Dinner Time Ideas

Chicken and Rice

2012-02-08T14:37:00.000-08:00

This is what it will look like when it is ready to go into the oven.

**This was one of my favorite dinners growing up. I think it is funny that I have been married for 22 years and can't even count on one hand how many times I have made this. I seem to keep forgetting about it. Well, now that I am making it, it is going into the compilation of recipes I am doing, so I will be sure to see it and make it more frequently. I hope your family will enjoy it. **

Chicken and Rice

8x8 recipe

2 chicken breasts cooked and diced up

1 box Chicken and Mushroom Rice A Roni

1 can Cream of Mushroom and Chicken (Yes, it is all mixed together already)

1 1/3 cup water

**Brown the rice mixture in a skillet over medium heat. I don't add the butter to do this. I just spray the pan with some Pam. When the mixture is light brown, pour into an 8x8 baking dish. Sprinkle half the seasoning packet over top of rice. Place the chicken over top of the rice mixture. Sprinkle with remaining seasoning packet. Open the can of soup, and place dollops of the soup evenly over top of the chicken. Slowly pour in the water so that it is evenly distributed through the baking dish.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 35 minutes.

9x13 recipe

4 chicken breasts cooked and diced up

2 boxes Chicken and Mushroom Rice A Roni

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 can cream of mushroom soup

OR you can just do 2 cans of cream of chicken and mushroom soup

2 2/3 cup water

**Brown the rice mixture in a skillet over medium heat. I don't add the butter to do this. I just spray the pan with some Pam. When the mixture is light brown, pour into a 9x13 baking dish. Sprinkle 1 seasoning packet over top of rice. Place the chicken over top of the rice mixture. Sprinkle with the 2nd seasoning packet. Open the cans of soup, and place dollops of the soup evenly over top of the chicken. Slowly pour in the water so that it is evenly distributed through the baking dish.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 35 minutes.

Mom's Pumpkin Dump and Berry Cobbler Dump

2012-02-04T16:03:00.000-08:00

**My Mom always made this and still makes this quite frequently. This recipe follows the ingredients on the back of a Libby's 100% pumpkin 29oz can and then she adds the cake mix to the top.**

Pumpkin Dump

1 29oz can Libby's 100% pumpkin

1 1/2 cups sugar

4 eggs

2-12oz cans evaporated milk

1 tsp salt

3-4 tsp pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon (my mom always uses pumpkin pie spice and never uses cloves like other recipes)

1 box yellow cake mix

1 stick butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9x13 baking dish. In a large bowl, combine the pumpkin, evaporated milk, eggs, sugar and spices. Mix well. Pour into the baking dish. Sprinkle the dry cake mix evenly over top of the pumpkin mixture. Drizzle the melted butter evenly over top. Bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour. Watch closely after about 45 minutes.

Berry or Cherry Cobbler

2 cans Comstock berry pie filling or cherry pie filling

1 box yellow cake mix

1 stick melted butter

Pour both cans of pie filling into a 9x13 baking dish. Sprinkle the box of cake mix evenly over top. Drizzle the melted butter evenly over the top of the cake mix. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes or until golden brown.

Mom's Fried Rice

2012-02-04T15:30:00.001-08:00

**I have such a hard time typing up my moms recipes, because she is such a "dump cook." So, I kind of cook that way too. My measurements are not exact, but they are close.** My mom always made this with the Egg Rolls, or the Sweet n Sour chicken.**

Fried Rice

3 cups cooked rice

1 lb bacon, cooked and crumbled. (Reserve bacon grease in skillet)

4-5 eggs

Lawry's Onion Salt

Peas (optional)

Green onion (optional)

Cook the bacon in a skillet. Set aside on paper towel to drain grease. Crumble bacon after it has cooled off. Set aside.

You may remove some of the bacon grease, but then, over medium-high heat, heat the grease and pan drippings back up. Add the rice to the pan drippings. At this point, if you like peas in your fried rice, add them too. Let it cook until heated through.

My mom then used to move all the rice to the outer edges of the skillet and cook the egg in the middle of the skillet and then incorporate it into the rice after they were fully cooked. I'm not very good at this, as my eggs always stick. So, I just scramble my eggs in a seperate smaller skillet and then add them to the rice mixture. Add the bacon also at this time and the optional green onion. Sprinkle Lawry's onion salt until the taste is how you would like it.

Mom's Egg Rolls

2012-02-04T14:22:00.000-08:00

**Sorry I don't have a finished picture. These are pictures I took a while ago when we were leaving for a party, and I forgot to get a picture of the final product. This is another recipe my mom used to make growing up. I tried baking them one time, and it just didn't seem like the entire wrapper got cooked and the taste was not as good as being fried. If you have any ideas for baking them, please share your ideas and successes. These were something that we all enjoyed growing up, even with all the vegetables in them.**

Egg Rolls

1 pkg egg roll wrappers

4 chicken breasts cut up in small cubes

1 cup diced celery

1 onion diced

1 pkg mushrooms in carton, diced

Soy sauce

Salt n pepper

Olive or canola oil

Dice up each vegetable. In a skillet, saute each vegetable seperately in a small amount of oil. Add about 1/2-1 TB soy sauce, and salt and pepper. After cooking each vegetable for about 3 mintues, place it in a medium sized bowl. Then saute the diced up chicken in oil, soy sauce, salt and pepper until no longer pink. Place the chicken in the bowl with the vegetables also. Stir until all the ingredients are equally mixed in. Add more soy sauce and salt and pepper as desired for taste.

Place about 1/4 cup of mixture on an egg roll wrapper. Fold up sides, and dip your fingers in some milk to help seal up the seams.

Cook in a skillet with about 1/2 cup oil. Fry each side until light brown. Place on a paper towel to drain grease. Serve.

Oreo Truffles

2012-02-04T14:03:00.001-08:00

**My high school aged daughter came home from school the other day wanting to make a treat that she and her friends were discussing during their lunch break. I was proud that she did it all by herself (except buying the ingredients of course). **

Oreo Truffles

1 8oz pkg Philadelphia cream cheese, softened

1 pkg oreo cookies, finely crushed

Milk chocolate chips, melted

White chocolate chips, melted

*Finely crush the Oreo cookies in a baggie with a mallot. In a medium sized bowl add the cookie crumbs and add the softened cream cheese. Mix together very well. Shape into 48 round balls. Dip each ball into the melted chocolate. (You could also refrigerate them or freeze them prior to dipping. She just didn't have time.) Place the dipped truffles on a sheet of wax paper. Place melted white chocolate in baggie. Puncture a small hole at the corner, and drizzle over the top of each truffle. Let sit until chocolate has hardened or place in refrigerator until hardened. Serve.

Spaghetti Squash with Tomatoes, Feta and Basil

2012-02-02T16:01:00.004-08:00

**If you are trying to heat healthier, this was really a good flavorful dish. I am finding that I really like Feta cheese. I've never really used it much in the past, but I have a few recipes that call for it now. You can pair this with some chicken, shrimp or bbq steak of some kind**

Spaghetti Squash with Tomatoes, Feta and Basil

Live Better Health Coach - Facebook

3 cups prepared spaghetti squash

1 TB olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup chopped tomatoes

1/2 cup chopped zucchini

3/4 cup crumbled, reduced fat feta cheese

3 TB sliced black olives (I did not add this)

1 tsp basil

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a baking sheet. Cut your spaghetti squash in half long ways, and place each side face down on sheet. Bake for about 30 minutes or until a sharp knife can be inserted with only a little resistance. Remove squash from oven and set aside to cool enough to be easily handled. Scoop out the seeds, then use a large spoon and scoop out all the stringy cooked squash. Place in a medium sized bowl.

In a skillet, heat oil and saute garlic until browned. Stir in tomatoes, zucchini and olives. Cook until the zucchini and tomatoes are warmed through. Toss squash with the sauteed vegetables, feta cheese and basil. Serve warm.

For Lean and Green:

This recipe has 3 servings. Each serving is 1 complete green, 1 condiment and 1 healthy fat. You will still need to have 3/4 lean such as beef, chicken or shrimp.

***I ended up cutting my chicken in cubes and added it to the spaghetti squash. Yum. Lots of flavor.

Italian Sausage Sandwiches

2012-01-31T17:32:00.001-08:00

**I am trying to get a bunch of recipes from growing up on here, because I want to make a recipe book for some family members. This is a recipe my mom used to make quite often that I really liked. I hope your family will like it too.**

Italian Sausage Sandwiches

Mild or Sweet Italian Sausage links (However many you need for your family)

1/2 jar spaghetti sauce

American, Provolone, or your favorite cheese

French rolls

Place the sausage links in a large saucepan and pour the spaghetti sauce over top. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer. Let cook for about 30 minutes.

Cut open french rolls, and place some spaghetti sauce, then the sausage and then the cheese. You can put more sauce over top if you like.

**For my kids, I cut my sausages in half so they aren't as thick and then lay them on the french bread. (see picture above)

Crock Pot Stuffing Chicken

2012-01-29T14:58:00.001-08:00

**This is very similar to the stuffing casserole that my kids love, it is just cooked differently, and the stuffing gets more moist. They all agreed that while it was a familiar flavor, it was different. They like the crunchiness of the stuffing casserole better, but still enjoyed this meal. This is a very quick and easy meal. My husband said he thinks it would be good with some salsa verde added to it. I found this recipe on Food, Friends and Fun.**

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I put mine in frozen)
1 10 ¾ oz can cream of chicken, mushroom or celery soup
1/3 cup milk
1 package Stove Top stuffing
1 2/3 cup water

Place chicken in crock pot. Mix the soup and milk together and pour over the chicken. Evenly spread the Stove top stuffing mix over top of the soup mixture. Slowly drizzle water over top of stuffing, so you get most of the stuffing wet.

Cook in crock pot on low for about 5-6 hours.

Li'l Cheddar Meatloaves

2012-01-28T12:45:00.000-08:00

**This recipe came from, Food, Friends and Fun. The only thing I did differently was the ketchup on top. Her recipe calls for more ingredients with the ketchup and I just didn't think it was needed, but go check her recipe out. My kids LOVE my own meatloaf recipe that was passed down from my mom, you can find it here, but I found this recipe and thought it was different from mine and that my family would still enjoy it and they did. They said they still like mine the best, but enjoyed this one. :)**

1 lb ground beef

1 egg

1/4 cup milk

1 cup shreddad cheddar cheese

1/2 cup quick cooking oats

1 pkg Lipton onion soup mix

2 cloves garlic

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

a few shakes Worcestershire sauce

Ketchup (for drizzle over top)

Mix all ingredients but the ketchup in a large bowl. Knead with hands until all ingredients are blended in and incorporated. Shape into 4 or more mini meat loaves. Place in a greased 9x13 baking dish. Drizzle ketchup over top. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

Pretzel Crusted Caramel and Chocolate Brownie Cups

2012-01-26T12:57:00.001-08:00

Pretzel Crusted Caramel and Chocolate Brownie

Adapted from: My Favorite Recipes

**Check out her recipe, because she uses a cake mix, has alot more crusted topping which I think would be better and her top is a little different**

1 brownie mix - make as per instructions on box

Pretzel Crumble:

1/4 cup butter, melted

2TB brown sugar

1 cup crushed pretzels

**If I were doing this again, I would for sure double this part

Caramel:

1/3 bag of caramels

milk as needed for consistency

In a large bowl, make the cake mix as instructed on box. Scoop batter 2/3 full into muffin tin. In a seperate bowl, mix together the ingredients for the pretzel crumble. Scoop evenly on top of the brownie mixture. (The runny part is good. It gets crusty as it cooks.) Pat down lightly. Bake at 350 degrees for about 12 minutes. Meanwhile melt caramel and milk until creamy and soft. Immediately after taking the cups out of the oven, drizzle caramel over top. Let cool. Take out of pan and serve.

(I took the cups out of the pan right away before I drizzled the caramel, but it was very difficult to get them out. If I did it again, I would take a sharp knife and loosen the edges of each one, then let them sit for a little bit, probably at least 15 minutes, then try to take them out. At that point, I would then drizzle the caramel over top.)

This recipe should make 36 if you use a mini muffin pan. When I mad this, I made 24 mini cups, and with the extra, I made 6 in a regular muffin pan for my family.

Cheeseburger Soup

2012-01-25T09:57:00.000-08:00

**This recipe comes from my friend Jennifer who posted it in our church cookbook. The only difference I did was that I don't make a white sauce with the butter, flour and milk. I omit the butter, and just blend milk and flour together. It is still delicious. It tastes alot like potato cheese soup, but with meat and some added flavor from the basil and parsley.**

½ lb ground beef

1TB butter

¾ cup shredded carrots or sliced carrots

¼ cup chopped onion

¾ cup diced celery

1 tsp dried parsley flakes

1 tsp dried basil

2 cans chicken broth

4 cups diced and peeled potatoes

¼ cup flour

½ tsp pepper

¼ tsp salt

2 cups milk

8oz Velveeta cheese – cubed

In a 3qt stock pan, brown ground beef. Drain fat, and remove meat from pan. Set aside.

In the same pan, melt the butter, and sauté the carrots, onion, and celery, basil and parsley for 5-10 minutes. Add broth, potatoes and beef. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for about 10 minutes until potatoes are tender.

In a blender mix the flour, salt, pepper and milk together. Blend until smooth.

Return the heat on the stove to high, and pour this mixture into the vegetable mixture. Stir until thickened. Add cheese cubes. Let it sit for about 10 minutes or until cheese is completely melted. Stir and then serve.

Snicker Apple Salad

2012-01-25T09:12:00.000-08:00

**This is my SECOND most requested salad, next to the Potato salad. This is so yummy and a total kid pleaser! It also deserved it's own post. :)**

Apple Snicker Salad
**This salad disappears QUICKLY at all functions**
3 Apples. I usually use a mix of golden and red
3-4 snickers candy bars
1/2 - 1 stick cream cheese
1/2 cup - 1 cup powdered sugar
1 8oz cool whip

Cut up apples in to small cubes.

Cut up Candybar into small cubes (I usually do 4 long slices down the length of the candybar and then cut small cubes going the opposite way). Then place the apple and snickers a medium - large sized bowl ***LATELY, I HAVE JUST BEEN FREEZING MY CANDYBARS, AND THEN PLACE THEM IN A BAGGIE AND HIT THEM WITH A MALLOT. SO MUCH EASIER THAN CUTTING!***

Blend the cream cheese and powdered sugar together. Fold in the cool whip. Pour this into the bowl with the apples and the snickers. Stir until well blended.

Chill in fridge until ready to serve.

Potato Salad

2012-01-25T09:01:00.000-08:00

**This is one of my most asked for recipes. It is already on this blog in a post for 4th of July salads, I believe, but it is so good that it deserved it's own post. All my friends and family ask for me to bring this to parties. My mom has made this salad since I was young and it is the ONLY potato salad that I will ever eat. All the others have some kind of bitter flavor that isn't enjoyable to me.**

Potato Salad
You could always add celery and/or onion if you want too
3 medium to large Russet Potatoes (I like to use red potatoes and just keep the skin on them, but you have to use more potatoes because they are smaller)
1 dozen eggs
2 single packets, or 1 side of the double packet "Buttermilk Recipe" ranch packets
(MUST BE PACKET THAT SAYS BUTTERMILK RECIPE)
1-2 cups Mayonaise

Boil the potatoes until cooked through. Cook the eggs until hard boiled. Cut the potatoes and eggs in to cubes. Place in a large bowl. Sprinkle Ranch packet dressing on to the potatoes and eggs. Stir well. Now add mayonaise until the desired consistency.

Chocolate Molten Lava Cake

2012-01-22T14:07:00.001-08:00

**This is my sister in law Amanda's favorite dessert from Chili's restaurant. I have been wanting to make it for her, but have always thought it would be too hard or time consuming. I found this recipe on The Pioneer Woman and it tastes just like it came from the restaurant! It is also SO SO SO SIMPLE to make. I can't believe I was kind of afraid to make it before today.**

4 oz "Bakers" semi sweet baking chocolate

1/2 cup butter

1 cup powdered sugar

2 eggs

2 egg yolks

6 TB flour

(Serves 4)

6oz "Bakers" semi sweet baking chocolate

3/4 cup butter

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

3 eggs

3 egg yolks

9 TB flour

(Serves 6)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Spray Ramekin or custard dishes with no stick spray really well. Place them on a cookie sheet.

Melt the chocolate and butter in a large glass dish. Whisk until mixture is melted and smooth.

Add powdered sugar. Mix well. Add eggs and egg yolks. Whisk together until completely blended. Stir in flour.

Divide evenly among the ramekin or custard dishes.

Bake at 425 degrees. Bake 13-15 minute.

Invert cakes onto a plate by placing plate over ramekin and then inverting onto the plate.

Top with whipped cream or ice cream. If you are using ice cream, squirt some "chocolate hard shell" over top.

Easy Chicken

2012-01-19T17:28:00.000-08:00

**My mom used to make a dish called Easy Chicken growing up. When I got the recipe from her, I could never seem to make it right. It never turned out. You would sprinkle the onion soup mix in the bottom of your baking dish, pour the uncooked rice over that, then lay the chicken breasts on top. Then you would pour chicken broth over the top and bake. For some reason, my chicken was always dry and my rice was always mushy. So, I was pretty happy when I found this recipe on Foods, Friends and fun blog. This was a much simpler way of achieving the same flavors, but with moist chicken and non-mushy rice. **

**I used 4 frozen chicken breasts and halfed this recipe. We served it over brown rice.**

Easy Chicken

Chicken Breasts or thighs

2 cans cream of mushroom soup

1 pkg Lipton onion soup mix

Lay your chicken breasts on bottom of your crock pot. Pour canned soup over top of chicken and sprinkle the onion soup mix over top. Cover and let cook in your crock pot on low 4 hours. (Times may vary depending on your crock pot)

Serve over rice or noodles.

**If you want to make this and you don't have a crock pot or you don't have 4 hours, just combine all your ingredients in a large saucepan or stock pot pan. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to a simmer. Let it simmer until the chicken is cooked through. It will probably be close to an hour to be finished.**

White Taco Casserole

2012-01-18T14:06:00.001-08:00

**This is a recipe that my husbands Grandmother used to make. I didn't know about it until my sister-in-law introduced it to us after we went over there one night around dinner time. It is very simple to make, especially for those with busy households.**

(I made 1/2 this recipe in a 1.5 quart round baking dish. It easily served 4+)

White Taco Casserole

1 lb ground beef

1 4oz can green chiles

2 10oz cans cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup

2 cups milk

1 bag Fritos (my sister in law likes to use the Frito Scoops)

3-4 cups grated cheddar cheese

Brown ground beef in a skillet. Drain and set aside. Mix cans of soup with milk and chiles.

In a round, deep dish casserole dish or in a 9x13 layer half of the meat, soup, fritos and cheese. Repeat layers one more time. Cover with foil.

Bake 350 degrees for 30 minutes COVERED, then remove foil and bake another 5-10 minutes.

Creamy Ranch Chicken

2012-01-12T15:47:00.000-08:00

**This is one of those super easy family meals. My family really enjoyed this. This recipe is all over the internet as RANCH HOUSE PORK CHOPS, but I didn't have pork chops, and I don't know what Ranch House means, so I am calling it Creamy Ranch Chicken. As I was online this morning, I got the idea from Chef In Training. Check out her page. She has some yummy looking stuff.**

Creamy Ranch Chicken

4 Chicken breasts (Mine were 5oz each)

1 10oz can Cream of Chicken soup (I would think cream of mushroom would work too)

1 packet of Hidden Valley Ranch dressing

Mix together soup and ranch packet. Lay Chicken in a crock pot and pour soup over top. Cook on low for about 4 hours.

***I did not make this in the crock pot. I put the chicken in a covered saucepan, poured the soup mix over the top, put it on the stove and heated until it started to bubble. I turned the chicken over, and then turned the burner to simmer. It simmered for about 30 minutes.***

Parmesan Garlic Potatoes

I served this over instant potatoes. I added 1 tsp minced garlic and about 1/4 cup parmesan cheese at the same time I added the potato flakes to the water mixture. You could always do homemade potatoes and then add the garlic and parmesan. Yum.

Roasted Bone-in Chicken Breasts

2011-12-02T08:30:00.001-08:00

I originally thought of is as a post under the "good idea" category, but it can also make a delicious dinner idea so that's a double-duty post for you!

I've posted before about prepping chicken & freezing it until you're ready to use it. It saves time all around, for sure.

But recently, I've found it's more cost-effective and MUCH easier to buy the bone-in-breasts and roast them. After they cool, I cube & shred & freeze some delicious chicken. The chicken tastes so much better when it's roasted first!

So before the holiday season gets TOO busy for you, find a sale (bone-in breasts were on sale for $1.00/pound here recently), roast & prep some chicken for your freezer.

You'll be ready for those busy-busy holiday nights and you'll have chicken all ready to bring a yummy dinner to a holiday party too!

Double-bonus: These are great straight out of the oven, paired with a salad & some cornbread, for example - they're a perfect, quick dinner. AND/OR - allow chicken breasts to cool, place in Tupperware & save for a quick lunch the next day.

Enjoy!

Roasted Bone-in Chicken Breasts

Bone-in chicken breasts
Olive oil
Salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 375*F.

Line baking pan(s) - not a cookie sheet! - with heavy duty foil, if desired. (It makes clean-up a breeze!)

Trim excess fat and skin from chicken breasts. (I bake mine skinless, but it's up to you.)

Place chicken breasts about 2" apart in the baking pan. Rub chicken breasts with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt & pepper.

Bake 35-40 minutes, or until cooked through.

Serve, if making dinner.

OR - Set aside until cool enough to handle, if you'll be shredding or cubing.

After chicken breasts have cooled a bit, remove meat from the bones (you can use the bones to make a delicious homemade chicken broth!). Shred/cube chicken.

Place in freezer bag(s) in desired quantities.

Freeze for up to 3 months.

NOTE: 6 bone-in chicken breasts will give you 4-6 cups of cubed chicken.

Scones - Starbucks' Pumpkin and Chocolate Chip

2011-11-11T15:39:00.001-08:00

We're deep into hot cocoa weather here in Utah and there's nothing better with a cup of hot cocoa than a scone. Yummm!!!

The Starbucks' Pumpkin Scone recipe came from recipegirl.com, the Chocolate Chip Scone recipe was adapted by me from a few recipes I had in my recipe book. They're both amazing!

The Starbucks' Pumpkin Scone tastes just like the ones they carry at my local Starbucks, but they don't cost $4 and they're fresh from your oven. Awesome.

They only take about 10 minutes to make and about 10-15 to bake and you'll have a plate full of deliciousness - ENJOY!!

Starbucks' Pumpkin Scones
Makes 12 scones

For the scones:
2 cups all-purpose flour
7 Tblsp granulated sugar
1 Tblsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground ginger
6 Tblsp cold butter - must be COLD, not room temp
1/2 cup canned pumpkin - 100% pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling
3 Tblsp half-and-half (or 2 Tblsp heavy whipping cream + 1 Tblsp milk)
1 large egg

For the powdered sugar glaze:
1 cup + 1 Tblsp powdered sugar
2 Tblsp milk

For the spiced glaze:
1 cup + 3 Tblsp powdered sugar
2 T milk
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
Pinch of ground ginger
Pinch of ground cloves

Preheat oven to 425*F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves & ginger in a large bowl. Use a fork (I used a whisk & a pastry cutter) to cut the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture is crumbly and no chunks of butter are obvious; set aside.

** This process is not immediate. Be patient & thorough. It's totally worth it! **

In a separate bowl, whisk together the pumpkin, half-and-half, and egg until thoroughly mixed. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients, and form the dough into a ball.

Pat out dough onto a lightly floured surface and form it into a 1-inch thick rectangle, about 3 times as long as it is wide. Use a large knife or a pizza cutter to slice the dough twice through the width, making 3 equal portions.

Cut each of the portions in an X pattern (into 4 pieces) so you end up with a total of 2 triangular pieces of dough. Place on prepared baking sheet.

Bake for 14-16 minutes, or until light brown. Remove from baking sheet to a wire rack to cool.

Mix the powdered sugar and milk together until smooth to make plain powdered sugar glaze. When scones are cool, use a brush to spread plain glaze over the top of each scone.

While powdered sugar glaze is firming on scones, combine all the ingredients for the spiced glaze. Drizzle spiced glaze over each scone. Allow icing to dry before serving (about an hour).

Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Scones

Makes 8 scones

2 cups Bisquick - I used the Heart Healthy style

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1/3 cup heavy whipping cream + about 2 Tblsp more for brushing on scones

3 Tblsp granulated sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

Additional or decorative sugar

Preheat oven to 425*F. Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray. (I lined mine with foil first).

Stir Bisquick mix, chocolate chips, 1/3 cup whipping cream, 3 Tblsp sugar, the egg & vanilla in a medium bowl until soft dough forms. (I needed an additional teaspoon of whipping cream so my dough would stick together. You do not want this dough wet though. It is very dry & crumbly.)

Pat dough into 8-inch circle on cookie sheet. (If dough is sticky, dip fingers in Bisquick mix.) Brush circle with additional whipping cream; sprinkle with additional or decorative sugar.

Cut into 8 wedges with a long knife or pizza cutter, but do not separate.

Bake about 12 minutes or until golden brown. Carefully separate scones. If possible, serve warm.

EVEN EASIER:

Make it even easier by making drop scones. Heat oven to 400*F. Drop dough into 8 mounds onto greased cookie sheet; pat slightly to flatten. Bake 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. If making the pumpkin scones, brush & drizzle glazes after scones have cooled on a wire rack.

Meat Lasagne

2011-11-09T17:02:00.000-08:00

**This is a great recipe with the taste of Lasagne, but without all the added calories. It also does not have any pasta so it is low carb. This came from Sandy at Light Recipes.**

Meat Lasagne

Ingredients:

1 lb ground turkey or beef

1 can Italian flavored diced tomatoes

¼ tsp garlic powder

1/8 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

Cheese filling:

½ cup Part Skim reduced fat Ricotta Cheese

1 ½ cups Mozarella cheese – DIVIDED

3 TB parmesan cheese

2 TB Egg beaters

¼ tsp garlic powder

1 tsp Italian seasoning

1/8 tsp pepper

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brown ground turkey or beef in a skillet. Add the tomatoes and seasonings. Simmer for 2 minutes. Pour into an 8x8 baking dish.

In a separate bowl, add all the ingredients for the the cheese filling. (only use ¾ cup mozzarella cheese at this point) Stir well and spread over the meat mixture. Now sprinkle remaining mozzarella cheese over top.

Bake for 35 minutes until the top becomes bubbly.

Serves 4

Low Carb Pizza - Cauliflower Pizza

2011-11-09T16:39:00.000-08:00

**This is a recipe where if you are really wanting pizza, but are watching your weight, it will fill that craving without the guilt!!! It DOES stick though even with spray, so I started using the no stick foil which has helped, a silpat may work, or parchment paper also. **

Cauliflower Pizza

Crust:

1 cup raw cauliflower grated or just chopped up smaller

1/4 cup egg beaters

1/4 cup reduced fat cheddar cheese or mexican cheese blend

1/8 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp basil

Topping:

1/4 cup low carb pizza sauce or pureed diced tomatoes (I just use pizza sauce)

1/4 cup mozarella cheese

1/4 cup lean italian turkey sausage, turkey pepperoni, vegetarian sausage crumbles

1/4 cup chopped up peppers, mushrooms etc..

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place non stick foil on cookie sheet. Combine cauliflower, egg beaters, cheese, garlic powder and basil into a blender. Blend until smooth. If you grate the cauliflower, you could just mix this well instead. Pour onto the foil and create a circle crust. The thinner the mixture the less chance of it being soggy. Bake for 30 minutes. Carefully flip the pizza crust over. (remember that it does stick so be careful while loosening it from the foil). Bake an additional 15 minutes.

Remove from oven and place all ingredients on top of pizza. Place back in the oven for about 10-15 minutes.

Makes 1 pizza

Healthy Versions of Chili

2011-11-09T16:34:00.001-08:00

**Here are 3 recipes of different versions of Chili for those that are watching their weight or want some lower sodium recipes. Each of them are recipes that I really like**

Turkey Chili

1 lb ground turkey

2 cups water

2 packets HERBOX sodium free Chicken bouillon

5 fresh tomatoes diced up (I use 2 cans no salt added diced tomatoes)

5 green onions diced

1 garlic clove

½ TB chili powder

½ tsp cumin

½ tsp paprika

½ tsp mortons lite salt

½ tsp pepper

Brown turkey bresast in a large skillet. Add to a large saucepan with remaining ingredients. Stir to combine all ingredients. Bring chili to a boil and then simmer over medium heat for 30-45 minutes. (If you use canned tomatoes, you don’t need to simmer as long)

Serves 3-4

Chili

1 lb ground beef

5 green onions diced

1 garlic clove

1 TB chili powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp oregano

dash of red pepper flakes

2 cans no salt added diced tomatoes

3 cups water

3 packets HERBOX sodium free Beef bouillon

Brown Ground beef in a large skillet. Add to a large saucepan with remaining ingredients. Stir to combine all ingredients. Bring to a boil and then simmer over medium heat for 20 minutes.

Serves 4

Mexican Chili

1 lb lean ground turkey or beef

¼ cup and ½ cup reduced fat Mexican blend cheese

1 cans diced tomatoes with green chiles

6 tsp low sodium taco seasoning

3 wedges Laughing Cow Queso Fresco and Chipotle Light cheese

Brown ground beef in a skillet. Add to a medium saucepan. Add ¼ cup Mexican cheese, diced tomatoes, taco seasoning and 3 wedges of cheese. Stir and heat to boiling. Serve with remaining cheese sprinkled over top.

Classic Mac-n-Cheese

2011-10-26T09:08:00.000-07:00

Creamy, cheesy, comforting - SO delicious! Our family loves mac-n-cheese. :)

I've posted a few recipes before, but this one was the cheesiest & yummiest (according to my family). It will be out go-to mac-n-cheese from now on.

This is not a low-cal recipe! But every once-in-awhile, it's nice to just load up on some cheesy-ness, right?

We really enjoyed the chicken & apple sausages I served with this mac-n-cheese!! Their low-cal, no trans fat, stats almost made up for the carb overload that is mac-n-cheese. LOL!

Go to the end of the post if you want to see what kind we had.

Enjoy!

Classic Mac-n-Cheese
Makes 1 2-quart serving dish - should serve about 8 people

Prep: 10 mins Cook time: 25 mins

1 box (1 lb) elbow macaroni (or penne)
1 1/4 lb shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
3 Tblsp butter
3 Tblsp all-purpose flour
2 cups milk (you can use evaporated or powdered, reconstituted to equal 2 cups)
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper or paprika, if you don't like it spicy

Optional breadcrumb topping:
2 Tblsp butter
1/2 cup plain breadcrumbs

Preheat oven to 350*F. Coat an oven-safe baking dish with nonstick cooking spray & set aside.

Cook macaroni according to package directions, drain & set aside.

In a large bowl, toss together cheddar and Parmesan. Set aside.

In a large pot (I used a dutch oven), melt butter over medium heat.

Whisk in flour, onion powder, salt & cayenne or paprika until smooth and bubbly.

In a thin, constant stream, whisk in milk until smooth.

Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring often or constantly, if possible.

Reduce heat & simmer 3 minutes.

Remove from heat; whisk in 2 1/2 cups of the cheese mixture. (This will be hard to whisk at first, but dig in & whisk hard until it's smooth & all the cheese is melted in.)

Dump cooked macaroni into the cheese sauce; stir until well combined.

Spoon half of the cheesy macaroni into prepared baking dish.

Sprinkle with a generous cup of the cheddar/Parmesan cheeses.

Spoon remaining cheesy macaroni into the baking dish (over the top of the cheese).

Sprinkle with remaining shredded cheese.

The next step is optional:

In a medium skillet, melt 2 Tblsp of butter with 1/2 cup breadcrumbs.

Cook & stir until butter is melted & breadcrumbs just begin to turn golden brown.

Sprinkle cooked breadcrumbs over the top of the mac-n-cheese is the baking dish.

Bake for 20 minutes at 350*F.

Remove from oven & serve hot! Enjoy!

NOTE:
If you didn't use the breadcrumbs & you'd like the top of your mac-n-cheese to be lightly browned, put the baking dish under the broiler for 2-3 minutes before serving.

YUMMMMM!!!

We served this mac-n-cheese with chicken & apple sausage and a side of steamed broccoli.

The sausage we used was:

I bought it with a Buy-1-Get-1-Free coupon, but they're regularly about $3.75/pkg at my grocery store.

I've been wanting to try them because they're chicken (not pork, which I can't eat), they have no trans fats, and the apple sounded yummy.

The had a terrific snap as we cut through them and they were SO juicy! The apple could've been stronger, in my opinion, but my family had no complaints. Just "yum" noises all around the table. :)

I cooked them on a grill pan on my stovetop. You can microwave them or cook them in a skillet with a bit of water, but the grill sounded yummiest to me.

I'm getting no compensation from Johnsonville for this post - just wanted to share something we'd tried and loved.

Spiced Pumpkin Sippers

2011-10-17T08:45:00.000-07:00

The chill of Fall is creeping into the air these days & warm, cozy foods are on our menu. Our treats are changing too - from Summer's cool treats to the belly-warming treats of Fall. It's one of my favorite times of year!

I found this treat on The Farm Chicks' blog. I made it this weekend and it's going to be a struggle not to make it every single day! SO yummy!!

A nice change from traditional hot chocolate & so perfect for Fall!!

Enjoy!

The Farm Chicks' Spiced Pumpkin Sippers

Serves 4-6

4 cups whole milk

1 cup canned pumpkin puree

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

Add all ingredients to a saucepan & whisk together thoroughly.

Whisk occasionally, over medium heat, until hot.

Ladle into mugs. Top with softly whipped cream & sprinkle with nutmeg. Serve hot.

Notes & Tips:

If you prefer a less-sweet drink, you can reduce the sugar by half.

These sippers are a great drink to serve to guests. To ease the work at party time, prepare the recipe in advance and refrigerate until ready to use.

Keep a crockpot full of the mixture to serve warm throughout your gathering.

Or, drink it one cupful at a time, simply reheating in the microwave.

My Big Skinny Greek Turkey Burger

2011-10-12T18:22:00.000-07:00

**This recipe came Sandy's Kitchen. We really enjoyed these and thought they had great flavor, especially for being on the healthy side. The BUMMER is as I am typing this up I realized I FORGOT to add the Feta cheese!!!! Oh, that would have made it so much better than it already was. But the fact that it was great without it, is really good news too.**

My Big Skinny Greek Turkey Burger

1 lb LEAN ground turkey (I used 93%)

1/4 cup reduced fat Feta cheese

1 heaping tsp oregano

1/2 heaping tsp salt

1/2 - 3/4 cup chopped red pepper

1/2 - 3/4 cup chopped fresh spinach leaves

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and and mix together well. Form into 4 patties. You can grill these inside or outside.

If you are doing the Medifast program:

7oz lean ground turkey

1 oz feta cheese

1/2 tsp oregano

1/4 tsp salt (I've been subbing garlic powder for the salt)

1/4 cup chopped red pepper

1/4 cup chopped fresh spinach leaves

1 lean, 3/4 of 1 green, and 3 condiments

Enjoy!

Mac-n-Cheese Muffins

2011-10-12T09:03:00.000-07:00

Aren't these cute?!? I love the idea of having this cute little side dish on my family's plates. :) Plus, perfect portion control!

I found the idea for these on Betty Crocker's website (link here) but I didn't like their actual recipe. So I decided to post the technique & let you use your own Mac-n-Cheese recipe. Even a box of Kraft Mac-n-Cheese would be fun for this recipe!

A couple of notes:
The meat is not necessary for this recipe. You can omit it altogether, or change it to something else. Ideas: chicken, Italian sausage, ham or crumbled bacon, kidney beans, or veggies (like broccoli).

If you're cooking this as a meal, I'd definitely add something to it. As a side dish, it's fine all by itself.

I was thinking you could cook most pasta recipes this way... Might be fun to put down a couple of these muffins using a marinara-based dish (like baked ziti?) and a big salad plus garlic bread for dinner!

I also think they would be a cute appetizer or snack!

Get creative & enjoy!

Mac-n-Cheese Muffins
adapted from Cooking With Sugar's recipe on BettyCrocker.com

Your favorite recipe for Mac-n-Cheese (here's mine)
1 cup (4 oz) finely shredded cheese
(pick a cheese that reflects the flavors in your mac-n-cheese recipe - Cheddar,
Monterey Jack or Pepper Jack for basic mac-n-cheese, Italian cheese for Italian
mac-n-cheese, etc)
1/2 cup Italian-style panko crispy bread crumbs

If adding meat: 1/2 lb ground meat/sausage

Heat oven to 350*F. Spray 12 regular-sized muffin cups with cooking spray; set aside.

Prepare your favorite Mac-n-Cheese recipe.

If using ground meat, brown it thoroughly & drain, if necessary.

Fill each muffin cup with Mac-n-Cheese. If using them, sprinkle add-ins (like meat, beans, veggies) over the top.

Sprinkle bread crumbs & shredded cheese over top.

Cover pan loosely with foil, making sure foil does not touch cheese. Bake 15 minutes.

Remove foil; continue baking for 5 minutes more to brown mac-n-cheese muffin tops.

Remove from oven. Cool at least 10 minutes before removing muffins from pan.

Recipe note on BettyCrocker.com:
Muffins will still be wet when first removed from the oven. But once they cool, they are easy to remove from the pan with a small metal spatula.

Chocolate Caramel Cookies

2011-10-08T09:00:00.001-07:00

I posted about cake mix cookies a couple of months ago - love 'em! They're easy & super yummy. This recipe puts a new twist on the cake mix cookie. There's a hidden surprise inside!

These are baked with a Rolo candy hidden inside - YUM!!

They were easy to make, delicious to eat, and perfect for a cold & blustery Fall day.

Enjoy!

Chocolate Caramel Cookies

1 box devil's food cake mix
1/4 cup water
1 egg
3 Tblsp vegetable oil
3 Tblsp all-purpose flourRolo candies
Chopped nuts (hazelnuts, walnuts, pecans - pick your favorite)
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350*F.

Combine cake mix, water, egg, oil & all-purpose flour in a large bowl. Stir until well-combined.

Spray hand lightly with cooking spray. Roll rounded teaspoonfuls of dough into balls.

Press a Rolo candy into the dough ball...

... then re-shape the ball to completely cover the Rolo candy.

(You may need a smidge more dough to completely cover the Rolo)

Dip tops of dough balls into chopped nuts.

Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets.

Bake at 350*F for 8-10 minutes (mine took about 12 mins) or until tops are cracked.

Cool for 2 minutes before removing from baking sheets to wire racks.

Store in an airtight container.

YUMMM!!!

I wondered if this would work with different combo's - chocolate cake mix with Reese's peanut butter cups, maybe? Yellow cake mix with Hershey's kisses? Pumpkin cake mix with Hershey's Hugs (white & milk chocolate)?

If you try another combo & it works, let me know!

Balsamic Tri-Tip Roast in the Crock Pot

2011-10-05T12:34:00.001-07:00

If you like balsamic vinegar, you'll LOVE this roast! If you don't like it, stop reading now.

This roast, for those who like balsamic vinegar, is amazing. Fall-apart, mouth-watering amazing! And SO easy!

Just a few ingredients & about 5 minutes in the morning for a delicious dinner that night. Especially satisfying now that the cooler days of Fall are here.

FYI - Balsamic vinegar is the dark vinegar they bring you to add to your olive oil for dipping bread at nicer Italian restaurants, in case you're not sure what it is. It has a strong, tangy, rich flavor. It's a flavor you either love or hate, so be sure you like it before making this dinner. It's easy to find at any grocery store. Don't spend the money for the super expensive brands since it's cooking all day in the crock pot, the store brands work just as well.

We serve this with mashed potatoes, gravy & usually green beans and corn on the side. DELISH!!

Balsamic Tri-Tip Roast in the Crock Pot

3 lbs tri-tip roast (You can buy 1 big roast or 2 smaller ones for this recipe. Watch for tri-tip on sale since it can be expensive, keep it in the freezer & take it out for this recipe.)
1 8-oz bottle balsamic vinegar
2 Tblsp minced garlic
Spices: salt, pepper, sage, rosemary, thyme, parsley

Turn crock pot on LOW.

Sprinkle minced garlic on the bottom of the crock pot. Place the lid on top to keep the heat in.

Sear tri-tip on all sides in a very hot pan. Use tongs to hold the roast upright to be sure you get all sides well-browned.

Use tongs to move browned tri-tip from the skillet to the crock pot. Try to lay the roast mostly flat, but don't push it down.

Sprinkle roast with spices - don't overload it, just a light covering (see below).

Pour balsamic vinegar into the crock pot. Don't pour it over the top of the roast or you'll wash away all the spices. Just pour it along the sides, into the bottom.

Replace lid & cook on LOW for at least 8 hours. (10 hours is best, but 8 is great too)

About 30 minutes before serving, use tongs to turn the roast in the crock pot. This will allow the vinegar to get into all sides of the roast. Replace lid & prepare side dishes.

To serve, remove from crock pot with tongs. (The roast will usually just fall apart. Sometimes, it holds its shape.) If necessary, move roast to a cutting board & cut into slices.

Serve with your favorite sides.

We like mashed potatoes & gravy, baked potatoes, or rice pilaf with this roast. Veggies on the sides are yummy too.

Enjoy!

Sausage Gravy over Biscuits

2011-09-29T08:07:00.001-07:00

This meal is one of my family's favorites, but I should admit that it's not one of MY favorites. But at 5-to-1, that means we have this at least once a month. Happy family = happy life, right?

Usually this recipe is called "S.O.S" and served over white toast. I decided to fancy it up a bit & serve it over fresh biscuits.

I make the gravy from scratch, but you can buy powdered mixes if you want REALLY fast & easy. Look for mixes called "Country Gravy" to get the same flavors. You can also use pre-made biscuits or a pre-made dough (like Pillsbury) for the biscuits.

Sausage Gravy over Biscuits
Serves 6

12 freshly made biscuits (use your favorite recipe)
8 Tbsp butter or margarine
8 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 - 1 tsp pepper
4 cups milk
16 ozs cooked breakfast sausage (not maple flavored)

Start biscuits baking & sausage browning before you start making the gravy.

Gravy:
In a medium saucepan, melt butter over low heat.

In a separate bowl, stir together flour, salt & pepper. When butter is melted, stir in flour/salt/pepper mixture all at once. Cook over low heat, stirring/whisking mixture until smooth & bubbly.

Stir in milk & heat to boiling; stirring/whisking until smooth & thickened.

Pour cooked sausage onto a paper towel-lined plate to soak up excess grease. Dump cooked sausage into finished gravy.

Stir to combine.

Serve sausage gravy over freshly cooked biscuits.

We always pair this with some fruit to balance out the richness of the gravy.

Enjoy!

Italian Ground Beef Squash Casserole

2011-09-26T19:57:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I forgot to take a picture of this before we cut into it, so this is the best you get. :)

This recipe came from Facebook - Live Better Health Coach This is a recipe that is a lean and green meal with Medifast. We really liked it. It had alot of flavor and is healthy.

Italian Ground Beef Squash Casserole

Recipe says serves 2 if you are following the Lean and Green program

5oz cooked 93% lean ground beef (could also use ground turkey)

2/3 cup reduced fat mozarella cheese

1/2 cup 1% cottage cheese (I only had non fat so I used that)

1/2 cup tomato puree. (I pureed a can of diced tomatoes with green chiles and used 1/2 cup of that and froze the rest)

1 cup sliced zucchini

1 cup sliced yellow squash

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp basil

1/2 tsp oregano

2 tsp reduced fat parmesan cheese

Prheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray casserole dish with pam and set aside. Combine tomato puree, garlic powder, salt, basil, and oregano until well blended. Brown ground beef and measure out 5oz of ground beef. Add to tomato mixture and stir until blended together. Layer the sliced zucchini and squash in the bottom of a 8x8 casserole dish. Pour ground beef mixture over vegetables. Spread the cottage cheese over meat mixture. Top with mozarella cheese and then sprinkle parmesan cheese over that. Bake for 25 minutes.

Chocolate Chip Cookie & Brownie Pie

2011-09-26T12:10:00.001-07:00

We had a 10 for $10 sale recently on those pouch cookie mixes & brownie mixes for 8x8" pans. I couldn't turn down the great deal (plus coupons, of course), but now I have 20 of these mixes...

I didn't want to use them for the same old thing, so I got creative! And it was a great success!! :)

This was delicious still warm from the oven, topped with vanilla ice cream & chocolate or chocolate syrup. I think it would be delicious plain too!

Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Cookie & Brownie Pie

Makes 1 9" pie

1 pouch chocolate chip cookie mix, prepare dough according to package directions

1 box brownie mix for 8x8" pans, prepare batter according to package directions

* Preheat oven to 350*F. Lightly butter (or use cooking spray) 9" pie pan.

* Spread brownie mix in bottom of pie pan.

* Drop cookie dough by mounded spoonfuls on top of the brownie batter. (see picture below)

* Bake for 28-30 minutes.

* Serve & enjoy!

Here's a picture of the finished product. We enjoyed this for my daughter's pre-birthday dinner with her grandparents.

Pasta & Veg Italian Casserole

2011-09-21T12:08:00.001-07:00

I found the inspiration for this recipe in the booklet that came with our microwave. I know - weird. I wasn't sold on microwaving it & wanted to change some things so I experimented. It turned out great!

This recipe is a good one for using up those half-boxes of pasta & the leftover veggies in your fridge. It's a great way to disguise leftovers. :) Plus it's cheesy-good!

Enjoy!

Pasta & Veg Italian Casserole

16-ozs pasta, cooked until tender (I had a half-box each of rotini & penne - use whatever you have on-hand)

2 cups each of two veggies, cooked - 4 cups total (I used peas & broccoli since that's what I had in my fridge)

3 cups marinara sauce

1 cup mozzarella cheese, divided

Preheat oven to 375*F.

Stir cooked pasta, leftover veggies, marinara sauce & 1/2 cup mozzarella together in a large bowl.

Pour into a 9x13" baking dish.

Top with remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella.

Bake for 20-30 mins, until heated through & cheese is melted on top.

We served this without any sides - it has everything all in one!

NOTE:

You can add meat to this recipe easily. Browned ground turkey or beef or Italian sausage would be good (browned with Italian seasonings would be great). I think leftover cooked chicken would be great too.

Beans would be a great addition if you wanted a more filling meal & still wanted it to be vegetarian. Kidney or cannellini beans would be great. Chickpeas (garbanzo beans) would be yummy too.

Polska Mac-n-Cheese Casserole

2011-09-19T14:17:00.000-07:00

I found this recipe in a Halloween-themed ad for Hillshire Farms products a few years ago. They called it "Spook-tacular" Smoked Casserole. It was similar to a from-scratch mac-n-cheese with polska recipe I've posted before, but this one uses fewer ingredients & bakes up without much prep. Hmmm... Sounds good to me!

I had all the ingredients on-hand, but could think of modifications too. Like substituting broccoli or green beans for the peas. Or substituting a different pasta, one you have on-hand. Or substituting fat-free products for the cream of mushroom soup, the milk & the cheddar. Or even substituting cream of something for the cream of mushroom... I'm sure you can think of a few too.

The real taste-kick though is one that you shouldn't substitute - the lightly browned polska kielbasa! It's YUMMY! Brings such a great smoky flavor to the mac-n-cheese. It's definitely one part you don't want to leave out.

So whether you bake this up at Halloween-time ("spook-tacular"!) or any old night you want a warm & cozy meal, it's a winner. My family declared it "A KEEP!"

Polska Mac-n-Cheese Casserole
adapted slightly from Hillshire Farms

Prep time: 10 mins
Bake time: 45 mins
Serves: 6

1 16-oz pkg turkey polska kielbasa (original recipe calls for smoked sausage)
1 10.75-oz can fat-free cream of mushroom soup
2 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups or 8-oz uncooked penne pasta
1 1/2 cups french-fried onions, divided
1 cup or 4-oz shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup frozen peas

Preheat oven to 375*F. Cut polska kielbasa into 1/4-inch slices.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add polska; cook & stir for 3-4 minutes or until lightly browned.

Combine soup & milk in a 9x13" baking dish. Stir in uncooked pasta, browned polska, 1/2 cup french-fried onions, 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, and peas. Cover baking dish tightly with foil.

Bake for 45 minutes.

Remove foil & top with remaining 1 cup french-fried onions and 1/2 cup cheddar cheese. Bake for 3 minutes more or until cheese is melted.

Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

We paired this with broccoli - YUMMM!!

VARIATIONS:
Change the polska kielbasa to chicken or smoked sausage.
Change the cheese to Monterey Jack or Pepper Jack.
Change the peas to broccoli, carrots and/or corn or green beans.
Change the cream of mushroom soup to cream of chicken (if using chicken).

These are just a few I thought of - get creative!! Let me know if you find a new combo that works!

Enjoy -

Crusty Baked Chicken

2011-09-18T16:28:00.001-07:00

Y.U.M.

There's something special about fried chicken, mashed potatoes & gravy that makes me swoon. But fried chicken is usually too much for me. All the spattering grease, the "is the breast done first or the wing?" questions, and the heat in my kitchen - all too much most of the time.

Usually, I just want quick-n-easy. Delicious, but fast. My family's schedule explodes in the Fall. So many things to do, so many places to be. I need something in 30 minutes or less most nights. Frying a whole chicken (or two, honestly) is too much.

But baked "fried" chicken is definitely an option! Using thin chicken cutlets or small(er) chicken breasts is even better - from prep to table in 20-25 minutes. Perfect!

Crusty Baked Chicken

3 lbs thin chicken cutlets or small(er) chicken breasts
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
1 cup instant potato flakes
1 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp poultry seasoning
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese (not fresh, use the Kraft kind)
2-4 Tbsp melted butter or margarine

Preheat oven to 400*F. Line two baking pans or rimmed cookie sheets with foil, spray lightly with cooking spray. Set aside.

In one bowl, beat together egg & milk.

In another bowl, stir together potato flakes, garlic salt, paprika, poultry seasoning & Parmesan cheese.

Dip chicken, one piece at a time, into the egg/milk mixtue and then roll in the potato flakes mixture to coat evenly on all sides. Place coated chicken in baking dish. Repeat with all chicken pieces. Chicken pieces should not touch in the baking pans.

Sprinkle leftover (if any) potato flake mixture on chicken pieces and drizzle with melted butter/margarine.

Bake for 20 minutes, or until internal temp reads 170*F with a meat thermometer.

Serve & enjoy!

NOTE:
You can use a cut-up 3# frying chicken for this recipe with the following changes:

Bake at 400*F for 35 minutes, turning chicken only once.

Increase oven temp to 425*F and bake for another 10-15 minutes or until chicken is tender and juices from thigh pieces run clear when pierced with a fork. Internal temp should be 170*F.

Bruschetta Chicken

2011-09-04T17:02:00.001-07:00

This recipe comes from my friend Rachel who shared it when we were altogether in a recipe group. I haven't made it in a while, but I'm glad I found the recipe to try out again. My whole family enjoys this one.

**If you are doing a Medifast lean and green meal, this recipe will work, just make sure to measure out your portions correctly. You will need a smaller oz chicken breast to make up for the cheese**

Bruschetta Chicken
4 chicken breast
8 Tbsp Sun Dried Tomato Dressing - Divided (Kens has a really good Fat Free one that tastes great with this recipe and there are some Lite ones that are good also)
1 cup finely chopped tomato
1 cup mozarella cheese
Fresh basil chopped or 1 tsp dried

Marinate Chicken Breasts in 4TBSP dressing. I put mine in a bag in the morning and marinated all day. The recipe says for 20 minutes.

Combine 4TBSP dressing, tomatoes, cheese and basil in a seperate bowl. Set aside.

Place large sheet of aluminum foil on half of grill. Grill one side of chicken on un-foiled grill for approx 6 minutes. Then flip over onto foil and evenly divide tomato mixture onto each of the 4 chicken breasts. Close the lid of the BBQ and cook for approx 8 minutes or until chicken is done.

Yum! Enjoy!

The Farm Chicks' "Chocolate Dipped Anything"

2011-08-04T14:44:00.001-07:00

Look at THIS!!!!

Could you just die?!? I could - and I'd die happy!!

I found this recipe on The Farm Chicks' blog and I smiled.

I might have even giggled... just a bit. :)

I couldn't post it here fast enough.

So break out your "anything" and get it chocolate dipped! Then call a friend or your sweet kids or your even sweeter hubby/wife and SHARE. Mmmmmmm!!!

The Farm Chicks' "Chocolate Dipped Anything"
It's always good to have a back-up dessert option for those times friends stop by or you just want to create a wonderful treat in no time flat. Chocolate Dipped Anything is a favorite of mine. I know, I had you at chocolate, right? And to make it even better, why not sprinkle it up? With sprinkles, of course.

Here's all you need:

Chocolate Chips

Vegetable Oil

Fruit or cookies for dipping

Combine chocolate chips and oil together in a small vessel such as a small measuring cup or bowl. (Something that is a bit more narrow than a standard cereal bowl, yet large enough for you to dip into, as this makes the chocolate go further). I use about 1/2 teaspoon of oil to 1 cup of chocolate chips.

Microwave at 30 second intervals, stirring after each, until oil and chocolate are combined and the mixture is melted and smooth.

Dip fruit/cookies into the chocolate, followed by a dip into a bowl of sprinkles (you can skip the sprinkles if you'd prefer) and place onto a sheet of tin foil or waxed paper.

Allow to sit and harden (you can speed this up by placing them in the fridge for about 15 minutes). Once chocolate has set, transfer to a serving platter and serve.

Tips:

I like to do serve a mixture of dipped, un-dipped, some sprinkled, and some not, so there are choices for everyone's tastes.

Tiny bunches of grapes are a favorite of mine for dipping, and are an unexpected twist to the traditional strawberry.

I prefer to use semi-sweet chocolate chips, but milk chocolate and white chocolate are delicious too.

Make sure fruit is completely dry before dipping. Water and chocolate don't mix, and the water will make the chocolate become instantly lumpy and unusable.

I always keep large jars of different sprinkles on hand.

Everything below the recipe title & the gorgeous picture at the beginning come directly from The Farm Chicks
The silly rambling above the recipe title - all me.

Quick-n-Easy Chicken Parmesan

2011-07-23T09:05:00.001-07:00

I have a totally-from-scratch recipe for Chicken Parmesan that I LOVE to make in the winter-time. It's time consuming (like make-your-own-breadcrumbs-&-sauce time consuming!) and it includes loads of pots on the stovetop & the ovens going too. It's wonderful & comforting on a chilly winter day.

But it's NOT what I wanted on a hot summer day! I found this quick-n-easy recipe from kraftfoods.com that isn't as fancy & rich as my from-scratch recipe, but after a few adjustments of my own, it was really delicious! My family said this recipe was a "keeper"!!! (triple exclamation points from my youngest)

So here it is - my summertime, quick-n-easy version of Chicken Parmesan. Enjoy!

Quick-n-Easy Chicken Parmesan
serves 6, Total cook & prep time: 30 minutes

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 - 1 1/2 pounds)
1 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 Tblsp. dried Italian seasoning
2 eggs
2 Tblsp. water
1 cup grated mozzarella or 6 slices mozzarella or provolone, halved
Spaghetti sauce
Spaghetti, cooked according to package directions

Preheat oven to 400*F.
Line a rimmed baking sheets or 9x13" casserole dish with foil. Spray lightly with cooking spray and set aside.

In a medium-sized bowl, mix breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese & Italian seasonings.

In a small bowl, beat egg & water well.

Pat each chicken breast dry on both sides with a paper towel. Dunk chicken breast in egg mixture then in breadcrumb mixture. Be sure to coat chicken breast on all sides.

Set each coated chicken breast on the foil-lined baking sheet, leaving a space between.

Continue process until all chicken breasts are coated & arranged on the baking sheet.

Bake 15 minutes at 400*F. (If your chicken breasts are bigger, you'll need to cook them longer - until an internal temp of 165*F)

Remove baking sheet from oven. Pour 1-2 Tblsp. spaghetti sauce over the middle of each chicken breast. Cover spaghetti sauce with mozzarella/provolone cheese.

Return baking sheet to the oven for 5 minutes more, or until cheese is melted & spaghetti sauce begins to bubble.

Serve over cooked spaghetti with sauce. (any other pasta would be fine)

We always pair this with a big green salad.

Cake Mix Cookies

2011-07-21T12:18:00.000-07:00

Another quick-n-easy, super yummy recipe! :)

Just 3 basic ingredients plus a bonus one for fun. All ingredients you probably have in your cupboards right now.

They're light, fluffy with a tiny bit of chewiness, and you can customize them anyway you wish! Your kids could whip these up for you.

Enjoy!

Cake Mix Cookies

1 box cake mix (18.25 oz)
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
just shy of 1/4 cup mix-in, if desired

NOTE: Never add more than 1/4 cup mix-ins total. For example, if you're adding chocolate chips AND nuts, combine them to equal just shy of 1/4 cup. NOT 1/4 cup each.

Preheat oven to 350*F.

In a medium-sized bowl, stir together cake mix, eggs & oil.

If desired, add mix-in(s) too.

Stir just until completely mixed - don't over mix.

Roll dough into balls, about 1" or just smaller, and place on ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake at 350*F for approx 10-12 minutes. (My oven takes 11 minutes)

Cool for 1-2 minutes on the cookie sheet, then remove cookies to a cooling rack.

Once cooled, store in an airtight container 3-5 days.

DELICIOUS!! :)

Just ask my sweet puppy -

- who, with this perfect sit & beg (LOL!), eventually got a plain vanilla cookie. Happy dog!

NOTES ABOUT MIX-INs:

We like to use mini-chips or chopped nuts for mix-ins. Any flavor you like will be fine. We've had some fun combining chips & cake mix flavors: chocolate cake mix w/mint chips or crushed candy canes, butter pecan cake mix with butterscotch chips & crushed pecans, lemon cake mix with vanilla chips, french vanilla cake mix with walnuts & craisins...

Anything that sounds good to you will be delicious! Just make sure your TOTAL mix-in(s) are just shy of 1/4 cup!

Anymore than that will overwhelm the dough & the cookies will be runny & flat.

Have fun with it!

Easy Roasted Chicken

2011-07-20T09:42:00.000-07:00

Y.U.M.

Can anyone resist a perfectly roasted chicken? I know I can't!

Roasted chicken is a recipe that everyone should have in their repertoire. It's impressive (good enough for company), always delicious, and SOOOO easy.

We always use onion, lemon, garlic & rosemary with salt & pepper - but you can use your family's favorite flavors.

Make sure you have an oil (like butter or olive oil), seasonings/aromatics (like onion & lemon & garlic), and a spice or two.

Set aside about an hour for roasting and you've got a perfect roasted chicken!

If you have one of these - a countertop roaster - you can roast these without using your oven & heating up your kitchen in the summertime. I can roast two birds at once in the same time it takes to cook one in the oven. LOVE my roaster!

There are crock-pot recipes for roasting chickens too. You can look online, but HERE is my favorite link.

It's great to buy whole chickens when they're on sale, roast up a few, then chop or dice or shred the meat & freeze it for later.

Enjoy! :)

Easy Roasted Chicken

1 whole chicken, about 5 pounds
1 lemon, quartered
1 small onion, quartered
3-4 Tblsp. butter, room temperature
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
2 sprigs fresh rosemary or 1 tsp dried
2 Tblsp. minced garlic

Preheat oven to 450*F.

In a small bowl, stir together butter, salt, pepper, garlic & dried rosemary (if you're not using fresh rosemary sprigs). Set aside.

Prepare a work surface for raw chicken. I always use a separate, washable cutting board.

Remove & discard giblets from chicken cavity.

Rinse chicken, inside & out, and pat dry with paper towels.

Sprinkle a little salt & pepper into cavity. Fill cavity with onion & lemon quarters.

Using your fingers, GENTLY separate skin from chicken. Rub butter/herb mixture generously between skin & meat. Also rub some on the outside of the chicken.

Tie chicken legs together with kitchen twine & tuck in wings, if desired. (This step isn't necessary. It just makes for a prettier presentation later.)

Place chicken on a rack set in a roasting pan or on a rack placed on a rimmed baking sheet.

Roast until an instant-read thermometer registers 160*F when inserted in the thickest part of the thigh. Avoid hitting the bone when checking the temperature.

Roasting time is about 45 minutes to 1 hour, usually. The size of your chicken will determine total cooking time, usually about 10 minutes per pound.

Serve & enjoy!

Grilled Tri-Tip Roast

2011-07-16T08:27:00.001-07:00

Seriously - doesn't that picture say "Summer Grilling"??

Tri-tip is a favorite cut around our house. It's not the cheapest cut, I know, but it's flavor & tenderness are amazing!

We usually cook our tri-tip in the crock pot with balsamic vinegar, garlic & spices. (recipe to come later) But since it's summer (and to be honest, I hadn't planned ahead for dinner...), we decided to grill it.

I am SO glad we did! It was tender, juicy & so flavorful - especially the crusty bits on the outside.

Watch for tri-tip on sale, store it in your freezer & plan on grilling some this summer!

We served this with a parmesan risotto & broccoli. It would be good with anything, really. Your favorite picnic sides or some fancier sides - it's that good.

I combined a couple of recipes I found online on foodnetwork.com, then adjusted them to fit our family's tastes.

Enjoy! :)

Grilled Tri-Tip Roast

2 tri-tip roasts, approx. 1.5 lbs each

Generous amount of seasoning salt (we used Emeril's & a little Lawry's - use your favorite or make your own)

Preheat your grill to 450*F.

Dust the roasts generously with seasoning salt all over & rub in gently.

Place the roasts on the grill, fatty side down.

Grill for 20 minutes total, turning about every 2-3 minutes, for a juicy medium rare. (about 130*F internal temp)

Remove from grill, cover & let rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing & serving.

Slice at an angle against the grain of the meat.

Serving suggestions:

Slice very thin & serve over salad.

Slice thinly & serve in tortillas with fresh salsa, avocado & lime.

Cut into smaller pieces, glaze with BBQ spices/sauce & grill.

Robert Irvine's BBQ Spice Rub (if you want to make your own)

1-2 Tblsp each:

Worcestershire sauce

black pepper

salt

garlic, minced

chili pepper

onion salt

ground cumin

ground cilantro

Coat tri-tip with rub & place in a bowl in the refrigerator for 1 hour before grilling per instructions above.

Strawberry (Fruit) Picnic Pies

2011-07-12T16:10:00.001-07:00

Aren't these cute?!? They remind me of those pre-packaged, processed but strangely delicious Hostess pies I used to eat when I was young.

This recipe comes from The Farm Chicks. Check out her blog - she's adorable & her decor ideas, recipes, & thoughts are always great!

I'm quite sure these will be MUCH better than the ones I ate - better tasting & better for you!

I can't wait to give these a try. With all the fresh berries in season, these should be a regular on our summer menu.

I bet you can try these with peaches or nectarines or even apples... I'll have to try 'em & let you know.

Enjoy!

Picnic Pies

Crust:
3 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 1/2 cups cold butter, cut into small pieces
1 egg
1/2 cup cold water

Combine the flour and graham cracker crumbs in a large bowl. Cut in the butter using a pastry blender or your fingers until the mixture resembles course meal. Whisk the egg and water together and mix into the flour mixture until just combined. Transfer to a clean work surface and gently press to form a dough. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap, press into a disk shape, and chill for at least one hour.

While dough chills, prepare Strawberry Pie Filling.

Strawberry Pie Filling:
4 cups strawberries, hulled and quartered (cut into eighths if the berries are huge)
1 cup brown sugar (not packed)
1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine all ingredients into a medium bowl and stir together until flour and sugar are mixed in. Set Pie Filling aside. Line two large baking sheets with foil or parchment and lightly grease.

Roll out dough onto a floured work surface and roll out to a 1/8" thickness. Use a cereal bowl for a guide, and trace with a knife.

Repeat until the dough is all used up. (Should make about 16-18 dough circles). Divide pie filling evenly between the dough circles, folding and pressing each one closed as you go. Press edges with a fork and prick center for steam to escape. Place the pies on the baking sheets.

Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes, or until crust is golden brown and filling is oozing out from steam holes. Remove pies immediately to a wire cooling rack and allow to cool completely. (They will harden up as they cool to room temperature).

Notes:

These pies will ooze filling as they cook, as the strawberries are very juicy. If you prefer a less juicy/messy pie, don't use all of the juice from the filling mixture when filling the pies.

Your baking sheets will look somewhat - a lot juicy when you remove the pies from the oven. Don't worry, this is normal. Just make sure to remove the pies while they're hot so the filling doesn't stick to the foil/parchment.

I definitely recommend using foil or parchment, rather than placing these directly on the baking sheet. this way, you won't have a huge clean-up when you're done!

Picnic Pies are rustic and don't need to be perfect. They're meant to be enjoyed!

Independence Day Treats - a little inspiration

2011-07-01T10:04:00.000-07:00

When Independence Day rolls around, I think we've all made a flag cake with berries for the stars & stripes, or dyed our pancakes red & blue, or decorated sugar cookies, or made cupcakes...

Sometimes it can feel redundant. Most times, I'm looking for something new to jazz up our festivities.

This year, I found a couple of things I think you might like - a little inspiration...

These skewers are adorable! Perfect for little hands at an Independence Day party. You can find them (and more!) at Sisters Stuff.

It's an oldy-but-goody, and it sure looks beautiful. I like to add granola to my fruit & yogurt parfaits. Theses are great for an Independence Day breakfast or snack. Much lighter than pancakes! (Though I do love me some pancakes!)

This one is adorable! What a great way to display breakfast muffins or cupcakes or mini-cheesecakes - anything, really.

The big splash is the topper, for me. Love another way to display a flag at the buffet table.

Finally, our traditional dessert while we watch the fireworks on Independence Day - Indoor S'mores.

They're AMAZING! :)

Happy Independence Day, everyone!

Enjoy!

Chicken Apple Walnut Salad

2011-06-21T12:37:00.001-07:00

I've posted here before about how I like to prep big batches of chicken to keep in my freezer so they're ready for me whenever I want them.

Usually, I measure the prepped chicken into 4 cup quantities. I always seem to have 1 chicken breast leftover. I could add it to a bag in the freezer, but I'd much rather have this delicious salad for lunch! :)

This could be made in larger quantities, obviously. I like to make it just for me for a quick-n-easy & healthy lunch.

Chicken Apple Walnut Salad
(for one)

1 chicken breast, cooked & cut into bite-sized chunks
1 apple, peeled (if desired), cored & cut into bite-sized chunks
1 green onion, chopped
1 - 1 1/2 Tblsp. walnuts
1 - 1 1/2 Tblsp. mayonnaise
salt & pepper to taste

Stir all together in a bowl & enjoy!

You can add halved grapes to this salad too, if you like.

I like my salad drier so I use less mayonnaise. You can use fat-free or low-fat mayo too.

I love this on whole grain bread with lettuce & tomato, or with Triscuit crackers on the side. YUMM!!

The Best Potato Salad EVER

2011-06-18T11:18:00.001-07:00

I LOVE potato salad!! But I'm picky. I really only LOVE mine. :)

I take this recipe with me whenever we're invited to a BBQ or picnic and the host asks us to bring "a salad". The main reason I bring it - so I can eat it! But the compliments I always get are pretty nice too.

My Uncle Lee, at a family picnic, once declared this "the best potato salad EVER", so that's been the recipe's title ever since. (I happen to agree with my Uncle Lee!)

Another Potato Salad recipe from this blog that is Janis' favorite can be found here.

http://dinnertimeideas.blogspot.com/2010/06/4th-of-july-salads.html

Enjoy!

The Best Potato Salad EVER

2 pounds (approx) red potatoes (or Yukon Gold) - washed, cubed & boiled until tender

4 hard boiled eggs, diced

1/2 cup red onion, chopped (about 1 medium onion or 1/2 large)

1 - 1 1/2 cups celery, chopped (2-4 stalks - I like more, my hubby likes less)

1 cup + 1 Tblsp. mayonnaise (not Miracle Whip!!)

1 Tblsp. white vinegar

1 Tblsp. yellow mustard

salt & pepper to taste

Place eggs in a saucepan, cover with cold water and bring to a rolling boil. Remove from heat & set aside (don't drain!), lid on, for 20 minutes. Drain, run cold water over cooked eggs for 1 minute. Move eggs to a towel or rack to cool.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Wash & dice about 2 lbs. red potatoes or Yukon Gold potatoes.

Dump diced potatoes into boiling water (watch out for splashes - ouch!). Cook until fork-tender. Drain & set aside to cool.

Wash & dice celery stalks. Dice red onion. Place both in a medium-sized bowl. Add mayonnaise, mustard, & vinegar.

Stir well to combine. (Cover bowl with plastic wrap & place in the refrigerator if your potatoes & eggs aren't cooled yet. You can prepare the onion/celery/mayo mixture the night before, if you want)

Dice the cooled eggs & add to cooled potatoes in a serving bowl. Sprinkle on about 1/2 tsp. pepper & 1/2 tsp. salt. (You might add it plus more later, after you've mixed everything. It's to taste so it's up to you.)

Pour celery/onion/mayo mixture over the potatoes & eggs. Mix well, until all the potatoes are covered with the mayo mixture.

Taste. (YUMM!!!) Add salt/pepper, if desired.

EAT! :)

NOTE: This is even better if it can sit in the fridge for a few hours before you serve it. You can top it with sliced hard-boiled eggs & paprika for "prettiness", but they're definitely not necessary.

Cheesy Garlic Drop Biscuits

2011-06-14T13:53:00.001-07:00

I could easily eat an entire batch of these - YUMMM!!! They were perfect paired with our Grilled Steak Salad last night (recipe below). I got this recipe from a magazine at least 10 years ago. I think it was Family Circle??....

A quick stir, bake for 10 minutes, and they're ready to go.

Cheesy Garlic Drop Biscuits
Makes 10 biscuits

2 cups baking mix (I used Heart Healthy Bisquick)
2/3 cup milk
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
2 Tbsps melted butter or margarine
1/8 tsp garlic powder

Preheat oven to 450*F.

Stir baking mix, milk & cheese until soft dough forms. (I had to add about 2 Tbsps more milk to my dough.)

Drop by 10 spoonfuls onto lightly greased cookie sheet.

Bake 8-10 minutes or until golden brown.

Stir together melted butter/margarine & garlic powder; brush over warm biscuits.

I dare you to eat just one...

Grilled Steak Salad

2011-06-14T13:36:00.000-07:00

This one is a no-brainer - steak, hot off the grill, a lucious salad & Cheesy Garlic Drop Biscuits (recipe above). YUMMM!!!

I got New York strip steaks on sale at the grocery store in a value-pak of 4 steaks - just $13.96 for the 4-pack - and I always have salad greens on-hand in my fridge. Watch for steak on sale & take advantage of a great deal for this yummy summer dinner.

It's a perfect summer meal that's healthy too, ready in under 20 minutes.

Grilled Steak Salad
Serves 6

4 New York strip steaks, about 3 lbs
Montreal Steak seasoning
1 lb. pre-packaged salad greens (I used a "spring greens" mix)
2 green onions, chopped
2 radishes, sliced thinly
1 carrot, shredded or julienned (I used pre-packaged shredded carrots)
1/4 cup glazed walnuts
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella (or monterey jack or colby)
1/2 cucumber, chopped
1 tomato, chopped
2 Tbsps roasted, salted, shelled sunflower seeds

1/2 hour before grilling, place steaks, in packaging, on kitchen counter to warm up a bit.

Heat grill to 400*F.

Place steaks on hot grill to sear. (Once they're down, don't move them until you're going to turn them!)

Turn heat down to medium.

Cook steaks for 8 minutes.

Turn steaks & grill for 4 minutes more.

Remove from grill to a platter. Cover loosely with foil. Allow steaks to rest for 5 minutes.

Slice steaks against the grain & return to platter.

Serve a few strips per person over salad.

While steaks are grilling, assemble your salad. We used the ingredients noted above, but you can build your green salad to match your family's tastes.

We used ranch dressing on our salad 'cause that's what we like best. Your favorite dressing or a squeeze of lemon plus a drizzle of olive oil would be delicious too.

Don't forget the cheesy garlic biscuits! Recipe shown above.

Enjoy!!

Turkey & Bacon Sliders

2011-06-02T10:38:00.001-07:00

I was browsing my favorite blogs the other day & I came across THESE on The Pioneer Woman's website. Holy moly. They looked SO good, I had to make some sliders ASAP!!

Hers are beef, wrapped in bacon & baked on a broiler pan. It was a warm day & I didn't want to turn on my oven so I just cooked the turkey patties on my stove-top grill pan and cooked the bacon in the microwave. (Do you have the Presto Microwave Bacon cooker?? You should!)

We shucked some corn & cooked it up, and sliced some ice-cold watermelon too. It felt & looked like Summer on a plate.

Enjoy! :)

Turkey & Bacon Sliders
Serves 6

2 lbs ground turkey
1 16oz pkg bacon, cooked & set aside (you can snap these in half to make it easier to place them on the sliders, if you want)
6 slices cheese, cut in half (white American, Provolone, Swiss, Pepper Jack, etc)
Emeril's Original Essence (or your favorite spice blend for burgers)
12 whole wheat dinner rolls

Toppings:
red onion, sliced very thin
lettuce
sliced tomato
1000 Island dressing (or ketchup, if you're my kids)

Shape ground turkey into patties about the size of your palm. Don't overwork the meat - just lightly shape them & then leave them alone.

Sprinkle with Emeril's seasonings (or your favorite). Don't work the seasoning into the ground turkey. This overworks the meat & makes your turkey patties dry. Just sprinkle it on the outside.

Place on grill over medium-high heat. Cook about 4 minutes each side, depending upon thickness. Make sure they're cooked through - No pink inside turkey burgers!!

Just before they're done cooking on the second side, lay 2 pieces of cooked bacon on top. Lay a half-slice of cheese over the bacon. The cheese will melt down & get all yummy & gooey. It also keeps the bacon in place.

Slice 12 dinner rolls in half. Place a turkey patty w/cheese on each roll's bottom half.

Build your slider with your favorite toppings. Serve & enjoy!

You can always make these with a different ground meat. Beef or lamb would be yummy! Experiment with seasonings & flavors: Greek with the ground lamb, or add some BBQ to beef-bacon sliders.

Blender Wheat Pancakes

2011-05-27T18:25:00.000-07:00

To continue with the class on using your wheat. Here is another recipe that is good.

Blender Wheat Pancakes
http://www.everydayfoodstorage.net/
1 cup milk
1 cup whole wheat kernels. ( I used winter white wheat, not red)
2 eggs
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 TB oil
2 TB honey or sugar

Add milk and wheat kernels into the blender. Blend for 4-5 minutes until smooth. Add eggs, oil, baking powder, salt, and honey or sugar. Blend on low for about 1 minute. Cook on griddle. Enjoy!

OR from the gal Sue who taught the class, this is her recipe. I need to try this one and see the difference.

Blender Wheat Pancakes
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup raw wheat kernels
*Blend in blender on high speed for about 4 minutes.

Add:
2 eggs
2 TB brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
*Blend for another minute. Optional. Let batter sit for a few minutes for wheat to absorb liquid. Blend again quickly. Cook pancakes on griddle.

Crepes

2011-05-27T18:12:00.000-07:00

This is a recipe for Crepes that I learned at a class at church on "Using Wheat"

It tastes just like regular crepes. It is FANTASTIC!

Place in a blender and blend at highest speed for 3-5 minutes:
1 cup milk
1/2 cup WHOLE kernal wheat (I use winter white wheat verses red) You could also use Kamut, or oat groats

Add these ingredients and blend briefly:
1 TB melted butter
1 TB sugar
1/4 tsp salt

Add and continue blending for about 2 minutes:
2 eggs

Pour 1/4 cup into griddle for each Crepe. Cook for about 2 minutes on first side and then flip and cook for another 30 seconds.

You will be amazed.

**My mom used to fill crepes with honey sweetened cottage cheese and then folds them over and places a dallop of sour cream on top with strawberries.

How do you guys eat your Crepes??

Sweet & Sour Sauce for Chicken

2011-05-27T15:24:00.001-07:00

**This is a sweet & sour sauce my mom made growing up that everyone loved. It was used with a breaded chicken that was cooked in the oven. I used it with meatballs, so I revamped it a little to use with meatballs. It seemed too sweet without being baked in oven with the chicken. I am going to give 2 recipes. One is my moms original, and another is this recipe re-vamped **

Moms Original Sweet & Sour

1 cup pineapple juice

1/4 cup ketchup

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/8 cup vinegar

Mix all ingredients together and pour over chicken .... see below

Chicken

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup corn starch

1 tsp garlic salt

2-3 eggs

Chicken drumsticks and wings

In a bowl, place eggs and beat well. In a large baggie, mix together the flour, cornstarch and garlic salt.

Dip the chicken in the egg mixture, then shake the chicken in the flour mixture. Lay out on a jelly roll pan. Pour the sweet n sour mixture over the chicken. Bake at 350" for 45-60 minutes.

**Sweet & Sour sauce re-vamped*****

1 1/4 cup pineapple juice

3 TB vinegar

3/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 TB soy sauce

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 cup ketchup

3TB flour

Add all ingredients in a saucepan and whisk until thickened. Serve over rice with meatballs or chicken.

Peanut Butter Cookies

2011-05-27T15:22:00.000-07:00

**This recipe came from either my friend Rachel or Erin....Cant remember. :( The thing I do know for sure is that they are good!**

Peanut Butter Cookies

1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup peanut butter
2 cups quick oats
1 ¼ cup flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt

Cream together butter, sugar and brown sugar. Add eggs, vanilla, and peanut butter. Mix until it is all incorporated.

In a separate bowl add oats, flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Mix together in bowl.

Slowly mix in to creamed mixture.

Drop by spoonfuls onto baking sheet.

Bake 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes.

French Dip Sandwiches tonight!

2011-05-25T10:11:00.000-07:00

We're having these YUMMY sandwiches tonight! (originally posted here in March 2011)

Love that I can get the roast in the crock pot in the morning & have dinner done. It's busy-busy around here as the school year is ending. Prepare-ahead meals are a must for our little family right now.

French Dip Sandwiches with Au Jus

Enjoy!!

Sorry! I've been slacking!

2011-05-20T17:43:00.000-07:00

It's been busy around here lately and I've been slacking off on the blog! Sorry about that!

We've been going back to our family favorites - our "go to" meals. Like breakfast for dinner, tacos & burritos, or favorite casseroles.

What are your family favorites? Your "go to" meals?

I'll be back soon with some yummy new recipes!

Thanks -

Here are some links to some of our "go to" meal ideas:

Breakfast ideas

Tacos & burritos

Favorite casseroles: here and here and here

Chocolate Chip Croissants

2011-05-04T05:10:00.001-07:00

Y.U.M.

Warm & gooey, buttery & flaky - these are truly dangerous! And SUPER easy!

Whipped some up for the kids as they came home from school. We liked them so much, I made some more after dinner. They were gone in a flash!

Enjoy!!

Chocolate Chip Croissants

1 pkg (8 count) refrigerated ready-to-bake crescent rolls
Chocolate chips
Clear sugar sprinkles, if desired

Preheat oven to 375*F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or spray with cooking spray.

Open & unroll all 8 crescent rolls. Place 10-15 chocolate chips on the widest part of the dough triangle. Carefully roll up crescent roll, rolling from widest part to tip. (see picture above)

You can sprinkle these with candied sugar before baking, if desired. There's no taste difference, but they're pretty. :)

Place about 2 inches apart on baking sheet.

Bake 12-14 minutes, until golden brown.

Let sit on baking sheet for 1-2 minutes after baking to allow the chocolate to fully melt.

Serve warm.

Tortellini Spinach Bake in Creamy Lemon Sauce (by Our Best Bites)

2011-05-03T08:43:00.000-07:00

Made this recipe last night - found it on www.ourbestbites.com - LOVED it!!

I changed a couple of things just because I didn't have exactly what they called for, but I doubt they made a difference in the taste. Delicious!!

I think you could use the sauce from this recipe over any pasta, not just tortellini. It would be great over angel hair (vermicelli) or rotini as a side dish.

I'm also wondering if I could substitute broccoli for the spinach... I'll have to try that later & let you know.

Enjoy!!

Tortellini Spinach Bake in Creamy Lemon Sauce
Recipe by Our Best Bites
Serves 4-6

12 oz bag Barilla Cheese & Spinach Tortellini (in the dry pasta aisle)
4 oz bacon or pancetta (about 4 strips of bacon)**
3 cloves garlic, pressed in a garlic press or finely minced
2 Tbsp flour
2 cups milk
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1 1/2 tsp dry basil
1/4 tsp red pepper (1/2 tsp or more if you like spicy)
1 medium lemon, zest & juice
2 cups loosely packed fresh spinach, roughly chopped
3/4 cup grated mozzarella cheese, divided
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided

Preheat oven to 350*F. Cook tortellini in large stock pot according to package directions.

Meanwhile, cook bacon in a medium-sized skillet at medium-high heat. Cook until crisp. Remove bacon from pan & set on paper towels to drain. Crumble when cooled. Reserve 2 Tbsps bacon drippings in pan & discard the rest.

Add garlic to pan & cook until fragrant & tender, about 1 minute. Add flour to pan & stir with whisk for about 1 minute. Slowly add milk & continue to stir with whisk until smooth. Add salt, pepper, basil & red pepper flakes. Bring sauce to a simmer.

Zest lemon, then cut in half & juice. Add 2 tsps zest and 1 Tbsp lemon juice to sauce. Continue to stir until thickened, 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat.

Drain tortellini when finished cooking & place back in stock pot. Reserve 1 Tbsp of cooked bacon & add the rest to the pasta. Add spinach, 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese & 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. Add sauce. Gently stir to combine.

Place pasta mixture in an 8x8" or 9x9" baking dish. Top with remaining 1/4 cup mozzarella & 1/4 cup Parmesan cheeses. Sprinkle with remaining crumbled bacon.

Cover pan with foil. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil & bake for another 5-10 minutes, until cheese on top is melted & pasta is bubbly througout.

Remove from oven & cool for 10 minutes before serving.

** For a vegetarian meal, omit the bacon. Replace the 2 Tbsps reserved bacon drippings with olive oil.

MY CHANGES:

I used refrigerated, pre-prepared tortellini from Costco.

I used dried Italian seasonings instead of dried basil.

I left out the red pepper flakes completely.

I also completely forgot to let it sit for 10 minute after baking. It was delicious anyway!

Easy Potato & Bacon Breakfast Casserole (Our Best Bites)

2011-05-02T11:57:00.000-07:00

SUPER yummm!!! Have you seen this over at Our Best Bites?!?

Perfect recipe to send to hubby to make for Mother's Day. Also a good idea for dinner on a busy day. Make it in the morning, let it sit in the fridge, & pop it in the oven at the end of the day.

I can't wait to make this - I'll let you know how it goes...

Whole Wheat Waffles

2011-04-23T10:11:00.000-07:00

I love whole wheat waffles!! But sometimes they can be heavy. These aren't - they're fluffy & light; crispy on the outside, tender & soft inside. Just perfect. :)

We had these this morning for our Easter Saturday celebration. I like mine with butter, berries & powdered sugar. We also had strawberries, whipped cream, and syrup. I had to make 2 batches to satisfy my family!

I hope you enjoy these as much as we did!

Whole Wheat Waffles
Adapted from Betty Crocker's "Mom's Best Waffles"
Prep time: 35 mins Servings: 6

2 eggs
1 3/4 cups milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 Tbsp brown sugar
2 cups whole wheat flour (you can also use all-purpose)
4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Toppings, as desired
fresh berries
whipped cream
powdered sugar
butter & syrup

Heat waffle maker.

In a large bowl, beat eggs until fluffy. Beat in remaining ingredients (liquids first, then dry ingredients) just until smooth.

If necessary, brush waffle maker with vegetable oil or spray with cooking spray before batter for each waffle is added.

Pour about 1/2 - 3/4 cup batter from cup or pitcher onto center of hot waffle maker. (Check manufacturer's directions for recommended amount of batter.) Close lid of waffle maker.

Let cook about 5 minutes or until steaming stops (or until indicator on your waffle maker shows waffle is done). Carefully remove waffle. Repeat with remaining batter.

Nutrition Info: 1 Serving: 380 calories (from fat = 200); total fat 22g (sat fat 4g); cholesterol 75mg; sodium 480mg; total carbs 38g; dietary fiber 1g; protein 9g

If you're making a large batch ahead of time, preheat your oven to 275*F. Place a foil-lined cookie sheet in the oven. As you remove each waffle from the waffle maker, place it on the cookie sheet & leave the cookie sheet in the oven. The waffles will stay warm & crispy until you serve them.

You can set out a waffle bar, buffet style. Warm a platter (in the oven beforehand) for the waffles and set out toppings in bowls. Everyone can make their own.

Healthier Recipe:

For 7 grams of fat and 255 calories per serving, substitute 1/2 cup fat-free cholesterol free egg product (like EggBeaters) for the eggs, use fat-free milk and decrease oil to 3 Tbsp.

Chicken Taco Ring

2011-04-20T17:56:00.000-07:00

This recipe came from The Daily Smash

Our entire family enjoyed it. There is another one of these on our blog that I made a while back and it is a Chicken Brocoli Ring. We enjoyed both of them, but my kids raved more about this one when dinner was over. My 5 year old saw the olives and tomatoes go in and said yuck, I'm not eating that, but by time it was all cooked, she enjoyed it.

Chicken Taco Ring
2 tubes (8 ounces each) refrigerated crescent rolls
1/3 cup finely crushed tortilla chips
2 cups finely chopped rotisserie chicken (I used chicken boiled in broth)
3/4 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies, undrained
1/4 cup chopped pitted ripe olives
1 plum tomato, seeded and chopped
1 tablespoon taco seasoning
1 tablespoon lime juice

1. Grease a 12-in. pizza pan. Unroll crescent dough.

2. Lay the crescent triangles in a circle with the wide end being in the middle and the pointed end going out. Lightly press wide ends together.

3. In a small bowl, combine the chicken, cheese, mayonnaise, chilies, olives, tomato, taco seasoning, lime juice and tortilla chips. Stir until all is combined.

4. Spoon the chicken mixture in a circle over wide ends of dough. Fold points of triangles over filling and tuck under wide ends (filling will be visible).

5. Bake at 375° for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Garnish with sour cream, salsa, tomatoes and lime. (I didn't garnish with anything. We just served this with a salad.)

We made the TOP 5 on "Sweet as Sugar Cookies"

2011-04-16T10:36:00.001-07:00

We made it to the Top 5 on Sweets for a Saturday at http://sweet-as-sugar-cookies.blogspot.com/!! Woohoo!!

Hop on over there to check out some more ideas for Easter treats & some mouth-watering recipes to satisfy your sweet tooth.

Chocolate Chip Blondies (half whole wheat flour)

2011-04-13T15:12:00.001-07:00

These blondies are one of our favorite treats!! The combination of butterscotch with chocolate chips plus the buttery taste is divine. I cut the recipe out of Sunset Magazine YEARS ago (maybe 9 or 10 years?) so I can't give the exact issue.

I've taken these to potlucks, given them for Christmas gifts, taken them to sick friends' families as a dinner treat, and baked them for family & friends for years - I always get the question "Can I get the recipe?!?" LOVE that!

I also like that they're made with half whole wheat flour and half all-purpose flour. Not that a bit of whole wheat flour makes up for the butter & the sugar & the butterscotch or chocolate chips, mind you. :)

I hope you enjoy these!!

Chocolate Chip Blondies

Prep & cook time: about 1.25 hours
Makes: 24 blondies

3/4 cup butter, at room temperature (softened)
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour, finely ground
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup butterscotch chips
3/4 cup chocolate chips
3/4 cup chopped walnuts (about 3 ozs)

Preheat oven to 350*F. Butter (use butter, not cooking spray, if you can) a 9x13" baking pan; set aisde.

In a bowl, with mixer on medium speed, beat butter, white sugar, & brown sugar until smooth. Add vanilla & eggs and beat until well blended.

Stir in flour, salt & baking soda until well combined.

Stir in butterscotch & chocolate chips and the walnuts.

Spread dough level in pan. (It's thick so take your time & spread it evenly)

Bake 30 minutes until top is browned and a wooden skewer inserted in center comes out with moist crumbs attached.

Cool on a rack for 15 minutes, then cut into 24 squares.

NOTE: As it cools, the center will sink a bit.

We like this warm with ice cream or a cold glass of milk, but you can serve these warm or cold.

Store in an airtight container or tightly cover your baking dish with cling wrap.

Chicken Corn Chowder with Broccoli

2011-04-08T07:46:00.000-07:00

Is anybody else stuck in stormy, grey weather?? We sure are here in Utah! For me, that means warm & cozy dinners that fill you & warm you up from the inside. This Chicken-Corn Chowder definitely hit the spot!

Except for the toppings & fresh broccoli, this recipe is made entirely from my food storage. I love that since I always have the ingredients on-hand. The broccoli is optional, but for us it's one of the best parts of the chowder. You can also leave the chicken out and make this chowder vegetarian.

I posted this recipe once before, but I've tweaked it a bit recently. This is the new (and better, according to my family) recipe.

Chicken Corn Chowder with Broccoli
3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
water
2 12oz cans evaporated milk
2 Tbsp dried minced onion
2 large potatoes, cooked & cubed or sliced OR 2-3 14.5oz cans cubed or sliced potatoes
1 14.5oz can creamed corn
1 14.5oz can fresh corn
1 12.5oz can chicken, drained OR 1-2 cups fresh cooked & cubed or shredded chicken
1 16oz pkg frozen broccoli, thawed (or cooked) & drained OR 1 large head fresh broccoli, cooked
salt & pepper, to taste

Toppings:
grated Cheddar cheese
green onions, chopped
bacon, cooked & crumbled

In a bowl, whisk together 3 Tbsp all-purpose flour and 1/3 cup COLD water. Whisk until smooth & completely incorporated. Set aside.

In a 4-cup measuring cup, pour 2 cans evaporated milk and add water to equal 4 cups liquid total. (It's about 3 cups evaporated milk & 1 cup water)

In a large pot or dutch oven, pour milk/water mixture. Over medium heat, bring almost to a boil. Whisk in flour/water mixture. Cook until slightly thickened, about 4-5 minutes.

If using fresh broccoli: While the milk/water/flour mixture is cooking, trim broccoli stems & cook florets in boiling water for about 4-5 minutes.

Stir into milk/water/flour mixture, minced onion, potatoes, creamed corn, fresh corn, and chicken. Mix completely, stirring gently. Turn heat down to LOW. Stir in broccoli once it's cooked & drained. Add salt & pepper to taste.

Put the lid on and cook on low for about 10 minutes.

Serve topped with grated cheddar, chopped green onions, and bacon.

We like this with a chunk of warm French bread on the side. Enjoy!!

Overnight French Toast Bake with Berry Sauce

2011-04-04T10:33:00.001-07:00

I got this recipe from Betty Crocker's "Most Requested Recipes" cookbook. It was a hit with the family so this will become a tradition for those days when we want something ready to go in the morning. A dish I can just pop in the oven, bake & serve.

The berry sauce recipe came from Betty Crocker too, but from one of their recipe magazines. (I cut it out & have no idea what the magazine's title was!) The sauce is completely optional. I love it, but my family prefers powdered sugar or syrup.

This is easy & delicious. In fact, my teenage girls did the "night before" prep and my hubby made the fruit sauce the next day. Enjoy!

Overnight French Toast Bake with Berry Sauce
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Start to Finish: 4 hours 50 minutes minimum
Servings: 8

French Toast Bake:
12 cups cubed (1 inch) soft French bread (about 13 ozs) - I used a french loaf from my grocery store - do not use the ends of the loaf
8 eggs
3 cups half-and-half (you could use plain milk, but it's soggier after you bake it & not as rich)
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon (I double this because we love cinnamon!)
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla

Berry Sauce:
1 cup sugar
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1/4 cup orange juice
1 12oz bag frozen unsweetened mixed berries
3 cups fresh strawberries, cut into quarters (or just use your favorite berry like raspberry, blackberry, etc)

Spray bottom & sides of 13x9" (3 quart) baking dish with cooking spray. Place bread cubes in baking dish.

In large bowl, beat eggs, half-and-half, 1/4 cup sugar, cinnamon, salt & vanilla with wire whisk until smooth. Pour mixture over bread cubes. Press cubes lightly into egg mixture & turn over any pieces that are still dry on one side. You want each bread cube to be coated with the egg mixture.

Cover tightly; refrigerate at least 4 hours but no longer than 24 hours. I like to do this before I go to bed & bake it first thing in the morning.

Preheat oven to 400*F.

Uncover dish; bake 25-35 minutes or until golden brown and knife inserted in center comes out clean.

While French Toast Bake is baking: In 2-quart saucepan, stir together 1 cup sugar and cornstarch. Stir in orange juice until smooth. Stir in mixed berries.

Heat to boiling over medium heat, stirring constantly.

Cook about 6 minutes, stirring constantly, until topping is slightly thickened. Remove from heat.

Just before serving, stir strawberries (or your favorite berry) into topping. Serve warm over French Toast Bake.

Because I'm allergic to strawberries, we used raspberries in our berry sauce - YUM!!

This berry sauce is so good over cake!! Pound cake, angel food cake & chocolate cake are our favorites. It freezes well too. I pour it into a ziplock bag after it has cooled & seal it tightly. It stays good in your freezer up to 3 months.

The French Toast Bake is delicious with syrup and powdered sugar, but if you have a good powered sugar glaze recipe that is amazing too! We like this as a side for eggs too.

Betty Crocker's Cupcake Poppers

2011-03-30T09:44:00.000-07:00

Have you seen these from Betty Crocker?? They're SO CUTE and super easy!! You can do any color for any occasion. Just awesome :)

Poppyseed Chicken

2011-03-29T15:08:00.000-07:00

This is one of those dishes that everybody has a recipe for! Each one is a little different, I'm sure. For my family this is definitely our "comfort food". Yesterday was icky & grey & cold so a creamy, satisfying casserole was exactly what we needed.

My recipe comes from my mom's, my neighbor's, and something of my own thrown in to make it my own. Do you have a recipe for Poppyseed Chicken? Please share it!

Poppyseed Chicken
Makes 1 9x13" casserole

4 cups dry egg noodles, cooked according to package directions
2 cups chicken, cooked & cut into bite-sized pieces
8 oz sour cream
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1/8 cup dried minced onions
1 tsp minced garlic (optional)
1 cylinder Ritz crackers (we like whole wheat Ritz)
1 cube (1/2 cup) butter
1 tsp poppyseeds (these really are just for show - if you don't have 'em, don't worry)

Preheat oven to 375*F. Spray inside of 9x13" baking dish with cooking spray.

Cook egg noodles according to package directions.

In a large bowl, stir together & mix well: sour cream, chicken soup, Parmesan, onions & garlic. When mixed thoroughly, stir in chicken.

In a separate medium-sized bowl, melt butter in the microwave. Crush Ritz crackers. Stir crushed crackers & poppyseeds into melted butter.

Build the casserole: Pour noodles into baking dish. Spread chicken/soup mixture evenly over the noodles. Gently spread the Ritz/butter mixture over the chicken/soup mixture, until evenly covered.

Bake 30 minutes & serve.

We always serve this with broccoli, but it would be great with pretty much any veggie.

This is a great recipe to make large batches of for family gatherings too.

Enjoy!

French Dip Sandwiches with Au Jus

2011-03-25T12:07:00.000-07:00

YUM!! The chuck roast & onions for these sandwiches cooked all day in the crock pot & filled the house with a delicious aroma!! We were super excited to get eating by the time dinner rolled around! 5 minutes prep in the morning & about 5 more just before dinner - a perfect busy-day dinner.

French Dip Sandwiches with Au Jus
Serves 6-8

6-8 bolillo rolls (or your favorite sub rolls - choose white though, wheat isn't as good with these sandwiches)
6-8 slices swiss or provolone cheese
1 2.5 lb beef roast (I used chuck, but whatever you have on-hand would do)
1 onion
1 14.5oz can beef broth
1-2 Tbsp minced garlic
salt & pepper - about 1 Tbsp each or more, if you like pepper

In a large skillet, sear the roast on all sides. (You want it browned thorougly before you put it in the slow cooker).

Turn on slow cooker to LOW.

Slice onion & place slices on the bottom of your slow cooker. Pour beef broth over the onions.

Place beef roast on top of sliced onions/broth. Sprinkle salt, pepper & minced garlic over the top of the roast.

Cook on LOW for 6-8 hours. If possible, turn the roast over halfway through cooking.

If you're using a larger roast (3-4 lbs), cook for 8-10 hours.

At dinnertime:

Slice rolls open & set out with cheeses for building sandwiches. You can brown the rolls under the broiler or in the oven, if you like.

Remove roast from crock pot to a large cutting board. Roughly slice roast, cutting away fat (if desired - my youngest loves the fat (yuck!)), to use in sandwiches.

** Get help for this step, if you need it - Crock pots are heavy! ** Pour liquid from crock pot through a fine strainer into a bowl or large glass measuring cup. (This is the au jus for dipping the sandwiches) Pour au jus into small bowls, big enough for dipping the sandwiches.

Each person builds a sandwich with beef, cheese & cooked onions (from the crock pot).

These sandwiches are dipped into the au jus before each bite. Don't pour it on - it will soak the sandwich & ruin the roll. The onions are optional on the sandwiches, but I love 'em!

We always serve these with a big green salad.

Enjoy!!

Parmesan-Garlic Pull Apart Bread

2011-03-24T18:09:00.001-07:00

**Sorry, I know the picture doesn't look that appetizing. I should have watched it better while in the oven. We had Spaghetti for dinner tonight, and I have been wanting to attempt these using the same dough I use for our 60 minute rolls. My family loved them.***

Parmesan-Garlic Pull Apart Bread
1 recipe of 60 minute rolls (below)

Dry Ingredients
3 1/2 cups flour --divided (2 1/2 cups 1 cup)
*This is how I did the flour, my friend said she started with 3 1/2 cups flour and added up to 1 more cup, but you may not use the whole 1 cup.
1/4 cup sugar
2 TB yeast
2 TB dry milk powder
1 tsp salt

Wet Ingredients
1 1/2 cups Hottest tap water
1/4 cup oil

Add all dry ingredients in a mixing bowl (minus the 1 cup flour). Add wet ingredients to a measuring cup. Gradually add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and beat by hand or by mixer for 1 minute. I did mine in my Kitchen Aid mixer.

Now, gradually add the extra 1 cup of flour and knead for 4 true minutes.

Cover and let rise for 15 true minutes.

While this rises...Add all the below ingredients into a medium sized measuring cup.

1/4 cup butter
1 TB minced garlic
3 TB parmesan cheese
1 tsp italian seasoning
1 tsp garlic salt

Punch down the dough, and roll into smaller than golfball size balls. I did 2o balls for my bread, and then I was still able to make 11 rolls that are rolled about the size of golfballs or larger to just make regular rolls.

After you roll the bread balls, roll them in to the butter mixture and place in a greased round casserole dish. If there is extra butter mix, just pour evenly over the top.

For the extra dough that you are using just for rolls, place them in an 8x8 greased casserole dish.
Cover and let rise again for 15 minutes.

Bake at 400 degrees for 12 minutes.

Mini Meat & Cheese Foldovers

2011-03-21T18:12:00.000-07:00

This recipe started with a recipe in Kraft's Food & Family Magazine last year called Beef & Cheese Foldover. Their recipe started with a pie crust that was laid flat & filled with a meat & cheese mixture. Then the edges of the pie crust were folded up to hold in the meat mixture while it cooked.

Great idea, but I wasn't totally into it. I didn't completely love the flavorings they chose either...

Flash forward to today & I was thinking about that recipe again. I knew I could re-do it to our tastes. I took out the pie crust & added crescent rolls. I baked each serving separately in ramekins. I changed the seasonings to match our Quick-n-Easy Shepherd's Pie flavors that we loved so much. Finally, my daughter, Kendall, changed up the title.

So here's the result! I'm happy to report it was YUMMY!!

Mini Meat & Cheese Foldovers
Serves 8

8 7-oz ramekins
1 8-count cylinder of ready-to-bake crescent rolls
1 1/2 lbs ground turkey (or beef, if you prefer)
1 small onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups frozen corn
1/2 cup ketchup
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 cups finely shredded Cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp parsley flakes, optional (I didn't use these, but wish I had)

Preheat oven to 375*F. Line a baking sheet with foil (for easy clean-up). Set ramekins on foil-lined baking sheet & spray lightly with cooking spray.
Open & separate crescent rolls into 8 individual triangles. Lay 1 triangle in each ramekin - thick side along the bottom of the ramekin & the point sticking out over the side (see below). Set aside.

In a large skillet, brown meat with onions until cooked through; drain.
Stir in corn, ketchup & Worcestershire.
Spoon meat/veg mixture into each ramekin to just below the rim.
Sprinkle cheese over meat/veg mixture.
Fold point of crescent roll over the top of the cheese. (see below)

Bake 20 minutes or until cheese is melted & crescent roll is cooked through & golden brown.

Enjoy with a side of your favorite veggies or a green salad.

I think there are probably loads of variations to this recipe.

You could go Italian - replace the ketchup with spaghetti sauce & add a bit of minced garlic when cooking the meat. Top with shredded mozzarella. Maybe sprinkle some garlic salt over the crescent roll too.

I think vegetarian would be great too - saute' some portabella mushrooms & onions in butter & garlic. You could add some red kidney beans too. Use the mushroom/bean mixture to replace the meat/veg mixture. Top with a spicy Pepper Jack cheese.

Use your imagination!! If you come up with a delicous variation, please let us know so we can post it.

Ice Cream - Sugar Cookie Sandwiches

2011-03-18T12:57:00.001-07:00

These were so fun!! It's our surprise dessert for St. Patrick's Day. I snuck into my daughter's leprechaun trap, took out the chocolate "bait", and left a note from Mr. Leprechaun. The note read: "Thanks for the treasure! I left one for you in the freezer!" It was a big hit!

Obviously you can make these with any cookie & any ice cream. They came together in less than 5 minutes and were enjoyed for much longer. Totally worth the minimal effort! Whip some up this afternoon!

Ice Cream - Sugar Cookie Sandwiches

Your favorite sugar cookies - store bought or homemade
A complimentary ice cream - softened slightly (I left mine out on the counter for about 5 minutes & it was perfect)

Set out a cookie sheet covered with wax paper. Make room in your freezer for the cookie sheet to lay flat (so the sandwiches won't slide)

Place a scoop of ice cream on one cookie. Gently smoosh another cookie on top.

Use your fingers or a small spatula to smooth the sides & press ice cream into all the open spots.
Hold the sandwiches by 2 fingers, only touching the cookies. Sprinkle your favorite sprinkles around the edges.
Place the finished ice cream sandwiches on the wax papered cookie sheet.
When finished, carefully move the cookie sheet into the freezer to lay flat. Allow ice cream sandwiches to set-up/harden for at least 1 hour.

Enjoy!!

This is a very kid-friendly project. If they're older, they can do the whole thing. If they're younger, they can put the 2nd cookie on top & move the finished product to the cookie sheet. They can even put the sprinkles on. Get 'em cooking too! :)

Quick-n-Easy Shepherd's Pie

2011-03-18T12:46:00.000-07:00

Don't let the green mashed potatoes freak you out - I made this for our St. Patrick's Day dinner last night. :) Obviously, you can make this with regular white mashed potatoes on top for everyday.

This was quick-n-easy, delicious & filling. YUM!!

Quick-n-Easy Shepherd's Pie
Serves 4 adapted from recipe found in Real Simple Magazine

1 lb ground turkey (or beef, if you prefer)
1/3 cup ketchup
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
8 ozs frozen mixed vegetables, thawed (I used a peas/corn/carrots/green beans mix)
1/4 cup (1 oz) shredded Cheddar cheese
3 cups prepared mashed potatoes OR 1 16-oz pkg refrigerated or frozen & thawed mashed potatoes

Preheat oven to 400*F
Place meat in large skillet & cook over medium-high heat until no trace of pink remains, about 5 minutes. Spoon off/discard any fat.
Stir in ketchup & Worcestershire thoroughly. Add vegetables. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
Spoon meat/veg mixture into a 2 quart baking dish. Sprinkle cheese over meat/veg mixture. Spread mashed potatoes over the top.
Bake 10-15 minutes, or until heated through.

You can also serve this in individual baking dishes.

For St. Patrick's Day, I added 5 drops each green & yellow food coloring to the water before preparing my instant mashed potatoes. To keep the green theme going, we paired this with "Leprechaun" Lemonade (tinted green w/food coloring) and a green salad.

Enjoy!

Grilled Lemon Chicken

2011-03-15T18:33:00.000-07:00

LOVED this new recipe!!! It's always great to have another recipe for chicken breasts, right?

Next time, I'll make this outdoors. My indoor grill pan worked beautifully, but it was smoky & the house had a bit of a haze going until we opened the windows. This will be perfect for spring & summer grilling at our house. If you have an outdoor-venting fan above your stovetop, you could make this without the smoke being a problem.

I found this recipe in a mail-order recipe club advertisement. I threw away the club membership offer, but kept the recipe. Glad I did!!

Grilled Lemon Chicken
Serves 4

1 lemon - zest & juice
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley (I used dried parsley, about 1 tsp)
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, 4-6 ozs each

Into a large bowl, combine the lemon zest & juice, olive oil, garlic, parsley, thyme, salt & pepper. Add chicken breasts to the bowl and use your hands to evenly distribute lemon mixture all over the chicken breasts, until well-coated. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Chill for 30 minutes minimum or overnight, if you have time.

When you're ready to cook, preheat grill/griddle to medium heat. Put marinated chicken breasts on the griddle. Reserve marinade.

Cook chicken until cooked through, about 10 minutes per side, or until internal temperature reaches 170*F. Brush with remaining marinade 2-3 times during cooking. (I didn't do this at all & it was still delicious)

I served this with angel hair pasta & broccoli with pesto sauce. I added the zest & juice of 1 lemon to jarred pesto sauce, then stirred it into the hot broccoli & pasta. YUMMM!!!

This chicken would be great all by itself, but you could also pair it with a salad and/or your favorite veggies.

Enjoy!!

Bowtie Pasta

2011-03-14T19:27:00.000-07:00

**I can't believe I haven't posted this yet, since it is a family favorite. I don't make it too often though, just because it is an Alfredo sauce, but it's lighter than the ones you would buy in a restaurant, because I use light cream cheese and nonfat milk.**

Bowtie Pasta

12 oz Bowtie pasta
3-4 chicken breasts (mine are small 4oz pieces)
lemon pepper or any other of your favorite seasonings
2 cups nonfat milk
6oz cream cheese (I use light)
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 cup butter
1 TB minced garlic

In a stock pot, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain, put back into pot and set aside.

Cook chicken breasts in a skillet with lemon pepper (or favorite seasoning) sprinkled over top. When it is done, cut chicken into cubes. When the chicken is done add it to the cooked pasta.

In a saucepan, over medium heat, melt butter and add garlic. Let it saute for about 1-2 minutes. Add cream cheese, parmesan cheese, and milk. Whisk together until all ingredients are melted and smooth. Bring to a boil and then turn off.

Right before serving, pour the white sauce into the pot with the pasta and chicken. Stir until everything is coated.

Serve.

This should serve 6

Elbows on the Table

2011-03-10T10:03:00.000-08:00

Made this for dinner last night - YUM! Paired it with green salad & garlic breadsticks. Dinner on the table in 15 minutes. Awesome!

You can find this recipe from 2 years ago on our blog here.

Enjoy!!

Meatball Sub Sandwiches

2011-03-03T09:31:00.001-08:00

Made these Tuesday night - easy & SO yummy!! I used my baked turkey meatballs. Paired with a green salad, this a great dinner!

Meatball Sub Sandwiches
Italian meatballs - prepared & hot - about 4-6 per sandwich
Sub rolls - white is best for taste/texture, even though it's not the healthiest choice
Grated or sliced mozzarella, provolone or romano cheese - pick your favorite
Spaghetti sauce - again, your favorite

Prepare a batch of meatballs - you can buy frozen italian meatballs or make your own - just make sure they're hot before you build your sandwiches!
Preheat oven to 400*F.
Cut open & toast sub rolls lightly under the broiler, if desired.
Build sandwiches - meatballs, topped with spaghetti sauce, then topped with cheese. Place on foil-lined cookie sheet in oven for about 5 minutes, just until cheese melts & starts to turn golden.
Remove from oven & serve immediately.

Enjoy!!

Waffle Cookies

2011-02-26T18:00:00.001-08:00

I've had this recipe FOREVER - no idea where I got it from. It's a family favorite. The kids go nuts when I pull out the waffle iron in the middle of the day. They know what's coming. :)

You can top these with frosting (the way my kids like them) or you can leave them plain (the way hubby & I like them). They're also ridiculously good with a scoop of ice cream between cookies to make an ice cream sandwich.

But my favorite is to put a cookie on a plate, top it with a scoop of ice cream & drizzle hot fudge over the top. Holy moly.

Enjoy!!

Waffle Cookies
Makes 16 cookies

1/2 cup melted butter
2/3 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup all-purpose flour (I'm going to try wheat flour next time or maybe 1/2 wheat, 1/2 all-purpose. I'll keep you posted)
1/4 cup cocoa
1/2 tsp salt.

Preheat waffle iron.
Mix together wet ingredients (butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla).
Stir together dry ingredients in another bowl. Mix into wet ingredients. The batter will be thick.
Drop by tablespoons onto a hot waffle iron.

Check cookies after 1 minute. (Mine took 1 min 20 secs). When set, remove from iron with a fork by gently lifting a corner or edge.
Let cool on baking rack.

Frost, if desired, with chocolate or buttercream frosting just before eating.
Store unfrosted in airtight container up to 3 days.

Friday Night Nachos

2011-02-26T07:41:00.000-08:00

It was Movie Night at our house last night & what could be better to go with a movie than Nachos?!?

This recipe came from Family Circle Magazine, Jan 2010. They were delicious!! Ooey & gooey, just like nachos should be.

I made them 2 ways - with shredded chicken and with shredded pork. I used canned chicken from my food storage since I didn't have any fresh shredded chicken on-hand. I had some in my freezer, but forgot to take it out to defrost.

The canned chicken was really good after I drained & rinsed it, then browned it up just a touch in a non-stick skillet. No oil, just the chicken. It browned up & dried out just a bit so it was perfect on the nachos.

The pork was a refrigerated, pre-prepared product by Hormel. It's called Pork Roast au Jus. No extra seasonings, just yummy pork roast. You pop it into the microwave for 4 minutes, let it sit for 2 more, and then shred it with a fork. Super good!

Other options:
Make these with 1/2 pound coarsely chopped cooked shrimp and 1 8oz can drained crushed pineapple instead of chicken or pork. We're definitely trying that next time!

I think you could also used shredded beef (taco flavored or plain) or some ground beef or turkey browned & seasoned with taco seasonings. Meatless would be great too. Just increase the beans, if desired.

Friday Night Nachos
serves 6 Prep time: 10 minutes

6 ozs baked tortilla chips
2 cups (8 ounces) cooked shredded chicken or pork (or your favorite, see notes above)
1 15oz can black beans, drained & rinsed (you could also use pinto beans, drained & rinsed)
1 cup jarred salsa
1 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend
4 scallions (green onions), trimmed and thinly sliced

Heat oven to 350*F
Pour tortillas chips into 9x13x2" baking dish. Spread evenly.
Scatter chicken (or your choice of meat) and black beans over chips.
Spoon salsa over beans/meat and top with cheese & scallions.
Bake for 15-20 minutes, until heated through and cheese is melted.
Serve immediately.

Per serving: 282 calories; 6g fat (2g sat.); 19g protein; 37g carbohydrate; 6g fiber; 686mg sodium; 35mg cholesterol

Taco Fettucine and Chicken

2011-02-24T17:11:00.003-08:00

**Our family really enjoyed this. This will go into the rotation of favorite meals. Thank you to Adrienne over at www.tastethejoy.blogspot.com for the recipe! The title of hers is Chicken Fettucine a la Fuente. **

1 12oz pkg Fettucine nooodles cooked
1 TB olive oil
3 4oz Boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 cloves garlic - minced
1 pkg taco seasoning
1 cup whipping cream (I used half and half, next time, I will just try it using my milk)
1/2 TB dried parsley or 1/3 cup fresh parsley
1/3 cup Parmesan Cheese

1- Cook Fettucine as directed on package
2- In a skillet, heat the oil and saute the chicken until the chicken is cooked through. I sprinkled mine with some salt and pepper. Remove from pan and cut into cubes.
3- In the same skillet add the garlic, taco seasoning, and cream and cheese. Cook on low to medium heat for 3-5 minutes.
4- Stir in the parsley.
5- Add to cooked Fettucine noodles. Toss.
Serves 4

Chicken Parmigiana

2011-02-24T11:03:00.000-08:00

**This recipe was delicious. It was made by a wonderful friend from church. I have never made Chicken Parmigiana before, but she assures me it is easy. If you want to save time, you could always use your favorite spaghetti sauce with a can of added diced tomatoes even.**

Chicken or Veal Parmigiana

Sauce
olive oil
3 garlic cloves minced
1 onion, minced
1 large can about 20oz of Tomatoes
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 8oz can tomato sauce
1/4 tsp dried thyme

Chicken
4 chicken breasts or veal
1 egg
1/4 cup dried Italian bread crumbs
1/4 cup parmesan cheese

Mozarella cheese
Parmesan cheese

Sauce
1- Heat 3TB oil and saute garlic and onion until golden brown.
2- Add the tomatoes, breaking them up, salt and pepper. Simmer uncovered for about 10 minutes.
3- Add tomato sauce and thyme. Simmer for another 20 minutes.

Chicken
1- Cut chicken breasts in half. Pound with a mallet until thin. Cover with wax paper when pounding because it can get messy. If you don't want to pound the chicken, just slice the chicken breasts thinly while still a little bit frozen.
2- Mix in a shallow bowl the bread crumbs and the parmesan cheese.
3- Beat egg well in another bowl.
4- Dip the chicken pieces into the egg mixture, then into the crumbs. Saute chicken a few pieces at a time in oil over medium heat. Be careful not to burn. Remove from pan and set aside.

Assembly
1- Put some of the tomato sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish.
2- Put chicken on top.
3- Add more sauce on top of chicken, but do not cover.
4- Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.
5- Sprinkle mozarella cheese on top of each chicken piece, adding more parmesan cheese if desired.
6- Continue to bake another 10 minutes.

Serve with noodles, green salad, and garlic bread.

Chocolate Birds Nests - by Thanksgiving Point Emporium Kitchen

2011-02-23T18:08:00.001-08:00

OMGosh!! How cute are these?!?!? I can't wait to make these for Easter!!

Recipe from Thanksgiving Point, Emporium Kitchen.

Chocolate Birds Nests

Makes 5 large or 10 small

* 5 oz. crunchy chow mein noodles (1 small can)
* 1 c. chocolate chips (½ a bag)
* 1 tsp. vegetable shortening
* Candy eggs (medium-sized speckled jelly-beans, or Cadbury Mini-Eggs in Easter pastels work nicely)

Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Melt the chocolate and shortening together in a microwave or over a double boiler, stirring until melted. Allow to cool slightly, but do not let it set up. Stir in the chow mein noodles until evenly coated. Drop the coated noodles onto the baking sheet with a large spoon. For 5 large nests, form into circle about the size of an adult palm or half that amount for 10 small. Use your fingers to sculpt the noodles into a round shape and to form an indentation in the middle of the nest. Place eggs in the nest while chocolate is still wet. Place nests in the refrigerator to harden.

We're linked up with Sweet As Sugar Cookies!

Slow Cooker Pot Roast

2011-02-23T17:51:00.001-08:00

Perfect meal for a cold day. Easy meal for a busy-busy day. Low-cost meal when roast and/or veggies are on sale. All around - a classic, delicious, perfect meal. Enjoy! :)

Slow Cooker Pot Roast
8 servings
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 8 hours (at least)

1 Tbsp oil (or spray with nonstick cooking spray)
3 - 3 1/2 lb boneless beef pot roast - rump, chuck or round
4 carrots, sliced (or a 1 lb pkg baby carrots)
4 medium potatoes (about 2 lbs), cut into 1-inch pieces
2 envelopes onion soup mix
3/4 cup water (I prefer to use beef broth. I pour the extra from the can into the bottom of the crock pot)

If making gravy from crock pot juices/liquid:
1/4 cup water
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour

In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat (or spray with nonstick cooking spray). Brown roast on all sides.
In slow cooker, place carrots & potatoes. Top with browned roast. Set aside.
In glass measuring cup, combine onion soup mix and water. Add to skillet, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of pan. The mixture will thicken & bubble.
Pour soup mixture into slow cooker, over the roast.
Cook covered on LOW 8-10 hours or HIGH 4-6 hours.
Remove roast & vegetables; place on serving platter. Trim roast into serving-size pieces, if desired.
To make gravy: Pour liquid/juices from the slow cooker into a medium saucepan. Turn heat to medium-high.
In a separate bowl, thoroughly combine 1/4 cup water and 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour. Add to liquid in saucepan.
Whisk flour/water mixture & liquid/juices until combined. Continue whisking & bring to a slow boil. Heat until thickened, about 5 minutes.
Pour gravy through seive (if desired) into serving dish.

We like to serve this with fresh breadsticks. Hope you enjoy it!

2011-02-23T15:06:00.000-08:00

We just linked up our Chicken and Capers recipe with Lil Luna. Go check out what others are sharing.

Small-fry Frittatas

2011-02-22T17:54:00.000-08:00

These frittatas are like mini-omelets. Basically scrambled eggs, baked in muffin pans, and with custom add-ins. My family's reaction: "so cool!" "spectacular" "definitely a KEEP!" I like those responses to a new recipe! :)

The add-ins are completely up to you. After you mix the basic recipe & fill the muffin cups, you can add whatever you have on-hand or whatever suits your tastes. You can even customize each family member's meal (if you have the time) - they can choose exactly what they want in their frittatas.

Great meal to get kids involved in the cooking process.

Small-fry Frittatas
adapted from a recipe originally printed in Family Fun Magazine

8 large eggs
1/2 cup half-and-half
1/2 tsp salt
Assorted add-ins (see below for ideas)
Grated Parmesan cheese, if desired

Preheat your oven to 350*F. Coat a 12-cup muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray.
Whisk together eggs, half-and-half, and salt in a medium bowl, then fill each muffin cup about 1/2 - 2/3 full (be sure to evenly distribute the egg mixture).
Add about 2 Tbsp add-ins, if desired, to each cup, then sprinkle on a bit of Parmesan cheese, if desired.
Bake the frittatas until they are puffy and the edges are golden brown, about 20-25 minutes. Don't take them out early or they'll be gooey in the middle.
If necessary, run a butter knife around the edge of each one to loosen them before removing them from the pan.
Serve & enjoy!!

Add-ins:

shredded cheese, diced veggies, cooked & chopped bacon, ham or sausage, spinach, green onions, etc... You're only limited by your tastes & imagination. It's a great way to use leftover veggies & meats.

** Be sure any meat products you use are pre-cooked. This baking process will not cook meat through.

Turkey, Bacon & Avocado Sandwiches on Ciabatta

2011-02-21T09:24:00.000-08:00

This is the best sandwich EVER - from Kneaders Bakery & Cafe, here in Utah. I love them. They're huge, fresh, delicious, and I'm not above asking my husband to pick some up on his way home from work!

But then I figured, as good as Kneaders is, I could probably make this at home. So I did! :)

Definitely pick up the ciabatta bread - it makes this sandwich really special. Definitely use fresh or leftover turkey (especially if you've made this) and not deli meat. It's SO worth it!

We make these the day after Thanksgiving and whenever I bake or crock-pot a turkey breast, I save leftovers to make these sandwiches.

Enjoy!!

Turkey-Bacon-Avocado Sandwiches on Ciabatta

Use leftover turkey, cooked bacon & sliced avocado on sliced ciabatta bread.
Trim with provolone cheese, fresh lettuce & tomato, thinly sliced red onion, and a 1-1 mixture of your favorite mayo & spicy mustard.

SO yummy!

The White House Chef's Turkey Patties

2011-02-18T18:00:00.001-08:00

This recipe for Turkey Patties is from an article in Family Circle magazine found here. It was created by White House Executive Chef Cris Comerford as part of the "Let's Move" initiative.

The benefits to these patties are first, taste - SO delicious! Second, lower in calories & fat than traditional turkey patties. Third, they're super easy to make.

I used traditional plain breadcrumbs since I didn't have any Panko crumbs on-hand.

My family declared this recipe: "a definite KEEP!"

The White House Chef's Turkey Patties

1 lb ground turkey
1/4 cup panko crumbs
1 egg white
2 Tbsp minced scallions
1 clove garlic, minced
2 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley (if you use dried, check the package to figure out the proper amount to use)
Zest & juice from 1 lemon
non-stick spray

In a large bowl, combine ground turkey with panko, egg white, scallions, garlic, soy sauce, parsley, lemon zest & juice. (I'd do this with your hands so you don't break down the meat too much. If you break ground turkey down too much, it becomes grainy.)
Shape into 4 equal patties.
Spray large skillet or grill pan with non-stick spray. Heat over medium heat. (Don't put patties on a cool skillet. Make sure the skillet is fully heated before placing the patties.)
Cook turkey patties for about 5-7 minutes on each side or until cooked through.
Serve.

We had these with rice pilaf & veggies.

Enjoy!

Stromboli

2011-02-17T17:52:00.000-08:00

Tonight I made stromboli for the first time - this is a meal I'll definitely make again! :)

The fillings are completely adjustable to fit your tastes & what you have on-hand. I'm sure you could use different sauces, veggies & meats, but traditionally a stromboli is an Italian food. So you begin with pizza dough, mozzarella & marinara sauce. What you add after that it totally up to you!

My recipe was adapted from the first recipe I saw in Martha Stewart's "Everyday Food" and then adjusted to match what we had on-hand.

Here's what we had tonight...

STROMBOLI for 6

2 canisters pizza dough, like Pillsbury - or 1 1/2 lbs prepared pizza dough, thawed if frozen
all-purpose flour for work surface
1 1.25lb package ground turkey
1 1/2 tsp Italian seasonings
1 tsp minced garlic
2 cups grated mozzarella cheese
1-2 cups marinara/spaghetti sauce (your favorite)
1 cup spinach
Marinara sauce for dipping

Preheat oven to 400*F. Line a baking sheet with foil. Spray lightly with non-stick spray.
Brown ground turkey mixed with Italian seasonings. Remove from heat & stir in minced garlic. Place on hot pad/trivet near your prepared work surface.
On a lightly floured work surface, divide each canister of pizza dough into 3 pieces. (I rolled it out horizontally & fairly flat, then pulled it just a bit to make it fairly even.) Cut it into thirds with a pizza cutter. Stretch out each third to about a 6" x 8" piece. Let dough rest briefly if it keeps returning to it's original size/shape.

This picture shows 1 piece of dough (left) pulled out, 1 piece (top) with fillings sprinkled on, and 1 piece (right) rolled & ready to move to the foil-lined pan.

Divide cooked ground turkey evenly into 6 portions. Scatter ground turkey over dough, leaving 1/2" margin. Lay spinach leaves on top of meat. Sprinkle mozzarella & marinara sauce on top.
Starting at one end, roll up each stromboli. Pinch the seams & ends gently. You don't need to completely seal it. Don't panic of the pizza dough tears slightly or holes open up. You can pinch them shut or, if they're small, leave them for venting while it cooks.
Place on foil-lined baking sheet, seam side down. If no holes have formed in the pizza dough, use a paring knife to cut 2 slits in the top of each stromboli.
Brush very lightly with olive oil.
Bake until golden, about 20-25 minutes.
Serve with 1/2 cup marinara sauce for dipping, if desired.

We paired this with a spinach & arugula salad.

It took longer than I expected to prepare & roll each stromboli. My dough was a bit too thin & popped open a lot while I was rolling. But they came out beautifully & were absolutely delicious!

Some variations I found online, all with mozzarella & marinara sauce:
canadian bacon, pineapple
broccoli, halved grape tomatoes, salami
Italian sausage or chicken sausage, spinach

Some additional variations:
alfredo sauce, shredded chicken, Parmesan
pesto, shredded chicken, mozzarella

Cake Mixes - Regular vs. Low Fat Recipe

2011-02-17T11:08:00.001-08:00

Have you seen the "Lower Fat Recipe" on the back of your boxed cake mixes? Have you ever wondered if they'll still taste good? If the changes are really worth it?

I have! So today, I decided to try one out.

I used a Duncan Hines Red Velvet cake mix and followed the directions on the box for the Lower Fat Recipe. I also had to do the noted adjustments for High Altitude since I live here in Utah.

But will it be worth it?

I know this isn't a great picture, but I found the statistics pretty interesting...

Each serving is listed as 1/12 of a cake. For cupcakes, I just multiplied their numbers by 12 (12 servings total or 1/12 twelve times). When I had the total for the whole cake, I divided it by the number of cupcakes I made. Since I was doing the high altitude adjustments, I got 30 cupcakes from this mix.

The Lower Fat Recipe calls for 1/3 cup plain applesauce instead of vegetable oil, 1 cup of water instead of the usual 1 1/2 cups, and the eggs (3) stayed the same.

This is the applesauce I used. My son was recently diagnosed Type 1 diabetic so we have loads of No Sugar Added products on-hand, like this Mott's Applesauce.

The total calories went down from 250 to 200 when using the Lower Fat Recipe.

The total fat went down from 12g to 6g (saturated fat from 3g to 2g, polyunsaturated fat from 5g to 1g, and monounsaturated fat from 3g to 1.5g)

Cholesterol, Sodium, & Protein stayed the same.

Total Carbohydrates (this is what we need to know for my son's diabetes) actually went UP! From 33g to 34g - not much, but still surprising. The total sugars went up from 19g to 20g.

So for us, specifically my diabetic son, the regular recipe is actually better for his carb counts. But in view of total health, I think the cut in calories & fat is absolutely worth making the small changes and using the Lower Fat Recipe.

BUT - how did it taste? How did it look? That's what we really want to know, right?

Here's the finished cupcake with buttercream frosting & some red sprinkles. Beautiful!

And, for the sake of research (of course!), I took a bite so you could see the inside of the cupcake. It was moist & the flavor was perfect. I had expected to find a hint of applesauce-y flavor, but there was none. I also thought there would be a texture difference - nope!

My final verdict: Totally worth it for overall health (lower fat, lower calories). Not worth it if you're only concerned about carb counts.

But either way - super-duper yummy cupcake!

Chocolate Fondue

2011-02-14T19:40:00.001-08:00

This was our fun Valentine's Day treat with the kids, but you could make it for guests or a fun date night dessert too.

I used these two recipes from bettycrocker.com:
Milk Chocolate Fondue
Dark Chocolate Fondue
to come up with the one I made tonight.

Here's the horrible (sorry!) picture of our treat:

It was delicious!! Even if you don't have a fondue pot, I think you could eat this right out of the saucepan - if you eat fast. :)

This dessert took less than 15 minutes to prepare. Enjoy!

Chocolate Fondue

2/3 cup half-and-half
12 oz semisweet chocolate chips or 2 cups (you could use another flavor of chips like white chocolate or milk chocolate - get creative!)
2 Tbsp half-and-half (or liqueurs, as the original recipes called for, but we don't drink alcohol so we used more half-and-half)
1 tsp vanilla
Dippers: Pound cake or angel cake cubes, marshmallows, mini sugar cookies, brownie cubes, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, bananas, dried apricots, pineapple chunks, etc

In 2-quart heavy saucepan, heat half-and-half and chocolate over low heat (very important so it doesn't burn), stirring constantly, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth; remove from heat.
Stir in 2 Tbsp half-and-half (or liqueurs) and vanilla. Stir until fully incorporated & creamy-smooth.
Pour into fondue pot.
Spear dippers with fondue forks; dip into fondue.

If fondue becomes too thick, stir in a small amount of half-and-half.

Whole Wheat Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

2011-02-12T17:37:00.000-08:00

These are my mom's "famous" cookies. I've been making them since I was a child. They're also my family's favorite chocolate chip cookies. They're more fluffy & crunchy than soft & chewy. They're perfect for dipping in milk.

My dad & my sister like to flip them upside down & spread butter on them while they're still warm. I'm not into that so much...

Anyway, I like that they're made with whole wheat flour & oats.

Whip up a batch, pour a glass of cold milk & enjoy!!

Whole Wheat Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Preheat oven to 350*F.

Cream together thoroughly:
1 cup vegetable shortening
1 cup white sugar
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 Tbsp vanilla

Sift together:
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda

Add sifted ingredients to creamed ingredients. Mix only until thoroughly incorporated.

Stir in:
1 1/2 cups quick oats
1 heaping cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Drop by teaspoonful onto ungreased cookie sheets, about 2" apart.
Bake for 12 minutes. **
Cool & store in airtight container.
1/2 cup walnuts (optional)

** NOTE:
Baking time is approximate. Depending upon the oven & the weather, they could take from 10 - 14 minutes to bake. Keep an eye on your first batch, then bake the rest for the same amount of time.

GREAT idea from my co-blogger, Janis:
Just as a side note for those that like oatmeal raisin cookies like me, I add raisins instead of chocolate chips and add at least a tsp of cinnamon. Maybe more, I just dump stuff in. Yum! :)

The Emporium's Famous Sugar Cookies

2011-02-08T18:01:00.001-08:00

I live in Lehi, Utah, fairly close to Thanksgiving Point. It hosts a dinosaur museum, Farm Country, art studio, movie theater and - especially great - The Emporium. It's a shop that makes me drool & wish I had a bigger home decor budget!

They also offer some amazing foods there (and cooking classes in their kitchens). One of the best things they have there are these sugar cookies.

I'm thinking they'd be awesome for Valentine's Day! If you have the piping skills, you can make them especially pretty.

Enjoy! :)

The Emporium's Famous Sugar Cookies

1/2 cup butter

1 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp almond extract

1 egg

1/2 cup sour cream

3 1/4 cup flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

Cream butter & sugar together. Add egg, vanilla and almond extracts, and mix well. Add sour cream and mix until blended. Sift dry ingredients together. Add dry ingredients until blended. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and chill for 1 to 2 hours. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Roll dough out onto lightly floured surface to about 1/8" thick. Dip cookie cutter in flour and cut out cookies into desired shapes. Bake on cookie sheets for 8 to 10 minutes or until edges are pale golden. Cool on wire racks.

What are capers?

2011-02-04T07:56:00.000-08:00

I wanted to explain what capers are & what flavor they bring. It's good to know what you're getting into before you buy & prepare a new dish, right?

Here's the answer to "What are capers?" from foodnetwork.com ...

This didn't help me much...

I will say they are tiny, the texture of olives, and take on the flavor of the vinegar they're packed in. They are said to be salty, but I noticed the vinegar flavor more than the salt.

With the lemons, they add a balsamic vinegar-y flavor to this dish. Very pleasant & mild, not overwhelming. I think it's because the recipe calls for them to be rinsed before you use them. It removes most of the vinegar flavor. Kind of like the Tbsp of vinegar you add to potato salad. Not overwhelming, but it wouldn't be the same without it.

Hope this helps! - Kathryn

Lemon Chicken with Capers

2011-02-03T11:02:00.001-08:00

This is what I always order when I go to Buca di Beppo. It's DELISH!! Super easy to make, took me about 30 minutes total. I got chicken on sale for $1.49/pound so the whole meal was under $5 for my family of 6 - not bad!

Capers are usually sold by the pickles & olives. I found them at Walmart so they should be easy to find near you. Don't leave them out - they really make the dish!

We served this with fettucine & a green salad. I doubled the lemon/caper sauce & poured some over the hot fettucine and the rest over the chicken. You could also serve it with smashed potatoes or a loaf of crusty french bread.

Lemon Chicken with Capers

4 5-oz boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

salt & pepper

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

3 Tbsp butter

3 Tbsp vegetable oil

1/4 cup lemon juice

1/2 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup capers, rinsed

Preheat oven to 225*. Line baking pan or jelly roll pan with foil. Place in oven.
Sprinkle chicken with salt & pepper, then dredge in flour.
Warm 1 Tbsp butter and 2 Tbsp vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until butter foams.
Add 2 floured chicken breast halves; cook until browned, 3-4 minutes. Flip chicken; cook until firm and browned on other side, about 3-4 minutes longer.
Transfer cooked chicken breasts to baking pan in oven. Cover loosely with foil.
Add 1 Tbsp butter and 1 Tbsp oil to the skillet and repeat steps # 2-5 with the remaining chicken breast halves. (Add butter & oil each time you add 2 more chicken breast halves)
Add lemon juice & chicken broth to skillet and bring to a boil, scraping up browned bits from bottom of pan.
Boil, stirring occasionally, until thicker - about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in capers & 1 Tbsp butter. Stir until butter melts. Lightly season with salt & pepper, if desired.
Remove chicken from oven & transfer to a serving platter. Pour sauce over chicken & serve.

Be sure to prepare your side dish while the chicken is cooking. Timing will depend upon what you're serving.

Prep time: 5 mins Serves: 4-6

Cook time: 20-30 mins, depending upon how many chicken breasts you prepare

Per serving: 387 calories; 18g fat (7g saturated fat); 122mg cholesterol; 1g fiber; 41g protein; 10g carbohydrates; 1010mg sodium

Crock Pot Pork Chops

2011-01-31T17:43:00.001-08:00

**This recipe comes from http://www.thesweetslife.com/2009/10/crockpot-pork-chops.html It reminded me of a Teryaki and had good flavor. We served it with brown rice and salad**

Ingredients:
-6 boneless pork chops
-1/4 cup brown sugar
-1 teaspoon ground ginger
-1/2 cup soy sauce
-1/4 cup ketchup
-2 cloves garlic, crushed (I used minced garlic)
-salt and pepper, to taste

Place pork chops in crockpot. Combine remaining ingredients in a small bowl and pour over pork chops. Cook on low setting for 4-6 hours.

Taco Soup

2011-01-31T16:47:00.001-08:00

**This is a soup my mom would make growing up. With all the yucky foggy weather we have been having lately, it was a great dinner.**

Taco Soup
1 pound extra lean ground beef
1/2 cup onion chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced (I use garlic from the jar)
1 14oz can beef broth
1 packet taco seasoning
1 14oz can diced tomatoes with green chiles
1 14oz can corn - drained (or you can use frozen corn)
1 14oz can black beans (or whatever bean you like)

1 14oz can tomato sauce (Optional..I have not been adding lately)

In a skillet brown the ground beef and onion together. Drain any excess fat. Add garlic. Stir until combined. Then add the taco seasoning packet and beef broth. Bring to a boil and then pour in to a medium sized stock pot.

Add the can of tomatoes, tomato sauce, corn, and beans. Stir well and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat to keep warm or serve.

Serve with sour cream, cilantro, tortilla chips etc.. or just eat plain. :)

No Bake Cheesecake

2011-01-20T12:55:00.000-08:00

**This is a recipe that my mom would make growing up. I love cheesecake, and I love how this is so so simple.**

No Bake Cheesecake

1 box Honey Maid graham cracker crumbs
**Follow the recipe on the back of the box for crust. You will need sugar and butter/margarine. I tripled the recipe, and put it in a 9x13 and did not bake it. You could also use 2 9" pie dishes.

2 8oz cream cheese
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup sour cream
2 tsp vanilla
8oz cool whip

Cream the cream cheese and sugar together. Blend in the sour cream and vanilla. When the mixture is mixed together well, fold in the cool whip. Pour into your 9x13 dish and chill for at least an hour before serving.

**The sauce on the top is a fresh blackberry puree mixed with a raspberry cake filling. I used half of a can of raspberry cake filling, and then I blended up about a cup of blackberries and added it to the raspberry cake filling. It was yummy!

Cranberry & Rosemary Chicken

2010-12-22T18:30:00.000-08:00

**This is a recipe from a womens night activity we had, then my friend Brooke shared it with me the other day and reminded me of having it at church. My family thought this recipe was OK. My daughter said to use less rosemary and maybe she would like it better. I thought it was worth posting because it is easy and some people may have more appeal to these ingredients than we did.**

Cranberry & Rosemary Chicken
5 Chicken Breast (4oz size)
1 16oz whole cranberry sauce
8oz french salad dressing
1 packet dry onion soup mix
1 1/2 TB dried rosemary (my family said they would like less)

Put chicken breasts in the crock pot. In a seperate bowl, add all other ingredients and mix until all is blended together. Pour over chicken. Cook on low for 5 hours. Shred chicken. Serve over rice.

Chili's Southwest Eggrolls (well almost)

2010-12-18T19:35:00.001-08:00

**We LOVE Chili's Soutwest Eggrolls, and now BJ's does a Southwest Eggroll and also Claim Jumper. So these are the new popular appetizer. I was inspired to finally try and figure out how to make them on my own when I saw this recipe on www.aubreysrecipes.blogspot.com. I am so glad I found this recipe because they are as close to the real thing as you can get.*****

Southwest Eggrolls
2 TBSP vegetable oil
1 bunch of minced green onion. I cut the a little bit of the white end off, and about 1 inch of the green tops off and chopped all the rest of the bunch.
1/2 red bell pepper, finely chopped
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 pkg frozen spinach, thawed, then squeeze out all the liquid
1 jalapeno finely chopped ( I DID NOT DO THIS. I DON'T COOK WITH JALAPENO ENOUGH TO KNOW IT'S SPICINESS SO I JUST DIDN'T USE IT)
1 TBSP fresh parsley, finely chopped
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1-2 cups Monterey Jack Cheese ( I used 1 cup)
Flour tortillas, about 10

Heat oil in skillet. Stir in onion and red pepper. Cook and stir for about 5 minutes. The add the corn, black beans, spinach, jalapeno, parsley, cumin, chili powder, salt, and cayenne pepper. Cook and stir for another 5 minutes until well blended and tender. Remove from heat and stir in the cheese. It will melt in the mixture. Just stir it until it is evenly blended in.

In a tortilla warmer, warm up the tortillas so they are soft. Fill them with filling and roll them making sure to tuck the ends in. You can secure them with a toothpick if you wish. I didn't do that.

Chili's way (apparently)- Arrange all rolled eggrolls in a dish cover with plastic and place in the freezer for about 4 hours. In a large deep skillet, heat oil for deep frying. Fry each eggroll for about 10 minutes. Drain on paper towels before serving.

OR
**This is the way I did them**
Arrange all the eggrolls in a dish. Cover with plastic and freeze for about 30 minutes. In a large deep skillet fry each eggroll until browned on the outside. Drain on paper towels before serving.

Aubreys directions say to fry each eggroll until golden brown and then drain on paper towel. Next, place them on a baking sheet and place them in the oven at 350 degrees for about 8 minutes.

I would like to try to just brush them with oil and bake them completely and see how they turn out.

We served them with homemade ranch. You could add avocado to the ranch to make an avocado ranch, or add taco seasoning to the ranch to spice it up a bit. YUM!!

Cream Cheese Chicken

2010-12-06T08:12:00.001-08:00

**This recipe comes from my friend Xian. When we first moved to Northern California, they had us over for dinner and this is what she made. I had never had it before and it was really good. It is super easy too. :)**

Cream Cheese Chicken
4 - 4oz chicken breasts (I know that because the package I buy are already to cut to be that size, otherwise about a pound of chicken breast)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 packet Good Seasonings Italian Dressing Mix (You buy it on the salad dressing aisle where the ranch packets are sold also. I believe they come in box of about 3 to buy. I don't remember if they come individually. The entire packet seems to be close to a TBSP)
1 8oz cream cheese (I used the 1/3 less fat)

**Also as a sidenote, when I went to make this, I realized I did not have a cream of chicken soup, so I just added 2 cream of mushroom soups and then added 1 chicken boullion for flavor. It probably added a ton more sodium, but that's what I did. It was still delicious.**

Put chicken breast in crock pot. In seperate bowl mix the rest of the ingredients EXCEPT the cream cheese together. Pour over chicken. Cook over low for about 4 hours. When chicken is done, shred the chicken into smaller pieces. Cut up the bar of cream cheese, and add to mix. Stir well until cheese is all melted. You could also add a little bit of water or chicken broth if you don't like the mixture so thick.

**If you don't want to do the crock pot, I have heard of mixing all ingredients including the cream cheese and pouring over the chicken in 9x13. Then bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes or until chicken is tender**

Serve over rice or noodles. YUM!

Serves 6

Summit House Restaurant's Creamed Corn Au Gratin

2010-11-30T08:24:00.000-08:00

Summit House Restaurant in Fullerton, CA, gets so many requests for this recipe, they started printing it on cards for diners to take home! It's a holiday tradition for our family & a favorite wherever I bring it.

Classic Creamed Corn Au Gratin

1 lb frozen corn (I buy the sweet white or petite corn)
12 oz whipping cream
1 1/2 T. melted butter
1 1/2 T. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
2 T. white sugar
pinch of pepper
3 T. Parmesan cheese

Combine corn, cream, salt, sugar & pepper in a pot and bring gently to a boil. (Be sure to stir often to keep the cream from burning)
Stir butter & flour very well, until totally combined. (Make a roux) Add to corn/cream mixture & mix well. Simmer for 5 minutes. (Mixture will thicken - be sure to stir occasionally)
Transfer corn mixture to casserole dish. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese & brown under broiler.

Enjoy!