I’ve been on a pizza kick recently. I want it all the time. We fix these tortilla pizzas a lot in our house. You can vary the toppings depending on how you’re feeling. Feeling especially frisky today? Use hot salsa and jalapenos. Feeling bland and blah? Plain cheese works too. It’s ok if no one in your house likes the same toppings…..if usually that makes you travel somewhere like CiCi’s Pizza (be still my heart!) then today you’re in luck! Each pizza can be customized to your pickiness. There won’t be a recipe at the end, as this is just to give you a general idea. Then I’ll unleash you and let you go. If you love something, let it go! I love pizza, and I let it go…….down the hatch. [Read more…] |
Search Results for: bread
Pumpkin Chili
I’m always intrigued by recipes that have unusual ingredients in the title and I usually end up making them. I once made brownies with cayenne pepper in them (Brownies With a Kick) and they were delicious! There are exceptions to this rule however. Like, any recipe with “whole fish” in the title is not for me. I don’t want food staring at me while I try to eat it. Or anything that says “live.” No. The point of food is that it’s dead. But Pumpkin Chili? That’s not so scary sounding. I love soups with pumpkin stirred in. It gives it a little something special. This soup is very hearty and the pumpkin gives it a smooth taste. It’s easy to make and it’s very warming during this coooooooooooooooooold season. I’ll just stop right here and tell you that the Farmer’s Almanac was VERY wrong. It is NOT a mild winter. Where do they get their information? [Read more…] |
Black Bean Burgers
I repeat myself a lot…….so you probably already know that Mondays are Meatless at our house. Meatless Monday. I LOVE alliteration. We used to also have Fishy Friday, but my tastes have changed since having Annie. I used to love just about any fish, but now just about any fish makes me want to puke. Especially shrimp. I loved shrimp before I was pregnant. Now, I think they should just stay in the ocean. I can still handle tuna and those frozen fish patties……and fish sticks. But anyone can eat fish sticks because that’s why they make ketchup. Ketchup covers a multitude of sins. I love veggie burgers. If we visit a restaurant that has Gardenburgers on the menu, you can bet that’s what I’m going to order every time. Red Robin’s Gardenburger makes me want to sing! YUMMO! So, I thought I’d show you guys how to make homemade veggie burgers. The base for this burger is black beans. There are tons of different ways to make them, so you might see other various recipes down the road. [Read more…] |
Stacy’s Baked Apples
Man cannot live by bread alone………….but Annie can live by only eating apples. Seriously, this child will eat me out of house and apple. If I’m feeding her apples, I can’t do it fast enough. I ate a lot while I was pregnant, so I guess this is what I get. At least it’s not marshmallows or Snickers. Our house goes through a lot of apples – I usually buy in bulk at the produce market. So, I bake with them a lot. We love baked apples around here, and they are so easy to make! You’ll wonder why you’ve never done it after I show you. They make a great side dish for the Christmas table. And, they make your house smell divine. [Read more…] |
My Favorite Things – 2010
These are a few of my favorite things!” I love that song…….girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes, snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes. Yeah, you’re gonna sing that all day now. I’m not sorry. I decided that since it was the Christmas season, I’d talk about my current five favorite things in the kitchen. I’ll also tell you how you can get them cheaper than retail. Yeah, you knew that was coming. If you know someone who loves kitchen things and you can’t think of what to get them for Christmas, then today you’re going to get five options to choose from. Your shopping just can’t really get any easier than this. I should go into business being a personal bargain shopper. |
This is the most expensive of my five things……unless you run into one at a yard sale. I got one this summer for my friend Kim for a grand total of $1.00. Yep. Don’t be a hater. Anyway, I am in love with my food processor. I use it a LOT. It will puree soup….okay, it purees whatever you put in there, but I just wanted to say soup. It does a ton of other stuff too, but I didn’t read the manual. I’ve got a weird relationship with instruction manuals……I don’t read them. I just really enjoy mine. It makes a lot of the things I do in the kitchen a lot quicker. Sometimes if I have a lot of veggies to chop, I’ll just throw them in there and give it a whirl for a few seconds. Done! It can also be used to make pie crust, but we’ll explore that later. So, how do you get this baby cheaper? Mine was a gift from my Mama. Thanks Mama! That’s a good way to get it cheaper. Of course, I already said you could look for them at yard sales. However, if you want one NOW you’re in luck. ‘Tis the season! This time of year tons of electronic things are on sale. This is really the time of year to buy anything electronic. I just saw today that they have tons of options on Overstock.com and they are also offering $1 shipping! [Read more…] |
Family Tradition – Advent
Traditions have always been a big deal to me. I love things that I can look forward to; knowing that they’re going to happen every year. When I was growing up, I always knew that we’d go “Bear Hunting” on Thanksgiving……no, we didn’t have bears. I think my family was just trying to find some way to get all the kids out of the house for a little bit. When you’re little, you’re clueless. Now that I have a child, I want her to have traditions that she looks forward to as well. I wanted to make our own family traditions that we could add to the ones that we already have. For us, this started last year during the Christmas season. We decided to buy an Advent calendar and celebrate yearly by doing something special. Traditionally you get an advent calendar and put a small gift in each pocket. I thought that seemed a little boring……so we decided that we’d do a different family activity together every day instead. We really enjoyed it last year! I’m looking forward to doing the same thing this year. It should be a lot more fun now that Annie can actually participate in some things. So, take a peek into our new family tradition….think about starting one of your own. Your kids will LOVE it! It will be something they’ll always remember – and count on. [Read more…] |
How to Make Homemade Bagels – Pumpkin Spice
***UPDATE – See this post about our new eating habits. (7/10/11) I love bagels…..something about a toasted bagel just makes me happy. I love getting bagels from bakeries, but ya know sometimes I don’t feel like going out just to get a bagel. That would mean I’d have to put something on besides my PJs. Some days, that just ain’t happening. Can I get a witness?! Homemade bagels make the ones in the store taste like shoe leather. It’s really not that hard to make homemade bagels, it just takes a little bit of time – just like anything you use with yeast. I LOVE baking with yeast. It’s so magical and bubbly…..and smelly. But smelly in a good way – not like with socks. [Read more…] |
Ode to Thanksgiving – Sweet Potato Biscuits
*UPDATE – See this post about our new eating habits.(7/10/11)
I feel eternally sorry for people who aren’t from the South. Biscuits just aren’t biscuits unless they’re southern-style. This year at Thanksgiving I think I’ll say “I am thankful for biscuits. Amen.” Ya know, biscuits aren’t a traditional bread for a Thanksgiving table. But why not mix it up a little this year? These Sweet Potato Biscuits are so moist and delicious, you’ll be eternally sorry if you don’t make them. I’m eternally sorry that we ate them all already. If you’re not from the South, follow these directions and you can pretend that you’re visiting. Now, practice saying “Please pass the butta y’all.” [Read more…] |
Ode to Thanksgiving – Pumpkin Pie Dip
*UPDATE – See this post about our new eating habits.(7/10/11)
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday; Barry’s too. It’s a nice, relaxed day when you just sit back, eat until you think you might have to go to the emergency room, and watch football. I’m not really a football watcher, but I do look forward to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. But we’re looking forward to buying tickets for Liverpool FC matches so we can watch the games live. So, in honor of my favorite holiday, we’ll dedicate this week to Thanksgiving. I’ll cover an appetizer (today), a side dish, a bread, a dessert, a centerpiece, and place cards. What fun! Have some fun with me….and you might want to look into renting a dolly. |
I knew this recipe was a winner when my brother-in-law enjoyed it. Let me just take a minute and tell you about Brian – usually when I cook something and I ask him if he wants some he says, “maybe later.” That’s code for, “not ever gonna happen.”When I made this the first time he was eating and eating it…….and he LOVED it! We’re talking about a man who won’t eat anything unless it also includes ketchup and/or cheese. We were all chowing down on it before the main meal. When the meal came, I was full of dip. Oops. To make this, you’ll need pumpkin puree (go here to read how to make your own), powdered sugar, cream cheese, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla, ginger, and cookies. You can tell it’s for Thanksgiving just by the ingredients! |
How to Make a Smoothie
Did you know there are actually restaurants that only sell smoothies? I still haven’t figured that one out. I’ve never been to one, as I’ve heard they’re pretty expensive. To me, it would sorta be like drinking my money, all blended up. Do you know where that money has been? Eww! Also, I think those smoothies are supposed to sometimes stand in as your meal. What is THAT about? Only a smoothie to eat? Man, I need something else with my drink, like cereal, toast, or waffles. Man cannot live on smoothie alone. I make great smoothies at home, using whatever we have on hand. You can do it too, because it’s SO easy! I’ll go step by step, giving you ideas so you can create your own custom smoothie, and for heaven’s sake please eat a biscuit with it. |
For this demonstration, I made Peanut Butter and Banana Smoothies. Those are two ingredients that are just meant to be together. Soul mates! These are the ingredients that I used if you want to make one just like me (awwww, flattery!): two bananas, two tablespoons of peanut butter, ¼ cup dry milk, two tablespoons wheat germ, one cup of yogurt, and a handful of ice cubes. This made enough for two smoothies, so if you only want one you’d cut it in half – genius, right? [Read more…] |