Pizza Pasta

O.K. I don't have a picture for this one, but just imagine noodles covered in red sauce with mozzarella cheese melted on top. This recipe was so easy to make and was a hit with everyone! It is my new favorite!

2 c. Rotini pasta, cooked until slightly firm
1/2 lb. Italian sausage
16 oz. pizza sauce
1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, chopped
1 c. pepperoni
4 T. milk
green pepper/olives/mushrooms or anything else you like on pizza

Preheat oven to 350
Cook noodles until slightly firm, drain
In skillet brown sausage with onion and garlic. Drain fat. Stir in noodles, pepperoni, pizza sauce and milk. Mix well. Pour into a 2 qt. casserole dish. Cover. Bake 25 minutes. Sprinkle cheese on top and cook another 5 minutes.

Chicken Spaghetti

Another recipe from PW. Scott and I really liked it. The boys were not so thrilled because of the green and red things in it. Too bad for them.



1 cut up chicken (or 3 chicken breasts)
1 lb. thin spaghetti, broken into 2 in. pieces
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
2 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar
1 small onion, finely diced
1/4 c. finely diced green bell pepper
1 jar (4 oz.) diced pimientos
1 tsp. seasoned salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste
1/8 to 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper to taste

Heat oven to 350. Add chicken to a stockpot. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the chicken is cooked, about 25 minutes.

Remove the chicken from water and set is aside on a plate to cool. Remove 2 cups of broth from the pot and set aside. Bring the remaining broth back to a boil and add the spaghetti. Cook until al dente. Drain and set aside.

Shred or cut chicken into bite-size chunks.

Place the cooked spaghetti in a large bowl. Add the cream of mushroom soup and 2 cups of the shredded cheddar. Then add the onion, green pepper and pimiento. Add the seasoned salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper. Take it easy on the cayenne if you can't handle the heat. When I made this I added 1/8 tsp and it wasn't hot at all.

Add the chicken and broth. Stir together well, then taste to check the seasonings.
Pour the mixture into a large baking dish and top with the remaining 1/2 cup Cheddar. Bake for 35-45 minutes until bubbly.

Cheese Soup

This soup is delightful, especially when it is bitter cold outside!

3 large carrots, diced
1/2 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, diced
5-6 medium potatoes, diced
Broccoli or peas, if desired

2 cubes margarine
1 cup flour
6 chicken bouillon cubes
1/2 - 1 lb Jar of Cheese Whiz

Boil vegetables until tender. I usually throw the carrots, onion and celery in first, a few minutes later add the taters and then a few minutes before everything is tender add the broccoli. Drain and save the liquid. Melt 2 cubes (I use 1 cube and it works just fine) in large pot. Stir in 1 cup flour, heat while stirring constantly. Add 2 quarts of water (using the liquid drained from the veggies) very slowly while whisking, so you don't get lumps. Add bouillon cubes and stir until thick. Add Cheese Whiz (I usually use a whole jar). Add veggies and heat. Add salt and pepper to taste.

This soup is wonderful served in bread bowls

Oven Roasted Potatoes

These potatoes are delightful. The good thing about them is if you don't have one or two of the spices you are fine. Just add what you have!

1/8 c. olive oil
1 T. minced garlic
1/2 t. basil
1/2 t. marjoram
1/2 t. dill weed - I love dill, so I usually double this amount
1/2 t. thyme
1/2 t. oregano
1/2 t. parsley
1/2 t. crushed red pepper - I have yet to add this. My kiddos don't like "spicy"
1/2 t. salt

4 large potatoes, cubed - red work best, but any will do

Preheat oven to 475. Combine all above, stir in potatoes. Place potatoes in a single layer on a baking sheet.

Roast for 30 minutes, turning occasionally to brown all sides.

Chicken Enchiladas

Unlike most of my recipes that I post here, this one is relatively good for you and delicious as well. You don't need loads of creams soups and cream cheese to get tasty enchiladas. I got it several years ago from this lovely lady and it is a favorite at our house. Didn't I tell you I poach recipes?

Preheat the oven to 350 and lightly coat your 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray.

1 lb of chicken breasts - Boil for about 15 minutes and then shred. Or I usually just use canned chicken and shred.
4 green onions, sliced
2 Tb cilantro, chopped (more is always better in my opinion)
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced

Lightly coat a skillet, saute the onions, cilantro and jalapeno. Add the chicken and cook for a few minutes.

3 (10 oz) cans of green enchilada sauce - I love this sauce! It is so much better than the Old El Paso like brands. It is a lot thicker.
Add one can to the chicken mixture and heat.



8 corn tortillas - I use the Costco ones that you cook yourself. But you can use the pre-cooked ones, just make sure you warm them first before you roll them

Add the chicken mixture into the tortillas, roll up and place in your casserole dish. I usually spray it with Pam and then dump some of my leftover sauce on the bottom first.

When you are done rolling, dump the rest of the sauce on top and add some cheese.

Bake 350 until bubbly.

Top with salsa, tomatoes, lettuce, olives etc. You know what is best!

Giant Cinnamon Rolls

I got this recipe years ago from a lady I worked with at a nursing facility. At some point we started making these rolls every General Conference Sunday. It has since become a tradition and we always give some away. I am embarrassed to tell you how many sticks of butter are in this, but let me tell you it is so worth it! Read on to find out how many miles you will have to run to work these babies off your hips.

8 to 8 1/2 c. all purpose flour
2 c. warm milk (105-115)
2/3 c. sugar
1 t. salt
2 T. yeast
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 c. butter, softened

Filling - We like lots of sweet in our rolls, so we usually double the sugar and cinnamon
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
1 stick butter, softened (yes, this makes 3 so far)
3/4 t. cinnamon

Cream Cheese Frosting
8 oz cream cheese softened
1 stick butter (yes that makes a total of 4 sticks of butter in this recipe!)
1 t. vanilla
3-4 c. powered sugar

Combine 2 c. of the flour, milk, sugar, salt and yeast in a large bowl; mix well. Add eggs and butter. Stir in as much of the remaining flour as needed to form a soft dough. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead dough, adding flour as needed, until smooth and elastic (5-8 minutes).

Transfer to a large greased bowl; turn to coat both sides. Cover with towel and allow to rise until double in volume, about 1 hour.

Punch dough down with fist, knead about 10 times and allow to rest 10 minutes under a towel. Roll out dough to 24x15 inch rectangle.

For filling combine brown sugar, butter, cinnamon in small bowl; stir well. Spread onto dough to within 1 inch of edges. Roll up tightly lengthwise, pinching edges together to seal. Cut into 16 slices (I use dental floss to cut them). Place rolls onto greased baking pans. Cover with towel; let rise until double, about 30 minutes.

Heat oven to 375. Bake until golden brown; 20 minutes or so. Let cool slightly.

For frosting mix together ingredients until smooth. Drizzle over rolls.

Enjoy and then go do a few laps around your yard.

BBQ Meatballs

I got this recipe from PW awhile ago and love it! Now I wouldn't call it health food by any stretch, but it is tasty! Like meatloaf with a zing. Highly recommend. Once you have made it a few times, you can whip right through it and have it in the oven in a snap.

1 1/2 lbs ground beef
3/4 c. oats
1 c. milk
3 T. finely minced onion
1 1/2 t. salt
lots of pepper

Sauce:
1 c. ketchup
2 T. sugar
3 T. vinegar
2T. worcestershire sauce
4-6 T. chopped onion
Dash of Tabasco

Preheat oven to 350

Combine meatball ingredients. Roll into medium/small balls and place on cookie sheet. Hint: The less you handle it the tender the meatballs. I combine with my hands until barely mixed. Then use my cookie scoop to make them into balls. Place in freezer for 5 minutes. I have omitted the freezer part and it still works fine.

Remove from freezer and dredge in unseasoned flour. Brown meatballs in oil until just brown. Place into baking dish. Combine all sauce ingredients. I have been known to make 1 1/2 times the sauce recipe, because it is so good. And you can't ever have too much sauce. Pour over meatballs and bake for 45 minutes.