Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

It's pumpkin season!!!  While technically you can make pumpkin dishes anytime of year, the fall is the perfect time for them!  I have a few favorites I'll be sharing with you over the next several weeks leading up to Thanksgiving.  I'd love to hear your favorites too...share with me in the comments!

We went to a pumpkin carving event at a local park yesterday.  They already have the pumpkins cleaned out and ready for you to carve.  The idea is for people to come and carve a pumpkin, leave it there, then come back the next weekend where they set them up in the park and have them lit!  It really is a fun time. 

Well, we had such a good time, we decided to come home and carve our own.  My daughter LOVED cleaning out the pumpkin and gave me the seeds to roast.  

So first fun treat....roasted pumpkin seeds. 

I started by putting the seeds in a colander and thoroughly rinsing them.  Use your hands to separate them while the water is running over them.  This helps loosen up any pumpkin guts still attached.  Then I spread them out on a baking sheet and let them dry out overnight. 

We decided to make ours sweet.  Here is the recipe we used...

1.5 cups fresh pumpkin seeds
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
sea salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Toss seeds in a bowl with olive oil, brown sugar, cinnamon and a pinch or 2 of salt.  Spread out evenly onto a greased baking sheet. 

Bake for 15-20 minutes, stirring seeds halfway. 

Let seeds cool and then store in an airtight container.  Enjoy!

Now you have a cute, carved pumpkin and a yummy treat!

Savory Breakfast Casserole

Sometimes I can stare in the fridge and see food options but not really know what to fix.  I get in a rut and fix the same thing over and over again.  Then there are those leftovers that nobody ever wants to finish.  Leftovers are almost always inevitable after holiday gatherings, so why not use them to create an entirely new dish!

We always travel for Christmas so when I contribute to a meal I like it to be something easy.  And what's easier than rolls?!  Afterwards we had plenty of the rolls leftover so I came up with a dish to use them up.

Who doesn't love breakfast for dinner?!  Or breakfast anytime of the day really.  ;)  So I decided to make a savory breakfast casserole using up my leftover rolls and some creamy Chobani greek yogurt. 

I started by spraying a 9x13 baking dish.  Then I tore 5 large rolls into bite size pieces and placed them in the dish.  Next I added sausage pieces that I had cut up.

Then it was time for the egg mixture.  I mixed together eggs, milk, Chobani plain greek yogurt, shredded cheese and seasoning.

Then I poured the egg mixture over the bread and sausage, making sure all the bread was coated.

Now it's ready to bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes.

Let cool for a few minutes and enjoy!  I served my casserole with some pan fried potatoes and fruit.  This meal would be great anytime of day!  If you are serving this for breakfast you could easily whip it up the night before and refrigerate.  Then in the morning take it out about 30 minutes before putting in the oven to bake.

Check out madewithchobani.com for other yummy recipe ideas using Chobani greek yogurt!

Savory Breakfast Casserole

Ingredients:
8 eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup Chobani plain greek yogurt
1 cup shredded cheese
1 tsp Mrs. Dash original seasoning blend (or just salt & pepper to taste)
5-6 large dinner rolls
3-4 sausage patties, cooked and diced

Directions:
Grease a 9x13 baking dish and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Tear the rolls into bite size pieces and place them in the dish.  Next add the sausage pieces.  In a large bowl, mix together the eggs, milk, greek yogurt, shredded cheese and seasoning.  Pour over the bread, making sure it is all coated.  Bake for 30-40 minutes or until the top of the casserole begins to brown and springs back when touched lightly.  Let cool, slice and enjoy!

{Crockpot} chicken tacos

I used to use this chicken fajita crock pot recipe all the time but then I got lazy and started doing this instead.  Plus this a a great alternative when fresh veggies aren't in season!

Ingredients:

3-4 chicken breasts (i used frozen)
1 can of rotel
1 packet taco seasoning
1/2 cup chicken broth or water

Directions:
Add all ingredients to crock pot and cook on low for 6-8 hours. About an hour before eating I use a fork and shred up the chicken so it has awhile to marinate in the juices. Then before eating, drain the juices and enjoy with your favorite tortillas and toppings!

zucchini noodles

It is garden season and one of my favorite fresh veggies this time of year is zucchini!  But when it comes to fixing it I pretty much either saute it or use it in this pasta dish.  Recently I came across some recipes using zucchini noodles made with a spirooli slicer and peeler.  I was anxious to try it out. 

A major plus is I already had this funky contraption!!!  We bought ours years ago to use with potatoes and then after the newness wore off it got put in a cabinet and forgot about.  I think we might have tried it with apples too. 

Little Bit was excited to try out the spirooli once she saw it!  But of course she didn't want to eat the zucchini...oh well!  We still had fun making it together.  ;)

Once our noodles were cut I just sauteed them in some olive oil with minced garlic and mushrooms.   Such a delicious new side dish!!!  I want to try this shrimp scampi recipe next! 

Cinnamon Strawberry Muffins

I recently had some strawberries that needed to be used when I stumbled across this recipe from Everyday Reading.    I just made a few tweaks based on ingredients I had and these muffins came out fabulous! 

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup stevia baking blend
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 eggs
1/3 cup strawberry yogurt
1/3 cup applesauce
1/2 - 1 cup chopped strawberries 

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Wisk together dry ingredients in mixing bowl.   Stir in remaining ingredients and mix until just combined.   

Divide batter between 12 greased muffin tins.  

Bake in 350 degree oven for 28 - 30 minutes.  

strawberry chocolate {cupcakes}

What to do on a snowy day when you've already played in the snow, had hot chocolate and watched a movie?  Why make cupcakes of course!  Little Bit wanted to make cupcakes, so I asked her what kind.  She said strawberry chocolate!  I went to the cabinets and this is what I had, so we made it work...

We first took a can of strawberry pie filling and dumped it into a bowl.  With a fork we mashed up the strawberries.

Then we added 2 eggs and the cake mix.  Mix until all dry ingredients are moist and incorporated.   Stir in the chocolate chips. 

Then fill each muffin tin 2/3 full and bake at 350 for 20 minutes.  

Little Bit really wanted chocolate icing for them, so I grabbed a can of butter cream icing that I had in the pantry and added some cocoa powder to it!  Delish!

She even helped me ice them...and eat them of course!  The verdict is...yummo!!!

Ingredients:
1 box yellow cake mix
1 can strawberry pie filling
2 eggs
2/3 cup dark chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Dump the can of pie filling into a mixing bowl and mash strawberries with a fork.  Then add the 2 eggs and cake mix.  Mix until all dry ingredients are moist and incorporated.  Stir in chocolate chips.  Place muffin liners in 18 muffin slots.  Then fill each muffin tin 2/3 full.  {If not using liners, spray pans}.  Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.  Enjoy!....or add some yummy icing like we did!


Chocolate butter cream icing
1 can butter cream icing
1/4 cup cocoa powder
Mix together until chocolaty and smooth! {Or you could make your own if you want, but I prefer this shortcut!}

fish taco {recipe}

Tilapia is a fish that I cook with often.  It is fairly inexpensive and I find it on sale often.  Plus it's not too fishy for me...taste or smell wise.  We tried these fish tacos several months ago and fell in love with them!  They make it on the menu monthly at least!

Fish Tacos 
Ingredients:
4 tilapia fillets
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp garlic powder
salt
pepper

Directions:
Place thawed tilapia fillets on plate or cutting board.  {I put my frozen tilapia in a ziplock bag and place them in the sink with water for about 15 minutes or so.}  Sprinkle tilapia with salt and pepper.  Mix together other spices and rub on both sides of the fillets.  Cook in a skillet on medium heat about 5-6 minutes per side.  The fish will flake easily with a fork when it is done.

Cilantro lime sauce
2 Tbsp sour cream
1 Tbsp lime juice
1/2 tsp cilantro
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp garlic powder

Mix together in small bowl and serve on fish tacos!


Here are some of my other recipes featuring Tilapia...
Orange-Ginger Tilapia
Breaded Tilapia Sticks
Almond-Coconut Tilapia

{chicken} taco soup

This taco soup is one of my favorite go-to recipes!  It is so easy to throw together and just yummo!  Plus you can easily adapt it based on what ingredients you have on hand.  I was out of ground meat but had chicken.  I was also out of beef stock...so chicken stock stepped up to the crockpot!  ;)

Ingredients:
1 can corn or 1-2 cups frozen corn
1 can can rotel
1 can white beans
2 cups chicken broth
1 package taco seasoning
1 package ranch seasoning
2-3 frozen chicken breasts

optional toppings:  shredded cheese, sour cream, crushed tortilla chips

Directions:
Drain beans and place them with all other ingredients in the crockpot.  Stir to combine seasoning mixes.  Cook on low for 8-10 hours or high for 4-6.  About an hour before serving remove the chicken, shred, and place back in crockpot.  Stir and let cook the remaining hour. 

Enjoy just as it is or with your favorite toppings!

cheese & zucchini pasta

During the summer when zucchini is readily available, this is one of my go to dishes!  Zucchini is one of my favorite vegetables and this recipe is just so easy to throw together and tastes yummo!  I hope you give it a try.

Ingredients:
1/2 box pasta of your choice {I usually use whatever I have on hand}
1 medium zucchini
1/4 - 1/2 cup olive oil
2 gloves garlic finely chopped
1/2 tsp dried basil
1 cup shredded cheese {provolone or mozzarella}
3 Tbsp Parmesan cheese

Directions: 
Start by washing and slicing your zucchini.  I slice it into rounds and then cut then in half.  This makes them about the same size as your pasta pieces.  Salt & pepper the zucchini and set aside.

Cook pasta according to the package directions.

In a separate pan, heat olive oil on medium to medium-low heat.  Add garlic and basil, cook for a few minutes.  Then add zucchini and cook until tender.  Once pasta has finished cooking, drain and add to zucchini.  Stir to coat pasta with oil.

Turn off the heat and add cheeses.  Toss pasta and cheese mixture, cheese will begin to melt.  Serve & enjoy!!!

Taco soup

This past weekend we had a family get together at our house.  I was trying to find easy prep meals so I wasn't constantly in the kitchen!   Taco soup to the rescue!  ;)  Not only was this super easy but it got rave reviews from the family!  This is no new recipe but it was new to me.  I have had it before but never made it.  Now it has been added to my list of go tos!

Ingredients:
1 can corn
1 can can rotel
1 can black beans
1 can kidney beans
2 cups beef broth
1 package taco seasoning
1 package ranch seasoning
1 pound ground beef, cooked and crumbled


optional toppings:  shredded cheese, sour cream, crushed tortilla chips

Directions:
Brown the ground beef and drain.  I did this the night before so in the morning I could just dump all the ingredients in the crockpot. 

Drain both cans of beans and rinse.  Dump into crock pot along with all other ingredients.  Stir to combine.  Cook on low for 8-10 hours or high for 4-6.

Enjoy just as it is or with your favorite toppings!

Sloppy joes

These are always a hit when I make them!  I just realized that I have never posted the recipe.  So here you go...

Ingredients:
1 pound lean ground beef
1/4 cup diced onion
1/4 cup diced green bell pepper
3/4 cup ketchup
1 tsp yellow mustard
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
3 Tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp dried thyme
salt & pepper to taste

Directions:
Season ground beef with salt & pepper.  In a medium skillet over medium heat, brown the ground beef, onion and green pepper. 

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl combine the rest of the ingredients, stirring until blended together.

Once the meat is cooked and drained, pour sauce over meat and mix thoroughly.  Reduce heat to low and simmer, partially covered, for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

Enjoy on your favorite bun!  ;)

Yummy treats!

Well, we got snow today and are expected to get some more overnight & in the morning.  Sounds to me like a good time to do some holiday baking!  I have been pinning some recipes that look yummo and can't wait to try some of them out....

 

salted caramel pretzel bark

 

peppermint crunch popcorn

 

gooey red velvet cookies

 

easy christmas peppermint patties

Now to check the pantry for which ones of these I can make without trekking through the snow to the store!  

What fun things do you like to bake during the holidays?

{family dinner} paninis...

A panini can be made lots of different ways...so this is just how we made ours!

I started by gathering up our ingredients...bread, butter, several options of deli meat {we used ham & turkey), slice cheese {colby jack & provolone}, pesto and other toppings as desired. 

Little Bit and the hubs started out by buttering the outsides of our bread.  I know traditional paninis aren't made with slice bread, but we used some fresh think slices from the bakery.

Then we layered cheese and several kinds of meat in between two buttered slices of bread.  

Don't have a panini press...no problem.  We used our Foreman grill!  I just put 2 sandwiches on at a time, close the lid and let cook for a minute or 2.  I didn't time it, I just checked every so often and took out when they were golden brown.  Or you can use a skillet on the stove and just put another skillet on top of the sandwiches to press them. 

The nice thing is we could all customize what we wanted on our sandwiches.  Little Bit just wanted ham and colby jack cheese.  The hubs had ham, turkey and provolone.  I had ham, turkey, provolone and some pesto!  Yummo!

{family dinner} homemade guacamole...

I know it's been awhile since I posted but we had vacation in there and I've just had some catching up to do since we got back.  I will share some pics with you next week...we went to Disney again...our home away from home.  

Anyway back to the originally scheduled broadcast...lol!  Our family cooking nights haven't been as regular now that school is in full swing.  All of our meals have been a success so far.  I love getting Little Bit involved in the cooking process and hopefully help to expand her palate.  

This particular night we had mexican...beef tacos, refried beans and homemade guacamole.  Little Bit was a big help making the guac.  I was so proud of her for tasting it...and liking it even!  Now we make it about once a week!

Little Bit loves to help measure out ingredients and pour them in the bowl!  This guacamole really is simple to throw together. 
 

Ingredients:
1 large avocado
juice of 1/2 a lime
1/3 cup salsa
1 tsp dried cilantro
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder

Directions:
Cut avocado in half and scoop it out of the skin.  I either use a spoon to scoop it out or sometimes I just squeeze the avocado halves and it comes right out in the bowl.  Then using a fork, I mash up the avocado.  Add the lime juice, salsa and spices.  Mix/mash until all ingredients are combined and you have a creamy consistency.  Grab some tortilla chips and dig right into the yummy goodness!

This makes enough to feed the 3 of us so you might want to double for a larger crowd.

Enjoy!!!

{family dinner} manicotti...

Little Bit has loved getting into the kitchen more these days.  Our family cooking nights have been perfect for this!  She especially loves when cracking eggs are involved!  ;) 

I also love her having a hand in making the meals because it helps her know what goes into the dish and hopefully gets her to try some new things! 

We are big pasta lovers in this house, so manicotti was a perfect dish to try and create together!  Sometimes stuffing pasta might turn people off because it seems time consuming, but I thought it was fun and fairly easy to put it all together.

 Little Bit was a big help with measuring and pouring ingredients!

To stuff the shells I put my filling into a Ziploc bag, squeezed it down into one of the corners and then snipped off the corner tip to create a piping bag.  Then it was super easy to fill each shell!

Baked Manicotti

Ingredients:
manicotti noodles
16 oz. ricotta cheese
8 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese, plus
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese, plus
1 egg
1 tsp fresh chopped parsley
1 Tbsp fresh chopped basil
salt & pepper to taste
16 oz. pasta sauce

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 9x13 baking dish and set aside.  Boil your manicotti noodles for about 4-6 minutes, you don't want to over cook them because they will cook more in the oven.  Drain noodles and let them cool enough for you to handle them.

Combine cheeses, herbs and egg in a mixing bowl.  Add salt and pepper to taste. Transfer cheese mixture into Ziploc bag and snip one corner. 

Spoon 1 cup pasta sauce in the bottom of the baking dish.  Begin filling your shells with cheese mixture and place them in the prepared baking dish.  Spoon remaining sauce over top of shells and sprinkle with additional mozzarella and parmesan cheese.  Bake for 30-35 minutes until bubbly and cheese is melted. 

Enjoy!

This meal got rave reviews from my smiley girl!

family cooking night!

A couple weeks ago the hubs brought up the idea of a family cooking night.  One night a week we would all work together on preparing a dinner.  Little Bit loved the idea...she is such a good helper!  Now to come up with a meal that all of us would enjoy and be able to have a part in the making........

The hubs got out one of my cookbooks and landed on the recipe for Maryland fried chicken.  It had several steps and plenty for the three of us to do. 

 

We needed cracker crumbs....Little Bit loved beating the crackers to create our crumb mixture!

 

She has also been wanting to crack eggs ever since we read Eloise Breaks Some Eggs!  Lucky for her we needed eggs for this recipe!

The hubs got the job of de-skinning the chicken.  Fun stuff!  ;)  He did a great job!

 

After I dipped the chicken pieces into the egg wash I laid them in the crumb mixture and Little Bit would cover them up.  

Then we were ready to fry!

 

 

Our chicken stuck to the pan a bit but still turned out pretty darn tasty!  Little Bit said she was a great cook!  LOL!  

So glad to be getting her in the kitchen more and creating fun family memories together!!! 

crescent pizza rolls

This was a great recipe for me to use up some things I had on hand after Easter....YES, I actually made this not long after Easter but I'm just getting around to posting it.  ;)  But these were super yummy...so I had to share!

You start with a package or 2 of crescent rolls.  Unroll and separate triangles onto a baking sheet.  Top each triangle piece with toppings of your choice.  I used leftover ham, pineapple chunks and shredded mozzarella cheese. 

Then you roll up each one and line them up on the baking sheet.  Now for the seasoning....I used spray butter and spritzed each roll.  Then I sprinkled with garlic salt, Parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning.

Place in a 350 degree preheated oven and bake for 10-15 minutes or until nice and golden brown.

Serve with some warmed marinara sauce and enjoy!

{leftover} Easter candy?

Little Bit got to participate in several egg hunts this year so we had quite the haul of Easter candy.  One thing we came away with lots of were little foil wrapped chocolate eggs.  I was making a batch of pumpkin spice muffins last week and I usually add some chocolate chips.  BUT I didn't have any on hand, so I decided to chop up some of the chocolate eggs to use in their place.  It worked great! 

Here are a few other uses for Easter candy that look fun to try...

 

Peep smores | I have totally made these in the past and they are pretty yummo.  You don't want to overcook them though cause the sugary coating can get kind of tough.  

 

Reese's Peanut Butter Cup cookies |  I love these...especially the eggs at Easter time!  Don't know if I would have any leftover to make these cookies but they sure look good!

chocolate bunny dipped strawberries |  Melt those chocolate bunnies down and dip some strawberries in it for a yummy snack!  ;)  These would be great to make for a teacher appreciation gift or mother's day!!!

white chocolate M&M cookies |  I have some of these just sitting in the cabinet waiting to be eaten...might have to give these cookies a try! 

Do you still have Easter candy left?  If so, how do you use it up???