Two Bean Crock Pot Chili

Old chili: wash and chop onions (cry). Brown ground beef with onions, drain off fat. Pour ground beef and onions in crock pot. Open cans, try not to cut yourself on all the lids. Rinse all the beans - who wants all that icky salt - and pour them in with the beef. Don't forget the tomatoes - sorry the juice splattered on that white button down shirt you were going to wear to work. Throw splattered shirt in the laundry. Seed and chop some peppers, and throw several cans in the trash. Wash pan, cutting board, knife and spatula. 

New chili: open Thrive product. Measure out product and put it in your crock pot. Add water, cover, turn on to low. Put product back in pantry. Rinse tablespoon and measuring cup. Done! Hard to argue with a two minute dinner :)

1c Thrive Freeze Dried Ground Beef or Beef TVP
1/2c Thrive Instant Black Beans
1/2c Thrive Instant Pinto Beans
1/4c Thrive Red and Green Bell Peppers
2T Thrive Tomato Powder
2T Thrive Chopped Onions
1 can Diced Tomatoes with Jalapenos (optional)
1 Envelope Chili Seasonings (or 1/2t garlic powder, 1/2t chili powder, 1/2t salt and 1t cumin)
4c Water

Combine all ingredients in your slow cooker. Cover and cook on low all day. Serve with crackers, diced onions, cheese, sour cream, etc.

Spaghetti Pie

1/2c Thrive Tomato Powder
1T Thrive Freeze Dried Onions
1T Thrive Carrot Dices
1T Thrive Freeze Dried Celery
1T Thrive Red & Green Bell Peppers
1/2t Garlic Powder
1T Italian Seasonings
1/2t Thrive White Sugar
2c Hot Water
1/2lb Spaghetti
1c Thrive Freeze Dried Ground Beef, rehydrated
1 Recipe Homemade Ricotta
1 1/2c Shredded Mozzarella Cheese, divided
1/2c Grated Parmesan Cheese, divided

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine tomato powder, onions, carrots, celery, peppers, garlic, Italian seasonings, sugar and water. Stir well. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes or until sauce has thickened.

 Sauce Ingredients

Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions; drain. In a large mixing bowl, combine pasta, rehydrated ground beef, ricotta cheese, 3/4c mozzarella and 1/4c parmesan. Pour into greased pie plate. Top with marinara sauce, remaining 3/4c mozzarella and 1/4c parmesan. Bake uncovered for 25 minutes or until cheese is bubbly. Serve hot with crusty garlic bread.

Lasagna Cupcakes with Homemade Ricotta Cheese

These lasagna "cupcakes" are so pretty and simple to put together!

Lasagna Cupcakes

12 Small Wonton Wrappers
1c Thrive Ground Beef, rehydrated (Thrive Sausage Crumbles would also be good here)
1c Pasta Sauce
1 Recipe Homemade Thrive Ricotta Cheese (recipe below)
1T Italian Seasonings
1c Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
Parmesan Cheese

Preheat your oven to 375 and grease a 12 cup muffin tin. In a small bowl, combine ricotta cheese with Italian seasonings. Set aside. Put one wonton wrapper in each muffin cup. Press the wrapper into the bottom of the cup, allowing the edges to come up and out of the top of the cups.

To each cup, and in the following order, add about half a tablespoon of sauce, ricotta and ground beef. Press a second wrapper over the fillings and repeat the layers. Use your judgement here and add more or less of any of the ingredients depending on your family's preferences. Sprinkle the top of each cup with 1 to 2 tablespoons of shredded mozzarella and a little parmesan cheese.

Bake uncovered at 375 for 20 minutes or until cheese is brown and bubbly. Allow the cupcakes to rest and cool for 10 minutes before removing them from the tins - this will allow the ingredients to firm up and hold their shape.


Why would you make ricotta from scratch when you can just buy it at the store? Because it tastes so good. It is rich and creamy and fat free. And made from Thrive!

Homemade Ricotta
Thanks to Misty for figuring this out!

8c Water
1 1/2c Thrive Instant Milk
3T Vinegar
1/2t Salt

Combine water, milk and salt in a large pot and bring to a boil, stirring frequently to prevent the milk from scalding. As soon as the milk begins to boil, turn the stove off and stir in the vinegar. Stir for one minute, cover and set aside. Your ricotta will be ready in as little as 30 minutes, but it will be tastier if you can give it a full 2 hours. After it rests, strain it through a fine mesh strainer (lined with cheesecloth if you have it). If you prefer a dry ricotta, leave it to drain for up to thirty minutes.
 Store your fresh ricotta in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.

You can expect to see more recipes along this line - I'm thinking taco cups, nacho cups, pizza cups... there are a lot of possibilities here!