Pizza Rolls, making pizza not so boring!

Posted by admin in Baked Goods, Beef, Breads, Comfort Food, frugal

I bet I know what you are thinking… but no, it’s not a cinnamon roll. It’s pizza… Oh yes, that is cheese and herbed french bread you see before you, with hidden layers of pepperoni! Now I bet you are thinking, I want that recipe…. okay. If you insist…

2 cups warm water

2 Tbsp instant yeast

1 Tbsp dried herbs of your choice (oregano, basil, rosemary etc or cheat like I do and buy and italian herb blend seasoning )

2 tsp salt (can use garlic salt…)

2 Tbsp shortening or Extra Virgin Olive Oil

6 cups flour

Follow the directions for my french bread recipe throwing the herbs in with the yeast and don’t bake it. (This bread dough smells like heaven when its rising.)

Next you’re going to need about… 2-3 cups of mozzarella and a few handfuls of pepperoni. Divide your dough in half and roll in to one of those fancy rectangles like you would for cinnamon rolls. Put down a layer of pepperoni and then your shredded cheese. The cheese thing is pretty much by preference… roll it form the short side rather than the long. (this is the opposite form what you do with cinnamon rolls) and slice into 6-8 rolls and place them in a 13×9 inch baking dish.

Like that!

Aren’t they pretty? So you’ll want to repeat with the remaining ingredients and the cover loosely with a kitchen towel to rise. 20 or so minutes. I took the time to preheat my oven cause these babies rose FAST! I mean maybe 10 minutes and they were ready to burst free of my pyrex! Pop in a preheated 350〫F oven for 25-30 minutes.

The kids and Hubs LOVED these! I served with a pizza dipping sauce. Also super easy to make with a can of tomato paste and water (or tomato sauce, we just like ours thicker) and a pizza seasoning and a little garlic salt. (I suggest the Oregon spice company)

Taquito! A new family favorite…

Posted by admin in Beef, Comfort Food, chicken, spur of the moment

Doesn’t that look yummy? It was super easy, just a little time consuming. Hubs and the kids loved them! I think next time I want to make a double batch and try freezing them!

So the first time I made these I made them with ground beef and steamed tortilla. The problem I was running into was the toothpicks didn’t hold in the steamed tortilla and the ground beef didn’t want to stay in the tortilla.

So how to make the tortillas a bit stronger? My first thought was “wet shirt bend bar” lol (Jackie Chan fans will get that!) SO I pre-fried my tortillas in a bit of melted shortening. (Don’t get uppity! Shortening is just solidified vegetable oil!)  So like this…

Then, ground beef is just a little too lose and rolls around a bit and whatnot… So quick and simple a bit of shredded chicken solved that problem. Then thinking about my gorgeous hunk of geek’s taste buds I thought to add shredded pepper jack cheese.

Toss it all together and load your tortillas with a thin strip of chicken and cheese. Roll up and pin shut with a toothpick. Fry in hot oil, turning to brown on all sides and drain on either a wire cooling rack or a paper towel.

Ta da! I’m thinking next time I’ll try with a shredded roast, pork or beef with either a verde or enchilada dipping sauce. Not bad for my first and second tries, huh?

Cold summer day? Hot and hearty Chili!

Posted by admin in Beans, Beef, Comfort Food, frugal, keeping warm

Okay so I don’t have an exact recipe for this… I was winging it.

First I fried up a whole red onion, 4 stalks celery and a few cloves garlic in some melted shortening. Then I tossed in about a pound of stew meat and let it get browned on the outsides. (mostly cause I’m told that this makes for good flavoring. o far I can’t argue.) The I mixed in one of those wee cans of tomato paste and let it cook a bit. Then I added a tea kettle full of water its like 8 cups I think. about 2 cups pinto beans, a can of diced tomatoes, a bit of garlic salt, about 1 tsp or so browning season ( this is found on your season or gravy isle, its a brown bottle wit a yellow label) a few dashes Tabasco, 1-2 tbsp Mrs dash extra spicy, a diced jalapeno, and some Mrs dash original. If you need more water, you’ll add it as you go. This should (does) thicken as it cooks. Cover and cook on medium low all day. I started it about 10 am-ish and it was done at dinner time 6-7 pm-ish. just check it every hour to see if it needs water and stir to keep from sticking. You could also cook it in a crackpot but I’m not too sure it will thicken as easily without a thickening agent…

Special Cinnamon Rolls

Posted by admin in Baked Goods, Breads, Breakfast, Comfort Food, Desserts, Family Recipes, spur of the moment

2 packages (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water (110〫to 115〫F)
8 cups all purpose flour
1 package (3.4 ounces) instant vanilla pudding mix
2 cups warm milk (110〫to 115〫F)
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil (don’t use olive oil!)
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup butter, melted

Filling
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 cup raisins
1 cup chopped walnuts

Glaze
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 to 2 tablespoons milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Add the next seven ingredients; mix well (do not kneed). Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until double, about 1 hour. Punch dough down. Turn onto a floured surface; divide in half. Roll each half into a 12″x8″ rectangle; brush with butter. Combine filling ingredients; sprinkle over dough. Roll up from long side; pinch seems to seal. Slice into 12 rolls; place cut side down in two greased 13″x9″x2″ baking pans. Cover and let rise until nearly double, 45 minutes. Bake at 350〫F for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Combine glaze ingredients; drizzle over rolls. Cool in pans over wire racks, Yeild: 2 dozen.

Chicken Fajita and Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution

Posted by admin in Comfort Food, Cookbook recipe, Gluten Free, Jamie Oliver Recipe, chicken

So I am a HUGE fan (not just in size ~_^) of Jamie Oliver. He’s one of my favorite celebrity chefs. I remember watching Jamie’s Ministry of Food on the BBC channel. I was fascinated, he seemed so determined the change the how, where and what people eat. I remember thinking it would be so cool if they did it here in America. And now HE HAS! If you haven’t been watching you should catch up.

Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution

Okay, so I’m beyond stoked about how much I love the show, but also because my wonderfully fabulous hubs bought me the cook book! Woohoo! Happy dance!

Dig it!!!

How rockin awesome is that?! (Yes, I am aware my picture taking skills are beyond non existant)

So in the book and on the site www.jamieoliver.com you can sign the petition. Its a pass it on deal, lol, I just love it! You learn the recipes and promise to teach them to 2 people you know and get them to promise to do the same. Its like a ripple effect.

So time to share the recipe!  I doubled it for our family.

Chicken Fajita (serves 2)

1 red bell pepper (I had an orange one and it worked just as well, infact my kids thought it was carrots and were more willing to try it.)

1 mediium red onion (I had a sweet white)

2 skinless, boneless chiecken breast fillets

1 tsp smoked paprika

a small pinch ground cumin

2 limes

olive oil

sea salt (I have one of those affordable sea salt grinders you buy at the grocery) and freshly ground black pepper

4 flour tortillas

1/2 cup sour cream or natural yogurt

1 cup guacamole (I just used avacado slices)

4 oz Cheddar Cheese

For the salsa:

1/2 of one fresh chile, to your taste

15 ripe fresh grape or cherry tomatoes

a small bunch of fresh cilantro (I had a jar of freeze dried I keep for my pantry)

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 lime

extra virgin olive oil

Put your grill pan on high heat. (I don’t have one… YET! lol, so I used my cast iron skillet) Seed and slice bell pepper into strips, then half your onion and slice it into strips. Next you’ll want to slice your chicken breast into strips too then toss it all in a bowl with the cumin, paprika juice of half a lime, salt, pepper and a “lug” of olive oil. My guess of a lug is somewhere between 1-2 tablespoons… toss and marinade while you make the salsa.

 

Now what you want to do here is chop your chile, tomatoes, cilantro (stalks and all) and throw into a decent sized bowl and season with salt, pepper, juice of one lime, and a lug of olive oil and stir and set aside.

It says to use a pair of tongs, and I found it to be very helpful, to move the chicken and veg into the preheated pan.You’ll want to keep things moving because the pan is so hot so as not to burn the veg and chicken. The pepper and onions are high in sugar and can burn easily I’ve found. Warm your tortillas in the microwave or a warm dry frying pan. (we used corn tortillas, my family seems to prefer them)

I squeezed more lime over the chicken, sliced the left over lime into wedges for the table. My kids and hubs loved it.

This recipe was WONDERFUL! We loved it as much as his spaghetti with tomatoes.

Blueberry Bagels

Posted by admin in Baked Goods, Comfort Food, frugal

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I used a recipe from “Tammy’s Recipes” Blog and we loved it!! Only change I made was adding half a bag of thawed frozen blueberries.

Home Made Bagels

Festive Blueberry French Toast Casserole

Posted by admin in Breakfast, Comfort Food, Desserts, keeping warm

So my BFF made a wonderful dish. It looks delicious. I hope you like it too!!

~Amanda

Festive Blueberry French Toast Casserole

1 1/2 hours / 20 min prep

3 slices of bread cut up into quarters
2 slices of bread (whole)
4 oz of cream cheese (cut into 1/2 inch cubes)
1 can of blueberry pie filling
2 eggs
1 cup eggnog
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

optional

1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon of wheat germ
a dollop of  homemade whipped cream

Set oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray or butter baking dish.

Arrange all the quarter pieces of bread in dish and top with blueberry filling add cubes of cream cheese on top.

Using cookie a cutter cut out some fun shapes with the 2 reaming slices of bread. Arrange cut out bread on top of blueberry / cream cheese.

Whisk together the eggs, eggnog, vanilla and spices. Pour mixture over bread, blueberries and cream cheese in dish.

Optional sprinkle wheat germ over casserole.

Cook at 350 degrees covered for 30 minutes then uncovered for another 25 to 30 min until center is firmed and lightly brown

Serve with warm with a dollop of whipped cream and enjoy

Chelle

I just kind of threw this together tonight…

Posted by admin in Comfort Food, Leftover Makeover, Veggies, frugal, spur of the moment

Doesn’t that just look yummy?!

I don’t have a printable for this yet, but I will soon.

Tonight I had the house to myself. (Yea me!) So as I do with these so few times I have with no picky eaters, I made something loaded with veggies! 

Heat 1-2 tablespoons olive oil in a pan (I’m partial to my frying pans. usually my cast iron but it wasn’t available). I diced a whole onion and added it to the pan. I let that cook as I washed and diced half a green bell pepper. I added that to the pan the a little salt and freshly ground pepper and then took a look in the fridge, I had some tomatoes, so I seeded and diced them and added them to the mix. Back to the fridge… The other night I’d made cabbage rolls (I’l post that after I’ve tested a few more recipes for it) so I had some leftover leaves. Those soft tender inner leaves. I chopped up a few and added them to the pan. I added the precooked shrimp (about 10 shrimp) I’d defrosted from the freezer (bought on sale of coarse) and let is cook just a minute or two to warm the shrimp through. I turned off the heat, and added about 1 tablespoon of minced garlic which I mixed through, letting the warm veggies heat the garlic. I served it over brown rice (leftover from the cabbage rolls). And I had enough for lunch tomorrow as well. (Yea me again!)

Doesn’t that just look wonderful? Let me tell you, it tastes as good as it looks!

Home-made French Bread

Posted by admin in Baked Goods, Breads, Comfort Food, Family Recipes, frugal

 

French Bread (Betty Crocker picture cookbook 1950) printable

1 c luke warm water
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 cake compressed yeast (I believe a cake of yeast was the equivalent of a packet of dry yeast, so that’s what I used.)
1 tbsp soft shortening
3 1/2 to 3 3/4 cups sifted flour

When dough is ready for shaping, after second rising, follow directions.

roll into 15×10 oblong. Roll up tightly toward you…. beginning with wide side. Seal edge by pinching together.
with a hand on each end, roll gently back and forth to lengthen loaf and taper ends. Place it diagonally on lightly greased corn meal sprinkled baking sheet.
make 1/4″ slashes in dough at 2″ intervals, or 1 slash lengthwise. Brush top with cold water. Let stand uncovered about 1 1/2 hr. Brush again, and bake.
Bake 10 minutes in hot oven (425 F). Remove from oven and brush again. Reduce temperature to 375 F and bake 10 minutes more. Remove from oven and brush again. Sprinkle with sesame or poppy seeds. Continue baking 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown.

Notes: This is a heavy dough so requires maximum rising time.
For more glaze, less crustiness, use egg white wash. (1 egg white slightly beaten with 1 tsp water

Now tips from me
when you grease your bowl use solid shortening. I keeps the dough from drying out without making it to greasy to handle
when dough is rising boil a kettle of water, put a 9×9 baking pan in the bottom of the oven and fill half full with boiled water. The steam from the water will warm the oven, helping the dough rise, as well as keeping the dough from drying out.
also instead of all that taking the bread out of the oven to brush with cold water, fill a spray bottle with cold water, open the oven door and spritz the bread. As well as keeping the pan of water in the oven while the bread bakes.

This recipe turned out soooooooooooo yummy!!!! The whole family loved it!!!

Who wants cocoa???

Posted by admin in Beverages, Comfort Food, keeping warm, mixes

Baby, it’s cold outside!!!

Deano had it right, and I don’t know about you but when our weather report says its going to drop to 29 degrees and it feels that way just from looking out the window, there’s no remedy like home made hot cocoa. And if you are like me and a little more aware of how much you are spending verses how much you are trying to save you may have notice that Hershey’s Special Dark Chocolate Cocoa runs (at the cheapest I found) $2 a box. A box having a maximum of 4 envelopes. (ouch! I know!) So I decided to take a family favorite recipe and adapt it to make “Momma’s Dark Chocolate Cocoa Mix” Oh yeah!

Now before posting the recipe I want to mention a few things. The original recipe my family fell in love with 3 years ago can be found at a wonderful site called “The HillBilly HouseWife” This lady know how to tighten a budget and still keep you on that path from your man’s stomach to his heart!! I’m not sure who this quote is by, but they really are words to live buy. “Face powder may catch a man, but baking powder will keep him” ~_^

Anywho I’ve side tracked, know that you know where to find the original recipe, I want to mention a few other things about powdered milks. My youngest is lactose intolerant, I buy her Whey milk powder, because its high in protein and low in lactose. My friends daughter is allergic to milk protein (this would be the whey mentioned before) there for we make her mix with Soy milk powder, now my friend’s son is allergic to milk and soy so for this kind of allergy you’d want to use Rice milk powder, and those of you watching your waist lines you could also sub my fattening milk powder (which you can find in the ethnic section in your grocery, its called Nido and made by Nestle) with non-fat instant dried milk powder. (notice I provided links to these products so I don’t look like I made it up.)

And finally if you or someone you will be serving this beverage has allergies, please remember to leave out the pudding mix (its really just there for thickening).

Momma’s Dark Chocolate Cocoa Mix (printable version)

• 2 Cups powdered whole milk
• ½ Cup Hershey’s Special Dark Chocolate Cocoa powder
• ½ Cup powdered non-dairy creamer
• ½ Cup Sugar
• ¹⁄₈ Teaspoon salt
• 1 Package (serves 4) instant Vanilla pudding mix

You’ll want to mix all of these ingredients together and store in an air tight container. I would HIGHLY suggest sifting the cocoa powder to prevent clumps in your cup, or even just dumping all the ingredients in your food processor and giving a few pulses.

The Printable version of this recipe has all of the powdered milk information (minus the links of coarse) for reminders.

And the Marshmallows are for fun but if you really want to treat yourself, whip up some cream with a tad bit of vanilla..