Serves 8

Preparation Time: 20 Minutes
Cook Time: 5 hours

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 cups mushrooms, chopped
• 1 cup green bell pepper, seeded, chopped
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 3 cups spinach, loosely packed, chopped
• 1 lb. 2% cottage cheese
• 2 cups (plus ½ cup) shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
• ¼ tsp. salt
• 26 oz. jarred low sodium pasta sauce
• 2 large zucchini, sliced, ¼-inch thick rounds
• 8 oz. no-boil whole wheat lasagna noodles

Directions:

Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat; add mushrooms, peppers, onions and spinach. Cook 5 minutes, or until water evaporates. Season with salt and pepper.

2. In mixing bowl, mix cottage cheese, 2 cups mozzarella cheese and salt. Divide into 2 portions.

3. Grease slow cooker. Cover bottom with ⅓ of sauce and assemble as follows: single layer noodles, ⅓ of cooked vegetables, single layer zucchini, 1 portion of cottage cheese mixture, single layer of noodles. Repeat layering once in same order. Add layer of remaining sauce, cooked vegetables and zucchini.

4. Sprinkle ½ cup mozzarella cheese on top.

5. Cook on low for 5 hours or until noodles and zucchini are tender.

Nutrition Information:

Slow Cooker Veggie Lasagna: Calories 490, Fat 16.32g, Protein 31.17g, Carbohydrate 50.81g, Fiber 4.64g, Cholesterol 51mg, Sodium 379mg, Calcium 614mg, Vitamin A 2696 IU, Vitamin C 39.07mg, Iron 2.88mg

This is my fast and easy go to meal when I am sick of the same old stuff or in a hurry. It is nice to throw together on a Sunday night then just warm it up during the week in the slow cooker. It is not too sweet or sour, and it has just the right mix of veggies and seasonings. Start with 1 tablespoon of chili powder, then add more if you prefer more heat! If you are worried about the cooking wine and serving this to children, NO WORRIES! The alcohol cooks out! If you are wondering why this is in the pasta category, read to the bottom to find out.

If you don’t eat beef, this taste good with ground turkey or ground chicken. I have tried it all 3 ways. The chicken was by far my favorite though.

Please enjoy and let me know what you think!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 can (14-1/2 oz.) petite diced tomatoes
• 1/3 cup Holland House Red Wine Vinegar (Print and Save $.50 now!)
• 1/3 cup ketchup
• 2 to 3 Tbsp. packed brown sugar
• 1-1/2 lbs. lean ground beef, chicken or turkey)
• 1 cup chopped yellow onion
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
• 3 large cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 to 2 Tbsp. chili powder
• 1 tsp. dried leaf oregano
• 1/2 tsp. salt

DIRECTIONS

1. In a medium bowl, combine tomatoes, red wine vinegar, ketchup and brown sugar.
2. Stir together to dissolve the sugar. Set it to the side.
3. In a large skillet or Dutch oven, combine your ground beef with the remaining ingredients.
4. Cook it over high heat for 8 to 10 minutes
5. You want to make sure that you don’t have big chunks of ground beef so I used a spatula and just “chop it” as I turn the meat.
6. If you aren’t using a lean meat, at this point you will want to drain off the grease and return it to the skillet.
7. Stir in the tomato mixture that you prepared earlier
8. Reduce heat to medium and cook, uncovered, 12 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally
9. Serve in buns or even over hot cooked pasta! It is delicious like this.
10. Makes 5 1/2 cups. Depending on how you like your buns piled, you can get 6 to 10 sandwiches from this.

This year for Valentine’s Day we stayed in. Since I am not big on this holiday to start with, I was happy with this. My son ended up with the Flu and home that night (and the rest of the week off school) so we made it work. My boyfriend made me a delicious Valentine’s Day dinner. I’m a chicken and pasta addict so the man fed right into that addiction! He has a background in cooking so I thought it was time the man cooked for me. Here is the recipe he used with a few of his own little tweaks.

Ingredients:

• 4  boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into thin strips or cubes
• 1 pound Mueller’s linguine cooked al dente
• 4 teaspoons McCormick Cajun seasoning
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 2 thinly sliced green onion
• 2 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 4 tablespoons chopped sun-dried tomatoes
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1⁄4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon Nakano Red Pepper Seasoned Rice Vinegar
• 1 tablespoon Nakano Basil & Oregano Seasoned Rice Vinegar
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Place chicken, vinegars and Cajun seasoning in a bowl and toss to coat.
2. In a large skillet over medium heat, sauté chicken in butter until chicken is tender, about 5 to 7 minutes.
3. Reduce heat add green onion, heavy cream, tomatoes, basil, salt, garlic powder, black pepper and heat through.
4. Pour over hot linguine and toss with Parmesan cheese.

Disclosure: MAK Media, LLC was not asked or paid in any form to share this information. Any Brand names that are listed are for the sole purpose of specifying a product used. It is still okay to post something simply because I wanted to share it with my readers right?

I love making lasagna and it is a dish that my boys really enjoy. I wanted to change it up a bit so I came up with these roll ups. I am sure it is not my original idea since there are so many awesome Mom’s out there! They are fun to make and to eat. It’s an easy recipe that you can get the kids involved in! Spencer loves to stick the toothpicks in the top since he couldn’t quite get the rolling part down. I actually made almost a double batch which is why there are so many in my pan pictured below. ENJOY!

Ingredients:

• Cooking Spray
• 12 lasagna noodles
• 1 cup of soft cheese (such as Alouette, I used Philidelphia Cooking Cremes)
• 1/2 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese
• 2 tablespoons of basil
• 1 1/2 cups of tomato sauce
• 1/4 cup of Parmeasan cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Coat a shallow baking pan with cooking spray
3. Cook your lasagna noodles according to the package directions.
4. Drain them and set them to the side. Be careful not to stir them to often or they will break when you are trying to work with them.
5. Next,  in a small bowl, combine the herbed cheese, mozzarella and basil then mix it well.
6. Lay your lasagna noodles out on a flat surface.
7. Spoon a thin layer of the cheese mixture onto each noodle. You don’t want to over load these.
8. Starting from one end, roll up the noodle and secure it with a toothpick.
9. Place rolls side by side in the pan
10. Pour the tomato sauce on top and then sprinkle them with parmesean cheese.
11. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes until cheese filling melts and the tops are golden brown.

I am a cheese lover and at first thought these needed more cheese than what I put in. However, once they were baked and I tasted them, it is actually enough. I am going to try them again with the standard mozzarella and ricotta one time. I know, I never make anything by the original recipe

Serves 4

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One of the things I wish I had done while my Dad was still alive was making him some Polish food. I am by no means a pro at this but it is something I wanted to learn to make. I have made these a handful of times and they were always a huge hit with everyone who has tried them. While my boys and I were back home for Christmas, my mom talked me into making them for her. They are really not as difficult as you might think. Just time consuming. I wanted to get a nice picture of them finished by the hounds moved in and I didn’t get a chance Most people serve their pierogies with sour cream but I also like mind with a nice spicy brown mustard.

Filling:

• 4 large baking potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch slices
• 1 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3/4 to 1 cup grated dry farmer’s cheese (Feel free to use your favorite FINELY shredded/grated cheese!)
• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• Freshly chopped Chives (optional)

In a large bowl, combine the flour, egg, milk and water. Beat the eggs as you mix and gradually add the rest of the water until the mixture is combined.

Place your dough on a well floured surface. Knead it gentlt only until the ingredients are blended and the dough is smooth and slightly sticky, about 3 to 5 minutes. Be careful not to over work your dough.

Form a ball with your dough and wrap it in plastic wrap. Let it rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

For the filling:
Put the potatoes in a medium pot and add just enough cold, salted water to cover them. Bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes are fork tender. You don’t want them mushy or water logged.

When the potatoes are soft, drain them and return them to the pot. Make sure you get out as much water as you can. Add your cheese, butter,chives, salt and pepper. Mash them just until blended and large lumps are gone. Season again with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside to cool while you roll out your dough.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. On a well floured surface, roll out your dough with a rolling pin until it is about 1/8 inch thick. I used a 3 inch metal cookie cutter to cut each pierogie out. Make sure you you keep them covered with a damp towel as you work so they don’t dry out.

Once you have all of your rounds, go back and lightly roll over each one. I found that this makes them a little easier to pinch closed and gets out and thick spots you might have missed.

Fill the center of each one with a teaspoon of the potato mixture. Join the edges and pinch them firmly to seal them. Press around the edges with a fork. I had a few stubborn ones that didn’t want to stay closed but most of them closed jsut fine without wetting the edges. Make sure you have a tight seal or you will have a mess when you cook them.

You can cook these as you work or wrap them and cook them the next day. Drop no more than 6 in the pot at a time. When your pierogies float to the top, let them cook an additional 2-4 minutes. At this point you can store them for frying later or move them right into a saute’ pan and cook until they are golden brown on each side.

I was very excited to try this recipe and I have to tell you I was a bit disappointed. It had nothing to do with the recipe being good or bad, it was good, it just wasn’t for us. This is only my second encounter with cooking wines and I expected more of the wine taste to cook off. I don’t drink so the called for amount was a bit much. My friend, who is an ex chef, even thought it was a bit much. I listed the recipe as written originally but with some suggestions. I used Spaghetti even though I originally was going to use Angel hair. I thought the chunky sauce might be a little much for the fine pasta. I hope you will give this a try and let me know what you think! It was very easy to prepare.

Ingredients

2 Tbsp. olive oil
3/4 c onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 oz. bacon, cooked, drained, chopped
2 cans (28 oz. each) plum or crushed tomatoes
1 tsp. sugar
1 c Holland House Red Cooking Wine (I recommend only 1/2 to 3/4 c)
Ground pepper, to taste
Red pepper flakes, to taste (I didn’t use)
Parmesan cheese (optional)
1 lb. pasta, cooked (I used Spaghetti)

Directions

Heat oil in heavy pan over medium heat. Sauté onion until soft. Stir in garlic and bacon for 3 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, sugar, wine and spices. Simmer on low, uncovered for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serve over pasta, with cheese.

Makes 6 servings.

Click any image to enlarge

I made this for dinner the other night and just had to share! I am sorry to say that it was a time restricted night and I didn’t get to take picture of all of the steps for you.  I will try to make it again and add some photos at a later date. Please don’t hold me to that It was SOOO delicious and easy! Give it a try and come back and tell me what you thought!

What You Need!

1/2 lb. fettuccine, uncooked
1 lb.  boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
1-1/4 cups fat-free reduced-sodium chicken broth
4 tsp.  flour
4 oz. (1/2 of 8-oz.) 1/3 Less Fat Cream Cheese, cubed
3 tbsp.  Grated Parmesan Cheese, divided
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp.  pepper

Make It!

COOK pasta as directed on package.

MEANWHILE, heat large nonstick skillet sprayed with cooking spray on medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook 5 to 7 min. or until chicken is done, stirring occasionally. Remove from skillet. Mix broth and flour in same skillet. Stir in cream cheese, 2 Tbsp. Parmesan, garlic powder and pepper; cook 2 min. or until mixture boils and thickens, stirring constantly with whisk. Stir in chicken.

DRAIN pasta; place in large bowl. Add chicken mixture; toss to coat. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan.

This is a nice little way to make an otherwise not so healthy dish a little better for you. I personally left out the Salsa because I don’t like it and it was still fantastic!! I am not normally a Mexican food eater (not that I would really consider this Mexican) but I gave it a try and it was a success. If anything else it can just be a little way to jazz up the plain old pasta on a plate. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Prep Time: 30 min
Start to Finish: 30 min
Makes: 6 servings (about 1 1/3 cups each)

1    lb extra-lean (at least 93%) ground beef
1    jar (16 oz) mild salsa
1    cup tomato sauce
1 1/2    cups water
2    cups uncooked regular or multigrain elbow macaroni
1    cup frozen corn
1/2    cup shredded reduced-fat sharp Cheddar cheese (2 oz)

1.    In 12-inch skillet, cook beef over medium-high heat 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thoroughly cooked; drain.
2.    Stir in salsa, tomato sauce and water. Heat to boiling. Stir in macaroni and corn. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 12 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until macaroni is tender.
3.    Sprinkle with cheese. Cover; let stand 1 to 2 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Find out your Pasta Personality and how it compares to some of Carrabba’s signature pasta dishes. Are you outgoing and have a spicy personality like a Marinara sauce, or warm and caring like a smooth Alfredo? No matter what your personality, Carrabba’s Italian Grill has a signature pasta dish that’s perfect for you! Take the Carrabba’s Pasta Personality Quiz and find out which one of their Signature Pasta meals best represents your personality!

I found it quite funny that mine came out to be Spaghetti and Meatballs. While I could eat Meatballs ALL DAY, I am not a big fan of Spaghetti. I am seriously a Fettuccine/Penne’ and Alfredo girl!

Red Gold Tomatoes generously sent me a gift box full of Red Gold goodies. In the box were 4 cans of tomatoes, a large sturdy shopping bag, a key chain, a Red Gold Cookbook, a magnet, Red Gold Ketchup and a brochure full of tomato soup recipes from around the world.

Budget Stretching Recipe: $.74 per serving It’s a fast and easy meal for the times when you’ve had a long day at work and not a lot of time at home. This recipe is used in several school lunch programs because children love it!

Ingredients
1 pound lean ground beef
1 cup chopped onion
1 (14.5 ounce) can Red Gold® Stewed Tomatoes or 1 (14.5 ounce) can Red Gold® Petite Diced Tomatoes with Onion, Celery & Green Pepper
1 cup elbow macaroni
2 cups shredded pasteurized prepared cheese product

Directions:

* In a large skillet, brown the ground beef and onion. Drain well. Add RED GOLD® STEWED TOMATOES and 1 cup of water; bring to a boil. Add macaroni and bring back to a boil.
* Reduce the heat to simmer and cook for 10 minutes or until macaroni is done. Sprinkle cheese on top and stir until cheese is melted.

Cook Hint::
Properly wrapped, fresh ground beef can be kept in the freezer at 0° for 3 months. Ground beef wrapped and frozen flat will stack easily and make best use of freezer space. These packages also thaw quicker. Be sure not to stack packages until they are completely frozen.

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GIVEAWAY: Gift pack pictured above!

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