Whenever I make a dinner that my husband gets excited about it makes me happy. When he ate this one he said "Put it in the binder!" referring to the binder of our family favorites. I was happy about that because it was EASY!

I pulled this recipe from Family Circle Magazine back in October 2010 and it took me until now to try it. I was prompted by the desire to use up stuff in my freezer and chicken was on the list. I cheaped out on the bean spouts and cucumbers the recipe calls for but maybe when I make it this summer and we have more cucumbers than we know what to do with.

If you have leftover chicken this recipe is perfect.

Ok I think I have gone on and on about this enough. Add it to your menu plan for next week and you will be happy.

Peanut Noodles and Chicken

1/2 Pound Linguine
2 T Soy Sauce
2 T Lemon Juice
1/2 t Cornstarch
1/3 Cup Peanut Butter
2 Cloves Garlic, finely chopped
1/2 t Sugar
1/4 t Red Pepper Flakes
1 t Sesame Oil
1 Pound Cooked Chicken, shredded
1/2 Cucumber, peeled and cut into 2-inch matchsticks
1/2 Cup Bean Sprouts

Cook linguine following package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water.

Mix together the soy sauce, lemon juice and cornstarch. In a medium size saucepan, combine peanut butter, garlic, sugar, reed pepper flakes and 1/2 cup hot water. Whisk in the soy sauce mixture and bring to a simmer. Whisk until smooth. Remove from the heat; stir in the sesame oil.

In a large bowl, toss together linguine, chicken and peanut butter mixture. Scatter cucumber and bean spouts over the top and serve at room temperature.

Tonight I made a new recipe for my little family - me, my husband, and our cat who was looking at me and so I let him smell it. Needless to say, he did not like it. Should I be offended? : ) Anyways, I was looking through recipes online and found this recipe on Eating Well. I think I made too much dressing because the arugula was a little soggy. It is a fun and interesting idea to have arugula in your pasta so I might try this again. It definitely helped us reach our veggie count for the day. Overall, I am not sure about this recipe but the reviews are great on the Eating Well website. My final suggestion would be to add bacon or walnuts. That would make this dish much better. If you decide to try it, let us know in the comments section below.

After church on Sunday I was in the mood for gooey warm delicious macaroni and cheese. I had a loaf of Pepper Jack cheese in the fridge that I wanted to use up so I decided to try it in mac and cheese. Of course my cooking began by scouring the Internet for what looked like the best recipe. I ended up deciding on an Alton Brown recipe from Food Network.com.

It was a bit more labor intensive than my quick macaroni and cheese that I have been making for years but so worth it. Right out of the oven with a crunchy top and oozing with cheese center. Perfect meal for a cold Sunday afternoon.

Baked Macaroni and Cheese by Alton Brown
(*with small changes by Sheena)

• 1/2 pound elbow macaroni
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 tablespoon powdered mustard
• 3 cups milk
• 1/2 cup yellow onion, finely diced
• 1 bay leaf
  
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
  
• 1 large egg
• 12 ounces pepper jack cheese, shredded*
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  
• Fresh black pepper

Topping:

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 cup crushed cornflakes*

Directions

This week I made a Warm Tortellini and Cherry Tomato Salad from Cooking Light. It was a great easy weeknight meal. I tried to take a picture after I made this but it didn't turn out as great as theirs shown above.

I love using recipes from Cooking Light as they have all the nutritional content already listed so you know it's healthy. This is low in calories and packed with veggies.

I did make a few changes. I didn't add the artichoke hearts because I don't really like them. I also added more balsamic vinegar and cheese.

I would recommend trying this recipe as a meal or even as a side if you want some meat in your meal. My husband said it was even better the second day for lunch. We will definitely have this again. Give it a try and let us know what you think.

For my birthday my hubby gave me a pasta press for my kitchen aid mixer. I finally got a chance to try it after our trip to Hawaii. The pasta was so good and so much cooler than rolling it out by hand. It had such good flavor that I didn't want to pile it with a rich sauce. I started searching online and ended up finding this recipe for Capellini Pomodoro on Olive Garden's website. I was so excited because it is one of my favorite things to order there.

It turned out even better than I imagined it would. You must try this! It is so easy and very light and fresh tasting. It is a meal you feel good about eating.

Capellini Pomodoro

8 Medium Tomatoes
11 Basil leaves, fresh chopped
14 oz Dry Capellini pasta
2 1/2 clove(s) Garlic
6 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt and freshley ground pepper

Chop tomatoes, season with salt, pepper, chopped basil, garlic and oil.Cook the Capellini in salted boiling water and drain. Toss with tomato mixture.

To see what other people are making visit Good Cheap Eats.

Last week I decided to throw together a simple pasta salad to serve with our dinner. It turned out perfect and was super easy! I liked it so much I even ate leftovers the next day which I almost never do.

I was also happy about this side dish because it used up several items that had been lingering in my pantry and fridge.

There are no measurements with this recipe just add as much or as little as you like. Feel free to add other ingredients too-this is very flexible. Have fun!

Simple Pasta Salad
Orzo
Cucumber
Zucchini
Onion
Green Pepper
Avocado
Italian Dressing

Cook the orzo according to the packed directions. Drain, and run under cold water to cool quickly. Dice all remaining ingredients to desired size. Toss the cold orzo, veggies, and Italian dressing to taste. Chill until ready to eat.

I was flipping through an old issue of Taste of Home and saw this recipe for Basil Pasta. Since I had just purchased a nice big basil plant at Trader Joe's earlier that day the recipe went on my list for that week. They ended up being very easy to put together and so delicious. I love homemade pasta and I love basil so really how could I go wrong?!?

Basil Noodles
Taste of Home August & September 2008

1 1/4 Cups Fresh Basil Leaves
3 Cups Flour
3 Eggs
1/2 Cup plus 1 Tablespoon Water
2 Teaspoons Olive Oil

Place basil in a food processor; cover and process until finely chopped. Add flour, process until blended. Add eggs , water and oil. Process for 15-20 seconds or until dough forms a ball. Turn onto a floured surface, knead until smooth and elastic, about 8-10 minutes. Cover and let rest for 30 minutes. Divide into fourths.

On a floured surface, roll each portion of dough to 1/16 in thickness (I dream of having a pasta press for this step). The recipe says to roll up jelly-roll style and cut into 1/4 in slices. This didn't work for me though so I just sliced them all rolled out.

Hang to dry or let stand on a clean towel for 1 hour. Cook noodles in boiled salted water for 4-5 minutes or until tender, drain.

Eat and enjoy!

To see more great dishes visit Good Cheap Eats.

A couple weeks ago I had on my menu plan an experiment with pasta and sausage. It ended up being one of the easiest and tastiest meals of the week. Very summery too!

There really isn't even a recipe to it but I will share what I did in hopes that it inspires you to whip some up for dinner. I took a bag of frozen tortellini and cooked it according to the packaged directions. While the pasta was cooking, I fried the sausage on the stove top. When the pasta was done and the sausage sufficiently warmed I tossed them both together with some homemade pesto sauce and fresh Parmesan cheese.

My husband thought I made an A+ dinner and I was only in the kitchen for about 15 minutes. A perfect night!

3 cups baby spinach

I have had a container of half and half in my fridge for several weeks now (yes that is a huge jar of pickle relish next to it. My husband loves pickle relish and thanks to a trip to Costco we will have relish forever). It was supposed to be used in another recipe the week I purchased it but that didn't happen. Since then it just sits there begging me to use it. When I made my meal plan this week I knew using it up was a priority, I couldn't take the guilt of letting it sit in the fridge until it expired.

I was flipping through my America's Test Kitchen cookbook and found a recipe for light Alfredo. It sounded good so I put it on my menu plan. The recipe also suggested serving it with fresh pasta. I used the recipe that was also in the Test Kitchen cookbook but it is almost identical to this post at Finding Joy in my Kitchen.

The whole meal was amazing! My husband and I both loved it. We couldn't even tell it was light. There are not a lot of recipes that make it to my binder of favorites but this one is going in there for sure. Now all I need is a pasta press to make homemade pasta a much faster process.

Light Fettuccine Alfredo
from America's Test Kitchen Cookbook

3/4 Cup Half and Half
1/8 Teaspoon Nutmeg
Salt
1 Teaspoon Cornstarch
9 Ounces Fresh Fettuccine
1 Cup Shredded Parmesan Cheese
Pepper

Cook pasta according to the directions at Finding Joy in My Kitchen. While you are waiting for the water to boil, simmer 1/2 cup of the half and half, nutmeg, and 1/4 teaspoons salt in a large saucepan. Whisk the cornstarch and remaining 1/4 cup half and half together, then whisk it into the simmering mixture. Continue to simmer the sauce, whisking constantly, until it has thickened about 1 minute. Cover and keep warm off the heat.

When the water is boiling stir in 1 tablespoon salt and the fettuccine. Cook per instructions at Finding Joy in My Kitchen. Reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water before draining .

When pasta is done return the half and half mixture to medium low head and whisk in the pasta cooking water. Slowly whisk in the Parmesan. Add the pasta and cook, gently tossing the pasta with tongs, until the sauce has thickened slightly and thoroughly coats the pasta, about 1 minute. Season with pepper to taste.

Enjoy!

This is a family favorite recipe that I come back to again and again. When I was in college I spent a semester in NYC and the meal I requested when I came home was this. I should also tell you that I hate leftovers but with this I am happy to eat away!

My husband is not a crab lover so I always mix tuna into his half which makes us both happy. I am sorry it is not a photogenic meal but it sure is good!



Crab Casserole

1 10 1/2 Ounce Can Cream of Mushroom
1/3 Cup Mayo
1/3 Cup Milk
Seafood to your liking (I use imitation crab because it is so much cheaper than real crab and canned tuna for my hubby. The original recipe calls for 6 oz shrimp and 7 oz crab)
2 Teaspoons Grated Onion
2 Cups Cooked Macaroni (You can use more or less it will just make the dish more or less creamy. I tend to use more because I like my pasta drier)
Paprika

Cook pasta according to package directions. While pasta is cooking mix together the cream of mushroom, mayo, milk, seafood, and onion. When pasta is done drain it and add to cream mixture. Put everything into a casserole dish and sprinkle with paprika. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 min.

There is one more easy meal of mine that didn't make it on the blog last week. It is one of my favorite things to eat at home or at a restaurant....PESTO! I love, love, love it! During the summer my Grandma and I always make several huge batches and freeze it in individual portions. They are perfect for a quick meal. All you do it grab one from the freezer, defrost, and pour onto hot pasta. You can also buy it at the store and do the same thing on a hectic night but I just love the homemade version.

My favorite pasta to put the pesto on is ravioli or tortellini. Mmmmm...it sounds so good just writing about it I might have to bump something off of my menu plan for the week so we can eat this again.

This pesto recipe from the Food Network isn't the exact one I use with my Grandma but it is very similar minus the walnuts. If you have planted Basil for the summer this is a great way to use it and something you can enjoy all winter long.

Barefoot Contessa Pesto nocoupons

• 1/4 cup walnuts
• 1/4 cup pine nuts
• 3 tablespoons chopped garlic (9 cloves)
• 5 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 cups good olive oil
• 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Place the walnuts, pine nuts, and garlic in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Process for 30 seconds. Add the basil leaves, salt, and pepper. With the processor running, slowly pour the olive oil into the bowl through the feed tube and process until the pesto is thoroughly pureed. Add the Parmesan and puree for a minute. Serve, or store the pesto in the refrigerator or freezer with a thin film of olive oil on top.

I tried a second recipe from Country Living this week called Vegetable Mac n Cheese. The overall result tasted very similar to a restaurant macaroni and cheese. I wouldn't say that the vegetables make this dinner any healthier though. It also took a long time to make. Next time I will make it ahead of time and just cook it for the last 30 minutes on the day of dinner. I would also add more veggies and cut the cheese a little bit. Overall, good dinner.

Sheena - hope this helps out with your leftover noodles!

Click here for the recipe.

If you have been reading my blog posts for long you can see a recurring theme-I am always looking for creative ways to use leftovers. I hate to see small bits of vegetables or meat thrown away after our dinners. I know I can always make soup but when the weather starts to get nice soup isn't on my mind. What I like to make then is stir-fry.

I usually pull a little of this and a little of that to make my stir-fry. I always include either noodles or rice, lots of veggies, and a meat. From there the possibilities are endless and there are no measurements needed. I just thrown stuff in until it looks right to me. I usually end up getting carried away with all the veggies and the dish just grows and grows.

Tonight I made stir-fry using the following list of ingredients but like I said above substitute anything you have on hand and take out anything you don't like.

Yakisoba Noodles
Frozen Green Beans (from our garden last summer..woo hoo! I was happy about that!)
Frozen Corn
Frozen Peas
Asparagus
Carrots
Fresh Pineapple-super good!
Shredded Pork (in the freezer from a previous meal)
Teriyaki Sauce

I usually cook the veggies first while the noodles are boiling (if I use rice then it is while the rice is cooking). To cook the veggies I cut them up into my desired size, usually small and bite size, and toss them in the frying pan. When they reach my desiered tenderness I add the drained noodles, meat, and teryaki sauce. Then I let the whole pan sizzle away until we are ready to eat but usually less than 10 minutes.

This meal come together so quickly and it makes you feel good knowing you are being so resourceful. The next time you have a little bit of this and a little bit of that try this and smile at your thriftiness.

A couple weeks ago I put Thai Chicken Fettuccine on my menu plan. The recipe I made was from Taste of Home and boy was it good! I am always looking for ways to use up extra cooked chicken that I have in the freezer. This seemed like a perfect way to get stuff out of the freezer and on the table.

These directions below are right from the Taste of Home website but I am putting them below to keep things easy. Take a look at their site for a better picture than I could ever take.

Thai Chicken Fettuccine

• 1 cup salsa
• 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons orange juice
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 8 ounces uncooked fettuccine
• 3/4 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1 medium sweet red pepper, julienned
• 1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro

Directions

• For sauce, in a microwave-safe bowl, combine the first five ingredients. Cover and microwave on high for 1 minute; stir. Set aside.
• Cook fettuccine according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook chicken in oil over medium heat for 3-5 minutes or until chicken juices run clear (obviously I didn't do this because I used pre-cooked chicken but if you don't have any than follow these directions). Add red pepper; cook and stir until crisp-tender.
• Drain fettuccine; top with chicken mixture and sauce. Sprinkle with cilantro.

As promised here is the recipe I made last week that was new to us. I usually make a semi-healthy macaroni and cheese but needed to use up some American cheese I had in the freezer. This turned out so so good! My husband loved it as well as my Dad. To me is tasted more restaurant style then my usual recipe.

I am afraid of making my healthy version now that my husband loves this!

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

1 Pound Macaroni
2 Tablespoons Butter
2 Tablespoons Flour
2 Cups of Milk
1 Pound Sliced American Cheese
2 Tablespoons Parmesan Cheese

Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add macaroni and cook, stirring occasionally for 7-10 minutes, or until macaroni is just cooked. Pour macaroni into a colander and drain.

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Melt butter in the same saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and stir constantly until mixture starts to bubble. Add 1/2 cup of the milk and stir until smooth. Add remaining milk and cook, stirring frequently for 10 to 15 minutes or until it comes to a boil.

Remove pan from heat, add American cheese slices, and stir until cheese is completely melted. Add macaroni and stir gently until it is completely coated with cheese.

Place macaroni in a large baking dish and sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.

This meal began as an experiment in using up leftovers. It started when I made queso over the weekend for my husband and I to enjoy. Thankfully the two of us didn't eat a pound of cheese dip and come Tuesday I still had a bowl left. I decided I was going to combine it with pasta and some taco seasoned ground beef I had in the freezer to make Mexican Macaroni and Cheese. It turned out yummy with a little spice which was nice. I am listing the recipe as if you were making it from scratch since not everyone has leftover meat and dip.

Enjoy this super easy dinner in no time!

Mexican Macaroni and Cheese

1/2 Pound Ground Beef, cooked and seasoned with taco seasoning
3/4 Pound Velveeta
1 Can Rotel
8 Ounces Pasta (two cups)
Salt and Pepper to Taste

Cook pasta according to packaged directions. While pasta is cooking melt Velveeta and Rotel in the microwave stirring often. When the pasta is cooked drain and return to pan. Over low heat add the Velveeta and Rotel mixture along with the cooked ground beef to the pasta. Stir to combine. Finally add salt and pepper to taste. From here you can eat it or pour it into a casserole dish and bake until the top gets a little crunchy which I LOVE!

This week has been very stressful so tonight on the dinner menu was some of my Grandmother's home cooking. She makes the most amazing spaghetti and it was famous when I was a kid. What's the trick to this pasta? You guessed it...lots of bad for you stuff that tastes really yummy. Her two secrets are #1, use butter when you brown the ground beef and also add butter to the noodles so that they won't stick. Take a jar of premade spaghetti sauce and add to your browned meat. If you can, add onions and garlic at this point if you wish. Secret ingredient #2, add to the sauce...plain white SUGAR. It sounds weird but it makes it really good. And don't be afraid to add a lot but make sure you taste it along the way.

Lastly, make sure you have a lot of leftovers. For some reason this recipe is so much better the second day and heated up on the stove. Enjoy!

Do you ever have one of those nights when everything you make turns out good? I know you were expecting me to say bad and lets just say I have had many of those nights when everything I make isn't even worth eating but tonight was different, tonight was amazing!

I had two goals today with my plan for dinner 1) use stuff out of our freezer to help clear out older stuff 2) use up sour cream in our fridge which was on the verge of going bad. I ended up making Chili Con Queso Mac from an old Rachel Ray episode (I printed the recipe in 2007 so it has been a while) to use up Chili in my freezer. I also made Easy Homemade Cheese Bread from Lynn's Kitchen Adventures to use up the sour cream. I am always happy with the recipes I take from her site. She is a great cook/chef!

If you want a guaranteed success whip both of these dishes up ASAP!

Chili Con Queso Mac

1 Pound Corkscrew Pasta, cooked until al dente
1 Tablespoon Vegetable or Olive Oil
2 Tablespoons Butter
3 Tablespoons Flour
2 1/2 Cups Whole or 2% Milk (I used 2%)
3 Cups Yellow Cheddar Cheese, divided
1-2 Cups Leftover Chili

1) Preheat broiler on high or oven at 400 degrees.

2) Heat a medium, deep skillet over medium heat. Add oil and butter. When the butter melts into the oil, add the flour and combine. Gently cook, whisking flour and butter together, until smooth and flour has had a chance to cook, about 1 minutes. Slowly add milk while continuing to whisk.

3) Gently bring milk to a bubble while stirring frequently. Allow the milk to thicken a bit then stir in 2 cups of cheese, a handful at a time.

4) Add 1-2 Cups of leftover chili, stir to combine thoroughly.

5) Taste and add a little salt, if you like. Add cooked pasta to sauce and coat completely by turning over and over in the cheese sauce.

6) Transfer to a baking dish and top with remaining cheese. Place baking dish under a hot broiler and brown the cheddar cheese on top or place in the oven for a few minutes.