Summer Tortellini Salad

I made this salad for our annual Bear Lake camping trip with the Billquist's. My sister-in-laws loved it and requested the recipe, so I thought I would share with everyone!

This recipe comes from The Pampered Chef.

Summer Tortellini Salad

1 package (9 oz) uncooked refrigerated cheese-filled tortellini
1 medium zucchini, thinly sliced
1 large carrot, peeled and chopped
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
4 green onions with tops, thinly sliced
1/4 cup snipped fresh parsley
1/2 cup fat-free ranch salad dressing
2 tablespoons grated fresh Parmesan cheese

1. Cook tortellini according to package directions. Drain and rinse under cold running water. Set aside in a large bowl. Chop up vegetables.
2. Add vegetables to tortellini. Pour salad dressing and grate Parmesan cheese over the salad. Mix gently. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.

Nutrition Information:
Serving Size: 1 cup; 180 calories, 3 g fat, 21 g carbohydrate, 7 g protein, 290 mg sodium, 3 g fiber


**I did a few alterations to my recipe - I used an entire 20 oz package of tortellini (adds more carbs, but I love pasta!). If I had used the 9 oz package of pasta, I would have used less dressing. I like to taste the things in the salad, not just the dressing! I also sliced up several baby carrots instead of using one large carrot.

Italian Meatball Sandwich Casserole

I found this recipe on allrecipes.com.

I have actually made this recipe lots of times - John and his friends all love it! A few weekends ago it was made at John's parents house for his family (I was sick, so everyone else made it) and they loved it too!

Italian Meatball Sandwich Casserole

1/3 cup chopped green onions
1/4 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 pound ground beef
1 (1 pound) loaf Italian bread, cut into 1 inch cubes
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
3 cups spaghetti sauce
1 cup water
2 cloves garlic, minced


1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Mix together onions, bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese and ground beef. Roll into 1-inch balls, and place in a baking pan. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until beef is no longer pink.
3. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
4. Arrange the bread cubes in a single layer in an ungreased 9x13 inch baking dish.
5. Mix together the cream cheese, mayonnaise, Italian seasoning and black pepper until smooth. Spread this mixture over each bread cube. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of the grated mozzarella cheese. 6. In a large bowl, mix together spaghetti sauce, water, and garlic. Gently stir in meatballs. Pour over the bread and cheese mixture in the baking pan. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella cheese evenly over the top.
7. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 minutes, or until heated through.

Serves 5 (large servings!)

Nutritional Information per serving: 992 Calories; 63.2 g Fat; 66g Carbohydrate; 5.5g Dietary Fiber; 39.2g Protein

Soup!

These are my two favorite soups to fix when John is out of town. John doesn't really like them, but Braxton and I love them! It's the one (and only) good thing that happens at our house when John is out of town...

Caroline's Cheesy Crock Cauliflower Soup

2 cups chicken broth
16 oz frozen cauliflower
1 medium stalk celery, chopped
1 medium carrot, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 tsp thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup milk
1-1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

Put all the ingredients, except for the milk and cheese into a Crock-Pot and cook on low until vegetables are very tender - about 4 to 6 hours.
Carefully pour mixture into a food processor or a blender. Cover and process until smooth. Or, if you like it a little lumpy and bumpy - use a potato masher and mash to your heart's delight!
Place the cauliflower mixture into a saucepan; stir in milk and cheese. Heat over medium heat, stirring constantly, until cheese is melted and mixture is hot.




Cream of Broccoli Soup

4 cups chicken broth
1 baking potato, peeled and quartered
4 to 6 cups broccoli (use 6 if you want to leave it chunky)
1/2 to 1 cup cream or milk
Salt and pepper to taste

Bring chicken broth, potato, and broccoli to a boil. Boil for 20 minutes or until vegetables are very tender. Blend soup in a blender until smooth. Pour back into pot and add cream and salt and pepper. Reheat, but do not boil.

Double Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake

CRUST
1 ½ c purchased chocolate cookie crumbs
½ stick (4 Tbsp) butter, melted

FILLING
3 bricks (8 oz each) 1/3-less fat cream cheese, softened
1 c sugar
2 Tbsp cornstarch
3 large eggs
½ c reduced-fat sour cream
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 c (6 oz) milk-chocolate chips, melted and cooled
1 c canned 100% pure pumpkin
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 c (6 oz) semisweet chocolate chips, melted and cooled

CHOCOLATE GLAZE
3 oz bittersweet chocolate
2 Tbsp stick butter
1 Tbsp light corn syrup

Heat oven to 350ºF. Coat an 8-in. springform pan with nonstick spray. Have ready a roasting pan larger than the springform pan.
CRUST: Put crumbs in a small bowl; stir in butter until evenly moistened. Press firmly over bottom of pan. Bake 8 to 10 minutes until set. Cool on rack. Wrap outside of pan with heavy-duty foil. Reduce oven temperature to 300ºF.
FILLING: Beat cream cheese, sugar and cornstarch in a large bowl with mixer on medium speed until smooth, scraping sides of bowl several times with a rubber spatula. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, just until blended. Beat in sour cream and vanilla to combine. Divide batter evenly between 3 medium bowls. Stir in melted milk chocolate into 1 bowl; pour into crust in an even layer. Whisk pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice 2nd bowl. Carefully spoon over chocolate layer to cover, then gently smooth into an even layer with an offset spatula (take care batters don’t run together). Stir semisweet chocolate into remaining batter. Carefully spoon over pumpkin layer; spread carefully as above.
Set springform pan in center of roasting pan. Place roasting pan in oven rack and add boiling water to come halfway up sides of springform pan.
Bake 1 ½ hours to 1 ¾ hours until set, but center still jiggles slightly when shaken.
Turn oven off (leave door closed); let cake cool for 1 hour (if cake hasn’t pulled away from sides of pan, carefully run a thin knife around edge of pan to release cake). Remove foil. Cool cake in pan on a wire rack. Cover refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.

CHOCOLATE GLAZE: Stir ingredients in a small saucepan over low heat until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth. Remove from heat; cool slightly.
Remove pan sides; place cake on serving plate. Spread glaze over top to edge (some may drip down side of cake). Refrigerate until glaze sets.

Serves 12
Per serving: 580 cal, 11g pro, 57g carb, 2g fiber, 35g fat (20g sat fat), 112mg chol, 425mg sod

Fiesta Dip

I have made this yummy dip before and made it again tonight for games... It's super delicious!

This recipe comes from The Essential Mormon Cookbook by Julie Badger Jensen.

Fiesta Dip

2 large, ripe avocados

1 Tbsp lemon juice

16 oz can refried beans

1 1/2 c sour cream

1.25 oz package taco seasoning mix

1 cup shredded Monterey Jack or cheddar cheese

3.8 oz can sliced black olives, well drained

2 medium tomatoes, chopped

6 green onions, chopped

Tortilla chips

Peel, pit, and mash avocados. Add lemon juice and mix well. Set aside. Spread refried beans on a large plate. Spread with avocado mixture. Stir together sour cream and taco mix. Spread over avocado layer. Sprinkle with cheese, black olives, tomatoes, and green onions. Serve with tortilla chips.