meatball rolls

meatball rolls
1 batch bread dough
1 bag store-bought meatballs
12 slices string cheese, diced into bite-size pieces
pizza sauce

prepare dough and roll out flat on countertop.
cut dough into 2 inch squares.
place one frozen meatball and 2 pieces cheese in each square and shape into rolls.
place in greased 9x13 baking dish.
(rolls can be frozen at this point, and then thawed for 4-6 hours before baking)
bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes.
serve alongside pizza sauce as dip.

Mashed Potatoes

After making potato skins, I had the insides of 17 potatoes all soft and mushy just begging me to make them into mashed taters.  These were incredibly simple!

Here is what you need:

About a pound and a half of potatoes (I used russet potatoes because I had just made potato skins, but if I were making them without making skins first, I would probably use Yukon Gold)
4 TBSP Butter
4 TBSP Heavy Cream
1 TBSP Milk
Salt and Pepper

Peel and quarter your potatoes.  Boil them until tender (easily penetrated by a fork).  Drain the water and set the potatoes aside in a bowl.  Heat up the butter, cream and milk on the stove top.  Once it is hot (not boiling though), mix it in the bowl of potatoes using a potato masher or a hand mixer.  If it is too thick, you can add more milk until you reach the desired consistency.  Salt and pepper to taste and you are done!

These turned out really good.  Carlee ate most of them in one sitting.

After making potato skins and mashed potatoes, I'm thinking these would be the perfect combination for Thanksgiving Day.  Potato skins while the guys watch football and mashed potatoes with dinner.

Potato Skins

When I was invited (okay, I invited myself) to a friend's house for the BCS Championship game, I decided that potato skins would be the perfect thing to bring to the party.  I had a whole sack of potatoes sitting on my counter just begging to be used.  These were pretty easy and I think they turned out pretty good.

Here is what you need:

Russet Potaotes
Butter
Seasoned Salt
Shredded Parmesan Cheese
Shredded Cheddar Cheese
*Bacon, cooked and crumbled
*Sour Cream
Chives, chopped

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.  Wash as many potatoes as you would like to make (each potato makes 2 skins).  Poke the potatoes with a fork and lightly grease them (I just used some butter).  Bake them for about 45 minutes.  Take them out and let them cool.  When they are cool (about 15 minutes), cut them in half long ways and scoop the insides out leaving a thin layer of potato along the inside of the skin.  Brush the inside and outside with melted butter.  Put the potato skins on a greased cookie sheet.  Sprinkle seasoned salt and shredded parmesan inside each potato half.  Bake for about 8 minutes or until bubbly inside.  Remove from the oven and sprinkle cheddar cheese and crumbled bacon in each potato.  Bake for another 3 minutes or until the cheese is melted.  Top with a dollop of sour cream and chives and enjoy.

Healthier alternatives would be turkey bacon and fat free sour cream.  I used these and heard things like "I couldn't even tell this was turkey bacon".  Apparently, they taste just as unhealthy with turkey bacon, but you save a few calories.

Copycat Outback Alice Springs Chicken

Last year, I didn't make any baking/cooking resolutions.  Sure, I tried new things, but it wasn't on my mind very often.  Well, this year, I resolved to make a new recipe each week, or 52 new-to-me recipes over the year.  I started off yesterday by making Copycat Alice Springs Chicken.  This is Brian's favorite thing to order at Outback, but after last night, he said I could make it for him any time he felt he needed to go to Outback.

Here is what you need:
1 c. Grey Poupon Dijon Mustard
1 c. Honey
1/2 c. Miracle Whip Lite*
1 tsp. lemon juice

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 tbsp vegetable oil
salt, pepper, paprika
8 strips turkey bacon*
1 c. monterey jack cheese
1 c. cheddar cheese
fresh parsley, chopped

With a hand mixer, mix together the grey poupon, honey, miracle whip and lemon juice.  Put the chicken breast in a gallon ziploc bag and pour in about a third of the mixture.  Marinate in the fridge for 2 hours and refrigerate the rest of the mixture.  Shortly before the 2 hours is up, cook the bacon strips.  Preheat your oven to 375 degrees and heat a skillet over medium heat with the oil in the skillet.  Pan sear the chicken breast for about 3-4 minutes on each side.  If your skillet is oven-safe, leave the chicken in the skillet.  If not, transfer to a baking dish.  Slather some more of the honey mustard on each chicken breast.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper and paprika.  I was really generous with the paprika.  Put two slices of bacon on top of each chicken breast in a criss-cross formation.  Top each breast with 1/4 c. monterey jack cheese and 1/4 c. cheddar cheese.  Bake for 7 to 10 minutes or until the cheese is all melty a gooey.  Remove from the oven and top with some freshly chopped parsley.  Serve with the leftover honey mustard.

Each chicken breast is about 753 calories by my calucations (that includes the dipping sauce).  Steamed broccoli was an excellent side dish.

This was really really good and filling.  To be honest, half a chicken breast would probably be filling enough without too many calories.  I will definitely be adding this one to my regular dinner rotation.

*The recipe actually called for regular bacon and regular mayo.  To make it a tad healthier, I substituted these lower calorie foods.

Bacon and Cheese Quiche

A few days ago, I was feeling like I was in a dinner rut. I made the same few things or we would go out to eat. I asked Brian what I should make for dinners before I went grocery shopping and he gave me the same few dishes that I generally make. He couldn't really think of anything else.

So, I went searching for new ideas, and I stumbled upon Bacon and Cheese Quiche. This is probably not the most healthy of recipes, but it was definitely delicious and even Carlee gobbled it up.

Here is what you need:

1 9-inch unbaked pie crust
1 tbsp butter
12 bacon slices crumbled
1 1/2 cups shredded cheese
4 eggs
2 cups heavy cream
3/4 tsp salt (optional)

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Put the pie crust into a pie plate. Spread the butter on the crust (I put my butter in the microwave on defrost for about a minute to make it more pliable). Sprinkle the bacon crumbles and cheese into the pie plate. Beat the eggs, cream and salt and pour into the pie plate. Bake for 15 minutes at 425 degrees and then turn the oven down to 325 degrees and continue to bake for 40 more minutes. Cool for 10 minutes and eat.

Cooking bacon isn't something I'm really good at. I got out a pan and started pan frying half the package and it was taking forever. While the first 6 pieces were slowly cooking, I decided to microwave the rest. It was so darn easy and those pieces crumbled a million times better. I put the bacon slices in between two paper towels on a microwave safe plate and microwaved for 5 minutes. So easy! To crumble the bacon, I put it in a Ziploc bag and just crunched it. I thought about letting Carlee do it for me, but she would have tried to eat the bag...

Oh and cooling for 10 minutes is so very important. The eggs and cream need that time to set. I was hungry and impatient, so I cut right into it and it was very runny. A few minutes later, it was more solid.

Enjoy! :)

Cookie-Brownie-Butterfinger Bars

So, we all know that cookies are delicious. Brownies are heavenly. And who doesn't like a Butterfinger? So, what happens when you combine the three? You get an AMAZING dessert.

Call me a glutton for punishment, but I make everything (except the Butterfinger) from scratch.

Go here for the cookie recipe.

For the brownies, here is what you need: (or you can use a mix)

1 stick butter
2 oz unsweetened chocolate
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup flour

Melt butter and chocolate together. Remove from heat and let cool about 5 minutes. Add vanilla and sugar and stir. Add eggs and stir. Add flour and stir.

If you are making the brownies on their own, spray an 8x8 pan and bake them at 350* for about 20 to 25 minutes.

For the Cookie-Brownie-Butterfinger Bars, preheat the oven to 350*. Spray a bars pan with cooking spray. Press a ball of cookie dough into the bottom of each bar on the pan. Place a fun size Butterfinger (unwrapped of course) on top. Top with brownie batter to cover the candy bar. Bake for 23 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool about 10 minutes.

These suckers are tricky to get out of the pan. I don't know how to get them out easier. I usually end up using a butter knife to loosen the bars from the pan. Then I tip the pan upside down and shake them loose.

Let the bars cool completely before eating. The Butterfinger becomes *very* hard when it is hot. It could be detrimental to dental work if this warning is not heeded. Once they are cool, enjoy! These are kind of a pain to make, but so incredibly worth it.

If you wanted to take major short cuts, you could use ready made cookie dough and buy a box of brownie mix. I also bought a second bars pan so I can now make them faster. Waiting for one batch to cool before being able to get the next one started makes this drag out for quite a while.

The Best Cookie Recipe Ever!!!

For years, I have struggled to find the perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe. For a long time, I resigned to purchasing tubs of Nestle Tollhouse Cookie Dough and just scooping and baking. While that is incredibly easy and results in a near perfect cookie, the recipe I found is so much better in my opinion.

Here is the scoop!

2 sticks of softened butter
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 teaspoons hot water
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups flour
1 bag chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350*. Cream together the butter and sugars. I never plan ahead long enough, so I usually pop the butter in the microwave on defrost for about a minute. Mix in the eggs one at a time. I mix it just long enough so the egg disappears into the mixture. Add the vanilla. Dissolve the baking soda in the hot water and mix in. Mix in salt. Add 3 cups of flour. Dump in a bag of chocolate chips. Spoon the dough onto a cookie sheet and bake for 11 minutes.

When they come out of the oven, they might seem a little underdone, but they aren't. Let them cool for a few minutes and they will set. Depending on how much cookie dough I eat while I'm baking, I can usually squeak out a little over 4 1/2 dozen cookies.

PS - This cookie dough works great in my cookie-brownie-Butterfinger bars. :)

thru-the-night-oatmeal

i have seen [way too] many recipes

for overnight refrigerator oatmeal

flying around Pinterest lately.

i had to know if any of them worked,

or were tasty.

i found one that looked simple.

we changed it because we're picky.

i enlisted my hubby's help.

and we hit a gold mine!

ingredients:

1/4 c. old fashioned oats

1/3 c. plain almond milk

1/4 c. plain greek yogurt

1 t. chia seeds

1 T. maple syrup

1/4 c. diced strawberries

put all the ingredients in a small jar.

twist on the lid & shake.

let it sit through the night in your fridge.

then crack the lid the next day and d-e-v-o-u-r.

 

there are 1,001 variations and flavors.

we'll try more and post them if they're fabulous!

super moist wheat zucchini bread

Time to put the summer garden's harvest to good use!!

super moist wheat zucchini bread
2 c. sugar
1 c. applesauce
3 eggs, beaten
2 medium zucchini (or one large!), grated, unpeeled, pressed in paper towel
3 tsp. vanilla
2 c. whole wheat flour
1 c. white flour
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
3 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. baking powder

mix sugar, applesauce, eggs, zucchini, and vanilla in a big bowl.
sift together in another bowl, flour, salt, soda, cinnamon and baking powder.
add the dry ingredients into the first bowl, stirring well.
pour in greased loaf pans. bake it at 350 degrees for 45 to 60 minutes.
allow to cool & slice.
(makes 2 full size loaves.)

CHICKEN ENCHILADA PASTA

2-3 chicken breasts, cooked & shredded 2 tbsp. olive oil 2 garlic cloves, minced 1 medium onion, diced 1 red pepper, diced 1 {4 oz.} can diced green chiles 1/2 tsp. salt 2 tsp. chili powder 1 tsp. cumin 2 {10 oz.} cans green chili enchilada sauce 2/3 cups red enchilada sauce 2 cups shredded cheese 1 cup sour cream (I used fat free, still yummy!) Penne pasta Optional toppings Avocado Green Onions Black Olives Tomatoes Sour Cream Cook chicken, drain, and shred {or shred your rotisserie}. Meanwhile boil pasta according to package and chop the veggies. Heat the olive oil in a deep skillet and cook onions for about 3-5 minutes. Add garlic & red pepper and cook for another 3-5 minutes. Add cooked chicken, green chiles, cumin, chili powder, salt, & enchilada sauces. Let sauce simmer for about 8-10 minutes. Add cheese and stir until the cheese is melted and heated through. Now toss in the sour cream, but whatever you do, DO NOT bring to a boil! Cook on low heat or the sour cream will curdle. Gross. Stir until sour cream is well mixed and heated through. Drain pasta & return to pot. Pour sauce over pasta and mix well. Serve and garnish with avocado, tomato, green onion, and a dollop of sour cream.

Pink Lemonade Cake

1 cup unsalted butter 4 eggs 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 tbsp baking powder 1/2 tsp salt 2 cups sugar red food coloring 1 1/3 cups milk 1/4 cup lemonade concentrate, thawed 1 tsp pure lemon extract 1. Allow butter and eggs to stand at room temp for 30 minutes. In medium bowl stip together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. 2. Preheat oven to 350. In extra large mixing bowl beat butter with mixer on medium for 30 seconds. Gradually add sugan, about 1/4 cup at a time, beating on medium until well combined. Scrape sides of bowl; beat 2 minutes more. Add 1/8 tsp of red foor coloring;beat to combine. Add eggs at a time, beating well after each addition. 3. In bowl stir together milk, lemonade concentrate, and extract (mixture will look curdled). Alternately add flour mixture and milk mixture to better mixture, beating on low after each waddition just until combined. Remove half (4 cups) of tinted batter; spread in one pan. In remaining batter in bowl stir in 1/4 tsp red food coloring. Spread in second pan. Bake for 35 minutes. Ok this recipe was supposed to be for a four layer cake, if you go that route you would just cut each cake in half and alternate one light layer one dark layer with the frosting between them. I just took the easy way out and made cup cakes, so I put in the full 1/4 tsp of food coloring in the first time and then only baked them for 20 minutes, makes 24 cupcakes. Here is the frosting recipe, if you make cupcakes you will only need about half of the frosting. Lemonade Buttercream 3 cups unsalted butter 2 16 oz jars marshmallow creme 1/4 cup frozed lemonade concentrate, thawed 1 cup powdered sugar 2 tsp pure lemon extract In very large bowl beat butter with mixer on medium until light and fluffy, about 30 seconds. Add marshmallow creme and lemonade concentrate. Beat until smooth, scraping bpwl sides. Add powdered sugar and extract;beat until light and fluffy (if frosting is stiff, soften in mmicrowave for no more then 10 seconds, then beat till smooth).

buffalo chicken cheeseball

This is a great appetizer for a party/shower or as a snack.
It's also pretty healthy with makes it even yummier!
You can tell by the picture that I had to quickly take, it doesn't last long!
Enjoy!

buffalo chicken cheeseball
1 c. chopped, cooked chicken
1 8oz. pkg. cream cheese
1/4 c. crumbled blue cheese
1/4 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
3-4 T. buffalo wing sauce (frank's red hot)
1 med. jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely diced

mix ingredients until well blended.
shape into ball.
roll in shredded monterrey jack cheese, if desired.
serve with celery, crackers or tortilla chips.

Cauliflower Soup

I saw this recipe somewhere and I love cauliflower so I had to try it.  We thought it was great and a very good alternative to a potato soup.

1 stick of butter, divided
1 onion, finely diced
1 whole carrot, finely diced
1 stalk celery, finely diced
1 whole Cauliflower head, roughly chopped
2 tbsp fresh or dried parsley, chopped
2 quarts chicken broth
6 tbsp flour
2 cups of whole milk
1 cup half and half
2 to 4 tbsp salt, to taste
1 cup sour cream

In large soup pot melt 4 tbsp of butter.  Add the onion and cook for a few minutes, our until it starts to turn brown.
Add the carrots and celery and cook an additional couple minutes.  Add cauliflower and parsley and stir too combine.
Cover and cook over very low heat for 15 minutes.  After 15 minutes, pour in chicken broth.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and let simmer.
In medium sauce pan, melt 4 tbsp of butter.  Mix the flour with the milk and whisk to combine.  Add flour-milk mixture slowly to the butter, whisk constantly.
Remove from heat and stir in 1 cup half and half.  Add mixture to simmering soup.  Allow to simmer 15-20 minutes.  Check seasoning and add more salt or pepper to taste.
In a bowl mix sour cream and a few ladles of soup, then combine back in with pot of soup.

cabbage & corned beef soup

cabbage & corned beef soup

2 T. oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 leeks, sliced

4 carrots, sliced

5 medium red potatoes, diced

1 head green cabbage, sliced

2 lb. corned beef (with seasoning packet)

8 cups water

in a large pot, saute garlic, leeks & carrots in oil for 4-5 mins.
trim fat from corned beef.
add water and beef (+ seasoning packet's contents) to pot.
bring to a boil.
cover and reduce heat to low and simmer 3 hours.
remove beef and shred meat.
return it to the pot.
add potatoes & cabbage and simmer for additional 30-45 minutes until tender.

adapted from skinnytaste

Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll Bars

pumpkin cinnamon roll bars1 15-oz. can pumpkin
4 eggs
1/2 c. oil (or applesauce)
1/2 c. milk
1/2 c. sour cream
1/2 c. butter
3/4 c. brown sugar
1/2 t. cinnamon
1 box instant vanilla pudding mix
1 vanilla cake mix

mix all ingredients, whichever way you want to, all together.
mix until smooth.
pour into jelly roll pan.
bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.
let cool, then frost.

 

 

cream cheese frosting

8-oz. package cream cheese
1 lb. (3-4c.) powdered sugar
1/4 c. butter or margarine
1 tsp. vanilla

2 T. milk

mix well, until smooth

Chicken Chili

My crock pot has been my best friend lately.  It is so easy to throw it together the night before and then just put it on the crock pot before I leave for work.  I found this recipe on another blog but then I kind of did my own thing. 

3 chicken breasts
1 can of diced tomatoes (i used the bigger can, cant remember the oz I think 28 or 32?)
1 cup of water
2 cans white beans
1 box of white chili seasoning
1 can of corn
1 diced onion

Just mix it all together and cook on high about 6 hours.  Shred chicken before serving.

It was pretty yummy and healthy too!!!!

Chicken Enchiladas

This is one of our favorites lately. So easy to throw together after work, plus Joe gets excited whenever I make it, lol! I would post a picture but Jonah broke my camera!

2 Lg Chicken Breasts
1 8 oz. package of cream cheese
10 corn tortillas
1 Lg can of Green Enchilada sauce
1/4 cup of Rotel (I just realized this was only 1/4 cup and I have been putting the whole can in, lol.)
Shredded Cheddar Cheese

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. Boil chicken breasts until cooked through (I just put it in my crock pot with some bouillon cubes and water and then shred it up when I get home from work.) then shred.
3. Warm up cream cheese in microwave (about 1 1/2 minutes).
4. Add chicken and rotel to cream cheese and combine.
6. Fill tortillas with mixture, add cheese, roll up and place in glass baking dish.
7. Pour enchilada sauce over top of the enchiladas and cover with cheese.
8. Bake for about 20 minutes.

Just a word of warning I used Old El Paso sauce the first time and it was pretty mild but the second time I used Macayo's sauce and it was VERY spicy and Jonah wouldn't eat it.

Pork Chops

In the past, when I have made pork chops, I have used shake and bake and just popped them in the oven. What I did today was almost as easy, but I didn't have to buy shake and bake. I mixed an egg with about a tablespoon of milk and dipped my pork chops in the mixture. Then, I coated the pork chops with 1/2 a cup of bread crumbs. This is enough for 4 pork chops. Then, I put them in a foil lined baking pan and put them in the oven at 350 degrees for about an hour. YUMMMM!!!! On a side note, I got the pork chops from The Pork Shop in Queen Creek. I'm so excited to have discovered this place! I also have a pork roast, brats and boneless country ribs to try out. I'm seriously contemplating buying half a hog from them. It is $219 for 75 pounds of meat broken into bacon, chops, ribs, pork steaks, roasts, ham and sausages. In the meantime, I know I'm going to be visiting The Pork Shop often.

Applesauce

Saturday morning, I picked up my Bountiful Basket along with a case of tomatoes. In my basket, I had a ton of awesome fruits and veggies. Among them were 8 Braeburn apples. While I do like eating apples plain, I decided to make some applesauce with them instead. This was incredibly easy and the preperation was pretty quick. I can't say the whole process is quick because they spent 8 hours in my crock pot. I simply peeled, cored and sliced the 8 apples and put them, along with a 1/2 cup of water in the crock pot on low for 8 hours. I occassionally stirred them. After the 8 hours, I transferred them into a container and put them in the fridge. You could also add 3/4 cup of brown sugar and some cinnamon to them and let them cook for 1/2 an hour longer. I chose not to though and I just have some homemade, unsweetened applesauce. I don't think I will ever purchase a jar of applesauce again! I can hardly wait until it is the season for canning apples so I can can some homemade applesauce up.

Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Rice Bowl

4 Chicken breasts
16oz Jar of Salsa
2 Cans of  Ranch Style Beans
1 tbsp of Chili Powder
1/2 tbsp of cumin
1/2 tbsp of garlic powder
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper

Mix together and sump in crock pot over chicken on low for 6-8 hours and serve over brown rice and top with cheese.