Smothered Chicken & Rice

YUM!! This was the perfect meal and one of my top favorites so far. Our friends loved it too..especially the rice! It can be done in 30 minutes or less if you decide not to marinade the chicken for 30 minutes to overnight.

Yes...I like a lot of Queso

Ingredients:

4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts

1 Bottle Lawry's Baja Chipotle 30 minute marinade

1 Tbsp. Olive Oil

1 cup Orzo

2 cups Chicken Broth

2 Tbsp. Tomato Paste

2 tsp. Chili Powder

8 oz. Velveeta; diced

1 can Rotel w/ the Green Chilies

**MY CHANGES**

1-1/2 cups White Rice (couldn't find Orzo)

1/2 cup Water along with the 2 cups Chicken Broth

3 tsp. Chili Powder

2 tsp. Cayenne Pepper

What To Do:

• Pour Baja Chipotle marinade over chicken and let marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes to overnight. If you don't want to wait 30 minutes, you can coat the chicken in the marinade and then continue to brush over the chicken while it grills
• Grill Chicken

• While the chicken is grilling prepare the Orzo or Rice
• Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and add Orzo/Rice
• Cook, stirring constantly, until lightly browned
• Stir in Chili Powder, Tomato Paste, Chicken Broth & Cayenne Pepper (If you choose to)
• Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for about 15-20 minutes
• Fluff with a fork

• Combine Rotel and Velveeta in a bowl
• Cook in microwave until cheese is melted

• Place rice on a plate, top with grilled chicken, and spoon queso over the chicken and orzo/rice!

Sour Cream Noodle Bake

The Pioneer Woman has some really good recipes, but I always forget about the site. After seeing my friend post about this recipe, I decided to make it. Good thing is, if you can multitask, this can be done in 30 minutes or under!!

It was very filling so we definitely have plenty of leftovers. To me, it was a mix of a meaty Mexican/Italian food so I decided to serve it with chips, salsa, and guacamole. 

Ingredients:

1-1/4 lbs. Ground Beef

1 can (15 oz.) Tomato Sauce

8 oz. Egg Noodles

1/2 cup Sour Cream

1-1/4 cup Cottage Cheese (I used Ricotta Cheese instead)

1/2 cup sliced Green Onions

Sharp Cheddar Cheese 

Salt and Pepper

FEW PICTURES OF THE PROCESS

*1st layer down

*Part of the 2nd layer down

*Off to the oven!

What To Do:

• Preheat oven to 350F
• In a bowl, combine sour cream and ricotta cheese (Cottage Cheese if you decided to use that). Add plenty of ground pepper to it and mix well. Set aside or back in fridge if you prefer.
• In a skillet, start browning your ground beef
• Meanwhile while your beef is cooking, start boiling your noodles
• When you beef is done, drain and return back to pan. Add tomato sauce, salt and pepper. Mix well and simmer on low while you prepare the noodles.
• Drain your noodles and put back in pan. Stir in your sour cream/cheese mixture to the noodles. Add green onions and mix well
• In a baking dish, put down half of your noodle mixture-top with half of the meat sauce mixture-and sprinkle with cheddar cheese
• Complete with one more layer
• Bake for 15-20 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly

Crock Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup

Chicken Tortilla Soup has been sounding really good lately so I thought that I would try out my own recipe. I decided to have it cook in the crock pot because the chicken shreds so easily after cooking for awhile.

I have to admit, it was pretty good, but I could have added more of the seasonings and not so much water because I think the water made it a little bland. I used a cup of water so in the ingredients below, I am going to adjust the water, seasonings, and chicken broth.

*Getting ready to start cooking!!

Ingredients:

2 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts

6 ounces Enchilada Sauce

7 ounces Whole Peeled Tomatoes; mashed

1/2 of Red Onion; chopped

2 ounces chopped Green Chilies

2 cloves Garlic; minced

5 ounces Frozen Corn

1/2 can Black Beans

2 Tbsp. Cilantro; chopped

2 tsp. Chili Powder

1 Tbsp. Cayenne Pepper

1-1/2 tsp. Cumin

8 ounces Chicken Broth

1/2 cup Water

Salt & Pepper

Optional, but Necessary Ingredients:

Avocados

Tortilla Strips

What To Do:

• In a crock pot, combine all ingredients and mix together
• Cook on High for 4 hours (or I am sure it would work on low for 8 hours if you want to put it in before work)
• Take out Chicken and shred
• Mix Chicken back into the crock pot
• Serve with fresh avocado slices and tortilla strips

Bacon Jalapeno Cheese Ball

***UPDATE***

After making this cheese ball again at the lake for our family Christmas, I must say it was better the 2nd time. I talked with my Aunt and decided to put the jalapenos and the bacon, the outside portion, after the cheese had set in the fridge for an hour. It was a lot crispier and tasted a lot better to me!! Here is what it looked like the 2nd time:

I found this cheese ball after searching for recipes online. Thanks to Homesick Texan website for this recipe! 

Of course, I don't like pecans or any nuts so I left that off and just added more bacon & jalapenos to accommodate it. My grandmother really liked the cheese ball and had asked me to make it when we do our Cocktail night at the lake for Christmas. I might add more Bacon this next time to make it look crisper on the outside.

Ingredients: (My version)

8 ounces Cream Cheese; room temperature

1/2 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese

2 Tbsp. chopped Cilantro

1 clove Garlic; minced

1/4 tsp. Ground Cumin

Pinch of Cayenne

1 tsp. Lime Juice

1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

3 Jalapenos; diced and divided

8 pieces cooked Bacon; crumbled and divided

Salt to taste

Crackers for serving

Ingredients: (Their version)

8 ounces Cream Cheese; room temperature

1/2 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese

2 Tbsp. chopped Cilantro

1 clove Garlic; minced

1/4 tsp. Ground Cumin

Pinch of Cayenne

1 tsp. Lime Juice

1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

2 Jalapenos; diced and divided

6 pieces cooked Bacon; crumbled and divided

1/4 cup chopped Pecans; roasted

Crackers for serving

What To Do:

• Mix together the cream cheese, cheddar cheese, cilantro, garlic, cumin, cayenne, lime juice, Worcestershire sauce, half of the diced jalapenos and half of the crumbled bacon
• Taste and adjust seasonings and add salt 
• Place the remaining jalapenos and bacon (*And Pecans if you choose to) on a plate
• Stir together so mixed well
• With your hands, roll the cheese mixture into a ball
• Place on the plate and roll in the jalapeno/bacon(pecan) mixture until covered
• Chill covered for at least an hour before serving
• Serve with crackers!

Garlic Pesto Chicken w/ Tomato Cream Penne

Another good find thanks to Southern Girl Cooking! I love Pesto, but never really make anything with it for some reason so when I saw this...it was perfect!!

**You need to marinate the chicken overnight so make sure you do it a day before you are ready to make it.

Ingredients for Marinade:

1/2 bottle Lawrys Herb and Garlic Marinade

1 large spoonfuls of Pesto

2 boneless Chicken Breasts

Ingredients for Sauce & Pasta:

8 oz. of Penne Pasta

2 Tbsp. Olive Oil

3 cloves of Garlic

2 spoonfuls of Pesto

1/2 cup Chicken Broth

8 oz. Tomato Sauce

1 cup of Half-and-Half

*I added 1 Tbsp. Parsley and 1/2 Tbsp. Oregano

What To Do(NIGHT BEFORE):

1. Cut Chicken into strips and then make slits into the chicken
2. Pour Lawrys marinade and pesto over chicken
3. Marinate overnight

DAY OF:

• Boil water and start your noodles
• In a skillet, pour entire batch of chicken, marinade and all, into it and cook chicken fully
• In another pan, heat olive oil and cook garlic
• Add pesto
• Simmer in chicken broth until half has cooked down
• Add tomato sauce, oregano and parsley
• Then add half-and-half
• Simmer for 5 minutes
• Toss pasta in
• Place chicken on top & serve!!

Crispy Cheddar Chicken Tenders

YUM is all I can say. Thank you to Plain Chicken for this wonderful recipe!

Ingredients:

2 lbs. Chicken Tenders

1/2 sleeve Club Crackers

1 1/2 cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese

1 tsp. Ranch Dressing Mix (oops..I used the whole packet, but I will next time also)

dash pepper

2 Eggs

2 Tbsp. Milk

1 can Cream of Chicken Soup

1 Tbsp. Sour Cream

1/4 cup Milk

1 Tbsp. Butter

2 pinches of Parsley

1/4 tsp. Pepper

What To Do:

• Preheat oven to 400
• In a food processor, combine crackers, cheese, ranch mix, and pepper
• Pulse until crumbs are fine and pour into a shallow bowl
• In another bowl, whisk together 2 eggs and 2 Tbsp. milk
• Dip chicken tenders into egg mixture and then coat in cracker crumbs
• Place chicken on foil lined baking pan
• Bake for 12-15 minutes (We baked ours for about 25 minutes to get really crispy)
• While chicken bakes, whisk together soup, butter, sour cream, milk, pepper and parsley
• Bring to a boil and simmer until chicken is done
• Spoon sauce over baked chicken

Jalapeno Stuffed Burgers

I wanted to keep dinner simple, but yet flavors that Kyle loves. I made the Jalapeno Stuff Chicken a couple of times and it is one of Kyle's favorites. This recipe is almost exactly the same to the Chicken, but in a burger instead. It serves 2 people so you may want to double the recipe if you are expecting more people to join for dinner.

It was harder for me to get a good picture after the burger was cooked so here is what the burger looks like before I stacked the other patty on top.

Ingredients:

1 lb.Ground Beef

4 oz. Cream Cheese; softened

1 Jalapeno; chopped and diced (w/ seeds for spice)

1/4 cup Shredded Cheese (I used Colby Jack)

1-2 slices Bacon; chopped 

Salt, Pepper & Garlic to taste

Plus any toppings you like, we used:

Lettuce

Onion

Avocado (perfect for this burger)

What To Do:

• In a bowl, combine your chopped jalapeno, bacon, cream cheese and shredded cheese
• I put in the microwave for about 10 seconds to get the cream cheese a little softer
• Divide your ground beef into 4 even slices and form patties
• Add cheese mixture to the center of one patty
• Place the other patty on top and press the edges together so they close
• Season burgers with salt, pepper and garlic
• Grill each side for about 5 minutes 
• Top with your favorite toppings!!

Chicken & Ravioli Carbonara

YUM YUM YUM!! Thanks to Plain Chicken for this wonderful recipe!! This was the perfect Italian Sunday meal & I can't wait for lunch today..leftovers :)! I doubled the recipe so that it would feed 3 of us for dinner and I could have just enough for lunch the next day. If it is for two of you, then this amount below is perfect!

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp. Olive Oil

1 cup cooked, chopped Chicken

1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning (I used Thyme, Basil and Oregano)

1 clove Garlic

1 package (9 oz) refrigerated Cheese Ravioli (I used Spinach and Cheese Ravioli)

3/4 cup Chicken broth

1/2 cup Half-and-half

4 slices Bacon, cooked and chopped

Parmesan Cheese

Parsley

*I also added Crushed Red Pepper flakes for a hint of spice

What To Do:

• In a skillet, heat oil over high heat
• Add chopped up chicken and Italian seasoning to skillet
• Heat for about 2-3 minutes
• Add Garlic and cook for another 30 seconds
• Add broth and ravioli. Heat to boiling; reduce heat to medium
• Cook uncovered for about 4 minutes (if you double the recipe, cook for about 6-7 minutes)
• **The broth will have mostly evaporated
• Stir in half-and-half; reduce heat
• Simmer uncovered for about 6-7 minutes so that sauce can thicken
• Sprinkle with bacon, cheese and parsley

*I served all three plates and then sprinkled with bacon, cheese and parsley

Chicken Pot "Not Pie" Soup

I am not a huge fan of Chicken Pot Pie, but Kyle loves it. After making those mini Pot Pies, I decided this soup would probably be better. This recipe will make a lot so I would cut the recipe in half if it's just 2 or 3 of you eating it.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup Flour

2 cups Water

4 cups Milk

1 large Celery stalk (I used 4 pieces from a container)

1/2 medium Onion

2 Chicken bouillons

1 tsp. Thyme

1 can of Corn

1 can of Peas

3 large Carrots; peeled and sliced

2 Potatoes; peeled and cubed small

1 bunch of Green Onions; chopped

16 oz. cooked Chicken breasts; diced small (I used 3 Chicken breasts)

Salt and Pepper

1 tsp. Cayenne pepper

1 tsp. Chili powder

What To Do:

• Cook your Chicken breasts if you haven't done so already
• Dice Chicken into small pieces (I set some aside for mine and shredded it)
• Pour 1 1/2 cups of water and your milk into a large pot and slowly bring to a boil
• Add celery, onion, carrots, potatoes, chicken bouillons, and thyme and return to a boil
• Partially cover and simmer on low until veggies are tender (About 10 min.)
• While veggies are cooking, in a bowl, combine the rest of your water- 1/2 cup with the flour and whisk until well blended; set aside
• Remove lid and add corn, peas, green onions, salt/pepper, cayenne pepper, and chili powder (cook for another 5 min.)
• Add chicken and slowly whisk in your water and flour mixture
• Cook another 2 minutes until soup thickens

Crock Pot Ravioli Casserole

Italian night at our house and what better way to cook than using the crock pot!! Thanks to Becoming Betty for this delicious recipe!

Ingredients:

1 lb. Ground Beef

1 Onion; chopped

1 clove Garlic; minced

1 (15 oz.) can Tomato Sauce

1 can Stewed Tomatoes

1 tsp. Oregano

1 tsp. Italian seasoning

salt and pepper

10 oz. frozen spinach (I used fresh Baby Spinach)

16 oz. Bowtie Pasta; cooked

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese; shredded

1 1/2 cup Mozzarella cheese; shredded

*For the Italian seasonings, I just used Parsley, dried Basil, Thyme along with Cayenne Pepper

What To Do:

• Brown the ground beef with the onion and garlic
• Once browned, put in the crock pot and add sauce, tomatoes, and seasonings
• Mix well
• Cook on low for 6-7 hours 
• Add the last 4 ingredients during the last 30 minutes of cooking and turn to high (I set the crock pot for 6 hours on low so that it would turn to warm once the 6 hours was up. When I got home from work and we were ready to eat, I turned the crock pot to high and added the last 4 ingredients)

Baked Tacos

Yes, I might know what you are thinking. Why baked tacos when tacos are so easy to make? Sometimes I want to add a little something different to just the easy, normal things to make. Thanks to a recipe online, I made tacos a different way!!

**The full recipe below will make around 18-20 tacos depending on how much you put in each shell. I halved the recipe and was able to make 10 Tacos.

Ingredients:

2 lbs. Ground Beef

4 tsp. Dried minced Onion

3 tsp. Chili Powder

1 tsp. Cornstarch

1 tsp. Garlic Powder

1 tsp. Ground Cumin

1/2 tsp. Dried Oregano

1/8 tsp. Cayenne Pepper

1 (8 oz.) can Tomato Sauce

1 (16 oz.) can Refried Beans

2 cups Shredded Colby-jack Cheese

Taco Shells (18-20 for full recipe/10 for half)

Optional Condiments:

Lettuce

Salsa

Guacamole

Pico de Gallo 

**When I halved the recipe, I used more for the seasonings so that I could make it spicy!

What To Do:

• Preheat oven to 400F
• In a pan, brown your ground beef and then drain any excess liquid
• Add refried beans, tomato sauce, and all the seasonings
• Mix well
• Spoon the taco meat into your taco shells (as much as desired) and place into a casserole dish (I used the shells with the flat bottoms so that they would stand on their own)
• **If you like your shells a little crunchy, make sure the shells are not touching
• Sprinkle the cheese on top of the meat
• Bake at 400F for 10-12 minutes
• Remove and top with any of your condiments!!

Beef & Vegetable Soup

Fall is here so now that means I am pulling out warm soup recipes as well as looking for some new ones! Since I am wanting beef all the time, why not make a beef vegetable soup. I decided to just throw in ingredients like a stew and just go with it.

After cooking all day in the crock pot, it turned out good, but I could have used just a little bit more of a kick of spice! Feel free to take out or add any other ingredients that you think would be good!

Make sure you brown your beef, so you may want to brown it the night before you plan to make the soup.

The beginning when I had just mixed everything together!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs. cubed Steak (for stew)

1/4 cup Flour

1/2 medium Red Onion; chopped

2 large Carrots; peeled and cut

2 large Potatoes; peeled and cut

2 cans of Diced Tomatoes w/ garlic; undrained

2 cans of low-sodium Beef Broth

1 Tbsp. minced garlic

1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

1/2 Tbsp. salt

1 tsp. pepper

1/2 Tbsp. Cayenne Pepper

1/2 Tbsp. Oregano

1/2 Tbsp. Thyme

1/2 Tbsp. Basil

1/2 Tbsp. Parsley

What To Do:

• Place flour and cubed steak in a Ziploc bag and shake so that the flour coats the steak
• Put oil in skillet and heat oil over medium-high heat
• Add steak and brown all sides; set aside once browned
• Peel and cut up potatoes, carrots, onion and garlic
• In the crock pot, add all the ingredients together, mix together and cover/cook on high for an hour
• Reduce heat to low and cook for 6-7 hours (depending on how soft you like your veggies)

Slow-Cooked Pork Chops

Found this recipe on a magazine site for some amazing pork chops that are supposed to be soooo tender. Well, I have to admit, these pork chops were very tender & I barely did anything. 

I was running behind one morning (I didn't have time to brown both sides of pork chops) so I decided to come home later in the day to put these in the crock pot since it gave the time as 6-7 hours on low or 3 1/2 hours on high! Love having the option.

Yes, it is another dish that cooks with rice so I just have to mix it up with my greens for another side.

Yes, the picture stinks. I should have done it differently, but I was starving!

Ingredients:

6 lean Pork Chops

1/2 cup Flour

1 (10 oz.) can of Chicken and Rice Soup

1 tsp. Dry Mustard

1/2 tsp. Garlic Powder

2 Tbsp. Olive Oil

I also added:

2 tsp. Chili Powder

a dash of Cayenne Pepper

2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce 

Salt and Pepper to taste

What To Do:

• In a baggie, combine flour, salt and pepper, dry mustard, and garlic powder (add Chili powder and Cayenne pepper if you decide to use these) and then shake to mix up
• Add pork chops to the baggie to coat both sides
• In a pan, add olive oil and brown both sides of the pork chops
• Add browned pork chops to the crock pot and cover with the Chicken and Rice soup (add Worcestershire sauce at this time too)
• Cover and cook on low for 3 1/2 hours or on high for 6-7 hours

Forgotten Chicken

First, sorry I haven't been posting as much as I would like too. With being pregnant and all the Holidays right around the corner, I keep turning to my comfort food along with fitting in all my cravings without overdoing it!

Thanks to Pinterest and Darling Doodles Blog, I found another recipe that seemed simple to just throw together! You make it with rice so you only need to make one other side!!

**HELPFUL HINT -- although the recipe is simple, it does take awhile to cook so just a heads up!

I will tell you in the steps how to not make yours so brown on top!

Ingredients:

Boneless, skinless Chicken breasts (I used 4)

Minute Rice (I just white rice)

1 pkg. Onion Soup mix

Can of Cream of Chicken soup

Can of Cream of Celery soup

Water

What To Do:

• Preheat oven to 375
• In a bowl, mix together cream of chicken and celery soups, 1 can water and 2 cups of minute rice (uncooked)
• Grab your cooking dish and butter the bottom and a little bit of the sides
• Pour your mixture into the buttered dish
• Lay chicken breasts on top of the mixture
• Sprinkle onion soup package on top (Make sure you sprinkle over the entire dish-I didn't read right and poured it only on the chicken...hence the dark outer layer)
• Cover with tin foil & don't forget this step
• Cook for 1 hr. 15 min. 

Creamy Beef Stroganoff

Yum....I haven't had Beef Stroganoff in a very long time. Plus, it always seems like the Hamburger Helper (yes sometimes I buy stuff that I can just throw together real quick) has a really strong distinct flavor to it. 

Yes, I am also on a CROCK POT kick right now :). It helps me not change my mind on what I want for dinner every 10 minutes and it keeps me from asking Kyle what he wants time after time after time haha.

My only suggestion for this recipe is to maybe not cook it quiet as long as 8 hours because our meat was so tender that is kept falling apart and for stroganoff, I like the chunks of meat.

Ingredients:

1 lb. cubed Beef Stew Meat

1 can Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup

1/2 cup chopped Onion

1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup Water

4 oz. Cream Cheese

Egg Noodles

*I added Creole and a touch of Cayenne Pepper to ours

What To Do:

• In a crock pot, combine meat, soup, onion, Worcestershire sauce and water
• Cook on Low for 8 hours or on High for about 5 hours
• Stir in Cream Cheese right before serving
• Cook Egg noodles on stove top
• Serve stroganoff on top of noodles

ENJOY :)

Crock Pot Meatloaf

So Kyle is not a huge fan of meatloaf because of all the onions. I found this crock pot recipe and thought it would be perfect because Kyle wouldn't get the overload of onions, but I could still get some from the salsa. Hmm..salsa in meatloaf. I have never heard of that, but that could be because I have never made meatloaf. My Mom makes really good meatloaf, but this recipe will get the job done. If you like your meatloaf kind of crunchy on the outside, then this is not for you. Since it cooks in the crock pot, the texture is really soft.

Ingredients:

1 lb. Lean Ground Beef

1/4 cup Milk

1 Egg

1/4 cup Salsa

2 slices of Bread; cubed

1/4 cup Ketchup

Salt and Pepper to taste

8 medium Carrots

8 small Red Potatoes

(Kind of reminds me of a pot roast w/ the carrots and potatoes)

Mix everything together in the bowl

Before I added in all the potatoes and carrots

What To Do:

• In a bowl, beat the egg and milk
• Stir in the bread cubes, salsa, salt and pepper
• Add the beef and mix well
• Spray the entire crock pot with cooking spray 
• Put beef mixture into pot and shape like a loaf of bread
• Spread the ketchup on top (I just squeezed the ketchup on top)
• Arrange the carrots and potatoes in layers around the meat

1. Cover and cook on high for 1 hour
2. Reduce heat to low
3. Cover and cook 7-8 hours

Creamy Chicken (Pasta)

So I started looking up recipes and found one that sounded good, but could use some changes to it. Since I made it with more sauce, I was going to serve it over pasta, but of course being pregnant now, my desire for certain foods changes quickly. I decided that I just wanted the chicken with some veggies instead of pasta. Next time, I will definitely cook it with pasta because of all the sauce it made.

Camera went dead so I had to use my phone (Not the best quality)


Ingredients:
4 Chicken Breasts
1 Packet Zesty Italian Dressing seasoning
1 (8 oz) Cream Cheese
2 cans Cream of Chicken Soup
1 Garlic Clove; minced
1/2 cup Onion; chopped
1 tsp. Tony's Creole

What To Do:

• Cut the Chicken breasts in half (if serving w/o pasta)
• Cut the Chicken breasts in slices (if serving w/ pasta)
• Put Chicken in the crock pot
• Chop up your onion and garlic and add to pot
• Cut the cream cheese into smaller slices so that doesn't melt in one big blob and add to pot
• Pour the rest of the ingredients into the crock pot and mix
• Cover and cook on low for 4 hours

*If sauce is too thick for your liking, add a little bit of milk right before serving

Val's Teriyaki Chicken

Labor Day Family Dinner w/ Friends :)

Our close friends, Val and Del, invited us over for dinner last night since it has been awhile since we last did our Family Dinner w/ Friends. Val decided  to try out a new recipe in the crock pot and man was it good. The whole meal fed 3 guys, us 2 girls and then leftovers for 2 lunches...a perfect meal for a small group! We served it over brown rice, which was the perfect combination.

We decided to take a picture so that I could post it on my blog to share with everyone. You actually split this meal into 2 separate freezer bags to freeze and pull them out when you want them.

Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless Chicken Breasts

4 cloves of Garlic

2 large can of Pineapples (undrained)

Red Onion cut into large chunks

Large bag of medium size Carrots

1 cup of Teriyaki sauce 

What To Do: 

• Split all the ingredients into 2 batches and put in separator freezer bags
• Mix, lay flat & freeze
• Thaw out a bag the night before you want to cook
• Throw in crock pot, add an additional 1/4 cup of Teriyaki sauce and cook on low for 6-7 hours

Sopapilla Cheesecake!

Thank you to my wonderful Mother-in-law for introducing me to Sopapilla Cheesecake about 2 years ago! I am now addicted to this delicious treat, but only make it every once in a while. We had a Mexican Night BBQ with our friends not too long ago & it was the perfect time to make this again :)

Ingredients:

2 cans Pillsbury Crescent Rolls

2 (8 oz) packages Cream Cheese; softened

1 1/4 cups Sugar

1 tsp. Vanilla extract

1/4 cup Cinnamon Sugar

3/4 of a stick of real Butter

What To Do:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F
2. Spray a 9 x 13 pan with cooking spray
3. Unroll and press 1 can of the crescent rolls into the bottom of your baking dish and press the seams together
4. In a bowl, blend the softened cream cheese, 1 cup Sugar and Vanilla extract
5. Unroll the second can of crescent rolls and place on top of the cream cheese mixture
6. Melt butter and pour over the top
7. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup of Sugar on top
8. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of Cinnamon Sugar on top of that
9. Bake for 30 minutes

ENJOY :)

Sausage & Peppers

I know that everyone probably knows about Sausage and Peppers, but I decided that I would go ahead and post it since I completely forgot about making this for dinner until I talked with my Mom and then saw the leftovers in the fridge. This only takes about 10 min. to make if your sausage is already cooked.

Ingredients:

2 cloves Garlic; minced

1 Red Pepper; chopped

1 Green Pepper; chopped

1/2 Red Onion; chopped

1 Tomato; chopped

Sausage Links

1 tsp. Oil

1 tsp. Cayenne Pepper

1 Tbsp. Tony's Creole

What To Do:

• Cook Sausage on the grill if you haven't done so already
• In a skillet, add the tsp. oil and saute your minced garlic
• Add the peppers, onion and  tomato and saute until tender
• Add the sausage and cook until it is warm since it is already cooked
• Mix in the seasonings and cook about a minute longer

Pot Roast

I absolutely love Pot Roast with all the carrots, potatoes, and onions!! This recipe is easy just to throw in your crock pot and let it cook all day while you are out or working. It's also perfect for lunch the next day...My sister & her family were in town so they used the pot roast and potatoes to throw in their breakfast burritos!

Ingredients:

2-5 pound Pot Roast

1 packet Ranch dressing (dried)

1 packet Italian dressing (dried)

1 packet Brown Gravy mix

Potatoes

Carrots

Onion (I use Red)

1 Beef Bouillon cube

1 to 1-1/2 cup Water

Salt & Pepper to taste

What To Do:

1. Cut the potatoes, carrots and onions to your liking and put in the bottom of the crock pot (I used about half a bag of carrots-left them whole, 6 red potatoes-quartered, and half of a red onion)
2. Place the beef cube on top of the vegetables
3. Place the Pot Roast on top of the vegetables
4. Sprinkle all 3 spice packets on top
5. Add the water (I added only 1 cup for the size of my Pot Roast)
6. Add Salt & Pepper to taste
7. Cook on Low for 6-10 hours until the vegetables are cooked through and the meat is tender

ENJOY :)

Twix Cheesecakes!!

Yum yum yum!! These Twix Cheesecakes are to die for & I can't wait to add different candies to them to see how those taste. The recipe is straight forward and makes about 15, but you have to chill these overnight so if you are making them to take somewhere, make them the night before....ENJOY!

Oh yeah, sorry the picture isn't the best!

Ingredients (Crust):

1/2 package Oreos-about 20

1 Tbsp. Sugar

1/4 cup Unsalted Butter; melted

(Cheesecake Batter)

1 lb. Cream Cheese; softened

1/2 cup Sugar

1/2 tsp. Vanilla Extract

2 large Eggs; lightly beaten

1/2 cup Sour Cream

12 mini Twix bars; chopped into small pieces

What To Do:

1. Preheat oven to 275F
2. In a food processor, grind up the Oreos into fine crumbs
3. Put the crumbs into a large bowl and add in the 1 Tbsp. sugar
4. Pour in the melted butter and mix to coat all of the crumbs w/ butter
5. Line a cupcake pan with liners
6. Scoop a Tbsp. of the cookie crumbs into each cupcake liner
7. Press the crumbs down firmly using your hand
8. In another bowl, mix the cream cheese until smooth with a hand mixer (low speed)
9. With the mixer on medium-low speed, add in the 1/2 cup sugar and mix
10. Then add in the vanilla extract and mix
11. Slowly pour in the lightly beaten eggs and mix well
12. Add in the sour cream and mix
13. Chop the mini Twix bars into small pieces
14. Add them into the batter and gently mix
15. Using an ice cream scooper, scoop the cheesecake batter into each cupcake liner
16. Bake for 30 minutes on 275F
17. Chill the cheesecake overnight in the fridge (I wanted to eat one so bad at this point)