dinner time!

My favorite meal to make is "Spaghetti Bake". My husband says its his fav too- and my picky toddler always wants seconds (you know thats a good sign!) It may look like a complicated recipe at 1st, but its actually pretty simple...

• 1 lb of ground beef (I always use turkey and its just as good+much better for you)


• 3/4 cup finely chopped onion


• 1/2 cup of green pepper, finely chopped (I've never used this in it-so let me know how it goes if you do!)


• 10 oz. can of cream of mushroom


• 10 oz can of tomato soup


• 1-1/3 cup of water


• 8 oz. can of tomato sauce


• 1/2 t. salt


• 1 clove of garlic, minced


• 8 oz. package of spaghetti, cooked


• 1-1/2 cup of shredded cheese

Brown beef with onion and green pepper in 12'' skillet. Drain. Add soups, water, tomato sauce, salt and garlic. Simmer until heated through. Place spaghetti in a large mixing bowl; add sauce mixture and 1 cup of cheese. mix well. spread onto a greased 13x9 baking dish ; top with remaining cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. serves 6-8.

[I don't normally mix the cheese in the middle, it seems to be really cheesy that way. i put all of it on top, which may require foil to keep it from burning. This dish is great for us to eat for several days- my husband always packs it for lunch the next day. i like to serve it with salad and garlic bread. green beans go good too.]

Spicing up boxed brownies...

My husband loves brownies, and i always think they're kinda boring... so this is where we compromise! I just took a package of cream cheese and mixed it with some powdered sugar to taste. After putting the brownie mixture in the dish to bake- i dumped the cream cheese on top in sections and used a toothpick to swirl it...it takes a few extra minutes to bake...yum!