Make Me A Meal Monday: Spaghetti Sauce and Meatballs

There is nothing better to me than homemade spaghetti sauce and meatballs!

We had a pretty uneventful weekend so I decided to make my annual batch of both.

Meatballs

1 lb ground turkeys

1 lb sweet turkey sausage

1 1/2 cups freshly grated romano cheese

1/2 cup of milk

2 eggs

1 tsp salt, onion powder, garlic powder, oregano, basil and pepper

Preheat oven to 375*

Mix all ingredients together.

Place on wire cookie sheet and spray with non stick spray. Make meatballs and place on wire rack.

Bake meatballs for 20 minutes. Remove, let sit for 10 minutes.

Remove and place in sauce. Cook for 30-45 minutes stirring frequently.

Spaghetti Sauce

1 lb ground turkey

1 yellow onion

2 cloves of minced garlic

52 oz of tomato puree

8 oz of tomato paste

1/2 cup of red wine {i may have put a little extra ;)}

1 tspn dried sweet basil

Chop onion. Sautee until almost translucent. Add ground turkey.

Drain if needed.

Add garlic during final 2 minutes of browning {or after draining}.

Add rest of ingredients. Let simmer for 30 minutes.

And then splurge for your first meal!

Meatball sub, with ruffles chips, and an apple!

YUM!

Happy Monday :)

Make Me A Meal - Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese

I apologize that I have been slacking on Make Me a Meal Monday... to be honest with you, I have not tried any new recipes.. well except the two that I found in the Food Network Magazine that I recently picked up... one was a complete and total flop [chicken and pasta soup - which was made in the crock pot] and the other was really tasty, however not really easy... and that brings us to today...

Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese

This meal was really good, but not easy [not easy at all!] - there is a reason that Kraft has an empire in mac and cheese.. ha! but if you like a dish that will leave you with a labor of love and a delicious meal - then it may be worth it! {it also is NOT a healthy meal by any means} and I thought it wasn't overly spicy at all - on a level of 1 to 10 of spice level - i think it would be a 3

Ingredients
7 tablespoons unsalted butter
kosher salt
1 lb of elbow macaroni
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 stalks of celery, finely chopped
3 cups shredded [if you know me cubed] rotisserie chicken
2 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup hot sauce [preferably Frank's]
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
2 teaspoons dry mustard
2 1/2 cups half and half [i used 1/2 cup half and half and 2 cups of skim milk]
1 lb of yellow sharp cheddar cheese cut into 1" cubes
8 oz pepper jack cheese, shredded
2/3 cups sour cream
1 cup panko bread crumbs
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley


Preheat oven to 350 degrees and butter [i used cooking spray] a 9"x13" pan
Chop up chicken, onion, celery and garlic

Cook noodles as directed on the box [i used whole wheat pasta]

Melt 3 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and celery and cook until soft, about 5 minutes.

Stir in chicken and garlic and cook 2 minutes then add 1/2 cup of hot sauce and simmer until slightly thickened about 1 more minute
i made sure i had all of the pieces of the next step right next to the pan pre-measured so it didn't cause me to burn anything or miss a step

melt 2 tablespoons butter in a sauce pan over medium heat, stir in the flour and mustard with a wooden spoon [or plastic if thats all you have] until smooth.

whisk in the half and half [i only used 1/2 cup half and half and then 2 cups of skim milk]

and add the additional 1/4 hot sauce and stir until thick, about 2 minutes

whisk in in the cheddar and pepper jack cheeses
then whisk in the sour cream until smooth


spread half of the macaroni in the prepared baking dish, then top with the chicken mixture and the remaining macaroni

pour the cheese sauce evenly over the top

I made the casserole part of the dish the night before - and I was EXHAUSTED after cooking this dish... [even sweating!]... i typically wouldn't post a lovely picture such as this - however i don't want ya'll to think that this dish was an easy one...

The topping


put the remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl and microwave until melted. Stir in panko, blue cheese and parsley

Sprinkle over the macaroni and bake until bubbly, 30-40 minutes.

Let rest 10 minutes before serving.

Make me a Meal Monday - Chicken and Pasta Baked Casserole

Chicken and Pasta Baked Casserole

aka Glorified Mac and Cheese or known even better at my house as "Congrats, you had a baby, do you mind if I come over and see your new bundle of joy, and I will bring you dinner meal?"

3/4 pound whole wheat pasta shells or penne
salt, to taste
1 small rotisserie chicken (you can also just use chicken breast)
1 large yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 bag fresh leaf spinach, chopped
1 cup almonds, coarsely chopped
6 ounces fresh mozzarella, grated (use the real stuff - not the powder stuff - just bagged shredded cheese)
4 ounces fresh Vermont cheddar (I use Vermont Extra Sharp Cheddar Cheese, grated - I use the whole bar (because lets face it more cheese just means more deliciousness - right?)

Preheat oven to 375 F. Butter/spray a large, rectangular casserole dish

Boil the pasta in salted water per package instructions. Drain, toss with a two tablespoons of olive oil. Set aside.

Chop onion, dice up chicken (or shredded it if you prefer), and grate the block of Vermont White Sharp Cheddar Cheese (yes I said grate...)

Heat a tablespoon or two of oil in a skillet or wok. Saute the onions and a bit of salt for 2-3 minutes. Add garlic, then spinach, cooking for approximately 20-30 seconds.

Remove skillet or wok from heat and stir in almonds.

Combine spinach mixture with pasta in a large bowl and carefully stir.

When chicken is done cooking, slice and add. Set aside. (If you like to sneak in more veggies, I’d recommend sliced mushrooms which I have also added before)

Combine cheeses (Vermont Extra Sharp Cheddar and Mozzerella) in a medium bowl. Begin by adding a layer of pasta to the casserole dish, followed by a layer of cheese.

Continue alternating layers, finishing with a layer of cheese. Sprinkle just a dash of cayenne and paprika over the top.

Cover dish with foil and bake for approximately 30 minutes.