Manicotti

Manicotti

1 box manicotti shells

1 jar pasta sauce 

8 oz mozzarella

1 lb cottage cheese

1 c parmesan

2 T italian seasoning

1 T dried parsley flakes

2 eggs

1/2 lb ground beef, cooked (optional)

Put a little bit of sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 glass pan.  Combine cheeses, seasonings, eggs and beef in large bowl.  Stuff shells with cheese mixture and place in pan.  Cover with remaining sauce and sprinkle remaining cheese mixture over top.  Cover with foil and bake at 350 for 60 minutes.  Add water as needed -- do not let shells dry out while baking.   

Goes well with a green salad and garlic toast.  

Ginger Casserole

Ginger Casserole

(aka Beef and Noodle Casserole) from Ginger Manning

2 lbs lean ground beef

1 onion, minced

1 15 oz can tomato sauce

1 can diced tomatoes

1 8oz package cream cheese, softened

1 8oz container of sour cream

1 pound egg noodles, cooked

8 oz grated cheddar cheese

Brown beef, season with salt and pepper and minced onion.  Add tomato sauce and diced tomatoes to create sauce.  In a separate bowl, combine cream cheese and sour cream.

Layer into a 9x13 pan - 1/2 meat sauce, 1/2 noodles, 1/2 cream cheese mixture, repeat.  Top with shredded cheese.

Bake 30 minutes at 350 degrees until cheese is melty and delicious.

Green Stuff

Green Stuff
from Linda Castillo

1 stick butter, melted                     1 c. Cool Whip
1 c. flour                                        2 (small) pkg. instant pistachio pudding
1/2 c. chopped pecans                   3 c. milk
1 c. powdered sugar                      2 c. Cool Whip
1 8oz package cream cheese

Mix butter, flour and pecans for crust, and press into greased 9x13 glass pan.  Bake at 350 for 15 minutes, and allow to cool.
Next mix powdered sugar, cream cheese, and 1 cup of Cool Whip together.  Spread this mixture over crust.
Mix pudding and milk togerher until smooth.  Pour over cream cheese layer, allow to set.
Spread the rest of the Cool Whip over the top and chill a couple of hours.


This was one of my dad's favorite desserts, and it's always a hit.  Goes over well at Easter and at Christmas, as well as anytime you need to take a dessert to an event.

Slow Cooker Kalua Pork

Slow Cooker Kalua Pork

1 large pork tenderloin (about 4 lbs)
Liquid Smoke (1/2 bottle)
Coarse ground Sea Salt
1 c. water

Toss pork and water in the crockpot, sprinkle generously with sea salt and add Liquid Smoke.  Cook for 6-8 hours.  Serve.

*****

This goes into everything.  We eat it with an Asian style green salad and macaroni salad (or mac and cheese) for a Hawaiian style treat.  We put BBQ sauce on it and eat it in sandwiches.  We use it in Green Chile Pork.  It's an easy and universally appreciated meal that is easy to take in.  Definitely a family staple.

Concoction

Concoction

A big old hunk of salmon, cooked (butter, salt, pepper, garlic powder, 25 minutes at 350)
4 c. steamed broccoli
1 lb pasta, cooked (I use Farfalle, but anything would work)
1/3 c. olive oil
parmesan cheese, grated or shredded
balsamic vinegar or vinagrette
salt and pepper to taste

Combine salmon, pasta, and broccoli in a large bowl.  Toss with olive oil.
Garnish with cheese, vinegar, salt and pepper.

*****

Appetizing name for a recipe, right?  One day my husband was in the kitchen messing around with ingredients and he threw this together and it was an instant and enduring hit.  We eat it a couple of times a month.  I even like it cold then next day for lunch.

This is another simple family staple that doesn't really take a recipe but is a constant in our house, and all of our people like it.  Some people try to eat around the broccoli or drown their bowl in balsamic, but they all eat it up.  Throw a sliver of whole wheat garlic toast in front of them and you have a bunch of happy people.

Graham Cracker Roads

Graham Cracker Roads, aka Chocolate Eclair Pie
from a co-worker at my first full-time job, many moons ago.  I don't remember her name but I remember this recipe!

1 box graham crackers
2 3-oz packages vanilla pudding
1 8-oz container whipped topping
3 cups milk
1 can chocolate frosting, slightly thinned with 2 Tbs milk

Combine milk and pudding mix with a whisk.  Add in whipped topping and stir well.
Place one layer of graham crackers in the bottom of a 9x13 glass pan and cover with half of pudding mixture.  Place another layer of graham crackers, and cover with the rest of the pudding mixture.  Place a third layer of graham crackers and frost with thinned chocolate frosting.  Refrigerate for a few hours or overnight before serving.

*****

My helpers named this Graham Cracker Roads because they adore the job of laying graham cracker roads between the pudding mixtures.  Also this is one my father-in-laws most favorite treats that I make for him.  It's a great no-oven dessert for our hot summer evenings.

Lemon Dill Salmon

Lemon Dill Salmon

big old salmon filet - I get a big one, 2-3 lbs, from Sam's or Costco.

1/2 c. butter, melted

3/4 c. lemon juice

2 T dill

1/2 t garlic powder

salt and pepper

Plop salmon in a big glass baking dish, coated with butter or Pam spray.  Combine butter and lemon juice and pour over salmon.  Sprinkle with dill, garlic powder, and salt and pepper.  Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes.  

*****

I have been making simple staples this week.  One of our favorites is this lemon dill salmon that doesn't really take a recipe, but since it's a family staple I'll post it up here.  All measurements are approximate and will depend on how big your hunk of salmon is, but it's easy to scale up or down.

My little dude loves this with steamed broccoli, couscous or rice, and garlic toast.  It's one of his favorite meals.  (But then again, they're all his favorite.  Except stir fry.)

Also, if you leave out the lemon and dill and scale back the butter, this is also how I cook salmon on other nights or to go in other dishes.  (See a future post entitled "Concoction.")