Recipe: Lite and Simple Pasta Salad

This is my go to recipe when I need something fast and easy. It is especially great when you need something for the next day because you can serve it cold. Tastes great warm, too, though.

Ingredients:

Tri color rotini pasta
Slices black olives
Minced garlic
Olive oil
Lemon juice
Black pepper

Options: diced tomato, feta cheese or parmesan cheese OR if  you really want to do an easy meal reaplace the garlic, olive oil and lemon juice with a light Italian dressing

You will notice I did not add amounts to my ingredients. That is because it is all really dependent upon taste and can be adjusted easily to the amount of pasta you need. I usually make a full box of the pasta when I cook this and take leftovers as a lunch to work. The beauty of this is that if you don't have the money for adding the extra ingredients or just can't get to the store, it is just as delicious in it's most simple form.

• Boil the pasta, strain and run under cold water. 
• Add enough olive oil to lightly coat the pasta and toss it together. 
• Add lemon juice to taste. Do not add enough to create a liquid pool in the bowl, just enough to cover the pasta. Usually this is about 2 teaspoons. If you do not love lemon taste just add a bit. 
• Add the garlic, also to taste. I add about a tablespoon. If you are a garlic lover, go crazy. 
• Drain the can of olives (I get the already sliced ones in a small can) and add them. 
• Pepper to taste, don't overdo it. 
• Also feel free to add other ingredients if you choose. 
• Toss it all again. If you are using a large Tupperware bowl put the lid on and shake. 

Voila!!! 

Recipe Review: Disney's Epcot Center Whipped Potatoes

I am always looking for new side dishes to try and I usually am not thrilled with the ones I find, but this one is a winner.

First off, I LOVE mashed potatoes AND cream cheese, so what did I have to lose? I did not tell my boyfriend about the cream cheese until after he tasted this. (He hates cream cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream, yogurt...the big baby.) He loved them. My oldest daughter, like me, could not get enough. My youngest does not like mashed potatoes. I made her at least try this, though, and although she was not raving about them she did eat all of hers without whining.

I have to say one very important thing: BEWARE!!! These are so good you will want them all the time. Unfortunately, you can see from the recipe that this is full of fat and calories. It is probably best saved for special occasions. I have already made it twice in the last month.

INGREDIENTS:

2 pounds Idaho potatoes, peeled
1 stick unsalted butter
8 oz. cream cheese
1 C. warmed milk maximum (1/4 C. milk recommended)
1 T. salt
Black pepper to taste

Boil potatoes until tender. 
Add all ingredients in large bowl and blend with mixer.

Tips:

• Sit the cream cheese and butter out while you are cooking the potatoes to soften it a little. Then put them in the bowl before adding the potatoes. The heat from the potatoes on top softens it even more. 
• Start with a little milk at a time. I put a little less than 1/4 C. in to start. About half way through mixing I added a little more. This recipe makes very thick and fluffy potatoes. Try not to add too much milk and make them runny. 
• Don't skimp on the salt. I tend to not like salt much, but when I tried this with less salt than recommended it came out a tad sweet because of the amount of dairy in this recipe. 
• If you do not have a standing mixer (like me) pick a bowl that you can easily turn on your counter while you mix. Because this is so thick your hand WILL get tired trying to get it all blended. It is worth sticking it out to get them perfectly creamy, though. 

Yummy Beef Tips update

Tonight I tried the beef tip recipe in my crock pot. If you did not see the original recipe post please click HERE.
I put all of the ingredients in the crock pot EXCEPT the broccoli. I didn't want it to be too overcooked. I added a few layers of paper towels under the lid to catch the excess moisture. Then I cooked it on low for 8 hours, adding the broccoli at the 6 hour mark.

A few observations:

• Ten hours would have been better. The meat was not as tender as when I made it in the oven. It was still delicious, though.
• I was home to change the paper towels a few times. There is a LOT of moisture. Make sure to put lots of layers under the lid, especially if you will be out for the day. 
• The broccoli should probably only be in for one hour. It was fine, but a bit overdone for my taste. 
• I used Campbell's cream of mushroom this time instead of the organic brand I used originally and there is a difference. It was still very yummy, but not as irresistible as the first time. 
• This time I served it over egg noodles. It wasn't bad, but I prefer it over rice. It felt like fancy Hamburger Helper over the noodles.

Verdict:

It is still a great meal and a nice option if you want something that can be left cooking for 10 hours, but for the best effect you want to cook it in the oven as originally intended. 

Recipe Review: Crock Pot Spicy Chicken Soup

I REALLY love Chicken Tortilla soup. Like, REALLY LOVE it. There is just one problem: Every recipe I have found has green chilies in it. Now, for ME that is not a problem, but for my boyfriend it is a HUGE problem. To put it delicately, he says Chicken Tortilla soup (or anything with green chilies) is a really good "cleansing" meal for him.

So, with all of that in mind, I decided to make up my own recipe that just might, if I am lucky, be close to my favorite Chicken Tortilla Soup recipe. And luckily, it was delicious!! It was also very spicy, as in my nose was a bit runny, so adjust your spices accordingly. I already adjusted it to half the Cheyenne pepper that I originally used.

Please note that I do not eat beans. I have a strange aversion to EVERY type of bean so any recipe that would normally have beans is cooked without for me. That mean I do not use them in Chicken Tortilla soup and did not use them in my substitute recipe. If you like beans feel free to experiment with that and leave comments in this post!

When I experiment with recipes I rarely measure so most of my measurements are approximations and can be adjusted to suit your taste.

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast (I prefer thin cut because it cooks quicker and is easier to shred)
3 carrots or 8 baby carrots, sliced thin
4 large celery stalks, sliced thin
½ large yellow onion, chopped
1 can diced tomatoes
2 C (approx.) chicken stock
1 C (approx..) water (milk can be substituted if you prefer a creamier soup)
2 T (approx..) chopped garlic
¼  t.* (approx.) Cheyenne pepper (this is enough to give it spice but not heat, add more if you like heat)

Black pepper to taste

• In a 2 Qt. crock pot add chicken (it can be thawed or frozen) and fill with stock until chicken is covered.
• Add tomatoes, vegetables and spices, fill with water until covered.
• If chicken is frozen set on high for 6-8 hours. (It will be cooked in 6 but more tender in 8).
• If thawed set on low for 6-8 hours or high for 4. For best results cook on low heat. If you do not have 6-8 hours you can cook on low for 3 hours then set on high for 1-2 hours.
• When food is finished, use 2 forks to shred the chicken. It should come apart easily.

*I tried ½ t of Cheyenne pepper when I made this and it was pretty spicy, not HOT, but had a kick. 

Recipe Review: Yummy Beef Tips

I hit the jackpot on this one! I have to say that this is THE best recipe I have found online and I will be making this over and over and OVER!!!

My Pinterest "Noms" board is full of recipes I would like to try, but most are a bit more complicated and I have been putting them off. And if you have been reading this blog you know that they don't always turn out so great. (See Crock Pot Lasagna)

This recipe comes from Mommy's Kitchen and she has a lot of what appear to be great recipes. This one seems to be her most popular so I am not overly surprised that it is so delicious. I am a bit surprised that I managed to pull it off so well, however.

First of all, as I have mentioned,  I don't always do things by the book. This was no exception. In fact, I messed up a few things and now I have basically invented an entirely different recipe. I still want to promote the Mommy's Kitchen recipe, because it looks amazing, but I can't personally attest to it since I am so inept that I couldn't even follow the recipe.

• Stew meat (1 lb, but can double that with same ingredients)
• 1 pkg brown gravy mix
• 1 pkg ranch dressing mix
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup (I used an organic soup with low sodium)
• 1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped
• Broccoli
• Garlic powder and black pepper to taste (I used about 1/2 tsp each)

• Preheat over to 300 degrees
• Place the meat, broccoli and onion evenly in casserole dish 
• Sprinkle with garlic powder and pepper
• Mix all other ingredients together in a bowl then pour on to meat and veggies

Make sure the dish is well sealed. I have a covered casserole dish, but tightly covered with foil is all you need. 

This dish will cook for 3 hours. DO NOT CHECK IT. Just leave it and in 3 hours it is tender and amazingly delicious!!

I had this over white rice, but over egg noodles or mashed potatoes would probably be just as delicious. 

Pretty much the BEST meal ever!

I plan to try this in a crock pot as well. I think on low while I am at work will do fine. And add a few paper towels under the lid to capture the extra moisture. I will let you know in comments when I give this a try. It will be cooked again soon!

PINTEREST RECIPE FAIL: CROCK POT LASAGNA

In the last 6 months I have been trying to cook more and more rather than eating out or microwaving my meals. Pinterest has been a very useful tool to this end. I have a few recipes of my own that really enjoy making, but I want to give my family more variety.

Since I work full time and have to drive an extra half hour half of my week to get the kids from daycare, I have found that crock pot meals are my best friend. So when I see a really simple recipe for the crock pot I jump at it.

I really love lasagna and the idea of making it effortlessly in a crock pot seemed too good to be true, and I was right.

Let me qualify this, however, I truly think this fail is my fault and I do not in anyway mean to disparage the original poster of this recipe. I will explain as we go.

The original recipe was pinned from a blog titled Creating through Life and can be found HERE.
It seemed so easy and looked very good.

I wish I had a photo of my finished product, but had not yet realized I would be blogging about it. 

I won't list the directions here since I have the link. What I will tell you are where I made my own adjustments. Remember how I said I rarely follow instructions?

The instructions call for putting your crock pot on low for 4 hours or suggest that if you put it on high while you get ready for your you can then put it on keep warm you can leave it for a full work day. I don't take long to get ready for work and forgot to do this "on high" part. So as I left I wasn't sure what to do. I decided to put it on low and when my boyfriend got home, 7 hours later, I had him put it on warm. I them got home 2 hours later. 

We were having his best friend over for dinner and they were already home when I arrived. We had our lasagna with Caesar salad and some bread. They were very gracious about it, but honestly, it was horrible!!!

The edges were nearly burnt, very crusty. The sauce was completely dried out. And the noodles, this part was the worst, were mushy. I had to throw half of it away. Thank goodness we had a lot of Italian bread. 

So, I ask you to PLEASE, go to the link about and try this recipe. Try is EXACTLY as directed. Then please let me know in comments how it was. I am sure this is a lovely recipe and, as usual, it was my own domestic failings that ruined this one.