December Re-Make Recap

I know December isn't over, but with New Years Eve coming, I figured I'd give you this post a few days early! I loved recapping my November re-make recap so I will definitely continue to post them monthly. It really inspires me to revisit some old recipes we loved. This month was nuts... it started with kidney stones on December 1, which also happened to be Landon's first birthday party...aka a party I planned since before he was born. I was in the hospital and missed his special day. I then dealt with "stoney" as we called it for half the month. At that point holiday insanity began and before you knew it... Christmas was here. Landon was so sick for Christmas so we were doubly busy with trying to juggle festivities and a sick boy. So basically December was a challenge and there wasn't too much cooking going on! I didn't even make my usual cookie platters this year, but it is what it is! There's always next year.

With all that said, there was still some yumminess going on. For Landon's birthday party I made Oreo cupcakes as one of the flavors for my cupcake buffet. I did it differently- I didn't do the diet version like I posted in the original, I made the yellow cake mix as usual and then added the Oreos as mentioned in the directions. They were a hit.

Another remake was this one here for  quesadilla Italiano. Landon loves quesadillas. He eats them for either lunch or dinner 4-5 times a week. I throw all types of stuff in, so I figured these would be a hit. Totally not haha! I think he hated the roasted red peppers I threw in as an effort to get more veggies in him. Whatever, I loved them and happily ate it for dinner in his place!

Since I'm now in love with my panini press there were a few paninis this month. This Italian panini is a great one. I did it a little differently this time- I spread pesto on the bread instead of drizzling balsamic on it. I loved the flavors!

Creamy noodles still continues to be one of my favorite side dishes. I threw these together as a last minute side dish to go with some Christmas leftovers and they stole the show. Landon was a big fan! No surprise there though... creamy+noodles=amazing.

I make a few different tomato sauce recipes, but the one I make the most frequently is this tomato sauce with onion and butter. Over time it has evolved and now I make it slightly different (basically just adding some garlic/Italian seasonings and will use crushed tomatoes instead of San Marzano if I'm in a jam). I used the sauce for my lasagna recipe for Christmas Eve.

Pizza is something I make just about weekly. I make all different kinds but this recipe for chicken bacon ranch pizza is one of our favorites in this house. I usually have all of the ingredients on hand so it's perfect for nights when I don't know what to make but want something good.

Lighter lemon baked spaghetti is such a hit in this house. At first Landon was skeptical but once he got into it he was moaning for more (he's a very vocal eater). John and I still love this... it's light in taste but creamy in texture. Perfect.

Cake batter cookies are pretty much the only cookies I make these days. I love them. L-O-V-E. This month alone I made them 4 times! I made them the way listed above twice, plus two other varieties that I'll be sharing soon. They're so easy and just so good. Absolutely my favorite easy way to make cookies!

...and that's it for December! Not much cooking went on this month but what went on was awesome! I wish you all a happy and healthy 2013!