Nope, not a vegetarian but I had my first veggie burger Sunday at this amazing restaurant and fell in love. So of course, I had to make one myself! Mine wasn't as good but I'm going to cook it in the oven next time. On the grill would be best but I don't have a grill. The flavor was there but the texture was mushy. Kids hated them and Matt wouldn't even try one. I'll try them again and if they are still mushy I'll just make them for me. It was a super cheap recipe that kept me full.
I did go with the other reviewers and added corn. Had some frozen in the freezer along with a pepper and onion mix so that's what I did. If you beat me to making them let me know if cooking them differently helps the texture!
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/homemade-black-bean-veggie-burgers/detail.aspx
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Friday, February 10, 2012
Crazy Life
Yes, I know, I haven't posted in a million years. It's what has kept me sane these past two months of being off work. Why was I off work? I had a baby! I know, I'm awesome.
So let me tell you of some goodies I have found. There's a Cheesy Ranch Potato Bake that is to die for. I added bacon the second time I made it and it was even better! A potato soup that has everything for a good base (that's yummy just by itself) but if you dress it up with bacon, cheese, broccoli or anything that sounds good, it will be good. Crazy fluffy pancakes that have you add 2Tbsp of vinegar to a 2/3c milk and it does wonders. I've bought myself an electric skillet and it makes breakfast so much faster. And I have found by freezing the pancakes I can pop them in the toaster and be okay with them. I ran out of vanilla so I added almond to the pancakes instead, can you say YUM!? Won't make them any other way now.
Let's see, what else? Oh! Six Can Tortilla Soup! Love it! Take a can of black beans, corn (can or frozen....fresh even?) two cans of chicken broth and a chicken breast (cooked and shreaded or use canned chicken but that's just gross to me). Add cumin and chili powder and heat through. So easy, cheap and yummy!
A friend of mine posted a chocolate cake recipe that I went crazy for. I found a yummy white cake recipe that's oh so good. And I have learned that halving the white sugar in sweet things and and adding brown sugar makes things softer. And using butter instead of oil will make things like cake stay softer longer. Who knew?
So that's some newbies I have found and all of them (except the chocolate cake) are from Allrecipes. Look for the one with the most reviews.
Erin
So let me tell you of some goodies I have found. There's a Cheesy Ranch Potato Bake that is to die for. I added bacon the second time I made it and it was even better! A potato soup that has everything for a good base (that's yummy just by itself) but if you dress it up with bacon, cheese, broccoli or anything that sounds good, it will be good. Crazy fluffy pancakes that have you add 2Tbsp of vinegar to a 2/3c milk and it does wonders. I've bought myself an electric skillet and it makes breakfast so much faster. And I have found by freezing the pancakes I can pop them in the toaster and be okay with them. I ran out of vanilla so I added almond to the pancakes instead, can you say YUM!? Won't make them any other way now.
Let's see, what else? Oh! Six Can Tortilla Soup! Love it! Take a can of black beans, corn (can or frozen....fresh even?) two cans of chicken broth and a chicken breast (cooked and shreaded or use canned chicken but that's just gross to me). Add cumin and chili powder and heat through. So easy, cheap and yummy!
A friend of mine posted a chocolate cake recipe that I went crazy for. I found a yummy white cake recipe that's oh so good. And I have learned that halving the white sugar in sweet things and and adding brown sugar makes things softer. And using butter instead of oil will make things like cake stay softer longer. Who knew?
So that's some newbies I have found and all of them (except the chocolate cake) are from Allrecipes. Look for the one with the most reviews.
Erin
Monday, April 11, 2011
Beer Can Chicken
I just realized that I said I was going to post my beer can chicken recipe. Yep, I completely forgot.
This was the bestest chicken recipe EVER! It turned out so juicy and with so much flavor. I have had it before a few years back at my sister's. I guess it usually is done on the grill. I live in an apartment where they don't allow grills (yes, very sad) so I had to find something. The is an oven recipe and talk about simple! It wasn't even hard to get the can in the chicken. Thinking about it, it is complicated to get it out. You need like five hands. Budget wise it's nice two. I can usually find a small chicken, I think around 6lbs-ish, for under five bucks. I am also able to use the 'hot out of the oven' chicken for a meal then shred it for another recipe.
So go for it, get your hands dirty and thank me later!
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Baked-Beer-Can-Chicken/Detail.aspx
This was the bestest chicken recipe EVER! It turned out so juicy and with so much flavor. I have had it before a few years back at my sister's. I guess it usually is done on the grill. I live in an apartment where they don't allow grills (yes, very sad) so I had to find something. The is an oven recipe and talk about simple! It wasn't even hard to get the can in the chicken. Thinking about it, it is complicated to get it out. You need like five hands. Budget wise it's nice two. I can usually find a small chicken, I think around 6lbs-ish, for under five bucks. I am also able to use the 'hot out of the oven' chicken for a meal then shred it for another recipe.
So go for it, get your hands dirty and thank me later!
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Baked-Beer-Can-Chicken/Detail.aspx
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Plum-Side Down Cakes
YUM! I found this recipe in a cookbook my aunt got me. It's mainly for kids and having them cook with you. Claire likes to cook with me but usually doesn't eat it. I was happy to find that in this recipe I only needed one thing, the fruit! I might try canned next time to make it 'cupboard ready'. However, I did like the idea that this was 100% fresh. You can use any fruit with it. Next time I will lessen the amount of fruit in the bottom of the pans. They fell apart while trying to remove. Other than that, simple, easy and oh so tasty! Enjoy!
2 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp light brown sugar
3 plums, sliced
2 Tbsp shortening
1/2 C sugar
1 egg
1 C flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 C milk
Preheat oven to 350F. Spray muffin it with nonstick cooking spray.
Melt butter and stir in brown sugar. Spoon in muffin tins.
Arrange the fruit slices in the bottom of each cup.
Beat the shortening and sugar until fluffy.
Beat in the egg until well combined.
In another bowl stir together flour, baking powder and salt.
Add the dry ingredients and milk to the shortening mixture. Beat until smooth.
Spoon batter over the fruit.
Bake for 20 to 22 minutes.
Cool for 10 minutes.
Makes 6 servings
2 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp light brown sugar
3 plums, sliced
2 Tbsp shortening
1/2 C sugar
1 egg
1 C flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 C milk
Preheat oven to 350F. Spray muffin it with nonstick cooking spray.
Melt butter and stir in brown sugar. Spoon in muffin tins.
Arrange the fruit slices in the bottom of each cup.
Beat the shortening and sugar until fluffy.
Beat in the egg until well combined.
In another bowl stir together flour, baking powder and salt.
Add the dry ingredients and milk to the shortening mixture. Beat until smooth.
Spoon batter over the fruit.
Bake for 20 to 22 minutes.
Cool for 10 minutes.
Makes 6 servings
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Update
Okay, promise I've been cooking. I've just gotten too busy and too lazy to write about it. I've been making noodles that have turned out PERFECT! I recently made some vodka cream sauce (spagehtti sauce). It turned out okay, wasn't a big fan. Claire and I made some playdough. One batch turned out crappy and no color the other was perfect playdough. I made chocolate pudding. That sorta was okay. My blender crapped out on me....well, exploded. still tasted good though. I just found out that you can take heavy whipping cream and turn it into whip cream (I know, I know). Claire wanted hot chocolate so I added a bit of hazelnut syrup to it and oh so yummy! I will be posting my Beer Can Chicken recipe. That turned out wonderful!
Keep Cooking!
Keep Cooking!
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Christmas Dinner
As the weeks came closer to Christmas we learned that it would be best to just stay at our house. I'm glad we did! It was a little weird since I can remember only one dinner (and that might have been Thanksgiving) that we stayed home. I was quite proud of myself though it was taking forever. Having worked the night before I was tired but determind. So worth it!
Matt asked for a old fashion Thanksgiving meal for Christmas. All these years we have been together and I just now learn that he doesn't like ham. I thought he did! Hahaha! Anyway, I asked him to give me a list of what he wanted and I would make it happen. So turkey, gravy, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, corn, rolls and apple pie were my challenge. I really wanted to make my mom's rolls but Matt came up with a good point. "You have your plate full and there's no one here to empress, take shortcuts where you can." So I bought the rolls and gravy then added stuffing to the list. Oh, and apple cider. Matt may not like it but I've been craving this stuffing since we had it add his sisters' house.
I wasn't that impressed with the turkey but it wasn't the turkey's fault or the recipe's, it was mine. It had to be in the oven for 30 minutes then four hours more at a lower temp covered. I forgot to tell Matt to cover it so it burned all the skin. Still tasted good which it nice, I was worried. Plus, it's the four of us eating this turkey for a month. I was going to go for just turkey breast but it was the same price as the 16 lbs turkey I bought. I like dark meat so might as well. Plus, it will give me a chance to find some recipes for cooked turkey!
The sweet potatoes were so easy to make! I even liked them! There were mixed reviews on it. Some said it tasted awesome, others said it was more dessert like, and others said it was the worst thing ever. Well, we thought it was awesome! I will add more potatoes next time, I was unsure because it was using cans and I was using fresh. Seriously try this one! I did cut the flour down to about a half cup. That was one of many people's tips.
The stuffing was easy but time consuming. I will add a little more chicken broth to the stuffing that is not being cooked in the bird and I might go for a spicy sausage next time. Other than that, yum yum! Make sure you grab a big deep pan though. I started with a big skillet then switched to a deeper one. Even that was difficult to mix in.
The apple cider was so yummy! I went by a recipe from a book that came in my spices I got for Christmas (Thanks Kim and Angie!) and I made it in my new crockpot (Thanks Hubby!) Perfect warm drink to sit back and relax with.
The potatoes are no biggie, regular mashed potatoes but the apple pie.....OH MY GOSH! First off, I forgot to put butter with the apples, please don't do that. I added some white sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, fresh nutmeg, and some lemon juice. Tasted good but needed some butter. The crust on the other hand......WOW! I made a vodka pie crust. Seriously, go for it, try it! You will thank me and America's Test Kitchen. It turned out PERFECT! I don't own a big food processer so I just mixed it with a pastry blender.
So that was our Christmas meal, hope yours was just as tasty!
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Maple-Roast-Turkey-and-Gravy-2/Detail.aspx
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Cranberry-Sausage-and-Apple-Stuffing/Detail.aspx
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Thanksgiving-Sweet-Potatoes/Detail.aspx
http://www.americastestkitchen.com/recipes/detail.php?docid=11482&extcode=M**ASCA00
*you might need to sign up to read the pie crust recipe....trust me, it's worth it!*
Matt asked for a old fashion Thanksgiving meal for Christmas. All these years we have been together and I just now learn that he doesn't like ham. I thought he did! Hahaha! Anyway, I asked him to give me a list of what he wanted and I would make it happen. So turkey, gravy, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, corn, rolls and apple pie were my challenge. I really wanted to make my mom's rolls but Matt came up with a good point. "You have your plate full and there's no one here to empress, take shortcuts where you can." So I bought the rolls and gravy then added stuffing to the list. Oh, and apple cider. Matt may not like it but I've been craving this stuffing since we had it add his sisters' house.
I wasn't that impressed with the turkey but it wasn't the turkey's fault or the recipe's, it was mine. It had to be in the oven for 30 minutes then four hours more at a lower temp covered. I forgot to tell Matt to cover it so it burned all the skin. Still tasted good which it nice, I was worried. Plus, it's the four of us eating this turkey for a month. I was going to go for just turkey breast but it was the same price as the 16 lbs turkey I bought. I like dark meat so might as well. Plus, it will give me a chance to find some recipes for cooked turkey!
The sweet potatoes were so easy to make! I even liked them! There were mixed reviews on it. Some said it tasted awesome, others said it was more dessert like, and others said it was the worst thing ever. Well, we thought it was awesome! I will add more potatoes next time, I was unsure because it was using cans and I was using fresh. Seriously try this one! I did cut the flour down to about a half cup. That was one of many people's tips.
The stuffing was easy but time consuming. I will add a little more chicken broth to the stuffing that is not being cooked in the bird and I might go for a spicy sausage next time. Other than that, yum yum! Make sure you grab a big deep pan though. I started with a big skillet then switched to a deeper one. Even that was difficult to mix in.
The apple cider was so yummy! I went by a recipe from a book that came in my spices I got for Christmas (Thanks Kim and Angie!) and I made it in my new crockpot (Thanks Hubby!) Perfect warm drink to sit back and relax with.
The potatoes are no biggie, regular mashed potatoes but the apple pie.....OH MY GOSH! First off, I forgot to put butter with the apples, please don't do that. I added some white sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, fresh nutmeg, and some lemon juice. Tasted good but needed some butter. The crust on the other hand......WOW! I made a vodka pie crust. Seriously, go for it, try it! You will thank me and America's Test Kitchen. It turned out PERFECT! I don't own a big food processer so I just mixed it with a pastry blender.
So that was our Christmas meal, hope yours was just as tasty!
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Maple-Roast-Turkey-and-Gravy-2/Detail.aspx
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Cranberry-Sausage-and-Apple-Stuffing/Detail.aspx
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Thanksgiving-Sweet-Potatoes/Detail.aspx
http://www.americastestkitchen.com/recipes/detail.php?docid=11482&extcode=M**ASCA00
*you might need to sign up to read the pie crust recipe....trust me, it's worth it!*
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
BBQ Meatballs.....Sloppy Joes
Do you remember my Sausage Meatball recipe? It tasted fine but I wanted to use beef instead? Well I did and it turned out great....sorta. I actually had a real onion for once so I used that instead of onion powder. I also used carrots and celery in the recipe. However, I didn't add an extra combining ingredient so they started to fall apart. I wanted to have them simmer in my yummy barbecue sauce too for an added kick. Well, after sitting in the crock pot for a good 30 minutes I checked on them and they had completely broken down. I cracked up as I stood there stirring the meat mixture into the sauce. Well, lets have sloppy joes instead? They turned out fine, just needed a bigger kick. More spice. That's an easy fix and I probably would have done so if I have known I was going to change the recipe. I served them with baked potatoes (nothing fancy about those, salt, pepper, cheese and butter) and everyone seemed to enjoy them. Claire killed her plate, and part of Matt's. I don't think he was that impressed but I think he also would have preferred a better kick.
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