Sausage stuffed shells

30 jumbo pasta shells
6 links sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
1 medium onion finely chopped
5 cloves garlic chopped
3 cups white mushrooms roughly chopped
2.5 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
2 cups baby spinach
2 cups pasta sauce (I make my own and store it)
2 tbsp olive oil


Preheat oven to 375. Bring very large pot of salted water to boil. Add pasta and bring back to a boil. Boil until al dente. Drain and add cold water to pan to allow pasta to cool. In a large skillet over medium heat add olive oil, garlic and onions. Cook for about 3 minutes and add in mushrooms. Toss and cook until mushrooms and onions are soft. Remove mushrooms and onions. In same pan break up sausage and saute until starting to brown. (Do not cook all the way through as it will finish cooking in the oven.) Turn off heat and add mushrooms back in. Add in spinach and combine. Place half of cheese in pan and combine quickly. Place pasta sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish. Take a shell out of the water and gently open it. Using your hand fill it with about 2 tbsp of the sausage mixture. Place it open side up in the pan. After you have filled all of the shells place any remaining sausage and mushroom mixture around the shells. Top with other half of cheese. Cover and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and turn on broiler. Cook for 5-7 minutes or until cheese browns.

Strawberry Napoleons

INGREDIENTS
1 puff pastry sheet
1 3 1/2 ounce vanilla instant pudding
1 cup milk
1 1/2 cups sweetened whipped cream
1 1/3 cups sliced strawberries
powdered sugar

DIRECTIONS
1. Thaw pastry sheet at room temperature 40 min. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Unfold pastry on lightly floured surface. Cut into 3 strips along fold marks. Place on baking sheet. Bake 15 minutes or until golden. Let cool.
3. Prepare pudding mix according to package directions except use 1 cup milk. Fold in whipped cream.
4. Split each pastry into 2 layers. Set aside 2 of the top layers. Spread each of the remaining 4 layers with 1/2 cup pudding mixture and 1/3 cup strawberries. For each dessert, assemble 2 layers and top with 1 top pastry layer.
5. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate up to 4 hours.

Coconut Curry Chicken

INGREDIENTS
1 ½ pounds chicken breasts, cut into 1” chunks
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 14 oz can of coconut milk
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon hot sauce
2 tablespoons curry powder
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 inch grated ginger

DIRECTIONS
1. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken, onion and garlic, cook about 8 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink.
2. Add in curry powder, coriander, cumin, and ginger. Stir in coconut milk, tomato paste and hot sauce.
3. Reduce heat and simmer 10-15 minutes until the sauce thickens. Serve over Basmati rice.

French Toast

INGREDIENTS
4 eggs
3/4 cup milk
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
8 slices of your favorite bread
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon powdered sugar
cooking spray

DIRECTIONS
1. In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs. Add the milk, brown sugar and nutmeg; mix well to combine.
2. Soak bread slices in the egg mixture, coating both sides. Let excess egg mixture drip off.
3. Spray frying pan with cooking spray and heat over medium high heat. Add bread slices to hot skillet and cook 2-3 minutes per side, or until lightly browned. Serve sprinkled with cinnamon and powdered sugar.

NOTE: Get creative with your bread choice. You can use croissants, baguettes, or even sourdough.

Golden Mushroom Pork Chops - Update

I have updated the picture to my Golden Mushroom Pork Chops recipe. Check it out!

Mexican Style Ribs

INGREDIENTS
1 rack of baby back pork ribs
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
salt
pepper
garlic powder
1 can Ro-Tel diced tomatoes with habaneros
16 ounces tomato sauce
½ jalapeno pepper, sliced seeds removed
cooking spray

DIRECTIONS
1. Slice rack of ribs into single ribs and season with salt, pepper and garlic powder. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add in the ribs and allow to brown, about 5 minutes.
2. Add diced tomatoes, tomato sauce and jalapeno pepper into a blender and puree.
3. Spray inside of crock pot with cooking spray. Add in ribs, then pour pureed tomato sauce over the top. Stir around to make sure all the ribs are fully coated.
4. Cook on low 6-8 hours. Check regularly, ribs may need to be stirred around.

NOTE: These aren't as spicy as you would think. My 4 year old ate them and proclaimed "Mommy these aren't spicy at all!"

Split Pea with Ham Soup

INGREDIENTS
1 pound dried split peas, picked through, rinsed and drained
1 ½ pound ham bone
8 cups cold water
3 tablespoons butter
1 large onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 potatoes, diced
2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper

DIRECTIONS
1. In a large pot melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery, carrots and potatoes cook, stirring until soft, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic cook another minute.
2. Add in the peas, ham, water, thyme, bay leaf, salt and pepper.
3. Bring to a boil then simmer for 1 ½ hours or until peas are tender, stirring occasionally.
4. Remove the bay leaf and the ham bone. Cut off any remaining meat, chop up and return meat to the soup. Return soup to a simmer. Season with salt and pepper to taste.