Baked Spaghetti

My husband is a picky as can be! I found this site recently and I was so excited! I have bookmarked so many recipes from just the first few posts and I know my husband will approve of them!!

School has started back and it's going to be a challenging year! I was so ehausted every night last week that dinner didn't get made at all! I made this baked spaghetti so that hopefully I can enjoy some of it for lunches or when I don't have the energy to make dinner this week!

I hope you enjoy!

VIRGINIA'S BAKED SPAGHETTI
Credit: Gooseberry Patch Cookbook

(I cut this in half)
16-oz. spaghetti noodles, cooked

2-(24-oz.) jars spaghetti sauce

2 lbs. ground beef, browned

1/4 c. butter

1/4 c. all-purpose flour

1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese

2 t. salt

1/2 t. garlic powder

12-oz. evaporated milk

3 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided

Combine spaghetti noodles, spaghetti sauce and ground beef in a large bowl; set aside. Melt butter in a sauce pan over medium heat; add flour, Parmesan cheese, salt and garlic powder, stirring constantly until smooth and bubbly. Add evaporated milk and one cup cheddar cheese; stir until thickened.

Pour half of spaghetti noodle mixture into a greased 13"x9" casserole dish and pour the cheese mixture over top. Pour remaining noodle mixture into dish; top with remaining 2 cups cheddar cheese. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes. Serves 12.

Macaroni and Cheese

I love macaroni and cheese! I have found some great recipes for it lately and now this recipe will be added to the bunch! I got this recipe from this site. I have gotten some other great recipes from this site as well so be sure to check it out!

Ingredients:( I cut this in half)
2 cups shredded mild cheddar,
2 cups shredded colby jack blend,
1 cup medium (or sharp) cheddar,
2 cups shredded velveeta or the small box/8 oz of large box,
1 box elbow macaroni (or noodle of choice),
4 eggs,
3 cups whole milk,
1 cup heavy cream (1/2 pint),
1/2 stick of butter,
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, set out and spray w/ non-stick spray a 13x9 inch pan that is at least 3-4 inches deep (or use several smaller round pans to share with others or save for later)

Step 1: Boil noodles as directed on package until just undercooked, quick drain- rinse- shake, set aside for later
Step 2: Mix eggs, milk, cream and salt and pepper, whisk until well blended.
Step 3: In a bowl combine the three types of shredded cheese; 2 cups mild cheddar, 2 cups colby jack and 1 cup medium/sharp cheddar
and mix
Step 4: In a greased 9x13 inch pan (at least 3-4 inches deep) pour 1/2 of milk mixture in bottom of pan.
Step 5: Add a layer of noodles, salt and pepper
Step 6: Top noodles with cheese and mix cheese up a little w/ noodles
Step 7: Add slices of velveeta over shredded cheese
Step 8: Repeat steps 5-7 (noodles, cheese, cheese- salt and pepper)
Step 9: When both layers are complete, poke holes through the top layer and pour rest of milk mixture over the remaining noodles and cheese.
Step 10: Melt 1/2 stick of butter (or more!) and pour over the top of the dish. Salt and pepper.
Step 11: Cover tightly with foil and bake in oven for 45 minutes. Remove foil and cook for 5-10 more minutes more or until golden. Let stand for at least 10-15 minutes before serving.

Summer Strawberry Dessert

Summer is just great for delicious fruity desserts!! I found this recipe using strawberries and it made me so exicted! I love strawberries and I have been eating them all summer. I am not sure where I found this recipe as it was just saved on my computer. I hope you enjoy this as much as I did.
(Sorry for the horrible picture!)

2 Cups Fresh Strawberries sliced(about 1 QT )
1 - 14oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 Container of Cool Whip (I use FF)
8 Oreo cookies
1 TBSP butter (melted)

Directions:
Line a bread loaf pan with foil.
In a large bowl mash 2 cups of the strawberries.
Add the condensed milk to the strawberries and stir.
Add 2 cups of cool whip and lemon juice and stir.
Pour into foil lined pan.
Crush the oreo cookies and add melted butter.
Spread the cookie mixture over the top.
Cover the top with foil and freeze for several hours.
Flip over and slice up and serve.

Unstuffed peppers

I was able to get to another new recipe this week. This recipe turned out great and was a hit with the husband!! That's always a plus. I will definitely make it again! Since this wasn't served inside a pepper I served it with tortilla chips. Sorry for the lack of pictures but we were starving.

1 lb ground beef
2 cups salsa
1 cup frozen corn
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1/4 cup water
3/4 tsp cumin
3/4 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 cup cooked rice
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
Brown hamburger and drain. Add remaining ingredients except rice and cheese. Cover and simmer for about 20 minutes or till peppers are tender. Stir in rice and heat through. Sprinkle cheese over the top and replace the lid. (You can turn the stove off at this point. You just need the cheese to melt.)

Baked Ziti

I have had a pretty busy summer. I have about 3 weeks left till I have to start getting stuff ready for school so I am trying to continue to rest up and get as much in as possible. I've got some new recipes to try out this week and I started with this one. I don't know if I'll get to the other recipes this week and this created a great amount of food!! That's ok because it was delicious! If I make this again I will definitely take half and freeze it!

Baked Ziti with Mascarpone
From: Lauren's Kitchen
1 lb ziti pasta
1 (26 oz) jar spaghetti sauce
1/2 lb ground beef
1 small onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz mascarpone cheese
1 cup sour cream
1-2 cups Mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese


Cook pasta to al dente. Drain & set aside.

Meanwhile, brown meat with onion & garlic. Season with salt & pepper to taste. Add marinara sauce to the pan and simmer for about 10 minutes. Thin the sauce just a tad with about 1/8 cup water or chicken stock. Season the sauce with garlic & herbs, to taste.

In a large bowl, combine mascarpone cheese, sour cream, and cooked pasta.Layer the pasta, sauce and cheese in a large greased casserole dish as follows:

1/2 pasta
1/2 sauce
1/2 cheese
remaining pasta
remaining sauce
remaining cheese

Bake at 350 degrees F for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and top with Parmesan cheese and bake for an additional 5 minutes. Let sit for about 10 minutes before serving.

Yesterday we went to a family reunion on Chad’s side. It was a pitch in and I decided to bring a dessert. I have tons of recipes starred in my Google reader! I decided to go back to the beginning of the starred recipes and start making them. So far I have made about 5 different things out of probably over 300!!!! These bars turned out great and were super simple to put together! That is always a plus.

This is a Pillsbury recipe but I actually found it from this site.




Oatmeal Carmelitas

from Pillsbury

2 cups Pillsbury BEST® All Purpose or Unbleached Flour (I used Gold Medal)
2 cups quick-cooking rolled oats
1 1/2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups margarine or butter, softened (I used butter)
1 (12.5-oz.) jar (1 cup) caramel ice cream topping
3 tablespoons Pillsbury BEST® All Purpose or Unbleached Flour (I used Gold Medal)
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (I used 1/2 cup Milk chocolate and 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips)
1/2 cup chopped nuts (I usually use Walnuts but omitted nuts this time)
Heat oven to 350°F.
Grease 13x9-inch pan.


Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup; level off. In large bowl, combine all crust ingredients; mix at low speed until crumbly. Reserve half of crumb mixture (about 3 cups) for topping. Press remaining crumb mixture in bottom of greased pan.
Bake for 10 minutes or until light brown.

Meanwhile, in small bowl, combine caramel topping and 3 tablespoons flour; blend well.
Remove partially baked crust from oven; sprinkle with chocolate chips and nuts.
Drizzle evenly with caramel mixture; sprinkle with reserved crumb mixture.
Return to oven; bake an additional 18 to 22 minutes or until golden brown.
Cool 1 hour or until completely cooled. Refrigerate 1 to 2 hours or until filling is set.
Cut into bars.

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Strawberry Ice Cream

I have been anxious to get my ice cream maker out this summer. I have only made ice cream once and it turned out to be a disaster. I followed the instructions to a tee this time and luckily it turned out great!I have my list of flavors I want to try, my next one is mint chocolate chip.


Strawberry Ice Cream
Source: All Recipes

INGREDIENTS
1 quart fresh strawberries, hulled
1 1/2 cups heavy cream, divided
3/4 cup white sugar
3 egg yolks
3 tablespoons light corn syrup

DIRECTIONS
1. Place the berries into the container of a blender or food processor, and puree until smooth. Pour into a large bowl, and set aside.

2.Heat 1 1/4 cups of the cream in a saucepan over medium heat until it begins to bubble at the edge of the pan. In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, egg yolks, remaining 1/4 cup cream, and corn syrup. Gradually pour the hot cream into the egg yolk mixture, whisking constantly. Return the mixture to the saucepan, and heat until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a metal spoon, about 5 minutes. Do not allow the mixture to boil. Strain custard into the berry puree through a sieve, mix, and refrigerate until chilled.

3.Fill an ice cream maker with the mixture, and freeze according to the manufacturer's instructions.