. Top with remaining turkey mixture and mozzarella.
Bake at 350° for 50 minutes or until cheese melts and sauce is bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Pasta e Fagioli

With the bitterly cold weather we've been having this week, soup seemed like the perfect choice for dinner this past Sunday. I had found this recipe on Tricia's blog and knowing that Joe likes pasta e fagioli it easily found a spot on my menu. And I'm glad it did - this soup was delicious! It's super easy to make and just requires about an hour total of simmering time. Be warned though - this makes a TON of soup. Joe and I each had a large bowl but ended up with two giant tupperwares full of leftovers. I shared some with my parents, but we are more than happy to eat the remainder for dinner again this week. Warm, hearty and full of flavor, this is just a great soup, especially when served with some crusty bread. I followed the recipe almost exactly, but found that I didn't have much liquid. I even added an extra can of beef broth and still had a very thick soup. Not a bad thing, but if you prefer more liquid in your soup you may want to cook the pasta separate and add it into the soup to prevent it from absorbing too much liquid. But don't wait to make this - especially on a cold evening!

Pasta e Fagioli (copy cat Olive Garden)

Cooking spray
1 lb. ground beef
1 small onion, diced
1/2 of a small 1 lb. bag of baby carrots, chopped
5 stalks of celery, diced (I omitted)
2 (14.5 oz.) cans of diced tomatoes
1 can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 (32 oz.) carton + 1 (14.5 oz.) can of beef broth (I also used an additional can of beef broth)
1 1/2 tsp oregano
1 1/4 tsp pepper
2 1/2 tsp fresh parsley, chopped (I used dry)
3/4 tsp tabasco sauce
1 jar (1 lb. 10 oz.) spaghetti sauce
1 cup dry small pasta (such as ditalini or elbow macaroni)
salt to taste

Brown ground beef in oil. Drain if necessary.
Add onion, carrot, celery and diced tomatoes. Simmer 10 minutes.
Add beans, beef broth, oregano, pepper, parsley, tabasco sauce and spaghetti sauce.
Simmer soup on low for about 30-45 minutes until carrots are almost tender.
Add pasta to pot and simmer on low for about 15-30 minutes until pasta is just shy of al dente. As the soup cools, the pasta will absorb the broth. You can cook the pasta separate and add it to the soup after the soup has cooled.

Basil Chicken Pasta

Last week my brother-in-law John came home with a pack of frozen basil that he was pretty pumped about. Just a few days later I came across this recipe on Jaime's blog, Good Eats n' Sweet Treats, and I forwarded it right to John. He cooked this up for our dinner on Monday night. This was a very simple and quick recipe, however ours could have used more flavor. John omitted the hot sauce because he didn't realize we had any, but the dish could have benefited from a little kick. It also didn't have too much basil flavor, as John wasn't sure of just how strong his frozen basil was and didn't want to overwhelm the dish. He did follow Jaime's suggestion though to make the sauce creamy by adding 1/4 cup fat free half and half. Over all, this was a good dinner but I recommend that you don't skimp on the basil and do add a little hot sauce or red pepper flake for some punch!

Basil Chicken Pasta

1 (8 ounce) package angel hair pasta
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 clove garlic, chopped
2 (14 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with garlic and basil
2 cups boneless chicken breast halves, cooked and cubed
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
1/4 cup fat free half and half
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook angel hair pasta until it is al dente, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain, and set aside. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Saute the onions and garlic. Stir in the tomatoes, chicken, basil, salt and hot pepper sauce. Reduce heat to medium, and cover skillet. Simmer for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until mixture is hot and tomatoes are soft.Toss sauce with hot cooked angel hair pasta to coat. Serve with Parmesan cheese.

Tucker, for one, was quite impressed with this dinner. He wanted some in the worst way. Sorry, Tuck, there were actually no leftovers ;)

Shrimp Crab-inara

No real recipe here, just a product review! I was at a local craft show the other weekend and came across a table where a woman was selling Crabi-inara pasta sauces - basically marinara sauce with bits of crab meat in it. After tasting the sample and finding it yummy, I purchased two jars - regular and spicy. Last week I decided to try the sauce out for dinner - I simply grilled up some shrimp and tossed them with the sauce and some whole wheat angel hair pasta. This sauce is delicious - it has a great crab flavor, plus it's low in fat and calories. Joe and I both loved it! The sauce is available in several ShopRite's in the NJ area - if you're local, pick some up!

Orzo with Sausage, Peppers and Tomatoes

There's just something about orzo that I love. I only recently started cooking with it, but now I find myself searching for recipes that incorporate it. I found this one on Sarah's blog, A Taste of Home Cooking and was drawn right in. I took some of Sarah's remarks on the recipe into consideration while cooking and made some changes. Instead of fresh chopped tomatoes I used a can of Italian-flavored diced tomatoes to give it a stronger tomato flavor. I also used two types of sausage - two links of spicy Italian turkey sausage and two links of Parmesan pecorino romano chicken sausage. I recommend using the red pepper - the little kick is nice. I really liked this dish! It was creamy and a little spicy and just plain good.

Orzo with Sausage, Peppers, and Tomatoes

3 cups chicken broth
1 pound orzo pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 links (7 ounces total) mild Italian turkey sausage, casings removed
1 garlic clove, minced
2 jarred roasted red bell peppers, cut into 1/4-inch strips
2 plum tomatoes, chopped (I used a can of diced tomatoes)
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

In a large saucepan, bring the chicken broth and 3 cups of water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, 8 to 10 minutes.
While the pasta is cooking, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the turkey sausage and sauté until cooked through, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the bell peppers, tomatoes, and red pepper flakes (if using) to the pan and cook until heated through, about 2 minutes.
Drain the pasta, reserving about 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid, and transfer it to a large serving bowl. Add the sausage mixture, 1 tablespoon of the parsley, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss well to combine, adding the reserved cooking liquid if needed to loosen the pasta. Top with the Parmesan and sprinkle with the remaining parsley.