Spaghetti Squash Mac-n-Cheese

Ok, yesterday I explained how I cooked my spaghetti squash to get it ready for this dish. If you didn't catch it then you can read about it HERE.

Now you are ready to put this quick and tasty dish together.

Spaghetti Squash Mac-n-Cheese

1 1/2 tsp. flour
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/4 cup milk (plus more)
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese, divided
1 spaghetti squash, cooked and shredded

In a saucepan, whisk together the flour, salt, pepper and onion powder. 
Turn on heat to medium and add 1/4 cup of milk.
Stir constantly until mixture thickens. (takes several minutes)
Once it thickens, add all but a handful of the cheese. You will use that handful as a topping later.
Stir until melted and add a bit more milk until you get a creamy consistency. Sorry I didn't measure as I did this step I just kind of eyeballed it. To be safe just add a splash at a time.
Once the sauce is mixed well and creamy then pour it over the squash and stir.
Pour into a small greased casserole.
Top with that remaining handful of cheese.
Bake at 450 degrees for 20 minutes or until lightly browned.
Enjoy!

Spaghetti Squash - How to Bake & Prepare It for a Recipe

Ever heard of it or even tried it?
It's actually pretty good!

It's a member of the winter squash family and is supposedly fairly easy to grow. 
We'll see! 
I may try to plant a few this year and see what happens.
It can be used in a variety of dishes but makes a great substitution for pasta. A low-carb version of pasta.

Here's how you can bake it.

Before cooking I always wash my veggies. I don't care what kind they are...you never know where they have been.
So wash the outside of the squash!
Cut the ends off of the squash. This can be a challenge if you aren't using a good knife so Be Careful!
Slice the squash lengthwise.
Remove the seeds and pulp from the center.
Place the squash, cut side down, on a greased cookie sheet. (as pictured above)
Take a sharp knife and pierce several holes in each squash half.
Place in a 350 degree oven for 1 hour.
Remove and let cool a bit.

Now take a fork and pull from the outer edge of the squash to the center thus creating your "spaghetti".
You can use this immediately while it's still hot or you can store it in the fridge for later use which is what I did.

Tomorrow I'll show you the yummy dish I made with mine.

Cheesy Zucchini Salami Casserole *THE BEST*

My brother-in-law's girlfriend has been telling me about how good this casserole is for a few weeks now and since I've got squash and zucchini coming out of my ears right now I've been sharing it with them.
Well, the other day my BIL returned with a casserole in his hands.
Yep! It was THE casserole she's been raving about.
Oh my!
I can't even begin to describe how good it was.
Hubby, who is a non-zucchini eating person even ate it 
and said, " That's good!"

Cheesy Zucchini Salami Casserole

1 onion, sliced thin
zucchini, sliced thin lengthwise
8 oz. shredded mozzarella
1 cup shredded Parmesan (optional)
2 cups diced salami
1 can of crescent rolls

Layer onion slices in the bottom of a greased 13 X 9.
Place zucchini slices on top of onions.
Sprinkle with cheeses.
Add another layer of zucchini.
Followed by another layer of cheeses.
Top with diced salami.
Place crescent rolls flat on top of casserole.
Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes until top is golden brown.

*Additional Note*
I originally posted this recipe with just one layer of zucchini but the last time I made it I made it with a second layer and it was even better. Either way works...you'll just have a thinner or thicker dish depending on the amount of layers you choose.
Enjoy!

Once A Month Shopping and A Favorite Cuke Salad

Friday was my big Once A Month Shopping Day.
It takes me a week to plan for it and then it's an ALL day event. Shopping here, there and everywhere for the deals and filling up on the items that I know will make enough meals for another 30 days.
Just makes me tired thinking about it!
Anyways there is always lots to do after all the shopping.
There are fresh veggies to clean and repackage ~ some to be used now and others to be frozen for future use.
There is also bulk amounts of meats purchased and all that has to be separated and repackaged into meal size portions.
It's a full day (or 2) by the time I get all the shopping done and everything put away but hey, at least it only happens once every month.
The biggest perk of it all is that I do save money by shopping only once a month. Oh and I should say that I do still have to go to the store throughout the month to resupply milk and bread.

Since it's the season for fresh veggies I thought I'd share my favorite recipe for cucumbers.


Sour Cream Cucumbers


2 large cucumbers, peeled and sliced in rounds
1 onion, sliced in thin rings
3/4 cup fat free sour cream
3 tbsp. cider vinegar
2 tbsp. sugar (can use less)
*I have used Stevia in place of the sugar and it turned out just as good*  (a little less than 1/8 tsp.)
salt and pepper


Refrigerate and Enjoy!

Green Beans Almondine

Green beans are a staple at our house. It's the one vegetable that will actually get eaten by all the picky eaters. The problem is I get sick of them. (tired of making them and tired of eating them)
They were served with most every dinner when I was growing up at home and they seem to be on the table each night here in my own home.
So to change them up a bit I made my version of Green Beans Almondine.

Green Beans Almondine


1 tsp. olive oil
1/2 cup slivered almonds
38 oz. can green beans, drained
1/2 tsp. Mrs. Dash's table Blend
1/4 tsp. black pepper
14.5 oz. can of fire roasted diced tomatoes


Heat oil in skillet.
Add almonds and roast until they begin to brown.
Once roasted then you can add the green beans, seasonings and tomatoes.
Heat through and Enjoy!

Tomato Gravy or Creamed Tomatoes

Tomato Gravy over Cubed French Bread w/ a side of tomatoes and cukes

I remember the first time I tasted this I thought it was so good. My mother-in-law used to make it often with her own garden tomatoes but it's just as good using a store-bought can of juice which is what I used tonight.


Tomato Gravy or Creamed Tomatoes


1 qt. tomato juice or stewed tomatoes
1/2 tsp. baking soda
2 tbsp. flour
2 tbsp. sugar
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup milk
salt & pepper


Heat tomato juice and baking soda. (whisk it together)
Combine flour, sugar and water in a small bowl. Stir well until no lumps of flour are left.
Pour this mixture into hot juice while stirring.
Simmer and continue to stir until thickened.
Add milk and heat through.
Season with salt & pepper.
Serve over bread, biscuits or toast.
Enjoy!

Roasting Veggies

Howdy all!

It's been a very busy weekend with not a lot of down time. (No time for sewing!)
Saturday was warm and sunny as we spent the day working at my parent's house. It was time to pull the forms up around the new concrete and then till a little of the yard to level it off a bit, plant new grass and clean up. As soon as that was done I cleaned myself up and then off for the rest of the evening to a Haunted House Halloween party with Gage.

Miranda's 7th Annual Halloween Party

Sunday was spent tidying up the house and catching up on odds and ends.
Now today I can rest a bit...Aahhhhh..that's better!
But not until I get those veggies cooked. 

So once schooling was done this morning I headed to the kitchen to get the veggies ready.  This is my favorite way to have veggies. Just peel, dice, season and roast.

I like to use onions, sweet potatoes, squash, zucchini, carrots, peppers and white potatoes in mine but you can use anything that you like.
Dice them up and throw them all in a big bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and season. I use McCormick's Montreal Steak Seasoning, Mrs. Dash Table Blend and dried Basil but again you can season with your own favorite spices.

Toss the veggies around with your hands and then pour them out onto a large greased cookie sheet. I usually end up with 2 cookie sheets full. Spread them out...don't just pile them on one or they won't cook evenly.
Place in a 350° oven and bake until done. I usually cook mine for about 1 1/2 - 2 hours, turning them once every 1/2 hour.

I've got mine done already so I'm off to enjoy the rest of this rainy afternoon just stitching away!

Crockpot Cheesy Creamed Corn

Ugghhh!
I was hoping to post some silly pictures from this weekend but my computer is not cooperating so instead I'll have to share this super easy and yummy side dish that I made for our cookout this weekend. It was a hit with all of the family.

Crockpot Cheesy Creamed Corn

3 pkg. frozen corn
2 (8oz.) cream cheese, cubed (I only used 8 oz.)
1/4 cup butter, cubed
3 tbsp. water
3 tbsp. milk
2 tbsp. sugar
6 sliced American singles, cut in small pieces

Place all ingredients in a greased crockpot.
Stir it all up, even though it doesn't mix well  until it heats up a bit.
Cover and cook on low for 4 hours or until heated through. ( I cooked mine on high for 4 hours.)
Stir before serving and ENJOY!

* This recipe is out of a Taste of Home magazine.*

I'll continue to work on the silly pictures and hope to share them a little later.

Parmesan & Broccoli Crescent Pie

Howdy all!
I've decided to link up with Farmchick over at Fresh From the Farm for her Homemade by You ~Mondays.
Each Monday I hope to have a new and yummy creation to share with you all. (Keeping my fingers crossed that I can keep up!)
Anyways, today I'm gonna share my Broccoli Crescent with you. It's easy to put together and pretty tasty too!

Parmesan Broccoli Crescent Pie

12 oz. bag of frozen broccoli cuts
3 tbsp. water
2 - 8oz. packages of crescent rolls
1 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup milk
14.75 oz. can of cream of mushroom soup

Place broccoli and water in a microwave safe dish, cover and cook on high for 3 1/2 minutes.
Stir broccoli and place back in microwave for another 3 1/2 minutes, drain and set aside.
Place one package of crescent rolls in the bottom of a greased 13X9 pan.

In a mixing bowl, combine cheese, milk, soup and drained broccoli.
Pour mixture over crescent layer.
Place second package of crescent rolls on top.
Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until brown.
Enjoy!

Stitchery News! (For those of you wondering)

I didn't get my new stitchery totally finished over the weekend but I'm close to it. I ran out of blue thread so I had to wait until today for our local sewing shop to open so that I could get some more. So frustrating when you're that close to being done and then have to quit. I could have run over to the mall (30 minutes away) to get the thread but I figured why waste the gas money when I can get it local at the beginning of the week.
Hopefully I'll get it finished tomorrow so I can show it to you...and start another project!

Need a Healthy Snack?

Try these roasted kale chips in place of potato chips!
Delicate yet crispy with lots of salty goodness.

Dinner was at Mom & Dad's yesterday and when I walked into their kitchen I saw this crispy and slightly browned bowl of "weeds" sitting on the counter.
"What in the world is that?", I asked.

Mom informed me that it was roasted kale.
Well, I'm not a big fan of kale but I had to try this.
CRUNCH...CRUNCH
MMMMMMmmmmm....it was actually good!
Good enough that my husband even liked them and trust me that's saying something. He's a man who calls vegetables "rabbit food" and eats very little of them. Actually, now that I think of it he probably never even knew what kale was let alone what it tasted like before yesterday.


Roasted Kale Chips

Wash and dry kale.
Place on a greased baking sheet in a single layer.
Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle generously with sea salt.
Roast in a 275 degree oven for 20 minutes.
Carefully turn kale over and bake another 20 minutes or until crisp.
Cool and enjoy!

Greek Salad and a Good Movie

I made this salad tonight for dinner and it was so good.
I wasn't so sure that I would like the homemade dressing on it but I did.
Lots of different flavors all mixed into one.

Greek Salad

1/4 cup olive oil
6 cups cubed french bread
1 head of lettuce, chopped
1 cucumber, sliced
6 mini red, yellow and orange sweet peppers
8 mini tomatoes cut into small wedges (the ones that are just a bit bigger than the grape tomatoes)
1 jar green olives, drained
6 oz. crumbled Feta cheese

Dressing:
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. dried oregano
1  tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a skillet. Add bread crumbs and toss around until lightly browned. Remove from heat and cool.
Wash, seed and dice peppers into small pieces.
Place peppers in a skillet with a small drizzle of olive oil and heat just until peppers begin to brown.
Remove from heat and allow them to cool. ( I placed mine in the freezer for a few minutes.)
While those are cooling begin cutting the lettuce, cucumber and tomatoes.
In large bowl, toss together lettuce, peppers, cucumber, tomatoes & peppers.
Add Feta cheese and bread cubes and set aside while you make the dressing.
For Dressing:
Whisk together the 1/2 cup olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper.
Pour over salad and toss to coat everything.
*You be the judge of how much dressing to use. I used all but about 2 tbsp. of it on mine.*
Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes so that flavors mingle.
Enjoy!

Now to the GOOD movie.
We watched Country Strong last night, starring Tim McGraw and Gwyneth Paltrow and it was sooo good. Not the end that I expected but still a great movie. I loved each and every song that they played throughout the movie so I had to go today and grab the soundtrack. I also added two of the songs to my Playlist here on my blog.
Which reminds me, I love, love, love to listen to music thus the reason for the Playlist on my sidebar. However, I know some people would rather not listen to the music ~ sometimes it's distracting if you are trying to read. So if you'd rather visit without the noise then just scroll down to my Playlist and shut the music off. That way you can read in peace and quiet.

Well, it's a cold and windy evening here so we're all indoors for the night. I think I'll get ready for bed early and maybe watch Country Strong again....it's going on my wish list because it's definitely one of those movies that I could watch over and over again.
I'll be back later to catch up with all of you!

Freezing Zucchini

What do you do when you are up to your ears in zucchini???

FREEZE IT!

I'm not sure if my method is correct but it works for me. I did this with last years crop and had enough stored up to last us all winter.
Here's how I do it.

Wash & peel zucchini  (can leave the peel on if you prefer).
Slice it in circles, slabs or chunks.
I like to use the circles to saute in butter, the slabs make nice ZUCCHINI SANDWICHES and the chunks can be thrown into a variety of dishes (soups, casseroles, etc.).
When freezing the slices or slabs I layer them on waxed paper. When a sheet is full I just add another piece of waxed paper and continue layering. I then place all the layers into a freezer bag and freeze.

I can easily remove a sheet at a time or use the whole bag if needed.

To freeze the chunks I place them on a cookie sheet (spread them out) and put in the freezer. Once frozen you can remove them from the tray and place in a freezer bag. Freezing them first prevents them from freezing all together into one big ice chunk. Now you can just grab a handful of zucchini chunks for your next recipe without having to defrost the whole bag.
I use this same method when freezing peppers

(Slice/Freeze/Bag) that way when I go to make a pot of soup or such I just open the bag and easily pour just the amount of peppers that I need into the pan. I then reseal the rest of the bag and place back in the freezer for another recipe.

                               * Today's Batch*

We are still "on vacation" for a few more days. I am so enjoying the week without schedules, bedtimes or alarm clocks. It's been too hot to do much outside other than swim so I've been inside watching movies, playing games and sewing. I manage to get outdoors late in the evening to water the plants and sit a bit in the cooler air. (If you want to call that cool air!) I can't believe how hot this season has been so far!
As I sit here typing, the rain is beginning to fall outside which is so good. The gardens and lawns are super thirsty so this will do them good. I just hope it cools things off a bit.
Hope you all are staying cool and Enjoy your weekend!

Bean Salad

Not to be confused with a 3 Bean Salad.....because I can't stand the taste of the wax beans that they use in them.
I just left those out and then added a little red wine vinegar to give a little extra zing to this dish.

Bean Salad

38 oz. can green beans

15 oz. kidney beans

2 tbsp. finely chopped onion

1/2 cup sugar

1/3 cup apple cider vinegar

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

1 1/2 tsp. sea salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1 tsp. parsley

Place beans in a large bowl.

In smaller bowl, mix all other ingredients and then pour over beans.

Mix well and refrigerate.

Mother's Day this year was spent indoors as the temperatures here are a little on the chilly side.

I spent the day sitting in front of my sewing machine and watching some great *sappy* movies on the Hallmark Channel followed by a dinner with the family at my Mom & Dad's.

Today, or better yet this whole week will be another busy one finishing up with our schooling. I'll probably be very sporadic with my posting until we get it finished. There is just not enough time in the day and I would like to truly focus on school so that we can get it done.

Then we can enjoy the summer.

Catch you all later!

Picnic Food ~ Potato Salad

Well another weekend has come and gone and it's back to the ol' grind again.
I cooked  a bit over the weekend but nothing too hard or fancy. Just some good old summertime picnic food.
Some I'll be sharing with you this week.
It's a gloomy, rainy day here in WV. It will be a nice day for catching up on indoor activities as well as making a big pot of soup for supper ~ Cheeseburger soup I believe.
*Did you hear that Mom?*  --  I'll be sure to save you some.

No big happenings over the weekend.
Just a little shopping, cooking and relaxing.
We did manage to get a bike ride in yesterday which was nice. The weather was perfect!
Oh, and my MIL's dog has come again to stay with us for a few months. When my MIL passed away last year she asked my BIL to take care of the dog. However, we kind of have a joint custody thing going on. They keep her but every so often they bring her up to stay with us for a few months. She seems happy in both places so it just works.
That's about all that is new or exciting (woo-hoo) here in my world. I'll leave you with the recipe for my potato salad and hope you have a cheerful MONDAY!

Potato Salad

8 lbs. potatoes, diced & boiled

4-5 hard boiled eggs

1/4 -1/2 cup finely diced onions

2 cups Miracle Whip

1 cup pickle relish

1 tbsp. prepared mustard

1/2 tsp. celery seed

2-3 tbsp. sugar

milk

In a small bowl, mix Miracle Whip, onion, relish, mustard & celery seed.

Gradually add sugar 1 tbsp. at a time, tasting between each addition. Use as much or as little as you prefer.

One you have all sauce ingredients combined then you can begin to thin it down a little. I pour a little milk in and then whisk it all together. Keep adding a little milk each time until you have the right consistency.

Pour sauce over diced potato and eggs and mix well.

You can add salt and pepper to taste too!

Refrigerate & enjoy!

Crispy Crunchy Onion Rings

Here are the onion rings that I mentioned last week. They were so good the last time that I made them that my husband asked me to make them again this past weekend.
I aim to please so I finished off the last of the bag of onions and now he will have to wait a while before I make them again.
My waistline says wait a long while. These are so good but definitely not the healthiest. I have tried to make baked onion rings before and they were good but nothing compares to good old deep fried onion rings.
I did not measure any of my ingredients so I'm going to tell you what I used and you will have to judge on the amount yourself. You really can't mess them up.

                           Crispy Crunchy Onion Rings

                                      sweet onions
                                        buttermilk
                                     self-rising flour
                                      seasoned salt
                                       black pepper
                                   ground red pepper
                                          paprika
                                       oil to fry in

I start by cleaning and slicing all the onions into rings.
Next place buttermilk in a bowl and set aside.
In a large bowl, mix flour and all spices together.
Heat oil.
When oil is hot dip the onion rings in the buttermilk.
Next coat them in the flour mixture.
Dip them back into the buttermilk and once more in the flour.
Place in hot oil and fry till golden brown. I turn mine over half ways through the cooking time so that both sides brown nicely.
When done remove to a paper towel lined dish to soak up any of the extra grease.
That's it! It's super easy and so so tasty.
I think that the trick to tasty rings are in the self-rising flour (as opposed to regular flour) and the double dipping.
That all for today. I'm off to teach the kids and then if there is enough time I need to head to the store for a few things for Easter dinner this weekend.
Enjoy your day!
 

Honey Glazed Carrots

Just a quick recipe to share today and then I'm off to work on my quilt for the day. Schools have been cancelled again due to the forecast of another 5-10" of the white stuff. So for me, it's a day off from teaching and I hope to make the most of it.

Honey Glazed Carrots

12 carrots

1/4 cup butter

1 tbsp. brown sugar

1 tbsp. honey

2 tbsp. water

parsley

Clean carrots and cut into 3 inch pieces.

Cook carrots in water till tender.

Drain and place in a bowl.

In a saucepan, melt butter, brown sugar, honey and water.

Stir until well combined.

Add carrots & let simmer on low.

Turn carrots so that glaze coats all sides.

Remove from pan and sprinkle with parsley.

Zucchini & Carrot Casserole

I love zucchini!

When zucchini season rolls around everyone usually has tons of it to give away from their gardens. Which is a good thing because for the past 2 years I have had NO luck at all growing it.

I like to cube it or shred it up and freeze it for later in the year when the prices are so high.

But I also use lots of it while it's fresh. Whether it's in a cake, casserole or just sauteed in a little butter or olive oil.

So here's a casserole that I threw together one day last week and thought that I'd share it with you. You could actually throw in other favorite veggies if you wanted.

Zucchini & Carrot Casserole

1 large zucchini, cut in bite size chunks

1 cup (or more) shredded carrots

1 tsp. dried minced onion

1 can cream of celery soup

1/3 cup water

1 to 1 1/2 cups Velveeta, cubed

bread crumbs

salt & pepper

Grease a 13X9 pan.

Place zucchini chunks & carrot shreds in pan.

Sprinkle with salt, pepper & minced onion.

In a bowl, whisk together soup & water & pour over vegetables.

Put Velveeta cubes on top & sprinkle with bread crumbs.

Cover & bake for 50-60 minutes.

Uncover and bake another 10 minutes.