Date Bars

The Yummiest Date BARS

Ingredients

Make the date filling first because it needs to cool.

Date Filling

2 cups pitted chopped Dates

1/2 cup sugar

1-1/4 cups water

1/2 cup almonds, finely ground - not to a meal but finely ground.

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon almond extract

Date Crust

3/4 cup butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar, packed

1-1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1-1/2 cup Quick Cooking Oats

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

.

Directions

Date Filling

Put the dates in a Food Processor and chop to fine pieces.

 

In a medium sized saucepan add the chopped dates, water and 1/2 cup granulated sugar.

Stir and cook over medium high heat and then turn down and cook until the mixture is thickened.

Add the vanilla extract, almond extract and finely ground almonds.

Spoon into a bowl and let cool down because you will be pressing this out, with your fingers, onto the bottom layer of the crust.

Lightly grease a 9" x 13" baking pan - set aside.

Date Crust

Cream the butter and brown sugar with a Hand Mixer, until light and fluffy. About 5 minutes.

Add the flour, baking soda and salt.

Mix.

Add the oats and mix well.

It will be a crumbly mixture but it will press together.

Sprinkle half the dough into the prepared baking pan.

Press down with your fingers to an even layer all across the pan bottom.

Now take the date mixture and dab teaspoons full here and there across the bottom layer in the pan. It will be easier to spread this way.

With your fingers - gently press out the filling for a solid layer across the complete bottom of the crust.

Sprinkle the rest of the dough over the filling layer.

Make sure it is even. Then press the top crust with your hand to make a solid layer. I use my fingers and the palm of my hand. It does not take much pressure.

Bake at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

Cut into squares while it is still warm.

Crock Pot Cheesy Potatoes

Crock Pot Cheesy Potatoes

1/2 onion, diced
2/3 too half stick of butter (or margarine) 8 oz. sour cream
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1 bag of shredded hash brown potatoes (usually 26 to 30 oz.)
2 cups of shredded sharp cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Melt butter in microwave along with onion to soften onion.  Once butter is melted, stir in sour cream and soup.  In a very large bowl, mix together hash browns, cheese, and butter/sour cream/soup mix.  (I do recommend doing this in a large bowl rather than right in the crock pot so you have more room to move it around, but if you want to do it right in the slow cooker, go ahead.)  Pour into crock pot, season with salt and pepper, and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours.

If you want to be fancy like I did for Thanksgiving today you can transfer the taters into an oven safe dish sprinkle more cheese on top and broil the top til crispy and sprinkle crispy bacon on top!
I also blotted any extra grease off the top with a paper towel because I'm crazy like that...

Roasted Butternut Acorn Squash Soup

My aunt sent me a great fall soup recipe which I tweeked just a bit and it turned out amazing!

Roasted Butternut Acorn Squash Soup

1 small butternut squash
1 small acorn squash
1 onion
4 cups chicken stock
Salt
Pepper
1/8th cup packed brown sugar
Dash cinnamon
3/4ths of a brick of cream cheese
1/2 stick of butter browned

Slice your squash in half and remove seeds. Cut onion in half. You don't even have to remove skin. Lay face down on lined greased cookie sheet. Roast your squashs and onion at 350 until done about 40 min. Cool and scrape out insides of squash and peel the skin off the onion. Place everything in your vitamix and blend until smooth hot and bubbly. If you have to do it in batches just blend til smooth and heat on the stove in a sauce pan.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

2 (12 ounce) cans chunk chicken drained (I use the Kirtland ones from Costco so they are a bit bigger than the ones you get from say Wal-Mart which are 10oz)

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
softened

1 cup Ranch dressing

1 cup Frank's or 3/4 cup if using the 10oz cans you get at Wal-Mart

2 to 2 1/2cups shredded Cheddar cheese

celery, cleaned and cut into sticks

Chips or crackers

Directions:

Heat chicken and hot sauce in a skillet over medium heat, until heated through.

Stir in cream cheese and ranch dressing. Cook, stirring until well blended and warm. 

Mix in half of the shredded cheese, and transfer the mixture to a slow cooker or oven safe dish (8x11 or 9x13)

Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top, cover, and cook on Low setting until hot and bubbly if in slow cooker or 350 for 30 min.

Serve with celery sticks and chips or crackers.  I am sure a little blue cheese dressing would be yummy on this as well!

The picture is of a little mini one I made

Protein Muffins

Ingredients

Olive oil spray
1 cup 100% whole-wheat flour
4 scoops protein powder plus more flour to make a complete cup
2  teaspoons baking powder heaped
4 large eggs
1 cup plain, low-fat Greek yogurt (I was out so I blended equal amounts if applesauce and cottage cheese to make 1 cup
¼ cup oil
½ cup honey
2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract (if using plain/unflavored protein powder) 1 tsp if flavored
Splenda to sprinkle on top before baking

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, protein powder, and baking powder.In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs and yogurt, then add the oil, honey and vanilla.Pour the liquid mixture into the flour mixture. Mix with a fork just until combined.Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups. Bake 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in one of the muffins comes out clean. Cool and enjoy!

Vitamix Broccoli Cheese Soup

This changed my life! So easy...So versatile.

3 cups cooked frozen broccoli (I roasted mine this time the oven with S&P) reserve 1 cup and chop if chunky is your thing
1.5 cups chicken stock
1.5 cups milk
2 cups cheddar shredded
Red pepper flakes
S&P
2 TBS diced onion
1 carrot (I roasted it with the broccoli)

Place stock, milk, onion, cheese, broccoli, and pepper flakes in that order in blender.

On variable speed move up to 10. Then high for 5 to 8 min until hot bubbly and steamy.

Add your chopped reserved 1 cup broccoli and S&P is you need it.

Done!

Pressure Cooker Lentils with Spicey Sausage and Stew Meat

Pressure Cooker Lentils (electric)

1-2 tbs tomato paste

Can of stewed tomatoes (Italian or some flavor…chop them)

1 lb hot sausage in bulk tube cooked (leave a little of the grease to brown the stew meat in drain off rest)

Stew meat browned in the sausage oil

1c lentils

Beef stock 3tbs or so better than beef bouillon

Onion 1 med diced.

Carrot like 4 small/med diced

Cayenne and crushed red pepper

2 bay leaf

S and P

4 garlic cloves minced

6-8 cups water

 

Brown your sausage in the pressure cooker and then drain off most all the oil/fat. Scoop out sausage and set aside. Brown the Stew meat. Next add all the rest of ingredients. Place pressure cooker on high for 25 min if you like your lentils a little soft and 15 min for firmer.

Far Enough Along!

Well the excitement is spilling out from everywhere!!!! And I am far enough along that I feel comfy saying  Woohoo! The hubs and I are expecting our first little miracle! I have been told since I was 18 I would never have children and we had even tried fertility treatment before and failed. After a break of trying for a while we were going to re start treatment when I randomly took an extra preg test I had laying about. After my messed up surgery I am always sick and tired so I didn't think anything of being so tired. So Memorial Day morning I took the test and started hollering for the hubs because the test said pregnant before the control lines even appeared. My hubby thought I was dying or there was a spider on me...same thing in our house haha. Anywho. That weekend I took 2 more tests and that following Tuesday when the DR office was open I took a blood one to confirm...Sure enough! We had a baby on the way! An I hadn't even known it for months! I was almost 12 weeks out by the time I got in that following week with an OB appointment. We are so excited and so blessed its insane! I am still labeled as high risk but all is well there :)

Our little bundle is Due December 18th and we found out 2 days before my birthday we are having a little girl! I swear I have rainbows shooting out of everywhere. That day we went and bought her first little girl outfit to celebrate!

I am trying to be crafty and make a few things for her like burp cloths, changing pad, nursing scarfs, and a couple baby blankets.
Well I made 2 nursing infinity scarfs  and my first baby blanket. The scarf was amazing and I think I will wear it now haha and so easy one seam! You take jersey knit fabric a piece about 30 inches wide and 60 inches long....I found this that was 58 wide and so I just had her cut a little over 30 long to save some cash and not have left over fabric.  Fold the long way in half and sew the two ends together...that's it! Here it is...

 

Here is a pic of the simple blanket I did...

 



Moroccan Bulgur Salad

For the salad

½ cup bulgur, uncooked
½ cup pitted dates, chopped
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup pistachios
1/2 can mandarin oranges in water drained, optional
2 cups baby spinach leaves

For the dressing

1 can mandarin oranges in water drained 1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2  tablespoon apple cider vinegar
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup fresh cilantro leaves, packed
1-2 tablespoons water to adjust consistency

INSTRUCTIONS

Cook the bulgur according to package directions, adding the dates and salt just at the end of the cooking time. This helps soften the dates a bit and gives the bulgur good flavor. Cool the bulgur for 20-30 minutes for a cold salad.In a food processor, combine all the dressing ingredients. Puree until smooth. Toss the cooled bulgur and dates mixture with the other salad ingredients. Drizzle or toss with the dressing. Serve immediately.

Vitamix Fruit Smoothies

I make one of these just about every day! They serve 2 to 3

Best cheese sauce of your life!

2 tbs butter
1 tablespoon heaped flour
2 oz cream cheese
1 heaping cup sharp white cheddar
Dash mustard powder
Dash white pepper
Few dashes salt
1 to 1.25 cups milk.

Make a roux with butter and flour. Whisk in milk until all the lumps are gone. Add everything else and whisk until thick and bubbly!

This is so good I could eat it with a spoon no joke. And creamy....mmm so versatile too. Serve over veg, pasta, chicken, rice you name it!

Thankful for good friends and pretty gardens!

I have a friend who's hubby is gone so I thought hey lets have a girls lunch and catch up! I have to say living here it has been hard to find a really great friend who is there for you when you need it. Most people just want a friend when it's convenient or when they need something from you. It makes me sad. So when my hubby and I became friends with this couple it was such a blessing. Prime example. When our ride  from the airport canceled on us and left us stranded with no ride home they came to our rescue extremely last min! I wanted to do something nice and have some girl catch up time so I made my delicious skillet chicken pot pie and apple crumble. We of course ate the dessert first. It was a girls day after all :). The beauty of these 2 recipes was that I could prep everything for the trip. The pot pie I assembled and tossed in her oven when I got there while we snacked on the fresh from the oven apple crumble. We were going to be healthy and have a salad with the pot pie but somehow that didn't happen haha! Great food, Great company. Such a blessing to have her as a friend and get to spend some much needed girl time with our busy hectic schedules.

And for our garden...We are trying a container garden this season. Our deck will hopefully be a veg paradise in a few months! We have veg, herbs, fruit, and flowers! After a few more seeds we started sprout we may be adding some more! Can't wait to reap the benefits of home grown goodness and a relaxing place to spend some time. God is so good!

Brocolini Pesto Rolled Crescent Rolls

Brocolini Pesto Rolled Crescent Rolls

1 pound brocolini rough chop
1/2 pound deli provolone (in one large chunk)
olive oil
salt
red chili paste to taste (1 tsp)
cayenne (couple dashes)
1 roll crescent rolls

Tear the cheese into large chunks add your chili paste about a teaspoon, add your brocolini and drizzle a fair about of olive oil in. pulse your food processor to help move things along. then begin to drizzle in a bit more until the get a thick paste. If not spicey enough add the cayenne and salt to taste. pulse to mix.

Roll out your crescent dough and pinch into one sheet on a lightly flowered surface. Place your pesto mixture in the center leaving a 1/2 in border on all sides. Roll so that it makes a long tube. slice off into muffin tin sized rolls and place in the tin. Depending how large you cut them you will get 9-12. I did 9 and next time I may stretch it out to 10-11 so they were a bit smaller. 9 was perfect though I just like dainty rolls hah! Bake at 350 about 30 min until all golden brown. Let sit a few min before removing from the pan. EAT!

Oven Roasted Potatoes and Tomatoes

Oven Roasted Potatoes and Tomatoes

FOR THE TOMATOES

3 large tomatoes on the vine, or 5 romas 1/4-inch slices1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil1 teaspoon fresh oregano, finely chopped, 2 cloves chopped garlic Salt and pepper to taste

FOR THE POTATOES

3 to 4 medium potatoes, cut lengthwise into 1/4 inch slices 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped1 teaspoon fresh Italian parsley, bunch of chopped chives 2 tablespoons

TOMATOES

Preheat oven to 325°. Place tomatoes on a baking sheet with a wire rack. Drizzle with oil, and sprinkle with oregano, garlic  season with salt and pepper.Roast for about an hour.

POTATOES

Preheat the oven to 400°Place the potatoes on a baking sheet, add the olive oil, salt, pepper and sprinkle with rosemary and chives , massage them with your hands to combine all the ingredients.Roast the potatoes and onions until they begin to become tender, about 20-30 minutes.Add the tomatoes and keep roasting until the potatoes become golden brown (watch not to over cook 5-7 min is all ).Remove from the oven and sprinkle with parsley.Serve immediately.

They were gone before I could get a picture!

Easter Tasty Casserole and some special hummus

We decided to have a low key Easter dinner this year. So I made my Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole. Amazing!

Chicken Cordon bleu casserole

· FOR THE CASSEROLE:

· 1 whole Cooked Chicken, Bones Removed, Meat Diced Or Shredded (rotisserie Chicken Is Excellent, Should Be 5-6 Cups Of Chicken

· ½ pounds Very Thinly Sliced Deli-style Honey Ham, Rough Chopped

· ¼ pounds Thin Sliced Baby Swiss Cheese

· FOR THE SAUCE:

· 4 Tablespoons Butter

· 4 Tablespoons Flour

· 3 cups Milk

· 2 Tablespoons Fresh Squeezed Lemon Juice plus the zest of the lemon

· 2-3 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard

· ½  teaspoons Salt (I like a little less)

· ½ teaspoons Smoked Paprika

· ¼ teaspoons Pepper

· ¼ teaspoons cayenne

· ½ tsp better than bullion chicken

· ¼ teaspoons Seasoning Salt or a dash really so maybe less

· FOR THE TOPPING:

· 1-½ cup Panko Breadcrumbs or homemade breadcrumbs

· 4 Tablespoons Butter, Melted

· ½ teaspoons Seasoning Salt

· 2 Tablespoons chopped Parsley

Preheat oven to 350 F. Butter a 9×13-inch baking dish. Set aside.

Put cooked shredded or diced chicken on the bottom of the baking dish. Rough chop the ham and scatter it over the top of the chicken. Lay the Swiss cheese on top of the ham.

For the sauce:

Melt the butter in a large sauce pot over medium heat. When butter is melted, quickly stir in the flour to form a smooth roux.  Once the roux is smooth and bubbly, slowly pour in the cold milk and bullion while stirring briskly to make a smooth sauce. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until the sauce thickens. Stir in the lemon juice and zest, Dijon mustard, salt, smoked paprika, cayenne, and white pepper. Bring sauce just back to a low boil and turn off heat. Pour sauce evenly over the casserole, being certain to get some of the sauce around the edges of the pan.

For the topping:

Melt the butter in a saucepan and let it begin to brown, add the seasoned salt and then the bread crumbs making sure everything is coated. Stir in the Parsley and then sprinkle over the top of the casserole.

Bake casserole uncovered for 45 minutes until hot and bubbly throughout and topping has turned a light golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes prior to serving.

 I ate mine over a cream biscuit

 

 

NOW the hummus!!!!!

 



Sun Dried Tomato Hummus

¼ cup toasted sesame seeds

½ tsp sesame oil
Olive oil
¼ cup julienned sun dried tomato packed in oil
1 can chickpeas
2 cloves garlic
Salt
½ tsp dried basil

Take your sesame seeds and 2 oils and pulse in your blender until a tahini paste emerges. Then add in your tomato and blend for a few seconds to break it all up. I had to add olive oil here so it wasn’t so thick. I like a smoother texture.  Add your basil, salt, garlic, and chickpeas. Blend blend blend while drizzling in olive oil until you reach the consistency you like. To lighten this up you could use less oil and add some chicken stock or veg stock but I was going for the real thing with all the fat haha!

Enjoy with some veg...

Cream Biscuits and Egg Nests

Trust me. You will never buy store bought biscuits for biscuits and gravy again! OR heck just as a dinner biscuit. These are amazingly tender. AND when you have to find ways of using self rising flour because you didn't pay enough attention at the store this will fit the bill! Now I think I will start keeping the flour around just for these. No joke!

 

Cream biscuits

2 cup self-rising flour, plus more for dusting

1 tbsp sugar

1 1⁄2 cup heavy whipping cream

Directions

Preheat oven to 500 degrees F.

In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, and cream until the dough forms a ball. Turn the dough out onto a surface dusted with additional flour. Fold the dough in 1/2 and knead 5 to 7 times, adding just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to your hands. Gently roll out dough to 1/2-inch thickness. Using a 3-inch biscuit cutter (or glass because you're not cool enough for a biscuit cutter) coated with flour, cut dough into biscuits. Place on baking sheet coated with cooking spray, leaving at least 1-inch between each biscuit. Bake for 10 minutes, or until golden brown.

An additional tastyness would be to brush them with melted butter. Just saying.

 

Egg Nests are up next. I made these for breakfast meal prep for my hubby. He can just pop them out of the freezer in the am and by the time he is done with the gym and PT they are thawed and ready to be heated.

Ingredients:

 

Lunch meat ( I used deli turkey and ham)

9 eggs

1/4 heaping cup cottage cheese (makes them very fluffy)

Salt

Pepper

Veg you wish to add

Shredded cheese to sprinkle on top

 

Directions:

Preheat Oven to 350.

Layer lunch meat into a cupcake tin. The turkey was large enough for just one slice but the ham required 2 whisk the rest of your ingredients together except the shredded cheese. Use an ice cream scoop to fill the meat nest. Make sure to leave room for the egg to rise as it bakes. Sprinkle Cheese on top. Bake for 20-25 min. Depending on how much veg you put into the egg mixture it will make 12-16 egg nests.

 

 

Busy Life Busy Wife

Boy things are sure in full swing around here. I have been running like a chicken with my head cut off with no rest for the last few weeks. Monday was my first day of no scheduled plans and it was glorious. BUT still so busy as I played catch up on other things that were not getting my full attention. To help with the upcoming craziness I did a whole bunch of food prep. I must say it helps so much!
I roasted a whole chicken in the crockpot and made stock from it, prepped all our weeks worth of fresh veggies, made applesauce from some apples I needed to use up, orange puree, and a low carb dessert to name a few foodie things. Not to mention all the other housey stuff that one must do. But this dessert made everything better and has changed my life I tell you!!! Ok maybe not changed my life but you get what I am saying ;)

2 Ingredient Jello/Greek Yogurt Dessert

1 box of sugar free jello large box (you will only use 1/4 of the prepared mix)
3/4 cup light greek yogurt (I use light and fit vanilla)

Mix 1/4 of your prepared jello and greek yogurt in a blender. Let sit in fridge about 2 hrs. to set up.
Eat!

Simply amazing!

Here is the applesauce I made in the slow cooker...
9 apples or so (cored, skinned mostly, and thinly sliced), 1/2 cup splenda, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1 tbs lemon juice, and 1 cup water.

Cook on low in the slow cooker for 6 hours and then pulse through your vitamix or whatever you have handy. tah dah!

Make Ahead Breakfast for the busy week

Well with my crazy busy schedule lately I've been forgetting to get all my protein in and I've been skipping meals. Which is not good so to remedy this and feed my adorable hubby a protein filled breakfast too I made breakfast morning egg muffins.

For this time I used left over colcannon from St Patrick's day but I've used any type of potato really.  Frozen fries, tater tots, hash browns...

9 egs beaten with Salt/Pepper (I add a few dashes of hot sauce )
Potatoes
Grated cheese  (this time I had cheddar and parm)
Cooked Meat (bacon, sausage, chicken) 1/3 cup or so chopped
Sautéed spinach is yummy in these too

Spray your muffin tin with cooking spray. Smoosh your taters in the bottom. If mashed 2 Tbsp or so if tater tot 3 to 4. Bake 425 15 min.
Pull out and place your meat in just a little will do you. Spoon the eggs on top leaving space eggs rise when baked. Top with a sprinkle of cheese. Bake 350 for 20 min. Amazing! Great with a dab of ketchup too. Mmm
Easy breakfast for the week! And extra healthy with the added kale in the taters.

Stuffed Burgers Hawaiian Mac Salad, and Roasted Brussels

Oh man I made the best dinner the other night. Now that grilling season is upon us I plan on grilling my heart out.

First up the stuffed burgers.
1 lb. Ground beef
4 slices of crisp bacon chopped
Shredded cheddar cheese
Pepper
Salt
2 eggs

Divide meat into 4 equal balls and firm into thinish patties. Fill 2 patties with bacon and cheese. Top with the other side and make sure seams are closed. Salt very little and pepper.
Grill these babies up!  Then top with a yoky poached or fried egg and devour!

Next up was oven roasted Brussel sprouts which I'm sure I've written about. This time I used the left over bacon grease. Normally I don't haha. But it wasn't a healthy night.  
Pre  heat oven to 425. Roll Brussels in the grease and season with pepper.  Roast about 40 min. We like ours dark and then top with just a tiny bit of salt.

And last but not least....
Hawaiian mac salad!

Ingredients:
1 lb elbow macaroni
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar (I added a little extra myself)
2 cups milk
2 cups mayonnaise
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1/4 cup grated onion
1 large carrot, peeled & grated
Salt & pepper

Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil. Add 1 Tbsp salt and the macaroni; cook until VERY soft, about 15 minutes. Drain and return to pot; meanwhile while pasta cooks grate your onion and carrot. I squeezed off some of the liquid from the union. Whisk your milk mayo and vinegar. Add the salt pepper and grated veg. Fold on the cooked pasta. It will seem watery and that's OK the pasta will absorb the liquid. It's best to make this salad the day before or at least 2 to 4 hours before serving.

* I was a little shy on the mayo a bit over 1/2 cup shy so I just adjusted the milk down to match and it was still plenty saucy!

Crazy Busy Life...And Puppy Potty Training.

I miss sleeping through the night. I love my little Emma but SLEEP! She has thankfully learned to go in and out of the dog door but we are still working on where to potty....No accidents yesterday but I still keep a close eye. I crochet my little one a collar since her little neck is so small the collar we got her wont fit yet...We watched some friends dogs this last weekend and their little male who is unfixed decided to mark up my house and rugs and....you get the picture. His parents are getting him fixed so hopefully that will help for the next time. He is a sweet pup but No Pottying In My House Please! They also have a big goofy dog who is so funny. And now that it is warming up he basically lived out side the whole weekend. I haven't seen him so happy. When I would call him inside periodically I'd get this sad face.

While they were here I did make some amazing Salisbury steak. I served it over seasoned fries I cooked in the oven. Amazing....

Salisbury Steak
Sauce:
1 thinly sliced onion
8oz package mushrooms sliced
drizzle of oil
pat of butter
2 TBS flour
1.5 cup beef broth
creamed sherry
dash of Worcestershire sauce
2 TBS tomato paste
1 TSP apple cider vinegar
Salt and Pepper

Heat the butter and oil in a skillet and sweat your onions. Stir occasionally. You want to cook them so that they become a soft golden honeyed color. (I put a bit of Worcestershire sauce here for some flavor. Next Add your mushrooms and cook until golden and tender. Add the 1/2 cup broth, salt and pepper and continue to cook adding more broth as needed to keep it from caramelizing on the bottom of the pan. this should take 25 or so minutes. Then add the flour and cook for about 2 min to get rid of the flour taste. Next add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for about 10 min. Then Add the beef patties and simmer until done. (recipe below for the beef). Serve over mashed taters, fries, noodles. Whatever floats your boat. The left overs the next day were amazing all by themselves.

Beef Patty:
1 pound ground beef
couple handfuls of bread crumbs I'd say about 1/2 cup (I keep homemade bread crumbs in my freezer)
2 eggs
1 clove garlic
few dashes of Worcestershire sauce
2.5 TBS chopped parsley or about 1 TBS dried
1 TSP dried thyme
salt and pepper

Mix all up and make 4 patties. Just let them sit and rest until ready to add to the above sauce. This gives the chance for the bread crumbs to get soft and moist.

Then LAST NIGHT I whipped out our BBQ Grill for the first time of the season. It was a culinary night of amazingness. SEE!

I grilled some component of everything...The corn in the salad, the cheese bread, and the chicken of course.

Cheese bread:
Left over Italian loaf was about 1/4 loaf sliced in half
shredded sharp cheddar
Mrs. Dash
Pat of butter
1-2 TBS of Mayo (enough to make it spreadable a bit)

Mix it all up slather on each side of the bread and put in foil. Make sure to not let the foil touch the top or it will stick there and we don't want that. I placed on the grill after I turned the chicken and had it on the top rack. a min or two before I took the chicken off I placed on the bottom because I like the bottom crispy and dark. 

Green Salad with BBQ Lime Corn:

Chop up a head of romaine
dice a med/large carrot

2 Roma tomatoes diced 
one can of diced beets drained and patted dry
corn (could be on the cob, frozen kernels doesn't matter)
lime juice
salt
pepper
oil
apple cider vinegar

Wrap the corn up with the lime and place on  the grill to get nice and caramelized with the lime.
Meanwhile place all the salad ingredients together. And make a dressing out of the oil and vinegar with some extra lime for awesomeness. S and P to taste. Most people like a 2 to 1 oil to vinegar ratio but I prefer a more vinegary less oil dressing myself. Just taste it to find what you like.

Hidden Veggie Mac And Cheese

Who doesn't like more veggies in their diet. This recipe was amazing! Definitely on my make again list. We had homemade french dips to accompany. The picture below was the hubs plate and he was stuffed!

Hidden veggie mac and cheese
Ingredients
4 carrots, peeled and sliced
1 small head of cauliflower, cut into pieces
1/2 to 3/4 cup milk
1 tsp salt
Pepper
2 cups shredded colby cheese
8 oz light cream cheese
4 TBS butter
16 oz elbow pasta

Directions
Cook the cauliflower and carrots covered in a saucepan filled about a 1/4 of the way with water for about 10 minutes until tender.  Drain the veggies and let them cool for a minute.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the package directions.

Put the veggies in the blender or vitamix  with about 3/4 cup of water and puree until smooth.  Add the puree to a large sauce pan.  On medium-low heat, add in the milk, salt, pepper, colby, butter and cream cheese and stir until melted.

Drain the pasta, add to the sauce and stir.

Crock Pot Apple Whisky Herb Chicken

Every so often I feel the need to just randomly make stuff up. Ok so maybe it's more than every so often. =) Well yesterday was one of those days. I bring you.... Crock Pot Apple Whisky Herb Chicken. It was amazing. My hubby ate 1/2 the large chicken himself!

As always...Adjust the seasonings to your own tastes. These are just about what I used since I didn't use measuring spoons...My ninja crockpot has a roaster insert so my chicken was not sitting in the liquid but it would be just as good if it was...

1 whole chicken
1/2 stick butter
1 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp rosemary
1/2 tsp sage
1/2 c whisky
1/4-1/2 c water
1 apple large
salt
pepper

rinse and pat dry your chicken. Make sure to take the giblets and all that out. Make your compound butter with the herbs and set aside. Quarter your apple. Lift the skin on your chicken and rub underneath the skin with the compound butter spreading evenly. Stuff the apple up into the chicken cavity. Tie the feet shut. If there is left over apple that wont fit just put it in the liquid. Sprinkle salt and pepper on the top. Pour your whisky and water in the bottom and cook on low for 8-9 hrs. I had a huge chicken so I did 9.

You can roast off the top in the oven if you like the skin but we don't eat the skin so I didn't bother. I just took it out. Let it rest about 10 or so min and started to debone and remove all the skin.

Snow Day Equals Comfort Food Day

Well here in NC it's snowing life nobody's business. So I took it as a sign to kick back relax and enjoy some free family time. Stared with breakfast. A perfect poached egg with toast. Was so decadent. I don't know why I don't make them more often really. Then lunch was shine frozen left over beans and bacon soup with homemade croutons. Perfect after shoveling my steps and walkway. And tonight for dinner.... crock pot apple, rosemary thyme sage whisky roast chicken with low calorie cheesy vegetables (the veg recipe is from east what you love) and for dessert.  Fruit salad. Wen eating all this plus a cookie my hubby fed me I'm still under my calorie goal for the day! it will be 1 calorie is all but still haha. Now to not have any extra snacks before dinner or bed and ruin my victory!

If the crock pot recipe turns out as good as it smells I'll post it tomorrow.

Busy Busy...

So 5 am came early this morning. I have the house feeling all clean and sparkly and the pups fed and napping all before 7am. I have to say I was oddly productive for so early. Next up coffee and some book shopping. I have decided to upgrade my nook finally and get the nook simple touch. I am old school with the 1st gen nook. It still works but it's seen better days. Barnes and Nobles lowered their price to 99.00 from the 120.00 and I had another 10% off with an additional 5% off from Upromise which made it 15 bucks cheaper...I can handle that. It paid for the case to protect it in. I opted to have it shipped with free express 1 day shipping so that I didn't have to wait at the store. They were crazy backed up. I can use my old stand by for one more day.

Fayetteville is expected to be drowned in snow starting tonight again. But we shall see. We have plenty of food here so I say BRING IT! I live for more time with my hubby.

This weekend I made some baked oatmeal. Was pretty good I must say. Thick creamy and not to sweet. Makes a 9x13 pan so there is oatmeal for days which if this snow hits may come in handy.

Here is the recipe...

3 c. old fashioned oats

1½ c. brown sugar

5½ c. milk

½ c. peanut butter

3 eggs, beaten

1 c. raisins

1 c. chocolate chips

Instructions

1. In a large saucepan, combine oats, sugar, milk, peanut butter, and eggs.
2. Simmer over medium heat 20 minutes, stirring often, until thickened.
3. Stir in raisins.
4. Pour into greased 9x13 inch pan and top with chocolate chips.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or until oatmeal is set.
6. Serve warm; top with milk or additional brown sugar if desired.

 

New career....Mindy's Puppy Love Pet Care Service...TAH DAH!

So since I have had my surgery and had so many complications it has left me unable to hold down a FT job. My hubby works so hard for us and I wanted to contribute in a more tangible way aka financially. Every little helps I figure. So I was thinking one afternoon what can I do???? It hit me. Pet Sitting! I have been wanting to volunteer at the animal shelter around here. I love pets...all kinds...I have had, hamsters, rats, a snake, a bird, dogs of all sizes, and a cat. Heck even a hermit crab and fish! So here I am starting my own business as a pet sitter! Lets pray this takes off! I have accounts at sittercity.com ( https://www.sittercity.com/pet-sitting/nc/fayetteville/11485907 ), care.com (http://www.care.com/p/melindab1186/pc ), and petsitter.com ( http://petsitter.com/mindy-s-puppy-love-service-pet-sitter-dog-walker-fayetteville-nc ). The first two websites even have background checks completed so people know I am not a crazy haha!

New Addition and Slow Cooker Italian Stuffed Peppers

First the most important thing....Our new addition! Her name is Emma.

Buster the chubby boy here loves her and Nana in the back won't even look at me she is so jealous we brought a new lil girl home. I am sure she will warm up to Emma. Such Characters! I love her so much and we just got her today!

Now on to the PEPPERS!

This recipe cooks 3-4 hrs on High. Just a heads up.

6 med green bell peppers
6 oz Italian turkey sausage
1 pound ground turkey
1 cup slightly under cooked with a tad bit of liquid still in the mix.
1/2 cup diced onion
1/4 c fresh parsley (this time I only had dried so about 1.5-2 tbs)
1/4 c fresh basil (same deal as the parsley here)
1/2-3/4 tsp dried oregano
2 tbs grated parm
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1 large egg
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 26 oz  jar of prego traditional
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Now. cut the tops off the peppers, core them, seed them and set aside. You can cut up the bit of pepper from the tops to add if you like.

Mix the rest of the ingredients Italian turkey sausage through prego. BUT ONLY USE about 3 TBS of the Prego. reserve the rest for later.

Now stuff your peppers and set them in the slow cooker upright. Add the red pepper flakes to the prego and pour over the pepper tops. Next add about 3/4 cup water to the bottom of the cooker and set on high3-4 hrs until done.

Remove peppers and if your cooker has a simmer function reduce the sauce down and spoon over. If not you can skip this part or reduce it in a pot on the pan. I like mine saucy so I reduce it and spoon it over and dip some bread in it....

OPTIONAL...because its in the picture....I grate some sharp cheddar over the top at the end because I love cheese!

this is left overs the next day....

New Years Resolutions are for the birds...

Well I gave it a great deal of thought and nope not doing any New Years resolutions but am going to continue like I try to do everyday to keep making wise choices and not fall off the wagon so very often. I am a wagon faller offer now and again. Today for breakfast I had a scrambled egg with some diced ham, cheese, and tomato. I make these little bread crisps to get a nice toast effect for just a couple cals. Lunch is tasty as well with some chicken salad and I use romaine as the bread like little boats kinda. Dinner I am planning oven roasted tomatoes and grilled steaks...yum yum!

As I said Better Choices! And I am really good I will drink a protein shake too! I have a slight confession since this is my blog after all but I went to Hobby Lobby to just check it out and left with fake flowers and some crochet hook grips! Yikes! Naughty Naughty!