Sweet and Sour Pasta Salad

With warmer weather outside, my appetite focuses on a few southern charms - fresh corn on the cob, fresh green beans, juicy ripe tomatoes, and grilling out. One of my favorite side dishes to go along with these dishes is pasta salad.

This recipe is a family favorite. My mom and mama make it, so I feel really domestic when I make it. ;)

I hope you enjoy!

Sweet and Sour Pasta Salad
(makes 2 servings) .... I normally half this recipe

1 can sweetened condensed milk
2 c mayo
1 c sugar
1 c vinegar
1 t salt
1/2 t pepper

prepared pasta
chopped and prepped fresh veggies of your choice

1.) Whisk together the first 6 ingredients
2.) Pour over pasta and veggies - stir and enjoy!

Couldn't be easier! :)

Creamy Tomato Tortellini Skillet

I cannot take credit for this recipe. I wish I could. But, I can't.
I can take credit for pinning it on my ever-growing Pinterest "DinnerTime" board. (that counts toward culinary genius, right??)

We have a family of 3.5 (the half is fiercely kicking his way out through my belly button as I'm typing this...). We ate this for two meals - my husband ate it cold...(blah) - I did not - I warm my food, like a normal human being ;)

I must say that this recipe exceeded my usual budget for a meal, but it was so good and easy that I may keep it on my menu rotation. I'm cheap when it comes to food. I love to cook, but I try to keep my meals to only a few dollars per person. (this is probably why I rarely bake - it becomes too expensive). I hate to spend too much money on food just like I hate spending money on toilet paper and paper towels - these things don't last long. ;) I will add that I do calculate the price of organic produce into the price per serving since I like knowing that I'm not feeding pesticides to my family with every bite of food. ;)

Anyway - here's the delightful recipe that scored rave reviews with my hubs and my 2 year old. I hope you like it just as much as we do!

Creamy Tomato Tortellini Skillet (found: here @ Mostly Homemade Mom)

16oz package frozen/refrig cheese tortellini
15oz can Italian diced tomatoes
2 cups fresh spinach, chopped (I didn't chop mine - just threw it in)
1/2 t salt
1/2 t ground pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced (I used 1.5)
3/4 c milk
3/4 c heavy cream (I used half and half - for price and for calories!)
2 T all-purpose flour
1/4 c grated Parm cheese

Prepare tortellini as directed on package.
Meanwhile, combine tomatoes (undrained), garlic, spinach, salt, and pepper in a large skillet over med-high heat. Stir occasionally until the mixture begins to boil.
In a separate bowl, whisk together milk, cream, and flour. Pour into skillet, along with parm cheese.
Cook until bubbling again, then reduce heat and simmer about 3 minutes until thick.
Add cooked tortellini and stir to fully coat with sauce.
Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes to further thicken the sauce.

Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Pudding Cookies (aka - bites of Heaven)

Are you ready to gain 10lbs of cookie sweetness?!? Because if you make these little guys, you just might! I made the mistake of "tasting" a warm cookie after taking them out of the oven...Samuel and I ended up eating more than one warm cookie - they were so amazing!

These guys are not gluten free, clean eating, grain free, paleo, etc...they are GOOD old fashioned sweets! The best things in life to eat are the things like my grandma and mom make - the good stuff we ate - and we turned out just fine! :)

I ran across this recipe on Pinterest (where else?). It popped out to me because it doesn't require any chocolate (to which I am allergic...I know, how do I live??). It uses Reeses Pieces, which I eat to pretend I'm eating chocolate (is that sad??).

Anyway. Here's the recipe. I found it at this cute little blog: InsideBruCrewLife.
I hope you enjoy!

sorry for the poor lighting, I took this right before stuffing my face before going to bed for the night! ;)

Peanut Butter Pudding Cookies

3/4 c butter, softened
1/2 c peanut butter
1/2 c sugar
1/2 c brown sugar (I always use dark brown sugar)
2 eggs
1 T honey
1 t vanilla
2 1/4 c flour
1 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1 small box instant vanilla pudding mix
1 c chocolate chips
1 c Reeses Pieces
1 c dried banana chips, broken

(I omitted the chocolate and the banana pieces. I've not missed them yet!)

1. In a bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and pudding mix. Set aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter, peanut butter, and sugars until fluffy.
    Add the eggs, vanilla, and honey, and beat again.
3. Slowly add the dry ingredients, being careful not to overmix.
4. Stir in the chocolate chips, Reese Pieces, and banana chips (according to the blog, you can    
    substitute anything for these- pretzels, chips, etc...)
5. Drop by tablespoon onto a parchment lined baking sheet, leaving 2 inches between each cookie.
6. Bake at 350* for 10-12 minutes. (As with any PB cookie, do not overbake! I used 11 min)
7. Cool on pan for 3-4 minutes, then remove to wire rack.

This recipe made about 2 dozen cookies for me.

The Best Chicken Noodle Soup...ever.

Happy New Year...Happy Mid-January!

So much has taken over my life lately, that my blogging has fallen to the wayside (speaking of wayside, is it beach season yet?? I'm finished with cold and snow...). We'll catch up on my busy life later... ;)

For now, let's focus on this dreary winter weather and try to find an end to it! If not an end, at least a perk amidst the freezing cold.

My perk tonight was this Chicken Noodle Soup. I cannot even say enough about it. I'm dying over this recipe. I hope my hubs liked it as much as I did because it is now on my rotation of staple recipes. Plus, most of the ingredients were already on hand.

My two year old LOVED this! I scooped some soup out for him, leaving behind the broth (I wanted to avoid a huge mess tonight!) - so he had the veggies, noodles, and chicken. The chicken was his favorite. I love when he shares our meals instead of eating "kid" food - so this is keeper!

This is a Pinterest recipe - I cannot take credit for it. I will just share my new-found love for it.

You can find the recipe here.

A Few Notes:

• I omitted the white wine and just used an extra cup of chicken broth.
• I also only used 5 chicken thighs and found it to be PLENTY of chicken.
• I cooked the chicken for only 7 hours and found it to be perfectly tender. The smell was too tempting to wait another hour to eat, so I was ecstatic to find it done at 7 hours. ;)
• I would add more than 2 cups of noodles the next time, possibly 2 1/2 - 3.  2 cups didn't seem to be enough with the abundance of chicken.

Enjoy!

Blueberry Casserole

I'm not a cobbler fan. Probably because I've only ever tried Peach Cobbler, and I don't care for baked peaches...I feel like they taste like bad breath (am I the only one??).

My mama (pronounced, "MawMaw" in WV ;) ) made this blueberry cobbler a few weekends ago. I couldn't get enough of it! I made some for my little family and ate most of it. I even contemplated having some for breakfast (it's fruit, right?? and with ice cream on top, it's the same as having milk...).

I would LOVE to keep this as a top-secret family recipe, but it's not our own - it came from a church cookbook (love those!) that my mama picked up at a yard sale, of all places. I'm now a believer in cobbler. Once you taste this, you will be a believer in cobbler for every meal and every snack in between. ;)

Blueberry Casserole

1 can crushed pineapple, undrained
2-3 c blueberries
1/2 c sugar
yellow cake mix
2 sticks butter, melted
1/4 c brown sugar
chopped pecans

1.) Spray 8x10 pan and preheat oven for 350.
2.) Spread pineapple in bottom of pan.
3.) Mix blueberries ad sugar. Spread on top of pineapple.
4.) Sprinkle cake mix on top of blueberries.
5.) Pour melted butter over cake mix.
6.) Sprinkle brown sugar and pecans on top of butter.
7.) Bake for 25 minutes.

Top with vanilla ice cream, and enjoy! Leftovers are great, too!

Jo's Spaghetti Pie

I love cookbooks. I love comfort food. So, I LOVE church cookbooks - the cookbooks that are always sold around Christmas time, and are overflowing with recipes from wise, home-making cooks. I love them! If anyone ever needs a gift idea for me, there you go! ;)

This recipe is a favorite in our house. It is from one of my church cookbooks. It came from a sweet lady named, Jo, who recently walked through Heaven's gates to meet the Savior she loved. I had the privilege of talking with Jo in the women's Bible study I led. She attended the church I attended for most of my life. She was a retired teacher. She shared her teacher-wisdom with me. She was so encouraging as she shared in our study - to hear her speak of joy and peace while she was fighting cancer. I won't forget it.

Last night as I made this Spaghetti Pie, my thoughts were on Jo. I miss seeing her on Sunday mornings as my family scooted into the pew behind her. I miss hearing her joke about fighting for her pew in church - the pew beside the window. :) These memories make this recipe a little sweeter for me.

Enjoy!

Jo's Spaghetti Pie

1 (6 oz) package spaghetti
2 T butter
1/3 c grated Parm cheese
2 eggs, well beaten
1 (8 oz) carton cottage cheese
1 lb ground beef or sausage
1/4 c chopped onion
1/4 c chopped green pepper
1 (8 oz) can chopped tomatoes, undrained
1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
1 t sugar
1 t dried oregano
1/4 t garlic salt
1/3 c shredded mozz cheese

-Cook spaghetti according to package. Drain. Stir butter into spaghetti. Add Parm cheese and eggs to spaghetti. Form the spaghetti mixture into a "crust" into a buttered 10-inch pie plate.
-Spread cottage cheese over crust.
-Brown meat, onion, and green pepper until tender. Drain. Stir in undrained tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar, oregano, and garlic salt. Pour mixture onto crust.
-Bake, uncovered, in 350 oven for 20 minutes.
-Sprinkle with mozz cheese and bake for 5 more minutes

(If you're thinking, "cottage cheese?? gross!" Don't. It makes this dish creamy and delish. It's the only way I can get my hubs to eat cottage cheese. ha! :)

A Lazy Girl's Peach Cobbler

I must confess, I have a sweet tooth. Not for candy, but for desserts. My Pinterest dessert board is overloaded with recipes I intend to make....I usually never get around to baking them, but today, I made one!

This recipe is SO easy - I tweeked it a lot and it turned out great!

Peach Cobbler

7-8 ripe peaches, peeled and sliced
1/2 box of yellow cake mix
1 stick of unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
handful of dark brown sugar
sprinkle of cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Grease a 9x13 dish. Place peaches in prepared dish.
3. Sprinkle with dark brown sugar and cinnamon. Top with cake mix.
4. Place the butter on top of the cake mix.
5. Bake 35-45 minutes or until cake mix is browned.

(if the cake mix seems dry, sprinkle with water and/or stir the cobbler just enough to moistened the dry spots)

(my oven took FOREVER to bake - it was close to an hour - I even put it under the broiler on low for a few minutes to brown the top).

Top with vanilla ice cream and ENJOY!!