Delicous, Not-very hard Lasagna ~ from Jaci

I know, homemade lasagna sounds hard, but it really just takes a few steps without a lot of interruptions.  I've made it a few times recently and LOVE IT, as do my kids and hubby....Here goes....

Preheat oven to 375.

1 box whole wheat lasagna noodles (I don't know why they put so many in there, there are always 2 leftover when I make it.)
1 jar marinara sauce (my new favorite is Rinaldi sweet and tasty tomato)
1 pound ground beef, cooked with 1-2 cloves garlic
1 pound shredded mozzarella cheese (buying it pre-shredded saves a lot of time)
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Mix:
1 large carton cottage cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
2 eggs, beaten
1-2 Tbsp. dried parsley
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
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Directions:
1 - Cook the pasta until it is mostly done, but not so done it falls apart.  Drain.
2 - While the pasta is cooking, brown the hamburger and mix up the cheeses, eggs, and spices
3 - Pour just enough sauce to cover the bottom of a 9x13 in. pan
4 - Mix the meat and and the rest of the sauce
5 - Now, layer some noodles on (use 3 or 4 and overlap a bit), spread 1/2 the cottage cheese mixture over the noodles, then 1/2 the meat and sauce mixture, 1/2 the mozzarella, then repeat with the rest of the noodles, cottage cheese, meat sauce, mozzarella. 
6 - Bake, uncovered, at 375 for 30 minutes, or until heated through.  Remove from oven and allow to sit for a few minutes to firm up.  Serves 6-8.  YUM!

Frozen Crock Pot Meals/ Curried Chicken - Erin

Ingredient                     Unit per bag       10 bags

Onions, chopped              1 large                    10

Green bell pepper             1 chopped              10

Chicken breast, chopped   2 breasts                20

Salsa                                      1 cup              10cups

Ginger, fresh grated          2 tsp.               20 tsp.

Garlic cloves, chopped      clove           10 cloves

Red pepper flakes           1/2 tsp.               5 tsp.

Sugar                                   1 tsp.                10 tsp.

Curry Powder                 1 tsp.                10 tsp.

Fresh Cilantro               1/4 cup          2 1/2 cups

Salt                                  1 tsp.                 5 tsp.

Freezer Crock Pot Meals/ BBQ Chicken - Erin

Ingredient                                1bag/meal          10bags
Green bell peppers, chopped        1                   10
Red bell peppers, chopped          1/2                  5
Zucchini, sliced                            1/2                  5
Large yellow onion                       1                    10
Red potatoes, chopped                3                    30
Garlic cloves, chopped                 2                    20
Chicken breast, halved                 2                    20
Tomato Sauce, 15 oz can            1/2can           5 cans
Worcestershire                            1/2 Tblsp.    5 Tblsp.
Brown sugar                                1/2 Tblsp.    5 Tblsp.
Quick Cooking Tapioca               1/2 Tblsp.   5 Tblsp.
Mustard                                       1 Tblsp.     10 Tblsp.
Salt                                             1/4 tsp.       2 1/2 tsp.

*cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours.  Serve with rice.

Freezer Crock Pot Meals/Chicken Teriyaki - Erin

I just made 30 freezer crock pot meals out of part of the 80 lbs. of chicken we got from Zaycon Foods.  I made Chicken Teriyaki, BBQ Chicken and Curried Chicken.  First I labeled all the bags and added instructions.   Then I went shopping for all the fresh veggies.  I will post each recipe separately.

I enlisted some help...

Spread out the baggies and began dumping in each ingredient..

I like to squish up and then flatten freezer bags to freeze them.

Here is the recipe for Chicken Teriyaki.  For 1 bag or meal and for 10...

Ingredients                                                Per Meal or Bag       For 10 bags

Carrots chopped or 

       baby carrots to save time -                  1 pound          10 pounds

Red Onion                                               1/2 large onion         5 onions

Pineapple; undrained                                half a 20 oz. can       5 cans

Garlic cloves                                              2 chopped            20 chopped

Teriyaki Sauce                                           1/2 cup                5 cups

Chicken Breast; can leave whole or cut -    2 breasts            10 breasts

Cooking Instructions: Crock pot on HIGH for 4 hours or LOW for 8 hours.  Make rice to go with.

Spaghetti Carbonara ~ Jaci

This is SO fast and SO yummy, and yet I always forget about it.  Hopefully you'll try it one of these nights when you're desperate for a good, fast dinner or lunch.  The leftovers are great, too.  By the way, I believe this is very close to the recipe Tom Cruise uses (he's quite the cook, and shares my b-day, which was a lot cooler before he jumped on Oprah's couch) that he learned from a real Italian guy who told him that real carbonara doesn't have cream in it....just a little trivia. ;)

• 1 pound spaghetti (I use whole wheat)
• 3-4 eggs
• 5ish strips of diced bacon - unless you really like bacon (duh!) and then however much you want (I keep my bacon in the freezer and dice it up frozen, then toss it in the pan - no thawing required)
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
• black pepper to taste

Cook the pasta according to directions in well-salted water.  Meanwhile, cook the bacon in it's own grease with the garlic (don't let the garlic burn).  You may want to pour off some of the grease - I think 1-2 Tbsp is plenty to keep.  Beat the eggs in a separate bowl.  When the pasta is done cooking, drain it and quickly return it to the pan on the stove (turn off heat) and QUICKLY stir in the bacon, eggs, pepper, and about half of the parmesan cheese.  The heat from the pasta will cook the eggs.  Serve immediately.  Top with the remaining parmesan.   Buon Appetito!

Instant Chocolate Cake (in a cup) ~ Jaci

1/4 cup flour
5 Tbs. sugar
2 Tbsp. cocoa powder
1 egg
3 Tbsp. milk
3 Tbsp. canola/safflower/vegetable oil
a dash of vanilla
a dash of salt

Whisk together in a large mug until smooth. Microwave for about 2 minutes (or less). Sprinkle with more cocoa powder, if desired.
This doesn't have a cake-like consistency, it's more like a souffle or something and if you undercook it a little bit, there will be a chocolate sauce under the "cake" part. Enjoy!

Pork Chops with Green onion & Mushrooms

1 tsp butter
4 pork loin chops, 1 inch thick, (I buy loin & have the butcher slice it 1" thick for me)
1/2 tsp salt
fresh ground pepper
1/4 cup chopped green onions, white & green parts
1 cup fat free chicken stock
15 oz sliced mushrooms (or more or less)
1 tbsp dijon mustard , optional
2 tbsp chopped, fresh parsley
cornstarch

In a large frying pan heat the butter over low heat. Season pork with salt and pepper. Turn heat to medium and add the chops to the pan and saute for about 7 minutes. Turn and cook until chops are browned and done to medium, about 7-8 minutes longer.Remove the chops and put in a warm spot, I heat the oven a little and put the chops there.

Add green onions to the pan and cook, stirring, until soft, about 3 minutes.

Add the stock to deglaze the pan, stir in the optional mustard, 1 tbsp parsley, then add mushrooms, season with fresh pepper and cook about 3 minutes, or until mushrooms are done.

Put the chops on a platter and pour the mushroom sauce over the meat, top with remaining parsley.

I don't always use the parsley or dijon mustard. Because the pork loin is so lean and determining on the type of pan that I use, I sometimes need to add a few dashes of cornstarch untill I get the consistancy of sauce that I'm looking for. I also really like mushrooms so I usually add a lot of those!

Delicious!