Stuffed Pasta Shells

I made this for Sunday dinner and Casey really liked it. I have tried a couple other jumbo shell pasta recipes and Casey liked them okay, but this one is his very favorite. He thought this one was really good. It got a little bit crispy around the edges, I am not sure if it is because I didn't put in quite as much pasta sauce as it called for, or if it was because it cooked on low for too long. It was still good though. Sorry there isn't a picture.

18 jumbo pasta shells
1 lb. lean ground beef
1 onion chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1 Tbsp. parsley flakes
1 egg, beaten
2 jars meatless spaghetti sauce
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Cook pasta shells according to directions, just until tender and drain. Meanwhile, brown beef, onion and garlic on stove top, drain. Add mozzarella, bread crumbs, parsley and egg. Stuff shells, set aside. Pour 1 jar of sauce into Crockery Pot. Arrange stuffed shells in sauce. Top with other jar of sauce and Parmesan cheese. Cover and cook on low 5 to 7 hours.

BLT Pasta Salad

I have been watching the food network a lot lately to try and get some new ideas for meals. I found this one on their website. I made it for the FHE potluck party we got invited to after we first moved into our new ward here. It turned out really yummy, but I totally forgot to add in the chopped romaine hearts! I also think I cooked the tomato mixture a little too long. Just in case you do try to make this don't get your tomato mixture very hot. If you do when you add the lettuce it will probably wilt. So looking back it might actually be a good think I spaced the lettuce. :) It made me really mad thought because I had already washed and chopped it all, I just forgot to pull it out of the crisper to put in the salad. I guess I am getting more and more like mom everyday. :) I forgot to take a picture of this one too! This pic. is from the food network website.

Ingredients

• 12 ounces corkscrew-shaped pasta
• 1/2 cup milk
• 12 ounces lean bacon
• 3 medium ripe tomatoes, cut into chunks
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 4 tablespoons chopped chives or scallion greens
• 5 heads Bibb lettuce, quartered, or 5 cups chopped romaine hearts

Directions

Cook the pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water as the label directs. Drain and toss with the milk in a large bowl; set aside.
Meanwhile, cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat until crisp. Drain on paper towels. Discard all but 3 tablespoons drippings from the pan. Add the tomatoes, thyme and garlic to the pan and toss until warmed through; season with salt and pepper. Crumble the bacon into bite-size pieces; set aside 1/4 cup for garnish. Toss the remaining bacon and the tomato mixture with the pasta.
Mix the mayonnaise, sour cream and 3 tablespoons chives with the pasta until evenly combined. Season with salt and pepper. Add the lettuce; toss again to coat. Garnish with the reserved bacon and the remaining 1 tablespoon chives. Serve at room temperature.

Italian Sausage and Bowties

I found this recipe here (thanks Chalece:) I don't usually do white pasta, but everyonce in awhile, it's a special "treat" at our house! I have to say, this was a real crowd pleaser... Feel free to alter as needed:)

4 cups dried large bow ties (8 ounces)


12 ounces spicy Italian sausage links (next time I will cut ours into smaller bites b/c Ike LOVED to pull them out and we ended up a with some leftovers and no sausage!)

2 medium red sweet peppers, cut into 3/4-inch pieces (1 1/2 cups)

1/2 cup vegetable or beef broth

1/4 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper

1/4 snipped fresh Italian Parsley
1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain; Keep warm.
2. Meanwhile, cut the sausage into 1-inch pieces. In a large skillet cook sausage and sweet pepper over medium-high heat until sausage is brown; drain.
3. Add the broth and black pepper to skillet. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Pour over pasta; add parsley. Stir gently to coat.

Easy Swedish Meatballs

Ok, so these meatballs really made an impression on Ben! A few YEARS ago, we had them at our friends' house for dinner. He had me call that friend and beg for the recipe years later. My friend explained that it is embarrassingly easy, but hey, those make the best recipes sometimes, right?! Anyway, we have altered it a bit to make it to our family's liking and a little healthier, so please feel free to make it your own too! Oh, I also have to mention that most of the time we make our own meatballs, but for convenience, Jen introduced me to frozen meatballs and they are great too! Don't be ashamed to use frozen, they taste like homemade and in a pinch, are great to have on hand:) 

I really contemplated not using a picture because this one certainly does not do them justice, so you'll have to just TRUST ME on this one... or TRUST BEN if you can't trust me... They are really tasty!

3/4 lb. - 1 lb. hamburger made into meatballs (use your favorite recipe)
1 cup sour cream (we use fat free- you can't tell the difference in sauce like this)
1 packet brown gravy mix
1 cup water
1-2 T. onion soup mix
pepper to taste
Egg Noodles, or  whole wheat pasta, if you like a little more fiber

Prepare meatballs as you normally would (we do ours in the oven). Cook noodles according to package directions. Prepare gravy mix according to directions (our packet said to add 1 c. water to gravy mix in a saucepan stirring continually until thickened). Once thickened, add 1 cup of sour cream mix and warm thoroughly. Add onion soup mix and pepper to taste. Stir in meatballs and cook on low heat for 7-10 minutes. Serve warm over noodles. I usually like to make more sauce, but it just depends on how you like it.

I know, this IS easy! But, the next time you are in a pinch for dinner, I hope you think of this one;)
Also, FYI, this has hardly any carbs... Gravy mix only contains 3 g. carbs per serving, so even the most diabetic can afford a few noodles:)