Taco Soup

1 lb. ground beef (again, use 1 package of Morning Star Farms recipe crumbles for a vegetarian meal)

1/2 cup chopped onion

28-oz can whole tomatoes with juice

14-oz can kidney beans with juice

17-oz canned corn with juice

8-oz can tomato sauce

1 pkg. dry taco seasoning

1 to 2 cups of water

salt and pepper to taste

cheddar cheese

hard taco shells or corn chips

Disclaimer: I, of course, make this vegetarian. I also bought all low sodium items.

Brown beef and onions in skillet. Drain (when you use the vegetarian meat, there is no draining).

Combine all ingredients (except cheese and chips) in a slow cooker (although I made mine in a large stockpot).

Cover-cook on low for 4-6 hours (cooking it in a pot took about 20 minutes-I had the heat on high).

Ladle into bowls. Top with cheese and chips.

Spinach and Feta Pasta

1 (8 ounce) package penne pasta

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 clove garlic, minced

1 jar (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes

2 cups spinach leaves, packed (I just used frozen and it worked fine)

salt and pepper to taste

1 pinch red pepper flakes

feta cheese, crumbled

While boiling your pasta, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add onion and garlic, and cook until golden brown. Mix in tomatoes and spinach. Season with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Cook 2 minutes more, until tomatoes are heated through and spinach is wilted.

Prepare your plate and top with feta cheese. You can use as little or as much as you want.

It was sooooooooo good!!!

Nutter Butter Truffles

1 box of cream cheese

1 package Nutter Butters (take about five out of the package and set aside-you won't need them)

Semi-sweet Baker's chocolate

Place Nutter Butter cookies in a food processor and crush finely. Mix with cream cheese. Form into one inch balls and dip in melted chocolate. Place truffles on cookie sheet lined with wax paper.

I usually put my truffles in the freezer because they keep longer that way. But, you can put them in the fridge if you prefer them that way.

Nacho Bake

I saw this on the back of a Velveeta Shells and Cheese box. It turned out to be really yummy!!

1 package Velveeta Shells and Cheese Dinner

1 lb. ground beef (as always, I substitute this with soy crumles)

1 package Taco Seasoning Mix

3/4 cup Water

3/4 cup Sour Cream

3/4 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese

3/4 cup Salsa

Tortilla chips

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare the Velveeta Shells and Cheese as you usually would. When this is done and you are adding the cheese mix also add ALL of the sour cream.

Brown meat (or soy) and drain fat if needed. Add water and taco seasoning mix. Simmer for 5 minutes.

In an 8 inch square baking dish, add half of the Velveeta mixture. Top with meat, half of the shredded cheese, and the rest of the Velveeta mixture.

Cover and bake for about 15 minutes. When it is done, top with salsa and the remain shredded cheese (I actually added the other half on top of the mixture before baking it).

In your own bowl (or plate) top with some crushed tortilla chips.

The actual recipe says to add it to the dish, but if you have leftovers (and we did because it is only the two of us!) the chips will get soggy.

Enjoy!

Baked Mostaccioli

YUM!!! So tasty! I love this stuff!!

1 box (1lb.) mostaccioli

1 jar (26oz) spaghetti sauce

1 package (8oz) shredded Mozzarella cheese

Cook mostaccioli as directed on package. Warm up spaghetti sauce over warm heat. After pasta is cooked, combine with sauce. Mix it up well so the pasta is coated in sauce. In a large glass casserole dish (I use 13 X 9in) put a layer of pasta and cover with cheese. Then another layer of pasta and cover with cheese. Continue until all pasta is in the dish. Top with cheese. Cover with foil.

Heat oven to 350 degrees and bake for 10-15 minutes (just until the cheese is melted). I usually remove the foil after this and bake for a few more minutes (like 3 minutes).

Serve with some garlic toast and you are set! A perfect Lenten meal.

Cream Cheese Wontons

These wontons are really easy and very tasty. You can find wonton wrappers in the produce section of your local grocery store. These are an appetizer, but my huband and I can eat them like a meal. We are BAD!

18 oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened

1 C. Monterey jack cheese, shredded

1 tbs. fresh minced garlic (or more. I didn't really measure out the garlic. My husband and I are garlic freaks, so the more is better for us.)

5 green onions, diced (this is how many I used. You can use as much as you like!)

Black pepper to taste

1 16 oz. package wonton wrappers

Vegetable oil for frying

DIRECTIONS
Mix cream cheese, Monterey jack cheese, garlic, green onions, and black pepper in a small bowl.

Spoon about one tablespoon of the mixture into a wonton wrapper.

With damp fingers, fold the wonton wrapper in half to make a triangle. Make sure that all edges are sealed.

Quickly fry wontons in vegetable oil until golden brown.

I used my Fry Daddy and it made it a quick job.

DO NOT put ALL the wontons together when frying them. Just fry about 7-10 at one time.

Peanut butter suprise cookies

These are my all time FAVORITE cookies. YUM! I gain about five pounds just thinking about them.

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup packed light-brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup granulated sugar, for rolling dough

36 mini peanut butter cups, chilled and unwrapped

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Using an electric mixer, cream peanut butter and butter in a mixing bowl until smooth.

Add brown sugar; beat until combined, scraping down bowl as needed.

Add eggs and vanilla, and beat until incorporated.

In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.

With mixer on low speed, gradually beat in flour mixture in two batches.

Scoop off dough by the tablespoon; roll into balls.

Place granulated sugar on a plate; roll balls in sugar, coating completely.

Place 2 inches apart on a nonstick insulated baking sheet.

Bake until cookies begin to puff up slightly, about 7 minutes.

Remove from oven.

Press one peanut butter cup in center of each cookie.

Return to oven; continue baking until cookies are golden brown and chocolate has begun to melt, about 6 minutes more.

Let cool at least 10 minutes on baking sheet before transferring cookies to rack to cool completely.

Baked Potato and Broccoli Soup

This is a recipe from myrecipes.com

You can look at the link to see their recipe. I modify it a little since I'm a vegetarian. Nestie mrspresley also has a potato soup recipe just like this!

It is SUPER yummy.

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 (14 ounce) cans vegetarian vegetable broth

3 cups peeled, cubed potato (about 1 1/4 pounds)

2 cups broccoli florets, chopped (I just bought the frozen kind-less work)

1 small onion, chopped

1 1/4 cups milk

Shredded 2% reduced-fat sharp Cheddar cheese (I bought the pre-shredded bagged kind)

7 teaspoons chopped green onions (optional)

1 or 2 cloves fresh garlic, finely chopped (optional)

DIRECTIONS
Whisk together flour and 1/3 cup broth until smooth. Set aside.

Combine remaining broth and next 3 ingredients in a Dutch oven or large stock pot.

Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 8 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

Gradually stir in flour mixture. Cook, stirring often, 5 minutes.

Stir in milk and 8 ounces shredded cheese.

Cook mixture over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until cheese melts.

Top each serving with green onions or more cheese!

Cheesy Chicken Biscuit Cups

I have made this before for my husband. He seemed to really enjoy them. You can also modify the recipe by adding in broccoli or whatever other veggie you like!

1 (7.5oz) can homestyle or buttermilk biscuits

15oz Chicken breast, cooked and diced

1 can cream of chicken soup

2/3 cup shredded fat free cheddar cheese

1 tsp dried parsley flakes

1/4 tsp black pepper

DIRECTIONS
Place biscuits in muffin pan, pressing dough into the pan to form cups.

In a bowl, combine chicken, soup, cheese, parsley, and pepper.

Mix well.

Spoon mixture into cups.

Bake at 400 for 12-15 minutes.

My kitchen gadget wishlist

I finally found a small cookie scoop on Pampered Chef! I NEED one of those. Badly.

For some odd reason, I feel like I need a spreader. Why I can't just use a butter knife, I don't know. But I'm sure I put the spreader to good use!

This egg separator is really neat. I think I may need it.

Do cookie presses really work? If they do, I think it would be neat to have one.

I also need a new set of pots and pans. Ours are all old and not in the best shape. I'm not even sure which brand I would purchase, but something good.

This is totally unrealistic to have, but I think it is pretty cool! It's a pizza oven! How fun!

Why in the world do I want these? I am a nerd.