Garlic Noodles

Garlic Noodles


1 Tbsp Grated Parmesan Cheese
8 oz dried pasta (I use Sam Mills or DeBoyles Gluten Free Corn Spaghetti)
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup whipping cream
3 Tbsp Olive oil
8 Garlic Cloves, minced

Cook the pasta as directed, drain and set aside.  Saute the garlic in the olive oil (I use my handy dandy garlic press to prepare the garlic) until not quite browned.  Add the whipping cream, salt and pepper.  Simmer for 2-3 minutes.  Toss in pasta and Parmesan cheese, heat through.

My family absolutely loves this.  They even went back for seconds and told me I need to make more next time!

Please forgive the photo, I had to use the flash because of the poor lighting.

Cheesy Penne & Ham

Cheesy Penne & Ham

8 oz dried GF Penne (or any pasta, I used GF elbows for the one in the picture)
8 oz package of cream cheese
1/2 cup shredded cheddar
1/2 cup Chopped Ham (I just chopped up some breakfast ham steaks)
1 - 10 oz can of diced tomatoes with green chilies
1/2 cup frozen baby sweet peas (I used regular frozen peas, because that is what I had!)

Cook the pasta as directed, adding the peas in with the pasta during the last few minutes.  Drain and set aside.  Combine all remaining ingredients in the same pot you cooked the pasta in.  Cook until the cheese melts and gets all creamy and gooey, and maybe a little bubbly.  Stir in the penne and peas.  Make sure it's heated through, and serve!

*Note - My family doesn't care for huge chunks of tomatoes in their food.  Crushed tomatoes are preferred here.  So, I just dump the can of diced tomatoes with chilies in my mini food processor and blend it all up.  That is most likely why my dish looks pink!

Pot Roast - CrockPot Style

There is nothing better than smelling Pot Roast cook all day in the crock pot.  Ok, well maybe there is, but today it holds true!  Who doesn't love the melt in your mouth tenderness of the meat and the veggies packed with flavor?

Pot Roast

2 - 3 lb Chuck Roast

1 Tbsp butter

1 Tbsp Olive Oil

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

A bunch of carrots, cut into 1-2 inch chunks

2 -3 cups No Salt Added Beef Broth (make sure it's Gluten Free)

2 Garlic cloves, minced

Salt and Pepper to taste

Sprinkle of Thyme and Sage

In a large skillet over medium high heat, melt the butter and add the olive oil.  Saute the onions until they start to caramelize.  Throw in the carrots during the last few minutes.   Remove the onions and carrots from the skillet and set aside.  

Season the chuck roast with salt and pepper to your tastes.  We love pepper, so I tend to use a lot on my meat.  In the same skillet you sauteed the onions and carrots, sear both sides of the roast.  I love that sound!

In the crockpot, add the beefstock, spices and garlic.  Add the roast (the beef stock should just come to the top of the roast).  On top of the roast, add the onions and carrots.  Cover and cook on low for 8 -10 hours.

Menu Plan Monday - 9/26/11

I am trying really hard to get back on track planning our meals.  I have discovered I spend countless hours a day trying to decide what to make for dinner.  Even with cupboards full, I can never find something to make. Not anymore!  I actually sat down last week and made a menu plan for the whole month, including recipes.

Since this is my first post on my new blog, I have no recipes yet! **Edited to add: they are slowly coming!*** I will be slowly adding them as I go along.  Some are my own, some are out of cookbooks, and some I have found online.  I do have some recipes and Menu plans on my main blog, Come Stitch With Me, but I decided my cooking needed it's own blog.  I don't really think my Cross Stitching friends are too interested in seeing my menus, and vice versa!  I will try to add photos as I go, but warning, I am not the world's best food photographer!  Other photography I can do pretty well though.  I just need practice!

I downloaded some menu lists online, one for the month, then I printed out several weekly lists and put them all in a small 3-ring binder.  The monthly menu is in front with a quick glimpse of meals to come.  The next page is the first weeks menus (which was this past week) followed by a loose leaf page with any recipes I will need for that week.  The following page is the next week, followed by a page of recipes and so on and so forth.  I found all the lists at Organized Home.  This link takes you right to the Menu planning section with all sort of tips to help make menu planning less stressful.  There are links to downloadable documents on the bottom of the page.  I think the whole website is pretty neat, and I even took advantage of downloading to-do lists, diet trackers and even a blood pressure tracker.

99.9% of the time, my menu and recipes are going to be Gluten Free.  I have Celiac Disease, and therefore can not eat anything containing gluten.  Which means no wheat, barley or rye for me.  The rest of my family is not affected by gluten, so they get regular bread and some other things now and then, but I only make Gluten Free dinners because I don't want to make 2 dinners!

So, for this week:

Monday: Pot Roast in the CrockPot, Mashed Potatoes (Courtesy of The Pioneer Woman)

Tuesday: Cheesy Penne and Ham, Tossed Salad

Wednesday: Cheeseburgers, Garlic Noodles, Mixed Vegetables

Thursday: Tacos, Corn, Rice

Friday: Vegetable Soup (Progresso Garden Vegetable), Ham Sandwiches (I use Udi's or Rudi's Gluten Free bread), Tossed Salad (Maybe, trip to the City and we may not be home for dinner)

Saturday: Delmonico Steaks on the grill, Baked Potatoes with Sour Cream, Tossed Salad

Sunday: Hot Dogs (simple and easy! I use Udi's Gluten Free Hot Dog Buns), French Fries, Tossed Salad