The Easiest Homemade Lasagna

If you are still buying frozen lasagna, this is the recipe for you.

It really could not be easier and is so delicious.  I mean, who doesn't love homemade lasagna?!  Whip up a green salad and some garlic bread and you are golden.  A super easy meal that people will be super impressed by.

1 1/2 lbs. lean ground beef

1 jar marinara (I use Trader Joe's tomato basil)

16 oz. cottage cheese

8 oz. sour cream

1 cup parmesan

18 slices of mozzarella (or shredded works, too)

8 oven ready lasagna noodles (I use Barilla)

*Brown the ground beef on stove.  Add marinara sauce and simmer.  In a 9x13 pan, put a little bit of the meat sauce.  Just enough to cover the bottom of the pan.  Lay down 4 of the noodles.  Mix the cottage cheese and sour cream together in a bowl.  Spoon half of that mixture over the noodles and spread.  Put 6 slices of the mozzarella over that.  Pour half of the remaining meat sauce over the mozzarella.  Sprinkle half of the parmesan.  Start again with noodles and repeat steps.  Top with remaining slices of mozzarella.  Cover with foil (without it touching the cheese) and bake at 350 for 1 hour.  Remove foil and bake for 10 more minutes.

Sidenote:  You can make the lasagna bigger by doing more meat sauce and more white sauce.  I will often do that when we are feeding more than just our family of six.  All the other ingredients stay the same.

Frito Casserole

Isn't it funny when you pin a recipe on Pinterest only to find that it came from one of your favorite food blogs?  That is what happened with this casserole.  I pinned it months ago thinking that it looked yummy and family-friendly.  I finally got around to making it last night and was so happy to see that it came from Sweet Treats and More!  Her recipes are great and always delicious.  Click here for the recipe and to see some way better pictures of this scrumptious dish.  My family loved it!

Easy Beef Stroganoff

Happy 2013!!

Hope it's been a good year for you so far.

I didn't do a lot of dinner-making during the month of December. In fact, we may have set a record for largest number of hot-and-ready Little Caesar's pizzas consumed in one month.  I hope the person that came up with that idea got a raise.  Best idea ever.  

But now it's a new year and we don't have an activity every night of the week and I'm cooking again!  Hooray!

This dinner is so easy and family-friendly.  Kids like anything with ground beef and noodles, right?  And it tastes great!

Just make sure and serve something green with this dish because it's not exactly the role model for healthy dinners.

1 pound lean ground beef
diced onion
1 can cream of mushroom
3/4 cup sour cream
salt
fresh ground pepper
garlic powder
egg noodles

*Brown beef with onions.  Add soup and sour cream.  Mix well.  Add a little salt to taste and a generous amount of pepper.  Add garlic powder to taste.  Let simmer over medium low for 10 minutes or so.  Serve over cooked egg noodles.

Enchilada Casserole

I got this idea off of Picky Palate.  She made something similar using chicken enchilada ingredients so I decided to try it with ground beef and red sauce.  This was so easy and tasted so good that I might never make regular enchiladas again.  Ok, so I actually made enchiladas yesterday (honey/lime) and rolled them, so I guess that's not true.  But a casserole sure is nice when you're short on time.

1 lb. lean ground beef
1 onion, chopped
Red enchilada sauce (I used two small jars from Trader Joe's)
6-8 corn tortillas, torn into pieces
Shredded cheese (I used colby/jack)

*Brown ground beef with onion on stove.  Season with salt/pepper/garlic powder.  Add enchilada sauce and let simmer.  Tear up corn tortillas into bite-size pieces.  Pour meat mixture into a 9x13 pan.  Add tortillas and mix together really well.  Cover the top with cheese and bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.

Meatballs

 Griffin has been requesting meatballs for dinner for the past few weeks.  I finally made them last night and he was quite pleased.  He ate 4 in fact!  I've never made them before so I just turned to google for a recipe and found this one from Betty Crocker.  We love Betty!  Anyways, it's a simple recipe and only took about 30 minutes start to finish.  I'm not really a meatball girl but these were really good.  And with 3 hungry boys to feed, you can't go wrong with meatballs!

Meatballs

1 lb. ground beef
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup italian style breadcrumbs
1/4 cup milk
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 egg

Line 9x13 pan with foil and spray with Pam.  Mix all ingredients in a bowl.  Shape into 1 1/2 inch balls.  Should make about 20 meatballs.  Place on greased foil and cook for 20 minutes at 400 degrees.  Serve with marina sauce.

Sour Cream Beef Enchiladas

 First things first.  Please don't stop looking at this blog because of this gross picture.  It's obvious that I have a lot to learn about food photography, and believe me, it's on my to-do list.

Also, I am in New York at Holly's house and tomorrow morning I am taking a train with BC to New York City and I can't remember the last time I was this excited about going somewhere. 

Not to sound dramatic, but I've pretty much been dreaming of going to NYC my whole life.

I have a long list of places I want to eat and only two days to hit them all...so wish me luck.

Now about the enchiladas.  They were really easy and really good.  It was fun to try a different spin on the traditional beef enchiladas that we usually eat.

 

1 medium onion

1 lb. lean ground beef

1 (16 oz.) container sour cream

1 (10 oz.)  can hot enchilada sauce

1 (10 oz.) can mild enchilada sauce

1 cup frozen white corn

12 corn tortillas

sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

*Brown ground beef with onion.  Add sour cream and corn.  Mix well while heating over medium heat.  Add half the can of hot enchilada sauce.  Stir to combine.  Warm up tortillas.  Spoon some meat mixture into each tortilla.  Top with a little cheese.  Roll up and place in a 9x13 pan.  When the pan is full, mix the remaining enchilada sauces and pour over top.  Cover with cheese.  Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

NANI'S ENCHILADAS

This recipe came from my dear friend Brooke's mother, Ana Maria, fondly known as "Nani". Nani was born in Spain and raised in the Phillipines. She is the cutest, sassiest most adorable lady you could ever meet and if you ever visit her, she will feed you until your eyes bulge! This is a great, hearty enchilada recipe that is easy and can be frozen for future use. If you choose to freeze it for use a a later time, freeze it unbaked. Take out of the freezer and let it sit for about 20 minutes before baking at 375 for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Check to make sure it is done in the middle.

I hope you like this as much as we do and I really wish all of you could meet Nani!!

INGREDIENTS

1 lb. ground beef
1 small chopped onion
1 15 oz. can refried beans
1 3.8 can sliced black olives
1 large can Macayo's Enchilada Sauce (comes in mild or hot--your preference)
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
1 15-20 count package corn tortillas
2 cups shredded cheese (Mexican blend or your choice)

Brown ground beef, and add chopped onion, Cook a little with onion in the beef then drain. Add olives and refried beans. Let mixture cool a little as you will be rolling this into the tortillas..

Heat to medium heat about 2 inches of oil in a medium frying pan. Dip tortillasinto hot oil, just to soften. Do not cook crisp. Drain on paper towels.

In a 9x13 baking dish, place about 3/4 cup of enchilada sauce and coat bottom of dish. Dip tortillas into enchilada sauce and place approx. 3 T. of meat mixture into the center of the tortill and roll. Place seam side down and repeat until all tortillas or mixture is used. Lay in rows in pan. Make sure you place them tightly in the dish, or they will not fit. You may have to use 2 pans. Pour remainder of enchilada sauce on top and top with shredded cheese.

Bake covered at 375 for 3-40 minutes. Each serving can be topped with lettuce, tomatoes, olives, chives, sour cream or chopped cilantro.

Mexican Rice Casserole

Every now and then, I like to make a casserole for dinner to get us through the week.  You know, so we can eat the leftovers for 3 days in a row and so I don't have to cook every night.  I used to be anti leftovers but now I love them!  Most meals actually taste better the next day.  I found this recipe on For The Love Of Cooking.  It was full of mexican flavor and fed us for the entire week.  Perfect.

Mexican Rice Casserole

• 1 1/2 cups of cooked white rice
• 1 tsp of olive oil
• 1 lb lean ground beef (I used 96/4)
• 1/2 sweet yellow onion, diced
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp dried cumin
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2-1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste
• 1 15 oz can of black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 15 oz can of tomato sauce
• 3-4 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped (divided)
• 1-2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese
• 3-4 tomatoes, sliced thickly
• Sour cream (topping)

Pour olive oil in skillet.  Brown beef until mostly done then add onion and cook until tender.  Add garlic and cook for 1 minute.  Add seasonings and mix well.  Next, add rice, drained black beans, tomato sauce and a little bit of cilantro.  Pour into a greased 9x13 pan.  Spread evenly then top with tomato slices and cheese.  Cover with foil that has been sprayed with cooking spray.  Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.  Remove foil and bake an additional 5 minutes until cheese is bubbly and golden brown.  Serve with a spoonful of sour cream and a sprinkle of cilantro.

Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

 I got this recipe from Nat who got it from her mother-in-law, Janet.  I have had it for a few years and finally decided to try it out.  I changed it slightly after comparing it to other recipes I found on the internet.  I always thought homemade spaghetti sauce would be so time consuming to make, but I was wrong!  It was easy and I actually had most of the ingredients already.  We loved this sauce and it was even better the next day!

Spaghetti Sauce

2 Tbs. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, diced
1 lb. ground beef
2 6oz. cans tomato paste
1 large can pureed tomatoes (I used 28oz. can crushed tomatoes)
1/2 Tbs. oregano
1/2 Tbs. basil
1/2 Tbs. parsley
2 Tbs. brown sugar
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 1/2 cups water 
3 Tbs. Parmesan cheese

Put oil in large pot, then add onion.  Saute until translucent then add garlic.  Stir for 1 minute.  Add beef and brown.  Pour in pureed tomatoes and tomato paste then add water.  Next, add spices and sugar.  Simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.  Serve over spaghetti noodles and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

*This makes a lot of sauce.  I used half one night and made lasagna with it the next night.  You can freeze the sauce to use later.

Green Beef Enchiladas

There are a couple of recipe magazines that I like to read and Taste of Home is one of them.  They have some fun contests and I love to see which recipes are the Grand Prize winners.

This enchilada recipe won a Southwestern dish contest and I couldn't wait to try it out.  I took one look at the ingredients for the sauce and wished I had thought of it myself.  Genius.

These were really tasty and I can't wait to try this sauce out on chicken enchiladas.

1 lb. lean ground beef
1/3 cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced (I used 2)
3/4 cup salsa
1 Tbs. cornmeal
2 tsp. chili powder
1 1/2 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. dried oregano
salt/pepper to taste
12 corn tortillas, warmed
shredded cheese

Sauce:
1 1/2 cups frozen white corn, thawed
1 (4 oz) can green chilies
1 cup fresh cilantro
1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
salt/pepper to taste

*Saute beef, onion and garlic until beef is no longer pink.  Remove from heat and stir in salsa, cornmeal and seasonings.  Spoon about 1/4 cup of meat mixture down the center of corn tortillas, sprinkle some cheese and then roll up and place seam side down in a 9x13 greased pan.
*Put all of sauce ingredients in a food processor and pulse until well blended.  I think I blended the sauce too long because in the magazine picture, it wasn't so green and you could see bits of cilantro.  Spoon over enchiladas and top with more cheese.  Cover and bake at 350 for 30 minutes, then uncover and bake for 5-10 more minutes.

The original recipe calls for ground turkey, flour tortillas, and olives on top.

Sour Cream Noodle Bake

 I'm a big fan of Pioneer Woman, as I'm sure most of you are.

Her recipes are family-friendly and she uses real ingredients that are easy to find.  Plus she gives away tons of awesome stuff.

When I saw this recipe on her website, I knew immediately that it was going to become a favorite at our house.  Anything involving ground beef, noodles, and cheese is sure to be a winner around here.

1 1/4 lbs. lean ground beef
1 can (15 oz.) tomato sauce
salt/pepper
8 oz. egg noodles
1/2 cup sour cream
1 1/4 cups cottage cheese
1/2 cup sliced green onion (I left this out)
1 cup grated sharp cheddar

*Brown beef in a skillet.  Add tomato sauce and salt and pepper.  I used quite a bit of freshly ground pepper.  Let simmer while you prepare the rest.  Cook noodles according to package.  Drain and set aside.  In a separate bowl, combine sour cream and cottage cheese.  Add some freshly ground pepper.  Add to noodles and stir.  Add green onions and stir.  Grab a casserole dish and begin by adding half the noodles.  Then add half the meat and half the grated cheese.  Repeat with noodles, meat, cheese.  Bake for 20 minutes at 350.

Crock-pot Ravioli Casserole

I found this recipe in a Rival cookbook at my Aunt Annette's house.  I get so excited about good crock-pot recipes.  They come in so handy on busy days and especially on Sundays, when we come home from church starving and ready to eat.  This was filling and flavorful and the kids loved it!  Three stars in our house.

1 1/2 lbs. lean ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
salt/pepper
10 oz. frozen spinach, thawed (I used fresh spinach)
16 oz. bowtie pasta, cooked
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
1 1/2 cup mozzarella, shredded

*Brown ground beef with onion and garlic.  Put in crock-pot and add sauce, tomatoes and seasonings. Cook for 6-7 hours on low.  Add the last 4 ingredients during the last 30 minutes of cooking and turn crock-pot to high.  I added the fresh spinach, pasta, parmesan and 1 cup of the mozzarella and I mixed it all up really well.  Then I added the last 1/2 cup of mozzarella to melt on the top.

Shepherd's Pie

I had a lot of leftover mashed potatoes on Sunday and Jen suggested that I make shepherd's pie with them.  I hadn't made this dish in years and I was so glad she thought of it.  Last time I made it, I used canned green beans and potato pearls.  Bland.  This time I used real mashed potatoes (made with red potatoes) and frozen green beans.  Much better!

1 lb. lean ground beef
salt/pepper
1 can Italian style stewed tomatoes
2 cups fresh or frozen green beans
mashed potatoes (2-3 cups I think)
sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

*Brown ground beef in a skillet and season with salt and pepper (I like a lot of pepper).  Add tomatoes and mix well, breaking up any big chunks of tomato.  Simmer for a few minutes.  Pour beef into a casserole dish.  Spread green beans over beef and season with salt and pepper.  Spread mashed potatoes over beans and then top with lots of shredded cheese (tastes better if you shred it yourself).  Bake at 350 for 40 minutes.

Ranch Taco Soup

When my kids get their copy of "The Friend" magazine in the mail, they get excited for the games and stories.  I get excited to see what recipe they're going to feature that month.

It's always something family-friendly and easy to make.

This soup was in the January issue and we gave it a try this week.

A nice spin on the traditional taco soup that we usually make.

Which, coincidentally, also came out of "The Friend."

1 lb. lean ground beef
1 cup chopped onion
2 Tbs. taco seasoning
2 Tbs. Ranch seasoning and salad dressing mix
1 can chicken broth
1 can water
2 cans kidney beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can corn, drained (I used frozen white corn)
1 can green beans, drained (I used frozen green beans)

*Brown beef and onion.  Add in seasonings and mix well.  Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.  Turn down to low and cook for 30 minutes, covered.  Serve with tortilla chips, grated cheese, sour cream, and other desired toppings.

Taco Seasoning

Last Sunday it was time to make dinner and I realized that I hadn't thought about what we were having for Sunday dinner until that very moment.  Don't you hate that?  You probably don't do that.
So we went with the old standby...tried and true...always have the ingredients on hand...Taco salad.
Then I realized that I had left my taco seasoning at my parents' cabin.
No problem.  Google to the rescue.  Can't be rocket science making taco seasoning.
So I found this recipe on allrecipes (I think) and thought it looked like a winner.
I mixed it up and added it to the meat mixture and we loved the flavor.
Better tasting than my big plastic container of taco seasoning and better yet, no weird preservatives.

2 Tbs. chili powder
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp. oregano
1/4 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. paprika
2 tsp. pepper
2 tsp. salt

*I mixed it up in a little tupperware and used about 1/3 of it for 1 lb. of ground beef.

Aunt Carolyn's Famous Casserole

This is actually the second time I have posted this recipe.  I put it on here last year when Brett's sweet aunt passed away.  I didn't have a picture of it then and if you're like me, you don't pay much attention to recipes that don't have a picture.  So here it is again in all it's photo glory.

1 lb. lean ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 can tomato soup
1 can tomato sauce (15 oz.)
1 can corn, drained
1 T. chili powder
1 tsp. salt
8 oz. pasta (I used whole wheat penne) uncooked

*Brown beef and onion.  Add the rest of ingredients and mix well.  Pour into a casserole dish and sprinkle with shredded cheese. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes.

*The recipe says to used already cooked pasta, but I'm not into that extra step.  So I just added a little water to the mix and it turned out just great.  A family favorite for sure. 

Enchilada Lasagna

Two of my favorite things...together in one recipe!
It's like a happy food marriage.
We loved this dish and will definitely be adding it into our dinner rotation.

1 1/2 lbs. lean ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 can stewed tomatoes (14 oz.)
1 can red enchilada sauce (10 oz.)
1 1/2 tsp. cumin
1 egg, beaten
1 1/2 cups cottage cheese
3 cups shredded cheese (I used sharp cheddar)
4 flour tortillas, cut in half

*Brown beef with onion and garlic.  Add tomatoes, enchilada sauce and cumin.  Bring to a boil and then turn down to low and simmer for 20 minutes.  In a separate bowl, combine egg and cottage cheese.  In a 9X13 pan, spread 1/2 of the meat sauce.  Layer with 1/2 of cheese, 1/2 of tortillas and 1/2 of cottage cheese.  Repeat layers and sprinkle with a little more cheese.  Bake at 350 for 15 minutes covered with foil and 15 minutes uncovered.

*A couple of our kids didn't like the tomato chunks, so next time I might try tomato sauce or tomato soup in the meat mixture.

Martha's Taco Meat

Martha Stewart. Bless her crafty little heart. She has an app for ipods/iphones that shows a new dinner recipe everyday. It's like Christmas. It's one of the first things I look at in the morning. A lot of her recipes involve fish, which you might have noticed, we don't do. But one day this beef taco recipe popped up and it is a gem. We ate it two days in a row and then I thought about it on the third day and wished I was having it again. Thank you, Martha.

1 tsp. oil

1 onion, chopped

2 bell peppers, chopped (I used red and yellow)

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 Tbs. tomato paste

2 tsp. chili powder

1 1/2 tsp. cumin

salt and pepper

1 lb. lean ground beef

*In a skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and peppers. Cook for 3-5 minutes. Add 1 cup of water and cook for 3-5 more minutes, until water has evaporated and veggies are softened. Add garlic, paste, chili powder, and cumin. Season with salt and pepper. Add beef and cook well until crumbly and brown. Season again with salt and pepper. Serve on flour tortillas with toppings that you like. (If you haven't tried the corn tortillas from Trader Joe's, I highly recommend).

BAKED ZITI IN CREAMY MARINARA

This recipe is so great and easy because you don't have to cook the pasta first. You can also omit the meat if you like.

1 lb. ground beef, browned and drained
Set aside.

Mix:
1 26 oz jar pasta sauce, (Ragu or Prego)
1 1/2 c. water
15 oz. container of Ricotta cheese
1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
Mix well and stir in:
8 oz. uncooked ziti (can use penne also) and the ground beef. Place in a 9 x 13 pan and bake, covered in 400 degree ovenfor 55 minutes.

Remove from oven and sprinkle with Mozarella cheese. Bake uncovered for 5 more minutes until cheese is melted. So easy!!

Little League Tostadas

We have been spending lots of time at the ballpark.

T-ball and baseball games every night Monday through Thursday.

It has been a lot of fun.

This makes for really quick and easy dinners as we fly out the door.

Here is something we tried the other night and I think this one will stick around even after Little League is over.

1 lb. lean ground beef

taco seasoning

1 can refried beans

1 can green chilies

shredded cheese

tostada shells

shredded cabbage

cilantro

lime juice

*Cook ground beef and add taco seasoning and a little water. In a separate saucepan, heat up beans and add green chilies and a little milk. Combine shredded cabbage with chopped cilantro (as much as you like) and some lime juice to taste. Layer on tostada shell: beans, meat, cheese, shredded cabbage mix. Top with favorite taco sauce. Our favorite is Macayos.