Chicken Bacon Mac n Cheese

Yesterday I was sitting at home with my husband trying to figure out how to use the chicken boobs (yes, I said chicken boobs) we had thawed out in the fridge, and use them in such a way that we could have 2 different meals out of them in a row. 4 big chicken boob halves and 2 dinners to be prepared... I wanted something different that wasn't just plain chicken.

So I went down a list of yummy things I like to make with chicken breast. (Eventually I'll have recipes for these)

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole?
Honey Pecan Chicken?
Pizza-topped Chicken?
Spicy Chicken and Spinach Rotini? (A pasta-casserole variation of this yummy dish)
Baked Chicken Spaghetti? (A recipe from my great granny that I'll have to eventually share)

Then I started tossing out ideas on what I could make with the chicken, that I hadn't made before, and this was the result.

The winning comment went like this:

"I want to make beer bread... OOH HOW ABOUT A CHICKEN BACON MAC N CHEESE?"

(Product Plug! The Tastefully Simple Beer Bread is so easy and so delicious, I always buy the 3 pack for our pantry... it makes a loaf of bread that's about a pound and a half, and all it takes is mixing a bottle of beer with a packet of mix and optionally pouring some melted butter over the top, then baking for 50 minutes)

My husband's face was like... "Wha...?" (He's used to my seemingly random jumps between thoughts, and gives me that look so I'll explain the steps from A to B - though not how I managed to make that jump in less than a second)

1) I love the Tastefully Simple Beer Bread (so does he) and wanted it with whatever I made
2) The beer bread, crumbled up, makes an excellent topping for baked mac n cheese
3) I looooove home made baked mac n cheese
4) We could put chicken in the mac n cheese
5) Bacon makes every thing better.

Thus my outburst. Then I started plotting how I was going to tackle this dish, and what we had in the kitchen to make it. (We had to get pepper jack from the store, but still, mostly things at home)

I came up with this list:

Milk, flour and bacon grease not pictured.

8oz elbow macaroni, cooked and drained
2 cup shredded colby jack cheese (or mild cheddar) (divided)
1 cup shredded pepper jack (divided)
1 cup shredded mozzarella (divided)
1/2 cup grated parmesan
4 cups milk
3 tbsp flour
ground mustard
garlic powder
4 tbsp butter + 2 tbsp bacon grease
2 - 8oz chicken breasts cooked and cubed or shredded (or both, since that's what happens to me every time) (about 2 1/2 cups)
10 - 12 slices cooked and crumbled bacon (reserve some grease)
1 1/2 cup cubed beer bread (or other cubed bread, or 1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs) + 2 tbsp melted butter

How I put it together:

Boil the chicken breast, allow to cool, then cut it into small chunks.

Prepare and bake the beer bread, following package directions.

I wish you could smell this.

Cook and crumble the bacon, reserving a couple tablespoons of the grease

Boil and drain the macaroni, and put in a large bowl

Add crumbled bacon and chicken to pasta, and set aside

==Heat oven to 350*F==

In a large sauce pan, melt the butter, and add reserved bacon grease

Add flour and spices, and cook until brown

Add about a half a cup of milk and stir until smooth, then add the rest of the milk and the cheeses (minus 1/3 cup of each shredded cheese (if desired) for the topping - I skipped this and put it all in the sauce)

Cook and stir until smooth, until bubbling slightly... stir constantly so it doesn't stick or clump, and let to bubble for a minute or so, allowing the sauce to thicken

Pour cheese sauce over macaroni and meat mixture, 1 cup at a time (I used 4 cups sauce and reserved 1 cup) then pour into a 9x13 casserole dish.

Top with remaining cheeses (if you saved some), bread crumbs/cubes

Drizzle with 2 tbsp melted butter, and bake at 350 for about 30 minutes, until topping is golden, and cheese is bubbly.

The sauce will seem thin at first, but as it heats to bubbling, it will thicken, and then thicken a bit more in the oven.

There was just a little too much sauce for the pasta/meat mixture. I reserved about 1 cup of sauce and used it like fondue for the rest of the beer bread, it was yummy! If you don't want extra sauce, just reduce the amount of milk and cheese you add, or make more pasta for a bigger casserole.

ENJOY!
~Mandy

Orange Dream Cake Balls

There are 3 things I absolutely love when it comes to desserts... Marshmallow (especially S'mores and Krispie treats), apple cinnamon, and citrus (lemon, lime, orange). While I adore chocolate, it takes a back seat if any of the others are featured. If asked what my favorite dessert is I can't decide between apple crisp and lemon meringue pie. My favorite travel food is a pack of those gummy orange slices. And I really enjoy experimenting (my husband loves my experimenting, too) with various flavors of Krispie treats (I have future posts planned for Cookies n cream, and Butterfinger treats!)

When I came across this recipe on Miss CandiQuik I couldn't resist bookmarking it, and making it. But it makes so many, I needed to wait for an event where I could share. Well the opportunity came up, and so I am preparing them. In the future, I will probably try other cake/frosting/coating combos, but I'm going to *mostly* go with her original recipe for now.

EDIT: The changes I made to this were:
1) I added 1/4tsp orange extract
2) I only used 1 package white candy coating

My batch ended up making 31 cake balls. I just used my 1 tbsp measuring spoon to scoop it out. If you want more balls, use the 1/2 tbsp. :) Also, because of the size I used, I made them too big to serve in the little mini cups I got. OOPS!

Your cast of characters:

Not pictured: Water, Orange extract

1 box Orange cake mix
 - eggs, oil, water as mix requires
1/2 cup buttercream frosting
1 16oz package white candy coating

Optional:
1/4 tsp Orange extract
sprinkles
paper cups

Start by preparing the cake mix as directed on the box (adding orange extract if desired), bake, and allow to cool.

Yes, I have other 9x13 baking dishes but this is my favorite.

Then the fun part! Take that pretty orange cake, and crumble it all up in a large bowl.

And, yes, that's my favorite mixing bowl.

Then add 1/2 cup frosting (about half the tub) to the crumbled cake, and mush it all together.

Mix that up and then form into 1 inch balls (I used a 1 tbsp measuring spoon to scoop it out). Put them on a cookie sheet and chill in the fridge for a couple hours so they are easier to work with. (FYI, these things will be super sticky and not want to roll into a ball very easily... don't get frustrated, keep trying, eventually they shape into a ball!)

Then melt down a package of the candy coating as the package directs (either in the provided tray, in a microwave safe bowl, or in a saucepan over low heat). If you need to (I didn't even use all of the first package), melt the other package when necessary (this will keep you from having to constantly re-melt).

Dip your cake balls in to the coating, set on wax paper, and top with sprinkles immediately (if you want to use sprinkles) the sprinkles won't stick once the coating sets, and it will start setting quick because your cake balls are cold.


Allow to set, and enjoy!

Those wouldn't fit in the storage container.. I had to sample. :)

 Thanks for reading, and be sure to visit Miss CandiQuik for more yummy ideas using candy coating!

~Mandy

P.S. I will definitely be trying this again in the future with a different cake flavor/frosting flavor combo. I might even go for a triple chocolate taste! (chocolate cake, chocolate frosting, chocolate candy coating, with chocolate sprinkles)... or a lemon berry (strawberry cake, lemon frosting)... Or even butter pecan like the cake I made recently that was so yummy! Many possibilities... This has me thinking if it would work with my Tastefully Simple items.. The tropical pound cake with the Orange Dream cheese ball... or the Chocolate pound cake with the Cherry cheese ball... Might be yummy!

Norwegian School Bread

Adventures in baking today, for sure.

My husband had to do a project and presentation on Norwegian immigrants to America, including history, customs, and food, and other various things.

Of course, my husband is hopeless in the kitchen, and so I was drafted to prepare the food. Well, the food he chose, or was told to bring (not sure how it happened, but a member of his group asked if I could prepare it) is Skolebrød (Norwegian "School Bread").

I've never made this before, and it involves working with yeast (something I've rarely done), and the spice cardamom (which I've never used). And the original recipe that he gave me was in metric, so I had to go searching for one that was similar only in U.S. measurements so I didn't have to go hunting up a conversion chart... and it turns out the recipe he sent me was incorrect anyway (too much water), and the one I found seems to be more in line. I looked at several, but settled on this one, because it seemed most friendly (read: I choose it at random). From Food.com -> Norwegian School Bread. It seemed fairly close to this one, found on a blog written by someone in Norway, married to a Norwegian lady and so I trust their recipe is the real deal.

So, I invite you to come with me on this adventure in broadening my horizons in the kitchen!

Cast of characters:

Milk and water not pictured. Bowls contain (from left to right) granulated sugar, egg, and powdered sugar.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups milk + 2 1/2 cups milk for filling (total 4 cups)
1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick)
1 (2 1/4 teaspoon) package active dry yeast
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons freshly ground cardamom (I went with 1tsp on this - from a jar, the other recipe calls for 1/2tsp)
4 cups flour
1 (5 1/8 ounce) package vanilla instant pudding mix

1 egg, well-beaten
6 tablespoons powdered sugar plus 1 tbsp. water, mixed to form a light glaze
shredded coconut

Instructions:

In a saucepan, melt the butter, then add 1 1/2 cups milk and heat until scalded (stirring constantly). It's scalded when small bubbles start to form on the sides, but before it comes to a boil. It took me about 5-6 minutes over medium heat.

Remove the milk + butter from heat (I poured it into my stainless steel mixing bowl), and let cool. This took longer than letting it scald, because the butter kept forming a film over the top and trapping the heat! Check it and stir regularly. This stopped as it cooled. About 15 minutes. When milk is lukewarm add the yeast and sugar and let sit until the yeast has bloomed (10 mins or so, when it's bubbly and foamy and smelling like delicious fresh bread).

Kinda foamy, kinda bubbly, and I wish you could smell this.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour and cardamom and then add to the wet ingredients. Mix until the dough starts pulling away from the sides of the bowl. (This didn't take all that long. I formed the dough into a ball so I could more easily see when it had doubled in size. That's why I love this bowl, it's got measure markings engraved on the outside that you can see from the inside for reference).

Cover with a towel and let rise for an hour, or until doubled in size (this depends on how warm it is... it will rise faster in a warmer location)

Then punch it down and turn out onto a floured surface. Keep some cooking spray handy for your hands, because the dough will be sticky, and constantly stopping to add more flour to your hands will add more flour to the dough and could make it tough. (Lesson I learned the hard way). Knead the bread until it is smooth and elastic. Then divide into 3, and roll into logs, then cut each into even pieces (making a ball the size of a small orange)

It's almost time to retire these cookie sheets... They've seen the oven *many* times.

Place the dough balls on a lightly greased, or parchment lined, baking sheet. Cover them up again, and let them rise for another 30 minutes or so.

While they are rising, prepare the pudding. Add 2 1/2 cups milk to the powder, mix well, then allow to thicken at room temperature while the rolls are rising. (There was a lot of leftover extra pudding. I don't know if it's because I didn't use enough, or because this box was too big...)

Preheat oven to 365*F (it's kind of a weird setting, I know. But who am I to question a recipe I've never prepared?) - I ended up using 375, and they were done in 15 minutes.

While oven is heating, using your finger, create a well well in the top of each roll (but not all the way through the bottom). - Sorry, I forgot to grab a pic of this! But I found that using my first knuckle was the best method for making the wells without handling the dough too much.

Then add 1tbsp or so of the pudding, in the wells you just made. This might be easier to do by using a pastry bag or a plastic zipper bag with a corner cut off (add the pudding, snip the corner, then squeeze the bag) and piping it in.

Allow to rise (again) for about 10 minutes, then beat the egg well and brush over the top and sides of the buns (but not the pudding).

Bake for 15 minutes, or until golden, then remove and allow to cool slightly.

While they are cooling, mix the powdered sugar with water, adjusting amounts until a glaze consistency is reached, then brush over the tops of the rolls (avoiding the pudding) and sprinkle on the coconut.

It was suggested that these are best served warm, with coffee.

After baking, and sampling, these... I would say they are pretty good! The cardamom is something I'm not entirely sure on, because my palate is unfamiliar with that spice. Apparently it's also commonly used in Middle Eastern and Indian foods. It's very aromatic and the flavor is pretty strong.. I would say in comparison, it's close to ginger.... Which makes sense, because after a little research, apparently the cardamom plant is in the ginger family.

Enjoy! :)

~Mandy

Lemon Bark Candy

I am going to confess that I love EVERYTHING lemon, particularly desserts that are lemony.

Which makes me wonder what I've been thinking by avoiding making lemon bark. It's so amazingly easy, only 2 ingredients (with an optional 3rd), and no baking involved. It's sweet and crunchy and delicious and LEMON.

I've seen this recipe in so many places, and so many times I don't have a link for you just my memory of what I've seen.

Your cast of characters:

Featuring my little food processor!

That's it. Lemon drops and white candy coating. If you want some extra lemony flavor, lemon extract.

Before you start, line a large baking sheet with wax paper, or foil lightly coated with cooking spray.

First step to make this is to crush the lemon drops... Like 2/3 or 3/4 cup (I used 3/4), depending on how crunchy you want your lemon bark. Toss them in a food processor and whirr it up until you have lots of lemony crunchy pieces. Scoop a few tablespoons out into a small bowl and set them aside for topping.

Then melt the white candy coating. I break it into pieces, then (usually) do 30 seconds in the microwave, then 15 second intervals, stirring after each, until it's completely melted and smooth. However, due to all the craziness that's been happening in my kitchen, I used a medium saucepan and melted it over low heat, stirring frequently... it took about 5 minutes.

Mix in the crushed lemon drops and pour onto prepared baking sheet.

After you pour out the mixture, spread it and smooth it, then sprinkle the rest of the crushed lemon drops on the top before it sets.

I chill mine in the fridge so it sets up faster, and the colder it is, the more brittle it will be. If you want to cut it into pretty, even slices, you can let it set up at room temperature, it will take a little longer but it will be a little softer and easier to cut. Me? I like to just pick mine up and drop it from a few inches and see how it breaks (like peanut brittle!)... I like to have lots of random shapes and sizes. Sometimes you want a little piece sometimes you want a big one.

That's it! Super easy and tasty and fun to share.

Enjoy!
~Mandy

Brown Sugar Pulled Pork

Several weeks ago, my husband found a ~10lb picnic shoulder (meaning it still had the bone in it) for a pretty good price, so he picked it up. I did some guess work and cooked it low and slow in the oven and then shared it with friends.

We found another one, not on sale, but I wanted to make it again... So it ended up in the grocery cart.

Here's how I prepare it, for fall apart pork that's slightly sweet an REALLY good with some Sweet Baby Ray's Hickory & Brown Sugar Barbecue Sauce. It's a 2-day process, but so worth it.

First I line a large roasting pan with foil. Lots of foil, because there's a lot of liquid and drippings in this, and a well lined pan makes for much easier clean up, and then put the shoulder in fat/skin layer facing up.

Then I take a sharp, serrated knife and cut some grooves in the fat, down to the meat in a criss-cross pattern.

Then I put the rub together half of the rub goes on the meat to sit over night, the other half goes on before it goes in the oven.

The dry-rub ingredients:
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp garlic powder
1/2 tbsp onion powder
1/2 tbsp mustard pwoder
1/4-1/2 tsp ground cayenne

Mix them all up! Then rub half of the rub mixture onto the pork... make sure you get it down in the grooves, and directly on the meat on the ends, and the bottom.

Then cover with foil and stick in the fridge over night.

Day 2!

Set your oven to 275*F (low and slow, baby)

Uncover your pork shoulder, save the foil though, so you can cover it back up. Grab your rub, and rub the rest of it on the shoulder, then cover it back up and stick it the oven... For about 45 mins per pound.

My 10lb pork shoulder should be done in around 8 hours at 275. If you want to cook it more quickly, it can be done at 350 for 25-30 mins per pound. The trick is to get the meat to 180 or above for a while to break down the connective tissue so it falls apart into that juicy, shredded goodness. Make sure the internal temp is at least 160 though to be sure it's done.

When it comes out of the oven, I use tongs to remove and discard the fat layer (it should come right off) and pull the bone out (it should slide out clean). Then I pull it with the tongs and a fork and put the meat into a slow cooker on the "warm" setting to keep the meat warm. I serve it with barbecue sauce and bread and enjoy! :) Or sometimes I just eat it plain, it's really good!

(Sorry I don't have any pictures of the finished product, we had friends over and we were hungry!)

For the leftovers, I divide it into equal portions and store in freezer bags. It freezes pretty well. I use the leftovers for pork tacos or with collards. Yum.

Enjoy!
~Mandy

Butter Pecan Poke Cake

Brace yourself....

Every Friday, our little community has a cook out... So every Thursday, I bake up something I think will be scrumptious to share. It's the perfect excuse to try out a new cake or other dessert recipes without having the whole thing here for just my husband and me. Usually on Wednesdays I start looking, because Thursday is our typical shopping day. (Unfortunately due to rain, tonight's cook out was canceled... which is why I got a picture of a slice of the cake!)

On Wednesday I found this bit of drool-worthiness: Southern Pecan Praline Cake onThe Country Cook. I love just about everything Butter Pecan, so I had to check it out. When I saw that the frosting goes *into* the cake mix, and the sauce involved sweetened condensed milk, I was sold.

I had to make a few edits to fit my needs, and so I followed the recipe for the cake itself, and then made some changes when it came to the topping, and turned it into a poke cake.

Your cast of characters:

(Water and whipped topping not pictured)

Cake ingredients:
1 box Butter Pecan Cake mix
1 tub Coconut Pecan frosting
4 eggs
3/4 cup oil
1 cup water
1/2 cup chopped pecans

In the middle:
1 can (14oz.) sweetened condensed milk
2 tbsp butter

On the top:
8oz tub Whipped Topping (like Cool Whip)
1/2c chopped pecans

How to make it:

Heat oven to 350*F

Grease a 9x13 dish with cooking spray.

Mix all the ingredients for the cake together (except the pecans) in a large bowl. That includes the frosting! Once everything is well mixed, add in the pecans and give it a stir. (Batter will seem kind of thin)

Pour batter into prepared 9x13 dish, and bake at 350*F for 38-42 minutes. (Mine was done at 39 minutes, this takes a while to bake up because of all the liquid ingredients).

While your cake is baking, you have time to do silly things. Like take pictures of your pets with random things on their heads.

Back to the cake... it's done when a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

This is where I differ from the original recipe. She suggest mixing up the sauce, and serving it over individual slices, but I had to prepare this for a gathering, and that wasn't going to work.

Because I love poke cakes, and wanted each slice to get some of the yummy topping, I poked holes in the cake, and poured the sauce (minus the pecans) over it like a poke cake.

To do this: poke holes in the cake with the handle of a wooden spoon, then melt the butter in the microwave and mix with the sweetened condensed milk and pour over the cake, trying to get it mostly into the holes.

Once the cake cools completely, spread the whipped topping over it (I do this in 2 steps - first a thin layer to fill in the holes, then a 2nd layer to pretty it up).. and sprinkle the top with 1/2 cup chopped pecans.

Cut and serve! This cake is incredibly moist and rich. And SO VERY yummy.

Don't you just want to steal the fork and take a bite?

I hope you enjoy!

And stay tuned, coming up is my recipe/method for making brown sugar pulled pork!

~Mandy

Milky Way Poke Cake!

Oh my goodness people. Grab a napkin for the drool and LOOK AT THIS cake...

That picture doesn't even begin to do this cake justice. You can't see all the gooey, chewy nougat and caramel in the middle, between the whipped topping and the chocolate sheet cake, but it's there, I promise.

I found this recipe at Chef In Training and HAD to make it. Because something that's chocolate and caramel and includes marshmallow fluff *has* to be amazing right? And of course, it has to be difficult right? Because nothing that looks that good can be easy, RIGHT?

WRONG! This was not very difficult to make at all. The hardest part was the nougat, and only because of the "stir constantly for 4 minutes" part... Not hard, just some standing still and stirring.

Anyway... Your cast of characters:

1 box chocolate cake mix and ingredients it calls for (The one I used called for 1 1/4 cups water, 1/2 cup oil, and 3 eggs).

Nougat Filling:
1/4 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup evaporated milk
1 1/2 cups marshmallow creme/fluff
1 tsp. vanilla

Toppings:
1 (12 oz) jar caramel topping
1 (8 oz) tub cool whip thawed
3 regular size Milky Way Candy Bars chopped

Not pictured: Water for the cake mix.

First step is to bake the boxed cake mix as instructed on the box in a 9x13 dish.

After it's cooled for 5-10 minutes, take a wooden spoon and use the handle to poke several holes across the top. I usually do rows of 5 to make my mild OCD happy.

Once that is done, you need to mix up your nougat filling. I did this by putting the marshmallow creme into a large metal bowl and adding the vanilla first, then mixing up the nougat on the stove.

Melt the butter over medium heat, add the sugar and evaporated milk and stir until the sugar is dissolved, then bring to a boil and stir constantly for 4 mins. You need to keep stirring because this mixture will burn to the bottom of the pan and cause sticky clumps in your nougat.

This is the tricky part, because you have to work quickly since the mixture thickens pretty fast as it cools. Pour the hot milk/butter/sugar mixture over the marshmallow creme and vanilla and mix until smooth, then (I used 1/2 cup measuring cup to make it easier) pour the nougat mixture over the cake, filling the holes. It will sit on top, but eventually gravity will do it's thing and the nougat will sink down into the cake. Some will go down the sides, and sit on top, and that's okay!

Once you are done with the nougat, take the ice cream topping and repeat the process, saving some to drizzle on the top if you'd like. I like the squeeze bottle, but if you get a jar, just use a spoon and try to get it as much into the holes as possible, then let the cake cool. It will look something like this:

Don't worry, those holes will be filled soon!

After the cake has cooled completely, spread on the whipped topping. I did a thin layer first, and pressed down slightly with my rubber spatula to get it down in the holes, then added the rest of it. Drizzle a little caramel sauce. Sprinkle your chopped Milky Way pieces (I used the Bites because I had a coupon, and just chopped them in half), and then drizzle a little more caramel sauce (or not, I just love caramel) and you're done! :)

Then you get to dig in to this beautiful cake. Yum!

That's all for now. Enjoy!
~Mandy

Bacon Wrapped Meatloaf

It's been a while since I've posted! I've been a little busy, but I've got a treat to share.

This meatloaf is loaded with cheese, wrapped in bacon, and glazed with barbecue sauce. It's DELICIOUS. I modified it (a bit) from this recipe I found on allrecipes.

Mmm melty cheese, bacon, caramelized barbecue sauce...

I didn't get pictures of the whole process, because I was dealing with raw meat, and didn't want to get all that gunk on my camera.

Anyway! To make this you'll need:

2 pounds ground meat (I used beef and pork)
2 eggs
2 tablespoons barbecue sauce (or ketchup) + enough for glazing
1 cup dry bread crumbs
1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese
garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, oregano, basil, thyme, chili powder, ground red pepper (to taste)
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 small green bell pepper, diced
6-8 slices bacon
1 cup Cheddar cheese, shredded (divided)

Preheat oven to 375*F

Step 1: In a large bowl, mix the meats and the wet ingredients together (Meat, eggs, barbecue sauce). Wash your hands really well, then dig in. It's messy, but it's the easiest way.

Step 2: Mix in the dry ingredients (bread crumbs, seasonings, chopped veggies, and 3/4 cup cheese) until everything is pretty well incorporated.

Step 3: Line a 9x13 baking pan with foil, then lay out bacon slices across the width, overlapping slightly.

Step 4: Transfer meat mixture to the baking pan, and form into a loaf shape over the bacon strips, then wrap the bacon strips around the meat-loaf and brush a thin layer of barbecue sauce over the whole loaf.

Step 5:  Bake for 1 hour, to 1 hour and 15 minutes... or until the middle reaches 165*F.

Step 6: Top with remaining 1/4 cup cheese, and place back in the oven for 5 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.


Let the meatloaf sit for a few minutes before cutting and enjoy!

What can I say, I like melted cheese.

This meatloaf is DELICIOUS. I will be making it again! I know the picture up there looks a bit like it's burned all over, but that's just caramelized barbecue sauce, and the crispy ends of the bacon.

Number of slices depends on the shape of your loaf, and the width of your slices. The leftovers will make excellent sandwiches!

Enjoy!
~Mandy

Lasagna and More!

I'm a bit slow with the pictures. Sorry about that.

Anyway, here's the lasagna (recipe from Taste of Home, minus cottage cheese), the pull-apart garlic knots (from Comfortable Food) and the Blueberry Dessert (modified from CentsLessDeals):

The table setting:

It was Valentine's day, so I went a little fancy. Cloth napkins, wine goblets for our water. Croutons and sunflower seeds for the salads. And a foil pan for the Lasagnas. Ha! I made 4 of them. We ate that one, I gave one to a friend of mine who was trying to balance being a full time student, her job, being a single parent, and battling a sinus infection (poor lady!) and stuck 2 in the freezer. So we have freezer meals for later. Yum.

That plate next to the lasagna is the Balsamic and Basil dipping oil from Tastefully Simple and was excellent to dip the bread in. This bread... Oh man, this bread:

  

 

Just looking at the picture makes me wish there was still some left over. There's just something about (successfully!) making bread from scratch that gives me an awesome sense of accomplishment.

Don't you just want to reach in and grab a piece? It was crispy cheese, and chewy cheese, and garlicy buttery yeasty goodness. And those little brown crumbles on the top? Parmesan. I was in heaven with this bread. So very proud of how it turned out.

And then there was this bit of yummy deliciousness:

I was smelling the sauce all day long.  I was so ready to eat this when it came out of the oven I had to smack my own hands when I went to pick at the cheese on top! I don't use any cottage cheese in my lasagna. I use the 15oz tub of ricotta, an egg, some milk and mix it with some grated parm. It's good stuff.

Then we had this for dessert, and I felt like I was going to pop. Next time I make this, I will modify the butter/sugar on the top... I think it was too much. I'll just brush it, instead of pour 1/2 stick melted butter and reduce the amount of sugar on top. It was still good, it was just *too* much.

The taste was still amazing, but the amount of butter on top all pooled in the middle and left the crescent dough still a bit raw. So a lesson for next time: brush, don't pour, the butter... and sprinkle the sugar. Also, I was supposed to add 2 tbsp of vanilla to the cream cheese mixture. I did not. I added 1/2 tsp of lemon extract and it was more than enough. I wanted lemon berry and I got it. :)

So that was Valentine's dinner. Yesterday I did my nails again, with the water marble method, so I could get a more uniform look on my hands. I think I'm getting better with this. I used a rainbow theme, and these were the results.

Right hand:

Left hand:

I think they came out well! I love that they are all different and I'm not getting bored with them quickly.

That's all for now. :)

~Mandy

What a Crazy Week!

Monday wasn't so bad, then the rain come on Tuesday, the ice came on Wednesday, the thaw came on Thursday, and the earthquake came on Friday. I live in South Carolina. Ice and earthquakes are not normally on the menu!

Now it's Saturday, and while hubby is at work, I'll be preparing our Valentine's day feast. :)

First though, pictures of the crazy ice:

Seriously, ice everywhere. If you want to see the rest of my "I like to point my camera at things and push the button " pictures they are here.

During the icy nasty mess, I saw a picture thing pop up on Facebook about dripping nail polish into water, and then making designs and having it stick to your nail. The comments called it water marbling, and so I searched Youtube, and found this awesome video about how to do it, and decided I want this chick to be my friend. She's so happy! Also, the nail art looked fun.

We ventured out to the store yesterday, so I picked up a few new colors (mine are old and had thickened, the polish needs to be thin enough to drip off the brush easily). And then last night I tried it on my own, with a bunch of different polishes to see if they'd work. This is what I came up with:

Left Hand

I don't know which one is my favorite! I really like the pink/black/white combo on the pinky, the blue/green on the thumb... and the pink/purple/white on the pointer seems good for Valentine's day!

Right Hand

And on this one? I don't know either! I like the pink/black/orange on the thumb, the red/white/blue on the pointer, and hubby is a big fan of the green/white/yellow on the middle finger, because he's a Green Bay Packer's fan. :)

Anyway, if I can do it, I think anyone can... And that was my first attempt. It took me about an hour, but there was some panic in the middle of that hour about the random earthquake that shook my apartment. (Seriously Mother Nature, what gives?)

And now for tonight's (ice-delayed) Valentine's Day feast!

My husband and I... We're not big on crazy celebrations. We prefer to celebrate at home. So on most of the romantic dates (Valentine's Day, anniversary, birthdays, etc), I tend to make a more time consuming meal (the effort is part of the gift!) and we have a 'dinner and movie' date at home, courtesy of my kitchen, and Netflix!

Our main dish will be my husband's favorite food, lasagna. I base my recipe off of one I found on Taste Of Home a while back, but I tend to fancy up a traditional pasta sauce in my own way, rather than from a recipe. I wing it every time, no joke! Also, I skip the cottage cheese, and just use a whole 15oz tub of ricotta with the parmesan and egg. Seems to work well, and I don't end up with leftover ricotta or cottage cheese in my fridge, because I rarely use them outside of lasagna. I also make it in several small foil pans, instead of one huge dish, so I can freeze a couple of them, and we can have lasagna later, without the fuss.

And with pasta, you have to have garlic bread right? So I'll be trying my hand at these Pull Apart Cheesy Garlic Knots from scratch! Wish me luck on that, I don't work with yeast very often, so that might be tough.

And for dessert, I'm going back to the "yummy stuff between crescent rolls" easy option after all the work I'll be putting into the meal. The only sub I'll make to this recipe is the pie filling used. Instead of cherry, I'm using blueberry, because it's my husband's favorite.

I'll probably throw together a quick salad to go with it, so I can use my fancy hand painted bamboo salad bowl and utensils that my mother in law got for me for Christmas!

I'll take pics and post them in a follow up post.

Happy Saturday! :)
~Mandy