We're Pregnant!!!!

As of today, I am 7 weeks and 4 days pregnant!!! Due date is set at October 11, 2009 so clear your calendars.. it's going to be a fun 7 months!! We are so lucky that we were able to get pregnant so quickly. Our families & friends are ecstatic for us and our baby is going to be so loved. We are truly blessed!

Cheese Lovers 5 Cheese Mac and Cheese

This recipe is from Ultimate Recipe Showdown: Comfort Food on The Food Network!

Cheese Lovers 5 Cheese Mac and Cheese

Ingredients
Kosher salt
1 (16-ounce) package macaroni (cellentani or other curly noodle)
1/4 pound bacon, diced
1 medium onion, diced
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more to butter baking dish
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 1/2 cups whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
1 sprig fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups grated Fontina
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
3/4 cup grated Gruyere
3/4 cup grated white Cheddar
3/4 cup grated Parmesan
3 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley
1/4 cup bread crumbs

Directions
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F and butter a 9 by 13-inch glass baking dish.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add salt. Cook macaroni according to package directions. Drain.
In a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot, saute the bacon until crisp. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon and reserve. Saute the onion in the bacon drippings until soft. Add the 5 tablespoons butter to the onion mixture and melt the butter stirring with a wooden spoon.
Using a whisk, add the flour, and stir constantly until well mixed with the fat making a roux. Whisk in the mustard. Gradually add the milk and cream whisking constantly.
Add the thyme, bay leaf, and salt. Let come to a simmer and stir frequently for 15 minutes.
Strain the hot milk mixture into a metal bowl and discard the solids. Working quickly, mix in 1 cup fontina, blue cheese, 1/2 cup Gruyere, 1/2 cup white Cheddar, 1/2 cup Parmesan, the reserved bacon, and parsley. Continue to stir until all cheese is melted.
Add the cooked noodles to the cheese mixture to coat. Add the noodle mixture to the prepared baking dish. Mix the remaining cheese and bread crumbs together and sprinkle on top of the noodles. Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes or until bubbling and golden brown. Remove from oven when done and rest for 5 minutes.

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So this was a very interesting experience... I could not find Gruyere or Fontina cheese at Kroger so I ended up just getting a bunch of different cheeses. haha I also did not have heavy cream OR whole milk so I used evaporated milk and 2%. I didn't realize that this would be an issue until I was mixing the milk in and it ended up making GRAVY!! hahaha So I could not strain the mixture and ended up just mixing it all together. It was a pretty intense recipe (for me) and it was tasty but I think I could find something else easier.

Southwestern Soup

Ingredients
1 lb ground beef
1 cup coarsely chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 (16 oz) cans light red kidney beans, rinsed & drained
1 (15 oz) can black beans, rinsed & drained
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes & mild green chiles, undrained
1 (14.5 oz) can petite diced tomatoes & jalapenos, undrained
1 (14 oz) can beef broth
2 cups frozen yellow & white whole kernel corn
1 (1 oz) envelope taco seasoning mix
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 Tbsp. chopped cilantro

Directions
Brown ground beef, onion, and garlic in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat, stirring often, 10-12 minutes or until meat crumbles and is no longer pink and onion is softened.
Drain.
Stir in kidney beans, next 8 ingredients, and 4 cups water.
Bring to boil over medium-high heat.
Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 30 minutes or until thoroughly heated.
Stir in cilantro just before serving.
Top with sour cream.

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I made this and served with cornbread. I think next time I'm going to use less liquid and make as a chili. My mom & dad were in town this weekend and gave it 4 thumbs up! Said it would taste great on nachos! Def be making this again and again!! Thank you again, Southern Living!

Peanut Butter Granola

Ingredients
3 cups uncooked regular oats
1/2 cup dry-roasted peanuts
1/2 cup sweetened coconut flakes
3 Tbsp. sesame seeds
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup butter
1 Tbsp. light corn syrup
1/4 tsp. salt

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cook peanut butter, brown sugar, butter, corn syrup and salt in a small saucepan over medium heat 3 minutes or until smooth.
Toss together oats, peanuts, coconut, and sesame seeds in a large bowl.
Stir peanut butter mixture into oat mixture until blended.
Spread mixture in a single layer on a lightly greased, aluminum foil lined 17" x 12" jelly roll pan.
Bake 20 minutes or until lightly golden, stirring after 10 minutes.
Transfer to wax paper and cool completely (about 20 minutes).
Serve with vanilla yogurt and sliced bananas.

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I found this recipe in the Southern Living January 2009 magazine while at the doctor's office this morning and made it tonight as AJ & I are trying to eat more healthy. I substituted almonds for peanuts (that's what I had) and used un-sweetened coconut instead of sweetened but it came out great! Very tasty! We are not big fans of yogurt so we do not have any in our fridge but this may make me try some. :)

Obama Family Chili

In honor of our new President, I present to you the Obama Family Chili recipe:

Ingredients

1 large onion, chopped

1 green pepper, chopped

several cloves of garlic, chopped

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 pound ground turkey or beef

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon ground oregano

1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric

1/4 teaspoon ground basil

1 Tablespoon chili powder

3 Tablespoons red wine vinegar

several tomatoes, depending on size, chopped

1 can red kidney beans, undrained

Directions
Saute onions, green pepper, and garlic in oil until soft. Add ground meat and brown. Combine spices together into a mixture, then add to ground meat. Add red wine vinegar. Add tomatoes and let simmer, until tomatoes cook down. Add kidney beans and cook for a few more minutes.
Serve over white or brown rice. Garnish with grated cheddar cheese, onions, and sour cream.

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It is said that it may be a little bland but I'm not a fan of spicy foods so I cannot WAIT to try it!!

Welcome 2009!

AJ & I bought a Wii back in November on a whim and have loved playing tennis, bowling, etc. We had been looking around for a Wii Fit for a while but with the holidays, they were hard to find. I finally found one on Ebay and we LOVE it!

AJ & I have both gained significant weight since the college days and are hoping that this will help us with taking some (most) of it back off. I guess you could say it is our New Years Resolution to get in shape. I am hesitant in saying "New Years Resolution" because I've only ever kept up with a resolution and that was in 2007 when I wanted to read 50 books in 1 year (I exceeded that!). Hopefully we will stick with this...

If you are reading this, please help us stay accountable!! We don't like being fat!!

The Reason I Will Gain 20 Pounds This Christmas:

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Mallow Bars

Ingredients
1 pkg. (2-layer size) devil's food cake mix
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
2/3 cup milk, divided
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1 jar (7 oz.) marshmallow creme
1/2 cup salted peanuts
6 squares BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate, coarsely chopped

Directions
HEAT oven to 350°F. Mix dry cake mix, butter and 1/3 cup milk until blended; press 2/3 onto bottom of 13x9-inch pan. Bake 12 to 14 min. or until center is almost set; cool 3 min. Meanwhile, mix peanut butter and remaining milk.
SPREAD peanut butter mixture onto crust; top with small spoonfuls of the marshmallow creme and remaining cake mixture. Sprinkle with nuts and chocolate; press gently into cake mixture.
BAKE 18 min. or just until center is set. Cool completely before cutting into bars.

SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO GOOD!!!