Sausage Casserole

 Sausage Casserole

1 lb. sausage (I use Jimmy Dean with Sage)

1 cup onion, diced

1/2 cup celery, diced

1 pkg Lipton soup mix (I use Extra Noodle)

2 cups water

1/2 cup long grain rice

1/2 cup sliced almonds

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°

In a skillet brown sausage and remove to paper towel lined plate

Sauté onion and celery in sausage drippings

Combine sausage and veggies in a greased 9x13 pan

Toast almonds in skillet for a couple minutes until lightly golden and add to sausage mixture

In a small pot cook packet of soup mix with water for 5 minutes and then add rice

Mix rice and noodle soup with sausage mixture in the 9x13

Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes

Uncover and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes until top is golden brown

Crockpot Three Cheese Stuffed Shells

So I happened across this post on Everyday Good Thinking about how you can cook pasta in the crockpot and I was like...What?  Why have I not heard about this before?  You are probably thinking, Dah!  But I was excited.  So I rounded up my own recipe for Three Cheese Stuffed Shells and added some spinach.  I even thought they were easier to stuff dry...and to my delight...IT WORKED!!  This opens up a whole world of possibilities.  Now, to be fair you do have to be careful.  Your pasta can go from perfect to over cooked and mushy in a heart beat.  So you do have to keep an eye on it at the end for sure.

Crockpot Three Cheese Stuffed Shells

Adapted from {Everyday Good Thinking}

1 (45 oz) jar pasta sauce

1 box jumbo shells

1 (15 oz) ricotta cheese

3 cups mozzarella, shredded & divided

1/4 cup parmesan, shredded

1 (9 oz) box frozen spinach, thawed & drained

2 tsp garlic, minced

2 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

1 egg, beaten

Directions
Pour a third of the pasta sauce in the bottom of the crockpot
In a medium size bowl combine ricotta, 2 cups mozzarella, and parmesan
Fold in spinach, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper
Stir in beaten egg until combined
Fill dry shells with cheese filling and layer in crockpot until filling is gone
Cover filled shells with remaining sauce
Sprinkle with 1 cup mozzarella cheese
Place crockpot on high and cook for 3 hours.

Crockpot Smothered Pork Chops

This is what it's all about!  A few months ago a friend of mine shared one of her family's favorite dinners.  I was really excited to check it out, especially since pork chops are one of the things I don't usually have a lot of recipes for.

They were AMAZING!  So easy (like fail proof easy!) and fall apart tender!  My favorite way to serve them is with a big scoop of homemade mashed potatoes to go with all the gravy.

Thank you Katie for sharing, because now it's one of my family's favorite dinners too!

Crockpot Smothered Pork Chops

Adapted from {Katie Gee}

8 boneless pork chops

1 (10.75 oz) can Campell's Cream of Mushroom with Roasted Garlic soup

(OR 1 can cream of mushroom and 2 tsp minced garlic)

1 (10.75 oz) can cream of celery

1 cup onion, diced

1 Tbl beef bullion

Directions

Place pork chops in crockpot and add soups, onion, and bullion

Cook on high for 4 hours OR low for 6 hours

Chicken Parmesan Casserole

A simple but delicious weeknight casserole the whole family will like!  I am a big believer that food doesn't have to be fancy to taste good.

Chicken Parmesan Casserole

2 heaping cups rotini pasta
2 boneless skinless chicken breast, cubed
salt and pepper to taste
1 (24oz) jar favorite tomato pasta sauce
2 cups mozzarella, shredded
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
1 Tbl unsalted butter
1/4 tsp garlic salt (or to taste)

Directions
Boil pasta according to package directions
In a large pan cook chicken with salt and pepper until no longer pink
Add jar of tomato pasta sauce
In an 8x8 baking dish layer half the noodles with half the sauce/chicken and half the cheese
Then pour in remaining pasta, remaining sauce/chicken, and cheese
In a small bowl melt butter in the microwave for approximately 30 seconds and slightly cool
Add bread crumbs into zipper plastic bag
Add garlic salt to crumbs
Poor in butter and zip the bag shut
Shake and massage the bag until crumbs are coated
Spread crumbs evenly over cheese on top
Bake at 350°F for 20-30 minutes or until cheese is melted and crumbs start to brown

Crockpot Korean Beef

I seriously get so excited when I find a new crockpot recipe that we really like around here.  Those kind of recipes are my go to on Sundays.  I love how tender the meat gets and the sweet and savory flavor of the sauce.  It pairs perfectly with fluffy white rice!

Crockpot Korean Beef

2 lbs stew meat

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 Tbl sesame oil

2 tsp garlic, minced

1 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 Tbl cornstarch

green onion for garnish

rice of choice

Directions

In a small bowl whisk together soy, sugar, oil, garlic, ginger, and pepper.

Place meat in crockpot and pour sauce over top

Cook for 4 hours on high OR 6 hours on low

For the last hour of cooking, mix cornstarch with 2 Tbl of water

Pour into crockpot to thicken sauce

Serve over your favorite rice and garnish with green onion

Thai Chicken Skewers with Peanut Sauce

A long time ago I had some really delicious chicken lettuce wraps with a peanut dipping sauce at a restaurant when we lived in Arizona.  I have never had anything close to as good...until now.  These turned out amazing and we all devoured them!

Thai Chicken Skewers with Peanut Sauce
Adapted from {emily bites}

4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast, cut in chunks

Marinade
3 Tbl soy sauce
2 Tbl honey
1 Tbl sesame oil
2 Tbl lime juice
2 tsp garlic, minced
1/4 tsp sriracha
2 Tbl cilantro, chopped

Peanut Sauce
1/4 cup natural peanut butter
1 Tbl rice wine vinegar
1 Tbl soy sauce
1 Tbl honey
1/4 tsp sesame oil

Directions
In a medium bowl whisk soy, honey, oil, juice, garlic, sriracha and cilantro
Place chicken into gallon zip bag
Pour marinade over chicken and refrigerate 4-6 hours or longer
Remove chicken and discard marinade
Grill on medium-high heat until chicken is no longer pink (about 10 minutes)
Turn the skewers half way through
In a small bowl whisk peanut butter, vinegar, soy, honey and oil
Add about 1 Tbl hot water to thin adding more slowly to desired consistency

Raspberry Dijon Glazed Pork Chops

It's getting to be that time of year again when I don't want to turn my oven on as much.  So we do a lot of grilling in the summer. These chops are a nice balance of sweet and tangy!  This sauce would also go great with chicken too.

Raspberry Dijon Glazed Pork Chops

Adapted from {Kraft Recipes}

6 pork chops

salt and pepper to taste

1 (8oz) bottle Raspberry Vinaigrette

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 Tbl yellow mustard

2 tsp dijon mustard

Directions

In a medium bowl pour in vinaigrette
Whisk in brown sugar and both kinds of mustard
Salt and pepper your chops to taste
Place chops in a large zipper bag
Reserve about 1/3 cup of sauce and pour remaining over pork chops and seal bag
Let marinate for at least 1 hour
Place chops on a hot grill and discard used sauce
Let chops cook on each side for about 5 minutes or preference of doneness
(If they are very thick or bone-in it will be longer)
Glaze chops with reserved sauce each time you turn them
Remove from grill and let sit for 5-10 minutes for juices to redistribute
Serve with extra sauce

Zuppa Toscana Soup

This is such a really delicious soup.  It has pretty simple prep but is big on flavor!

Zuppa Toscana Soup

1 lb ground Italian Sausage
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper (or to taste)
1 large onion, diced
6 slices bacon, diced
2 tsp garlic
5 tsp chicken bouillon
8 cups water
1 cup heavy cream
1 (15oz) can diced potatoes, drained
1/4 bunch kale, roughly chopped
Parmesan (for garnish)

Directions
In a large pot brown sausage and crushed red pepper until no longer pink
Remove sausage from pot and drain off fat
In the same pot, cook bacon, onion and garlic until onions are soft
Stir in chicken bouillon, water and cream and bring to a simmer
Add potatoes, sausage and kale
Cook for 15-20 minutes
Garnish with grated Parmesan