Lemon and Basil Ricotta Stuffed Shells

I've been really bored by the stuff that we "usually"eat lately, so I've been trying some new variations of old favorites. My husband LOVES stuffed shells, but my kids tend to resist marinara sauce. (I know, weird kids!) I saw a recipe for lemon and ricotta stuffed shells on Pinterest, so I decided to give it a try using my own favorite recipes. My husband and kids really liked it. We thought it was a nice, fresh switch for summer! This is how I made it,

Ingredients for Filling -

1 big tub of cottage cheese (I used cottage cheese for affordability purposes!)
1 8 oz bag Italian blend cheese
About a half cup of Parmesan cheese (grated or shredded)
Zest of one lemon
Fresh basil to taste
Salt and pepper to taste

Sauce Ingredients -

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk (I used 2%.)
8 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese (grated or shredded)
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
Zest of one lemon (Plus juice if desired. We thought it was a little too lemony with the juice!)
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions -

Mix all of your filling ingredients together in a big bowl. (Reserve a little Italian and/or Parmesan for the top!) Set filling aside while shell noodles boil to "al dente" as directed. While your noodles boil, add 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons of flour to a sauce pan. Stir together as the butter melts. Then, stir in milk and warm through. Next, melt in cream cheese and Parmesan. (If your sauce is not think enough, you can stir a little sauce and flour together in a separate cup and add back to the sauce pan for thickening.) Once the sauce is smooth, stir in garlic powder, zest and lemon juice (if desired) and stir. Then, ladle a thin layer of sauce over the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Now that the noodles have cooled slightly, gentle spoon in the filling and place each shell in the pan so they are touching. Once the pan is full, ladle the remaining sauce over the noodles. Top with additional grated Parmesan and/or shredded Italian cheese and bake covered at 350 for about 40 minutes or until bubbly. Remove the foil and bake for another 5 or 10 minutes until browned on top. Cool for 15 minutes and sprinkle with fresh basil. Voila!

Oven Baked Tacos

I've seen this baked taco thing several times on Pinterest. The thing that I like about tacos is that they are fast and easy. The thing I DON'T like about tacos is frantically stuffing them while little people eat them faster than I can get them on the table. For both reasons, I thought I should give the baked tacos a shot!

Overall, we really liked them! My oldest daughter and I stuffed and baked them together. While the tacos were in the oven, we got the veggies ready and cleaned up the kitchen. Then, we took them out of the oven to let them cool while we waited for Daddy to get home from work. No more frantic taco making! Instead, we were all about to sit together at the table, and the big girls were able to stuff their tacos on their own. I also really enjoyed the semi-crunchy shell, and the leftovers held up well! Hurray!

Here is how we made them!

Ingredients -

14 fajita sized tortillas
1 lb of ground beef
1 can of refried beans
1/2 cup enchilada sauce
2 cups cheddar cheese

Directions -

Brown and strain grease off of ground beef. Then, add refried beans and enchilada sauce. Stir until combined and warmed through. Next, carefully place the tacos in a 9x13 pan, so they are pressed against each other but still slightly open. Sprinkle with cheese (generously if you live at our house!) and bake at 375 for 10 minutes. Perfection!

Skinny Cake Batter Dip

Variations of this recipe have definitely made the Pinterest rounds! We really like it, and it is worth sharing, for sure!

I made cake batter dip for the first time quite awhile ago. My kids REALLY like Cool Whip and whipped cream, so I knew it would be a hit with them. Last time I made it, I made it with regular vanilla yogurt, and it was definitely not as impressive. This time, I made it with plain Greek yogurt, and it was awesome. The Greek yogurt gives it more of a cheesecake/cream cheese type flavor and texture. I definitely recommend sticking with the plain Greek yogurt. It is still plenty sweet!

For the 4th, I had planned on making it with red, white and blue funfetti mix, but I had a hard time finding it! I ended up finding it at Aldi at the last minute. I'm definitely going to try to remember that for the future! I know they always have red and green for Christmas too and probably other variations for other holidays too! Wouldn't they be fun for a Halloween or Valentine's Day cake batter dip for a school party???

Here is how I made it...

1 box funfetti cake mix
2 cups fat free, plain Greek yogurt
1 cup Cool Whip
Sprinkles, for garnish (optional)

Directions,

First, with a whisk, whip Cool Whip and Greek yogurt together until smooth. Then, gently stir in cake mix.

DONE!

I served mine with animal crackers, but it is awesome with grahams, Nilla wafers, a spoon...you get it!

Cowboy Caviar

I had Cowboy Caviar for the first time at a wedding a number of years ago. One of my mom's good friends is "famous" for this recipe, actually. When I loved it at the wedding, my mom proudly informed me that she already had her friend's recipe. I've made it for a few things since. It's nice because it makes A LOT. It's perfect for a crowd at a shower, potluck, picnic, whatever. Today I'm taking it to our neighborhood block party and serving it with tortilla chips. You can also serve it as a salad. Actually, I like it wrapped up in a tortilla for a quick lunch too.

Here is the recipe,

Two cans of white shoepeg corn, drained
Two cans of black eyed peas, drained
Two cans of tomatoes with green chiles (I drained, but you probably don't have to.)

Very finely chop and stir in,

1 green bell pepper
1 jalapeno (or more or less for heat)
1/2 yellow onion
2 cloves of garlic
4 green onions (I omitted.)

Then, stir in 1 cup of fat free Italian dresses and 1/4 cup of dried parsley flakes.

Enjoy!

Sherwin Williams Dragonfruit and Friendly Yellow

We're still having all kinds of fun painting around here! (When I say "we," I mean "my husband," of course!) We just finished up the girl's room last night. The yellow is Sherwin Williams Friendly Yellow and the pink is Sherwin Williams Dragonfruit. Here the lighting is all natural light (because the girl's light in their room broke!)We all really love the hot pink! The pictures just don't do it justice. It is very bright and rich but without being obnoxious. It's just SO pretty, and it makes us so happy!

Preschool Popsicles

Anyone who has read this blog for awhile knows that I despise sugary school snacks. (Oh, the dental bills!) I feel like my kids have sugar coming at them in all directions, so I try really hard to deviate from that. As I've gone about the last few years, I've tried to document what I send for my kids preschool snacks, birthday and otherwise, as an alternative to the store bought cupcakes piled high with frosting.

My middle daughter has a summer birthday. I conveniently scheduled her birthday snacks the day before our sweet baby Iris was due. I was pretty miserable, so I had to come up with something VERY easy...something that someone else could pick up at the store even. It ended up that I had a coupon for Outshine popsicles, and they were on sale at the beginning of May too. Now, I know these aren't sugar free, but they are such a great alternative to the usual birthday snacks! I also ended up being able to provide special snacks for easily under $5 for her class of 16.

We were hoping for a beautiful sunny day where the kids could celebrate Aurelia's birthday outside, which is where she loves to be the most! It didn't happen, but she let me know that the kids all still had a great time and enjoyed their treats!

Happy Early Birthday, Aurelia!

Lemon Poppyseed Noodles

This is a really easy, no brainer of a side dish! My mom used to make poppyseed noodles all the time when I was a kid. Tonight, we had mango barbecue chicken, fresh summer veggies and these noodles, and I discovered that I still love them as much as I always have!

Here is the recipe!

Ingredients -

1 lb of noodles, prepared as directed
3-4 tablespoons of butter
1 tablespoon of poppyseeds (or more or less)
1 teaspoon of lemon zest

Directions -

Prepare noodles as directed. Drain and stir in butter until it is completely melted. Then, stir in poppyseed and lemon zest. Serve warm or room temperature.