Pumpkin Pie Cookies

It's almost Thanksgiving and I have some left-over Pumpkin still in the fridge from my Pumpkin Bread. SO I decided to bake up a batch of Pumpkin Cookies! These turned out soft and moist and SO full of pumpkin flavor!

Ingredients: (36 cookies)

2½ c all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground nutmeg
½ tsp salt
1½ c granulated sugar
½ c butter (1 stick), softened
1 c pure pumpkin
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract

Prep:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease or line baking sheets with silicon liners.

2. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in medium bowl. Beat sugar and butter in large mixer bowl until well blended. Beat in pumpkin, egg and vanilla extract until smooth. Gradually beat in flour mixture.

3. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto prepared baking sheets. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes or until edges are firm. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Rigatoni Noodles Lasagna Style!

I bought a package of Rigatoni noodles from Target last week and thought they'd be perfect in a baked pasta dish. I layered the noodles with pasta sauce, cheese and meat almost like a Lasagna. It was great and I think the Ricotta Cheese is what made it SO yummy! :)

Ingredients:

1 lb Rigatoni noodles
1 lb ground beef
1 jar marinara sauce
2 c ricotta cheese
4 c grated mozzarella cheese, reserve 1 cup, for topping
½ c grated Parmesan

Prep:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

3. Meanwhile, cook beef in a hot skillet over medium heat until golden brown on all sides. Remove from heat.

4. In a medium bowl, combine ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese and mix well. Spoon 1/2 cup of Marinara sauce in the bottom of a 4-quart casserole dish. Top with half of the cooked ziti. Top with half of the meat and half cheese mixture. Top with 1 cup of Marinara sauce.

5. Repeat layer, ending with Marinara sauce. Sprinkle remaining mozzarella and parmesan cheese over top. Cover with foil and bake 30 minutes. Uncover and bake 15 more minutes, until cheese is golden and bubbly.

Gravy in a Can works for ME!

Nothing says Comfort Food like Porkchops in Gravy with Mashed Potatoes! BUT making gravy from scratch can be pretty time-consuming. I was hesitant to try canned gravy but when you add in some mushrooms and onions, it tastes just like home-made! Well, maybe not EXACTLY like home-made but close enough and VERY yummy! This is also the first time I've ever made mashed potatoes and they turned out great as well. I used those cute Petite Potatoes and mashed them with the skin. Doesn't this look like Comfort on a Plate???

Ingredients: (4 servings)

1 lbs petite potatoes, cut in half
½ c buttermilk
¼ c (½ stick) butter, cut into chunks
¼ c sour cream
1 c sliced fresh mushrooms
1 small onion, chopped
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
4 boneless pork chops
1 (12-oz) jar gravy
Salt and pepper

Prep:

1. Put potatoes into a large pot and cover with water. Bring water to a boil and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, or until potatoes are fork tender. Drain and return potatoes to pot. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Mash with potato masher, gradually adding buttermilk, then butter, then sour cream.

2. Meanwhile, in large skillet, cook mushrooms and onion in oil until tender; remove from skillet.

3. In same skillet, cook pork chops until browned on both sides; season with salt and pepper. Stir in gravy.

4. Return mushroom mixture to skillet. Cover and simmer 10 to 15 minutes or until pork chops are done.

5. Place mashed potatoes and pork chops on a serving platter. Pour gravy mixture on top.

Pumpkin Carrot Bread

It's that time of the year again! I think the smell of Pumpkin just feels like Thanksgiving, don't you think? I found this recipe on the Nestle website and thought I'd give it a try. It's SUPER healthy and doesn't even use butter! The only thing I changed was using Baby Carrots cuz that's what I had in the fridge.

Butternut Squash Soup = Fall Comfort

This is my 2nd Recipes to Rival and yes, I cheated AGAIN! (What is WRONG with me?) I didn't make the stock from scratch like I was supposed to and I used pre-cut Butternut Squash from Trader Joe's! BUT the soup tasted AWESOME! (Oh and I sub'ed sour cream for vanilla cuz we LOVE sour cream at our house!)

Ingredients: (2 servings)

1 (8 oz) pkg precut butternut squash
2 c chicken broth
1 tbsp olive oil
½ onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
10 baby carrot, shredded in food processor
salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbsp sour cream

Prep:

1. In a large pot, sauté the onion and garlic in olive oil until onions turn soft, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add the carrots and cook for another 3 to 5 minutes.

2. Add the squash and stir just to coat, then add the broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a slow simmer. Allow to cook for at least 25 minutes, or until squash is soft.

3. Puree soup in a blender until smooth. Garnish with a swirl of sour cream before serving.

A Monster of a MEATLOAF

Yes, this thing is GI-NORMOUS! It's 2 lbs of BEEF and a box of Stuffing Mix! All mixed in with some CHEESE and KETCHUP! Hum...what is there NOT to love about this? (Just make sure you bake it in the oven until the meat is completely cooked, which may take up to 1hr and a half!)

It's the HOLIDAYS, which means I'm baking up a storm. I wanted to give my guys a special breakfast treat and who doesn't love Blueberry Muffins right? I found this recipe from Paula Deen and they just looked SO moist and yummy! Look at all those JUICY Blueberries! :)