Hey good lookin', whatcha got cookin'?

2012-02-02T09:19:00.000-08:00

Another recipe made last night that I found from Pinterest and another keeper. One of these days, I will get around to making my own recipes and blogging about those...but for now, I am having fun trying out new things.

I made Pepperoni Rolls. I would do ham and pineapple next time though. We are not huge fans of pepperoni, we like it, but would rather have had ham and pineapple. Maybe whip up some 'crazy sauce' to dip them in too.

Here's the recipe...

Pepperoni Rolls

Ingredients:

Frozen bread dough

Pepperoni

Mozzarella

Parmesan cheese

Olive oil

Italian herbs seasoning

Put a loaf or two or three onto a greased jelly roll pan. Spray saran wrap with Pam and place over the dough. Let the dough thaw and rise all day. When it's doubled in size it's ready to be rolled.

Roll out dough to an 11x11 square. Brush dough with olive oil.

Place pepperoni on top, then top with shredded mozzarella cheese and parmesan cheese

Sprinkle with italian seasoning.

Roll up dough starting at one edge of square.
Place rolls on baking sheet, leaving space between.
Brush some melted butter on top of uncooked pepperoni roll.
Bake at 375 degrees for approx. 15 to 25 minutes. When done, top of roll should be golden brown and you should be able to make a tapping sound on the crust with your fingernail...just the same as when baking bread.

Crazy Sauce Recipe

10.5 oz can tomato puree

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 tsp. dried basil

1/4 tsp. dried marjoram

1/4 tsp. dried oregano

1/4 tsp. dried thyme

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat. When sauce begins to bubble reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes, stirring often. Serve with breadsticks or the pepperoni rolls above.

2012-02-01T07:23:00.000-08:00

Honey Parmesan Pork Roast

Tried a recipe that I found through Pinterest

Slow Cooker Parmesan Honey Pork Roast Recipe

Ingredients:

1 (2-3 pound) boneless pork roast
2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup honey
3 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp dried basil
2 Tbsp minced garlic
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp cornstarch
1/4 cup cold water

Spray slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray. Place roast in slow cooker. In a small bowl, combine the cheese, honey, soy sauce, basil, garlic, oil and salt; pour over pork. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours or until a meat thermometer reads 160°.
Remove meat to a serving platter; keep warm. Skim fat from cooking juices; transfer to a small saucepan. Bring liquid to a boil. Combine cornstarch and water until smooth. Gradually stir into pan. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Slice roast; serve with gravy (I also made mashed potatoes and the gravy was delicious on them!).

My notes: I shredded my meat instead of slicing. I only added 3/4 TBSP of dried basil and thought there was just a tad too much basil. When I make it again I would add only 1/2 TBSP. I'm not a huge basil fan, so if you like it, stick with the original. Instead of the cornstarch and water step. I added about 1/2 cup water to the juices, then added some Wondra (Check it out here). If you haven't found Wondra yet, it is simply amazing stuff. True, lump free gravy.

I served this with

Parmesan Mashed Potatoes

5lbs potatoes, peeled and cubed

6 TBSP butter

1 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese

2 tsp. minced garlic

milk to desired consistancy

salt and pepper to taste

Place potatoes into a large pot of cold water. Place onto stove top over high heat and bring to a boil. Once water is boiling, cook until potatoes are fork tender. Drain and transfer to the work bowl of a stand or electric mixer. Mix on low until potatoes are mashed then add butter, Parmesan, garlic, milk, salt and pepper. Season to taste if needed. For thinner mashed potatoes add more milk, slowly until your desired consistency.

Now to top it off, I thought with the honey flavors a nice light and airy dessert would be nice. So I made this Coconut Cloud Cake from Martha Stewart.

Let's just say, mine didn't turn out like the photo above. My cake was AWESOME - my frosting, well it flopped. It did take a LOT of time to make and after I got done, I thought.. there's an easier way.

Go to your grocery store and buy an angel food cake, fluffy white frosting and some coconut. It won't be as good as 'made from scratch' but it will save you OODLES of time in the kitchen. Click on the 'coconut cloud cake' above to take you to the recipe.

Enjoy!!

Homemade Fruit Roll Ups

2012-01-30T13:38:00.000-08:00

These are going to go fast!! They are THAT good!! We usually make this before we go to bed and let it cook all night.

2 Cups apple sauce
1 small box jello - any flavor *not the sugar free kind

Line a jelly roll pan with saran wrap. In a bowl, mix 2 cups of applesauce with 1 box of jello. Spread your mixture evenly over the saran wrap. Make sure the saran wrap does not fold into the mixture or it will not set right. (You also don't want the saran wrap to hang over the edge - see photo below)

Bake at 170 (or lower if you can) overnight. (170 generally works for us).
Cut up or roll up and store in an air tight container. Enjoy!!

What it looks like going into the oven

Ours cooked just a tad too long that it started to crack, but it was still SO yummy!!

*We tried this with sugar free jello once and it just didn't cook up right.