New Look

I wanted to change the template.  I don't normally like purple so I don't know how long this one will stay up. 

Menu Planner Monday

My husband worked a lot of overtime last week, so I didn't cook as much as usual.  This week, I had another nerve block.  The doctor seems to think that I will be in pain a few days, so I am combining last week's menu with some easy recipes.

Blackened Flounder
Shrimp Scampi
Rice

Pork Chops with Fresh Take
Bacon Pepper Mac N Cheese - Recipe will be posted later

Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Soup
Potato Skins by Brown Eyed Baker
Avalanche Bark

Chicken Noodle Soup

Hamburgers
French Fries

Chicken Patty Sandwiches
Potato Chips
Taco Dip

Pizza

Cheddar Bake Chicken
Salad with Outback Steak House Ranch Dressing

Menu Possibilities

I haven't had a lot of time to surf the web this week.  I did find a few recipes I want to try.

1)  Buttermilk Ranch Dressing - I love making my own dressings.

2) Peppermint Meringues - I really meant to make these at Christmas, but I never had the time.  Maybe for Valentine's Day.

3)  Cheddar Baked Chicken - This will be on my menu next week.

4)  Easy Homemade Funfetti Cupcakes

Dinner and Marshmallows

I had meant to take a picture of the Pizza Casserole but I forgot to snap it before my husband got to it.  I did however make Marshmallow pops without the sticks.

My husband loves marshmallows.  So I thought I would make him a small treat.  I knew he wouldn't like the sticks so I just made the marshmallows with the chocolate and sprinkles.  They were fun to make and he enjoyed them.

We were suppose to have Butterscotch molten cakes and ice cream but I didn't get them made.  Maybe another day.  I also didn't get any cookies made.  I plan on working on them later in the week.

The marshmallows were real easy to make.  I just melted the chocolate wafer.  Dip the marshmallows in the melted wafers and then in the sprinkles.

If you have some one who likes marshmallows you should give these a try.

Menu Planner Monday

I am going to start posting my weekly menu every Monday.  When I make out my menu I don't assign a day that way if I don't feel like cooking one day I can choice some thing easy or if I want a bigger meal I can do it.

If I am using a recipe from the web, I will link so you can have the recipe.  I will group main meals with side dishes and/or desserts.  I also usually like to have 7-10 menus on the list so I can have a bigger selection.  I never know when my husband will be working late, or I will have a migraine, or not want to cook, etc.

Pizza Casserole

Molten Butterscotch Cakes - I will post the recipe once I try it

Vanilla Ice Cream

Steak, Gravy & Rice - This is a favorite.  Just a diced up steak with cream of mushroom soup and rice

Flounder
Shrimp Scrampi
Rice

Pork Chops with Fresh Take
Bacon Pepper Mac N Cheese - Recipe will be posted later

Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Soup
Potato Skins by Brown Eyed Baker
Avalanche Bark

Chicken Patty Sandwiches

Mozzarella Beef Roll-ups - These are ready made and frozen in my freezer.

Cookies

I am off Monday and I think it is going to be a baking day.  I have a bunch of cookies I want to try.  I think I am going to make several different batches and then freeze them.  I will only bake 6-12 cookies from each batch.  That way I can have several different favors and also have some for later.

Here are some of the cookies I want to try.  I don't know if I will make all of them.  We will just have to wait and see how I feel and what kind of time I have.

The pictures for the cookies came from the websites where I found the recipes. When I bake the cookies, I will take pictures to share.

Cake Batter Chocolate Chip Cookies










Rolo Stuffed Peanut Butter Cookies

Soft Baked Peanut Butter Lover Cookies

Soft Baked Monster Cookies












Salted Caramel Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Cake Batter Sugar Cookies







Brown Butter Snickerdoodle Cookies

Menu Possibilities

Here are the websites for this week.  I am still looking at ice cream recipes so there will be a few new ones today.  I hope you find something that you like.

I started looking on Paula Deen's site so there will be several recipes from her site.

1)  Vanilla Ice Cream - Paula Deen has some great recipes.

2) Sunny's Butter Pecan Ice Cream

3) Butter Pecan Ice Cream

4)  Mexican Chicken - I had this for dinner on Tuesday.  It was really good.  I think next time, I will make layers so there are more tortilla shells.  I put the casserole into two dishes and I froze the other one.  Another meal in the freezer.  I just love have meals in the freezer.

5)  Mouth Watering Stuffed Mushrooms - I love stuffed mushrooms so these may be on my menu for next week.

6) Two Ingredient Ice Cream - I wonder if I can do this in my ice cream maker instead of the freezer.  I will let you know.

7) Outback Steak House Ranch Dressing - I am definitely trying this one.

8)  Three Cheese Mac N Cheese - I love mac n cheese.  I have some many recipes.  I love to make a big patch in individual bowls and then freeze it.  I don't know how this one will freeze but it does sound good.

9)  Honey Mustard Glazed Chicks In A Blanket 

10) Reese's Brownies with Peanut Butter

This is for now.  I hope you find something you like.

Have a great weekend.

Kitchen Gadgets - Crockpots

Let me start by saying, I am not looking to buy a new crockpot.  I have two that I really like.  But every where you look there is a new crockpot.  They have some new features.  And they come in all sizes.

I just adore the little Crock-pot Lunch Warmers.  They come in three colors.  If I had seen these before Christmas, I might have considered picking one up for my husband's work truck.  Who knows he might get one next year.

Here are some of the features:

• 20 ounce capacity
• Removable food vessel to easily transport food to and from home and for easier cleaning
• Easy-travel lid for portability
• Dishwasher-safe removable vessel and lid
• Cool to the touch
• Cord management

I also like the Double Dipper Warmer.  This would be great for tailgating.  But it would only be good for warming things up so I can't see me using it often.  I wish I could just get the bowl to fit my current slow cooker.

Here are the features:

• Two 16 ounce compartments
• Removable oval stoneware
• Warms dips and sauces

If I was considering a new crockpot, I would have to look seriously at the Hamilton Beach Set N Forget.  I love the probe option and the timer, plus it has the clip-down lid for traveling.






I am not recommending any of these crock-pots.  I just saw them and thought I would post what I found out there on the world wide web.  It is amazing how many different crock-pots there are out now.

I have some recipes to share with you.  I haven't tried most of these, but they do have some possibilities.

Breakfast
Good Morning Oatmeal

Poultry
Jalapeno Chicken Breasts
Thai Chicken Wings with Peanut Sauce

Desserts
Triple Chocolate Peanut Butter Pudding Cake
Triple Berry Cobbler

Slow Cooked Beef Fajitas

Here is a new recipe for you.  I got it out of the Better Homes and Gardens "Skinny Slower Cooker" magazine.  This is definitely a keeper and I will make it again.

You will be seeing more recipes from this magazine.  It had lots of good looking recipes.



Slow-Cooked Beef Fajitas

1 1/2 lb beef flank steak
1 large green pepper; seeded and cut into strips
1 large red pepper; seeded and cut into strips
16 oz salsa

Flour tortillas
Sour Cream
Shredded Cheese

Trim fat from meat.  Place peppers in cooker.  Top with meat.  Pour salsa over meat.

Cover and cook on low-heat seating for 8 to 10 hours or on high-heat setting for 4 to 5 hours.  Transfer meat to a cutting board.  Using two forks, pull meat apart into shreds.

Spoon some of the meat and vegetables onto one side of each warmed tortilla; top with sour cream and cheese.  Fold tortilla in half over filling.

Menu Possibilities

Time for the first Menu Possibilities.  Every Friday, I will post links I have found while surfing the web for recipes I want to try.  I will try to keep the list down to under 10, but I am not making any promising.

1)  Avalanche Bark from Brown Eyed Baker....I will be trying these this weekend.  I will let you know how they came out.

2)  Billion Dollar Candy Bars .... Wow, these look delicious.

3)  Cracker Candy .... I will be making these this coming week.  Looks easy and quick to make.

4)  Brown Butter Snickerdoodle Cookies....I love snickerdoodles so I am really looking forward to trying these.

5)  Homemade Eggnog....I know it is past Christmas but I have been looking for good eggnog recipes.  I may have to try this one and see if it is the one.

Hope everyone has a good weekend.

Kitchen Gadgets

Starting today, I am going to pick a kitchen gadget including the specs to talk about.  I might include reviews and/or recipes.

I got the ice cream attachment for Christmas.  We love ice cream at my house and this makes it is easy to make.

Here are the specs:

Welcome to a new, more convenient way to make amazing homemade ice cream. The KitchenAid Ice Cream Maker Attachment fits virtually every KitchenAid Stand Mixer made since 1919. Just freeze the mixing bowl overnight, attach with the dasher to your stand mixer and watch your batter turn into soft-serve ice cream. It only takes about 20 minutes to be enjoying your own ice cream, or if you prefer hardened ice cream, put it in the freezer for an hour or 2. This is one of the most popular attachments for KitchenAid Stand Mixers, so forget about storing a big manual ice cream maker and rock-salt—this is easy to use, easy to clean and easy to store.

• For use with KitchenAid Stand Mixer
• Makes up to 2 quarts of ice cream, sorbets and frozen desserts
• Innovative bowl design provides thorough freezing
• Easy to use
• Easy to clean
• Number of Pieces: 4
• Includes: Recipe Book, Adapter Ring, Instruction Manual
• Capacity (volume): 2.0 Qt.
• Material: Plastic, Stainless Steel
• Care and Cleaning: Dishwasher Safe Parts, Wipe Clean With Soap and Water

Here is one of my favorite ice cream recipes....

Strawberry Ice Cream Like Ben & Jerry's

1 pint strawberries
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 large eggs
1 cup sugar
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla

Combine strawberries, lemon juice, and 1/4 cup sugar in a mixing bowl, set aside in fridge for 1 hour.  In large mixing bowl, beat eggs until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Gradually add 3/4 cups sugar, mixing well.  Stir in milk and vanilla and mix well.  Add strawberries with juice and mix well.  Gently stir in whipping cream just until combined. 

Pour into ice cream maker.

Note:  I prefer to use half and half instead of the heavy whipping cream.  It makes it less creamy.

New Idea

I am still surfing through the Brown Eyed Baker site.  On her site, she has a Weekend Dish post.  Every Saturday, she reviews her post and then makes a list of recipes she has bookmarked from other sites.  I like this idea.  I think I will do it on Friday night however.  It will just be sites that I have bookmarked that others might like or recipes that I have bookmarked.  So keep a watch out for the new Friday post.  I think I will call it Menu Possibilities. 

Kitchenaid Ice Cream Attachment

I got the ice cream attachment for Christmas.  I love it.  I will share a recipe with you tomorrow.  If anyone has any recipes, they would like to share, send me an email.

I have a strawberry ice cream recipe that I love, but I am looking for some different ones.

In searching for recipes, I ran across a great website.  It is Brown Eyed Baker.  It will take me a while to go through the  whole site and you will be seeing links to the site again.  The page that caught my attention first was "30 of My Favorite Ice Cream Recipes".  Check it out, you might find a new ice cream recipe.

I have pinned a lot of the ice cream recipes from the site on my ice cream board over on pinterest.

Pizza Mac 'n Cheese Review

I thought the recipe was really good.  I would change a few things.  It needs more cheese and instead of putting the pepperoni on top.  I would cut it up and stir it into the mac 'n cheese.

It made a lot so I cut it in individual  bowls and froze the leftovers.  They will be perfect for lunches.

That's it for now.  Chat with all of you later...

Pizza Mac N Cheese

I found this recipe in "Top-rated Recipes" by Betty Crocker.

I love Mac N Cheese so I am always looking for different ways to make it.   This will be my side dish tonight.  I have a feeling that my son is going to really like it.  It has all of his favorites.

I will let you know how it goes.



 Pizza Mac 'n Cheese

3 1/2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni (16 oz)
1 lb mild or spicy pork sausage
1 large green bell pepper; chopped
1 large onion, chopped (1 cup)
1/3 cup butter or margarine
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
2 cups milk
3/4 cup water
4 cups shredded white Cheddar cheese (16 oz)
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (6 oz)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
20 slices pepperoni

Heat oven to 325.  Spray 3-quart casserole with cooking spray.  Cook and drain macaroni as directed on package.  In 12-inch nonstick skillet, cook sausage over medium high heat until no longer pink, drain.  In same skillet, cook bell pepper and onion 5 minutes or until crisp.

In 4-quart saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat.  Stir in flour, salt and 1/2 tsp of the pepper flakes.  Cook and stir until smooth.  Gradually add milk and water, stirring constantly until thickened.  Gradually add cheddar cheese; stir until melted.  Add macaroni, sausage and onion mixture; toss to coat.  Spoon into casserole.  Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.  Bake uncovered 30 minutes or until bubbly.  Top with Parmesan cheese, pepperoni and remaining 1 tsp pepper flakes.  Bake 2 to 4 minutes longer, or until lightly browned.  Garnish with basil.

Nutrution Info:
Per Serving
Calories 570
Total Fat 35g
Sodium 960 mg
Total Carbohydrate 36g
Protein 29g