Day 17 - Recipes 26 & 27

It's midnight and I can barely keep my eyes open so I will just post the pics of today's recipes for now and I will get on in the morning to do the write up. Today's recipes are Spicy Mac & Cheese and Nutella Ravioli.

Okay... well now it is 5 am and while I am still exhausted, at least my eyes are remaining open! Hopefully Eric will start sleeping better SOON and I can get some rest. Maybe if I wasn't so crazy trying to fit in workouts at 4 am I would be a little less tired. Oh well.... I gotta get it in somehow! Now on to the point of this blog... food!

I have been eyeing this mac and cheese for a few months now. I got the recipe from Pioneer Woman. I left out the jalepeno because Anya and Lexie were going to eat it, too. Okay, and because I'm a wuss when it comes to heat! To be honest, I will add it next time because I don't think it would be too bad. Plus, I ate a jalepeno popper along side the mac and cheese, so if I can do that one jalepeno in the entire recipe shouldn't be too bad! This definately isn't your traditional mac and cheese, but it was soooooooo good. Monica and I were eating it straight out of the pan while Travis was downstairs BBQing. And, it made a ton, which makes for nice leftovers.

One of my biggest food obsessions has to be Nutella. My BFF from 7th grade, Kristl, introduced me to Nutella almost 2 years ago. I don't know if I should thank her or curse her for bringing this wonderful spread into my life. I always have to have a jar of it in the house and my all-time favorite way to eat it is with pretzels. Or with bananas in a crepe. Okay, or on a stick. It doesn't matter. It is GOOD! Anyway... I have been looking for new ways to use Nutella and I found this recipe for Nutella Ravioli Cookies (Culinary Concoctions by Peabody). It is basically Nutella inside of a sugar cookie. YUM! You can use any sugar cookie recipe you want or even a tube of store bought sugar cookie dough. When I can make it into the kitchen to get my sugar cookie recipe, I will post it. Promise!

Now, on to the recipes before Eric finishes eating. (See, it's all about the food!)

Pioneer Woman's Spicy Mac and Cheese


4 cups cooked macaroni or cavatappi
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 to 1/2 finely diced red onion
Equal amount diced red bell pepper
1 finely diced jalapeno
1 4 oz can chopped green chilies
1 cup frozen corn
2 to 3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup cream
1 generous cup grated Pepper Jack cheese
2 tablespoons butter
Salt
Pepper

Boil pasta until al dente. In a large skillet, add olive oil and saute garlic and vegetables over medium heat for a couple of minutes. Add in canned chilies and stir around, then turn off heat. Drain pasta and add it to skillet. Pour on cream, add cheese, then add salt and pepper to taste and stir gently. At the end, add 2 tablespoons butter and stir again. Check seasonings and serve.

Serve with juicy steak, with grilled shrimp, chicken, or on its own.
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Nutella Ravioli Cookies

Sugar Cookie Dough

Nutella

Chocolate Chips

White Chocolate Chips

Roll out sugar cookie dough and cut into circles. Pipe 1 teaspoon of nutella in the middle of each round. Fold cookie dough in half and pinch edges to seal.

Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes. Move to cooling rack and let cool.

Melt chocolate chips and white chocolate chips seperately. Drizzle over cooled cookies.

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