Lasagna Soup

1 pound ground Italian sausage
1 onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 cans Italian style tomatoes
1 8 ounce can tomato sauce
1 6 ounce can tomato paste
2 tsp. leaf basil
2 T. sugar
1/8 tsp. crushed red pepper
4 cups chicken broth
1/2 tsp. salt
7 lasagna noodes, broken up
1 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1-2 cups grated mozzarella cheese

Brown the sausage, onion, bell pepper and garlic in a soup pan until the sausage is browned and the onions are translucent.

Add the tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, basil, sugar, red pepper, chicken broth, and salt. Bring the soup to a boil over medium high heat, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes.

Add the lasagna noodle chunks to the soup pot. Let the noodles simmer in the soup until they are tender--about 10 to 15 minutes.

Serve with parmesan and mozzarella cheese on top.

This recipe freezes really well, but the noodles absorb a lot of the liquid so it isn't much like soup anymore, but still tastes great.

From:  Cherise Dodson

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Southwest Chicken Wraps

From: Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Note: This is one of the most adaptable recipes on here (reading through the comments will prove that – your variations sound amazing!). Feel free to up the cilantro, add in a different meat of your choice, eliminate the pepper, add green chilies – seriously, the options are endless.

Maria's note:  I did eliminate the pepper and added 1 can green chilies.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup cooked rice, warm or at room temperature
• 1 cup cooked, shredded chicken (or other leftover meat, like shredded pork or beef)
• 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 green onion, finely sliced (white and green parts)
• 1/2 red or green pepper, diced
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• juice of 1 lime
• 1/2 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
• 2 cups shredded cheese (I use a combination of Monterey jack and sharp cheddar)
• Sour cream (optional)
• 6 burrito-sized flour tortillas

DIRECTIONS

1. Mix rice together with chili powder, cumin and garlic salt. Add remaining ingredients except for cheese and sour cream. Sprinkle cheese over tortillas, leaving 1/2-inch border around edges, then arrange chicken and rice mixture down the center of each tortilla. (Optional: I like to dollop little bits of sour cream over the cheese before arranging chicken and rice mixture down the center – it makes the wraps delightfully creamy.) Roll stuffed tortillas, leaving edges open and slightly flatten the wraps with the palm of your hand. Spray seam-side of the wrap lightly with cooking spray.
2. Heat a large non-stick skillet (or griddle) over medium heat for 1 minute. Arrange wraps, seam-side down, in pan or griddle and cook until golden brown and crisp, about 2-3 minutes per side. Cooking them seam-side down first helps seal the long edge so they don’t fall apart. Transfer to a plate and repeat with remaining wraps. Serve warm.

Lasagna

From:  Mel's Kitchen Cafe

INGREDIENTS

Red Sauce:
• 1 pound lean ground beef or ground turkey
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
• 6-ounce can tomato paste
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
Creamy Filling:
• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 1 cup cottage
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 tablespoon parsley flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
Noodles and Cheese:
• 4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 9 no-boil lasagna noodles 

DIRECTIONS

1. For the sauce, in a large, 12-inch nonstick skillet, cook the ground meat and onion until the meat is cooked through. Drain any excess grease. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar, dried basil, salt and pepper. Simmer the sauce for 20 minutes.
2. For the filling, in a medium bowl mix the ricotta, egg, basil, parsley, salt, and Parmesan cheese. 
3. To assemble the lasagna, lightly grease a 9X13-inch baking pan. Spread 1/2 cup or so of the sauce over the bottom into a thin layer. Layer as follows: 3 noodles, red sauce, creamy filling, mozzarella, 3 noodles, red sauce, creamy filling, mozzarella, 3 noodles, red sauce, remaining mozzarella. (Basically, all layers - the noodles, red sauce, mozzarella - are split into three layers and the creamy filling is divided among two layers.)
4. Cover with greased foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Uncover, bake 20-30 minutes more until hot and bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting.
5. *Freezable Meal: Prepare recipe right up until the baking step and then cover with a double layer of lightly greased aluminum foil. Freeze. Thaw in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 days. To bake, increase baking time to about 40 minutes covered and 20 minutes uncovered. If baking from frozen, bake covered for 1 hour and 30 minutes, uncover and bake 30-40 minutes longer.

Easy Garlic Hummus

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients

• 1 (15oz) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained - reserve ¼ cup liquid from can
• ½ Tbsp minced garlic
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• ¼ cup tahini (pure ground sesame seeds)
• 3 Tbsp lemon juice
• ¼ cup liquid from can of chickpeas (or water)
• ½ tsp salt (or to taste)
• ½ tsp cumin

Instructions

1. Place all ingredients into a food processor or blender.
2. Blend until smooth, about 1 minute, scraping the sides if needed.
3. Serve with carrots, pita chips, crackers, or other vegetables

From: Loriann

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Pine Nut Hummus

Yields: 2 cups

Ingredients:
*2 Tablespoons tahini (sesame seed paste)
*2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
*2 Tablespoons olive oil
*1 garlic clove
*1/2 teaspoon salt
*15 ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
*1/4 cup roasted pine nuts
*1/4 cup water
*dried parsley, olive oil, and pine nuts for garnish (if desired)

Directions:
1. In a blender or food processor, add all ingredients and pulse or blend, scraping down the sides as needed. Process or blend until you have a smooth, creamy consistency. Add more warm water a tiny bit at a time if the hummus is still too thick.
2. Pour it into a bowl and drizzle a small amount of olive oil on top. Sprinkle with dried parsley and pine nuts if desired.
3. Serve with pita chips or raw veggies.
4. Cover and refrigerate leftovers.

NOTES: We have made this a few times in the past couple of months. I think this is so much better the next day!

Tahini can usually be found in the Asian aisle at the grocery store. It is an expensive ingredient, but you usually only use a bit at a time - You need to use it to make the hummus taste right.
Click here if you want to make your own

recipe from: lovely little kitchen

Simple Butter Rolls

This recipe came with my Oster bread maker, to be used with the dough making setting.  I use this recipe a lot when I want rolls fast and I don't want to refrigerate the dough overnight.   I usually triple it in the Bosch these days with the size of my family.

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. sugar
3 c. bread flour (This is approximate. I used some combination of white and wheat flour, and I leave my roll dough on the sticky side).
2 tsp. active dry yeast
1/4 c. water
3/4 c. milk, warmed
1 egg
1/4 c. butter, melted

Directions:
Knead in mixer or use dough making setting on bread maker.  Spay large bowl with cooking spray or coat with shortening. Place dough in bowl and turn dough to coat. Cover and let rise until doubled.  Decrease rising time in a warm oven.  Depending on how the dough is used,  it makes twelve rolls baked at 325 degrees F for 25-30 minutes.

Molasses Bread

INGREDIENTS

• 
  
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• 2 1/2 cups warm water (about 110 degrees)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons instant yeast
• 1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon unsulphured molasses
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened, natural cocoa powder
• 3 tablespoons oil 
• 1/3 cup honey
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 3 tablespoons vital wheat gluten (optional)
• 3 cups white whole wheat flour
• 3-4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2-3 tablespoons butter, melted
• Old-fashioned oats for sprinkling (optional)

DIRECTIONS

1. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the dough hook (or in a large bowl with a wooden spoon if powering through this by hand), combine the water, yeast, molasses, cocoa powder, oil, honey, salt, gluten (if using), and 2 cups of the whole wheat flour. Mix until combined. 
2. With the mixer running, slowly add the rest of the whole wheat flour. Start adding the white flour gradually until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Knead for 5-7 minutes (about 10-15 if kneading by hand). The dough should be soft and slightly tacky but shouldn't leave a lot of residue on your fingers if you grab a piece. 
3. Turn the dough into a large, lightly greased bowl, cover with greased plastic wrap or a light towel, and let rise until doubled, 1-2 hours. 
4. Lightly punch down the dough and divide into three equal pieces. Form into tight oval loaves and place on parchment-lined or lightly greased baking sheets (I fit two loaves on one large, rimmed 11X17-inch baking sheet and the third loaf on another baking sheet). Lightly cover with greased plastic wrap or a light towel and let rise until puffy and doubled in size. Optional: right before baking, using a very sharp knife, cut three deep slashes in the top of each loaf.
5. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake the loaves for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and lightly brush with about a tablespoon of butter. Sprinkle with the oats and bake for another 5-7 minutes.  (Maria's note:  In my oven, 20 minutes total baking time was plenty. This is from Mel's Kitchen Cafe)

Chocolate Chip Bars

INGREDIENTS

• 2 1/8 cups (10 1/2 ounces) all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 12 tablespoons butter (1 1/2 sticks), melted and cooled slightly
• 1 cup (7 ounces) light brown sugar
• 1/2 (3 1/2 ounces) cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups chocolate chips (use your preference of semisweet, bittersweet, milk, white, peanut butter…the options are endless!)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Adjust the oven rack to lower-middle position. Line a 9X13-inch baking pan with foil, letting the excess hang over the edges of the pan by about 1 inch so you can grab those edges and pull the brownies from the pan after they have baked. Spray the foil-lined pan with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Mix the flour, salt, and baking soda together in medium bowl; set aside. Whisk the melted butter and sugars in a large bowl until combined. Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla and mix well. Using a rubber spatula, fold the dry ingredients into the egg mixture until just combined; do not overmix. Fold in the chocolate chips and turn the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top with the spatula.
3. Bake until the top of the bars is light golden brown, slightly firm to the touch, and edges start pulling away from sides of pan, 24-28 minutes. Cool on a wire rack to room temperature. Remove the bars from the pan by lifting the foil overhang and transfer them to a cutting board. Cut into 2-inch squares and serve.