FALLin for Roast Chicken

My Oh My!! This is AMAZING and SO Super easy!!

1 large sweet potato

3-4 small apples

4 carrots

2-3 stalks of celery

1/2 large onion

Chicken - I used frozen thighs and drumsticks because my kids love the "handle chicken"

Olive Oil, Salt & Pepper

Cut veggies and apples in to chunks and dump into roasting dish. Place chicken on top and coat everything with olive oil salt & pepper.

If you want more flavor you could add poultry seasoning, or herbs. My family tends to prefer the "raw" taste.

Roast in 350 oven for 1 hr or until chicken juices run clear.

After it came out I took the apple skins off and mushed the apples into the juices in the bottom of the pan and it made the best "sauce"

Make this TONIGHT!!! Your family will be warm, happy and ready for November!

Fully loaded Chicken Salad

I made this for a block party and everyone really liked it.

Now as I have mentioned before, I don't measure (except when I bake) I just throw stuff together till it tastes good. So all of these "measurements" are a guess as to how much I used =)

What was in it:

1 pkg Salad noodles, 3 carrots, 1 rib celery, 1 small can olives, 1 small apple, 1 can Mandarin oranges, 1 C. Grapes cut in half. 1/2 Can Pineapple tidbits, 1 Can chicken

Dressing (again...none of this was measured):

1-2 C mayo, 1/4 C Mandarin orange juice, 1 tsp Orange extract (Or substitute Mandarin orange juice and extract for 2-3 tbl frozen orange juice concentrate) 3 Tbl Pineapple juice, 2 tsp ginger, Salt and pepper.

Pour over salad ingredients in big bowl and stir.

Ravisanga

I was really wanting some lasagna yesterday, but didn't have ricotta cheese in my fridge, so I thought, "Hey! I have cheese ravioli....why can't that work?!"  So I tried it, and it does!! It was even something Bubba could help with, which I always Love (and so does he). Here's it goes:

To make a 9x13 pan

1 1/2 pkg cheese Ravioli

1 1/2 jar Spaghetti sauce

3 links turkey sausage (remove case and cook to a crumble)

Shredded cheese to top

Boil ravioli until they just start to pop to the surface. You don't want to boil them for the full 7-10 mins as directed on pkg otherwise you will end up with mushy raviolis and that makes it hard to layer, and wont make for a very good ravisagna

Layer sauce

Ravioli

the reason some are different colors is because my 1/2 pkg was mushroom ravioli.

Crumbled turkey sausage, more sauce,

One more layer of ravioli and sauce, top with cheese

Bake at 350 for 30 mins.

Let it set for 15 mins before cutting



The nice part about this is, it's easy, fast, very kid friendly, and pretty inexpensive. You can cut it like a regular lasagna or scoop it out, depending on how you put the ravioli down they will be on top of each other for optimal scoopage!  It taste just like Lasagna! Enjoy

Vegetable Soup

I've started a diet (insert *Gasp* here).  It's a soup based diet, and so far it's pretty decent.

Here's the recipe for the soup. It's a pretty good soup and the whole pot is only 1150 calories, and it makes a HUGE pot!!!

1 Bunch of Celery (I like the Celery Hearts)
2 lbs Carrots
3 Large Green Onions (I used 1/2 yellow onion)
2 Green Peppers
-Chop veggies and put into a LARGE Soup Pot and cover with water. Boil for 10 mins.
-Dump in remaining ingredients
1 Large can (1 32oz Box) Beef broth (Low sodium/fat)
2 Cans Cut Green Beans Drained
1 can Stewed Tomatoes (I used Italian Style) I squish them in my hand before dumping them in.
1 pkg Lipton Soup Mix (Chicken Noodle)
-Bring back to boil and simmer until veggies are tender.
May season with Salt and Pepper, curry, parsley, bouillon, hot sauce or Worcestershire sauce.

Because you eat this soup all day long for 7 days I like to season it differently every day to keep it from getting old.  Yesterday I put the hot sauce in it, and today I'm adding Curry. So far so good!

The rest of the diet
Day 1- soup and Fruit (except bananas)
Day 2- Soup and Veggies (except corn, peas and beans)  I'm putting extra veggies (mushrooms, red peepers, zucchini, yellow squash) in the soup to make it extra chunky.
        Have a baked potato with butter for dinner.    (Do NOT eat any fruit today)
Day 3- Soup, fruit and veggies. No baked potato  Today I plan to eat the leftover super veggie filled soup and make fruit smoothies using frozen fruit, milk, and 100% Cranberry juice (I got mine from the natural foods section to make sure it was unsweetened)
Day 4- Soup, Bananas, Skim Milk.  Eat at least 3 bananas and drink as much milk as you can.  I plan on freezing the milk and making banana smoothies (just bananas and milk)  Because I really, highly dislike eating bananas and drinking milk. But I can drink a banana smoothie
Day 5- Beef and tomatoes: you may have 10-20 oz of beef and up to 6 tomatoes. Eat the soup at least once today.  I bought steak and Cherry tomatoes for this. I can pop cherry tomatoes all day where it's hard for me to sit down and eat a whole tomato
Day 6- Beef and Veggies. Eat all the beef and veggies you want today. You can even have 2-3 steaks if you like with green leafy veggies, but NO baked potato. Be sure to eat the soup at least once today. I plan on making the super chunky vegetable version in the crock pot and throwing steak in the soup.....I am very excited about this day!
Day 7- Brown rice, unsweetened juice and veggies until full. (don't forget about your soup)  I plan on putting the rice in the leftover super chunky veggie soup.  also putting veggies in with the rice.

Drink allowed
Unsweetened juices
Tea
Coffee
Cranberry juice
Skim Milk (for those who don't know, because I'm embarrassed to admit that I didn't, that's 1% milk)
Lots of water (I've been drinking water non stop. My hubby brought me home a cup that is hard plastic with a straw and I carry it everywhere and fill it up constantly)

Magic Toffee

My brother called and gave me this recipe. Super easy, Super yummy, and I bet you have everything you need right now! 

 This is so easy that I included step by step pics, because you're not gonna believe me!

Seriously!

1 Pkg Saltine Crackers

1 C. Butter

1 C. Brown Sugar

1 Pkg Chocolate Chips

Line cookie sheet with foil

Layer crackers

(I sprayed mine, but you don't need to)

Melt Butter and Brown sugar in pan.

When it starts boiling, stop stirring and boil 3-4 mins.

Seriously. Don't stir it! Resist the urge

Immediately pour Carmel over crackers

Put in 400 Degree oven for 8 Mins

When it comes out put choco chips on top, wait a min, spread chocolate

Cool. This takes 30-45 mins.

Break up and enjoy

Thanks bro for this awesomly easy recipe! It's a total Keeper!



Veggie Noodles

I made this for lunch today and we LOVED it!! It's fresh. It's healthy. It's full of veggies. It's good! I asked the Hubs if there was anything he would want changed and he said "This is a no talking meal"  - Which I took as a No. =)

The  best part. You could make this Veggie style super easy!

1 Small Zucchini

1/2 Small Yellow Squash

8oz sliced Baby Bella mushrooms

2-3 carrots sliced on a diagonal

4 Chicken Tenders

1 C Chicken Stock

1/2 C Cream of Chicken Soup

3 Tbl Butter

2-3 Tbl Flour

1/2 pkg Spaghetti noodles

Heat oven to 350, Cook frozen chicken tenders 20 mins. Chop.

Get water boiling for noodles

Heat lg Skillet coating the bottom with 2 Tbl Olive oil. Saute Carrots for 5 mins, Add Butter and mushrooms, cook till Mushrooms are brown and tender. Add Zucchini and squash until tender. add sprinkle flour on veggies, stir, add chicken stock and simmer till thick. Add Soup and chicken. Simmer 5 mins (or until your noodles are cooked to your liking). Add noodles. I like to use the starchy cooking liquid from the noodles to thin out sauce if needed.

Serve, Enjoy!!

I guarantee this will become a family fav.

To make it more vegetarian friendly, just leave out the chicken. Use Veggie stock, and Cream of Mushroom soup, instead of chicken.

Chocolate cookie Cheesecake!

 This is the best Cheesecake I have ever made! granted it's the first cheesecake I've ever made....
I stayed up all night New Years Eve making this one and it was Totally worth it!! My hubby and I Rocked out while we waited for it to bake. We watched the fireworks at the Space Needle at Midnight. And all though I made this for a New Years Day celebration we were going to it was worth the tired eyes! This one is For SURE a keeper! Super rich, super addicting, Super Yummy!!!

Best made 1-2 days in advance!!! Serves 14-20 depending on slice size.

Adapted from this recipe

1 C. Chocolate cookie Crumbs (1-1 1/2 rows with center removed)

1 C. Chocolate Graham Cracker Crumbs

4 Tbl melted Butter

1/4 C Brown Sugar

Combine in a medium bowl and press evenly on to bottom and up 1 in up the side of a 10'' spring form pan. Bake 350 for 5 mins. Set aside

2 lb (4, 8oz squares)  Cream Cheese softened

1 1/4 C White Sugar

1/3 C Heaven whipping Cream

2 Tbl Flour

1 ts Vanilla

4 Eggs

In a large bowl beat Cream Cheese until smooth (5 mins) Gradually mix in sugar, cream, flour, and vanilla. Mix until smooth. Beat eggs in 1 at a time, beating until smooth after each addition.

Pour 1/3 of the batter into pan. top with Chocolate, cream filled, cookies.

Pour remaining batter on top of cookies.

Bake at 350 for 65-70 mins. I baked mine in a water bath*. If you choose to NOT use the water bath. Only bake for 45 mins.

Combine 16 oz Sour Cream, 1/4 C white sugar, 1 tsp Vanilla.

When Cheese cake is done baking, pull out of oven and carefully top with sour cream mixture. Return cake to oven and bake for 15 mins (7 mins w/o water bath). Turn oven off and leave in oven for 30 mins. Remove cheesecake.

Combine 1 C whipping Cream and 1 1/2 C chocolate chips in saucepan. Stir over low heat until Chocolate melts then stir in 1 tsp vanilla. Pour mixture over cheese cake while still warm. Let cool completely on wire rack, Move to Refrigerator and chill at least 8 hrs! remove 30 mins before serving.

The best way to cut this is to have a glass of HOT water and a napkin or towel. Dip sharp knife in hot water, wipe dry, cut. Do this before EACH cut and you will have perfect slices of cheesecake every time!

What are you waiting for?! Make this, NOW! and prepare yourself for some serious compliments!!

*Water Bath. This is how I do mine. I use a roasting pan with rack. I wrap the outside of my spring form pan in foil (because I'm paranoid about water getting in) and I set my cheesecake in the pan on the rack. Fill it with hot Hot HOT water till it's just about an inch up the side of the pan.

Pizza 101

Pizza Dough
2 Tbl Yeast
1/2 C Warm Water
2 tsp sugar
put in bottom of mixer and let dissolve and foam
while that's working heat, melt and dissolve
1 1/2 C Milk
1/2 C Shortening (I use Olive Oil)
4 Tbl Sugar
Microwave for 2 mins, stirring after 1 to make sure your sugar is dissolving. Add to your yeast slowly while mixing, then add 4 C Flour and 1-2 tsp dried pizza seasoning. Mix well. Dump onto floured surface and knead. roll into ball and let rest.

Toppings:
Whatever you would like. We used (because it's what we had on hand):
Olives
Tomatoes
Ham
Mushrooms
Cheese

Sauce:
Your fav. Spaghetti sauce.
 Here's how you do it:

Spread dough out to desired size

Spread sauce

*sample sauce if desired*

Spread Cheese

Dump on toppings

Bake for 20 mins

Enjoy!!

My boys had so much fun making their own pizza! It is work but Totally worth all the clean up!