Spaghetti Pepperoni Bake

When David and I were students at Utah State, we discovered that you could buy pepperoni at Sams Club in GIANT bags for super super cheap. Like eight pounds of pepperoni for under $10. (A regular package of pepperoni is like $3-4 for 7 oz.) We totally bought it, separated it into smaller bags, froze them, and had enough pepperoni to last us forever. We ate a lot of pizza during that time of our lives. (I'd leave rhodes rolls on the counter in the morning and then whip up some personal pizzas when we got home at night.) We also started exploring all of the other things that you could do with pepperoni. We found this recipe and it has become a much loved favorite. (I don't even know where to source it back to, because it was so long ago - but it's a simple recipe. I'm sure you can find them all over the web.) This is nice when you want something slightly nicer than spaghetti (read: having guests over but still want a simple meal) or when you have some leftover mozzarella in the fridge.

Spaghetti Pepperoni Bake

Ingredients: 

1 bottle Prego spaghetti sauce
1 (8 oz.) pkg. spaghetti, cooked al dente and drained
1 (4 oz.) pkg. pepperoni, thinly sliced
8 oz. Mozzarella cheese, shredded (about 2 c.)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine sauce and spaghetti. Arrange half of the spaghetti in bottom of 9x13 dish. Top with half the pepperoni and sprinkle with half the cheeses. Repeat layering with remaining spaghetti, pepperoni, and cheese. I also like to add a coating of parmesan cheese to the very top. (Can be prepared ahead to this point and refrigerated.) Bake until heated through, about 25 to 30 minutes. Serve immediately. Serves 6 to 8.

*Note: this is an awesome meal for just making however much you want. I don't usually make a full 9x13 dish I usually make a 5x8 dish with leftover spaghetti, leftover sauce, and whatever extra cheese and pepperoni I have on hand. It's better with more cheese and pepperoni, but the other day I made it with 12 pieces of pepperoni and it was still delicious. So definitely a meal where you can adjust according to whatever you have on hand. 

Chicken Taco Soup

Chicken Taco Soup
Source: Adapted from All Recipes

Ingredients:
1 onion, chopped
1 can black beans
1 can whole kernel corn, drained
1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can green chilies, undrained
2 Tbs taco seasoning (Use Bill Echols Taco Seasoning, recipe below)
1 chicken breasts
shredded Cheddar cheese(optional)
sour cream (optional)
crushed tortilla chips(optional)

Bill Echols Taco Seasoning. It really makes this recipe. 1 tablespoon chili powder 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder 1/4 teaspoon onion powder 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano 1/2 teaspoon paprika 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin 1 teaspoon sea salt 1 teaspoon black pepper

Directions:
Place the onion, black beans, corn, tomato sauce, and diced tomatoes in a slow cooker. Add taco seasoning, and stir to blend. Lay chicken breasts on top of the mixture, pressing down slightly until just covered by the other ingredients. Set slow cooker for low heat, cover, and cook for 5 hours.
Remove chicken breasts from the soup and shred. Stir the shredded chicken back into the soup, and continue cooking for 1 hour. Serve topped with shredded Cheddar cheese, a dollop of sour cream, and crushed tortilla chips, if desired.

Southwest Salad with Cilantro Dressing

I love Costa Vida's Sweet Pork Salads, but I'll be honest and say that my favorite part of the salad is the dressing. When I came across the idea to use the cilantro dressing on top of a regular chopped salad - I knew that I needed to try it. This recipe is so much easier to prepare than the sweet pork salad, and it was a nice refreshing meal. I think adding some grilled chicken would be yummy if you wanted to add a little meat to the dish.

Southwest Salad with Cilantro Dressing

Ingredients:
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 can black beans, rinsed
1 can sweet corn OR 1 cup frozen corn, thawed
1 roma tomatoe, diced
1 green onion, chopped
1 avocado, diced
1 head lettuce, chopped (Romaine is better, all we had was iceburg at the time)

Directions:
Finely chop lettuce, bell pepper, tomatoes, green onions. Dice avocado. Drain and rinse corn and black beans. Place lettuce on a plate, add toppings, cover with creamy cilantro-lime dressing. (I just used leftover dressing, but the recipe is below.)

**When I made this, I was about 9 weeks pregnant and chicken seemed like the yuckiest food on the face of the planet. However, now that I'm 15 weeks and like meat again I think that some grilled chicken would be great on this. I also think that crunching up some tortilla chips would be a yummy addition. Also, David doesn't really like the cilantro dressing - so I got some cubed ham and turkey for his salad and topped everything with ranch dressing.  It's pretty flexible. 

Tomatillo/Cilantro Ranch Dressing
Source: Adapted from A Mommy's Life with a Touch of Yellow

Ingredients:
1 packet of buttermilk ranch dressing
1 Cup mayo/Miracle Whip
1 Cup buttermilk (the smallest carton is perfect)
1 bunch of cilantro (after you wash, make sure you pat dry)
2 tomatillos husked
1 jalapeno (take the rib and seeds out)
Garlic powder (just a few shakes)
juice from 1 lime

Directions:
Put the mayo, dressing mix, buttermilk, and garlic in a blender and mix until blended all together. Squeeze lime juice directly into the blender. Cut up tomatillos, jalapeno, cilantro and pat dry. Add to the blender and blend until everything is mixed together and creamy. Chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. This can be stored in the fridge for several months - so don't throw your leftovers away. If it starts to separate - just shake it all back together.