MyBellaBug : Food For Thought: Creamy Pasta

Happy Friday!!! I cannot believe we are already half way done with November and Thanksgiving and Christmas are right around the corner. I am trying to be ahead of the curve this year and get the majority if not all of my Christmas shopping done before December. This week I want to share with you an easy meal that is sure to fill your tummies with yummy goodness!!!

I love making homemade spaghetti sauce, but when the days are crazy I love to spice up a jar of Ragu and serve over pasta. Some nights we will have spaghetti and there is always leftovers, so to add a little extra something, something to the next meal I will add cream cheese to the sauce and have instant creamy pasta :)

CREAMY PASTA INGREDIENTS:

1 lb of Ground Beef

1/2 Medium Onion, diced (or substitute 1 tsp of onion powder)

1 Garlic Clove, diced (or substitute 1/2 tsp garlic powder)

1 Jar of Ragu spaghetti sauce

1 Can of Sliced Mushrooms

1 Can of Diced Tomatoes

1 tsp of Oregano

1 tsp of Parsley

1 tsp Sugar

1 Package of Cream Cheese, softened (8 oz)

1 lb of noodles (we went with penne pasta)

Set out the cream cheese to let soften. Saute the diced onion and garlic, then add to ground meat. Brown the ground meat, then drain off the excess fat. Add the spaghetti sauce, diced tomatoes, mushrooms, and seasonings to the meat. Let simmer for at least thirty minutes.

Then add the cream cheese to the mixture and let simmer for an additional 15 - 20 minutes.

While the sauce is simmering, boil the water for the noodles. Once the water is boiling add a few teaspoons of salt to the water and then add the pasta (the salt will help flavor the noodles). Once everything is ready serve sauce over the pasta and enjoy!!

We had some pears that were really starting to ripen, so I decided to make a quick salad with our meal. I didn't have all the ingredients that this recipe called for, but it was still yummy in my tummy!!! I have made this salad often and it has now become one of my go to salads. For this salad, I had craisins, pears, romaine lettuce, and feta cheese. I even had a little helper :)