Tailgate Tuesday- Sausage Stuffed Jalapenos

Who’s tailgating this football season? Or going to game day gatherings?

If that’s you, then you will likely be taking something for the crowd to snack on. I’m sure you’ve got some go-to recipes, but I’m here to offer you some new recipes that have been serving me well for many football seasons past.

Today, I’m sharing a delicious recipe for Sausage Stuffed Jalapenos.

I actually made this one for the first time this year, but they were well-liked, and I feel I could take them again to the same crowd. I first had this recipe while visiting my former neighbors in Louisiana. Megan made them for us, we at them all, then we made them again. They’re that good. Continue reading “Tailgate Tuesday- Sausage Stuffed Jalapenos”

The Smoothie Recipe That Keeps Me Full All Morning

I’m a pretty early riser during the school year. I have to be at work early, and because I like my devotion time in the morning, I will wake up before 5:00 most days. This means I’m usually eating breakfast between 5:00 and 5:15 and don’t get to eat again until 11:00. If I eat at 5:00 a.m. and don’t eat something protein-rich, I’m hungry by 8:00 a.m. Not conducive to my teacher schedule at all.

This school year I set out on a quest to find the things that would best keep me full without having to fix a full on breakfast every morning. Enter the protein smoothie.

Continue reading “The Smoothie Recipe That Keeps Me Full All Morning”

Garlic Brussel Sprouts Recipe

GARLIC BRUSSEL SPROUTS RECIPE

Say hello to my new favorite side dish. I have never actually liked brussel sprouts. I thought they were pretty bitter, and I’d probably never had them jazzed up before. But in an effort to better our health in our thirties, Paul and I decided to give them a go and to find a recipe that would hopefully make them appetizing and still be healthy. Continue reading “Garlic Brussel Sprouts Recipe”

Meatless White Pizza Recipe

MEATLESS WHITE PIZZA RECIPE

This idea came to me when Paul told me that his mom was trying to think of some meatless meals for Fridays during Lent. He told her that I make a pizza that I often don’t put any meat on, and that it’s really good. It’s very simple, and I’d like to share the recipe with you if you’re tired of ordering cheese pizza during Lent or if you just don’t want to pay for delivery or have all those extra calories that seem to pile on with take-out pizza.

First, you must know that I am a pizza lover. If I had to have a last meal, it would definitely be some form of pizza. Probably several forms of it, if I’m being honest. I won’t proclaim this pizza to be super healthy. It just tastes good and isn’t take-out.

I start with a store bought thin pizza crust. You can obviously go with a regular crust or the pizza dough in the refrigerated section. But I usually do the thin crust like this.

I brush a little olive oil on the crust (mostly because the package tells you to) and then add a little Alfredo sauce. I don’t go crazy on the sauce. I don’t like a lot of sauce on my pizza, so I just use a regular spoon and stop when I feel like I’ve got enough. This actually looks like a lot of sauce, though. Oops!

Then I’ve got to doctor it up a little. I sprinkle Italian seasoning onto the sauce and a little garlic powder and red pepper flakes.

Then I pile on the spinach. I usually go with the bag of spinach, but I have used the frozen stuff if I’ve had some left over from another recipe. I prefer the fresh spinach because you can add a good amount, and it wilts down beautifully. I feel like I’m getting more of the spinach when I use the fresh.

Next comes the mozzarella cheese. I like using shredded or fresh mozzarella. And sometimes I’ll add some Parmesan too. It just depends on what I’ve got in the fridge. Usually it’s just mozzarella as was the case tonight.

Lastly, and maybe my favorite part is the sliced Roma tomatoes. They cook really well on top of the pizza and taste so delicious.

Then I bake until the cheese is nice and melted. If you’re feeling fancy, turn on the broiler for a few minutes to get the cheese really bubbly. Take it out and let it rest for a few minutes. Then cut and serve. I don’t typically top it with anything else because all of my favorite toppings have been cooked into it. Fresh parsley would be nice, though.

Simple right? And so yummy!

Now, let me tell you of a few changes you can make that tastes delicious also.

Instead of alfredo or whatever white sauce you like, you can do marinara sauce or, my favorite, basil pesto. Now don’t overdo the pesto, but just a little spread over the crust is a different and scrumptious flavor if you’re tired of red and white sauce on your pizza.
Use other greens instead of spinach. Arugula would be very good in place of spinach, and of course, kale would be a great substitute too.
Add meat! You don’t have to on Fridays during Lent, obviously, but I often add canned chicken. Yep, you read that right, canned chicken. It’s amazing! And cheap and easy and sometimes it’s what works and I’m not apologizing for it.
Add your favorite cheese. If mozzarella isn’t your favorite cheese, by all means, add your fave. I’ve even added ricotta with my mozzarella which is super tasty.
I only added Roma tomatoes, but please add whatever toppings you like. Add some onions, black olives, mushrooms, peppers, the list goes on.

The point is that you can add anything to your pizza that you like. This one just happens to be one of my favorites to make. Below is a picture of all the ingredients and the recipe. Let me know if you make this pizza and if you changed it in any way! I’d love more inspiration for more delicious pizzas!

Ingredients:

Thin Pizza Crust
Jar of Alfredo Sauce
Olive Oil
Italian Seasoning
Garlic Powder
Red PepperFlakes
Spinach Leaves
Mozzarella Cheese
Roma Tomato (2)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450° for this particular crust
Brush olive oil onto the crust
Spoon on desired amount of Alfredo sauce
Sprinkle on Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes
Add desired amount of spinach
Sprinkle mozzarella cheese onto pizza
Cut tomatoes into medallions and spread over the cheese
Bake until cheese is melted (15-20 minutes)
Serve and Enjoy

The Best Hot Cocoa Recipe Ever

THE BEST HOT COCOA RECIPE EVER

Every year that I’ve taught (I think-maybe I missed one or two of the early years) I’ve made homemade hot cocoa for my students. It’s usually during a week full of super fun Christmas crafts, movies, programs, and excitement. But this year I am teaching 3rd grade and the festivities were a bit different than they have been in the past. However, I still wanted to make them hot cocoa that didn’t come in powder form in a packet. (Not knocking that stuff either. It’s not so bad!)

Planning Ahead

I have 42 students that I had to prepare for, so I doubled the recipe I used. Turns out doubling the recipe is too much liquid to fit into my slow cooker. So, I used a large pot and made it on the stove the night before. It cooled a bit and I funneled it into a gallon jug and a 64 oz. Hydroflask. (These things are seriously so wonderful. I use the 32 oz. bottle for water every single day.)

When I got to school I immediately put some in the slow cooker and somehow ended up looking like this…Yep, wore the chocolate splatter all day from before 7:30am until about 4:30pm.

I serve it to the students in these small styrofoam cups with marshmallows. This size cup is really big enough for them. The cocoa is pretty rich, and they are always satisfied with a small amount as opposed to a full mug. I ended up with a little left over and was able to enjoy a few cups at home. That full mug at the top of the post was WAY too much. I think I made it through half before I had to pour out the rest. It’s very rich and sweet.

I reheat it either on the stove, stirring regularly or in the microwave in 30 second increments. It still tastes pretty delicious a few days later.

The Recipe

2 cups heavy cream

2 cups milk chocolate chips

6 cups of whole milk

1 tsp vanilla

Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker (or a pot on the stove on low heat). Stir together and cook on low until chocolate is melted. Stir often to help dissolve the chocolate chips and prevent them from sticking to the bottom of the slow cooker. Ladle the finished product into your favorite mug, top with marshmallows, wait to cool a bit, then enjoy!

*You can just use 1.5 cups heavy cream and a 14 oz. can of sweetened condensed milk to make it a tad richer if you’d like. Yum!

It’s so delightful and sure to be a crowd pleaser with your family this Christmas.

Cheers, y’all!

Elizabeth

Fall Recipe- Pumpkin Oatmeal

PUMPKIN OATMEAL

I’m still on a fall food kick, and I’ve found another yummy one. Pumpkin Oatmeal, y’all! I am a fan of oatmeal in bursts. Sometimes I get really into it, and I’ll stay into it for a few weeks or so, but then I don’t want it for about six months.

I was in one of those six month stretches when I came across this recipe on Pinterest. (Seriously, what did we do before Pinterest?) I’m a sucker for just about anything with pumpkin, so I decided to give it a go.

The Recipe

As is my pattern, I cannot take credit for this recipe, so I’d like to link to the original post where I found it. Click here to go to Damn Delicious. Yep, that’s the name of her site. Ha! Well, the oatmeal was just that, so her content lives up to her site name.

I cooked the oatmeal (Old Fashioned Oats) in almond milk, and once it was done (ten-ish minutes), I added canned pumpkin, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Something about cinnamon screams fall and simply warms my heart.

Your kitchen will begin to smell like some serious fall goodness, and you’ll want to eat the entire pot even though it makes about four servings.

Let’s Eat!

Chungah, the author of Damn Delicious, serves hers with pecans on top. (YUM!) But I didn’t have any pecans, and it didn’t make that much of a difference to me to have them, so I omitted them this time.

But you should for sure drizzle on a little maple syrup before serving the oatmeal for just a hint of sweetness. So tasty!

Then pour yourself a coffee with your favorite pumpkin spice creamer and you’ve got yourself a bona fide fall breakfast.

It keeps well in the fridge and warms up pretty well in the microwave. I recommend pouring a bit more almond milk over it before microwaving since it can dry out the longer it sits in the fridge.

Don’t forget to head over to Damn Delicious to get this DELICOUS recipe. I hope you get a chance to make it and enjoy it as much as I do.

Happy Wednesday, friends! See you soon with some September favorites. (There’s quite a few!) 🙂 Have a great rest of the week.

XO,

Elizabeth

Fall Recipe- Cheesy Potato Soup

FALL RECIPE-CHEESY POTATO SOUP

Have y’all ever been to O’Charley’s? Have you ever ordered the potato soup while there? Did you ever go back to O’Charley’s and order that soup every single time you went? Guilty.

In my fall state of mind over here I went to Pinterest to look for some yummy fall recipes. Okay, let’s be honest, I went there looking for pumpkin recipes because I’m a basic white girl that loves her #psl (psl=pumpkin spice latte for those of you living under a rock) and I ain’t ashamed to admit it! (I’ve tested one recipe already, and I’ll be reporting back next week with that treasure.) Anyway, as one often does on a Pinterest binge, I found myself heading down the soup-hole that is so enormous on that site, and I landed right on THIS ONE. I immediately wanted to try it, so I set out for the grocery store. I didn’t get a good picture of all the ingredients, but I will link the original website that was linked to the pin here at The Chunky Chef and she will give you all the information you need.

It calls for three pounds of red potatoes, so here’s a picture of those yummy potatoes post boil. While the potatoes were boiling, I was chopping green onions, making a roux (Louisiana friends don’t hate on the looks of my roux-I didn’t burn it, so I’m proud!),and cooking the bacon to be crumbled on top. I don’t know about y’all, but I just about don’t cook bacon any other way than in my oven. I don’t like being popped by hot grease nor do I like cleaning it up. So this is my favorite way.I need to say that it’s not a healthy soup. It has half and half, whole milk, Velveeta, and cans of cheddar cheese soup to name a few unhealthy ingredients. But sometimes you just want some comfort food, and when those temperatures dropped a week or so ago, the fall feels were all over me, and I needed some soup dang it.

And of course I served it with more bread because No Carb Left Behind! It’s super delicious. It does call for a lot of garlic, so if you’re garlic-sensitive like my dad, you will need to scale down on the amount you put in. It really makes it taste so good, and I don’t recommend leaving it out entirely, but maybe you could use only half the amount it calls for (2 tsp, I think) and it would still be tasty. The other thing that makes it so good is the little kick you get from adding a touch of hot sauce. It’s the magic ingredient for sure.

One more thing-it makes a very large pot. So share with someone! Paul and I don’t mind leftovers, but it was still too much for the two of us. Needless to say, we shared. I cannot take credit for this recipe, so I won’t list the actual written recipe here on my post, but if you click HERE you’ll go right to it on The Chunky Chef’s blog. Her pictures are way gorgeous, and her tomato soup looks to die for. I don’t even like tomato soup and I want to make it!

I hope you give this one a go. I know the temperatures have gone back up to the low 90s lately but just bump your air down a bit before dinner. 🙂 It’s worth it!

Happy Friday, friends!

XO,

Elizabeth

Recipe Worth Sharing- Shrimp Lo Mein

RECIPE WORTH SHARING- SHRIMP LO MEIN

You guys…this recipe! First, let me preface this post by saying I am no food photographer. I have tons to learn in that department, but I need to share this recipe with y’all so bear with my amateur skills behind the camera.

I’ve been seriously slacking in the wife department when it comes to cooking, well pretty much everywhere else too now that school has started. Paul has been doing so much laundry. Bless you, babe! When you’re basically a sloth in the summer in front of Netflix all the time, you forget how to balance your life. Anyway, I am determined to get it back together now that I’m a few weeks in to school.

Yesterday I knew I had to get something to cook for dinner before heading home, so I headed to Pinterest for some inspiration instead of ordering pizza. I was sort of craving Chinese food, noodles, specifically, and shrimp and searched a lo mein recipe. I clicked on this pin from lifemadesweeter.com.

Ingredients

Her lo mein recipe used:

shrimp
red bell pepper
carrots

Very simple and delicious. Paul doesn’t love bell pepper, so I decided to do broccoli instead. But when I got to the store I found myself adding all of these things to my cart to add to my lo mein, so I used:

shrimp
green peas
broccoli
grated carrots
small sweet onion
water chestnuts

In the center is minced garlic and minced ginger which is part of her recipe.

For the sauce, you have to use oyster sauce. That sounded positively disgusting, and I fully expected the smell to be very off-putting, but it wasn’t so bad, and it totally makes the sauce, AND I found it very easily in Super Foods. Woo Hoo! (As much as I appreciate a good Walmart clearance or just a good Walmart find in general, I was so happy to not have to go there on a Friday afternoon.)

So here are the other ingredients I used (all but the veggie oil and noodles are used in the sauce).

I followed her recipe just as she had written it, and I’m not going to post an in-depth description of what I did, since this is not my recipe. Please visit her website to see the full recipe. I just wanted you to see how I tweaked it.

Put it all together and what do you have? Deliciousness!

Okay, I mixed up the sauce while the noodles were boiling. I used thin spaghetti noodles instead of lo mein noodles because I already had those in the cabinet. I didn’t have the Chinese cooking wine or dry sherry, so I omitted it, and I never missed it. Also, Paul and I don’t like cilantro, so I left that out too.

The sauce only take a minute to put together, so while the noodles cooked, I heated a big skillet with some of the veggie oil, dropped in the shrimp and onions and sauted for a few minutes. Then I added all the other ingredients except the sauce. I let them all cook down and get a little soft. The recipe tells you to add the sauce and noodles next, toss, and cook for about two minutes, so I did that.

*I cooked the whole pound of noodles because, well, leftovers. But that means I doubled the amount of sauce that the recipe calls for.* It doesn’t look like it’s going to be enough sauce because my noodles did not get as dark as the one in her pictures, but it was perfect!

The beauty of this recipe is how customizable it is. I think bell pepper would be good in it, chicken instead of shrimp, baby corn, chopped asparagus, pineapple, rice instead of noodles, or even just leave it veggie and not put any meat in it.

The Verdict

It was a big hit! Paul loves Chinese food, but I just don’t love typical Chinese takeout. I like the veggie lo mein and fried rice, but I’m never just dying to go get Chinese food unless, well, honestly unless it’s at Ming’s Garden in Montgomery or P.F. Chang’s. I do enjoy the fried rice and lo mein at China Town here in Greenville, though. And their fried wontons. Yum! I get so sidetracked, I’m sorry. It was so delicious! I took one bite and shook my head because it was so unbelievable. It was exactly what I was craving, and I’m so happy to have leftovers and happy to make this again and switch up some of the ingredients each time.

Here are a few more amateur pictures of our food. 🙂

Please visit lifemadesweeter.com to find this delicious recipe. She has so many other scrumptious looking dishes to make, too. I’ll be going there for more Asian-inspired dinners soon.

Okay, go make this delicious dinner tonight! It was very easy and would be a quick weeknight meal. It would be even quicker if you meal-prepped early and had everything thawed (well, not the shrimp) and cut/grated.

Anyone else like Asian food? Paul and I love sushi, but haven’t gotten around to a sushi date night lately. Any restaurant recommendations for good sushi in the Montgomery area? Leave them in the comments.

Have a great weekend, everyone.

XO, Elizabeth