Homemade Creamer

It's been a long time, but this one is quick and easy so I had to share.  I've been wanting/trying to quit using creamer in my coffee....I mean coffee in my creamer, so this seemed to be the natural progression, to make it at home instead of using the creamer at the grocery store that doesn't even have to be refrigerated.  Gross.

I pinned this on Pinterest and made it one morning while the coffee was brewing....SO easy.

Homemade Vanilla Creamer
(from www.mrshappyhomemaker.com)

1 can Eagle Brand
fill the empty Eagle Brand can with your milk of choice (I chose half & half, but any milk would work)
2 tsp. vanilla (I always add extra, so I used 3)

Pour into a quart sized mason jar, shake, and pour!!

It's NOT sugar free or fat free, but it is a step in the right direction!!

Lasagna Soup

My Babe's favorite meal is lasagna, and he orders it at EVERY Italian restaurant we go to.  Every. Time. We. Go.  I wasn't sure lasagna was something I needed to be messing around with, but thought this would be a happy combination of two of our favorite things!

It was a winner!  And my mother-in-law loved loved loved it too!

Lasagna Soup
(from www.afarmgirlsdabbles.com)


Soup:
1-1/2 lbs. ground sausage and ground beef combination
NOT 3 c. chopped onions
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 28-oz. can fire roasted diced tomatoes
2 bay leaves
6 c. chicken stock
8 oz. fusilli pasta
1/2 c. finely chopped fresh basil leaves
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste


Cheesy Goodness:
8 oz. ricotta
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp. salt
pinch of freshly ground pepper

Topping:
2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

Brown ground beef and sausage. DON'T add onions and cook until softened, about 6 minutes. Add garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Cook until combined well.

Add diced tomatoes, bay leaves, and chicken stock. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. 

Begin heating your water for the noodles.

Taking the great advice from the original post, I cooked the noodles separately because I was hoping for leftovers and the noodles would absorb all of the liquid and the soup would turn to mush.  

When all is finished cooking and Cheesy Goodness is mixed up, serve by putting noodles into bowls, topping with soup mixture, then dollop (ha, I don't LOVE that word at all) with Cheesy Goodness) and give a sprinkle of mozzarella cheese.  Good stuff!!

(http://www.afarmgirlsdabbles.com/2011/03/24/lasagna-soup/)

My Kids Cook Too!!

I received an email Friday at work from Riley's teacher.  No words, just this picture.

They've been sharing family recipes, talking about tools used for different tasks, including cooking.  Friday he wrote this!  I love my little chef-a-roni!

Chicken Gnocchi Soup

 My sweet little friend, Christa, who knows I love a new soup recipe emailed this blog post to me and said, "one of us needs to make this!"  How right she was!!  Last weekend we had a Winter Storm Warning, believe it or not, and it even snowed.  I was thrilled to have everything ready to go to make this soup and try it out.  I loved it.  Riley wasn't a huge fan of the gnocchi texture.  He ate everything but those.

Chicken Gnocchi Soup

1 tablespoon olive oil
NOT 1 small onion, diced
3 stalks celery, diced (used extra to make up for onion)
3 cloves garlic, minced (used extra to make up for onion)
2 carrots, shredded (chopped baby carrots for me+extra)
1 rotisserie chicken, shredded
4 cups chicken broth
1 (16 ounce) package mini potato gnocchi
1 (6 ounce) bag baby spinach leaves
2 cups half-and-half cream
salt and ground black pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook (NO) onion, celery, garlic, and carrots in the hot oil until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in shredded chicken and chicken broth; bring to a simmer.      

Stir gnocchi into the simmering soup and cook until they begin to float, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in spinach; cook until wilted, about 3 additional minutes.        

Stir half-and-half into simmering soup. Cook until soup thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.        

(http://thefamilycraft.blogspot.com/2012/01/chicken-gnocchi-soup-aka-annie-oakley.html?m=1)
(Serves 6ish?  Enough for us plus some leftovers.)

         

Breakfast Sandwiches

Growing up, breakfast always included sausage or bacon.  Though I love the smells and they remind me of Mom's house and Nana's house, I don't cook them for breakfast often.  I use them in recipes, but they aren't a breakfast staple in our house.

This morning I didn't really have a plan for breakfast, but I DID have a can of biscuits, half of a pound of sausage, and some eggs.  So I made these!  You can too!!

No recipe at all, just do it.

Bake the biscuits, cook the sausage, and fry an egg.  Add a slice of cheese to your sandwich.  Serve with fresh fruit.  Yum-ola!

CInnamon Roll Hearts

This isn't a recipe, but it's an idea inspired by Pinterest.  I was seeing all of these homemade cinnamon roll recipes in the shape of a heart for Valentines Day.  One recipe said to pinch the bottom to make it shaped like a heart.  Well.....I know that a circle pinched at the bottom does NOT make a heart, so I was off to make it work my way.

I stayed home with a sick baby, woke up at 5am on Valentines Day and decided to make a Valentine Breakfast for my boys.  The cinnamon rolls were my mission and I wasn't making them from scratch.  Cooking with yeast frightens me.

I opened a can of cinnamon rolls, unrolled each roll to a line, rolled up each end and THEN pinched the bottom and THAT made a heart.  I laid them in the pan and baked them.

On a comment, I read that once you iced them, they didn't really look like hearts anymore, so I iced them in the shape of the heart AND threw away most of the icing.  Nobody noticed--score!!

Served this Valentine breakfast with strawberry "moomies" (smoothies) and a smile!!

Zebra Nipples??

The first Valentine treat we made were these.

 They sure were fun, but as I was making them, I was thinking that they needed a new name--Chocolate Pretzel Buttons just didn't do it for me.  It's like "Pretzels with an M&M and a Hug" kind of thing.  Of course my sous chef was in on this project:

 Thank goodness I had an Oompa Loompa to help--there was alot of unwrapping to do!  I was wishing for 10 more!!

So while he was eating one, Russ came up with a new name--Zebra Nipples!!  It's perfect, but not so G-rated for our house.  I'm still looking for another name.....but his is my favorite.

Zebra Nipples

square pretzels

Hershey Hugs

Valentine M&Ms

Preheat oven to 200 degrees and begin laying your pretzels out on a Silpat mat.  Top with Hugs.  Bake in oven to soften 4-5 minutes (5 minutes for me) and when they come out, immediately press M&Ms into center.  Refrigerate to set and they're ready to share and enjoy a few for yourself!