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!

Buffalo-Chicken Macaroni and Cheese

When I was writing my Fried Chicken post, I mentioned my constant quest for yummy mac and cheese recipes. I think I laughed out loud when later that day I opened my new Food Network Magazine (April 2010) and saw that there was an article on just that. When I turned to the recipes and saw this one I knew right away I had to make it. I like buffalo chicken dishes occasionally, but my husband and son LOVE them. I discovered that even my 22 month old daughter does too. She devoured this buffalo chicken dip that I made for Superbowl this year. Anyway, I thought this sounded pretty good. Well, it was delicious! The sour cream gave an incredible texture and left me thinking that I need to be putting sour cream in all of my mac and cheese. One thing I left out was the blue cheese on top. We are just not huge fans and honestly I don't fell like it was missed.  Even though we're not normally blue cheese fans, the blue cheese makes this recipe delicious! The original recipe calls for using a store-bought rotisserie chicken but I just poached some chicken breasts instead. Be careful with this one. You're going to want to eat it all. (Look for more mac-and-cheese recipes to come - I think it will be a series)

This is one of my favorite "BLD" recipes (one of Rachael Ray's terms meaning Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner). This was the first time I tried this recipe with the no-boil lasagna noodles and it came out perfect! I'm thrilled because they are one of my favorite ingredients. I love lasagna, but have never been a fan of the boiling, oiling, cooling, etc of the noodles before you can even assemble your lasagna.

Shrimp and Broccoli Lasagna

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Servings: 4 for dinner and leftovers for lunch

Ingredients

• 1 lb medium shrimp, cooked
• 1 lb broccoli, cooked crisp-tender
• 6 lasagna noodles (pre-cooked if they're not no-boil)
• 6 T butter
• 1/2 c flour
• 1/2 c green onions, sliced
• 1/2 t salt
• 1/2 t dry mustard
• 1/2 t thyme
• 1/4 t cayenne pepper
• 5 c milk
• 2 c monterey jack, shredded
• 3-4 c cheddar, shredded (white or yellow is fine)

Directions:

1. Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat.
2. Stir in flour, onions, salt, dry mustard, thyme, and cayenne.
3. Cook for a minute, add milk, and continue to cook, stirring, until mixture comes to a boil and thickens.
4. Reduce heat to low and add the monterey jack.
5. Cook about 1 minute, stirring constantly, until the cheese is melted.
6. Preheat oven to 350.
7. In an ungreased 13x9 (3 qt) baking dish, layer 1 cup of sauce, 3 noodles, all of the broccoli, 1 cup of cheddar and 2 cups of sauce. Top with 3 more noodles, all of the shrimp, 1 cup of cheddar, remaining sauce, and remaining cheddar.
8. Bake 30 minutes until top is golden and bubbly.