Spiderweb Cupcake toppers

I saw this cute idea in Country Living magazine last year and wanted to try it out. I found this template for the spider webs. All you do is melt white chocolate chips and poor in to a sandwich bag, snip off a tiny hole in the corner of the bag. Put this template under some parchment paper and pipe chocolate on to it. This was my first time piping anything so it looks a little shaky but by the end it was getting easier. I thought they came out really cute!

Fruit Smoothie

Super easy!

In a blender, put 1 cup of lowfat ice cream or frozen yogurt, 1/2 cup of milk and 8 ice cubes. Then add fruit. I made Brian one with grapes and bananas and he really liked it. I made one with pears and grapes. It tasted okay, but the grainy texture of the pears was too much for me. I'm a freak when it comes to food textures. I can't wait to make these in the summer when berries are in season. I can only imagine how good it would be with fresh strawberries, blue berries, raspberries, etc.

Enjoy!!!! :)

Not Sure What To Call This One... I'm Open To Suggestions

Last Sunday, my husband and I experimented with dinner. I had some defrosted boneless, skinless chicken breast, but wasn't entirely sure what to make. So, we threw some random things in the crock pot and the result was surprisingly delicious!!!!

Here is what we used:

1 package of cheesy scalloped potatoes
1 cup of milk
1 can rotel tomatillos
1/2 cup of jalepenos (we like spicy things)
3 boneless, skinless chicken breast
Mashed potato pearls

Pour in the scalloped potatoes and the cheese mix. Add a cup of milk and stir. Add the tomatillos and jalepenos and stir. Throw in the chicken breast. Turn crock pot on high. When the chicken is almost done, add in mashed potato pearls to soak up the extra moisture and stir. Cut into the chicken breast in the center to make sure it is white throughout and then serve. You can top it with sour cream and maybe add salsa or olives or anything else. :)

Spinach Artichoke Dip

My husband and I both love Spinach Artichoke Dip. On Saturday, we got some fresh spinach in our Bountiful Basket (bountifulbaskets.org) and decided to attempt making some. It was easier than I thought it would be.

Ingredients:
1 package cream cheese (I used fat free)
1 14oz can artichoke hearts drained and chopped
1/2 cup spinach rinsed and chopped
1/4 cup mayonaise (I used low fat)
1/2 cup parmesan, romano and asiago cheese (the recipe called for 1/4 cup of parmesan and 1/4 cup of romano, but I couldn't find romano at the store, but I did find a mixture of the three. It turned out though)
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon dried basil (I am going to try just 1/4 teaspoon next time because it was a little heavy on the basil taste...)
1/4 cup grated mozzarella cheese

Take the cream cheese out of the fridge and allow it to come to room temperature. If you aren't patient, let it sit on the counter while you chop the spinach and artichoke hearts and then put the cream cheese in the crock pot on low. It worked for me. :) Mix the cream cheese, mayonaise, cheese, garlic salt and basil together. Add in the chopped spinach and artichoke hearts. Mix it all together and leave it in the crock pot on high for about half an hour. Serve with toasted bread or chips. We ate it with Breton Multigrain crackers from Costco, but I'm thinking Club crackers would taste good too. :)

If you aren't a fan of crock pots, you could also spray a pan with cooking spray, pour the dip in and top it with mozzarella cheese. Bake it at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until the top is browned. The crock pot seemed so much easier to me though.

ENJOY!!!

Nana's Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

My Nana died before I was born, so I never got to taste her cookies, but I'm so excited to make a recipe that she made. :)

Mix:
1 Cup Margerine or Shortening
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1 Cup Sugar
2 Eggs
1 Tsp. Vanilla

Add:
1 1/2 Cups Flour
1 Tsp. Baking Soda
1 Tsp. Salt
3 Cups Quick Oats

You can add chocolate chips, raisins or both. I strongly dislike raisins, but I added chopped walnuts! YUM!!!!

Bake at 350* for 10 minutes. Her recipe doesn't specify a size for the ball of dough. I used a small ice cream scoop to scoop the dough. It works really well and keeps the cookies round and somewhat uniform. One of these days, I will invest in a smaller scoop. I also tried a dozen in my bar pan. Those are in the oven now. I hope they turn out.

Tatertot Casserole

Super easy and very yummy!

What you need is:

1 lb ground beef browned (I use lean. Tastes the same and has very little grease)
2 cans cream of whatever soup. I use cream of potato cuz I think it makes sense (tater tots, cream of potato....)
1 can (use empty soup an to measure) milk
Frozen Tatertots

**Optional**
Cheese - shredded or sliced - Pepper Jack, American, whatever you want

On low heat in a small pan, mix the soup and milk. Stir in the beef. Put mixture in a 9 x 12 glass pan. Cover the top with a layer of tater tots. Add cheese if you want on top of the tater tots. Cook according to the directions on the tater tot package. When it is done, the soup mixture will be bubbling, the cheese (if you used it) melted, and the tater tots golden brown. Serve with ketchup if you would like. Enjoy! It reheats very well too.

Crock Pot Chicken Parmesan

So, can I just say that I love my crock pot? And that would probably be and understatement. My mom just bought me a bigger one, so I'm enjoying using two. :)

Crock pot chicken parmesan is so so so easy and pretty effortless.

Here's what you need:

Chicken breast or breaded chicken breast depending on what you prefer
Rotini noodles
Spaghetti sauce
Mozzarella cheese
Parmesan cheese

Boil water and cook the noodles for a few minutes just to soften them up a little. The crock pot will do the rest. In the crock pot, dump in your noodles and some sauce and mix it around. Top it with some parmesan and mozzarella cheese. Then add in a layer of chicken breast and top it with more sauce and cheese. You can add more layers of chicken if you want on top of that. Turn your crock pot on high for 2 hours, give or take, to fully cook the chicken. Or you can turn it on low for 3 to 4 hours. Once again, just make sure your chicken is cooked so you don't get sick.... Then, enjoy. :) The prep time on it when I have made it is about 10 minutes.