Baked Potato with Salsa and Grilled Chicken

These were surprisingly a hit, and incredibly easy, something I love!!

Ingredients:
Potatoes washed, stabbed with a knife or fork a few times, wrapped in AL foil, and baked (425 for about an hour)
Salsa (for something a little healthier than just your normal salsa in a jar use the recipe for "red pepper salsa", click here.)
Grilled chicken
Cheese
refried beans (optional)
sour cream (optional)
butter
salt and pepper

Slice open potatoes, top with beans, salsa, chicken, cheese. Enjoy!!

The BEST Sweet Potatoes!!!!!!!! (from someone who really doesn't like sweet pots)

I am posting this before I have a picture of them, that will come after Wednesday. I make these a day ahead, just one less thing to do when worrying about the turkey or getting kids ready to go eat the turkey. I am not a huge fan of sweet potatoes. I refused to eat them growing up and would never dream of ever making them, that was all before I had these babies. Then one Thanksgiving while we lived in Madison, WI we had Thanksgiving dinner at church with a TON of our friends who didn't have any family close by. My friend, Maggie Richards, made these and they are a part of Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner. They are like dessert and I LOVE them. Try them, I dare you. You will become a fan too.

Maggie's Sweet Potatoes

3 C. cooked, mashed sweet potatoes

1 C. sugar

¼ C. melted butter

2 eggs well beaten

1 tsp. vanilla

1/3 C. evaporated milk

Mix together and put in greased 9x13 pan.

Topping (I actually doubled the topping from Maggie's recipe. So, do a few more push ups or something.)

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup flour

5 Tablespoons melted butter

1 cup chopped pecans

Sprinkle on top of sweet potatoes. Bake 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes.

Cranberry Sauce

I have been buying cranberries like crazy and freezing them because I love to make cranberry bread and cranberry sauce. This is really easy and packed with lots of vitamins to help boost your immune system. I puree mine so that is not so chunky and then add it to yogurt. I am going to try it in cheesecake this year. So, look for more cranberry recipes in the next month.

1 cup orange juice
1 cup (or a little more) sugar
1 12 oz bag of cranberries
zest of one orange, and then orange segments chopped (optional)

In a pot combine OJ and sugar. Bring to a boil. Add cranberries, zest, and orange segments. Reduce heat and cook 10 minutes, stirring often. Let mixture cool. I puree mine in the food processor (since my magic bullet bit the dust last month. Sniff, sniff). Store in fridge and don't tell your kids how good this is for them.

Roasted Veggie Stew with Curry

This recipe started out at "Roasted Tomato and Eggplant Soup" from www.marthastewart.com. I found the recipe when a farmer sent 5 eggplants home with my husband one time. It was really good, but I changed it up a bit and this way was easier and has more veggies in it. I made this for a friend in WI one time and she loved it. It takes a little bit of time, but is so worth it and freezes well. Today I made a double batch, so I can freeze it. This is a soup that if you eat 1 serving of it, you are LOADED with veggies for the day. If I had fresh spinach, I would have chopped it up and tossed it in too.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 butternut squash

1 red pepper

1 eggplant

1 15 oz can of black beans

2 teaspoons or more curry powder

salt and pepper

1 28 oz can of tomatoes, undrained

4 cups chicken stock (or veggie stock)

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

5 teaspoons of minced garlic (or 10 fresh cloves of garlic chopped)

1/2 bunch of cilantro

Slice eggplant, sprinkle with salt, and allow it to sit in a colander in the sink for about 20 to 30 minutes. Peel and cut squash into 1 inch chunks, cut pepper into chunks as well. Preheat oven to 425. Drizzle squash and pepper with half of the EVOO and put it in a rimmed cookie sheet or 9 by 13. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of salt and some pepper. Rinse eggplant slices and cut them into chunks. Drain beans, mix them with eggplant. Add remaining oil, curry powder, 1 teaspoon of salt, and some pepper. Put in a separate rimmed baking sheet or 9 by 13 pan. Put both pans in the oven and roast veggies for about 40 minutes stirring them a few times during cooking. In a large pot heat up the other 2 Tablespoons of EVOO, add garlic. Saute for about a minute and then turn off the heat. When veggies are done add eggplant mixture to garlic and oil. Puree squash mixture and the can of tomatoes (with the juice), add to pot. Add chicken stock. If it needs it add extra curry powder. Let is simmer for about 15 minutes. Top with half a bunch of chopped cilantro. (I take a short cut and actually put the cilantro in with the tomatoes and squash when I am pureeing them. Saves me some time).

A Year Ago Today...

So, I am being a little nostalgic right now. Last November we sold our first home in Wisconsin and moved half way across the country to Pennsylvania, leaving some wonderful friends behind. It broke my heart to leave, yet I know that this is where we need to be right now. And, I love where we are, I just wish I could take all of my friends from WI with me.

A year ago today I had several friends help clean my house and pack up a truck to move across the country.

A year ago today I said good bye to some of the best friends I have ever had.

A year ago today a good friend let all 7 of us (at the time) stay in her home, another took care of my sick baby, and others watched, fed, and bathed my youngest kids. Others stayed most of the day helping us, one had her sick daughter lay on my floor and watch TV while she helped me. What a blessing to have friends who see your needs (and gently make suggestions) when you are too exhausted to make rational decisions.

A year ago today I learned that even though life is not fair at times, the unfairness of it can be what is really best for you in the end. As much as I hated to leave WI, the move here has been a huge blessing.

A year ago today I realized, once again, how very blessed we have been with good friends who have helped us to be better people. I consider knowing you an honor.

Thanks to all of you who have inspired me and been my friend, I love you.

Trick or Treat Blonde Brownies (with pumpkin), I also call them "Halloweener Brownies"

I have had a hard time getting to the blog lately, but I really wanted to post this one. Are you tired of your kids asking you for Halloween candy and wanting to get rid of it (we got 7 gallons of candy)? This is a great way to get rid of the candy fast, and you still get to enjoy some of it too. You also get to sneak pumpkin in, which adds some nutrition. If you don't add the pumpkin, then reduce the flour by about 1/2 cup. Make it for your family and then take left overs to your neighbors or send them to work. Then you are only left with the "Now and Later"s and other non-chocolate candy that does not tempt me one bit. I got this recipe from the little book that came with "The Perfect Brownie Pan" that my mom got for me. I tweaked it to make more and added the pumpkin.

1 1/2 cups butter
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
3/4 cups sugar
1 can pureed pumpkin
2 eggs
1 Tablespoon vanilla
4 1/4 cups flour
baking soda
salt
2 to 3 cups of unwrapped halloween chocolate candy (candy corns are okay too) cut up larger pieces so that they are about the size of chocolate chunks. Kids can help with this and love it.

Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9 by 13 pan. Cream butter, sugars, add eggs, pumpkin, vanilla. Mix flour, baking soda and salt together. Mix two mixtures together, mix in candy. Spread mixture into pan. Bake for about 40 minutes (I think mine took more like 45), until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean (you may want to cover it with foil at the end if it is starting to brown too much on top.) I like to have mine right out of the oven, in a mug with milk over it. Yummy!!!!!!!!!!!

Mexican Shepherds Pie

Still have no idea why it is called Shepherds Pie, but... whatever. This took minutes to make and was really good. I am a HUGE fan of the cook once, serve 4 or 5 times theory. I had some taco meat that I had made and frozen, and instant potatoes I had gotten 4 for $1. Why did I only get 2 boxes, I guess there wasn't a ton of room in my cart or something. Anyway, this was a great alternative to tacos and if I would have had some pureed butternut squash or cauliflower I totally would have snuck it in.


Ingredients:

2 pouches (1 box) of instant potatoes made according to instructions.

1 1/2 pounds of taco meat

1 small can of tomato paste

salsa

nacho chips

cheese


Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Put prepared instant potatoes in greased 9 by 13 pan. Heat up taco meat, add desired amount of salsa and can of tomato paste (I do this to make it a bit thicker and it adds more vitamins to the mix too). Spread taco meat over potatoes. Cook in oven for about 20 mintues. Add nacho chips and top with shredded cheese (I only had cheese slices) and heat in oven until cheese is melted.

Pumpkin Buttermilk Pancakes

I don't think I had ever purchased buttermilk until I decided to try to make real buttermilk pancakes. Oh, baby, it is in my cart each time I go to the store now. I LOVE making these pancakes and they are always inhaled. I found a recipe for buttermilk pancakes at www.allrecipes.com ("buttermilk pancakes II") and changed it a little bit and found breakfast for dinner perfection.
Ingredients:
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 Tablespoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups buttermilk
1 cup milk
3 eggs
1/4 cup melted butter
1 cup pumpkin
chocolate chips (optional)

In mixing bowl combine dry ingredients (not including chocolate chips). In a seperate bowl, mix wet ingredients together. Heat griddle and shmear with butter. Add wet mixture to dry mixture and mix until it is just blended. Scoop onto hot griddle using 1/3 measuring cup. Add 4 or 5 chocolate chips to each pancake, flip them and finishing cooking them. Enjoy with some good syrup.