Sausage Fajitas

This is a super yummy dinner that is sure to fill you up! Typically, this could serve five or six people. But in my house of course, it's just enough for the three of us. You can eat this fajita style, or just eat it alone!

Ingredients:

2 red peppers

2 yellow peppers

2 sausage links

1 large onion

3 large potatoes or 5 small potatoes

Olive oil

Garlic powder

Salt & Pepper

I previously chopped up my peppers and froze them, which made the prep time so much shorter! But you want to chop up your peppers, onion, sausage, and potatoes. Mix them all up in a large bowl with olive oil, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. You can also substitute onions for onion powder if you don't have any.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees and start putting your mix into aluminum foil boats. You can say a hand sized amount is about one serving, and want to make sure your foil ends will touch when they close so you can fold them over. Make sure the ends are tucked in and covered as well to avoid spills!

Fill up all your foil boats and bake for 40-75 mins. Depending on the size you cut your potatoes, you may have to cook at a different time. The smaller, the less time. This time I had to cook mine to about 75 mins to make sure they were soft. Usually I cut them smaller and cook them for 55 mins. They end up melting in your mouth and are my FAVORITE part of this meal. So just keep checking on them until it's just right.

Try this out and let me know how you like it! Like I said, you can eat these with tortillas to make them fajitas, or plain. You could maybe even add some cheese or extra seasonings to make it spicy. Also if you don't want so many servings, you can easily cut the recipe in half. One pepper each, one sausage link, half an onion, and less potatoes. Experiment with it and make it your own! You'll love it (:

White Chicken Chili

Yummy, yummy, yummy! My Hubby has never had white chicken chili before, so I've been anxious to make this for him! Of course it ended up being a little spicy for SS and I, but not spicy enough for Hubs.... The red pepper flakes and hot sauce made their usual appearance! None the less, this is still an awesome dinner. And bonus!...Crock pot!! I threw all the stuff I needed into the crock pot before heading out to go get stuff for our garden, and 4-6 hours later after all our shopping, exploring, and relaxing was done, dinner was ready for us! I love lazy cooking (:

Ingredients:

2.5 lbs of boneless, skinless, chicken breasts

2 cans of great northern white beans (can also use pinto)

1 can of whole corn (white corn would be awesome but I couldn't find any)

2 small cans of green chilies

One 32 oz container of chicken broth

2 packets of McCormick white chicken chili seasoning

Put your chicken in the crock pot along with your chicken broth, chilies, and seasoning. Drain beans and corn, and add those as well. Stir, cover, and cook on high for four hours, or low for six hours. That's it!

I used frozen chicken, so after 5 1/2 hours on low it was pretty much cooked, I shredded it up, and cooked another thirty minutes. We topped it with cheese, and crackers! Also, sorry for the dark picture... my over head light on the stove blew out ): But you get the idea! This smells sooo yummy, and has a good spice to it! If you don't like so much spice, use one can of chilies. If you LOVE your spice, add another can! But it has a nice balance. Try this out since its so easy, and let me know if you enjoyed it! (:

Crispy Mustard Ranch Potatoes

This is a little embarrassing.... This is one of my favorite foods, ever, that my Mom makes, and I got so excited about making it, that I ate half my bowl before taking a picture.... HAHA!
It was a lazy day the other day. Hubby stayed home to spend the day with us, and I knew dinner was going to be late. We were all getting a little hungry, and I finally had some bacon, so I thought..."YES! I can finally try some mustard ranch potatoes!" I was super excited.

I'm not a mustard person, at all. One thing I love is that my Step Son loves/hates all the same condiments as me. We love ketchup, and mayo, but hate mustard. Hubby is the opposite. We have lots of "YUCK" fights in this house! What's so weird to me is I really do not like mustard the slightest bit (besides honey mustard), but I absolutely adore these potatoes!! I think the bacon is what makes them so good. I could eat three pots of these, and still not be satisfied. I'm seriously in love. Now that I know how to make them, I'm even more in love, because now I can make them anytime I want!! This is a perfect side dish because you only need four ingredients that are usually laying around, and there's time for you to make all your other food while these are getting cooked up!

Ingredients:

3 large potatoes
Ranch dressing
Mustard
4 large bacon slices

You first want to peel and cube, your potatoes. Once you're done with that huge task, mix them with ranch dressing and mustard. There's no exact measurement I can give you, so just put a little more ranch than mustard until evenly coated.

Chop up your bacon, and brown in a large pot. Over medium heat, add in your potatoes once the bacon is done, and stir. Cover the pot like you're going to cook fried potatoes, and keep covered until cooked. Once they're soft and browning, uncover the pot until they get to your desired crispness. That's all!

I could have let my potatoes get crispier, but I was getting too impatient, and every two seconds I heard SS "is the food ready yet?" But these are the boooommbbbb. Try them and let me know if you love them, too!

Mama's Homemade Creamy Mac 'n Cheese

Yet another of my, missing home and having cravings, recipes from my Mama, with no exact measurements. It's so frustrating sometimes when my Mom tells me some of my favorite recipes she makes because I want it to be as good as hers! She's made some of these for us our whole life, so she's become a pro at eye balling how much is needed in her recipes. Recently though, my interpretations have come out pretty great. This would be one of those!

My brother and I were basically raised on macaroni and cheese. Due to his Autism, it was one of the only things we as a family all enjoyed. I want to say a few years back though, my Mom started making this homemade macaroni and cheese. I don't think I'll ever go back!! The generic box stuff just isn't as good anymore. This is awesome as a side dish, which I used for the dinner I made in the photo. But we've made it our whole meal before! It's just that good, and you can't get enough of it.

Ingredients:

16 oz elbow or shell macaroni
Butter
Milk
Velveeta cheese
Shredded cheese (fiest blend, cheddar, mozzarella, any kind you like....)
Salt and Pepper

Cook your macaroni according to the boxes instructions. Drain, plop a big glob of butter into the pot, and cut a big hunk of Velveeta cheese. Cut it up into decent size chunks, add milk, and a big handful of shredded cheese. Salt and pepper to taste, and stir till melted. You can add more cheese/milk/both as you like, depending on the consistency you want. Once satisfied with your pot of gooey cheese, mix in the macaroni!

That's it! Super easy, and super yummy. My Mama also told me sometimes she seasons it with a little bit of nutmeg as well, so maybe give that a try! Let me know what you think, and if you love it as much as me!

Creamy Garlic Pasta

Groceries are dwindling down around here as we wait for an opportunity to go to the grocery store. Meanwhile, I was STARVING last night while Hubby was at work. I was on Pinterest, of course, looking at pasta recipes that I could make to use up some spaghetti noodles we have and came across this recipe. My Mom would make this all the time, so I already knew I'd love it, and I just so happened to have exactly what the recipe called for left sitting around. This was super easy, and even yummier than I remembered.

Ingredients:

2 tsp olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp butter
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
3 cups chicken stock
spaghetti or angel hair pasta
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
3/4 cup heavy cream

In a pot, bring olive oil to medium-low heat. Add the garlic and let cook for a few minutes while stirring. Mix in the butter until melted, and then add salt, pepper, and chicken stock. Raise the heat to high and let it come to a boil.

Once it is at a rolling boil, add the pasta and cook according to the boxes instructions. Reduce the stove to medium heat and mix in the parmesan cheese until melted. Turn off the heat and mix in the heavy cream.

This turned out super creamy, and FULL of flavor. Usually I would add extra parmesan on top, but there was no need! I steamed up a bag of broccoli florets and paired them together. It was delicious and filling. Tried my hardest not to eat the whole pot, so Hubby could have some when he got home! I'm glad I didn't eat anymore because he devoured into it! Try this out and let me know how you like it! (:

Honey Sesame Chicken

Today was my first full day at home by myself. SS isn't home until next week, and Hubby was at work. So I spent my day catching up on some sleep, dishes, and laundry, and doing some unpacking. I didn't have to cook dinner at the usual time since Hubby gets off work late at a different time every night. So it was a perfect opportunity for a crock pot meal.

This meal is DELICIOUS. First time I made it, Hubby was craving sesame chicken, and this cured it. It amazes me how one ingredient, chicken, can be made to taste like so many different flavors. It's probably my favorite ingredient to cook with. I have to watch how much chicken, rice, and pasta I cook because I love them all so much. Which is why you'll see a lot of recipes involving chicken, rice, and pasta on this blog!

So lets get started! Ingredients:

6-8 boneless skinless chicken thighs, or 4 chicken breasts

salt & pepper

1/2 cup diced onion

2 cloves garlic minced

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce

1/4 cup ketchup

2 tbsp vegetable or olive oil

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

4 tsp corn starch

1/3 cup water

rice

sesame seeds for garnish

You want to lightly salt and pepper each side of your chicken. Combine your onion, garlic, honey, soy sauce, ketchup, oil, and red pepper flakes. Pour over your chicken in the crock pot. 

Cook on low for 3-4 hours or on high for 2 hours. 

Remove chicken and shred while preparing rice. Dissolve corn starch in water and add to your sauce in the crock pot. Cook on high for 10 minutes. 

Top your rice with chicken, sauce, and sesame seeds, and DEVOUR!

Try this out and let me know how you like it! I promise you it won't be the last time you make it! (:

Garlic Broccoli Pasta

Yesterday we took a day trip to Disney World. One of the many perks of living in Florida and having annual passes. We didn't get home until past 2am, and we are sore, tired, and cranky. We had a lazy day of laying in bed, on the couch, and playing Disneyland Kinect. So I was NOT about to make a big dinner with tons of ingredients or steps. My legs are sore and feet are covered in blisters, so I wanted something that wouldn't have me standing any longer than 20 mins. Another wonderful perk of Disney (:

This is a favorite of ours and I've got it down to where I put my own "measurements", but I will make it more precise for you guys. Of course with some wiggle room for things like cheese. Because who wants a limit on how much cheese they can eat?!

The trick with the cheese is picking the right kind. Usually the "fancy" cheese in the little buckets work best, but sometimes my store doesn't have any. So the store brand usually works just as well. It just ends up being SUPER cheesy and getting stuck all in the pasta spoon and pot if you put it in while it's still steaming. The plates are super fun to clean. I had a little bucket of fancy cheese, but had some store brand mozzarella that needed used up so I forgot all about the fancy little bucket.

Ingredients:

12 oz of uncooked pasta (elbow works best)
6 1/2 cups of broccoli florets, no stems
4 large cloves of garlic or 5 small cloves
2 tbsp olive oil, divided
salt and pepper to taste
as much or as little cheese as you want

To start, add your pasta and broccoli at the same time, in a boiling pot of salted water. Cook according to the pasta directions. SAVE A CUP OF THE PASTA WATER. I almost always forget this step, and I really think it makes a difference in the taste. Drain and put your pot back on the stove.

Heat up a tablespoon of olive oil, and once HOT, cook your garlic in the oil over low-medium heat until golden. Return your pasta and broccoli back to the pot and add your pasta water and other tablespoon of oil. Add cheese, salt and pepper to taste, and serve.

Incredibly easy, and super yummy! This is SUPPOSE to serve six...it serves the three of us in our house, with room for salad and garlic bread. Now you understand "Feeding My Monsters" if you didn't already! Hubby had a third plate and probably four pieces of garlic toast.... Give it a try and tell me how you like it! The first time I made it, it was pretty bland. Salt and "sprinkle cheese" (grated Parmesan) helped a lot! So that's why I'm giving no limit on cheese! It all depends on your taste and how you like YOUR food. Enjoy! (:

Chicken Fajita Quesadillas

OMG OMG OMG, I LOVE THESE!!! We love cooking as much Hispanic food around here as we can to get SS interested in all the cultures in his family. He doesn't get much exposure with his Mom, so we load up over here! Dora is beginning to make a presence in our home even. LOL. Peppers are our second favorite veggie next to broccoli, so I cook with peppers a ton. I'm always looking for new ways to cook with them, and found this. We make "sausage fajitas" a lot, so I thought it would be nice to make some actual fajitas. This was surprisingly easier than I anticipated and will probably be made again sometime soon. We LOVED them. SS ate all of his and Hubby asked me to make him seconds.

Ingredients:

Olive oil

Fajita mix

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 red bell pepper

1 green bell pepper

2 onions

Taco blend cheese or cheddar cheese

Tortillas

Butter

Salsa and sour cream (optional)

Cut your onions, peppers, and chicken into long strips. Mix the chicken with 1 tbsp of fajita mix. With a little bit of olive oil, cook your chicken until no longer pink on the inside. A little bit of a char would be nice to really give it an authentic taste. Remove your chicken and wipe your skillet clean. Next, with a little bit of olive oil again, cook your onions until almost translucent. Add your peppers and the rest of the fajita mix. Mix will and cook slightly. Now add your chicken and let cook for a little bit longer. I covered my pan with a lid, off the heat, while I did the next step to keep it all warm and make sure the peppers were really cooked.

In a hot, clean skillet, add some butter and allow to melt. Place your tortilla in the pan and move it around so it gets covered in butter. You can choose to put your cheese on now, or after you fill with a layer of the fajita mix. Place a second tortilla on top and flip. I found it best to slid a little bit of butter under the new tortilla and shake the pan around to make sure it got crispy, too.

You can them serve with salsa and sour cream. We ate ours with our favorite Spanish rice. Like I said, these are amazing! I got a sweet taste from them, probably because of the butter on the tortillas. We all ate every last bite, and are still wishing there was some left. Also, a big thank you to my Hubby for plating this for me while I cooked some more. (: He then made us some dessert tortillas. A tortilla covered in butter, fried in a skillet, covered in cinnamon sugar. YUM. First thing he ever cooked for me when we were dating. We had fun during dinner listening to SS figure out how to say fajita quesadillas. He came up with a ton of variations. Bahida Quesadillas and fadillas were my favorites.

PLEASE, try these. You must. Tell me if you like them, and we can share the yumminess together. Your bellies will be super happy, I promise you.

Mama's Potato Soup

This one was scary for me! Who on earth can ever cook food as good as their Mom? Not me, that's for sure. There's just something about food from your Mom and Grandma, that you just can't copy. It never taste just quite the same or just as good. 

But, I tried anyways and it turned out well! This was a staple dinner when I was living with my parents, and I always looked forward to a bowl, or two, or three on chilly nights or when I wanted something hearty and salty. It was one of the things I craved most from my Mama's cooking. My SS loves potato soup, and most importantly his Grandma's, so he was excited that I was copying her recipe tonight.

This is definitely a dish that takes some practice in my opinion, no matter how great of a cook you are. There were plenty of nights my Mom would complain that it wasn't thick enough or have enough flavor or whatever was wrong! But once you've got it down, it's more likely you'll get it right more often than you won't. These are the ingredients I used, some exact measurements, some guesstimates. But use what amount works best for you. As long as you have the right ingredients, measurements don't need to be exact.

Ingredients:

4 large potatoes

4 thick slices of bacon

Half a large onion

2 large carrots

2 celery stalks

Flour (about 5 tsp?)

Butter (optional, used about 2 tbsp)

2 1/2 cups of chicken broth

2 cups of milk (guessing)

Salt & Pepper to taste

Garnish with
Cheese 

Crackers

Bacon bits

First you want to start by cleaning, peeling, and dicing your potatoes. Boil them in a large pot of salted water for 15 minutes. When done, dice and brown some bacon in the pot. Cut onion, carrot, and celery into tiny bites. Remove bacon when cooked and throw in diced veggies into the bacon grease. Cook over low-medium heat until they are soft.

Add flour to grease to make a rue. This is when you can add your butter if you like. I did because I didn't have enough bacon grease. You can also add some vegetable oil if you aren't getting much of a rue. My fault for not leaving all the fat on the bacon.... Stir and cook until light brown, and salt while cooking. Add your chicken broth. You can add 2-4 cups depending on the thickness you want. I love my potato soup thick, so I only did two and half cups. Add your potatoes and some milk, and stir it all up until it becomes the thickness you want. 

Top with bacon and cheese, serve with some crackers, and be sure to salt and pepper to taste!

This was so scary for me, and I was so frustrated that it wasn't working that I almost threw it all out. But once I got it to start thickening, all was right in the world again. SS loved it and actually ate every bite. Something that is hard for him to do recently. There's still plenty left over for Hubby to eat when he gets home from work, and enough for me to snack on some if I get hungry while waiting.

Experiment with this recipe and let me know how it goes! I've been missing my Mom a bit recently since it is now two full weeks since we've been completely moved into our home. So it was nice to have a little piece of her at my house tonight. There's nothing in the world like Mama's love filled comfort food.

Crescent Roll S'mores

It was a lazy morning today. Hubby let me sleep in and I didn't have any big plans for breakfast so we just had simple things. Hubs and SS were playing Kinect and I was watching my online shows when it hit me that I still had a can of crescent rolls left over from a big breakfast we had last week, and we now had Nutella and marshmallows! I've seen crescent roll s'mores on Pinterest I don't know how many times, so I jumped up and made some!

You'll learn very quickly on this blog, that we buy a LOT of Great Value and generic brands. I was raised on generic, and have always thought they were just as good as name brand. Some things, yes, you want to buy name brand, but if I can save a dollar on the same taste, I do it.
This is a super easy snack....only three ingredients.

Nutella or Hershey chocolate squares
Mini marshmallows
A can of crescent rolls

You want to start by preheating your oven according to the crescent roll directions, and grease your baking sheet or put down some parchment paper. I definitely recommend putting down parchment paper, because these got a bit messy while cooking. I have a fun mess to clean up (;

You want to put a small bit of Nutella or one square of chocolate on the middle of the longest edge of your crescent roll, and top with marshmallows. I found three to be a good amount. Four caused them to overflow out too much. Also, don't cover the whole edge with chocolate...it's a mess.

You'll notice the first top one was my tester, and I quickly learned how to do them the correct way HAHA. Roll them up and cook them according to the directions. Mine actually took one minute less than the directions and turned out perfect. I have a pretty powerful oven....my electric bill proves it. These are not pretty by any means, but turned out delicious.

I served these still pretty warm with some milk and Hubby and SS loved them! Every bite SS took came with a loud "Mmmm!!" So I think these will definitely be made again next time we have the ingredients laying around and want a sweet snack.

Also, I am currently using my iPhone for all of these pictures. :P We are still unpacking (mostly my things) and I haven't been able to find my camera. So if these pictures aren't Pinterest perfect for you, bear with me for a bit!! I hope you all try this out, and let me know how you liked them! It seriously was so quick. I think I made them all during the ads in my show, and they were a quick boost for Hubs before heading to work.
Enjoy! (: