Italian Cheesy Shells

Easy to make?  YES.
Easy ingredients?  YES.

Yummy?  YES.  

Fast to prepare?  Well,  there are certainly faster recipes, but i think the first answers make up for this last answer.  It usually takes me about 45 minutes of prep-work & then I bake it for about 30 minutes.  And we usually get at least 6 meals out of it -- I love having leftovers to take to work.

This IS definitely one of my favorite go-to dinners.

Ingredients:
30 dried jumbo pasta shells
2 beaten eggs
24 oz carton low-fat cottage cheese (use about 3/4 of it)

16 oz ricotta cheese

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1&1/2 cups frozen spinach, thawed & squeezed out
1&1/2 tbsp Italian seasoning
14 oz can Italian diced tomatoes (I've been using Hunts -- they ARE better than the store brand!)
24 oz jar of Prego or Bertoli spaghetti sauce (I use the garlic & parmesan kind, but any will do)


1.  Cook pasta shells about 14 minutes til tender but still firm.  Add a little olive oil & garlic salt to the cooking water.  Lightly spray a 9x13 cooking dish.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2.  Meanwhile, for filling, stir together egg, cottage cheese, ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan, seasoning & spinach.  You'll want the spinach to be as dry as possible.  Stir mixture so that it becomes as uniform throughout as possible.  Spoon a little less than 1/4 cup of cheese mixture into each pasta shell.  Arrange shells in the prepared 9x13 glass cooking dish.

3.  Drain the canned tomatoes & combine with about 3/4 of the jar of Prego.  Amounts don't have to be exact.  Spoon the saucy mixture over the cheesy shells.  Bake, covered, at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.  Uncover & continue to bake 10 or 15 minutes more or til heated through.

4.  Serve with a green salad & garlic toast.

Cuban Rice & Sausage

This recipe is actually an adaptation of a Publix recipe.  I just tweaked the ingredients a little to match up with what I actually keep in my kitchen on a regular basis.  Publix stocks this sausage, but Costco also sells it.  It comes in a big package (of course!) but it is also pretty TasTY if you just slice it & fry it up plain for breakfast meat alongside some muffins & fruit.  So I have no worries of using it before it expires.  But back to the rice dish...

Ingredients:

5 links of Aidells Chicken-Apple sausage, sliced into bite-size pieces

2 tbsp olive oil or butter

2 boxes of low-sodium chicken flavor Rice-a-Roni (6.9 oz each)

4 cups of water (not 5 cups, as you might think from the rice box directions)

1/4 - 1/2 cup diced dill pickles (I prefer Claussen sandwich slices, or prepared relish)

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

1 tbsp dried Cilantro

Shredded Pepper Jack cheese, to desired taste

Directions:

1.  Preheat oil or butter in pan & begin preparing Rice-a-Roni as directed on box.  You can also add in the sliced sausages.  Cook 2 to 3 minutes or until lightly browned.

2.  Stir in 1 cup water & seasoning mix packets.  Cook & stir for 1 or 2 minutes.  Then add remaining 3 cups of water.  Allow to simmer for 15 to 20 minutes or until rice is tender & water is absorbed.

3.  Stir in diced pickles, mustard & cilantro.  Top with shredded cheese.  (The cheese can be a little hot, so that's why I wait to add it on last -- to only put on what "heat" I can tolerate!)

4.  Serve with a green salad or fresh fruit.

Asparagus Casserole Side Dish

I love a well-rounded meal.  I want a meat, a starch & a veggie -- and I want them to all be easily prepared.  Here, I made the asparagus casserole, but the rice just had to boil & the salmon went straight from the freezer into the oven.  I bought the pre-seasoned salmon fillets at Costco, and the rice was just a wild rice with some garlic salt & butter.  Everything was ready in about 40 minutes, start to finish.  Here is the asparagus recipe:

Ingredients:
Garlic salt to taste
Pepper to taste
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
1 cup milk
1 pound fresh asparagus
1 cup grated cheddar cheese

Directions:
Make a white sauce by first melting butter in a small sauce pan.  Stir in flour, garlic salt & pepper and blend well with butter to form a paste.  Add milk, stirring constantly over low - medium heat.  Cook until smooth and thickened like gravy.  Set aside to use later.

Wash asparagus & break off the woody parts.  Snap the asparagus into 2 to 3 inch pieces and make a layer in a 10 inch oven-safe dish. (I like to use my Pampered Chef Deep Dish Baker.)  Spoon white sauce over the asparagus pieces.  Sprinkle with grated cheddar.

Bake uncovered at 400 degrees for 12 to 14 minutes.   mmm MMM... I love my asparagus like this!