Ravioli

As a child, I ate more than my fair share of canned ravioli.  I loved the stuff.  However, after attempting to consume a can of it a couple of months ago, I realized that either my taste has matured or they've changed their recipe.  Jake claims that he used to eat the stuff in college, and it was edible, so maybe they really did change the way they make it.  Anyways, when I found this recipe on Pinterest, I was excited to try it.

Thomas was not a fan (the only pasta we've been able to convince him to eat is the boxed mac n'cheese, so I didn't take it too personally).  However, Jake loved it and went back for seconds and thirds.  It was super easy to make--like ridiculously easy--like 10 minutes prep-time, and I was going slowly and taking pictures.

Ingredients:

1 bag of frozen ravioli
1 can marinara sauce
2 cups mozzarella cheese

Directions:

1.  Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.  Grease a casserole dish to prevent sticking.  Spread a thin layer of marinara sauce over the bottom of the casserole dish.

2.  In a single layer, place ravioli along the bottom of the dish.  Cover the noodles with half of your remaining sauce and half of your mozzarella cheese.

3.  Repeat step 2 with a second layer of ravioli.  Finish off the dish with the remaining sauce and cheese.

4.  Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.  Remove the foil and bake for an additional 15 minutes.

Super easy and absolutely delicious with a generous amount of parmesan cheese sprinkled (heaped) on top.  I think I may even attempt to grate in some carrots or zucchini next time I make this dish...we'll see if I can hide the veggies from my picky-eater hubby :)

*I halved the amount of noodles used, because there were only 2 of us eating it.  I used the entire can of marinara sauce, because really, what are you going to do with a half a can of leftover marinara sauce?  And I probably used the entire 2 cups of cheese because I really love cheese.  Overall, I would say that half the recipe would comfortably serve 3-4 and the entire recipe would serve 6-8.

Mom's Macaroni and Cheese

This is and has been my favorite food since I was a little girl - I love almost all macaroni and cheese's (I have lost my desire for the box kind in the past 10 years of making too  many boxes for my kids!), but MY MOM's is my favorite macaroni ever.

And although I have learned to make it  - and it is good - there is nothing compared to going home and having mom's - which I will probably never be able to compete with. :) yum...

Here's the basics (recipe below):
Boil a box of noodles (16 oz). Shred a pound of cheese (and then some if you want it really good!)

Layer: 

noodles & cheese

butter

salt/pepper (before or after butter)

REPEAT LAYERS:
noodles

cheese

butter

salt/pepper

 Then, to top it all off, mix up eggs (2) and milk (enough to make 2 cups)

and pour over the top.

(My mom added about another cup of milk - 2%)

Then, bake - 350 for 30 minutes.
 (My oven can't take more than 25 minutes or the top will usually burn)

And this part is important - cover it (aluminum foil) and let it sit 

(My mom used to make it before church and then let it sit and reheat it in the microwave (no foil!) when we got home - not sure if this was "food safe", but it was SO good and perfect)

Today, she let it sit probably 30 minutes.

Recipe:

16 oz macaroni noodles, cooked and drained

16 oz cheddar cheese (I like mild, but my great grandma used to use sharp and hers was good too, just with a different flavor) - mom probably used another 4 oz of cheese today

2 eggs

about 3 cups milk (2% is good, skim will do - but it's not as good) :)

butter (about half a stick)

salt/pepper

Layer the noodles and cheese (seasoning with pats of butter, salt, and pepper on each layer) in a 9x13 (two layers). 

Beat 2 eggs, then add enough milk to make 2 cups. Pour over entire casserole. Add enough milk so it is wet (about another cup).

Bake for 30 minutes at 350. After baking, cover and let sit. 

(If you eat it right away it's too runny and doesn't stay together well. You can decrease the milk to avoid this if you need to eat it right away, but then you've lost some of the rich moist flavor. Trust me. I've tried. It's not worth the time saving.) :)

You can also half this recipe for an 8x8 or 9x9 baking dish.

*This is an excessive amount of pictures for a seemingly simple side dish, but if you tasted mom's you would know
1) the pictures don't do the taste justice and
2) it takes practice to get this recipe as good as she's got it!