LC2 Ladies Night

It's Ladies Night! Tonight all the beautiful women of learning community two are getting together for a good ol' pajama party.  There are about fifteen of us and we are all future secondary education teachers.  Each subject area was assigned a different dish to bring.  English is dessert, Science is appetizers, and Social Studies/Math is Main Course/Salad.

I am Math so I had to come up with some sort of main dish or salad.  I'm thinking about making a dessert as well just for kicks.  This event reminded me of Progressive Dinner with my coworkers at VIP.  I thought about what people brought for the main course for that and remembered the amazing quiche that Leigh put together.  I decided that I would make a similar one because it is a great dish and pretty healthy!

Cheesy Spinach and Tomato Quiche

Ingredients:

1 russet potato, peeled and thinly sliced

8 eggs

1/4 cup milk

1 tsp italian seasoning

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

3 cups packed baby spinach

2 large roma tomatoes, sliced

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

1/2 cup low-fat, mozzarella cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease a 9 inch pie pan.

2. Peel, wash and slice the potato into slices about 1/4 inch thick.  Place potatoes on the bottom and sides of the pie pan. Bake for about 10 minutes or until potatoes are translucent. Set aside.

3. Beat eggs and milk until well combined.  Mix in seasonings.

4. Place the spinach on top of the potato crust and sprinkle the feta cheese on top of the spinach.  Pour the egg mixture over everything.  Finally, place the tomatoes on the top.

5. Bake quiche for 30-40 minutes or until it is no longer jiggly.  During the last 10 minutes or so, sprinkle the mozzarella on top of the quiche and let it continue to bake.

Enjoy :)

This event is super cute and I can't wait for tonight.  Of course, I am also going to share everyone else's dishes! I think that all teachers should have opportunities to have events such as this one.  It requires very little work to put together as everyone brings a dish and it helps everyone get to know each other and get closer to each other.  I am so excited to spend tonight with these ladies.  

Learning Community 2 has become a huge part of my life.  We take almost all of our classes together in the School of Education and we get to share our teaching experiences with each other.  You can learn a lot from hearing other's experiences and we have gotten very close through this process.

I hope you enjoy everyone's recipes!

Appetizers:

Meat and Cheese Tray

By: Kristin

Ingredients:
Cheddar Cheese Squares
Crackers
Pepperoni

I also brought cole slaw...all from Target (great store)

Caprese Salad Sticks

By: Courtney

1. Cut your own ke-bob sticks or use tooth picks
2. Place 1 cherry tomato, 1 basil leaf, and a slice of mozzarella cheese (I used string cheese!) on each stick.
Enjoy :)

Chips and Salsa
By: Shannon

I got Donkey chips and Frontera Salsa
Enjoy :)


Main Course:

Cheesy Spinach and Tomato Quiche (See above)

Baked Mostaccioli
By: Lauren

Ingredients:
2 cups spaghetti sauce
Ground beef, cooked
3 cups mostaccioli noodles, cooked according to box
1 cup mozzarella cheese, grated, plus more for the topping
Parmesan cheese, grated

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 13 x 9 inch pan.
2.  Mix in the cooked ground beef to the spaghetti sauce. Mix sauce/meat with the mostaccioli and 1 cup of mozzarella.  Pour into the prepared pan.  Top with more mozzarella and parmesan (as much as you would like)
3. Bake for 20 minutes or until cheese is brown and sauce is bubbling.
Enjoy :)

Emily's Pasta Salad

Ingredients:
1 red pepper, diced
1 ball of mozzarella, cubed
1 summer sausage, cut into small pieces
1 box of Bowtie Pasta
Your favorite Balsamic Vinaigrette, to taste

Directions:
1. Make pasta according to the directions on the box.  Drain and let cool.
2. Place pasta in a large bowl and toss with the rest of the ingredients.  Top with your favorite balsamic dressing.
Enjoy :)

Tamara's Pasta Salad (adapted from Multiply Delicious)

Ingredients:
1 20 oz package of cheese tortellini
1/2 cup (or so) of your favorite Balsamic Vinaigrette Salad Dressing
1 tsp Dijon mustard
salt and pepper
2 cups firmly packed baby spinach, chopped
1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped
1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced

Directions:
1. In a small bowl, whisk the dressing and mustard together. Set aside
2.  Cook pasta according to directions, drain, and place in a large bowl.  Drizzle with a little olive oil and let cool for about 10 minutes.
3. Toss the pasta with the spinach, basil, tomatoes, and peppers.  Toss with the dressing.  Serve immediately or let chill in the fridge before serving.
Enjoy :)


Jenny's Salad with Raspberry Poppyseed Dressing (also known as: Northern Light Garden Salad)

Ingredients:
For the salad:
8-12 oz fresh baby spinach, washed and dried
2 cups strawberries, halved
8 oz Brie, cut into small pieces
For the dressing:
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup raspberry vinegar
1/2 cup canola oil
2 tbsp poppyseeds
1 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tsp paprika
1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
1 tsp minced onion

Directions: 
1. Prepare the dressing: in a small saucepan, whisk the sugar and vinegar over low heat until the sugar dissolves.  Remove from heat and whisk in the oil.  Whisk in the remaining dressing ingredients. Place in fridge until ready to use.
2. Toss salad ingredients in a large bowl and drizzle dressing over everything.
Enjoy :)

Dessert:

Cake Batter Cookies (adapted from Six Sisters' Stuff)
By: Tamara

Ingredients:
1 18.25 oz box yellow cake mix
1 tsp baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
sprinkles

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a few baking sheets.
2. In a medium bowl, stir the cake mix and baking powder.  Add eggs and oil and mix until blended.
3. Stir in chocolate chips and sprinkles. Drop by spoonfuls on the cookie sheets. Top with more sprinkles if desired.
4. Bake for 10 minutes.  Allow cookies to cool completely.
Enjoy :)

Peanut Butter Cookies

By: Natalie

Ingredients:
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Blend all ingredients together in a medium bowl.
3. Drop tablespoons of dough onto a cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes. (Makes about 15 cookies).
Enjoy :)

Oatmeal Cranberry White Chocolate Cookies

By: Hillary

Ingredients:
2/3 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups dried cranberries
2/3 cup white chocolate chips

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add in eggs, mixing well.
3. In a medium bowl combine oats, flour, baking soda, and salt.  Add to the butter mixture in several additions, mixing until just combined.  Stir in dried cranberries and white chocolate chips.
4.  Drop by rounded tablespoons onto an ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake for 10-12 minutes. Makes about 2 1/2 dozen cookies.
Enjoy :)

Puppy Chow

By: Heather

Ingredients:
9 cups chex cereal
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 1/2ish cups milk chocolate chips
2 tsp vanilla
2 ish cups powdered sugar


Directions:
1. Microwave butter, peanut butter, and chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl for about a minute.  Stir to melt completely and add in vanilla.
2. Place chex in a large bowl and pour in chocolate mixture.  Stir with a wooden spoon.
3. Once the cereal is coated completely (you might want to add in more chocolate/peanut butter mixture), place it in a plastic bag with the powdered sugar and shake the bag to coat the cereal with the sugar.  Again, you might want to add in more sugar.
Enjoy :) ...and try your best not to eat it all at once (like I did...)