2014 - 52 in 52 #6 - Creamy Spinach and Sausage Pasta

I am always on the look out for easy dinners.  Both my husband and I work full time jobs.  Plus I have my insane commute which takes me at least an hour and a half to get home in the evenings.  Needless to say by the time I get home I am normally less than excited about cooking a bit fancy meal.  I need something easy to prepare and easy to clean up so we are not up half the night scrubbing pans.  If I can find one pot meals, even better! 

 

I first found this recipe(link) when I was looking for new meals per my husband’s request for this month.  It has all of the ingredients to make an awesome dish – cheese, pasta, and sausage. 

 

I have never pan fried a smoked sausage like that before and I had no idea how much grease was actually produced.  You will need to know that ahead of time and make sure that you dispose of that properly.  Please don’t dump it down the sink.  I laid down several super thick napkins and drained the sausage on those before I added the onions. 

 

This recipe was simple to make with very simple ingredients and it turned out awesome!  Both my husband and our eldest daughter remarked at how good it was while they were eating.  My husband even requested for us to make this again, which is a step in the right direction.  I was apprehensive when reading through the ingredients about how the dish was going to turn out with the Rotel and spinach together but it was actually an awesome taste.  We added some pepper jack cheese to ours and the spice level was awesome.  It was a bit spicy but overall not too much so that your mouth was on fire.  The sauce was creamy and the dish overall had just the right amount of seasoning and heat.  The spinach added an extra flavor that really balanced out the entire dish.  We will definitely be making this again!

 

Creamy Spinach and Sausage Pasta

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 20 mins

 

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 package smoke sausage – we used a kielbasa

1 medium onion, diced

1 can diced tomatoes and green chiles

2 cups chicken broth

8 ounces pasta – we used egg noodles

3 cups spinach, chopped

4 ounces Monterrey jack cheese, shredded

2 ounces pepper jack cheese, shredded

 

Instructions:

 

In a high sided skillet, cook sausage in olive oil until browned over medium high heat.  Drain off excess grease.  Add onions and cook until onions are softened (approx. 6 minutes).  Add diced tomatoes and green chiles and chicken broth.  Use spatula to scrape up all browned bits from the bottom of the pan.  This is your flavor and you don’t want to lose this!  Bring mixture to a boil.  Add pasta and return to a boil.  Once liquid has reached a boil, ensure that all noodles are at least partially submerged, and cover with a lid.  At this point you should reduce your heat so the liquid remains at a simmer.  Simmer for 10 minutes stirring occasionally to ensure that nothing sticks.  After 10 minutes, add cheese, cover with the lid and heat until cheese is melted. 

Enjoy!

 

2014 52 in 52 #3 - Bacon Wrapped Lil' Smokies

Bacon, lil' smokies, butter and brown sugar... if you don't love that combination then you need serious mental help.  And you should definitely stop reading because you will be greatly disappointed. 

Hubby was the first one to alert me to this recipe.  I filed it away for another time when we were having a party or get together with friends.  This is definitely a 'man' recipe.  Anything covered in butter and bacon attracts men like flies. 

I am always on the look for appetizers and snacks for the kid's birthday parties.  I like to serve several different appetizers and snacks in lieu of a meal, that way people are destined to find something that they like.  I originally made this recipe for Isabella's third birthday party and it was okay.  There were several people who ranted and raved about it but I knew that it could be better.  If you make it like the recipe states it kind of swims in the syrup created by the butter and sugar and the bacon will never look or taste like it is cooked.  I definitely wanted that to be different. 

For Silas's second birthday, I made it again and this time, I think, it turned out a lot better.  I played with the ratio of brown sugar and butter and we changed the heat settings on the oven in an attempt to cook the bacon on the outside a bit more. 

Try it and let me know what you think!  Also, let me know what appetizers you like or what food you like to serve at birthday parties. 

Bacon Wrapped Lil' Smokies
Prep time: 15 mins
Cook time: 30 mins

Ingredients:
2 packages of lil' smokies
1 and 1/2lb thin sliced bacon
1/2 stick butter, melted
1 and 2/3 cup brown sugar, divided

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Cut bacon strips into thirds.  Wrap bacon around each lil' smoky and place in ungreased 8x8 pan.  I used an 8x8 and a 9x9 this time in order to fit all of the lil' smokies in.  You can also use a 13x9 but I found that they didn't all fit without overlapping and that created soggy bacon.  Combine melted butter and 1 cup brown sugar together.  Spread evenly on top of bacon wrapped sausages.  Crumble remaining brown sugar evenly over the top.  Cook 20 minutes uncovered on 375, then raise heat to 400 and cook another 5 minutes.  We then cooked the pans carefully on broil for an extra 5 minutes in an attempt to crisp the skin a bit.  It still could be more crisp if it were up to me, but the party goers seemed to like them in the state that they were in.  Serve warm. 

Enjoy! 

Easy Breakfast Casserole

I have read different recipes from every corner of the Internet claiming to offer an easy, healthy breakfast option to the consumer.  Most of those, after careful inspection, are lackluster in flavor, substance, or are not really as easy as they claim to be.  When it comes to making breakfast, the easier the better, for me.  I don't want a 900 step recipe to follow in the morning when I shouldn't even be trusted to find my own shoes. 

Luckily for our family, I found a recipe for an easy breakfast casserole years ago.  Over time, we have adapted it to fit our new tastes and diet.  Honestly, other than pouring a bowl of cereal, I don't know that you could cook a recipe that was more simple than this in the morning.  This meal also fills you up enough to be a good substitute for dinner.  Who doesn't love breakfast foods for dinner every once in a while? 


Easy & Healthy Breakfast Casserole
Prep time: 15 mins
Cook time: 45 mins

6 eggs - we use the Aldi brand of Egg Beaters and they are awesome. 
1 lb of turkey sausage, crumbled
1 package of low calorie crescent rolls
8 oz low calorie Colby Jack cheese

Preheat your over to 350 degrees. 

Brown the sausage.  Sometimes we buy the patties and crumble them up and sometimes we buy in bulk.  The calorie count is pretty similar, so I just work with what we have on hand.  Drain the fat from the sausage.  This is an important step or else you end up with grease elsewhere in your dish and that is less than ideal.

Press the crescent rolls into the bottom of a well-greased 13 x 9 pan.  I am emphasizing well-greased for a reason.  If you decide to skip that step, you will run the risk of not being able to eat any of the crust that forms on this meal because it will be horribly stuck to the pan.  Don't ask how I know. 

Once you have the crescent rolls pressed out into a flat layer in the bottom of your pan, pour the drained sausage crumbles over the layer of crescent rolls. 

Pour the beaten eggs over the sausage evenly and top with the shredded cheese. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 mins until the crescent roll layer is browned and crispy on the edges, the cheese is melty and the eggs are set. 

Enjoy!