The adventure begins tonight!

(Emily's sitting on her new potty, in case you couldn't see that part.)

Pizza in a Bowl

I had a request for this recipe, so I thought I'd go ahead and post it instead of waiting until next week. It was really good and the 6 serving recipe made enough to freeze one for later!

Pizza in a Bowl

6 servings (4 servings)

2 C dried rotini (1 1/2 C)
3.5 oz thinly sliced pepperoni (1.75 oz)
1 lb ground beef (12 oz)
1/3 C finely chopped onion (1/4 C)
15 oz pizza sauce* (8 oz)
8 oz tomato sauce (4 oz)
6 oz tomato paste (3 oz)
1/2 t sugar (1/4 t)
1/4 t garlic salt or onion salt (1/8 t)
1/8 t black pepper (dash)
2 C (8 oz) shredded mozzarella cheese (1 1/2 C-6 oz)
2 T grated Parmesan cheese (1 T)

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt; drain well. Cut half of the pepperoni slices into quarters; set aside.

In a large skillet, cook ground beef and onion until meat is brown and onion is tender; drain off fat. Pour into cooked rotini pot and add pizza sauce, tomato sauce, tomato paste, sugar, garlic salt, pepper, and quartered pepperoni slices.

Spoon half of the rotini mixture into a greased 2 qt casserole (9x13 would also work); sprinkle with half of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers. Top with Parmesan cheese and remaining pepperoni slices. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until heated through.

For four servings, use a 1 1/2 quart casserole.

*I made my own pizza sauce using 2 8oz cans of tomato sauce, 2 t Italian seasoning and 1 t Worchestershire sauce.

Enjoy!!

Meal Plan Monday

No real reasoning behind this week's plan. I guess, just trying to use what we have instead of spending money. I'd say it's a pretty good plan for just using up stuff!

Thursday: blueberry and sour cream pancakes (They were so good the first time around, I really wanted them again. I'm sharing the recipe below in case you'd like to try them! I left out the nutmeg because we just don't like that and they still taste great.)
Friday: date night!!!
Monday: chicken & dumplings, some kind of veggie
Tuesday: pizza in a bowl, some kind of veggie
Wednesday: spaghetti, garlic bread


Blueberry-Sour Cream Pancakes
Kathy Grashoff, Gooseberry Patch: Made from Scratch

1 1/3 C all purpose flour
1/2 t baking soda
1 t salt
1 T brown sugar
1/2 t nutmeg
1 T cinnamon
1 egg, beaten
1 C sour cream
1 C milk
1 C blueberries (I used frozen and dredged them)

Stir flour, baking soda, salt, brown sugar, nutmeg and cinnamon together thoroughly. In a separate bowl, combine egg, sour cream and milk; add to the dry ingredients, stirring just enough to moisten. Carefully add blueberries, stirring gently to mix. Drop batter by 1/4 cupfuls onto a hot greased griddle. Cook until the surface is covered with bubbles; flip and cook until done. Makes 12-14 pancakes.

Meal Plan Monday

No real reasoning behind this week's plan. I guess, just trying to use what we have instead of spending money. I'd say it's a pretty good plan for just using up stuff!

Thursday and Friday: I was in Dallas so Phillip and Emily were on their own
Monday: chicken nuggets, tater tots, french fries, peaches, broccoli (maybe strawberry pineapple salad instead of the peaches)
Tuesday: steak, Delmonico Potatoes, strawberry pineapple salad, chocolate peanut butter pie
Wednesday: Italian Crescent Casserole, some vegetable to be decided later

Birthday wishes

It's so nice to be loved! This morning, I opened my email and found the following companies wishing me a happy birthday. (Okay, so I signed up for their emails and told them when to send me coupons for freebies, but still!)

Cold Stone Creamery
(free Like It creation)

Jason's Deli
($5 off--probably won't be using this one...I might get shot by my husband!)

Red Robin
(free Gourmet Burger)

IHOP
(free Rooty Tooty Fresh & Fruity)

Fazoli's
(free dessert)

Taco Bueno
(free cheesecake chimichangas--one of my favorites!)

Looks like we'll be eating out some in the next couple weeks!

Meal Plan Monday

This is a week of using up. We don't have much grocery money left so I'm trying to maximize the use of the stuff we already have. In fact, we didn't even go grocery shopping last Thursday like we usually do!

Thursday: breakfast supper leftovers from the past few weeks
Friday: salmon, corn casserole, broccoli
Monday: broccoli, rice, chicken & cheese casserole, pears
Tuesday: bierox
Wednesday: spaghetti