green juice

Mike got a juicer about 2 years ago.  I never used it.  He did for awhile and then it sat unused.

I pulled it out after new years in an effort to get the kids to "eat" vegetables.  Amelia will drink any of the juices we make...Hayden and me not so much.

I found this green juice recipe and everyone drank it.  So its a keeper!

It is a good recipe when you are starting out juicing and need to get used to drinking veggies.  It is not over powering.

I actually add a more kale now that they are used to it.

6 Kale leaves
1 cup Pineapple (you can use the outside shell but it makes the juice more foamy if you use too much)
1/2 cup melon

oatmeal cookie dough smoothie

I have been going to the gym every day.  This smoothie is great for when I get home and I am starving and need something.  Sometimes I throw in a few small dark chocolate chips too.

Ingredients

1. 1 small frozen banana
2. 1/4 cup raw oats
3. 1 tsp. chia seeds (optional)
4. 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
5. 1 tsp. vanilla flavor
6. 1 Tbsp. almond butter (I just used natural peanut butter)
7. 1/2 cup vanilla almond milk (regular milk works fine too)

Instructions

1. Place all ingredients into any standard blender and blend until smooth.

Oreo fudge bars

Wanted to take a new dessert at a party. These were easy to make and were all eaten. Got the recipe from Pinterest.

 

1 devils food cake mix
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
1  can (14oz.) sweetened condensed milk
14 Oreos, broken into bite size pieces

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and line a 9×13 inch baking pan with foil sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.
2. Place cake mix, butter and egg into a large bowl, mixing to combine. Use your hands, it works much quicker. Press into prepared baking pan. Top with broken pieces of cookies.
3. Pour sweetened condensed milk over cookies and top with chocolate chips. Bake for 23-25 minutes, until cooked through. Remove from oven.

 

 adapted from pickypalate.com

Cinnamon roll caramel popcorn

I made this for all of the kids teachers, helpers,etc.  It turned out great.  I will definitely make it again. 

 

• 18 cups popped popcorn (about 3/4 cup kernels)
• 1 1/2 sticks butter (12 tablespoons)
• 1 1/2 cups lightly packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup light corn syrup
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 4 ounces white chocolate, melted

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Grease two large rimmed baking sheets and set aside.
2. Place the popcorn in a really large bowl (or two separate large bowls if you don't have an extra big one).
3. In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. When melted add the brown sugar, corn syrup, and cinnamon. Bring to a boil while stirring. Once the mixture starts boiling, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring often, for 3 minutes. The mixture will be slightly thickened. Take the pot off the heat and stir in the vanilla and baking soda. The mixture will bubble so be careful.
4. Pour the caramel over the popcorn and mix until the popcorn is evenly coated.
5. Turn the popcorn out onto the baking sheets, spreading into an even layer on each sheet. Bake the popcorn for one hour, stirring and tossing every 20 minutes. Move the bottom tray to the upper rack and vice versa each time you stir. The popcorn will deepen in color and harden a bit as the caramel bakes and sets.
6. When the popcorn comes out of the oven, scrape it onto an even layer of parchment or wax paper.
7. Drizzle the white chocolate over the top (using the tines of a fork to drizzle it across or pour the melted chocolate into a freezer quart-size ziploc bag and snip a corner to drizzle).
8. Let the popcorn sit until white chocolate is set, 30 minutes or so. Break into pieces

 

adapted from melskitchencafe.com

Chicken parm minis

I love chicken parm. I order it a lot when we go out to eat I saw this recipe and thought it would good to have something different in our meal rotation. They were easy to make and tasted good. They are also a good freezer meal.

Ingredients:
1 pound of raw ground chicken
1/2 of a red pepper, diced
1/2 onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 teaspoon of oregano
3 mozzarella cheese sticks, each cut into 4 pieces
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 egg
1 cup of marinara sauce
1/2 cup of Italian bread crumbs
2 Tablespoons of Parmesan cheese
1 Tablespoon of olive oil
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  For the topping, mix together the Italian bread crumbs, one tablespoon of the parmesan cheese, and one tablespoon of olive oil; set aside.  In a bigger bowl, lightly beat the egg, and add chicken, red pepper, onion, garlic, oregano, 1 Tablespoon of Parmesan,  salt and pepper. Mix until well combined.  Spray a regular sized  muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray.  Spoon heaping spoonfuls of the chicken mixture into a muffin tin. Place a cheese cube (one of the pieces of cheese stick) down in the center of the mixture.  Put one more spoonful of chicken mixture on top, making sure the cheese is covered completely. Sprinkle the bread crumb mixture on top of each chicken mini. Put the muffin tin in the oven and cook for 30 minutes or until cooked through.  Serve with marinara sauce under the minis or in a cup on the side.
Makes 10 Chicken Parmesan Minis

from sixsistersstuff.com

Cheddar bacon dip in bread

 

I love dips and this did not disappoint.  It looks pretty in the the hollowed out bread too.

 

I did not put any ham in this.  Only the bacon.

It would beep great for a Super Bowl party. 

 

 oz. sour cream
8 oz. cream cheese
16 oz. cheddar cheese, grated (sharp or mild)
4 oz. chopped green chilies
Green onion (suit your own taste)
1 c. chopped ham
1/2 pound chopped bacon
1 round bread loaf, hollowed outMix first seven ingredients together and put into the hollowed out bread loaf. Bake at 350 degrees uncovered for one hour. Serve with leftover bread or chips…

Chicken Nuggets

There are tons of home made chicken nugget recipes.  I have made many.  This is my current favorite.  Buttermilk is always a key ingredient in breaded chicken but the pickle juice here is key.  Try it.  They are yummy.

Recipe:

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts
3/4 cup dill pickle juice
3/4 cup buttermilk
Tabasco sauce
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon paprika
3 egg whites
1 tablespoon water
1 1/2 cups unseasoned panko bread crumbs
Peanut oil (or other oil with a very high smoke point like canola, although canola can impart a fishy flavor when cooked at very high temperatures)

Instructions:

Cut the chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces. In a gallon-sized Ziploc bag, combine pickle juice, buttermilk, and about 10 dashes of Tabasco sauce. Add the chicken and seal the bag, then refrigerate it for 1-4 hours.

When ready to cook, whisk together 1 teaspoon black pepper, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, the flour, baking soda, onion powder, garlic powder, and paprika in a shallow bowl. In another shallow bowl, whisk together the egg whites and water. Add the bread crumbs to a third shallow bowl. Begin heating about 2 inches of peanut oil in a heavy pot (keep an eye on it…a grease fire will ruin your day).

Place a handful of chicken pieces into the flour and toss to coat (you can also coat them all at once by combining the chicken and the flour mixture in a large Ziploc bag and shaking to coat). Roll the chicken in the egg whites, then roll to coat in the Panko. Repeat with remaining chicken pieces. I find it works best when I use one hand to do the flour/egg part and the other hand for the bread crumbs–it kind of keeps the mess to a minimum.

Preheat oven to the lowest setting.

When the oil reaches 350 degrees, place 1/3-1/2 of the coated chicken pieces in the pan and cook, stirring gently and frequently, until golden brown (about 3-5 minutes; use an instant read thermometer to check them if you’re nervous; the nuggets should be at least 165 degrees F in the center). Place the cooked chicken in the heated oven (or serve, if you have hungry little monkeys hanging around the kitchen) and repeat with the remaining chicken. Serve immediately. Makes 6 servings.

from ourbestbites.com