Crockpot Monkey Bread

So a few days ago I decided we would have breakfast for dinner and I wanted to do something a little different because I'm not a huge bacon, sausage, or scrapple fan so I'm only really left with eggs and toast when we do a big breakfast.  So I came across a recipe for monkey bread using the crockpot and thought I would give it a go!  It smelled amazing and tasted even better, but next time I will let it cook a bit longer because I may have been a little impatient and only let it go until it was just done.  You can find the original recipe and ingredients here!

Ingredients:

• 1 container Pillsbury Grands Original Biscuits {16.3 oz.}
• 1/2 cup White Sugar
• 1/2 cup Brown Sugar
• 1 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
• 1 stick Butter, melted
• Optional: Cream Cheese, softened

Directions:

• Spray inside of crockpot with non-stick cooking spray.
• Melt butter in microwave safe bowl, and set aside.
• Combine brown sugar, white sugar and cinnamon in gallon size ziploc bag, zip up, and shake well to mix together.  Set aside.
• Cut each biscuit into 6 pieces.
• Once all pieces have been cut, take each piece one by one and dip into melted butter, then transfer into cinnamon sugar mixture bag.
• Once all pieces have been added to bag, zip up and carefully shake and gently roll around so all pieces get coated.
• Pour any remaining leftover butter into bottom of crockpot.
• Carefully transfer all sugar coated biscuit pieces into crockpot, and spread out along the bottom.
• Cook on LOW for 2.5 hours, or until done.
• Optional: top with a little room temperature cream cheese for an extra added bit of deliciousness!
• Scoop portions out into small dishes, serve and ENJOY!!

Now I did make a few adjustments as well. I added a bit of vanilla to the butter before I dunked the biscuit pieces in.  I also didn't put the sugar into a plastic bag, but instead put it on a plate and just coated each piece and threw it in the crockpot.

Here is a picture of it just about finished:

I don't have any other pictures though because in my haste to fill my belly I forgot that I wanted a picture of it ready to be eaten.  This is definitely something I will make again too because not only did I love it, but Sammy loved it just as much!  Let me know if you make it & if you change anything!

Kimmy

French Bread Pizzas Reimagined!

Hey Becca,

  So I looked over the blog the other day and decided I wanted to do french bread pizzas for dinner last week, but as I started to make them I decided that I wanted to do something just a little different.  So instead of doing the traditional french bread pizza, I did more like garlic bread pizzas.  I cut the loaf of bread in half so that I could have my share and Mike could have his.  I wrapped his half back up and stuck it in the fridge so he could make it when he was ready.  I cut my half of the bread up like I was cutting it for garlic bread and then set it on a pan.  I added sauce, with a sprinkle of garlic, then added the cheese to the top and threw it in the oven! Here is the end result:

They were perfectly sized and I was able to serve mine with a little side salad and hold onto the rest for the next day!  It wasn't like it was SO much more easier than the traditional french bread pizza, but I thought it was a cute (and easy) way to just change it up!

Cinnamon Roll Cake

This one is heavenly. I tried it a few months back and thought it was delicious and I kept meaning to make it again, but never remembered to.  Here we are counting down the days before grocery shopping and I am trying to use up ingredients and this recipe was perfect for that! Here's the link to find the recipe:Cinnamon Roll Cake & here are the ingredients and instructions so you don't have to leave this page! 

Cinnamon Roll Cake
Cake:
3 c. flour
1/4 tsp.salt
1 c. sugar
4 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 c. milk
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. butter, melted
Topping:
1 c. butter, softened
1 c. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. cinnamon
Mix everything together except for the butter. Slowly stir in the melted butter and pour into a greased 9x13 pan. For the topping, mix all the ingredients together until well combined. Drop evenly over the batter and swirl with a knife. Bake at 350 for 28-32 minutes.
Glaze:
2 c. powdered sugar
5 Tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla
While warm drizzle the glaze over the cake. 

Now I have to admit that while I followed the instructions and ingredient measurements for the most part, I did add extra vanilla and cinnamon because we love those! Instead of the glaze,  I just served with syrup, but that is totally your preference!  Enjoy!!

Skillet Pasta & Beef Dinner

Kimmy here! 

So I am finally getting around to posting a recipe that I am in love with and will be making for dinner next week.  I found this while surfing pinterest months ago and made it twice in one night....mainly because somehow I totally messed up the first attempt at making it so if we wanted to have dinner that night I had to figure out something to make.  This is super simple to make and can easily feed 5.5 people.  I want to say that even my picky eating daughter ate some of the ground beef!

The recipe is called Skillet Pasta & Beef Dinner.  The recipe given says that it will serve four people, so you will probably need to adjust a little to make sure there is enough to go around!! I used a the pound of ground beef, but less sauce and probably a pound of noodles.  Because I used more noodles and less sauce I found it easier to cook everything separately, throw in the skillet to mix with the sauce and melt the cheese on top.  I served a small salad beforehand and garlic bread with the meal!

What you'll need

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 jar pasta sauce
• 8 ounces uncooked rotini pasta
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (about 4 oz.)

How to make it

1. Brown ground beef in 12-inch skillet; drain.
2. Stir in pasta sauce and 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Stir in uncooked rotini and return to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook covered, stirring occasionally, 14 minutes or until rotini is tender.
3. Remove from heat, then sprinkle with cheese. Cover and let stand 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.

 Here is the website too: Skillet Pasta & Beef Dinner

Let me know if you try it and how you like it! If you do anything different, let me know too!! I think it might taste even better with some extra flavor like maybe peppers or onions....although onions may make it taste to much like a cheeseburger!

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

Howdy!

So, this is probably my all time favorite recipe. It is a classic that my mom use to make all the time. Now, I love to make it whenever I can. There are two ways to prepare this: easy and hard. There is no link to this recipe since it is a really simple family recipe. I'm sure families everywhere have this recipe so it is not a secret! Here is what you need:

• Meatballs (You can either buy frozen meatballs (easy) or ground beef to make your own (hard))
• One jar grape jelly (regular sized jar. Don't go crazy and get the massive ones)
• One jar chili sauce (comes in one size, I believe. Just need one)

1. If you plan on making your own meatballs, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

2. Make medium sized meatballs. The smaller the meatballs, the shorter the cooking time. The larger, the longer. You get the idea.

3. Once you make your meatballs, cook on a baking sheet for about 20 minutes (for medium meat balls).

4. In a large pot, add the grape jelly and chili sauce. Set to low. You want to melt the jelly and let both mix into a yummy sauce!

5. Once the meatballs are done, use tongs to remove them from the greasy baking sheet and place them in the pot with the sauce.

6. Let the sauce and meatballs simmer together for about 15 minutes, to get a good flavor in the meatballs. 

7. Serve hot!

Simple, right! If you plan on using frozen meatballs (I use Food Lion brand), then just follow the directions below!

1. Place grape jelly and chili sauce in large pot. Simmer until jelly is melted and both are mixed well.

2. Add frozen meatballs to sauce mixture.

3. Simmer for about 25 minutes. (You can cook frozen meatballs in the sauce until they're cooked. So easy).

4. Serve hot!

Even easier! I usually serve this with some garlic/cheese bread and some steamed veggies. If I am feeling starchy, I'll throw in some mashed potatoes. We have tons left over from Easter so those are getting added to the meal tonight!

*Note: This makes TONS of sauce. I usually make about 3 lbs. of meatballs and I still have sauce left over. However, I did mix the leftover sauce with ground beef to season meatloaf the next night. It turned out pretty good. So, if you don't use all the sauce, use it in another recipe! You can always save this for another meal. It gets very thick when cold, so I suggest reheating it over the stove for optimal reheated goodness!

*Second Note: If making your own meatballs, I have cooked them in a table top toaster oven (is that what they're called these days? I don't know lol. Go to this link to see what I mean!). This is favorable for less grease. It has the built in drainage pan so when the meatballs cook all the grease is drained into the bottom of the pan. This is easier to handle than a baking sheet with sloshing grease. Just an idea if you're prone to messes!

Let me know what you think!

Rebecca :)

French Bread Pizza

Hello Again!

I have another delicious recipe for you to try! This one is a simple French Bread Pizza Recipe from Kraft. You can find it here. I did two different variations of this recipe for dinner tonight. Both were amazing! I altered the recipe a bit, because I am a simple cooking kind of gal; so, I did not go all crazy with everything that is included in the recipe. Here's what I used for each!

Pizza 1
This is the pizza that I did not follow the directions at all. I just threw a couple of pretty standard pizza toppings on the french bread, for the kiddos.

• 1 French bread Loaf (Cut in half lengthwise)
• 1 can (15 oz.) tomato sauce
• 1/2 package Mozzarella Cheese
• Pizza Pepperonis (however many your heart desires!)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Cut the french bread loaf in half length wise. Than in half width wise to end up with four pieces.

3. Spread tomato sauce on all four sections.

4. Top each section with a generous helping of cheese.

5. Top each section with your preferred number of pepperonis.

6. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

Note: You can cut each of these pieces in half again to end up with 8 total pieces, or have a blast and have a quarter of the pizza all to yourself. Whatever you fancy.

Pizza 2

This is the pizza where I followed the directions a bit. I did not include everything. 

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 French bread loaf (Cut in half lengthwise)
• 1 can (15 oz.) tomato sauce
• 1 pkg (8 oz.) Mozzarella Cheese
• Pizza Pepperonis (however many your heart, once again, desires!

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees (or keep it on from earlier, your call if you want to make that much pizza in one night!)

2. Brown the ground beef in a pan. Drain.

3. Add tomato sauce and simmer for 5 minutes.

4. Cut the french bread loaf in half length wise. Than in half width wise to end up with four pieces.

5. Top each section with an even amount of the ground beef tomato sauce mixture.

6. Top each section with a generous helping of cheese.

7. Top each section with the amount of pepperonis of your choice.

8. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

Note: Once again, you can cut these pieces in half to end up with 8 pieces of pizza!

And there you have it! They were both super amazing and delicious. If you want to add the other stuff that is mentioned in the recipe, or alter if for yourself, have a go! I think this is a fool proof meal that you can customize any which way and it will still turn out delicious!

Let me know what you think! And, until next time!

Rebecca

Tuna Melt

Hey Kimmy!

So, first up is a Tuna Melt recipe that I found at www.allrecipes.com. The name of the recipe is Best Tuna Melt (New Jersey Diner Style). Here is a link to the recipe. Here is what I used to make 5 servings:

• 18 oz of canned white tuna in water, drained
• ~1/2 cup of miracle whip (add however much you like when you make tuna salad)
• one celery stalk, chopped
• 1/4 of an onion, chopped
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tomatoes, sliced
• 10 slices of swiss cheese
• 5 slices seedless rye bread

I followed the directions basically how they were given in the recipe online, but I will reiterate them for you here:

1. Preheated the oven broiler.

2. Mixed together the tuna, onion, celery, miracle whip, salt, and pepper.

3. Placed the sliced bread in the broiler for about 1 minute until it was toasted.

4. Removed the bread from the broiler and topped each piece with the tuna mixture. Then topped each piece with 1 piece of swiss cheese. Then placed two slices of tomatoes on each (except hubby's). Then topped the tomatoes with another piece of swiss cheese.

5. Placed the tuna melts back in the broiler for 2-3 minutes until the cheese was melted (and browning; oops!)

Voila! Tuna Melt! 

I have to say, I am not a huge tuna fan but I LOVED this recipe! I will definitely be doing this from now on when I want to have tunafish! You could even make it a sandwich. Hubby did! Let me know if you try it and, if you do, how you like it!

Toodles!

Rebecca