Spaghetti Squash Alfredo

Today's feature here at Month by Month is Spaghetti Squash Alfredo. I tried baking some last year with simple butter and seasoning and while it was good, it just wasn't as yummy as I wanted it to be. So when visiting a friend the other evening, she served Spaghetti Squash Alfredo which was exceptionally creamy and good.

Cut the squash in half, remove seeds, brush with olive oil and sprinkle with garlic, bake for 45 minutes, add the sauce toward the end of the baking period and allow it to heat through.

She baked her squash after brushing it with some olive oil and garlic but here's a recipe that calls for boiling it.  Spaghetti Squash Alfredo (boiling method)

It was a creamy lovely experience. Not exactly like noodles but close enough to curb the urge for some high carb pasta. I would definitely suggest giving it a try!

Freezer Cooking 101

It's a Snow Day....or I should more correctly say "ice day" so I thought it would be the perfect time to revisit freezer meals. I hope to put some together later today to "feed the freezer" so to speak.

Containers for Meals:

• Freezer Bags: Obviosly the most "space friendly" storage container is a Ziploc freezer bag (for freezing I tend to us a name brand rather than generic because I feel like they are better quality for freezing but use your own judgment). Make sure you squeeze all the air out of them and that they are sealed completely. Once they freeze they stack nicely on a shelf and they are GREAT for crockpot freezer meals.
• Aluminum Pans:  Pictured above are some aluminum pans I picked up at Dollar Tree. I haven't used them yet but I think I will wrap them in foil also as a double layer of protection. Pans are great for casseroles to freeze.
• Plastic wear. There's lot of freezable plastic ware out there. My main problem with it is storage. If it's not full in the freezer it takes up a lot of space and a lot of organization on my part to keep up with it. It also tends to take up more space in the freezer too and I have limited space. It is still an option though for those that like using it.

Cooking sessions:

A couple years ago I came across a "cooking session" that outlined step by step the way to create about 7 meals using chicken and ground beef. Most of the meals were stored in freezer bags. The most important thing about your cooking sessions is that it is important to plan them out and have things on hand for your session. To do this pick 3-4 recipes that you know you like and that will freeze well. Make an ingredients list and have all the items on hand. Then start cooking!  I also find it very helpful to brown extra ground beef and keep it in freezer bags for tacos, spaghetti sauce etc. It's not a whole freezer meal but it saves lots of time!

A Favorite Recipe:

Pineapple Dump Chicken:

 

1/2 lb  chicken pieces (breasts or thighs)
1/2 cup  onion, chopped
1/4 cup  butter, melted
1/2 cup  ketchup
1 cup  pineapple preserves      
2 teaspoons  dry mustard
1 cup  pineapple tidbits

Directions:

For immediate cooking: Pre-heat oven to 350°F Place all ingredients into a large baking dish, turn chicken to coat. Bake until chicken juices run clear (45-60 minutes for chicken pieces, or 20-30 minutes for chicken breasts).

For freezing: Place all ingredients into a 1 Gallon freezer bag. Lay flat in freezer.
To thaw and cook: Take the bag out of the freezer the night before, make sure the bag is sealed completely.

For the oven: Preheat the oven to 350°F Empty the contents of the bag into a large baking dish and bake until the juices run clear (45-60 minutes for chicken pieces, or 20-30 minutes for chicken breasts).

For the crockpot: cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 4-6 or until done. 

On the grill: cook over medium heat until juices run clear.

 

Recipe Source: Food.com

 

I don't think this is the site I original got the recipe from but it has the same ingredients as the one I use. I freeze this in a freezer bag and usually make it in the crock pot. I like to serve it over fluffy white rice. Yummy!

New Menu Planner

My new menu planning binder arrived from Zazzle.com  I bought a customized one. While I wouldn't normally spend quite so much on a binder, I wanted something that was cute and that I might use more often because of that (and the investment). I like it!  I'm already plotting about buying another one (already picked out the design) for my updated Month by Month notebook.

The background is kind of rustic wood and you can write your own title! There's some checked trim along the spine and I customized the spine with wording too.

I've sort of run out of ideas and I'm only to June so I hope I can dig up some more recipes. For some reason I always have trouble with the summer recipes. Once I get to autumn and winter, I'll have tons to use again. I am also using some basics too, like tacos, hotdogs, and such.

I'll update again later on the menu plans and recipes. Hmmm....they have some really nice Christmas recipe notebooks on that site too.....(addicted)

Wild Card Wednesday: Menus

Since Move It Out Monday focused on groceries I thought I'd feature menus on Wild Card Wednesday!  A while back I wrote about my seasonal menu plans. I have a five week menu plan for each season (Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter). The five week plans feature old favorites, seasonal dishes, and even have spaces for "trying new recipes".  Sometimes I follow them closely and sometimes I get off track...such is life!

Here's next weeks plan:

Sunday: Grilled Burgers (I have several recipes with different seasonings etc)

Monday:  Pepper Steak Oriental (during the hot summer months, Monday is crockpot Monday so this is a crockpot recipe)

Tuesday: Gramps Goulash

Wednesday:  Beef, Noodle, and Vegetable Skillet (sort of a homemade version of Hamburger Helper)

Thursday: Skillet Ham (slices) with Potatoes

Friday:  Southwest Chicken and Beans

Saturday:  Cranberry Meatballs

My next goal in my seasonal plans: Create a shopping list for each weeks menu....a grab and go....so I can check off what I already have and then pick up the rest when shopping. I started this but didn't get very far yet!

Here's a recipe you can try next week:

Grandpa's Goulash

Ingredients:

i onion cut into strips

1 green pepper cut into strips

2-3 Tablespoons of water

1 pound of ground beef

2 (14 1/2 oz) cans of diced tomatoes

salt and pepper

16 ounce box of elbow macaroni

In a skillet over medium heat saute the onion and pepper in water until tender and water cooks off. Add ground beef and cook until browned. Stir in tomatoes. Add salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer at least one hour. Serve this over cooked macaroni. Makes 4-6 servings.

Frugal Friday: A Recipe

Here's a frugal recipe for you...coming in at about a dollar a serving!

These are Migas featured over at All About You. This yummy dish features eggs!

Wild Card Wednesday: Cinco de Mayo Recipe

Cinco de Mayo will be here before you know it, so here's a little recipe roundup....

Chipotle Chicken Cups HERE

. Frozen Cinco de Mayo Dessert HERE.

 

Caldo de Pollo (chicken soup) HERE

.

Sopes.....HERE.

Wild Card Wednesday: Recipe

Magnolia Dream Cheesecake

Find it HERE.

Wild Card Wednesday: Recipe Roundup

It's Wild Card Wednesday...and it's a recipe roundup this week.....enjoy the little goodies I've uncovered!!   I'll see you again for Frugal Friday!!

Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes for St Patrick's Day: Baked Perfection

Peanut Butter Cup Brownies form Baked Perfection:

Vegetable Tamale Pies From a Couple of Cooks.

Summer Fun with V8

V Fusion by V8 comes in seven delicious flavors: Strawberry Banana, Peach Mango, Pomegranate Blueberry, Acai Mixed Berry, Cranberry Blackberry, Goji Raspberry, and  Grape Raspberry. Yummy flavors for some summer fun!

Make some freezer pops with these and give your kids some healthy freezer pops instead of ones choked full of sugar!  They're low in sodium and no high fructose corn syrup or added sugars!  

Now how about some adult fun? Add a shot of rum or perhaps a flavored vodka and liven up your next patio party.  These look pretty in clear glasses where you can see the summery colors! Pop in a little umbrella and you will feel just like your in some tropical paradise.



Salsa Rollups

6 tortilla shells
2 packages of cream cheese
1 cup of salsa
Package of shredded cheese (colby/monterey jack)

Soften cream cheese. Mix cream cheese, shredded cheese, and salsa together. Spread over each tortilla sheel. Then roll them up. Wrap them with saran wrap to help them stay wrapped and put in refrigerator for about an hour. Take them out and slice into bite sized pin wheels!

A quick and easy appetizer for a barbeque!

Recipe: Ranch Pasta

1 box medium sized pasta shells
1 package dry Ranch dip mix
3/4 cup mayo
1 carrot sliced julienne
1 cup frozen peas
1/4 cup green/red/yellow pepper chopped

Boil pasta til al dente. Mix ranch dip with mayo. Add remaining ingredients and fold mayo mixture into shells and vegetables. Refrigerate and serve cold.

Fairy Day 2010

Thursday June 24th is Fairy Day. Why not celebrate with a wee bit of Fairy bread. So yummy.
Fairy Bread is bread spread with butter and then covered in sprinkles. Sounds plain but is actually VERY tasty. Some people cut their bread into shapes like the hearts shown above and some just do the diagonal cut of the slice like the ones below.

I have also read that some people use peanut butter instead of regular butter but I haven't tried that myself. So get out the sprinkles and make some Fairy Bread on Thursday. Kids love to help make it. I am going to let Evan help me!

Grilled Pepper Salad

4 bell peppers (mixed colors) halved, seeded and stemmed.
1/4 cup halved and pitted oil cured black olives
1/4 cup rinsed and chopped oil packed sun dried tomatoes
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1/8 teaspoon salt

Grill peppers on medium high, truning once, until soft and charred in spots, about 5 minutes per side. When cool, chop into cubes and toss with other ingredients in a bowl.

Garden Salad

This salad is great for the picnic and barbeque season!

Marinade:
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup oil
3/4 cup vinegar
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon bean juice

Vegetables:
1 (16oz) can peas (drained)
1 (16 oz) can corn (drained)
1 (16 oz) can french style greenbeans (drained)
1 small jar pimentos
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup green pepper finely chopped
1/2 cup onion chopped

In a sauce pan combine the sugar, oil, vinegar, salt, pepper and bean juice. Bring to a boil and cool. Combine all vegetables and pour cooled marinade ovet them. Refrigerate over night.

Salad will keep for one week.

Recipe: Ginger's Version of Ship Wrecked

This is a variation of a dish called Ship Wrecked. I may have shared the original with you earlier but I played around with it a bit and thing this one is a lot tastier.

Shipwrecked (Ginger's Version)

6 potatoes peeled and sliced thin
1 lb ground beef
salt
black pepper
ground mustard
parley flakes
garlic minced
1 onion
15 ounce can of black beans (drained)
2 cans tomato soup
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup brown sugar (or to taste)

Preheat oven to 375. Grease bottom of casserole dish
Brown hamburger with garlic and some parsley flakes
Layer the sliced potatoes in the bottom of a casserole dish and sprinkle with parsley flakes and some ground mustard. Salt and pepper the potatoes.
Layer the browned ground beef over the potatoes.
Layer the chopped onion over the ground beef.
Layer the drained can of blackbeans over the onion.
(If you want add a few chopped green or orange peppers with them.)
Mix the soup, ketchup and brown sugar in a bowl and then pour over the beans.

Bake 45 minutes covered. Uncover and bake an additional 15 minutes.

October

It's almost October!!!

Time for some Autumn regrouping....it's hard for me to blog when things are falling down around my head so please know that I am still with you...but I have to lead by example which means house first....blog second!!

For October I am going to focus on TWO main things.....here at Month by Month...

• Freezer OAMC (Once A Month Cooking)...I'm using some recipes someone posted about that are on Recipezarr...and so far things are working great. I'll share the links to the recipes and tell you how my first mini chicken cooking session went. I am planning a mini ground beef session next so I'll be sharing that also.
• Clutter Clutter Clutter...this is the absolute KEY to a clean house....well....decluttering is the key...We are going to take a ruthless approach here at Month by Month and part of it will involve the closet...and clothing pods...so Autumn wardrobes...beware...!!!

Dipping Sauces

Apricot Dipping Sauce
1/2 cup apricot jam
2 teaspoons brown mustard
1 teaspoon prepared horseradish

Orange Dipping Sauce
1/2 cup orange marmalade,
2 teaspoons mustard
1 teaspoon horseradish

NOTE: For these recipes you can adjust amounts until the sauce is to your liking. These are just suggested quantities.

Coconut Shrimp

Back from the BEACH....and time to share a coconut shrimp recipe with you....yummy...had some on vacation and they were yummy....dipping sauce recipe coming up next!!

Ingredients:
1 egg
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup beer
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups flaked coconut
24 shrimp
3 cups oil for frying

Directions:
In medium bowl, combine egg, 1/2 cup flour, beer and baking powder. Place 1/4 cup flour and coconut in two separate bowls.
Hold shrimp by tail, and dredge in flour, shaking off excess flour. Dip in egg/beer batter; allow excess to drip off. Roll shrimp in coconut, and place on a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, heat oil to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) in a deep-fryer.
Fry shrimp in batches: cook, turning once, for 2 to 3 minutes, or until golden brown. Using tongs, remove shrimp to paper towels to drain. Serve warm with your favorite dipping sauce.

French Onion Tomato Soup

Here's a lovely little soup that would work perfectly at a Holiday Brunch. Not a typical breakfast food but still light and nice. Since BRUNCH combines breakfast and lunch foods this would be a nice addition and would be wonderful paired with some cornbread muffins.

INGREDIENTS

4 cups thinly sliced onions
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 (46 ounce) can tomato juice
2 teaspoons beef bouillon granules
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
2 teaspoons brown sugar
6 slices French bread, toasted
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

DIRECTIONS

In a large saucepan, saute onions and garlic in butter until tender. Add the tomato juice, bouillon, lemon juice, parsley and brown sugar. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Ladle soup into 10-oz. ovenproof soup bowls or ramekins. Top with French bread; sprinkle with cheese. Broil 4-6 in. from the heat for 2-3 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.

Chinese New Years Recipe

Sweet and Sour Chicken: A recipe from my favorite site: allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

1 (8 ounce) can pineapple chunks, drained
2 green bell pepper, cut into 1 inch pieces
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 3/4 cups water
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 cup distilled white vinegar
2 drops orange food color
8 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves -
cut into 1 inch cubes
2 1/4 cups self-rising flour
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
1 egg
2 cups water
1 quart vegetable oil for frying

Directions:
1. In a saucepan, combine 1 1/2 cups water, sugar, vinegar, reserved pineapple syrup, and orange food coloring. Heat to boiling. Turn off heat. Combine 1/4 cup cornstarch and 1/4 cup water; slowly stir into saucepan. Continue stirring until mixture thickens.

2. Combine flour, 2 tablespoons oil, 2 tablespoons cornstarch, salt, white pepper, and egg. Add 1 1/2 cups water gradually to make a thick batter. Stir to blend thoroughly. Add chicken pieces, and stir until chicken is well coated.

3. Heat oil in skillet or wok to 360 degrees F (180 degrees C). Fry chicken pieces in hot oil until golden. Remove chicken, and drain on paper towels.

4. When ready to serve, layer green peppers, pineapple chunks, and cooked chicken pieces on a platter. Pour hot sweet and sour sauce over top.