One Pot Baked Ziti

My life has been so chaotic lately, I barely have time to cook or post recipes any more.  My 4 year old never stops chattering, and my 18 month old's idea of fun is trying to climb furniture or turn the oven on.  So when I make dinner these days, I need it to be relatively easy, and with little clean up.  Also ideal?  A meal that everyone in my family will actually eat.  I'm trying to eat lower calorie meals in order to lose the last few pounds of baby weight, my husband wants to feel full, my daughter hates anything with vegetables, and my son doesn't like most meat.  

This Baked Ziti was pretty much a miracle.  First of all, it all bakes in one pot!  Just make sure you use something that can go in the oven, like an enamel dutch oven.  Otherwise, you'll need to transfer the food into a baking dish, which will give you two dishes to clean up (the horror!).  It only takes about 30-40 minutes to cook, which is super necessary in my life right now.  I held my breath when I served it to my family, praying that the meal wouldn't be filled with tears and gagging (like most meals these days...toddlers are so much fun!).  To my immense relief, everyone ate it happily!  Sweet success!  And to my own happiness, this dish is under 400 calories a serving, so I can eat it guilt-free.  WOO!

Cheesy Broccoli & Chicken Quinoa Casserole

I have a deep love for casseroles.  It is really hard to cook a main dish and several sides when you have two young children.  A casserole means less cooking, less cleaning, and a less frazzled mama.  Plus, casseroles will always be the quintessential comfort food.  

Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins

Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins are currently my breakfast obsession.  I make a batch every other Sunday, freeze half (they freeze and reheat great!), and then keep the other half in the fridge to eat all week.  I usually do blueberries, but sometimes I use cherries or peaches instead.  I bet it would be great with pecans too!  Not only are these muffins delicious, but they keep you full all the way until lunchtime despite only being 229 calories a serving.  I love that it only takes 30 seconds to warm them up in the microwave in the morning, and then they are ready to eat.  My mornings are so chaotic now that I'm a mom of two kids.  One day  I'll have the chance to actually sit and eat breakfast again, but until then, I'm glad I have these oatmeal cups!

Cashew Chicken Lettuce Wraps

I needed a quick and healthy dinner that would appease both my husband and my picky toddler.  I'm a huge fan of cashews and lettuce wraps, so I thought, "Hey, let's try Cashew Chicken Lettuce Wraps!".   It only took about 20 minutes to make, and everyone gobbled the wraps right up.  Success!

Browned Butter Pecan Pie

In my family, no single person is responsible for all the holiday cooking, regardless of who is hosting the meal.  We are a potluck family, where each family member is assigned a dish or two to bring, so we can focus on just being together.  I had three separate holiday dinners to attend this Christmas, so I was sure I would be asked at least once to bring a dessert.  I had been dying to try out a new pie recipe, since I rarely have a good reason to bake a full-fat, decadent pie. Much to my surprise, everyone instead requested my "Crackaroni & Cheese", so I have found myself making a ton of macaroni and cheese, and alas, no pie.

Pasta with Creamy Butternut Sauce

One of my favorite fall dishes is Pasta with Creamy Butternut Sauce.  The sauce tastes rich and decadent, but it is oh-so-healthy. It's also a really easy dish to make vegetarian!  But for my meat-eaters, this dish is excellent with sliced sausage added to it.  Either way, it makes the perfect comfort meal for a cool fall evening.  Enjoy!

Ultimate Fudge Brownie

The only thing in my culinary life that can match my deep love for chocolate chip cookies is a fudge brownie.  My favorite kind of brownie has a flakey buttery crust on top, but is gooey and fudgy inside.  While I adore my healthy brownie recipes (like my Black Bean Brownies), sometimes I just want a classic delicious brownie!  For the past few months, I've been experimenting with different brownie recipes, and tweaking them to try to create my personal favorite brownie.  If only I put this much work into other endeavors in my life.... Anyways, after much determination and calories, I've finally created a recipe that results in the ideal, ultimate, fudge brownie.  Honestly, this whips up so quickly and easily (with ingredients I always have on hand), that I'll never feel the need to buy a box mix again.