Porcupine Meatballs with Gravy

What a month... about four weeks ago, I decided I have had enough of my long commute to work. I recently took over a new programming area in a new community center and along with these new responsibilities has come longer hours. As a result, I am exhausted and I never see my family.

So, we are moving to Oswego, Illinois. Our new house is 9.87 miles from my work- I am going from 110 miles a day to under 20! I cannot wait. This whirlwind of events has caused my projects and my blog to take a backseat. I promise I will resume shortly- in fact, I'm in the middle of a project for our new home and will share it once we're settled around the first week of April.

For now, I'd like to share one of my favorite meals from my childhood- porcupine meatballs with gravy. I recently started making these for my family. I forgot how delicious and budget-friendly this recipe is. With just a box of Rice-a-Roni, a pound of beef and an egg, you have a great dinner for the family. And if you have a young family like mine, you'll have plenty of left-overs. This pairs perfectly with my Garlic Mashed Potatoes recipe.

Here is the recipe...

No Boil Lasagna with Fresh Baby Spinach

Lasagna is one of my favorite comfort foods. Thanks to my friend Emily, its gotten a little better & healthier. She suggested adding fresh baby spinach to my lasagna and I'm glad I did. It was amazing. I thought it would be weird because I usually use sauteed spinach and the texture would be different, but it wasn't.

This recipe is lower fat than a traditional lasagna recipe, but it's packed with flavor. Try it, you won't be disappointed!

Itallian Beef Stuffed Bread

There is a restaurant near my town that makes beef rolls once a week. People line up around the building to pick them up. I have friends that look forward to it all week and then once they get it, hoard it until the weekend and reheat it. I had a tub of Italian beef and some frozen bread dough in my freezer and thought I could create it. It was awesome! Although...how could you go wrong with fresh crusty bread brushed with garlic butter and stuffed with beef and cheese.  Are you drooling just thinking about it?

Slow cooker Pasta Sauce

This is an easy sauce that cooks all day in your slow cooker. When I make sauce, I make it to last for several meals so this recipe makes a lot. It takes up every inch of my 6 QT slow cooker. If you have a smaller slow cooker, just reduce the amount of tomato sauce you add.

Baked Rigatoni Pie

This is an adaptation of a Martha Stewart recipe. The second I saw it on Pinterest, I knew I needed to make it. It takes a little time to put it all together, but it's worth it. A great twist for your boring pasta dinner!

Hot Pepper and Cheese Stuffed Burger

It's been 70 degrees here all week in Chicago, which has given me the grilling bug.  Clinton exchanged our propane tank the other day and now we're set to grill as long as the weather stays nice...although, it is Chicago and I still expect another snow storm. As much as it has been nice not to scrape windows this winter, I've missed the snow...so I'm secretly hoping for one more snow day. (Fellow Chicagoans- I take no responsibility if my predictions are accurate) :)

Anyway, I digress... I love coming up with new burger recipes. Most of them are inspired from the travel channel's food shows... and they are tasty.  So, here is my first burger recipe of the season- with hopefully lots more to come!

Chili Macaroni Soup

I love chili! I think there is nothing better than a big bowl of chili on a cold day. This soup is the next best thing, especially if you don't have a few hours to cook dinner. I have had this recipe for about five years and I get excited for the cold weather to come so I can make it.

Five Point Lasagna Soup

Its my mission to find easy, healthy dinners that taste great. This is one of them. I thought it tasted great last night, but for lunch today it was even better.  This recipe is modified from the the deen brother's website. It's a hearty soup that's also healthy. The recipe is 5 Weight Watcher's points for a one cup serving. This soup is a little time consuming, but its definitely worth the wait. Enjoy!

Low Point Taco Pockets

This recipe is originally from Pillsbury, but I made a couple modifications to lighten it up and add a little flavor. It tasted great and was only 8 WW points. With a quarter cup of corn, I had a very delicious and filling nine point dinner. Clinton has already made the request that I make this more often.

It is a little weird to have 12 biscuits as an ingredient, since its not quite two cans, however, if you only need 8, you can save the leftover meat for tacos for your lunch the next day.

Taco Pockets

12 Reduced-fat buttermilk Jumbo refrigerated biscuits
1 lb lean ground beef or turkey
1 packet taco season
1/2 C water
1 1/2 C salsa
1 can black beans
11 tbsp reduced-fat cheddar cheese

Heat oven to 375. Brown beef. Add taco season, water, salsa and black beans. Heat through.

Roll out biscuits into a 6 inch circle. Fill one 1/2 of each circle with 1/3 C taco mixture and 1 Tbsp cheese. Fold over the empty side and seal with a fork. Bake 9-12 minutes until pockets are golden brown.

Easy Crockpot Chilli

Whenever I make chili for a family gathering, I'm always asked for the recipe.  In fact, my dad has told my mom to get it from me and I used hers!-with a few minor adjustments.

I like my chili simple, beans, tomatoes and beef. I know people get crazy over their chili recipes by adding roasted peppers, three types of meats, soaking beans over night, etc. Not me, this is simple, but its great. In the fall, if I have some tomatoes or peppers from my garden, I will add them to the chili, but for the most part, everything comes from cans. This recipe makes a lot of chili. I like to have leftovers for lunch and after a few days, I'll put it in the freezer for later. I like my chili spicy, so adjust the heat to your liking.

Crockpot Beef Stew

My slow cooker is my savior. I'm in the car for three hours a day due to my commute and my crock pot is the only thing saving me from going through a drive thru every day. Today it's beef stew. I love a good beef stew on a cold day. The beef is wonderfully tender after cooking all day in the slow cooker and the flavors and aromas of the veggies and spices is the best thing to walk in the door to after a long day at work.

If you haven't purchased Reynolds slow cooker liners, yet, you're missing out! The only thing I hate about the slow cooker is the mess afterwards and these slow cooker liners make that a non-issue. I highly recommend going out and getting these before your next crock pot meal!