Easiest Cranberry Sauce

Homemade CRANBERRY sauce is. the. best. If anyone disagrees with me, I DARE you to try this SIMPLE recipe. You can make it a day or two before THANKSGIVING and keep it in the fridge. It really is refreshing and well, wonderful!

Easiest Cranberry Sauce
1 bag fresh cranberries
1 cup orange juice
3/4 cup sugar (or 1/2 cup honey)

Place all ingredients together in a large saucepan and heat over medium heat for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until all of the cranberries have burst. Remove from heat and let cool. As it cools, it will thicken.

TIP: Add a tablespoon or two of orange zest for extra citrus flavor!

Healthy Alfredo Sauce (AMAZING!)

Pasta is always a tasty and QUICK dinner at our house. But there are so many recipes loaded with calories—and they are DELISH, don't get me wrong! Now our new favorite is this much HEALTHIER version of an alfredo sauce. It really is yummy and can be eaten totally GUILT FREE!

Healthy Alfredo Sauce (AMAZING!)
1 head cauliflower, cut into florets
2 tablespoons butter
2 to 4 cloves garlic
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup milk
Shredded Parmesan cheese
Angel hair pasta, cooked (I used around half a package, though it was pretty saucy!)

Boil the cauliflower florets in a pot of water until tender, about 8 to 10 minutes. While cauliflower is cooking, saute the garlic in the butter a minute or two and then set aside. Use a slotted spoon to drop cauliflower into a blender and add the garlic butter mixture, salt, pepper, and milk along with 1 cup of the cooking water. Blend until smooth. Pour mixture in a saucepan and add desired amount of Parmesan cheese and let simmer while you cook your pasta. (I added about 1/3 cup and topped with a little more to garnish along with some green onion).

TIP: The sauce tasted fab without the cheese added, so feel free to leave it out if you want to cut even more calories. I also still had zucchini from the garden, so I shredded it and added it to my angel hair pasta the last minute or two it was cooking. I drained it all in a colander and then tossed it in the sauce. (That's why you see green mixed in!) It was nummy!

Easy Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

I typically use a jar of spaghetti SAUCE when we have spaghetti for dinner. I know, silly, but if I make my own, it defeats the purpose of one of my easy, go-to QUICK dinners. However, this sauce is so easy and so UNBELIEVABLY delicious, that I may not buy "those" jars anymore! And you can make it so MANY different ways, it's crazy!

Easy Homemade Spaghetti Sauce
1/2 small sweet onion, minced
1/3 red bell pepper, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 small zucchini, minced
Olive oil
1 can crushed tomatoes
2 cans tomato sauce
Fresh chopped basil, oregano, and thyme (you can use dried in place of fresh)
2 to 3 tablespoons brown sugar
Garlic salt and pepper, to taste

Saute the onion, bell pepper, garlic, and zucchini in oil until tender and lightly browned. Stir in the remaining ingredients and simmer on low for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

TIP: You can mince up just about any veggie to make this your own. Or leave the bell pepper and zucchini out if you prefer. It's tasty no matter what!

Pasta with Pumpkin Cream Sauce

A few weeks back I made and posted about a YUMMY pumpkin trifle—and ended up with leftover canned PUMPKIN. Well, this is what I came up with! SUPER easy, and pretty delish if I do say so myself!

Pasta with Pumpkin Cream Sauce
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup fresh grated or shaved Parmesan cheese
Thyme (I did a few hefty pinches of dried)
Garlic salt
Pasta of choice, cooked according to directions

In a pan, melt the butter. Stir in the flour until well combined, then add the milk gradually while stirring. Continue stirring and heat the mixture a few minutes more. Gradually stir in the pumpkin. When completely incorporated, add the cheese and stir until melted. Season with thyme and garlic salt according to taste and then serve over pasta with more Parmesan sprinkled over top. Yummy!

TIP: This is also great the next day if you have any leftover. You can just reheat in the microwave slowly, in 30-second intervals until warm. If it is a little thick, add some more milk, a little at a time. Also, if you'd like this to be EXTRA good, try using cream or half-and-half instead of milk!

BONUS TIP: I also browned some chopped onion and served that over the pasta, then topped with the pumpkin sauce. Sooooo good!

Meaty Spaghetti Sauce for the Crockpot

I know it seems too HOT to have a meal in the CROCKPOT, but it's actually smart to use the HANDY appliance during the SUMMER because it doesn't HEAT up your kitchen!

(P.S. I know the photo isn't amazing since it just looks like plain old spaghetti sauce, but I wanted to show how the sides of the crockpot get all toasty with sauce. I try to scrape it off and stir it into the sauce because those browned bits just taste sooooo good!)

Meaty Spaghetti Sauce for the Crockpot
1/2 pound ground beef, browned and drained
4 Colosimo mild Italian sausages, cut into bite-sized pieces
25 to 30 (or so) pepperoni slices, halved or quartered
1 jar meat-flavored spaghetti sauce (I prefer Prego)
1 can tomato sauce
1/4 cup water
Italian seasoning
Garlic salt

Put all of the meat in a 2- to 3-quart crockpot.  Pour the sauces and water over top. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning and a few shakes of garlic salt. Stir everything together and then cook on low heat for 6 to 8 hours. Serve over cooked spaghetti noodles or any other pasta.

TIP: If you can't find Colosimo sausages in your area, just brown 1/2 pound Italian sausage and throw it in instead. You could also slice up some polish sausage as a substitute as well. Also, if you prefer your sauce to be a little more liquidy, just add more spaghetti or tomato sauce!

Fish Tacos with Lime Cilantro Sauce

This is a very REFRESHING dinner that I like to throw together during my healthy eating times. I love the FLAVORS of cilantro and lime—so tangy and powerful, and the PERFECT sauce for these excellent tacos.

Fish Tacos with Lime Cilantro Sauce

Lime Cilantro Sauce

1/2 cup chopped cilantro

1 green onion, thinly sliced

1/4 cup light or fat-free mayonnaise

1/4 cup light or fat-free sour cream

2 teaspoons lime zest

1 tablespoon lime juice

1 clove garlic, minced

Fish Tacos

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1 1/2 pounds any white fish (halibut, mahi-mahi, tilapia, etc.)

Small flour tortillas (or corn tortillas if you prefer)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

To make the sauce, combine all the ingredients and then refrigerate until ready to use.

To make the tacos, combine all the seasonings and then coat your choice of fish. Bake for about 10-12 minutes, or until done (the fish will flake easily with a fork). When fish is done, break into pieces with a fork and then scoop in the center of your tortillas. Drizzle the sauce over top and serve. Makes about 4-6 servings.

TIP: To add some extra nutrients, top the fish with shredded cabbage or romaine lettuce and then drizzle with the sauce. You can also serve with lime wedges on the side so people can squeeze on extra juice.