Grandma's Stuffing

Prep Time: 30-40 minutes
Total Time: 1 hr 20 min
Serves: 20

Ingredients
4 Tbsp. butter
2 cups chopped sweet onion
2 cups chopped celery
6 cloves of garlic, minced
2 lb. country pork sausage
2 tsp either sage or poultry seasoning
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
1-2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
1 & 1/2 loaves french bread (chopped and dipped in water, squeeze out excess)

Directions

Heat oven to 350 F and spray a 3 qt casserole dish with nonstick spray.

Melt butter and saute onion, celery and garlic until vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes. 

Add sausage and cook until done. 

Add remaining spices. Stir well. Add parsley and remove from heat.

Let cool, then work in bread pieces.

Place stuffing in a casserole dish and bake, covered 40 minutes. 

Uncover and let stand 10 minutes.

 Enjoy!

My Grandma Judy makes the best stuffing I have ever eaten, so I asked her for the recipe. This recipe was passed down from my great grandma (Yaya) to her daughter-in-law (my Grandma Judy). Not only is this recipe dear to my heart, but it's so simple and delicious. 

Chicken Tortilla Casserole

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 1 hr 15 min
Serves: 8

Ingredients
1 (10 3/4 oz.) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 (4.5 oz.) can diced green chiles
1 (8 oz.) container fat-free sour cream
1/2 cup fat-free milk
1 & 1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. cumin
2 & 1/2 cups cooked, shredded chicken breast
8 corn tortillas, sliced
1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
1 large tomato chopped
1 & 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Directions

Heat oven to 350 F. Spray a 3 quart glass baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. In a large bowl mix soup, chiles, sour cream, milk, chili powder and cumin until blended.

Stir in chicken, tortillas, bell pepper, tomatoes and 1 cup of the cheese. Spread mixture into baking dish.

Cover with foil and bake 40 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle with remaining cheese and bake uncovered for 5-10 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes.

Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from eatbetteramerica.com

Lasagna

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 2 hr 30 min
Serves: 12

Ingredients
9 uncooked lasagna noodles
1 lb. extra lean ground beef
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 (25.5 oz.) jar of pasta sauce
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1 & 1/2 tsp. dried basil
3 hard boiled eggs, sliced
1 (15 oz.) container reduced fat ricotta
2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/3 cup Parmesan

Directions

Cook and drain noodles according to package directions. Place in cold water. Cook beef and garlic over medium-high heat 5-7 minutes, or until beef is thoroughly cooked. Drain.

Stir in pasta sauce, cayenne pepper and 1 tsp. basil. Heat to boiling, then remove from heat. 

Heat oven to 350 F. Spray a 3 quart glass baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. In a medium bowl, stir ricotta and remaining basil until blended. Drain noodles. Spread about 1/2 cup sauce mixture over bottom of baking. Top with 3 noodles, 1 & 1/2 cups sauce mixture, ricotta,  3/4 cups mozzarella and 1/2 of the hard boiled eggs.

Repeat layers once. Top with remaining noodles, sauce and mozzarella. Sprinkle with Parmesan. 

Cover with foil and bake 45 minutes. Uncover, bake 10-15 minutes longer, or until bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. 

Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from eatbetteramerica.com

Italian Sausage Soup

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
Makes 10 servings

Ingredients
2 slices of bacon
1/2 lb. chicken Italian sausage, casings removed
2 large russet potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
4 cups water
3 & 1/2 cups (2-15 oz. cans) chicken broth
4 cups chopped fresh kale or Swiss chard
1 (15 oz.) can cannellini beans, draining and rinsed
1 cup half-and-half

Directions

In a dutch oven, cook bacon until crisp, then drain on a paper towel.

 Crumble bacon and set aside. Remove and discard drippings from pan. In the same pan, cook sausage over medium-high heat 6-8 minutes, stirring frequently, until browned.

Drain well on paper towels, set aside.

In the same dutch over, mix potatoes, onion, garlic, Italian seasoning, pepper, pepper flakes, water and broth. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat to low and cook uncovered for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Stir in bacon, sausage, kale and beans. Cook 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until potatoes and kale are tender.

Stir in half-and-half. Heat through.

Enjoy!

Nutrition Information per 1 and 1/4 cup serving

Calories: 190

Fat: 3.5 g

Carbs: 29 g

Protein 12 g

Fiber: 4 g

Recipe adapted from eatbetteramerica.com

Sausage and Beef Rigatoni

Total time: 30 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients
2 large red bell peppers, or one red, one yellow
3/4 lb. hot Italian sausage
1/2 lb. ground beef
1 small red onion, chopped
3-4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 Anaheim chile, seeded and chopped
pepper
2 Tbsp. tomato paste
1/2 cup sherry
1 (28 oz.) can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup beef broth
Parmesan cheese for serving

Directions

Char the bell pepper under a hot broiler until blackened all over, turning occasionally. 

Let cool completely then peel the skin off and slice into strips.

In a dutch over, cook sausage and beef on medium-high heat until browned, 7-8 minutes.

Stir in the onion, garlic and hot pepper until softened, season with pepper.

 Stir in the tomato paste for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, beef broth and bell peppers. Simmer to thicken.

Cook pasta until al dente. Drain and reserve 1/2 cup cooking water. Add the water to the sauce and serve over the noodles. Top with Parmesan and Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from Everyday with Rachel Ray, October 2011.

Ropa Vieja

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook: 6 hours

Serves: 8

Ingredients

2 lbs. boneless beef chuck roast

2 onions, chopped

2 green bell peppers, chopped

3 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced

3 (14.5 oz.) cans diced tomatoes, undrained

1/2 cup water

6 garlic cloves, minced

2 Tbsp. minced fresh cilantro

4 tsp. beef bouillon granules

2 tsp. pepper

1 & 1/2 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. oregano

Directions

Place meat in crock pot. Add onions and peppers. 

In a large bowl, combine tomatoes, water, garlic, cilantro, beef bouillon, pepper, cumin, and oregano. Pour over vegetables.

Cover and cook on high 4-6 hours or low for 8-10 hours. Shred beef with two forks. Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from Taste of Home Magazine, November 2011.

Spaghetti Squash with Italian Sausage

Total time: 30 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients
1 large spaghetti squash
1/2 lb ground turkey
1/2 lb Italian sausage
1 jar spaghetti sauce
fresh grated Parmesan (optional)
red pepper flakes (optional)

Directions

Wash squash and poke with a fork several times. Please on a paper towel and microwave for 8 minutes. Turn over and microwave for an additional 8 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook turkey and sausage over medium heat until browned.

Add sauce and reduce heat to low.

Slice squash lengthwise. Discard membranes and seeds. Use two forks to separate "Spaghetti". 

Serve with sauce, Parmesan and red pepper flakes. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Cheesecake

Prep Time: 40 minutes
Start to finish: 10 hours 30 minutes

Ingredients
Crust
1 cup plus 2 Tbps. graham cracker crumbs
3 Tbsp. apple jelly (I didn't have apple jelly, so I used 2 Tbsp. apple butter and 1 Tbsp. honey)
Filling
4 (8 oz.) packages reduced fat cream cheese
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated suagr
1/3 cup Splenda
5 eggs
1 (15 oz.) can of pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)
1/4 cup flour
3 tsp. pumpkin pie spice (if you don't have pumpkin pie spice, use 1 & 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp. nutmeg, 1/4 tsp. ground cloves, and 1/2 tsp. ground ginger)
1 cup fat-free whipped topping

Directions

Heat oven to 350 F. Spray 9-inch springform pan with nonstick cooking spray. Coat sides only with 2 Tbsp. graham cracker crumbs. In a small bowl, mix remaining graham cracker crumbs with apple jelly. Press into bottom of pan.

Bake 8 minutes. Cool 5 minutes. Refrigerate 5 minutes, or until completely cool.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, beat cream cheese with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth and creamy. 

Gradually beat in sugars until smooth.

On low speed, add eggs 1 at a time, beating just until blended.

In a medium bowl, mix pumpkin, flour and pumpkin pie spice. 

Gradually add to cream cheese mixture, beating until smooth.

Pour over partially baked crust.

Bake 1 hour 20 minutes, or until center is almost set. 

Cool on a cooling rack 30 minutes. With a sharp knife, loosen cheesecake from sides of pan. Refrigerate for at least 8 hours. Loosen cheesecake with a knife again. Remove side of pan. Slice cheesecake and serve with whipped topping.

Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from eatbetteramerica.com