Pear Mice

Vanilla Snowmen

It is something to do with the kids when they want to be out building a snowman and it is too cold or they are sick or, like here in Utah, when the inversion makes the air quality awful.

Basically, you use vanilla ice cream for snow and  add goodies to make the face and body.

I started with a light dusting of coconut for "snow" covered ground:

Next, I made a plate of leftover Christmas candy:

Then I scooped 2-3 balls of vanilla ice cream and let them build:

Fancy Grilled Cheese

Trying to diet is killing me.  I justified indulging in some buttery carbs by watching my portions and adding in a healthy sized meat and veggie serving... don't you judge me. ;)

2 slices 98 calorie bread
Butter --I still won't go margarine
Cheddar
Sliced Avacado, tomato, and lettuce
provalone

Arrange so you have one kind of cheese on each slice of lightly buttered bread and the meat and veggies in between.  Cook on medium heat in a skillet until both sides are golden brown.

I had something similar at Cubby's.  They have cranberries on theirs. SO GOOD.

Turkey Parmesan Muffins

I saw something similar a while back online, but I couldn't find it, so I improvised. It was really good!

Grease medium sized muffin tin
Preheat oven to 350

In a mixing bowl combine 1.5 lbs ground Turkey, 1 egg, 1 egg white, 3T Italian seasoning, 2 tsp crushed Garlic, 1/2 C bread crumbs, 1/2 C Parmesan cheese (grated) --don't over mix.

scoop into muffin tin 3/4 full in each section.  Top with a layer of spaghetti sauce and Mozzarella.

Bake for 20 min.

makes 8 medium sized muffins

Leftover Pot Roast Fajitas

Pot roast is on my top five comfort foods.  It makes me think of home.  We do a large roast, and then use leftovers for stew, sandwiches and soups.  Yet, things can get tired after a while.  I decided to stir things up yesterday (literally as you can see) and make our leftovers more exciting.

Not everyone serves a family of eight, so I calculated the ingredients for 2 fajitas per person.  Just multiply by the number of people served.

*1 T Olive Oil
*1 cup (per person) of leftover pot roast pulled apart or cut up
*taco/fajita seasonings to taste
*1/4 bell pepper (per person) cut up
*3 cherry tomatoes
*1 T minced onion
*Favorite shredded cheese to taste
*2 tortillas (I used wheat, but any kind will do.)

 I hate dry fajitas.  If you need more oil or a bit of water while heating the meat up, go for it.
Combine all ingredients and heat. I add the peppers and tomatoes last to avoid mushy veggies.

Place on tortillas in a line, add any extra cheese you'd like and roll.

MMMMMMM.....!

Easy Baked Sweet and Sour Chicken with Ham fried Rice

I love Pinterest!

One of my latest finds is this tasty meal found HERE.  It is easy, light and filling and my kids vaccuum it down knowing there is plenty more.  I'm adding this to the label "under $10" because we had every indgredient but the chicken on hand which cost me six dollars to feed 8.

The chicken coating:

3-4 boneless chicken breasts (I used the stir fry cut packages)

salt + pepper

1 cup cornstarch

2 eggs, beaten

1/4 cup canola oil

The sweet and sour sauce:

3/4 cup sugar

4 tbs ketchup

1/2 cup distilled white vinegar

1 tbs soy sauce

1 tsp garlic salt

This is about half way done in the oven.  My fully finished golden brown version had a corrupted file.

Start by preheating your oven to 325 degrees. Rinse your chicken breasts in water and then cut into cubes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Dip chicken into the cornstarch to coat then dip into the eggs. Heat your 1/4 cup oil in a large skillet and cook your chicken until browned but not cooked through. Place the chicken in a 9x13 greased baking dish. Mix all of your sweet and sour sauce ingredients in a bowl with a whisk and then pour evenly over the chicken. Bake for one hour and during the baking process you will need to turn the chicken every 15 minutes

Fried Rice : This is so dang easy and it tastes just like restaurant ham fried rice.   

3 cups cooked white rice (day old or leftover rice works best!)

3 tbs sesame oil

1 cup frozen peas and carrots (thawed)

1 small onion, chopped

2 tsp minced garlic

2 eggs, slightly beaten

1/4 cup soy sauce

(I added ham)

On medium high heat, heat the oil in a large skillet or wok. Add the peas/carrots mix, onion and garlic. Stir fry until tender. Lower the heat to medium low and push the mixture off to one side, then pour your eggs on the other side of skillet and stir fry until scrambled. Now add the rice and soy sauce and blend all together well. Stir fry until thoroughly heated!

Alternative to fried dough

I LOVE fried dough/western scones. I don't love the added oil, grease, splatters, calories, and using an entire bottle of oil I have to dispose of later.

My daughter and I, while preparing a favorite snack of fresh tortillas, decided to experiment a bit.

We liked it so much it was our breakfast this morning and was SO STINKING GOOD!
All you do is heat the uncooked tortillas on a clean dry skillet per directions on the package, butter them, and add your favorite scone toppings.

Lazy dessert...

This is best filed under things I threw together and didn't turn out half bad... :)

1 small bag frozen raspberries, dumped into a glass baking dish that has been sprayed with oil

1 chocolate cake mix, dumped directly on top of the raspberries

1 stick butter, cut into slices and put on top of the dry cake mix

Bake for about 1/2 an hour. You will see it bubbling slightly on the edges when it is done.

It looks like a big gooey mess, as you can see, but was actually pretty tasty. I let it cool for a little while, but served it while it was still warm. Goes great with vanilla ice cream too. Think cobblerish dump cake?

Lipton's white pizza dip

So good! So easy!  Think Really yummy Artichoke dip meets cheesy bread.

1 envelope Lipton® Recipe Secrets® Savory Herb with Garlic Soup Mix
1 container (16 oz.) sour cream
1 cup (8 oz.) ricotta cheese
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (about 4 oz.)
1/4 cup (1 oz.) chopped pepperoni (optional)
1 loaf Italian or French bread, sliced

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350°. In shallow 1-quart casserole, combine Lipton® Recipe Secrets® Savory Herb with Garlic Soup Mix, sour cream, ricotta cheese, 3/4 cup mozzarella cheese and pepperoni.   2. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese.   3. Bake uncovered 30 minutes or until heated through. Serve with bread.

CHEDDAR-POTATO-CARROT SOUP

CHEDDAR-POTATO-CARROT SOUP

6 TBSP butter or olive oil, or 50/50 of each

1 sm. onion, minced

Saute in a small skillet until translucent, more like sweating than sauteing.

Transfer to a big sauce or soup pot, & add:

6 C chicken broth & simmer for a bit.

Shred 8-10 carrots & 3 to 5 peeled potatoes. (I have used thawed hash browns, which work just as well.)

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1 bay leaf

2 drops Tabasco

1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

Simmer until veggies are tender.

Turn heat to low & add 2 C of 1/2 & 1/2 (can use fat free 1/2 & 1/2). 

Bring up to warm. TURN OFF HEAT!

Gently stir in one handful at the time, 2 - 3 C grated cheddar cheese, stirring in between til the cheese melts, otherwise your soup will "break".

Serve immediately!!!

Liz's Jello Salad

1 (6 oz.) box lemon Jello
1/2 c. hot water
1 (8 oz.) carton whipped topping
3/4 c. grated Cheddar cheese
1 (8 oz.) can crushed pineapple, not drained
3/4 c. Miracle Whip salad dressing

 

Dissolve Jello in hot water. Mix in in all other ingredients. Pour into a baking dish or salad bowl. Chill until firm.

Traditional Irish Soda Bread Farls



Place a large flat skillet, lightly floured on the stove over medium low heat.

2 C Flour

1/2 tsp Salt

1 tsp Baking Soda (Sifted)

fluff together in a large bowl and make a large hole in the center

1 Cup Buttermilk

fill the hole with the buttermilk and quickly mix into a dough.

Place dough on a floured surface and gently knead into a ball, then press into a disk about 1/2 in thick.

cut disk into 1/4 pieces (Farls)



Place your fourths/Farls on the floured, heated skillet and cook until golden brown (about 5 min) flipping once to brown the other side (another 5-ish minutes)

Think really dense KFC biscuit with butter and jam....but better.  Also, the dough can be fried like a scone or baked into a bread.

Homemade chicken stock

Waste not ... Want not! In my childhood home my mother almost always had something on the stove simmering away. From tomatoes to chicken bones my mother could transform leftovers and extras into delectable freezable's that could be used again and again.

To make Chicken Stock

Remove the giblets, and neck bone (leave the skin on the neck bone/meat). Roughly chop celery, onion, carrots and garlic. (If you are deboning the chicken instead of cooking it whole you can add ALL of the bones to the stock pot. The bones add a great deal of flavor.)

Add all ingredients to a stock pot with 1-2 pads butter, thyme, a bay leaf, and S&P. Saute for 5-10 minutes over medium heat until onions are soft but not burnt. Cover with water, bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and then cover with a lid. Simmer over very low heat for a few hours.

Once the stock is rich in color and flavor remove from heat and allow to cool.

Strain stock through a fine mesh screen or cheese cloth.

Discard the vegetables, giblets and bones. You now have a rich flavorful stock that can be used for cooking right away, can be stored in the fridge temporarily, or frozen or canned for longer storage periods.

Wandering Gypsy Girl Potato Leek Soup

I got the base for this soup from an Irish Pub cookbook (please see earlier post) and felt it could use a little Gypsy Girl flare. Below is how I made it tonight and I thought it turned out delicious. Alter and enhance as you see fit. Happy Cooking!

1 Leek

2 Potatoes

1/2 sweet onion

1can Chicken stock

3 slices bacon

1pkg cream cheese

1/4 cup heavy cream + extra for garnish

1/4 small block cheddar cheese

chives (garnish)

S&P to taste

3 pieces of bacon diced and fried until crisp.

While the bacon is cooking chop up 1 leek (including the majority of the green stock), 1/2 sweet onion, and two potatoes.

Remove bacon from pan when crisp and reserve for garnish at end. Add 2 pads butter to the bacon drippings in the pan and then add the onion, leeks, potatoes and S&P to taste. Saute until onions are soft but not brown.

Add 1 can chicken stock and 1/2 can of water. Cover with lid and simmer 20min or until potatoes are cooked through.

Poor potatoes/leek stock mixture into a food processor or blender. Pulse/blend until smooth.

Melt 1 package cream cheese, 1/4 cup heavy cream and 1/4 of a small block of cheddar cheese (if you have white cheddar that would be great...I went with yellow because it was what I had).

Pour the blended potato leek mixture back into the pan with the cheese and stir until smooth and heated through. If you desire a slightly thinner consistency simply add more cream, milk or stock until the soup is to your liking.

Garnish with cream, chives and crisp bacon bits.

Loaded Cheesy Rice

2 Cups of Uncooked Rice

Make according to directions with Chicken broth instead of water and adding some minced onion

Melt in about 2 Cups of Cheddar Cheese.  (Enough to coat all of the rice)

Place in bowls topped with sour cream and bacon bits

This was not an all around hit in our house.  Exactly half and half, actually.  It tastes like the rice version of a loaded baked potato.  I dug it, personally, but the potato purists felt it would be better to stick with the good stuff.  LOL

If I ever make this rice again, I think I might add broccoli.



Traditional Irish Potato Leek Soup

I tried this new recipe from a cook book I received for Christmas (and impressively I only made one change to the recipe) - It turned out wonderfully and so I'm sharing here.

Serves 4-6

4tbsp butter

1 onion chopped

3 leeks, sliced (from the base to about 1/4-1/2 way up the green stocks)

2-3 potatoes (depending on size) sliced

3 1/2 cups vegetable or chicken stock (I used one box or organic chicken stock)

S&P to taste

2/3 cups heavy cream, to serve (optional)

2tbsp snipped fresh chives to garnish

(I added one half package of cream cheese)

Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add leeks, onion and potatoes to pot and saute until onions and leeks are softened. Poor in stock, bring to a boil, the reduce the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes.

Transfer mixture to a food processor or blender and process until smooth. Return contents to pot, add softened cream cheese and S&P. Combine contents thoroughly and bring back up to temp.

Ladle into soup bowls, swirl with heavy cream and garnish with chives.

Cumin Tomato Rice

Basmati Rice

Butter

Tomato diced

Cumin seeds

Cumin powder

Turmeric (just a pinch for color)

S&P to taste

Follow the instructions on the package for the basmati rice. Add cumin seeds, and some cumin powder to the water and butter while the rice is cooking. After the rice is cooked through taste and add extra cumin powder S&P to taste. Dice up tomato (either one large or a handful of cherry tomato's) and add to rice.

-Enjoy

Baked apples

 

This is the dessert that would tell me cool weather had arrived, when I was a kid.  There are a few ways to do the apples: The whole apple, cored;  Peeled and cut up; or in a sauce, though that's my least favorite.  Either way, it is a great way to use up apples!

This recipe is easily adapted to amounts, so you can have it for two or for twelve.

-Any kind of apple in the desired quantity chopped up.

-Coat in brown sugar and cinnamon generously (if using whole apples, stuff with brown sugar)

-Top with butter

-Bake at 350 for 30 min or until apples are softened.

Serve with Vanilla Ice Cream

Utah's famous Fry Sauce

If you are a Utahn, you are familiar with this fast food staple. For the fry sauce addict out of state, you'll be hard pressed to find fry sauce unless you frequent Arctic Circle. You should see the defiant looks at our local In and Out when you ask for Fry Sauce. I think they are more than used to having it requested and will cut you off mod sentence. "do you have any-" " We don't serve Fry Sauce."

Well now you can make your own and rest happy, knowing all is still right with your fries... And it is delicious on a burger.

The basic recipe is:

1/3 Ketchup. 2/3 Mayo (not Miracle Whip). And stir.

That's it!

For experimenters, try ranch dressing for the mayo, or BBQ sauce instead of ketchup. You can also add mustard, relish, or onion. But really, why mess with a good thing????

South Western Wedges

Cut up potatoes
Olive Oil
Season Salt
Cayenne Pepper

Brush potatoes with oil, place in Ziplock, shake in season salt enough to lightly coat the potatoes, do a few shakes of the cayenne, zip the ziplock and shake and bake!

Bake at 400 for about 20-30 minutes
For crispier taters, cut finer wedges or do Fry style!