Pancakes

So, have you made your own pancakes yet??!! This is such a simple recipe, and its fun to add different things to it. This morning I added blueberries. In the past we have had bananas, and chocolate chips! Pancakes are a great addition if your having a 'breakfast" dinner. Double this recipe and freeze..your kids will thank you, mine do!

see recipe below:

I have just recently started making home made pancakes. In the past I would spend way to much on the frozen already made. This recipe is so simple and it has truly amazing results. I have to make a double or triple batch because my children tear them up. Another great thing about these are that they freeze well, so I never worry about making too many. It's so nice to have them on hand.


1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 1/4 cups milk
1 egg
3 tablespoons butter, melted


In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Make a well in the center and pour in the milk, egg and melted butter; mix until smooth.

Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.

Easy calzone rolls

These babies are GOOD!! This is a keeper, and something I know my family will ask for again. It was such a nice switch up from doing a pizza on a Friday night! The only thing I did different was use one loaf of bread instead of two. I didn't want my calzone to be too "bready" lol if that's even a word!! Also, if you haven't made your own home made pizza dough, and do not have the desire to, this frozen bread dough works great for that too!

In one of the rolls, I added black olives. If you read the comments on the original link, A woman says that she adds Italian dressing to hers. I also read someone likes roast beef, provolone, and hot peppers with ranch. I think both sound wonderful and I certainly am game for trying those out as well!

Price wise this is a deal! So my plan of cheap but good food is working out!

2 loafs frozen bread dough, thawed
1/2 pound sliced ham
1/2 pound sliced hard salami
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup jarred marinara sauce

Roll each loaf of dough into a rectangle about 8 inches by 12 inches.

Layer ham and salami down the center of each rolled loaf lengthwise.

Top meats with 1 cup shredded mozzarella for each roll.

Fold short ends of each loaf in about 1/2 inch and seal. Roll from the long sides and pinch well to seal the entire loaf. You should have 2 long rolls.

Bake, seam side down on a greased baking sheet in a 375 degree F oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Cut each roll into 8 slices and serve with marinara for dipping.
below is the link:
http://family.go.com/food/pkg-family-approved-recipes/recipe-642631-easy-calzone-rolls-t/

crunchy chicken fingers

I made these for dinner, 7-14-2011 and instead of using an egg I used....mayo!! what I noticed was that the chicken was more tender..but the cornflakes didn't stick as well..so... I probably will not be doing that again! The nice thing about this chicken recipe is that its fast and easy and...cheap! My children love the honey and sweetness in these chicken fingers. Served this with a mixed vegetable and honey mustard dipping sauce.

kid friendly rating 5 stars...with the right dipping sauce!!

These chicken fingers are bland, but extremely crunchy. Watch your cooking time, I had to add another oh...5 minutes or more to mine tonight. Definitely needed a sauce, good thing I picked up a bottle of honey mustard! Served this with corn and a small salad. All in all a good easy meal!! I will be making these again!

Ingredients

12 ounces  skinless, boneless chicken-breast halves

1   egg, lightly beaten

1 tablespoon  honey

1 teaspoon  yellow mustard

1 cup  packaged cornflake crumbs or 2 cups cornflakes, finely crushed

1/4 teaspoon  salt

  Dash ground black pepper

  Ketchup (optional)

Directions

1. Heat oven to 450 degrees F. Cut chicken into 3/4-inch strips. In a shallow dish, combine the egg, honey, and mustard. In another shallow dish stir together cornflake crumbs, salt, and pepper. Dip chicken strips into the egg mixture; roll them in crumb mixture to coat evenly.

2. Arrange chicken strips on a baking sheet. Lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray. Bake 12 to 15 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through. Serve with ketchup, if desired.

Below is the Link:

http://www.recipe.com/crunchy-chicken-fingers-1/

Almost lasagna

Tonight's dinner, well cost effective for sure! And it feeds a crowd, there is 1/2 a pan leftover and that's with people having 2nds and packing some for Aaron's lunch tomorrow. Now..taste..well its bland. And I added basil, garlic, and oregano. I think next time I make this I am going to add a can of Italian seasoned diced tomatoes and really spice it up with the seasonings! Don't get me wrong, it was good, and I think because it was bland the kids enjoyed more! For sides I made a simple salad and garlic bread.

Please check out the link for the original- they tell you that you can do this with chicken , turkey, tofu...etc... also they suggest putting a vegetable in it.

So if anything I think this gives a great spring board to start this and then ADD to it whatever you want!

1 pound elbow macaroni, cooked
1 pound Ground beef
1 jar Pasta Sauce, (26 ounces)
 Parmesan cheese
2 eggs
1 pound Ricotta cheese
2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
garlic, basil, and oregano
salt and pepper

Brown meat and drain well.

While meat is cooking, stir together eggs, ricotta and salt, pepper, basil, garlic and oregano (to taste)

Mix cooked meat, macaroni and sauce Add ricotta mixture and blend well.

Coat a 9-by-13 baking pan with cooking spray or olive oil and spread half of macaroni mixture evenly over the bottom. Top with a cup of mozzarella and a healthy sprinkle of grated Parmesan. Add the remaining macaroni mixture  and top with another cup of mozzarella and another sprinkle of Parmesan.

Cover with foil.

Heat your oven to 350 degrees F and bake the casserole for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake for another 10 to 20 minutes until the cheese on top is lightly browned and bubbly.

original recipe link:

http://family.go.com/food/pkg-family-approved-recipes/recipe-786707-almost-lasagna-t/

corned beef and cabbage

click on this picture to make it larger!

Tonight I used a head of white cabbage and margarine instead of butter. Oh was it great. I served it with a loaf of white bread and green beans. The Bread was a hit! my family ate the entire loaf, if you do not have a bread machine but want fresh bread, check out your freezer section at your local store. The Kids loved having margarine and honey on there warm bread. I apologize i did not take a picture of tonight's meal plated. I only have the one of it in the pot.

Corned beef and cabbage- simple to make

To make this you will need 1 can of corned beef, and your choice of cabbage (white or red). In a deep pot crumble and brown corned beef  while beef is browning chop your cabbage depending on the size of the head- i usually end up using the whole thing  (cabbage cooks down really well). Add your chopped cabbage to beef, and then add oh about 2Tbs of butter (or margerine) salt and pepper to taste- cover and simmer until the cabbage is nice and soft. this takes about 20 minutes, stirring every few min

Hey Campers..... this works for you folks very well!

brine- for bbq chicken

So for my brine i used the following:

1/2 gallon of water

2 tbl. of minced garlic

1 t thyme

2 tbl. sea salt

1/4 cup brown sugar

For my meal... I had 5 chicken/leg quarters just over 5 pounds (and for $4.89 total cost). I submerged my chicken in the brine and let it sit in there for 3 hours (refrigerated) - next time i will let it go longer perhaps 6 hours.. you can go up to 8.

when using a brine, and you want crispy chicken do the following: after it has sat in the brine for hours..pat it dry and then set in the refridgerator uncovered for at least an hour..this gives enough time for some moisture to evaporate from the skin.

For grilling.. use an indirect cooking method.. simple enough- load your charcoal up on one side of the grill, sear chicken (both sides) this locks in the moisture. Next move the chicken to the charcoal free zone :) and cover with the lid, wait at least an hour before opening the grill.

if your chicken is not done at the hour mark throw in a couple more charcoal briskets and wait another 30 min.  when the chicken is cooked and you desire BBQ sauce..now is your chance! BBQ away - dinner is served!

Here are a few links for you:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/the-ultimate-barbecued-chicken-recipe/index.html

http://www.bbq-fyi.com/brining-chicken.html

Some nice easy side.. corn on the cob, and a quick ceasar salad.

ranch pepperoni pasta (summer meal idea 1) *video

This was simple and i just threw it together.

1 cup tri-colored pasta
1 cucumber sliced
pepperoni cut into fours
black olives sliced
green pepper chopped
green onion chopped
Little feta cheese
shredded parmesan
ranch dressing (1/2 cup)
mayo (1/2 cup)
sea salt /pepper

Now just boil your pasta and then throw it all together...using a much or as little of each ingredient you want. If its too dry add more mayo or ranch but i suggest starting out with just a 1/2 cup each. Make this ahead of time so it has time to blend together at least 1 hour.

Served this with kielbasa, that i cut into long pieces and then sliced down the middle..grilled and fruit salad.


Link to the watermelon bowl:
http://chucklesgrill28.blogspot.com/2011/05/watermelon-fruit-bowl.html

watermelon fruit bowl

This fruit bowl was a huge hit at the girls birthday party!! So I figure why not share what I did with my favorite group of people!!

Here is what you need:

watermelon
1 banana
strawberries
1 can pineapple (chunks)


I cut the watermelon in half making the bowl half the largest. Then I cut out the center as best as i good leaving the melon  "meat"in larger pieces. For the top of the bowl,  just cut small triangles around the entire edge.

Once the melon bowl was cleared of the melon "meat" I proceeded to cut the melon chunks into bite sized pieces, sliced the strawberries, sliced the banana, and opened the can of pineapple =) It all went in the bowl including the juice to the pineapple. I put the banana in the middle because I didn't want it to brown.

You will have a lot of melon that will not fit in the bowl, so I just put it in Tupperware, the kids ate it later in the week~ no waste!

HOBO dinner

Hobo dinner's are fun and easy! A few years back Aaron's parents came to visit and made them. Karen and Rich are big time campers, and this is one of their favorites when camping out. I like them because there is little mess, and everyone can make their own, exactly the way they want!

here is what you need:

heavy duty foil - or double up on regular foil

ground beef

onion

green pepper

mushrooms

potato (sliced)- I use red potatoes

non stick spray

salt and pepper

garlic powder

blackened seasoning or any other seasoning of your choice.

lay a square of foil out and spray with non stick spray. Next put your potatoes on (sliced) and then your ground beef..as little or as much as you want! Then simply put the rest of the toppings in, season, wrap... grill covered for 20 minutes!!

I serve these right in the foil! no plates, no mess!! I hope you give these a try this summer!



 

lemon and butter chicken on the grill!

Goodness, thank you Paula Dean! I came across this early this morning when I took the chicken out. I was searching for something to do with it, and I found PAULA..my hero!! and it was fate!!! I had everything on hand..lol all 3 ingredients!!

Now, I used 3 large chicken breasts.. marinated them in half the sauce (3 hours)..and used the rest the last 6 minutes of grill time..this sauce is what makes the flames go up and gives this chicken a great charbroil! I did salt and pepper the chicken and when I pulled it from the grill I sprinkled just a tad of sea salt over it!

the LINKS:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/daddys-tangy-grilling-sauce-recipe/index.html

Just a little note.. i was talking to a friend and saying how this reminded me of lobster, the chicken so tender all the butter and lemon... :)