Wheat Pumpkin Muffins

1 1/2 C whole wheat flour (I use a mix of white whole wheat and hard red)
1/2 C brown sugar
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 eggs
1 C pumpkin puree
1/2 C applesauce
1/2 C honey
Cinnamon, ginger, cloves to taste (around 1 tsp for cinnamon and 1/4-1/2 for the others)
-add ins...we love chocolate chips and coconut, also raisins and any nut :)

You know the drill...mix eggs, applesauce, sugar, pumpkin, honey. Add mixed dry ingredients-flour, baking powder and soda, spices. Mix until just combined, stir in nuts, chips, coconut, etc...

Spaghetti Pie

16-17 oz spaghetti (cooked and drained)
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 cans (15-16 oz) diced tomatoes, drained
1 can (small) tomato sauce
1 bunch asparagus, chopped (you can use broccoli or spinach or any veggie in a similar amount)
2 carrots, chopped
basil, oregano or Italian seasoning to taste - I often use fresh but dried probably about 1-2 tsp
1 C cottage cheese (or ricotta cheese)
-optional 4oz cream cheese (you might want to reduce the cottage cheese a bit if you use it)
1/2 Parmesan cheese
1 - 2 C Mozzarella (yes, I have used cheddar and it works great too)

Cook spaghetti. In sauce pan, saute onions and garlic in a little butter/oil. Add tomatoes, sauce, asparagus, carrots and herbs. Simmer till somewhat thick. Mix the cottage cheese and cream cheese in to the cooked, hot and drained spaghetti. Combine with sauce mixture and add cheese (you can save some for the top). Put in 9x13 and bake for about 20 minutes or until bubbly :)

French Chocolate Mousse

I have children who go to school in French and a husband who is deathly afraid of "raw" eggs. This is my attempt to "cook" the eggs for authentic French mousse and make everyone happy...

10 oz chocolate (semi-sweet, dark, bittersweet...whatever...I like a dark & semisweet mix)
4 eggs
2 Tbsp sugar
2 C cream, divided

Beat eggs and sugar till fluffy (as fluffy as they will get). Melt chocolate in a double broiler and add egg and sugar mixture and about 1/2 C of cream. It is best to switch adding back and forth or just add a little egg at a time because it can get thick. Whisk, whisk, whisk...I heat this up as much as I can till the chocolate tells me it will be really unhappy if I heat it any more. If you have worked with chocolate you'll recognize that sheen and when it has reached its breaking point :) If not then just heat it till it is slightly warm and just be happy that it is rare that eggs cause food poisoning and don't tell your husband that the eggs aren't technically cooked...Let cool...
Whip the rest of the cream until it forms decently stiff peaks. Slowly fold chocolate into whipped cream. Chill it in the fridge...if you can wait that long :)

French Soup with Spring Veggies

1 lb leeks, chopped
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic
a few tablespoons butter
7 C of veggie broth/chicken broth
2 large carrots, chopped
1 bunch of asparagus, chopped into 1/2 pieces
1/2 C Aborio rice
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp flour
1 C milk
1 C cream
1-2 C fresh spinach
fresh basil, rosemary, oregano, parsley, thyme to taste (I use them in large amounts :)

Saute onion, garlic, leeks, rice in butter. Add broth and bring to simmer. Add carrots, asparagus and herbs, cook until tender. Separately make a roux with butter and flour. Add milk and cream (you can just use milk :) and cook until thickened and pour into the broth & veggies. Add spinach...

Frog Eye Salad

FROG EYE SALAD

-1 cup granulated sugar
-2 tablespoon all-purpose flour
-1 3/4 pineapple juice (use from the pineapple chunks and then add more-I buy the little juice cans and use what I need)
-1 (20-ounce) can pineapple chunks in its own juice, save juice
-2 large egg, beaten
-1 tbsp lemon juice
-16 oz Acine di Pepe Pasta
- some frozen non-dairy whipped topping (some people like this a lot but I usually only use one or two scoops)
-add in: most people do mandarin oranges, maraschino cherries, mini marshmallows and coconut but I much prefer to cut up apples, strawberries, blueberries, etc and use the pineapple and coconut!

1. In medium saucepan, stir together sugar, flour and salt.
2. Drain pineapple, reserving juice. With whisk, gradually stir juice and egg into sugar mixture. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until mixture comes to a boil. Stir in lemon juice. Cool mixture to room temperature. You want it to be thick-ish :)
3.  Cook pasta according to package directions; drain. Rinse with cold water to cool quickly; drain well.
4.  Stir together pineapple juice mixture and pasta. Cover and refrigerate several hours or overnight.
5.  Add pineapple and any thing else you want in there along with the whipped topping. Cover and put back in the fridge. It is best to wait until you are about ready to serve it to mix the two together if you are using the fresh fruit.

American Goulash

1 lb ground beef (I use 1/4-1/2 lb)
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlice, minced
2 cans tomato sauce
1 can diced tomatoes
3 C water
1/4 C green pepper, chopped
4 tsp Italian Seasoning
1 Tbsp Worchestershire sauce
1 Tbsp Soy sauce
1 bay leaf
salt/pepper
2 C uncooked macaroni

Brown meat. Drain. Cook onions, meat, garlic till tender.  Add everything else and bring to a boil.  Add macaroni and cook till macaroni is done.

What...I left meat out of goulash? Yes, tried it and it was okay but it likes a little meat :)

Italian Sausage Soup

• 1 pound Italian sausage
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 (14 ounce) cans beef broth
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can Italian-style stewed tomatoes
• 1 cup sliced carrots
• 1 cup barley (can use beans)
• 2 small zucchini, cubed
• 1-2 cups spinach (frozen works good)
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic salt

Cook the sausage, drain...add everything :)

PS I have used different sausage and way, way less of it...