Delicious Baked Manicotti

 

So, besides my post yesterday I know it's been awhile since you've seen me post anything on here! It's not because we've taken a hiatus from eating or cooking, it's just that as soon as the weather here in OK started to get more "Spring" like, I can't keep myself inside or sitting still! As someone who has spent her entire life loving the outdoors, I think it's SO important to put down the iPad, tablet, computer or whatever it is that keeps you inside and go outside and take some time to stop and smell the roses! 

 outdoormindedmag.com

We've been fishing, hiking and cooking out with friends and family already this Spring, and there will be much more of all that as the season for outdoor living has just begun! Today is yucky, so I'm taking this downtime to put up a new recipe! I grabbed this recipe from Mel's Kitchen Cafe, and she has so many good recipes on there it's hard to chose where to start! Let's get started with this one!

Ingredients

Tomato Sauce

 

1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes (in juice)
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 medium cloves garlic, finely minced
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons dried basil 

Cheese Filling and Pasta:

3 cups part-skim ricotta cheese
4 ounces grated Parmesan cheese

8 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese
2 large eggs , lightly beaten
3/4 teaspoon table salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves (or 2 1/2 teaspoons dried parsley)
2 teaspoons chopped fresh basil (or 1 teaspoon dried basil)
16 no-boil lasagna noodles

 

Make sure you have a rack in the middle of your oven and pre-heat it to 375 degrees. 

 

In a large saucepan heat the oil, pepper flakes and garlic over medium/high heat! You are wanting this to get fragrant, not so much brown! It should take about a minute or two to get that first wonderful whiff of deliciousness! Now throw in your tomatoes, salt and dried basil and allow to simmer for about 15 minutes or until sauce has thickened (not too thick just slightly). 

 

 

 

In a medium sized bowl stir together the ricotta, mozzarella cheese, 1 cup of the Parmesan cheese (1/2 of what the recipe calls for), eggs, salt, pepper, and herbs! Set this mixture to the side.

 

 

 

Now for the assembly!! n a 9x13 pan, pour about one inch of boiling water into the pan. Add your noodles one at a time, making sure they don't all stick together! Let them soak for about 5 minutes or until you can "roll them" without them breaking! You don't want them to be completely cooked through because then they will break on you! 

 

 

Lay your noodles out on a paper towel or dish towel to dry off and discard the water in the pan. Make sure your pan is dried and clean to start the assembly process. Add just enough of the sauce to cover the bottom of your pan. It should be about 1 1/2 cups of sauce! Take a noodle and spoon about 1/4 c of the cheese mixture on the bottom of the noodle! This took some trial and error for me! I found the easiest way to do this was to spoon the mixture on about an inch from the bottom of the noodle. Spread it out a little with your fingers and start to roll the noodle! You'll have to figure out what works best for you! I made about 3 extra noodles just so I could practice a couple of times without losing any of our food! Place them on top of the sauce in the pan, seam side down! Cover with the remaining sauce and place aluminum foil over the pan. Bake in the oven for about 40 minutes and then remove the foil (CAREFUL: DON'T BURN YOURSELF WITH THE STEAM). Add the remainder of the Parmesan cheese, and bake about 5-7 more minutes or until the cheese is brown and bubbly. Remove from oven and let stand for a few minutes to cool! 

Serve and enjoy!

I'm going to try and start writing the night before so all I have to do before heading out is hit publish and we can be on our way! I love sharing our recipes with ya'll and you've given me such an overwhelming response that I want to make sure to keep it up! I've got to figure out what I'm going to do to make up for the photo challenge this month. Maybe next month I will take 2 pictures a day and go from there!

Until next time...

~Happy Eating~

 

--"Study nature, love nature, stay close to nature. It will never fail you"-- 

~Frank Lloyd Wright~

 

 

A Trip to the Hollow

I recently had the fun opportunity to go and tour a new outdoor/indoor venue in Broken Arrow, OK! The name "Tranquility Hollow" is a perfect way to describe the 20 acres surrounded by trees, hills, and a lot of love from the owners, Bob and Lola! Limited only by your own dreams and imaginations, this venue is a perfect setting for a wedding, family get together, birthday party, or a day spent with friends! They have different "packages" you can buy, which include a wedding weekend for a small group of overnight guests! If you decide to book a wedding weekend package with them, the entire venue is yours for the weekend so you don't have to worry about any "wedding crashers!" Otherwise, you can choose an activity package based on your wants and needs by the hour, or time of day! Just call ahead to get prices and package options! DJ and I throw around ideas about a venue to get hitched at, and I stumbled across this place (which is much closer than the other locations we were looking at). I came home with pictures and stories and cannot wait to take him out there in the beginning of May for a photography session with our friend Natalie who owns and operates, Hugs and Smiles Photography! I had been e-mailing Lola so much, that when I finally arrived it was as if two friends were meeting up for an afternoon of walking and talking and "catching up"! Her husband Bob, was hard at work on the land and I didn't get a chance to visit with him, but I'm absolutely positive we will get along! I snagged some pictures with my phone while I was out there to bring home to DJ so he could see the place, and Lola has given me permission to share them with you all! You can contact them for rates or questions but here is a small list of fun activities they offer at the Hollow (they offer plenty more than I'm giving you here):

Catch and Release Fishing

Horseshoe Pitching

Swings

20 BEAUTIFUL ACRES

Zip Line

Fire Pits

Swimming

You can choose a weekend package for up to about 8 people! This is one of the beautiful rooms they have put together to make your stay as comfortable as possible! This is also the room that Lola said would be her idea of the groom's room for weddings!

This is one of the beautiful bathrooms downstairs with this stunning bathtub! Doesn't it just make you want to grab some candles and scented bubble bath and relax here?!

Upstairs you'll find the designated "bridal suite" which has it's own bedroom, bathroom, living room and kitchen! It's almost like giving the bride and her girls their own private apartment with a screened in porch overlooking the land! I think this would make a great "apartment" to relax in the day of our wedding! 

As if all the activities outside are not enough for you, if you need to wind down and relax why not choose to do so in their own movie room! They have lots of movies for you to choose from, or you can bring your own favorite! I'll show you the reverse of this picture where you get to cozy up and relax during the show :)

 

A beautiful sunny afternoon :) 

Here is the lagoon style pool with winding slide that you all can enjoy on your trip to the Hollow! It is cooled off in the heat of the summer, and heated if it's cool outside! Remember to call out there if you have questions about prices or policies! I know I have your interest by now!

Enjoy sitting around the campfire at night and roast weenies or s'mores! Grab a guitar and have a jam session with your friends-whatever your heart desires!

 

They have built a fun tree house for kids or children at heart! 

 

We had massive Spring storms a couple days before I went out with high winds and heavy rains! Normally the pond is much cleaner but the pounding rain causes every pond/lake in OK to get a little muddy! Still absolutely beautiful! 

I know in writing it is hard to give this place the credit it deserves! I had an absolutely wonderful afternoon and can't wait to go back soon! My mind is reeling with ideas for functions and wedding ideas! Plus, I gained a great new friend from my experience and know it will continue through the years (we brainstorm and think alike on a lot of things!) 

Call and book your event at Tranquility Hollow and let me know how it goes! I'm anxious to see what kind of ideas people come up with for their events out there! Everybody sees things in different ways, and this venue gives you room to stretch your imagination and offers you so much more than just your typical "outside venue"! 

~Shelly~

Spicy Smoked Sausage Pasta

I have a lot of catching up to do on recipes!! This recipe I pulled from Kevin and Amanda's blog who got this recipe from the cookbook, The Best Simple Recipes! Smoked sausage is one of those things I love to eat, but often forget exists when I'm at the grocery store! This is an absolutely delightful, hearty dish that we had no problems polishing off in just a couple of days! Let's get started...

Ingredients

1 TB olive oil

1 lb. smoked sausage

1.5 c diced onion

2 cloves garlic-minced

2 c chicken broth

1 (10 oz) can Rotel

1/2 c heavy cream

8 oz. Penne Pasta

1/2 tsp. salt & pepper 

1 c Mont Jack shredded cheese

1/3 c thin sliced green onion

To begin, you're going to want to add your olive oil to your pan over medium/high heat! You're going to want the oil to get hot enough it's smoking before you add the sliced smoked sausage and diced onion. 

Cook these two together until slightly browned, which should take about 4-6 minutes! Add in the 2 garlic cloves, and saute about 30 seconds, or until fragrant! 

Add the chicken broth, tomatoes, heavy cream, pasta, salt and pepper and stir together!

Bring this all to boil and cover leaving the heat on medium/low and simmer for about 15 minutes or until the pasta is tender!

Stir in 1/2 of a cup of the shredded cheese and mix together well! Top it off with the remaining 1/2 cup of cheese and sliced green onion, and place under the broiler for a just a few minutes, until the cheese is bubbly and getting brown!

Ready for the broiler

Out of the broiler!

All finished and ready to eat :)

This recipe was absolutely wonderful since it's been so cold outside, it helped warm us up! I did sprinkle a little dash or two of red pepper flakes in there to spice it up a little more! 

Stay tuned for another recipe from a friend of mine!

Until then...

 

Photo Challenge Update 3/25/2013

Photo Challenge This Past Week Included:

Something Green

Something Funny

Something Yellow

A Toy

Corner of our home

A Sign

An Animal

My something green picture is of a green bell pepper! I try and keep sliced bell peppers in our fridge for easy snack ideas! They are absolutely delicious and only about 30 calories for one large bell pepper! You really can't beat that!

My something funny picture is of "Shelly Beans"! I rarely see my name out there (which is nice, I like having a unique name), and this one definitely takes the cake! D called me, "Shelly Bean" the rest of the day! I've heard these are actually very yummy, I have yet to try them out! :)

My something yellow picture is of a fishing jig out of our tackle box! I had to do some major cleaning out of the fishing bag because these things were just floating around everywhere, and it's an awfully nice surprise when you reach in the bag and one of these little guys comes out attached to your hand! OUCH

Ah, yes! Our Nintendo! I can remember putting the stickers on this when I was a little girl! And yes, we still have two controllers and the gun! Oh what fun! 

This is a corner in our kitchen! Let's see, it's not the prettiest (I need cute cord covers or something!) but this is probably the most used corner of our home! 

In other words, you better not even take your foot off the break while driving! 

My animal picture is of a little sheep off of a blanket my Grandma Hendrix made for me and all of my cousins! I named it Snuggles when I was a little girl (and yes, I can't refer to it as a blanket; still to this day I will ask D to hand me Snuggles!) It's pretty worn out since it's been around for probably 25+ years...but it's still as soft and cozy as ever! I hope someday our kids can snuggle up with it on the couch with us and it will bring them just as many warm and cozy moments as it has brought me! 

I have a lot of catching up to do with my recipes! I've got about 3 that need to make their way on here! So stay tuned! I'll be posting one tomorrow! 

Until Then...

Fried Honey and Cinnamon Bananas

Okay, so this isn't exactly a "fried" banana more of a heated through banana! It's delicious and healthy! I pinned this awhile back, and couldn't wait to try it, so today was the day! You can see the health information on this snack at The Crohn's Journey Foundation's website! They break down each ingredient with all the nutritional facts about each one! It's worth the read even if you don't make this yummy snack! Let's get started...

Ingredients

One organic banana

Coconut Oil Cooking Spray

1 TB Organic honey

1/2 TB water

Cinnamon

Cut your banana into small rounds and set aside. In your skillet spray your coconut oil spray, and heat the skillet over medium/high heat. Add the banana rounds and brown on one side. Once they are browned, flip the over (carefully) and start browning the other side. Turn the stove off at this point and add your PRE-MIXED honey and water. At this point it's going to start getting very bubbly, and once that dies down you can sprinkle on the cinnamon. If you LOVE the taste of cinnamon be generous, if you are just adding for a touch of flavor, a light dusting will do! Remove them from the pan and let them cool, then enjoy! 

Honey and water mix

I didn't have the cooking spray, so I added a little bit of coconut oil to the pan! I use this for SOOOO many things including, toothpaste, hair conditioner, lotion, sunscreen, etc etc! It's awesome!

Here is the banana in the skillet getting browned! 

I LOVE cinnamon! If you'll take my advice and read up on the website where this recipe was pulled, you'll find that you might start adding cinnamon to recipes when you can :) I've added it to sloppy joe mix before and it was awesome! If you like Coney Island, did you know they add cinnamon to their chili!? (Not that that will make their coney's healthy lol but they are delish!)

Here it is just finishing up! I can still smell ALL of the ingredients in the house! 

Stay tuned for a new recipe...Shrimp & Grits! 

Until then...

Broccoli & Chicken Casserole

This recipe was a hands down winner in our home!! I found the recipe off of a fun blog titled, Just Get Off Your Butt and Bake! (Since you said it so nicely lol)! She has tons of great looking recipes that I can't wait to try out! I threw this one together fairly quickly, and once all your ingredients are put together, it goes by more smoothly! (I should also add I was in a major hurry trying to get this done before DJ left for work, and finished just in time!) Let's get started...

Ingredients

1 lb. fresh broccoli-broken into pieces & steamed for 2 minutes

3 cups of cooked chicken-broken into little pieces

1 1/2 c Cheddar Cheese-shredded

2 tubes of Ritz Crackers

1 stick of melted butter

1 TBS Poppy Seeds

SAUCE

1/3 c butter-melted

1/4 c cornstarch dissolved in 1/2 of a cup of cold water

1/3 c Chicken Broth

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

2 c Milk

1 1/2 c shredded Cheddar cheese

Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. In a greased 9x13 pan layer the steamed broccoli on the bottom, then add the shredded chicken. Set this aside for now! In a saucepan, melt the one stick of butter and add the poppy seeds. Set the temperature to low once these two ingredients have been incorporated. In a large Ziploc bag, add the Ritz crackers, and take a rolling pin and crush the crackers. Don't make the pieces too small (more chunky pieces)! Once you have your cracker crumbs, pour the crumbs into the saucepan with your butter and poppy seeds and stir together! Add the 1 1/2 c of shredded cheddar cheese to the pan (on top of the chicken). Keep the saucepan on low for now! In a separate sauce pan, you're going to melt the 1/3 cup of butter. Add the cornstarch, broth, salt, pepper, and milk and stir together! I waited until this was all heated through before I added the 1 1/2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese. Once you have all the ingredients stirred together, your sauce should now be a much thicker consistency. Pour the sauce over the cheddar cheese layer in your pan, then top it off with your Ritz cracker crumb mixture from the other pan! Place all this in the oven (uncovered) for 30 minutes! Let it cool for a couple minutes, and the rest is history!! Seriously, we probably would have taken down the whole pan by ourselves last night if we had been given the chance...it was THAT good!! This is now going in our "favorite dishes" book!! It seems like a lot of work, but there's no chopping, just a lot of standing by the stove making sure all your saucepans are behaving! Had I not been rushing around like a crazy person, this would have been a very easy dinner to make! 

Fresh broccoli (prior to tearing it all apart and steaming it)

Here is the broccoli in it's steam bath!

Make sure when you are making the corn starch and water mixture that your water is VERY COLD! This will thicken up quickly and stick to the bottom of your bowl! So, I made my mix right before I was ready to put it in the sauce pan!

The good thing about this recipe is that it doesn't take all the Ritz crackers from the box! I love to snack on these and club crackers!! 

This is the Ritz cracker, butter and poppy seed mix! If you look closely you can see the tiny poppy seeds in there :)

Here it is out right out of the oven, and part of it is already gone! 

DELICIOUS!! 

Stay tuned for some great recipes!! 

I don't know about ya'll but I am more than excited for Spring to finally be here and STAY here!! We had beautiful weather this past weekend (partially), and now we are back to chilly. cloudy days! (I'm pretty sure it might have just sleeted a little bit here)! I have been looking up Spring accessories, clothes, decorations and recipes for a couple weeks now! I came across this fun Etsy shop with some great items! Check it out if you haven't already found her yourself! 

Jimmy Pickles

This pocket purse is only $14... DEAL!! She really has some crazy cute stuff! 

Now I need to go decide what's next on the menu!

Until next time...