Baby It's Cold Outside

Brrrrr - it's cold outside, guys!! It's way colder than I thought it was going to be (I thought it was going to be in the 50's, but I know it didn't reached that!) I even saw it snowing a little this morning! On days like this, I just want to grab a cup of hot tea, a blanket, and a book or my computer and hibernate. I didn't have this luxury today seeing as how the dishes were piled up and I hadn't done laundry since....ummm.....last Thursday and I still needed to get my thank you's done from Christmas and well, you know how it goes.

I know that tonight is pasta night, and I did make homemade Mac-n-Cheese for the kiddos, but I wanted something a little lower in fat but filling for me & Mike. Here's what I fixed:

Mexican Beef Soup

1 26oz jar of salsa (I used Great Value Corn & Black Bean from Walmart b/c that's my favorite and it has the extra veggies & beans; if you like stuff spicy, use hot salsa!)

3 c beef broth (chicken or veggie broth would be fine, too, though)

2 c cooked hamburger (I used our leftovers from last night's tacos!) (you could even use up leftover roast..yum!)

1 can of corn, undrained

Dump everything in your pot and simmer on the stove until hot or better yet, dump it in your crockpot in the morning, set it on low, and you'll be good to go for dinner!

I actually fixed this at lunch and it literally took me,

at the max, 20 minutes to throw together and heat up. I topped it with some crushed tortilla chips. YUMMO! Even though I made this at lunch, we'll be having it again for supper.

Baked Cheesy Macaroni

2 c uncooked pasta

1/4 c flour

2 3/4 c milk

1/2 c cheese powder

3 c shredded cheddar cheese

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 tsp salt (or to taste)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook pasta according to package. Grease a 2 quart dish. Over medium heat, whisk together flour, cheese powder, and milk. (cheese powder may not want to dissolve - this is okay). Bring to a boil. Remove this from heat and add 2 cups of cheddar, salt, and pepper. Stir until cheddar melts. Add this to cooked pasta and pour all into your greased pan. Bake for 25 minutes. Take out and add remaining 1 cup of cheese. Bake another 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.

You'll notice the Diet Coke in the background...you'll probably see this a lot.... :D

I told you yesterday about my visit to Glenn's Bulk Foods. I also mentioned how much I love this store. I used to buy my specialty baking items online, never knowing this little gem of a store was only a short drive out of Hutchinson. Once I finally went there, I've never looked back. I no longer have to pay shipping for all my baking needs (and wants)!!!! When I went there yesterday, I decided to finally try their cheese powder, perfect for making homemade mac-n-cheese. One of the Mennonite ladies working there was willing to share a simple recipe for how to use this powder (and I will try this recipe another time), but I decided to try my own version of a baked mac-n-cheese.