Yellow Squash Puree Macaroni and Cheese

Ah yes, another Mac and Cheese recipe. This really is tasty! You would never guess it has squash in it. We cook and puree the squash from our garden and freeze it in ice cube trays. Since we are still in the baby stage in our family I am planning to use this for baby food in a few months. But it is also convenient to use in this recipe - I just microwave 8 or so cubes of squash to get the 1 cup of puree called for.

This is from one of my favorite Food Storage sites: everydayfoodstorage.net

2 C. Elbow Macaroni

1/3 C. Magic Mix
1/2 C. Water
1 C. Yellow Squash Puree
1-1/2 C. Cheddar Cheese, grated
4 oz. Cream Cheese (can be reduced fat or non-fat)
1/2 t. Salt
1/8 t. Paprika
1/2 t. PepperDirections:

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the macaroni and cook accodring to package directions until al dente. Drain in a colander.

While the macaroni is cooking, combine Magic Mix and water in a saucepan. Stir rapidly (I use a wire wisk) over medium heat until it starts to bubble and thicken.

Add the squash puree, Cheddar, cream cheese, and seasonings, and stir until the cheese is melted and the sauce is smooth.

Stir in the macaroni and serve warm. (Personally, I chop up a tomato and stir it in. I really like the taste of tomatoes and cheese but that is optional. I also garnish with a little paprika and grated cheese.)

Yaki Soba

1 package of spaghetti noodles, cooked and drained

1 onion, chopped

1 head of cabbage, chopped

1 pkg bacon, cooked (I also add chicken as a variation)

2 T ginger

soy sauce to taste

1 can mushrooms, drained

Warm through and serve.

Crockpot Macaroni and Cheese

8 oz macaroni, cooked and drained (2 cups dry)

13 oz can evaporated milk

3 c shredded cheese

1/4 c melted butter

Mix all ingredients together and put in freezer bag. Freeze flat. When time to serve, thaw and put in crock pot 2-4 hours on low.

This is a cinch to double (so you use the whole box of pasta) and have an extra.

Penne with Spinach Sauce

from Leia

1 lb whole wheat penne

3 garlic cloves

2 oz goat cheese (I buy it at Costco and freeze in 2 oz portions)

1 oz reduced-fat cream cheese

3/4 t salt

1/2 t pepper

6 oz spinach leaves (I'm very generous with this)

2 T grated Parmesan

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook till tender but still firm.

Mince garlic in food processor. Add goat cheese, cream cheese, salt and pepper, and 1/2 of spinach. (I usually do ALL the spinach). Blend till creamy. Set aside.

Drain pasta, reserving 1 cup of cooking liquid. Spoon pasta atop spinach in a bowl. Scrape sauce over pasta, toss to coat. Add enough liquid to moisten. Season with salt and pepper and top with Parmesan.

Angel Chicken Pasta

Adapted from allrecipes.com

6 chicken breasts

1/4 c butter

1 packet Italian dressing mix

1/2 c milk

1 10.75oz can of cream of mushroom soup

4 oz cream cheese with chives

1 lb angel hair pasta

Chop up chicken and place in crockpot. Mix up sauce till blended and stir into crock. Cook 2 hours on high and 2 hours on low - longer if using frozen chicken. During last 20 minutes cook and drain pasta. Mix up pasta and sauce and serve.

Classic Mac & Cheese

from America's Test Kitchen

Bread Crumb Topping

6 slices sandwich bread (I use the cheap store bread - .99 or so on sale - that I've frozen and don't bother to thaw)

3 T butter

Pasta and Cheese

1 lb elbow macaroni

1 T salt

5 T butter

6 T flour

1 1/2 t mustard powder

5 c milk

8 oz Jack, shredded (2 c)

8 oz Sharp Cheddar, shredded (2 c)

1 t salt

For crumbs: pulse bread and butter 10-15 1 second pulses in food processor.

Pasta:

Boil 4 qt water, add pasta and 1T salt. Cook till tender (1-2 minutes less than package directions). Drain and set aside.

In pot you used for pasta, heat butter over med-hi heat till foaming. Add flour and mustard whisking well to combine. Continue till fragrant and deepened in color ~1 minute. Whisk in milk; bring to boil; whisk constantly. FULL BOIL. Reduce to medium heat and continue stirring till thick ~5 minutes.

Add pasta and warm through ~6 minutes.

Pour into 9x13 pan, sprinkling crumbs on top. Broil 3-5 minutes on lower middle rack - watch carefully! - until nicely golden.

Macaroni Salad

from the Polynesian Kitchen

1 lb elbow macaroni

1/2 medium yellow onion, minced

1/2 medium celery stalk, minced

1 medium carrot, shredded

1 small can of sliced olives

1 c. mayo

2 dashes curry powder (or 1/2 t)

season to taste with 1/2 - 1 t of pepper, garlic salt, celery salt, celery seed

Cook macaroni and drain. Mix all ingredients, adding more mayo if needed. Cover and chill 2 hours or overnight.

Chicken Canneloni

adapted from Allrecipes.com

Filling:
8 oz. chicken breast (about 2), cooked

pkg of frozen spinach

1 oz. sundried tomatoes

16 oz. ricotta/cottage cheese

3 oz. mozarella, shredded

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp salt

12 lasagna noodles

Sauce:

16 oz white pasta sauce

16 oz tomato based pasta sauce

3 oz parmesan, grated

Once the chicken is cooked, cool to 45 degrees. Dice into 1/2" pieces and place in a large bowl. Add filling stuff and mix.

Arrange pasta sheets on cutting board and place 2 or 3 rounded Tbs of filling down center and roll up. Place into baking dish. Mix sauces and pour over top. Sprinkle with cheese.

Cover and bake at 350 for 20 min.
Remove foil, cook 20 more min. or until temp reaches 165 degrees.
Garnish with tomatoe and basil.

Serves 6.

I had no red sauce so I subbed 2 cans of tomato sauce and a jar of diced tomatoes and added Italian seasoning. :) I also just made this as a lasagna with lasagna noodles.  But it tasted great!