Summer Spaghetti

Well, I told you I would be posting this recipe soon! And to be honest, I'm just as surprised as you are that I'm getting it up this quickly. I've been commuting to my real estate training for the last week or so. I'm not supposed to be here until 9:00, but I head down the road after I drop the kids off at 7:00. It's usually only a 45 minute commute, but you never know what you might hit on the way, so I like to give myself a little bit of extra time. Since I had some extra time this morning, I figured why not go ahead and get this recipe up on the blog.

I saw this recipe posted on Food, Fitness and Family a couple of weeks ago. I honestly didn't think that I would make it until I realized that I needed a recipe yesterday and I already had most of the ingredients on hand. Plus, I needed something that would work with the 21 Day Fix Extreme and a light bulb came on in my head. I went back and looked at this recipe and decided to give it a try. I'm really glad that I did, too! It was really good and so incredibly easy! TC and the kids weren't too thrilled about the zucchini and yellow squash in it, but as far as I'm concerned, they can just pick them out. They're still getting in veggies with the sauce. If you're looking for a quick and delicious recipe to try, I definitely recommend adding this one to your menu plan for next week! I used a recipe for some turkey meatballs (which I will be posting the recipe for at a later time), but the recipe calls for chicken. So, just use what you prefer :-)

SUMMER SPAGHETTI
Source: Food, Fitness & Family
Servings: 6 - 8
Points+: 8

1 box whole grain spaghetti

1 medium zucchini, chopped

1 medium yellow squash, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 t. salt

1/4 t. pepper

1 1/2 c. tomato sauce

1 t. oregano

1/2 t. garlic powder

1/2 c. diced tomatoes

2 cooked chicken breasts, sliced

Shredded parmesan cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and veggies, salt & pepper and cook until veggies are tender. Add sauce, tomatoes and spices and heat until sauce is warm.

Serve with chicken (or meatballs) and top with shredded parmesan cheese.

Enjoy!

Crockpot Refried Beans

Hey there friends! I hope you're all having a great week. It's nearly over. I'm not sure about where you are, but the weather here has been all over the place. It's cooler today, but the last few days have been pretty warm. It's supposed to stay cool for a while now, but as we all know, that's always subject to change where the weather is concerned. We leave for our cruise in 9 days and I cannot wait! One of the reasons that I love to cruise so much is that when I'm on the ship, I have no contact with the outside world. I'm unreachable! Not that I don't love being in the know, but sometimes it's nice to unplug. Does that make sense?

Anyway, I wanted to share this recipe with you that I made a while back for crockpot refriend beans. I hate to buy canned things all the time. They have so much sodium in them and it's so much cheaper to make my own of a lot of things. These refried beans are a perfect example. I know, I know, they're not true "refried" beans since they never get fried, but I promise, you'll never know the difference. They're really easy to make and since it's a crockpot recipe, what's not to love? Here's the recipe:

CROCKPOT REFRIED BEANS
adapted from Rachel Cooks
Servings: 24
Points+: 3

2 pounds dried pinto beans (approximately 5 cups), rinsed and sorted
1 medium to large yellow onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 teaspoons of salt (more to taste)
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin powder
1/4 teaspoon paprika
9+ cups of water

Add all ingredients to slow cooker and stir to combine. Cook on high for 6-8 hours or until beans are soft and mash easily. Add more water if necessary during cooking. I added two cups about 2/3 of the way through cooking because it was looking dry. It doesn't hurt to have extra water, but you don't want them to dry up.

Reserving the liquid, strain the beans out into a large bowl. Mash with a potato masher. Add the reserved liquid until you reach the consistency you desire. Serve, or cool completely and freeze in portions appropriate for your family.

The next time you have Mexican Monday, Taco Tuesday or even Fajita Friday, you should definitely try these beans. They're a great way to round out your meal that everyone will love.

So long for today...