Breakfast

Breakfast Casserole

I threw this one together one saturday morning and it turned out not to bad.

1 1/2 cups frozen hash browns
6 eggs
1 Tbsp milk
2 Tbsp cream cheese
6 strips of bacon cooked and crumbled
1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
1 Tbsp dill

Cook the hash browns in butter until golden brown. Press them into a small casserole dish. Spread the cream cheese and bacon over the has browns. ( I use my clean hands to brake up the cream cheese.) in another bowl beat eggs, milk, dill, and add some salt and pepper to taste. Pour over the hash browns, bacon and cream cheese. Bake uncovered in a 350 degree oven for about 35 minutes. Take out and add cheese on top and then bake for an additional 5 minutes or until cheese is a little crisp and bubbley.

This was so easy and so yummy. I just kind of threw together what I had and it turned out yummy.



SO EASY PUMPKIN BREAD

This receipe I found out of the magazine "PARENTS". I had all the ingrediants so I whipped it up and it was pretty yummy.

BREAD
1 box of yellow cake mix
1 cup of pure pumpkin puree
1 cup smashed bananas
1 tsp of cinnamon

Prepare cake mix as directed omitting the water. Stir in pumpkin, bananas, and cinnamon. Pour into a greased 9" loaf pan; Bake at 375 degrees for 50 minutes.




FROSTING

4 oz cream cheese
1/4 cup softened butter
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup powdered sugar

In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and butter until creamy. Stir in vanilla and slowly add powdered sugar. Frost cooled Bread: chill.

Makes 16 slices. Each slice has 281 calories and 1/2 served of fruits and veggies.

A Day at the Beach

We went to the beach over last weekend and had a blast! And I made some yummy food to take along with us. Which included:

Corn, Tomato, and Avocado Salad
1/2 Cup Olive Oil
1 1/2 cups of fresh Dill or Cilantro or whatever herb you like best. (I used dill from my garden :) )
2 Tbsp of Lime Juice
zest of one lime
Salt and Pepper
Blend in a food processor or blender until smooth. Set aside.

4 ears of Corn
(Put in cold, salted water, Bring to a boil, turn off heat, cover and let sit for 10-12 min, rinse under cold water and then shave corn off onto a clean kitchen towel. This prevents it from flying everywhere.)
1 cup of cherry tomatoes halved
1 cup of fresh mozzarella balls
2 avocados diced

Mix all the veggies and cheese together and pour the dressing over and chill for an hour before serving. This was SO good! I made this recipe twice, and the second time I made it I threw in some sweet red bell pepper, it was yummy.

Ham, Cheese, and Spinach Pin Wheels

2 cans of crescent rolls
some thinly sliced deli ham (you could also use prosciutto)
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese or Asiago
salt and pepper
1 garlic clove finely minced
1 cup of cooked spinach

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Roll out the crescent rolls and pinch all the seams together. Lay the ham over the dough in an even layer. Mix the Spinach, cheese, garlic, salt and pepper. Spread the spinach mixture evenly over the ham. Roll up making a "jelly roll" kind of. Then slice thin slices like you would a Cinnamon roll and lay on a greased cookie sheet. Bake for about 12 - 15 min until they are golden brown. These traveled very well and were delicious! Let them cool for a good 15- 25 minutes before you pack them up so they stay crisp and don't get soggy.


Along with these 2 delicious recipes I made tiny chocolate chip cookies. The dough I made about a week before our trip and had in the freezer, so it was easy to just bake some off to take with us. I made them about tsp size. They were prefect to just pop in your mouth. I had bought a pineapple about 5 or 6 days before we went on our little weekend beach trip. I sat it in the window so it got nice and ripe. I chopped that up with some strawberries. We had a very fun weekend of boating and swimming and building sand castles. The food was just the cherry on the cake.

What is with the ground beef?

I don't know about you, but I always have ground beef in the freezer. Well I have been trying to eat healthier and I was wondering what in the world I could make with ground beef. So I googled it, I food networked it, I kraftfoods.comed it... I couldn't really find anything. So I am sitting at work and it hit me... LETTUCE WRAPS! And boy were they good.

1 lb. lean ground beef or turkey
1/4 cup of grape jelly (not really healthy, I know... but good)
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 Honey BBQ Sauce
Salt and Pepper

Brown your meat add the rest of the ingredients and feel free to experiment.. that's what I do.

1 head of crisp romaine lettuce (or what ever lettuce you would like to use)
7 baby carrots - I cut them into thin strips (or just buy shredded carrots)
1 can of water chestnuts (compliments of my mom... I didn't have any :) )
15 roasted almonds with no salt added. ( cut them up )
1/2 of a large red bell pepper or one small, cut the same size as the other veggies.

Mix all that into a bowl except for the lettuce leaves. Pile the meat mixture and veggies into the lettuce and WALLAH! My man put ranch on his and loved them... I ate them plain and loved them. Whatever you like, get creative.

Green Chile Enchiladas

18 corn tortilla's
1 large can of Green Enchilada Sauce.. 25 oz (I think)
1 cup of Canola Oil
1 cup of sour cream
1 small can of green chiles
1 small can of jalepenos (or fresh if you have them) remember these go a long way, so if you don't like it too hot, only use half the can.
2 cups of shredded chicken. (2 or 3 chicken breasts)

2 cups of mexican style cheese


Roast 2 or 3 chicken breasts in the oven at 350 degrees for about an hour. I put olive oil, salt, and pepper on them and covered the baking dish with foil.

In a blender blend sour cream, 3/4 of the can of enchilada sauce, jalapenos, and green chiles. Blend just until combined.

heat 1 cup of Canola Oil in a deep skillet and begin to fry all of your corn tortillas until they are golden brown.

Shred the chicken after it has cooled for a about 10 minutes.

Start to layer in a 13x9 glass dish. put down 6 of the corn tortilla's then spread some of the chicken evenly over the tortilla's then pour some of the sauce over the chicken, then add some cheese and repeat. Add the last layer of corn tortilla's and the the rest of the sauce and cheese. (you can really layer however your little heart desires.)

Bake for about 30 minutes at 350 degrees. I served this with green salad, fruit and tortilla chips, sour cream and salsa... of course. No picture, sorry...but they were yummy. I used a whole can of jalapenos, so they had some kick FOR SURE. :)

Chicken Cord on Bleu

1 cup sour cream
1 can of Cream of Celery
1 Tbs Worcestershire Sauce
1 Tbs minced onion
1 Tbs of fresh dill
1 Tbs of fresh flat leaf parsley
Salt & Pepper
Mix the above ingredients together and set aside

Pound 3 or 4 chicken breasts out flat. I put wax paper on both sides and used my rolling pin to make them nice and flat. Place a slice of Swiss cheese and 2 slices of thinly sliced deli ham in the chicken breast and roll up. Secure with toothpicks.

Spray a glass cooking dish with Pam and place your chicken seam side down in the dish. Pour the Sour Cream mixture over the top of the chicken making sure they are all covered. Place tin foil over the top and place in a preheated oven at 375 degrees. Let them cook for about 90 minutes.

I always serve this dish with roasted veggies because the sauce is SO yummy to pour over them. This time I did baby Yukon golds, cauliflower, and carrots. I put them on a cookie sheet and tossed them with salt, pepper, and olive oil. I put them in the oven with the chicken for about 30 minutes. Keep an eye on them so they don't burn.

When you are slicing your chicken, make sure to let it rest for about 15 minutes before you cut it. This will ensure that they will look pretty.

Jesse said this one gets an A+. He loved the veggie combo.

One more helpful hint, DO NOT use low fat sour cream... it makes the sauce have a more sour flavor, rather then rich.

Chimichangas

1/2 Cup minced onion
2 cloves of garlic
3 Tbs olive oil
2 cups of shredded chicken
(I roasted mine in the oven at 400 degrees for 30 min. with salt and pepper and Olive oil)
1 can of the large crescent rolls
Salsa
Shredded cheese
Sour cream

Heat oven 350 degrees, grease a large cookie sheet. In a skillet cook onion and garlic with oil until tender. Add the shredded chicken and heat through.

Unroll the dough and separate the triangles. Spread on each one some of the salsa. (not all the way to the edge) Add the chicken mixture and roll the dough up around the filling. Seal the edges and place on the cookie sheet.

Bake for 16 - 20 min until lightly browned, add some of your cheese on top of each one and throw them back in the oven until the cheese is nice and melted and kind of crispy. (That's how we like it)

Served with sour cream and salsa. Pretty easy, and pretty good.

Fudgy Chocolate Chip Toffee Bars

Another Pillsbury recipe... SO GOOD

1/2 Cup melted butter
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 bag Heath Bits O'Brickle Toffee bits (they are in the baking isle)
1 roll of refrigerated cookie dough
1 bag semi sweet chocolate chips
1 can of sweetened condensed milk
1 Tbs butter
1 tsp vanilla

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray the bottom of a 13x9 inch pan with non stick spray.
Ina bowl mix 1/2 cup butter, 1 1/2 cups of the graham cracker crumbs and 3/4 Cup of the toffee bits. Press this mixture into your greased pan. Throw into the refrigerator for 15 to 20 minutes.

Pull the cookie dough out of the fridge for about 10 minutes to soften. In a 2 quart sauce pan, heat chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, and 1 tbs of butter over med heat stirring frequently, until chops are melted and mixture is smooth. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Spread this mixture over crust.

Using the same bowl you mix your crust in, break up the cookie dough into small chunks and mix in the remaining graham cracker crumbs. Crumble mixture over the chocolate layer and sprinkle with more toffee bits. (I used the rest of the bag)

Bake for 25 minutes until top is golden. Cool completely. These bars are the best when you put them in the refrigerator for a couple of hours. YUM...

Southwest Sloppy Joe Pizza

( I almost forgot to get a picture )


I got this one from my Pillsbury Cookbook... it sounded kind of weird, but I had all the stuff to make, so I did... and we loved it!

1 can of refrigerated pizza dough
1 lb lean ground beef
1 medium onion (minced)
1/4 cup diced jalapeno peppers
1/4 tsp Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp of minced garlic
1 1/2 tsp of Worcestershire Sauce
1 cup of salsa
1/2 cup of grape jelly ( I know weirdness, huh?)
2 cups of shredded mild cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a cookie sheet with non stick spray. Unroll pizza dough and push it into the pan so it fits. (If it tears then mend it together, no biggie) Bake the crust for 8 - 10 minutes.

In a skillet brown your ground beef with the onions and jalapeno.

Stir in mustard, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, salsa, and jelly into beef mixture. Cook until sauce is slightly thickened.

Spread the beef mixture over the partially cooked dough and sprinkle with cheese. Throw that back in the oven for 8 more minutes until cheese is melted and crust is browned. Let stand for a few minutes before you cut into slices.

It's kind of sweet and spicy. Surprisingly delicious and easy!

Dry Rub BBQ Chicken

1 Tbs brown sugar
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 salt
1/4 tsp Cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp of ground ginger

Mix together the ingredients above and rub on 3 to 4 breasts of chicken. Line a baking sheet with foil and bake for 45 min at 350 degrees.

3/4 cup of honey BBQ sauce
1 Tbs brown sugar
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Mix ingredients in a small sauce pan and let heat through. Serve over top of chicken.

I served this chicken with a big green salad and Risotto. I didn't get a picture of it because it disappeared way to quick. :) My 2 1/2 year old ate half of a chicken breast him self. Jesse said this one is a keeper.

Apple, Raisin, Pecan Salad

1/2 cup raw pecans
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 medium apple (I chose honey crisp.. oh so good)
1 head of crispy Romain lettuce
5 dried apricots (diced into small pieces)

Mix together all ingredients except nuts.

Toast the pecans in a dry pan, stirring frequently. Mix together 1 Tbsp of brown sugar and 1 Tbsp of water and add to the nuts. Keep stirring until liquid is gone. Pour on top of the salad.

I think Raspberry Vinaigrette would be awesome on this salad. But I made my own orange marmalade dressing.

2 Tbsp orange marmalade
1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp of lemon juice
a dash of apple cider vinegar
salt and pepper

Mix together and pour over salad.

Jesse said the dressing was funky. :) I liked it, but like I said Raspberry Vinaigrette would be a safe route and yummy.

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

2 1/2 Cups of Flour
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. salt
1 1/4 Cups of Sugar
1/2 Cup of Vegetable Oil
3 Eggs
1 tsp. Vanilla
1 1/2 Cups of Mashed Banana's ( I use more if I have more)
1 Cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips ( once again, I use more sometimes)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter and CINNAMON SUGAR (that is my secret ya'll) your loaf pans, or muffin pan. The sugar makes this sweet kind of crunchy crust. So delicious.

Stir flour, baking soda, and salt in a separate bowl and set aside. (if you have a sifter, sift. But I just stir them together. In another bowl mash up your banana's with a fork.

In a mixing bowl mix together sugar, eggs, oil, and vanilla until well blended. Add banana's and blend well. Mix in your flour mixture just until blended. Stir in chocolate chips.

Divide batter among loaf pans and/or muffin pan. Put in the oven for 45 minutes to an hour. For Muffins set timer at 30 min and then check on them. To check if they are done stick a toothpick in the middle, if it comes out clean, your good to go.

I am telling you, buttering and sugaring the pan makes ALL the difference!

Hamburger Pie

Today for lunch I made Hamburger Pie. It's a recipe from the Pilsbury Cook Book. I have made it a few times now, I really like it.

The hamburger is the "crust". It has ketchup, mustard, bread crumbs, onion, and garlic. You press that into your pie pan and bake it for 15 minutes. Then you fill it with mashed potatoes, cheese, and tomatoes on top. You can also add green onions and bacon.

Jesse gives it a thumbs up. :) Carson enjoyed this one as well.


I made homemade brownies for desert.... JUST KIDDIN! These are box brownies. :)

Stuffed Pork Chops

Tonight I made stuffed pork chops. I stuffed them with a left over dinner roll (grounded it up in the food processor) and mixed in some chopped cilantro, salt & pepper, and like a tablespoon or butter and a tablespoon of cream cheese. Cut a slit in the side of my pork chops and stuffed them with my mixture. I then seared them in a pan with olive oil and transferred them into a glass baking dish filled with orange juice, brown sugar, Worchtershire(don't know how to spell that) sauce, and salt and pepper. Baked at 400 for about 40 minutes. Served with mashed potatoes and green salad.

Jesse and Carson both LOVED it. Carson ate all of his meat (about 3 good slices). I asked Jesse if he liked it and he said it was delicious.

Dinner accomplished! :) Now I have to go do my dishes.

Cooking

So I love to cook. I love trying new recipes and sharing what I have created with others. So, I will be sharing with you my creations, whether good or bad (I will be honest and let you know either or). I hope to inspire others to cook and to enjoy the company of their families. :) Let the cooking begin....