Beans, beans, beans

Since I've already introduced you to my best friend, I thought I'd share an even easier recipe with you.
Seriously, easiest dinner you'll ever make.

Ready?
It's oh so cleverly called: Sausage and Green Beans.
And it's one of my kids favorite meals.

Ingredients:

Smoked Sausage
Frozen Cut Green Beans
Seasoning of your choice (optional)

I wasn't kidding when I said it was easy.

I usually add 3 bags of frozen green beans to the crockpot and add some water so that they don't stick to the pot.  I add some garlic and dehydrated onion (because I usually don't have fresh onion on hand) and sometimes some black pepper. 

I add the smoked sausage on top but don't cut it.  The reason I don't cut it, is because just like most of my crockpot meals, it probably cooks too long and that helps it from getting too dried out.
I love the green beans to be on the mushy side for this meal, and so do the kids, so actually it works out well that this cooks for about 9 hours because that helps them get nice and cooked!  Make sure to use a slotted spoon to drain out the water when you serve it up!

Sometimes I do add some sort of potato to this to try and round out the meal, or I'll add a side of garlic bread.  Many nights it can be a struggle to get my daughter to eat her veggies.  Not so with this meal.  Maybe it's because it's pretty much the base of the meal, as opposed to a side item.  I'm not sure why, but I just roll with it. 
Most nights, she asks for seconds!

{please excuse his ridiculous, long over due hair cut in this picture!  I promise it has since been cut!}

I'm all about easy meals that everyone in the family loves.  I grew up on this meal, and it's still a winner in my house!

Meet my best friend

Do you all love your crock pot as much as I do? (ok, I think the technical term is slow-cooker because crock pot is a brand name, but you know what I mean)

It is seriously one of my best friends. Let me explain:

5:00pm is by far one of the most hectic times of our day during the work week. It's when we're getting home from work, picking up the kids, feeding the dog and letting her outside, and trying to get a (somewhat) wholesome meal on the table so that we can all eat together as a family before it gets cold. And all of that must happen in a span of about 15 minutes.

I've picked up a few tricks to try and combat the craziness, but there's only so much you can do.

Into my best friend, the slow cooker.

Dinner is already made for me, and all I have to do is lift the lid and dish some deliciousness onto the kids plates to let it cool off for a minute before it's served.

Talk about awesome.

One of the other things I love about the slow cooker is that it is basically effortless. Dump a bunch of ingredients into a big pot and turn it on. Really. It's that simple. I'm always experimenting with new "recipes" if you can even call them that. I rarely measure ingredients and many times will just add in random items that I have on hand or left-over.

Here's my latest creation (before being cooked):

　

　

I know you can't see all of the ingredients in this picture, and I'm a bad blogger by not taking step by step instructions. But I know you're smart and I bet you can figure it out from my super simple instructions:

What you'll need:

2-3 lbs of boneless, skinless chicken breasts

8oz cream cheese, softened (I use fat free; use your preference)

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 can corn, drained and rinsed

1 can diced tomatoes, juices included (Get creative here...I used diced tomatoes with green chilies; you can use any variation you wish!)

1/2 small onion, chopped

Add any spices you enjoy (I always add garlic, because I'm a garlic lover)

　

Layer ingredients into the slow cooker in the order listed above. Turn slow cooker on low and let it cook for a few hours (until chicken is cooked through).

**Here's the thing, since I cook mine while I'm at work for 8-10 hours, I really have no idea how long it takes until it's done. I know mine is slightly over cooked, but that's the awesome thing about slow cookers...it's pretty difficult to ruin the meal!)

I served mine with rice, all mixed together :) I had made the rice the night before (after the kids went to bed) so that took about 1 minute or so to heat up the microwave :)

You can eat it as is, like a casserole type dish, or we actually then put the entire mixture (with rice) served on soft taco shells with lettuce, cheese, and avocado (I'm sure my husband added hot sauce; he always adds hot sauce).

We don't have a name for it other than Crockpot Mexican Chicken Mix...if you come up with something better/more creative, feel free to share in the comments below :)

　

　

Game Day....A Day Late!

In case you missed it....yesterday was the Super Bowl.

I love sports.  Playing them, watching them, talking about them.  Volleyball is my favorite, with basketball a close second. 

I understand the rules and the game of football (mostly) but I can't say it is a favorite of mine.
Then add in that the Super Bowl was not showcasing a team I really follow or care much about and well, let's just say I was into the Super Bowl this year just so that I could make (and eat) some good food!

I know this post doesn't really help YOU do some creative cooking for an event that took place yesterday, but you can just file this away for future reference.  Or maybe you have a little boy's football themed birthday party and you're still looking for ideas!

Anyway...I got creative yesterday!

My daughter loves to help in the kitchen.  So, we decided to make a fan favorite...Rice Crispy Treats!  Only we made them with a little twist.  I used Cocoa Crispies (ok, actually, I used the store brand generic version).  But instead of placing them in a standard pan, I used a muffin tin.  It was perfect for making individually sized treats.  I used the excess to form a football shape for a larger focal point :)

After the treats were cooled, I took out my cake decorating supplies, and piped some laces onto my "footballs".  I even had an extra helper, who decided to help himself to some icing!

Super easy, super yummy :)


Next up was my taco dip.  This is a recipe that I usually make, but I changed up the presentation a bit to make it football themed.

Why, yes, those are opposing olive teams.  And yes, there are 11 players on each team.  It's all in the details :) 

And in case your interested...here's the recipe for my taco dip!  I usually use lower fat ingredients to make it a little bit healthier, but any version will work.  I included quantities for each ingredient, but to be honest, usually I just eyeball it.  So, feel free to adjust as you feel necessary!  (This recipe is also easily doubled to feed larger crowds)

Michelle's Taco Dip
1 can refried beans (this time I used black bean refried beans because that's what I had on hand)
8 oz cream cheese, softened (I use fat free)
8 oz sour cream (I use fat free)
1/2 packet taco seasoning
1 cup shredded cheese (I use 2% milk cheese)
1 cup salsa
1-2 cups chopped lettuce

In a mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, sour cream, and taco seasoning.  I used a hand mixer to get the cream cheese smooth.  Set aside.

In a pan (I used an 8x11, just because that's what was clean, you can easily fit this in a 9x13) start with you beans and make a base layer.  I like to use a clear pan so you can see the layers, but that's totally not necessary!

Then layer the cream cheese mixture, and the rest of your ingredients.  Usually I layer in this order:

beans
cream cheese/sour cream mixture
salsa
lettuce
cheese

But, since I was trying to make a football field, I used the lettuce last as "grass" and added extra salsa on the ends for my "end zone".  Then I piped on some extra sour cream to make my "goal lines".  The goal lines came out a little thick...oh well.  Who doesn't love a little extra sour cream!?

Then I decided to cut some olives in order to put a "team" on the field. 
If you really wanted to take this to the next level, you can add some goal posts too.  But I was making this, while also trying to make lunch and feed the kids, so no goal posts this time around.

Serve with tortilla chips or your favorite dippers.  Yum!!
In addition to looking good, it also tasted great too :)

Did you make any festive football food for yesterday's big game?

"New" Microwaved Popcorn

I love popcorn.
I mean, who doesn't love popcorn (Ok, besides my husband!).

I think the absolute best popcorn is when my mom makes it over the stovetop, with oil, in a pan.  Delish!
I don't have the patience to do that myself, and I also don't like the calories that come with the oil.

I usually just do the standard pre-packaged, store-bought microwave popcorn. (You know, probably the only thing you think of when think microwave popcorn.---until now!)

I'm typically calorie conscious, which means I eat the oh-so delicious 98% fat free microwave popcorn.
Even that has tons of preservatives, which I'm not such a fan of, if it can be avoided.
I've asked for a hot air popcorn popper before, to which my husband responds, "yay, more crap!"
Then, probably a year or two ago I heard a trick about making your own microwave popcorn, using a brown paper bag (you know, like you used to pack your school lunch in) and popping corn.

I finally tried it last week.
I added about 1/3 cup of popping corn to the bag.  Nothing else.  Just plain popcorn kernels.
I folded the bag a few times (tightly).
Put it in the microwave.

Success!!

How have I never tried this before?  So simple, so cheap.  If I reuse the paper bag a few times, even cheaper!
The only thing I might do is add a little piece of tape to the fold on the bag, but this time it didn't matter.
So fair warning that if you're not careful, you might have a popcorn explosion in your microwave.  Just sayin'.

I added some salt and a little bit of spray butter

Now I want to expand into the world of popcorn seasonings.  Things might just get a little crazy.

Happy Popping!

Do you eat the seeds?

Wow, it's been a while since I've had time to sit down and write!
Remeber when I mentioned how much I love FALL?

I think I forgot to mention, that our fall also includes:

-My daughter's birthday
-My son's birthday
-My wedding anniversary
-Halloween
-My birthday

Oh, and all of that in less than a 4 week time span!  Say WHAT!?  To say we are busy this time of year is a bit understated.

Anyway, more on all of the fun we've been having with birthdays and anniversaries and such later. 
We finally carved our pumpkin tonight, which always prompts the discussion of the pumpkin seeds.

It was tradition in my family to scoop out the seeds, clean them and roast 'em up for eating.
My husband and his family NEVER roast the pumpkin seeds! 

We were with my in-laws last night and they carved their pumpkin....so naturally, I asked them for their seeds that they were just going to *gasp* throw in the garbage!
I brought them home, cleaned them up and put them in the fridge so I could add them to our seeds tonight.

I keep my pumpkin seeds pretty basic.  I add a little bit of butter and salt (ok, maybe lots  of salt...I have a bit of an unhealthy addiction).  Put them on a baking sheet and roast at 350 degrees for 10-20 minutes, turning once.
So easy, so yummy!

Do you roast the pumpkin seeds you save from your jack-o-lantern?

Grandparent Appreciation Dinner

My husband and I are very blessed to live in the same town as both of our parents.
After we graduated from college and were making plans for our future, we always dreamed of moving to a "big" city and getting away from our hometown (even though my husband and I didn't meet until our junior year of college, we actually only grew up minutes from each other!)

Now that we have kids, I recognize what a blessing it is to have each of our parents close by.  What a different life we'd be living if our family wasn't in the same city!  Some may take this for granted, and sometimes I do too.  I grew up with my maternal grandparents living 12 hours away.  We usually only got together once or twice a year, for a week or two at a time.  My kids have such a different experience having each set of grandparents only living about a 20 minute drive away!  It's also quite convenient (and wonderful, at the same time) to be able to call either of the grandparents to hang out with their grandkids when we make some last minute plans (and by last minute, this still means a few days in advance, but you catch my drift!)

So, this past weekend, we had a "Grandparent Appreciation Dinner"!
It was nothing fancy and planned less than a week in advance, but a great time was had by all. 
We had a pasta bar, with multiple types of pasta, various sauces, breadsticks and salad.  Of course there was plenty of beer and wine too (and milk for the kiddos!)

We know our parents love to spend time with their grandkids every chance they get.  But we still just wanted to take some extra time to say "THANK YOU" for everything they do. 
We love you!!

Meatloaf Surprise

Interesting title, huh?

I usually only make meatloaf one time a year.  It's one of my husband's favorite meals, so he gets it homemade each year as his birthday dinner.

I left work a little early so I'd have time to make it before I had two kids tugging on my legs.  It's just easier that way, trust me.

We try to eat fairly healthy, so I'm always trying to think of new ways to "reinvent" meatloaf.  You know, make it healthier, and more exciting.
My meatloaf recipe isn't all that special or exciting.  I usually just follow the tried and true recipe from my Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook. 

Doesn't every married woman have one of these?


Anyway, I loosly follow the meatloaf recipe that's in there, adjusting quantities based on what I have and to suit our tastes. 
But this year, I thought I'd liven it up a little more:

Shredded carrot is pretty exciting, isn't it!?


Wait, there's more....

Can you guess what it is?


I had an extra zucchini that needed to be used.  So I shredded that into the meatloaf, as well.
I know you can hardly contain yourself and your excitement.

As if the meatloaf couldn't get any better, I added yet another twist this year....

Individual portioned mini-meatloafs!


As a bonus, I was able to get EXACTLY twelve mini-meatloaves to fill the cupcake pan.  I can't even do that when I make actual cupcakes!

Unfortunately, there isn't a cooked picture of the meatloaf, because by that time the kids were home and chaos had ensued.  Trust me when I say that they were at hit!

Individually portioned and easy to serve.  And SURPRISE.....added vegetables that the kids don't even know they are eating.  Awesome!

I just might have to do this again before next year!