Cavatini!

Here is my Cavatini recipe.  I first tried Cavatini many years ago at Pizza Hut.  I had never heard of it.  Then years later I ran across this freezer recipe and I knew it sounded very similar to the dish I had at Pizza Hut.  I tried it and I liked it. Since it makes two pans you can eat one after you prepare it and freeze the other for another time if you'd like.   Thought I would share.

Cavatini

This will make enough for two meals.

4 cups of different sized pasta - such as 1 cup macaroni, 1 cup shells, etc..

2 lbs ground round, browned (I use ground turkey or chicken)

1/2 lb pepperoni (I use turkey pepperoni-less fat and less greasy)

2 medium onions, finely chopped and pre-sauteed

2 small green peepers, finely chopped and pre-sauteed

1 large can mushrooms, drained (I sometimes eliminate this)

2 quarts of spaghetti sauce(I buy whatever's on sale)

2 cups mozzarella cheese

Boil all pasta together - a little less time than package directs because you will freeze it. While water is boiling, cut pepperoni into Fourths and microwave for 30 seconds. Stir and microwave for another 30 seconds. Mix together, meats, onions, pepper, mushrooms and sauce. When pasta is ready, drain and mix with meat mixture. Divide mixture between 2 9X13 pans. Sprinkle about a cup of cheese over each, pushing a little into the mixture.

Freezing instructions - when cool, wrap with plastic wrap, foil, and label or attach directions.

Serving Day Instructions - Thaw overnight in refrigerator. Remove Plastic Wrap. Tent Foil and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. 

Enjoy!

Pam 

Menu for week of January 28th

Breakfast will be:  Cereal, Oatmeal, Toast with Peanut Butter, Yogurt and Fruit, etc.

Lunch will be:  Lovely Leftovers, if there are any, sammies, soups, veggies and dip, etc.

Monday:  Scalloped Potatoes and Ham, Brussels Sprouts, Garlic Cheese Biscuits

Tuesday:  Chili Dawgs and Tots

Wednesday:  Soft Tacos, Refried Beans, Mexican Rice

Thursday:  Chicken Dressing Casserole, Layered Salad, Green Beans

Friday:  Cajun Beans and Sausage, leftover Layered Salad, Corn Cobbettes

Saturday:  (freezer meal), Little Cheddar Meatloaves, Macaroni and Cheese, Carol's Corn Casserole

Sunday:  Hamburger Helper, leftover Corn Casserole, Salad or Green Veggie

That's my plan.  Go to  Organized Junkie  for 100's of menus posted every Monday.

Pam

The Homeschooling Mother's Journal

In Our Homeschool This Week:  Still plugging along with our 8th grade Switched On Schoolhouse program.  We are behind but I'm not too worried except for the pre-algebra.  Dd takes her SAT's the last week of March and it seems we are always behind in that and her scores always reflect that.  Hubby is going to do some pre-algebra work with dd this weekend.

Places We're Going and People We're Seeing:  We've been homebodies the last few weeks and haven't done anything exciting.  Just the usual errand and shopping trips and the like.

My Favorite Thing This Week:  My nephew is living with us and is getting to items on our To-Do List.  We went yesterday and bought a new ceiling fan for the Master Bedroom with a remote!  I think he is going to install that today or tomorrow.  Also, he was able to figure out why our Beam vacuum system hasn't been working well.  Woot Woot!  That and a new belt will have my house cat hair free before we know it!  Seeing items checked off my To-Do List makes me very happy!

Things I'm Working On:  I have been cleaning and organzing my pantry this week.  It is fairly large and very deep.  I was able to purchase four large utility totes from the Thirty-One Outlet and so far have three of them filled.  Two with insulated totes, thermoses, lunch boxes and lunch packing containers and one with nothing by breakfast foods such as cereal, oatmeal, pancake mix and pancake syrup.  Not sure what I am going to use the fourth tote for. 

I'm Cooking:  Tonight I am making Cavatini and a Salad.  I'll probably make some sort of bread as well.  I am going to freeze a pan for a later meal.  I love having meals in my freezer!

I'm Praying For:  Safe travels for everyone in our area that are out and about today.  We are experiencing freezing rain as I type this and this could go on all day.  Hubby stayed home from work.  I am praying that our power stays on.

Thank you for stopping by Second Star Academy.  Please come back again!

Pam

Menu for week of January 21st

Here's my plan for feeding my family this week:

Breakfasts will consist of :  Cereal, Oatmeal, Pancakes, Crumpets, Eggs with Biscuits, etc.

Lunch will consist of:  Leftovers, Sammies, Soups, Salads, etc.

Monday:  (freezer meal) Smoked Sausage with Ziti, Salad, Rolls

Tuesday:  Taco Soup (put extra in freezer), Birthday Cake for nephew

Wednesday:  (freezer meal) Dump Cranberry Chicken, Rice, Green Veggie

Thursday:  Cavatini (make extra pan for freezer), Salad or Green Veggie, Garlic Biscuits?

Friday:  Easy Soup, Cornbread

Saturday:  Ham and Cheese Ziti (make extra pan for freezer), Salad, Rolls

Sunday:  Smoked Turkey Sausage with Peppers and Onions, Rice, Cornbread Salad

Go to Organized Junkie for 100's of menu plans every Monday.  Thanks for stopping by!

Pam

Buttermilk Pie

Have buttermilk lurking in your refrigerator and needing to use it up?  I did, and I made this.

Buttermilk Pie

Adapted from Southern Living

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 cups sugar

3 tablespoons flour

3 eggs

1 cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 unbaked 9-inch pastry shell 

Cream butter at high speed of an electric mixer; gradually add sugar, beating well. Add flour, and beat until smooth. Add eggs, and beat until blended. Add buttermilk, vanilla and salt; beat well. Pour filling into pastry shell. Bake at 400 degrees for 5 minutes; reduce heat to 350, and bake an additional 40-45 minutes or until set. Cool to room temperature and then chill thoroughly before serving.

It was rich and delicious and I would make it again!

Pam

Menu for week of January 14th

Monday:

B-Eggs, Ham, Toast
L-PB&J, Apple
D-Sausage Casserole, Corn Cobbettes, Rolls

Tuesday:

B-Oatmeal and Crumpets with Jam
L- Leftovers for PB&J
D-Spaghetti Casserole (freeze one pan), Salad, French Bread

Wednesday:

B-Omelets, Toast
L-Soup and Grilled Cheese
D-Freezer Meal, Dump Cranberry Chicken, Rice, Broccoli with Cheese Sauce

Thursday:

B-Cereal, Toast with Peanut Butter
L-Cheese Quesas, Carrots and Dip
D-Crock Pot White Beans with Ham, Cornbread Muffins

Friday:

B-Cereal, Toast with Peanut Butter
L-Lovely Leftovers
D-Chicken Sausage and Peppers and Onions, Rice, Green Beans

Saturday:

B-Pancakes and Sausage
L-Freezer Surprise!  Cheese and Crackers, Veggies and Dip
D-Cavatini (freeze one pan), Salad, Garlic Biscuits

Sunday:

B-Muffins, Scrambled Eggs
L-Paula's Chili Cheese Dip, Chips and Salsa, Tacos
D-Your On Your Own!

Go to I'm an Organized Junkie to see 100's of menu plans.  Have a great day!

Pam

Menu for week of January 7

I'm gonna post all three meals this week to see if I can stick to my plan:

Monday:  

Breakfast-Oatmeal, Crumpets with Jam
Lunch-Serving at church/lunch there
Dinner-Lil' Cheddar Meatloaves (a family fav-putting some away into the freezer), Green Bean Casserole, Homemade Macaroni and Cheese, Rolls
Snacks-Bananas, Oranges

Tuesday:

Breakfast-Oatmeal, Crumpets with Jam
Lunch-probably leftovers
Dinner-Taco Soup
Snacks-Oranges and Apples

Wednesday:

Breakfast-Oatmeal, Crumpets with Jam (I see a pattern developing here LOL)
Lunch-probably leftovers
Dinner-Chicken Shepherd's Pie, Biscuits, Tossed Salad
Snacks-Strawberry Smoothies

Thursday:

Breakfast-One Eyed Sailors, Link Sausage
Lunch-Sammies, Veggies and Dip
Dinner-Ham and Cheese Ziti (didn't get to this last week-freeze one pan), Tossed Salad or Veggie, Rolls
Snacks-Apples with Peanut Butter

Friday:

Breakfast-Pancakes
Lunch-Leftovers
Dinner-Pigs in a Blanket (turkey franks), Tater Tots, Veggies and Dip
Snacks-Strawberry Smoothies

Saturday:

Breakfast-Eggs, Potatoes O'Brien, Bacon
Lunch-Freezer Surprise!  (some sorta soup lurking in our freezer which remains nameless and label-less! LOL)
Dinner-Spaghetti Casserole (freeze one pan), Salad, Garlic Biscuits
Snacks-Apples with Peanut Butter

Sunday:

Breakfast-Muffins
Lunch-Freezer Meal, Dump Cranberry Chicken, Rice, Broccoli with Cheese Sauce, Rolls
Dinner-YOYO (You're On Your Own)
Snack-Popcorn

That's my plan for the week.  How about you?  Go to  Organized Junkie every Monday  for 100's of other menu plans for the week.

Thanks for visiting,

Pam

The Homeschool Mother's Journal

In my life this week...well, it seems like forever since I've participated in this blog hop.  Holidays get very busy and enjoying your family time seems more important, right?  Hubby was sick for what seemed forever during December and this week my daughter is sick and coughing.  I still haven't taken down my Christmas tree in the kitchen and I've pretty much not done a whole lot of anything!  Yay me.  But the house looks horrible.  Time to get to those New Year's Resolutions!

In our homeschool this week... not much going on here with daughter being sick but I am going to have her do some assignments today.  Since we use SOS on our laptops I believe she will feel up to doing that today, even if it is in her bed!  During the holidays, hubby did get to do some algebra lessons with her.  I am so thankful for his math mind!

Places we're going and people we're seeing...we haven't been anywhere special of late.  Spent time with our parents during the holidays, shopping, church, etc.  Nothing on the horizon either.

Things I'm working on...well, today, it is laundry and KP duty!  Also, hubby has to pick up his car from the shop, so I will need to take him to get the car, and make a run to the grocery store.  Other than that, I do have some resolutions to work on.  Baby steps...

I'm cooking...I do love to cook, I hate doing dishes.  Oh vey!   Check out my menu that I post every Monday to see what's cooking at my house.  Sometimes I even post a recipe or two.

I'm grateful for... the love of my family, my cats, and my health, and lately YouTube and Pinterest :D.

Thank you for stopping by my humble abode.  I always love getting visitors.  Stay and look around if you have the time and leave a comment if you feel so led. 

Blessings,

Pam

New Year Update 2013

I was just reading over the last few years resolutions that I have posted here on my blog.  There have been a few changes, but some are slow in coming.  I'm a work in progress and so is my home!  With God's help, I can accomplish these things in His time.

I know some folks are adamant that we shouldn't do resolutions.  But I feel for me it is a time to reflect on areas of my life that need tweaking and to also to look at the progress being made in me and my home in the past year.

Home:  Yep, we're still here.  We didn't put the home on the market last spring.  We decided, once again, to wait until hubby is finished with his training regarding his new job.  This will only be a couple more months.  He comes home from work, after driving an hour there and an hour home, to sit and study.  He has tests nearly every Friday and oral exams at the end of each section of study.  He has no time to work on the home. Our goal is still to sell the home and move closer to his job.  Two hours on the road daily is a lot of wear and tear on our vehicles, which are old, and one has had several mechanical difficulties and is in the shop as I type this post.

My nephew came and stayed several weeks with us in late summer and I saw a few tasks get finished around the house. One of them was the wood trim around our kitchen window that needed torn out and replaced.   He also gave our front door a welcoming new coat of paint and did repaint some trim around the door and porch rails.  He did some much needed pressure washing, although our pressure washer isn't the most powerful, it looks better.  But the thing he did that I have enjoyed the most, is that he painted our master bedroom, closet and bath.  It is so nice.  It's a beautiful robin's egg blue.  I just love it.  All the switch plate covers and towel bars got a new coat of paint too.  I bought new towels and my bathroom looks so much nicer.  Earlier in the year I had purchased a new comforter set as an anniversary gift for us and it still looks good. Thank you nephew for all your hard work!

My daughter's bathroom was painted by her dad and we bought her a new shower curtain with a Paris theme and now she loves added new Paris additions to her bathroom.  A new etagere behind her toilet gives her more needed shelving for her bath. For her birthday she received a new black and white comforter set, a vanity stool and cart to hold all her makeup.  Oh and a new colorful floor lamp too.  Her room is so teenage looking.  I would have loved her room when I was her age.

Blog:  I haven't stuck to my three posts a week plan for my blog.  Homeschooling still takes up quite a bit of my time but I want to try to post more often.  I am still learning how to do a lot of this techy stuff.  I am so glad I married a geek and our daughter takes after him.  She really is a lot of help to this old woman!

Family:  We are trying to all attend church more faithfully.  It's funny when I married my husband he wasn't a church attender at all.  Now, he is there more than I am.  My daughter and I still volunteer to help with the Senior luncheon most every month but getting there in time for Sunday school has been a bit difficult for this insomniac.  I will continue to work on being more faithful in my church attendance. I was faithful to attend our candlelight Christmas Eve service.  It was beautiful.

We had several nice vacations this year and enjoyed our season passes to Dollywood.  I just found out that my husband's aunt is going to renew all our passes again as our birthday gifts.  We look forward to going back in the spring.

Personal goals:  Some things never change.  Here is where I need to be more faithful.

Take my vitamins/supplements daily.
Exercise on bike and treadmill and with handweights.
Consistent Bible and prayer time.
Writing in my journal daily.
Get to bed earlier
Get up earlier
Work on my scrapbooks (but first the craftroom needs organizing. Ugh!)

So as you see, those are the areas in my life that need some tweaking in 2013.  Follow my blog and see if I meet my goals.

Thanks for stopping by.  Feel free to share your link to your goals for 2013.

Pam