"My Favorite Pasta Recipe" Monday

Creamy Fusilli

This is my "go to" pasta when I want something quick but yummy. This isn't the fanciest pasta, or the healthiest pasta, but I love this pasta because 1) it's so easy to make, 2) it satisfies most finicky eaters, 3) I almost always have most of the ingredients on hand, and 4) you can substitute most of the ingredients for lower fat ingredients although I have to admit...the real stuff makes it taste so much creamier [my MIL and SIL JeNeale are always getting after me for not having the "real stuff."]. I don't have a picture of the dish -- but here are the fusilli noodles that I like:
I can only find these fusilli noodles in the bulk section at Winco (bonus!) but most fusilli you find looks more like rotini, which you can easily substitute.

Ingredients:
4 c. fusilli or rotini (I do quite a bit and then double the sauce...I never actually measure the pasta)
3 T. butter
2/3 c. Parmesan cheese
1/3 c. parsley (I actually prefer the dried kind so my kids don't freak out; I just use a 2-4 T of the dried parsley)
2 T. mayonnaise
1/2 c. whipping cream
2 garlic cloves, mashed (I use a mortar and pestle but you can mash garlic with the side of a large chef's knife and some salt)
8 bacon slices, crisped and crumbled

Cook and drain pasta. Melt butter, add cheese, parsley, mayo, cream, and garlic. Mix and warm (don't boil). Toss cheese mixture with hot pasta and crumbled bacon until well coated. Season with salt and pepper, if needed.

Like I said, I usually make a few more noodles than this and double the sauce. You can also add diced chicken and steamed veggies (asparagus and broccoli are yummy).

OK, what are your favorite pasta dishes? I'd love some new ideas! :)

"My Favorite Summer Dessert Recipe" Monday

It's finally starting to warm up here and I love it! I love spring in Idaho, but that's another post. When it gets warm I start putting away the soup recipes and pulling out the summer fun! In honor of the return of the sun and MLB season (love you Cash!), this is my mom's Ice Cream dessert and it's 1) super easy, 2) great to make ahead, and 3) so fun for summer evenings on the deck! Oh, and the crunchy mix is sooo good that I have to make sure I don't eat it with a spoon...it does look an awful lot like cereal... I don't make this very often because Cash's mom doesn't like coconut and his brother is allergic to pecans... Maybe I can adapt the recipe...

Mom's Ice Cream Dessert
2 c. rice krispies (hummm... maybe there's a theme...)
1 c. brown sugar
1 c. coconut
1/2 c. melted butter
1/2 c. chopped pecans.
1/2 gallon of vanilla ice cream (the kind in a box) -- softened a bit

Mix ingredients together in a bowl. Place 2/3 in a 9x13 dish. Take your box of ice cream and peel off the box. Slice ice cream (about 1 to 1 1/2" slices) and layer on your yummy crunchy stuff. Just use the extra ice cream to fill in the gaps. Top with the rest of your crunchy mixture. Cover with plastic wrap and refreeze until ready to eat.

My mom would make a topping with Strawberry Danish Dessert (I have no idea what that is) and frozen strawberries. I just use strawberry freezer jam, or even the strawberry ice cream topping.

If you try it let me know! Do any Schroeders remember this?

Well, Audrey is home from preschool and Emmett is awake...

Flashback Friday...way back!

So I started Flashback Friday but realized that I don't have a scanner! So, for now, my pictures are limited. But, this is one of my favorite pictures ever.

This is me and my mom; I love how happy she looks. I don't know much about it except that it's taken at my Grandma and Grandpa Rockwell's house (the one my mom grew up in). I think that it's taken about the time I was sealed to my parents (in the St. George Temple). Sometimes I feel sad when I think about my parents missing the first 18 months of my life when I find so much joy in the little things that Emmett does. But I'm so grateful they chose to take the little girl with the sticky-up hair! I love you mom and dad.