March 11th's Photo!

Chicken fajitas . . . it's what's for dinner!

Thanks to McCormick's they are easy peasy to make! Click here to see my secret.

Have Fun!

Pin It

February 2nd's Photo!

Pumpkin Spice Cake Mix Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting at the request of my daughter.

Have Fun!

Pin It

Christmas Goodies!

Unfortunately, I don't usually do a lot of baking at Christmas. I just can't fit it in with being a working Mom. Kudos to those of you who do!

However, since I have some time this year, I am going to try to do a little baking. Here are just a couple of the goodies that are on my list to make.

Pizzelles - A family obsession favorite. Click here for my recipe.

Holiday Pretzel Treats - No one resists this sweet & salty combination. Click here for my recipe.

Have Fun!

Pin It

Marshmallows of a New Flavor!

Look what I found at Target!

I bought three bags and I'm not really a marshmallow fan!

I'm planning on trying out this recipe at Christmas for Peppermint Cookie Bark. The recipe is from Leigh Anne over at Your Homebased Mom. 

Click here to take you to the recipe on her blog. 

I've made some of her cookie bark before for Halloween and it is delish!

Until I make Leigh Anne's Peppermint Cookie Bark, I'll just enjoy the PeppermintMallows in hot chocolate.

They are so yummy in hot chocolate especially with a candy cane!

Isn't the mug cute? I picked it up at Goodwill for Allison for 25 cents!

I love a bargain!

Have Fun!

Pin It

Do You Love Ice Cream?

If you love ice cream, you'll need to stop over at my cooking blog today.

I've posted the most sinfully delicious and easy ice cream dessert!

Make one for your Labor Day picnic!

Your friends and family will love you even more than they already do!

Have Fun!

Pin It

My New Favorite Vegetable Recipe!

First I want to say "This is NOT my recipe." I found it on Recipe Zaar. It's one of my favorite recipe sites. Since the internet, I do not buy cookbooks any more. There are so many great sites online to search for tried and true recipes with ratings from others who have tried it. I have some of my favorites listed over there ----> in my sidebar. This recipe link is here. I love cabbage....a lot. I could eat Halupki (stuffed cabbage rolls) for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Obviously that isn't too practical so I went on a search for cooked cabbage. There is a ton of them out there but I picked this one because it seemed easier and healthier than the rest I found. Don't get me wrong. The ones that said to sauté the cabbage in bacon fat sounded tasty but I thought I better stick with something a little less fattening.

Simmered Cabbage

The Participants: 1 head of cabbage, olive oil, butter, salt and pepper. I omitted the sherry but feel free if you like.

Grab a big sauté pan. Please don't look at the condition of my pan. This is my favorite as you can tell by how well loved it is. It's a Cook's Essentials deep sauté pan from QVC but they don't sell it in this size anymore. So I'll love this pan for as long as I can.

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter in the pan.

While that's melting, chop up your cabbage into about 1 inch squares. The recipe calls for a 1/2 of cabbage but I wasn't sure what that meant so I used 8 cups and it was perfect.
Cool! Look at the pretty design!

I know! I'm weird!

:::blurry pic alert:::

Add the cabbage, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a 1/4 teaspoon pepper to the pan. Oh my! I may have misjudged the pan. It's a little full!

Ooops! I forgot the chicken broth. I used light and fat free. You'll need this a little later.

Stir and sauté the cabbage for about 5 minutes.

This looks just about right.

Now add 1 cup of the chick broth and bring to a boil.

Once it boils, turn it down to simmer and cover it. You'll need to stir it frequently so the bottom doesn't burn.
It should probably take about 15 minutes to get the cabbage tender. When it's tender, take off the lid.
Turn the heat back up so the broth boils. Make sure to stir it so it doesn't burn. After the broth reduces by half, it is done.
Yummy! This is the finished product!

Enjoy!

This is the recipe copied exactly from the Recipe Zaar site by the original poster. The items in red are my adjustments or comments.

Simmered Cabbage

Ingredients
1/2 head cabbage, chopped into approx 1 inch squares or pieces (I used 8 cups)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon salt, to taste
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper, to taste
1 cup chicken broth or vegetable broth (I prefer it with the chicken) (Me too!)
3 tablespoons dry sherry (optional) (I didn't use this)

Directions
~Heat oil and butter in large heavy and wide saucepan or sauté pan; add cabbage, salt, pepper, and stir over low heat for 5 minutes.
~Add broth (I usually add a bit of sherry, too )and bring to boil, cover and simmer over medium-low heat, stirring often, for about 15 minutes or until cabbage is tender.
~Raise heat to medium, uncover and let juices reduce to about half (be careful not to let burn). ~Taste and adjust seasoning, serve hot.

Have Fun!

Pin It

A Family Favorite Indulgence!

I've mentioned before that we are eating healthier these days. This recipe no way no how fits into healthy eating. If you ever watched Paula Deen, you would think this is her recipe. It has two sticks of butter in it! Definitely not a low fat recipe! It is a family favorite but we only have it for family get togethers. This way there is not much left over if any at all. Thank goodness! This casserole has a way of playing with my mind. It calls my name from the refrigerator!

Let's get started making the "Hash Brown Casserole."

There are a ton of versions of this recipe out there. I have seen it with different kind of potatoes and different kind of toppings. This is the version that I use. Although I like onions, I don't like them in this casserole so I've omitted them. If you want to add one small onion chopped feel free.

The participants: 1 bag of hash browns (I usually use the store brand but they didn't have any that day so I had to buy the name brand), 16 oz. sour cream, 2 sticks of butter, 1 can of cream of chicken soup, 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese, pepper and corn flakes.

Now go and find yourself a BIG bowl and I mean big! This is my Tupperware fix-n-mix bowl. I think it's 26 cups.

Put the whole container of sour cream into the bowl.

Add the can of cream of chicken soup.

I can't find my recipe right now. I looked. I promise. It is no where to be found. It's odd because I keep them all in the same place! Anyway, it's time to add the pepper but I can't remember how much. I'm pretty sure it's 1/4 teaspoon. Honestly, I never measure it. I just shake away.
Now dump the two cups of shredded cheddar cheese in to the bowl. Mild? Sharp? It doesn't matter. Pick your favorite!
Now it's time to melt your butter or butta as Paula would say. I use my Pampered Chef small micro-cooker. It's the only thing I use it for. I'm strange. I know.
Now add the melted butta to the bowl. I'm sorry. I meant to say butter. I think I just channeled Paula Deen there for a second!
Now get in there and stir it all together.
This is what it should look like. If yours doesn't look like this, you better check the recipe. You might have missed something.
Now add the bag of frozen hash browns. Yes, I said frozen. I've seen some recipes that said to thaw them before. Not that I am a chef or anything but I would think that they would break down a little when you stir them. Anyway, when you add the hash browns, stir it fast. Since they are frozen they will make your mixture very cold very fast. This in turn makes it hard to stir so work fast. Your bicep will thank you.

See. I worked fast!
Now dump the mixture into a 9 x 13 casserole dish. Smooth it out flat. I like to press it down too. By the way, make sure you have sprayed your dish with a non-stick spray. I have forgotten once and the pan was hard to clean. Please learn from my mistake and spray away!
Now it's time for the topping. My family likes the crunch so I've double the topping. Feel free to cut it in half if you like but the crunch on the top is the best. Trust me on this.

Measure out 4 cups of corn flakes.
Throw it in a gallon Ziploc bag. A freezer bag works well. This double guard works REALLY well. Curtis picked them up when I asked him to pick up a few groceries for me. I usually buy the Target brand bags so this was a real treat. I hoard them! I don't want the box to come to an end! Anyway, my point here is that the corn flakes will puncture little holes in the bag. So you want to make sure you use a strong bag. Go ahead and crush them. I use my baker's roller but a can of soup works fine too.

Melt the other stick of butter and add it to the crushed corn flakes. This is why I told you to use a strong bag. Those little puncture holes would be big puncture holes and you would have a mess here. Some butter will still seep through the little holes but work fast. You'll be fine. Make sure all the corn flakes are coated or they will burn in the oven.
Now dump all the corn flake mixture onto the top of the potato mixture.
Ta Da! You are ready to bake! Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and bake for 1 hour 15 minutes.
The finished product!
This is also a great do ahead casserole. Make it the day before and store it in the refrigerator until you are ready to bake it for your get together.

Hash Brown Casserole

2 lbs. frozen hash browns

16 oz. sour cream

1 can cream of chicken soup

1/4 t. pepper

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

2 sticks of melted butter (1 stick for base and 1 for topping so keep them separate)

4 cups corn flakes

~Mix the first 4 ingredients and 1 stick of melted butter together well.
~Add the hash browns to the mixture.

~Put the mixture into a greased 9 x 13 casserole dish.

~Crush the corn flakes in a Ziploc bag.

~Add 1 stick of melted butter to the crushed corn flakes.

~Put corn flake mixture on top of base.

~Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hr. 15 min.

Have Fun!

Pin It

The Best Baked Bean Recipe Ever and a Tag!

Years ago at a get together I tasted the BEST Baked Beans EVER! I knew immediately I needed that recipe! And I was prepared to do anything to get it! Fortunately for me, I didn't have to break into the cook's house in the middle of the night while they were sleeping to get it! My best friend's Mom, Sandy, had made it. Thank goodness! She's like my second Mom and loves me so I knew she would hand it over to me without me having to use unscrupulous methods to obtain it. He he! I was right. I asked and she ever so kindly gave it to me. And lucky for you, I am about to share it with all of you. I promise this is the BEST baked bean recipe you will ever taste! It's called "Calico Baked Beans." It makes a lot so it's probably not a good idea to make it for dinner if you are a family of two...unless it's the only thing you make. But then you'll end up hating it because you ate too much and it made your belly hurt and then you'll disagree that it's the BEST ever and then you'll email me and say that it wasn't the best and then I'd have to find you and make you agree with me that it's the best because it really is! Oh gosh, just save the recipe for a get together and you'll save us both a headache! I make it every year for Allison's birthday party since it's the only time that I get to cook for a crowd. It's always a hit and usually there are no leftovers! It's the perfect recipe to make the day ahead so you'll save yourself some time on party day. On party day, I just throw it straight from the refrigerator into a Crockpot a couple of hours before I need it. I put it on high to get it started. Once is gets going, I stir it and either switch it to low or warm and forget about it. It's perfect every time.

I didn't take a picture of the ingredients before I started. I just started making it and then thought that I should share it with all of you. I've listed the ingredients and amounts below with the directions but so you won't be lost with the pictures, here the list: bacon, ground beef, fresh onion, can of pork & beans, can of kidney beans, can of lima beans, brown sugar, ketchup, vinegar and yellow mustard.

Let's get started!

Start with 1 pound of bacon. Make sure it's one pound and not those 12 ounce packages they sell these days. What are those about anyway? A 4 ounce difference? Seriously friends, does anyone really stand there and say, "Cool, 4 ounces less! I'll take this package!" or do they get home and say "Dang, this isn't a pound!" I swear the latter happens more often. I know I made the mistake once! Oops! Sorry for getting off track with my consumer comments! Okay, let's get back to the pound of bacon. I cut the whole slab into thirds and then put it in the pan. Since the bacon doesn't have to be perfect long slices I use my deeper smaller pan instead of my large pan with a big flat surface. I feel like I can control it better in this pan and anyway, it's my favorite pan! So I am attached to it! As the pan starts to heat up the pieces will start to break up. Give it some help with a pair of long handled tongs. I know a lot of people do not like to cook bacon. It's not that bad. The key is to cook it at the right temperature. Too hot and you'll get it crackling and spitting at you as if it's saying "Hey! Our bath is too hot!" and then it burns before you know it. Not hot enough and it takes forever and it never really gets crisp.

While you have the bacon cooking nicely, grab a BIG bowl. Now open your can of pork & beans and throw it in! I only use Campbell's Pork and Beans and not the small one. It's the next size up. Around 20 ounces or so. They have a really big one but that's too big. I know some of you are probably thinking that other brands are better. I am sure they are but you will be adding the flavor to it and the Campbell's work the best. Trust me here.
Add a regular sized can of kidney beans. Dark Red? Light Red? It doesn't matter. Throw in whatever you have in your pantry. These happen to be light red.
Next it's time for the lima beans. Open the can and make sure you rinse very well under cold water before you add them to the bowl.
Don't forget to check on the bacon! Hmmm, I love the smell of bacon cooking!
Now back to the bowl. Add 1 cup of firmly packed brown sugar. The recipe doesn't say if it's dark or light brown sugar. I used dark brown this time because that's what was in my cupboard. Light brown works well too!
Now go get that bacon out of it's hot bath! Drain it on a couple of paper towels on a plate. Let it cool while we get back to our bowl.
Now add 1 cup of ketchup. Heinz is my brand of choice. Not only because it's the best but it's also from Pittsburgh! Next add 1 tablespoon of vinegar. I use apple cider vinegar of course it's Heinz!
One more tablespoon to go! And this time it's yellow mustard. Any ideas on the brand?? Yes! If you guessed Heinz, you are right!

By the way, now would be a good time to start preheating your oven to 350 degrees.

Now it's time to go back to the stove. Throw in the pound of ground beef. Start to break it up and brown it over medium to medium high heat.

As that is starting to brown, grab an onion! The recipe calls for an onion. This is something I struggle with when I read recipes that say "an" onion. Does this mean a small one? A medium one? A large one? I use either one small or 1/2 of a medium one. Of course this all depends on your perception of small or medium! This is my idea of a 1/2 of a medium one...but it doesn't matter! That is the best thing about cooking! There is room for adjusting recipes to fit you and your family. So if you like a lot of onion, go for it! Now get going and chop that onion!

Add it to the ground beef and continue to brown it all.

While this combination is browning nicely, I go to my cooled bacon. I run my knife through it on the cutting board to help crumble it up. You can crumble it if you like but I like it some crumbled and some little pieces.

See what I mean? I like to see the bacon in the finished product. Now add your bacon to the big bowl.

Your beef and onions should be done by now. Drain it well.

Add it to the big bowl and stir, stir, stir!

Now transfer it to some sort of oven safe cookware. Make sure it's big enough to allow it to bubble some. I use my CorningWare.

Go ahead and cover it before you put it into your preheated 350 degree oven. If your cookware doesn't have a lid, just use good old aluminum foil.

Bake it for 45 minutes and be careful when you take off the lid or foil. There will be steam in there and you don't want to burn your pretty face.

Grab a spoon and give it a good stir. Click on the pic to get a good look. Doesn't it look yummy?? I really hope you try it. I promise you will not be disappointed!

Calico Baked Beans

Ingredients:

1 lb. bacon

1 lb. ground beef

1 onion (chopped)

1 medium can of Campbell's Pork and Beans

1 can Kidney Beans

1 can Lima Beans (drained)

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup ketchup

1 tablespoon vinegar

1 tablespoon yellow mustard

~Cook off 1 pound of bacon, drain and when cooled, crumble.

~Brown 1 pound of ground meat with chopped onion. Drain grease.

~All all ingredient into a big bowl and mix together well.

~Bake at 350 degrees covered in oven safe cookware for 45 minutes.

Okay, now it's time for me to respond to a tag! Kim, my fellow blog friend who lives in Florida, tagged me on her blog. Here it goes:

Ten Years Ago: I had just bought a new car a couple of weeks ago. It was and still is a 1998 Ford Taurus which is emerald green. Her name is Emmie and I still have her. She's my second car and has 190,000 miles on her. Sometimes I feel the same as I'm sure she does...tired and old. I was also single and probably depressed because my biological clock had been ticking for some time and I never thought I would ever be a Mom.

Five things on today's to do list: 1. Finish this blog post. 2. Clean the living room. 3. Help Allison with her puppet show. 4. Make dinner. 5. Laundry! Laundry! Laundry. No Kim! It's never ends for any of us!

Snacks I enjoy: Right now it's been watermelon. I can't get enough! I love it! I've also been eating those new Baked Tostitos Scoop with salsa. Yummy!

Things I would do if I were a millionaire: Secure Allison's college education. The online calculators tell me it's going to $200,000 by the time she goes! I would also buy an old farm house back home by my family and friend to fix up and spend my time fixing it up. I would have time of course because I would have quit my job if I were a millionaire. I would also invest a good portion of it so we could continue to live in my dream farm house. I would also donate to children's charities because we have been so blessed that Allison is healthy, I would want them to find cures for all childhood diseases.

Places I have lived: Virginia, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

I am now supposed to tag 4 people so I tag Stephanie, Jolene, Stephanie and Stephanie! We need to get Stephanie to back to blogging. Sorry Steph but I am not picking on you! You weren't all of my 4 choices! Love You!

That's it for now!

Have Fun!

Pin It