Tuna Pie w/ Spinach

As I've grown up to be technically an adult, I have come to like many more vegetables than I did as a child. Part of that was just the growing up process, and part of it was learning that there are other ways to prepare them besides battered & fried.

But one vegetable that I have never learned to like, and never will, is broccoli. I just can't stand the trees. My kids like it, my husband likes it, but not me.

The only way I've ever been able to eat broccoli is in my Tuna Pie. I guess the other ingredients were just so yummy that it disguised the ick of broccoli. But I always wondered if it would taste good with spinach, which I LOVE. So tonight, I finally tried that for the first time.

And it was FANTASTIC!!

Here's the recipe again in case you want to try it. It's good stuff and perfect for Meatless Monday!

Tuna Pie
2 cans tuna in water, drained
1 cup shredded cheese
1 small onion, chopped
3 eggs
1 cup mayo
½ cup sour cream
1 box chopped broccoli *OR Spinach!!*, cooked per directions
2 pie shells, cooked per directions

Mix all ingredient except pie shells.
Pour half of the mixture into each pie shell. Bake at 375 degrees for 50 minutes.

Satchel's Pizza

WOW! I didn't realize it had been so long since I posted here.
Today we went to a local restaurant called Satchel's Pizza. This place is truly unique.

If you live in or around Gainesville, or even plan on being in the area for a visit, I highly recommend you eat at Satchel's!

One of the highlights is an old VW van outside, with a table inside. Everyone loves to sit there; both times we've been it was full so we haven't had a chance to sit there yet.

Satchel's is locally owned and has been in Gainesville since 2003. There's a junk shop in the back called Lightnin' Salvage, featuring cool & unique toys and gifts.

"Serious Junk", sign inside of Lightnin' Salvage

There are all kinds of different collections displayed in both the shop & the restaurant, like this cool clothespin collection.

Even the website is fun and interesting. I could tell you more about Satchel's, but the website tells it all in a much more interesting way!

a door inside Lightnin' Salvage

The food is absolutely delicious. The guys had calzones, and they were so huge that they couldn't finish them. Which rarely happens with my guys! The rest of us had pizza, which was fantastic. I had spinach & artichoke hearts. YUM! It's sold by the slice as well as whole pies. The slices are very big, in fact the little girls couldn't even finish theirs!

So whenever you're in Gainesville, be sure to check out Satchel's Pizza!

(This post was not sponsored in any way!)

Porcupine Balls!

A few months ago I read a really cute book called Muffins & Mayhem by Suzanne Beecher. It was full of little stories about the author's life, as well as lots of recipes. I had checked it out from the library, but I then bought a copy from Amazon so that I'd have all the recipes. I keep it with my cookbooks! Tonight I made two recipes from this book and wanted to share them with you all.

Porcupine Balls (I don't know what the kids like better; eating this dish or saying the name!)

1 pound ground beef

1/2 cup uncooked rice

1/2 cup water

1/3 cup chopped onion

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp celery salt

1/8 tsp garlic powder

1/8 tsp pepper

1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce

1 cup water

2 tsp Worcestershire Sauce

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix meat, rice, 1/2 cup water, onion, salts, garlic powder, & pepper. Shape mixture into meatballs. Place meatballs in ungreased baking pan. Stir remaining ingredients together and pour over meatballs. Cover and bake for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake 15 minutes longer.

{I doubled this recipe and used 1 lb. of ground beef & 1 lb. of ground turkey. It made 42 meatballs. They were off the chain! I served them with roasted asparagus and garlic toast.}

And for dessert....

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 cup butter (2 sticks), softened

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup light brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

3 cups oatmeal

1-2 cups chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix the flour, baking soda, and salt together. Mix remaining ingredients with the flour mixture, then add chocolate chips. Roll into balls & place on cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until cookies are light brown. Cool & share!

I was not compensated in any way for this post - just sharing good recipes!