Alfredo potatoes/cauliflower

This recipe is a tweak from A Taste of Home cookbook I have. We often serve it with a salad and call it a meal. It's a great version of twice-baked potatoes.

No real recipe, just general directions:

Potatoes

Alfredo sauce or packets to make sauce

Cheese, mozzarella or cheddar

Bake as many potatoes as you need, remembering that each potato will be halved. 

Bake potatoes, cool slightly, split in half and scoop out potato into a bowl (setting aside), leaving a 1/4 shell.

Make up a couple of cups of Alfredo sauce (or use canned sauce).

Mash up potato insides that were set aside and mix well with the Alfredo sauce. Add some salt/pepper and mozzarella or cheddar cheese. 

Refill each potato shell with Alfredo/potato mixture, top with a bit more cheese and bake again for 10-20 minutes, until cheese is melted and everything is warm and bubbly. 

YUM!

*This same thing can be done with mashed cauliflower for a lower carb dish. Drain the cauliflower well after boiling or steaming and mashing.

Warm Black Bean Dip

I believe I got this recipe from A Taste of Home magazine. 

When we attend a potluck type of event this is often what we take. 

I usually double it for family and triple it when I take to a dinner event.

1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp veg oil
1 can (15 oz) black beans-rinsed and drained
1/2 C diced fresh tomato
1/3 C salsa
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/4 C shredded cheddar
1/3 C minced fresh cilantro
1 Tbsp lime juice

Saute' onion and garlic in oil until tender. Add beans, mash gently. Stir in tomato, salsa, cumin and chili powder. Cook and stir just til heated through. Remove from heat; stir in cheese, cilantro and lime juice. Serve warm with chips.

*If you can find S&W Caribbean beans you can omit the cilantro and lime juice as they are already in the beans.

*We often don't drain the beans and make it a bit soupier and eat it as a soup for supper.

Baked Ziti

From Taste Of Home magazine. Submitted by Eileen Anderson.

12 oz ziti or penne noodles

2 lbs ground beef

1 28 oz jar spaghetti sauce

2 eggs

1 15 oz carton ricotta cheese

2 1/2 C shredded mozzarella 

1/2 C grated Parmesan

Cook pasta, drain. Brown ground beef with some dried onion, drain. Stir in spaghetti sauce. In a large bowl combine eggs, ricotta, 1 1/2 C mozzarella and Parmesan.  Add drained pasta to cheese mixture and toss to coat. 

Layer 1/3 of meat mixture into a 9x13 pan or deep dish lasagna pan; too with 1/2 pasta mix. Repeat layers and top with remaining 1/3 meat mixture. 

Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and bake 5-10 minutes more. Let stand 15 minutes before serving to allow it to set. 

Serve with salad and bread.

Taco Soup

from the Glenview Ward 1997 cookbook, submitted by Shelly Adams (my old VT companion)

1/2 lb grd beef
1 onion, chopped
1 pkg taco seasoning
2 16 oz cans stewed tomatoes
1 15 oz can kidney beans, drained (I sub pinto beans, since we live in the pinto bean belt, and I usually cook up 1 1/2-2 lbs instead of a can. Stretch that soup!)
1 16 oz can corn, drained
2 8 oz cans tomato sauce
1/4 C brown sugar
salt and pepper to taste

Brown beef with onion. Remove any grease. Stir in taco seasoning, tomatoes, beans, corn, tomato sauce, brown sugar and salt and pepper. Simmer til warmed through. Serve with tortilla chips. Add grated cheese and sour cream to your bowl of soup if desired.

My variations: I often use up leftover taco meat in this soup, makes it a snap to put together. I often leave out the sugar and stewed tomatoes. I have started putting stewed tomatoes through my blender to reduce the chunks and that helps. I don't get bothered by tomato acidity, hence no sugar added, but if tomatoes are too acidic for you, throw the sugar in.

looks better in the bowl with some cheese