Breakfast Pizza Pie

I found this recipe in a cookbook that a school PTO sold as a fundraiser. All the recipes have been submitted by the parents and teachers of the school, so you know they are recipes that "real" people eat. I love that, because sometimes I look through cookbooks and I don't know what an ingredient is or its really expensive.

This breakfast pie would be great, of course, for breakfast...but we had it for dinner tonight. It makes 6-8 servings so we will have leftovers for lunch tomorrow, too. 


1 lb turkey sausage (or sausage)
1 pkg refrigerated crescent rolls
1 c frozen hash browns, thawed
1 c shredded Cheddar
5 eggs
1/4 c milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
2 Tbl Parmesan cheese

• Brown sausage and drain.
• Separate crescent roll dough into 8 triangles. Place in greased pie plate with points toward center. Press over bottom and up sides to form crust; seal perforations.
• Spoon cooked sausage over crust. 
• Sprinkle with hash browns.
• Top with shredded cheese.
• In bowl, beat together eggs, milk, salt, and pepper. Pour onto pie
• Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
• Bake @ 350* for 25-30 minutes or until edges are golden.

Spaghetti Marinara or Baked Ziti

Spaghetti always looks weird in photos!

     Who says Italian food has to be unhealthy? This recipe is not only versatile, but very healthy as well. I love pasta, which is why I can never stick to a diet. If I can eat delicious, healthy pasta, I'm a happy girl. Anyhow, I feel like a "diet" is more about moderation and less about limitations...which is a post for another blog on another day.
     These recipes will both appear on one post because they both use the same base: marinara sauce....and because my picture of the baked ziti was not appetizing at all. I'm a cook; I'm not a photographer. I promise it tastes so good, though!

adapted from Biggest Loser Family Cookbook
The Marinara Sauce:
1 c minced yellow or white onion
2 Tbl minced garlic
28oz Italian diced tomatoes
1/4 c water
2 Tbl tomato paste (no salt)
2 tsp honey
1 Tbl dried oregano
2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp red pepper
salt, to taste
optional: ground turkey or turkey sausage (not pictured, but have done before with great success)

• Spray a saucepan with oil and place over medium heat.
• Add onion and garlic and cook until tender. 
• Reduce heat to low and stir in tomatoes, water, paste, honey, oregano, basil, and pepper. 
• Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for at least an hour. Season with salt if desired.

Option 1: Spaghetti Marinara serves 6-8

sauce (above)
zucchini, diced
whole wheat spaghetti

• Prepare marinara sauce as stated above. Add zucchini during the last 5 minutes or so. If you add it too early, it will get soggy.
• Cook spaghetti as directed on box.
• Drain spaghetti and mix with sauce. Top with grated Parmesan if desired.

Option 2: Baked Ziti serves 8

1 box penne or ziti (whole wheat or garden delight)
15oz Fat Free Ricotta
1 egg
8oz Red-Fat Mozzarella
1/4 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper, to taste
red pepper, to taset
Marinara (from above)
2 Tbl grated Parmesan

• Preheat oven to 450*. Mist a 13x9 dish with olive oil.
• Cook ziti two minutes less than package directs. Drain
• Combine riccota, egg, and all but 1 cup of mozzarella.  Add garlic powder and season with salt, pepper, and red pepper. Stir in cooked pasta until well combined.
• Spread 1 cup of marinara on bottom of prepared dish. Add half the pasta in an even layer over sauce. Top the pasta with another cup of sauce. Layer the remaining pasta over sauce. Spoon the rest of the sauce evenly over the top, then sprinkle the remaining mozzarella and the parmesan on the top.
• Cover the dish with foil and bake 20 minutes. 
• Remove foil and bake 10 minutes longer, or until cheese is melted.  Let stand 5 minutes.

    

Spaghetti Squash with Sauce

I really tricked my husband this time! I hid all the evidence, and he had no idea what he was really eating.

I have never made spaghetti squash before, but I had read in several recipes that you can substitute it for regular spaghetti. I was a little skeptical, but I had a back up plan so I figured it was worth a try. An added bonus would be that we could substitute the "bad carbs" for veggies. It was actually good...and I didn't feel guilty for having seconds! This would fit better into the budget if the squash were in season, but the sauce can be used anytime (only $3 to make with meat!).

1 spaghetti squash
1 lb sausage (or turkey sausage, ground beef, or ground turkey) ($1.99)
chopped onion
1/2 clove minced garlic
2 8-oz cans tomato sauce ($0.50)
1 6-oz can tomato paste ($0.40)
1 tsp brown sugar
1 Tbl parsley
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp salt
dash pepper
dash bay leaves

• Heat oven to 375*
• Cut squash in half and remove seeds. 
• Place flesh side down on a greased baking sheet. POKE HOLES IN THE SKIN OF THE SQUASH SO IT WON'T EXPLODE IN THE OVEN
• Bake for about 45 minutes or until tender.
• Meanwhile, make the sauce...Brown meat and drain and return to pan.
  
• Add onion, garlic, tomato sauce, tomato paste, brown sugar, parsley, oregano, salt, pepper, and bay leaves.
• Heat to boiling. Reduce heat to low, partially cover and cook 30 minutes
• Remove from oven. Use a fork to scrape the flesh out of the skin. It looks just like spaghetti! Place in a bowl.
• Combine sauce and spaghetti sqaush
• Top with parmesan cheese

Pizza Roll Ups

These roll ups are delicious! To save a little money or if you don't have it onhand you can substitute the pizza sauce with 8oz tomato sauce plus 1 heaping teaspoon oregano and some onion powder. Adapted from my favorite cookbook,  Taste of Home  Quick Cooking 2006

1 lb ground beef, turkey, or sausage
1 can (8oz) pizza sauce
about 30 pepperoni or turkey pepperoni slices
1/2 tsp dried oregano
6 tortillas, warmed (I used wheat)
6 pieces string cheese

• Brown meat in skillet. Stir in pizza sauce, pepperoni, and oregano.
• Spoon about 1/2 cup meat mixture off-center on each tortilla. Top with string cheese. Fold one side of each tortilla over filling and roll up from the opposite side. Place seam side down on ungreased baking dish
• Bake @ 350* for 10 minutes or until heated through and cheese melts.

Hashbrown Casserole, Revisited

     One of my favorite things that my mamaw makes is hashbrown casserole. It's very similar to the one at Cracker Barrel, but I think hers is better. This week was my second time making this dish, and I thought I would add some smoked sausage to make it a main dish casserole.  I guess you could eat cheesy potatoes as your main dish without any meat, but I feel like most things seem more like a main course if they have meat included.

From original post....
This cheesy potato dish is great any time of day. This time, I made it for breakfast when out of town guests stayed for New Year's, but just last week my grandma made it as a side for Christmas dinner. Sorry, there is no picture. I was entertaining said guests. About $6 to make 12 servings.

1 2-lb bag hashbrowns-thawed ($2.38)
1 can cream of chicken soup ($0.59)
1 pt sour cream ($1.34)
1 stick butter-melted (no wonder it's so good!) ($0.15)
1 c chopped onion (or sprinkle dried onion)
2 c grated mild cheddar ($1.45)
1 tsp salt
1-lb smoked sausage, sliced
Topping
2 c cornflakes (or rice chex), crumbled ($0.10)
4 Tbl melted butter($0.07)

• Mix all ingredients, except topping, together in a large bowl
• Spread into 9x13 baking dish
• Add topping
• bake @350 for 1 hour

Lasagna, Two Ways

     I was so excited to find whole wheat lasagna noodles at the store a couple of weeks ago. The inability to find them has, in a large part, led to the decline in appearances on our dinner table. I had forgotten how much I love homemade lasagna! There is just something comforting about this hearty meal. Since one box of noodles allows you to make lasagna two times, we have done it two different ways for variety. Usually, I make chicken lasagna in an effort to recreate this fabulous dish we had at one of our favorite restaurants. The second time around, we had Italian turkey sausage and veggie lasagna, and I think I might have liked it better than the chicken! Both are so good. These will be back in our rotation again!
     I got this recipe from a cookbook my students made for Mother's Day gifts. Each student brought in their favorite recipe their mom makes, and we typed them up and bound them. These books contain some of my favorite recipes!

1-lb sausage or chicken
1 medium onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
16oz can diced tomato
15oz tomato sauce
2 Tbl dried parsley
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 c shredded carrot (opt)
1/2 c frozen chopped spinach (opt)
9 uncooked lasagna noodles (I used whole wheat)
16oz  ricotta cheese
1/4 c grated Parmesan cheese
1 Tbl dried parsley
1-1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
2 c shredded mozzarella (I used Italian blend instead)
1/4c grated Parmesan cheese

• Cook and stir meat, onion, and garlic in a sauce pan. Drain and return to pan.
• Add tomatoes with liquid, tomato sauce, sugar, parsley, basil, and salt.
• Heat to boiling, stirring occasionally. 
• Reduce heat ans simmer until mixture is like thick spaghetti sauce; about an hour.

• Set aside 1/2 cup of the sauce.
• Mix ricotta, Parmesan, parsley, salt, oregano, and Italian seasoning.
• Lay 3 uncooked lasagna noodles in the bottom of baking dish. Spread 1/3 of the ricotta mixture over the noodles. Spoon on 1/3 of the sauce and shredded cheese. 
• Repeat two more times.
• Spoon reserved sauce over the top. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese (and a little more shredded cheese if you like).
• Cook uncovered @ 350* for 45 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

Submitted to
Real Sustenance's Seasonal Sundays

Portobello Pizza

     Since starting to eat less salt and fat, I've had trouble find foods that still taste good after removing those delicious ingredients. Some things have come out OK, some things have come out terribly, and some things, like this, taste amazing! I could eat this every week, and it's much healthier than traditional pizza.

     One piece of advice before making these: Only make what you will eat in one sitting. We usually save our leftovers for lunch the next day, but if you save these the mushroom gets a little watery. I recommend saving your sauce and uncooked mushrooms separately and putting them together to cook when you want to eat them.
Adapted from The Biggest Loser Book

5 whole portobello mushroom caps (about 5 inches each), stems removed
8oz tomato sauce
6oz tomato paste
chopped onion
1/2 clove minced garlic
1 tsp brown sugar (or substitute)
1 Tbl parsley
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp salt (or leave out if your watching)
dash pepper
dash bay leaves
1 lb turkey Italian sausage, cooked, drained, and crumbled
4 Tbl mozzarella cheese
2 tsp grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp basil

• Preheat oven to 350*
• Wipe mushrooms clean of any dirt. Place them on a baking sheet, gill side up.
• To make sauce: combine tomato sauce, tomato paste, onion, garlic, parsley, oregano, salt, pepper, and bay leaves. Pour over cooked sausage and stir.
• Spoon meat sauce onto each cap, then sprinkle on the cheeses.  (freeze extra sauce for another time)
• Place in oven and bake 6-8 minutes, or until cheese is melted.
• Garnish with basil. Serve immediately.

Portobello Mushrooms

Pita Pizzas

     Sometimes when we visit my mom, we have a "make your own pizza" party. It's easier than trying to get ten people to decide on the same toppings to order a pizza....and the kids love it! You can buy individual size pizza crusts, make your own small crusts, or just use pita bread. This picture is a pizza made with whole wheat pita bread and my toppings of choice. You could be creative or traditional.

pita bread (or crusts of your choice)
marinara sauce (or pizza sauce if you prefer...or BBQ)
toppings: (your choice)pepperoni, mushroom, ham, bacon, ground beef, chicken, sausage, tomato, basil, mozzarella, cheddar, swiss, etc...

• Place pizza "crusts" on a cookie sheet.
• Top as desired. 
• Bake until cheese melts.

Party Pizzas

These delicious mini-bread treats are a hit as an appetizer or party food, but sometimes we eat them for dinner!These do cost a little more than this penny-pincher usually spends, but they are worth it!

1 lb ground turkey (or beef) ($1.19)
1 lb turkey sausage (or sausage) ($1.99)
1 lb Velveeta type cheese (we use Aldi brand) ($1.85)
Cocktail Rye or Pumpernickel Bread ($1.99)

• Brown both meats together.
• Add cheese in chunks. Stir until melted
• Spoon meat mixture onto the little bread pieces.
• Bake @ 350 until toasty.
• When I make these for a party, I keep them warm by stacking them between layers of foil in a crock pot.
  

Spaghetti with Homemade Sauce

I used to buy jarred sauce at Aldi for $0.99 until I found this recipe. I found it when I made homemade manicotti and thought it was the most delicious sauce ever. Since homemade manicotti takes a loooong time to make, we usually just make the sauce and have spaghetti. If I get really motivated, I will make the manicotti and post if for you to try, too! This sauce costs about $0.90 to make before adding meat.

12 oz spaghetti (1/3 of Aldi spaghetti box) ($0.45)
1 lb sausage (or turkey sausage) ($1.99)
chopped onion
1/2 clove minced garlic
2 8-oz cans tomato sauce ($0.50)
1 6-oz can tomato paste ($0.40)
1 tsp brown sugar
1 Tbl parsley
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp salt
dash pepper
dash bay leaves

• The sauce tastes better if you make it a half - hour ahead of time, but this is not necessary!
• Brown meat and drain and return to pan.
  
• Add onion, garlic, tomato sauce, tomato paste, brown sugar, parsley, oregano, salt, pepper, and bay leaves.
• Heat to boiling. Reduce heat to low, partially cover and cook 30 minutes
• Boil spaghetti according to package. Break into smaller pieces before adding to water. Drain.
  
• Combine sauce and spaghetti.
  

Crock Pot Spaghetti

     I got this recipe from my mom. She always made it when we had family reunions...and if she didn't make it, she heard about it. For whatever reason, we haven't had a family reunion in years and one great aunt was talking about how much she missed this spaghetti. My mom made her a special batch of it.
     I made this for Christmas dinner this year. I know, it's not the most traditional dinner, but I have a one year old and she thinks spaghetti is the greatest culinary creation. She really liked the pieces of pepperoni in it, too. I really liked that it's made in the slow cooker, so I didn't have to do much to get it ready. I just enjoyed the day. For sides, we had salad and braided herb bread. For dessert, we had pumpkin dump cake...recipe coming soon!

serves 6-8
1 lb ground chuck (turkey, sausage, or combination)
1-1/2 tsp onion powder
1-1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp mustard (or mustard powder)
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp oregano (or Italian seasoning)
8oz tomato sauce
4 oz can mushrooms
3-1/2--4cups tomato juice
1 pkg pepperoni
1-1/2c dry spaghetti, break 4 times

• Brown meat and drain well.
• Place in crock pot. 
• Add all remaining ingredients, except spaghetti.
• Stir well.
• Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours or high for 3-1/2 hours.
• Turn to high the last hour and add spaghetti pieces. Add a little tomato juice, if needed, at this time.

Spaghetti