Pasta Fagioli Crockpot Italian Soup Thing

This recipe is really great, and is a knock off of something they serve at Olive Garden.  It is really great and everyone in my family loved it. 

1 lb. ground beef
1 lb. ground turkey
1 onion, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
4 celery stalks, chopped
2-28 oz can of diced tomatoes
16 oz. red kidney beans
16 oz. cannellini beans
30 oz. beef broth
3 tsp. oregano
2 tsp. pepper
5 tsp. parsley
1 tsp. Tabasco Sauce
20 oz. jar of spaghetti sauce

Brown the meat and add everything to your crock pot.  This will make A LOT of soup, so make sure you have a big crock pot.  Cook on low for 7-8 hours or high for 4-5 hours.  Boil some pasta (whole wheat elbows or shells) and mix it in the bowls when you serve.  Top with parmesan or mozzarella cheese. 

Almond truffles

These are super yummy - almost like buckeyes or peanut butter-chocolate truffles without all the self loathing at the end.  All of the ingredients I found at our Kroger in the organic section.  They are gluten free, low sugar, high protein.   Paleo friendly.  Enjoy. 

TRUFFLE MIX:
1/2 c. coconut flour
1/2 c. almond flour
1 c. almond butter
2 tsp. coconut oil (melted)
1 T honey
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 c. Enjoy Life chocolate chips (like these)

COATING:
1/2 c. Enjoy Life chocolate chips
1 T coconut oil

Mix the truffle stuff together in a bowl.  Roll into balls and chill for 15-20 minutes.  Melt the coating in the microwave (it takes almost no time - watch it closely - like 1 min or less!).  Roll the balls in the chocolate coating and chill a little longer. So good.

--from Pinterest and my friend Dawn Candler. 

Cauliflower "rice"

Recipe: Herbed Garlic Cauliflower Rice

• Prep Time: 5 min(s)
• Cook Time: 10 min(s)
• Total Time: 15 min(s)
• Servings: 4-6

A healthy cauliflower side dish flavored with fresh herbs and salt and pepper.

Ingredients

• 1 head cauliflower, cut into florets
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh herbs (any combination: cilantro, parsley, basil, oregano, sage, thyme)

Instructions

• Grate the cauliflower florets or pulse in a food processor until it resembles rice.
• Place the grated cauliflower and water in a microwave-safe covered dish.
• Cook cauliflower in microwave on high for 4 minutes.
• Heat olive oil on medium heat in a large saute pan.
• Add the garlic and cook until fragrant.
• Stir in the riced cauliflower and cook for 3-5 minutes until tender, stirring occasionally.
• Remove the pan from heat and fold in the fresh herbs before serving.

Dinner plans

Below are some upcoming dinner plans for the Green household.  We sometimes shift these ideas around, but the plan is that at the beginning of the week, we will have the ingredients for the things listed for that week, whether we eat roast on Monday or save it until Thursday.  A lot of the meal planning is dictated by our schedules - on days when we have busy evenings, maybe we will have something that is made ahead or something that is thrown in the crock pot. 

I have not linked the recipes yet, but will.  Also, every day, we have salad.  Sometimes the salad is just spinach or romaine lettuce, and sometimes it has grapes, tomatoes, carrots, cucumbers, or something else. 

Also, you will see a theme - one day is beef, one day is Mexican food, one day is a salad, one day is vegetarian, one day is a chicken day, and the other days are "miscellaneous."  I am always looking for and loving trying new recipes, but if we have the things that are required for these meals, I know that we will at least have something good to eat at the end of the day, even if it is something we have been eating for years. 

Roast with mashed potatoes	Chicken Enchilada Casserole (Bread and Wine) and refried beans	Taco Salad	Spinach Fettuccini Alfredo	Grilled Chicken and roasted veggies	Meatball soup	Turkey burgers (Bread and Wine has a great recipe)
Stew	Taco Soup	Chicken Caesar Salads	Chalupas	White chicken chili	Pork chops, roasted potatoes	Sloppy joes
Brisket with mashed potatoes	Tomatillo Chicken	Grilled Chicken Salad	Spaghetti	Chicken pot pie	Kielbasa sausage with BBQ sauce, mac and cheese	Stir fry chicken
Macaroni and beef casserole	Enchilada Casserole, refried beans	Egg salad or chicken salad over spinach	Ravioli	BBQ chicken and sweet potato fries	Pork tenderloin, scalloped potatoes	Chili (maybe meatless, maybe Frito pie)

School lunches

My kids decided early on that buying lunch at school was a waste of time.  Literally, it sucked up all the good eating time when you had to stand in line and wait to get your lunch.  Since we move a little slower around our house, and we also like to maximize the time we can spend eating, wasting 10 minutes in line for pizza was not worth it.  I am secretly happy that they take lunch instead of buy it because I can watch what they eat and what they do not.  I know school lunches are nutritionally sound, but they are not always as appealing as the fresh fruit or veggies I can throw in the lunches. 

 

I know that Bento boxes are all the rage, but frankly I did not have time to look for where to purchase these precious little boxes, and I was not sure they would be cheap enough for me to have 10 on hand at any time.  So, I bought these Ziploc divided containers, and they are cheap and dishwasher safe, and work well.  Ours have held up for a couple of years, and I am not aware of any leakage issues.  These fit great in the 31 insulated totes, too. 

 

In the big part I put a sandwich, and since I love a fresh sandwich, these are usually made the day of.  However, all other assembly is performed on the weekend, and stuck in the fridge to stay cool and untouched.  In the little parts, we put:  mixed nuts; trail mix; pretzels; yogurt covered pretzels; pickles; carrots cut into little sticks; cucumbers; pineapple; berries – strawberries or blueberries are a hit for us; jello; oranges segments; or cheese slices.  I also add in chips or crackers or something that we have either bought in individual packages or have divided into snack baggies. 

 

I must admit that while a lot of this is driven by my need to make mornings run smoothly, a lot is also driven by the fact that I live with a bunch of snackers, and if I do not pre-package some things, there is a good chance that Friday morning, I would pull out a bag of crackers with one single lonely cracker left in it, and there is no way I would be able to cobble together enough fruit or pickles to fill the little containers. 

3 Envelope Roast

This recipe has circulated around social media, and it is really easy and a favorite at the Green house. 

1 packet of Ranch dressing mix
1 packet of Italian dressing mix
1 packet of brown gravy mix
1 1/2 cups water
4 lb roast
3 chopped carrots (or a couple of handfuls of carrot chips)
3 small potatoes, quartered

Put this all in the crock pot and cook for 6 hours.  Serve with a green salad. 

Peaches in White Balsamic

That is pretty much the recipe.  Cut up peaches (not from a can - a real live peach) and drizzle white balsamic over them.  They are amazing. 

Corn-Avocado-Tomato Salad

I don't really know how to qualify this---is it a dip?  a salad? a side? 
All I know is that it is healthy and it is YUMMY!  I started eating it with chips, and then moved to a fork, and later a spoon.  I ate it with a little grilled chicken mixed in, too, and later a little romaine lettuce. 

3 ears of corn, brushed with olive oil and sea salt and toasted on the grill (and then cut off the cob)
2 avocados, cut into small chunks
2 handfuls of cherry or grape tomatoes, cut in half

Juice from one lime
1 tablespoon of olive oil

Mix all these things together in a bowl and try to not eat the entire bowl full.  It is summer deliciousness!! 

Hawaiian Ham Sandwiches

My family L.O.V.E.S. this recipe from my mother-in-law:

24 Hawaiian rolls cut almost in half
12 slices ham (quartered)
8 slices Swiss cheese (cut in thirds)
 
Place a slice of cheese between 2 pieces of ham and place on roll.   
Place on a Pammed baking sheet.
 
1 stick butter (melted)
1T mustard
1T finely minced onions
1T poppy seed
1t Worcestershire sauce
 
Combine remaining ingredients and spoon over sandwiches.  Bake  at  
350• for 15 minutes.

11-week menu

SUNDAY	MONDAY	TUESDAY	WEDNESDAY	THURSDAY	FRIDAY
Chicken Bowtie Pasta	White Chicken Chili	Green enchiladas	Lentil soup	Prosciutto Chicken	Baked ziti
David’s Pasta salad	Crunchy chicken casserole	Tomatillo chicken	Holly’s bean soup	Buffalo chicken macaroni	Ravioli
Pizza rolls	Chicken enchilada casserole	Meat loaf	Corn chowder	Chicken fajitas	Chili (Frito pie)
Hamburgers	Chicken with Rice	Macaroni beef casserole	Meatball soup	Chicken spinach alfredo	Cincinnati turkey chili
Bierox	Oven fried chicken, mashed potatoes	Brisket	Italian hillside soup	Soft tacos	Pita pizzas
Steak on the grill	Hawaiian ham sandwiches	Roast with green beans	Pork tenderloin	Beef fajitas	Spaghetti and meatballs
Paula’s chicken enchiladas	Honey mustard roasted chicken	Sloppy joes	Beef stew	Fettuccini with pesto, bruschetta	Sun dried tomato chicken, mashed potatoes
Chicken & Dumplins	Chicken spaghetti	Shepherd’s pie	Wing chicken sandwiches	Chopped steak and scalloped potatoes	Pulled chicken BBQ sandwiches
Taco soup	Chicken pot pie	Baked potato soup	Slow cooked philly cheese steaks	Mexican pile-on/taco salad	Pork tenderloin kebabs
Scalloped potatoes and ham	White bean gnocchi	Chicken tortilla pie	Cheeseburger soup	Harvest vegetable soup	Spicy beef sandwiches
	Make ahead Mexican casserole	Chicken vegetable casserole	Vegetarian chili	Tortilla crunch chicken	Cheesy chicken casserole

Cheesy Chicken Noodle Casserole

• 3 to 4 cooked chicken breasts, chopped
• 16-oz. pkg. wide egg noodles, cooked
• 24-oz. container sour cream
• 2 (10 3/4-oz.) cans cream of chicken soup
• 8-oz. pkg. shredded Cheddar cheese
• 8-oz. pkg. shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 sleeve round buttery crackers, crushed
• 1/4 cup margarine, melted
• 2 tablespoons poppy seed

Preparation

Combine chicken, noodles, sour cream, soup and cheeses in a large bowl. Pour into a lightly greased 13"x9" baking dish. Mix together cracker crumbs and margarine; sprinkle over top. Sprinkle poppy seed over cracker crumbs. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until crackers are crispy and golden and cheese is melted.