Thursday, October 23, 2008

The Brain!


I carved this spooky watermellon "brain" for our Halloween party. It was a little time- consuming (about an hour's work), but it was lots of fun. Just peel the rind off a watermellon (I used a vegetable peeler), and then cut off a slice from the bottom so that it won't roll around. Using a sharp knife to cut narrow channels, expose the pink mellon to resemble a brain.

Saturday, October 18, 2008

Man Catcher Lasagna



1 jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce

1 small can tomato sauce

1 small tomato sauce can of water

½-1lb. ground beef, browned with 1 sm. onion, and drained

12 lasagna noodles, uncooked

1 16 oz. container cottage cheese

Mozzarella cheese

Spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray. Combine spaghetti sauce, tomato sauce, water, and ground beef in mixing bowl. Spread ¼- ½ cup of sauce in bottom of 9x13 pan. Place 3 ½ lasagna noodles in pan on top of sauce. Spread 1/3 of cottage cheese on top of noodles. Sprinkle 2-3 large handfuls of cheese on top of cottage cheese. Spoon 1/3 of sauce on top of cheese. Repeat layers two more times, ending with sauce. Sprinkle one more handful of cheese on top. Cover with aluminum foil; bake at 350° for 1 hour. Let stand at least 10 minutes before serving.

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Super Smoothie (from Mom VDG)

Jamba Juice has met its (healthier and more cost effective) match!



1 sm. carton yogurt (I use strawberry or peach)
3 ripe peaches, peeled and sliced
Juice from 1 can of pineapple
1/2 c. apple juice
Enough frozen fruit to fill the blender (peaches, strawberries, blueberries, and pineapple are what I use)

Combine ingredients in blender. Blend until smooth. Serve immediately, or refrigerate for up to one hour.

Taco Soup


1 qt. tomato juice
1 can corn, drained
1 sm. can tomato sauce
1 pkg. taco seasoning
2 cans kidney beans and juice (I like to use 1 can kidney beans and 1 can chili beans with sauce)
1 lb. hamburger
1 sm. onion

Brown hamburger in large pot with onion; drain fat. Add all ingredients to hamburger, and stir well. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for at least 10 minutes. Serve with tortilla chips, cheese, sour cream, etc.
Sometimes I double the recipe and freeze the leftovers. (I don't double the meat though).

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

The Goodness of Granola

This recipe comes from my sister's husband, Ben, and it's a winner! Good for breakfast, a snack, or as a topping on yogurt.



Ingredients:

2 lg. boxes old-fashioned oatmeal

2 c. chopped nuts (optional)

2 c. coconut

1 ¼ c. canola oil

2 c. honey

2 c. chopped dates, set aside

Directions:

Mix all ingredients except dates. Place in two to three 9x13 pans. Bake at 250 degrees for 1 ½ hours, stirring half way through baking time. Cool, stirring once when half cooled.

Note:

This makes A LOT of granola! I usually halve it. Also, I usually need to bake mine a little longer than the recipe directs.