#417: Lentil-Tomato Soup

Really, this should just be called Lentil Soup.  There is so little tomato in this recipe, you can barely taste it (fine by me as tomatoes don't really agree with baby brother).  I really, really wanted to add some of the ham from the Slow-Cooked Ham recipe posted below, but that recipe was such a bust, I didn't have any to add to it.  SO...I think this would be better if it had a little chopped, cooked ham in it, other than that though, I am quite enjoying it.  I especially enjoyed it with a side of cheese balls I made Brian run out and get for lunch.  :) 

When I take it for lunches this week I'm going to add a little bit of small cooked noodles and some Parmesan cheese on top.  I'd make this again!

Oh, and by the way, there were too many steps in this recipe for my liking, so I threw it all together in the crockpot and cooked it on high for about 6 hours.  So much easier if I say so myself!
4-1/2 cups water

4 medium carrots, sliced

1 medium onion, chopped

2/3 cup dried lentils, rinsed

1 can (6 ounces) tomato paste (I used about 8 oz of tomato sauce)

2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 tablespoon white vinegar

1 teaspoon garlic salt

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1/4 teaspoon dill weed (I omitted)

1/4 teaspoon dried tarragon (I omitted)

1/4 teaspoon pepper

In a large saucepan, combine the water, carrots, onion and lentils; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 20-25 minutes or until vegetables and lentils are tender. Stir in the remaining ingredients; return to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes to allow flavors to blend.

#415: Slow-Cooked Ham

This doesn't even look like a ham does it?!  (Not a good sign)

I rarely make ham for my family and when I do, it's pre-cooked and just needs to be heated in the oven.  When I came across this recipe, I figured it was time to venture out from pre-cooked hams and take a try at it on my own.  Besides, with the holidays coming up, I figured I could probably get a pretty good deal for a ham.  Little did I know, it's very hard to find a non-pre-cooked ham and when you do, who knows what kind to get!?  So I settled on a bone-in (it's all I could find) shank cut and took a chance that this would turn out good.  I put it in the crockpot and let it cook all day and it was obviously ready for us when we got home from church.

Sadly we were so disappointed in this.  In fact, during dinner Brian says, "I rarely say this, but can you NOT make this again?"  Fine with me!  We expected this to be like a regular ham, but the texture was like pot roast?  It was stringy.  Not at all like a ham should be.  Maybe it was my cut of meat, but this recipe is NOT getting made again in our house.  Too bad too, it was so easy!

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground mustard (I used prepared Dijon mustard)

1 teaspoon prepared horseradish (I omitted)

4 tablespoons regular cola, divided (I used Pepsi Max)

1 boneless smoked ham (5 to 6 pounds), cut in half (mine had a bone, so I didn't cut in half)
In a bowl, combine the brown sugar, mustard, horseradish and 2 tablespoons cola; mix well. Rub over ham. Place in a 5-qt. slow cooker; pour remaining cola over ham. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or until a meat thermometer reads 140°.

#414: Taco Puffs

I was drawn to this recipe just by the original photo.  It looked so yummy, and was basically taco meat and biscuits, so I really wanted to try it.  Of course I will find any way to make this recipe easier, so when I was looking at the reviews, and I saw someone made it in a pie pan instead of individually, I knew it was exactly how I would make this!  Personally, I don't think a pie pan is big enough, but my 8x8 pan was in the dishwasher.  Next time I would make this is an 8x8 or 9x9 pan instead.

Okay, we really, really enjoyed this and there was enough for us to get another meal out of it.  (Bonus!)  I think I need to turn the heat down though (375 degrees maybe?!) because the tops and bottoms of the rolls cooked, but the very center wasn't super hot (the cheese didn't totally melt) and the rolls were slightly undercooked.  It didn't deter us from eating it though!  Also, by looking at the original photo and then my picture, I may not have used the correct rolls...it was still good though.

1 pound ground beef

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 envelope taco seasoning

2 tubes (16.3 ounces each) large refrigerated flaky biscuits

2 cups (8 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese

In a large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Add the taco seasoning and prepare according to package directions. Cool slightly.

Flatten half of the biscuits into 4-in. circles; place in greased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pans. Spoon 1/4 cup meat mixture onto each; sprinkle with 1/4 cup shredded cheese. Flatten the remaining biscuits; place on top and pinch edges to seal tightly. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

#413: Presto Pizza Patties

I found this recipe in one of my Taste of Home magazines and I thought it might be different enough, yet appealing for my family to try.  Much to my dismay, Chloe took one look at it and proclaimed, "I no like this."  My sweet Allison though said, "Mommy this looks delicious!"  Regardless of their first appearance decisions, Chloe actually out-ate Allison on this dinner and promptly changed her mind about liking dinner. 

This took much longer to cook than the recipe calls for, but I think my burgers were a bit large.  I was afraid it was getting over cooked in the skillet, so we decided to throw it on the grill to let it finish cooking without burning.  These were not what I expected.  The texture actually reminded me of meatloaf.  The center was cooked though, but a much softer texture than a typical "burger."  Our overall consensus was that this was pretty good and we would eat it again, although it isn't going to make on our "I love this!" menu...except maybe for Chloe.

2 egg whites

1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs

1/2 cup finely chopped green pepper

1 can (8 ounces) pizza sauce, divided

1/4 cup finely chopped onion

1 garlic clove, minced

1 pound lean ground beef (90% lean)

6 slices Italian bread (1/2 inch thick)

2 teaspoons olive oil

1-1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

1/2 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

In a large bowl, combine the egg whites, bread crumbs, green pepper, 1/3 cup pizza sauce, onion and garlic. Crumble beef over mixture and mix well. Shape into six oval patties.

In a large nonstick skillet, cook patties over medium heat for 4-5 minutes on each side or until a meat thermometer reads 160° and juices run clear.

Meanwhile, place bread on an ungreased baking sheet. Brush tops with oil; sprinkle with Italian seasoning. Broil 4 in. from the heat for 2-3 minutes or until lightly toasted.

Microwave remaining pizza sauce, covered, on high for 10-20 seconds or until heated through. Place patties on toast; top with cheese and sauce.

#412: Apple-Bacon Sweet Potatoes

Do I have a problem if bacon has been an ingredient in the last 3 or 4 posts?  I came across this recipe in a recent issue of Kraft Foods (love that magazine!).  This wasn't as sweet as I had hoped, but this is definitely a more savory dish with the addition of bacon.  I did like this, but I don't know if I could eat a lot of it at one time.  I am looking forward to having it for leftovers again tomorrow though...so that's always a good sign!

1 large onion, chopped

4 slices Turkey Bacon, chopped

1-1/2 lb. sweet potatoes (2 large), peeled, cut into bite-size chunks

2 apples, chopped

1/2 cup apple juice

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 cup chopped Pecans (I used walnuts)
Heat oven to 375ºF.  Cook onions and bacon in large nonstick skillet on medium heat 7 to 8 min. or until onions are crisp-tender.

Place potatoes in 13x9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray.   Add apples, apple juice and cinnamon; mix lightly.   Top with onion mixture; cover.  Bake 40 min.; top with nuts.   Bake 15 min. or until potatoes are tender and most the liquid is absorbed.

#411: Quick Creamy Corn

The word "quick" in this recipe caught my attention (as did the corn and peppers), and this recipe really is quick to throw together.  I can put this all together in my microwave within 5 minutes of coming home.  Chloe loves corn, but did not like this recipe unfortunately.  In fact, no one else in my family will eat this, but that's okay by me because I'll happily take the leftovers for lunch.  In fact, I added leftover cooked rice to the remaining corn and mixed it all together.  Now I have a full lunch just by combining my leftovers.  This recipe also needs to have salt, pepper and bacon (I used real bacon bits) to it. :)  (I took this picture before adding the salt, pepper or bacon though).

2 tsp.butter

1/2 cup each finely chopped green and red peppers (I used yellow and red because I had it on hand)

1 pkg. (16 oz.) frozen corn, thawed (I didn't thaw mine!)

1/2 cup (1/2 of 8-oz. tub) Philly Chive & Onion Cream Cheese Spread (I used plain cream cheese)

1/4 cup Grated Parmesan Cheese1/4 cup real bacon bits (or real crumbled bacon!)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Microwave butter in medium microwaveable bowl on high 30 sec. or until melted. Stir in peppers. Microwave 1 to 2 min. or until heated through.  Stir in corn.  (I added 2 tbsp water).  Microwave 3 to 4 min. or until heated through, stirring after 2 min.  Add cream cheese; stir until melted. Stir in Parmesan, salt and pepper, and bacon.

#410: Crockpot Scalloped Potatoes

Did you know you could cut potatoes ahead of time, put them in a bowl of ice water and they will not turn brown!?  Did you know you could do this the night before needing them?!  I did NOT know this and I am SO glad I found this out.  Any crockpot meal is pretty much worth trying in this house because it gets dinner on the table so much faster!  So when I came across this recipe, I knew I really, really wanted to try it, but figured it would have to be a weekend recipe.  But thanks to the powers of Google, I realized I could cut the potatoes, put in a bowl of ice water and stick in the fridge overnight.  When I got up in the morning, I drained the potatoes, added them to the already-made "potato cream mixture" and then threw it all in my crockpot.  I even had to put it on a timer so it would go on about 1 1/2 hours after we left.  You would never know it!  These potatoes were a perfect when I got home from work. 

The only thing I would do next time, is to add cooked bacon to it.  :)  More bacon, I know!  Doesn't the picture above look like it would be better with bacon though (salt and pepper too)???

This recipe also bears the reminder of: CROCKPOT LINERS.  Are you using them yet?  Saves you a TON of time on clean-up, and this recipe is no exception!

1 cup Sour Cream

1 can (10-3/4 oz.) condensed cream of potato soup

1 Tbsp.Worcestershire sauce

2 lb. small red potatoes, very thinly sliced (I left mine a little thicker so they wouldn't over cook)

1-1/2 cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese

1/2 tsp. paprika (I omitted)

3 Tbsp. chopped fresh chives (I omitted)

Mix first 3 ingredients in large bowl. Add potatoes; toss to coat. Spoon 1/3 into slow cooker sprayed with cooking spray; top with 3/4 cup cheese. Repeat layers; cover with remaining potato mixture. Cover with lid.
Cook on high 3-1/2 to 4-1/2 hours (or on low 7 to 8 hours). Stir well; sprinkle with paprika and chives.

#409: Parmesan-Garlic Dinner Rolls

I do not have good luck with yeast.  Actually, I'm starting to think it's not a recipe that calls for yeast, it's the fact that I don't knead the dough nearly as long as the recipe calls for.  Who can knead dough for 8 minutes??  So I do try to avoid recipes like this.  But, we were having leftover pizza for dinner so I knew I had to add something to our dinner to make it a little homemade.  So I figured I'd try this recipe out.  As expected, my dough did not rise nearly enough as the recipe says (it NEVER doubles for me!), so these were a little dense, but we all enjoyed them none-the-less. 

I halved the recipe below and I got 12 rolls out of it which fit very nicely in a 9x13 pan!
4-1/2 to 5 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 package (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast

1-1/4 teaspoons salt

1 cup whole milk (I used skim)

1/2 cup water

2 tablespoons butter

2 eggs
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 teaspoon dried minced garlic

In a large bowl, combine 2 cups flour, sugar, yeast and salt. In a small saucepan, heat the milk, water and butter to 120°-130°. Add to dry ingredients; beat on medium speed for 3 minutes. Add 2 eggs; beat on high speed for 2 minutes. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough (dough will be sticky).

Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide into 24 portions. Shape into balls. Divide between two greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking pans.

Cover with a clean, lightweight towel and let rise until doubled, about 30 min. Brush with lightly beaten egg. Sprinkle with toppings for rolls of your choice.
Bake at 375° for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks. Yield: 2 dozen.

#408: Unstuffed Shells

Brian is NOT a fan of the new Philly Cooking Cremes.  Personally, I can only take it in smaller doses as well.  If a recipe calls for the whole container, I'll usually just add about 1/3 of the container and we feel it's definitely enough flavor for our family.  So when this recipe called for the cooking creme again, I wasn't sure he was going to eat this.  BUT, I was happily surprised that this made a huge 9x13 pan and we actually ate it for two dinners!  Bonus!  I would definitely make this again for us and I would continue to use a little less meat and a lot less cooking creme. 

4 cups medium pasta shells, uncooked

1 lb. extra-lean ground beef (I used 3/4 lb ground turkey)

1 jar (24 oz.) marinara sauce

1 tub (10 oz.) Philadelphia Original Cooking Creme (I used 1/3 of the tub)

1/3 cup chopped fresh basil

1/4 cup Grated Parmesan Cheese

1-1/2 cups Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

Cook pasta as directed on package, omitting salt.  Meanwhile, brown meat in large skillet; drain.  Stir in marinara sauce; simmer on medium heat 2 min.  Remove from heat.

Drain pasta.  Mix cooking creme, basil and Parmesan in large bowl; stir in pasta.  Spread half the meat sauce onto bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray; cover with layers of pasta mixture and remaining meat sauce.  Sprinkle with mozzarella; cover with foil.  Refrigerate up to 24 hours.    

Heat oven to 375ºF.  Bake casserole, covered, 40 to 45 min. or until heated through, uncovering after 30 min.

#407: French Bread Pizza

I had a lot of leftover ground turkey and wanted several quick recipes to use up the meat.  I came across this recipe in my Taste of Home The Ultimate Ground Beef Cookbook and knew my family would enjoy this meal.  I was right, we ALL enjoyed this meal.  I never thought Chloe would eat this, but she totally finished her dinner.

I think the best part of this was the cheese...do NOT use shredded cheese.  Instead go buy the sliced cheeses (we used provolone since we had it in the house).  It gives it such a cheesy, ooey-gooey, melty goodness.  Brian, "who only eats mozzarella!" (so he thinks), had no idea this wasn't mozzarella and really enjoyed this dinner too!

1/2 pound ground beef

1 can (15 ounces) pizza sauce

1 jar (8 ounces) sliced mushrooms, drained (I omitted)
20 slices of pepperoni, chopped

1 loaf (1 pound) French bread

2 cups (8 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese (I used sliced provolone)
In a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Stir in pizza sauce and mushrooms; set aside.

Cut bread in half lengthwise, then into eight pieces. Spread meat sauce on bread; place on a greased baking sheet. Sprinkle with mozzarella. Bake, uncovered, at 400° for 10 minutes or until cheese melted and bubbly. Yield: 6-8 servings.

#406: Memphis-Style BBQ Joes

There were two huge draws for me to make this recipe: 1. Bacon 2. French Fried Onions.  Healthy?  Probably not.  Yummy? Absolutely. 

Brian and the girls weren't nearly as big of fans of this as I was, so I don't know if it will make it onto a menu again too soon, but I certainly enjoyed this. 

1 lb bacon, chopped
2/3 c finely chopped onion
1 lb ground beef (I used ground turkey)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 c BBQ sauce
Hamburger Buns
1/2 c finely shredded sharp cheddar cheese
3/4 c prepared coleslaw (I omitted)
1/2 c french fried onions

Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium heat 10-12 minutes or until browned and crisp, stirring frequently.  Drain all but 1 tbsp drippings from skillet.  Add onion, cook 3-5 minutes or until union is soft, stirring occasionally. 

Crumble beef into skillet, sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Cook 8-10 minutes or until beef is thoroughly cooked and no longer pink.  Stir in BBQ sauce and cook until heated through.

Divide beef mixture between hamburger buns.  Top with cheese, coleslaw and fried onions.  Makes 6 sandwiches.

Kroger's Truly Awesome Cookies

 No, this is not a new recipe I've made/tried.  However, it is a new product I had the opportunity to try through BzzAgent.  And I'm so glad I did!  These cookies remind me a lot of Chips Ahoy, but these are SO much better.  They haven't been in the stores very long, and I was not familiar with them before this campaign.  Two things I love most about these cookies:
1: These are BIG cookies.  Way bigger than you would expect from a box of pre-packaged cookies.
2. The first ingredient listed on the box is chocolate chips!  How can you not like a cookie that lists chocolate chips as their number 1 ingredient!?  The only thing I wish is that there were more in the box.  These only come in packages of 8 (a box is not going to last very long with the four of us!)  However, unlike regular cookies, you really can eat just one at a time.  Do you have a Kroger near you?  (or a Kroger Affiliated store)  If so, go out and get a box of these right away.  Your family will thank you! 

#405: Pineapple Cherry Jello

Thanksgiving = New Jello Recipe to try. 

I found this recipe in one of my recent All You Magazines, as an advertisement for Dole.  It was supposed to be made into mini molds, but that required an extra step, so I just made it in one big bowl.  I LOVED this!  But I love cherries, so if you don't like cherries, you might not like this one.  Definitely making this again soon. 

20 oz crushed pineapple
12 oz pineapple juice
2 packages (3 oz each) cherry gelatin
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1 c frozen dark sweet cherries, thawed, quartered and drained
1/2 c chopped pecans

Drain pineapple, reserve juice.  Heat reserved juice plus canned pineapple juice to boiling.  Add gelatin; stir at least 2 minutes or until completely dissolved.  Add nutmeg and chill until mixture thickens slightly.  Fold in pineapple, cherries and pecans.  Pour into a bowl or jell-o mold and chill until firm. 

#404: Italian Beef Sandwiches...sort of

I had to make a few adjustments because I decided to throw this into the crockpot at the last minute and didn't have all the ingredients like I intended.  Regardless of the changes, this was really, really yummy!  I not only plan to make this again, hopefully I can use some of the other original ingredients to make it even better.  So yummy!  Another great recipe from Taste of Home!

2 lbs boneless beef rump roast or bottom round roast, halved (I omitted)
2 lbs boneless beef chuck roast

1 lb beef sirloin tip roast (I omitted, but next time I plan to add this)

2 tablespoons canola oil (I omitted)
2 cups water (I used 1 1/2 cups)
1 medium onion, chopped (I used minced dried onion)
4 garlic cloves, minced (I used 2 tbsp)
2 envelopes Italian salad dressing mix (I omitted)
1 envelope zesty Italian salad dressing mix (I used 1 package)
1 envelope (0.87 ounce) brown gravy mix (I used 1/2 package)
2 tablespoons crushed red pepper flakes (I used just a few flakes)
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning (I used about 1/2 tbsp)
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
16 hoagie buns, split
Sliced provolone cheese, optional
Giardiniera, optional
In a large skillet, brown each roast in oil on all sides.  Drain.  Transfer meat to a 7-qt. slow cooker. (I didn't have time for this, so I added my roast still frozen to the crockpot).

Combine the water, onion, garlic, salad dressing and gravy mixes, pepper flakes, Italian seasoning and Worcestershire sauce; pour over beef. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or until meat is tender.  (I forgot to turn my crockpot to low, so it actually cooked on high for 10 1/2 hours.  The edges were a little dark and dried out but it was still really good..and those dried out pieces were actually my favorites!)

Remove beef; cool slightly. Shred beef with two forks; return to crockpot to reheat in leftover liquids. Using a slotted spoon, place 1/2 cup of meat on each bun. Top with cheese and giardiniera if desired.  (I toasted my bun and then added the cheese so it began to melt a bit.) 

#403: Cornbread Stuffing with Bacon

                Ugh...I accidentally deleted the photo!  Guess I'll have to make this again!

It may not be a typical "book club" snack, but when I saw the recipe for this stuffing, I knew they would be the perfect guinea pigs to try this recipe on.  Sorry for the huge delay in posting this, we've been super busy lately. 

I REALLY enjoyed this meal!  Cornbread is not my most favorite bread, so I would probably make this again with a different, hearty bread instead.  But I'm definitely making this again, and adding a lot more bacon.  Also, I would cook the bacon in a pan separately from the celery and onion, because the water from the celery made the bacon more soft than I would have liked, and in the time it took the bacon to cook fully, the onion and celery were almost non-existent. 
2 tablespoons butter
4 slices applewood-smoked bacon, chopped (next time I'm adding more like 1 lb!)
1 1/2 cups chopped celery
3/4 cup chopped onion
8 cups cubed cornbread (1 inch)
1 tablespoon dried sage (I used fresh sage)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 cup half-and-half
1 egg

Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 11x7-inch glass or ceramic baking dish with cooking spray. Melt butter in large skillet over medium heat. Cook bacon, celery and onion 12 to 15 minutes or until bacon is browned and vegetables are softened, stirring occasionally.
Meanwhile, combine cornbread, sage, salt and pepper in large bowl; gently toss with bacon mixture. Whisk half-and-half and egg in small bowl; pour over cornbread mixture. Stir gently to combine; spoon into baking dish. (Stuffing can be made 8 hours ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Add 5 to 10 minutes to baking time, if necessary.)  Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until lightly browned and hot.

#402: Melt-in-your-mouth Meatloaf

This is another recipe from my Taste of Home The Ultimate Ground Beef Cookbook.  Brian enjoyed this but the girls and I really didn't like it all too much.  Not for any particular reason, but it was a little soft and just not super special.  Sadly, I wouldn't make this again for myself.

2 eggs

3/4 cup milk

2/3 cup seasoned bread crumbs

2 teaspoons dried minced onion

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage (I omitted)

1-1/2 pounds ground beef

1/4 cup ketchup

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground mustard

1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

In a large bowl, combine the first six ingredients. Crumble beef over mixture and mix well (mixture will be moist). Shape into a round loaf; place in a 5-qt. slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours or until no pink remains and a meat thermometer reads 160°.

In a small bowl, whisk the ketchup, brown sugar, mustard and Worcestershire sauce. Spoon over the meat loaf. Cook 15 minutes longer or until heated through. Let stand for 10-15 minutes before cutting.

#401: Easy Bacon and Egg Bake

The original recipe serves 8, but no one in my family would eat this, so I cut it down to make one serving (and had to enlist the help of my husband to figure out the measurements).  The recipe shown below is for 8 servings.  I really enjoyed this!  It was really easy and quick to make and although I doubled the amount of bacon (one slice just didn't seem like enough!), next time I'll try this with cooked, crumbled breakfast sausage or possibly even bacon AND sausage.  (Dare devil, I know!)    

9 bacon strips, chopped

9 eggs, beaten

3 cups 2% milk

3/4 cup biscuit/baking mix

1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded pepper Jack cheese

1 large onion, chopped

1 large sweet red pepper, chopped

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Remove to paper towels to drain.
In a large bowl, combine the eggs, milk and biscuit mix. Stir in the cooked bacon, cheese, onion, red pepper, salt and pepper. Pour into a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish.

Bake at 350° for 45-55 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting.

#400: Not-exactly "Heart Tarts"

The original recipe was supposed to be for Valentine's Day and you were supposed to use a large heart shaped cookie cutter.  Well, the largest cookie cutter I had was a bell, but when they baked, I think they look more like Christmas Trees.  When Allison saw these I asked her what they were and she quickly replied "Christmas trees."  She didn't seem to care, and hopefully her school friends won't care either.  Regardless, both girls liked these! 

TARTS

Prepared pie crust
Jar of strawberry jam
1 egg whisked with 1 teaspoon water

FROSTING AND DECORATIONS

2 ½ cups powdered sugar, sifted

1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon softened butter

2 tablespoons light corn syrup
Red food coloring

Nonpareils or colored sugar

Heat the oven to 400° and cover a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

On a floured surface, roll out the pie crust to a 1/8-inch thickness. Use a large heart-shaped cookie cutter (ours measures 4 inches wide) to make pairs of hearts, gathering the scraps and rerolling the dough as necessary.

For each tart, spread 2 teaspoons of strawberry jam on a heart, leaving a ½-inch margin on all sides. Brush the egg mixture around the edge before placing a second heart on top. Use the tines of a fork to seal the edges, then brush the tops with the egg mixture.

Bake the hearts on the prepared cookie sheet until their edges are just beginning to brown, about 15 minutes. Let them rest on the sheet a few minutes, then move them to a rack and let them cool completely.

Whisk the first four frosting ingredients in a medium bowl, adding more water a teaspoon at a time if needed to make a smooth, creamy frosting. Add a few drops of food coloring and mix until well blended. Spoon the frosting into a Ziploc bag, snip off a corner, and squeeze it onto the tarts. Top them with nonpareils or colored sugar.

#399: Crockpot French Dip

EASY and oh, so YUMMY.  This was good!  VERY good.  Did I mention easy?  I recently came across a new blog and found this recipe among several others.  We will definitely be making this one again. 

4 pounds of some type of roast meat (rump roast, chuck roast, etc)

1 can (10.5 oz) beef broth

1 can (10.5 oz) french onion soup (I used dried onion soup mix)

1 bottle or can (12 oz) beer (I used beef broth)

french rolls or other crusty rolls

sliced cheese (I was too lazy to get this since I would have been the only one eating it)

Place your roast in the crockpot and pour the broth, french onion soup and beer on top.   Cover and cook on low heat for 7-8 hours.  (Mine cooked for 10 hours)  About 30 minutes before eating, take out the meat and shred.  Place meat back into the juices and stir to flavor all the meat.  Split your rolls and top with sliced cheese.  Bake at 200 degrees for about 10 minutes or until rolls are nice and toasty.  Top rolls with shredded meat and add a cup of the au jus on the side to dip your sandwich in.

#398: Crockpot Minestrone Soup

This photo was taken before the noodles were added...obviously.

I need to learn one thing: If a soup recipe calls for celery I just need to omit it.  I sadly have very little desire to eat this soup because of the celery in it.  I'm going to have to start picking it out.  It's not that I'm a celery snob, but it's definitely not my favorite vegetable.  I am glad I came across this recipe though.  It was super, super easy to make and my kitchen smelled comforting and yummy as it cooked on the counter.  It was really good too, but this picky meat eater actually preferred the very similar Zucchini Beef Soup instead. 

My picture doesn't look nearly as good as the original photo from Skinny Taste though, so make sure you head over to her blog and check out this recipe as well as many of her others. 

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 (I used 4 cups)
1 oz chunk of good Parmesan cheese rind (I omitted)
1 fresh rosemary sprig (I used dried)
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 (I omitted)
2 cups cooked small pasta like ditalini or elbows (al dente)
extra Parmesan cheese to top

In a crockpot combine broth, tomatoes, beans, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, herbs, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper.  Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.  One hour before the soup is done cooking, add zucchini and spinach.  Add cooked pasta last 10 minutes. (I added it to individual bowls so the noodles wouldn't get soggy in the leftovers).  Remove bay leaves, rosemary spring and Parmesan rind.  Season with salt and pepper if needed. 

#397: Zucchini Beef Soup

Just looking at this photo makes me want to go get a bowl out of the freezer and start defrosting it!  I loved this soup.  I ate it all week for lunch and then froze the leftovers so I have some again for lunches in the future.  I made quite a few additions and changes to this original recipe though. 

1/2 pound lean ground beef (I used ground turkey)

2 celery ribs, thinly sliced (I omitted)

1/3 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped green pepper (I used a yellow pepper)

1 can (28 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained (I used about 10 oz)

3 medium zucchini, cubed (I used 1 zucchini)

1/3 c chopped carrots

2 cups water (I used about 5 cups of water)

1-1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

1 teaspoon salt, optional

1 teaspoon beef bouillon granules (I used 2 tsp)

1/2 teaspoon sugar

Pepper to taste

Shredded Parmesan cheese, optional

In a large saucepan, cook the beef, celery, onion, carrots and green pepper over medium heat until meat is no longer pink and vegetables are tender; drain.  Stir in the tomatoes, zucchini, water, Italian seasoning, salt if desired, bouillon, sugar and pepper.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 20-25 minutes or until zucchini is tender.  Garnish with Parmesan cheese if desired.  I also served this over small cooked pasta such as elbow macaroni or ditalini noodles.

#396: Parmesan Roasted Acorn Squash

I ripped this recipe out of one of my magazines, I THINK it was real simple, but I'm not 100% sure.  This was super easy to make.  Squash is usually hard to cut into but the acorn squash is so small, it's easy to cut.  The girls were not fans (I pretty much had to force them to eat a small bite), but I loved this.  This was a super yummy, fall dish!

1 two-pound acorn squash halved, seeded and sliced in 3/4 in thick slices
2 tbsp olive oil
8 springs fresh thyme (I used tried)
Salt and pepper
1/4 c grated Parmesan cheese

Heat oven to 400 degrees. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss the squash with the oil, thyme, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper.  Sprinkle with Parmesan.  Roast the squash until golden brown and tender, approx. 25-30 min.

#395: Lasagna Pasta Pies

I'll admit, I was very nervous about serving this recipe to my family.  I didn't think Brian would eat this.  No that's not true, I thought he would eat it, but not enjoy it.  We'll he didn't think they were too bad.  In fact, we all thought these were pretty good.  Different, a little odd, but good.
1 cup uncooked rotini pasta

1 lb ground Italian sausage

1 1/2 cups tomato pasta sauce

3/4 cup ricotta cheese

1 can (16.3 oz) Pillsbury® Grands!® refrigerated buttermilk biscuits

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (4 oz)

Heat oven to 350°F. Cook and drain pasta as directed on package. Meanwhile, in skillet, cook Italian sausage until no longer pink; drain. Stir in pasta sauce, ricotta cheese and pasta; cook 1 minute.                   

 

Separate dough into 8 biscuits; press each biscuit to 5 1/2-inch round. Firmly press 1 biscuit in bottom and up side of each of 8 ungreased jumbo muffin cups, forming 1/4-inch rim. Fill with sausage mixture; sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.                   

 

Bake 28 to 32 minutes or until golden brown. Cool 1 minute; remove from pan.

#394: Chocolate Banana Bread

I had just about all of the ingredients on hand for this recipe and of course, I had several bananas sitting on the counter completely over ripe.  So I knew this was the prefect recipe to use these bananas with.  Instead of making this in one large loaf pan, I decided to make it into three smaller pans so I could make two to take to my sister, and one to keep for us.  I don't think I have perfected the skill of banana bread yet because this was awfully chewy.  Allison really enjoyed it, Chloe didn't like it hardly at all (Allison was more than happy to eat her piece) and I thought it was just okay.  I'm still giving it to my sister and her family though.  :)  Hopefully they won't think it's too bad.  Unfortunately this made very thin loaves...as you can tell from the photo.

2 cups Banana Nut Cheerios® cereal

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup canola or vegetable oil

3/4 cup buttermilk

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 egg

1 cup mashed very ripe bananas (2 medium)

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup unsweetened baking cocoa

1teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips

Topping

1/2 cup Banana Nut Cheerios® cereal

Heat oven to 350°F. Spray bottom only of 9x5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray. Place 2 cups cereal in resealable food-storage plastic bag or between sheets of waxed paper; crush with rolling pin to make 3/4 cup. Set aside.
In large bowl, beat sugar and oil with electric mixer on low speed until well mixed. Beat in buttermilk, vanilla and egg just until blended; beat in bananas. Stir in flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt until well mixed. Stir in 3/4 cup crushed cereal and chocolate chips. Spoon and spread evenly in pan.
Place 1/2 cup cereal in resealable food-storage plastic bag or between sheets of waxed paper; coarsely crush with rolling pin. Sprinkle over batter in pan; press lightly.
Bake 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes. Remove from pan to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 2 hours.

#393: Brown Bag Burritos

I came across this recipe in a recent issue of Taste of Home and figured I'd give it a try.  I had to make some changes though because I knew I'd be pushing it if I tried to use two cans of refried beans with my family.  : )  This was SUPER easy to prepare and it literally took 2 minutes in the microwave to cook these.  I had dinner on the table SO fast!  I am definitely making these again to keep on hand for lunches or quick dinners. 

PS...My family enjoyed these!  The girls (especially Allison) loves burritos and Brian didn't seem to notice nor complain about the beans (he had no idea it was in there).

2 pounds ground beef

2 cans (16 ounces each) refried beans (I used 1 can)

3 cups (12 ounces) shredded Mexican cheese blend or cheddar cheese

1-1/3 cups enchilada sauce (I used 1 can)

1/2 cup water

1/3 cup chopped onion

2 tablespoons chili powder

1 tablespoon garlic powder

2 teaspoons dried oregano

1 teaspoon salt

16 flour tortillas (10 inches), warmed

Optional toppings: shredded Mexican cheese blend, sour cream, shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes and sliced ripe olives

In a Dutch oven, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Return to pan; add the beans, cheese, enchilada sauce, water, onion and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

Spoon 1/2 cup filling off center on each tortilla. Fold sides and end over filling and roll up. Wrap individually in paper towels, then foil. Transfer to a resealable plastic bag. May be frozen for up to 2 months.

To use frozen burritos: Unwrap foil. Place paper towel-wrapped burritos on a microwave-safe plate. Microwave on high for 3-4 minutes or until heated through. Serve with toppings of your choice. Yield: 16 servings.


#392: Caramel Apple Biscuits

Oh.my.goodness!  Fantastic.  Delicious. Easy. Sweet.  Would you like me to keep coming up with adjectives to describe these little biscuit bites?  I think I just ate 7 of them.  Yes in one sitting.  Mmmmm...so yummy! 

These were supposed to be make in regular size muffin tins and with a popsicle stick sticking out of it.  It doesn't need the stick and these are super yummy as mini muffins.  EASY to make too!

Biscuit Cups

1 can (16.3 oz) Pillsbury® Grands!® refrigerated buttermilk biscuits

2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted

1 medium apple, peeled, chopped (1 cup)

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

 

Icing

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/4 cup whipping cream

3/4 cup powdered sugar

Heat oven to 350°F.  Place paper baking cup in each of 12 regular-size muffin cups.   Cut each biscuit into 6 pieces; place in large bowl.  Add butter, apple, granulated sugar and cinnamon; toss gently to mix.  Spoon mixture into muffin cups.                   

Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.  Immediately remove from pan.  Meanwhile, in 1-quart saucepan, heat brown sugar and cream to a full rolling boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.  Beat in powdered sugar until smooth.  Spoon warm icing over warm biscuit cups.