What's for Dinner? Crock Pot Lasagna

This weekend I had a photo shoot late in the afternoon. I knew there was a chance that I may not be able to make it back in time for dinner, and wanted to have something ready to go for my husband and kiddo. I needed a quick and easy crockpot meal, that required zero additional steps once everything was in the pot. Of course, I turned to Pinterest, and found a bazillion pins for crock pot lasagna. I've seen this before and turned my nose up to it, because really, who the heck makes lasagna in a crock pot? But I was desperate, so I threw it together, crossed all my crossables, and fully intended to pick up a pizza on the way home.

It was awesome. In fact, I'll say it was the best lasagna I've ever had. (Sorry mom). Slow cookers are great because they can be convenient, but are also wonderful because they give food so much more flavor. I even forgot the ricotta cheese, and it was still awesome. (By the way, if you ever do that - just double the mozzarella, parmesan, and egg, and add a little sauce to the mix to keep it moist). It's a quick cook in the crock pot, so this isn't a leave it all day meal, but if you need something quick and easy and will be gone for a few hours, this rules.

Crock Pot Lasagna

Photo Credit - Kraft Foods

Ingredients

• 1lb ground turkey or lean ground beef
• 1 jar pasta sauce (about 2.75 cups)
• 1 cup water
• 1.75 cups ricotta cheese
• 1.75 cups mozzarella cheese, divided
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, divided
• 1 egg
• 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
• 6 lasagna noodles, uncooked

Directions

• Brown meat in a large skillet and drain.
• Stir in pasta sauce and water, warm slightly.
• Mix ricotta, 1.5 cups mozzarella, 2 tbsp parmesan, egg, and parsley.
• Spoon 1 cup of meat sauce into slow cooker.
• Layer as follows - noodles (break to fit), cheese, sauce, noodles, cheese, sauce, noodles, sauce, cheese (or really, however you want to layer it). I topped it with more mozzarella and parmesan.
• Cover with lid. 
• Cook on low heat. This part will depend on your crock pot. The recipe calls for 4-6 hours, mine took about 3 hours.

Enjoy!

Source: Kraft Foods

What's for Dinner? Tortellini Bake in Creamy Lemon Sauce

If you've never heard of Pinterest, you are either living under a rock, or in your third year of law school (that was for you V). If you're not on there, find your closest friend, (who most likely is not living under said rock) and offer to trade just about anything you have for an invitation (husbands included, kiddos excluded). Within the site you'll find everything from gorgeous home decorations, photo ideas, wedding details, funny quotes, and recipes. And I'm not just talking "how to make a taco salad" recipes, I'm talking "how to make a taco salad that you'll be eating and talking about for the next week" recipes. Deeeeeelish.

Photo Credit - OurBestBites.com (Because
mine didn't look like this, and let's be honest,
yours won't either). But it still tastes
damn good!

Last night I tried out a new Pinterecipe (I made that up, like it?). My husband took one bite and said "Yup, this is what eat from now on." Sadly, if that were the case, we'd weigh in at a million pounds a piece, but for every now and again, this dish rules.

I made just a few teeny tiny changes to the original recipe. Here's my version, and the original is linked below. I highly recommend prepping the ingredients before you begin to cook unless you are some sort of crazy kitchen cooking wizard.

Tortellini Bake in Creamy Lemon Sauce


Ingredients

• 20 oz cheese tortellini (I used garlic and herb)
• 4 oz bacon (about 5 strips), crumbled and divided
• 3 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 2 tbs flour
• 2 c milk
• 3/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1 1/2 tsp dry basil
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1 medium lemon - zested (2 tsp) and juiced (1 tbsp)
• 2 cups loosely packed fresh spinach, roughly chopped
• 3/4 cup grated mozzarella cheese, divided
• 3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese, divided

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Fill a large stockpot with water and bring to a boil. Add tortellini and cook according to package instructions (NOTE: Do not overcook - tortellini only takes 3-5 minutes to cook). Drain and return to stockpot.
• While tortellini cooks - in a medium-sized skillet, cook the bacon over medium heat. Cook until crisp. Remove and place on paper towels to drain and cool. 
• Reserve two tablespoons of bacon drippings in the pan, and discard the rest.
• Add garlic and cook until fragrant and tender, about 1 minute.
• Add flour to pan, and whisk for 1 minute.
• Slowly add milk and continue to stir with a whisk until smooth.
• Add salt, pepper, basil, and red pepper flakes, and bring sauce to a simmer.
• Add lemon zest and juice. Continue to whisk until thickened, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Crumble bacon. Reserve one tablespoon, and add the rest to the pasta mixture.
• Add spinach, 1/2 cup mozzarella and 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese. Add sauce and stir gently to combine.
• Place mixture in a casserole or baking dish and top with remaining mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, and bacon.
• Cover with foil or baking dish lid, and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil or lid and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes until cheese on top is melted, and dish is bubbly.

I hope you like it. It's a bit of work, but so very worth it! Yum yum!

Source: OurBestBites.com

What's for Dinner? Mini Meatball Sandwiches

Sidenote: (Can you do a sidenote before you even get started?) I didn't take the picture. Because when you are a photographer, people expect you to take nice pictures, and attempting to take out my nice camera, attach my best lens, find the perfect light, take a few shots, and edit the best ones to get one little picture for this one little blog post was just too much to think about on a night where I'm also making dinner for and on solo-parent duty of a 10 month old. So there.

Photo Credit: Ree Drummond

And, we begin.

These. Are. Awesome. Husband approved, and seriously 10-month old baby approved. They're easy to make, filling, and if you do them right, they're pretty healthy too. Of course, they are from my superhuman internet mentor Ree Drummond, aka The Pioneer Woman. She uses ground beef, I use turkey, either way, these are a really yummy and fun dinner.

Mini Meatball Sandwiches

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground turkey or beef
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp salt
• Ground pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 of 1 whole medium onion, diced
• 1 large jar marinara or spaghetti sauce
• 12 dinner rolls
• 4 slices provolone cheese, cut into wedges

Directions

• In a large mixing bowl, mix together meat, bread crumbs, garlic, salt, pepper, and milk. Knead with your hands. Roll together into heaping tablespoon sized rolls.
• Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and saute for one minute.
• Add meatballs between the onions and brown both sides.
• Add the jar of marinara or spaghetti sauce and shake the pan gently to mix in.
• Cover, and simmer for 20 minutes.
• Cut dinner rolls in half and put one wedge of provolone the top and bottom of each roll. Add a meatball to the bottom bun and add the top of the roll.
• Serve immediately, and return for seconds.

Um, YUM!

Source: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/07/16-minute-meal-3-mini-meatball-sandwiches/

What's for Dinner?: Chicken and Biscuits Casserole

I love when I try a new recipe and my husband takes the first bite, looks at me and says something to the effect of "this can happen again." This is one of those recipes. I found this on The Pioneer Woman's Tasty Kitchen  recipe database, which is pretty similar to All Recipes. It's easy, its sooooo tasty, and it makes enough for leftovers for the next day. And best of all, its husband approved!

Chicken and Biscuits Casserole


Ingredients

• 4 cups shredded chicken 
• 1.5 sticks butter, divided
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 whole small yellow onion, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 can (14oz) low sodium chicken broth
• 1 can low sodium cream of chicken soup
• salt and pepper to taste
• 3 cups Bisquick Mix
• 1.5 cups sharp shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 cup milk

Directions

1. Prepare shredded chicken. This can be done in a number of ways, but I chose the boiling method: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add three chicken breasts and boil about 20 minutes or until the center is no longer pink. Be careful not to overcook. Remove from water and pull apart with a fork.
2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
3. In a small saucepan, melt 1 stick of butter with the minced garlic. Saute for 1 minute. Set aside.
4. Place the shredded chicken in a greased casserole dish.
5. In a large saucepan, melt the remaining butter. Saute the onions in the butter over medium-high heat for approximately 4 minutes.
6. Lower the heat and add flour and chicken broth. Simmer for 2-3 minutes.
7. Remove from the heat and add the cream of chicken soup and salt and pepper to taste.
8. Pour the mixture over the shredded chicken and mix well.
9. In a separate bowl, mix the Bisquick, milk, and shredded cheese. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the chicken. (Note: depending on the size of your dish, it may not completely cover the mixture. Don't worry, it spreads when it cooks!)
10. Baste the biscuits with the garlic butter and bake for 22-25 minutes.

I hope you like it as much as we did!

What's for Dinner?: Grilled Chicken with Lemon Basil Pasta

If you have not yet discovered The Pioneer Woman, now is the time to do so. I won't lie, I kind of have a girl crush on her. She does it all, cooking, teaching, photography, gardening, the list goes on and on.

I recently starting trying out some of her food recipes, and this one very quickly became my new favorite dish. The first time I made it I felt like I was sitting at the Olive Garden. All I needed were the breadsticks and salad!

Grilled Chicken with Lemon Basil Pasta

Ingredients

• 3-4 chicken breasts, seasoned (I use 2 parts basil, 1 part rosemary, 1/2 part oregano, 1/4 part thyme)
• 1 lb penne pasta
• 1/2 stick butter
• 1 jumbo lemon, juiced
• 3/4 cups heavy cream
• 1/4 cup half and half
• 1.5 cups grated parmesean cheese
• 20 whole fresh basil leaves, chopped
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Cook chicken breasts. I cook them in strips, but you can cook and strip or cube after if that's easier for you.
2. Cook the pasta.
3. Melt the butter over medium heat. Add lemon juice. Whisk together.
4. Pour in cream and half-and-half. Whisk until hot.
5. Dump in the cheese and whisk until melted.
6. Add the salt and pepper.
7. Pour the pasta and sauce into a large serving bowl. Sprinkle the basil over the top and add the chicken breasts.

The only thing I do caution is to watch your timing so the cheese mixture is ready just as the pasta and chicken get done. Overall, the recipe is super easy though, and makes enough for leftovers the next day!