Easy Baked Mac and Cheese with Bacon

Mac and Cheese from scratch is the best and it's so easy!

2 cups uncooked mac
3 strips of bacon
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk
2 cups cheddar cheese
1/4 cup parm cheese


Cook mac according to package directions. Cut bacon in small pieces and cook in medium saucepan. Once cooked, remove bacon and leave drippings. Add flour and cook for a minute. Whisk in milk, and bring to a boil, always stirring, until sauce becomes thick. Then add 1 cup cheddar cheese and parm cheese and heat through. Mix mac, cheese sauce and bacon, and spread into baking dish. Sprinkle last cup of cheese on top. Bake for 20 minutes in 350 oven.

ps: you can also add spinach or broccoli, if you want a healthier version!

Easy chili in the crock pot

lb browned ground beef
1/2 onion chopped
1/2 green or red pepper chopped
1/2 cup chopped celery
2 cans of tomatoes with chilies (I use Rotel) undrained
1-2 cans of red beans (depends how many beans you like) undrained
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons chile powder
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon parsley
1 teaspoon basil
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Brown beef. Drain off grease, and season to taste with salt and pepper. In a slow cooker, combine the cooked beef, kidney beans, onions, tomatoes, celery, peppers, and red wine vinegar. Season with chili powder, cumin, parsley, basil and Worcestershire sauce. Stir to distribute ingredients evenly. Cook on High for 6 hours, or on Low for 8 hours.

Lentil salad with cumin lime dressing

Ok, so I am expecting a baby and am supposed to eat a lot of protein. It's harder than it sounds to eat protein at every meal. So, I am trying to think of creative ways. I received a calendar from the Scholar House here in Louisville which contained several recipes. This is a great one to get protein in your diet without eating meat :)

1 cup of basmati rice cooked to package directions
1 cup of lentils cooked to package directions
1/2 cup shredded carrots
1/2 cup pinenuts
1/2 cup red pepper, diced

cumin lime dressing:
1 cup lime juice (use the bottled stuff)
1 cup veg oil
2-3 cloves garlic
1 jalapeno pepper, diced
4 teaspoons cumin
s and p

Mix first five ingredients together and chill. Mix up dressing in blender. Add dressing right before serving and chill. You can eat this alone or add some baby greens. Again, adapted from the Louisville Scholar House calendar.

Liz's easy lasagna

Okay, I haven't posted in a while. I got inspired by a nice lady in the grocery who recommended these noodles. I was a little skeptical, but they turned out great! No boiling and the texture was perfect. Thank you random lady in the grocery!

Barilla lasagna noodles (no boiling variety)
1 lb ground beef
1 onion
1 green pepper
2 cloves garlic
16 oz ricotta cheese
2 cups mozz cheese
1 cup parm cheese
1 teaspoon dried parsley
1 egg
1 26 oz jar of pasta sauce
1 cup water

Brown beef with pepper, onion, and garlic. Drain beef and add sauce and water. Bring to boil and simmer. Mix ricotta cheese, 1 cup of mozz cheese, 1/2 cup of parm cheese, egg and parsly.
Pre-heat oven to 375. In 9 by 13: layer cup of meat sauce, 3-4 UNCOOKED noodles and 1/3 of ricotta cheese. Repeat layers. Top with remaining mozz cheese and parm cheese. Bake covered for 50-60 minutes.

Butternut squash casserole

This is so good, it's almost a dessert! You can also use sweet potatoes. To peel a squash is work, but it's worth it!

1 butternut squash
1 cup white sugar
1 1/2 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 pinch salt
2 tablespoons flour
3 eggs
1/4 cup butter, melted

TOPPING
1/2 (16 ounce) package vanilla wafers, crushed
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup brown sugar

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 425 degrees
Put butternut squash in the microwave and cook on high, until soft, 2 to 3 minutes. Cut in half, scoop out seeds and cube. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add squash and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and mash.
In a 9x13 inch casserole dish combine 3 cups mashed butternut squash, white sugar, milk, vanilla extract, salt, flour, eggs and 1/4 cup melted margarine.
Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until set.
In a medium bowl combine crushed vanilla wafers, 1/2 cup melted margarine and brown sugar. Crumble over top of cooked casserole and return to oven to brown.

Adapted from Allrecipes

Bourbon Balls

Adapted from my friend Mary's mom's recipe. My husband loves them.

1 stick of butter
1 16oz box of powdered sugar
5 TB to 1/4 cup of bourbon
1 cup of chopped pecans
1 1/2 to 2 pkgs of semi sweet choco squares
parafin to thin chocolate (I found it at walmart)
pecan halfs


Mix powdered sugar (sifted) and softed butter and then mix in the bourbon. Mix well and then added the 1 cup of chopped pecans. Then put them in the freezer for about an hour or so, so that the dough will firm up. It is easier to scoop out when it is firm. Then, after the dough set, form the balls. Then put balls back in the freezer for an hour or two until they firm up again.

Melt the chocolate over low heat and dip the balls, using a toothpick or spoon to hold them.
Place the pecan on top; chocolate cools very quickly.

Pumpkin soup - I love pumpkin

Evoo
1 bay leaf
1 ribs celery chopped
1/2 onion chopped
Salt and pepper
1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon tyme
3 cups chicken stock
1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin
1 cups heavy cream
nutmeg

Directions
Heat a medium soup pot over medium to medium high heat. Add the oil and melt the butter. Add bay, celery, and onion. Season the veggies with salt and pepper. Cook 5 minutes, until tender. Add flour, and tyme, then cook flour a minute. Whisk in chicken stock and bring liquid to a bubble. Whisk in pumpkin. Simmer soup 10 minutes to thicken a bit then add in cream and nutmeg.

From Rachel Ray