Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli

by penji1

Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli

The first of the winter soup pots, so happy!  I love homemade soup, I could and sometimes do live off it during the winter months.  This one comes from “Todd Wilbur’s Top Secret Recipes” and was amazingly delicious!  Can’t wait to have a bowl for lunch today as soup is almost always better the next day.

1 pound ground beef

1 small onion, diced (1 cup)

1 large carrot, julienned (1 cup)

3 stalks celery, chopped (1 cup)

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 (14.5 oz) cans diced tomatoes with liquid

1 (15 oz) can red kidney beans with liquid

1 (15 oz) can Great Northern beans with liquid

1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce

1 (12 oz) can V8 juice

1 tablespoon white vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon oregano

1 teaspoon basil

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon thyme

1/2 pound ditali pasta

1  Brown ground beef over medium heat.  Drain off most off fat.

2  Add onion, carrot, celery and garlic and saute for 10 minutes.

3  Add remaining ingredients, except pasta, and simmer for 1 hour.

4  About 50 minutes into simmering, cook pasta according to package directions.

5  Add pasta to soup.  Simmer 5 – 10 minutes more.

(So here’s what I did – I browned the ground beef then added everything except the pasta to my crock pot and cooked it on high for about 6 hours.  I cooked the pasta according to package directions and added it to the soup right before serving.  I also add another cup of V8 with the pasta because after adding the pasta the soup was incredibly thick.)

Chicken and Black Bean Enchilada Skillet

by penji1

Chicken and Black Bean Enchilada Skillet

Here is the other part of our dinner from Sunday night, a recipe from “Six Sisters’ Stuff”.  It tasted pretty good but the texture was not great, super mushy.  Now some people here really liked it like Bob and Jaren (they said it reminded them of tamales not enchiladas) who had seconds but the rest of us couldn’t get over the texture.  If I try this again I think I’ll leave the tortillas out and then serve it with crunched up tortilla chips added right before serving.

8 (6 – 8″) corn tortillas, cut into bite size strips

3 cups cooked chicken, shredded

1 medium onion, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

1 (10 oz) can Rotel (diced tomatoes and green chilies), undrained

1 (10 oz) can enchilada sauce

1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, divided

1  Spray large skillet with nonstick cooking spray and set on stove over medium high heat.

2  Add tortillas, chicken, onion and garlic and cook for about 5 minutes, until onion is translucent and tender, stirring frequently.

3  In a medium bowl, mix Rotel, enchilada sauce, black beans, cumin and garlic powder.  Pour mixture over chicken and mix well.

4  Sprinkle half the cheese on top, cover with lid and let cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Top with remaining cheese and serve with your favorite enchilada toppings (cilantro, sour cream, salsa, guacamole, etc).

Fudge Revel Bars

by penji1

Fudge Revel Bars

I promised Courtney and Jaren a treat on Sunday night when they came over and Cort always wants a chocolate treat so I went on Pinterest and searched for “quick and easy chocolate treats” and this is one that came up.  They were quick and easy and also delicious!  They come from a blog called “Mandy’s Recipe Box”.

bars:

1 cup butter

2 cups brown sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 1/2 cups flour

3 cups quick oats

filling:

1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk

1 package milk chocolate chips (I used semisweet to get that flavor instead of the milk)

1 tablespoon butter

1/2 teaspoon salt

1  For bars:  Cream together butter, brown sugar and eggs.  Add vanilla and mix.  Add salt, baking soda and flour and mix.  Add oats and mix well.  Press 2/3 dough into greased 10 x 15″ jelly roll pan (cookie sheet with sides).

2  For filling:  Put sweetened condensed milk, chips, butter and salt in bowl and microwave for 1 minute then stir.  Keep microwaving at 30 second intervals and stirring until melted and smooth.  Pour over dough and spread out.

3  Sprinkle remaining dough over fudge layer.  Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

One Pot Mexican Rice Casserole

by penji1

One Pot Mexican Rice Casserole

Sunday dinner last night with the whole fam, my favorite part of the week!  Made this along with some other things, which will show up later.  It was easy and yummy!  I served it as a side dish but I was thinking that you could add some meat to it and it could be dinner.  It comes from a blog called “Damn Delicious”.

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced (or pressed)

1 onion, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 zucchini, diced

1 cup corn kernels, frozen, canned or roasted (I had a bag of frozen corn, onions, red and green bell peppers, black beans, and green chilies that I got at Sam’s Club so I used that instead of the onion, red bell pepper, zucchini and corn)

1 (14.5 oz) can petite diced tomatoes, undrained

1 cup white rice

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon cumin

salt and pepper

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (omit cheese for vegan)

2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves (I think we all know how I feel about cilantro!)

1  Heat olive oil in saucepan over medium high heat.  Add garlic, onion and pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until onions are translucent, 2 – 3 minutes.  Stir in zucchini and corn until tender and heated through, 2 minutes.

2  Stir in tomatoes, rice, chili powder, cumin and 1 1/2 cups water, season with salt and pepper.  Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer until rice is cooked through, 15 – 18 minutes.

3  Stir in cheese until melted through, about 1 – 2 minutes.  Serve with cilantro.

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Butterscotch Apple Crisp

by penji1

Butterscotch Apple Crisp

Here’s the other dessert I made for Bunco the other night, I was on a butterscotch kick.  This one was amazingly delicious, the butterscotch chips added the perfect taste to an ordinary apple crisp.  The recipe comes from “The Food Network” and was easy to make.  I added to the recipe by half so that I could fill a 3 quart or 9 x 13″ pan instead of the 2 quart pan called for in the recipe.

filling:

5 Granny Smith apples (about 2 pounds), peeled and roughly chopped

1 (11 oz) bag butterscotch chips

1/4 cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon allspice

1 lemon, juiced

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed

topping:

3/4 cup flour

1/4 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup quick oats

pinch salt

1/2 cup butter

3/4 cup pecans, chopped (I used walnuts)

1  Preheat oven to 350.  Butter 2 quart baking dish.

2  For filling:  Toss apples, butterscotch chips, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, allspice, and lemon juice together in large bowl.  Add to baking dish and dot with butter.

3  For topping:  In another bowl, combine flour, sugar, oats, and salt.  Blend butter into mixture (with pastry cutter or 2 forks) until it forms pea sized lumps.  Stir in nuts and sprinkle over filling.

4  Bake until apples are tender and butterscotch is bubbling, about 45 minutes.  Let cool 5 minutes before serving.  (I served with a choice of vanilla ice cream or Cool Whip.)

Butterscotch Chip Oatmeal Cake

by penji1

Butterscotch Chip Oatmeal Cake

One of the desserts that I made for Bunco last night, trying out some Fall-ish recipes for Thanksgiving.  This one was delicious and easy!  It comes from “Better Homes and Gardens“.

1 cup quick cooking rolled oats

1 3/4 cups boiling water

1 cup sugar

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup butter, cut up and softened

2 eggs

1 3/4 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon grated orange peel (didn’t have an orange so left this out)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 (12 oz) bag butterscotch chips

3/4 cups chopped pecans (didn’t have pecans so used almonds instead)

1  Preheat oven to 350.  Place oats in large bowl, pour boiling water over oats and let stand for 10 minutes.  Grease 9 x 13” baking dish.

2  Add sugar, brown sugar, and butter to oats mixture and stir until butter is melted.  Stir in eggs until combined.  Stir in flour, baking soda, orange peel and salt until combined.  Stir in 1 cup of butterscotch chips.

3  Pour batter into prepared pan.  Sprinkle with nuts and remaining butterscotch chips.  Bake 40 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool completely on wire rack.

Colleen’s Overnight French Toast

by penji1
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Colleen’s Overnight French Toast

There is a restaurant here in my town called Kneaders (it’s in other towns too, you can find out if it’s in your town here) that is a family favorite of ours.  This recipe came in a little flyer that they threw in with our lunch the other day and I just happened to have a loaf of their Chunky Cinnamon Bread in my freezer so I prepared it last night for brunch today and it seriously could not have been any easier or more delicious!  If you don’t have a Kneaders near you, so sorry, then I’m sure you could try another kind of cinnamon bread just be sure and slice it nice and thick.  We decided that this would be the perfect Christmas morning breakfast.

1 loaf Kneaders Chunky Cinnamon Bread

8 eggs

1 tablespoon brown sugar (I think I might add 2 next time)

1 tablespoon vanilla

3 cups milk

3/4 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons butter

Slice bread into 8 pieces.  Butter 9 x 13″ dish generously.  Place 6 bread slices in dish then cut remaining 2 slices into smaller pieces to fill the spaces in the pan.  (6 slices fully filled my dish so I just put the remaining 2 into another smaller dish.)  Mix eggs, brown sugar, vanilla, milk and salt together and then pour over bread.  Cut butter into small pieces and dot over top of bread.  Cover and refrigerate overnight or for at least 4 hours.  Uncover and bake at 350 for 45 – 50 minutes.

Baked Ziti with Fresh Tomatoes

by penji1

Baked Ziti with Fresh Tomatoes

Dinner last night, recipe compliments of Taste of Home, it was comfort food yummy and a good way to use up some of the last tomatoes from the garden.

1 pound ground turkey or beef (I used about 1 1/2 pounds hamburger)

1 cup chopped onion (I used 1 large onion)

3 pounds plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped (about 15 tomatoes) (I was lazy and didn’t peel or seed the tomatoes and it came out great unless you absolutely hate tomato skins! Also I used way more than 15 tomatoes as mine weren’t that big, I used around 30ish.)

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon dried basil (I used 2 teaspoons and also added 2 teaspoons of oregano and I also added about 3 cloves garlic pressed)

1/4 teaspoon pepper

8 ounces cooked ziti (I used the whole box which was 16 oz)

2 cups (8 oz) shredded mozzarella cheese, divided

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

1  In Dutch oven, cook beef and onion on medium until beef is no longer pink, drain grease.  Stir in tomatoes, salt, basil (and other spices if desired) and pepper.  Reduce heat to low and cook 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.

2  Cook ziti according to package directions.  Place in large bowl.  Stir in sauce and 1 cup Mozzarella.  Transfer to greased 3 quart baking dish, sprinkle with remaining Mozzarella and Parmesan.

3  Cover and bake at 350 for 15 minutes, uncover and bake for an additional 15 minutes.

Congo Bars

by penji1

Congo Bars

Been working a lot, needed a treat yesterday, these fit the bill, all butter and brown sugar and chocolate, crunchy on the outside and gooey on the inside, from “I heart naptime”, you should try them.

2 cups brown sugar

2/3 cup salted butter, softened

3 eggs

2 1/2 cups flour

2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 – 2 cups chocolate chips

1  Preheat oven to 325.  Cream butter and sugar in mixing bowl.  Add eggs and vanilla and beat until combined.  Add dry ingredients a little at a time.  Fold in chocolate chips.

2  Grease 12 x 14″ or 13 x 9″ pan with cooking spray.  Press dough into pan with hands.  Bake 25 – 35 minutes or until lightly browned.  Dough should be soft in center.

One Pot Burrito Bowls

by penji1

One Pot Burrito Bowls Here’s a tasty and quick dinner idea from “I Heart Naptime”.  Everyone here loved it although next time I’ll be sure to get tortilla chips to serve with it.

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 cup red bell pepper (I used 1 whole pepper)

1/2 cup diced sweet onion (I used 1 whole onion)

1 pound lean hamburger

1/3 cup salsa

1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained

1 (15 oz) can corn, drained

1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes

1 (4 oz) can diced green chiles

1 cup jasmine rice (or any long grain rice) (I used Uncle Ben’s long grain white rice)

1 tablespoon taco seasoning

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

2 1/2 cups chicken stock

1 cup shredded cheddar/jack cheese

toppings: sour cream cilantro green onions tomatoes avocado lettuce tortilla chips

1  In large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat.  Saute pepper and onion.  Add hamburger and cook until browned.  Stir in salsa, beans, corn, tomatoes, green chiles, rice, taco seasoning and chili powder.  Pour in chicken stock and bring to a light boil.  Cover pan and reduce heat to low.  Cook for 15 – 20 minutes or until rice is cooked.

2  When rice is done, salt and pepper to taste and top with cheese.  Top with favorite toppings.