Super Easy Pizza Pasta

I am lazy. Although I desire to make and eat yummy food for dinner, since I have been pregnant I seem to lack the motivation to do anything that requires above minimal effort. As a result, we eat cereal a lot for dinner these days.

Luckily for my husband, I felt bad for him and decided to make him some pasta for dinner. We had some spaghetti sauce, mozzarella, and pepperoni left over from making pizza a few nights before. Then it came to me: pizza pasta. It didn't sound very good but it did seem easy and so that is what won me over.

The beauty of this story is: it tasted really, really good! I am definitely going to make it again and often! My husband enjoyed it as well, or so he says. The yummy spicy flavor or pepperoni was nice to have in a pasta dish for once, it was a nice change. See below for what I did.

Ingrediants:

Noodle of your choice

Tomato Sauce

Pepperoni (Cut in halves)

Green Peppers

Mozzarella Cheese

Directions:

1) Boil those noodles baby

2) Heat up your sauce, green peppers, and pepperoni

3) Add cooked noodles to sauce. Add lots of mozzarella cheese and mix in so it melts.

4) Eat it up!

Zucchini Muffins

• 3 c. fresh grated Zucchini
• 2/3 c. melted, unsalted Butter
• 1 1/3 c. Sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 tsp. Vanilla
• 2 tsp. Baking Soda
• pinch of salt
• 3 c. Flour
• 2 tsp. Cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. Nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine the sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Stir in the grated zucchini and then the melted butter. Sprinkle the baking soda and salt over the zucchini mixture and mix in. In a separate bowl mix together the flour, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Stir these dry ingredients into the zucchini mixture.

Coat each muffin cup in your muffin pan with cooking spray and fill them to the top with muffin batter. Bake on the middle baking rack until muffins are brown, about 25-30 minutes. Test the middle with a toothpick. Set on a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes. Remove muffins from baking tin and let them cool for another 20 minutes.

*My kids loved these! They didn't know they were eating zucchini!

Banana/Peanut Butter/Chocolate/Streusel Muffins

There were a couple bananas that needed to be thrown out or baked with so of course I took advantage of the opportunity. I wanted something a little more than plain banana bread and this recipe was the perfect solution. These muffins are moist and delish! Additionally, they have a little less fat and sugar than most muffin recipes I have seen. If you ever have bananas that are too soft to eat plain, utilize them! 

Banana/Peanut Butter/Chocolate/Streusel Muffins

makes 12

Muffin Ingredients:

1 cup flour

2 Tbs unsalted butter (I used only 1 Tbs)

3 Tbs Peanut butter (obviously I used 4... its peanut butter!)

1/2 Cup packed brown sugar

1/2 Cup milk

1 Egg

1 tsp Baking powder

1/4 tsp Baking soda

1/4 tsp Salt

1/4 cup chocolate chips

1/2 cup ripe mashed bananas (2 bananas)

Streusel:

1/4 Cup Flour

1/4 Cup Rolled oats

1/4 Cup Packed brown sugar

1 tsp Cinnamon

2 Tbs Peanut butter

1 Tbs Unsalted butter

1/4 Cup Chocolate chips

Directions:

In a large bowl, cream the butter and peanut butter together. Add milk and egg, then slowly mix in the dry ingredients (you can use a separate bowl with the dry ingredients mixed, or just add half of the flour and sugar at a time). Stir in banana and chocolate chips. 

Now for the streusel topping! Combine the flour, sugar, and cinnamon. Fold in the peanut butter and butter until it is crumbly. Add the chocolate chips. 

Fill greased muffin cups about 2/3 full. Sprinkle Streusel topping over batter (I completely covered each one). Bake for 20-25 minutes or until you get a clean toothpick test! These are better fresh and still warm!

Zucchini Brownies

• 1/2 c. Butter, softened
• 1/2 c. to 3/4 c. Sugar
• 1 tsp. Vanilla
• 2 1/2 c. Flour
• 1 1/2 tsp. Baking Soda
• 6 oz. Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
• 1/2 c. Corn Oil
• 2 XL Eggs
• 1/2 tsp. Cinnamon
• 1/2 c. Sour Cream
• 4 Tbsp. Cocoa
• 2 c. grated Zucchini (DO NOT peel, wash clean)

Cream butter, oil, and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Add eggs, vanilla, and sour cream. Beat until smooth. Sift dry ingredients into mixture, add the 2 cups of zuchinni. Blend ingredients together with a mixing spoon. Pour into greased, 9 x 13 pan. Top with chocolate chips. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes. Cool before cutting.

*These are so good! My kids didn't even know they were eating a vegetable!

French Toast Bake

My family has brunch on Conference Sunday at my parents' house. I made this for everyone for Spring Conference and was reminded of it last week and I decided to share.

The meal was a hit with the adults and the kids! It is a cross between French Toast and German Pancakes (some people call them Dutch Babies or something). Note: if you do not like the texture of German Pancakes, you probably wont like this! However, I LOVE French Toast bake now!

***I got the recipe from one of the thousand food blogs I stalk, and I also used the picture from the blog because I lack the ability to take good pictures.

My changes: I did not add the heavy whipping cream or the granulated sugar. The streusel has enough sugar to compensate the sweetness and whipping cream is really not necessary. I also tripled the amount of cinnamon in the streusel because I love me some cinnamon :)

Cinnamon Baked French Toast
Recipe adapted from The Pioneer Woman
1 loaf French Bread
8 large eggs
2 cups milk
½ cup heavy whipping cream
¾ cups granulated sugar
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
Streusel Topping:
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon salt
1/2 cup cold butter, cut into pieces
1. Spray a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Tear or cut French bread into 1 - 2 inch cubes, and evenly place in the pan.
2. Mix together eggs, milk, cream, sugar, and vanilla extract. Pour evenly over bread. Cover pan with saran wrap and store in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight.
3. In a separate bowl, mix flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Add butter pieces and cut into the mixture using a fork or your hands. Combine until the mixture resembles sand with a few pea sized chunks. Cover and store mixture in the refrigerator.
4. When you’re ready to bake preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sprinkle crumb mixture over the top of casserole. Bake for 45-55 minutes, or until the French toast is set and golden brown. *** Mine was done at 40 mins so make sure to check on it!
5. Serve warm with maple syrup.

Sprucing Up Cup Cakes With Little Effort

Ah, the cup cake craze. I have to admit that I love it. However, some of the adorable cup cakes you see people making for birthdays and holidays literally take HOURS and let's face it: it is not always worth the effort. So what do you do when you want to make cup cakes that makes it seem like they are "fancy" with out actually being fancy? Answer: small additions.

The other night my husband's best friend came over, and right before he got there my husband casually mentions that it was his birthday. I had no time to go to the store for supplies, or spend hours making a fancy cake. So I whipped up some cup cakes and searches the depths of my cupboards and fridge. I had some german chocolate cake frosting and peanut butter frosting left over (that sounds really pathetic). So for variety, I decided to use both. But I couldn't just slop frosting on cupcakes and serve that, I mean, that is just rude! I had to show him that I made a big effort in honor of his coming into the world!

Solution 1: Ya know what is REALLY good with german chocolate cake? Maraschino cherries. And They look really cute on top of the cup cakes.

Solution 2: I melted some chocolate in a plastic bag, cut a small hole in the corner, and then I spelled out a happy birthday salutation.

Check it out peeps, and please don't judge the hideous display. I really was rushing and we hadn't unpacked our platters yet so I had to use a cookie sheet.

Seriously, just add a piece of candy or shredded chocolate a top any cup cake and you will find that the presentation value increases exponentially.

Amazing Meatballs

• 1 Large Bag of Frozen Italian Meatballs


• 12 oz. Grape Jelly


• 12.oz. Brown Sugar


• 12 oz. Homemade Brand Chili Sauce


• 1 1/2 T. Lemon Juice

Heat Chili Sauce, Jelly, Brown Sugar, and Lemon Juice in a saucepan. The Jelly will turn to liquid. Add frozen meatballs. Heat on Low 20-30 minutes. Trasnfer to crock pot and slow cook for at least 1 hour.

*this makes a great appetizer*

Italian Pasta Salad

• 1 package rotini pasta cooked and drained ( I used the vegetable, colored kind)
• brocoli florets boiled, and cut into bite sized pieces
• 1 package pepperoni pieces sliced in half or small pepperonis
• Mozzerella Cheese cubed or cut 10-12 mozzerella sticks into cubes
• 20-30 cherry tomatoes
• 1-2 c. chopped olives
• 1 bottle of your favorite italian dressing ( I used hidden valley)
• 1 c. finely shredded parmesan cheese

Combine all the ingredients except dressing and parmesan cheese in a large bowl and mix. pour dressing on slowly while continuing to mix. The pasta will soak up the dressing so add more than you might think or pour on some more right before serving. I mix in the parmesan cheese at the end. Refridgerate until ready to eat!

Garlic Green Beans

• 1 IB Fresh Green Beans
• 2 c. water
• 3 cloves minced garlic
• 3 T butter
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/8 t. pepper

Bring beans and water to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Drain and set beans aside. In a large skillet saute butter and garlic until light brown. Add beans, salt, and pepper. Heat through.

*this makes a great side dish! It is awesome with garden green beans*

Chicken Enchiladas

• 8-10 Flour Tortillas
• 2 cans Cream of Chicken soup
• 1 c. Sour Cream
• 1-2 c. grated Mozzarella Cheese
• 1 c. Salsa or green chilis
• 2 c. cooked, chucked Chicken

Mix soup, sour cream, & salsa in a bowl then melt in the microwave. Take 1/3 of the mixture out and put in a different bowl with the chicken. Lay tortillas one at a time on a plate and spread with sauce on both sides of tortilla. Add a line of chicken mixture down the center of the tortilla and roll. Place enchiladas in greased 9x13 pan and pour mozzerella cheese on top. Bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes. Cover with foil for the first 2o minutes.

*These are really good made with homemade salsa*

Lemon Cream Pie

• 2 graham cracker pie crusts
• 2 small boxes of instant lemon pudding
• 1 c. powdered sugar
• package of cool whip
• 4 oz. cream cheese
• 3 c. milk
• strawberries
• nuts (optional)

Mix cream cheese, powdered sugar, and 1 c. cool whip and put in the bottom of the 2 pie crusts. Then mix lemon pudding mixes and milk in a bowl and pour in the to crusts. Spread remaing cool whip on top of the 2 pies. Refridgerate until ready to serve. Chop strawberries and put on top just before serving. Nuts on top are optional.

Low Fat Vegetable Lasagna

• 8 oz lasagna noodles
• 1 medium zuchinni, thinly sliced
• 1 1/2 t olive oil
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 10 oz. package frozen brocolli, chopped, thawed and well drained
• 3/4 cup low fat ricotta cheese
• 2 T parmesan cheese
• 1 T parsely flakes
• 1/2 t salt
• 1/4 t pepper
• 1 1/2 c tomato sauce
• 2 oz. lowfat mozzarella cheese, grated

This is a great way to use that zuchinni in your garden! Bring a large pot fulled with salted water to a boil. Add lasagna noodles and cook 7 to 10 minutes, drain and rinse. Place zuchinni in a microwave bowl with 3 T water. Cover with plastic wrap and cook on high for 1 minute. Drain and set aside. In a medium saucepan, heat olive oil, add onion and cook for 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute longer. Remove from heat. Add chopped brocolli, ricotta, parmesan, parsley, salt and pepper, blend well. Fold in cooked zuchinni. Spread 2 T tomato sauce over bottom of a 9 x 9 x 2" baking dish. Arrange a single layer of noodles over sauce. Spread half of vegetable filling over noodles and spoon 1/3 of the remaining sauce over the filling. Make another layer with half the remaining noodles, all the remaining filling, and 1/3 of the sauce. Top with remaining noodles and sauce. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese evenly over top. Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. Serves 6.

Sneak Veggies into Meals Without Extra Hassle

I know I should eat my veggies every day, but sometimes it is just one other thing I have to cook up when trying to make a quick and easy meal. It creates a lot of internal turmoil because I actually LOVE vegetables but I am just a lazy bum sometimes and just want to finish cooking so I can EAT! Luckily, I have a method to help with this issue. Below is my genius, life-altering trick:

1. At the beginning of the week, bake up a bunch of veggies (I will give you my easy recipe).
2. Store in fridge and use in meals through out the week.

Wow, I know. I bet no one has thought of that before. You skeptics might be thinking that eating the same veggies as a side dish every day could get boring, right? Well use the already prepared veggies you have and slip them into recipes! Below are some examples of how they could be used over 5 weekdays:

Day 1: Use as a side dish
Day 2: Cook up your favorite pasta, add you favorite sauce, and stir some veggies in! Even add some chicken!
Day 3: Serve cold on a salad with some yummy vinaigrette.
Day 4: Cook up some noodles, add your veggies, add a can of diced tomatoes WITH the juice, add a can of chicken broth, some garlic and onion salt, maybe some red pepper for a kick - and you have got yourself an amazing veggie-noodle soup!
Day 5: Use in a shepherd's pie! Seriously, any vegetable is fantastic with this!

Baked Vegetables:

1) Cut Vegetables in similar sized portions and put in mixing bowl
2) Add olive oil, lots of salt and pepper, and stir so all the vegetables are coated
3) Bake at 425 for 25-30 minutes or until veggies are tender


PS... I know it's a wretched photo... I did in on my cell phone as I was eating ok?!

Best Chocolate Chip Cookie. Ever.

My sister-in-law made the most amazing chocolate chip cookies I have ever had, so I begged for the recipe. She said she had tried millions of chocolate chip cookie recipes and the Kitchen Aide recipe is the best by far. So I decided to try it out myself and sweet mercy, they are delish! What is neat about the recipe is that they are very specific in their directions which is kind of nice sometimes. I decided to try out following the recipe and using ALL THE BUTTER it recommended, since that is what my sister-in-law did.  The first batch came out flatter than what I was hoping for so I added more flour to the batter and the other batches came out fantastic! SEE?! Too much butter is no bueno! But seriously, these are delicious cookies so try them.

Kitchen Aide Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Ingredients:

- 1 Cup granulated sugar

- 1 Cup brown sugar

- 1 Cup butter softened

- 2 Eggs

- 1 1/2  Teaspoons vanilla

- 1 Teaspoon baking soda

- 1 Teaspoon salt

- 3 Cups all-purpose flour

- 12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Place softened butter, sugars, eggs, and vanilla in the mixer bowl.

2. Use the flat beater to mix. Mix for 30 seconds on Speed 2. Stop and scrape the bowl. Mix for another 30 seconds on Speed 4. Scrape again.

3. Sift together the baking soda, salt, and flour.

4. On Stir speed, gradually add the dry mixture to the sugar mixture for 2 minutes.

5. Turn to Speed 2 and mix 30 seconds.

6. On Stir speed, and the chocolate chips and mix for 15 seconds.

7. Drop rounded spoonfuls two inches apart onto greased cookie sheet.

8. Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes. Let cookies rest for 1 minute after removing from oven, the move to wire racks.

My personal changes:

* Added about 3/4 cup of extra flour

* Used a tablespoon of vanilla

* Cooked for 7 1/2 minutes (but I like my cookies very chewy!)

Enjoy!

Stawberry Banana Pancakes

Ingredients:
1 1/2 c. Flour
1 tsp salt
3 T Sugar
1 3/4 t double acting Baking Powder
1 or 2 slightly beaten whole eggs
3 T melted butter
1 to 1 1/4 c. Milk
1 c. chopped strawberries
1-2 small bananas chopped

I a medium bowl sift flour. Add salt, sugar, and baking powder and resift. In a small bowl beat eggs. add melted butter and milk. Mix the liquid ingredients quickly into the dry ingredients. Chop bananas and strawberries and set aside. Pour 1/2 c. of the mix onto a hot griddle set at med/med low heat greased with butter. Drop desired amount of strawberries and bananas on pancake spaced evenly. Flip pancake when edges are cooked and bubbles have formed in the middle. These taste really good served with Whipped Cream on top! Makes 6-8 medium sized pancakes.

Manicotti

Ingredients:

1 IB Hamburger
1 clove of garlic, crushed
8 oz. Mozzerella Cheese, Shredded
1 c. Cottage Cheese
1 c. Best Foods Mayo
1 tsp. Salt
16 oz. any variety of Spaghetti Sauce
1 pkg. Manicottie Noodles, cooked according to package directions

Brown Hamburer and garlic in a little butter in a hot skillet. In a large mixing bowl mix mozzerella, cottage cheese, mayo, and salt together. Drain grease from meat and add to mixture. Rinses noodles and stuff with hamburger mixture and place stuffed noodles in a greased 13x9 pan. Pour spaghetti sauce over noodles. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Sprinkle Parmesan Cheese on top after baking for more flavor! Serves 4.

Cute Cupcakes!

You can really be creative with cupcakes and they are cheap and easy to make. Here are 3 easy ways to decorate them for themed parties! Make a batch of cupcakes with cake mix and then do the following:

Fish Cupcakes:
Ingredients-
2 Dozen cupcakes
Icing
plain M&Ms
food coloring

Split the icing into 4 parts and dye it 4 colors of your choice. Decorate as seen in picture with M&Ms and icing! Perfect for an under the sea party!

Lady Bug Cupcakes:
Ingredients-
Cupcakes
vanilla Icing
chocolate Icing
Licorice
Plain M&Ms
Food Coloring

Make desired amount of cupcakes. Dye the vanilla icing pink. Spread it on the cupcakes. Put some chocolate icing on the 'head of the ladybug'. Cut licorice for antennas and put on the head. Use M&Ms for spots. Enjoy!

Shark Fin Cupcakes:

Ingredients-

Cupcakes

Icing

Chocolate orange or candy orange slices

food coloring
coconut shavings optional

Make desired amount of cupcakes. Dye icing blue and frost the cupcakes. Cut chocolate orange slices or candy orange slices in half. Place in center of cupcake. Put coconut shavings in a ziplock bag with a few drops of blue food coloring. Shake until coconut shavings are blue and sprinkle on the cupcakes. Enjoy!

Super Moist Baked BBQ Chicken

I love BBQ chicken, it is probably one of the most common meals I make for dinner because it's delicious an easy. Through experimenting and perfecting, I am prepared to share my method for making baked BBQ chicken.

1. Pre-heat oven to 350
2. Place a sheet of tin foil over a baking sheet
3. Spread two spoonfuls of BBQ sauce in the middle of the sheet and place two chicken breasts over the sauce.
4. Cut one or two slits, length-wise, along each chicken breasts. Only cut about halfway through.
5. Fold the foil over the chicken breasts and place in over. Set timer for 20 minutes.
6. While chicken is baking, get a small bowl or cup (I usually just use a paper cup). Mix together a spoonful of melted butter and bbq sauce. Sometimes I add a little bit of lemon juice as well to add a little bit extra.
7. When the timer goes off, unfold the foil and brush or carefully pour the mixture over the chicken.
8. Bake for another 15-20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked all the way through.

A few times I had some extra time on my hands and I coated the chicken with the mixture 2-3 times through out baking and it made it ridiculously moist. However, one time is sufficient.

I usually make my favorite baked fries with this meal, I will have to post that easy recipe later!





The directions are for two chicken breasts, but if you need to bake more just add extra

Parmesan Rolls

Ingredients:
1 dozen Rhodes Bake n Serve frozen Dinner Rolls
2 T butter
Parmesan Cheese finely shredded
Parmesan Cheese grated

These are insanely easy to make and taste amazing! I like to let the dough rise in a greased muffin pan, but they can be made in a greased 13 x 9 pan too. Let the dough rise for 3-5 hours until double in size. Melt butter in microwave. Lightly coat rolls in butter and sprinkle on the shredded parmesan cheese. I like to put some of the shredded cheese underneath the rolls too. Then sprinkle some grated parmesan cheese on top. Bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes. Enjoy!

Butter, it's overdone.

One thing I have learned in my short time attempting to bake is this: The world thinks butter has to be in everything. Don't get me wrong, there are times when butter makes food heavenly. For instance, I never substitute butter when it comes to steamed veggies or rolls.

However, in the world of baking butter is called for in almost every recipe, and a lot of it! The sad thing is, in many cases, it is completely unnecessary! For instance, almost every time I have made cookies I have cut the butter in half- at LEAST! In making muffins or cakes, I never add butter and usually no oil either. Guess what? THEY TURN OUT JUST FINE! The key is to find good substitutes for the oil or butter that do not take away from the needed moistness or texture too much. Below are lists of hints

1. I usually about double the amount of vanilla extract.
2. Substitute oil for some good ol' apple sauce. Just use the same measurements, 1/2 cup apple sauce for a 1/2 cup oil. If you are too nervous at first, start off by doing half and half and see how you feel about it.
3. YOGURT! Oh man, I love substituting yogurt for butter. Not only does it make it moist, you can also use different flavors to add to your cakes!
4. Still nervous that your batter is too dry? Add a little bit of water or milk.
5. Low-fat pudding. Yes, it does have sugar and fat in it... but I just don't like butter ok?!
6. Low-fat sour creme. Again, not the healthiest choice, but it is a better one! And oh does sour creme work wonders!

Cookie tips: Please note that cookies are more finicky than cakes. I would still recommend halving the butter and NOT ADDING ANY SUBSTITUTES. Seriously, it will make the cookies puffier and less oily. The first time you do this you will probably be nervous because you are used to a wetter, more oily batter. However, as long as you are able to smash the cookie clumps together onto the baking sheet, you are fine! If you are super nervous you messed it up, try throwing it in muffin tins and see what happens.

Cakes/muffins: By far cakes are more experiment-able than cookies. I have drastically changed and tested many a recipe and it still came out great. I made some gluten free cupcakes for my mom that called for a whole cup of butter and I used NONE! They turned out AMAZING! I just added sour creme, yogurt, lemon and cherry juice!

If you know of other substitutes, please let me know! Nothing brings me more joy than learning of new substitutes!

Healthier Banana Cinnamon Muffins

I had a bunch of ripe bananas so I wanted to make a treat with them that wouldn't make me feel too guilty. After searching my recipes, I found a few muffin recipes and decided to combine three of them to make my own twist and left out the butter- yuck! Oh and about 1/3 the sugar the recipes called for, seriously people. 

Danny said he really liked them because they were really moist. I liked them because they were sweet and were not as unhealthy as most muffins. I forgot to take a picture but Danny made me promise to make them again so I will post one then! 

Ingrediants, from what I can remember :

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

3 T cinnamon (why do all recipes call for less? I want to TASTE it! )

1 Egg

1 T vanilla extract

1 mashed banana

1/8 cup brown sugar

1/8 cup white sugar

1 vanilla pudding cup  

* I used pudding instead of butter and buttermilk and added less sugar. If you don't have pudding, you can definitely use yogurt! I just didn't have any, and I was also wanting a lot of vanilla flavor.

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 350F

2. Mix the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon in a large bowl. 

3. In another bowl, combine the egg, vanilla, pudding, and banana. 

4. Mix the wet and dry ingredients until just combined. 

5. Add batter to muffin tin until 2/3 full. Sprinkle a cinnamon sugar blend over the tops of the batter (not too heavy or the muffins wont rise well). 

6. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown and a tooth pick comes out clean.