My New Love For Cooking

My mom is an amazing cook. She comes up with the most amazing recipes & they always taste delicious. I however, did not develop this talent/love for cooking & it has always driven my mom crazy. She can see a can of soup in my pantry & say "why don't you make something for dinner with that?" I see a can of soup & think "I guess we're having soup for dinner." ha.

So as I said in my previous post, I've decided to give cooking a try. Maybe it's the pregnancy & the fact that I want to eat everything in sight but so far, so good. I've chosen easy recipes that I know my family will gobble up (minus the zucchini a few nights ago). I thought I'd post them for you in case you're looking for something yummy to try!

Pizza Pasta Casserole (makes 2 9x13 pans)

2 lbs ground beef
1 large onion chopped
1 clove garlic minced
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 (26 once) jars spaghetti sauce
16 ounces rotini pasta, cooked and drained
5 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
8 ounces sliced pepperoni

Brown ground beef, onion, and garlic in oil. Drain. Stir in pasta, spaghetti sauce, and 3 cups cheese. Place mixture in 2 greased 9x13 pans. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Top with pepperoni. Cover and freeze or bake uncovered at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until heated through.

This recipe makes 2 pans so be sure to 1/2 it if you don't have freezer space! My fam thought it was very tasty & I think I'll add some frozen veggies next time...corn maybe?

Apple Cider Pancakes (makes roughly 9 pancakes so double if you need more!)

1 cups dry pancake mix (i used hungry jack)

1 egg, separated
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup buttermilk (or buttermilk substitute)
1/4 cup plain yogurt
1 teaspoons honey
1/2 cup apple cider (or apple juice if you can’t find cider)

Butter (both for cooking the pancakes and topping them when they are finished)

3 Tablespoons sugar + 1 1/2 Tablespoons ground cinnamon

Place the 1 cup of dry mix in a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk the egg white, buttermilk, yogurt, honey and cider. In another small bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and olive oil. Whisk the wet ingredients in one bowl until combined. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry mix and stir until just combined. Lumps are good! Don’t get rid of them!

Heat 1 tablespoon of butter or vegetable oil in a medium pan. Measure 1/3 cup of the batter and pour into the pan. When you start to see small bubbles on the top of the pancakes and the edges are beginning to cook, flip the pancake. Be sure to add more butter or oil as needed so the pancakes don’t stick.

While the pancakes are still warm, top with some butter and allow it to melt over the top of the pancakes. Sprinkle with the cinnamon and sugar mixture and eat!

SUPER delicious! The whole family devoured them in moments. Yum!