Cheese and Spinich Filled Manacotti

Here's a family pleasing meal. All, even the kids love this one! This one freezes quite well, so just whip up a double batch and freeze one for later!

Cheese and Spinach Stuffed Manacotti{or shells!}

1 Box of manacotti noodles or jumbo shells

1 large container of ricotta cheese

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

2 eggs(beaten)

1-2 boxes frozen chopped spinach(thawed and drained)

1 cup mozzarella cheese(shredded)

1 cup cheddar cheese(shredded)

1-2 tsp garlic powder

Boil your noodles 5-7 minutes until just barely tender. If you cook all the way they will break when you try and stuff them.

While cooking noodles mix remaining ingredients(reserve 3/4 cup of cheeses)

Drain noodles. Stuff filling in each shell. I have no problem just using a spoon, but you can put filling in a large freezer bag, cut the corner and squeeze into shells if you prefer.

Top with spaghetti sauce(search this blog for a cheap, easy homemade version!)

and reserved cheese, and bake uncovered for 30 minutes at 350.

To save money you can buy a smaller container of the ricotta and a small container of cottage cheese and combine those. I prefer the texture of the ricotta, so prefer to at least mix the two, rather than use straight cottage cheese.

My Grandma's Chicken Noodles

When we were young our grandmother would cook a special meal for us for our birthdays. We could request anything we wanted, and me and my brother both always requested the same thing, each and every year, well into adulthood! Her homemade chicken noodles! Oh, they were so good! She would serve them over mashed potatoes(I'll post my own recipe for those on a following post!)

Grandma's Chicken Noodles

The base is simple enough, just boil some chicken until cooked and cut into big chunks or bite sized pieces. I like to use canned chicken broth rather than water for more flavor. Add a little salt and pepper. It really is that simple, yet so tasty. I used boneless skinless breasts, but if you want the best flavor use the whole chicken on the bone, and after cooked remove meat from the bone. Seeing how I rarely eat meat, and can't if it resembles it's natural form in any way, the boneless, skinless works for me!!

The Noodles

3 eggs

3 tbls milk

enough flour to make a very stiff dough

salt

pepper

Mix all ingredients, and roll out about 1/4 inch onto wax paper. Let set out to dry for an hour or more(you can skip this step if short on time)

Cut into strips and add to boiling soup and cook for 15-20 minutes. Serve on mashed potatoes!

Breakfast Ideas...

Breakfast can be a hard one, unless you're satisfied with boxed cearl and willing to pay the high price per box. I do occasionally get cearl for a very good price(60 cents to a buck a box!) with sales and coupons, and stock up as much as I can we I can find those deals. With a family of six, even 10-20 boxes doesn't last long, we can easily go through a box a day, and more often than not two boxes! OUCH!!

Cearl can also get quite boring after a while, and in most cases cearl is highly processed, loaded with sugar and not very healthy.

So what's a mom to do? I take the same approach with breakfast as I do with pre-made frozen lunches. I make large quantities of pancakes, muffins, rolls, and breakfast sandwiches and freeze them. Then the kids can just help themselves to what they like in the morning.

Our favorite pancake recipe is this one:
2 eggs
2-1/2 cups buttermilk(I use regular milk with 2-1/2 tbls vinegar)
1 tsp baking soda
2-1/2 cup flour
2 tsp sugar
4tsp veggie oil
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla

I usually double or triple the recipe and mix it all together and cook them all and freeze the extras in individual servings. These are also good to make the batter and store in a container to take camping!!

I will also make large batches of a variety of muffins and sweet breads to freeze. On of my favorites is Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins:


1 cup canned pumpkin

1/3 cup water

1/3 cup canola oil

2 tbls ground flaxseed

1 tsp vanilla

1 2/3 cup flour

1 1/3 cup sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

3/4 cup chocolate chips

mix together and pour batter into grease muffin pan. Top with cinnamon/sugar mixture(3/4 cup sugar and 2tsp Cinnamon, save left overs for the next few times!)

Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes. Delicious

Not the least expensive option, but one of our favorites are breakfast sandwiches. You can use biscuits(home-made or store bought), bagels, or English muffins.

On each stack with cheese slices, meat or veggie sausages and eggs. I freeze these in individual servings as well.

It takes a little work to make such large batches all at once, but it is worth it to have ready made items on hand when the kids start complaining of being hungry. You could buy all of these pre-made, but I guarantee you these are MUCH cheaper and healthier!!

Spag. and Pizza, and Pizza Pockets!!

This one is another easy and tasty idea. With this one you get at least two meals from one night of cooking!

In the morning I put 2 medium sized cans of tomato sauce along with a small can of paste into the crock pot. I also add a tablespoon of soy sauce(sounds odd, but it gives it extra flavor!) a teaspoon of salt, a small handful of brown sugar and half a handful(1-2 tablespoons maybe?) of the following: Basil, Oregano, and a bit less Thyme. A couple good shakes with the garlic powder finishes it off.

I let it simmer on low all day and at dinner we have spaghetti along with homemade garlic or foccacia bread and a salad!

The next day I make pizza and pizza pockets using the leftover sauce. For the pizza I use a recipe included with my bread machine for the dough and top with cheese and veggies. Sometimes I will add pepperoni or veggie meatless balls ground up.

For the pizza pockets I make a the dough in the bread machine using a recipe for white bread (NOT pizza dough for these!)

I separate the dough into eight pieces and roll each one into a round shape. I add a big slice of Mozzarella Cheese, a tablespoon of Ricotta and a tablespoon of the spaghetti sauce from the previous night. I fold over and pinch edges with a fork to seal. Let rise for an hour and bake at 350-400 for 20-30 minutes.

When cool, I put in individual freezer bags and again, the kids have ready made lunches to heat in the microwave. These are WAY yummier than any store bought varieties and healthier too.

You can add anything else that suits your fancy, pepperoni, veggies, etc....

My son came up with a good variation the other night: Rather than separate the dough he rolled it all out into a rectangle. He spread with mustard and topped it with sliced ham and pepperoni and cheese. He folded the top over and baked right away. After it cooled a little he sliced it into individual servings!

I like cooking this way, cooking one night and getting 2-3 meals out of it! Saves time, money and the temptation to order out!

Beans, Beans, Beans!!!

Once every other week or so I make a big pot of refried beans using my crock pot. I then use some that night for Enchilada's, and maybe set some aside for nachos or bean burritos for lunch and/or dinner the next day, and finally with the rest I prepare as many bean and cheese burritos as I can. I then wrap these and freeze them. Then during the week when the kids are hungry and I am too busy to stop what I'm doing and start lunch, they can just go to the freezer and grab one and heat in the microwave for 2 minutes each!

My husband also takes these to work for lunch many days a week!

We do something similar with pizza pockets, which I will share a recipe for next time. For now here is how I make the beans. I get rave reviews on these from young and old alike, and they are SO easy and SUPER cheap!!!

First, in the morning, I put about four cups of beans covered with water to soak all day in the crockpot. That night I drain the water and recover with water and cook on low all night. Then the following morning, I add:

4 tbsp. Flour
4 tsp. Chili Powder
3 tsp. Dried Minced Onion Flakes
2 tsp Salt
2 tsp. Paprika
1 tsp. Sugar
2 tsp Garlic Powder
I also add a pinch or two of dried red pepper flakes. I then use a potato masher to smash them all up and cook for several hours longer on low. I will turn them off late afternoon to let them cool before I separate them for their various uses.

These are so much tastier than store bought canned beans, and much cheaper as well, not to mention healthier!! Enjoy!