Uh oh......

Spaghettios.....

Depending on your age you may or may not be very familiar with our dear chef Boyardee and this lovely concoction......  

image

And when looking for an image I am reminded of the time a rodent was found in a can but I digress....

There were many things I longed for as a small child but did not get which I understand why now and many of these things fall under the catagory of processed foods:   Pop Tarts, Icees, various sugared cerals.......  There also was not a lot of Chef Boyardee in our family cupboard.   And like any child you want what you cannot have and sadly no of my other friends had these things as well so it wasn't like I could go to their house to get them.   Amazingly enough I survived childhood without these things and most of them I will not give to J either.   But when I came across this recipe I just couldn't resist!

 

Recipe found here 

I made this on Sunday and G's response was - that taste exactly like spaghettio's.   Then he proceeded to tell me he wasn't a big fan of them.  Sigh......   Shows he doesn't pay attention when I discuss the week's menu with him.   Needless to say he ate a big whooping portion of it so I guess it all worked out ok.

I pretty much followed the recipe but used ground beef (about a pound) instead of chicken.   This makes enough for a family of 20 growning boys.   Well maybe not exactly but geez it seemed to expand in the pan as I went.   Needless to say plenty for two meals as well as some to go in the freezer for later and it couldn't be any easier to through together.   Bonus was that J had it for dinner Monday night and loved it as well.  Try to ignore the amount of butter and remember there its for a pound of pasta.   You will have left over ranch dressing mix and so I sprinkled that over the califlower and carrots I was roasting in the oven and it was perfect!  Definetly a fall meal with the pasta and veggies straight from the oven.

Bon Appetit! 

And this is why.....

........people have more than one child

We are almost at the year mark and we have survived - we less bumps and bruises than expected for all parties involved.....

At this point you have conquered the big things (in no particular order).......

.......when to switch from the bassinet to the crib

.......first bath

.......introducing solid food

.......sleeping through the night

.......ear infections

........which bottles to use

........diaper rash from h*ll that won't quit

........how to get them to nap

........when to quit swaddling

........how to swaddle

........how to pick a daycare

........leaving them with a babysitter

And then there is also the point you realize that your days of enjoying this are numbered.....

......snuggles with his bottle

That sweet, sweet face sucking away on his bottle all happy and content right up against me where I am  able to kiss his sweet forehead and tell him how much I love him.   Those days are numbered......

......this I am convinced is why people have another.  After all you won't have all the questions the second time.  You will know how to do things and do it with more confidence.   Also, pregnancy would be easier the second time as you would know what was going to happen and what to expect there as well. 

My pickle is not a baby anymore and I'm not sure how that happened....

I know snuggles are not over completely but they will be less in numbers.

I hope for him to be a happy, loving, and compassionate person who will always know how much I love him and that I will always be there for a snuggle....

Truth

here

Now I remember why I don't make stuffed shells.......

.....because when the cook the shells they break up and stick to the bottom of the pan so you have to cook the whole box and then you only get about half of the box with shells that you can still stuff and use which is just beyond frustrating and wasteful.....

But I digress.....

I had the TV on one morning while I was doing stuff and J was sleeping and one of Paula Deen kids was on (apparently only she got axed not them) and he was making stuffed shells.   This prompted me to wonder why I didn't ever make those.  So off to Pinterest I went looked at a couple of recipes and came up with this.......

1 jar your favorite red pasta sauce (don't judge I have a baby and limited time)
1 12 oz can tomatoe sauce
1/2 a container ricotta cheese
1 cup or so of mozzarella cheese
1 lb chicken italian sausage
1 box pasta shells
handfuls of your favorite Italian herbs fresh or dried
sprinkle of sugar
splash of red wine

Brown the sausage and add the sauces.  Twik the sauce to your taste with sugar, wine, and herbs.   Let simmer for about an hour or so if you can but if not move on to the next step

Cook the shells - cook all of them.....just in case they break or stick to the bottom of the pan (I know I'm ranting and repeating - I can its my blog - hee hee). Once cooked place the ones that aren't stuck to the bottom of the pan on a towel to cool. 

Spray the bottom of a 9x13 or two 9x9 pans (I did two 9x9 and put one in the freezer for a rainy day)

Spread some of the sauce in the bottom of both pans - enough to cover the bottom and make a "nest"

Into the remaining sauce add the ricotta and a handful of the mozzarella cheese.  Add more or less of the ricotta as you see fit - this to me is a personal preference thing.   Also the traditional thing to do would be to add some cooked spinach at this point but I opted not to this time.  This is your "stuffing".  Stuff the shells and nestle them on top of the sauce.

Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella cheese over the tops

If you are freezing stop here - double wrap and save for another day.

If you are eating now......Cover with foil and bake at 375 for 30 - 45 minutes depending on your oven.

The last 15 minutes I put some leftover french bread wrapped in foil next to it to have some warm bread to go with it.

Planning

Hard to believe but in a little over a month my little pickle is going to be ONE!  How in the world did that happen?

As we speak I am knee deep in planning the bash to celebrate.   This will probably be the last big bash for him for a while.   Don't plan to do big bday parties for him every year.

It's a Baby Luau - the tradition that every good respecting hawaiian family does when the babe turns one.   It was a celebration of sorts that the baby made it to the one year mark as sadly many did not in the old days.  I consider it a celebration of surviving the first year.   A dear friend said this when her little one turned one and I didn't really understand......now I do......

I have set a budget for myself and I think I'm going to come pretty close (T&R are going to help a little as well so that will help).

I came to the realization this past week that I am going full board on the catering.......and as I trade off I will make cupcakes.   I just couldn't find a bakery I wanted to use or a price I wanted to pay.   This is a birthday party not a wedding after all.  I will of course make a small smash cake for him as well.  And I will also make sugar cookies in the shape of a one.   This will be a tradition going forward to make cookies for his birthday with the number he is - fun times.

Things I'm crafting.....

• Cupcake toppers
• Food tent cards
• Wreath for the door
• Goody bag/treat for the kiddos

Did I mention I have invited 50 people?  What in the world was I thinking?  Surely not everyone will come right?  (haven't had one person say they aren't at this point)  But there truly wasn't someone on the list that I would take off - actually there were a couple others I wish I could of invited but when you add husbands and littles it all adds up quickly..... Not sure where everyone is going to fit?   Pray (pray hard) that the weather is nice and people can spill out onto the deck.   And really not everyone will come at the same time right?   Just let me live in that little world ok?   If this is the only thing I have to worry about then I think we are doing ok....

And there will be a take away.  I can't have a party and not have a take away.   I know what I'm making but will keep that to myself until after.

Should be fun times and we will be more than ready for our vacation the week after the big bash.......

Pics of the bash as well as the crafts I promise.