Italian Wedding Soup

I needed an Italian Wedding Soup recipe for my sister's party this weekend. I had never tried to make it before but thought it would compliment my meal well. I just picked a random recipe that got good reviews. It's a good base recipe that allows you to add things to your liking. I made mine in a crockpot.

Rating: 7 of 10

Italian Wedding Soup

25 min 5 min prep
SERVES 8


1 lb lean ground beef
2 eggs, slightly beaten
4 tablespoons breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon onion powder
11 1/2 cups chicken broth
4 cups chopped escarole or chopped spinach
1 cup orzo pasta, uncooked
2/3 cup finely chopped carrot
grated parmesan cheese

In medium bowl combine, meat, egg,bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, basil& onion powder; shape into 3/4" balls.

In large sauce pan, heat broth to boiling; stir in spinach, orzo, carrot& meatballs.

Return to boil;reduce heat to medium.

Cook at slow boil for 10 minutes or until orzo is tender.

Stir frequently to avoid sticking.

Serve with additional Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top.

Crockpot Mac and Cheese

This was really yummy! The left overs are good as well! Make sure you don't cook it too long though. I made mine for a party later in the day and of course my family was late so I had to serve dinner later than I had planned.

Rating: 10 of 10

Slow Cooker Mac and Cheese

3 cups pasta
3 Tbl. butter, unsalted
8 oz. Velveeta cheese, cubed
1 ¼ cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 cup milk
½ cup heavy cream
1 tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper

Cook the pasta in salted boiling water for 5 minutes or until it is just under al dente. Drain and place in the slow cooker. Add the remaining ingredients to the pasta and stir until well combined. Cook on high for 2 – 3 hours stirring about every 30 minutes. The pasta should still hold its shape and the cheese is completely creamy. This makes about 6 servings as a side dish.

Pizza Bubbles

This sounds like a childs dinner (probably because it is!) but they were actually pretty good! Justin and I have pretty simple taste and this was perfect for a quick dinner.





Pizza Bubbles
















Ingredients

1 can (7.5 oz) refrigerated buttermilk biscuits
1 cup pizza sauce
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Heat over to 375 F. Spray 8-inch square pan with cooking spray. Separate dough into 15 biscuits. Cut each into quarters; place in medium bowl. Stir in 1-1/2 cup pizza sauce to coat.

Spoon biscuit mixture evenly into dish.Bake 15 minutes or until light golden brown and center biscuits are no longer doughy.(DON'T skip this step!)

Sprinkle with cheese; bake 5 more minutes longer or until cheese is melted. Cut into squares; serve warm with additional pizza sauce for dipping.This is really quick and perfect for a lunch.

Cheesy Spinach and Bacon Dip

I made this dip when we had people over for the Steelers game this weekend. It was really good and super easy to make!

Rating: 10 of 10

Cheesy Spinach and Bacon Dip

Prep Time:10 min
Total Time:15 min
Makes:4 cups or 32 servings, 2 Tbsp. each

What You Need
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained
1 lb. (16 oz.) VELVEETA Pasteurized Prepared Cheese Product, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
4 oz. (1/2 of 8-oz. pkg.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, cubed
1 can (10 oz.) RO*TEL Diced Tomatoes & Green Chilies
8 slices OSCAR MAYER Bacon, cooked, crumbled

MICROWAVE all ingredients in microwaveable bowl on HIGH 5 min. or until VELVEETA is completely melted and mixture is well blended, stirring after 3 min.

SERVE with tortilla chips and cut-up fresh vegetables.

Baked Potato Soup

My parents came over for the Pens game last night. I made this recipe for dinner. It was really good! I served it with grilled cheese sandwiches!

Rating: 10 of 10

Baked Potato Soup

INGREDIENTS:
3 bacon strips, diced
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon pepper
3 cups chicken broth
2 large baked potatoes, peeled (I used 3)
and cubed
1 cup half-and-half cream
1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
Shredded Cheddar cheese
Minced fresh parsley
DIRECTIONS:
In a large saucepan, cook bacon until crisp. Drain. Saute onion and garlic in the drippings until tender. Stir in flour, salt, basil and pepper; mix well. Gradually add broth. Bring to boil; boil and stir for 2 minutes. Add the potatoes, cream and hot pepper sauce; heat through but do not boil. Garnish with bacon, cheese and parsley.

Tortellini Primavera

I thought that this recipe was pretty good. I added more milk to make the sauce a little thinner and I think that next time I will only use half of the cream cheese the recipe called for. I also added red pepper flakes.


Tortellini Primavera

Ingredients:
1 cup mushrooms, chopped
½ cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tbsp. margarine
10 oz. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
8 oz. cream cheese (I will only use 4 oz. next time)
1 tomato, chopped
¼ cup milk (I added more milk to make the sauce a little thinner)
¼ cup parmesan cheese
1 t. Italian seasoning
salt and pepper, to taste
family size cheese-filled tortellini, cooked and drained (don't cook to tortellini too much or they will be mushy!)

Directions:
Heat margarine in a skillet. Add mushrooms, onion and garlic and sautee. Add all remaining ingredients except tortellini. Heat until all have melted together and are well blended. Cook until the mixture just begins to boil, stirring occasionally. Stir in tortellini.

Shelves

I have 3 large white shelves that are hung in our living room. I really want to do some sort of picture frame arrangement on them like this:

I plan on using engagement pics, honeymoon pics, pics of the doggies and many more. I'll be sure to post pics when I'm done!