Four Cheese Chicken Fettuccine Bake

If you have a comfort food night on your menu, this is the recipe for you! This is such a delicious dish. The pasta is creamy and cheesy and the buttery crumb topping is so good. My kids absolutely love fettuccine Alfredo, so they loved this one. I got the recipe from the Taste of Home magazine and modified it just slightly (their recipe has a can of sliced mushrooms in it and I decided to not push mushrooms on my mushroom hating children - I on the other hand would totally included the mushrooms if it was just for me). It's comfort food at it's yummiest.

Four Cheese Chicken Fettuccine Bake

12 oz uncooked fettuccine, strands snapped in half
1 can cream of mushroom soup
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 cup cream
1/2 cup butter
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
3/4 cup grated Parmesan
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup shredded Swiss
3 cups cooked and cubed chicken
pepper, to taste

Topping:
1/3 cup seasoned bread crumbs
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1-2 tablespoons grated Parmesan

Cook fettuccine (which has been snapped in half) according to package directions.

Meanwhile in a large skillet, combine soup, cream cheese, cream, butter, and garlic powder. Stir in cheeses; cook and stir until melted. Add chicken; heat through. Drain the fettuccine; add to the sauce.

Transfer to a greased 9x13 baking dish. Combine topping ingredients and sprinkle over the pasta mixture. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Uncover; bake 5-10 minutes longer or until golden brown.

Sausage and Egg Breakfast Casserole

Here's another winner breakfast casserole. It's a great, bread based breakfast casserole. We had it for a breakfast for dinner night with sliced tomatoes and fruit salad. My family really liked it and my kids didn't even notice the bell peppers, which they usually don't like. It makes a lot and the leftovers reheat really well. Win, win.

Sausage and Egg Breakfast Casserole

10 eggs
3 cups milk
1 teaspoon salt
1 loaf bakery French bread, torn into bite size pieces
1 green pepper, diced
1 red pepper, diced
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cups shredded colby jack or cheddar cheese
12 oz reduced fat sausage, cooked and crumbled
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Spray a 9x13 (or just the size larger) baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Combine eggs, milk, and salt in a bowl, set aside. Distribute half of the bread pieces in the baking dish. Sprinkle half of the following ingredients over the bread: green pepper, red pepper, onion, cheese, and sausage. Repeat layering again, beginning with bread. Sprinkle black pepper over the top. Pour the egg mixture over the casserole as evenly as possible. Bake for 60 minutes.

Cherry Almond Poke Cake and other Macbeth Book Club Eats

I hosted a book club for Macbeth by William Shakespeare. It was really fun to make the treats for this book club. I made this cherry poke cake and called it "Out Damned Spot" cake, which I think is super fun. And the cake turned out to be really yummy on top of looking bloody, so yay! My kids also loved the leftovers of this cake and keep asking for me to make it again. Poke cakes are easy to adapt to whatever flavor you want. You could make it with chocolate cake to make a cherry chocolate poke cake or with orange jello to make a creamsicle like cake, the possibilities are endless. I really liked the little something something that the almond extract gave this cake. It was good.

Cherry Almond Poke Cake

1 white cake
ingredients on the box to make the cake
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 small box cherry Jello
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup cold water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with non-stick spray. In a stand mixer combine cake mix, eggs called for on box, water called for on box, oil called for on box, and almond extract. Beat for 2 minutes on medium speed. Pour into the baking dish and bake for 22-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes.

Combine jello and boiling water, stirring for about 2 minutes or until completely dissolved. Add cold water. Set aside.

Using a wooden skewer or large fork, poke holes all over cake, about every 1/2 inch. Carefully pour jello over the cake. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours. After it is refrigerated frost with frosting below and sprinkle with sliced almonds.

Frosting:
8 oz tub Cool Whip, thawed
1/2 cup marshmallow fluff
sliced almonds, for topping

In a stand mixer combine Cool Whip and marshmallow fluff. Beat until mixed and fluffy. Spread over cake and sprinkle with almonds.

I kinda went overboard for my Macbeth treats. I had of course this cake, various candies in mason jars labeled with creepy names, a veggie tray, and Fresca labeled as "flying potion" and Diet Coke labeled as "bewitching brew". I love getting into book club eats! It makes me happy.

Beef Enchilada Casserole

Wow, it's been a while since I posted! Life can get so busy. Here's the recipe I made for our Cinco de Mayo dinner. It's so fast to put together and get in the oven and my whole family loved it. The salsa is the ingredient that will either give this spice or tone it down, so if you like it spicy, use hot salsa and if you don't, use mild salsa. I used medium. I hope you like it as much as my family did.

Beef Enchilada Casserole

1 lb lean ground beef
1 cup chopped onion
2 cups salsa
1, 15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup sour cream
1, 15 oz can corn, drained
1 packet taco seasoning
2 cups grated cheese, cheddar or colby jack
6 corn tortillas
diced tomatoes, for topping (I used halved grape tomatoes)
sliced olives, for topping

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a large skillet brown the ground beef. Add onion and cook until onion is tender. Drain off fat. Stir in salsa, beans, sour cream, corn, and taco seasoning. Spoon about 1/3 of meat mixture into the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish, sprinkle with 1/2 cup shredded cheese. Place 2 tortillas on top. Repeat layers 2 more times, ending with a healthy handful of cheese. Spray a piece of foil with non-stick spray and cover baking dish with the foil. Bake for 25 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Cool for 5 minutes before topping with diced tomatoes and sliced olives.

Creamy Italian Sausage Bowtie Pasta

This is an under 30 minute meal and it's delicious. It's a lot like the Italian Sausage Fettuccine I make a lot, but with bowtie pasta instead and some less fussy ingredients (that one calls for shallots, which I don't usually have on hand). This recipe is originally from Lilluna, but I modified it slightly. I served it with some sourdough bread from Costco and mixed veggies and it was a fast weeknight meal.

Creamy Italian Sausage Bowtie Pasta

1, 12 oz package bowtie pasta
1 lb bulk Italian sausage
pinch red pepper flakes
1/2 cup diced onions
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
1, 14.5 oz can petite diced tomatoes, undrained
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried rubbed sage
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
3/4 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese, divided

Cook pasta according to package directions, reserving 1 cup of the pasta water. Drain, and set aside.

Meanwhile, in a large deep skillet brown sausage, breaking up with a spatula, until cooked through. Add pepper flakes and diced onions and cook until onions are tender. Add tomatoes, cream, salt, rubbed sage, basil, and 1/2 cup grated Parmesan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 6-8 minutes or until slightly thickened. Add drained pasta, tossing to coat with sauce. Add reserved pasta water as needed to thin sauce to desired consistency. Garnish with remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan.

Crock Pot Pork Roast with Vegetables and Gravy

This is another great recipe from Jamie Cooks It Up. It's the pork roast equivalent of a pot roast and the pork comes out tender and moist. The gravy that you make from the juices is so good and would be delicious over mashed potatoes. In fact, I think next time I'll just add the onions and carrots and have mashed potatoes with it instead of the chunked potatoes, because my family thinks every roast should have mashed potatoes and gravy along-side it. This really is a great Sunday dinner and a good switch up from the regular beef roast.

Crock Pot Pork Roast with Vegetables and Gravy

1, 3 lb pork roast
3 tablespoons olive oil
5 russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 large onion, cut into chunks
3 cups baby carrots
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup balsamic vinaigrette salad dressing
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup brown sugar

Gravy:
juices from roast
2 packets pork gravy mix
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup milk
1 can cream mushroom soup

Heat oil in a large skillet. Brown the pork roast on all sides and place in the bottom of your slow cooker. Place cubed potatoes, onions, and baby carrots on top. In a bowl combine minced garlic, soy sauce, balsamic dressing, water, and brown sugar; pour this mixture over the vegetables in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 7 hours or high for 4-5 hours.

After cooking time remove the pork roast to a cutting board and let it rest for 5-10 minutes, then cut into slices. Remove vegetables from crockpot to a large bowl and cover with foil.

Meanwhile, prepare the gravy by pouring the juices from the crockpot through a sieve into a large saucepan. Add pork gravy packets, water, milk, and cream of mushroom soup, whisking well together. Heat until boiling, stirring occasionally. Serve gravy over pork and vegetables.

Roasted Carrots and Green Beans

I could not find asparagus at any store last Friday. It was all sold out. I went to 4 stores. Wow, it was frustrating, but I did find carrots and fresh green beans so I decided to have that be our Easter veggie side dish instead. And it was wonderfully yummy. I roasted them in the oven and they came out great. You could definitely make this with asparagus instead of green beans and it would be great. Roasting vegetables really is the way to go. It's a fast, easy, and delicious way to add veggies to any meal.

Roasted Carrots and Green Beans

about 6 large carrots, cut into sticks
fresh green beans, ends trimmed
olive oil
kosher salt
fresh ground black pepper

Boil carrot sticks in enough water to cover for about 6 minutes or until tender. Drain, rinse with cold water, and set aside.

Wash and trim green beans. In a large bowl combine carrots and green beans. Drizzle with olive oil (as much or as little as you want - I just did enough to thinly coat veggies). Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Spread vegetables out on a non-stick sprayed or greased rimmed cookie sheet. Roast at 425 degrees for 15-25 minutes or until veggies have just started to brown.

Our Easter dinner was very simple this year: cheesy ham and potato casserole, roasted veggies, and deviled eggs made from our dyed Easter eggs. Simple, but delicious.