Taco Jar Salad

August 29, 2022 Amanda Plott

If you can’t tell, I’ve been in jar salad mode for a while now. For me, it’s super easy to accidentally skip out on lunch, so having prepared jarred salads ready to go in my fridge means that I don’t have any excuse to miss out on a meal! These Taco Jar Salad are another great option too. You get a lot of bang for your buck here since there technically isn’t any salad dressing. We’re using salsa here!

The salsa naturally gives the salad a dressing of it’s own that is low in calories and in guilt. Which means you get to load this salad up with all the more taco goodness. We’re talking beans, corn, cheese, tomatoes. All of it! Even the meat and cheese…

Pastitsio

August 20, 2022 Amanda Plott

I’m just going to start this one out by saying that this recipe does take time. While it’s fairly easy to make, there are layering components that each take some time to put together. That being said, this dish is a great one. It tastes like all the time and effort that’s been put into it. So, what is Pastitsio anyway? It’s a Greek style of lasagna basically. The main difference between lasagna and Pastitsio is that Pastitsio is made with a different style of noodle and also with a béchamel sauce rather than ricotta. It’s layered a bit differently than lasagna too.

Now, I’ve never made a béchamel sauce, and even with this being my first time doing so I found it to be pretty easy to do and is very similar to any sort of roux based sauce. The béchamel gave this dish life. There’s so much flavor packed into the sauce that the béchamel is needed to sort of cut through that intense flavor…

Beef Stew Casserole

May 10, 2022 Amanda Plott

Like I’ve said, it’s the end of the school year and quick and easy meals are what I’m about. This Beef Stew Casserole is going to be a new family favorite that I think has to go into general rotation. It’s filling and savory and is so easily put together. So what is Beef Stew Casserole anyway? Well, it’s exactly what it sounds like, beef stew in the form of a delicious casserole and doesn’t take hours on hours to make.

Everything you love about beef stew traditionally is here; beef, carrots, potatoes, celery, onion. All the goods. And to make this a casserole, it’s tossed together and baked with some tasty egg noodles! The noodles soak up a lot of the broth goodness as it bakes together and you end up with a delicious pasta dish that the whole family will love…

Chili Cheese Cornbread Casserole

April 16, 2022 Amanda Plott

It’s no secret that I tend to make up a batch of chili and then store the leftovers in the freezer to be used at another time. Chili is perfect for the purposes of reuse. It’s versatile and goes on anything from hotdogs to enchiladas and so much more. This time around I decided to use it up in a new casserole. One that has both the chili AND the cornbread baked together into a delicious all inclusive dish.

This casserole starts out with a simple cornbread on the bottom that’s pretty much baked through before you pile the chili on top along with cheese and bake it for a little longer. The cornbread soaks up some of the liquid of the chili and gives you this tasty casserole that’s more spoon friendly than anything else…

Reuben Stuffed Potato Skins

March 5, 2022 Amanda Plott

With St. Patricks Day just around the corner, and a pantry full of potatoes that need to reused up relatively soon, I decided to make some reuben inspired potato skins. These Reuben Stuffed Potato Skins take some of the standard parts of a reuben and stuffs them into potato skins that are hearty and filling.

These potatoes start out being turned into shells with the potato scooped out and mixed with some dressing and then seasoned. After that they’re topped off with kraut, corned beef, and of course some cheese! They’re then baked to perfection and ready to eat in just a few minutes…

Instant Pot Meatloaf Bites

February 9, 2022 Amanda Plott

Hey, you. Yeah, you! Did you know that you can make meatloaf in the instant pot? Well you absolutely can! I took one of my favorite meatloaf recipes that I already make in the instant pot and turned it into mini individual meatloaves. One of my favorite things about these meatloaves is that they are perfectly portioned and loaded up with sneaky hidden veggies!

Another thing that I like about these meatloaves is that they are great for making ahead as a meal prep for the week or for lunches! They also freeze and either reheat or cook up pretty well when you’re ready to enjoy them.