Brown Sugar Pork Chops!

So, I was looking for something quick and easy to make, and not unlike Old Mother Hubbard, my cupboards were bare. I had some pork chops in the fridge that I really needed to use up. I was short on time, desire, and energy to cook. So, this was the result... which, to my surprise... was DELICIOUS!

Brown Sugar Pork Chops
4-6 pork chops
brown sugar
1/2 C. soy sauce, approximately

Melt a 1-2 Tbsp. coconut oil,  or some other oil, in the bottom of a skillet, over medium heat. Using a large table spoon, spoon one spoonful of brown sugar onto each pork chop. Pat or pack the brown sugar onto the pork chop. Place brown sugar side down into heated skillet, repeat with remaining pork chops. Put the same amount of brown sugar onto the top of pork chops. Take soy sauce and "squirt" or pour over pork chops, just enough to dampen the brown sugar on each chop. Cook for approximately 3-5 minutes per side, or until browned and cooked part way through. Flip pork chops and cook on opposite side, until done. I let mine simmer, on low for a bit, to let the sauce simmer and reduce a little.

Delicious Hot Pineapple Casserole

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!! 

I first made this recipe a few years ago. It is SOOO good. I think it would be amazing at Easter, with ham! It is really easy to whip up and delicious!

Have a great day! 

Enjoy!

Hot Pineapple Casserole

2 (20 ounce) cans crushed pineapple, drained
6 Tbsp. all-purpose flour

1 C. white sugar

2 C. shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1 sleeve buttery round crackers (such as Ritz®), crushed
1/2 cup butter, melted

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees. Drain the pineapple.Combine the flour and sugar in a large bowl.  Add the Cheddar cheese and crushed pineapple to the flour mixture. Once combined, pour the mixture into a 1 1/2- 2 quart (sprayed) casserole dish. Mix the cracker crumbs and butter in a small bowl, then sprinkle over the pineapple mixture. Bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes.

Baked Frito Chili Pie

I love Frito Chili Pie... I really do. It is so simple, yet so yummy. When I saw this recipe floating around, I knew I had to give it a try. I had to change it up a little bit, one, because I wasn't paying attention, and two because I was running really low on shredded cheese. Anyway, this came out really well!! 

Enjoy!

Baked Frito Chili Pie

1 lb. ground beef

1 can (16 oz) chili beans (do not drain)
1 can (14-16 oz) tomato sauce
1 can (15 oz) diced tomatoes (drained)
1 envelope taco seasoning
1 C. shredded cheddar cheese
3-1/2 C. corn chips (Fritos)
1-1/4 C. fat free sour cream

Cook ground beef until meat is browned; drain. Stir in beans, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes (I wasn't paying attention and I did not drain mine...), taco seasoning mix. and 1/4 c. of cheese. Sprinkle 1 C. corn chips in bottom of baking dish. Cover with chili. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Spread sour cream over chili. Top with remaining corn chips and cheese. Bake 4-5 minutes longer. I used Velveeta on top of mine, I was running low on shredded cheese.Original Recipe: Myfamilymealplan

Super Easy Peanut Butter Cookies!

I was craving something sweet this morning... but wanted to try to stay gluten free. I was not so good yesterday about following the whole gluten free thing. Well, I stumbled upon this recipe and decided to give it a try. I had tried a flour free, gluten free peanut butter cookie recipe before, but they did not turn out very good. I am VERY happy with this recipe! They turned out so good. Very sweet, but VERY good!

Enjoy!

Easy Peanut Butter Cookies
1 C. creamy peanut butter
1 C. granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. baking soda

extra sugar, optional

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Cream all ingredients in a mixer. Roll into one inch balls, roll in extra sugar, and flatten with the bottom of a glass jar or cup. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 8-10 minutes and cool on cookie sheet until completely cool.

Original recipe: RumblyTumbly

Queso Taco Pasta Bake

I saw this recipe floating around Pinterest. I decided to give it a try tonight. I did motif it some, to meet my needs, but it was VERY good!! 

Queso Taco Pasta Bake

4 Tbsp. unsalted butter

1/4 C. all purpose flour (gf)
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1-1/2 C. almond milk (recipe called for chicken broth)
1-1/2 C. shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 C. prepared mild salsa
1 C. finely chopped onions
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 lb. lean ground beef
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1- 10 oz. can Rotel tomatoes, mild
1 Tbsp. ground cumin
1 Tbsp. lime juice
3/4 lb. small pasta of your choice (gf)
2 C. shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and lightly spray a 9×13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.
Place butter into a medium pan over medium heat. Stir to melt. Whisk in flour, salt and pepper for about 30 seconds until bubbly. Slowly whisk in milk or broth until smooth. Increase heat to high while whisking until thickened, approximately 3-5 minutes. Stir in cheese and salsa, turn off heat and set aside. Brown ground beef, when almost done browning, add salt and pepper, onions and garlic. Drain, if needed. Then, add tomatoes, cumin, and lime juice, stir to combine. Cook pasta according to package directions and drain. Transfer beef, noodles and queso to casserole dish. Top with shredded cheese. Bake for 25-30 minutes until cheese is melted. Serve warm.

Original recipe: PickyPalate

Cheesy Smoked Sausage Potato Casserole

The weather here has been very rainy and cold. The temperatures have finally dropped off and our highs have only been in the 50s the last few days. I am loving the fall weather, but wish I could stay at home, snuggled up with my cat and a good book. I was really craving comfort food. Comfort food, to me, is usually something warm, and with lots of melted cheese. Oh! Add some potatoes in there too! So, as I was browsing around Pinterest looking for some ideas, I came across a recipe that I knew I had everything to make. I took this recipe and adapted it some, to fit my comfort food craving, and voila! 

Enjoy!

Cheesy Smoked Sausage Potato Casserole

3 C. potatoes, boiled and cut into cubes, approx. 1 lb.
4 Tbsp. butter
4 Tbsp. flour (I used gluten free flour)
2 C. milk (I used almond milk)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/2 lb. Velveeta cheese, diced
1/2 C. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1 lb. skinless smoked sausage
1/8 tsp. smoked paprika

Preheat oven to 350*. Cut skinless smoked sausage in half, lengthwise, and then slice into 1/2 inch "half moon" cuts. Cook in a frying pan for about 15 minutes, until slightly brown. While the sausage is browning up, put the cooked & diced potatoes in 2 quart casserole. Add the cooked sausage. Mix all remaining ingredients (except shredded cheddar cheese & paprika), with a whisk, in a saucepan over medium heat until warm, melted, and smooth. Stir constantly. Pour the cheese sauce over the potatoes and meat, stir to combine. Sprinkle shredded sharp cheddar cheese on top, and then sprinkle paprika evenly over the top.
Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until golden brown on top.

*You can substitute: 1/2 lb. hot dogs, sliced into 1/2-inch slices OR 1/2 lb. ham diced into 1/2-inch dices OR 12 oz. can of Spam diced into 1/2-inch dices, instead of the smoked sausage.

Original recipe: Jolean's Cheese Potato and Smoked Sausage Casserole

Baked Chili Cheese Dogs... YUM!

I had been thinking that chili dogs sounded good. But, when I went to make them, I thought I wanted to go about it a little bit differently than usual. So, this was the result. These were quick to put together and very good!

Baked Chili Cheese Dogs
8 gf or regular hot dog buns
8 hot dogs
1 can chili or one batch of homemade chili
shredded cheese
diced onion (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray. Put one hotdog per bun, place in pan. Top each hotdog with chili, shredded cheese, and onion (optional). Cover with foil, and bake for 40-45 minutes minutes.

Quick Meatballs

Every time that we have spaghetti for supper, my oldest ALWAYS asks for meatballs. I rarely make them, because, well, I am lazy. Just browning the hamburger is way easier. So, tonight when I decided to make spaghetti, I thought I would surprise her with meatballs. When looking for a recipe, I wanted something quick and easy to make. 

Quick Meatballs

1 lb. ground beef
1/2 - 3/4 C. bread crumbs (I used gf)
1 egg lightly beaten
garlic powder
black pepper

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Mix all ingredients together. I threw all of the ingredients together in my KitchenAide mixer, I don't like touching raw meat. Once mixed well, form into meatballs, approximately the size of golfballs. Bake for 20-30, or until done.

Brown Sugar Pork Chops

Well, it is only Tuesday, am I worn out. I keep asking if it is Friday yet and everyone keeps telling me, "no." :(  I think they are all just trying to torture me. I have also been in a real rut here lately in the cooking department. I have fallen off the meal planning wagon, and I can tell. I am struggling to find something to make from day to day. Blah... So, tonight was simple brown sugar pork chops. They were easy and very simple. I think that the next time I make them, I will double the brown sugar mixture.

Simple Brown Sugar Pork Chops

4-6 pork chops
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
minced/chopped garlic

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix brown sugar, chili powder, garlic powder, and minced garlic. Place pork chops in pan, coat with brown sugar mixture. Bake for 20 minutes or until done.

Gluten Free Quick and Easy Banana Bread

With the cooler weather, I have been craving banana bread. I love the flavors, the smells... Mmmmm... In my quest for a GOOD gluten free banana bread recipe, I also wanted something super easy. Well, this recipe could not be any easier, I don't think. 

Gluten Free Banana Bread
1 box gluten free yellow or white cake mix
3 eggs
4 ripe bananas 
1/2-1 C. mini chocolate chips (optional)
1/2 C. chopped pecans (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray two loaf pans with nonstick spray. Mix first three ingredients together. Fold in chocolate chips, if using. Pour half of the batter into each prepared loaf pan. Top each pan of batter with half of the chopped pecan, if using. Bake for approximately 40 minutes, or util toothpick poked in middle comes out clean.

*If you are not wanting gluten free, you can simply use a regular cake mix.

Hamburger Potato Casserole

Our temperatures have finally dropped some and nice during the day and we are having cool evenings. The weather has been perfect! Only downfall... the pollen levels are so high. So, I am not feeling so hot, to put it nicely. This achy body did not want to get up and make anything for supper, but the littles seem to get hungry and need to be fed.

Hamburger Potato Casserole

1 lb. ground beef
2 to 4 potatoes (depending on how thin slice) uncooked
3/4 C. diced onion
1 clove garlic, minced 
1 Tbsp. dried parsley
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. onion powder
A few pinches of pepper
1 can cream of mushroom soup  (gluten free)
1 C. shredded cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Brown the meat in a skillet. Add the onions and the seasonings. While the ground beef is cooking, slice the potatoes. Spray the casserole dish, and then line the bottom with the sliced potatoes. When the meat is almost brown, add in the fresh garlic. Add in the can of cream of mushroom soup. Mix well. Put half of the soup mixture over the first layer of potato slices. Then add another layer of potatoes. Then scoop the remaining amount of the mixture on top of those potatoes. Cover the dish with foil. Bake about 45 minutes to an hour, or until potatoes are cooked through. When potatoes are fork tender, remove foil and sprinkle the cheese on top and cook again until the cheese is melted.

Original recipe: PureLifeandtheloveoffood

Baked BBQ Chicken

Tonight's supper was quick and easy. I had some chicken thighs to use up and wanted to bbq them, but it was 100+ degrees outside and I was not going to fire up the grill. I don't like to sweat to when I cook. So, here you go!

Baked BBQ Chicken
8 chicken thighs
1/2 bottle of favorite bbq sauce
1/4 c. honey
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. smoked paprika
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. seasoned salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In skillet, brown chicken thighs. Place in 9x13 pan. In small bowl, mix up remaining ingredients. Spread over chicken. Bake for 30-45 minutes, or until chicken is done and juices run clear.

Spaghetti Tacos... Surprisingly delicious!

So, the yahooties head back to school tomorrow! This momma is doing a happy dance!! I know, that is horrible, but, well... I am! A couple years ago, while watching one of their favorite tv shows, the girls heard about spaghetti tacos. They had asked me to make them, at that time, and I didn't ever do it. As a Back to School surprise, we have spent the evening watching their favorite show, iCarly, and having spaghetti tacos. I had 3 of them myself. Pretty yummy...

Spaghetti Tacos
1 lb. hamburger or sausage
1 large jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce
8-10 oz. of spaghetti
shredded cheese
1 pkg. taco shells

Brown hamburger or sausage over medium heat in sauce pan, drain if needed. Add sauce, heat through. In another pot, cooks spaghetti until a dente, drain. Add spaghetti to spaghetti sauce, stir to combine. I warm my taco shells in a 350 degree oven for about 5-7 minutes. After warming taco shells, remove from oven. Add a scoop of spaghetti to each taco shell, top with shredded cheese.
*I used gluten free spaghetti

Oven Roasted Chicken with Veggies

Tonight's supper could be a one pan supper, if you want to just have chicken and the veggies. But, there is always the option of adding on additional side dishes, if you so wish. 

Oven Roasted Chicken with Veggies
1 4-6 lb. whole chicken
1 lb. baby carrots
1 medium to large zucchini
1 medium to large onion chunked
Coconut oil

Cavendar's Greek Seasoning

Seasoning salt

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. While oven is preheating. Put baby carrots in bottom of a 9x13 pan. Add rough chopped zucchini and onion. Sprinkle with seasoning salt and Cavendar's Greek Seasoning. Remove giblets from whole chicken. Pour 2 Tbsp. coconut oil inside chicken, and move around to coat inside of chicken. Sprinkle in 1-2 Tbsp. Cavendar's Greek Seasoning, move chicken around to coat inside. Tie legs together with string. Put chicken on top of veggies, breast side down. Coat top of chicken with coconut oil and sprinkle more Cavendar's Greek Seasoning on top. Bake for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes is up, reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees. Carefully tip the chicken to drain off any juices from the cavity and turn the chicken over. Coat the top of the chicken/breast with coconut oil and sprinkle with more Cavendar's Greek Seasoning. Bake an additional 20 minutes per pound or until chicken is cooked through and juices run clear. Let sit for 20-30 minutes before serving. You can tent it with aluminum foil during this time, if you wish.

Quick Meatloaf Cups

I thought meatloaf sounded good tonight, but I wanted something fast and my ground beef was still half frozen. Whoops! I guess that is what happens when I don't decide on this until 2 p.m. in the afternoon... And, well, supper needed to be ready around 4:30-ish. Again, whoops!

Quick Meatloaf Cups

1 lb. of ground beef or turkey (makes 12 cups)
Bread crumbs (about 1/2 C., I used gluten free)
Worcestershire sauce (about 2 Tbs.)
1 egg
1 pkt. french onion soup mix
Approx. 1/2 C. parmesan cheese (optional)

Sauce: 1/3 c. brown sugar, 1/3 c. ketchup, and 2 Tbsp. yellow mustard

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix all meatloaf ingredients together, either by hand or in a Kitchen Aide mixer (that is what I do, because I do NOT like touching raw meat). Put in sprayed muffin tins. In a separate bowl, mix together sauce. After meat mixtures has been divided into tins, top with sauce. Bake for approximately 20-30 minutes, or until cooked through.

Original recipe: Temeculablogs

Another Oven Baked Fried Chicken

I had some more chicken legs to use up, so this was another take at oven fried chicken legs. The family liked this recipe better than the previous one. I would have to say that these did turn our really well, and honestly, not having to actually fry them made it a lot less of a mess to clean up.

Oven Baked Fried Chicken

1/2 C. all-purpose flour (I used gf)
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. garlic
1/3 tsp. paprika
1/4 tsp. pepper

1 tsp. chili flakes
6-8 chicken drumsticks
1/2 C. butter, melted

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Mix the flour, salt, garlic, paprika, chili flakes, and pepper in a bowl. While you are mixing your coating, but butter in a shallow container that is wide enough to dip the legs in. Melt the butter in the microwave.

Dip the drumsticks into the butter, coating them completely. Roll in flour mixture to coat completely. Then, dip in the butter again and back once again into the flour mixture. 

Put the drumsticks in an ungreased pan. Bake, uncovered, until done, about 45-50 minutes.
Original recipe: howtobestunning

Beanie Weenie Cornbread Casserole!

Every once in a while I get a craving for Beanie Weenies. I cannot explain it. They are just good... Mmmmmm... So, with this in mind, I decided to make up a Beanie Weenie and Cornbread Casserole. I needed something that could be a complete meal with a salad on the side or something. This casserole is sooo good. Gourmet I tell ya! Pure gourmet! 

Beanie Weenie Cornbread Casserole

2 cans (14 oz.) Chili beans or pork and beans
1 pkg. hotdogs, sliced into rounds
2 Tbsp. dried minced onion
1/4 c. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. yellow mustard
1/4 c. bbq sauce or ketchup
Ground black pepper, to taste
1 box corn bread muffin mix

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In casserole dish, mix up the beans, sliced hotdogs, onion, brown sugar, mustard, bbq sauce/ketchup, and pepper. In a small bowl, mix up corn bread muffin mix as per directions on box. The mix I used called for 1/3 C. of milk, I only used 1/4 c. Spoon cornbread mix over the top of the bean and hotdog mixture. Bake until cornbread is baked through, approximately 20-30 minutes. 

Marshmallow Caramel Popcorn... Sinful!

I was having a MAJOR sweet craving, and, well, I had NOTHING in the house that sounded even remotely good. So, while digging in the "holy land," aka Pinterest, I came across a recipe that I used for the base of the one I am posting below. I did tweek it a little bit, to make it doable, based on what I had available at home. Apparently, the grocery fairy has skipped our house AGAIN and I am going to have to make a run to the store tomorrow. This is one of my least favorite things to do, EVER.

This popcorn is SOOO gooey, and yummy... I ate this for supper tonight. Ssshhhh... Don't tell!

Marshmallow Caramel Popcorn
1/2 C. coconut oil or butter
1 C. brown sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp. light karo syrup (corn syrup)
14 large marshmallows
9 Tbsp. popcorn kernels or 1 pkg. microwave popcorn

Pop popcorn in 1-2 Tbsp. coconut oil, or if using microwave popcorn, pop the popcorn. Try to remove any unpopped kernels. In a small sauce pan put the coconut oil or melt the butter. Add the brown sugar, karo syrup, and marshmallows. Mix till everything is melted and blended well. With the coconut oil, it did not want to blend well, I had to use a whisk to get it to melt and blend as much as possible. There was still some oil that was not mixing in, but when the rest of the mixture got caramely, I just poured it all over the popped corn and it all stirred in well. Pour over popcorn  and stir well to completely coat the popped corn.
Original recipe: myglutenfreefoods

Fried Chicken Legs

I thought fried chicken sounded good tonight. Of course, it is one of the hottest days we have had so far this summer, but, well... Anyway. 

Earlier this afternoon, I had seen an article about research that had been conducted on mothers of children on the autism spectrum vs. mothers of "normal" children. I hate to use the word "normal" because, well, there really is no "normal," but you get the idea. So, according to this research, mothers of children on the spectrum have much higher levels of stress, anxiety, and depression. It also talked about some "trainings" that can help parents learn to relieve some of that stress and anxiety and help to fight off depression. I can completely relate to the outcomes of this article. Although, I think it can also apply to many dad's of children on the autism spectrum. It probably is true for parents of a child with just about any type of disability. Of course, in the middle of making this fried chicken, with matter covered hands, the girls start picking, pestering, and prodding each other. I think they have these little sensors that go off, letting them know that you are in the middle of something... How is it that it always turns out that way? 

Comfort food was definitely in store for this evening! Enjoy!

Fried Chicken Legs
12 chicken legs or chicken pieces

1 qt. of buttermilk or substitute

3 C. of flour

3 Tbsp. Seasoned Salt

2 tsp. Thyme

1/4 tsp. cayenne

1/2 C. milk

Oil or shortening for frying

Put the legs in a ziploc bag and cover with buttermilk, reserving about 1/2 cup, and let sit overnight, if possible. I only had mine marinate for about 1.5 to 2 hours. Preheat oven to 350. Remove chicken from buttermilk and pat dry. In a medium bowl, combine 2 cups of flour, 2 Tbsp. of seasoned salt, thyme, and cayenne. Add in milk and reserved buttermilk and stir to make a thick batter. In a separate dish, mix remaining flour and seasoned salt together. Heat oil or shortening in a deep cast iron skillet or dutch oven. There should be enough oil to almost cover the chicken completely. Heat oil. While oil is heating, dredge chicken in the wet batter, making sure to get a good coating, then dredge in flour mixture. Working in batches, place chicken in oil gently. Cook for about 5 minutes on one side then turn and cook the other side for another 3-4 minutes. Place chicken on baking sheet. Bake for about 15 minutes or until juices run clear.

*If cooking gluten free, like I did: use gluten free flour. I used Betty Crocker gluten free all purpose flour blend. I also had to use about 1.5 to 2 cups milk/buttermilk to get the batter thin enough to coat the chicken. I just eye balled it.

Original recipe from: Eatinonthecheap

Amazing Cheesy Bacon Tater Tots

I was needing a cheese and bacon fix. But, I could not decide on what I wanted. Nothing really sounded good. The family was starting to get restless because it was almost supper time. So, I went to scrounging around for ideas. These are AMAZING! YUM!

Cheesy Bacon Tater Tots1 bag frozen tater tots
1 cup sour cream
½ cup ranch dressing
¼ cup milk
1 cup Shredded cheddar cheese
½ cup real bacon bits or 4-6 slices bacon fried and crumbled
Salt and pepper to taste

Bake the tater tots according to the package instructions. While tater tots are baking, mix the sour cream, ranch dressing, and milk until well blended. Once tater tots are done, drizzle the sour cream ranch mixture over the cooked tater tots. Sprinkle the cheese and bacon bits all over the top of the tater tots. Place the tater tots back into the oven until the cheese melts. ENJOY!

Quick Parmesan Crusted Fish Fillets

One of my goals for the remainder of 2014 is to incorporate more fish into my diet. I like fish, I just don't find myself cooking it all that often. This was a super quick and easy recipe that I came across. This really was quick to whip and throw in the oven and it really doesn't have to bake all that long, so it is good for a fast meal.

Parmesan Crusted Fish1 (16-oz) package frozen fish fillets, thawed 

1/3 C. mayonnaise 

1/4 C. freshly grated Parmesan cheese 

1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

Preheat oven to 400°F. Place fillets in a 13- x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Stir together mayonnaise, Parmesan cheese, and Worcestershire sauce in a small bowl; spread over fillets. Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork.

Modified recipe from: Emeals

Mushroom-Onion Pot Roast (Crock Pot)

Tonight's supper was absolutely amazing and really easy to throw together. I will definitely be throwing this in the crock pot again sometime soon! It just has amazing flavor! YUM!

Mushroom-Oni0n Pot Roast (Crock Pot)

3-4 lb. roast
2 Tbsp. coconut oil
1 (8-oz) pkg. sliced fresh mushrooms
1 sweet onion, sliced
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. pepper
3 Tbsp. gluten free flour
2 C. chicken broth

Heat oil in skillet. Add mushrooms, onion, garlic salt, and pepper to skillet; cook 3 to 5 minutes or until onion is tender, stirring constantly. Add almond flour; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Combine mushroom mixture and broth in a 6-quart slow cooker; stir well. Add roast to slow cooker. Cover, and cook on Low 8 hours or until roast is very tender. Remove roast to a serving plate; skim fat from juices. Serve juices with roast.

Original recipe from: Emeals

Arroz Con Pollo... DELICIOUS!

I have this "friend," that I have never had the privilege of meeting in real life. One time, I was looking for ideas and she shared her recipe for Arroz con Pollo with our group. I made it that night and instantly fell in love with it!! It is pretty easy and SOOO amazingly delicious.

Enjoy!

Elizabeth's Arroz con Pollo
6 pk. of chicken thighs
1-2 Tbsp. coconut oil
1 C. rice
1 sm. onion, diced
1 green pepper, diced
1 can tomato sauce
1 can chicken broth
2 tsp. garlic salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1 tsp. cumin

Brown the chicken in a stock pot or large skillet. Remove chicken from pot or skillet, add white rice, onion, and green pepper to the pan. Cook about a minute, then add tomato sauce, chicken broth, garlic salt, pepper, and cumin. Stir well. Add chicken back in the pan. When it starts to boil, put a lid on it and cook on low for 25-30 minutes. Serve with black beans, or refried beans, guacamole and tortillas.

Easy Steak Stir Fry!

I had some leftover grilled steaks from the other night. I wanted a fast and easy supper tonight. I had really wanted to go out to eat, but by the time everyone got home, I didn't want to get out of my sweats. So, steak stir fry it is!

Steak Stir Fry 

1 T. oil (I used coconut oil)
2 or 3 boneless cooked steaks, sliced thin
Coarse salt and fresh ground pepper
1 pkg. (16 oz.) frozen vegetables

1 can bamboo shoots
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
2 T. soy sauce
Steamed rice (optional)

Heat the oil in large skillet over high. When the oil is hot, add sliced steak. Sprinkle with salt and fresh-ground pepper. Stir and cook in hot oil, until heated through. Remove the steak from the skillet onto a plate. Add the frozen veggies and bamboo shoots to the skillet and stir to coat with oil and drippings. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Cook and stir over high heat for 5-6 minutes, until heated through and crisp-tender. Do not overcook. Add steak back to skillet with veggies.
Serve alone or with steamed rice.

4th of July Rice Krispy Treats!

I was looking for something patriotic, but quick and easy. Hhhhmmm, there appears to be a theme here. I came across an image of red, white, and blue rice krispy treats, which I thought would be awesome!

Red, White, and Blue Rice Krispy Treats
6 Tbsp. butter
12 C. Rice Krispies 
2 pkg. Miniature marshmallows
Food coloring

In sauce pan, melt 2 Tbsp. butter, add 1 C. marshmallows. Stir until melted together. Stir in 4 C. of rice krispies. Add red food coloring, until you have the shade of red that you want. In a prepared 9x13 pan, with buttered hands, press red layer into bottom of pan. Repeat with no food coloring for the "white" layer. Press on top of the red layer. Repeat a third time with blue food coloring. Press blue layer on top of white layer. Allow to cool completely, cut, and serve!

Chocolate Avocado Pudding... AMAZING!

So, I was told by the doc that my girls go to, that the oldest needs WAY more good fats in her diet. The doc also mentioned her eating more avocado, nuts, using coconut and olive oil more, etc. Oook... sooo, off I went to look for stuff she would eat. She is a picky one. SOOO picky. I had remembered seeing a recipe for chocolate pudding floating around the interwebs, using avocado. I found A LOT of various recipes, but decided to combine a couple. I wanted fast and easy. I mean SUPER easy. What I came up with is DELICIOUS and AMAZINGLY easy! I was very skeptical about this, really, I was. But, I had to do the chef taste test, of licking the spatula clean, after I scraped the food processor clean. It is SOOO good. Seriously. I am impressed.

The only change I might make, next time, is to use a little less cocoa powder. This had a pretty strong chocolate flavor, but still YUM!

Chocolate Avocado Pudding

1 ripe avocado

2 Tbsp. cocoa powder
1 1/2 Tbsp. honey or maple syrup
pinch of salt (approx. 1/16 tsp.)

Cut avocado in half. Scoop insides out and put them in a food processor. Add cocoa powder, honey or maple syrup, and salt. Blend up until all ingredients are mixed together and smooth. This can take a little bit, to get it all smooth and creamy. 

Taa Daaa!! 

Super Easy Chicken Thighs

I have been super lazy today and wanted a quick and easy supper. I was scrounging around for ideas, when I remembered that I had a bag of frozen chicken thighs in the freezer. I set them out to thaw and then went to the Holy Land, aka Pinterest to look for ideas.  These chicken thighs are so easy and VERY juicy. 

Here you go! Enjoy!!

Easy Baked Chicken Thighs
Chicken thighs (however many you need)
Soy sauce
Garlic Powder
Smoked Paprika

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a baking dish or 9x13 with non-stick spray. Place chicken thighs in pan. Sprinkle each thigh with garlic powder and smoked paprika. Don't go too crazy on those poor thighs. They only need a slight dusting. Then, put approximately 1 tsp. soy sauce on each thigh. I just shook some on each thigh, I didn't measure it out. Ssshhhhh... Bake for 45-60 minutes, or until thighs are cooked through and skin is browned and crisp.

One Skillet Sausage Supper!

Happy Father's Day to all the amazing dads out there!! 

The girls and I took my dad a nice plate full of his favorite cookies, oatmeal raisin. After spending some time with Daddy-O, I took off for town. The girls stayed with my mom and dad, for some cousin time. The plan was for mom to bring them home around 2. Well, after a stop in town, a trip back home, and enjoying a movie, with NO interruptions... I dove into cleaning and organizing the office. For those of you whom have never seen my home office... it is a disaster zone. One of embarrassing proportions! I kid you not!! After a call from Mommy Dearest around 2 to see if the girls could stay later, I continued to take advantage of my child free time. The CHILD FREE TIME is a rare commodity around here. It was WONDERFUL!! I cleaned for 4-5 hours on the office and I am still NOT done. Sigh... With that being said, supper needed to be quick and easy.

Enjoy!

One Skillet Sausage Supper

1-2 pkgs. smoked sausage, sliced

1 small onion, diced or sliced

4-5 md. potatoes, sliced

Creole seasoning, salt/pepper, optional

1-2 Tbsp. Coconut oil or oil of choice

Warm oil in skillet. After skillet and oil are warmed, add sliced potatoes. Fry potatoes until browned, stir occasionally. Add sliced, smoked sausage and onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until sausage is warmed/browned and onion is cooked through. Add Creole seasoning, salt and pepper, or any other seasonings that you choose.

Sticky Chicken Wings

I have a child that will ONLY eat chicken that is, "chicken on the bone." If you present her with chicken in any other fashion, forget about it! She will not even touch it. Why "on the bone" is so special, I have no idea. I decided that we had not had any kind of "chicken on the bone" for awhile, so I went digging around in the Mother Land, aka Pinterest, for a recipe for chicken wings that sounded delicious, but was also quick and easy. Not feeling very motivated here lately... So, this is the recipe that I decided to try out tonight!!

Sticky Chicken Wings

1- 4 lb. package chicken wing sections
1 can Dr. Pepper
1 C. ketchup
¼ cup butter, melted

Smoked paprika, garlic powder, dried onion (to taste)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place wings in baking dish that has been sprayed with nonstick spray. Mix the remaining ingredients together in a bowl and pour over wings. I used approximately 1 tsp. of each of the seasonings listed above. You can mix and match whatever seasonings you like. Bake until done, approximately 1 hour. Turn the broiler on high for approximately 3-5 minutes, or more, to thicken sauce and brown the tops of the chicken wings.

Original Recipe: Allthecooks

Chicken, Bacon, and Avocado Salad

So, after a busy morning, I was looking for something yummy have for lunch this afternoon. I love avocados... I mean, I LOVE avocados. And, bacon... So, when I come across a recipe that has bacon AND avocados, it makes my heart (and tummy) VERY happy!!! This is SSOOO delicious!!

Chicken, Bacon & Avocado Salad
6 chicken breasts, cooked

(3 C. Schwan's fajita chicken meat)
5-6 green onions, diced
1 package bacon (I used 6-8 slices)
1 avocado, cubed
2 Tbsp. mayo
salt and pepper, to taste

Cook bacon, until crispy. Transfer to paper towels to get excess grease off. Finely chop.
Season chicken breasts as cooking (original recipe suggested garlic, salt, pepper and onion.) and let rest. Cube when cooled. I used the frozen Schwan's fajita chicken meat, it is amazing in any chicken salad. Dice green onions and cube the avocado. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and add mayo. Just enough to give it a little moisture, you add more, if needed or to your liking. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve with sandwich buns or alone.

I modified the original recipe. The original recipe called for the 6 cooked chicken breasts, I substituted Schwan's fajita chicken meat. It also called for a whole package of bacon, cooked. I used 6-8 slices of the Schwan's precooked bacon slices. 2 avocados were used in the original recipe, I only used 1 cubed, avocado. 2-3 Tbsp. mayo were listed in the original recipe, I only used 2 Tbsp. AND I used 2 Tbsp. prepared guacamole. 

Original Recipe: A Kitchen Cafe

Home From Vacation and Bacon and Cheddar Pork Chops.

Well, I survived a family vacation! You may question that comment, but when you have a child with Asperger's and ADHD, who exhibits problem behaviors due to diet and other factors, driving for 7 hours and staying away from home for 5-6 days is something that can cause anxiety. At least for this momma, it does. It was a nice trip to Hot Springs, Arkansas. We had a really nice condo, that had a full kitchen, two bedrooms, and two bathrooms. The youngest is now in love with balconies!! Anytime that we were in our condo, she was on the balcony. 

We hit a lot of the typical "tourist" attractions, but it was a good "first" vacation for the girls and for me. I feel more comfortable do other vacations and possibly hitting destinations that are farther away, next time.

Bacon and Cheddar Pork Chops

4 pork chops
2 eggs
1/4 C. of milk
1.5oz real bacon bits
1 C. gluten free bread crumbs
1-1/2 C.  shredded cheddar or cheddar blend cheese
chopped green onions to garnish (optional)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In one wide dishes, whisk together the eggs & milk. In another, mix together the bacon bits, bread crumbs, & 1 cup of the shredded cheese. Dip the pork chops in the egg/milk mixture & then into the breadcrumb mixture. Shake off any excess crumbs & then dip back into the egg/milk mixture again. Dredge in the breadcrumb combination a second time & press the mixture into each side. Place in a sprayed baking dish. Sprinkle on any remaining breadcrumb mixture, and press down lightly. Bake for 30 minutes, flipping over halfway through cooking. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup of cheese & return to the oven for 2 minute, just enough to melt the cheese. Garnish with chopped green onions, optional.

Original Recipe: MrsHappyHomemaker

Meatball Sandwiches... Where Have You Been All My Life?

I have been wanting meatball sandwiches for awhile now. I have not made them in a year or more and well, they sounded REALLY good. Today, after being able to go and get groceries ALL.BY.MYSELF, because of my wonderful mother offering to keep the girls for me, I got caught up on my crap tv. Then, it was time to get the yard mowed, since I had not done that yet. Ick! With a majority of the yard mowed, that meant MEATBALL TIME!

Meatballs (approx. 24 meatballs)

1-1/4 lbs. ground beef

2 tsp. worcestershire sauce
1 egg, beaten
1/2 C. Italian Gluten Free bread crumbs
1/4 C. grated Parmesan cheese
2 tsp. garlic, finely chopped
1/4 C. finely diced onion (I used frozen)
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients in a bowl. I use my Kitchen Aide mixer for this job, because I have issues with touching raw meat with my hands. Roll meat into 1 1/2 inch meatballs (or do like I do and use my cookie dough scoop!!!) and place on greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until no longer pink. 

For sandwiches, warm marinara sauce in sauce pan, place 3-4 meatballs in buns (I used Udi's gluten free hotdog buns), top with warm marinara sauce, sprinkle with shredded mozzarella cheese.

Enjoy!!

Peanut Butter Rice Krispy Bars... A Little Piece of Heaven On Earth!

Today is only the second day of summer break and I have this desire to achieve something and, well, looking around my house, there is a lot to be achieved. This past week has been insanely busy. So, I have been very neglectful in the cooking department and the cleaning department, and every other department that there is. The To Do List is growing... 

So, after cleaning the kitchen, emptying the dishwasher, reloading it, picking up the living room, cleaning off the coffee table and end tables, running Dave, and some laundry, I decided something sweet was in order.

I love Rice Krispy treats as much as anyone, but I REALLY love peanut butter Rice Krispy treats. 

Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Rice Krispy Treats
4 Tbsp. Butter
5 C. mini marshmallows
1/2 C. peanut butter
5-3/4 C. Rice Krispy cereal

Spray a 9x13 pan. Melt butter in a large sauce pan, add marshmallows. Stur until melted. Add peanut butter. Stir constantly, until the marshmallows and peanut butter are all melted and mixed together, approx. 5 minutes. Turn off heat and remove pan. Add Rice Krispies, stir until coated. Dump into pan. Spray hands with cooking spray and pat mixture down in the 9x13 pan. Allow 30-45 minutes to cool. Cut and serve!
Original Recipe: CountryCook