Easy and Creamy Italian Skillet Dinner

From Cooking During Stolen Moments

1/2 lb ground beef
1/2 onion, diced
1/2 green pepper, diced
1 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp Italian seasoning
8 oz tomato sauce
15 oz diced tomatoes
16 oz ricotta
1/2 lb pasta, cooked
1 cup mozzarella

In a large skillet, cook ground beef with onions and green peppers. Season with salt, garlic powder and Italian seasoning. Drain when browned.

Add tomato sauce and diced tomatoes. Simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in ricotta until combined. Add in pasta. Sprinkle with cheese and cover until cheese is melted.

Comments: This was fabulous to cook. I love one skillet dinners. J loved it because it had ricotta. C loved it, well she just loved it. I definitely plan on cooking this one again.

Taco Bell Mexican Pizzas

From Stolen Moments Cooking

8 flour tortillas, small
oil
1/2 lb ground beef
2 tsp chili powder
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic
1 can refried beans
1/2 cup taco sauce
2 cups shredded cheese
1/4 diced tomatoes
1/4 cup green onions

Heat oil over medium-heat. Add tortillas one at a time and cook 20-30 seconds per side.

In a small saucepan, brown ground beef and drain. Stir in seasonings. Add 1/4 cup water. Bring to a boil and simmer until thickened. Meanwhile, warm refried beans (this can be done on the stove, but the microwave is much easier).

Take 4 tortillas and spread beans on each. Evenly spread ground beef over refried beans. Top each with a second tortilla. Spoon an even amount of taco sauce over each. Top with cheese.

Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes (until cheese is melted). Sprinkle with tomatoes and green onions to serve.

Comments: Don't act like you don't like Taco Bell. Its greasy and sometimes a little sketchy, but sometimes it hits the spot. Mexican Pizzas from Taco Bell are J's favorite. These were pretty much the same exact thing with a little less grease and a lot less sketch. My tortillas didn't really match theirs, but again I blame all differences on my lack of grease. What I liked the best about this recipe is the seasonings I added to the meat. I'm not sure I will ever buy taco seasoning again. This had the perfect flavor and those are all things I keep on hand.

One Skillet Chili Bake with Mexi Ranch Sauce

1 lb ground beef
1 can red kidney beans
1 can rotel
1/2 cup uncooked rice
2 tbsp chili powder
1 cup shredded cheese
1 cup water (if needed)

Brown beef in a large skillet and drain

Add beans, rotel, rice, and chili powder to beef. (Also add the water if needed, I did.)

Simmer, covered, for 20 minutes.

Uncover and top with the cheese. Cook until it melts.

Serve over tostada shells. Drizzle Mexi Ranch sauce over top.

Mexi Ranch:

1 cup ranch
1/4 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin

Mix together

Comments: I've had this recipe in my file for a lone time and I was really looking for something easy for this week. This turned out so good. I messed up a little and used the hot Rotel I had for another recipe, rather than the regular Rotel. Hot Rotel isn't kidding around, so Miss C didn't get to test this one out. It was far too spicy for her. J, surprisingly, really enjoyed the heat. The Mexi-Ranch was a late addition because I thought it needed something to counteract the heat. It was a great addition. Again, another easy recipe that will definitely get added to the rotation.

Bacon Cheeseburger Pasta

1 lb spiral pasta
1 lb ground beef
6 strips bacon, diced
1 can condensed tomato soup
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese
barbecue sauce

Cook pasta according to package directions

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink. Drain and set aside.

In the same skillet, cook bacon until crisp; remove with slotted spoon to paper towels. Discard drippings.

Drain pasta. Add to skillet. Add soup, beef and bacon. Mix together and heat through. Mix in desired amount of barbecue sauce (I use a whole bottle, we like it saucy). Sprinkle with cheese and cover until cheese melts.

Comments: This is an old favorite of ours. I have had this recipe for years. Its super quick. It reminds me of hamburger helper, but a homemade, slightly healthier version. Sometimes J and I like to reminisce about poor college days and how we ate way too much hamburger helper. One of my favorite things about the dish is there are so few ingredients.You can kind of throw it together super quick.

Cowboy Spaghetti

From Rachael Ray

1 lb spaghetti (I recommend angel hair for this one)
salt
1 tbsp olive oil
3 slices of bacon
1 lb ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
3-4 cloves garlic
pepper
2 tsp hot sauce
1 tbsp worcestshire sauce (I went really heavy on the worcestshire)
1/2 cup beer
14 oz chopped or crushed fire roasted tomatoes
8 oz tomato sauce
sharp cheddar

Cook spaghetti to al dente.

Heat large skillet with olive oil and bacon. Cook until brown and crisp. Remove and allow to cool. Once cool, crumble the bacon.

Add beef to skillet and brown.

Once brown, add onions and garlic. Allow to soften. Season with salt and pepper. Add hot sauce and worcestshire. Allow to cook for a few minutes.

Add 1/2 cup of beer to de-glaze pan.

Cook 5-6 minutes and stir in tomatoes and sauce. Allow to simmer for flavors to combine.

Add sauce to spaghetti and mix together well.

Grate/Sprinkle with cheese (this is important!)

Comments: I was a little unsure about this at first. I prefer my pasta to be very saucy and J really, really likes his to be saucy. This was not. At all. I was afraid there wouldn't be much flavor. I forgot the cheese at first, and the pasta tasted pretty good. I don't often salt and pepper my food at the table, but I felt like this needed it.

Then I remembered the cheese. That changed everything. I didn't add a lot, just a sprinkle. But it totally added so much flavor.

I'm really looking forward to making this again so I can tweak it exactly to our tastes.

Taco Casserole

From Cully's Kitchen

1 lb ground beef
1 pkg taco seasoning
Mexican blend shredded cheese
15 oz refried beans
1 cup salsa
2.5 oz sliced black olives
1 tomato, chopped
corn chips, crushed

Brown beef and drain. Add taco seasoning and cook according to package directions.

Prep casserole dish and layer crushed tortilla chips on the bottom

Heat beans according to directions. Add 1 cup cheese and 1 cup of salsa. Mix well

Pour mixture over chips. Top with beef. Sprinkle with cheese and olives

Bake at 375 until cheese melts. Sprinkle with tomatoes before serving.

Comments: This was pretty good. Very simple and quick. I wasn't overly impressed. I have several different types of Mexican casseroles and this would probably be among my least favorite. It did, however, give me a craving for King Ranch Chicken casserole. I'm sure you will be seeing that recipe in the coming weeks.

Baked Spaghetti

J loves spaghetti. I'm ok with it. My big issue is that I can't eat it leftover for some reason. I'm always look for recipes that J and C will love, and that I can eat leftover. I found this recipe and thought I would give it a try. Usually a layer of cheese on top will make anything acceptable leftover.

Baked Spaghetti

16 oz Angel Hair pasta (any pasta will work. J prefers Angel Hair and thats what was in the pantry)
1 Jar/Can of Spaghetti Sauce (we had big cans in the pantry. I think it was 26 oz)
1 lb Ground Beef (any ground meat will work)
1/4 cup butter
1/4 flour
1/4 Shredded Parmesan cheese
1 tsp salt
1 tsp Garlic Powder
12 oz Evaporated milk
3 cups shredded Sharp Cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cook noodles and brown meat.

Combine noodles, sauce and meat in a large bowl and set aside.

Melt butter in small saucepan over medium to low heat. Add flour, parmesan cheese, salt and garlic powder.

At this point the recipe said to stir until smooth and bubbly. Mine never got smooth and bubbly so I just stirred until everything was mixed together well.

Add evaporated milk and 1 cup of the cheddar cheese. Stir until thickened.

Pour half of the noodle mixture into greased casserole dish. Top with cheese mixture. Pour the remaining noodle mixture on top. Sprinkle the remaining cheddar cheese on top.

Bake in 350 degree oven for 25-30 min

Review: This recipe was great! It makes A LOT, so its good for a big crowd or if you want leftovers for several days . C has become less of a human garbage disposal and a little more picky, but she loved this. I also think this is going to be great left over. Next time I make it I might add in some veggies to the sauce (olives, chopped onions, etc).