Granola

I'm re-posting this granola recipe....because....well it's that good. :-)

4 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup honey
2 tablespoons sugar
4 teaspoons vanilla extract

optional: raisins, cranberries, any dried fruit, coconut, any nuts or seeds.

Combine oats, almonds, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon in a large bowl.

In a sauce pan over med heat, combine honey, oil, and sugar.

Simmer until bubbly.

Pour hot liquid over oat mixture. Combine with hands until all is coated.

Spread the granola on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Bake for 20-30 min at 300 degrees until golden brown.

If you like your granola with big chunks, do not stir or touch until completely cooled. If you like it all separate, stir half way through baking and once you take it out of the oven.

Store in an air tight container. Eat with milk, yogurt, or just as a snack.

Healthy Sweet Potato Pancakes

It's snowing.....again. It's definitely an inside day.....so that means.....I'm cooking. :-) (and cleaning a little :-(

We started off our day with Healthy Sweet Potato Pancakes

2 cups white whole wheat flour
4 t baking powder
2 T brown sugar
1 t cinnamon
2 cups milk (plus more for thinning)
1/4 cup milled flax seeds or wheat germ (half and half would be awesome)
4 t butter, melted
2 eggs
1 sweet potato, cooked (a heaping 1/2 cup is good)

Mix well. Let sit for a few minutes and it will get smoother. Add milk for thinner pancakes. (I ended up adding quite a bit) Butter or spray your pan.
Pour 1/4 cup of batter into a med high hot pan. When you see bubbles, flip.

Enjoy!

These take a little bit longer to cook than normal pancakes. You could also sub in pumpkin instead of sweet potato. Yum! Double your batch and/or freeze your leftovers for a quick breakfast during the week.

Breakfast Casserole

I love anything I can make in advance. This is one of those. do the work the night before and put it in the oven in the morning. Perfect for a Saturday/Sunday breakfast. The only thing you have to do is plan a little. :) Enjoy!

8 oz Ciabatta bread cut into 1 inch cubes

1 lb turkey sausage

1/2 c chopped green onion

1 1/4 c milk

1 c shredded sharp cheddar cheese

6 large eggs

2 Tbl chopped fresh parsley

Preheat 400 degrees. Spread bread in a single layer on a baking sheet and toast about 8 min. Cook turkey sausage in pan over med heat until done. About 6 min. Crumble. Combine sausage, bread, and onions in a large bowl. Combine milk, eggs, and cheese in a seperate bowl. Add egg mix to bread mix and toss till coated. Spoon mix in a 2 quart baking dish. Cover and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight.

Preheat 350. Uncover casserole and bake for 5o min or until set and lightly brown. Sprinkle with parsley and serve. Should serve around 6.

Monday Meal Plan

Here's what's cookin at our house this week:

Parmesan Chicken

Feta Burgers



Breakfast

Enchiladas Blanco

Cola Pork Chops

Stir Fry Shrimp

Leftovers/Eat out

Happy Monday

Aaaahhhh.....I'm home. I've spent the last week travel with a college choir to Kentucky. It was sooo much fun. The people in KY are amazing! Some of the nicest folk I've come across. I have tons of catching up to do around here but it was worth going! I'll update ya'll (as they say in KY) through out the week. Here is what I'm planning on serving my fam this week (links to the recipes are coming):

Asparagus Chicken Roll-ups

Basil and Tomato Pizza

Cola Pork Chops

Breakfast Casserole

Asian Chicken Wraps

Eat Out

Sausage Foil Packs

Hope you had a great 4th! Have a blessed week!

Tuesday's Tip ~ How to make the perfect hard boiled egg

Have you been trying to figure out how to make the perfect hard boiled egg?

Cover the eggs with water and a splash of vinegar (it supposedly helps to keep the whites together if the egg were to crack). Bring to a boil. As soon as it starts boiling, turn off the burner and cover for 15 minutes. Pour cold water over and peel. Success everytime! :)

Meal Plan Monday

I'm trying 3 new recipes this week! But here's the good part, they are all under 30 minutes!

I hope to be unveiling some news pretty soon.....regarding cooking (no I'm not pregnant...lol).

Enjoy your week and I pray you find time to enjoy some great dinners and great family time as well.

If you make any of the recipes found on this website, please send me a pic. I'd love to share with everybody and know what you think!

Stir-fried Sesame Shrimp
(I'll add a pic later)

Boursin Chicken with Mushrooms
(making these tomorrow for company) :)

Sichuan Pork Noodles

(planning on making the kiddos something different, not sure if this will be spicy)

Feta Burgers

Smothered Breakfast Burritos

Leftovers

Eat Out

Click here to print this meal plan with recipes and a grocery list!

Meal Plan 9

My meal plan this week is going to be easy and frugal! I plan on only cooking 3-4 times this week. I am going to cook breakfast for my husbands work (only 8 people), so dinner plan is going to be simple.
We are having:

Cuban Black Beans and Rice

Muffin tin Mini Meatloaves

Black Bean Enchiladas (using leftover Cuban black beans)

Parmesan Garlic Chicken

Meatloaf Sliders with chipotle ketchup and crispy onions(using leftover mini meatloaves)

Chicken and Broccoli Quiche (using leftover parmesan chicken)

Good Morning Sunshine

One of the ways I show my husband love and respect is by making him breakfast in the mornings. (he gets up at 4:30am!!.....I'm not crazy....I usually go back to bed when he leaves) He loves it and means the world to him. It's just a little way of mine to say thanks for working so hard and a chance to send him on his way with a kiss and hug. He never has time to sit and eat so I have the opportunity to get creative.

We love these breakfast sandwiches. I try to make smart choices and save calories for dinnertime ;) I use a real egg for him, egg beaters for me. Today, I used sundried tomato and basil cheese but I must say our favorite is applewood bacon cheddar. I cook the egg for 30 sec in the microwave, top it with cheese for another 20 sec, heat the turkey sausage for 25 sec and assemble. TA DA!

Berry Breakfast Cookies

I took these cookies to a playdate this morning and came home with just the plate. Tells me these are worth posting about! When I first saw this recipe it called for canned fruit cocktail (yuck....JMO).....so I tweaked it and this was the result. Keep in mind......this is a breakfast cookie.....it does not have much sugar in it....don't expect it to compare to your grandma's chocolate chip cookies. :)

3/4 cup strawberries cut into bitesize pieces
1/4 cup blackberries cut into bitesize pieces
4oz yogurt (I used blueberry...this about 6 Tbl)
1 2/3 cup old fashioned oats
1 cup bisquick heart smart baking mix
3/4 cup milk
3 Tbl no calorie sweetner (I use Truvia but splenda would work too or regular sugar)
3 Tbl brown sugar (not packed)
2 1/4 tsp baking powder
3 Tbl unsalted
dash of salt

Preheat oven 425. Pat fruit dry and mix with yogurt. Set aside. Combine oats, bisquick, sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, and salt. Melt butter in microwave and add to dry mix. Mix well. Add milk and stir until mixed thoroughly. Fold fruit into the batter. Let dough sit for 5 minutes. (so the oats can soak up some wet). Portion with a 1/4 cup measurer. Bake 11-13 minutes or until tops are slightly firm and edges begin to brown. Let cool slightly. Enjoy! (makes 2 dozen)

Meal Plan Monday

Yes, I know, it's not Monday. Yesterday turned out to be a little busier than I expected. Next week, I'll make sure to have this done actually on Monday. lol. :)

This week I created a meal plan with my friend, Robin, in mind. She and her husband work funky hours and just want to spend time together and with thier son when not working. But like all of us, we want our families to eat good food not to mention save money on eating out. So, I tried to put myself in her shoes......so I'm thinking easy meals, cooking once and using leftovers in another meal, freezing....stuff like that. Here is what I came up with:

Meal Plan 5

This week, I started something new as well. On this meal plan check out sheet two......yep....you got it.....the grocery list!
My son picking on the quiche on the counter. :)

Chicken and Brocolli quiche. 3 suggestions. Omit the lemon juice, add some hot sauce, and add some cheddar.

This is unbaked in this picture. Just think Arby's hot ham and cheese only this has a yummy buttery sauce!

We should rename this parmesan garlic chicken to "YOU HAVE TO TRY THIS CHICKEN"! It was soooo good! We used the leftovers in the quiche and that was after my husband took some to work, AND I was able to freeze some for the next quiche or quesadilla. :)

Green Shrimp Scampi (we use whole wheat pasta...so ours looks brown) :)

This week freezing instructions:

*Can wrap pork tenderloin in marinade and freeze until ready. thaw completely in fridge before baking. Could also freeze after cooking. Slice and add juice from pan in a freezer bag.

*Can wrap parmesan garlic chicken after cheese coating individually. Just take out as many as you need. Thaw completely in fridge before cooking.

*Can freeze ham and cheese sands after assembled wrapped in foil. No need to thaw before cooking. (this is one of our favorites!!!)

*Yes, you can even freeze quiche! After cooking, cool completely. Cover with plastic wrap and then foil. Freeze. Thaw completely in fridge. Reheat in 325 oven for 20-30 min. Cover loosely with foil if starts to brown.

Dessert this week:

This week I'm making Frozen Lemon Pie (I have an obsession with lemon in the summertime)
3/4 c sugar
1 whole egg
2 egg yolks
1/2 t salt
1/4 c fresh lemon juice
1/2 t lemon zest
1 1/3 c whipping cream
2 egg whites
graham pie crust

In a double broiler, mix sugar, whole egg, yolks, salt, lemon juice, and zest. Over med heat until thick. Remove and cool. Seperatly, beat egg whites until stiff peaks. In a seperate bowl, beat whipping cream until soft peaks form. Fold egg whites into lemon mix. Fold whipping cream into lemon mix. Spread into graham crust. Freeze. Thaw slightly before slicing. YUM! (pictures to come)

More Meal Plans

Meal Plan 4

Here's meal plan number 4! Enjoy! This week I focused on freezing alot of items or making ahead. It's nice to have short cuts on those days I just don't feel like cooking much.

Blessings,
Shelby

http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=rg6BTzPV1QzV1pqaf65aJ7g&hl=ens.google.com/ccc?key=rg6BTzPV1QzV1pqaf65aJ7g&hl=ens.google.com/ccc?

Smothered Breakfast Burrittos

Meatball Sands

Buffalo Chicken Salad