Tomato Basil Soup

 Tomato Basil Soup

- Depending on the amount of soup you'd want, get between 25 and 30 large, ripe tomatoes. (These also come in cans if you don't want to peel them yourself).
- Peel the skins off all the tomatoes, and put them in a large pot with the juice on low heat.

- Sprinkle in some pepper. This is done to taste, so don't go overboard here because you can always add some later if needed.
- After the tomatoes have been simmering on a low heat for around 45 minutes to an hour, use an immersion blender or scoop the still-whole tomatoes into a blender and puree.

- Put about a cup and a half  of whole basil leaves in a food processor, and grind them up. This is to taste though, so add slowly until you reach the desired basil-ness. Add to the soup. You can also use dried basil if fresh is not available to you.

- Continue to let the soup simmer, the thicker and less watery it becomes.


 Enjoy this wonderful soup with Grilled Cheese or some fresh sourdough bread.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

 Best-Ever Chocolate Chip Cookies

What You Need:

2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all purpose unbleached flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) butter, melted and cooled a little
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granukated sugar

1 large egg and 1 egg yolk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract ( I used Haitian Vanilla but I know not everyone has that available)

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

What You Do:

Preheat your oven to 325* degrees.

In a medium bowl whisk the flour, baking soda and salt together. Set aside. Either by hand or with your mixture mix together the melted butter, salt and light brown sugar until thoroughly blended. Mix in the egg, egg yolk and vanilla until combined. Add the dry ingredients and  beat on low speed (or mix by hand with a spatula) just until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips. Make about 1 in balls and place on your cookie sheets. Bake for 15-18 minutes and then allow to cool on cookie sheet.

This recipe yields about 2 dozen cookies

ENJOY!!!

Yummy Turkey Cookies

 Turkey Cookies

Have a Bite to Eat of this Frightful Treat - Jack Skellington Cookies

 

It's time to get into the Halloween spirit by creating yummy treats at home with your family. Homemade decorative sugar cookies are the perfect treat for this ghoulish season! Here is a recipe for delicious Jack Skellington Sugar Cookies courtesy of Walt Disney Parks & Resorts:

Jack Skellington Sugar Cookies

makes 18 cookies

Spinach & Herb Chicken

Spinach & Herb Chicken

  

What you will need:
8 chicken tenders or 1 1/2lbs chicken breasts
2 Tbsp Spinach & Herb Dip Mix
1/2 cup EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
1 1/2 Tbsp White Wine (I use the cooking kind)
1 cup chicken broth
1 box of CousCous cooked according to package


What you will do:
 Add the chicken to your crock-pot. In a bowl combine the EVOO, Spinach & Herb Mix and White Wine.
Pour the mixture over your chicken and allow to cook on low 6-8 hours or until chicken is tender. Serve the chicken over couscous.

Makes 4-5 servings.


ENJOY!! 

Homemade Sloppy Joes

 Homemade Sloppy Joes

What you will need:
1.5 lbs lean ground beef
1 can tomato soup
1 can tomato paste
 1 can tomato sauce
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1/4 cup brown sugar
salt and pepper to taste
package of your favorite rolls or buns

What you will do:
Brown the hamburger with the onions and drain off fat. Transfer the meat to your crock pot and add remaining ingredients. Cook on low for 2-3 hours.


ENJOY!! 

FRANKENWEENIE inspired Recipes

 FRANKENWEENIE

And here are some yummy recipes just in time for Halloween!!

Balsamic Pork Roast

Balsamic Pork Roast  

 What You Need:

2 pound boneless pork shoulder roast (sirloin roast)

seasoned salt, to taste

1/2 tsp garlic powder

½ teaspoon red pepper flakes

1/4 cup chicken or vegetable broth

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon honey 

What You Do:

Combine the salt, garlic and pepper flakes in a small dish then rub all over the roast. Place the roast in your crock pot. In another bowl combine the chicken broth and vinegar, then pour over the roast. Drizzle the honey over the roast. Cook on High for 4-6 hours or until roast is tender.

I served my roast with Honey Glazed Carrots and my Homemade Rolls.

Baked Sun Dried Tomato Crusted Tilapia

Baked Sun Dried Tomato Crusted Tilapia

 What You Need:

1 cup seasoned breadcrumbs 2 teaspoons onion powder1 teaspoon garlic powder2 teaspoons paprika1 teaspoon salt2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese8 sun dried tomatoes, packed in oil2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil4 Tilapia fillets1/3 cup flour1 egg beaten
What You Do:
Place the breadcrumbs, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, salt and Parmesan cheese into a food processor and pulse until everything is mixed well. Then add the sundried tomatoes and olive oil and pulse again until you have the consistency of coarse meal.Spread some olive oil in the bottom of your roasting pan and set it aside. Preheat your oven to 350*F. Rinse off your tilapia fillets with water and pat dry. Spread the flour onto a small/medium sized plate. Then put the beaten egg in a shallow bowl and the breadcrumbs in a bowl as well. Then you will start by dredging the tilapia fillets in the flour until lightly coated, then dip in the beaten egg until coated and let the excess drip off. Then place a handful of the breadcrumb mixture onto a large plate and place the fillet on top of the mixture. Then sprinkle a good amount of breadcrumb mixture over the top of the fillet and press them down with your fingers. When both sides of te fillet are well breaded, place the fillet in your roasting pan.

Place your roasting pan in the oven and bake for 15 minutes or until the fish is cooked through. To tell if the fish is done it will easily flake with a fork.

I serve steamed asparagus with hollandaise sauce with our tilapia. 

Nostalgia Electrics - Soft Pretzel Maker with Recipe

 

One thing my family loves to do is snack. But I try my hardest to give them the healthiest and best of everything which is not always easy. One of our favorite snacks it soft pretzels but the store bought ones are never as good as the fresh ones. With that said I am super excited to tell you about our new snack machine it is a Nostalgia Electrics soft pretzel maker. 

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread...Yummy

 This is one of my favorite recipes and I have won Blue Ribbons with it as well I hope you enjoy it as well.

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, beaten
2 1/3 cups mashed overripe bananas
1 cup mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease 9x5 inch loaf pan.

In a large bowl combine flour, baking soda and salt. In a seperate bowl, cream together butter
and brown sugar. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture; stir just to moisten. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.

Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 65 minutes, until toothpick inserted into center of loaf comes
out clean. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.

BBQ Ribs

 BBQ Ribs

What you will need:
2 - 3 lbs pork ribs I use the ones that come individual so no cutting
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 tablespoon cayenne red pepper
1 tablespoon Rustic Herb
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 medium onion, sliced
1 can cherry cola
2 cups of your favorite BBQ sauce ( we use sweet baby ray's)


What you will do:
Spray the inside of your crock-pot with cooking spray. Mix the brown sugar, salt, pepper, cayenne red pepper, rustic herb and garlic; rub the mixture into the ribs. Layer your ribs in your crock-pot along with the onion. Pour the cherry cola over the ribs. Cover and cook on low for 8-9 hours or until ribs are tender. When the ribs are tender remove them from the crock-pot and drain and discard the liquid from the crock-pot. Put your BBQ sauce in a medium shallow sized bowl. Dip the ribs into the sauce and then place back in the crock-pot and cook for 1 hour on low. These ribs will fall off the bone when done as you can easily see from my picture below. :-)

ENJOY!! 

Baked Salisbury Steak

 Baked Salisbury Steaks:

1 1/2lbs lean hamburger (93% or Organic meat)

1/2 cup dry Italian Bread Crumbs

1 egg

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

1 Tbsp Onion Onion 

1/2 tsp Garlic Garlic

1/2 Tbsp Bacon Bacon

2 packets brown gravy mix

Sliced Mushrooms and Onions - Optional

What To Do:

Combine all ingredients except the gravy. 

Form into 6 oval patties and cook each patty in a skillet until browned on each side.

Then place them into a baking dish. 

Prepare the gravy as directed on the package and then pour over the steak patties. 

You can add sliced mushrooms or onions into this before baking if you would like.

Cover with aluminum foil. 

Bake in a 350*F oven for 1 hour. Serve with fresh steamed veggies.  

Artichoke & Spinach Chicken

 Artichoke & Spinach Chicken

What you will need:
1 lb chicken breast; cubed
10.75 can of cream of chicken soup
1 packet Artichoke & Spinach Warm Dip Mix
1/2 cup water
1 can artichoke hearts, drained and cut up
salt & pepper to taste
12 oz. prepared spinach pasta or your favorite pasta


What you will do:
Spray the inside of your crock-pot with cooking spray. Add the cube chicken to your crock-pot.
Mix the remaining except the pasta in a bowl and pour over top of your chicken. Cook on low for 2-3 hours or until tender. (Add 2-3 tablespoons water or milk if the chicken becomes too dry.) Spoon chicken mixture over hot pasta.

Makes 3-4 servings.

ENJOY!! 

Mexican Chicken Lasagna Recipe

This recipe is something that I came up with one evening when I was tired of the same old boring thing every night for dinner. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

Scalloped Potatoes

 Scalloped Potatoes

What You Need:

2 pounds of potatoes washed
3 tsp butter, melted
olive oil spray (or any cooking spary)
1 tsp of salt and pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
4 oz cheddar cheese
1 1/4 cup milk
1 tsp bayleaf
1 tsp thyme


What You Do:
First peel and slice your potatoes they should be able 1/8 in thick.

Next place your sliced potatoes in a bowl with the melted butter, salt, pepper and garlic powder; toss to coat the potatoes.

In a saucepan bring the milk, thyme and bayleaf.

While waiting for your milk to boil, add a single layer of potatoes in a greased baking pan. Next, add a layer of cheese, then add your remaining potatoes. Add the remainder of the cheese and pour your milk over the potatoes.

Bake at 425 degrees for 40-50 minutes, let cool and enjoy!

ENJOY!!!

Protein Fruit Smoothie

 Protein Fruit Smoothie

What You Need:

1 cup Greek Vanilla Yogurt ( I used Chobani because it has the most protein)1/2 cup Vanilla Almond Milk1 cup fresh fruit
What You Do:Place all ingredients into your blender and blend until smooth. I then freeze the smoothie and place it in Pumpkin's lunch box and by the time he has lunch it is thawed and he can drink it.

In the smoothie pictured we used 1/2 cup fresh blueberries and a half of a banana. We have also done a mixed berry with fresh strawberries, blueberries and black raspberries. 

Italian Chicken w/ Green Beans & Carrots

 Italian Chicken w/ Green Beans & Carrots

What you will need:
1 1/2 to 2lbs chicken
3 carrots cut into thirds
2 cups fresh green beans
1 bottle Italian Dressing
2 cups Parmesan Cheese


What you will do:
Squirt a small amount of Italian Dressing in the bottom of your crockpot then place 2 to 3 breasts in the bottom of your crockpot. Squirt some more Italian Dressing on top of the chicken and sprinkle with half of the Parmesan Cheese. Place the rest of your chicken on top and then add your veggies squirt some more Italian Dressing on top and with the remaining Parmesan Cheese. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.

ENJOY!! 

Chicken Bacon Alfredo Lasagna

Chicken Bacon Alfredo Lasagna 

What You Need:

9 uncooked lasagna noodles
1 jar or 24 oz Light Alfredo sauce
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano leaves
3 cups chopped cooked chicken
1 cup crumbled bacon
3 cups mozzarella cheese
2 cups fresh baby spinach

What You Do:
Preheat oven to 375*. Cook noodles according to directions on package; drain. In a bowl combine the Alfredo sauce, milk and oregano; whisk until blended. Set aside.

Chop the chicken into bite size pieces. Add the mozzarella cheese and bacon to the chicken then mix well.
To assemble the lasagna, spread about 1/4 cup of the Alfredo sauce mixture over the bottom of your 9 x 13 baking dish. Top with noodles, overlapping to fit. Layer half of the spinach over the noodles; top with half the chicken mixture. Repeat layers starting with half of the remaining sauce. After layers are done pour the remaining sauce over the top of the lasagna.

Cover your dish with foil and Bake for 30 minutes.  Carefully remove the foil and continue baking for 10 minutes or until bubbly.

Cut and ENJOY!!

Homemade Bread Machine Wheat Rolls

 Homemade Bread Machine Wheat Rolls

This is a easy recipe for homemade wheat rolls that uses a bread machine to make the dough: 

These wheat rolls are just as good as what you get at some restaurants! They are very easy to make, but do require rising and resting time so they do take some time to make.  I usually put the ingredients in the bread machine at lunch time and then we have fresh from the oven rolls with our dinner.  

Broccoli Sausage Alfredo w/ Goat Cheese

Broccoli Sausage Alfredo w/ Goat Cheese

 What You Need:

1 head of Broccoli4 Spinach & White Cheddar Chicken Sausage links1 jar of Light Alfredo Sauce1 box of your favorite pastacrumbled goat cheese

What You Do:
Cook pasta according to directions on package. While pasta is cooking cut the broccoli into florets and steam them. Cut the sausage links into pieces and add them to the sauce in a pan to warm the sauce once the pasta  is done drain and return to pan. Add the steamed broccoli and warmed sauce to pasta and mix. Once it's all mixed put on plates and top with goat cheese. 
Enjoy!!!

Fried Green Tomatoes

 Fried Green Tomatoes 

What You Need:
4 Large Firm Green Tomatoes
2 eggs
1/2 cup Buttermilk
1 cup flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup plain breadcrumbs
2 tsp coarse kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
vegetable oil for frying


What You Do:
Slice the tomatoes into 1/4 in thick slices and discard the ends.

Whisk the eggs and buttermilk together in a medium sized bowl. Place the flour onto a plate. Mix the cornmeal, breadcrumbs, salt and pepper on another plate. Dip the tomato slices into the flour to coat. Then dip them into the egg and milk mixture. Dredge in the breadcrumbs to completely coat.

In a large skillet pour the vegetable oil ( you'll need enough so that there is 1/2 inch of oil in the pan) and heat over medium heat. Place the tomatoes into the frying pan in batches of 4 to 5, depending on the size of your skillet. You do not want to crowd the tomatoes they should not touch each other. When the tomatoes are browned, flip them over and fry on the other side. Drain on a paper towel.

ENJOY!!!