Candy Cinnamon Almonds

I could eat these all day!  They are so easy to make. 
1/4 Cup water
1 Cup Sugar
1 T Cinnamon
3 Cups Almonds
Mix the water, sugar, and cinnamon in a pan.  Toss in the almonds and cook over med heat, stirring the whole time.  We halved the recipe and it turned out fine.  (But we did make two batches.)  Pat wanted the almonds to have more of a toasted flavor so he broiled them after.  This is a BAD idea.  It re-melted the sugar and it hardened when it cooled.  Here are some pictures of them cooking.  They turn fast, so don’t walk away!

Banana Nut Bread

• 1/2 cup Miracle Whip
• 1 egg
• 1 1/3 cup mashed bananas
• 1 1/2 cup flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt

Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Beat egg, dressing and bananas in large bowl with whish until blended.  Mix remeaining ingredients. Add to banana mixture; stir until just blended.
Pour into 9x5 loaf pan sprayed with cooking spray.
Bake 1 hour or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool in pan 10 minutes; remove to wire rack and cool completely.

One Pot Wonder Tomato Basil Pasta

This was so easy to make and tasted fantastic! What else could you want in a dinner recipe? I used chicken broth instead of vegetable broth. The best part was the freshly grated Parmesan cheese on top (the kind you find in the refrigerated cheese section). It definitely brought just the right flavor. I highly recommend making this. I am definitely adding this to my rotating meals.

ONE POT WONDER TOMATO BASIL PASTA

Serves 4 to 6 as an entree

12 ounces linguine pasta
1 can (15 ounces) diced tomatoes with liquid ( I used zesty red pepper flavor)
1 large sweet onion, cut in julienne strips
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons dried oregano leaves
2 large sprigs basil, chopped
4 1/2 cups vegetable broth (regular broth and NOT low sodium)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Parmesan cheese for garnish

Place pasta, tomatoes, onion, garlic, basil, in a large stock pot. Pour in vegetable broth. Sprinkle on top the pepper flakes and oregano. Drizzle top with oil.

Cover pot and bring to a boil. Reduce to a low simmer and keep covered and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes or so. Cook until almost all liquid has evaporated – I left about an inch of liquid in the bottom of the pot – but you can reduce as desired .

Season to taste with salt and pepper , stirring pasta several times to distribute the liquid in the bottom of the pot. Serve garnished with Parmesan cheese.

Crockpot Minestrone

I love this recipe, although it is more like a vegetable soup than a minestrone, in my opinion. Don't leave out the zucchini, they are the best part.

Also, thank you for putting up with a ton of food posts from me.

Crock Pot Minestrone Soup

• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1 cup carrots, chopped
• 1 celery stalk, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
• 1 (15 oz) can white beans, drained, rinsed (cannellini or navy)
• 3 cups fat free chicken broth (or vegetable broth for vegetarians)
• 1 oz chunk of good Parmesan cheese rind
• 1 fresh rosemary sprig
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh basil
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
• salt and fresh pepper
• 1 medium zucchini, chopped
• 2 cups chopped fresh or frozen (defrosted) spinach
• 2 cups cooked small pasta like ditalini or elbows (al dente)
• extra Parmesan cheese to top (extra pts)

Rinse and drain beans. Puree beans with 1 cup of the broth in a blender.

In a crock pot, combine broth, tomatoes, pureed beans, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, herbs, Parmesan cheese rind, salt and pepper. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.

Forty minutes before the soup is done cooking, add zucchini and spinach. Cover and cook 30 more minutes. Add cooked pasta, cook 10 minutes more. Remove bay leaves, rosemary sprig, Parmesan rind and season to taste with salt and black pepper.Ladle soup into bowls and top with extra Parmesan cheese.

S’more Brownies

Pat traded a batch of ooey gooey brownies for a gym pass…  I know, go figure.  Anyway, these are the brownies he came up with…  S’more Brownies.  If you are looking for a pan filled with a days worth of calories… this is your ticket.  They were so good!!!  He just baked a pan of brownies according to the directions of the box.  Then he topped them with marshmallows, chocolate chips and crumbled up graham crackers.  He then put the pan back in the oven under the broiler to melt and brown the marshmallows.  Oh.  My.  We had to hurry and take a picture before they were devoured!  I mean… look at the smile on Claire’s face as she eats her piece.  That says it all. 

Lemon Strawberry Sorbet

Last Sorbet Recipe! I promise! This one was good, but it tasted a lot like freezer strawberry jam. A little too similar.

We ranked our favorite sorbets tonight and surprisingly, this is how they ranked:

#1 - Lemon Sorbet

#2 - Raspberry Sorbet

#3 - This one (Strawberry Sorbet)

Here's the recipe:

Strawberry Sorbet

1 lemon, seeded and roughly chopped

2 cups sugar
2 pounds strawberries, hulled
Juice of 1 to 2 lemons

1. Place the chopped lemon and sugar in a food processor, and pulse until combined. Transfer to a bowl.
2. Puree the strawberries in a food processor, and add to the lemon mixture, along with the juice of 1 lemon. Taste and add more juice as desired. The lemon flavor should be intense but should not overpower the strawberries. Pour the mixture into an ice cream machine and churn until frozen.

Guacamole Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Not my picture. This one
had tomatoes in the guacamole.
Mine did not.

I love guacamole and this 'recipe' sounded fantastic to me. So, while Makayla was eating bacon and pears, her 2 favorite foods, I made myself one of these. It did not disappoint. I had to make myself a second. I think this may be my new favorite food. I do love avocados and guacamole, (as evident in the fact that I even made this pie recipe) but if you don't like avocados then you won't like this. It was gooey, creamy perfection.

Here's the 'recipe'.

1. Heat a griddle to medium heat. Butter both sides of bread (yes, you knew this recipe had to have butter in it somewhere). Place bread on griddle until toasted, then flip over. Add cheese to warm side of bread. Continue cooking bread with cheese, until it's melted. Remove from griddle and spread guacamole on top of melted cheese. Put sides together and enjoy. Then make another one.

Southwest Chopped Chicken Salad

Here's another recipe to use your shredded precooked chicken.

I loved this because it was so fresh! The dressing was really good, too! I needed to make more, and so I substituted sour cream for the Greek yogurt.

(this is not my picture)

This one is, though.

Ingredients

for the salad:
• 2 cups shredded chicken
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1 can black beans, rinsed
• 1 can sweet yellow corn (or 1 cup frozen corn, thawed)
• 2 roma tomatoes, diced
• 4 green onions, sliced
• 1 head ice berg lettuce, washed and chopped
• 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
• 2 ripe avocados, diced
• 1 cup crushed tortilla chips

Dressing

for the dressing:
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 2/3 cup Greek yogurt
• 1 tbsp ranch seasoning
• 1 tbsp taco seasoning

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine all salad ingredients together, excluding the tortilla chips.
2. In a small bowl stir all dressing ingredients together.
3. Pour dressing over salad, starting with about half of the dressing.
4. Toss to combine, then gradually add more dressing until it is dressed to your liking.
5. Top with tortilla chips. Enjoy!

Chocolate Sorbet

I'm currently on a huge sorbet kick! I love it! Especially Raspberry! Actually, maybe I'm just in love with my new ice cream maker. So far, we've made homemade ice cream and sorbet at least a dozen times! Recently, I tried coconut sorbet, which was good and thick and creamy, but nothing to write home about (or post on a blog). So, when I saw this chocolate sorbet, I had to try it!

Oh, and I wanted it to be soooo good. I mean, it's chocolate! How can it not be great? I even took lots of photos to document this dessert. But when I tried the finished product it left me wanting to eat something else and not something with chocolate in it.

It's made from a lot of semisweet chocolate and unsweetened cocoa powder. Because it's sorbet it does NOT have any milk in it. So there it is. I should have known I wasn't going to be in love with it. Semisweet chocolate and no milk. It tastes just like it sounds. Don't get me wrong. It tastes very chocolatey. Just the wrong kind of chocolate.

Chocolate Sorbet

2 1/4 cups (555 ml) water

1 cup (200 g) sugar
3/4 cup (75 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
Pinch of salt
6 ounces (170 g) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a large saucepan (yes, you must use a large one or it will bubble over. Trust me.), whisk together 1 1/2 cups (375 ml) of the water with the sugar, cocoa powder, and salt. Bring to a boil, whisking frequently. Let it boil, continuing to whisk, for 45 seconds.

Remove from the heat and stir in the chocolate until it’s melted, then stir in the vanilla extract and the remaining 3/4 cup (180 ml) water. Transfer the mixture to a blender and blend for 15 seconds.

Chill the mixture thoroughly, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. If the mixture has become too thick to pour into your machine, whisk it vigorously to thin it out. 

*Recipe from one of my favorite cooking blogs, Smitten Kitchen.

Broccoli and Cheese Soup

My gouda! Jayson said that this was his favorite soup ever! In fact, he ranked it as the best dinner we've had in the last 2 weeks. The kids compared it to their favorite soup at Panera, and actually said it was better. But that's probably because my kids always say nice things about dinner.

I didn't take a picture until it was almost gone. Oops! Guess we'll have to make it again.

what's in it?

2 bunches of fresh broccoli [cut and chop the tops]
4 cups chicken broth

2 cup of shredded carrots

1 onion [chopped]
2 large cloves of garlic, minced

1 bay leaf

2 cups half and half 

6 TBSP all purpose flour
6 TBSP butter

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp allspice

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp dried basilsalt and pepper, to taste

1 cup of sharp cheddar cheese, plus plenty extra for topping [freshly grated]

2 cups of regular gouda cheese [freshly grated, rind removed]

get cooking!Add your broth to a pot on medium-high heat, add your 2/3 of your broccoli [about 2 cups of florets] as well as your carrots, onion, garlic, and bay leaf.  Simmer on medium, covered, for about 15-20 minutes or until the veggies are tender. 

Once the broth is done, start your roux.  In a large pot, melt 6 tablespoons of butter on medium heat, whisking constantly.  Once melted, slowly add 6 tablespoons of flour as you continue to whisk.  Remove from heat and slowly pour in the broth from your veggie mixture  and stir to incorporate.  Next pour in the veggies and slowly stir in 2 cups of half and half.  Return to the burner on very low heat, uncovered.   Spoon out the bay leaf and season with the herbs and spices, adding a little extra of whichever you like to taste.  Once the soup has warmed back up, stir in the grated cheeses and remove from heat immediately.

Tortellini in Creamy Rosé Sauce

I really loved the flavor of this pasta sauce. It was very flavorful and smooth. The best part of it, though, was that I left to pick Jayna up from play practice and when I came home, Jayson was home and finishing dinner! I had to document it with a photo.

Tortellini in Creamy Rosé Sauce

Here's what you need to make it:

• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 2 cups spaghetti sauce
• 1 pkg (20 oz) refrigerated tortellini
• 1 (10 oz) pkg Philadelphia Cooking Creme (I used Italian Cheese and Herb - see photo)
• 4  cups fresh spinach
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese 

 Heat oil in large saucepan on medium heat. Add onion and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in broth and spaghetti sauce. Bring to a boil.
Add pasta; stir. Cover; cook on medium heat for 5 minutes. Stir occasionally  Add cooking creme. Cook and stir 3 more minutes. Cover; cook 5 minutes or until pasta is tender, stirring occasionally.
Stir in Spinach; cook covered 1 minute, or until wilted. Remove from heat, top with Parmesan.

Enjoy with a large slice of French Bread! Yum!

This sauce reminded me of another sauce that I love. Here's that recipe, too!

Farfalle with Sausage, Tomatoes and Cream

• 
  
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 pound sausage
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes with added puree
• 1/2 cup whipping cream

• 1 pound farfalle (bow-tie pasta)
• 1/2 cup (packed) chopped fresh basil
• Freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese

Heat oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add sausage. Sauté until sausage is no longer pink, breaking up with back of fork, about 5 minutes. Add onion and garlic; sauté until onion is tender and sausage is browned, about 3 minutes longer. Add tomatoes and cream. Reduce heat to low and simmer until sausage mixture thickens, about 3 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to bite. Drain, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid. Return pasta to same pot. Add sausage mixture and toss over medium-low heat until sauce coats pasta, adding reserved cooking liquid by 1/4 cupfuls if mixture is dry. Transfer pasta to serving dish. Sprinkle with basil. Serve, passing cheese separately.

Cilantro Lime Chicken Tacos

I've seen this picture/recipe posted on Pinterest quite a few times, so I thought I'd give it a try. Except, instead of using my crockpot, I put all the ingredients in a pan with my precooked shredded chicken. It made up so fast! It was really good, and we finished it all off. I did add more lime juice than it asked for, and I thought it needed some salt.

Here's how I made it: (for the crockpot version, click here)

2 cups cooked shredded chicken
4 Tbs lime juice
1 bunch of cilantro, chopped
1(16 oz) bag of frozen corn
1/2 red onion, chopped
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 tsp cumin
salt and pepper to taste

I put all the ingredients in a large saucepan and heated it on medium-low until everything was nice and hot.

When it was heated thoroughly, I served it on warm tortillas with cheese, salsa and sour cream. Jayson gave it 2 thumbs up and said it tasted a little like Chipotle w/o the rice (which, he added, wasn't missed). I don't think I would make this in a crockpot . . . but if someone does will you let me know how it turns out?

Weekly Menu

I love finding things that make life easier.

Before I go grocery shopping, I pick 7 meals for the week. This not only helps me with my shopping, it saves me money and makes it easier to decide what's for dinner. Win-Win-Win! What makes this even easier is a list of meals by season (summer vs winter). I keep a copy in my purse and one on my fridge. This makes picking meals for the week lots easier.

I find it easier to NOT assign meals to days, which gives me a little more flexibility if our schedules change. I found this cute weekly menu planner and thought I would share it. I don't know where I got it from originally, but if you want a copy I'll email you a PDF. Just let me know.

Raspberry Sorbet

Holy Cow! This was amazing!! I know that by telling you how much I absolutely loved this, that I'll be setting your expectations super high; but I think that this recipe will totally live up to it's expectations. It was so delicious!!

Forget that Lemon Sorbet recipe I gave you a while ago. It's no good. You are only going to want to make this Raspberry Sorbet every week from now until eternity! Wowza!

I made this in my ice cream maker, but if you don't have one, you could probably make this similarly to the instructions for lemon sorbet.

Makes 5 cups (ten 1/2 cup servings)

• 2 cups water
• 1 1/2 cups sugar

Prepare a simple syrup with the water and sugar by combining both in a saucepan set on medium low heat. Cook until sugar is fully dissolved.

• pinch of salt
• 4 cups frozen raspberries, thawed

Add the raspberries and salt. 

Blend until smooth. Strain the mixture (half at a time) through a fine mesh strainer to remove the seeds. Use a spatula to help. Cover and refrigerate 2-3 hours (or overnight).

 

Pour into ice cream maker and let mix until thickened. (about 15-20 minutes). Serve!

Stuffed Blueberry French Toast

1 loaf of french bread cut into squares

8 eggs

8 oz cream cheese

1 1/2 cups milk
1/3 cup of sugar

3/4 cup of maple syrup

1 1/2 cups of blueberries

1 tsp vanilla

cinnamon

6 Tbs butter

Coat a 13 x9 inch baking dish with cooking spray. 

Layer one half of the bread cubes in baking dish.  

Cream together sugar and cream cheese and drop spoonfuls over bread.  Layer blueberries over cream cheese.  Cover the blueberries with remaining bread.  Sprinkle generously with cinnamon.  Mix remaining ingredients and pour over bread.  Press bread with spatula to help soak up mixture.  

Cover and refrigerate overnight.  

Bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes.  Servers 8.

Chicken Enchiladas!

You have to try these! They were delicious!

Here's what mine really looked like - I blame the lighting in my house. 

• 3 cups cooked chicken, shredded
• 2 cups shredded Monterrey Jack Cheese
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 (4.5 oz) can chopped green chiles. Drained.
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 8 flour tortillas
• vegetable cooking spray
• 1 8-oz container sour cream
• 1 8-oz bottle green taco sauce (I used half a bottle of La Victoria brand sauce- see pic)
• Toppings: diced tomatoes, chopped avocado, chopped green onions, sliced olives, cilantro

Make it!

Stir together first 5 ingredients. Spoon chicken mixture evenly over each tortilla, and roll up. Arrange in a lightly greased 13- x 9-inch baking dish. Coat tortillas with vegetable cooking spray.

1. Bake at 350° for 35 to 40 minutes or until golden brown. (Mine didn't need this long. I would cook them 20 minutes and then check on them.)
2. Stir together sour cream and taco sauce. Spoon over hot enchiladas, and sprinkle with toppings.

My Latest Time Saving Tip

Sometimes life is just way too busy. And sometimes that means that dinner is the last thing on my mind. So I found a way to still get a good meal during the week - I cook my chicken ahead of time, so it's ready to be added to dishes without much prep time.

I know. It's nothing really new or innovative. But I thought it might help you, too.

First, I put all my chicken in the crockpot. Frozen. All at once. My crockpot can hold quite a bit, so I fill it full. I turn it on to high and let it cook about 3 hours. (*crockpot cook times may vary. Mine seems to run on the hot side). Without any effort at all, I have a crockpot full of cooked chicken breasts! Yay!

Second, I take the chicken breasts, trim them of any fat and stick 2 or 3 into my mixer. Then using the paddle accessory, I turn it on for a few seconds. This easily shreds the chicken.

Don't run your mixer too long, or the chicken will get shredded into small tiny pieces. It only takes a few seconds. Don't overdo it!

Then I take my shredded chicken and put it in a tupperware and repeat with the remaining chicken. I can put it in the fridge or freeze it.

Now, I can use my shredded chicken for all kinds of recipes cutting dinner prep time in half. *(Actual time saved has not really been measured. But I feel like dinner has been lots easier.)

Some dinner ideas for your shredded chicken:

• Fajitas (just saute some onions and peppers, heat up the chicken in a skillet with seasonings, and you are ready to go south of the border in seconds!)
• Chicken Salad Sandwiches
• Southwest Chopped Chicken Salad
• Cilantro Lime Chicken Tacos
• Chicken Enchilada Pasta - just heat up the sauce and cook the pasta. Add the chicken and you are ready to go!
• Chicken Noodle Soup 
• Teriyaki Chicken
• Chicken Pot Pie
• Haystacks
• These delicious Chicken Enchiladas

*also, I save the broth from the chicken and strain it and use it for homemade chicken noodle soup.  Win-win-win!