Remember that commercial where the mom makes something quick and easy, then streaks flour on her face and clothes to make her family think she worked hard to make it? This cake tastes like it is complicated and time-consuming to make, but the reality is it's very simple. But, I won't tell on you if you choose to smudge a little flour on your face and/or clothes to impress your mother-in-law.
Piña Colada Cake:
1 box yellow or white cake mix
4 tsp. coconut extract
1 pkg. instant vanilla pudding
1 can crushed pineapple, drained
1 tub cool whip
1/4 c. toasted coconut
Prepare cake mix as directed on the package. (Again, I add one extra egg and 1/4 c. more oil to get a heavier cake.) Add 3 tsp. coconut extract to batter and stir well. Pour into two greased and floured round cake pans. Bake as directed on the package. Let the cakes cool completely before continuing. (Otherwise, all the good stuff will melt off!) Once the cakes are cool, prepare the pudding as directed on the package. Add the remaining 1 tsp. of extract and stir well. Fold in well-drained pineapple. Place one cake on a serving platter. (If you put the cake on the plate upside down, it gives you a flat surface to work with and yields a more presentable final product.) Spread the entire pudding mixture on top of that cake, then top that with the second cake. Frost the whole two-layered beauty with cool whip. Refrigerate about 1 hour to let it set up. Right before serving, sprinkle the toasted coconut over the cake. Don't forget to splash some water on your forehead (to look like sweat) and smear flour on yourself before you take this out to impress your guests!
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Biscuits and Gravy
Good ol' country cooking... fast. Seems impossible, but it's true. My grandma used to make biscuits and gravy for breakfast when my sisters and I would stay the night. I LOVED having that for breakfast, but I couldn't believe how much time my grandma spent making it. Not that making biscuits from scratch isn't worth the time you spend doing it, but they really do make some pretty awesome biscuits in a can now... that you can just pull out of your fridge when you need them... and the kids like to open them because the can explodes... and who am I to deny kids having fun with explosions first thing in the morning?!? Here's how I make that good ol' country breakfast:
Biscuits and Gravy:
One can biscuits
1 lb. ground sausage
milk (whole milk makes the best gravy)
flour
salt and garlic pepper, to taste
Bake the biscuits as directed on the can. Brown the sausage in a large saucepan. (Don't drain it! You want the drippings for your gravy. It's not country food if it doesn't clog your arteries!) Add milk to the pan. (Notice how I didn't say how much milk? It really depends on the size of the pan you're using and how meaty you want your gravy. I usually use about 3 cups when I make this.) Heat this to almost boiling over medium-high heat, then stir very well to make sure stuff isn't sticking to the bottom. Add a little bit of flour and continue stirring. (You want to add the flour a little (about 1 Tbsp.) at a time. It's always easier to add more flour than try to get your gravy thin again because you've added too much.) Continue adding a little flour until the gravy is the consistency you like. Once it's as thick as you want it, turn the heat off. Add salt and garlic pepper until it tastes how you want it to taste. Split the biscuits in half on your plate and smother them with the gravy. Mmmmm... sorry grandma, but you've gotta love modern convenience when it tastes like this!
Biscuits and Gravy:
One can biscuits
1 lb. ground sausage
milk (whole milk makes the best gravy)
flour
salt and garlic pepper, to taste
Bake the biscuits as directed on the can. Brown the sausage in a large saucepan. (Don't drain it! You want the drippings for your gravy. It's not country food if it doesn't clog your arteries!) Add milk to the pan. (Notice how I didn't say how much milk? It really depends on the size of the pan you're using and how meaty you want your gravy. I usually use about 3 cups when I make this.) Heat this to almost boiling over medium-high heat, then stir very well to make sure stuff isn't sticking to the bottom. Add a little bit of flour and continue stirring. (You want to add the flour a little (about 1 Tbsp.) at a time. It's always easier to add more flour than try to get your gravy thin again because you've added too much.) Continue adding a little flour until the gravy is the consistency you like. Once it's as thick as you want it, turn the heat off. Add salt and garlic pepper until it tastes how you want it to taste. Split the biscuits in half on your plate and smother them with the gravy. Mmmmm... sorry grandma, but you've gotta love modern convenience when it tastes like this!
Chocolate Cherry Upside Down Cake
I have very vivid memories of eating my mother's pineapple upside down cake... smothered with melting cool whip... spooning up every last drop of yumminess off the plate (and honestly, I was only using my spoon because my mother wouldn't let me lick the plate clean, if she happened to turn her back, the spoon was left on the table... yeah, seriously. Please don't tell her that though. I was a kid! I didn't have the patience to use a spoon on that stuff!) Man, that dessert was fantastic! I'm definitely not bashing my mother's delicious cake, but one day I just needed to try something different. This is what I came up with.
Chocolate Cherry Upside Down Cake:
One box chocolate cake mix (try dark chocolate or devil's food)
One can cherry pie filling
4oz cream cheese, room temperature
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. vanilla
Prepare the cake mix as directed on the box. (I usually add one more egg and 1/4 c. more oil than what is called for. I like heavier cake, and that seems to do the trick.) Pour the pie filling into the cake pan and spread evenly. Combine the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla, then plop it on top of the pie filling in the pan. (The first time I did this, I was very particular about spreading and layering carefully... I'll give you a tip: Don't waste your time doing that! The pie filling and cream cheese melt together when the cake is baking, no matter how meticulously you layer them.) Pour the cake batter in the pan. Bake as directed on the box for whatever size of pan you are using. Now, take that to your mom's house for dessert and see if you can catch her licking the plate when she thinks you're not looking!
*Again, your imagination is the limit with what you can do! Try a spice cake with an apple pie filling, a lemon cake with blueberry pie filling, a yellow cake with peach pie filling... on and on! Get creative! Your taste buds will thank you.
Chocolate Cherry Upside Down Cake:
One box chocolate cake mix (try dark chocolate or devil's food)
One can cherry pie filling
4oz cream cheese, room temperature
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. vanilla
Prepare the cake mix as directed on the box. (I usually add one more egg and 1/4 c. more oil than what is called for. I like heavier cake, and that seems to do the trick.) Pour the pie filling into the cake pan and spread evenly. Combine the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla, then plop it on top of the pie filling in the pan. (The first time I did this, I was very particular about spreading and layering carefully... I'll give you a tip: Don't waste your time doing that! The pie filling and cream cheese melt together when the cake is baking, no matter how meticulously you layer them.) Pour the cake batter in the pan. Bake as directed on the box for whatever size of pan you are using. Now, take that to your mom's house for dessert and see if you can catch her licking the plate when she thinks you're not looking!
*Again, your imagination is the limit with what you can do! Try a spice cake with an apple pie filling, a lemon cake with blueberry pie filling, a yellow cake with peach pie filling... on and on! Get creative! Your taste buds will thank you.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Happy Kids Pizza and Cheese-stuffed Breadsticks
Good pizza is expensive. Making everyone happy with the toppings on that pizza without ordering 20 pizzas is nearly impossible. By the time you add bread sticks to the order, you feel like you've just paid for heart attacks for all of your family when you see the grease on their fingers and plates. Yikes! That's just not a happy scenario. Try this instead. It's less greasy, less expensive and exactly what everyone wants! (They can't complain about it if they make it themselves, right?)
Happy Kids Pizza
1 or 2 cans biscuits (depends on how many pizzas and bread sticks you want to make)
1 can spaghetti sauce
shredded cheese (I like mozzarella.)
pizza toppings (pepperoni, diced ham, sausage, olives, pineapple, green pepper... whatever you/they want/have!)
Heat the oven to 350. Have the kids mash 2 or 3 biscuits together and stretch/pound it into the shape they want their pizza. Add 1 or 2 Tbsp. spaghetti sauce on the top surface of the dough, sprinkle with cheese and add the toppings. (TIP: This is a BIG tip. It makes life SO much easier (and kids happier) if you have them build their pizzas on a greased cookie sheet. Trying to transfer these babies post-toppings is VERY difficult and often ends up in a necessary conversion from pizza to calzone.) Once everyone has their pizza the way they want it, bake them (the pizzas, not the kids) in the oven until cooked through, about 10 minutes.
Cheese-stuffed Bread sticks
string cheese (One cheese makes two bread sticks, so judge how many you need by how many you want.)
1 can biscuits
garlic salt
Heat oven to 350. Have the kids mash 2 biscuits together, then roll into "snakes" and flatten. Place half (split lengthwise) of a string cheese on the flattened dough and fold up the sides and ends of the dough to cover the cheese. (Rolling these again helps seal the dough and makes it less likely that the cheese will melt out of the seams and burn, but it's a little tricky. They might need a little help from you.) Sprinkle the sealed project with a little garlic salt, then bake for about 10 minutes.
*Notice how convenient it is that both of these recipes bake at the same temperature for the same amount of time? Take advantage of that! Less dishes= more play time for you!
*Another nice thing, if you're making these together, is that you'll have leftover sauce from making pizzas to use as dipping sauce for the bread sticks.
After stuffing your face shamelessly while your kids do the same thing, pat yourself on the back. You just accomplished the nearly impossible task of pleasing everyone at once with pizza for dinner while saving money AND making pizza and bread sticks less greasy! Wow, you rock!
Happy Kids Pizza
1 or 2 cans biscuits (depends on how many pizzas and bread sticks you want to make)
1 can spaghetti sauce
shredded cheese (I like mozzarella.)
pizza toppings (pepperoni, diced ham, sausage, olives, pineapple, green pepper... whatever you/they want/have!)
Heat the oven to 350. Have the kids mash 2 or 3 biscuits together and stretch/pound it into the shape they want their pizza. Add 1 or 2 Tbsp. spaghetti sauce on the top surface of the dough, sprinkle with cheese and add the toppings. (TIP: This is a BIG tip. It makes life SO much easier (and kids happier) if you have them build their pizzas on a greased cookie sheet. Trying to transfer these babies post-toppings is VERY difficult and often ends up in a necessary conversion from pizza to calzone.) Once everyone has their pizza the way they want it, bake them (the pizzas, not the kids) in the oven until cooked through, about 10 minutes.
Cheese-stuffed Bread sticks
string cheese (One cheese makes two bread sticks, so judge how many you need by how many you want.)
1 can biscuits
garlic salt
Heat oven to 350. Have the kids mash 2 biscuits together, then roll into "snakes" and flatten. Place half (split lengthwise) of a string cheese on the flattened dough and fold up the sides and ends of the dough to cover the cheese. (Rolling these again helps seal the dough and makes it less likely that the cheese will melt out of the seams and burn, but it's a little tricky. They might need a little help from you.) Sprinkle the sealed project with a little garlic salt, then bake for about 10 minutes.
*Notice how convenient it is that both of these recipes bake at the same temperature for the same amount of time? Take advantage of that! Less dishes= more play time for you!
*Another nice thing, if you're making these together, is that you'll have leftover sauce from making pizzas to use as dipping sauce for the bread sticks.
After stuffing your face shamelessly while your kids do the same thing, pat yourself on the back. You just accomplished the nearly impossible task of pleasing everyone at once with pizza for dinner while saving money AND making pizza and bread sticks less greasy! Wow, you rock!
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Crockpot Pumpkin Oatmeal
I found this recipe for baked oatmeal and, being the crock pot lover I am, changed it a bit and made it in my crock pot. It made such a good hot and ready breakfast that I have to add it to this collection. (I LOVE cooking in my crock pot!)
Crock pot Pumpkin Oatmeal
2 Tbsp. melted butter
2 c. fresh pumpkin puree (or 1 can of pumpkin)
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
2 1/2 c. milk
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 c. water
3 c. rolled oats
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
Combine first 6 ingredients, then stir in dry ingredients. Pour into your crock pot and cook on low over night. (I set it up at about 11pm and ate it at 6:30am.) Make sure the lid is on tight to keep in as much moisture as possible. Serve with added milk or cream and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar or drizzle with a little maple syrup.
*Try adding golden raisins and/or chopped nuts to this!
*Though this recipe is for pumpkin oatmeal, you could easily make it apple oatmeal by using applesauce instead of pumpkin and apple pie spice instead of pumpkin pie spice. You could even add one diced, fresh apple for texture.
Crock pot Pumpkin Oatmeal
2 Tbsp. melted butter
2 c. fresh pumpkin puree (or 1 can of pumpkin)
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
2 1/2 c. milk
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 c. water
3 c. rolled oats
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
Combine first 6 ingredients, then stir in dry ingredients. Pour into your crock pot and cook on low over night. (I set it up at about 11pm and ate it at 6:30am.) Make sure the lid is on tight to keep in as much moisture as possible. Serve with added milk or cream and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar or drizzle with a little maple syrup.
*Try adding golden raisins and/or chopped nuts to this!
*Though this recipe is for pumpkin oatmeal, you could easily make it apple oatmeal by using applesauce instead of pumpkin and apple pie spice instead of pumpkin pie spice. You could even add one diced, fresh apple for texture.
Easy, Cheesy Taco Meat
I love making things from scratch, but the reality of my life right now is that I just don't have the time to spend half an hour shredding an imported chocolate bar by hand for a cake that takes 4 1/2 hours to make. (It's very delicious, and someday I hope to make it again... but that someday is not in my near future.) Wow, that was a random detour we just took... hope you had fun... back to the point of this entry. Right now, quick recipes that stretch the dollars as much as possible and still taste good the next day or two for leftovers are the necessity for my kitchen. I love tacos, but they can get pretty boring pretty quick. Here is my experiment from dinner tonight that made Carter want thirds!
Easy, Cheesy Taco Meat
1 lb. ground beef
1 taco seasoning packet
1 can cheddar cheese soup
all the taco fixings you like
Brown the ground beef and follow the directions on the seasoning packet. Once the meat is ready, add the can of cheddar cheese soup. (Don't add the milk/water it says to add. Just what's in the can.) Heat it through, then make your tacos the way you like them.
*Did you know you can use plain yogurt instead of sour cream? I've tried it a few times now, and I'm happy with the results I've had.
*If you want to stretch this out to feed more people, try adding a can of refried beans along with the cheddar cheese soup to the meat. (I like the lime ones... they give it a little kick. I guess I like my tacos feisty. What can I say?)
*This meat filling is great for tacos, burritos and nachos!
*If you want to spice it up a bit, try adding one cup of hot salsa in as well.
Easy, Cheesy Taco Meat
1 lb. ground beef
1 taco seasoning packet
1 can cheddar cheese soup
all the taco fixings you like
Brown the ground beef and follow the directions on the seasoning packet. Once the meat is ready, add the can of cheddar cheese soup. (Don't add the milk/water it says to add. Just what's in the can.) Heat it through, then make your tacos the way you like them.
*Did you know you can use plain yogurt instead of sour cream? I've tried it a few times now, and I'm happy with the results I've had.
*If you want to stretch this out to feed more people, try adding a can of refried beans along with the cheddar cheese soup to the meat. (I like the lime ones... they give it a little kick. I guess I like my tacos feisty. What can I say?)
*This meat filling is great for tacos, burritos and nachos!
*If you want to spice it up a bit, try adding one cup of hot salsa in as well.
Friday, June 11, 2010
Honey Mustard Chicken with Potatoes
This sounds like a crazy experiment gone wrong, but I promise your taste buds will be happy with you if you make this! I buy chicken in bulk, separate it, wash & trim it, bag it, and freeze it for future use. (And by "I" I mean Bob. I do buy it, but that's the end of my responsibility with it until I'm cooking it. Raw chicken is yuck!) So, while he was handling all the yuck stuff with it for me one day, I wondered if you could put the chicken in marinade and then freeze it... then when you wanted it, you could pull it out of the freezer, stick it in a sink of water to thaw AND marinate, then get right to cooking it instead of taking more time for it to thaw, then marinate and then cooking it... the answer is YES, my friends. Yes, you can do that. And you should do that. I've done it with teriyaki sauce, italian dressing, lemon juice with garlic pepper, taco mix with lime juice and so on, but my favorite frozen marinade is honey mustard. Here's the recipe!
Honey Mustard Chicken with Potatoes:
(for two chicken breasts)
1/2 c. Dijon mustard
1/4 c. honey
Combine mustard and honey. Add to two chicken breasts in a freezer-safe baggie. Seal the bag and mix them around a little to coat. Let out any extra trapped air, then freeze them flat.
When you're ready for them, soak them in a sink of water until thawed. (Thawing and marinating in one step! Hooray!) Wash and dice two unpeeled potatoes. Add the entire contents of the thawed bag to a large saucepan. Add the potatoes. Sprinkle all with garlic salt and minced onion. Cover and let cook. Stir occasionally, not only to ensure equal cooking, but also equal flavor. Once the chicken and potatoes are cooked through, you can start pigging out. So yum! Enjoy!
Honey Mustard Chicken with Potatoes:
(for two chicken breasts)
1/2 c. Dijon mustard
1/4 c. honey
Combine mustard and honey. Add to two chicken breasts in a freezer-safe baggie. Seal the bag and mix them around a little to coat. Let out any extra trapped air, then freeze them flat.
When you're ready for them, soak them in a sink of water until thawed. (Thawing and marinating in one step! Hooray!) Wash and dice two unpeeled potatoes. Add the entire contents of the thawed bag to a large saucepan. Add the potatoes. Sprinkle all with garlic salt and minced onion. Cover and let cook. Stir occasionally, not only to ensure equal cooking, but also equal flavor. Once the chicken and potatoes are cooked through, you can start pigging out. So yum! Enjoy!
White Girl Salsa
I'm far from a salsa-making pro, but I LOVE salsa. I'm just white about it. I don't like too many onions. I don't like big chunks of tomatoes. I don't like it too hot or too dull. I don't like it too mushy or too crunchy. It's so hard to buy salsa from a store that meets all of my demands and makes my taste buds happy. So, here's the salsa I make at home... from canned stuff... with my food processor.
White Girl Salsa:
1 can diced tomatoes with green chiles
1 can diced tomatoes with cilantro and lime
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
1 can white corn, drained
1/2 fresh green bell pepper, diced
3 Tbsp. minced onion
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
cilantro (to taste)
lime juice (to taste)
crushed red pepper (to taste)
garlic salt (to taste)
Combine all of the tomatoes in the food processor and pulse them until they're the texture you like. You're in charge here. Make it your way! When you're done, pour the pulverized pulp into a bowl and add the rest of the ingredients. (When I make this, it fills two 1 qt. mason jars. My fridge is packed all the time, so it's easier to fit two jars in there than try to push and wedge and carefully balance the mixing bowl on a shelf.) That's it! I usually let it sit in the fridge for two days before eating it. That way the flavors have time to blend and settle and it's really yummy. Salsa made my white way. Enjoy!
White Girl Salsa:
1 can diced tomatoes with green chiles
1 can diced tomatoes with cilantro and lime
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
1 can white corn, drained
1/2 fresh green bell pepper, diced
3 Tbsp. minced onion
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
cilantro (to taste)
lime juice (to taste)
crushed red pepper (to taste)
garlic salt (to taste)
Combine all of the tomatoes in the food processor and pulse them until they're the texture you like. You're in charge here. Make it your way! When you're done, pour the pulverized pulp into a bowl and add the rest of the ingredients. (When I make this, it fills two 1 qt. mason jars. My fridge is packed all the time, so it's easier to fit two jars in there than try to push and wedge and carefully balance the mixing bowl on a shelf.) That's it! I usually let it sit in the fridge for two days before eating it. That way the flavors have time to blend and settle and it's really yummy. Salsa made my white way. Enjoy!
Easy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Delicious, melt-in-your-mouth, moist cookies!!! I can't trust myself alone with many of these, and they're SO easy to make!
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies:
1 spice cake mix (I've used a carrot cake mix before too.)
2 cups pumpkin puree, or 1 can (15oz.) pumpkin
1/2 bag chocolate chips
Combine dry mix (Don't add the extra ingredients to it like you would if you were making a cake!) and pumpkin, stir in chips. Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes, or until done. (Yeah, there's really only three ingredients!)
These cookies don't change their shape much while baking, so if they're pointed and poky when you put them on the cookie sheet, they'll be pointed and poky when you're trying to eat them. You can wet your finger with water and smooth them down before you bake them, or you can use a cookie scoop. (It looks like a small ice cream scoop... I LOVE my cookie scoops. I'm never going back to spooning cookie dough onto baking sheets again! NEVER!!)
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies:
1 spice cake mix (I've used a carrot cake mix before too.)
2 cups pumpkin puree, or 1 can (15oz.) pumpkin
1/2 bag chocolate chips
Combine dry mix (Don't add the extra ingredients to it like you would if you were making a cake!) and pumpkin, stir in chips. Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes, or until done. (Yeah, there's really only three ingredients!)
These cookies don't change their shape much while baking, so if they're pointed and poky when you put them on the cookie sheet, they'll be pointed and poky when you're trying to eat them. You can wet your finger with water and smooth them down before you bake them, or you can use a cookie scoop. (It looks like a small ice cream scoop... I LOVE my cookie scoops. I'm never going back to spooning cookie dough onto baking sheets again! NEVER!!)
Crockpot Lasagna
Italian food makes me drool... and I LOVE my crock pot... putting the two of them together is like paradise for me. Seriously, I get giddy just thinking about this recipe.
**I use a 5qt. crock pot that I got as a high school graduation present. (I'm not going to tell you how long ago that was.) Nevertheless, newer models, or different sizes may require an adjustment to the cooking time and how much of an ingredient is required.**
Crock pot Lasagna:
One package lasagna noodles (UNCOOKED!!!)
1 lb. ground beef
1/2 lb. sausage
1 can (26.5 oz.) spaghetti sauce
1 c. warm water
Filling:
1 bag mozzarella, shredded
15 oz. ricotta
1 small container of small curd cottage cheese
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese
2 eggs
parsley
Brown the beef and sausage together. Strain and rinse well. Add the sauce and water. In a bowl, mix the ingredients for the filling, and add enough parsley to make it pretty. Now we're ready to layer this baby in your crock pot!
Start with a few spoons of sauce to prevent sticking. Then layer: break the noodles to fit, cheese, sauce, broken noodles, cheese, sauce... until you run out of stuff to layer with. (My crock pot usually gets 4 healthy layers.) Make sure to end with sauce and cover the top with extra cheese (mozzarella or Italian blend works nice!). Add more pretty parsley and a touch of garlic salt. Voila!
You can cook this on low for 6 hours, or on high for 4. Try to avoid the temptation of lifting the lid once it's cooking, even for just one tiny smell, so this can cook properly. You'll want to remove the lid completely for the last 45 minutes of cook time to let the sauce thicken. (You can smell all you want then!!)
Lasagna... in a crock pot... it's pure beauty!!!
*If you like things a little on the spicy side, I won't judge you, try this with hot sausage and add some crushed red pepper flakes to the sauce. Baby that's HOT!
**I use a 5qt. crock pot that I got as a high school graduation present. (I'm not going to tell you how long ago that was.) Nevertheless, newer models, or different sizes may require an adjustment to the cooking time and how much of an ingredient is required.**
Crock pot Lasagna:
One package lasagna noodles (UNCOOKED!!!)
1 lb. ground beef
1/2 lb. sausage
1 can (26.5 oz.) spaghetti sauce
1 c. warm water
Filling:
1 bag mozzarella, shredded
15 oz. ricotta
1 small container of small curd cottage cheese
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese
2 eggs
parsley
Brown the beef and sausage together. Strain and rinse well. Add the sauce and water. In a bowl, mix the ingredients for the filling, and add enough parsley to make it pretty. Now we're ready to layer this baby in your crock pot!
Start with a few spoons of sauce to prevent sticking. Then layer: break the noodles to fit, cheese, sauce, broken noodles, cheese, sauce... until you run out of stuff to layer with. (My crock pot usually gets 4 healthy layers.) Make sure to end with sauce and cover the top with extra cheese (mozzarella or Italian blend works nice!). Add more pretty parsley and a touch of garlic salt. Voila!
You can cook this on low for 6 hours, or on high for 4. Try to avoid the temptation of lifting the lid once it's cooking, even for just one tiny smell, so this can cook properly. You'll want to remove the lid completely for the last 45 minutes of cook time to let the sauce thicken. (You can smell all you want then!!)
Lasagna... in a crock pot... it's pure beauty!!!
*If you like things a little on the spicy side, I won't judge you, try this with hot sausage and add some crushed red pepper flakes to the sauce. Baby that's HOT!
Teriyaki Burgers
I experimented a bit with these the other night, and I'm SO glad I did! I think I've found my favorite burger! (They're best grilled outside of course, but you could cook them inside, in a pan or on a Foreman grill if necessary.)
Teriyaki Burgers:
For each pound of ground beef add:
1/4-1/2 c. teriyaki sauce (I just added until it smelled right, so I'm not exactly sure how much it was.)
2 Tbsp. minced onion (If you're using fresh onions, make sure to use a sweet one.)
2 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 Tbsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp. garlic pepper
1/2 tsp. ginger
Sauce:
1/2 c. miracle whip
1/4 c. teriyaki sauce
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
Combine stuff for burgers and shape into patties. Cook until browned through. (If you have it, grill some pineapple slices to go with these burgers. I promise you won't be sorry!) When assembling burgers, add the sauce generously as well as a slice of grilled pineapple. We used Country Oven onion buns. I'm not a big onion fan, but I must admit those buns made these burgers. Try them and let me know what you think! I'm a fan!
Teriyaki Burgers:
For each pound of ground beef add:
1/4-1/2 c. teriyaki sauce (I just added until it smelled right, so I'm not exactly sure how much it was.)
2 Tbsp. minced onion (If you're using fresh onions, make sure to use a sweet one.)
2 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 Tbsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp. garlic pepper
1/2 tsp. ginger
Sauce:
1/2 c. miracle whip
1/4 c. teriyaki sauce
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
Combine stuff for burgers and shape into patties. Cook until browned through. (If you have it, grill some pineapple slices to go with these burgers. I promise you won't be sorry!) When assembling burgers, add the sauce generously as well as a slice of grilled pineapple. We used Country Oven onion buns. I'm not a big onion fan, but I must admit those buns made these burgers. Try them and let me know what you think! I'm a fan!
Cake Mix Cookies
I LOVE how quick, easy and delicious these cookies are. I also love the endless possibilities of flavors and combinations. This is the recipe I fall back on any time I need a cookie quick fix!
Cake Mix Cookies:
One cake mix (any flavor you want)
1/2 bag chocolate chips (white or milk or dark... anything you want)
2 eggs (at room temp.)
1 stick butter/margarine (also at room temp.)
Combine mix with eggs and butter, stir in chips. Scoop and space about 2 inches apart on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for about 9 minutes. (How long they need to bake depends on the size of the cookies you make. Check them at 9 minutes to see how they're doing and use your own judgement from there.)There you go! That's seriously it! They're soft and chewy. I LOVE these!
Get creative! Some of my favorite combinations are:
Lemon cake mix with white choc. chips
Strawberry cake mix with mini milk choc. chips
White cake mix (add 1 Tbsp. huckleberry extract) with white choc. chips
Dark chocolate cake mix with mint choc. chips
The possibilities are as endless as your imagination! Enjoy!
Cake Mix Cookies:
One cake mix (any flavor you want)
1/2 bag chocolate chips (white or milk or dark... anything you want)
2 eggs (at room temp.)
1 stick butter/margarine (also at room temp.)
Combine mix with eggs and butter, stir in chips. Scoop and space about 2 inches apart on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for about 9 minutes. (How long they need to bake depends on the size of the cookies you make. Check them at 9 minutes to see how they're doing and use your own judgement from there.)There you go! That's seriously it! They're soft and chewy. I LOVE these!
Get creative! Some of my favorite combinations are:
Lemon cake mix with white choc. chips
Strawberry cake mix with mini milk choc. chips
White cake mix (add 1 Tbsp. huckleberry extract) with white choc. chips
Dark chocolate cake mix with mint choc. chips
The possibilities are as endless as your imagination! Enjoy!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)