Sausage Bean Soup and Italian Grilled Cheese

Sinfully delish! That's exactly how I would describe this meal--especially the grilled cheese. It's the best grilled cheese because it's right in between grilled cheese and savory french toast. Make sure you save points for this meal, because you're going to need them.




What's Needed:
Soup:
3/4 lb. bulk Italian sausage
1/2 C. chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
1 can (15 oz) garbonzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (15 oz) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (14 oz) beef broth
1 tsp. dried basil
Parmesan cheese (optional, and will be additional points)

Grilled Cheese:
4 slices Italian bread (1 in. thick)--I cut mine in half and made mini-sandwiches.
4 slices provolone cheese
3 eggs
1/2 C. milk
3/4 tsp. Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
2/3 C. Italian-seasoned bread crumbs.

Soup:
1. In a large saucepan, cook sausage, onion, and garlic until sausage is no longer pink. Drain.

2. Add beans, tomatoes, broth, and basil.

3. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, if desired.
Serves: 6

Grilled Cheese:
1. Cut the 4 slices of bread in half. Place a slice of cheese in the middle and top with the other half.

2. In a bowl, beat eggs, milk, Italian seasoning, and garlic salt. Soak bread for 2 minutes on each side.

3. Coat bread with bread crumbs.

4. Cook on a greased hot griddle until golden brown on both sides.
Serves 8

Husband's Grade: A+
PointsPlus--Soup: 9 for 1/6 of the recipe
PointsPlus--Sandwich: 8 for 2 mini-sandwiches

Inspired by: TasteofHome Classic Cookbook

Cheese Ravioli Lasagna

Easy and very tastey. This was a win all the way around!

What's Needed:

2 24 oz. jars pasta sauce with tomato and basil
12 oz. bulk Italian sausage
2 C. chopped tomatoes
1 15-oz. carton ricotta cheese
1/2 C. milk
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
2 9-oz. packages refrigerated light cheese-filled ravioli
1 1/2 C. shredded part-skim mozzerella cheese

1. Preheat oven to 375. Spread about 1/2 C. of the pasta sauce in the bottom of an ungreased 9x13-inch baking dish. Set the remaining pasta sauce aside.

2. In a skillet, cook sausage over medium-high heat until cooked through. Drain off fat. Stir the remaining pasta sauce and chopped tomatoes into cooked sausage; set aside.

3. In a medium bowl, combine ricatta cheese, milk, nutmeg; set aside.

4. Layer half of the uncooked ravioli over pasta sauce in baking dish. Spoon half of the sausag emixture over ravioli in dish; sprinkle with half of the mozzarella cheese. Top with remaining ravioli; spoon ricotta mixture over ravioli and top with remaining meat sauce.

5. Bake, covered, for 30 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese. Bake, uncovered, about 15 minutes more or until heated through and ravioli is cooked. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving. If desired, top with Parmesan cheese and parsley.

Serves 10.

Husband's Grade: A+
PointsPlus: 11

Inspired by: 9x13: The Pan That Can

Subs? In a Crockpot???

That's what the recipe said. My husband likened it to beef stew in sandwich form. It was still mighty tastey :)

What's needed:
1 T. vegetable oil
1 lb. boneless beef round steak, cut into thin strips
1 lb. bulk Italian sausage (I used mild)
1 green bell pepper, cut into strips
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
salt
black pepper
1 jar (26 oz) spaghetti sauce
Sub sandwich rolls from the bakery

1. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Brown steak on both sides. Drain and discard fat. Place meat in crockpot.

2. In same skillet, cook Italian sausage, stirring to break up. Cook until no longer pink. Drain and discard fat. Add sausage to crockpot.

3. Place bell pepper and onion over meat in crockpot. Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Top with spaghetti sauce. Cover; cook on LOW 4-6 hours. Serve mixture on bread.

Husband Rating: A
PointsPlus: 14 for 1 roll and 1/6 of the meat mixture

A Tale of Two Casseroles

I like to call this "Italian Shepherd's Pie". I've made several versions of this casserole--one that Joe, my husband, adores, and the other is my personal favorite. The recipes, both with slight changes, are included below.

Version A (a.k.a. My Favorite)


What's Needed:
3/4 C. Mozzerella cheese
2 C. mashed potatoes, refrigerated mashed potatos, or made from potato flakes
1 lb. ground beef, browned and drained
1/2 C. chopped onion
2 C. bell pepper
1 14.5 oz. can of Italian Stewed tomatoes
1 can tomato paste
1/4 tsp. pepper
Paprika

1. Stir 1/2 C. cheese into potatoes; set aside.

2. In a large skillet, add onion, bell pepper. Cook until tender. Add ground beef, undrained tomatoes, tomato paste, and pepper. Bring to boiling. Transfer mixture into a 2 qt. casserole dish.

3. Spoon mashed potato in mounds on top of ground beef mixture, the spread to cover. Sprinkle the top with the remianing cheese and paprka.

4. Bake in a 375 oven for 30 minutes or until mashed potato top is golden brown. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Husband Rating: C
PointsPlus: 7 per serving (cut into 6 pieces prior to serving)
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Version B (a.k.a. Joe's favorite)--Changes are indicated in bold


What's Needed:
3/4 C. Mozzerella cheese
2 C. mashed potatoes, refrigerated mashed potatos, or made from potato flakes
3/4 lb. ground beef, browned and drained
1/4 lb. sweet Italian sausage, browned and drained
1/2 C. chopped onion
2 C. green beans (or peas)
1 14.5 oz. can of diced tomatoes
1 can tomato paste
1/4 tsp. pepper
Paprika

Follow the same directions as above, substituting ingredients as needed.

Husband Rating: A
PointsPlus 8 per serving