Italian Mac-n-Cheese

The next in my series of mac and cheese recipes, I've yet to find someone who doesn't love this when they try it. It is sooo yummy! It satisfies so many cravings: cravings for mac and cheese, comfort food, Italian food. The best part - it's a 30 minute meal! Everything is cooked before hand and all you need to do is pop it under the broiler to brown it. Another great thing about this recipe is that it freezes very well. You should definitely make a double batch and pop one in the freezer. This was one of the recipes I froze during my last pregnancy so that we had home cooked meals when the baby came home. It was delicious and might taste even better than the first day. I have to thank Rachael Ray for yet another yummy but quick and easy meal.

Shepherd's Pie

Shepherd's Pie has always been a favorite in my family. I loved it growing up and now we love it in our family. I think it's a great family recipe because you can put what your family likes in it. I've made a lot of versions of this dish. The original dish is made with lamb but we often use ground beef. I've also made it with ground turkey and topped it with mashed sweet potatoes. This dish is also a great way to use leftover meat. Some of our favorite shepherd's pie has been made with leftover roast pork loin. This recipe is the basic one I use when we have shepherd's pie, but feel free to change it up. Use whatever veggies your family likes. This time I added some carrot and it was yummy!

Fried Rice and Stir-Fry

One of my recent issues of Food Network Magazine had this really cool article on Stir Fries. It's a mix and match type thing where you pick your protein, veggies, and sauce. I chose to do Sweet and Sour Chicken. It was pretty good but not amazing. Maybe my family thinks different but I don't remember too many "mmm" sounds at the table that night. I personally think I've made better stir-fries. I just feel like something was missing. Anyway I also made fried rice which is always a hit around here. It's actually quite easy and you can't put pretty much anything you want in it.

Spring Shells and Cheese

As promised here is another macaroni and cheese recipe. This was one of five recipes included in an article about mac and cheese in Food Network Magazine. It's also where I got the recipe for Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese. I like dishes like this one with the veggies in it. It's one less thing to worry about when making dinner. This was pretty yummy and pretty easy. The flavor reminded me of a vegetable lasagna. The only problem for me was when I shredded the zucchini in my Cuisinart and then couldn't get the lid off. My zucchini was stuck until my husband could get home and work his handyman magic on it. We ended up having to wait till the next day for our mac and cheese. Anyway, it was worth the wait and it went great with some grilled pork chops that I had marinated (for over a day at that point) in McCormick Grill Mates Garlic Herb & Wine marinade. The whole family loved it and, even though my kids are pretty good with their veggies, this was a great way to get some in them.