Creamy Taco Mac

Recipe originally from Annie's Eats.

1¼ lbs. ground turkey
8 oz. dry pasta shapes
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 (14 oz.) can diced tomatoes, drained
4 tbsp. taco seasoning
3 oz. cream cheese
½ cup sour cream
Salt and pepper
Shredded cheddar cheese (optional)

Directions:
Bring a large pot of water to boil. Cook pasta according to the package directions. Drain, reserving ½ cup of pasta water. Set aside.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet or sauté pan, cook the ground turkey over medium-high heat until no longer pink. A few minutes before the turkey is cooked through, add the chopped onion to the skillet. Once the turkey is cooked through, mix in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Mix in the diced tomatoes and taco seasoning and let simmer over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Stir in the cooked pasta, cream cheese, sour cream and reserved pasta water, and continue stirring until the cream cheese is melted and the sauce is well blended. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Simmer over medium-low heat 3-5 minutes to reduce the sauce a bit. Remove from the heat and top with shredded cheddar cheese, if desired.

Banana Oatmeal and Peanut Butter Muffins

Recipe originally from Annie's Eats.

Yield: about 18 muffins
Ingredients:
1½ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup old-fashioned oats
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
2 tbsp. applesauce
¾ cup light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup mashed banana (about 3 bananas)
6 tbsp. creamy peanut butter
1 cup low-fat buttermilk

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line 18 muffin cups with paper liners. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir together with a fork to blend. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the applesauce, brown sugar, eggs, banana, peanut butter and buttermilk until smooth. Pour the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients and mix just until incorporated and fully blended. Divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups. Bake 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Source: adapted from Baking Bites

Italian Mac and Cheese

2 TBSP. butter

2 TBSP. flour

2 1/2 C milk

3/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

2 C Italian Blend shredded cheese

8 oz. (2 C dry) cooked macaroni noodles (or any other pasta noodles)

1 C Italian breadcrumbs

1 TBSP. olive oil

Melt butter in large saucepan. Add flour, cook and stir 1 minute. Add milk, salt and pepper flakes. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat, simmer 2 minutes or until sauce thickens. Stir in 1 1/2 C cheese until melted. Stir in cooked macaroni, transfer to 8 or 9 inch baking dish.

Toss breadcrumbs with remaining cheese and olive oil. Sprinkle over mac and cheese. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until topping is golden brown.

Salsa Chicken Salad

Makes about 4 dinner salads.

4 chicken breasts

torn salad greens of your choice

1 C frozen corn, thawed (or canned corn)

1 C black beans

1 C mexican-style cheese

1 C crushed tortillas

1/2 C salsa

1/4 C ranch dressing, plus some for topping

Preheat grill. Marinate chicken in ranch dressing for about 10 minutes. Grill chicken about 6 minutes on each side, or until cooked through. Slice chicken into strips.

Divide salad greens among 4 plates. Add chicken, and top with the corn, black beans, cheese, tortillas, salsa and some ranch dressing.

Mozzarella Burgers

1 lb. lean ground beef

1/2 - 3/4 C. shredded mozzarella cheese

1/2 C. bread crumbs

1/4 C. Barbeque sauce

4 hamburger buns

Preheat grill. Mix ground beef, 2-3 TBSP of the Barbeque sauce, cheese and bread crumbs. Use hands to knead together. Shape into 4 hamburger patties.

Grill, around 8 minutes on each side, or until cooked through, spreading remaining barbeque sauce on during last few minutes of grilling.

Also very tasty: try adding sauteed mushrooms as a topping for the burger.

Fruit Pizza

This recipe originally from Kim Harker.

Crust:

1/2 C butter

1 egg

1 tsp. cream of tartar.

3/4 C. sugar

1/2 tsp. soda

1 3/4 C flour

Cream butter, sugar and egg. Add dry ingredients and pat onto a pizza pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Cool completely.

Topping:

1 (8 oz) pkg. cream cheese

2 TBSP. pineapple juice

1/2 C powdered sugar

Mix until smooth and easy to spread. Spread over cooled crust and top with fresh fruit like, blueberries, strawberries, pineapple, kiwi. You can also top with pie filling.

Pizza Casserole

2 Cups uncooked Rotini pasta

1 1/2 to 2 pounds ground beef

1/2 medium onion, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

1 (15 oz) can pizza sauce

1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce

1 (6 oz) can tomato paste

1/2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp garlic salt

1/2 tsp oregano

2 Cups shredded mozzarella cheese

20-30 slices of pepperoni

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook pasta according to package; drain and set aside.

Ground up beef and brown with onion until beef is cooked through. Drain fat, then season beef with salt and pepper.

Combine pasta, pizza sauce, tomato sauce, tomato paste, sugar, garlic salt and oregano in large bowl, or in the pot the pasta was cooked in. Add beef mixture and stir until well blended.

Place half of mixture in casserole dish, top with 1/2 of the cheese and 1/2 of the pepperoni. Repeat layers. Bake 25-30 minutes, or until heated through and cheese is melted.