Bow-Tie Alfredo

This is a super quick diner, my Bow-Tie Alfredo. Or whatever type of pasta I have on hand! This recipe calls for:

• 6 ounces of Parmesan cheese, grated
• 1.5 sticks of butter, unsalted, soften
• Pepper and Salt to taste
• 12 ounces (or so) of pasta, shapes make it more fun

Get the pasta cooking, I add salt to my water to help it boil faster and to flavor the pasta more. Cream together the butter and cheese. Add as much salt and pepper as you want. Leave mixture in mixing bowl.
Once pasta is cooked, spoon it out of the pot and into the cheese and butter mixture. Don't rinse it, just kind of drain the water off. You want it to be steaming hot when it goes in the the mixture.

Stir the pasta and sauce together. The heat from the pasta will melt the cheese and butter together, forming the Alfredo sauce.

Serve and done!

I'm Sick

Sorry there have been to recipes! I've been sick, and not cooking much. I did come up with a good one the other night, I'll work on getting it out here soon.

Macaroni and Cheese

Okay, everyone has a recipe for mac and cheese, and this is mine.

• 1.5 cups of uncooked macaroni
• 1.5 cups of milk
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1/4 teaspoon of pepper
• 1 teaspoon of mustard
• 1/3 cup sour cream
• 2 cups cheese (cheddar, swiss, colby, whatever you have on hand)
• 1/4 cup fine bread crumbs

Cook the macaroni till al dente. While doing that, melt the butter in a nice skillet. Add to the melted butter: flour, salt, pepper and mustard. Use a whisk to mix.

Set a timer for 15 minutes. While on a medium heat, slowly add the milk. About 1/4 cup at a time, making sure it is well mixed. Stir the mixture like you would a béchamel sauce. It takes nearly 15 minutes before it becomes thick.

Once the sauce is thick, add 1.5 cups of cheese and all the sour cream. Mix together until cheese is melted.

Mix the cheese sauce with the macaroni, and put into a greased 2 quart casserole dish. Top with the remaining half cup of cheese, and then the bread crumbs. I then take my cooking spray and gently coat the bread crumbs. This makes it them turn out crispy.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.

Today we enjoyed it with corn bread muffins.

Lemonade Pie

This is a perfect recipe for those hot summer days.

• 32 graham cracker squares - about 1.5 cups
• 3 tablespoons of sugar
• 1/3 cup melted butter
• 1/2 can of lemonade (I use pink lemonade, makes it a pretty color)
• 4 cups of vanilla ice cream
• 4 ounces of frozen whipped topping Mix together the finely chopped graham crackers, melted butter and sugar. Press the mixture into a pie pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-12 minutes.
  

Meanwhile, mix together soften ice cream, whipped topping and lemonade.

Pour mixture into the graham cracker crust.

Put into the freezer for about 5 hours to harden. The top shelf of my freezer is all baby food, except for the pie!

Let it sit out for about five minutes before trying to cut. Enjoy!

Silicone Bakeware

I love using silicone bake ware. I have a really nice set of Kitchenaid Bakeware. When I use it, I always put one of my metal cookie sheets underneath it. That way it isn't floppy. Makes it much easier to use. And clean up with the silicone is a snap.

Toffee Bars

Here is a recipe for toffee bars with a twist.

• 1 pouch of peanut butter cookie mix
• 3 tablespoons of oil
• 1 tablespoon of water
• 1 egg
• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1.5 cups crushed potato chips
• 1 cup salted peanuts
• 12 ounces of chocolate chips

Mix together peanut butter cookie mix, oil, water and the egg.

Put in sprayed 9 X 13 Pyrex pan, bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. It will still be soft.

While the batter is baking, melt butter in sauce pan. Add the brown sugar. Bring this to a boil and stir continuously for about a minute.

Remove batter from oven, top with potato chips and peanuts. Then drizzle the butter/brown sugar mix over top. Return to oven for 15 minutes.

Remove from oven and put the chocolate chips on top. Bake for two more minutes, until the chocolate chips are melty.

Take the back of a spoon and spread the chocolate chips out. Allow to cool completely before cutting.

Beware, they are super sweet, and you will need a glass of milk.

Woolite Bag

This is a good trick I figured out. Baby socks are little, and my washing machine is big. This means things get lost. So what I do to keep the socks together is I wash all baby socks (and other tiny garments) in this Woolite delicates bag. I think the bag was less than $3, and I haven't lost a sock since.

Champion Shoes

One thing people don't tell you about what happens to your body when you have a baby (I could write a whole book on that subject!) is that your feet grow! Mine went up a whole size, and haven't shrunk down yet! Normally, I wouldn't buy athletic type shoes at Payless. But check these guys out! $14.99 for cute pink and white Champion brand shoes. They slip on super easy, and have a velcro strap instead of laces. So that makes it quick, and easy to do with baby in hand. I took them out for a test walk, and they were more comfy than I imagined. I am thrilled. Payless has their famous buy one get one half off sale on now, so my son got a pair of shoes as well! There sale ends July 8th, so hurry.