STUFFED SHELLS RECIPE...AND HAPPY BELATED THANKSGIVING!

Happy Belated Thanksgiving! Over my long holiday weekend I found time to make stuffed shells for the first time. They came out pretty good if I do say so myself!

Ingredients
1/2 of a 12-ounce box of jumbo pasta shells (about 18 shells)
2 teaspoon salt
1 (15-ounce) container ricotta cheese
2 large eggs
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 cups grated mozzarella cheese (divided into 1 cup each)
2 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley (or 2 teaspoons dried)

1 teaspoons of dried oregano
1 (26-ounce) jar Italian pasta sauce

1/2 onion, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 TBS olive oil

Frozen spinach, thawed and squeeze dried (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bring a large pot of water to boil over high heat. Add 1 teaspoon of salt and the pasta shells to the water. Boil the pasta shells until they are tender, but still a little firm (al dente), about 10 minutes. While the water is boiling, toss 1 TB oil, minced onion and garlic in skillet over medium heat until onions become soft, translucent and fragrant- about 5 minutes. Scrape out of skillet and let cool.

When pasta is done, drain the shells, run under cold water to stop the cooking process and set aside.

In a large bowl stir together: the ricotta cheese, eggs, Parmesan cheese, 1 cup mozzarella cheese, the onion and garlic mixture, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon balck pepper, oregano, and parsley.

Pour 1 TB olive oil in casserole 9x12 casserole dish and spread around. Then pour about 1 cup of pasta sauce and spread that around to cover the bottom of the dish.

Spoon heaping tablespoons of the ricotta filling into each cooked pasta shell. I added the spinach to the mixture at the end to make about 7 spinach and ricotta shells.

Place the filled shells, side by side, (I fit three lengthwise rows of 7 shells per row), into the casserole dish.

Spoon the remaining pasta sauce, and remaining 1 cup of mozzarella cheese on top of the shells.

Bake uncovered until bubbly, about 30 minutes.

SERIOUS SKIN CARE...PROBLEM.

p.s. just for the record....i've been going to bed really late this past week because of the painting and home improving. So I haven't used my cleanser for like- a week, and my face has broken out! I got a monster on my chin!!! Moral of this story? Gotta get back on the regimen...STAT! the end.

CHRISTMAS CRAFT IDEAS

I'm hosting the family Christmas dinner this year and I want the whole experience to be really special....I'm talkin'- from the decorating to the menu. Afterall, it's all in the details. Unfortunately, because this is only our second Christmas in the house, we haven't accumulated enough decorations to really make an impact. Ah, who am I kidding? All we have are Christmas lights- not to mention, a very small....tiny...miniscule budget. This financial glitch could deter others from achieving their winter wonderland theme goal, but not this crafty lady. You can doll up any room for very little money if you have a pair of scissors, a glue gun, and a free weekend. I started searching the internet and i found this AWESOME website for a magazine called Family Fun. 10 issue for $10 by the way. Here are 3 DIY projects that caught my eye. I LOOOOOOOOVE the trinket tree, or should I say- my NEW Christmas dinner table centerpiece!

SHIMMERING SHELFSICLES

WRAPPING PAPER STARS

TRINKET TREE

IF I HAD BALLS...

I'd get this haircut...minus the purple streaks. Based on past experiences, those bright chunks of color like red and purple- fade really fast and end up looking dry and dull unless you touch them up frequently.

But man, how about this haircut, huh? Sharp...

Soooo, we moved into our house on July 27, 2009- and I just got around to painting the back bedroom. I guess it makes sense since we don't use the back bedroom. It's easy to walk past it...especially when the door is closed and you don't have to look at the plastic drop clothes, bare walls, scraps of wallpaper, and plaster dust covering the orange carpet. Yeah, I said it. Orange carpet. I chose to paint the walls brown. Brown and orange kind of compliment each other. Uh, I guess. I noticed the walls were kind of dark when the 1st coat dried, but by channeling the interior designer within- I figured I could counter balance the darkness with bright pops of color all over the room later. After I slather on the second coat, rearrange the the furniture, and vacuum- I will reward myself for all the hard work with BEDDING!!!!! OOOWW!!! In closing-I have to thank my brother, Seamus, for the motivation to finally finish this project. We were in my sister's wedding this past weekend (which by the way- was AWEEEEEEEEEESOME!!), and he and his girlfriend ended up having to sleep over my house afterwards. And since there was nowhere else to sleep...I had to stick them back in that construction zone against my will. So, that was embarrassing. Granted, he's a 19 year old so he could've cared less. But either way, it inspired me to move my fat ass! It's really coming along. More pics to come.

THE LIGHTBULB VASE...a future craft project!

Not sure about you guys, but I love me some crafts, and easy "do-it-yourself" projects. In fact, I'm gonna start incorporating those into this blog very soon cause I've been feeling pretty crafty lately. I may not know much, but I DO know that when you get that feeling- you should never repress your creative juices from 'a flowin'. Anyway, what I'm trying to get at is this. I was surfing the web and came across this website called "Unplggd: Smarter Home. Fewer Wires." They've come up with a really cool DIY project involving a bud vase made out of....well, a bulb. A LIGHT bulb to be exact. It's chic, modern looking, and no doubt a guaranteed conversation starter if you choose to attempt one of your own! Click here to check it out! I LOVE it!

PRODUCT REVIEW UPDATE

Hey again. So, I bought this stuff called Serious Skin Glycolic Cleanser back in May. But, in traditional Katie fashion, I probably got distracted by some other cool thing I saw on an infommercial and forgot that it was sitting in my medicine cabinet. Well, I was admiring myself in the mirror this past weekend...haha. Sike. I was brushing my teeth over the weekend and noticed my skin in the mirror...all ruddy and broken out and remembered I had this product and hadn't really given it a fair shot. Soooooo, I started using it on Sunday, and have been using it faithfully ever since. It's only been 4 days, but I swear I can see a difference. Luckily, I took a "before" picture figuring I'd end up posting an "after" picture in a few weeks. But ya know what? I'm gonna post a "before and after" today because that's how confident I am about the change that is already occurring after this short amount of time. For real though...is it just me, or does my skin look more even?

I'm just sayin...it's not perfect, but for 4 days?? I gotta give this stuff props.

I'M BACK, BABY!!

I made the most delicious recipe last night and had to share! OW!

Chicken Saltimbocca

Serving Size: 6
Ingredients:
3 chicken breast cutlets
6 slices paper thin prosciutto
Raw baby Spinach
1/2 cup flour
2 TBS olive oil
1 TBS butter
Salt and fresh pepper
1 cup fat free chicken broth
1/2 cup white wine
1/4 cup half and half
Medium sized pasta shells

Directions:
1. Slice each breast into two thin, flat cutlets to make a total of 6.

2. Pound each one to make them thin

3. Season chicken with a salt and pepper (you can go light on the salt- the proscuitto is pretty salty already).

4. Start boiling water for pasta and cook as directed.

5. Lay a thin layer of baby spinach, then a slice of prosciutto, then another thin layer of baby spinach.

6. Fold over and secure with a toothpick if necessary.

7. Place flour in a shallow bowl and lightly dredge chicken in flour, shaking off excess.

8. Pour oil into skillet on medium high heat. When oil is hot, sautée chicken for about 1 minute on each side or until golden brown. You may have to do this in 2 batches.

9. Remove chicken from pan. Lower the heat to medium.

10. Deglaze the pan with wine, scraping up any brown bits. Add chicken broth, and butter until melted.

11. Return chicken to the sauce. Finish cooking on low for about 5 minutes or until chicken cooked through. Baste chicken with sauce a few times while simmering.

12. Remove chicken and serve over medium pasta shells.

Tip: I cook the shells as directed while making the chicken. After I drain the shells and remove the chicken from the skillet, I toss the pasta into the skillet with the sauce to coat.

SO EASY AND SOOOOOO DELICIOUS!!