| Butternut Squash Macaroni and Cheese
This is my ABSOLUTE favorite comfort food. On a cold night, I love to make this for my little family and we can feel good about eating because it has half of the calories of a traditional mac and cheese dish and a fourth of the saturated fat. Using a trick in the sauce, and no heavy cream in sight, we can put the comfort back in comfort food and not worry about putting on the pounds! It still has a delicious cheesy, gooey texture and goes great with some roasted chicken, salad and crusty bread. It also makes great leftovers and will wow any guests...especially when they learn the secret ingredients!
One tip before you begin:
If you've never used butternut squash before you may not know that it can be a bear to peel and cut...my solution is to pay a buck more in the store and buy the sliced version that you can still find in the veggie section.
| Ingredients:
3 Cups cubed, peeled butternut squash (about a pound)
1 1/4 Cups chicken broth (buy low sodium!)
1 1/2 Cups fat free milk
2 garlic cloves
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 tbsp fat-free greek yogurt (secret ingredient!)
1 1/4 Cups shredded gruyere cheese
1 cup shredded pecorino romano cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1 pound uncooked macaroni noodles
Cooking spray
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 Cup panko (japanese bread crumbs)
Optional: fresh parsley | Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. Combine squash, broth, milk and garlic. Bring to boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to medium and allow to simmer for approx. 25 minutes. Remove from heat.
3. Add salt, pepper, and greek yogurt. Either use a potato masher or hand held blender to blend/mash until mixture is smooth.
4. Place mixture into a separate bowl, and stir in gruyere, pecorino Romano, and 2 tbsp of Parmesan. Stir it well!
5. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain.
6. Add cheese/squash mixture to pasta and stir until combined. Spread mixture evenly into a 13x9 inch glass baking dish coated with cooking spray.
7. Heat olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add panko and cook for a few minutes until browned. Remove from heat and add 2 remaining tbsp of Parmasan cheese. Sprinkle evenly over the pasta mixture.
8. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes. If you would like, sprinkle with parsley.
Enjoy the creamy goodness!
Happy Cooking :) Courtney
 After a wonderful weekend, J started feeling a little under the weather on Sunday. I decided to make some delicious creamy soup for my love and we enjoyed it with some crusty bread! This soup is one of my favorite cold weather dishes and makes the house smell wonderful while it cooks all day. It freezes extremely well and is good in the lunch box the next day, so I recommend making extra! I have also tried this soup in a lighter version by not adding the cream mixture at the end. Enjoy this on a cold fall night or when someone you love isn't feeling top notch...
Happy Cooking :) Courtney
Ingredients:
4 1/2 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 package of Rice-a-Roni long grain and wild rice
1/2 tsp salt (plus more to taste)
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup butter
2 cups half and half (I used fat-free half and half)
1 cup grated carrots (I diced mine)
1 cup diced celery
Directions:
Combine broth, water, carrots, celery, chicken and rice (along with seasoning packet) in a large slow cooker. Cook on low for 6 hours or on high for 4 hours. Take out chicken and shred with two forks and then add back into slow cooker. In a small bowl combine salt, pepper, and flour. In medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in flour mixture by tablespoon to form a roux. Whisk in cream, a little at a time, until fully incorporated and smooth. Stir cream mixture into slow cooker and then let cook on low for 15 more minutes.
I love spending the weekends with the one I love, and this weekend we had a wonderful time visiting Ganyard Farms in Durham, N.C. We went through a corn maze, rode on a tractor, picked pumpkins, and even picked cotton! It was a beautiful fall day, and we loved acting like kids and taking silly pictures :) So, sometime soon, I encourage all of you to be a little silly with the one you love, and take a breath of fresh air!
Happy Living
:) Courtney
 I LOVE fall...I mean not a simple, oh I kind of like it, but serious heart-warming LOVE for the most beautiful season of the year! Now that it's finally starting to feel like fall in the south, it's time to break out my crock pot, roast some fall veggies and make everything pumpkin that I can get my hands on! Fall is not only my favorite season to be outdoors, but it's also the best kitchen time at our house :) Here are some of my favorite fall recipes that I've made recently!
Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Soup
INGREDIENTS:
1 onion, chopped
1 (16 ounce) can chili beans
1 (15 ounce) can black beans
1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn,
drained
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle beer
2 (10 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with
green chilies, undrained
1 (1.25 ounce) package taco seasoning
3 whole skinless, boneless chicken
breasts
shredded Cheddar cheese (optional)
sour cream (optional)
crushed tortilla chips (optional)
DIRECTIONS:
1.Place the onion, chili beans, black beans, corn, tomato sauce, beer, and diced tomatoes in a slow cooker. Add taco seasoning, and stir to blend. Lay chicken breasts on top of the mixture, pressing down slightly until just covered by the other ingredients. Set slow cooker for low heat, cover, and cook for 5 hours.
2.Remove chicken breasts from the soup, and allow to cool long enough to be handled. Stir the shredded chicken back into the soup, and continue cooking for 2 hours. Serve topped with shredded Cheddar cheese, a dollop of sour cream, and crushed tortilla chips! Recently, we've been obsessed with the sweet potato tortilla chips from Trader Joes...a must have for a little soup dippin'
Roasted Fall Veggies
Ingredients:
1 Butternut Squash, cubed
2 Sweet Apples (braeburn and gala are totally our faves)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 Red Onion
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp salt
DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. Using a large, non-stick baking sheet, spread out all veggies into one even layer. Pour olive oil over entire mixture and toss to coat.
3. Mix spices in a separate bowl and toss over veggie mixture. Bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes, turning occasionally, until all veggies are tender and starting to turn brown. I also often turn the broiler to high for a minute or two to get a little more brown!
Pumpkin Muffins
INGREDIENTS:
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
4 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2/3 cup water
3 cups white sugar
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
DIRECTIONS:
1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place paper muffin cups into tins (makes about 18).
2.In a large bowl, mix together pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, water and sugar until well blended. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. Stir the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture until just blended. Pour into the prepared muffin tins.
3.Bake for about 20 minutes in the preheated oven. Loaves are done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
More to come...Happy cooking!
:) Courtney
Sundays always have a certain element of difficulty for me. After a restful weekend at home with my sweet husband, it's so hard to think about the stress and busy-ness that a new school week brings. It takes a lot of work to prepare mentally for the week, and it all often seems overwhelming as I sit at home on Sunday nights thinking about all of the things that could happen in my classroom over the course of the following 5 days. Even after three years of teaching, the "Sunday night blues" always seem to creep into my mind and although it has gotten better over time, it still often overwhelms me to think about all the work/stress/time that I have coming at me in the week to come. With all of that said, a few weeks ago, I was in my normal state of worrying about the school week and I posted the following on my facebook wall: "Prayers for patience and energy as I begin another busy week at school. It's hard to get back to work after an amazing weekend!" A wonderful friend and AMAZING teacher then responded: "My sister in law told me years ago not to pray for patience with a situation, but pray for peace. So everyday I pray for peace in my classroom!" This small response made me step back and think about all of the times that I have prayed for patience instead of peace. With all of the difficult situations that we as teachers have to face, and in the midst of busy days, I often remind myself to be patient. Don't get me wrong, as my dad always reminds me, "Patience is a virtue," and it is certainly an important quality to have, but it really changed my perspective when my friend mentioned her above statement...a reminder of peace. Isn't this what we all really need? A prayer for peace that will bring calm to noisy classrooms and difficult days, that will prevent the hardest moments from happening at all. If we all took a minute to pause and pray for peace, encourage peacefulness to those around us, and show others what it means to be peaceful, our days may not be so hectic, and our lives would certainly be happier.
So, tonight, as I look forward to another busy week in fourth grade with a class that is undoubtedly my biggest challenge yet, I look to God and pray for the "Peace that passes all understanding" for myself, my students, and all that surround me.
Take a deep breath, pray for peace...and happy teaching...
:) Courtney
| "Teachers teach because they care. Teaching young people is what they do best. It requires long hours, patience, and care."
--Horace Mann
Teaching is what I've always felt called to do. I've known for a very long time that God was leading me to be a teacher and I love where I am in my profession and I really do love my job. Although some days are hard, most days are really good, and a lot of days are absolutely wonderful. I teach fourth grade at a wonderful school in NC and I love my fabulous fourth grade friends. I think fourth grade was destined to be my thing and I can't imagine teaching any other age :)
I love the quote that I have posted above and I think that it says a lot about the life of a teacher. I care deeply about my students and desperately want them to succeed, be happy, and know how to respect themselves and others. I spend a lot of time thinking about my students and planning for their days, and even though the hours are long...it's worth it in the long run to have a student tell you how much they have learned or see them grow throughout the school year.
So...here's to all the 9 and 10 year olds that I spend every day with and I know will change the world one day
Happy Teaching - Courtney | |
 I LOVE going to the farmer's market to find fresh produce, delicious baked goods, and beautiful plants! We went this afternoon and came back with quite the abundance to add to our meals this week! It is a beautiful day in NC and a slight crispness is in the air, which means it's almost time for the most beautiful season of the year...fall. Today we found: - Fresh gala apples for munching with lunch
- SIX huge sweet potatoes for only $2...which we will use to make stuffed sweet potatoes later this week
- Fresh lima beans...cooked with a little butter and onions
- Summer squash and zucchini which will go great in the veggie quinoa and organic salmon we are having for dinner tonight
- A BEAUTIFUL bouquet of fall-colored flowers for the kitchen table
- Annnnnnd...last but not least a yummy chocolate chip oatmeal cookie for the road (J did run 10 miles this morning, so I think he can handle it)!
Go check out your local farmers market for some fresh produce today and Happy Cooking :) Courtney
 This weekend, we were looking for a fun and interesting way to spend our Saturday and were hoping that it would involve our dog, Lucy! With a suggestion from our friend Laurie, and some convincing for J, we loaded up the car and headed for the vet school at NC State! They had vendors selling cute dog accessories, dog rescue organizations, and lots of athletic events for dogs and their human friends to compete in! Although Lucy didn't compete (she should have won the gold medal for the most enthusiastic dog there), we had a blast seeing all the dogs and even meeting up with the Neuse River Golden Retriever Rescue organization, where we adopted Ms. Lucy from about a year and a half ago.
Laurie and Derrick's dog, Crosby competed in the musical sit and won the silver medal! It was a great way to spend a Saturday morning and we'll be going back next year for another dog-gone good time.
Happy Living :) Courtney
 Crosby is such an athlete!! Here she is making an awesome high jump!  Crosby proudly displaying her musical sit silver medal!  Yep, definitely should have won gold for cutest, most enthusiastic dog!
 Each week J and I DREAD the question..."What do you want for dinner this week?" We often race to see who can ask the question first...just to avoid having the job of the answerer! Don't get me wrong, I LOVE to cook and don't even mind the task of actually going to the grocery store to search for all of the beautiful ingredients that go into making delicious meals, but the hard part is the prep and the decision making. It's so easy to sift through recipes online or flip through a cookbook, but the act of planning is quite the task every week. Over the past few years, we have refined our weekly grocery planning to fit our budget, our schedule and our taste buds, which definitely helps, but that doesn't mean it's in our top ten list of things to do on a Sunday afternoon :)
After a few years of going to the grocery store whenever I had time, or whenever we needed something, I figured out that was not the best way to ensure we were being health-conscious and budget friendly. J and I decided to give our weekly grocery shopping habit a makeover. Each week, we go to the grocery ONLY on Sundays. I know, you must be thinking, "What if you run out of something throughout the week or decide to cook something different?" Well, of course that happens, but we do try really hard to prep for the week and stick to only going one time, which certainly helps the budget. We plan a menu for the week, taking into account busy nights or long days at work, and then we make our list from there. Nothing spectacular or noteworthy, but it works for us, and going to the grocery actually isn't so bad when you have someone as cute as J to do it with!
So...here is the menu for this week! We just got back from the grocery, and also decided this week to head to the farmers market for some fresh fall flavors!
Sunday:
Grilled Cedar plank salmon (the fresh organic kind what on sale at HT and looked delicious)
Veggie Quinoa
Monday:
Grilled Balsamic chicken
Fresh local corn
Fresh cheddar semolina bread (also on sale at HT)
Yummy salad with FM tomatoes
Tuesday:
Veggie stromboli
http://www.pipandebby.com/pip-ebby/2010/12/18/veggie-cheese-stromboli.html
Wednesday:
Stuffed sweet potatoes (we got 6 at the farmers market for only $2!!)
Fresh lima beans
Thursday:
Veggie and rice stir fry with fresh FM veggies and whole grain brown rice
I'll add some pictures after these yummy meals are made this week!
Happy Cooking :) Courtney
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