Dinner's done!

Do you get into the same rut with dinner as we do? I have my summer dinners and my winter dinners and I seem to make the same stuff over and over again. I started a list on the side of my fridge a year or so ago that has a list of dinners on it, but even with that, I tend to find myself in the same rut!

I went recipe hunting last week for recipes and we have tried out a couple new recipes that will be keepers.

Taco Soup (basically chili with a Mexican twist)
1# ground turkey or beef
4 cans of beans, rinsed and drained (pinto, kidney, black or mix)
1 can broth (I used beef)
28 oz can diced tomatoes in juice
6 oz can tomato paste
1 can corn, drained and rinsed
1 can mild green chilis
1 onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 packet taco seasoning
1 packet hidden valley ranch dressing mix
brown meat, drain and rinse. Add everything else and bring to a boil. Simmer for at least 20 minutes, covered. I simmered mine for about an hour and a half because that's how I like my chili. I served with tortilla chips, sour cream and cheese, but this would also be great over baked potatoes. I was even brave enough to serve this when we had some friends over and they all seemed to like it as well. It would also freeze well so make a big pot and freeze half for later.

Creamy Sausage Pasta
1# pasta
2 T olive oil
1 medium red onion, chopped
1 pound sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
8 ounces mushrooms, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups baby spinach rough chopped - I used about 1/2 C frozen spinach, thawed, drained
3/4 cup white wine or chicken broth
1/2 cup light cream (half & half)
cook pasta according to package directions
Heat OO in large skillet over medium/high heat. Add the onions and saute for about 2 minutes. Add the sausage and saute for another 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms, red pepper, sat and pepper. Saute for about 15 minutes, until sausage is well browned and the vegetables tender. Add the spinach and garlic, then saute for another minute. Add the wine/chicken broth and deglaze the pan, scraping any brown bits from the bottom. Allow to reduce for about 5 minutes. Add the cream and heat through.
Mix in the cooked pasta and serve hot.
(I only use dreamfields pasta (www.dreamfieldsfoods.com) because it only has 5 grams of digestable carbs and tastes great! It's not like the whole wheat pasta you are thinking of, you honestly will not be able to tell the difference and neither will your kids. It's a bit pricier and not found in all stores - I buy mine at Meijer, but it's worth it. I love my pasta, but hate all the carbs. When I was pregnant with Jesse and had gestational diabetes my nutritionist started me on this and I have never gone back to regular pasta.)

Please leave your family favorite recipe in the comments. I would love to get a new list going of favorite recipes to make.