Tortellini Soup

Ingredients:

1lb. Pork sausage

1-2 TBS Olive Oil

4 carrots (sliced)

2 celery stalks (sliced)

8 mushrooms(sliced)

1/2 large onion (diced)

2 cloves garlic (minced)

1 tsp. oregano

1 tsp. basil

salt and pepper

48 oz box Swanson broth

1 can Swanson broth

1/2 bag of Cheese Tortellini

1 can diced tomatoes

1/2 cup water

Directions:

Cook the sausage until no longer pink. Drain and place on a paper towel.

In a medium to large stock pot saute the carrots, celery and onions for about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and garlic in for about 1 minute.

Add the Broth, oregano, basil, salt and pepper, diced tomatoes and water. Let this simmer on low for about 20-25 minutes. Add in the tortellini and let them cook for about 5 minutes.

Enjoy!

The Results:

This was a delicious quick soup. Soup is always good because you can throw anything you want into the pot. I don't think you can really go wrong. I topped the soup off with some Parmesan cheese and some crusty bread. It was tasty and filling.

Deep Dish Lasagna

Sorry, I didn't clean up the picture. The sauce draining down the plate makes it more real, right?

So as you can tell by most of my pictures they are quick and in a hurry. With no background or anything. What can I say my family can not wait for the dinner. My husband sighs every time I break out the camera. We had company the night I made this lasagna and they asked "Why are you taking a picture of the food?" I just laughed because I know it looks kinda weird. Oh well, I do it for the viewing pleasures of you guys. I just wish my family didn't have to starve an extra 5 minutes longer.

INGREDIENTS :
12 uncooked lasagna noodles
1 pound sweet Italian sausage (I used half ground beef and half sausage)
2/3 cup chopped onions
1/2 tablespoon minced garlic
2/3 cup chopped fresh parsley, divided
3 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
2 cups water
1 1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil leaves
1 pound part-skim ricotta cheese
1 (10 ounce) package chopped spinach, thawed and squeeze dried
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 eggs
2 teaspoons garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add lasagna and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
In skillet over medium heat, brown the sausage with the onions, garlic and 1/2 the parsley; drain. Add tomato paste, tomato sauce, water, Italian seasoning, oregano, and basil; mix well. Simmer, covered, for 5 minutes; stirring occasionally.
In a bowl, combine remaining parsley and Ricotta, spinach, Parmesan, eggs, garlic salt, and pepper; mix well.
In lightly greased 9x13 inch baking dish, spread 2 cups sauce mix. Begin layering with 4 noodles, 1/2 cheese mix, 1/3 remaining sauce, and 1 cup mozzarella. Repeat this layer again and the last layer will be noodles, sauce and mozzarella cheese.
Bake covered in a preheated oven at for 45 minutes. Bake uncovered an additional 10 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.

The Results:
I made this for company a couple days ago. It was really good. I did change a couple things. I did half ground beef and half sausage and I added about 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of salt to the sauce. Also you only need 10 noodles. Everything else was just perfect. Yummy! I served it with a salad and garlic bread. Also if you wanted just use your own spaghetti sauce. You can make it or pour it out of your favorite bottle of sauce. I won't judge you.:) I got this recipe from allrecipes.

P.W. Chile Con Queso, Revved Up

2lbs package of Velvetta Cheese

1lb package of Hot Breakfast Sausage (Jimmy Dean's)

1/2 large onion (chopped)

1 regular can Rotel (diced tomatoes with green chilies)(either regular or hot)

1 7-oz can of diced green chilies

1 to 3 diced jalapeno peppers, according to preference

Directions:
Chop the onion and brown with the breakfast sausage. Drain excess fat so you won’t have a
coronary. Cut Velveeta into cubes and add to warm skillet. Add Rotel and green chilies, and stir
together over low heat until mixture is melted. Add finely diced jalapenos, stir together, and serve warm with tortilla chips. During serving, Queso needs to be kept warm, either in a fondue pot,chafing dish, or Crock Pot.
Queso can be frozen flat in Ziploc bags and reheated.

The Results:

I really liked this. I think the hot breakfast sausage gave it a good texture and taste. I would have added another jalapeno though. I just added one jalapeno. I'm sure I will make it again so next time I will probably add 2 jalapeno's maybe even the third one. I like hot stuff though. So taste it before you go throwing another one in. I did as Pioneer Woman said and I Ziploced the rest of the queso. Try this and check out P.W. website on how she did it step by step.

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/06/chile_con_queso/

Biscuits and Gravy

Ingredients:
Breakfast Sausage
Flour
Milk
Salt
Pepper
Canned Biscuits

Directions:
Here are the step by step directions: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/09/biscuits_and_gr/ or you can you the PDF recipe she has set up.
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/recipes/biscuits-and-gravy.pdf

The Results:
My husband really liked this. I think next time I would use a Hot Breakfast Sausage though. Everything went really good together.

Baked Penne Mozzarella with Sweet Italian Sausage

Ingredients:
1 lbs dry penne pasta
1/2 yellow onion
3 cloves garlic (minced)
1 lbs Sweet Italian Sausage
1/2 package of fresh mushroom or 1 can of mushrooms
season with a little salt and pepper
1 jar Traditional Prego
1 cup cottage cheese
2 cups mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cook pasta according to directions, drain and set aside. Heat up a large pan and add the Italian Sausage , onion and garlic. Add the mushrooms to the pan once the sausage is cooked. Cook the mushroom with the sausage for just a little bit and season with a little salt and pepper. Next add the Prego to the Sausage mixture. Add the cooked penne to the sausage and prego sauce.
Spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray. Add half of the pasta into the pan. Next put the cup of cottage cheese on top and 1 cup of mozzarella. Then top it off with the rest of the pasta and put the remaining mozzarella on top and Parmesan cheese. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbling.

The Results:
It turned out so good. I loved it. It is going to make GREAT leftovers for the next couple days. It makes a lot. I wish I could have made some bread sticks with it but I ran out of time. So it was served with a salad and we had some cut up strawberries for dessert. YUMMY!

Sausage Tortellini Soup

Ingredients:

1 pound of sausage (sweet sausage, pork sausage..whatever)
1 small onion (chopped)
2 cloves garlic (minced)
1 teaspoon of oregano
1 teaspoon of basil
1/2 teaspoon of parsley
48 oz box of chicken broth
1 cup of water
2 carrots (chopped)
3 stalks of celery (chopped)
1 can of diced tomatoes (drained)
a batch of spinach ( *you could also use zuchinni)
8oz frozen cheese tortellini
salt and pepper to taste
** Top with mozzerella or parmesan cheese**
Directions:
Cook the sausage, onion and garlic and drain off the grease. Add the oregano, basil and parsley. Then add the broth, water, carrots, celery and diced tomatoes. Bring all of this to a boil and add the tortellini and let it cook for 2 minutes and then add the spinach till wilted in soup. Now it's all ready to eat.

The Results:
**I made this up tonight so I hope it turns out good for you. It was good to us. Serve it with garlic bread and whatever else you want.:) It kinda taste like the mini meatball soup. They are both good though.