Tortellini Soup

We love the Olive Garden.  The soups and bread sticks moreso than the pasta dishes.  When it comes to pasta, I think I do a better job at home - that way I can make it exactly the way I like and for a fraction of the cost.  The first thing my husband said when he tried this soup that I found on Pinterest was that it reminded him of his favorite soup at the Olive Garden.

Recipe adapted from Little Fellows:

Ingredients:
1 (19oz) bag of frozen cheese tortellini 
1 small bag of fresh spinach
2 (14.5 oz) cans of Italian style diced tomatoes, drained
1 block (8 oz) of cream cheese, softened
1 lb. sausage, cooked and crumbled (I've used regular and Italian, both are good)
3-4 cups of chicken broth (start with 3, add 1 more if it looks like it needs it)


Place all ingredients in crockpot insert.  Cook on low 4 hours.  Before stirring, make cornstarch slurry by mixing 2 tsp. cornstarch with 2 tsp. water.  Stir into soup and stir occassionally until desired thickness.   

Mississippi Roast

My husband is a big carnivore.  Yours probably is as well.  My mother-in-law loves to tell the story of when he was about 5 years old and declared that he "didn't trust nothing green!"  I, on the other hand, am just as happy eating a vegetarian meal as I am eating a well-prepared steak.  This recipe, however, knocked my SOCKS off.  I want to eat it every. Single. Day.  I beg you - please make it as written the first time and don't balk at the peppers.  It is NOT spicy.  You can discard those little peppers at the end and pretend it never ever touched your food, I promise.

Props to Table for Two for sharing this.  It's awesome.  The leftovers are even better, and I get skeeved out by eating leftover meat.  I called dibs on the leftovers, the hubs wanted to fight me for them.

Ingredients:  

3 lbs. chuck roast

1 envelope dry ranch dressing (1 oz)

1 envelope dry au jus mix (1 oz)

6 Tbsp. butter

1/4 C. water

5-6 jarred pepperoncini peppers

Add water to crockpot.  Place the roast on top.  Sprinkle the dry ranch dressing on top of the meat, then the dry au jus.  Dot with butter.  Place peppers around the roast.  Cook on low for 6-8 hours.  When it's done, it will fall apart.  Proceed to swoon. 

You could also shred this with two forks and make the BEST drip beef sandwiches out of it!

Crockpot Beef Stew

Baby, it's COLD outside.  Iowa winters suck.  I tend to make a lot of soups and stews in the winter, but I'm really picky about my beef stew.  I've tried a million recipes, none of which I've been ecstatic with.  I came across this one on Pinterest and doctored it up.  I was very pleased with the results, I hope you will be too! 

Ingredients:

2 lb. beef stew meat, cut into cubes

1 lb. carrots, peeled and cut into chunks

4 medium potatoes, cut into chunks (I like to leave the skin on)

1 onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 (8 oz) container fresh mushrooms, sliced

1 bay leaf

2 envelopes dry brown gravy

1 envelope McCormick beef stew seasoning

1 C. red wine

2 tsp. Kitchen Bouquet

3-4 C. beef broth

Mix meat, veggies, and seasoning ingredients into crockpot insert.  Pour in enough beef broth so that everything is submerged.  Cook on high 4-6 hours or low 6-8 hours.  To thicken, make a cornstarch slurry by mixing 2 tsp. cornstarch with 2 tsp. water - pour into stew and stir occasionally until stew has thickened to desired consistency.  

Spinach, Chicken, and Bean Quesadillas

Found another winner on Pinterest! While this is a little labor intensive, you can make the filling ahead of time and then grill up a quesadilla when you're ready.  This is super filling and extremely tasty.  I can get several quesadillas out of this, so I'm very happy that the filling keeps in the fridge.

Many thanks to the Other Side of Fifty for sharing this gem!!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 -2 cups seasoned, cooked and diced chicken breast meat
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 C. diced onion
1 C. diced red bell pepper
a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
salt and pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
1 heaping Tbsp. all purpose flour
3/4 cup chicken broth
4 cups fresh baby spinach, stems removed, coarsely chopped
1 (15.5 ounce) can of cannellini beans/chickpeas, drained and rinsed

Cooking spray
Flour tortillas
Shredded cheddar cheese
Avocados, diced
Sour cream

In a large skillet heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and red bell pepper. Season with the crushed red pepper flakes and salt and pepper. Saute until veggies have softened, 6-8 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for another minute or two. Sprinkle the flour over the veggies and stir to combine. Cook while stirring for several minutes so that the flour loses its raw taste. Whisk in the chicken broth and stir until bubbly and smooth. Add the baby spinach and continue cooking for another minute or two or until spinach has wilted. Stir in the cooked chicken and beans and remove from heat.

Spray a large skillet or griddle with cooking spray. Heat over medium to medium-high heat. Place one tortilla on griddle and spread cheese over tortilla. Spread chicken, bean and spinach mixture over one half of the tortilla. Check underside of tortilla and when browned a bit, flip the half with just cheese over the half with the chicken. Remove from heat and cut into slices. Top with diced avocado and sour cream.  (Sometimes I put a little taco sauce on, too)

Chile Colorado Burritos

I found this recipe on Pinterest - as soon as I saw the picture, I knew I had to try it.  People, it tastes even BETTER than the picture! Drop what you're doing, go to the store to buy the ingredients, and make this today.  So. Flipping. Good.  One of my new favorites.  But please promise me you'll grate your own cheese, it's a million times better if you do. 

Props to Food Pusher for this crockpot miracle!!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 to 2 pounds stew meat or other beef cubed (top sirloin is great)
1 large can red enchilada sauce (at least 19 oz.)
2 beef bouillon cubes
1/2 can refried beans (optional)
burrito size flour tortillas
2 C. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded 

Put beef, whole bouillon cubes (do NOT add water), and enchilada sauce into crockpot insert and cook on low for 7-8 hours, or until meat is very tender. When beef is done, shred with two forks.  Warm refried beans in microwave if using.  Crank on the broiler while you assemble.  Lay out a tortilla and place 1/2 cup of the meat (drained by using a slotted spoon) and a spoonful of refried beans. Roll into a burrito and place on a rimmed baking sheet or in a baking dish. Pour the remaining enchilada sauce from the crock pot over the burritos to cover. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese and broil until cheese is bubbly, about 2-4 minutes.  

Crockpot Butter Ranch Mushrooms

This may be one of the unhealthiest recipes I've posted, but it's also one of the easiest and most delicious.  My friends beg me to make these mushrooms whenever we're having a get together and I'm happy to oblige, because it's the easiest thing in the whole world.  My mother-in-law graced me with this recipe. 

Ingredients:
4 (8 oz) boxes fresh mushrooms (whole)
1 lb. butter
1 envelope dry ranch dressing

Dump everything into crockpot insert.  Cook on low 6-8 hours.  Serve hot.  Run an extra mile the next day. 

Spicy Sausage Pasta

Who's ready for another awesome weeknight meal?  ALL IN ONE PAN!  We love this one enough that it's in our regular rotation, so we have it at least once a month.  The hubs loves it because it's meaty and cheesy, I like it because it's fast, easy, and tastes great.  This is another recipe that's perfect for your cast iron skillet.

Brought to you by Kevin & Amanda:

Ingredients: 

1 tbsp olive oil
1 lb smoked sausage (I use reduced-fat kielbasa)
1.5 cups diced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 (10 oz) can Ro-Tel tomatoes and green chiles, Mild
1/2 cup heavy cream
8 oz penne pasta
1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper, each
1 cup Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
1/3 cup thinly sliced scallions

Add olive oil to an oven-safe skillet over medium high heat until just smoking. Add sausage and onions and cook until lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Add broth, tomatoes, cream, pasta, salt and pepper and stir.  Bring to a boil, cover skillet, and reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer until pasta is tender, about 15 minutes.  Remove skillet from heat and stir in 1/2 cup cheese. Top with remaining cheese and sprinkle with scallions. Broil until cheese is melted, spotty brown, and bubbly.

The Bread - Pioneer Woman

My husband jokes that I try to serve bread with every dinner.  While that is a huge over exaggeration, there is a wee bit of truth to it.  I mean, how else am I going to sop up all the awesome juice and/or gravy left on my plate?

I adore the Pioneer Woman's way of cooking.  I believe in using the real deal in my recipes - butter, whole milk, etc.  I eat pretty light for breakfast and lunch, so when it's time for dinner I want my food to be real.  Know what I mean? I will use a can of condensed soup here and there and every once in a while there is no substitution for some good ol' fashioned Velveeta.  But I prefer full-fat ingredients for a majority of my cooking.  This is a perfect example of why - 2 ingredient bread that melts in your mouth.  Try it.  Watch it close at the end, though, you don't want to burn it!  You want it to blacken just a smidge.

The Bread by the Pioneer Woman

Ingredients:

1 loaf French bread, split lengthwise

2 sticks butter, softened

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spread one stick of softened butter on each half of the loaf.  Yes, really.  Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes, or until butter is melted and starting to soak into the bread.  Crank on broiler and broil bread for 3 to 5 minutes, watching the whole time. Remove when butter has started to brown and blacken. Slice into strips and serve immediately.

Creamy Cucumber Salad

The abundance of fresh veggies and herbs are one of my favorite parts of summer.  Late summer, I will nearly eat my weight in fresh tomatoes from my friends' gardens.  I've always wanted to have my own garden, but I was not blessed with a green thumb.  Thankfully, everyone seems to have more than they know what to do with and I benefit from that greatly. 

I really love cucumber salad.  There are a lot of different versions of it, but I think this one is the best.  I was gifted a ton of cucumbers recently, so of course I had to make this:

• Ingredients:
• 4 C. cucumbers, peeled and sliced
• 1/2 C. onion, thinly sliced
• 1/2 C. sour cream
• 1/2 C. mayonnaise
• 1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. pepper

Combine cucumbers and onions in a medium bowl.  In a small bowl stir together sour cream, mayonnaise, vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper.  Stir the sour cream mixture into the cucumbers and chill.

Crustless Spinach Quiche

Paula Deen is another chef whose recipes are usually a hit in my house.  In my quest to go low carb whenever possible, I came across this protein-packed recipe for her Crustless Spinach Quiche.  It's awesome.  I love it for breakfast.  It makes me happy at lunch.  It saves me from eating something naughty for dinner when we're just scrounging.  

Because I'm lazy and not capable of following a recipe word for word, I've made it even easier.  I've experimented with throwing different things in - tomatoes, crumbled bacon, green peppers - but I'm always happiest with it as is:

Ingredients:
1 (10 oz) box frozen chopped spinach
4 eggs
1 C. sour cream
1 C. cottage cheese
1/2  C. grated Parmesan
1/4 C. all purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 C. cheddar cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Spray 8 x 8 inch baking dish with cooking spray.  Remove paper from the spinach box and microwave it on a plate for 4 minutes.  Let it cool and then squeeze out all the liquid.  Put in a medium bowl.  Combine the eggs, sour cream, cottage cheese, Parmesan, flour, salt, and pepper.  Add in the spinach and cheese, stir to combine. Pour the spinach mixture into the baking dish and smooth out the top.  Bake about 45 minutes or until set.  It will be puffed up but will fall some as it cools.  Allow to cool a little, cut into squares, and serve warm.