Veggie Pasta Primavera

This is a recipe Andy came up with on the fly to make for friends who just had a baby. We had some summer squash and chard from our CSA that we thought would be great with pasta. I might be able to get Andy to be a little more specific on ingredient amounts, but this is just kind of the way he cooks!

• 1/2 - 3/4 lb mini penne pasta
• 2 small zucchini
• 2 medium yellow neck squash
• oregano
• garlic, minced
• olive oil
• salt
• pepper
• swiss chard, chopped finely
• 1/2 pint light whipping cream
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1/4 cup parmesan, plus more to top if desired
• 1/4 cup light sour cream or plain yogurt
• 2 cups frozen peas

Cook pasta according to package directions, set aside. Cube zucchini and squash, toss in pan with oregano, garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper, saute 10-15 min or until soft. Allow to cool, chop more finely if desired. In the same pan, cook the swiss chard until it wilts, set aside. Mix cream, butter, parmesan, and sour cream in a small sauce pan, bring to a light simmer for 5 minutes. Mix pasta, veggies, cream, and peas in a large bowl until pasta is coated. Add more salt, pepper, oregano, or garlic powder if desired. Pour into a casserole dish and top with parmesan. Bake 30 min at 350.

Cheesy Shell Bake

This is a recipe that was posted on the mama board I used to be a part of, so I've seen it for 4 years, and tonight was the first time I actually tried it. They all raved about it, but I thought it just sounded "eh." I was wrong! It's a fairly classic baked pasta dish, with a layer of sour cream (or yogurt), shredded cheddar, and parsley in the middle. Evan loved this, too. Yum!

Ingredients:

• 1 box of medium shells, cooked al dente - any pasta will work, we used mini penne
• 1lb of ground beef, could also use ground sausage or other meat
• 1 jar of pasta sauce
• 2-3Tbls of dried parsley
• 8oz sour cream or plain yogurt
• 8 oz shredded cheddar cheese
• salt and pepper
• garlic and onions for ground beef if desired
• Optional - veggies! Corn, carrots, tomatoes, zucchini, peppers, chiles, etc.*

Start the water for the noodles and while they are cooking, brown your beef. Add salt and pepper to taste and diced garlic and onions if you have them and like that. Once the beef is cooked, add the entire jar of tomato sauce. When the shells are ready, drain and add to the sauce beef mixture.

In a separate bowl, add the sour cream, parsley and about a third of the block of cheese. Mix all the ingredients.

Take half of the shell-beef-sauce mixture and put it into a 13x9 baking pan. Then take the sour cream mixture and layer it over the shells in the pan. If you find that you don't have enough sour cream mixture make a little bit more. Put the rest of the shell-sauce-beef on top and cover with the rest of the grated cheese. Cook at 350 for 25-30 minutes, until all the cheese is melted.

*We actually used leftover corn dip (made from sour cream, shredded cheese, corn, jalapeno, and green chiles) instead of the sour cream mixture, it was excellent! You might want to saute raw veggies a bit or cook with the ground beef to soften before adding.

Thai Pork Stew

I got this recipe from a Nashville mamas group I am a part of, and we love it! The sweet potatoes turn to complete mush, you'd never know they are the base of this meal. The recipe calls for pork tenderloin, but we normally use pork chops or steaks.

• 2 lbs. pork tenderloin - cut in 6 pieces
• 2 cups red bell pepper - julienned
• 1/4 cup soy or teriyaki sauce
• 2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp chili garlic sauce (tuong of toi vietnam - with picture of rooster)
• 2 garlic cloves - minced
• 2-3 sweet potatoes - cut in thirds
• 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
• cooked white rice
• green onions
• peanuts
• lime

Place pork through sweet potatoes in a slow cooker. Cover with lid and cook on low heat setting for 8 hours. Remove pork and coarsely chop. Add peanut butter to liquid in cooker and stir well. Add pork back in.

Serve stew over steamed white rice. Top with chopped green onions, peanuts and serve with lime wedges.

Bonus -- very freezer friendly!!

Wonderballs

I found this recipe on the website of someone who went to the same college I did, Meal Planning Mommies. I was excited to make them with Noelle, but she does not like to get her hands messy. So, I made them by myself, but it was still totally worth it! Now Andy and I make them together and sometimes we don't even share with Noelle.

• 1 Cup Peanut Butter
• 3/4 Cup Honey
• 1/2 Cup Milled Flax Seed
• 1/4 Cup chopped nuts
• 1/2 Cup of dried fruit like raisins or craisins
• 1/2 Cup of chocolate chips
• 2 Cups of Uncooked Oatmeal

In a large bowl, stir together peanut butter and honey. Add in oatmeal and flax seed, stir. Finally, stir in chocolate, chopped nuts, and dried fruit. Using a spoon or your hands, make cookie dough sized balls out of the mixture. I find it works best to squish it a bit to help it stay together better. Place the wonderballs into tupperware, stack with wax paper in between. Place them in your freezer, and take one out whenever you'd like a snack! You can also keep them in the refrigerator if you prefer them softer, but they will also be a little stickier that way.

Black Bean and Sweet Potato Burritos

• 2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• One can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup vegetable stock
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• Seasonings to taste: ground mustard, cinnamon, cayenne pepper, salt
• 4 large tortillas
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella (optional)
• ½ cup sour cream (optional)
• A couple handfuls of baby spinach

Boil the sweet potatoes in a large pot of salted water. In the meantime, sauté the onions in olive oil until translucent. Add the garlic when the onions are nearly finished. Add the black beans, vegetable stock and seasoning. Simmer, uncovered, over medium-high heat until the stock is absorbed.

Warm the tortilla shells (sprinkled liberally with cheese).

Drain the water from the sweet potatoes and set aside. When the beans are finished add the potatoes and stir.

Divide the potato and bean mixture among the four tortillas. Top with baby spinach and sour cream, roll up and dive in.

Rice a Roni Casserole

This is a recipe Andy's mom used to make when he was younger, only we've switched it up a bit. You can add other vegetables if you like, such as mushrooms or celery. We recently started using a yellow bell pepper instead of red because Noelle can't see it and will eat it without question!

• 1 box chicken rice-a-roni
• 3 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped
• 1 can cream of chicken soup
• 8 oz shredded cheddar
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt
• salt and pepper to taste

Prepare rice-a-roni according to package directions (microwave works fine!). After rice is done, pour into a large bowl. Add all remaining ingredients except half the cheese, stir to combine. Place mixture into a casserole dish, top with remaining cheese and bake for 45 minutes at 350º.

Italian Meatloaf Muffins

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 red pepper, seeded and minced
• 1 small onion, minced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 pound ground beef
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup quick-cooking oats
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 cup spaghetti sauce
• Cooking spray

Preheat the oven to 350. Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat and add the red pepper, onion and garlic. Saute until just softened, remove to a plate and cool. When the pepper-onion mixture is cool, combine all of the remaining ingredients together except for the spaghetti sauce.

Divide the meat mixture evenly among a 12-muffin tin that has been coated with cooking spray. Spread the marinara sauce evenly over each meatloaf muffin. Bake for 22 to 30 minutes, or until meat is no longer pink. Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Spring Rolls

Andy loves Thai food, and several years ago he decided to try making his own spring rolls. These turned out very well and we really enjoy making them. They freeze well, and you can pull out just a couple at a time to go along with a meal. They can go straight from the freezer into the frying pan.

• 1 pkg dried bean vermicelli noodles
• 2 cloves garlic
• cilantro, chopped
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 1 lb ground pork
• 3 oz raw prawn meat, finely chopped (we do not use)
• 1 medium carrot, grated
• 3 green onions, chopped
• 2 tsp fish sauce (we do not use)
• 1 Tbsp chili sauce
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 2 Tbsp water
• 25 spring roll wrappers
• oil for deep frying

Break the vermicelli into pieces and place in a heat-proof bowl. Cover with boiling water and leave to soak for 4 minutes or until soft, drain well.

Chop the garlic and cilantro finely. Heat the oil in a wok or frying pan. Add the garlic and cilantro and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Add the ground pork and prawn meat and stir-fry for 5 minutes. Add the carrot, green onions, fish sauce, chili sauce, and noodles to the wok. Stir well and then allow to cool.

In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch and water to form a paste. Place the spring roll wrappers on a damp tea towel and cover with one end of the towel.

Place 1 wrapper at a time, with a corner towards you, on another damp tea towel. using your fingertip, wet all the edges with the cornstarch paste.

Place 1 Tbsp of filling in the center of the wrapper and spread out to form a sausage shape. Fold the edges towards the center and roll up tightly. Seal the edge with paste. Continue with the remaining wrappers and filling, keeping the spring rolls covered with a damp tea towel.

Heat the oil to moderately hot in a wok or deep frying pan and cook 3 or 4 spring rolls at atime until they are golden brown. Remove from the oil using a wire mesh strainer, tongs or a slotted spoon. Drain the spring rolls on paper towels and serve immediately with a dipping sauce.

*We use a mixture of soy sauce, brown sugar, and sesame seeds as a dipping sauce.

Chicken Enchiladas

From the West End Community Church cookbook

• 2 Tbsp butter
• 2 large onions, chopped
• 2 cups chopped cooked chicken
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 6 oz cream cheese, cubed
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 18 oz canned diced green chilies
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 14 oz can chicken broth
• 1/2 cup salsa
• 10 flour tortillas
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add 3/4 of the chopped onions and saute until carmelized. Reduce heat to low and add chopped chicken, bell pepper, cream cheese, salt and pepper. Set aside.

Pulse chilies, remaining onion, garlic, oregano, cumin and sugar in blender until combined. Bring mixture and chicken broth to a boil. Cook 5 minutes or unti slightly thickened. Remove from heat and stir in salsa.

Spread 1/3 mixture evenly on bottom of a lightly greased 9x13 dish. Spoon chicken mixture evenly down center of each tortilla; roll up and place, seam side down, in baking dish. Top with remaining mixture; sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 375º for 25 minutes.

*Good to double and freeze