Pizza Bites

We made these pizza bites to go along with linguine & meat sauce. Yum! They are very fun and easy to make as an appetizer or for a potluck.

Ingredients

makes 48 bites

2 (13.8 oz) cans Pillsbury refrigerated pizza dough

8 ounces mozzarella cheese, cut into 48 cubes

48 slices (3oz) of pepperoni (well, we used 2 slices in each bite instead of just 1)

1/4 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

3 tablespoons parmesan cheese

1 jar of pizza sauce, heated

Directions

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2) Spray 2 cookie sheets with cooking spray.

3) Remove dough from both cans. Unroll dough, pressing out rectangle (one on each cookie sheet). Cut each rectangle into 24 squares.

4) Top each square with 1 cheese cube and 1-2 pepperoni.

5) Wrap dough around filling to completely cover, firmly press edges to seal. Place seam side down.

6) In a small bowl, mix oil, seasoning, and parmesan cheese. Drizzle over pizza bites.

7) Bake until golden brown. The recipe said 16-22 minutes... ours took only 10 minutes. Serve with pizza sauce. 

Chili

Fall weather can only mean one thing:

It's time to make CHILI!

My chili recipe is one that I have pieced together and changed around a variety of times. But now that Chris has had his hand in making it - having one of the strongest stomachs for spicy foods that I know - he says he loves it, so I can officially say this is THE recipe we'll be sticking with! This recipe makes a BIG batch but chili is great to freeze for later and save for lunches.

Ingredients

2 lbs lean ground beef

1.5 cups chopped onion

olive oil

4 cloves minced garlic

1 cup chopped green bell pepper

1/4 cup "Just My Taste" jalepeno marinade/ sauce (or you could use chiles.. something spicy!)

14.5 oz can diced tomatoes (undrained)

15 oz chili beans - we used 1 small can of kidney beans and 1 small can of black beans (drained & rinsed)

1.5 tbsp chili powder

1 tsp salt

2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp oregano

1/4 tsp pepper

tabasco sauce, to taste

Directions

Over medium heat, brown ground beef and onion with olive oil.

Add garlic and pepper and continue to cook for about 2 minutes.

Add jalepenos, tomatoes, beans, and spices.

Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes.

Simmer covered for an additional 15-20 minutes.

Top with cheddar cheese :)

Sloppy Joes & Oven Fries

Sloppy Joes

1 pound lean ground beef

1/4 cup chopped onion

1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon yellow mustard

3/4 cup ketchup

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1/2 tablespoon steak sauce

1/2 tablespoon worcestershire sauce

1/4 teaspoon pepper

hamburger buns

In a medium skillet over medium heat, brown the ground beef, onion, and green pepper. Drain off the liquids. Stir in the rest of the ingredients and mix thoroughly. Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes.

Oven Fries

Cut 2-3 potatoes into slices. Put into large bowl. Toss with approx. 2 tablespoons olive oil, 2 tablespoons Old Bay, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1/2 teaspoon cumin and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Mix well. Spread evenly on a foil-lined baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes, turning once.

Pumpkin Muffins

Words can not explain how much I loooove these muffins!!! Thank you, FoodNetwork.com (+some Dad alterations)!

Ingredients

Cooking spray

2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar

1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) vegetable oil

2 eggs

1 cup canned pumpkin

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 cup lowfat buttermilk (add another 1/4 cup if needed, can use plain yogurt instead)

1/4 cup raw, unsalted pumpkin seeds

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg.

In a large bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, oil, and eggs. Whisk in the pumpkin and vanilla. Whisk in flour mixture in 2 batches, alternating with the buttermilk. Whisk just until combined - don't stir too much!

Mix in the pumpkin seeds.

Pour the batter into the muffin pan. Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

(I obviously need one of these: http://www.kingarthurflour.com/shop/items/muffin-pan-sponge)

Marbled-Chocolate Banana Bread

Recipe from Cooking Light

At the end of the summer, I decided I wanted to make a bunch of breakfast foods that I could freeze and take out a little bit at a time to make the mornings quicker. So, when Chris went off to the beach for a "boy's weekend" I headed to my parents' and did some baking with my dad :) Here is a delicious banana bread recipe we tried out! This should last me a few weeks through the school year (as I think I've mentioned, Chris is not much of a breakfast food fan) as the recipe says 1 loaf = 16 slices.

Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup butter, softened

1 1/2 cups mashed ripe bananas (about 3 bananas)

2 eggs

1/3 cup plain low-fat yogurt

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

cooking spray

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Combine dry ingredients into one bowl: flour, baking soda, salt and sugar. 

3. Combine wet ingredients into a second bowl: butter, banana, eggs, and yogurt. Beat with a mixer at a medium speed until blended. 

4. Add flour mixture to the banana mixture. Beat at a low speed just until moist.

5. Place chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave about 1 minute or until almost melted, stirring until smooth. Cool slightly. Add 1 cup of the banana batter to the chocolate, stirring until well combined.

6. Coat loaf pan with cooking spray. Spoon plain banana batter alternately with chocolate batter into pan. 

7. Swirl batters together using a knife.

8. Bake at 350 for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan, then remove and cool completely on wire rack.

Homemade Chocolate Chip Cookies!

I decided that I wanted to make a special treat for my students for their first day of school this year, and since I luckily have no food allergies (at least not yet.. you never know with our high mobility rate) I decided what better than homemade chocolate chip cookies?! I used the recipe that I have used with my mom for years and years. Then I put two in a baggie with a monkey card (that's our classroom theme this year) for each kiddo :)

Ingredients

2/3 cup shortening

2/3 cup butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup brown sugar (packed)

2 eggs

3 teaspoons vanilla

3 1/2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

12 ounces chocolate chips

Directions

Heat oven to 375 degrees.

Mix thoroughly shortening, butter, sugars, eggs, and vanilla.

Blend in remaining ingredients.

Drop dough in teaspoonfuls on ungreased baking sheets.

Bake 8-10 minutes or until light brown.

Chicken Divan

Chicken Divan is one of my favorite meals that my mom would make growing up. I even remember requesting it for a birthday dinner or two! It is so yummy - I can't believe it took me 8 months before thinking to make it with Chris.. I think I just get so excited to try new recipes when I buy magazines and cookbooks that I forget about old favorites that I/we have already made.

You'll Need:

-about 20 oz. frozen broccoli, cooked according to the package

-3 chicken breasts, cooked and cut into small chunks

-2 cans low fat cream of chicken soup

-1 cup low fat mayonnaise

-1 teaspoon lemon juice

-1/2 cup+ (you know me and cheese.. hehe) shredded sharp cheddar cheese

-1/2 tsp curry powder

-1 tablespoon melted butter

-2 cups soft bread crumbs (I make by cutting up about 4 pieces of bread)

-approx. 6-8 servings of rice, cooked

1. Layer cooked broccoli in greased pan. Place chicken on top. 

2. Combine soup, mayonnaise, lemon juice and curry powder. Pour over chicken. Sprinkle cheese on top. Mix bread crumbs and melted butter together. Top the dish with the bread crumbs.

3. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Meanwhile, cook the rice. Serve the chicken divan over the rice! :)