Be back shortly...

Okay, I tried to get back on the ball last week but it's just not going to happen until January! Neither of our camera's are working and life is CRAZY. I will still post the weekly menus but for now, no new recipes until January, but I will be coming back strong and already have some great ones ready for you then!

Boursin Stuffed Chicken

I love Boursin. In fact I have a great recipe for it but had to swear I would keep it a secret, which I hate, but you can buy it at the store and it worth every penny you pay. Anyways, I made a whole bunch of it from Thanksgiving and we had some left over and it's good to waste so I came up with this recipe. If you are a boursin lover like Gray and I then this is sure to please the palate.

3 chicken breast
1/2 cup of panko
1 egg
4 1/2 Tbsp of Boursin

Heat oven to 350. Butterfly the chicken breast. Spoon 1 1/2 tbsp of boursin into the center and roll it up, securing with toothpicks. Dip the chicken into the egg mixture then roll in panko until totally covered. Bake for 4o minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Corn Chowder

I have really been on a soup kick this year, I have tried a ton of new recipes but this one might be my favorite. I found it this past summer on Our Best Bites and have been wanting to try it ever since! It's easy and so warm and creamy, perfect soup for this cold weather.

2 Tbsp. butter
1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. water
2 1/2 c. milk
2 regular-sized chicken bouillon cubes
1/2 lb. bacon, cooked and crumbled (optional but please don't skip it)
1 small onion, diced
2-3 red potatoes, cubed
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 can corn, drained or about 2 cups frozen fresh corn
Salt and Pepper to taste
a dash or two of hot sauce

Melt butter over low heat in large pot, add flour and whisk until it forms a small ball. Add water to the pot then whisk until all lumps are gone. Add the milk and bouillon cubes then bring to a simmer. Add the potatoes, onions, garlic and simmer, stirring often. Do not bring it to a boil. Cook for around 20 minutes or until potatoes are cooked through. Add bacon, corn, and pepper. Let cook for 2 to 4 minutes, taste before you salt. The bacon adds a lot of saltiness already. Top with cheese.

I'm sorry

I have been so slack with posting recipes, if you read my life/adoption blog then you know exactly why things haven't been getting posted. If you don't, we have been going through a very crazy time in our adoption and our lives have basically been consumed by that during the day and then when I get home at night I just want to lay down because I am so emotionally exhausted. I promise that tomorrow I will start back and keep it up! I have some good recipes coming soon!

Chicken and Cheese Biscuits

Who doesn't love a good comfort food recipe? And nothing is better than good comfort food on a cold night! I found the recipe on tidymom.net and it met all the qualifications for comfort food. the biggest ones being warm, easy and ingredients I normally have in my kitchen.

1 stick of butter
1/2 cup flour
4-5 chicken breasts (cooked and shredded)
1-14oz can chicken broth
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to taste
milk (as needed)
1 can biscuits

Place the already cooked and shredded chicken in the bottom of a greased 9x13 baking dish. Bring butter, salt, pepper, and chicken broth to a simmer in a sauce pan. Whisk in flour until the sauce is smooth. Thin down with milk if needed. Pour sauce over chicken. Top with cheese and biscuits. Bake according to biscuit directions. (It took mine about 20 minutes and the biscuit directions were 8 minutes).

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

My pumpkin obsession has continued. These cookies are awesome, one of my coworkers called them the crack cookies because she was so addicted to them after 1 bite. They aren't overwhelming with pumpkin flavor but just a hint to make them festive. This recipe is from Bunny's Warm Oven but I found it on Cooking with Christine.

1 cup butter
1-1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
2-2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Place the butter in a bowl and mix it for 1 minute. Add 1 1/2 cups sugar and pumpkin and mix until blended. Beat in cream of tartar, vanilla, baking soda and salt. Beat in the egg. Add the flour and beat in as much as possible with the mixer then stir in with a wooden spoon. Chill the dough in the refrigerator for an hour. In a small bowl mix together 1/2 cup sugar and cinnamon. Heat oven to 350. Drop teaspoons of the batter into the sugar mixture, roll around and place on an ungreased cookie sheet 2 inches apart. Repeat until all the dough is done. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes.

Tzatziki Sauce

I love Tzatziki Sauce, I mean love love love. I love dipping raw veggies it in, I love it loaded up on my gyros, and I LOVED it on those greek burgers from yesterday. Now there are so many different recipes circulating on the Internet of how to make the best Tzatziki sauce. I honestly read about 10 different recipes then came up with this one on my own based on the advice from those recipes.

1 cup of Greek Yogurt

1/2 tbsp dried dill

2 tbsp lemon juice

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 cup of grated cucumber

Add all the ingredients to the food processor and blended until relatively smooth.

Greek Burgers

These burgers were awesome, they were quick to make and so tasty. They felt so much lighter with the feta mixed into them than a burger smothered in cheese. Don't read that wrong, I love a burger smothered in cheese this was just a good change. The recipe is from Food for my Family. I cut the recipe in half for the two of us and we were able to eat them the next day for lunch too!

2 lbs. ground beef
15 Kalamata olives (give or take) chopped (I used less than this because Gray hates olives)
½ cup feta cheese
3 scallions chopped
½ tsp fresh black pepper
½ tsp kosher salt
Mix together all the ingredients then pattie them out. Put in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before grilling them. Heat your grill and place the patties on the grill. Cook on each side for 4 minutes flipping them twice on each side. Remove and top with Tzatiki, Cucumber, Tomato, Lettuce, ect.

This recipe was featured on Eat at Home Cooks Ingredient Spotlight for Ground Beef. 

Oven Baked Potato Wedges

I have been looking for a good potato recipe like this forever. I have tried so many that never would get soggy and not crisp up or would burn really quickly and the middle would never get done. Finally, this recipe from Pennies on the Platter came in and saved the day.

Potatoes
Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
Seasoning (I used Paula Deen's silly salt that my mom got me as a gift while she was in Savannah)

Heat oven to 400. Wash, scrub and dry the potatoes. Remove skin if necessary then cut into wedges. Mix the potatoes with a bit of olive oil, you want them to just be coated. Season with salt, pepper and seasoning of choice. Place on a baking sheet in one layer. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes turning every 10 minutes.

Cheesy Chicken, Bacon, Avocado Quesadillas

These were amazing. I was pretty sure this recipe wouldn't be a fail but I had no idea how creamy the avocado would make these quesadillas and how all of the flavors would flow perfectly together and yet you would be able to taste each item. Homerun! The recipe is from KevinandAmanda.com they seriously have some awesome recipes but as always it is slightly adapted.

4 medium-sized flour tortilla shells
1 lb chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
salt and pepper
1/2 cup scallions, diced
8 strips of bacon, cooked & crumbled
1 avocado, diced
cheese, shredded (I used colby jack)
2 tbsp butter

Fry bacon is skillet. Set aside 1/2 tbsp of bacon drippings and rinse pan. Add bacon drippings back to pan and saute the scallions for 2 minutes. Add the chicken, salt and pepper. Cook until chicken is golden brown and cooked through. Remove chicken and scallions, rinse pan.

Add 1/2 tbsp of butter to pan over medium heat, place the tortilla in the pan, add the chicken, bacon, avocado and cheese to half of the tortilla then fold the the torilla in half. Cook for about 1 to 2 more minutes on each side. Repeat until all the quesadillas are made

7UP Biscuits

These are some of the easiest and most delicious biscuits I have ever made. I have seen the recipe on multiple recipe blogs but they all point back to Plain Chicken. They reminded us of Cracker Barrel biscuits.

2 cups Bisquick
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup 7-up
1/4 cup melted butter

Mix the sour cream into the bisquick then add the 7-up and stir together. The dough will be pretty soft. Roll the dough out onto a flat surface sprinkled with bisquick flour and cut into biscuits. Place melted butter in the bottom of a 9 inch square pan and place the biscuits into the pan. Bake at 450 until the biscuits are gold brown.

Shrimp and Grits

This is southern goodness at it's finest! I have tried several shrimp and grits recipes and this one is the best. I knew it should be though because I got it off of the Southern Living website. Gray and I both enjoyed big bowls full of this goodness.

2 bacon slices
1 pound medium-size raw shrimp
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
2 teaspoons canola oil
1/2 cup chopped green onions
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon hot sauce

Cook the bacon is a large nonstick skillet until crisp. Remove bacon and crumble. Reserve 1 tsp of bacon drippings. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper then dredge in flour. Saute the mushrooms in the pan with the bacon drippings and oil for 5 minutes. Add the green onions and saute for 2 more minutes. Add the shrimp and the garlic and saute until the shrimp is slightly browned. Add in the chicken broth then add the hot sauce and lemon juice. Stir and cook for 2 to 4 more minutes. Place the shrimp and broth over cheese grits and top with crumbled bacon.

Cheese Grits

The other day I was looking through Southern Livings 100 recipes to "southern cooking", this is the grits that go with the Shrimp and Grits that will be posted tomorrow. The grits were great on their own and would be perfect for breakfast. They were quick and I had all the ingredients on hand which is always a plus. Just wait for the Shrimp part tomorrow though because they are good.

1 can chicken broth
1 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup uncooked quick-cooking grits
3/4 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper

Combine chicken broth, milk and salt. Bring to a boil over medium high heat in a saucepan. Slowly whisk in the grits. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring every few minutes. Add the remaining ingredients, mix in and serve hot.

Apple Dumplings

These guys are amazing. This is a famous Pioneer Woman recipe that had read a dozen times and finally made it for a friend's birthday dinner. They are sweet and warm and perfect. I swear that you will love them and be craving them for the weeks to come!

2 whole Granny Smith Apples
2 cans (8 Oz. Cans) Crescent Rolls
2 sticks Butter
1-½ cup Sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla
Cinnamon, To Taste
1 can (12 Oz.) Mountain Dew Soda

Peel and core the apples then cut into 8 slices. Wrap the crescent roll around each apple slice and place in greased 9x13 pan. Melt butter then add the sugar and just slightly stir. Add vanilla and stir then pour the mixture over the dumplings. Pour the mountain dew down the sides of the pan. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes. Serve right out of the oven with ice cream.

Simple Onion Burgers

And again...sorry for the crappy picture. I'm so mad that I dropped Gray's camera and I cannot get mine to take a good picture of food to save my life, it will take a great picture of the rug but then I try it with the food...horrible. Don't let the picture sway you in not making these burgers. I found the recipe on food.com adapted it slightly.

1 lb lean ground beef
1 package of dry onion soup mix
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp BBQ sauce

Mix all ingredients together. Form patties and grill.

Pumpkin Coffee Cake with a Brown Sugar Glaze

This recipe is from the Tasty Kitchen. This would be the perfect breakfast treat on Thanksgiving or Christmas morning. It was so moist and the glaze was the perfect amount of sweet to top off this cake!

⅓ cups Water
1 can Pureed Pumpkin (15 Oz)
2 whole Eggs
1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract
2 teaspoons Pumpkin Pie Spice
1 box Yellow Cake Mix (18 Ounce Box)
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 cup Brown Sugar, Divided
½ cups Flour
⅓ cups Walnuts, Chopped (I didn't use nuts because so many people have allergies)
4 Tablespoons Butter, Melted
¼ cups Granulated Sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
¼ cups Heavy Whipping Cream

Heat oven to 350. Mix together water, pumpkin, eggs, 1 tbsp vanilla extract, and pumpkin pie spice until combined. Add cake mix and baking soda and mix until combined. Pour into a greased 9x13 pan. In a separate bowl combine 1/2 cup of brown sugar, 1/2 cup of flour, nuts (if you are using them), and melted butter. Sprinkle over the top of the cake and bake for 25 to 35 minutes.

To make the glaze, combine 1/2 cup of brown sugar, granulated sugar, 1 tsp vanilla, and heavy cream in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer then remove from heat and stir until the sugar is dissolved.

After removing the cake from the oven poke holes in it with a toothpick and pour the glaze over making sure it covers the entire cake. Serve warm or at room temperature.

French Onion Dip

This recipe is from In Jennie's Kitchen. It's super easy and taste great, I love that it's something totally different. You don't normally see homemade french onion dip at parties, I took this with us to a football game and everyone loved it.

2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, sliced thin
1/3 cup sour cream
1/3 cup 2% Greek yogurt
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Heat the olive oil in a medium size skillet, add the onions and season. Saute until they are soft and golden brown. Cover and reduce heat. Cook for around 10 more minutes until the onions are very tender. Place the onions in a bowl and let them cool for around 5 to 10 minutes. Add yogurt, sour cream, and onions to food processor. Pulse until onions are chopped and ingredients are combined. Refrigerate before serving.

Creamy Minestrone and Meatball Soup

And again, sorry for the lack of a picture. I found this recipe on Tablespoon and it was awesome. It was so perfect for a chilly night.


8 oz. Cream Cheese
1 lb. frozen Italian Meatballs (or make your own!)
1 large onion, chopped
2 large carrots, shredded
1 30 oz. can diced tomatoes
1 large zucchini, chopped
1 15 oz. can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 15 oz. can great northern beans, rinsed and drained
48 oz. beef broth
3 c water
1 T dried oregano
2 T dried basil
2 tsp. ground black pepper
1 26 oz. jar spaghetti sauce
8 oz small uncooked pasta

Put a large pot on medium high heat. Saute onion for 3 to 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium low and add carrots and tomatoes. Cook for about 10 minutes. Add every remaining ingredient EXCEPT the cream cheese. Simmer for 20 minutes. Add in the cream cheese and stir until it is melted and incorporated. Serve hot.

Chocolate Chip Cream Cheese Vanilla Bean Muffins

 These guys are amazing. Seriously. They are too die for. I found them over at Cassie Craves and made them for one of our DVR and Dessert date nights. Yum Yum Yum!

1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 egg, room temperature
1/2 cup cream
1 inch vanilla bean (or 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract)
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup white sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup miniature semi-sweet chocolate chips

Heat oven to 400 and grease your muffin tin or set up liners. Beat together butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy. Beat in egg, cream and vanilla. In a separate bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the cream cheese mixture and stir just until the flour is incorporated. Fold in the chocolate chips. Spoon the mixture into the muffin pan until 3/4 full. Bake for about 20 minutes or until tops are golden.

Garlic Parmesan Green Beans

These green beans were quick and easy, they had great flavor and were a great side item and something different from our normal garlic green beans. I found the recipe on Tasty Kitchen.

1 pound Fresh Green Beans, Stems Removed
2 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter
2 cloves Garlic, Minced
½ teaspoons Kosher Salt
⅛ teaspoons Ground Black Pepper
1 Tablespoon Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese

Steam green beans for 6 to 8 minutes. Melt butter in skillet, add garlic and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the green beans and coat well. Let the green beans saute for 4 to 6 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and add the Parmesan cheese. Toss and Serve.

Swiss Chicken

My cousin has been telling me to make this one forever and I kept avoiding it, bad move on my part. This was my kinda comfort food at it's finest! Make this one right away!

6 chicken breast

6 slices swiss cheese

1 can cream of chicken soup

1/4 cup milk or white wine

1 package of chicken stuffing (8 oz)

1/2 cup butter (melted)

Heat oven to 350. Place chicken breast in a baking dish. Put a slice of cheese over each piece of chicken. Mix together the chicken soup and milk (or white wine). Pour the mixture over the chicken. Top with the stuffing. Pour melted butter on top. Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes to an hour.

Loaded Potato Soup

This potato soup is so good and so easy. I loved that it didn't make a ton so we didn't have leftovers for days. I hate leftovers. The recipe is from Ezra Pound Cake.

4 (6-ounce) red potatoes
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 1/4 cups fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups 1% low-fat milk, divided
1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 bacon slices (cooked and crumbled)
1/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese
4 teaspoons thinly sliced green onions

Wash the potatoes, prick them with a fork and microwave on a plate for 13 minutes. Cut them in half and set to the side. While the potatoes are in the microwave, heat the oil in saucepan over medium high and add the onion. Saute for around 3 minutes. Add the broth to the onions. In a bowl combine flour and 1/2 cup of milk. Add that to the broth along with the 1 1/2 cups of milk. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly and let cook for about a minute. Remove from heat and add sour cream, salt and pepper. Scoop the potato pulp out of the shell and add to the soup mixture. Mash the pulp into the soup. Serve hot and top with crumbled bacon, cheese and green onions.

Pumpkin Dip

Oh Tasty Kitchen, you bring me so much joy! This is a GREAT fall recipe, especially in the south were it is still blazing hot in the fall.

15 oz can Pumpkin
5 oz Instant Vanilla Pudding Mix
1 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice
16 oz Frozen Whipped Topping, Thawed

Mix together the Pumpkin, Vanilla Pudding and Pumpkin Pie Spice. Fold in the Whipped Topping and refrigerate until you are ready to serve. Service with Ginger Snaps and Apple slices.

Honey Garlic Meatballs

These were great! Gray even felt the need to sing about them the next morning when he realized he got to take the leftovers to work, hm...wonder how he would feel about me sharing that. It was another winner from over at the Tasty Kitchen!

Meatballs:
1-½ pound Ground Round
1/4 cups Finely Shredded Fresh Parmesan Cheese
1/2 cups Dry Breadcrumbs
1/3 cups Chopped Fresh Parsley
1/4 cups Tomato Sauce
1 teaspoon Dry Mustard
3/4 teaspoons Dried Italian Seasoning
1 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoons Freshly Ground Black Pepper
2 cloves Garlic, Finely Minced

Sauce:
2 Tablespoons Butter
3 cloves Garlic, Minced
¾ cups Ketchup
½ cups Honey
¼ cups Soy Sauce

Combine all the ingredients together for the meatballs and shape. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes or until done, drain grease. While the meatballs are cooking, melt the butter and saute the garlic for about a minute. Add the remain ingredients and mix well. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer for 5 minutes, add meatballs and serve.

Apple Bread

I found this recipe on Le Petit Pierogi but she adapted it from Allrecipes.com but then I adapted it further so who knows if it is close at all to the original recipe. This was the perfect way to use up some lovely apples I had from a friend. This bread was really good, sweet but not overly sweet and you could really taste the apples in it.

3 Cups All Purpose Flour
3 Tsp. Cinnamon
1 Tsp. Baking Soda
1/2 Tsp. Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp. Salt
1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil
1 Cup White Sugar
1 Cup Brown Sugar, packed
2 Eggs, Beaten
1/2 Tsp. Vanilla
2 cups apples, peeled, cored and coarsely chopped
3 tbsp applesauce or apple juice

Heat oven to 350. In a mixing bowl combine flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In a separate bowl combine the vegetable oil, brown sugar, white sugar, eggs, apples and vanilla. Stir the wet mixture into the dry mixture. Add the applesauce. Divide the batter between two 8x4 greased bread pans. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until done. Cool in pan for 10 minutes then remove from pan and cool on rack.

Roasted Garlic Zucchini

This is a great and very very very simple recipe. I found it on Simply Recipes! This might be my new favorite way to fix Zucchini.

1 lb zucchini, cut into spheres
1 Tbsp fresh minced garlic clove
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat oven to 450. Lay the zucchini pieces on a foiled lined cookie sheet, skin down. Mix together the olive oil and garlic then spoon the mixture over the zucchini. Place in oven and check after 5 minutes, if it is not starting to get brown then cook for 2 to 5 more minutes. Once it is out of the oven season with salt and pepper.

Autumn Pork Tenderloin

This was a great way to cook pork tenderloin! It had great flavor without taking too much away from the actual tenderloin, it had a bit of a kick so beware but it was great! I found the recipe on the Tasty Kitchen.

½ cups Balsamic Vinegar
2 Tablespoons Pure Maple Syrup
3 Tablespoons Yellow Mustard
3 Tablespoons Garlic Salt, Divided
1 pound Lean Cut Pork Tenderloin
⅓ cups Brown Sugar
2 Tablespoons Ground Mustard
1 Tablespoon Paprika
1 Tablespoon Ground Black Pepper
1 Tablespoon Crushed Red Pepper Flakes

Mix together the first three ingredients and 1 tablespoon of garlic salt. Marinate the pork tenderloin for 24 hours. If this isn't possible try to marinate it for at least 3 hours. Mix together brown sugar, ground mustard, garlic salt, paprika, black pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes. Rub on the pork tenderloin and grill over medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes on each side.

Sausage Balls

My mom has made these for as long as I can remember! They are so easy and filling, perfect for a party or breakfast!

1 lb mild sausage

2 cups bisquick

10 oz shredded cheddar cheese

Mix all ingredients together with hands until well combined. Form small balls out of the mixture. Bake on a greased cookie sheet at 350 for 20 minutes.

Garlic Cheese Bread

Really, what's not to love about this? This was a lot of bread for two people, don't worry we didn't eat it all. But it would be perfect if we had company. Recipes is from food.com.

1 loaf Italian bread (halved lengthwise)
1/4 cup butter (melted)
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese (grated)
2 garlic cloves (minced)
1/4 teaspoon pepper
3/4 cup mozzarella cheese (shredded)

Mix together the butter, parmesan cheese, garlic and pepper. Spread on the bread. Top with mozzarella cheese and bake at 350 until the cheese is good and melted.

Crockpot Chicken Tortilla Soup

This was such an easy recipe. I love what I like to call "dump and go" crockpot recipes. I put everything in the crockpot before I left for work and when I got home dinner was done. Very little clean up and the house smelled awesome. This recipes is from The Sisters Cafe.

4 boneless skinless chicken breast
2 15-oz cans black beans, drained
2 15-oz cans Mexican stewed tomatoes (I couldn't find these so I just mixed in a teaspoon of chili powder with each can)
1 cup MEDIUM salsa (not mild)
1 4-oz can chopped green chilies
1 14 ½-oz can tomato sauce
Tortilla chips
2 cups grated cheddar cheese

Place the chicken breast in the bottom of the crockpot then add the black beans, stewed tomatoes, salsa, green chilies and tomato sauce. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours. Before serving remove the chicken breast and shred then add it back to the pot. Serve over tortilla chips and top with cheese.

Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes

Gray and I both love sweet potatoes and I am always looking for fun new ways to eat them. This was a lot easier than I thought it was going to be and they were awesome. They weren't overly sweet but perfectly creamy. It's also a super easy recipe to double or triple if you have a big family or are having company over. The recipe is from Lucy's Kitchen.

2 large sweet potatoes (baked)***
1/4 cup light cream cheese
2 tbsp milk
1 tbsp brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup chopped pecans (optional)

*** I bake my potatoes in the microwave, it's hard to bake potatoes when you are at work all day so this is my solution. You stab them with a fork usually about 5 different times in different spots on the potato then microwave for 6 minutes then flip and microwave for 6 more. If they are really large sometimes you have to do it a bit longer.

Cut the potatoes in half and scoop out the inside, keeping the skin intact. Add the cream cheese, milk, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Mash well to combine. Put the filling back into the potatoes, top with nuts if you so desire and bake for 15 to 20 minutes.

Apple Crumb Bars

I found this recipe on the Tasty Kitchen, I started to make it and half way through I got a little bit nervous that it might be really dry. Thankfully I was wrong, they were really good and tasted a lot like apple pie but so much easier to eat!

3 cups All-purpose Flour
¾ cups Packed Brown Sugar
¼ cups White Sugar
2 teaspoons Cinnamon
¼ teaspoons Of Salt
1 cup (2 Sticks) Cold Unsalted Butter, Cut Into Small Pieces
1 whole Egg

Filling:

½ cups Granulated Sugar
2 teaspoons Cornstarch
4 whole Medium-sized Apples Peeled, Cored, And Grated (I used granny smith)

Heat oven to 375. Grease a 9x13 pan.
In a mixing bowl combine the flour, brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon and salt. Mix together well. Work in the butter and egg with your hands or a pastry blender until it forms small clumps and no flour is remaining. Press half of the mixture into the bottom of the pan.

For the filling combine the grated apple, first squeeze out the extra liquid from the apples. Then combine the sugar and cornstarch then add to the apples and combine well. Spread this mixture out evenly over the crust. Crumble the remaining flour mixture on top of the filling. Bake for 30 minutes of until the tops are golden brown. Cool before cutting.

Roasted Vegetable Soup

This is yet another winner from Cassie Craves. It was so easy to put together and the great thing is you can just use whatever veggies you have left over or whatever appeals to you, it reminded me a lot of the Summer Garden Vegetable soup just with different veggies.

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon dried rosemary leaves, crushed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 cups sliced zucchini
1 red onion, halved lengthwise and chopped
1 medium red bell pepper, coarsely chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1/2 pound mushrooms, sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced (except I totally forgot this, sadly. it was still great though)
1 can vegetable broth or chicken broth (I used chicken)
3/4 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (I used dry)

Heat oven to 475 degrees. In a bowl, combine oil, rosemary, salt and pepper, and set aside. In large bowl, combine all vegetables. Add oil mixture to vegetables and mix to coat. Place vegetables in a single layer on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 30 minutes or until vegetables are golden brown and tender, flip and stir after 15 minutes. In large saucepan, combine roasted vegetables, cream, broth and parsley. Cook and stir over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes or until heated and slightly thickened.

Chicken with Mushroom Gravy

We ate this all the time growing up, it's one of my Dad's favorite meals! I don't make it that often because we still have it often when we are at their house. Mom has had the recipe forever so I have no idea where it came from.

6 Chicken Pieces (you can use any thing that is skinless and boneless)
1 Large Can of Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 Cup Sour Cream
1 Cup Fresh Mushrooms, Sliced

Heat oven to 350. Lay the pieces of chicken in a baking dish. In a separate bowl mix together cream of mushroom, sour cream and fresh mushrooms. Spoon the mixture over the chicken. Bake for 40 minutes to an hour depending on how thick your chicken is. Serve over rice.

Honey Glazed Carrots

This is an easy and great way to fix carrots. I adapted it from Le Petit Pierogi.

1 pound carrots
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp lemon juice
pinch of ground ginger
freshly ground pepper
salt

Boil the carrots with salt, cook until fork tender. Drain and add the carrots back with butter, honey, and lemon juice. Cook for 3 or 4 minutes then add the spices and cook for 3 or 4 more minutes. Serve warm.

Cheese Biscuits

These little guys were sooo easy and delicious. I love cheese biscuits and they just warmed my heart. Plus they are small and the recipe only made a dozen which is perfect, we had them with two meals and the reheated well too. The recipe is from Finding Joy in My Kitchen.

1 Cup Flour
2 1/2 Tsp Baking Powder
1/4 Tsp Salt
1/2 Cup Shredded Cheddar
1/4 + 1/8 Cup Milk
1/6 Cup Olive Oil (just do half of a 1/3 cup)

Heat oven to 400. Mix together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the cheese and stir well to coat with the flour mixture. Add in the oil and milk until the batter is moist then drop small spoonfuls of the mixture onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes. Serve warm.

Crockpot Cheesy Chicken and Rice

This is a super easy crockpot recipe, it was so good. I was sick the night that I made this and it was the perfect comfort food along with some biscuits. I found the recipe on The Southern Plate! The great thing is you can cook the rice ahead of time and just toss it in right before you serve it!

1 box Yellow Rice
1 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
1 can Cream of Chicken
1 Onion, diced
3 or 4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast
1 15oz can of corn (I didn't use this, it kinda freaked me out to be honest but I might try it next time)

Put your chicken in the bottom of the crockpot, toss your onion on top then spoon the cream of chicken over it. Cook on low for 7 to 8 hours or high for 3 to 4 hours. Add your cooked rice, corn and cheese, stir together and serve.

Lemon Garlic Broccolini

This is a great side to make. It was quick and very tasty! The recipe is from Ezra Pound Cake.

1 bunch broccolini
salt
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 lemon, zested
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Blanch the broccolini in boiling salt water for two minutes then remove (the original recipe says to soak it in ice water but I didn't do this step because I am lazy). While blanching the broccolini melt the butter in a saute pan, add lemon zest and garlic and stir. Then add the broccolini and cook for 2 minutes. Add the lemon juice, black pepper and salt, remove from heat and serve.

Creamy Tortellini with Spinach and Tomatoes

I found this awesome and easy recipe on Cassie Craves. It took almost no time and had great flavor. I love tortellini so I knew this was a good choice!

1 19-oz package frozen cheese tortellini
1 cup milk
5 oz cream cheese, cubed
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese, divided
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
6 oz baby spinach
1 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered

Heat together milk and cream cheese over medium heat until smooth. Meanwhile be cooking the tortellini. Add the parmesan cheese and black pepper and melt. Add the spinach and mix well. Drain pasta and add to the mixture then add the tomatoes and remaining parmesan and stir. Serve warm.

Melt in Your Mouth Pumpkin Cookies

I made these cookies for one of Gray and I's DVR and Dessert Date Nights and they are awesome! I cut the recipe in half because it makes 60 cookies and we did not need that many, I am going to post the full recipe though. The cookies are a bit cakey which totally works for this recipe. The icing is amazing, don't try to skimp and use a different icing because it won't be the same. Recipe is from Sweet Treats and More.


2 cups butter, softened
2 cups granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 15-ounce can pumpkin
4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2-3/4 cups powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 350. Beat together 2 cups of butter with mixer for 30 seconds on medium. Add granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg. Beat until combined, scraping down the bowl as you go. Add the eggs and 2 teaspoons of vanilla, beat until combined. Beat in the pumpkin. Beat in as much of the flour as you can then use a wooden spoon to mix in the rest (I used a spatula because that's what I had available). Drop the batter with a teaspoon 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool. In a small saucepan melt 1/2 cup of butter and brown sugar until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and add milk and 1 teaspoon of vanilla. Add the powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Spread over the cookies and enjoy!

Broccoli and Swiss Stuffed Chicken

As usual I had to chance up this recipe a little bit. It was great though and pretty easy! The original came from Tasty Kitchen and called for American Cheese as well but I don't normally have American so I didn't want to buy it just for this recipe.

4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast
1 Cup Shredded Swiss or 4 slices of Swiss
3/4 Cup of Chopped Broccoli (I used fresh)
1/2 Cup of All Purpose Flour
1 Egg
1/2 Cup of Breadcrumbs or Panko

Heat oven to 350. If chicken breast are not thin enough you can either butterfly them or flatten them, I butterflied them! Then add broccoli and 1/4 cup of cheese to each chicken breast and secure with toothpicks. In three separate bowls put the AP Flour, Egg (beaten) and Breadcrumbs. First dip the chicken in the flour, then the egg then the breadcrumbs. Repeat until all the chicken is done. Bake on a greased cookie sheet in the oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until done.

Cinnamon Swirl Bread

I love cinnamon muffins, bread, anything with cinnamon is great with me this bread was no different. It was easy to make and delicious to eat. In fact my Dad had a piece and told me to please never make it again because it was too good and must be evil. The recipe is from What Megan's Making.

1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans, toasted (i didn't toast them because I forgot, it was fine without toasting them)
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cup sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1 cup milk
1/3 cup canola oil

Heat oven to 350. Mix together the pecans, cinnamon and sugar, set to the side. In another bowl mix together the sugar, flour, baking powder and salt. In a separate bowl mix together the egg, milk and oil. Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and mix together. Spray and 9x5x3 pan and add half of the batter to the pan then add half of the cinnamon mixture, add the remaining batter then the remaining cinnamon mixture. Swirl with a knife and bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes then remove and let cool on a wire rack.

BBQ Meatballs

This is a pioneer woman recipe. They were really good and warm on a rainy night!

Meatballs
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
3/4 cup oats
1 cup milk
3 tbps finely minced onion
1 1/2 tsps salt
pepper to taste
1 cup all purpose flour
canola oil

Sauce
1 cup ketchup
2 tbsp sugar
3 tbsp vinegar
2 tbsp worchestershire sauce
4 to 5 tbsp onion
1 dash tabasco (or 3 if you are me)

Preheat oven to 350. Combine all ingredients for the meatballs and mix well then form into medium size balls and place onto a cookie sheet. Place the cookie sheet into the freezer for 5 minutes. After five minutes remove from freezer and coat all the meatballs in flour. Brown the meatballs in canola oil just until brown on the outside. Place meatballs in baking dish. Combine all ingredients for the sauce then pour over the meatballs. Bake for 45 minutes.

Crash Hot Sweet Potatoes

This is a play off of the regular crash hot potatoes which I have never made before but I am hoping to make soon. It was on the Tasty Kitchen site but I changed it up a bit according to the kinds of spices we had already.

2 Medium to Large Sweet Potatoes
1/2 tbsp Kosher Salt
2 tbsp Olive Oil
2 tbsp Melted Butter
1 1/2 tbsp Brown Sugar
1/2 tsp Ground Cumin
1 tsp Chili Powder
1/2 tsp Paprika
1/4 tsp Onion Powder
1/4 tsp Garlic Powder
1/2 tsp Black Pepper

Peel sweet potatoes and slice about 1/3 inch thick. Boil potatoes for about 12 minutes. Remove and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Slightly mash each slice but make sure the slice remains intact. Mix together the seasonings and in a separate bowl mix together the olive oil and butter. Coat each potato slice with the olive oil mixture then sprinkle generously with seasoning on both sides. Repeat until all slices are done. Roast at 450 for 20 minutes then carefully flip and roast for 10 more minutes.

Spicy Sausage Dip

This is my friend Leslie's recipe. It's so easy and I love easy (if you couldn't tell already). It's a great dip to take in the fall and winter!

1 lb hot sausage
3 8oz blocks cream cheese
2 cans rotel tomatoes

Brown the sausage and drain. Add the cream cheese and tomatoes and melt until everything is combined and warm. Either serve in a bowl and reheat in the microwave as needed or serve in a crock pot on the keep warm cycle.

Menu Plan Week 41

Sunday - Dinner for my sister in law's birthday!
Monday - Garlic and Herb London Broil with Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes and Roasted Asparagus with a Balsamic Brown Butter
Tuesday - Roasted Vegetable Soup with Cheesy Biscuits
Wednesday - Poppyseed Chicken Casserole with Broccoli
Thursday - GOING TO THE FAIR! (yes that deserves all caps! I will take pictures of the delicious heart attack food we eat!)
Friday - Plans with my parents!
Saturday - All depends on the football game and where we watch it. I am hoping to make these guys though Chicken Salad Stuff'ems

Pumpkin Waffles

I was going to use one recipe the decided it was too complicated and I was too tired to do it so I googled pumpkin waffles and ended up with an easy and amazing recipe from epicurious.com, these are perfect for a cold fall night or morning. I love breakfast for dinner so these were a huge hit for me!

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
2 1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
4 large eggs
1 cup whole milk
1 cup well-shaken buttermilk
1 cup canned solid-pack pumpkin
6 tbsp unsalted butter, melted

Sift together flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and cloves. In a separate bowl whisk together eggs, milk, buttermilk, pumpkin and butter. Add the dry ingredients until everything is incorporated. Brush oil or spray the waffle iron. Spoon batter into the waffle iron and cook accordingly.

Bistro Chicken

When I saw this recipe I knew it would be good but I didn't expect it to be as delicious and wonderful as it was. It was really good and so easy. It felt much fancier than it actually is. I already want it again and I just had it. I found the recipe on Tasty Kitchen and did make few changes so here is my version.

2 Tablespoons Butter
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
3 Chicken Breast (skinless, boneless)
1 teaspoon Salt
½ teaspoons Freshly Ground Black Pepper
½ cups Chopped Onion
1 can (14 1/2 Oz. Can) Diced Tomatoes, Undrained
1/2 teaspoon Dried Thyme Leaves
1 can (10.5 Oz. Can) Condensed French Onion Soup
1 cup Shredded Swiss Cheese

Heat oven to 375. In a nonstick skillet melt the butter and olive oil. Cook the chicken just until it has browned on either side then remove, it does not need to be cooked all the way through. Place the chicken in a baking dish. Add the onion and saute until it is soft and translucent, do not caramelize. Add the tomatoes, thyme, salt and pepper, cook until sauce has reduced a bit, about 5 minutes. Add the french onion soup and let the sauce cook for another 5 or so minutes. Pour sauce over chicken and cook in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove and sprinkle cheese over the chicken then place back in the oven until the cheese is melted.

Parmesan Crusted Asparagus

Gray and I both love asparagus but I am always looking for a new way to cook it. This was so easy after a long day and tasted far better than the little amount of time it took to make. The recipe, if you can even call it that, is from Eat at Allie's.

Asparagus
Butter
Shredded Parmesan Cheese
Salt and Pepper

Heat oven to 350. Break the ends off the asparagus and lay in a single file line on a foil lined baking pan. Salt and pepper the asparagus. Top with little pats of butter across the top of the asparagus row then top with parmesan cheese. Bake for 10 minutes and then broil until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Cheesy Zucchini Muffins

These were a great addition to dinner for a few nights! I was really excited about them then right before making them I got nervous. They ended up being very good and I'm glad I made them! The recipe is from Lucy's Kitchen.

2 cups flour
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground sage
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups grated unpeeled zucchini
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup oil
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Mix together flour, cheeses, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, sage, salt and garlic powder. In a separate bowl mix together the zucchini, buttermilk, eggs, oil and worchestershire. Add the zucchini mixture to the flour mixture and combine. Fill muffin cups and bake at 375 for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let stand in pan for 5 minutes then remove to cool. To reheat I would just put them in the oven for a few minutes with whatever else was cooking.

Bacon and Tomato Sandwich with Bacon Basil Mayo

This recipe is from Framed Cooks. When I saw it I knew it was something that my mom would love, so when Gray was going to be one night I decide to go to her house and make these sandwiches for dinner. My dad was home too and just made a regular BLT but then decided he wanted to try the "fancy mayo" as he called it, he proceeded to dip bacon into it over and over and over until I finally made him stop because there is just something wrong with dipping bacon into mayonnaise. Anyways final verdict = awesome. Great twist on an already great sandwich.

Bacon already fried
Tomatoes sliced
Bread toasted
Bacon Basil Mayo (recipe below)

Spread the bacon basil mayo on toasted bread, layer tomatoes and bacon on top then add mayo to the other slice of toasted bread and top the sandwich.

Bacon Basil Mayo

1/2 cup of mayo
1 slice of bacon crumbled
3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
Fresh cracked pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients together.

White Chicken Chili

This recipe is from The Girl Who Ate Everything, it is amazing. We had this the other night while watching a football game with friends and it was perfect, everyone loved it! I am already craving it again!

1 large onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup butter
4 cups half and half
1 1/2 cups of chicken broth
4 cans white beans
2-3 (4 oz) cans chopped green chilies
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts cooked and sliced into small pieces
2 cups grated Monterrey Jack cheese
1-2 tsp. hot sauce
1-2 tsp. of chili powder (depending how spicy you want it)
1 tsp. cumin

Cook onion and garlic in a few tablespoons of butter until translucent (I used 2 tablespoons). Remove the garlic and onions and add half a cup of butter and melt then add the half a cup of flour to make your roux. Stir constantly until it starts to bubble then stir for 3 more minutes. Add back the onion and garlic, also add the chicken broth and half and half. Simmer for 3 minutes or until it gets thick.

Pour mixture into a crockpot and add remain ingredients. The recipe says simmer for 20 minutes but I'm not sure how warm it would be after only 20 minutes. I put mine in the crockpot 2 hours before we were going to eat it and after 40 minutes I turned the crockpot to keep warm.

Ginger Chewies for National Homemade Cookie Day

Ginger cookies and snickerdoodle cookies are my favorites, I know I inherited this from my mom. Growing up we went skiing every winter, my dad and brother would ski every single day but mom and I would only ski 2 or 3 days the other days we would spend shopping and looking for a cookie store with these cookies so that we could sit and have hot chocolate and cookies out in the snow. Maybe I love these cookies so much because I relate them to that memory or maybe I love them so much because they are simply the best. I got the recipes off of What Megan's Making, they are wonderful and chewy and flavorful and my favorite cookies ever.


2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp cloves
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1/4 cup molasses
about 1/4 cup granulated sugar

Make sure the rack is in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 350. Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and cloves. In a separate bowl, cream together the brown sugar and butter until smooth then add the egg and molasses. Beat for about a minute until everything is incorporated and the color is even. Slowly add the flour mixture and slowly mix as you add it.

Make small balls out of the dough (you make them as small or large as you would like depending on the size of the cookie you want) and roll the balls in granulated sugar. Space them out giving them plenty of room to spread. Bake cookies until the tops are firm but the centers are still soft, they take about 14 minutes. (When they come out of the oven I like to sprinkle them with a little more sugar.) Cool the cookies on the baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer the cookies to a wire rack.

Brown Sugar Carrots

This is Gray's grandmother's recipes for carrots! They are so easy and very hard to mess up which is a perfect recipe in my book!

16 oz bag of carrots
2 1/2 tbsp butter
1/3 cup brown sugar

Bring a pot of water to a boil, add carrots. Boil until you can stick a fork in them. Drain out water and add butter and brown sugar. Stir together and let cook over low heat for 10 to 15 more mintues, stirring every few minutes. Serve warm.