Tomato Mac

                                          Tomato Mac

 This is on of my all time favorite leftover remake dinners! I don't know about you but I always make a ton of spaghetti sauce when I make it so I always have leftovers.Tomato mac is simply a mix of mac and cheese and left over spaghetti sauce. I made it a little" fancy" this time because everything is better with a little extra cheese sauce! I first started making this when I would cook for my mom's daycare many years ago and I have continued to make this for my family ever since.

Tomato Mac:

2 boxes mac and cheese (any brand)

3-4 cups left over spaghetti sauce (check previous posts for recipe)

White sauce topping:

3 Tb butter

3 Tb flour

2-3 cups milk

1 cup parm cheese

salt and pepper

this is the way I store my left over sauce in the freezer.

Cook mac and cheese noodles in a large pan, while noodles are cooking reheat the leftover sauce. My sauce was in the freezer so I just put it in the microwave until it was heated through. Once the noodles are cooked, drain the water and return them to the pot.  Add cheese packets and mix through. next add the left over sauce and mix until combined. At this point it is perfectly lovely to eat and we eat it at this point most of the time with just a little parm cheese on top. 

 

However if you want to take it to the next level...pour this into a large casserole dish and top it with the cheese sauce!

Melt  butter and flour in a small sauce pan, cooking for just a few min to take the raw flour taste out. then slowly whisk in the milk and bring up to a boil until nice and thick. add salt and pepper and stir in cheese.

 

Pour cheese sauce all over the tomato mac and pop it into a really hot oven or under the broiler.

 Everything is already cooked you basically just want to brown up the top of the cheese sauce so it gets nice and bubbly.

That's all there is to it!!! easy peasy...like I said before this is the "fancy" version of tomato mac, if you choose to just make it without the white sauce it is still delicious! I hope you enjoy one of our favorite standby meals.

Banana Cake

                                       Banana Cake

This is an amazingly moist, rich cake. While eating this make sure to have a cold glass of milk at the ready!!! This is a recipe I got from a great friend named Andrea while I was living in Guam. I actually forgot all about this cake, which sounds crazy once you have tasted it, but I had until I came across in while looking through my old recipe box. This is super easy and another way to use up ripe bananas besides just making banana bread:) I hope you give it a try!

Banana Cake:

1 yellow cake mix

3 eggs

1 cup water

1/3 cup oil

2-3 ripe bananas

1/2 cup brown sugar

1tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla

make cake according to box instruction adding in brown sugar, then stir in mashed banana, cinnimon, and vanilla. Bake in a 9x13 pan. Bake at the temp the box instructs. If for some reason you dont have a yellow cake mix you can make a yellow cake from scratch and it works exactly the same it just takes a little more work :) after the cake is done cooking let rest for 5-10 min and then while the cake is still warm pour brown sugar glaze over the cake and then let cool for at least 20-30 min. I personally love to eat this while its still warm but you can have it at any temp you like. 

Brown sugar glaze:

1 stick butter

1 cup brown sugar

1tsp vanilla

1/4 cup milk

2 cups powder sugar

In a small sauce pan melt butter and brown sugar. cook until it comes to a boil, then add milk and take off the heat. Add vanilla and powder sugar and stir till smooth. pour over cake and spread out smoothly. Try not to lick the spoon while the icing is still hot...cuz it is hot and will burn your tongue...not that I would know:)

This cake is very rich so be sure to share with others:) If you want to make this into a layer cake it works well with two round cake pans as well. I have made it both ways and I prefer the large one layer only because it is easier. So the next time you have ripe bananas I hope you give this a try!

Roasted pork tenderloin with spicy cream corn

Pork Tenderloin with Spicy Cream Corn

This is a recipe that I have been making for years now. I adapted this from a Rachael Ray recipe but changed a few things to suite my tastes a bit more. I usually just buy a packaged pork tenderloin that is already marinated but feel free to make your own. This night I chose the mesquite flavor.  I just follow the  direction on the package for roasting the pork.

Spicy Cream Corn

1 medium onion

1 red bell pepper

1 jalapeno

16 oz frozen corn or 5 ears fresh corn cut off the cob

2-3 tbs flour

1 cup milk

1 cup chicken stock

handful chopped cilantro

Dice onion, pepper, and jalapeno and saute in a olive oil about 2tbs and a tbs of butter. cook for about a min or so and then add corn, salt and pepper. Cook another 4-5 min or until onions are tender.

 
Next sprinkle with flour and continue to cook for another min. Whisk  in chicken stock and milk. ( you can use a mix of these two or all milk or all chicken stock or chicken stock and heavy cream, its really up to you and how creamy you want it.) Bring corn up to a simmer and then lower the temp to med/low for about 5 min or until thickened.  Finish the corn by adding chopped cilantro and take off the heat.

 

I like a lot of cilantro but you can add as little or as much as you like. If you are not a huge fan of it you can add chopped parsley or a mix of both. *note, this is not very spicy because I seed the jalapeno but if you want it spicier you can add 2 jalapenos or keep the seeds in it.

Mashed Potatoes

Potatoes

butter

sour cream

salt and pepper

milk (optional)

peel and dice potatoes, throw into a large pot and cover with cold water. cook on high until desired tenderness. drain potatoes, and return to hot pot. Add butter and smash away. next add salt and pepper and sour cream.  I have no measurements for this recipe because its all about preference.  you can add some milk if you want it thinner but I usually keep mine pretty thick. 

 

This is a recipe I always seem to forget about..and then I will make it and think " I really need to make this more often"  :)  I like this in the summer too and then I will grill the pork on the BBQ. I hope you enjoy this one!