Creamy Cheesy Spaghetti and turkey meatballs

Sorry for the delay in new posts.  i was sick all weekend, and thanks to that i am now dealing with a sick 2 month old.  needless to say she is very cranky and tired.

here is one of my family's favorite meals.  it's what i made for dinner Saturday night.  easy to do when sick.  the first thing you will need to do is make the meatballs.  i make these in large batches, freeze them and then cook what i need when needed.  here is what you will need for the meat balls:

3lbs ground turkey
2 cups Italian bread crumbs(you can get 2 huge things for $5 at Costco)
3-4 eggs
1 pkg onion soup mix
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
2tbs garlic powder

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl.  preheat oven to 350 and grease a large casserole dish.  place dish in oven while it preheats.  make whatever size meatballs you want.  i use the size of a small ice cream scoop.  once preheated remove casserole dish from oven with pot holders.  place 12 meatballs in casserole(this normally makes 24 meatballs so u will have to either use 2 casserole dishes, or cook these in 2 batches).  bake for 25 minutes, turn over and bake for another 15 minutes or until cooked through.  let meatballs cool, place in freezer bag and freeze for later date.

Now to make the spaghetti.  her is what you will need:

1 can spaghetti sauce any flavor
1 jar creamy Alfredo sauce
1 box rotini pasta, or whatever pasta you prefer

mix spaghetti sauce and Alfredo sauce in pot together.  bring to a boil.  add however many frozen meatballs you want and reduce heat to simmer. boil water and cook pasta according to directions on package.  drain pasta and place some on plate.  spoon meatballs and sauce on top.  serve with salad and garlic bread. 

The best chicken in the world

Tonight i made the best chicken in the world.  at least that's how my family feels.  its so easy to make with only 4 ingredients and an hours time, you will have the most flavorful chicken.  here is what you will need:

4-6 boneless chicken thighs
1/2 cup dejon mustard
1/4 cup maple syrup
1tbs rice wine vinegar

preheat oven to 450.  mix dejon mustard, maple syrup(i use the actual maple syrup, have not tried it with regular pancake syrup, but if anyone tries both ways please let me know which way is best), and vinegar.  place chicken thighs in baking dish or casserole.  salt and pepper both sides.  dump mixture onto chicken.  make sure to coat both side in mixture evenly.  place in oven and bake for 40 minutes or until completely cooked.

Cowboy Casserole

Last night for dinner i made something called cowboy casserole.  it sounds disgusting and looks like dog food, but it really taste good.  Here is what you will need:

1lb ground beef
onion powder
garlic powder
1 can of corn
2 small can cream of mushroom soup
2 cups shredded cheese
3/4 cup milk
5tbs sour cream
1 bag or 30-40oz of tater tots

 

let the tater tots sit out for about an hour to help thaw. preheat oven to 350.  in skillet cook ground beef, adding some garlic and onion powder for taste.  drain the beef and set aside in large bowl.  in small bowl mix soup, milk and sour cream until smooth. add mixture to ground beef.  add corn and half of cheese to mixture.  mix to combine.  grease 9x13 casserole dish.  lay down half of tater tots on the bottom.  pour hamburger mixture on top.  layer the rest of tater tots on top.  sprinkle the rest of cheese on top.  bake for 25-30 minutes till the tots are crispy.  i have heard this work best with the round flat tater tots.  mike really loved this dish.

Saving Money with coupons and club cards

no worries you don't have to be one of those crazy coupon people to save money.  you just have to take a few minutes a week to do some planning.  first if you have a Target with a grocery store, take advantage of it.  Target accepts there store coupons released, i think on a monthly basis, along with manufacturer coupons.  so on each item you can use one store coupon and one manufacturer coupon.  i have saved on diapers this way up to $4 a package.  plus if you can find the item on sale or clearance all the better.  last month i got vitamins for my self for $5 a 30 day supply, and for my daughter $3.50 a 60 day supply.  i got craisens for 37 cents a bag, huggies diapers for $5.46 for 50 of them.  pull ups 30 for $5.46.  2 huge bags of huggies wipes for free.  all in just one carefully planned shopping trip.  also when you discover great deals for there store coupons, go to the corresponding items website and you may find a manufacturer coupon there.  saving you even more money.  also watch for coupons for some of you favorite items on the packages in the store.  i have scored great huggies and m&m coupons in the past month just attached to the packages.  Target also has where you can sign up for them to text coupons to you. Also sign up for there Red card debit card, which links to your checking account and every time you use it you receive 5% off in store and online plus free shipping. I also got Similac premade formula for the baby for 75 cents a bottle, thanks to the formula checks they had sent me.  just sign up on the formula companies website and they will send you formula checks.  i also saved on packs of the premade nursettes by enfamil at babies r us this way.  they had a deal on them if you bought 2 you saved $5.  plus i had 2 $5 formula checks.  saving me $15 on something that would normally cost $18.  so i paid $3 for 12 premade 2oz bottles.  they are great to keep as a just in case in the diaper bag.  To save on clothes for the kids i signed up for kohls and old navy email programs.  kohls will send you $5 off just for signing up, and an occasional $10 off.  those can be combined with the routine 15% off they send out on a regular basis and sale items.  doing this i have gotten summer clothes as well as cute dresses, even one for Adalise last Easter.  all for the cost of tax. Old navy will send you a $10 off your online purchase for signing up.  Also whenever buying anything online, go through ebates. you get a % of cash back at many online stores.  also always go to google search engine and search for coupon codes for where ever you are shopping.  My last bath and body works order i bought $150 worth of stuff for less then $50 and i got free shipping and cash back through ebates, just by searching for a code.  Also never shy away from Club stores.  i love Costco.  they save me on everything i don't have coupons for.  i buy there brand of  TP, Paper towels, bottled water, and baby wipes(which by the way are the thickest, softest, strongest i have ever used), and even our birthday party cakes(they are huge, less then $20, and can be personalized pretty much anyway you want).  we also get our gas there.  with prices being around $4.29 a gallon in our area right now(for the cheapest), they are $4.17.  that's a great deal.  if you don't have a club card, but still need to save on gas, sign up for a ralphs or food for less savings card. for every $100 you spend you get 10 cents off at food for less gas stations and shell gas up to 35 gallons.  we use all our WIC checks there, including our Formula for the baby(which runs about $150), and then we use those points to save on gas for my car(Costco is too outta the way for me to drive for gas, unlike hubby who passes one on his way to and from work).  Last but not least if you have a facebook page follow one of the many coupon pages.  they will alert you to all sorts of deals.  they do the work so you don't have to.  i follow Couponing to Disney http://www.couponingtodisney.com/.

Removing a Baby poop stain

Yesterday, thanks in part to Aurora's vaccines the day before, she had an explosive diaper, that leaked all over everything. I was so upset because she was wearing the cutest onsie. as you can see it is white with black and pink details.  after much research online i combined a few tips to completely remove the horrid green and yellow stain that took up about 1/4 of the onsie.

You will need:
cold water
baking soda
dawn dish soap


 i first rinsed it in cold water.  then i let it soak in cold water for a few hours.  next i dumped some baking soda on the stain and rubbed the thick paste into the stain, using it as a sort of abrasive material.  after rinsing the baking soda away i then used dawn dish soap to scrub the stain until it completely disappeared.  after rinsing i then soaked it in dawn dish soap and cold water for 30 minutes.  rinsed again with cold water, then washed and dried normal.  and the cute outfit is as good as new