Super Supper Sides-"Twice Bake" Bake
3/05/2012 01:10:00 PM Posted by mommy2twincesses
You'll need:
- 5 lb russet potatoes
- 10 slices bacon (I just used a small package of real bacon pieces-because I'm lazy like that)
- 8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/2 c unsalted butter, melted
- 1 c sour cream
- 1/4 c chives, minced
- 2 1/2 c shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
And what you'll do is:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Peel potatoes, and cut into 1-inch chunks. Place in a large saucepan, and add enough cold water to cover by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, and reduce to a simmer. Cook until tender and easily pierced with a paring knife, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a colander to drain; return to pan, cover, and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add bacon, and cook until crisp and browned, turning once. Transfer to paper towels to drain; let cool, and crumble into pieces.
3. Using a fork, mash the potatoes in pan until light and fluffy. Add the cream cheese, butter, and sour cream, and stir until combined and smooth. Add the chives, 2 cups cheddar cheese, half the bacon, salt, and pepper. Stir until well combined.
4. Transfer to a buttered 3-quart baking dish. Top with remaining 1/2 cup cheddar cheese. Bake until top is slightly golden and potatoes are heated through, about 30 minutes. Remove from oven; garnish with remaining bacon. And finally, serve immediately.
ENJOY!
Super Supper-Broccoli Cheddar Chicken Bake
3/05/2012 12:59:00 PM Posted by mommy2twincesses
It's all thank to this delicious "broccoli cheddar chicken bake".........again, thank you Pinterest!
As a matter of fact, my FIL, who "doesn't like cheese" gobbled this up and asked for more (and by this time it was just left overs)! If it's a good "left over" you KNOW it's good!
So, basically this is super simple and also inexpensive and all you need is:
- 2 cans Pillsbury Original Crescent Rolls
- 2 cups chicken chunks, cooked
- 2 cups cheddar cheese
- 2 cups broccoli, frozen, steamed and chopped
- 1/2 cup light mayonnaise
- 1 egg yolk
- fresh rosemary
And all you do is:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F
- On a parchment paper lined cookie sheet, spread both cans of crescents length wise to form a long rectangle.
- Press each of the seams to form a single layer of dough.
- In a large bowl, combine chicken, cheese, broccoli and mayonnaise
- Spread mixture over the center of the croissant dough evenly to create a log.
- Using a sharp knife, cut horizontal strips 1 inch apart down each side of the crescent dough.
- Fold the dough strips over the top of the chicken mixture, alternating left and right to create a braid.
- Brush the top of the braid with a beaten egg yolk and sprinkle fresh rosemary on top.
- Bake for 28 – 30 minutes until golden brown.
The only adjustments I made were a few seasonings. I put garlic and Lea and Perrin's for chicken on the chicken as I cooked it. And then sprinkled a little more garlic and some Tony Chachere's over the mixture before wrapping it with the crescents. O.M.G. I promise you'll love it!
Super Supper-Muffin Tin Meatloaf
3/01/2012 08:13:00 AM Posted by mommy2twincesses
Though DH and I both are pretty fond of the recipe above (check out the link), my 3 year old identical twins weren't crazy about it. I mean, they would eat it, but it wasn't something that they would just get exctied about.
While milling around on Pinterest I ran across "meatloaf cupcakes". I had seen fellow mommy bloggers post their "muffin tin" recipes but honestly thought it was just kind of a waste of time......IDK, I just didn't think my kids would eat something JUST because it was shaped like a cupcake. But, I thought "what the heck, I'll give it a shot".
I used my own recipe, let the girls "help", dished it out into my cupcake pan, popped it into the oven, and crossed my fingers.
Much to my amazement the girls just couldn't wait for the "cupcakes" to get done! They even requested that I turn on the oven light so they could "check on them".
When they were done I served mashed potatoes on top just like it showed in the Pinterest picture and do you know what?!
My stinkers gobbled them up and announced that tonight's supper was "a party"! I'm still in shock! The simple novelty of dinner being in the shape of cupcakes made a huge impact on their opinion of the meal. Ridiculous! But amazing.
There were a couple of "cupcakes" left over and K asked for one for breakfast this morning! LOL, true story!
I can't wait to see what other "muffin tin" meals I can find.......and don't worry, I'll share ;)
Super Supper-Sausage and Cream Cheese Bake
2/24/2012 06:51:00 PM Posted by mommy2twincesses
Today was one of those crazy busy days, you know the ones when you get so much done you finally just crash and think “what was I thinking?!”. There’s no need to be jealous. I don’t have many of these days, it’s just that I’ve been sick for so long (battling the flu) that I felt like there were a million things I needed to catch up on; the main one being spending fun time with my girls!
After I got the laundry going we did a little painting. After painting we played “school” with two new preschooler learning games I whipped up: the alphabet wheel, to help solidify letter recognition and counting cards, to start working on number recognition and counting objects.
When those things got old we baked cookies, went to buy a birthday gift, and finally to family’s house to visit.
Whew! Can you say B.U.S.Y.?
Anyway, I was pooped and more than pleased when DH said he kind of felt like breakfast for supper because that means one thing in my mind-EASY!
I threw together one of our favorite things and I hope it becomes one of your favorite things too :o)
Ingredients:
*1 can refrigerated croissants
*1 stick sausage (I use mild, but you use whatever you like)
*1 package cream cheese or Neaufchatel cheese; softened (I like the latter because it’s slightly lower in calories)
Directions:
*Brown the sausage and drain.
*Blend the softened cheese of your choice in well with the browned and drained sausage.
*Spread this mixture over the *unrolled croissants* and bake at 350 degrees until golden brown.
***I starred “unrolled croissants” because there are several ways you can do this part. The original recipe I got this idea from called them “spirals” because they suggested that you roll the entire can of croissants out and spread the sausage mixture over it, roll it up (length wise), put it in the freezer for several minutes, slice into circular pieces, lay on a baking sheet, and bake. However, I found this to be a pain in the you-know-what so I cheat and simple lay out half of the can of croissants and press the seams together. I spread the mixture on top and then lay the other half on top and bake. However you decide to do it is totally up to you, and heck, you may come up with your own way. But no matter what, the recipe doesn’t change and it’s crazy good to be so simple!
I served this with basic scrambled eggs :o)
Enjoy!
Super Supper-Chicken Pasta with Creamy Pesto Sauce
2/23/2012 05:42:00 PM Posted by mommy2twincesses
Tonight is the first of what I hope to continue in a “Super Supper” series. See, here’s the thing. I’m no great chef and I’m not all that great at following recipes. What I AM good at is taking what I have and creating something my family enjoys. Tonight, I did just that and thought I would share. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did :o)
Okay, so the ingredients:
*skinless boneless chicken breasts (I used 2)
*1/2 can of evaporated milk (I use this instead of heavy whipping cream, much less fattening)
*jarred pesto
*garlic powder, black pepper, chicken Worcestershire sauce
*butter
*noodles of your choice (I used Farfalle *aka* “butterfly” or “bow tie” whole wheat pasta)
Now, in one pot I got my noodles boiling. In another I mixed the evaporated milk, slab of butter, a couple of tablespoons of pesto, and a healthy sprinkling of black pepper, and let that simmer together while I cooked the chicken.
In a skillet I melted a small pat of butter and placed the chicken breasts on top. I sprinkled them with a good dose of garlic powder, black pepper, and chicken Worcestershire. To make it cook faster and so I wouldn’t have to do it later I cut the chicken into bite size pieces. (If I had had some red and/or yellow peppers I would have sliced them long ways and added them!)
When the chicken was done I poured the sauce mixture over the top, drained the noodles and also added them to the skillet. I mixed it all well and sprinkled the top with a little more black pepper and an Italian blend of shredded cheeses.
Super supper, super simple!
Because DH has to have all soft stuff right now after having all four of his wisdom teeth removed yesterday I did croissant rolls as the side instead of a veggie. Bad me, I know. But, DH needed it and we’re all bread feigns so *shrugs* sue me. Steamed broccoli, green beans, or asparagus would have set this off perfectly!
To spice up regular refrigerated croissants I added a small dollop of pesto to the inside of the rolls and sprinkled them with garlic. YUMMO!!!! I will DEFINITELY be doing this again! I’m a bit ashamed to say that every single one of us ate two………even the 3 year olds, OOPS! LOL
