Easy Pasta Casserole

It's the day before Thanksgiving, and I know everyone is thinking about all that cooking they will be doing tomorrow. Yummy, right?

But if you are like me and my family, at some point this weekend you will need a break from turkey, stuffing, and cranberry sauce.

This is where an easy but delicious pasta casserole recipe will come in very handy. This one is almost cheating, because it calls for a jar of spaghetti sauce, and is so simple to make, but it's really tasty.


Recipe for Easy Pasta Casserole

Ingredients:

1 pound lean ground beef
3 cups elbow or tube pasta, cooked
1 24oz. jar spaghetti sauce
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
2 cups Monterey Jack/Cheddar Cheese combo

HearthSong Legends of Magic Kit with DVD Review and Giveaway #sponsored

 

My oldest son is about to turn 7 years old, like most 7 year olds he is starting to find out what his real interests are. It is so neat to see him learning about life, our planet, the way things work, and recently the "magic" of magic. We went to a birthday party where they had a magician, Jayden was memorized, watching and waiting to see the magicians every move. He was studying him so hard, trying to see exactly how he executed each trick. When we left all he could talk about was how awesome it was, he asked if magic was real because although he thought it was great, he also had his doubts. Jayden is a "has to see it to believe it kind of kid" and magic was just so out of this world to him. He wanted to learn the magicians tricks so I knew he would love the HearthSong Legends of Magic Kit with DVD!

 

Baking Candy Cane Chocolate Cupcakes With Land O' Lakes Butter #HolidayButter #shop #cbias

Holiday baking has been a long tradition in my family, so I'm very excited to be in the kitchen baking some of my favorite treats.

Chocolate and peppermint are a must during the holiday season, so I combined the two and made these yummy cupcakes.

My grandchildren were thrilled when they saw them, and it was a real struggle for them to wait until after dinner to have one.

The key to successful baking for me, is using the highest quality ingredients that I can. Butter is one of those ingredients, and I always like stocking up on it at this time of the year.

Homemade Apple Pie + Adding ZEST to your weekend!

I have told everyone how much I like pie and desserts in general, I cannot pass on a good looking pie, I just can't. And in the beginning of the fall season I shared a recipe for Homemade Apple Pie with Lemon ZEST. It was a huge hit so I wanted to share it again in case you missed it. Not to mention you can wow your Thanksgiving guests with this zesty pie!

This time the recent pie I made was for a charity auction at Liam's preschool. Every year they auction off homemade desserts and treats, it is a smashing hit and brings in hundreds of dollars! Ever need a charity idea? Food always bring in the dough! Here is the recipe, ENJOY!

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
•  Pie Dough, your recipe of store bought crust, whichever you prefer     
• 10 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
• 3/4 cup sugar, plus additional for pie top
• Zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• Pinch ground cloves
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 egg, beaten

Why I'm Smiling it Forward #SmilingItForward #sponsored

I’m SMILING IT FORWARD™ because right now everyone in our family is happy and healthy. But that is not always the case around our house. Recently all of my children were hit hard with the flu and all at the same time. Of course, when they are sick all they want is mom. When you’re a mom seeing your children sick is so tough. Not only do we want to snuggle them and do anything to make them feel better, but we also want to take away their sickness. To help ease their pain and fevers we always turn to TYLENOL®, I know it is safe and effective for my children.

 

Not everyone has the luxury of things like medicine or health care to help when their children are sick, that's where Children's Health Fund comes in. Their mobile medical clinics provide children in need with access to the doctors, nurses and medicine they deserve. You can help do your part by loading a picture to SMILING IT FORWARD™ , and with every photo uploaded TYLENOL® will donate $1 to Children's Health Fund. What a simple and great way to help other children in need!
 

Cream Cheese Swirl Brownies

Recipe for Cream Cheese Swirl Brownies

Ingredients:

Filling:
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 egg
3 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Brownies:
1 regular size box brownie mix
water, vegetable oil, and eggs called for in brownie mix
1/3 cup mini chocolate chips

Uncle Milton National Geographic Review and Giveaway #sponsored

Finding unique and fun gifts for my children over the holiday season is one thing I like to do, feeling like your child has that special something is worth searching for. If you are looking for toys and gifts to give your little ones that not everyone will have then Uncle Milton is the place to shop! They have product lines like National Geographic, Fireworks Light Show,  Marvel Science, and more.

Dana Renee Style Jewelry Review and Giveaway #sponsored

I love the ease of doing my holiday shopping online. Especially when I find a shop that has beautiful things at a price I can afford.

Dana Renee Style Jewelry is an online jewelry shop that makes and sells lovely and unique handmade jewelry.

 Dana Renee Style Jewelry offers earrings, necklaces, bracelets, and rings in a variety of styles, with something to appeal to every woman.

Dana's inspiration for creating her jewelry comes from vintage clothing, nature, photography, and whatever happens to catch her eye.

Apple Tree Handprint Project

 

With Thanksgiving coming up next week we have been talking about giving, sharing and loving your family and friends. A great way for children to relate to this in real life is to read them a story about the subject. That is why we have been reading The Giving Tree , a family favorite. All this reading sparked the Apple Tree project below! I love it when the story continues into real life, it really seems like the children are understanding and absorbing what we are teaching.

 

 

Butterscotch Pudding

Butterscotch pudding was a favorite dessert of mine when I was a little girl. My mother loved making dessert for us, and pudding was something she made at least once a week.

This pudding isn't quite as good as what I remember from all those ago, but it is pretty delicious.
A little whipped cream and a dash of nutmeg are the perfect finish.

Ingredients:

1 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
3 cups milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 egg yolks, beaten
1/4 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract