Petite Lasanga Cups

This is dinner tonight! I can't wait to dive right into these little gems. So yummy! I mean lasagna in little petite sized cups of cheesy goodness! How can this not be the best thing you've ever put in your mouth?!?!?!

I love little variations on traditional meals. This is a great example of that. This would also be good for a dinner party-everyone gets their own little lasagna.


Petite Lasagna Cups
(makes 12)

12 oz raw ground turkey (or whatever meat you want to use-or go meatless-that would be good too!)

¼ tsp salt, divided

¼ tsp pepper

1 cup chopped onion

½ cup chopped mushrooms

14.5 oz can crushed tomatoes, or tomato sauce

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 tsp dried oregano, divided

½ tsp dried basil

1 ½ cups cream cheese (i'm using the philadelphia baking cream cheese-italian herbs)

12 lasagna noodles, cooked and cooled and cut in 1/2

1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese



Preheat oven to 375ºF. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the turkey, onions, mushrooms, salt, and pepper. Crumble the meat and saute the mixture for about 10 minutes, or until the turkey is cooked through. Add the garlic and stir constantly for 30 seconds.

Add the crushed tomatoes and 2 tsp of oregano. Bring the pan to a gentle boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the cream cheese, a pinch of salt and pepper, the remaining teaspoon of oregano, and the basil. Stir to mix well. Set aside.

Coat a 12-cup muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray. Place 1 noodle into each of the 12 cups, pressing firmly in the bottom of the cup and up the sides.

Using half of the ricotta mixture, divide it among the 12 muffin cups. Next, using half of the turkey tomato sauce, spoon it evenly over each of the ricotta filled cups. Sprinkle with 2 tsp of mozzarella.

Gently press another noodle on top of the mozzarella layer.

Repeat the process by distributing the remaining cream cheese, then the remaining tomato sauce, and finally the rest of the shredded mozzarella.

Bake for 10 minutes, or until the cheese has melted.

Let the cups cool, remove them from the pan, and serve!

picture courtesy of CAN YOU STAY FOR DINNER

Mexican Stuffed Shells

Who doesn't love tacos??? They are a favorite in this house for sure!! We love all things tacos. It's one meal I KNOW my kids will eat without any hesitation. We usually have tacos every couple of weeks.

So as I was browsing Pinterest one night I stumbled upon this gem! Thought "oh yeah-the kids will adore this" and THEY DID!!

So here you go! I hope your family enjoys it as much as mine did!!! YUM!!!

Mexican Stuffed Shells
Ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef
1 package low-sodium taco seasoning
1 can refried beans
4 oz. cream cheese (I used a veggie cream cheese that I already had in the fridge)
14-16 jumbo pasta shells
1.5 cup salsa
1 cup taco sauce
1 cup cheddar cheese
1 cup monterey jack cheese
3 green onions
Sour cream

Preheat oven to 350°.

In a frying pan cook ground beef; add taco seasoning and prepare according to package directions, add refried beans. Add cream cheese, cover and simmer until cheese is melted. Blend well. Set aside and cool completely. While ground beef is cooking, cook the pasta shells according to directions; drain. Set shells out individually on cutting board/baking sheet so that they don’t stick together.

Pour salsa on bottom of 9×13 baking dish. Stuff each shell with the meat mixture. Place shells in 9×13 pan open side up. Cover shells with taco sauce. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, add shredded cheese and bake for 10-15 more minutes, with the foil removed. Top with any condiments you’d like (green onions, black olives, etc.) Serve with sour cream and/or more salsa

picture courtesy of THE WAY TO HIS HEART

This was so good! Kids ate and ate!! Well yeah, I did too!!

Happy Eating!

Frozen Hot Chocolate....yeah I went there....

Guess I've been a bit lazy with this blog! I would like to blame the hubs being deployed on it and me not wanting to cook anything more exciting than mac n cheese, hot dogs and nuggets.....so there you go. Ug...But here I am, I haven't fallen off the face of the earth, although sometimes it sure does feel like it!

But not to have a pity party, here's something super yum!!!

I recently joined Pinterest. (I spend way too much time there.) I found this recipe and tonight we made it. The kids gulped it up and it was soooooooo good! If you've ever been to Serendipity 3 in NYC then you've no doubt heard of Frozen Hot Chocolate. I believe it was also talked about on Sex in the City? I dont watch that show, but I think I heard that it was. Please correct me if I'm wrong. Anyway, like I said, browsing the yumminess that is Pinterest I stumbled upon this lovely copy cat recipe. So here you go!!

We didn't have whipped cream so we just used marshmallows, which worked out just fine. I HIGHLY recommend you stopping what you are doing and making this right now! I'm pretty sure you have everything need to make it in your possession right now. :)

recipe courtesy of Pinterest

Frozen Hot Chocolate

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 6 oz. chopped semisweet chocolate (or chocolate chips)
• 3 cups whole milk, divided
• 1 Tbsp. plus 1 tsp. your favorite powdered hot chocolate mix
• 3 Tbsp. sugar
• 6 cups ice cubes
• whipped cream for garnish

Preparation:

1. Place chopped chocolate and 1/4 cup of the milk in a microwave-safe container. Heat on 50% power for 1 minute. Stir.
2. Heat on 50% power for 30 seconds. Stir. If necessary, continue heating in 30-second increments until chocolate is melted.
3. Add hot chocolate mix and sugar. Stir.
4. Slowly pour in 1/2 cup of the milk. Stir, and let cool to room temperature.
5. Pour cooled chocolate mixture into blender. Add remaining milk and ice cubes. Puree until smooth.
6. Top with whipped cream and serve immediately.

Nutella Peanut Butter Bars

Stop what you are doing right now and go make these. I'm not kidding. Get up and go to your kitchen! I'm pretty sure you'll have everything you need to make them. We are having a hard time not taking forks and just eating it straight out of the pan. They really are that good. So please for the love of all things gooey and scrumptious, do yourself a favor and make these! You'll thank me...

1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 cup peanut butter
2 cups oatmeal (not quick)
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
Nutella for spreading

Cream first 3 ingredients together. Add the vanilla, eggs, and peanut butter and combine. Add the remaining ingredients and mix together. Spread dough on a greased cake pan (the pan i used is slightly bigger than a 9x13). Make at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until golden brown. After baked through, dollup about 1C-1 1/2C peanut butter on top. Put back in the oven (make sure the oven has been turned off) for about 5 minutes. Pull the pan out and spread the peanut butter. Let that set up for a couple of hours or a good 30 minutes in the fridge. I just left mine on the counter while we were at church today and they were perfect by the time we came home. This will allow the peanut butter to stiffen up. Once that has set, spread with Nutella. Dive right in, don't forget the glass of milk.

These are divine....in fact....i'm gonna go have another one! :)

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Angel Food Cake

My grandmother used to make angel food cake all the time. It was sooooo good! I have very fond memories of that cake. So when the kids and I were invited to have Mother's Day dinner with some friends I immediately thought of making this cake to bring. I just hope it turns out as good as my grandmother's did!!

Angel Food Cake

• 1 1/4 cups cake flour
• 1 3/4 cups white sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups egg whites
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Beat egg whites until they form stiff peaks, and then add cream of tartar, vanilla extract.
2. Sift together flour, sugar, and salt. Repeat five times.
3. Gently combine the egg whites with the dry ingredients, and then pour into an ungreased 10 inch tube pan.
4. Place cake pan in a cold oven. Turn the oven on; set it to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Cook for about one hour, or until cake is golden brown.
5. Invert cake, and allow it to cool in the pan. When thoroughly cooled, remove from pan.

ColeSlaw with Corn

This was originally a Paula Deen recipe. I tweaked it (of course) and here's my version!

• 1 head green cabbage, shredded
• 1 pkg shredded carrots
• 5 fresh ears corn,
• 3/4 cup mayonnaise
• garlic powder to taste
• seasoned salt/pepper to taste

Directions

In a stock pot, cook corn until completely cooked. Cool and remove corn from the cob.
In a medium bowl, combine shredded cabbage, carrots, and corn.
Mix in mayo and seasonings to taste. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. This is better the longer it sits!

It was really good and the corn in it gave it a sweetness. Perfect for a potluck or to serve with hamburgers and hot dogs!