Bake once eat twice Lasagna

Ingredients

• 1 package (16 ounces) lasagna noodles
• 3 pounds ground beef
• 3 jars (26 ounces each) spaghetti sauce
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1-1/2 pounds ricotta cheese
• 6 cups (24 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided
• 1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

• Cook noodles according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Remove from the heat; stir in spaghetti sauce. In a large bowl, combine the eggs, ricotta cheese, 4-1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, parsley, salt and pepper.
• Drain noodles. Spread 1 cup meat sauce in each of two greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dishes. Layer each with three noodles, 1 cup ricotta mixture and 1-1/2 cups meat sauce. Repeat layers twice. Top with Parmesan cheese and remaining mozzarella cheese.
• Cover and freeze one lasagna for up to 3 months. Cover and bake remaining lasagna at 375° for 45 minutes. Uncover; bake 10 minutes longer or until bubbly. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting.
• To use frozen lasagna: Thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Cover and bake at 375° for 60-70 minutes or until heated through. Uncover; bake 10 minutes longer or until bubbly. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting. Yield: 2 lasagnas (12 servings each).

Nutrition Facts: 1 piece equals 365 calories, 17 g fat (8 g saturated fat), 78 mg cholesterol, 820 mg sodium, 25 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 27 g protein.

Karen's Homemade Alfredo Sauce

8 oz. cream cheese*

1 ⁄ 2 c. butter

1 ⁄ 2 c. parmesan cheese

1 c. milk

1 ⁄ 2 c. whipping cream*

salt and pepper to taste

Melt the cream cheese, butter, and parmesan cheese over low heat until smooth. Slowly add the whipping cream and milk while stirring until smooth. Slowly bring to a boil. Sauce will thicken as it heats up.

*For lighter sauce, use 4-6 oz. cream cheese and replace the whipping cream with milk.

Creamy Ground Beef Tetrazzini

This was a *HUGE* hit with the kids!!

1 pkg (1lb) spaghetti
1 pound sliced fresh mushrooms
1/2 - 1 onion, chopped (I did 1/2 an onion cause my kids aren't huge onion fans)
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbls olive oil
3 cans Cream of Mushroom soup
1 lb ground beef, browned
1 can chicken broth
1 tsp Italian Seasoning
1 tsp black pepper
2 c grated parmesan cheese (I used the parm from the Kraft green bottle)

Cook spaghetti according to package instructions. While spaghetti is cooking, in a LARGE skillet saute onions and garlic and ground beef in the olive oil. When ground beef is nearly done, add mushrooms, cover and cook for 5 minutes. (Just enough to cook the mushrooms) Sprinkle in italian seasoning and pepper and then stir in cream of mushroom soup and chicken broth. Mix well and heat through. Sprinkle in parmesan cheese and stir in cooked spaghetti. Mix all together and serve. I served this with the Herbed Garlic Bread (recipe also on this blog) but on the bread I also added mozzarella cheese to make it cheese bread. ENJOY!!

To have this as leftovers and to keep it creamy, I poured it all back into the large skillet and stirred in a cup of chicken broth and heated it up. My son had three helpings!!

Chicken Tetrazzini

I got this recipe from a friend of mine. It turned out great and the kids loved it!

4 large chicken breasts
6 Tbls butter
1 medium onion, chopped
4 celery stalks, chopped
5 cups chicken broth
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 c sour cream
12 oz spaghetti
1 c parmesan cheese

In a large skillet, saute onion and celery in butter. Set aside but leave butter in skillet. Put chicken in skillet and cook til no longer pink. Season with salt and pepper. In a mixing bowl, combine chicken broth, soup, salt and sour cream. Mix together and add to skillet with cooked chicken. Add in sauteed celery and onion. Add spaghetti and bring to a boil. Simmer for 20 minutes. Add parmesan cheese while simmering. Enjoy!

Chicken Tomato Mushroom Alfredo Pasta

I really like a lot of alfredo sauce with my meals. If you don't like a lot of sauce with yours, then cut the ingredients for the alfredo sauce in half. This meal will serve 8-10 people easily. It will seem like there might be too much sauce, but if you have it for leftovers it won't be as saucy.

Chicken mixture

3-4 large chicken breasts, cubed
4 green onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
2 - 2 1/2 tsp basil
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1 lb. fresh mushrooms, chopped

1 (17.6 oz) bag pasta (fettucine, bow-tie or tube etc.)

Alfredo Sauce

2 cups (1 pint) heavy whipping cream
4 cups milk
1 3/4 c parmesan cheese
12 Tbls butter
1 - 2 tsp garlic powder
1 - 2 tsp sea salt
6 Tbls flour

In a large olive-oil greased skillet, start chicken cooking on medium high heat. While it is cooking, chop up green onions, garlic and onion. Add to cooking chicken. Add basil and a dash of salt. Stir.**

While that is cooking, in a large saucepan melt butter on low to medium heat. As butter is melting add garlic powder and sea salt. When butter is completely melted add flour to make a buttery paste. (be careful not to burn) Add parmesan cheese while continuously mixing so as not to burn. Add heavy whipping cream and stir until smooth. Add milk. Turn heat to medium - medium-high. As sauce starts to heat through, continuously stir so milk and cheese don't scald to the bottom. As the sauce nears boiling, it will begin to thicken. Once it is thickened add more salt, pepper to your taste.

**While alfredo sauce is heating, add mushrooms to your cooking chicken mixture. Cook 5 minutes. Add can diced tomatoes to chicken mixture and let simmer while your alfredo sauce is cooking and while you cook your pasta.

--In another large saucepan, boil water and add pasta and cook according to package instructions. (usually cook pasta approx 10 minutes) Drain.--

Add chicken tomato mixture to pasta and stir. Then pour in your alfredo sauce. Enjoy!

Chicken Fettucine Alfredo

This recipe is great served with freshly steamed broccoli or spinach and garlic bread/sticks.

4 large chicken breasts, cubed
1 package fettucine noodles or noodles of your choice

Sauce:
6 Tbls butter
2 1/2 Tbls flour
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 cup half and half
2 cups milk
3/4 cup parmesan cheese
Dash of salt and pepper

In a large saucepan, cook noodles according to package instructions; drain.

In a greased skillet, cook cubed chicken until no longer pink in the center.

In a medium large saucepan, melt butter and add flour stirring together to make a paste over medium low heat. Be careful not to burn. Add garlic powder, half and half, milk, parmesan cheese and salt and pepper to taste. On medium heat, keep stirring often so cheese and milk don't burn to the bottom of the pan. Bring to a slow boil and then simmer until sauce is thickened.

Add cooked chicken into drained noodles and then add sauce and mix well together.

Makes 4-6 generous servings

Three-cheese Manicotti

I like to serve this recipe with spaghetti and garlic bread/sticks.

1 giant jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce
1 box of manicotti shells (approx 12-14 shells)
3 eggs
2 1/2 - 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
2 cups ricotta cheese
3/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp basil
1 Tbls parsley
Mozzarella cheese
Parmesan cheese
1 package frozen spinach, thawed (optional)

Cook manicotti shells according to package instructions; drain.

For filling:
In a medium bowl, beat eggs. Add ricotta cheese and mix together. Add parmesan cheese, oregano, basil, parsley and a dash of salt and pepper. Mix together well. (Mix in thawed spinach) Stir in mozzarella cheese. Spoon filling into manicotti shells.

In a greased 9 x 13 pan, pour enough spaghetti sauce to cover the bottom well. Pour some parmesan cheese on top and some mozzarella and mix around a bit and spread evenly. Lay shells next to eachother in pan close enough so they all fit. Pour remaining spaghetti sauce over shells and a bit more parmesan cheese, then mozzarella cheese. If you have leftover filling, mix it in around the sides of the baking dish. Cover with tinfoil and bake at 350 degrees for 60-70 minutes.

Makes 8-10 servings