Breakfast Sausage Toast

I'm not sure the real name for this recipe, so breakfast sausage toast seems appropriate.  Today we had a Sunday School breakfast for some friends that are moving to KY.  I made a variation of a recipe from Ben's cousin.  Apparently it was a hit because I came home with an empty dish.

1 pound sausage
1 jar of English Cheese
English Muffins (I used some left over sliced french bread)

Cook sausage, then add cheese, mix until all melted.  Put mixture on  muffins.

Leah (Ben's cousin) normally puts the English muffins in the oven (plain) for a crisp finish, then she puts on the mixture.

Quick and simple...my kind of cooking!

Amanda

Vegetable Lasagna

I made this recipe up last weekend with stuff I had on hand. It turned out pretty awesome! So this is kind of what I did. This is a fow-fat version, but so tasty!

Vegetable Lasagna

Sauce

1 T. olive oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 zuccini, sliced

1 yellow squash, sliced

1 28 oz. can Hunt's crushed tomatoes

2 T. fresh oregano, chopped

2 T. fresh basil, chopped

1 small can Hunt's tomato sauce

1 14 oz. can quartered artichoke hearts

salt & pepper to taste

Cheese Mixture

1 14 oz. carton low-fat Ricotta cheese

1 c. fat free sour cream

1/2 c. parmasean cheese

1 c. shredded mozarella cheese

1/4 c. egg beaters

1 9 oz. pkg. oven ready whole wheat lasagna noodles

On medium heat, put olive oil in large skillet and saute onion, garlic, zuccini and squash until tender. Add tomatoes and tomato sauce to skillet. Add herbs & seasonings and artichokes. Simmer 20 minutes.

Mix cheese and eggs together in a bowl and set aside.

To assemble lasagna, spray non-stick spray in a 9 x 13 casserole dish. Layer sauce in the bottom of the pan, place 1/3 of the noodles in the pan. Cover the noodles with 1/3 of cheese mixture, then 1/3 of the remaining sauce. Repeat layers until the sauce ends on the top. Cover with 1 cup of mozzerella. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 1.5 hours.

Best Salsa Ever!

My Mom (Carol) has been making this salsa my whole life. We never ate Pace or store-bought salsa growing up.....and we still never do! I think my mom's salsa is the best ever and it is so simple to make. She has passed the torch to me and I make this for pretty much any occasion. It is a must at our family reunion! People continually ask us for the family recipe.....so here it is! I never measure anything....so these are just suggested amounts. You can adjust it to your liking!

Carol's Homemade Salsa

1 - 28 oz. can of Hunt's Diced Tomatoes

Juice of one lime

Trappey's sliced jalapenos - I put a few forkfuls in....just depends how spicy you want it!

handful of fresh cilantro

2-3 green onions roughly chopped

dash of cumin

Put all your "green" ingredients in the food processor or blender, and pulse a few times until your desired consistency. Add tomates and pulse a few more times until well blended. Pour into a dish and serve!

You will never by salsa again! Just remember....the longer it sits....the hotter it gets!

Frozen Fruit Salad

This month we decided to do breakfast & dessert. I don't really eat dessert, but every now and then I'll need a sugar fix.

I didn't actually make the frozen fruit salad, but Elizabeth gave me a whole bag of leftovers to satisfy my sugar fix for the next few months.

Introducing the frozen fruit salad...

Ingredients
2 c. water
1 c. sugar
1 large apricot nectar
1 large crushed pineapple
16 oz sliced frozen strawberries (thawed)
bananas

Bring water and sugar to a boil. Simmer 5 minutes and cool. Add apricot nectar, crushed pineapple and strawberries; mix well. Fill muffin tins with paper. Place 1 banana slice on bottom of muffin cup. Spoon fruit mixture to fill cup 3/4 full. Place another banana slice on top. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze. When solid, pop out and freeze in zip-loc bag.

I've basically been eating two a day for the past month.  As soon as I run out, I'll be able to make my own.  Very tasty!

Amanda

Homemade Mac & Cheese

I don't know about you, but I have been on a quest to find a good homemade macaroni and cheese recipe. Lots of them have bread crumbs that make them dry and that's just not my cup of tea or bowl of macaroni. Anyway, I found a good recipe! My SILs friend, Carli makes a fabulous mac and cheese and she just gave me the recipe. Here it is:

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked macaroni
2 tablespoons flour

2 tablespoons butter

2 1/2 cups milk

3 cups shredded cheese (she uses sharp cheddar, I used colby jack because it's what I had)

More cheese for the top

Directions:

Using a sauce pan, mix the flour and butter. Gradually add the milk until the flour and butter are mixed in. Add the cheese to form a sauce. You can let it simmer to thicken, but you don't have to. After the sauce is formed, mix in the macaroni. Pour macaroni & cheese in a 9x13 casserole dish. Top with cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until cheese is melted.