Stuffed Pasta Shells

12 jumbo pasta shells
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic
1 cup ricotta cheese
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 Tbl fresh basil (or 1 ½ tsp dried basil)
1 egg
14 oz jar spaghetti sauce (Classico tomato&basil)
¼ lb ground beef (optional) (Spinach good addition as well)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Spray an eight inch (2qt) baking dish
Cook pasta and rinse with cold water
Ground beef; sauté garlic.
In a separate bowl, combine cheese, basil, egg, garlic, and meet
Spoon cheese mixture into shells
Place in baking dish; top with spaghetti sauce. Cover with foil.
Bake for 35-40 minutes

Orzo with Parmesan and Basil

Ingredients 

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 cup uncooked orzo pasta
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can chicken broth
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

Directions

1. Melt butter in heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in orzo and saute until lightly browned.
2. Stir in chicken stock and bring to boil. Cover. Reduce heat and simmer until orzo is tender and liquid is absorbed, about 15 - 20 minutes.
3. Mix in Parmesan cheese and basil. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to shallow bowl. Garnish with basil sprigs.
4. Serve with some fruit and a salad for a light but yummy summer dinner.

Makes 4 servings

Wisconsin Cauliflower Soup

Tastes pretty close to the Zupas goodness!  And even Mike will eat this recipe, so this soup is a major win at our house.

2 tablespoon butter or margarine
1 medium onion, chopped
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk**
1 1/2 cups water**
1 can (13 3/4 to 14 1/2 ounces) chicken broth
1 head (2 1/2 pounds) cauliflower, cut into 1-inch chunks
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1 cup Pepper Jack cheese, shredded

**Can substitute 1 can {12 oz} evaporated milk and 2 cups water for the 2 cups milk and 1 1/2 cups water.

In a large saucepan, melt margarine or butter over medium heat. Add onion and cook until golden, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Whisk in flour and salt. Gradually stir in milk, chicken broth, and water. 

Add cauliflower and heat to boiling over high heat. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer until cauliflower is tender, about 15 minutes. 

In blender (with center part of blender cover removed to allow steam to escape), blend cauliflower mixture at low speed in small batches until very smooth. {Don't let this step deter you from making the soup! Blending it is really easy and so worth the extra 3 minutes. The most annoying part are the added dishes!} 
Return cauliflower mixture to saucepan; heat over medium heat until hot, stirring occasionally. Remove saucepan from heat; stir in mustard and 1 1/2 cups cheese until melted and smooth. Serve soup with remaining cheese as a garnish.  (I sometimes add bacon on top as well.  Everything is better with bacon).

Cheesy Vegetable Chowder

2 Tablespoons butter

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 cup finely chopped carrot

1 stalk celery, finely chopped

1 Tablespoon minced garlic

4 cups chicken broth 

2 large baking potatoes, peeled and chopped (I usually add more)

1 Tablespoon flour

1/2 cup water

2/3 cup milk

2 cups chopped broccoli

2 heaping cups shredded cheddar cheese

Melt the butter in a large soup pot.  Add onions, carrots, and celery and saute over medium heat until tender.  Add garlic and cook 1 or 2 additional minutes.  Add chicken broth and potatoes, bring to a boil, and cook until potatoes are tender.  Mix flour with water, add, and simmer until soup is slightly thickened.  Add milk and broccoli and cook until broccoli is just tender and soup is heated through.  Stir in cheese, allow to melt, and serve.

Curried Butternut Squash Soup

2 lbs frozen butternut squash
1 T butter
2 c chopped peeled Granny Smith apples
(¾ lb)1 ½ cups finely chopped onion
½ cup thinly sliced celery
1 bay leaf
2 tsp curry powder
1 garlic clove, minced
3 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth
1/8 tsp salt
½ cup brown sugar (optional, unless you're me in which case it's not really optional.)

Melt butter in a large pot over medium-high heat.  Add apple, onion, celery and bay leaf.  Sautee for 10 minutes.  Stir in curry powder and garlic.  Cook 1 minute more stirring constantly.  Add broth, salt, and squash (and brown sugar, if you want it a little sweeter).
Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for 20-30 minutes.  Discard bay leaf.  Either mash mixture for more lumpy soup, or puree for smooth soup.  

Butternut Squash Ravioli

I found this recipe in Family Fun magazine. I tweaked it just a little.

I added a sauteed onion and salt and pepper to the filling.
Also, I hate nutmeg so I put in a teaspoon of ginger instead.

Time consuming, but Yum!

Apricot Chicken

1 C Apricot Jam, Jelly, or Preserves
1/2 C Kethchup
1/4 C Italian Salad Dressing

Mix together, coat chicken, bake for 1 hr. at 350

Brazilian Beans and Rice

This recipe is from a real Brazilian!

Beans:
1 can black beans (do not drain)
½ medium yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic minced
1 bay leaf
1/3 cup olive oil
Salt to taste

Rice:
1 cup long grain rice
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp minced onion and garlic (taken from the amount in the bean recipe)
2 cups water

Combine chopped onion and minced garlic, separate 1 tbsp for the rice recipe. Add one 1 Tbsp of olive oil to a sauté pan and brown the onion and garlic. In a seperate pan, sauté the onion and garlic for the rice with 1 tbsp of olive oil. Add the rice and sauté the whole mixture until rice is slightly brown, add water and bring to boil, when water boils turn heat to simmer and cook for 20 about minutes until rice is tender. (ok, I’m assuming not everyone knows how to cook rice). In the bean pan, when onion and garlic are slightly brown add the entire can of beans, juices included. Add the remaining ingredients and let simmer on medium heat for 15-20 minutes. (it is ideal if you can work both pans at the same time, then they simmer together and are both done at the same time).

This is the basic brasilian staple. It is usually served with some kind of meat or sausage (you can throw the cooked sausage in to the beans when they simmer, if you like that kind of thing), or an a fried egg (yummy and cheap). I will often make a cucumber tomato salad to top the rice and beans. Fried bananas with cinnamon and sugar for dessert! Yum!

*from Mae Williford

Crock Pot Chicken

2-3 chicken breasts
can of cream of chicken
milk
cheese

*from Tammy Bylund

Rice Casserole

3 cups cooked rice (1 cup uncooked), can use brown or white
hamburger
1 can cream of mushroom soup
chopped onion (to your taste)
chopped celery (to your taste)
1 TB soy sauce
milk
chow mein noodles

You cook the rice as directed on your package. (I make a huge batch and then freeze it, comes in handy when I don't remember to start the rice earlier than the rest of the meal. Then I pop into the microwave and instant rice!) Brown the hamburger with the onion and celery. Drain, add soup and soy sauce, add to rice. I add a little bit of milk, because I use brown rice so it is a little drier than white, so it doesn't dry out during cooking.

Bake at 350 for 1/2 hour. Sprinkle the chow mein noodles over the top upon serving.

*from Christine Hogg

Easy Burritos

One of our favorites is a tortilla with a spoonful of black beans, refried beans and cheese melted on top.

You can add onions, tomatoes, lettuce or whatever you like on top.

This one is pretty fast and No meat=cheap.

Calzones

For 4
Dough:1 T dry yeast1 cup lukewarm water
1 T sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 T olive oil
2.5 - 3 cups flour

Dissolve yeast mixture in a bowl. Add sugar, salt, and oil. Mix well. Gradually add flour to from a stiff dough. Knead on a floured surface until smooth and elastic. Place in greased bowl, cover with a towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk. Separate dough into 4 or 6 even balls. Roll out balls into flat circles. Place calzone fillers on one half of the rolled out circles. Fold over and seal up the edges. Put on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 for about 15 minutes or until nicely brown. Serve with tomato sauce spooned on top of each calzone.

Filling ideas: mozzarella cheese, broccoli, fresh spinach, pepperoni, ham

You'd think calzones would be hard to make, not true! One of the keys to making successful dough is the temperature of your house. When I made dough during the winter, it was about 68 degrees in our house and the dough was having a hard time rising. When I went to make the dough this summer, it was over 78 degrees in the house and that yeast went to town. My suggestion: if you're making this in cold temps (and your keeping the heat bill low), put the dough bowl on the stove while it preheats.

*from Ash Theodore

Chicken Salad Sandwiches

For 4:

2 chicken breasts

1/2 cup mayo

1 stalk celery

1/2 onion

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

Boil chicken breast for about 30 minutes. Chop celery and onions. Once the chicken is cooked, you can either shred it off with your fingers or cut it into small pieces. Mix all of the ingredients together and serve on bread. Croissants are always good, but you may not have them on hand.

You don't have to wait while the chicken salad cools down through refrigeration. Eat this recipe warm, it's good.

*from Ash Theodore

Apricot Chicken

For 4-6:
4 chicken breasts
1 bottle (8oz) Russian Salad Dressing
1 cup apricot jam
1 package (1 and 1/8oz) dry onion soup mix

Mix dressing, jam, and onion soup mix. Put chicken in 9X11 baking dish. Pour mixture over chicken. Bake at 350 for 1 hour 15 minutes.

You can also use peach jam, which tends to be on sale a bit more than apricot. You can serve this with rice and peas for a delicious meal.

*from Ash Theodore

Chicken and Rice

1.5 cup uncooked rice (not instant)
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
4 chicken breasts (can use only 2 or 3 if living on the cheap)
3 cups boiling water with 3 chicken bouillon cubes
1 package dry onion soup mix
1 can cream of chicken soup

In a 9x13 pan, place the rice, spring half cup cheese. Top with chicken. Boil water and bouillon and pour over chicken. Sprinkle onion soup mix over it. Spread chicken soup over that. Bake 1 hour at 325 degrees. Sprinkle rest of cheese and back half an hour longer.

Recipe note: yes, this is a recipe for a casserole and yes, it does use cream of chicken soup. But it is good. Eat with a fresh salad or some steamed broccoli for a convenient but quality meal to enjoy on a Sunday evening or busy day.

*from Ash Theodore

Pork Tenderloin Marinade

So easy, yet you feel gourmet when you make it...

1 lb. pork loin chops, boneless
3 T white wine vinegar
1 T Worcestershire sauce
1 T olive oil
2 garlic cloves crushed
1/2 c sour cream
2 T Dijon mustard

Place pork loin chops in bowl or plastic bag. Combine vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, olive oil and crushed garlic cloves. Pour over meat.* Let marinate. Grill or broil until well-cooked. Serve with mustard sauce. For mustard sauce, combine sour cream and Dijon mustard.

*you can freeze the pork at this time if desired. When ready to prepare, thaw meat then grill.

*from Ash Theodore

Pizza Dough

makes 3 crusts. You can freeze in a ziptop bag and defrost in the microwave on high for 20 seconds.

3 T. yeast
3 Cups Warm Water
3 T. oil
9 Cups flour
3 tsp. salt
1 1/2 T. oregano
1 T. garlic salt

you can also roll out the crust bake it at 500 degrees for 4 min. prepare it like you would a pizza and then freeze it like a frozen pizza. When you want to eat it bake at 500 degrees for 10-15 min. until the cheese melts.

Fajitas

1/4 C. Lime
1 tsp. sugar
1/8 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. chili powder
2 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 C. Vegetable oil

Chicken Marinade

(20 lbs. of chicken)
2 C. 7-ups
1 C. soy sauce
1 tsp. horseradish
1 C. salad oil
1/2 tsp. garlic powder

Pork Chop Marinade

1/4 C. lemon juice
1/2 C. Olive oil
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. garlic
pepper
1/4 tsp. garlic and herb seasoning