Angela's Baby Shower!

Ahoy! It's a boy!

We are so excited to celebrate the anticipated arrival of Angela's little boy!  Two weeks ago we threw her a very nautical baby shower.  A great time was had by all.  It just warms my heart to see Angela's belly grow so big! Her little man is due at the beginning of next year and I just can't wait to snuggle and spoil him!  Here are some pictures and recipes from the shower.  We hope you enjoy!

{Angela's amazing cake!}

{Nautical Center Pieces & Favors}

{Her invitations}

{Mom & Dad's special chairs}

{Beautiful Mommy-to-be sipping some water}

{The new parents arrive}

Mom-Mom's Grand kid Approved Chicken Fingers
1 lb chicken breast, cut into strips
4 cups Corn Flakes, crushed
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup of flour
salt and pepper
dipping sauces of your choice!

Preheat oven to 350
1. Cut chicken into strips, season with S & P.
2. Smash corn flakes.
3. Set up breading station: one tray of flour, one of egg and one of corn flakes.
4. Bread the chicken strips: flour, egg, corn flakes and place onto a plate.
5. Arrange strips onto a baking rack over a baking sheet.
6. Cook for about 8-10 minutes a side, depending on the size, flipping half way through.
7. Dip, dunk and eat!

To FREEZE: Complete up to step four.  Flash freeze strips and then place into bag or container.

To EAT: Thaw.  Bake as directed OR fry for extra crispiness!



The Real Deal Mac & Cheese
2 lbs macaroni, cooked and drained
2 eggs, whisked
4 TBSP butter, sliced
24 oz sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
8 oz mozzarella cheese, shredded
(the more cheese, the better)
whole milk

Preheat oven to 400
1. Cook pasta to al dente; drain and rinse with cool water.
2. Mix pasta with eggs and butter.
3. Mix shredded cheese together in a separate bowl.
4. Assemble the mac & cheese:  a thin layer of pasta, a thick layer of cheese and repeat.
5. Add whole milk (just slightly less than covering the pasta).
6. Bake, keeping an eye on the top layer.  Once that has browned, cover with foil and bake until milk evaporates.
7. Enjoy while HOT!

Stay full!

One Pot (Pasta) Wonders

So apparently I missed the boat.

 I've been making pasta all wrong--who knew! So me, Meghan, lover of freezer cooking, being lazy and leaving the dishes for later had no idea that amazing dishes existed where you cook the pasta IN THE SAME POT as everything else.  This means less dishes, less cleaning and less mess.  Now we're cooking with peanut oil, as Phil would say.

And the funny part is I learned of each recipe almost at the same time.  It was like the cooking gods were smiling upon me recently.  So here are the recipes, one from Andrea (shocker, I know!), one from Angela and one from kevinandamanda.com.

 Angela's Beef Goulash:

Beef Goulash
{serves 8}

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 pounds ground beef
2 large onions, finely chopped (about 2 cups)
2 14.5-ounce cans diced tomatoes
1 29-ounce can tomato sauce
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons dried basil
2 teaspoons dried oregano
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon garlic powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni

Instructions:

In a large Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Brown the meat in the oil about 10 minutes, breaking meat up with a fork as it cooks. Add the onion; cook and stir for 5 minutes.

Add the remaining ingredients except the macaroni. Reduce heat; simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. (Add water if it looks a bit thick.) Stir in the macaroni; simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Let the goulash stand for 20 minutes before serving.

original recipe by Bobby Deen

To freeze:

Make as directed and cool completely.  Spoon goulash into labeled containers and freeze.

To eat:

Thaw over night in refrigerator.  Heat in saucepan over low/med-low heat, stirring often. 

Andrea's One Pot Pasta Dinner

2 jars sauce

1/2lb ground beef

1/2 box pasta, broken into pieces

cheese to top

1. Brown meat and drain excess fat.

2. Add sauce and bring to simmer.

3. Add pasta, stirring so it doesn't stick.  

4.  Cook about 20 mins.

5. Cover with cheese, put a lid on to melt and serve!

Yup, that easy.

Cheesy Pasta with Sausage

1 tbsp olive oil
1 lb smoked sausage
1.5 cups diced onion (frozen chopped are awesome!)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 (10 oz) can Ro-Tel tomatoes and green chiles, Mild
1/2 cup heavy cream
8 oz penne pasta
1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper, each
1 cup Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
1/3 cup thinly sliced scallions

1. Add olive oil to an oven-safe skillet over medium high heat until just smoking. Add sausage and onions and cook until lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

2. Add broth, tomatoes, cream, pasta, salt and pepper and stir. Bring to a boil, cover skillet, and reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer until pasta is tender, about 15 minutes.

3. Remove skillet from heat and stir in 1/2 cup cheese. Top with remaining cheese and sprinkle with scallions. Broil until cheese is melted, spotty brown, and bubbly.

www.kevinandamanda.com

Enjoy these quick weeknight dinners! 

Stay full,

Sunday Funday: Chili Cheese Dip

Happy Football Season!
I'm back! Skipped last week, but with good reason...my mom was up from Florida and it was our first week back to school.  But now the chaos has settled down and football season is officially upon us, so here's my new Sunday Funday recipe for the week!

Chili Cheese Dip

If my husband had to list his top five favorite foods, it would look a little like this:
1. Wings
2. Chili
3. Wings
4. Wings
5. Chili

So needless to say, we always have lots of chili in the house!  This was my way to combine the idea for the hot taco dip and all of the chili we have in our house.  Same basic idea...cream cheese, chili and shredded cheese on top!

Sunday Funday Chili Cheese Dip

1 block of cream cheese, softened

1.5-2 cups chili 

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

(extras: bacon bits and chopped green onion)

1. Spread softened cream cheese on the bottom of a baking dish.

2. Pour chili on top and spread evenly.

3. Top with shredded cheese.

4. Bake in the oven at 350 for 25-30 minutes

5. Stir and enjoy immediately! (Garnish with extras, if using)

To make freezer friendly:

You can buy cream cheese when on sale and freeze in the package.  

You can also make a large batch of chili and freeze once cooled and use these ingredients to make the dip! 

Go Team!

Sunday Funday: Party Dips

Some like it Hot…

                So I’m a little over due with my Sunday Funday post, but here it is! I am so excited to share this dip with you because I’m pretty sure it’s the reason I fell in love with football.  I started to go to the games to spend time with Joe; I stayed for the food, specifically this one!  It’s a yummy warm cheesy gooey taco dip.  This recipe comes from Joe’s aunt Trish.  It’s so super simple and SO YUMMY!  It screams Sunday Funday!

Hers:

I like it Hot dip:

{serves a crowd}

1 package of cream cheese, softened

1 jar of salsa (no fresh…too runny!)

1 bag of shredded cheddar cheese

 1.       Spread the softened cream cheese in an even layer on the bottom of a pan (even better if it’s disposable!).

2.       Pour the jar of salsa on top and spread evenly.

3.       Sprinkle the whole bag of cheddar cheese on the top.

4.       Bake for about 30 minutes in a preheated 350 oven.

5.       Stir and serve immediately. 

6.       Repeat the process.  It’s that good.

…Some like it cold

                If you’re more of a cold/room temp kinda dip person then this dip is for you.  It’s Angela’s recipe, but I’m going to call it Joe’s Taco dip because Angela isn’t allowed over unless she brings this dip.  Joe has literally eaten the whole thing in one sitting.  What can I say…we take dips very seriously around here. 

His:

Joe’s Taco Dip (via Angela)

{serves a crowd}

1 package of cream cheese, softened

1 jar of salsa

1 bag of shredded cheddar cheese

1.       In a bowl, stir the softened cream cheese.  Add the salsa to combine thoroughly.

2.       Spread mixture into a pan.

3.       Sprinkle cheese on top.

4.       Let set in fridge for 30 minutes.

5.       Inhale and repeat.

This cold dip would be perfect if you’re going somewhere else to watch the game and aren’t sure if you’ll have access to an oven to cook the dip.

Freezing the dips:  I wouldn’t make the dips and then freeze them.  They are very easy to put together last minute.  You CAN however, stock up on cream cheese when it goes on sale and freeze that right in the package.  Also, you can freeze shredded cheese—just make sure to buy a block of cheese and shred it yourself THEN freeze.  Pre-shredded cheese doesn’t freeze very well. And salsa in a jar has a nice shelf life so if you stock up, these should be pretty easy dips to toss together last minute!

If you’re looking for a dip to make ahead and just cook on game day, try this dip

Ours:

Hot buffalo chicken dip

{serves2-4}

2 chicken breasts*

1/3 -1/2 cup Frank’s Original Red Hot Sauce

1 TBSP butter, melted

½ a block of cream cheese, softened

½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1.       Melt the butter in the microwave.

2.       Combine the cream cheese, melted butter and hot sauce.

3.       Put chicken breasts in crock pot and cover with mixture.

4.       Cook on high 4 hours.

5.       Shred chicken in sauce, add cheese and serve immediately!

TO FREEZE THIS DIP:

1.       Melt butter and combine with softened cream cheese and hot sauce. 

2.       When mixture is cool, add uncooked chicken breasts and sauce into a freezer bag.

TO EAT THIS DIP:

1.       Pour ingredients into crock pot and cook as directed.

**You could also make this dip with cooked, shredded chicken breast:  Combine all ingredients and bake in a 350 oven until bubbly, about 25 minutes.**

We had some friends over last night and I made my hot dip…we obviously inhaled it.  I won’t even lie…I paid more attention to the dip than the game.  And that’s no good because my fantasy football draft is this weekend!

Go Team!