Easy Cheese Sauce For Nachos

This sauce is perfect for nachos, baked potatoes, broccoli, or anything else you could dream of putting cheese sauce on, plus it is so easy and quick... cheese away!

3 tbs butter
3 tbs flour
1 1/2 c milk
1 c cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)

Melt butter in a sauce pan over medium high heat. Whisk in flour until smooth. Slowly add milk, allowing to thicken after each addition. Stir in cheese once sauce becomes thick. Stir in cayenne. Pour over nachos or whatever needs cheesy yumminess.

Spinach, Bacon, and Mushrooom Pasta

4 strips of bacon, chopped
1 cup sliced white mushrooms
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
3 cups fresh spinach, washed and trimmed
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp nutmeg
salt and pepper
4 cups cooked bowtie or penne

Heat a pan over medium high heat and add bacon. Cook until crisp and remove to a paper towel. Drain fat if needed, but leave a little to cook the onion. Add onion and cook for a couple minutes then add garlic and cook until transparent. Add mushrooms and cook for 2 minutes then add cream and turn up the heat a bit. Cook from about 5 minutes until cream thickens and add spinach. Lower heat to low and cook until spinch wilts about a minute or so. Add nutmeg and season with salt and pepper to taste. Toss with pasta and enjoy!

Calzones

One recipe pizza dough
mozzarella
tomato sauce
Any fillings you like, I chose:
Sliced olives, cooked and crumbled sausage, basil, red bell peppers, and onions (I chose to saute the peppers and onions first so that they would be more evenly cooked)
Olive Oil

Preheat oven to 400 and grease a baking sheet.

Make the dough and split it into 6 pieces. Roll the dough sections out till they are 1/4 inch thick (about the size of a dinner plate). Place a couple slices or a 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella, a few tablespoons of tomato sauce, and a 1/2 cup of filling into the calzones. Fold them over and pinch the edges to seal. Brush each calzone with a little olive oil.

Cook for 30 minutes or until calzones are a light brown.

Kinda Thai Soup

I saw someone make something like this on a cooking showdown show but couldn't find the recipe, so I made this up. It is light but very filling.

4 cups chicken broth
4 cups water
1 large chicken breast, whole
1 bunch of asparagus, ends trimmed off and cut into 1 inch pieces
1 red onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 carrot, peeled and then shaved
3/4 c frozen peas (don't thaw)
1/2 a package of Thai style rice noodles (you need about 5 oz)
1 tsp chili paste
1 tsp curry powder
2 tsp soy sauce
2 green onions
2 limes
Salt and pepper

In a large pot over high heat bring chicken broth to a boil. Add the chicken breast and cook until done (8-10 minutes). Take out of pot and shred, set aside. Add water and noodles to pot. Cook for about 8 minutes and then add asparagus and onion. Cook for another 2 or 3 minutes and add peas, carrot shavings, and chicken to pot. Stir in chili paste, curry powder, soy sauce, and juice of 1 lime. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with more soy sauce, chili paste, and lime wedges.

Spinach and Strawberry Salad

4 cups spinach, washed and stems removes
1/2 a red onion, thinly sliced
3/4 cup sliced fresh strawberries
1/4 c red wine vinegar
1/4 c vegetable oil
1 tsp sugar
salt and pepper

Whisk together vinegar, oil, and sugar and season with a little salt and pepper. Toss with spinach, onion, and strawberries. Mmmmmm!

Curried Sweet Potato, Chicken, and Chickpea Stew

I got this recipe from Women's Health Magazine and added a few things. It is terrific tasting, has an amazing flavor, and is super healthy.

1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 large green pepper, coarsely chopped
1 1/2 tbs curry powder
1/2 tsp cumin
4 cups chicken broth
1 chicken breast, cut into 1/2 in pieces
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1/2 in pieces
1 can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained
1 c light coconut milk
a handful of cilantro, finely chopped
salt and pepper

In a dutch oven, heat a couple tbs of oil and add onion. Cook over medium low heat for about 10 minutes until onions turn a caramel color. Add peppers and cook until soft. Stir in curry, cumin, and about a 1/4 tsp salt. Cook for a couple minutes and then add broth, sweet potatoes, and chicken. Simmer for 15 minutes or until chicken is cooked and potatoes are soft. Remove about 1 cup of the sweet potatoes and mash them, return them to the pot and bring to a boil. Add chickpeas, coconut milk, and cilantro. Cook until heated through and then season with salt and pepper to taste.

Maple Glazed Turkey Breast and Mac 'N Cheese

Maple Glazed Turkey Breast

1/3 c real maple syrup
1 tbs Dijon mustard
1 tbs brown sugar
1 tsp lemon juice
1 6-8 lb bone-in turkey breast, rinsed and patted dry (make sure it is thawed if frozen!)

Combine maple syrup, mustard, brown sugar, and lemon juice.

Preheat oven to 375. Place turkey, breast side up, in a roasting pan fitted with a rack. Cook meat for 30 minutes and then brush the maple mixture all over the top of the turkey. Place back in oven and continue basting turkey until it reaches 165 degrees internally. Be sure to check a few places of the turkey to ensure it is all cooked through. It will take about 2 hours to cook, but begin checking temp after about an hour and 15 minutes. Remove turkey from oven when temperature is reached and tent with tin foil for 15 minutes.

The result should be an extremely moist and perfectly flavored turkey!

My Favorite Mac 'N Cheese

1 lb pasta of choice (I like shells, but elbows, penne, or even rigatoni would work)
1/2 tbs olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
3 tbs butter
1/4 c flour
1 glug of white wine
3 c milk
2 egg yolks
1 c grated Gruyere cheese
1 c grated Cheddar
3/4 c grated Parmesan
Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375

Cook pasta till al dente.

Heat oil in a pan over medium-high heat and add onion. Cook for a minute and add garlic. Cook until fragrant and the onion is translucent. Add butter and melt. Once butter is melted, slowly whisk in flower until thickened. Whisk in wine and then slowly begin to add milk. Cook until thickened. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks until smooth. Add to sauce and mix in quickly. Now comes the fun part! Add 3/4 c Gruyere, 3/4 c Cheddar, and 1/2 c parm and stir until melted nicely. Add a little salt and black pepper. Add the cooked, drained pasta to the sauce and stir together. Try not to eat too much, it gets better!

Pour pasta mixture into a greased pan and top with remaining cheeses. Put in oven and cook until cheesed are melty and begin to brown.