Tortellini Salad

This is an excellent pasta salad (my husband's favorite) and is quite easy to assemble. I use Chef Todd's seasoning, but it is also really good with Italian seasoning. Also, because there are only two of us, I make a smaller portion by choosing a smaller package of the refrigerated tortellini, but when I make it for larger groups I use two packages or a larger package - preferably with multi-colored tortellini. I don't think it tastes any different, I just like the way it looks.

Recipe Yield: 4 servings

1 9 oz package cheese tortellini, prepared according to directions on package

1 red pepper, sliced

1/2 can black olives

Chef Todd's seasoning (to taste)

Salt, to taste

Olive oil

Feta cheese

Combine pasta, olive oil, and seasonings and stir until the pasta is completely coated. Add in remaining ingredients and stir. Refrigerate at least an hour before serving. If the pasta soaks up the olive oil before you eat it, add a little bit more.

Simple Chicken Cacciatore

There are some recipes that I have heard of dozens of times, but never had myself. I often think of them as  "gourmet" or "fancy." This was one of those recipes. I wanted to cook something Italian and so I decided to make it. Once I read through a couple of recipes completely, I realized that it is pretty much just chicken with spaghetti sauce. There is another recipe by Giada de Laurentiis that is somewhat different and I really want to try it in the future. The sauce completely homemade and it looks really good (and gets great reviews). Still, this one was decent, quick to make, and I would definitely make it again.

Yield: 4 servings

4 chicken breasts

1-2 Tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, sliced

1-2 tsp minced garlic

4 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced

2 cups pasta sauce

1/2 tsp dried rosemary

1/2 tsp oregano

Preheat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook chicken in oil for about 15 minutes or until it is thoroughly cooked and is crispy and golden on the outside. Add onion and garlic during the last five minutes of cooking. Then add remaining ingredients and simmer for another 10-15 minutes. Serve over spaghetti, prepared according to directions on the package.

Cabbage Patch Stew

This is a type of soup that my mom made when I was growing up. I am always a little bit nervous to make soups because my husband has told me a number of times that he doesn't like soup, but when I got cabbage from my Bountiful Basket, I just decided that he would have to suck it up and eat whatever I was making for dinner. I was actually surprised when he said he liked it a lot and that he would be willing to have it again. Maybe because it was a pretty thick, meaty soup. 

I also have to give you one word of caution. Worcestershire sauce smells really good and you might feel tempted to add in a little extra. Don't do it. It has a really strong flavor.

Recipe Yield: about 7 servings (I cut the recipe in half and we had enough for dinner and then lunch for both of us the next day)

2 lbs. hamburger

1 onion, sliced

1 cup diced potatoes

2 cups shredded cabbage

2 cups water

2 Tbsp sugar

1 28 oz can tomatoes

1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

2 tsp chili powder

1 15 oz can kidney beans

1 cup celery, diced (optional)

Salt and pepper to taste

Brown meat and drain grease from pan. Add onion, potatoes, cabbage, water and salt. Simmer for 15 minutes. Then add remaining ingredients and simmer for 35 more minutes.

Pizza Rolls

These were actually just a little experiment that I decided to do for the Super Bowl. They turned out to be a huge hit! Even though I layered the sauce, pepperoni, and cheese and rolled it all up together, I think it would also work if you just rolled up the dry ingredients and dipped them in sauce. I actually used the same dough to make cinnamon rolls as well.

Yeild: about 10 servings (I often cut the dough recipe in half and my husband and I still always have leftovers)

1 recipe pizza dough
Spaghetti Sauce
Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
Pepperoni

Prepare dough as directed. Preheat oven to 375°. Roll dough out into a rectangle that is approximately 18"x12" and about 1/8" thick. If you use the entire dough recipe, this will be enough to make two or three different rolls. Cover dough with a thin layer of spaghetti sauce, then pepperoni (I like to put the pepperoni slices so close to each other that they are nearly touching) and a layer of cheese. Then roll it up and use a sharp knife to cut the rolls into 1" slices. Place on a greased baking sheet and cook for about 20-25 minutes.

Blueberry Pancakes

Just the other day, I found a great deal on blueberries. Although we ended up eating most of them as a snack, I did use just a few to cook these pancakes. This is just a basic pancake recipe; you can add fruit or chocolate chips if you would like, or make plain pancakes. Why spend money on a pancake mix if these are so simple (and inexpensive) to make?

1 cup flour

1 Tbsp sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 egg

1 cup milk

1/2 tsp vanilla

2 Tbsp cooking oil

Blueberries

Mix everything (except the blueberries) together - first the wet ingredients, then the dry ingredients. Batter may be slightly lumpy. Cook desired size of pancakes on a skillet over medium-high heat. Drop blueberries into pancakes once they are already on the skillet. This keeps them from getting smashed and keeps the batter from turning blue.

Hawaiian Haystacks

This seems to be a pretty common recipe among people that I know. My mom made it when I was growing up, and just a few months ago, my mother-in-law made it too. I am sure that it actually has no ties to Hawaii, it is fun to make and to eat. I would definitely recommend it. Although I have it labelled as a "slow cooker," my mom never made the sauce that way, she just did it in a sauce pan over the stove. This is also an easy one to adapt to the number of people that you are serving. It can be made as a small dinner for two, or it can  be expanded to serve dozens of people.

Recipe Yield: about 4 servings

1 chicken breast

1 can cream of chicken soup

Milk

Rice

Toppings:

coconut tidbits

olives

peas

diced celery

shredded carrots

cheddar cheese

raisins

pineapple

green or red peppers

mandarin oranges

chow mien noodles

sliced green onion

cashews

... or anything else that strikes your fancy 

If you use a slow cooker for this meal, place the chicken breast and the chicken soup in the slow cooker and  cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 4-6 hours. Before serving, shred the chicken. Add milk to your desired consistency. If you like more sauce compared to chicken, simply add another can of cream of chicken soup.

To prepare this over the stove, cook the chicken and cut into cubes. Then heat chicken soup and about 1/2 cup milk over medium heat. Then add chicken cubes.

Everyone gets to assemble their own dish. Begin with rice; pour sauce over top and then pile on the toppings. 

Oatmeal Cookies

I LOVE making desserts. It is one of my favorite activities. I actually made these cookies when we already had half a pan of Caramel Brownies sitting on the counter, which may have been a mistake. Every day when my husband gets home from work, he eats a little snack - usually one of the baked goods that we have around. When I noticed that he hadn't been eating any of the brownies, I asked him if it was because he didn't like them (I am always a little paranoid that he doesn't like my cooking. I know it is silly). "No," he told me, "I just wanted to eat something healthy, so I had some oatmeal cookies instead." HA! Even though these cookies have oatmeal and raisins, I wouldn't exactly consider them to be "healthy." But if you choose to see it that way, they do provide an entire serving of whole grain and a serving of fruit (if you eat enough of them).

1 cup margarine or butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
3 cups oatmeal
1 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 350°. Combine all of the ingredients (first cream the wet ingredients, then stir in the dry; finally, add the raisins.) Bake for 10-12 minutes. 10 is usually enough. Take them out when they still look a little doughy and they will be deliciously soft and chewy.

Banana Nut Bread

Banana bread is never one of those things that I plan to make in advance. I usually just find myself obligated to make it in order to avoid letting over-ripe bananas go to waste. That was the case this morning, when I finally concluded that there was no way I would eat the last bananas when they had all of those brown spots. Rather than using the banana bread recipe that I usually do, I chose a new one. I was excited that it called for sour cream because I have had some sitting in my refrigerator ever since I made tacos a few weeks ago.

This is pretty much my new favorite banana bread recipe. It is wonderfully soft and stays moist for days - I stored one loaf in plastic wrap and the other in a ziplock bag and they both retained their moisture.

Makes 1 9x13" pan or 2 bread pans.

1 cup mashed bananas (approximately 2-3 bananas)
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup butter or margarine
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups flour
1/2-1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350° and prepare pans with cooking spray. In a small bowl, combine bananas and sour cream and set aside. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar then beat in eggs, one at a time. Stir in vanilla and banana mixture, then add dry ingredients and mix well. Pour into prepared pans and bake for 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.

Lemon Cookies

I was recently visiting a friend for an afternoon and she suggested that we try a new cookie recipe. She had found an amazing recipe on Mel's Kitchen Cafe and had all of the ingredients on hand. I had never made lemon cookies before, but was excited to try something new; and I have to say that I am IN LOVE with these cookies. I brought some home to my husband, and he felt the same way. After we ate them all in a single day, he asked me to make more and I happily obliged. Interestingly, I have since found these same cookies on a few other websites, so I guess they are kind of a fad right now. 

Recipe Yield: about 2 dozen cookies (depending on how big you make them)

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 egg

2 tsp freshly grated lemon zest

1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 1/2 lemon)

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 cups flour

powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350° and prepare baking sheets with parchment paper or cooking spray. (These cookies stick to the pan.) 

Cream butter and sugar. Add vanilla, egg, lemon zest and juice and mix well. Then stir in salt, baking powder, baking soda, and flour. Roll balls of dough in powdered sugar before placing on baking sheet approximately 2 inches apart. Bake for 9-11 minutes. Remove them from the oven before they begin to brown on the edges.