Pizza Pasta

My family tends to love it when I take two recipes and make one. Here you go:

1 lb Jimmy Dean sausage (Italian, Sage, or whatever suites your mood)

8 oz pasta

1 Jar spaghetti sauce (any flavor)

2 C mozzarella cheese

Cook pasta according to package. Brown sausage in a deep sided frying pan. Add sauce. Mix well and let simmer a few minutes to heat through. Drain pasta and let cool till steam stops rising from pasta (this helps sauce stick to pasta better). Add pasta and cheese to meat mixture. Serve!

Pizza Pockets

Last night I didn't know what to make. I guess that happens a lot. I looked through recipes and kind of made this one up. It was so good! You'll have left over bits and pieces, but you can use them tomorrow night.

1 pkg croissant rolls or pie crust

1/2 ham steak, diced and cooked

Pizza/spaghetti sauce

Mozzarella cheese

Preheat your oven to 350 deg.

Now I used croissant rolls because that's all I had and I didn't want to make dough. You could use pie crust or and kind of dough you have on hand. You can use whatever meat you have on hand too. If you think about it, there are many ways to make a pizza.

I rolled out the croissant rolls and kept two slices together to make a rectangle. Smudge the pieces together so they don't separate. Spoon on 1-2 T of sauce. Add ham pieces and top with cheese. Fold over dough and pinch edges so it closes. Repeat for other 3 rectangles or until you're done.

Bake for about 10 minutes. Add more mozzarella cheese to the top of the pockets and put back in the oven for 5 minutes. You want the cheese to melt, it's okay if it gets a little brown.

If you're serving them to little kids you may want to cut them open and let them cool a little before serving. They will be hot inside. They came out very well and both my kids ate them right up! (19 months and 3.5 years)

Chicken Parmesan

I threw this dinner together last night and it came out so good! I'll try to put down measurements to the best of my ability.....it's all in the head.

1/2 C bread crumbs

1/2 C Parmesan cheese, divided

1/2 t each: (any Italian herbs) oregano, parsley, basil

2 Eggs

4 chicken breast, patted dry

1 jar marinara/spaghetti sauce

1 C Mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350 deg F. In a rectangle container beat eggs well. In another container mix first three ingredients (using 1/4 C Parmesan cheese). Dip chicken into egg, then into dry mixture. Place in a rectangle baking dish and bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until juices run clear and chicken is crusty but not burnt. Pour sauce over chicken and top with Mozzarella cheese and remaining Parmesan cheese. Place back in oven for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted.

You can serve this dish with pasta.