Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

Forget the jar! This is so good and so easy, I'll never buy a shelf jar of spaghetti sauce again. I was completely at loss for what to make for dinner and I didn't feel like going to the store. I knew I had a little bit of ground beef in the freezer. So I started searching through the pantry and surprisingly, I had all this other stuff on hand. Made for an awesome supper that the DF and kiddos loved!

1/2 pound ground beef
1/2 white onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 - 28 oz. can Hunt's whole tomatoes
2 - 8 oz. cans tomato sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 bay leaf
3 tablespoons butter
1 box spaghetti (I used whole wheat..if you've never used it..definitely try it!)

In a large skillet or pot cook the ground beef. When the meat is browned add the onion, garlic, and mushrooms and drizzle the olive oil over and saute until all the veggies are soft. Add the whole can of tomatoes (I cut the little hard stem parts off the tomatoes before adding them) and the tomatoe sauce, along with the sugar, salt, Italian seasoning, oregano, garlic powder, and a bay leaf. When the sauce starts to boil, add butter, and reduce heat to simmer on low for about 30 minutes. Remove bay leaf before serving. Top over cooked spaghetti noodles. Enjoy!

Korean BBQ Chicken

This tangy savory chicken recipe is a definite must try to spice up your weekly rotation of chicken! Kids love it too! Make sure you reserve some of the sauce for dipping!

You'll need: 

2 packages of chicken breast tenderloins (about 12-14 tenderloins)

Marinade/Sauce:
2 cups low sodium soy sauce (make sure it's low sodium, otherwise it will be too salty)
2 cups water
2/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons onion powder
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 large clove garlic, minced
4 scallions, minced
1/2 small lemon, squeezed

Suggested sides: steamed jasmine rice and veggies

Whisk all ingredients together to make sure the sugar, onion powder, and ground ginger dissolve into the soy sauce and water. Reserve 1 cup of the marinade to use for dipping or to pour over rice and veggies. 

Put the chicken tenderloins in a bowl or in a large plastic bag. Pour the marinade (all but the 1 cup reserved) over the chicken. Move the chicken around to make sure the marinade gets all over the chicken. Set in refrigerator for at least 2 hours. 

After the chicken is done marinating, cook on the grill, spooning the marinade over the chicken. Cook a couple minutes on each side til thoroughly cooked. (Make sure to watch the chicken, so that it does not burn). And Voila! here is the finished product! Enjoy!

Fantastic French Toast

Fantastic French Toast

8 slices white bread (I prefer Oroweat brand Buttermilk sliced bread)
3 eggs
3/4 cup milk
2 tablespoon heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons honey
Vegetable or canola oil

Butter & Syrup (I use real butter not margarine and light corn syrup)

Put the eggs, milk, cream, cinnamon, and the almond and vanilla extracts in a shallow dish. Whisk in the honey. Heat one tablespoon oil on the griddle using medium-high heat. One at a time, dip each side of the bread into the egg mixture and allow to any excess to drip off back into the bowl. Place dipped bread onto the griddle for a minute or two (until desired brownness), flip to cook other side (may need to add more oil). Repeat until all breads are cooked. Enjoy while hot with butter and syrup!

Serves 4

Arroz Con Leche (Sweet Rice)

This is so good and creamy! 


1 cup white rice
2 cups water
2 tablespoons butter
2 cups milk
1 tablespoon flour
1 egg
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup heavy cream or half & half
1/2 cup raisins (optional)
1 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)


Put rice, water, and butter in a pot and bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. While the rice is cooking, combine milk, flour, egg, sugar, vanilla in a bowl and whisk together. When rice is done cooking, uncover and add the milk mixture to the pot and stir to combine. Bring heat up to low and cook for 15 minutes, stirring every couple minutes. Add raisin and cinnamon if you wish. Let cool slightly, add cream and enjoy!

Serves 4. 

YUM Salted Crumb Coffee Cake!

This crumb-y coffee cake is absolutely delightful! Moist yet crumbly, this cake is so good! And the salted crumb topping makes it that much more yummy!

Salted Crumb Coffee Cake


Cake:
12 tablespoons sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/3 cup sour cream
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon course kosher salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3 tablespoons vegetable/canola oil (this ensures a moist cake!)
Crumb Topping:
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 cup flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon course kosher salt


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
Combine the butter, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl. Make sure the butter gets crumbled well into the mixture. (Using your fingers is probably the best way to do this.)
Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (3 min). Add the eggs, vanilla, and sour cream. Mix until well combined. Add the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Mix until thoroughly combined, then add the oil and mix for a few more seconds. Spread half of the cake batter into a 9x13 inch baking dish. Then sprinkle with half of the crumb topping. Then spread the remaining cake batter. Finally, sprinkle the rest of the crumb topping evenly over the top. Bake for 40-45 minutes. (Use the toothpick test to make sure cooked through). 


Enjoy ;)

Mmmm..Potluck Tuna Pasta Salad

Make this pasta for a potluck or on Sundays to have lunch to take to work throughout the week. It's quick, easy, and tastes great! My kids love it!

Tuna Pasta Salad


1 lb. small shaped pasta (shells, radiatore, bowtie, etc.)
11 oz. pouch chunk light tuna in water
1 1/2 - 2 cups mayonnaise
3/4 cup frozen peas, thawed
1 cup cubed cheddar or colby-jack cheese
5 green onions, sliced
salt and pepper to taste


Cook pasta according to package directions; rinse, drain, and cool. Add tuna, mayonnaise, peas, cheese, green onions, and salt & pepper. Put in refrigerator til ready to serve. 


*If you make this the day before you may need to add a little more mayonnaise before serving because the pasta tends to soak up the mayo and the salad becomes a little dry.

Chewy Sugar Cookies!

My kids love sugar cookies and so do I! These are wonderful, chewy sugar cookies..the trick is not to bake them too long or they'll come out crisp instead of chewy! Try them you'll love them :)

Amazing Sugar Cookies

2 3/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon course salt

1 cup butter, softened (I nuke 2 sticks for about 30 seconds)
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 egg
2 tablespoons buttermilk
colored sugar crystals for the tops (be creative! we used blue and red mixed together)


Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and set aside. Cream the butter and sugar together. Add the egg and vanilla. Then gradually add  dry ingredients to butter mixture. Finally add the buttermilk once the dough starts to come together. Use a cookie dough scoop and then drop one side of the dough ball into the sugar crystals, then slightly press down onto an un-greased cookie sheet. Bake for 7 minutes. Make sure not to over bake!


Enjoy ;)