Spaghetti with White Bean Sauce - Courtesty of Food Network .com

I'm posting this b/c I made it and loved it and I don't want to lose the recipe but I didn't follow this recipe exactly so if you want to make it, let me know and I'll tell you what we changed. 
Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 red onion, very finely chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 1 cup cooked white beans
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1/4 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon hot pepper flakes
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 8 to 10 ounces spaghetti
• Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano for serving

Directions

Prepare the sauce: heat the olive oil in a non-stick frying pan. Add the garlic, onion, bell pepper and cook over medium heat until soft, not brown, about 4 minutes.

Stir in the white beans and cook for 1 minute. Add the vegetable stock, half the parsley, the pepper flakes, and salt and pepper to taste. The sauce should be highly seasoned. Simmer until the beans are quite soft. Coarsely mash half the beans with a fork.
Cook the spaghetti in a large pot in 4 quarts rapidly boiling salted water until al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain well. Meanwhile, bring the sauce to a boil. Transfer the spaghetti and bean sauce to a large shallow bowl and mix well. Sprinkle the spaghetti with the remaining parsley and serve at once with freshly grated cheese on top

Monkey Muffins - adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction

makes 16 small muffins (I used a cupcake pan)
■2.5 cups whole rolled oats (not instant)
■1/4 cup brown sugar or applesauce
■1 tsp baking powder
■1/2 tsp salt
■2 tsp ground cinnamon
■1 tsp vanilla extract
■1/2 cup milk
■1 large egg
■2 large very ripe bananas, mashed
■1/3 cup creamy peanut butter (or almond butter or I bet even nutella would work)
■1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, raisins, peanut butter chips, craisins...whatever you like to spruce it up

DIRECTIONS
1.Preheat oven to 350. Get cupcake liners ready
2.Mix together oats, brown sugar/ applesauce, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
3.Add in the milk, vanilla, and egg. Mix together until evenly combined.
4.Add mashed bananas, peanut butter, chocolate chips (or whatever you decided to put in) Stir well.
5.Pour the mixture into the pan and bake for 20 minutes.

Delicious hot with a glass of milk. Also tasty cooled. Even Natalie inhaled this. Super high in protein, fiber, whole grain, potassium, notice no added oil or butter or other fats, and low in carbs. I personally dig it because it's really filling. I had this for breakfast, it's now 10:10 and I haven't even started scrounging through the kitchen for easter candy to tide me over till lunch (that's rare for me. :) )

Lemon Berry Trifle

I've made this super easy dessert for two YW events and there has been majoring begging for the recipe. So while I'm typing it up for them, I might as well add it here!

one angel food cake, cut in bite size chunks
one small box lemon pudding
one can of sweetened condensed milk
1 cup milk
1 8 oz. cool whip.
1 bag of frozen boysenberries (still frozen)
1 bag of frozen raspberries (still frozen)

Mix the milk and pudding until dissolved. Add the sweetened condensed milk. Fold in half the container of cool whip. In a trifle dish or medium sized bowl, layer half the angel food cake, half the berries, half the pudding mixture. Repeat the layers. Cover with the rest of the cool whip. Let it sit in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or overnight.

Baked Shells and Broccoli with Ham and Cheesy-Creamy Cauliflower Sauce (from Martha)

I was really surprised how creamy the sauce turned out. Thanks Martha for helping me sneak a few more veggies in!

Prep Time 15 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Yield Serves 6 adults or 8 children

Ingredients

1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 small head cauliflower, cored and chopped (3 cups)
6 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
4 medium shallots, roughly chopped
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 teaspoons all-purpose flour
4 cups skim milk
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
6 ounces pecorino cheese, grated (2 cups)(I think Parm could be used)
1/2 pound medium multigrain pasta shells
1/4 pound sliced smoked ham, chopped
1 medium bunch broccoli, trimmed and cut into florets (5 cups)
1/2 cup toasted whole-wheat panko (Japanese breadcrumbs), for serving (optional)

Directions

Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add cauliflower, garlic, shallots, and 1/2 teaspoon salt; cook until softened but not brown, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with flour; stir to coat well.
Gradually stir in milk; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; gently simmer until cauliflower is very soft, about 15 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes. Transfer all to a blender, and puree with nutmeg and half the pecorino until smooth, about 2 minutes.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook pasta until slightly tender but not fully cooked, about 5 minutes. Drain well; return to pot. Add ham, broccoli, and cauliflower sauce; toss to combine. Transfer to a ovenproof 3 1/2-quart baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining pecorino, and bake until bubbling in center, about 30 minutes. Heat broiler, and broil until golden brown on top, 1 to 2 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes. Divide among dishes, top with breadcrumbs, and serve immediately.

Adding toasted whole-wheat breadcrumbs gives this dish a nice crunch that balances out the creaminess of the sauce. Rather than baking the shells with the crumbs on top (which can make them soggy), toast the breadcrumbs separately, and toss a handful over each serving right before you put it on the table.

Roasted Rosemary Chicken and Potatoes

2 tsp paprika
1 1/2 tsp dried rosemary
2 cloves minced garlic
1/2 tsp course ground pepper
2 Tbp olive oil
1 tsp salt

Mix all together and put in a gallon ziploc bag. Add 6 small chicken breasts (or I just cute up the huge ones) and mix till covered. Put in a 9x13 baking pan. Chop up 1 1/2 lbs (about 6) red potatoes and add to the ziploc bag. Mix until covered. Add to the baking pan. Roast uncovered at 425 degrees for about 30 minutes, flipping potatoes occasionally until tender.

Dee's Tortilla Soup

1 Tbs oil
1 c. (or one small) onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
8 c. chicken broth
1/2 c. (or one small can) diced ortega chilies
1/2 tsp salt
1 3/4 c. (or one can) diced tomatoes, drained
1/2 c. fresh lime juice
2 c. cooked shredded chicken (I love Costco again!)
1 big can hominy
opt: tortilla chips, cilantro, cheese, avocado, sour cream, corn

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onions and garlic. cook 3-4 minutes until onion is tender. Add broth, tomatoes, chilies, lime, salt. Bring to a boil. Add chicken and hominy. Reduce heat to low and cook uncovered 8-10 minutes. Add toppings as desired. Serves 8

Cilantro Lime Rice

I like this recipe even better than the Cafe Rio one. Not quite as gooey.

4 Tbsp oil
2 cups white rice
amount of water the package calls for
2 Tbsp chicken bullion
1 cup chopped cilantro
The juice of 3 medium limes

Heat the oil in a pan. Add the rice and brown until it looks golden. Add water and chicken bullion. Cover and simmer until the water is about 90% dissolved. Stir in the lime juice and add cilantro. Simmer until all the rice is fully cooked and the water is absorbed.

Rice cooker option: after browning in the pan, put rice, water and bullion in the rice cooker. Cook as normal. When done, add lime juice and cilantro and cook for about five minutes more.