dinners in 2013

Sausage & Bowtie Alfredo

2013-07-30T10:27:00.000-06:00

Last night I threw together a recipe that actually turned out pretty yummy. I'll call it Sausage & Bowtie Alredo. This is super easy and quick.

Sausage & Bowtie Alfredo

Ingredients
1/4 cup butter
3 cloves garlic, minced
16 oz cream cheese
1/2 package ranch dressing mix (the dry stuff)
1/2 cup sour cream
2 cups milk
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 cups bowtie pasta
1 lb sausage links (I recommend these ones)
parsley

Directions

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

On a grill or in a frying pan, cook sausage also according to package directions. When done, cut links into bite-size chunks.

Meanwhile, in a large sauce pan, melt butter and add garlic. Cook until garlic turns golden. Add cream cheese, sour cream, milk and ranch dressing mix. Heat over medium-high heat until smooth. If the sauce is too think, you can thicken it up with a little cornstarch.

Finally, combine your sauce, pasta and sausage all in the sauce pan. Stir to combine, sprinkle with parsley for garnish and serve immediately.

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The reason I used such random ingredients in this recipe is because this is what I had on hand. I only had a 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese or I would probably have added a little more.

It didn't matter that this recipe was thrown together. It was delicious and I'm glad I kept track of what I was putting in there as I will be making it again.

Serve with a salad or sliced grape tomatoes and cottage cheese.

zucchini lasagna

2013-07-25T11:27:00.000-06:00

A while ago I pinned this on pinterest:

photo credit: skinnytaste.com

I was intrigued, but time went by and I forgot about it. Until my husband's cousin brought us some zucchini and yellow squash and then i knew i would make this.

Here's my version - I made some changes to the original recipe, but you should click over to skinnytaste and read her directions because she has some very helpful hints.

Zucchini Lasagna

Ingredients
1 lb ground beef
16 oz cottage cheese
1 bottle spaghetti sauce
1 egg
3 medium zucchini (i used 2 and included 1 yellow squash)
16 oz Mozzarella cheese, grated
1/2 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 Tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper

Directions

Start by cleaning the zucchini. Then slice into 1/8-inch thick slices. Lay these on a flat surface and lightly coat with salt to draw out moisture. Heat grill (I used my indoor grill for ease) and grill each zucchini slice for about 4 minutes. Remove from grill and place on a paper towel to draw out more moisture.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a frying pan, add olive oil and grill onions and garlic. Cook until onions are tender and turning translucent. Add ground beef and cook until no longer pink.
Drain the excess fat from the meat mixture.
In a separate medium bowl, beat egg. Add cottage cheese and spaghetti sauce. Combine well.
In a 9x13 baking dish, spread out a small amount of the sauce mixture (just enough to lightly cover the bottom of the pan). On top of sauce mixture, lay out a layer of zucchini. Then spread out a layer of 1/2 of the meat mixture.
Add another layer of sauce (about half of the remaining), followed by a zucchini layer and finally another meat layer. Cover with a layer of zucchini.
Top with the Mozzarella cheese.
Cover with foil and bake in the oven for 45 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 10-15 minutes. Let it stand for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Make a tossed salad and some garlic bread and you've got yourself a meal!

The hubby loved this and so did I. The kids had a hard time getting past the fact that there weren't any noodles. Next time, I would only use the zucchini and leave the yellow squash for something else.

Cottage Cheese Veggie Dip

2013-07-08T15:24:00.000-06:00

I got this recipe from one of my neighbors. It is an awesome veggie and cracker dip.

Cottage Cheese Veggie Dip

24 oz Cottage Cheese
8 oz Sour Cream
1 cup Mayo
2 Tbsp Parsley Flakes
1 tsp Garlic Powder
2 tsp Onion Salt
2 tsp Ac'cent

Mix all ingredients together in medium bowl.

I didn't have any Ac'cent on hand when I made this, so I omitted it. It tasted slightly different than the real thing, but it was still good.

Also, you could make this recipe virtually fat free if you used fat free varieties of cottage cheese, sour cream and mayo. I'm not sure how it would affect the taste, but it might be worth a try.

Chicken and Black Bean Salad

2013-05-07T16:21:00.001-06:00

This recipe came from a picture posted on Pinterest. There was no recipe only a picture, so I guessed the best I could based on what I could discern from the picture and took some liberties from there.

Chicken and Black Bean Salad

Ingredients
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can diced green chilies
1 can sweet corn, drained
2 roma tomatoes, diced
1 avocado, diced
4-5 cilantro stems, chopped finely
1/2 red onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, finely diced

Directions
Boil chicken breasts until cooked through. Drain and allow to cool in the fridge.

Meanwhile, in medium size bowl, combine drained black beans and drained corn. Add green chilies.

Dice the tomatoes, avocado, cilantro, onion, and garlic. Add to bowl and stir to combine.

Once chicken is cool enough to handle, shred in to bite size chunks or strips. Add to bowl and combine.

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I should probably point out that the original picture I copied from didn't have avocado in it, and did have green onions instead of red onion. Either way, I think it would still be fantastic.

This turned out to be delicious. We serve it on a tortilla with some lettuce and sour cream. The kids loved it and so did the hubby.

It would also be great as just a salad. Add a little lime juice and some salt and pepper and eat as is.

I am thinking that next time I may try use Buffalo Chicken for this recipe.

Bacon and Pea Macaroni & Cheese

2013-05-02T09:41:00.003-06:00

I found this recipe via Pinterest here and adapted it for my own use. I'm always a little nervous making Pinterest recipes for the first time because you never quite know how they are going to turn out.

This one was a good one. The kids like it, the hubby likes it, it is super easy to make and takes almost no time to whip up. It's a win for everyone.

Bacon and Pea Macaroni & Cheese

Ingredients
2 cups uncooked macaroni noodles
1 small bag of frozen peas
4 slices bacon
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 Tbsp hot sauce
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
1 cup Colby Jack cheese, shredded
salt and pepper

Directions
Cook bacon until crispy. Set aside on a paper towel to cool.

Meanwhile, in a large sauce pan, cook pasta according to package directions. Add the peas during the last minute of cooking. Drain pasta and peas. Retain about 1 cup of pasta water for later use.

Return the pasta and peas to the pot and pour in the pasta water you kept. Add yogurt, hot sauce and about 1/3 of the cheese. Stir until cheese is melted and add a 1/3 more cheese. Stir again and add the rest of the cheese.

Crumble bacon and add to pot. Stir until combine. Add salt and pepper to your taste.

My tips:
Don't be scared away by the hot sauce, you can barely even taste it.

I didn't have any bacon on hand when I made this recipe and took the picture, so I used a bottle of bacon bits. I have also used canned peas before. not as good, but not horrible either.

This feeds my family of 6.

I am thinking of adding a little spicy mustard next time to see what kind of flavor that will give it.

German Pancakes (Hootenany)

2013-04-17T05:49:00.000-06:00

Some people call this German Pancakes, some call it Hootenany. Whatever you call it, it's delicious and easy to make.

German Pancakes

1/4 cube butter
6 eggs
1 cup flour
1 cup milk
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Put butter into 9x13 pan and put in the oven to melt butter.

Meanwhile, crack eggs in to medium size mixing bowl and whisk. Then whisk in milk.

Lastly, combine flour, salt and sugar in a separate bowl. Then add to egg mixture all at once. Mix thoroughly with whisk or electric beater.

Remove pan from oven. The butter should be melted by now. Tilt pan to spread butter around the bottom of the pan. Pour egg mixture into pan and return to oven.

* I double the recipe for my family and bake both pans at the same time.

Bake for 20 minutes.

Serve it up with some maple syrup or buttermilk syrup and sprinkle a little powdered sugar over it to top it off.

I like to make up the egg mixture the night before and store it in the fridge until morning.

Creamy Shepherd's Pie

2013-04-15T05:47:00.000-06:00

This is a variation of the old stand-by recipe that I'm sure almost everyone has. My husband prefers things creamy, so a while back I swapped out the tomato paste and substituted either cream of chicken or cream of mushroom. He loves it and so does my family. Next time you make this favortie recipe, try switching it up too.

Creamy Shepherd's Pie

1 pound ground beef
1 large onion, diced
4 cups mashed potatoes
1 can favorite vegetable, drained
1 can cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup
2 cups grated cheese
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Saute onions in large skillet. When onions begin to be translucent, add ground beef; salt and pepper to your taste. Cook until no longer pink. Drain grease.

In a 9x13 casserole dish, combine vegetable and can of soup. Add the ground beef and spread into a thin layer. Finally, spread potatoes over the top of the meat. Sprinkle with cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes.

Serve with salad and dressing.

One of these days I will post about how to make really yummy mashed potatoes.

Porcupine Meatballs

2013-04-03T06:40:00.000-06:00

I received this recipe for Porcupine Meatballs from an old friend when I was still in my teenage years. We did a recipe exchange for a youth activity at church, and this was one of the recipes that she brought to share with everyone.

Porcupine Meatballs

1 lb hamburger
1/2 cup oatmeal
1/4 cup rice
1 egg
salt and pepper
1 can tomato soup - plus a can and a half of water

Combine hamburger, egg, rice, oatmeal, and salt and pepper (to your taste). Create meatballs by take a portion of the meat mixture and rolling in your hands.

Meanwhile, open the can of soup and empty into a medium size sauce pan. Add a can and a half of water and bring to a boil. Once soup is boiling, carefully place meatballs in soup. Simmer for 1 hour. Serve over mashed potatoes.

Here are some tips from me for this recipe.

Use your electric mixture to combine the beef and other ingredients. It is so fast and easy.

Don't worry if your meatballs aren't completely covered by the soup mixture.. Once it starts boiling and the meatballs start cooking you can stir them around a bit and they will all cook.

Here are my meatballs not fully covered by the soup.

And here they are once the soup returns to a boil and they begin cooking. No worries!

When your meatballs are finished cooking, serve them over mashed potatoes. Super yummy!

Big Flaky Biscuits

2013-04-01T06:53:00.000-06:00

I'm trying to cut back on the amount of processed food my family eats and so cutting out the premade refrigerated Grands biscuits was an easy decision. The problem is that I have struggled to find a recipe that produced what I feel are big flaky biscuits.

I came across this biscuit recipe a little while ago on Pinterest, and wanted to give it a try. You can find the original recipe here. I adapted it slightly to make them plain.

Big Flaky Biscuits

3 cups all purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 1/2 cubes unsalted butter, cold
1 1/4 cups milk

Preheat oven to 450. Sift to combine dry ingredients in a medium bowl.

Cut butter sticks into 1 Tbsp chunks and add to bowl. Using either a pastry blender or two knives, cut in the butter until there are pea-size chunks or smaller.

Add milk and gently combine. Save the measuring cup you used for the milk. You will use the small amount of milk that is left in at the end.

Using either a pastry mat or your counter, flour the surface and turn out your dough. Fold it over and gently knead your dough a few times to finish combining it and make it one complete mound. Avoid adding any flour. You want your dough to remain soft.

Use a rolling pin to roll out your dough to about a 3/4-inch thickness. Use a biscuit cutter and cut out your biscuits and then place them on a parchment lined baking sheet.

Quick tip: If you want crispier edged biscuits separate your biscuits so that they do not touch. If you want your edges to be soft, place your biscuits on the baking sheet so that they barely touch.

Re-roll the leftover dough and cut out more biscuits. (I have made this recipe several times and each time I get 11 normal size biscuits and 1 tiny biscuit from this recipe.)

Once all of your biscuits are cut and arranged, use a brush (I usually use my finger) to lightly coat the top of each biscuit with the leftover milk. (I told you to save it!)

Bake at 450 for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

These biscuits are big, very light and flaky and super tasty as well. Don't let the time commitment scare you. After you have made them one time, the recipe and rolling take a very minimal amount of time. No, they are still not as quick as popping a tube from the fridge, but I feel better about what is in these.

I think I have found my replacement biscuit!

DIY Oatmeal Packets

2013-03-29T06:26:00.000-06:00

My kids love the instant oatmeal that comes in the little packages, but I was getting sick of buying them when I knew I had all of the ingredients in my own cupboard. I also have been trying to cut back on the amount of prepackaged, processed foods my family eats. This was a no-brainer for me.

So one saturday, I gathered up my children and told them to form a line at the counter.

All you need is oatmeal, brown sugar, cinammon and ziploc bags.

I gave myself and each child a "job".
I was responsible for putting the sacks inside of a plastic cup. I did this so that it would be easy to drop the ingredients in and keep them stable. I was also in charge of putting 1/8 tsp of cinnamon in each sack.
Isaac (in the white shirt) was responsible for putting 1 Tbsp of brown sugar in each sack.
Jared (blue shirt) was responsible for putting a 1/2 cup of oatmeal in each sack.
Amelia (down on the end) was responsible for closing up the sacks and putting them into a black basket that will be in our pantry.

Our finished product! When you're ready to eat, just dump the contents into a bowl, add about 2/3 cup water and heat for 1.5 minutes in the microwave. We are also saving the plastic bags in a bigger plastic bag to use again for next time.

I didn't think about this until after we were all done, but normally my boys will eat two of the packets for breakfast. Right now we are just letting them still dump two packets into a bowl in the morning. Next time we make our packets I will just have them double the ingredients in one bag and we will mark those bags as a double batch.

You can adjust the recipe to include whatever you want. I am thinking about trying dried apple chunks and cinnamon next time. What do you like in your oatmeal?

Rice Pudding

2013-03-27T06:14:00.000-06:00

Rice Pudding

2 cups water
1 cup rice
1 can evaporated milk
2 Tbsp cinnamon
1/2 to 1 cup sugar (depending on your taste)

Put water in a saucepan over high heat and add rice. Cook according to rice package directions.
Once rice is done cooking, add can of evaporated milk, cinnamon and sugar. Simmer on low for 15 minutes. Serve and enjoy!

Note: The original recipe that I adapted this from used a can of sweetened condensed milk instead of the sugar. It is super delicious, but I can't always bring myself to use it.

Chicken Crescents

2013-03-26T21:39:00.000-06:00

Another recipe I adapted from my friend, Malia.

Chicken Crescents

8 oz cream cheese
1/2 tsp pepper
2/3 cup mushrooms, cooked and chopped
1 can green chilies
2 cups chicken, cooked and cubed
2 can crescent rolls
6 tbsp butter, melted
1 pkg ranch dressing mix
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup milk

Combine cream cheese, pepper, chilies, mushrooms and chicken. Divide dough into 16 pieces. Put spoon size drops of chicken mixture onto wide end of dough and roll up towards skinny end. Pinch dough to close up open spaces. Roll in melted butter, then dressing mixture. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.

Meanwhile, combine chicken soup and milk in saucepan and heat through. Serve over top of crescents.

pancake mix and buttermilk pancakes

2013-03-25T21:10:00.000-06:00

I got this recipe from a lady in my neighborhood. She is a legendary cook around these parts and she makes some pretty awesome edibles.

Dry Pancake Mix

4 cups flour (half white and half wheat flour)
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup sugar

Sift all ingredients together and store in an air-tight container until ready for use.

Here is my container of pancake mix with the rest of the ingredients to make pancakes written on the front.

To make the actual pancakes you need the following:

Buttermilk Pancakes

1 cup of pancake mix
1 Tbsp softened butter
1 egg
1 cup buttermilk

Mix all ingredients together with an electric beater until incorporated. It's okay if the butter is still a little chunky. If the batter is a little too think, add a little more milk or buttermilk.

This recipe will yield about seven 4-inch pancakes. To feed my family (6 of us) about two pancakes each, I double the recipe above, meaning I start with 2 cups of the dry pancake mix.

Heat a skillet and start baking. Do not flip over the pancake until it is ready and bubbles start to form on the surface.

Pancakes only need to be flipped once! This will keep them light and fluffy. VOILA!!

I really recommend making this syrup to go with them.

Buttermilk Syrup

1 cube butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Heat butter, sugar, buttermilk & vanilla until the butter is melted and sugar is dissolved. Add baking soda last. CAUTION: the mixture will froth up, so be ready. I suggest making the syrup in a larger sauce pan than you think you will need. Makes 2-3 cups.

This will stay fresh in the refrigerator for about one to two weeks.

Chicken and Biscuits (Revised)

2013-03-21T18:14:00.000-06:00

I blogged about this recipe a while back but didn't have a picture of my own. I made this meal again last and finally got some pictures. yummy!

Chicken n Biscuits

Ingredients:
1 can (10-3/4 oz.) condensed cream of chicken soup

3/4 cup sour cream, divided

2 cups chopped cooked chicken

1 pkg. (16 oz.) frozen mixed vegetables (carrots, corn, green beans, peas), thawed

1 cup shredded mild cheddar cheese

1 cup all-purpose baking mix

3 Tbsp. milk

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375. In a 8-inch square dish, combine soup and half of sour cream. Then add chicken, vegetables and cheese.

In a separate bowl, mix baking mix, the rest of the sour cream and milk. Combine until you have formed a soft dough.

Spoon 6 mounds directly on top of your soup-chicken mixture. Bake 35 minutes until biscuits are golden brown and soup-chicken mixture is bubbly.

Ok, so a few notes from me.

I use boneless skinless chicken breasts and just boil them right before I start the rest of the ingredients. Just chop them before you put them in the pot to boil and they will cook super fast!

I double my biscuit recipe because they are seriously my family's favorite part of this meal. Don't be tempted to make your biscuits too big, because they will not cook all the way through during the 35 minutes. You have been warned!

The picture below is pre-baking and the big biscuit up front was not cooked all the way through.

This recipe will feed about 4 adults. If you are feeding a crowd or a larger family, double the recipe for sure.

Taco Bake

2013-03-19T10:46:00.001-06:00

I grew up with my mom making this recipe. I've modified it a little over the years, I'll give you the low down on the changes.

Taco Bake (printable recipe here)

Ingredients
1 pound ground beef
1/2 package taco seasoning
2 Tablespoons cornstarch
1 ½ cups water
1 can corn
1(8 oz) can tomato sauce
½ cup grated cheese
2 cups corn chips
1 can diced green chilies (optional)
1 (15 oz) can black beans (optional)

Directions

Cook beef, drain fat. Stir in taco seasoning and cornstarch. Add un-drained corn, tomato sauce, rinsed beans, green chilies and water. Cook to boiling, simmer uncovered 15 minutes. Add ½ corn chips; pour into ungreased casserole dish. Top with rest of corn chips and cheese.

Bake 10 minutes at 400 degrees.

My modifications to the recipe include adding the green chilies and the black beans. I added the green chilies as a way to add a twist on the taste and the black beans to make it more filling and feed more.

My kids love this dish and it tastes great served with a little sour cream and a green salad. My favorite part? the crispy chips and cheese on the top!

Coffee Cake

2013-03-18T10:33:00.000-06:00

Today's recipe comes from my friend Malia. I have gotten a lot of great recipes from her and this one is no exception.

Totally forgot to take a picture of it before I started eating it.... oops!

Coffee Cake
Printable recipe here.

Ingredients
1 cup butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
cinnamon and sugar

Directions
Preheat oven to 375. Cream butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla and sour cream. Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl and add all at once. Mix well.

Pour half of mixture into a greased coffee cake pan. Add mixture of cinnamon and sugar. Top with remaining batter. Sprinkle cinnamon and sugar on the top and bake for 50-55 minutes.

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Ok, so I have tasted Malia's coffee cake a half dozen times and it is wonderful so I definitely wanted to try it on my own. Here is my attempt in the oven ready to be baked.

Next time, I will add more cinnamon sugar to the middle. Here is a side shot of my cake and you can barely see the little swirl of cinnamon sugar in there. I probably used 3 Tbsp of cinnamon sugar in the middle.

Also, my edges were a little darker than I would have liked them. I baked for 55 minutes. Next time I will try 50 minutes or I will move the rack up. It tasted delicious regardless.

Crusty Bread

2013-03-18T06:50:00.000-06:00

I found this recipe via Pinterest, on this blog called Simply So Good.

Note that i added garlic and cheddar to this dough.

Crusty Bread (printable recipe here)

Ingredients

3 cups unbleached all purpose flour

1 3/4 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon yeast

1 1/2 cups warm water

Directions

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt and yeast. Add water and mix until a sticky mixture forms. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set aside for 12-18 hours.

Heat oven to 450 degrees. When the oven has reached 450 degrees place a cast iron pot (or crockpot) with a lid in the oven and heat the pot for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, pour dough onto a heavily floured surface and shape into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let set while the pot is heating.

Remove hot pot from the oven and carefully place it in the pot. Cover and return to oven for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes remove the lid and bake an additional 15 minutes. Remove bread from oven and place on a cooling rack to cool.

A few notes from me. This is what my dough looked like right after I added all of the ingredients and just before I covered it to sit overnight. It is supposed to look like a sticky mess!

Make sure when you turn your dough out to form it into a ball that your surface is heavily floured! I've learned that the hard way! When you leave the dough on your surface to rest for 30 minutes, (you know, while the pan is heating up in the oven) this is to allow the dough to raise a little. Please, make sure that there is quite a bit of flour on your surface. If your dough sticks, then the time that you have allowed it to rise will be all for naught and you'll have to let it rise again.

Ok, so I do not have a nice cast iron pot to bake my bread in, so I use my crockpot insert and lid. It works out wonderfully.

You can pretty much add anything you want to this recipe to make all sorts of wonderful bread creations. In my pictures, I had added about 1 cup of cheddar cheese and 1 Tbsp of fresh chopped garlic.

If you head over to Simply So Good, she has a couple of other wonderful creations she has put together that I can't wait to try.

Ham Asparagus Gratin

2013-02-28T14:18:00.002-07:00

I got today's recipe from here a couple of years ago. I love it because I love asparagus and surprisingly my kids like it too. Even the baby was chomping on the gooey goodness.

Ingredients
1 can cream of Asparagus Soup (I have used cream of mushroom, also, and it tasted great)
1/2 cup milk
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups cooked cut asparagus
1 1/2 cups cubed cooked ham
2 1/4 cups rotini pasta, cooked and drained (about 4 cups)
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese or Swiss cheese (about 4 ounces)

Directions:
Heat the oven to 400°F.

Stir the soup, milk, onion powder, black pepper, asparagus, ham, pasta and 1/2 cup cheese in a baking dish. Bake for 25 minutes or until the ham mixture is hot and bubbling. Stir the ham mixture. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake for 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

printable recipe here.

Muffin Tin Ham & Eggs

2013-02-13T08:48:00.003-07:00

I had seen a bunch of recipes like this on Pinterest and decided to give it a try this morning. They tasted great and are completely customizable to what you have on hand. This is what I did.

Ingredients (per tin)
2 slices of deli sliced ham (I just used the sandwich sliced meats I had for sandwiches)
1 egg
spinach
salt & pepper

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. First spray your muffin tins with some cooking spray. Then I pushed in the meat slices, making sure that they left a "well" in the middle for the egg. The meat slices tried to pop back up, so push them down well.

Next, take a couple of leaves of spinach and put on top of the meat. Then, crack and egg and drop it in on top of the spinach and salt and pepper to taste. I actually added the spinach last, but will do it the other way next time.

It should look something like this:

Then pop it in the oven for about 15 minutes. My yolks were completely cooked in that amount of time, so if you would like yours still runny, lessen the time.

Once they are done, pop them out with a spoon and serve! YUM!

Remember that you can use whatever ingredients you like; mushrooms, cheese, onion, red or green pepper, diced green chilies, bacon, bacon bits, etc...

I made a whole dozen because that is what my tin holds. I just took the extras out and put them in an airtight container in the fridge. They will heat up nicely in the microwave for a quick breakfast on the go!

Macaroni Deluxe Casserole

2013-02-05T10:06:00.002-07:00

This is a recipe that I've had in my recipe binder since before I got married. It is a family recipe from a friend. I forgot to snap a "pretty" picture of it before we started chowing down. The kids loved it and so did the hubby, so it might make an appearance on my dinner table more often.

Macaroni Deluxe Casserole (printable recipe here)

Ingredients:

3/4 lb hamburger
1/2 green pepper (I used a red pepper)
1 chopped onion
1 can tomato soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/2 large can of evaporated milk
1 1/2 cups uncooked macaroni
1 cup grated cheddar cheese (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sauté onions and peppers. Add hamburger and salt and pepper. Meanwhile, cook pasta and drain. Once meat is browned, drain. In a casserole dish, combine macaroni, soups, milk and meat mixture. Top with grated cheese.
Mix and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Dirty Rice with Ham and Black Beans

2013-01-28T10:57:00.005-07:00

I decided to try a little twist on one of our family favorites. I made up a batch of Cajun Dirty Rice but instead of using sausage, I used ham. I also added a can of black beans.

My Altered Recipe for Dirty Rice with Ham and Black Beans
1 1/2 cups uncooked long grain rice (i use instant most of the time)
1/2 pound ham, cooked
1/2 cup yellow onions, diced
1/2 cup green bell pepper, diced
1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon cayenne powder (you can add more, but this is the right amount of spice for my family)
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup olive oil

Cook rice according to package directions. In a large skillet, saute onions, peppers, and garlic. Add ham and heat through. Place rice and the remaining ingredients in a large skillet and simmer until the liquid is fully absorbed and the rice is hot and fluffy.

Ham Fried Rice

2013-01-04T10:14:00.000-07:00

It's a new year! So I changed the title of the blog yet again to keep current.

Last night I made a yummy version of an old favorite. This recipe goes back to my childhood, as my mother made this all the time. It is cheap, quick and tastes great. I made another version of this a while ago using bacon instead of ham. Not as good, but still edible.

Ham Fried Rice

2 Eggs
2-3 Green Onions, sliced
3 cups cooked Rice
2 cups cubed pre-cooked Ham
Soy Sauce
Black Pepper

Cook your rice according to the package directions. Scramble eggs and set aside. In large fry pan, cook onion slightly. Add egg and ham. Cook until ham is heated through. Add rice and stir to combine. Add soy sauce and black pepper to taste.

I didn't have any green onions on hand last night, so I just used regular yellow onion.

Buffalo Chicken

2012-12-06T09:33:00.001-07:00

Another yummy chicken crock-pot recipe from my friend Collette. This one is for Buffalo Chicken.

Buffalo Chicken

Ingredients:
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 bottle Frank's Redhot Buffalo Wing Sauce (*see note below)
1 package dry Ranch Dressing

Directions:
Put chicken in crockpot. Pour 3/4 to whole bottle of Frank's sauce over chicken. Pour entire pouch of ranch dressing over chicken. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. Shred chicken.

*The wings sauce was a little too spicy for my kids. We've had better luck with using the Frank's Redhot Thick Sauce. I have been wanting to try a batch using their Kickin' BBQ Sauce, which is really good.

Meal Ideas:
My friend Collette likes to serve this on King's Hawaiian rolls for sandwiches. We have use the meat in quesadillas, tacos and burritos and on chips for nachos.

Protein Energy Balls

2012-11-05T13:57:00.002-07:00

So not a meal, but a good healthy snack alternative. I got this recipe from my friend Collette, who is one of the healthiest eaters I know. Plus she really is an awesome cook!

The top recipe is as I received it, the recipe at the bottom is with my notes.

Protein Energy Balls

1 C Oats

2/3 C Peanut Butter

1/3 C Honey

1 Scoop Vanilla Protein Powder

½ C Coconut

½ C Mini Semi Sweet Choc Chips

½ C Flax Seed

½ C Sunflower Seeds

Vanilla

Mix all of the ingredients together with an electric mixer, adding vanilla last. You want them to be sticky, but not too sticky that you can't roll them into a ball. If needed, add more vanilla or sprinkle water with your fingers for the desired consistency.

Store in air tight container in the fridge.

Makes about 20 1-inch balls.

Protein Energy Balls

1 C Oats (I've used quick oats and regular. Not much of a difference.)

2/3 C Peanut Butter (To keep these healthy, make sure to use the healthy natural kind, like Adams)

1/3 C Honey

1 Scoop Vanilla Protein Powder (you could use another flavor, but it will change the over-all flavor)

½ C Coconut

½ C Mini Semi Sweet Choc Chips (they need to be semi-sweet, not milk chocolate to keep them healthy)

½ C Flax Seed (I bought mine at Maceys on the baking good aisle)

½ C Sunflower Seeds (get the unsalted, unroasted kind)

Vanilla

Quick Beef Stroganoff

2012-10-17T10:22:00.000-06:00

Last night I made some yummy Beef Stroganoff. I loosely followed this recipe from Kraft Foods. Their recipe is for a crockpot meal and uses stew meat. I wanted it quick and easy and I wanted to use ground beef. Basically, I used what I had on hand.

Here's what I did -

Quick Beef Stroganoff
Ingredients

1.5 lb. ground beef
10 oz. canned mushrooms
1/2 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 beef bouillon cube
2 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups sour cream (I like things saucy, so the 1 cup they suggested wouldn't cut it!)
1 Tbsp. dijon mustard
4 cups egg noodles, uncooked
2 tsp. dried parsley

Directions:

In large pot, cook pasta according to package directions.

Meanwhile, lightly oil, large skillet. Saute onion, garlic and mushrooms, until tender. Add ground beef and cook until brown. Drain grease. Return meat mixture to medium heat and add beef bouillon (and a 1/2 cup water), paprika, and salt.

In a separate bowl, mix sour cream and dijon mustard.

When pasta is al dente, drain and add to skillet with meat mixture. Mix to combine. Then add the sour cream mixture and mix more. Add parsley to top. Serve in skillet.

Serve with green beans or the vegetable of your choice! Enjoy!