Homemade Spaghetti Meat Sauce

Ingredients
2 Cloves Garlic- Minced
1/2 Onion- Chopped
1 Roma Tomato- Chopped
4 Tbsp Butter
4- 8 oz cans Tomato Sauce (2 no salt added, 2 regular)
2 Tbsp Oregano
1 Tbsp Pepper
3 Tbsp Lemon Juice
1/2 Tbsp Salt

for Meat
1 lb ground beef
1 tsp salt
1/2 T pepper

In a medium frying pan, sautee ground beef with salt and pepper until thoroughly cooked. Break into small pieces as it is browning. Reserve for sauce.

In a medium saucepot on medium heat start to melt butter. Add onions and cook, covered for 8-10 minutes or until they start to get soft. Add the garlic, lemon juice, tomatoes and all seasonings and cook for another 3-4 minutes, until the garlic starts to smell sweet. Then add the tomato sauce and meat and simmer for 10 minutes. During this time taste test it, salt/pepper to your taste.

Add to cooked pasta and enjoy. (At some point I'd like to make homemade pasta, so hopefully in the future (maybe over spring break) I'll get to try it). Yum.

Have a great day and God Bless.

Peanut Butter Chocolate chip pancakes

Ingredients
2 Cups Pioneer Baking Mix (+ 1/3 cup)
1 1/2 Cups Milk
2 Eggs
2 Tbsp Melted Butter
4 Tbsp Creamy Peanut Butter
Chocolate Chips

Makes 12-20 pancakes depending on size.

Before I tell you how to make these, first let me tell you that Pioneer Brand is bomb, yup it's amazing. It makes great biscuits and great pancakes as well. So if you haven't bought some, well, you should. ;)

Heat a pan or griddle over medium to medium high heat.

In a Large mixing bowl combine all ingredients EXCEPT Chocolate chips. Using a whisk, mix until smooth. They typical recipe from Pioneer Brand calls for 2 cups for a whole batch, I added another 1/3 cup because they were not thick enough because of the addition of peanut butter.

Spray your pan with cooking spray before each use. Pour Pancakes to your desired size. Then sprinkle a few chocolate chips on top (see below). Cook for 1-2 minutes each side, and only flip ONCE or your have extremely thin pancakes. And that just isn't fun!

Repeat, repeat and repeat, until you are all done ( I really NEED (want) a bigger pan, or a griddle).

These turned out fabulous, they had just enough peanut butter without being overwhelming. And they tasted like a Reese's Cup and really who wouldn't like that on a Saturday morning (or any morning for that matter!).

So make these for breakfast tomorrow morning!

Have a great weekend and God Bless!
p.s. if you have been stalking my blog, leave me a message/comment, it gets kind of boring over here on my side of the screen. That is all ;)

Chocolate Birthday Cake with Pink Buttercream frosting

Ingredients
From Betty Crocker's New Edition Cookbook
2 1/4 Cups All Purpose Flour
1 2/3 Cups Shugar
3/4 Cup Butter- softened
2/3 cup baking cocoa
1 1/4 cups water
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp baking powder
2 large eggs

Frosting Ingredients
From The Cake Doctor Book
1 stick butter at room temperature
3 3/4 cups confectioner's sugar
3-4 Tbsp milk
2 Tsp Vanilla Extract
5 Drops Food Coloring

Heat oven to 350*
Spray Pan ( I used a 12" springform) with Cooking spray/flour.

For Cake
In large bowl, add all ingredients and blend on low speed on low for 30 seconds until combined. Then on high for 3 minutes. Pour into pans.
Cook until a toothpick comes out clean roughly 35-40 minutes.

Cool for 1 hour on a wire rack.

To cut, take a serrated knife and mark the middle with small slices. Make deeper cuts as you go around. To finish take a 12" long piece of dental floss and slip through.
For Frosting
Put butter in a mixing bowl, blend with mixer on low until fluffy. Add the sugar, milk and vanilla and mix on low for 1 minute. Then turn speed up to medium for another minute until fluffy.

Place a dollop of the buttercream frosting in the middle of the 1st layer of cake. Spread LIGHTLY until it covers all of the cake. Now CAREFULLY place the top on the cake. Frost the sides and top of the cake, and TRY (really try, I did REALLY try, but alas, I need some work on my skills) to frost it all pretty like. *sigh*

Now take some sprinkles (or jimmy's if you prefer) and sprinkle them on top, take this to a friend for her birthday and enjoy celebrating with her!

Have a great night and God Bless!

Taco Pie

This was good, I adapted this recipe from here Tina at Mommy's Kitchen called this Nacho Pie but I switched some things around and we had a fab dinner.

Ingredients
1 Pillsbury Pie Crust
4 Handfuls (yes I know, very precise) Tortilla Chips
1 lb ground beef
1/2 onion sliced
1 can Rotel (original flavor)
1/2 can refried beans (heated)
3 Tbsp Sour Cream
2 Tbsp Water
1 Cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste

Serves 6

Ok are you ready for how easy this is?

Preheat oven to 350*

Roll out your pie crust into a pie tin. Take your handfuls of tortilla chips and squeeze them into little pieces and place in the bottom of your pie.


Take your ground beef, onions, salt and pepper and cook over medium (or medium high) heat until cooked through (about 10-12 minutes). Add 1 can of Rotel to the beef and onion mixture, mix together. Pour the mixture into the pie tin on top of the tortilla chips.


In a bowl take your refried beans, water and sour cream and mix together until combined.
Pour on top of the pie and spread out so it covers the pie. Add 1 cup cheese on top and place in the oven for 30 minutes or until cheese is melted and pie crust is golden.


This turned out great! The spiciness from the Rotel was PERFECT it didn't overwhelm the dish at all which was nice. The refried beans and sour cream mixture pulled it all together. We served this with some broccoli (hey you gotta get your greans!) You should definitely make this. It's easy and tastes great!

Have a great Saturday and God Bless!

ps it's ok to be pleased that my picture taking skills are getting better (I know they still aren't great, but I'm learning!)

Giveaways on other blogs

Over at Priscilla's Baking Adventures she is giving away some super cute shirts. Go take a look and perhaps you will get a chance to win!

http://priscillabakes.blogspot.com/

Good Luck and God Bless!

Chicken with Peppers, Olives and Onions

Ingredients
2 Chicken Breasts, sliced into strips
1 Green Bell pepper, sliced into strips
1 Medium Onion, sliced into strips
1/2 Can Black Olives, slivered
1 clove Garlic, minced
Salt and Pepper to taste
Oil

Serves 2

Heat a Grill Pan or Sautee Pan on Medium High Heat. Salt and Pepper Chicken and toss with oil.
Add to pan and cook for 6-8 minutes each side until cooked through.

In another pan over medium heat, add 3 Tbsp oil, then add peppers and onions. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally until onions become translucent. Add garlic and olives and cook for another 2 minutes until garlic becomes pungent and sweet smelling.

Spoon vegetables over chicken and enjoy.

We really liked how the vegetables turned out, they were sweet and garlicky but the garlic was pungent and really went well with the black olives. The pepper was a nice balance.

God Bless!

Penne with Garlic Tomato Butter Sauce

Ingredients
1 Package Penne Pasta (I used bowties as well)
2 cloves garlic minced
3 Tomatoes chopped (I would have used about 5 but didn't have that many) or 2 cans
1 Can Cannellini Beans Drained
1 Bunch Asparagus- Chopped into pieces
1/3 Cup Parmesan Cheese
8 Tbsp Butter Melted
2 Tbsp Oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

Serves: 3 as a meal; 4-6 as a side dish

In a medium pot boil water and cook pasta to desired tenderness.

Chop all vegetables and set aside.

Boil water and blanche asparagus (1.5 minutes), drain.

In a sauce pan, add 2 Tbsp Oil on medium heat. Add tomatoes and garlic to pan, cook for 3 minutes and add cannellini beans. Heat for another 3 minutes. Add asparagus to the pot.


Melt 8 Tbsp Butter, add all vegetables, parmesan cheese and pasta and mix together.

This made me happy when it was cooking, it smelled like Tortellini Paloma from the Family owned Italian Restaurant that I used to work at. This turned out really well and the parmesan cheese had enough bite that it balanced out the sweetness in the butter and tomato garlic mixture. Yum.
Enjoy and God Bless!

Chicken and Mashed Potato Bake

So as I was racking my brain for something to make tonight, I just kinda threw this together. It reminded hubby and I a wee bit of shepherd's pie.

Ingredients
3 Chicken Breasts - Cut into bite sized pieces
1 1/2 cups Broccoli
2 Cups Spinach
2 Large Russet Potatoes
1/2 Cup Cheddar Cheese
1 Egg- Beaten
Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 375*

In a medium pot, boil water, add potatoes and cook until fork tender.

In a grill pan or skillet over medium high heat cook your chicken until it is no longer pink, add season salt and pepper to taste.

You are almost done. Yup, already. I know. It's fabulous!

Take your potatoes, add about a 1/4 cup of milk and beat until they are mashed potatoes.

Now take a 13 x 9 baking dish. Place your chicken on the bottom, then add a layer of raw broccoli, a layer of raw spinach and a layer of cheese.

Now evenly spread dollops of mashed potatoes on top and using the back of a wooden spoon or a spatula smooth so it covers the top of the entire dish.

Take your beaten egg and spread over the top of the mashed potatoes, this will cause it to brown while you cook.

Put into your preheated oven set to 375* (alright, I'm now adding that to the top, but just so you know, I forgot to put it in before...yeesh)

Cook for 20-25 minutes until potatoes are starting to lightly brown.

Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes.

We liked this but I think it needed something, I'm thinking it was garlic, but I'm not positive, it just didn't have that oomph. hmmm....

Serve and relax, there is just something about comfort food that makes the day better!

God Bless!

Breakfast Burrito's- Breakfast For Dinner

Sometimes breakfast for dinner is just what you need. It gives you a break from the normalcy of dinner time food and who doesn't like breakfast?

I had been planning on making sausage for dinner. But a friend stopped over to visit hubby and while they were gone I cooked dinner. Thinking that I wanted to invite our friend to stay for dinner and seeing that there wasn't going to be enough sausage for two hungry men and one hungry woman (who.can.eat.alot.) I decided to make breakfast burrito's.

Ingredients
3 sweet sausages
3 Red potatoes- Chopped into small squares
9 eggs (4 egg whites/ 5 whole)
Tortillas
Cheese
Salsa
Salt, Pepper and Paprika (to taste)

Put a pot of water on to boil for the potatoes (boil them for 4 minutes and then drain).

Heat a skillet on medium high heat and add your sausage, cook until brown. Remove from pan and place on a plate with a paper towel.

Leaving all the sausage grease in the bottom of the pan add 4 Tbsp of butter to the pan and melt on medium high heat. Then add your par boiled potatoes to the pan add salt, pepper and paprika and cover. Stirring occasionally until browned on all sides.

Now for the eggs, break your eggs into a separate bowl and whisk until smooth (I usually use a bit of milk in mine). Pour into a pan heated over medium heat. Stirring occasionally until lightly scrambled.

Now grab a tortilla, add your sausage, eggs, cheese (optional) and salsa (optional)- try your best to fold it up and enjoy!

God Bless and remember to be thankful for all that you have, it is easy to forget.

Spicy Chicken and Potato Soup

Crockpot Thursday(yes I know I'm publishing it sunday!)

mmm this soup turned out amazingly well and with a nice firm kick as well!

Ingredients
2 Chicken Breasts (boneless, skinless) cut into bite sized pieces
4 stalks Broccoli (just the stalks)
1 Bell Pepper (I used Green)
1 Medium Onion (chopped)
2 Medium/Large Red Potatoes (chopped)
3 Cloves Garlic, Minced
1 Can Original Rotel (Tomatoes and Green Chilies)
Salt and Pepper to taste ( about 1 T each)
1 Tbsp Chicken Bouillon
4 Cups Water

In a Medium pot bring water to boil. Take your Chicken pieces and boil them until they are cooked through. Take Chicken pieces out of the water with a slotted spoon. Turn the water down on low and let simmer for 40 minutes. This becomes your base for the soup.

Chop up all of your vegetables. Here's how to do the broccoli stalks. I bet you looked at the ingredients and thought this lady is nuts. Well I'm not. The inside of the stalks are very good you just have to take off the outsides. So take a knife and remove all of the darker fibrous outside until you get to a lighter, non-fibrous inside. Do this on all 4 stalks and then chop the insides up and add to the crock pot. This will make you feel good because you won't be throwing them away like you usually do ;) more for your money!


Toss everything into the crockpot, including the broth that has been simmering. Add 4 more cups of water and 1 T of chicken bouillon and your can of Rotel. Stir, cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 4.

Now be careful. This has a big kick. If you don't like things that make your mouth burn you might want to try mild rotel, or just switch out for regular tomatoes. If you like things that make smoke come out your ears you could get the hot Rotel. This was about as hot as I could go and hubby thought it was perfect!

God Bless!

Easy Chicken Stirfry

ok, ok, I know I've been a terrible blogger over the last week. It's been super busy, so I just haven't had time to upload some meals, but I have been cooking.

Ingredients
2 Chicken Breasts (boneless, skinless)
4 cups fresh spinach
2 heads of broccoli (cut into florets)
1 Medium Onion- sliced
3 Cloves garlic- minced
1/2 Tsp Ginger
Canola Oil
Salt and Pepper

To start cut your chicken breast into bite size pieces (at this point you can leave them a little larger and as they cook you can break them up more if you like), toss in a medium size bowl with a few tablespoons of canola oil and some salt and pepper. Add the chicken to a large preheated (to medium high) skillet. Cook for about 3-4 minutes each side until cooked through. Then turn down to low until your veggies are finished. At then end toss some teriyaki/soy sauce in with the chicken for the last few minutes.


In another pan (over medium heat) add 1-2 T of Canola oil and add your chopped onion and broccoli florets, add your ginger on top. Cover the pan and cook on medium for about 6-8 minutes stirring occasionally until the broccoli and onions are cooked through but still slightly firm. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute before adding in all of the spinach.


Now if you haven't cooked with spinach before it goes from looking like a whole bunch to looking like very little. So when you add your 4 cups of spinach it WILL overtake the pan. But keep pushing it around and let it get down to the heat and it will start to cook and wilt very quickly.

Once the spinach is wilted. Spoon some vegetables and chicken over white rice add some more teryaki and enjoy!

God bless!