Thursday, February 25, 2010

Baked Ziti

1/2 lb. ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 jar (26-30 oz) spaghetti sauce
8 oz. tomato sauce
1 t. dried oregano
1 lb. ziti pasta, cooked 7 minutes & drained
1 container (15 oz) ricotta cheese
2 C. shredded mozzarella, divided
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese

Cook beef, onion & garlic until browned, stirring frequently. Drain. Stir in spaghetti sauce, tomato sauce & oregano. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat.
Combine 1 C. sauce with ziti. Spoon half into 9X13 pan.
Combine ricotta & 1 C. mozzarella cheese.
Spread cheese mixture in pan on top of pasta.
Pour 1 C. sauce over cheese, followed by the remaining pasta & the rest of the sauce.
Cover & bake in 350 degree oven for 20 minutes.
Sprinkle with remaining 1 C. mozzarella & parmesan cheese.
Bake uncovered 10 minutes longer or until heated through.

I made this last night for our Cub Scout Blue & Gold Banquet. My dish was empty at the end of the night. Someone else brought a pasta dish & it only had a few scoops taken out of it!!!I felt pretty bad, so we took some of hers home with us.
This is great with garlic bread & a green salad!

Easy Chocolate Sauce

1 tub (8oz.) Cool Whip
1 C. semi-sweet Chocolate chips

Microwave frozen whipped topping & chocolate in medium microwaveable bowl on HIGH 1 min or until chocolate is melted & mixture is shiny & smooth.
Makes 1 1/2 cups

We like this on ice cream! Also good with 3-4 T. peanut butter mixed in!! Yummy!

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Strawberry Spinach Salad

1 bag of fresh baby spinach
1/2 lb. strawberries, sliced
Dressing:
1 lemon, juiced
1 t. poppy seeds
2 T. white wine vinegar
1/3 c. sugar
1 T. oil
1/2 t. lemon zest

Pour spinach in a bowl. Add sliced strawberries. Mix dressing ingredients & pour over salad. Only add dressing when ready to serve, otherwise it will turn soggy. My kids love this salad!

Monday, February 22, 2010

Breakfast Casserole

We made this a few months ago for a Ward Brunch. My kids love it!

24 oz. hash brown potatoes
1 1/2 c. cheddar cheese, shredded
1 1/2 c. monterey jack cheese, shredded
2-3 c. diced ham
3/4 c. evaporated milk
8 eggs, beaten
1/4 t. seasoned salt


Spray 9 X13 pan with PAM. Put potatoes in pan. Bake at 425 degrees for 25 minutes. Remove from oven. Alternate layers of cheese & ham over the cooked potatoes. Beat the eggs & add seasoned salt. Pour over the ham & cheese. (At this point you can cover & refrigerate to bake in the morning-that's what we did for Christmas morning)Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until knife inserted in middle comes out clean. Great with To Die For Blueberry Muffins.

Garden Veggie Pizza

1 tube of crescent roll dough
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
2 T. ranch dressing mix or 1 packet
1/2 c. carrots, finely chopped
1/2 c. chopped each green & red bell peppers
1/2 c. broccoli, chopped fine
1/2 c. green onion, chopped
1 c. shredded cheese
1-2 tomatoes, seeded & chopped fine

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Roll out dough onto baking sheet. Stretch & flatten to form a single rectangle shape on the baking sheet. Bake 11-13 min. Allow to cool.
Mix cream cheese & ranch mix in a medium bowl. Spread over cooled crust. Arrange veggies on top. Chill for 1 hour. Cut into bite-size squares.

Strawberry-Banana Smoothie

1 C. strawberries
1 medium banana
1 C. water
1/3 C. nonfat dry milk
2 T. sugar
6 ice cubes

Blend in blender until smooth. Add more ice if needed.
Yield: about 4 servings

To Die For Blueberry Muffins

3 C. flour
1 1/2 C. sugar
1 t. salt
4 t. baking powder
2/3 C. oil
2 eggs
2/3 C. milk
2 C. blueberries

Crumb Topping:
1/2 C. brown sugar
1/3 C. flour
1/4 C. butter, cubed
1 1/2 t. cinnamon

Mix together with fork & sprinkle over muffins before baking.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Fill muffin pan w/ liners. Combine flour, sugar, salt & b. powder. Place oil in 2 C. measure. Add the egg & enough milk to make 2 cups total. Pour into flour mixture. Fold in blueberries. Fill muffin cups to the top & sprinkle with crumb topping. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until done when tested with toothpick in center.

I made these when I was pregnant & forgot to put the blueberries in. I had to stick them in the individual muffins before baking. At least I remembered before baking them!!

Welcome

These recipes are all family favorites. If I haven't made the recipe myself, someone I know has & their family loves it. These are recipes that have been tried, tested & made perfect!!