I have an announcement to make!

Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention please? I have an announcement to make. Or, as one of my students used to say - "a-mouse-ment".

I am in love with my cookbook.

Everything we've made has been heavenly. While we were engaged, somone saw this book for sale in the teacher's lounge at school and told me it was full of husband pleasing recipes. It was only a few bucks so I bought it. I haven't made anything from this delightful book until last week. After only a few recipes, I'm in love. Love I tell you!

Here's what I love the most - in completely random order.

1. There are no crazy ingredients you never buy.

2. The instructions are easy to follow.

3. The pictures are pretty. (I'm serious about this one. Pretty pretty pictures make food look good and help you decide what to make. It also lets you know when you've done it wrong!)

4. The cover is red. It matches my kitchen. This makes me happy.

5. There are easy to follow kid instructions on most of the recipes.

6. There are little symbols on each pages showing if they're easy prep, how long it takes to make it, if it's a kid friendly recipe, and if it's a "5 Star Favorite".

7. The recipes are easy to adapt for our tastes.

8. The recipes are easy to spice up a bit and this makes me feel less like a chef in training and more like a gourmet chef for the Hammond House!

Last week we made Cheeseburger Pasta. (I blogged about it. Scroll down and look for "A few items of business") We also made Fake 'Em Out Ravioli Lasagna. It made a huge dish. It lasted all of two nights in our house. I already want to make it again. (If you want the recipe, e-mail me. I'll be happy to share!)

Last night we made one of our favorites so far. No, I loved that Cheeseburger Pasta more. No, the Ravioli Lasagna. Or did I love this one most? Grrr! I can't decide! They're so very yummy! I'll tell you what - you make all three and tell me what you like the most. Okay? Deal!

Last night we made Hearty Lasagna Soup. But first, let's set the scene... The weather man told us that yesterday's high would be 48. He lied. We never got out of the 30's. After a very fun party the night before, I spent the day ignoring responsibility and nibbling on left overs. And painting. Lots of painting. (Christmas is coming, ya' know!) No shower, no laundry, no real food - just paint, cookies, and some wonderful e-mails with my friend Brandi. (Don't you love old friends who know your heart so well they can read your mind over e-mail even when you haven't seen each other in months? My heart just sighed a little!) My husband has little to no heat in his tennis office. And it's on an outside wall. And he had hall duty by a drafty door yesterday. And his car is very slow to heat up. And when he got home he had to take the trash out. So... Very cold. I'd eaten nothing but cookies. DJ was a frozen husband-sicle. So I made the warmest thing I could find in our new best friend! DJ made a fire. (A big one.) (In the fireplace.) When DJ saw the picture for this meal, he turned his nose up. I told him we were having it anyway. Then he came to the stove and smelled what I was cooking. Then he got very excited and kissed me. :) Now you know the story - on to the recipe!

1 pound ground beef (We used turkey. DJ burps with beef.)

1/4 t garlic powder (I threw in some onions. I could have thrown in more. And more garlic.)

3 and 1/2 cups beef broth with onion (I didn't have any. I used chicken broth.)

1/4 t Italian seasoning, curshed (Much to my surprise, we didn't have any of this either. I just sprinkled in a ton of oregano and basil until it smelled good.)

1 can diced tomatoes (Note: Don't buy the cheap stuff. They are icky. And green. And sometimes white. Next time I might use Italian tomatoes for more flavor.)

1 1/2 cups of uncooked mafalda or rotini (We used rotini. And we used more like 2 1/2 cups. As previously stated, we like pasta.)

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (We did more like 1/2 cup. We like cheese.)

Cook the beef (or turkey) and garlic powder (and onion) in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat until the meat is well browned, stirring frequently to break up meat. Pour off any fat.

Stir the broth, Italian seasoning, and tomatoes into the skillet. Heat to a boil.

Stir the pasta into the skillet. Reduce the heat to medium. Cook for 10 minutes or until the pasta is tender but still firm, stirring occasionally. Stir in the cheese. Serve with additional cheese, if desired.

I didn't read right and added the pasta with the broth and other stuff. It made our pasta super tender, which we were looking for. We topped it with mozzerella cheese. YUM! I made a loaf of French Bread from a can. My plan was to have left overs for lunch today. There are no left overs. :( I'll eat our taco pizza from the other night instead.

Are you in love with my cookbook too? It's fantabulous! I want to keep it with me always! :) If you'd like to buy one for your family, you can - right here!

I am not getting paid to endorse this cookbook. I just love it. We're making Chicken Macaroni Parmesan tomorrow night. (Tonight we have another party!) I'll let you know if it's as yummy as the last three have been. My guess is yes!

Have a fun day - and cook something new!! It's good for your heart...