If you have kids who won’t eat their veggies, one of the best things you can do is hide vegetables in sauces, meats and other dishes. They’ll never know that this tasty mac and cheese recipe harbors a car of carrots! Recipes and image provided by Mealtime.org.
In addition to the base recipe, this mac and cheese dish has three recipe variations for adventurous eaters — Pasta Florentine adds some garlic, spinach and Parmesan cheese; there’s a hint of spicy brown mustard in the Ham and Cheese variation; and Shrimp Parmesan is enhanced with a can of baby shrimp and the …read more

Today marks the last day of National Pasta Week, but that doesn’t mean we can’t continue to enjoy it just the same! Pasta is one of my family’s favorite things to eat (and one of my favorite things to make), whether it’s with an easy tomato sauce, a cream sauce or just some olive oil, garlic and fresh chopped tomatoes.

Though it might be easier to just use dried, store-bought pasta from a box for your next meal, the taste and texture of fresh pasta is really worth the bit of time and effort it takes to make it.
The recipe below, …read more

Chicken cacciatore is a classic Italian dish typically made with chicken, mushrooms, onions, garlic and various spices including thyme, parsley, and oregano and served over pasta or rice. It’s referred to as a “hunters stew” and in the past has also been know to be made with rabbit.

Though not traditional, more modern preparations of the dish include chopped tomatoes which results in a sauce instead of the gravy that the chicken on its own produces.
Chicken Cacciatore
from Martha Stewart
1-1/2 3-pound chickens, cut into 12 pieces
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 pounds cremini mushrooms or white mushrooms, quartered
2 large onions, sliced 1/4 …read more

I can understand the feeling when some people consider macaroni and cheese as their comfort food. There is just something so good with the creaminess and combination of the cheeses in it.

INGREDIENTS:
a box (16 oz) of elbow macaroni
half of stick of butter
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 jar of cheddar cheese spread
1/2 cup of milk
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
salt & pepper to taste

This recipe for Penne Chicken with Sun Dried Tomatoes is probably my husband’s most favorite meals. I found it in a cooking magazine last year and ended up changing it so much that I had to write it down separately or else I’d never remember what all I had ended up changing — and that, to my husband at least, would have been a travesty!

It does rely on pre-canned and pre-packaged foods, so we don’t make it very often and when we do it’s only if something’s on sale. You can definitely substitute the pre-packaged chicken for a some leftover …read more

This meat sauce is one that I’ve added to and tweaked over the last eleven or so years. It’s become such a standard sauce that I use for everything from spaghetti to lasagna, and I don’t really even measure anything anymore, just add it in as it looks good!

It’s a very basic recipe and can be multiplied for however big of a batch you might need. It’s also very forgiving as far as what you might have on hand. I’ve had to substitute dehydrated onion before when I thought I had fresh in the pantry, etc. You can even make …read more

For this week’s link round up I decided to look for recipes and posts containing pasta and noodles. I love the versatility of both and serving either one to my family is a surefire way to make sure everyone eats what’s on their plates!

The links below range from classic Italian pastas to Asian noodles, and cold summer salads to hot and comforting meals.
~ Pasta Salad with Steak & Blue Cheese Avocado Dressing at Bitchin Camero
~ Crabmeat Linguine from Evan’s Kitchen Ramblings
~ Lemon Fusilli at Dreamy Dish
~ Singapore Noodle Salad from Choosy Beggars
~ Roasted Summer Vegetables with Egg Noodles at Guilty …read more

A simple twist to the usual spaghetti dinneris by adding shredded cheese, maybe slices of mushrooms, put the whole thing in a casserole dish, top with more cheese and VOILA, you’ll get a delicious baked spaghetti. It’s really quite simple.
INGREDIENTS :
spaghetti noodles, cooked al dente
1 pound of ground beef
1 can of spaghetti sauce
6 button mushrooms, sliced
2 tsp of sugar
sprinkle of dried oregano
sprinkle of dried basil
generous amount of shredded cheddar cheese

Here is a simple pasta dish for a busy day. A bag of frozen shrimp and a box of past could go a long way. It’s delicious and very filling no matter how simple it is to make.
INGREDIENTS:
angel hair pasta, cooked according to the box, al dente
2 sprigs of scallions, chopped finely
2 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
1 bag frozen shrimp, shelled
1 jar of Alfredo sauce
a few capers
3/4 cup of water
a fistful of shredded mozzarella cheese
olive oil for sautéing
Heat the olive oil in a pan. Sauté garlic and scallions. Add the capers. Let the whole flavors cook together for about …read more

You know you can actually make a pasta dish without having to use marinara sauce or white creamy sauce like Alfredo sauce. That’s what I did with this Bacon & Smoked Sausage Pasta dish.
INGREDIENTS :
angel hair pasta, cook according to the box
5-6 strips of bacon, finely chopped
1 medium onion, chopped finely
3 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
2 pcs of smoked sausage, sliced thinly and diagonally
broccoli florets
a handful of capers
1/2 cup of cherry wine
2 scoops of the pasta water