December 31, 2013

Top 13 of 2013

With 2013 coming to an end I decided to make a little list of our top 13 moments from 2013. I'm also making a list of our top 13 favorite recipes from this past year too.




Top 13 Family Moments

Disney vacation- here, here, here, here, here, here and here
Christmas (haven't posted about it yet)
Our museum trips- here and here




Top 13 Favorite Recipes



What were your favorites? Happy New Year!! 









December 10, 2013

Cheeseburger Casserole

This recipe turned out amazing!! It tasted just like burgers!


2 cups (6 ounces) uncooked rotini pasta (spiral pasta)
1 pound ground beef
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
2 tablespoons ketchup
4-5 large Roma tomatoes, deseeded and diced (I used canned)
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 cups low fat cheddar cheese, shredded


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a cooking dish with nonstick spray. Boil the pasta al dente. Drain and set aside.  Brown ground beef until brown. Drain and return to stove.  Mix in the seasoned salt, ketchup, and mustard. Add in the tomatoes.  Simmer for a couple minutes.  Add the noodles to the mixture and stir.


Pour into baking dish. Sprinkle cheese on top.  Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted.





December 6, 2013

Chicken & Spinach Pasta Bake

The week I made this I was on a pasta kick. There are so many pasta meals out there and I love them all.


8 oz uncooked rigatoni (any kind of pasta would be okay)
1 (10 oz) pack frozen spinach, thawed
3 c cubed, cooked chicken breasts
1 (14 oz) can Italian-style diced tomatoes, undrained
1 (8 oz) container Philadelphia chive & onion cream cheese
½ t salt, ½ t pepper
1½ c shredded mozzarella cheese


Cook pasta al dente Drain and set aside. Drain chopped spinach well. Mix pasta, spinach, chicken, tomatoes, cream cheese, salt & pepper in bowl. Spoon mixture into dish & sprinkle evenly with shredded mozzarella cheese. Bake covered at 375 for 30 minutes; uncover & bake 15 more minutes.




Homemade Mac & Cheese

I always have a hard time deciding what to make for lunch on the weekends since everyone is home. I had all these ingredients already in the cabinet so I searched for a recipe on Pinterest. This recipe caught my eye and it turned out pretty good.


1 8oz. pkg of elbow pasta
1 stick of butter
1 (14 oz.) can of evaporated milk
1 lb. block of Velveeta cheese, cut into 1″-2″ cubes


Cook the pasta until al dente.   Drain the water but keep ¼ cup in the bottom of the pot. Add the butter, the can of evaporated milk and the cheese.  Sprinkle some salt and pepper in there. Heat over medium flame until the cheese is completely melted and blended in.  Remove from heat and allow to sit for about 5 minutes. Stir and serve.