Toddler Tuesdays: Homemade Spaghetti-Os

For toddlers... and those of us who just like to eat like one!

I am so excited to bring this recipe to you! Like, unnaturally excited. You see, growing up I loved Spaghetti-Os. I didn't like soup (I was a miserable eater as a child) but I liked to pretend I did. For some reason I equated enjoying soup with being very worldly and mature. I would sit and eat my Spaghetti-Os and in my head ran a monologue about my "tomato soup" and how cultured I was. I was a strange child.

Now as a mother I really try to put the best of ingredients in Landon as possible. Will he eat a can of Spaghetti-Os as a kid? Yes. I'm sure he will. Does he eat boxed macaroni and cheese? Sure, sometimes. But when I can I do try to make as much from scratch as possible. This recipe jumped out to me because I just loved the idea of recreating a childhood classic for my son. Plus I'm a sucker for fun shaped pasta, and seriously- what's more fun than these rings?? The night I made this for Landon he was in one of those "I'm not eating anything, not my favorite foods, not my milk, and certainly not this new food you're peddling" moods. So he ate three bites, moaned in a happy way, then put up the iron-gate-of-gridlock that all toddlers know how to do. You know... the hand up, pushing you away as you bring the spoon towards them, accompanied by frantic head shakes? I'm sure you know the act. John however seized the opportunity to "model" good eating for Landon and ate a huge bowl of this for dinner.

Did it taste exactly like the canned version? No. Was it very good? Yes! The cheddar cheese has a subtle effect on the taste, but that seems to be very key to accomplishing that Spaghetti-O flavor. The only thing I missed was the variety of sized noodles- I used to get irrationally excited when I'd get a large O stuffed perfectly with a middle O and a mini O in the center.

Source: Coffee and Cannolis

Ingredients:
29 oz. can tomato sauce
3 cups water
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
8 to 10 oz. dried pasta
1 cup packed freshly shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon butter
salt, to taste

Directions:
1-In a large pot, stir together the tomato sauce, water, sugar, garlic powder and garlic salt. Bring to a boil
2- Add pasta and turn down to medium-low heat. Cover partially and simmer, stirring frequently for 15-20 minutes or until the pasta is cooked.
3-Turn the heat to low and stir in the shredded cheese until melted.
4-Stir in milk and butter. Taste and add salt if desired. Remove from heat and serve immediately.

5-Store in a covered container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave or over low heat on the stove. You may need to add in a little more water or milk.

6- If preparing for freezer-ready meals, pour cooled Spaghetti-Os into flexible silicone muffin tray. Freeze. Pop frozen "pasta cubes" out and place in a freezer bag. Keep frozen until serving. 

Toddler Tuesdays: Mac and Cheese Muffins

Welcome to Toddler Tuesdays!

(If we're being 100% honest he wasn't a toddler in these pictures- maybe 10 months or so? But who's judging?)

 I am so excited to share this new series of recipes with you. What I can tell you right off the bat is that I  most likely will not be posting a recipe for this series every Tuesday, but my goal is to post at least 2-3 times a month with a new toddler friendly meal. Here's the inspiration: I have  a son who is 15 months, eats decently well, has multiple food allergies, and is underweight. Put it all together and you can assume that figuring out food to feed him is a big part of my day.

Most people say, "Oh- just feed them what you eat!" But anyone who has a toddler knows that doesn't always go as planned. Landon is a good eater and will try many new foods, but he also is known to snub things he loved the day before, throw food on the floor, or say "NO!" very loudly when he doesn't like something I'm offering...you know, act like a toddler! With that in mind I focus on making food I know he'll like while getting as much healthy fat and veggies in him as I can. I also like to cook in big batches and freeze portions because Landon eats dinner at 5 on weeknights since he goes to bed by 6, and John and I don't eat until 7:30, so he's eating alone. Easy is very important with those circumstances!

So the first meal for Toddler Tuesdays is mac and cheese muffins. I've seen mac and cheese muffins all over the place, so this is in no way new or groundbreaking, but it's perfect for toddlers (and adults alike). The portion size is perfect, they freeze well, and it's macaroni and cheese- so there's that! Landon *loved* this and ate a whole "muffin". I ended up mixing some sliced avocado in with it, just because I had it, and he liked it that way too. A definite winner!

Source: Stephanie Cooks Original, but inspired from various sites on the internet

Ingredients:
3 cups of cooked macaroni and cheese (I used a variation of this recipe), homemade or boxed
3 oz or about 1/2 cup chopped frozen spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
1 tbsp butter

Directions:
1- Preheat the oven to 350.
2- Grease the muffin tins with the butter.
3- Spoon the mac and cheese evenly into the muffin cups.
4- Bake 20 minutes, then remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack. Allow to cool completely. (If you want to serve one immediately just scoop it out but it most likely will lose it's shape, but it'll taste just as good).
5- Once cool, place the tin in the fridge for about 2 hours so the muffins set and retain their shape.
6- Remove muffins from tin, wrap individually in plastic wrap. Place wrapped muffins in a freezer bag and freeze. When you want to serve one remove from the freezer and allow to defrost, remove wrapper, and reheat.

Apple Cider Waffles

I know apple season is long gone. I know you're seeing this and thinking, "Ok... you're a few months late with this..." but throw away your preconceived notions of "seasonal recipes" because I have to share this recipe. You see, John is on an apple cider kick lately so we constantly have fresh apple cider in the house. Because of that when I saw this recipe pop up I knew I needed to make it. Originally I wanted to make this for John on his birthday but I couldn't get it together in time so I decided to do them later on in the week. The original recipe calls for making these into pancakes but I was feeling lazy so I pulled out my trusty waffle iron and make them into waffles. DE-LISH. They tasted cinnamon-y and comforting. I don't know if the apple flavor really was the star, I'd say it was more the cinnamon, but they were still incredible. We were big fans and it made for a great special breakfast for my special husband.

Source: Adapted from So Tasty, So Yummy

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 egg
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1/3 cup milk
1 cup apple cider

Directions:
1- In a mixing bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Stir well.
2- Beat in the egg, oil, milk, and cider.
3- Set aside and let stand 5 minutes while heating your waffle iron.
4- Spray the waffle iron and cook according to waffle iron directions.

Yields approximately 5 waffles.

Tomato Basil Soup

Pinterest will be my demise. I spend way too much time looking at stuff on there- I even look at things that have no interest to me! Plus now that I exist in a sleep-deprived haze thanks to my baby I find Pinterest to be the perfect website- I can just look at pictures and not think. Without fail I pin several recipes a day that I feel I need to try. This soup was one of my most recent pins. I loved that it cooked mostly in the crockpot making it an easy weeknight meal. Yes, you do need to make a roux on the stovetop, but in total that took 5 minutes.

When all was said and done this soup was seriously to die for. Shockingly I forgot to add the parmesan cheese that the original called for (yes... I forgot cheese... I know...) and it was still so rich. So rich that I don't think you even need cheese (GASP!) and I wouldn't add it next time I made it. I'm leaving it out of the recipe below but if you want just add 1 cup of parmesan when you add the half and half! John and I both were obsessed with this and I'm thrilled that it made enough to freeze for another night.

Source: Adapted from 365 Days of Slow Cooking

Ingredients:
2 (14 oz) cans diced tomatoes, with juices (fire roasted if you can find them)
1 cup finely diced carrots
1 cup finely diced celery
1 cup finely diced onions
1 tsp dried oregano
1/4 cup fresh basil, diced
4 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup butter
2 cups half and half, warmed
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Directions:
1- Combine the tomatoes, carrots, celery, onions, oregano, basil, and broth in a crockpot. Cook on low for 7 hours.
2- In a saucepan melt the butter and stir in the flour to create a roux. Once the paste is formed add 1 cup of the hot veggie mix, stirring well until incorporated. Add an additional 3 cups, stirring well, until smooth. Pour the mixture back into the crockpot, stir well.
3- Add in the half and half, salt, and pepper. Cook on low an additional hour.

Southwestern Pasta and Cheese

Before the baby came I made several meals to freeze for days when I just couldn't make dinner. This was one of the meals that I made, figuring it looked like something that would freeze nicely. Now, for some reason it didn't connect to me that "pasta and cheese" was essentially "macaroni and cheese." I was shocked when I saw the end results, which really is quite scary on my part since the title is pretty self-evident. Yes- I know, it's sad that I was shocked considering the title and the method of preparation, but I was. For some reason I thought the sauce would be lighter. However macaroni and cheese is never a bad surprise, right? This was very filling and hearty- John and I both could only handle a small portion of it. With that said, the leftovers were great and we're both looking forward to when I pull the tray of this out of the freezer.

Source: Slightly adapted from Krista's Kitchen

Ingredients:
3-1/3 cups uncooked bow tie pasta
1 medium sweet red pepper, chopped
8 green onions, chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil 
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon minced chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
2-1/4 cups milk
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided
2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro

Directions
1- Cook pasta according to package directions.
2- Meanwhile, in a large skillet, saute pepper and onions in oil untiltender. Stir in the flour, chili powder, chipotle pepper, salt and cumin until blended. Gradually stir in milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in 1/4 cup cheeseuntil melted. 
3- Drain pasta; toss with sauce. Stir in cilantro. Transfer to a 2-qt. baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered, at 400° for 20-25 minutes or until bubbly. 

Crockpot Chicken and Wild Rice

I'm going to be honest with you- this meal was a complete and utter mistake. A delicious mistake, but a mistake. It was supposed to be soup. Cream of chicken and wild rice soup. But... it doesn't look at all like soup to me... how about you? No? Ok... moving on.

The crockpot is my best friend these days. It's super easy for me to throw ingredients in it and let it go while I tend to my beautiful newborn son. I had seen a recipe for chicken and wild rice soup on pinterest as well as this version from Lauren's Latest and decided to combine the two and throw it in the crockpot. While the end results are not soup (in any way shape or form) it was delicious! John described it perfectly- it tasted like risotto. Risotto that I didn't have to do any work for. Best of all it made a lot so I froze a huge chunk of this for us for another night. The crockpot and the freezer... a new mom's two best friends!

Source: Stephanie Cooks Original

Ingredients:
4 cups chicken broth
1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup with Garlic (or the original if you can't find it)
1 6 oz box Uncle Ben's Wild Rice mix, rice and seasoning packet*
1/2 cup baby carrots, diced small
6 ounces cooked chicken

Directions:
1- Combine the broth, canned soup, rice and seasoning packet, and carrots in the crockpot. Cook on low for 5 hours.
2- Stir in the cooked chicken and allow it to cook for an additional 30 minutes.
3- Stir well and serve hot.

*I took the advice from Lauren's blog (linked above) and bought this specific brand of rice. As she explained the seasoning packet is responsible for the flavor of the dish, so I can't attest to how it would be if you used a different type.

Pesto and Cheese Stuffed Shells

I love baked pasta dishes- baked ziti, lasagna, stuffed shells, manicotti... you name it, I love it. My love is so deep that I can remember ordering stuffed shells at this local Italian restaurant every time we went as a child- they used to bake them in a ramekin- made it so much better. Note to self- must buy ramekins big enough for baked pasta dishes! The hubs, Mr. John (who is celebrating a birthday today- HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABY!), could live without it.

Whenever I make a baked pasta dish I try to find a way to make it more appealing to John- pesto being a sure bet. John ate a full plate of these and really enjoyed them which to me is the biggest compliment there is! I used a 15 ounce container of ricotta and it wasn't enough to fill a whole box of shells, so I modified the recipe to reflect how many shells I actually was able to make. We don't eat ground meat but you could always cook the pesto in with some ground beef or turkey and add that to the cheese mixture. We loved this and I'm so glad I froze a tray of these!

Source: Stephanie Cooks Original

Ingredients:
25 jumbo shells, cooked according to packaging directions
15 oz ricotta cheese
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
3/4 cup pesto (a thicker pesto is recommended, but any pesto will work)
1 egg
Salt and pepper
2 cups marinara sauce
Slices of mozzarella cheese

Directions:
1-In a mixing bowl combine the ricotta, parmesan, pesto, and egg. Stir well. Season with salt and pepper.
2- Cover the bottom of a baking dish with a thin layer of marinara sauce.
3- Working with one shell at a time, spoon a few spoonfuls of filling into each shell. Pinch closed and set in the baking dish. Repeat until all shells are full. Pour the marinara over the top and layer the mozzarella cheese over the shells.
4- Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes.

Freezer tip: Complete steps 2-3 in a freezer safe container. Cover and freeze, complete step 4 once you defrost it from the freezer.

Crockpot Salsa Chicken

This isn't the first time I've posted a crockpot recipe for salsa chicken. A long time ago, when I first started blogging, I blogged this version (be sure to check out my HORRIBLE picture of it too... ::gags::) However as my cooking has evolved and subsequently my tastes, that version just isn't my cup of tea anymore. I feel everyone needs a good go-to crockpot salsa chicken recipe though, so I decided to give it another go with a different recipe. This one was much, much, much better. It's healthier and more natural. Not to mention the flavors are more "real" and less processed. Best of all it makes a ton. We used it for chicken tacos and then I froze enough for two meals worth once the baby gets here.

Just a tip, here are some uses for the shredded salsa chicken: chicken tacos, served over rice and topped with taco fillings, used for quesadillas, mixed with pasta/veggies/black beans and baked with some additional salsa and cheddar cheese, used to make a Mexican pizza... the options are limitless which is really why everyone needs a good version at their fingertips!

Source: Lynn's Kitchen Adventures

Ingredients:
4 large chicken breasts
8 ounce can tomato sauce
1 cup salsa
1 packet of taco seasoning, or 2 tbsp homemade taco seasoning
1 tsp cumin

Directions:
1- Combine all of the ingredients and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Shred with two forks once done.

Pesto Chicken Alfredo Casserole

I mentioned before that I have a list of recipes I am dying to make in the fall. This recipe comes from that list of "must makes." When I saw it over the summer I knew we'd love it but it felt too... heavy... for summer. So as soon as September hit (even though it was still over 80 degrees out...) I busted out this recipe and got to work. You see, dinner on weeknights has before a huge hassle. I'm tired, I don't even care if I eat let alone what I eat, and often I am just so ready to get the whole cooking thing over with. Recipes like this are perfect for those situations. This meal was delicious. We both loved it and thoroughly enjoyed the meal. I froze most of it for after the baby comes and I'm already quite excited to eat it again.

Just a tip, if you are going to use jarred alfredo sauce I love Classico's alfredo sauce. I typically make my own but that would defeat the purpose of this easy meal so I did some internet research and saw Classico's sauce gets the best ratings. I really liked it and didn't feel it tasted fake or overly heavy either!

Source: Adapted from Cassie Craves

Ingredients:
1 pound uncooked rotini
1 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 7 oz jar roasted red peppers, drained and diced small
1 cup pesto sauce
1 jar Alfredo sauce (small/medium sized- not too large)
1/4 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese

Directions:
1- Preheat the oven to 350. Cook pasta according to directions. Drain and return to the pot. Stir in the chicken, red peppers, pesto, and alfredo sauce.
2- Spoon the ingredients into a large oven safe dish. Sprinkle the cheese over the top.
3- Cover and bake for 35 minutes. Serve hot

**Freezer tip- assemble up to step 2. Allow to cool completely and freeze. When ready to bake, defrost and complete step 3.

Chicken Veggie Soup with Pasta and Dumplings

I first saw this recipe last winter. For one reason or another I never got around to making it but I placed it a special file of "first recipes of fall." (Yes- I do categorize my recipes. No- you do not have permission to judge me, thank you very much!) I couldn't wait to make it, it just seemed like the perfect fall soup. Best of all it had dumplings which made me sure John would be a fan too. Sure enough we both loved it. I mean hello- soup+pasta+dumplings=AMAZING. Or at least that's the way I do math.

This recipe yields a lot of soup. Like, a lot. We both ate it for dinner, I took some for lunch, and I froze a big container of it for once the baby gets here. I'm already looking forward to pulling this out of the freezer and reheating it... yum. Serve it with bread, because a soup with pasta and dumplings doesn't have enough carbs on it's own. ::wink wink::

Source: Adapted from Lauren's Kitchen, originally from Rachel Ray

Ingredients:
2 tbsp EVOO
3 tbsp butter
1 rib celery, chopped
1 medium onion, diced small
Salt and pepper
2 rounded tbsp flour
6-8 cups chicken broth
1/2 tsp ground mustard
1/4 tsp dried thyme
2 cups frozen carrots and peas mix
1 cup Bisquick pancake mix
1/3 cup milk
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 cup tiny pasta (slightly less than 1/2 cup), uncooked (like pastina)
1 1/2 cup shredded cooked chicken

Directions:
1- In a large pot heat the oil and butter. Add the onion and celery, stir. Cover and allow to cook until soft, about 7 minutes.
2- Top with the flour, stirring until the mixture thickens. Add the broth and stir until well blended. Allow to heat over medium heat. Stir in the ground mustard and thyme, along with the peas and carrots mix. Cook 10 minutes or so. Season with salt and pepper.
3- In a small bowl combine the Bisquick and milk, along with the garlic powder. Stir until well combined, set aside.
4- Add the pasta and chicken to the soup, stirring well. Taste and add more salt and pepper as needed.
5- Using two spoons, spoon small amounts of the biscuit mix into the hot soup. Once all of the dumplings are added cover and allow to cook 8 minutes, stirring gently occasionally.
6- Serve hot.

Sticky Chicken

What a surprise this chicken turned out to be! I marinaded it one day, didn't want it so I froze it, defrosted it, then still didn't want it. It was the chicken that almost never was. I don't know why I was not feeling this chicken but I just really wasn't. I finally sucked it up, made it, and was shocked. The sauce was amazing. It's also extremely versatile, you can cut the chicken in small pieces when you marinade it and serve this over rice, cut it in thin strips and serve it with veggies and pasta, or do what I did and serve it in a panini. The sauce thickened up nicely and was really plentiful (it's not pictured, I served it on the side). I can see this recipe coming in handy in the coming months because it froze beautifully and cooked so quickly that it made for a perfect weeknight meal. Easy + delicious = winner!

Source: Adapted from About.com

Ingredients:
1 pound thin chicken breasts
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup chicken broth
1/8 cup sugar
1/8 cup brown sugar
1.5 tbsp. honey
1 tbsp. hot sauce
1 tbsp. ketchup

Directions:
1- Combine all of the ingredients, except the chicken, and stir well until sugar dissolves.
2- Add the chicken, marinade 24 hours (you can do less).
3- When ready to cook, add the chicken and marinade to a skillet. Cook until chicken is cooked through, remove chicken. Up the heat, stirring regularly, to thicken the sauce. Pour the thickened sauce over the chicken and serve.

**If you want to freeze this, marinade in a freezer safe container and place in the freezer.Allow to defrost, then continue with step 3.