Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese

Lately I had been feeling that I made the same recipes over and over again. I was getting bored with our usual Mexican, pasta, and soups. So I've been trying out some new recipes along with some new foods that we don't normally eat. So tonight's experiment was a recipe from my friend, Kara. My husband loooves mac and cheese and I've never actually made it for him, so I decided to start with Kara's butternut squash mac and cheese. I was impressed with the results and will definitely be adding this to my rotation. I also tweaked this to make it slightly healthier.

Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese

1 tbls. butter
1 lb elbow mac (I didn't have any, so I used whole wheat penne)
1 10 oz. frozen butternut squash package
1 1/2 cups cheddar (shredded)
1/2 cup mont. jack cheese (shredded)
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup gruyere (shredded)
1/4 cup cream
Whole wheat panko breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon paprika
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste

Heat oven to 375, cook noodles and set in baking dish (be sure to coat with Pam or butter so it won't stick)
In a saucepan over medium, heat bay leaf, butter, milk and squash until smooth, add in cheddar and jack one cup at a time (save 1/2 cup cheddar for top) until melted, add in spices, then pour over mac and mix well in dish (remove bay leaf), sprinkle rest of cheddar and breadcrumbs on top and bake for 25 min.

Black Bean and Corn Soup

Tonight my wonderful hubby and I had just finished our first round of P90X and I needed to make a quick and healthy dinner. I decided to go with a black bean and corn soup. I rummaged through my pantry and discovered that I also had lots of cans of tomatoes so I decided to add those. It was super easy, quick, and delicious.

Black Bean and Corn Soup

1 small onion
2 cloves garlic
2 (16 oz.) cans of black beans, drained and rinsed
1 box of vegetable stock
1 can of petite diced tomatoes (I used the diced ones with jalapeno's for a kick)
1 cup corn (I used Trader Joe's frozen roasted corn)
1 cup chopped bell peppers (again Trader Joe's frozen peppers)
1 tsp. paprika
2 tsp. cumin (or more to taste)
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste

Saute chopped onion, bay leaf, paprika and cumin in olive oil in a large dutch oven over medium heat until soft 1-2 minutes. Add minced garlic and saute for another minute.
Puree 8 oz of black beans along with can of tomatoes. (My husband and I don't like chunks of tomatoes so I pureed all of them. You can leave some chunks if you prefer)
Add the pureed mixture, beans, corn, bell peppers and vegetable stock and simmer 5-30 minutes, depending on how long you have. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove bay leaf before eating.