Mrs. Schwartz's Kitchen

Italian Meatball Kebabs

2013-06-17T18:08:00.000-07:00

We just got back from our trip out west to Yellowstone and Glacier National Park. Wow was it amazing and I will be posting pictures from our trip soon.

But for now, let's talk a little about food, this is a food blog and all. When you go on vacation for a week or so, do you get stick of going out to eat? This trip I tried my best to go out of the norm an not order a burger every time we went out to eat. That being said, I always get to a point where I just want to make my own meals.

Since the weather has been so nice out, I wanted to grill and didn't want the typical burger. I had been craving Italian food but with it being 80 degrees out, I didn't want something heavy like pasta. Then the idea struck me, Italian Kebabs. These were SUPER easy and quick, perfect for a week night dinner.

Start by cutting a red pepper into bite sized pieces.

Do the same with a green pepper.

Toss them in a bowl

And drizzle with Italian dressing.

Give them a quick toss

And start to assemble adding precooked meatballs to the skewer as well. Remember to soak your skewers in water before assembling so they don't burn.

Once assembled, drizzle with additional Italian dressing. I just used the extra dressing at the bottom of the bowl I used for the veggies. Pop these on the grill, about 300 degrees for about 7-9 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat up your favorite marinara/spaghetti sauce

Here they are, hot off the grill.

The perfect summer meal with a little side salad.

If you would like and if it's not 100 degrees out, you could aways toss the meatballs and veggies with the marinara sauce and pasta.

Dip in the marinara sauce. Dinner = done.

Italian Meatball Kebabs

1 red pepper, cut into bite sized pieces
1 green pepper, cut into bite sized pieces
3 tablespoons Italian dressing
40 precooked Italian seasoned meatballs
1 1/2 cups marinara/spaghetti sauce

Preheat the grill to 300 degrees.

Soaking the skewers in water.

Add the peppers to a small bowl. Drizzle with the Italian dressing and toss to coat.

Start to assemble your kebabs by alternating peppers and meatballs. Drizzle the kebabs with additional Italian dressing, not to drench them, just a little drizzle.

Place the kebabs on the grill and grill for about 7-9 minutes or until fully cooked.

While the kebabs are grilling, place the marinara sauce in a sauce pan on medium high heat, just to heat through.

Once the kebabs are cooked, remove from the grill and serve with a side of the warm marinara sauce.

Enjoy!

Recipe by: Mrs. Schwartz

Humann Wedding

2013-06-15T18:44:00.003-07:00

Yes, we have friends with the last name Humann. Remember when that Android commercial came out making fun of the fact that you can search for your "friends named Humann?" Well, we have them…and they are awesome.

Andy and Jaime were married on June 8th and it was a beautiful day and as we expected, fantastic night. Here are some of my favorite pictures from the weekend:

The Wives..well almost all wives… :)

Andy's Aunt and Uncle. They are so in love, it's adorable.

Waiting for his bride.

Flash of the flower girl.

The Bride, Jaime took our breath away. Absolutely gorgeous.

YAY! Husband and Wife.

The cutest guy at the wedding : )

Um, she had a VERA WANG dress.

Seriously amazing.

Poor Jeremy was stuck in the corner with all the Wives.

Cake: AMAZEBALLS. From Buttercream Bakery.

First Dance, Thunder Road, Bruce Springsteen.

Clearly having a good time.

Traditional Piano Man, a St. John's tradition. No one knows where it started but the boys always do it.

Congrats to the Humanns! We love you guys!

The BEST Queso and Spicy Mexican Chicken

2013-06-06T05:56:00.000-07:00

There is a Mexican food chain in the Twin Cities area that we are just obsessed with, a little place called Alcupulco. We love everything about it, especially the Queso Dip. Holy cats, that stuff is so freaking good. You can order it with your chips and salsa, smother your burrito with it, order it to go....whatever way you order it, just get.it.in.your.belly.

So, I thought I should probably try to recreate the Queso Dip at home and let me tell you, friends, I nailed it. It is SO good and this is SO dangerous. I served it over spicy chicken along with Spanish Rice and chips with corn salsa. Yeah, let's just say Mr. Schwartz was one happy guy.

Let's start with the chicken, specifically the spice rub. But, I have to be honest, when I made it, it was SO freaking salty (hence the HUGE tablespoon of salt up there...what was I thinking!?) so reduce that down to a teaspoon...the flavor was AH-MAZING but the salt was out of this world...

1/2 teaspoon of chili powder

1/2 teaspoon garlic

Dried Mexican oregano. I know, you are probably saying "I don't have that stuff, when would I ever use it?" Well, let's just say I thought the same thing...until I had it in my cupboard. Now I use it all the time!

You will also need 1/2 teaspoon dried chipolte powder.

Give it a good mix, yours will look less salty...because you will use less salt :)

Rub the spice mixture all over your chicken

And place it into a large skillet with a drizzle of canola oil. Cook for 4 minutes or so on each side or until no longer pink in the middle.

Alright, alright, I know this stuff is just junk but it is the essential element to the queso. I found it at drum roll please....Walmart.

Anyways, take a bunch of slices and tear them into pieces.

Chop up a few pickled jalapenos and that's basically the prep. Easy.

Melt some butter in a sauce pan

Add some flour and give it a good stir

Let the flour taste cook out for a few minutes...

And flip the chicken...

After the flour has had a chance to cook a bit, pour in some milk and whisk the heck out of it to avoid lumps

Once you reached a smooth consistency, add in the cheese

And the jalapenos (forgot to take a picture of that) and salt. Give it a stir, if it is too thick, add additional milk. At this point it is a good idea to taste it too, might need more salt or more jalapenos for spice!

That's it. Smother your spicy chicken breast with it...

Eat it with your Spanish rice

And look at that chicken, it's so good!

Also delicious rolled in tortillas.

Oh, you could also just dip chips in the queso too...whatever blows your hair back.

The BEST Queso and Spicy Mexican Chicken

For the Chicken:

1 tablespoon canola or vegetable oil

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon ground chipolte pepper

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon Mexican oregano

3-4 medium sized chicken breasts

Preheat a large skillet on medium high heat and drizzle in the oil.

Combine all of the seasonings into a small bowl and stir. Sprinkle the seasoning mix on both sides of each of the chicken breasts and rub in.

Place the chicken into the skillet and cook for about 4 minutes on each side or until no longer pink in the middle.

For the BEST Queso

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons flour

1 1/2 cups milk

12 slices of white American cheese, torn into pieces

3-4 (or more if you like it even spicier) tablespoons pickled jalapenos, finely chopped

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Melt the butter on medium heat in a sauce pan. Sprinkle in the flour and stir to combine. Let this cook (while stirring every once in a while) on medium heat for about 3 minutes to cook the flour taste out.

Once the flour is cooked, pour in the milk and stir the whole time to prevent clumps. Once you have reached a smooth consistency, add the cheese and continue to stir until the cheese is completely incorporated.

Add in the jalapenos and salt. Give it a good stir. If it is too thick, add a little milk at a time. Taste it as well, it might need more salt or jalapenos according to your taste.

Enjoy!

Recipes by: Mrs. Schwartz

Healthy Sesame Chicken Take Out Fake Out

2013-05-31T05:47:00.000-07:00

By now you have probably noticed my affinity to Take Out Fake Out. You can see some examples here and here and here and here and here and here. Don't get me wrong, I'm a HUGE fan of take out but everything is fried and well, fried food goes to my hips...and thighs, and arms and I could go on but you get the drift. Enter Take Out Fake Outs, all of the flavor while being wayyyyy healthier.

This one comes from my blog friend Laurie over at Simply Scratch. I saw it a while ago and did what everyone does these days, I pinned the heck out of it and decided to make it later. I was stumped on what to make the other night and sifting through my Pins this gem came up and I knew I had to make it. I'm so glad I did, this is one fabulous dish. Thanks Laurie!

Start by making the sauce, the base is honey

And soy sauce

With some toasted sesame seed oil

Garlic

And sesame seeds. Easy peasy.

Give it a quick stir and set aside for now

Then get to work on the veggies, red pepper

And green onions. Give them a quick chop and set aside for now

Then work on the "coating" egg whites and corn starch

Mix with a fork. This stuff is kind of weird but it will be okay, I promise.

Next cut up some chicken in small bite sized pieces and season with quite a bit of salt and pepper

Toss them in the egg white mixture.

Preheat a large skillet or wok with a little coconut oil (or canola if you don't have coconut). Once the pan is very hot, add the chicken in batches, be sure not to crowd the pan or you will steam the chicken rather than sear it. Also, I let the egg white mixture drip of the chicken a bit before putting it in the pan.

Once the first batch is done, remove it to a plate and add the second batch and so on...this is what you are looking for golden brown chicken baby.

Once all of the chicken is cooked, add the veggies and give them a quick stir fry.

Once the veggies have had a few minutes to cook, add the chicken back to the pan

And pour in the delicious sauce. Give it a quick toss and heat through and that's it!

Serve over rice white, brown, Jasmine whatever you have on hand.

Top with additional green onions

And try not to lick the plate.

Healthy Sesame Chicken Take Out Fake Out

1/2 cup honey
5 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
3/4 teaspoon toasted sesame seed oil
3 tablespoons sesame seeds
2 garlic cloves, minced or grated on a Microplane
2 egg whites
4 tablespoons corn starch
3 medium sized chicken breasts, chopped in small bite sized pieces
Salt and pepper to taste
2-3 tablespoons coconut oil (or canola)
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped into small pieces
4 green onions, chopped finely + 1 for garnish
Rice for serving

Start by combining the honey, soy sauce, sesame seed oil, sesame seeds and garlic in a small bowl. Mix well and set aside.

In a larger bowl, combine the egg whites and corn starch. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and the bite sized pieces into the bowl with the egg whites and corn starch. Toss to coat.

Add the coconut oil into a large skillet or wok on high heat. After it is preheated, add the chicken in batches, just enough to cover the bottom of the skillet/wok without touching each other. Let cook on all sides until golden brown. Once the first batch is cooked, remove it and place on a plate. Repeat until you have done this with all of the chicken.

With the skillet/wok still on high heat, add the vegetables and stir fry for 2 minutes or so. Then add the chicken back to the skillet/wok. Turn the heat down to medium and pour the sauce into the skillet/wok. Give it a good toss to coat everything and let bubble for 2 minutes or so.

Serve over rice and garnish with the additional green onion.

Enjoy!

Very slightly adapted from Laurie's version at Simply Scratch

Chill It Bag Giveaway!

2013-05-27T11:52:00.001-07:00

Hey! I hope you are all having a GREAT Memorial Day Weekend. I'm just popping in for a quick giveaway. I was recently provided with a few samples of these Chill It Bags.

They are perfect for the summer!

They fold down flat, lay them in the freezer

And whenever you want to head to the beach or outside but need to keep your drinks cold, pop it in the bag and out the door you go.

Now, don't you want to win one of these guys? Just use the Rafflecopter widget below! Good luck! The giveaway ends at midnight on Thursday, May 30th.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

**DISCLAIMER: I was provided with the Chill It Bag to giveaway. Also, the vodka is not included : ) **

First Wedding of 2013

2013-05-23T05:32:00.001-07:00

This past weekend two of our dearest friends were married in our home town. They are both in the Navy and bless her heart, Nicole (the Bride) planned everything from Washington state. Can you imagine? It was a beautiful day that was perfectly planned full of friends, family, beer and one heck of a good time.

Yep, this one is my husband, trashing his white suit up with $14 gas station sunglasses that "matched his flower perfectly." Apparently I was supposed to be proud. Hum....

Our buddies Meghan and Alex. Adorbs.

And Jer and Britt. Um, the hair, yeah that's another story...

Lovie.

They had their Navy buddies usher...I don't think any of the women minded one bit. Case in point: My Mom.

The groom, so handsome.

The cutest.

The Bride, absolutely stunning.

Eeee, the KISS! I love it.

Love.

Girlfriends at the bar. I love them all.

Sorry ladies, another one bites the dust : )

Newlyweds!

A good idea...at the time.

They made their own wine as favors, this is the strawberry version.

Probably the best picture of the night.

So sweet.

Cigars are a tradition in our group.

Hailey is really the only woman who participates, ya girl.

And those are all of the PG pictures I can post on the blog : ) Let's just say that at some point, all the groomsmen took of their shirts and only had vests on. Check out my Instagram if you are really interested (Krysten_schwartz is my user name) It was a wild and FUN night.

Congrats Al and Nicole, we love you guys! xoxo.

Easy Artichoke Bread

2013-05-16T07:12:00.000-07:00

Ready for one of the easiest appetizers of all time? Well friends, here it comes. I was craving artichoke dip after devouring it post-bar last weekend during a Bachelorette party. It was creamy, delicious and the best food I have ever eaten. I'm sure it didn't have anything to do with the fact I slung back a few shots and a couple (hundred) beers.

So last night I wanted to re-create things a bit. I didn't have the recipe from the other night but I did have a good idea of what was in there. I have to say, this version has a bit more flavor (if I'm remembering correctly--it's a bit foggy) due to the red pepper flakes. This recipe would be perfect for entertaining or like we had it, on a random Wednesday night with a big salad.

Start with a block of cream cheese. I used 1/3 the fat variety.

Grab a jar of these guys. I love these artichoke hearts from TJ's.

Give them a good chop. Toss them in the bowl with the cream cheese

Grate in a few cloves of garlic. If you don't have a microplane, just give them a really good mince.

Toss in some parmesan cheese

Season All Salt

Black pepper

Red pepper flakes

And some dried parsley for a bit of color. Give it a good stir.

And slather it all over a loaf of ciabatta bread

Sprinkle with a little more parm and into the oven they go

This is the end result.

Yep

Slice it up

And mow it down

Easy Artichoke Bread

8 oz cream cheese (1/3 the fat is okay)

8 oz marinated artichokes, chopped

1 cup parmesan cheese + 2 tablespoons or so for topping

1/2 teaspoon Season All Salt

15 cracks of black pepper (or about 1/8 of a teaspoon)

A large pinch of red pepper flakes

3/4 teaspoon of dried parsley

1 loaf of ciabatta bread

Start by preheating the oven to 400 degrees.

Combine the cream cheese (it's easier if it's at room temp), artichokes, parmesan cheese, Season All Salt, pepper, red pepper flakes and dried parsley. Stir until fully combined.

Cut the ciabatta bread in half and spread the artichoke dip over the inside of the loaf. Sprinkle with additional parmesan cheese.

Place on a baking sheet and put into the oven for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, check to see how it is doing. Bake until the top starts to turn golden brown and is heated through.

Slice into strips and enjoy!

Recipe by: Mrs. Schwartz

**Note, if you don't want to serve the dip ON the bread, you can put it in a baking dish and bake for about 20 minutes or until the top turns golden brown and is heated through. Serve with chips or sliced crusty bread.**

Taco Pizza

2013-05-07T05:49:00.001-07:00

I'd like you to think that I was organized enough to make this on Sunday for Cinco de Mayo. You just think that while in fact, I actually made coconut chicken fingers. So festive of me, right? Well they were delish too and the recipe is to come. But, I made this Taco Pizza earlier in the week and we gobbled it down.

Mr. Schwartz could eat tacos every day of the week if I let him. I'm not kidding. Every.single.day.of.the.week. While I love tacos, I don't love them quite as much as Mr. Schwartz does. A girl has got to have some variety. So, in the sake of pleasing the Hus and myself with a little variety, I came up with this Taco Pizza. It is super quick, just about as easy as regular tacos and very, very tasty.

Start with chopping an onion and tossing it in a pan with some canola oil.

Add your meat of choice. I used lean ground turkey.

Once browned and crumbled, add your favorite taco seasoning. You can make your own, and I have, but the packaged stuff works just fine as well.

Add a little water and let it simmer for a few minutes.

That's when you can work on the dough. I used my favorite fool proof pizza dough from Lauren's Latest. It seriously does not fail. If you are in a pinch, you could always use store bought pizza dough. I hear most pizza joints sell their dough as well. I know for a fact that Trader Joe's does and it's fab.

Whatever dough you have, spread it out as evenly as you can on a jelly roll pan that is inverted and dusted with cornmeal. Clearly I like to make a big mess. I probably should have cut this amount in half and gone with a thinner crust. I will next time...

Take a fork and poke a bunch of holes in the dough. Pop it in a 415 degree oven for about 4 minutes to "pre-bake" it.

Boom. Pre-baked.

Take your taco meat and add it to the crust

Along with a bunch of cheese. Like a BUNCH of cheese. Back into the oven it goes for about another 5-7 minutes or until the crust becomes golden brown and the cheese is all melted.

Like this.

That's the cheese I was talking about....

Then top with your favorite taco toppings. Here I have a simple taco sauce...

But then things get wild. My mother-in-law's pickled jalapenos....

And lettuce. Mr. Schwartz added sour cream too. He's crazy like that.

A new twist on an old favorite. We fell in love.

Taco Pizza

1 small onion, chopped
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 pound ground turkey, chicken or beef
1 packet taco seasoning + 1 tablespoon more
2/3 cup water
1/2 recipe for pizza dough or a store bought variety
1/8 cup cornmeal
2 cups shredded cheddar, pepper jack, Monterey jack or a combination of all cheese

For topping:
Taco/hot sauce
Pickled jalapenos
Shredded lettuce
Sour cream

Start by preheating the oven to 415 degrees.

In a medium skillet, add the canola oil and chopped onion. Let cook for about 3-4 minutes and add the meat. Cook until no longer pink and add the taco seasoning and water. Turn the heat down and let simmer while you work on the dough.

Flip a jelly roll pan upside down and dust the bottom of it with cornmeal. Spread the pizza dough out evenly on the pan and prick all over with a fork. Pop it in the oven for about 4 minutes to "pre-bake" the crust.

Remove the crust from the oven and spread the meat out evenly on top. Sprinkle with cheese and put it back in the oven for an additional 5-7 minutes or until the crust is golden and the cheese is melted.

Cut pizza into pieces and garnish with toppings.

Enjoy!

Recipe by: Mrs. Schwartz

Cinco de Mayo Recipes

2013-05-01T10:47:00.001-07:00

It's that time again, friends, Cinco de Mayo!!!! One of my favorite holidays because A. I love Mexican food B. I love beer and BEERGARITAS and C. I'm okay with tequila. Here is a few recipes to get your menu for the big bash started. I have you covered from breakfast, to lunch, dinner, DRINKS and dessert.

How will you be celebrating this year!?

Chicken Enchiladas

Cinco de Mayo Pulled Pulled Pork

Chicken Enchilada Pasta

Restaurant Style Salsa

Enchilada Style Stuffed Peppers

Mexican Breakfast Pizza

Crockpot Salsa Chicken

Grilled Breakfast Burrito

Taco Enchilada Bake

Beergaritas

Sopapilla Cheesecake

Chocolate Crazy Cake

2013-04-29T05:44:00.001-07:00

This is by far the easiest and most moist chocolate cake you will ever sink your teeth into. In fact, it might just be too easy. Simply mix everything in the pan, stir, and bake it. Um, yeah, it's that simple.

The recipe comes from one of my mom's old cookbooks and you better believe this page is splattered with cocoa, oil and flour. It also has "good!" in my mom's handwriting right next to it which means it is tried and true. YEARS of making this cake and it turns out every.single.time. And there are like, no dishes. #winning

Start by spraying a 9x13 pan with cooking spray. Add the flour

Sugar

Cocoa powder

Baking soda

Give it a quick stir with a fork

Then add cold water

Salt...that was supposed to be before the water but I forgot :)

Canola or vegetable oil

Vanilla

And vinegar

Mix it up with your fork again. Be sure to get around all of the edges and corners of the pan, thats where the dry ingredients like to hang out. Then, pop it in a 350 degree oven and bake for 30-35 minutes

Or until a tooth pick inserted in the middle comes out clean

It will be pretty, like this.

Now it's time for a confession. My mom and I frost it with pre-made frosting. Honestly, you can't tell the difference and it's how I have always had it so....that's the way it is. If you want to get fancy, you can make your own but really, this stuff is juuuust fine on it.

So frost it up. USE the whole tub of frosting. Live a little.

Add sprinkles. This is an essential part of the crazy cakeness. Mama D always uses sprinkles...and so do I :)

Slice it up

Look at that pillowy chocolate goodness.

Dig.in.

Oh I forgot to mention that it is essential, let me repeat, ESSENTIAL that you enjoy a tall glass of cold milk with the cake.

You can thank me later.

All packed up and ready go bring to work. Mr. Schwartz does not like chocolate. I know, who did I marry, right!? Well, turns out I DO like chocolate cake and if this sat in my house, I would be eating it straight out of the pan watching the Real Housewives of Orange County tonight. On second thought...that sounds kind of nice.

Chocolate Crazy Cake

3 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1/3 cup cocoa
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups cold water
2/3 cups canola or vegetable oil
3 teaspoons vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Spray a 9x13 inch pan with baking spray. Add the dry ingredients directly into the pan and stir to combine with a fork. Pour in the wet ingredients and mix until smooth and all of the dry ingredients have been incorporated. Be sure to get the corners.

Place in the oven for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the middle.

Let cool on a cooling wrack. Once cooled, frost as you wish. I like to use chocolate frosting from a tub. Don't judge me.

Enjoy!

Recipe from my Momma

The Best Granola

2013-04-22T05:50:00.002-07:00

As promised on my Facebook Page (which you should totally "like" if you haven't already), here is my favorite granola. I hate HATE buying granola from the store. It's unhealthy, EXPENSIVE and typically pretty blah. But this granola, oh, it is healthy(er), cheap and so so good. I usually make a big batch and put it in mason jars bringing one to work for lunch or midday snacks. Mr. Schwartz caught wind of this and asked me to make him a jar as well. I can't blame him, this stuff is awesome.

Start with some coconut oil. I LOVE this stuff and it is a healthy fat. If you don't have access to coconut oil (I buy mine at Trader Joe's), you can use butter. Less healthy, yes, but it will do the trick.

Melt the coconut oil in your pan

Chop up some almonds

Toss the almonds in the pan.

Chop up some cashews too. I forgot to take a picture of that, I'm pretty sure I was too busy eating them. Toss the cashews in along with some sunflower seeds.

Stir the nuts around to coat with the coconut oil (or butter) and toast them for just a bit. Keep stirring as this can go south fast. You will start to smell the toastiness and then you will know you are on track.

Then toss in some brown sugar

And get out your honey bear. This honey is from my cousin Colin who, no big deal, has his own bees and harvested it himself. Thanks Colin, BEST HONEY EVER!

Take the pan off the heat and drizzle in that glorious honey. Give it a good stir.

Give it a good stir.

Next add oats (I used Old Fashioned Rolled Oats) to a large bowl.

And some coconut. I LOVE coconut.

Pour in the nut mixture and stir everything together.

Sprinkle in some salt. This looks like a lot but I was making a lot! It brings out the natural sweetness of the honey and coconut.

Spread it out evenly on a baking sheet and into the oven it goes for 15 minutes.

After 15 minutes, give it a good toss to ensure the edges aren't the only thing browning and back into the oven it goes for about 10 more minutes.

Remove from the oven and let cool completely. Once cooled, it will be all stuck together so crumble it as finely as you would like. I prefer some bigger chunks and some smaller pieces as well.

There you have it, the best granola ever.

This is my favorite way to enjoy it! Parfait style with Chobani's Pineapple yogurt. Seriously amazing.

The best part about this recipe is that you can totally customize it to your liking. You don't like cashews, use pecans, not a fan of coconut, add more oats instead. You could even add raisins or dried cranberries after it has cooled. This granola is totally customizable!

The Best Granola

2 heaping tablespoons of coconut oil (or butter)
1 cup roasted almonds, very roughly chopped
1 cup roasted cashews, very roughly chopped
2/3 cup roasted sunflower seeds
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup honey
1 cup Old Fashioned Rolled Oats
1 cup coconut (sweetened is okay)
Large pinch of salt

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Start by melting the coconut oil (or butter) in a large skillet on medium heat. Once melted, add the almonds, cashews and sunflower seeds. Stir to coat in the coconut oil (or butter) and continue to stir and let toast for about 3 minutes or so.

Remove from the heat and add the brown sugar and honey. Stir while you add the honey as this can burn. Toss everything so it is evenly coated.

In a large bowl, add the oats and coconut. Pour in the nut mixture and stir so everything is evenly coated and incorporated. Add the salt and stir again.

Pour mixture onto a large baking sheet as evenly as you can get it and place in the oven. Bake for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, remove from the oven and give it a quick toss to ensure the edges are not the only thing that get brown. Back into the oven it goes for 10 more minutes. After 10 minutes, remove from the oven and let cool completely.

Once fully cooled, break into as big or small pieces as you would like. I prefer some larger and some smaller in mine for variety.

Serve with yogurt, in oatmeal, on ice cream, eat it plain, whatever floats your boat.

Enjoy!

Recipe by: Mrs. Schwartz

Meatball and Pepperoni Pasta Bake

2013-04-15T05:38:00.000-07:00

Are you ready for the easiest week night meal ever? Well, grab your fork and a few things out of the pantry and freezer because things are about to get easy up in here.

Start by adding frozen meatballs into a large skillet on high heat with a little bit of water. Liven these little guys up a bit...

Meanwhile, cut up about a 1/2 cup of pepperoni.

Once all of the water has evaporated, add the pepperoni. We want it to start to get a little crispy.

Then add one jar of your favorite marinara sauce. I buy the cheap stuff (aka whatever is on sale), don't judge me.

Some body wanted a meatball.... I said no, I know with that face? I'm heartless.

Then add a little water to the jar and get every last drop of it out. I told Mr. Schwartz that it was a Mama D thing (my mom) and he told me it was "just a MOM thing" because his mom does the same thing. Either way, do it.

Add it to the pan.

Add 3/4 of a pound of cooked pasta. I choose penne

And give it a good stir.

Pour it into a baking dish that has been sprayed with cooking spray.

Then you will need some of this. You guys, this cheese is amaze-balls. It melts like a dream. And no, Kraft didn't pay me to say that...although I wish they did.

Sprinkle the cheese all over the top and into the oven it goes.

When it comes out, you will have this.

Cheesy pasta meatbally-pepperoni goodness

Dinner is served.

The end.

Meatball and Pepperoni Pasta Bake

1 pound frozen meatballs

1/2 cup pepperoni, sliced in half

1 jar marinara sauce

3/4 pound cooked pasta

2 cups Mozzarella cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Start by adding the meatballs to a large skillet on medium high heat. Pour in the water and move the meatballs around a bit. Cook until the water has evaporated and add the pepperoni. Cook for about a minute or two, making sure not to burn the pepperoni. Add the marinara sauce and give it a good stir. Then add the pasta and stir again to ensure everything is coated in the sauce.

Pour the pasta mixture into a baking dish that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Sprinkle cheese over the top and place in the oven for about 20 minutes or until hot and bubbly and the cheese has melted.

Enjoy!

Recipe by: Mrs. Schwartz

Chicken Enchiladas

2013-04-09T05:38:00.001-07:00

So, today is our 2nd wedding anniversary! YAY! I was going to write up a big post about our second year of marriage but, I kind of just did that in the card I left on Mr. Schwartz's car seat. I'll just say that I'm beyond blessed to have the husband I do, the life we live and the future that awaits us. Mr. Schwartz is my heart, my rock and my best friend. I love him more every.single.day.

You might be thinking, what do enchiladas have to do with anniversaries and let's get to the good stuff, right? Well, I'm pretty sure Mr. Schwartz loves enchiladas as much as he loves me. He is a huge fan of all Mexican food and I thought enchiladas were fitting. And these, THESE enchiladas, are the best I have ever made. Hands down. Shall we?

Start by finely dicing an onion and popping it into a skillet with a little butter. Let the onions cook for about 4 minutes or until they start to get translucent and a little brown around the edges.

While the onions are cooking, cut two chicken breasts into strips and season with salt and pepper.

Also, mince one clove of garlic.

Toss the chicken into the pan and season with salt and pepper. Cook until it is no longer pink. This should only take a few minutes.

Add the garlic and give it a toss.

And a heaping spoonful of green chilies.

Sprinkle cumin all over the chicken

Along with a dash or Mexican oregano leaves

Your chicken will look something like this, golden brown and delicious! Seasoned to perfection if I do say so myself. At this point, this chicken would also make FAB tacos.

But we are making enchiladas here! So, take a few pieces of the chicken and line them up on a tortilla that you have warmed. I warm mine up in the microwave for about 30 seconds. It makes them much easier to roll.

Place the rolled tortillas seam side down in a baking pan that has been sprayed with cooking spray.

Pour over your favorite enchilada sauce.

And sprinkle with cheese. Into a 375 degree oven for about 30 minutes. Then, I put the broiler on for about 3 minutes and watched very carefully....

For reals. Check out that CHEESE!

Serve with lettuce and Spanish Rice.

You guys, these are so good.

The perfect meal... Happy Anniversary Baby!

Chicken Enchiladas

1 medium onion, chopped
1 tablespoon butter or a drizzle of canola oil
2 chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
Salt and pepper, for seasoning
1 clove of garlic
1 large heaping spoonful of diced green chillies
1/4 teaspoon of cumin
1/8 teaspoon (or a few dashes) Mexican oregano
8 small flour tortillas
1 small can of enchilada sauce (red or green will work)
1 1/2 cups of pepper jack cheese
Lettuce and Spanish rice for serving

Preheat a large skillet on medium high heat. Add the butter and onion. Cook the onion for about 4 minutes or until it starts to become translucent. Add the chicken to the skillet and season liberally with salt and pepper. Cook until no longer pink, this should take about 5 minutes. Add the garlic to the pan and toss, along with the green chillies. Cook for about a minute or so. Remove from the heat.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Warm the tortillas in the microwave for about 30 seconds so they are pliable. In the center of one of the tortillas, add a few strips of chicken, roll tightly and place in a 9x13 baking dish that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Repeat with the remaining 7 tortillas and chicken. Pour your favorite enchilada sauce over the tortillas and sprinkle with cheese.

Place in the oven (once is it preheated) and bake for about 30 minutes. If you would like, turn the oven to broil and broil for about 2-3 minutes but watch closely.

Serve with Spanish rice and lettuce. And beans, if you are into that sort of thing.

Enjoy!

Recipe by: Mrs. Schwartz

Poppyseed Chicken Salad

2013-04-03T05:46:00.001-07:00

The other day I had a hankering for chicken salad. I have no idea where it came from and the funny thing about it, I have only had chicken salad once in my life. But, I had to have it. I was too lazy to even look up a recipe so I just adapted my Chicken with Dried Cherries Pasta Salad recipe to a chicken salad recipe.

The results, my friends, amazing. I would eat this stuff slathered on an old boot. But, I think it does taste best on soft whole wheat bread with two layers of Romaine lettuce. It would also be great on crackers as a little snack or lazy dinner. Let's get it going...

Start with chopping up a few green onions

And celery. That's all the chopping that is needed. Did I mention this recipe is super easy?

Then you get started on the dressing. One cup of Mayo...I used the "light mayo" and it was great. Ps. how tan is my hand!? (Disclaimer: it does not look like that in real life).

Add a tablespoon of powdered sugar

Some poppy seeds

Salt

A good amount of black pepper

Splash of vinegar, I used white Balsamic

And dried mustard. Give it a good stir. Taste and make sure you don't need any more salt and or pepper

Okay, I kind of cheated but it was worth it. I shredded two rotisserie chicken breasts. I love them.

Add in the green onions, celery along with some dried cranberries and almonds.

Add the dressing a little at a time until you reach your desired amount. I used every drop and it was perfection. It as if it was meant to be..which is good because I really didn't know what I was doing.

Then the sandwich construction begins. Bread, lettuce.

Top with a good amount of the chicken salad.

And Romaine again. Double Romaine is essential.

Other slice of bread.

Mr. Schwartz was standing over my shoulder when I was making this saying, "so what do you put in chicken salad...." and basically cringed after every addition. Dried cranberries set him over the edge but he agreed to try it.

The verdict: He loves. And so do I. And I love him too. It's just a big o' love fest.

Poppyseed Chicken Salad
(Makes enough for 4 sandwiches with a good amount in each)

1 cup Mayo, light is okay
1 tablespoon powdered sugar
3/4 tablespoon (just estimate) poppy seeds
1 teaspoon salt
10 cracks or so black pepper
Splash (1-2 teaspoons or so) white vinegar, I used white Balsamic
1/2 teaspoon dried mustard
2 rotisserie chicken breasts, shredded

2-3 green onions, finely chopped

2 ribs/stalks of celery, cut pretty finely

1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup sliced almonds
Romaine, for sandwich
Whole wheat bread, for sandwich

In a small bowl, combine the mayo, powdered sugar, poppy seeds, salt, black pepper, white vinegar and dried mustard. Give it a good stir to combine and taste for seasonings. Add additional salt and pepper to your taste.

Add the chicken, onions, celery, cranberries and almonds into a large bowl. Add the dressing, a little at a time, until you reach your desired amount.

To construct the sandwich, place a piece of bread, then a layer or Romaine lettuce, then slather on the chicken salad, top with more Romaine and the other slice of bread.

Enjoy!

Recipe by: Mrs. Schwartz

Easter Brunch

2013-03-28T05:32:00.002-07:00

You guys, I'm hosting Easter Brunch at my house this year....for like 26 people. Eeep! I love to host, like LOVE to host but I haven't really hosted a sit down type dinner at my house of this size before! I'm so excited and thought about the menu right away. I have never been shy to try something out for the first time when entertaining and I don't think this Easter will be an exception.

But, if you are planning on hosting I have a few Brunch ideas for you! Unfortunately, I have yet to make a ham so there isn't a baked ham recipe on here! But there is one for Eggs Benedict Bake which has ham in it! If you have any ideas for me or that you would like to share, please leave them in the comment form below!

Happy Easter everyone!

Mushroom and Leek Quiche

Cheesy Potatoes

Egg Benedict Bake

Orange Sweet Rolls

Homemade Breakfast Sausage and Gravy

Vanilla French Toast

Cinnamon Sugar Pull Apart Rolls

Vanilla Pudding Cinnamon Rolls

Grapefruit Pull-Apart Bread

Lemon Monkey Bread Cupcakes

Blueberry Muffin Waffles

Slow Cooker Salisbury Steaks

2013-03-26T05:51:00.000-07:00

I hear this is the last "cold" week we are going to have in Minnesota! Cold being in the 30's. They are predicting that the high on Easter Sunday will be 49 degrees! Yay!

While I am happy to see spring come in (like a lamb), I will be sad to see my slow cooker go. I guess we don't totally have to part ways but spring and summer are for crisp salads and grilling, not heavy (yet delicious) slow cooked meals.

I took advantage of my slow cooker again this weekend and made these Salisbury Steaks for my parents and boy were they tasty. They do take a little prep before hand but the end result is deeelish.

Start with two pounds of ground beef. I used 93/7

Finely, FINELY, dice up an onion. If you don't do it FINELY they have the tendency to fall apart.

One packet of dried onion soup mix.

Italian seasoned bread crumbs. I'm pretty sure you could use regular if you wanted.

And a little milk. Combine with your hands and shape into patties.

Place in a large preheated skillet on medium high heat.

You want to give them a good sear...like so... No need to cook them all the way through, that will happen in the crock.

Remove the patties and place them on the bottom of your crock. Be sure to spray with cooking spray before you pop them in there. You will be happy you did.

Add two cans of cream of chicken or mushroom soup to the pan you cooked the patties in.

Along with a little water.

Give it a good stir. This looks neon.

I also added one of those condensed beef stock things. I think it added good flavor but I would say it is optional.

And a dash of Kitchen Bouquet. It deepens the color and the flavor. You must have this in your pantry. It's old school.

See, pretty gravy.

Add a ton of black pepper, if you are cooking for my Dad. If you are cooking for someone who doesn't coat their food in black pepper, just a little will do.

Pour the gravy over the patties and let this cook away on low for about 4 to 5 hours.

Whip up some mashed potatoes to go with it and you are good to go.

Salad would be a good choice for a side...

Now, who has summer slow cooker recipes for me!?

Slow Cooker Salisbury Steaks

2 pounds ground beef (I used 97/3)
1 onion, FINELY diced
1 packet dried onion soup mix
1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
1/4 cup milk
Drizzle of canola/vegetable oil
2 cans cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup
1/2 can of water
1 1/2 teaspoons of Kitchen Bouquet
Pepper to taste

Start by combining the ground beef, onion, onion soup mix, bread crumbs and milk together. Form into patties. Preheat a large skillet on medium high heat and drizzle with oil. Place the patties in the skillet and sear on both sides. No need to cook them through, just get a nice brown on them. Place the patties in the crock of your slow cooker that has been sprayed with cooking spray.

In the same pan you used to brown the meat, add the soup, water and Kitchen Bouquet. Lower the heat to medium and bring to a bubble, this shouldn't take long. Taste and season accordingly with black pepper. Pour the sauce over the patties in the crock.

Let cook on low for 4-5 hours. Serve with mashed potatoes and enjoy!

Recipe adapted from: AllRecipes.com

Lemon Monkey Bread Cupcakes

2013-03-18T10:36:00.001-07:00

These are so easy. Like super, duper easy. You could totally make them with your kids, if you had any. I think my little nieces would die over these. They are obsessed with anything little and that's "theirs." Mini: check Inidivdual: check. Win.Win. Not to mention they are packed with lemon flavor and a heck of a lot easier to make than my Grapefruit Pull-Apart Bread. While delicious, the pull-apart bread is pretty time consuming. So, today is a perfect day to make these. Do it.

Okay, before you go out and try to find refrigerated lemon biscuits, these are BUTTER flavored although they look lemon flavored. I bought these by accident. Who reads packages these days? I have no time.

Anyway, cut them up into little bite sized pieces. The biscuits I used were jumbo, 8 in a pack, so I think I cut each biscuit into 8 pieces.

Melt some butter.

Zest a lemon into 2 cups of sugar.

Give it a stir.

Set up your assembly line. Note the muffin tin in the background has been sprayed (heavily--you won't regret it) with cooking spray.

Take a few of the pieces at a time and toss them in the butter

Then the lemon sugar

Place them into the muffin tin like so. Bake for about 17 minutes or until you press on the middle and they spring back.

While they are baking, whip up the lemon cream cheese glaze. Yeah, I glazed these. Start with your cream cheese. I cheat and pop it in the microwave for about 25 seconds to get it pliable. I'm sure there is some rule against this but, I'm a BA.

Squeeze the juice of 1/2 of the lemon you zested.

Add a bunch of powdered sugar

And give it a good whisk, until it is thick and combined. If it is too thick you can always add additional lemon juice or a splash of milk. If it is too thin, add more powdered sugar, it will really depend on how juicy your lemon is.

Soon these lovelies will be out of the oven.

While perfect just the way they are...

You must find it within yourself to glaze them.

You won't regret it. Look at that lemon sugar CRUST.

Pulling them apart is the best part.

I think you should make these for Easter. That's all.

Lemon Monkey Bread Cupcakes

1 8 count roll refrigerated biscuits
1 stick butter, melted
1 lemon, zested and juiced
2 cups sugar
1/2 block cream cheese
2 cups powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Melt the butter in a microwaveable bowl. In a separate bowl, add the sugar and zest the lemon into the bowl. Give it a quick stir. Cut the biscuits into 8 pieces.

Spray your muffin tin with cooking spray. Dip each biscuit in the butter then roll in the lemon sugar. Place in the muffin cups and bake for 17-20 minutes or until you press down in the middle and they spring back.

Make the glaze by combining room temp (or microwaved for a few seconds) cream cheese, juice of 1/2 the lemon and powdered sugar. Give it a good whisk to combine. If it is too thick, add a little additional lemon juice or splash of milk. If it is too thin, add additional powdered sugar. It depends on how juicy your lemon is. Drizzle the glaze on top of each cupcake.

Enjoy!

Recipe by: Mrs. Schwartz

Crockpot Salsa Chicken

2013-03-15T05:58:00.001-07:00

If you follow me on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook, you already know I have had a doozy of a week with a nasty cold and WHOOPING cough (not the real thing but, it feels like it) and a casual root canal on Wednesday. Fun times.

But, the worst part: I haven't been able to taste ANYTHING for a week. Like nothing. What is the point of eating when you can't taste anything? Let me tell you, not much...besides sustaining your life, I guess. Yesterday I thought "today is the day I will taste" mind over matter I guess because BOOM, it worked. I made this Crockpot Salsa Chicken Chipolte style with cilantro lime rice, fresh corn salsa and tons of cheese. It was worth the wait and don't let me forget so flippin' easy to make. This will definitely be going on our dinner rotation...if you would call it that.

Start by spraying your crock with cooking spray and placing your chicken breasts in the bottom. I know, my crock looks pretty raggedy but I know exactly how it cooks and my other one (of 5--not kidding) cooks things too quickly. I will cry when that crack goes straight through the whole thing. Especially if I have it loaded with something. #canyousuperglueacrockpot?

Anyway, mix up the sauce, starting with cream of chicken soup. Yes, it sounds weird. No it doesn't not taste weird. Also add a cup of salsa (not pictured--blame it on the plethora of cold meds flowing through my body).

Also add taco seasoning

And a can of diced green chilis. I have to say, this did bring the heat up a lot so either cut down on how many or leave them out if you can't handle the heat.

Pour the sauce over the chicken

And spread it out evenly.

Let it cook for about 8 hours or so.

I used a tongs and just smooshed the chicken between them and it all just fell apart perfectly. I love when that happens.

Add a little sour cream, this did reduce the heat a bit.

Mix up a jumbo batch of Fresh Corn Salsa and try to not devour it on it's own with corn chips straight out of the bowl. I could live on this stuff. Someday I will repost this recipe on it's own but for now, check it out here and scroll to the bottom without looking at any of the pictures because they make me cringe. Note that I did add a whole red pepper as well.

Start with a bed of cilantro lime rice. Basically make rice as you usually would, add the juice of one lime and a few tablespoons of cilantro and good pinch of salt. That's it, the secret is out Chipolte.

Add in that delicious chicken.

A ton of corn salsa.

And cheese. Lots of cheese.

Garnish with a lime wedge. s

And serve with those corn chips...and more corn salsa.

My taste buds sang I tell you!

Crockpot Salsa Chicken

3 chicken breasts

1 can of cream of chicken soup

1 cup salsa

1 packet taco seasoning

1 little can of green chilis (more or less depending on your taste, omit if you would like)

1 cup sour cream

Fresh Corn Salsa

Cilantro rice

Cheese (we used Monterey Jack)

Lime wedge, for garnish

Start by spraying the crock with cooking spray and lay the chicken breasts in the bottom.

Combine with soup, salsa, taco seasoning and green chilis in a small bowl. Pour over the chicken and spread out evenly. Cook on low for about 8 hours.

Once cooked, use a tongs and smoosh the chicken, it will shred very easily. Stir in the sour cream and heat through.

Layer the rice, chicken, corn salsa and cheese in a bowl. Garnish with lime wedge and serve with corn chips and additional salsa.

Enjoy!

Crockpot Salsa Chicken recipe slightly adapted from: Fake Ginger

Crockpot Spaghetti Meat Sauce

2013-03-07T04:47:00.000-08:00

I have professed my love of Crockpot meals several times on the blog. I love, like LOVE Crockpot meals. Is there anything better than stepping in your front (or garage for me) door and being hit in the face with the smell of dinner that is almost done!? No, I'm telling you no.

When I stumbled across this recipe from Iowa Girl Eats I was intrigued. Yes, the sauce looked amaze but, the whole cooking the meat and onions + garlic thing…um, no thanks. I thought "how special can this sauce be, mean I could just use Regu…" Just call me Mrs. Skeptical. I figured I would give it a shot, just to see how it was. Let me tell you this sauce was something else. The depth of flavor was out of control and we gobbled down every last bite. Trust me, the prep work ahead of time is worth it!

Start with chopping up an onion and adding it to a pan with the ground beef. Brown it up.

Chop up a bunch of garlic.

Add that to the pan as well. Let this cook for 2 minutes longer or so.

Into the crock it goes.

Add a large can of fire roasted tomatoes.

Add a bunch of tomato sauce.

A can of tomato paste.

Basil

Oregano. I'm pretty sure I used the Spanish variety…does that matter?

Bay leaves

Salt

Brown sugar

And a few shakes of red pepper flakes. Give this a good stir. Let cook for 8 hours.

Cooked. Ps, how funny are those bay leaves?

Look at that richness.

Ugh, I can't take it.

Spicy, hearty

And deeeelicious!

Crockpot Spaghetti Meat Sauce

1 medium onion
1 pound of lean ground beef
2-3 garlic cloves
28 oz can of Fire Roasted Tomatoes
8 oz can tomato sauce
6 oz can tomato paste
2 teaspoons oregano
2 teaspoons basil
1 large to 2 small bay leaves
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Chop the onion and add it to a pan on medium high heat. Add the ground beef and cook until no longer pink. Mince the garlic and add to the pan. Cook an additional 2 minutes or so.

Spray the crock of your slow cooker and add the ground beef mixture. Add the remaining ingredients and give it a good stir. Cook anywhere from 6-8 hours on low heat.

Serve over hot cooked noodles.

Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from: Iowa Girl Eats

Soft Monster Cookies

2013-03-01T06:50:00.001-08:00

I know I have posted Monster Cookies before but these cookies, these cookies, let me tell you about these cookies. They are soft, super peanut buttery and studded with chocolate chips, m&m's and peanut butter chips. My sister (in-law) asked if I added nuts as well. That was a big no, but if you are into that sorta cookie kinkery, you sure can.

These are my new fave.

Start with butter (I made a double batch)

Brown sugar

White sugar

And give it a good stir to combine. The recipe said use a stand or hand mixer…I was lazy.

Add the peanut butter

Stir again

My peanut butter jar clean up crew :)

Add eggs

Stir again

Add vanilla…you guessed it, stir again

Then add the baking soda

Flour

And stir again, just to combine

Then you can add the fun stuff…oats

Mini chocolate chips (or regular, whatever you have on hand)

Peanut butter chips

And m&ms

Give it a good stir.

Scoop onto a silpat lined cookie sheet. I honestly don't know if you need a silpat or to spray the baking sheet with cooking spray since there is butter and peanut butter in them.

Smoosh them down just a bit since they don't spread on their own.

Bake and remove from the oven. Let them cool a little bit on the baking sheet so they set.

Devour.

If you need me, I will be stuffing my face with these at Scrapbook Camp this weekend. No, I'm not kidding and yes, I will be posting about it later.

Happy Weekend!

Soft Monster Cookies

1/2 cup or 1 stick of butter (at room temperature)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup white sugar

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup quick cooking oats

3/4 cup m&ms

1/4 cup chocolate chips

1/4 peanut butter chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Start by combining the butter, brown and white sugars in a large bowl using a hand/stand mixer or your own brute strength. Add the peanut butter, stir again. Add the egg, stir, vanilla stir.

Measure in the baking soda and flour and stir just until combined. Stir in the oats, m&ms, chocolate chips and peanut butter chips.

Scoop using a cookie scoop or two teaspoons measuring about 2 tablespoons onto a cookie sheet lined with a Silpat mat or sprayed with cooking spray (just in case). Press down gently as they do not spread on their own.

Bake for 9-10 minutes but no longer. You want these to stay soft. Remove from the oven and let cool on the cookie sheet for 2-3 minutes then move to a cooling rack.

Enjoy with a big glass of milk!

Recipe from: Sally's Baking Addiction

Sausage, Potato and Beer Cheese Soup

2013-02-26T05:39:00.000-08:00

I don't even know where to start with this soup. It is so freaking good. I made it on a whim on Sunday night and Mr. Schwartz and I were both blown away. Like we actually didn't talk the whole time we scarfed it down. I wish I was kidding.

Surprisingly I made it with healthy(ier) things like skim milk, chicken sausage and low fat cheese. I promise I doesn't taste low fat at all! Also, it takes less than a half an hour to whip up. Try this now and feel free to write me a handwritten thank you note with the tears of joy you shed while eating it. Yeah, it's that good.

Start by chopping up an onion.

Melt a little butter and pop it in a large Dutch Oven or soup pot. Add the onions (not pictured) and saute for about 3 minutes or so.

This is the sausage I used. Holy Moley you guys, I love this stuff.

Cut it into cute little half moons.

Add the sausage to the pot and give it a quick stir. Let this cook while you work on the potatoes...

Potatoes worked. As in I peeled, washed and diced them up.

Add them to the pot as well. Stir again.

Pour in some low sodium chicken broth.

And a bottle of beer. Oh I love Spotted Cow. My friend Amy hooked me up when she came back from Wisconsin. My little bootlegger. Shhh...don't tell anyone.

Cook for about 10 minutes or so, until the potatoes are tender.

Combine milk and flour to make a slurry and pour into the pot. Give it a stir and it should thicken things up nicely.

Season with a little salt

And lots of pepper.

Add the cheese and that is it!

How easy is that!?

The answer is: easy.

And delicious.

Sausage, Potato and Beer Cheese Soup

1 tablespoon butter
1 medium onion, chopped
13 oz of smoked sausage (I used chicken sausage) cut into half moons
3 medium potatoes, peeled, washed and chopped
1 32 oz box of chicken broth
1 bottle of beer. I loved the flavor Spotted Cow gave the soup.
1 1/2 cups milk (skim is totally okay!)
1/3 cup flour
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese + additional for topping (low fat is okay!)

Start by adding the butter and onion into a large Dutch Oven or soup pot on medium high heat. Let saute for about 3 minutes. Add the sausage and let cook for 3-4 minutes while you peel and chop the potatoes. Add the potatoes, chicken broth and beer. Let cook for about 10-15 minutes or until the potatoes are soft but not mushy.

Combine the milk and flour in a glass and make sure to use a fork to remove any lumps. Pour into the pot and give it a good stir. When it heats back up it will thicken the soup, be sure to continue to stir. Once the soup is hot and bubbly again, add the cheese and stir until creamy and combined.

Garnish with additional cheese and enjoy!

Recipe by: Mrs. Schwartz

Baked Bang Bang Chicken and Sweet Ginger Garlic Green Beans

2013-02-20T09:56:00.001-08:00

A few weeks ago Thai Kitchen sent me a few products to try. One of the products was their Sweet Red Chili Sauce and I knew I had to make Bang Bang Chicken. If you are a Pinterest user, I am sure you have seen Bang Bang Chicken several times. What I could gather is it is a combination of red chili sauce and mayo. Sounds weird but is utterly delicious. I didn't want to fry the chicken to keep it a little healthier so I used my old stand by baked chicken nuggets recipe and it turned out great!

I served the chicken over a bed of the Thai Kitchen's Jasmine Rice which I love since it cooks up so quickly! Along with the Bang Bang Chicken I quickly whipped up some roasted green beans with the Sweet Ginger Garlic seasoning. These were absolutely delicious as well and took about a minute to prepare. Let's do it to it.

Start by cutting two boneless skinless chicken breasts into chunks.

Add the chicken to a bowl and pour in a little buttermilk.

Give it a quick toss and pop it in the fridge for a few hours. I think you can skip this step however, it does lead to very moist chicken which, let's be honest, dry chicken is gross.

Next you can get your green beans set up. Cut the ends off and give them a good rinse.

Drizzle a little canola or olive oil over them

Here is the seasoning I was talking about. Wow, seriously amazing stuff. I kind of want it on everything. Just a quick sprinkle on a grilled chicken breast would even be amazing.

For this recipe I just sprinkled a good amount of seasoning on the beans and gave them a toss.

I lined a baking sheet with tin foil because I'm lazy and don't appreciate cleaning things. Look at all of that seasoning! Set the beans aside for now.

Then get to work on the breading for the chicken. I added flour, Panko bread crumbs (which to me are essential and add that extra crunch)...

Garlic salt

Paprika

And lots of black pepper

Give it a good stir

Whisk together a few eggs and you are good to go.

Set up your assembly line with the chicken, eggs, breading and cooking sheet (clearly lined with tin foil--ya, I'm lazy) and a cooling rack. That is essential as it allows the chicken to crisp on all sides.

Start by taking each piece of chicken and adding it to the eggs

Flour mixture

Flip it over and press the mixture onto the chicken so it sticks

Back into the eggs, and into the flour mixture. That will give you super crunchy chicken. I like super crunchy chicken, don't you?

Pop them onto the cooling rack.

This is a method I learned from Jessica at How Sweet It Is. Give each nugget a "spritz" as she says, of cooking spray. Yes, I understand that it looks like I'm drenching them but you try to take a picture while "spritzing" a chicken nugget left handed. Just try. Okay, sorry I blew up. Pop these little guys in the oven.

Now, to work on the sauce. It could not be easier. Add some mayo, I used light mayo.

And the Thai Kitchen Sweet Red Chili Sauce.

Like so.

That's it.

Cook up the rice as well. Typically I would start this earlier but like I said, the Thai Kitchen Jasmine Rice cooks up really fast!

Half way through the cooking process, remove the chicken, give it a quick flip and spritz the bottom that is now the top. Does that make any sense at all? But you want to make that powder go away so it's super crunchy.

Oh yeah, and pop the green beans in for a bit. Look at those babies! I could eat a whole pan.

That is it! Packed with serious flavor yet healthy and delicious!

Both would make a perfect appetizer for a party

But also come together for a quick and healthy meal!

Baked Bang Bang Chicken

2 bone-less skinless chicken breasts, cuts into bite sized pieces
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2 cups all-pupose flour
1 1/2 cups Panko bread crumbs
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3 eggs
Non-stick cooking spray
1/2 cup light mayo
1/2 Sweet Red Chili Sauce

Add the chicken and buttermilk in a large bowl, cover and place in the fridge for about 2 hours or so.

When the chicken is marinating, combine the flour, Panko, garlic salt, paprika and black pepper on a large plate. Give it a good stir.

Crack the eggs in a bowl and whisk.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees and line a baking sheet with tin foil and place a wire cooling rack on top of that.

Set up an assembly line with the chicken, egg then flour mixture at the end. Take each piece of chicken and coat it in the egg, flour mixture, egg and back in the flour mixture. Give it a little pat so the breading sticks. Place the breaded nuggets on the cooling rack and spray with non-stick cooking spray.

Bake in the oven for 7-8 minutes. After that time, remove from the oven, flip the nuggets over and spray again with the cooking spray. Bake for an additional 7-8 minutes.

While the chicken is baking, prepare your rice (if serving over rice) and combine the mayo and Sweet Red Chili Sauce.

When the nuggets are cooked, lay on a bed of Jasmine Rice and drizzle with the Bang-Bang Sauce.

Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from: How Sweet It Is

Sweet Ginger Garlic Green Beans

1 bunch of green beans (3 cups or so)
1 tablespoon canola or olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons Sweet Ginger Garlic Seasoning

Cut the ends of of the beans and wash. Drizzle with the oil and sprinkle with the seasoning.

Lay on a tin foil lined baking sheet and bake at 450 for 7-8 minutes. After that time, give them a good toss and place back in the oven for 7-8 minutes again.

Enjoy!

Recipe by: Mrs. Schwartz

FYI: This sponsorship is brought to you by Foodie Blogroll who we have partnered with for this promotion. However, the ideas are my own and like always, you can't by my love, baby.

Grapefruit Pull-Apart Bread

2013-02-12T05:26:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago I contacted TexaSweet regarding their grapefruit and possibly working together for a giveaway. Much to my surprise they agreed to the giveaway and sent me a big o' box of fresh and juicy grapefruit.

I'm one to gobble grapefruit up the way it is but since I had a few to enjoy, I figured I would make something with them as well. I have been wanting to make any type of pull-apart bread since a few version pops up every time I check out Pinterest. I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to create my own using the grapefruit from TexaSweet.

The result was a tangy yet super sweet and unique pull-apart bread. Mr. Schwartz and I gobbled it up one bready layer at a time. I have a feeling this will be gracing our Easter table, it just seems like the most perfect thing to celebrate the holiday.

Today, we can celebrate because TexaSweet is sponsoring a giveaway for a Breville Juice Fountain juicer! For more details read through the recipe and enter at the end of the post.

You might think, wow the lighting is super dark, she must have made this the night before. Oh no, our dog likes to wake up at 5:15 or 5:30 every day…regardless of how late we go to bed. It's fun and by fun I mean I hate it…a lot. But, it was my turn to wake up with the dog so Rem and I had ample time to whip up this bread before we even saw the whites of Mr. Schwartz's eyes.

Anyway, speaking on making the bread, start with flour, regular all purpose flour.

Yeast...

White sugar

And salt. Pour them into the bowl of a stand mixer and give it a quick stir.

This is kind of a weird part but that is okay. Add milk to a microwaveable bowl

Along with some butter. Place in the microwave on high for about 45 seconds or until the butter is melted.

Then add cold water.

Stir

Pour the mixture into the dry ingredients.

Give it a quick stir

Add the eggs

And let the stand mixer do the kneading for you.

Let it go for about 5 minutes on medium speed. The dough will be sticky, that is okay, trust me.

Place the dough in a bowl that has been heavily sprayed with cooking spray.

Cover and put in a warm place. It's only 7am and we have accomplished so much. Note: I didn't start making this bread right when I woke up, I had to make coffee and work on some other things first. It really doesn't take that long to make the dough.

Alright, the sun is up! Let's take a look at what was on my door step.

As soon as I opened the box I could smell the freshness.

Rem wanted some too...

So pretty.

Okay, enough of the ooh'ing and awww'ing. Let's get to work on the grapefruit sugar. Start with white sugar

And zest one grapefruit

Like so

Pretty.

Give it a quick stir

Once the dough has doubled you know good things are about to happen.

Heavily, I mean HEAVILY flour your working surface.

Plop the dough in the middle and give it a good dusting on top.

Roll out the dough to about 20x12.

Pour melted butter over the dough

Use a spatula to spread the butter out evenly.

Sprinkle with the grapefruit sugar. I ended up using my hands.

Mark every 4 inches making 6 sections of dough

Cut into strips

Gently, gently, lay all of the strips on top of each other.

Mark the dough so there are 6 even sections

Using a serrated knife, gently cut through the dough

Stack the dough into a loaf pan that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Bake at 325 for 35-45 minutes. Mine took 45 minutes.

While the bread is baking, get to work on the grapefruit cream cheese glaze. Look at that beauty.

Squeeze the grapefruit over a strainer. This is where that Breville Juicer would be handy…I'm just sayin'.

Sweet and sour nectar.

Add powdered sugar

And cream cheese.

Give it a quick whisk. Try not to break out a straw and drink that…just try.

Before you know it, this lovely loaf will be out of the oven.

Come on, it deserves another shot. You see that crunchy sugar on the end…DIBS!

All caramelized and ridiculously amazing.

Give a generous "drizzle" of the grapefruit cream cheese glaze.

I want to live between one of those layers.

Soft, sweet, slightly sour and oh so pillowy.

Let's be honest, I DOUCED that with the glaze. Just keepin' it real folks.

Okay, who wants to win this!? I figured you would. Use the Rafflecopter widget to enter and please let me know if you have any trouble with this. The giveaway ends at midnight on February 15th. Good luck and thanks again to TexaSweet for sponsoring this awesome giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Grapefruit Pull-Apart-Bread

For the bread:

2 3/4 cups all purpose flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 envelope (or 2 1/4 teaspoons) active dry yeast

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup milk

1/4 cup butter

2 eggs

1/4 cup cold water

Start by combining the flour, sugar, yeast and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer.

In a microwaveable bowl, add the milk and butter. Put in the microwave for about 45 seconds or until the butter is melted. Add the cold water to the butter and milk. Pour this mixture into the stand mixer bowl over the dry ingredients. Give it a quick stir. Add the eggs.

Place the dough hook on the mixer and let it knead on medium speed for 5 minutes.

After 5 minutes, remove the dough and place in a bowl sprayed with cooking spray. Lay a towel over the bowl and place in a warm spot. Let rise for about an hour or until doubled. Mine took a little longer maybe an hour and a half.

For the grapefruit sugar/filling:

1 cup white sugar

zest of 1 grapefruit

1/4 cup melted butter

Wash the grapefruit and zest it into a bowl with the sugar in it. Give it a quick stir. Set aside for now.

For the grapefruit cream cheese glaze:

Juice of one grapefruit

1 1/2 cup powdered sugar

4 oz cream cheese, softened

Juice the grapefruit and combine with powdered sugar and cream cheese in a medium bowl. Whisk until fully combined.

To assemble:

Once the dough rises, heavily flour your working surface and plop the dough in the middle. Give the dough a good dusting of flour as well. Roll the dough out to 20x12 inches or so. Pour the melted butter over the dough and spread using a spatula. Sprinkle the grapefruit sugar over the top.

Mark every 4 inches of the dough (height-wise) and make 5 strips using a pizza cutter. Gently stack the dough strips on top of each other and mark again to make 6 equal sections. Cut using a serrated knife. Place the dough cut side up in a loaf pan that has been sprayed generously with cooking spray.

Bake in a 325 degree preheated oven for 40-50 minutes. Mine took 50 minutes. Let cool in the pan for about 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, invert the pan and place on your serving dish. Drizzle with the grapefruit cream cheese glaze and enjoy!

Recipe adapted from: Leite's Culinaria

Strawberries and Champagne Cupcakes

2013-02-10T12:01:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day reminds me of two things (related to food that is) strawberries and champagne. Until a few months ago a loathed, yes, loathed strawberries. Now, I can tolerate them…especially if there is some sort of creamy fruit dip involved. When it comes to champagne, holy mother of all things delicious, I will take the whole bottle. I love, LOVE champagne. I would drink it every day if I could.

In thinking of what I should make for Valentine's Day this year (I sure as hell wasn't going to make these again…talk about a pain in the arce) I thought I should combine strawberries and champagne…that only make sense you know. So, I remembered these absolutely delicious cupcakes I made for my blogiversary last year from Sprinkles Bakes. A little tweaking and the addition of strawberry curd and these Strawberries and Champagne Cupcakes were born.

Let's start with making the cakes. Add butter and white sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer.

Whip it up.

Add the eggs, one at a time.

Beat in-between additions.

This is when I thought "this doesn't look right" then I remembered I was making a double batch.

And then I added two more eggs…that's what it should look like.

Add vanilla and mix again.

Then, sift the dry ingredients together starting with the flour. Yeah, that is the smallest thing I own..you will see where the big one is in a second. Poor planning by me.

Add baking soda.

Baking powder.

Add salt and sift your little heart out.

In a separate bowl, add champagne

And sour cream

Stir to combine.

Alternating dry and wet ingredients into the stand mixer, starting and ending with flour.

And wet…until everything is fully combined. Be sure to scrape down the sides.

Once mixed, fill the cupcake liners 2/3 of the way full or by using a muffin scoop. I love this thing.

Next, we can get to work on the strawberry curd. I used frozen strawberries. They were a bit frozen when I added them to the blender so I had to improvise a bit. I started by "blending" them. This is what they looked like.

So I cut up the limes

And juiced them.

Then the cupcakes were done. So I took them out. Perfect.

Juice.

Added that to the blender so it had a little more liquid to work with.

It worked!
Add that to a strainer to strain the juice. Yeah, this is where my big strainer was.

Using a rubber spatula, stir, and kind of press the juice through

It will look kinda like this.

You will be left with a bunch of pulp and all of the seeds. Toss em.

Add sugar

Corn starch

Strawberry puree/juice

Eggs and the egg yolks to a medium sauce pan.

Stir, stir, stir and bring to a boil. You need to keep stirring so things don't burn and the eggs stay intact with everything else. Imagine how gross that would be with scrambled eggs in strawberry sauce. No thanks...

It will turn lighter pink and get frothy.

Once it starts to bubble, keep stirring and let it cook for a minute.

Remove from the heat and pour into a large bowl to cool.

To prevent that gross skin from forming on the top, gently lay and press a piece of plastic wrap. Cover and place in the refrigerator.

Then work on the champagne butter cream frosting. You will need to reduce some champagne.

Add it to a large sauce pan and place on medium high heat.

Bubble bubble bubble.

Let it reduce until you have just a few tablespoons of concentrated champagne. Set this aside to cool.

Once the strawberry curd is cooled, place it in a pastry bag or a large plastic zip top bag.

Make a little hole in each cupcake. I like to use a large pastry tip.

Like so. You can do whatever you want with what you take out…I suggest, eating it.

Fill each hole with the curd.

Hello my pretties.

Add softened butter to the bowl of your stand mixer.

Along with powdered sugar.

Whip it up until soft and fluffy.

Add the condensed champagne

Along with a little fresh champagne from the bottle.

Whip again until it is very fluffy.

This frosting is out of this world. Give each cupcake a generous amount and that is it!

Cupcakes definitely worthy of a Valentine's Day celebration.

I think your honey would really appreciate these….and you, if you made them.

Oh yeah, and there is a surprise inside. Slightly tart and perfectly paired with the moist cake and delicious frosting.

Good thing I made a double batch.

Strawberries and Champagne Cupcakes
(single batch, makes about 17 cupcakes)

For the cake:
1/2 cup (one stick) of butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup champagne
1/2 cup sour cream

Start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the butter and sugar. Combine by using the paddle attachment. Mix until fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing between each addition. Scrape the sides and add the vanilla, mix again.

In a separate bowl, sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together. Set aside for now.

In a different bowl, combine the sour cream and champagne. It will bubble and look kind of strange, that is okay.

Add 1/3 of the dry ingredients, then 1/2 of the wet, 1/3 of the dry, 1/2 of the wet and the remaining dry until fully combined.

Scoop batter into cupcake liners in a cupcake pan. I like to use the muffin scoop but if you don't have one fill each cup about 2/3 of the way full.

Bake for 15-17 minutes or until just turning slightly golden brown. Remove from the oven and set on a cooling rack to cool.

For the Strawberry Curd:
(I made a regular batch of this and was left with about twice as much as I needed, it will be great on crepes, waffles etc. but if you want less, just 1/2 this recipe)

4 cups strawberries (frozen is okay)
Juice of 2 limes
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons of corn starch
3 eggs + 2 egg yolks

Place the strawberries in a blender, and blend away. Juice the limes over a strainer and pour the juice into the blender. Blend again. Pour into a strainer over a large bowl. Using a rubber spatula, press and stir the strawberry puree until only the seeds and pulp remain.

In a medium sauce pan on medium high heat, add sugar, corn starch, strawberry juice/puree, eggs and egg yolks. Stir to combine and continue to stir until it starts to bubble. Once it bubbles, let it cook for one minute.

Remove from the heat and pour into a large bowl. Place a sheet of plastic wrap over the top and press into the curd to prevent a skin from forming. Cover and place in the refrigerator to cool.

For the Champagne Butter Cream Frosting:

1 cup + 1 tablespoon champagne
2 sticks of softened butter
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Add 1 cup of the champagne to a medium sauce pan on medium high heat. Let simmer and bubble to reduce to about 2 tablespoons. Once reduced, remove from the heat and let cool.

Add the butter and powdered sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment. Whip until thick and fluffy. Scrape the sides.

Pour in the reduced champagne and 1 fresh tablespoon from the bottle. Whip again until fluffy, scraping the sides.

To assemble:

Once the cupcakes and curd have cooled, take a large pastry tip and press and twist down into the center of each cupcake. Remove the tip and a small circle of the cake should be removed. Discard (aka eat the pieces you remove).

Pour the strawberry curd into a large pastry (or zip top) bag and cut the end off. Pipe a little in each hole of the cupcake.

Spoon the champagne frosting into a separate pastry bag with a tip of your choice. Pipe on a generous amount of frosting on each cupcake. Garnish with a fresh strawberry.

Enjoy!

Champagne cake and frosting recipe from the amazingly talented: Sprinkles Bakes
Strawberry curd recipe adapted from: Southern Living

Easy Asian Turkey Lettuce Wraps

2013-02-04T05:45:00.001-08:00

I can't believe how long it has taken me to post these babies! My friend, Meghan, made them for New Year's Eve this year and I'm pretty sure I reminded her no less than 15 times that she needed to email me the recipe ASAP. I didn't want to leave the party without the handwritten recipe in my hands. Because I am a super annoying friend, I emailed her a day after and (again) begged for the recipe. Luckily, Meghan is a very sweet human and sent it right over. I'm pretty sure she was sick of my pathetic "this is the best thing I have ever tasted!!!!! OMG YUM YUM YUM YUM" shenanigans.

I say we get down to business and whip up a batch. I'm hungry for them again.

Start by chopping up some water chestnuts (my addition because I love a little crunch)

And green onions.

For the sauce, combine Hosin Sauce (you can find this in the grocery store by the soy sauce)

Peanut butter

Miracle Whip (yeah, I know, sounds SUPER weird…just do it. Trust me)

And a few shakes of red pepper flakes. That's it!

Cook ground brown turkey until it is no longer pink and add the veggies. It looks like a lot because I made a double batch then froze half of it..because I am super organized and plan ahead for everything…riiiight.

Once the turkey is fully cooked, add the sauce. Give it a stir and let it bubble a bit.

Meanwhile, clean your lettuce. You can use either butter or Boston lettuce. Heck, you really probably could use Romaine if you are into that sort of thing.

Bubblin….

That's it my friends.

Spoon it into your little lettuce cups and DE-vour.

Easy Asian Lettuce Turkey Wraps

1/2 cup Hosin Sauce
1/4 cup peanut butter. Crunch or smooth work just fine
1/4 cup Miracle Whip
1/8 teaspoon (or more depending on your taste) red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon peanut or canola oil
1 pound ground turkey
1 bunch of green onions, chopped
1/4 cup water chestnuts, chopped
1 head of Boston or Butter Lettuce

Start by preheating a large skillet on medium high heat. Add the oil and turkey. Cook until no longer pink.

While the turkey is cooking, combine the Hosin sauce, peanut butter, Miracle Whip and red pepper flakes in a small bowl.

Once the turkey is cooked, add all but about a tablespoon or so of the green onions and all of the water chestnuts to the pan. Give it a quick stir. Pour in the sauce and let it bubble for about 3 minutes or so.

While the meat and sauce are bubbling, throughly wash your lettuce and separate into cups.

After 3 minutes, spoon the meat and sauce mixture onto the lettuce cups. Top with green onions and serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Recipe from Meghan via Mindy.

Ps. this recipe works very well for parties, just put the meat and sauce mixture in a Slow Cooker.