Baked Shells with Winter Squash

I made this for dinner the other night, and it was unique and delicious!

Butter for the dish
4 Tbsp. olive oil
2 onions, halved and thinly sliced
salt and pepper
2 tsp. chopped fresh rosemary ( I used 1 tsp. dried)
1 lb. small pasta shells (not jumbo and not the tiny ones)
1 box (12 oz.) squash puree, thawed
1 cup grated Parmesan
3 slices crusty baguette, cut into 1/4-inch cubes (1 1/2 cups)

1. Preheat oven to 400. Butter a 9x13inch baking pan. Heat 3 Tbsp of the oil in a large skillet over med-low heat. Add the onions; season with salt and pepper. Cover;cook until the onions are soft and release their liquid, about 15 minutes. Uncover;raise the heat to medium. Cook, stirring, until the onions are browned, 20-25 minutes. Stir in 1/2 of the rosemary.

2. Meanwhile, cook the pasta for 2 minutes less than the package instructions. Drain, reserving
1 1/2 cups of the cooking water. Return pasta to the pot.

3. Stir squash and pasta water into the onions; simmer for 2 minutes. Toss the squash mixture and 1/2 cup of the Parmesan with the pasta. Transfer to the prepared baking dish.

4. Combine bread cubes with remaining Parmesan, rosemary, and oil; season with salt and pepper. Top pasta with bread cubes; bake until golden brown, 10-15 minutes.

Meals & Storage Amounts for 3 Month Supply

Total Number of Meals you want to store:

90 (Dinners for 3 months):
6 different Meals-- Store enough food to make each meal 15 times
10 different Meals-- Store enough food to make each meal 9 times
15 different Meals --Store enough food to make each meal 6 times
18 different Meals --Store enough food to make each meal 5 times

* To rotate your three months supply make a Pantry Meal 2 times a week and you will completely rotate you supply in 45 weeks

180 (Dinners & Lunch):
6 different Meals-- Store enough food to make each meal 30 times
10 different Meals-- Store enough food to make each meal 18 times
15 different Meals-- Store enough food to make each meal 12 times
18 different Meals-- Store enough food to make each meal 10 times

* To rotate your three months supply, make a Pantry Meal 2 times for dinner and 2 times for lunch each week and you will rotate your supply in 45 weeks.

Pizza - from Rachael Howell

We have this every Friday night for "Family Fun Night!"

PIZZA DOUGH:
Combine in kitchenaid:
1 c. hot water
2 T. milk
1 T. olive oil
1 T. shortening
1 1/4 tsp. salt
2 tsp. sugar
1 1/2 tsp. yeast

Then add:
3 c. flour (+1 T. semolina flour if you happen to have it)

Knead 5 minutes in mixer (or by hand 10 minutes?). Cover and let rise 45 minutes. Punch down and let rest 15 minutes. Now you are ready to top and bake at 400 or 415 for about 15 minutes or so. Or make breadsticks, dip in butter, twist and place on cookie sheet. Top with parmesan, garlic powder, etc... and bake at 415 for 12 minutes. You can also put dough in a well oiled plastic bag in the fridge either before or after rising for use within 2 days. Often, I make the dough before church, skip the rising and put it in the fridge. By the time we're home, the dough is ready to be made into breadsticks.

PIZZA SAUCE:
2 T. olive oil
1 medium onion, diced

Cook over medium heat til the onions are tender.

Add:
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 (15 oz.) cans petite diced tomatoes
1 can tomato paste
1 T. basil
1 T. oregano
1 bay leaf
1 T. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 T. honey

Let simmer 30 minutes uncovered. Makes enough for 3-4 pizzas, freezes great.

Chicken Broccoli Chowder by Maria Nelson

2 cups carrot slices
2 cups water
1 1/2 cups chopped chicken
1 (10 3/4 oz) can condensed chicken broth
1 (10 oz) package frozen chopped broccoli (or 2-3 cups fresh)
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup ground oat flour (1/2 cup oats in blender)
2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups cubed natural swiss cheese (or cheddar)

Combine carrot, water, chicken, broth broccoli, onion, and salt in 4 qt saucepan or dutch oven. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; reduce heat. Cover; simmer about 10 min. Bring to a full rolling boil gradually add oat flour, stirring constantly; stir in milk. Simmer, stirring occasionally about 10 min. Remove from heat; stir in cheese. Cover; let stand 3-5 min before serving.

Makes about four 1 1/2 cup servings.

Variation: Sub ham for chicken and 1 (10 oz) package frozen chopped spinach for broccoli; omit salt.

Note: Additional milk may be added if soup becomes thick on standing. I use the ingredients highlighted in blue and it is a family favorite!

Vegetable Tempura by Alisha Molen

I just made this recipe for the first time a couple of days ago and I really liked it. I was looking for low fat/low calorie recipes when I ran across this one. It’s got some kick so if you don’t like spicy foods you may want to hold back a little on the cayenne. For those interested - It’s a WeightWatchers recipe and is 2 points per 1 ½ cup serving. Enjoy!

VEGETABLE TEMPURA

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp table salt
• 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 medium zucchini, cut into 2-inch long, 1-inch wide sticks
• 2 medium summer squash, yellow, cut into 2-inch long, 1-inch wide sticks
• 1 1/2 medium raw eggplant, or 2 small, peeled and cut into 2-inch long, 1-inch wide sticks
• 4 1/2 oz baby carrots, about 1 cup
• 1 sprays olive oil cooking spray

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 400°F. Coat a large baking sheet with olive oil cooking spray.
  
  
• In a shallow dish, combine cornstarch, salt and cayenne. Mix well. Dip vegetables in cornstarch mixture and turn to coat.
  
  
• Transfer vegetables to prepared baking sheet and spray with cooking spray. Bake until golden brown and tender, 45 minutes. Yields about 1 1/2 cups per serving.

Spinach Balls by Sarah Carlston

This is a great way to get your kids to eat spinach. My kids actually beg me to make these!

16oz of frozen chopped spinach
2 cups of bread crumbs
1 small onion chopped
4 eggs
3/4 cup melted butter
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (if I dont have parmesan, I add cheddar instead)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook the spinach (I just put it in the microwave with out water and put a cover on it. Mix the rest of the ingredients and add to the spinach. Scoop into balls (it will be a little runny) onto a baking sheet (I do a little bigger than a TB spoon).

Bake for 20 minutes

Some things I did different from the recipe......

I added salt(appx. 1tsp) and some worcheshire sauce(appx. 1-2tsp)to taste

sometimes I add a little ground sage