Good morning, everyone! I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving full of love, laughter, family and many blessings.
Precious pumpkins made by my mama.
11/28/2013
11/16/2013
Candy Corn Cookies
Two days before Halloween, my coworkers decided we should have a fun Halloween celebration full of candy, snacks, and other sweets. Unfortunately, I was pressed for time between a salon appointment and working late that I felt like my last resort was going to be to purchase something un-festive. Don't get me wrong; there's absolutely nothing wrong with store-bought items, but I enjoy baking and creating things at home. In comes Betty Crocker sugar cookie mix and an adaptation of this recipe.
Ingredients:
2 pouches Betty Crocker sugar cookie mix
2/3 cup margarine, melted
2 eggs
Red and Yellow food gel
Directions:
Following the directions on the package, prepare the sugar cookie dough. Once complete, divide the dough into three sections. Add yellow food gel to one section and mix well. Add yellow and red food gel to the second section and mix well.
Next, line a loaf pan with waxed paper, making sure the paper extends over the edges of the pan. Spread the non-dyed dough into the bottom of the pan. Gently press the orange dough on top, followed by the yellow dough. Place the loaf pan into the refrigerator for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until firm.
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Remove the dough from the pan and cut into quarter inch slices. Next cut each slice into 5 wedges. On an ungreased cookie sheet, place cookies approximately 1 inch apart. Bake 7 to 9 minutes until edges are very light golden brown. Cool and store in an air tight container.
Ingredients:
2 pouches Betty Crocker sugar cookie mix
2/3 cup margarine, melted
2 eggs
Red and Yellow food gel
Directions:
Following the directions on the package, prepare the sugar cookie dough. Once complete, divide the dough into three sections. Add yellow food gel to one section and mix well. Add yellow and red food gel to the second section and mix well.
Next, line a loaf pan with waxed paper, making sure the paper extends over the edges of the pan. Spread the non-dyed dough into the bottom of the pan. Gently press the orange dough on top, followed by the yellow dough. Place the loaf pan into the refrigerator for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until firm.
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Remove the dough from the pan and cut into quarter inch slices. Next cut each slice into 5 wedges. On an ungreased cookie sheet, place cookies approximately 1 inch apart. Bake 7 to 9 minutes until edges are very light golden brown. Cool and store in an air tight container.
6/16/2013
Chocolate Chip Banana Cake
So after making the Banana Breakfast Cake a few weeks ago, I decided to try to this recipe again with just a few alterations.
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 whole bananas, mashed
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup honey
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together sugar, butter, banana, egg, and vanilla until smooth. Gradually mix in flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and honey. Once mixed, fold in chocolate chips. Pour into 9x9 greased baking dish and bake for 30-35 or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.
Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1 cup quick oats
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter, softened3/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 whole bananas, mashed
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup honey
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together sugar, butter, banana, egg, and vanilla until smooth. Gradually mix in flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and honey. Once mixed, fold in chocolate chips. Pour into 9x9 greased baking dish and bake for 30-35 or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.
6/15/2013
Slow Cooker Ranch Pork Chops with Parmesan Mashed Potatoes
Happy weekend, everyone! I know I've been slacking with the blog recently. I'm sorry! Don't really have a good reason other than we haven't been cooking or crafting! For the last couple of weeks, both T and I have been in the quick foods like egg, cereal, spaghetti or other super easy meals and haven't spent a lot of time trying new recipes. But fear not! We tried a delicious slow cooker meal this week that I'm excited to share with you today! Without further ado: Slow Cooker Ranch Pork Chops with Parmesan Mashed Potatoes found via RealMomKitchen.com.
Ingredients: Pork Chops
5-6 pork chops, 1/2 inch thick
1 package dry ranch seasoning
10.5 oz can cream of chicken soup + 3/4 can of water
Ingredients: Parmesan Mashed Potatoes
For the potatoes, I did a terrible job of keeping track of the quantity for each ingredient. But here are my best estimates:
10 red potatoes
2 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon half and half
2 tablespoons skim milk
1 tablespoon dried chives
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
Place thawed pork chops into slow cooker. Pour ranch seasoning directly onto pork chops. Mix cream of chicken soup and water together and pour over pork chops. Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low heat for 5-6 hours.
Boil a large pot of water on your stove top. Once boiling, add potatoes and boil until potatoes are tender. Transfer potatoes to mixing bowl. Mix on low until potatoes are mashed. Add butter, parmesan, half and half, milk, chives, salt and pepper. Add additional seasoning to taste.
Serve pork chops and gravy over mashed potatoes.
Ingredients: Pork Chops
5-6 pork chops, 1/2 inch thick
1 package dry ranch seasoning
10.5 oz can cream of chicken soup + 3/4 can of water
Ingredients: Parmesan Mashed Potatoes
For the potatoes, I did a terrible job of keeping track of the quantity for each ingredient. But here are my best estimates:
10 red potatoes
2 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon half and half
2 tablespoons skim milk
1 tablespoon dried chives
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
Place thawed pork chops into slow cooker. Pour ranch seasoning directly onto pork chops. Mix cream of chicken soup and water together and pour over pork chops. Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low heat for 5-6 hours.
Boil a large pot of water on your stove top. Once boiling, add potatoes and boil until potatoes are tender. Transfer potatoes to mixing bowl. Mix on low until potatoes are mashed. Add butter, parmesan, half and half, milk, chives, salt and pepper. Add additional seasoning to taste.
Serve pork chops and gravy over mashed potatoes.
5/26/2013
Lemonberry Cake
So I'm quickly becoming a fan of dishes with a small number of ingredients. Not just for the convenience, but because they also taste great! Six Sisters' Stuff had a Diet Lemon Raspberry Cake recipe with just four ingredients and I knew I had to try it! I'm not a super fan of raspberry, so I opted to change up the fruit a bit. Here are the results:
Ingredients:
1 box lemon cake mix
2 egg whites
1 1/4 cup Sprite Zero
1 cup each fresh blueberries and blueberries
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl, mix cake mix, egg whites, and Sprite. Fold in fruit. Pour into greased cake pan and bake for 30 minutes. Top with light cool whip. Fruit garnishment optional.
Ingredients:
1 box lemon cake mix
2 egg whites
1 1/4 cup Sprite Zero
1 cup each fresh blueberries and blueberries
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl, mix cake mix, egg whites, and Sprite. Fold in fruit. Pour into greased cake pan and bake for 30 minutes. Top with light cool whip. Fruit garnishment optional.
I was worried the lemon cake may be overpowering, but was delighted to find that its not at all! The flavor is subtle and the fruit is a great added touch!
Banana Breakfast Cake
Happy Sunday! How's everyone's weekend so far? We've been enjoying a pretty relaxing weekend so far! One of my best friends came over Friday night for grilled burgers and veggies and game night. We love board games of all kinds and enjoy having friends and family over to discover new games. We opened up our new Deadwood game and spent the evening discovering the rules and developing strategies for a successful game.
Yesterday Troy and I went with my parents to lay flowers at my grandma's headstone and check out a quilt shop that recently hit our radar. My mom and I love visiting quilt shops to check out the different fabrics, patterns and finished crafts on display. And last night Troy and I stayed in for a movie night.
I'm glad we've kept the weekend pretty low-key and stress-free as we can. I'm headed into work today for the afternoon and evening. I have a love-hate relationship with weekend workdays. They're great for getting a ton of things done since there are only one or two other people in the office, but terrible for being able to spend days off with family and friends. Thankfully I'm off tomorrow in celebration of Memorial Day where we'll head to lay flowers at my aunt's grave and out for lunch with extended family.
Before I head to get ready for work, I thought I'd share a recipe I recently came across on the Chiquita Banana website: Banana Breakfast Cookie. I read through the recipe a few times and tailored it towards our taste. I had originally intended to make the cookies, but after seeing the batter, I opted to make a cake instead. So without further ado, here is Banana Breakfast Cake.
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup shredded carrots
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 whole bananas, mashed
1/3 cup chocolate chips
1/3 cup craisins
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together sugar, butter, banana, egg, and vanilla until smooth. Gradually mix in flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and carrots. Once mixed, fold in chocolate chips and craisins. Pour into 9x9 greased baking dish and bake for 30-35 or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.
I'm not usually one for adding carrots to my cakes as the texture is sometimes objectionable. I must say, I was not at all bothered by the texture of the carrots in this dish. With that being said, I'm thinking I may try this again sans carrots and chocolate chips, and instead with craisins and some other dried fruit. I'll keep you posted!
In closing, please take a moment to remember the reason for this holiday weekend. Happy Memorial Day, everyone!
Yesterday Troy and I went with my parents to lay flowers at my grandma's headstone and check out a quilt shop that recently hit our radar. My mom and I love visiting quilt shops to check out the different fabrics, patterns and finished crafts on display. And last night Troy and I stayed in for a movie night.
I'm glad we've kept the weekend pretty low-key and stress-free as we can. I'm headed into work today for the afternoon and evening. I have a love-hate relationship with weekend workdays. They're great for getting a ton of things done since there are only one or two other people in the office, but terrible for being able to spend days off with family and friends. Thankfully I'm off tomorrow in celebration of Memorial Day where we'll head to lay flowers at my aunt's grave and out for lunch with extended family.
Before I head to get ready for work, I thought I'd share a recipe I recently came across on the Chiquita Banana website: Banana Breakfast Cookie. I read through the recipe a few times and tailored it towards our taste. I had originally intended to make the cookies, but after seeing the batter, I opted to make a cake instead. So without further ado, here is Banana Breakfast Cake.
Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1 cup quick oats
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter, softened3/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup shredded carrots
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 whole bananas, mashed
1/3 cup chocolate chips
1/3 cup craisins
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together sugar, butter, banana, egg, and vanilla until smooth. Gradually mix in flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and carrots. Once mixed, fold in chocolate chips and craisins. Pour into 9x9 greased baking dish and bake for 30-35 or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.
I'm not usually one for adding carrots to my cakes as the texture is sometimes objectionable. I must say, I was not at all bothered by the texture of the carrots in this dish. With that being said, I'm thinking I may try this again sans carrots and chocolate chips, and instead with craisins and some other dried fruit. I'll keep you posted!
In closing, please take a moment to remember the reason for this holiday weekend. Happy Memorial Day, everyone!
5/22/2013
Taco Salad Casserole
Hi, everyone! I recently ran across this awesome Beef and Bean Taco Casserole recipe and thought we should give something similar a try. Troy and I both love Mexican food and taco salad is pretty tasty so we opted to end the weekend with something delish. Hope you like it!
Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
1 can refried beans
1 half onion, chopped
2 cups white rice
1 package taco seasoning
2 1/2 cups tortilla chips, broken into smaller pieces
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
shredded lettuce and additional shredded cheddar to taste
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brown ground beef and drain of grease. Mix in refriend beans, onionm, rice and taco seasoning. Reduce to medium heat until mixture is warm.
Line the bottom of a casserole dish with the broken chips. Top with the beef and bean mixture. Sprinkle with bell peppers and 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese. Bake for 20 minutes or until bubbly.
Serve over additional tortilla chips (optional) and top with lettuce and additional cheese.
Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
1 can refried beans
1 half onion, chopped
2 cups white rice
1 package taco seasoning
2 1/2 cups tortilla chips, broken into smaller pieces
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
shredded lettuce and additional shredded cheddar to taste
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brown ground beef and drain of grease. Mix in refriend beans, onionm, rice and taco seasoning. Reduce to medium heat until mixture is warm.
Line the bottom of a casserole dish with the broken chips. Top with the beef and bean mixture. Sprinkle with bell peppers and 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese. Bake for 20 minutes or until bubbly.
Serve over additional tortilla chips (optional) and top with lettuce and additional cheese.
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