Cheese Sauce

So, my Mom taught me this and she doesn't really use measurements, so nothing is exact. Everything is a guesstimate until I make it all by myself next time. I will update the measurements if I find anything to be too different.

First, you put about about 1/2 a stick of butter in a small sauce pan and melt it. Then add 1/4 cup of flour. Mix those together until you get it to a pasty consistency (my mom says it is called a roux...). Then add about 3 cups of milk. Mix the roux into the milk with a wire whisk (I don't have one and used a fork, but a whisk would have worked better). Slowly bring it to a boil and then add 2 tablespoons of mustard and salt and pepper to taste. Then finally, add your cheese! Add about a cup of shredded cheese and melt it in. If it is too thick, add a little milk to thin it down. If it is too thin, mix together milk and flour and add it to thicken it up a little.

This is AMAZING with steamed brocolli!!! I don't like most vegetables, but I hear it is also good with carrots and cauliflower. Among its other uses are pouring it on potatoes for potatoes au gratin, thin it down for cheesy brocolli soup or cheesy potato soup or pour it over pasta.

Enjoy!!!

Pumpkin Rolls

Bread:

3 Eggs
2/3 cup pumpkin
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup flour

Mix all together and place on wax paper on a cookie sheet. Now if you grease the cookie sheet and then lay down the wax paper, the wax paper will stick to the cookie sheet and make things a lot easier. Bake at 375 for 10 minutes. The batter will barely cover the whole cookie sheet but don't worry because it will puff up during cooking.

When you take it out of the oven sprinkle sugar all over the top of the bread and then turn upside down on to a pillowcase (you can use a towel but they have more lint on them that may get on the bread so pillowcases are better.) Then roll up like you would the dough for cinnamon rolls and place in refrigerator to cool.

Frosting:

2 tbsp butter
8 oz cream cheese
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup powdered sugar

Mix together. Then unroll bread and peel wax paper off. Spread frosting over the side of the bread that you peeled the wax paper from. Once frosting is spread over bread roll back up and place back in refrigerator to firm up a bit.

And just so you know I bought a big can of pumpkin (because that is all they had at the store) and it made five rolls. This is a great recipe for the holidays to make and give out to friends and neighbors.

Breakfast Burritos

I don't have a picture, but I'll take one the next time I make them. I have been making them a lot lately. They are pretty easy.

To make 2 good sized burritos, I use the following:

4 eggs
Either 4 slices of Kraft American Cheese or about 1/2 a cup of shredded cheese
2 tortillas
4 slices of bacon (I use the fake bacon most because it is so easy to make!)

Scramble the eggs in a frying pan. Sprinkle in some of the cheese with the eggs. Cook the bacon (30 seconds in the microwave if you use the fake bacon). Put a tortilla on a plate and sprinkle 1/2 of the remaining cheese on it. Put it in the microwave for approximately 30 seconds. Careful! The plate and tortilla will be hot. Scoop half of the scrambled egg/cheese mixture on to the tortilla. Put 2 slices of bacon on top and roll up the tortilla. Repeat using the next tortilla. Then eat and enjoy! We have had these for breakfast and for a late night snack. They only take about 10 minutes tops to make. Pretty easy, plus they are yummy and kinda healthy (dairy and protein, right?). :)

Salsa Chicken

I found this recipe on this blog. It was so easy and so yummy! She has tons of good recipes that all seem to be pretty easy. My favorite was this one which I made for Lisa when she came down to visit me. About the chicken above, she said to put it on rice but I think it would be better in a burrito or taco. I also added some corn. But it was really easy and it really did take 5 minutes to put together.

Cake Mix Cookies

I had heard about these cookies and I found the recipe on another blog. They are super easy and very fast. You can make them with any kind of cake mix (I used Cherry Chip) and they are yummy.

1 Box of Cake Mix
2 eggs
1/2 cup of vegetable oil

Mix together, then roll in to balls and place on cookie sheet.

Bake at 375 for 8-9 minutes.

Just for the record, I can not make cookies. They always come out burnt or hard or whatever. these cookies came out nice and soft, just like I like them.

Sunrise Penne w/asparagus

So Jonah has not been eating his food that great lately and I made this for dinner and the kid ate a ton. It really isn't a recipe because it is out of a jar with a few added things, but it is so fast (takes about 20 minutes total) and yummy I had to share it.

1 box of pasta (I usually use mini penne)
1 jar of alfredo sauce (I like the Bertolli mushroom alfredo best)
1/3 of a 14 oz jar of prego
1 pound of asparagus (cut into 1 inch pieces)

Cook pasta like normal.

Saute asparagus with olive oil until tender. Now my friend Josh introduced me to this seasoning called Tony Chachere's awhile ago and it is so good. It is a little spicy and a little salt and I usually use it on the asparagus instead of salt and pepper. I actually use it on a lot of things like corn, chicken, other pasta dishes, I promise you it is awesome so go get some!

Mix jar of alfredo sauce with 1/3 of the jar of marinara sauce and asparagus. I add more of the Tony Chachere's to this because we like it a little spicy.

Once it is hot mix with the pasta and enjoy. I have also added Italian sausage to this which was VERY good cooked in the sauce. Let me know what you think if you try it.

Random Meals

So, I have been cooking a ton more and just wanted to share some of the super easy things that I have done.

1 - I have learned that Italian Dressing doubles great as a marinade for chicken. Just soak the chicken in a container over night in Italian Dressing and bake it in a glass pan in the oven the next evening and it is great. Add some garlic salt and maybe some Creole seasoning for a kick. Also, poke holes in the chicken with a fork so the dressing can soak in.

2 - Pillsbury Grand Flaky biscuits are wonderful and go with anything. They only take 8 minutes to cook and already have butter on them. The biscuits peel apart like string cheese kinda in layers, so they are fun to eat and really yummy.

3 - Don't ever use the whole packet of shake and bake unless you are making a ton of chicken or pork or whatever. I usually just make a few pork chops, so I put the pork in a ziploc bag and put in shake and bake until the whole thing is coated. I stretch a box of shake and bake out for a lot longer than Kraft would like you to.

4 - Adding brocolli to Rice a Roni is awesome and easy. I just add the frozen stuff in with the Rice a Roni and cook it in the microwave. The brocolli cooks perfectly and it is delicious!

5 - Crock pots are amazing! I cooked a pot roast for the first time on Sunday. I just put the pot roast in the crock pot with some pieces of potato cut up and turned it on and left it on basically all day. Oh and I put some garlic salt and creole on it. The potatoes were so yummy and spicy! When you can stick a fork into the pot roast and it pulls out easy and kinda shreds the meat, it is done. I would recommend putting the potatoes in a little bit later because they were kinda mushy after being in there all day. It was still good, but they could have been in there less time.

That is all for now. Sorry, no pictures, but I will try to remember to take some soon. I am cooking just about every night now. I last went out to dinner about 3 weeks ago. :)

Asparagus Grape Salad

Okay this isn't really a recipe its more of an idea. I know I am always looking for ways to change up a salad, well last month when we went to my great grandmas she made this yummy salad from stuff she had left over in the fridge. She had cooked some asparagus the night before we got there and had left overs (you know I wasn't there because there are never leftover asparagus when I am around) and some grapes she needed to use up. So she just threw those in with some lettuce and tomatoes and it was so good. Not a combination I would have normally done but it was so good. We just had it with ranch dressing but I am sure anything else would be good with it.

Goulash

Okay, I know this picture doesn't look to appetizing but goulash is definitely one of those comfort food meals. I got this recipe off of 30 Minute Meals with Rachel Ray but then I changed it a bit so here you go:

-2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
-1 tablespoon of butter
-1 1/2 pounds ground turkey (second time I made it with ground beef and it was better)
-1/2 pound white mushrooms, sliced
-2 cloves garlic, chopped
-1 medium onion, chopped
-1/2 bag frozen corn (recipe called for red bell pepper but I hate bell peppers)
-2 teaspoons smoked paprika
-salt and pepper
-1 cup chicken broth
-1 cup tomato sauce
-1/2 container of sour cream
-1 pound box of elbow macaroni, cooked according to package

-Heat the evoo and butter in large, deep skillet over medium to medium high heat. Add the ground turkey. Brown meat then push off to the sides of the pan then add mushrooms, garlic, onions and defrosted corn to the center of pan (I just cooked the meat in one pan and the veggies in another and then combined them). Cook veggies five minutes then mix them with the turkey and season with paprika, salt and pepper. Stir in chicken broth and tomato sauce and bring to a bubble. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook 5 minutes then stir in sour cream and turn off heat. Then mix in with elbow macaroni and eat. Yummy

Beef and Meatballs, 2 Ways Each

So I have a few very simple ideas for meals. The first two are using canned roast beef, either from Costco or from Fresh and Easy. The canned roast beef is really good and has almost no fat in it.
BBQ Beef Sandiches
Super simple! 2 cans of roast beef (you can half it, just see what works best) and add half a bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce. I love Famous Dave's but it can be hard to find. Break up the beef and mix in the BBQ sauce. Warm up some additional sauce in a pan or in the microwave. When the BBQ beef mixture is hot, spoon it on a bun, poor some additional sauce on, and enjoy! I make this with BBQ beans or coleslaw (you can buy a prebagged coleslaw veggie mix and seperate coleslaw dressing and just mix some together for fresh and easy coleslaw) or with whatever else sounds good.

Nachos
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Poor 2 cans of drained roast beef into a pan on the stove. Heat and break them up. When warm, add a packet of taco seasoning (I like Taco Bell's) and 3/4 cups water and simmer for 5 minutes. Warm up some refried beans as well (I use cannery refried beans, but any canned beans you like will work). Use a cookie sheet and spread out Tortilla chips in one layer across the whole pan. Sprinkle shredded cheese all over, then add the beef all over, and the beans. Put the cookie sheet in the oven just until the cheese melts (5 minutes or so?). Don't overcook them or the cheese will get hard! When the cheese is melty, take the sheet out of the oven, add sour cream, tomatoes, guacamole, olive, salsa, whatever floats your boat. I usually keep my salsa on the side so I don't get the chips soggy. You can also do this with just one plate of nachos and heat it up in the microwave, but Sam likes the fanciness of the entire cookie sheet of nachos.

Next up are the meatballs recipes! All I use are frozen meatballs, Costco, Wal-Mart, wherever.

Sweet and Sour Meatballs
Heat up frozen meatballs in the microwave as directed on the package. You only need like 30 or so. Put meatballs, 1 can of jellied cranberry sauce, 1 can of sauerkraut, 1/2 a jar of spaghetti sauce, and 1/4 cup of brown sugar, into a crockpot. Cook on low for 4-6 hours. You can serve it with rice and veggies which is my favorite. Sam like it with mashed potatoes and veggies. You can also do this same thing on the stovetop. Heat up meatballs first, add everything to a big pot, and cook on medium until the cranberry sauce has all melted and the sauce is mixed (maybe 30 minutes).

Meatball Mini Subs
Heat frozen meatballs in the microwave as directed (like 25 or so). Place them in a pot with a can of spaghetti sauce. Heat on medium low or medium until warm. Buy a package of French rolls (look like mini sub sandwich bread), parmesan cheese, and sliced provolone or mozzarella cheese. Take a french roll, add the sliced cheese, spoon on some meatballs, sprinkle on the parmesan, and voila! Yummy in my tummy! Really good with potato salad.

Sorry I have no personal pics. I stink at taking pictures :(

Mexican Lasagna

This picture doesn't look the greatest, I should have taken one after I cut a piece out, oh well. Also in this recipe I don't use the oregano but I do use chili powder. and when it is done let it sit out of the oven for about 10 minutes before you cut into it, otherwise it will be really soupy.

1 lb. lean ground beef cooked

2 cans refried beans

2 tsp. dried oregano

1 tsp. ground cumin

3/4 tsp. garlic powder

12 uncooked lasagna noodles

2 cups water

2 1/2 cups picante sauce or salsa

2 cups (16 oz.) sour cream

2 can (2.2 oz) sliced black olives, drained

2 cup (4 oz.) shredded Monterrey jack cheese

Combine beef, beans, oregano, cumin, and garlic powder. Place four of the uncooked lasagna noodles in the bottom of a 13 X 9 inch baking pan. Spread half of the beef mixture over the noodle. Top with four more noodles and the remaining beef mixture. Cover with remaining noodles. Combine water and picante sauce. Pour over all. Cover tightly with foil; bake at 350 degrees for an hour or until noodles are tender. Combine sour cream, onions, and olives. Spoon over casserole; top with cheese. Bake uncovered, until cheese is melted, about 5 minutes. Serves 12. Enjoy!

Creamy Broccoli Cheese Soup

Okay here is another soup, I found this on another cooking blog and thought I would give it a try. Well Joe loved this one and I have had to make it twice in the past two weeks for him. I like the other potato broccoli soup I posted better, but that's just me. This soup made a bigger batch but took like twice the time to make. Anyway give it a try and let me know what you think. I also added some minced garlic to this recipe. The first time I only added two cloves and that wasn't enough, so this time I added about 5 and that was better, I just cooked it in with the onions. Also the second time I made it I only added two large potatoes because the first time it had two many for me(I took the picture the first time).


4 potatoes peeled, and cut into small cubes
5 carrots peeled and chopped
2 heads of broccoli chopped (I justed used a bag of frozen broccoli)

Boil potatoes and carrots for 10 min. Then add broccoli and boil 10 more minutes. Drain and set aside.

Then:
half or whole onion diced
1/4 cup butter

Melt butter then saute onion in butter until tender. Set aside.

Then:
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup flour
4 cups whole milk
1 cup chicken broth
2 cups cheese shredded
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

Melt butter in large pot. Add flour and whisk until mixed well. Add milk and broth. Stirring constantly, bring to a boil and boil for 2 minutes to thicken. Add veggies, onion, cheese, salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low. Serve with rolls or in bread bowls. Enjoy!!

My Birthday Dinner

So, I know this is a little late coming, but I wanted to finally post what I made for my birthday dinner. I made shredded chicken burritos and a bean dip and guacamole that didn't quite turn out like guacamole, but it was still good.

Shredded Chicken Burritos:

Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breast

Salsa

Shredded Cheese

Tortillas

Cook the chicken. I just put it in a frying pan and added salt and cooked it up until it wasn't pink in the middle. After it is done cooking, shred the chicken. I use two forks and hold the chicken with one fork and pull pieces away with another fork. Pretty easy. Mix the shredded chicken with some salsa. Put some of it on a tortilla and top with cheese. Pop it in the microwave until the cheese melts and wrap it up.

Guacamole Dip Stuff

So, I usually make amazing guacamole, but this time, it wasn't the same. It was delicious, but not quite guacamole. I added too much sour cream, so I got creative (well, not too creative, but whatever).

Avocados

Sour Cream

Lime

Salsa

Jalepenos

Cut the avocados in half. Remove the pit (if you haven't ever done this before, it is fun. You take a knife and slam it into the pit and then just pull the knife out and the pit comes with). Peel the skin off and mash the avocado. Mix in some sour cream. I put a lot in this time and it was still good. Mix in some salsa and squeeze half a lime into it. Add salt to taste. Top with jalepenos.

Bean Dip

For my bean dip, I actually made the beans from scratch. Pretty easy. It is easier with the dehydrated bean flakes from the cannery though.

Pinto Beans

Pepper Jack Cheese

Soak the pinto beans over night. Remove the soak water and boil them in fresh water. Drain off some of the water and mash the beans. Add in a ton of pepper jack cheese. Done.

I did not get a picture of the bean dip because I did not drain off enough water and I had to boil some off. It took forever and I was too tired to take a picture when it was finally done, but it was good. You can also mix salsa with the beans.

Enjoy!