what's for dinner: baked potato soup (crockpot!)

I'm in love with this baked potato soup.  It was really, really good.

I will warn you that this makes quite a bit of soup.  So if you're a two-person family like us, you might want to either cut down on the recipe or prepare yourself to have a lot of leftovers. 

I hope you enjoy as much as we did!

Baked Potato Soup - Slow Cooker

from Mama Loves Food!

5 lbs. russet potatoes, washed but not peeled & cut into 1/2" cubes

1 lg. yellow onion, diced

10 cloves of garlic (whole, crushed, or minced - I used minced)

8 C. chicken stock (yes, all of it)

16 oz. cream cheese

1 Tbsp. seasoned salt or all-purpose seasoning

Bacon, cheddar cheese, or whatever else you use for a garnish

Add potatoes, onion, garlic, seasoning, and chicken stock to your slower cooker.  Cook on high for 6 hours or low for 10 hours.  Remove and puree the garlic cloves (if you used them whole) along with 1/2 to 1/3 of the soup and then reintroduce to the crockpot.  (Since I used minced, I skipped this step.)  Stir in cream cheese and melt.  Stir every 10-15 minutes until well blended.  Top with your garnishes.

sugary goodness: avalanche bars

I had every intention of sending these Avalanche Bars with CJ to work.  Needless to say, they didn't make it.  In my defense though, this didn't make the typical 9x13" pan, so I guess that makes it better?

Avalanche Bars

from Cookies & Cups

12 oz. white chocolate chips

1/4 C. creamy peanutbutter

3 C. Rice Krispies

1 1/2 C. mini marshmallows

1/4 C. mini chocolate chips

Microwave your white chocolate chips for 1 minute.  Stir and continue in 30 second intrevals until melted.

Combine your peanut butter with the melted chocolate and add your Rice Krispies.

Now, this is where I deviated from the recipe:

It calls for letting it cool 15-20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes.  Then you're supposed to add the marshmallows and mini chocolate chips.

That seemed like a lot of hassle, so I went ahead and just mixed everything together.  As a result, my avalanche bars didn't look quite as presentable as they did on the other blog, but I achieved the same result for less time.  Win.

what's for dinner: walking tacos

First, isn't this bowl awesome?  I'm pretty much in love with the handles.  And the color.  It can be yours if you visit The Container Store.  I'm pretty much in love with that store too.

Second, I realize what's in the bowl may not look the most appetizing, but it's good stuff.  It's The Pioneer Woman's version of walking tacos (she calls it Frito Chili Pie).  I'm pretty sure every high school concession stand sells these, but I'm pretty sure they don't go to as much trouble and it's not nearly as good.  This version is definitely worth the time.

Frito Chili Pie

The Pioneer Woman

2 lbs. ground chuck (I used regular beef)

3 cloves garlic, minced (optional)

12-14 oz. tomato sauce

10 oz. Rotel

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. oregano

1 Tbsp. cumin

2 Tbsp. chili powder

14 oz. kidney beans, drained and rinsed

14 oz. pinto beans, drained and rinsed

1/4 C. corn meal (I'm pretty sure I used corn starch...is that the same thing?)

1/2 C. warm water

Fritos

Cheddar cheese

Sour Cream

+ any other toppings you'd like

Brown your meat with the garlic cloves.  Add tomato sauce, Rotel, salt, oregano, cumin, and chili powder.  Cover and reduce heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes.

Add drained and rinsed beans.  Combine and cover and simmer for another 20 minutes.

Add in your corn meal.  Combine and simmer for 10-15 more minutes.

Serve with Fritos, cheddar cheese, and sour cream.

Enjoy!

drink up: mock champagne punch

If you're looking for a good punch recipe for the holidays or just for sometime in the future, bookmark this one.  A colleague of mine, Nancy, had this at a Christmas party and I made it for CJ's graduation party.  It's got a bit of a tangy flavor to it, which I really appreciate.

Mock Champagne Punch
2 - 2 liters of ginger ale
large can of pineapple juice
64 oz. white grape juice

A day before, pour one 2-liter of ginger ale into a round cake pan and freeze (I used a bundt pan, which was the perfect size).  The day of, put your ice ring in the punch bowl and add the other ingredients.

Enjoy!

what's for dinner: baked cream cheese spaghetti

Can we say lifesaver?  This baked cream cheese spaghetti was on so many levels.

1.  I panicked one night last week because when I went to throw the next day's crockpot recipe together, it required me to do a little pre-cooking.  At 10 pm, I wasn't going to thaw out chicken, cut it into pieces, roll it in flour, and cook it first.  Also, we know that we spend too much money eating out, separately and together, and we also have a full pantry, so we've been making a concerted effort to eat in whenever possible -- and I just didn't want to break down and eat out that night.

2.  I had all but one ingredient on hand and I estimate it cost me about $5.25 to make.  Lesson:  Buy stuff when it's on sale.  I purchased spaghetti in bulk a few weeks ago (a buck per box!) and cream cheese at a $1.25/package.  The french fried onions, the only thing I didn't have on hand, were on sale for $2.99 this week.  I had green peppers leftover from our garden, plenty of homemade pasta sauce from our garden, and a small bag of frozen onions in the freezer, so that all helped.  (Another lesson?  Plant a garden.  It's cheaper to buy one pepper plant at $1.99 than to buy one pepper in the middle of winter for $1.99.)

3.  CJ loved this recipe.  When we were engaged, I learned that he didn't like spaghetti.  (Imagine my horror.  What in the world would I cook?)  But throw in cream cheese, veggies, and meat, and he's a satisfied customer.

Enough storytelling already.  Here's the picture and recipe:

Baked Cream Cheese Spaghetti
from Salad in a Jar

8 oz. uncooked spaghetti
1 lb. ground beef
26.5 oz. spaghetti sauce
1 Tbsp. butter
1/2 C. chopped green peppers
1/3 C. chopped onions
8 oz. cream cheese
2 Tbsp. milk
Parmesan
French fried onions

Preheat your oven to 350.

Cook your spaghetti.  Brown your meat.  Add the two together.

Meanwhile, combine onions, pepper, and butter in a bowl and microwave on high for about 4 minutes.  Add cream cheese and milk to vegetables and stir well.

I used a 10x6" dish for this, by the way.

Then layer:
Spaghetti sauce
Spaghetti & meat
Cream cheese/veggie mix
Spaghetti sauce
Parmesan cheese

Bake for 25 minutes.  Remove from oven, add a layer of french fried onions, and then bake 5 minutes longer.

Enjoy!

and for a side: stuffed mushrooms

A former co-worker of mine, Christy, shared this stuffed mushrooms recipe on her blog, Trippin' - Life with Triplets, awhile ago.  These are quick and easy to make, and they never last long.  I can't remember if I've shared this recipe before or not, but even if I have, it's worth the repeat.

I'm not going to lie.  There were more stuffed mushrooms on this plate before I remembered to take a photo.  And the next thing I know they were gone.  Apparently what CJ heard was, "Finish off the mushrooms," when I really said, "The mushrooms are ready to eat."

Anyway, I'll get on with the recipe:

Stuffed Mushrooms

from Trippin' - Life with Triplets

Serves:  Not many

1 pkg. baby portabella or white mushrooms

1/2 C. grated smoked gouda

1/4 C. crushed garlic & herb croutons

butter

salt, optional

Clean mushrooms and remove stems.  Place caps top down on baking sheet.  Put a dab of butter in each.  Pack with cheese.  Sprinkle croutons on top and sprinkle with salt.  Bake 20 minutes at 425 degrees.

P.S.  Christy's blog is definitely worth the read.  She and her husband have a daughter and three triplet boys, so she's never short of good stories.

and for a side: twice-baked potato casserole

Can you guess where I found this recipe for twice-baked potato casserole?  If you guessed pinterest, you're right.  (Seriously?  You haven't joined YET??)

We eat lots of first time meals around our house.  Most of the time it doesn't work out.  But this potato casserole is an entirely different story.  I was eating it before I even had a chance to throw it in the oven.  I practically licked my plate clean.  It's just that good.

Looks delicious, right?

Henry helped out with this one.  It had bacon in it, after all.  But in his credit, Henry is a pretty good helper.  I'm not going to lie.  He's a good mop substitute.

I'll quit jabbering and just share the recipe already.

Twice-Baked Potato Casserole
From Sippity Sup
Serves at least 8

5 lb. potatoes
10 slices bacon
8 oz. cream cheese
1/2 C. unsalted butter, melted
1 C. sour cream
1/4 C. chives, minced
2-1/2 C. cheddar cheese
2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

Directions:
Preheat ovento 350 degrees.  Peel potatoes and cut into 1" chunks.  Place in large saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  Reduce to a simmer and cook about 20 minutes.  Drain and return to pan.

In the meantime, heat a large skillet over medium heat.  Add bacon and cook until crisp.  Drain, cool, and crumble into pieces.

Mash your potatoes.  Stir in butter, cream cheese, and sour cream.  Add in chives, 2 C. cheddar, half of your bacon, salt, and pepper, and stir.

Transfer to a dish (buttered or sprayed with Pam).  Top with remaining cheese.  Bake about 30 minutes or until your top is slightly golden.  Garnish with remaining bacon.

Hope you all enjoy this one as much as we did!

what's for dinner: cheeseburger soup

A few weeks ago, I made cheeseburger soup and it was pretty darn good, if I do say so. This was my mom's recipe, although it looks suspiciously like something Taste of Home posted.  Maybe mom ripped them off?  Or vice versa?

Either way, here's the really professional-looking photo I took:

And here's the recipe:

Cheeseburger Soup

From my mom and/or Taste of Home, altered a bit

1/2 lb. ground beef

3/4 C. chopped onion

4 Tbsp. butter

3 C. chicken broth

4 C. diced, peeled potatoes

1/4 C. flour

2 C. Velveeta

1 1/2 C. milk

3/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1/4 C. sour cream

Directions:

Brown beef and drain.  Saute onions in 1 Tbsp. butter.  Add broth, beef, onion mixture, and potatoes to pot and bring to a boil.  Simmer 10-12 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

In a saucepan, melt remainder of butter.  Add flour; cook and stir for 3-5 minutes.  Reduce heat to low.  Add cheese, milk, salt, and pepper.  Cook until cheese melts.

Remove heat and add sour cream.  Then add everything to the beef and mixture mix.

Molly's notes:

For starters, this recipe also calls for carrots and celery.  I hate celery and thought it'd be weird to have carrots floating around in there, so I omitted both of those.

I'm pretty sure I probably used a whole pound of ground beef.  And I didn't use 2 cups of Velveeta.  Actually, come to think of it, this one calls for American cheese.  But Velveeta is better.  I didn't measure out 2 cups either.  I figured I couldn't go wrong with more Velveeta.  Also, I think I ended up using 4 potatoes, not 4 cups of potatoes.  I also can't remember if I added in the sour cream at the end.

Next time, I'll take better notes while I'm making the soup.  Just play around with it until you figure out what suits your taste buds best.  Enjoy!

Oh and one last thing...  It kind of bugs my mom when she gives a recipe away and then someone takes it to an event where they can count on her being there.  So if you know my mom and are headed to the same pitch-in meal as she is -- highly unlikely, I know -- just don't bring this soup.

heath bar crunch cookie bars

This one's a mouthful -- Heath Bar Crunch Cookie Bars.

I'm going to admit that I'm not the world's biggest Heath bar fan.  Don't get me wrong.  If it's the only chocolate in miles and I'm desperate, I'll eat it.  It's chocolate, after all.  But, it definitely doesn't make my top 10 list of favorite candy bars.  I'm not sure what all does, but this one wouldn't make the cut.

My point?  I'm married to someone who likes Heath bars.  So I found this recipe on pinterest (Are you still not a member?  Really?), and they were a big hit.  CJ took a big risk in telling me that he liked these better than my chocolate chip cookies.

Anyway, I took a picture for you.  Because, you know, you've probably never seen cookie bars before or anything...

If you're not like me and do like Heath bars, head on over to Sweet Tooth Sweet Life for the full recipe...and enjoy!

pizza meatballs

I haven't been cooking much since CJ hasn't been home much, but I did manage to make these pizza meatballs a few weeks back.  CJ must have approved -- I'm pretty sure he went back for thirds!

I will warn you that this one took awhile to prepare - maybe an hour tops - but was worth it.  I only wish I had a professional camera and could make these look a little more appetizing than my phone camera does.

Head on over to Taste of Home if you want the full recipe!

I. Love. Nutella.

I had my first taste of Nutella in my high school French class.  There for awhile, it seemed like only French people or French students knew about it.  It's fairly mainstream now, and while I miss having this perceived secret product in my pantry, I'm a big fan of all these Nutella-based recipes that are popping up.

So, a few weeks back, I made these Peanut Butter & Nutella Swirl cookies for the guys at Station 2.  They were super easy and CJ reported they were gone by 1 pm.

Go find the recipe at Delightful Bitefuls (via Pinterest, of course).

cooking with cheerios

My latest Station 2 treat was these Cheerio treats.  Shamefully, not as many made their way to the fire station as should have.

Side note -- What are those special Rice Krispie treats called?  The ones with peanut butter and corn syrup?  These are really similar.  And just as easy.  And just as unhealthy.

Head on over to Kathie Cooks to get the recipe (yep, it's another pinterest find)...

reese's peanut butter cup brownies

I'm determined to not be one of those people who only pins something to their Pinterest account, never to actually try it.  (If you have an account, you understand what I mean.)

So I made these to-die-for Reese's peanut butter cup brownies.  They were so rich I could only eat a half of a brownie.  And then I sent the rest with CJ to work.  It's a good compromise, right?

Here's just part of the mixture.  Yep, there's Reese's Pieces in there.

And here's the final product (try to look past the crummy iPhone photo resolution):

This one has a layer of brownie mix.  Then there's the batter you saw above with Reese's Pieces in it.  Then there's the melted chocolate topping with Reese's peanut butter cups spread on top.

Obviously, there's nothing healthy about these whatsoever.  But if you're looking for a good brownie for a special occasion or if you really, really, really need a chocolate fix, try this one out.  You'll find the recipe at Pip & Ebby.

chocolate chip cookie brownies

I'm using my pinterest account again, this time whipping up these chocolate chip cookie dough brownies:

I'm not going to lie -- these took some time.  The bottom half is a (homemade) brownie.  The top half is (homemade) egg-less cookie dough batter.  If you decide to make them, know that it took me a lot longer to make the brownie, and I'd also switch out the semi-sweet chips for milk chocolate (but that's more personal preference).  Enjoy!

bubble up pizza

I've been trying to put my pinterest account to good use, so I whipped up this bubble up pizza the other night:

This was super easy and quick (less than 5 minutes prep!) and you can customize it with whatever ingredients you want.  And it gave me a good excuse to use up some of our homemade pasta sauce from our garden.

Enjoy!

on a grilled cheese quest

There are two foods that I prefer the restaurant to the homemade version.  One is mashed potatoes.  (Love me some KFC mashed potatoes.  Yum.)  The second is grilled cheese.  I could never figure out what restaurants did differently.  I tried different breads, cheeses, you name it.  And then I figured it out.  Or rather, Kraft figured it out for me.

Yup.  I took a picture of my grilled cheese sandwich.

The secret?  It's baked in the oven.  Did everyone else but me know this?

So really, it's not a grilled cheese sandwich so much as it's a baked cheese sandwich.  This recipe also called for Parmesan on the outside.  I'm not entirely sure it made a difference, but it's a nice twist.

It's pretty basic, but if you want the recipe, head on over to Kraft's website for the ultimate crispy grilled cheese sandwich recipe.

chicken mcnuggets knock-off

Not that I'm any busier than any other woman out there, but you'd think I'd have like a dozen cookbooks specifically geared towards busy women.  I only have one, and it's only because my mom bought it for me.  (Try out the green chile chicken alfredo recipe I found in that cookbook here.)  Instead of dumping stuff in my awesome crockpot, I sometimes like to tackle more complicated projects (try out the chicken satay recipe or read about how I'm never going to become like Julia Child) -- because, you know, I don't have a 10 page paper to write on doing business in India, do I?

I digress.  My friend, Amy (need a cake??), posted this recipe to her facebook wall.  I finally had an excuse to use our super new food processor too.  CJ had been hogging it to make fruit leather.  Oh, and we got it super cheap too, so I'm pretty pumped all around.

Chicken McNuggets
Makes 34 (if you make them in ping-pong sized balls)
From Shine on Yahoo! (I don't know.)

4 chicken breast fillets
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. parsley
1/2 tsp. oregano
1/4 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 eggs, beaten
1 C. flour
1.5 C. oil

I'll shorten up the directions.  Dump your chicken into a food processor and blend to make a paste.  Add in the other ingredients, less the eggs, flour, and oil.  Heat up oil in a pan.  Roll the chicken paste into balls, roll in flour, roll in egg, and roll back in flour.  Then put it in your heated up pan and cook on both sides.

Healthy?  Not so much.  But probably better than McD's.

saucy pork chops -- crockpot!

Do you like that I post a crockpot recipe I add an exclamation point at the end?  I'm not sure why I do it.  I must just get super excited about crockpots or something.

Anyway, this one was easy peasy and good.  Try it.

Saucy Pork Chops
Taste of Home

4 pork chops
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 Tbsp. canola oil
2 C. ketchup
1/2 C. packed brown sugar
1 tsp. hickory-seasoned Liquid Smoke

Sprinkle pork chops with garlic powder, salt, and pepper.  Brown pork chops in a large skillet in oil on both sides and drain.

In a bowl, combine all the other ingredients.  Pour half the sauce into your crockpot, put in your pork chops, and then pour in the remaining sauce.

Cook on low for 4.25 to 5.25 hours.

Enjoy!

cornbread trick

Okay, maybe everyone else in the world already knows this, but here's the trick anyway:  Substitute one can of creamed corn for the milk when making cornbread.  Sometimes the goodness of cornbread is that it's dry, but this moist version definitely hits the spot too!

crusty pizza dough

This pizza dough is one of CJ's (few) specialties in the kitchen.  It's definitely cheap to make, but once we add ingredients, I'm sure it would cost just as much to buy a frozen pizza.  It'd be quicker too, but definitely not as good.

Crusty Pizza Dough
KitchenAid (the cookbook came with our mixer)

1 package active dry yeast
1 cup warm water (105-115 degrees)
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. olive oil
2.5 - 3.5 C. all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp. cornmeal

Dissolve yeast in warm water in warmed mixer bowl.  Add salt, olive oil, and 2.5 C. flour.  Attach bowl and dough hook to mixer.  Turn to speed 2 and mix about 1 minute.  Continuing, add remaining flour, 1/2 C. at a time, and mix about 2 minutes, or until dough clings to hook and cleans sides of bowl.  Knead on Speed 2 about 2 minutes longer.  Place dough in greased bowl, turning to grease top.  Cover and let rise in warm place, free from draft, about 1 hour or until doubled in bulk.  Bake at 450 for 15-20 minutes.