Heather's "Retro" Spaghetti Pie

Heather's "Retro" Spaghetti Pie

8 oz. spaghetti, broken in 2 in. pieces
2 Tbsp. butter
1/3 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 egg, well beaten
1 1/2 lb. ground beef
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 16oz jar spaghetti sauce or 2 cups homemade
1 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. leaf oregano, crumbled
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
8 oz. cottage cheese
4 oz. shredded mozzarella

1. Cook spaghetti in boiling water, following label directions; drain. Place in 9x13 pan, or a 9 inch deep pie plate. Stir in butter, parmesan, salt, pepper, and egg until thoroughly combined. Spread mixture evenly in pan.
2. Sauté ground beef in oil in large skillet until meat is brown; drain excess fat. Stir in spaghetti sauce, sugar, oregano, and garlic salt.
3. Spread cottage cheese over spaghetti layer, top with meat mixture, then mozzarella.

Bake at 350 degrees for 40 min. Serves 8.

Salted Brown Butter Rice Krispy Treats

Salted Brown Butter Rice Krispy Treats
*adapted from smitten kitchen*

1 stick butter, plus extra for the pan
1 16-ounce bag marshmallows
Heaping 1/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt
8 cups Rice Krispies cereal  (Kellogg's brand really is superior!)

Butter (or coat with non-stick spray) an 9-inch square cake pan with 2-inch sides.

In a large pot, melt butter over medium-low heat. It will melt, then foam, then turn clear golden and finally start to turn brown and smell nutty. Stir frequently, scraping up any bits from the bottom as you do. Don’t take your eyes off the pot as while you may be impatient for it to start browning, the period between the time the butter begins to take on color and the point where it burns is often less than a minute.

As soon as the butter takes on a nutty color, turn the heat off and stir in the marshmallows. The residual heat from the melted butter should be enough to melt them, but if it is not, turn it back on low until the marshmallows are smooth.

Remove the pot from the stove and stir in the salt and cereal together. Quickly spread into prepared pan. I liked to use a piece of waxed or parchment paper that I’ve sprayed with oil to press it firmly and evenly into the edges and corners, though a silicon spatula works almost as well.

Let cool, cut into desired sized squares.  Makes 16 2-inch squares or 32 1- x 2-inch small bars.

** I know, just rice krispy treats? You'll never be the same!
**Adapted from a Stephanie Niccoli recipe

Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Mushrooms

Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Mushrooms

2 - 3 pork tenderloins (come in 4 pack at Costco - 2 per package)

Marinade:
1 1/4 C vegetable oil
3/4 C soy sauce
1/4 C Worcestershire sauce
2 T dry mustard
1 T pepper
1/2 C red wine vinegar
1 1/2 T parsley
1/3 C lemon juice
2 cloves garlic

8 oz (or more) sliced fresh mushrooms

Blend the above marinade ingredients in blender.  Pour half of marinade over tenderloins and marinate for 3 to 4 hours.  Grill pork on the barbecue at medium heat for about 20 minutes, turning and basting occasionally.  Add mushrooms to remaining marinade and heat in saucepan or skillet.  Slice tenderloins and pour mushroom and marinade over top to serve.

**Another fab recipe out of the Favorites recipes.  Our kids hate the mushroom, but love the meat, this works out perfectly since Hans and I can't get enough of the mushrooms!  Delicious served over steamed spinach.
** I usually make all 4 because our kids love it so much, but I'm always wishing there was more sauce, so next time I will 1 1/2 times the marinade recipe!

Kristi's Layered Sandwich

Kristi's Layered Sandwich

1 loaf of French bread
4 T butter softened
1 1lb sliced black forest ham (with edges removed)
½ lb sliced swiss cheese           
1 bag spinach
8 oz cream cheese           
¼ C chopped pecans
¼ C green onion chopped           
¼ t garlic powder

Mix cream cheese, pecans, green onion and garlic powder, set aside.

Cut the top 1/3 of the French bread off, keep for lid of sandwich.  On the bottom portion, remove inside of bread, leaving at least ½ inch on all sides.  Butter the bottom of the lid and the inside of the bottom portion.   Take 2/3 of the ham and layer it in the bottom portion of bread with ham hanging out over the edge of the bread.  Take ½ of spinach and layer it on top of ham, take ½ of swiss cheese and layer on top of spinach.  Spread cream cheese mixture on top of swiss cheese (I have never used all of the cream cheese mixture).  Put the rest of the swiss cheese on top of the cream cheese, then spinach and remaining 1/3 of ham.  Wrap the ham that is hanging over the edge, on top to hold all ingredients in and together.  Place on bread lid.  Wrap in foil and refrigerate for 4-24 hours.  Slice in 2-3 inch slices.

**So great to have prepared the day before to lessen the work for a lunch!  We cut them even thinner, which was great for the crowd, but they didn't stay together as well.

Praline French Toast

Praline French Toast  (Serves 8)
8 eggs

1-1/2 cups half and half

1/3 cup maple syrup

1/3 cup packed light brown sugar

10 to 12 slices soft bread, 1 inch thick

Topping:

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2/3 cup maple syrup
2 cups chopped pecans

Generously butter a 13 x 9 inch casserole dish. Mix the eggs, half and half, maple syrup, and sugar in a large bowl. Place the bread slices in the prepared casserole dish and cover with the egg mixture. Cover with plastic wrap and let soak overnight in the refrigerator.
Preheat the oven to 350º degrees F. Remove the casserole from the refrigerator.
Make the topping: Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the sugar and maple syrup and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the pecans. Pour the mixture over the bread and bake for 45 to 55 minutes. Allow to sit for 10 minutes before serving.

Serve with whipped cream and fruit.  Bananas are awesome, but so are strawberries!

**The only way we can figure to fit that many pieces of bread into the 9x13 is to make it a double layer.  Hans likes it with the crust on, but when I made it, I cut off the crusts and it was a little prettier when the pieces were cut. But Hans said he missed the crusts....personal taste.
**My choice for Mother's Day breakfast....it's like pecan pie for breakfast, I love it!

Laurie's Layered Greek Dip

Laurie's Layered Greek Dip

1-8oz Chives &onion Cream cheese spread
1-8oz Hummus
2 cucumbers -peeled and diced
3 tomatoes - diced
1 can Olives - sliced
1 -4oz Feta cheese - crumbled
1/4 cup Green Onions- chopped
1/4 - 1/3 cup Greek Salad Dressing

In a medium sized mixing bowl, place diced tomatoes, drizzle with Greek salad dressing and set aside.
Spread Chives & onion cream cheese on serving tray.
Place the following in order over cream cheese layer - hummus, cucumbers, tomatoes, olives, feta cheese and onions.

The recipe says to serve with pita chips, but I like the Multigrain cracker/chips at Costco better.
**Served this at Mother's Day lunch....it was the hit of the day! So yummy!

Pecan Almond Granola

Pecan Almond Granola 

1/2 C honey              
1/2 C canola oil
2 t vanilla              
2 t almond extract
2 t cinnamon              
5 C bran flakes
2 1/4 C old fashioned oats     
2 C sliced almonds, lightly toasted
2 C chopped pecans, lightly toasted      
2 C shredded coconut

Cook honey, oil, vanilla, almond extract, and cinnamon until almost boiling.  Pour over rest of ingredients and stir well.  Spread out mixture onto two large cooking sheets and bake at  375 for 15-20 minutes or until lightly toasted (stir after 10 minutes).  When done cool on cookie sheets and then store in airtight container.

**So amazing on yogurt! Add berries and you're in parfait heaven!
**I also like to add golden raisins to the granola in the last 5 minutes of cooking.