Food Friday: Butternut Squash

Preheat oven to 350.

Cut one butternut squash down the long side and de seed. Poke with fork (MANY TIMES!). Place on a cookie sheet and set aside.

Saute
1/4 c. Onion
2 Garlic Cloves
1 Tbs Brown Sugar
3 Tbs Butter

Saute these until the onion starts to become translucent. When done pour into the seed part of the butternut squash. Brush the sautéed ingredients over the squash so it seeps into the holes.

Cook in oven for 60 minuets

10 minuets before its done combine

1 Tbs. Rosemary 

1/4 c. Cheddar Cheese

1c. Grated Mozzarella

1 Tbs. Brown Sugar

1 c. Bread Crumbs

Mix and spread over squash when the timer goes off. Sprinkle with thyme and place back in the oven for 5 minuets.

When done. Take out and enjoy.

Bye for now,
Miss Riss

Food Friday: Taco Soup

This is a little recipe that is great for a girl with little time to cook and little experience in the kitchen (aka. me).

Ingredients:
1/5 lb. Ground beef
1/4 c. Chopped Onion
1 1/2 c. Water
1 can (16 oz.)Kidney beans
1 can (16 oz.) Stewed Tomatoes
1 can (8 oz) Tomato Sauce
2 Tbs. Taco Seasoning
1 Small Avocado (optional)
Grated Chedar Cheese
Corn Chips
Sour Cream (you can substitute plain yogurt)

What you do:
Brown ground beef. Drain off the fat. Add the water, tomatoes, beans, tomato sauce, onion and taco seasoning. Cover it and let it simmer for 15 minuets. Put it in your individual bowl and top it off with cheese, corn chips, sour cream and avocado.

I have the ground beef pre cooked and frozen so I just take out a bag and defrost it in the microwave before adding it in. This saves me a ton of same day cooking time.

This recipe is very yummy and filling. Plus it makes left overs and is easy to double if your family eats allot. Most importantly both me and my husband like it.

Have a great weekend,
Miss Riss

Pancakes

A while ago Brett woke up and wasn't feeling to great. In an attempt to make him smile I made him this.

Silly and rather sloppy, but it made him laugh, wich made me feel good. I love that the little things make him happy. 

Aunt Kristi's Chocolate Chip Cookies

When I was little I HATED chocolate chip cookies. I might have even told people I was allergic. There was one exception to my dislike of these cookies and that is my Aunt (read it with a british accent because thats how I really do say it) Kristi's chocolate chip cookies.  They are, with out a doubt, the best chocolate cookies on earth.

Here's the recipe.

1 c. butter
3/4 c. sugar
3/4 c. light brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
2 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
2 c. milk chocolate chips

Mix butter, sugar, vanilla and eggs. Then add all the reamaning ingredients except the chocolate chips. Mix well then add chocolate chips and stir.

Bake at 375 degrees for 8 minuets.

Enjoy!

Miss Riss

Bell Pepper Cream Sauce

Well hello again. This post is for the creamy pasta lover who have gotten tired of the regular alfrado (nothing personal alfrado, but a girl needs a little variety in life). This recipe is creamy like alfrado but with a lot more flavor. It's my current Italian love.

Here is whats in it.

2 c. milk
1 red, yellow or orange bell peper (I prefer orange), seeded sliced.
1 garlic clove, peeled
3 tbs. tomato paste
1 tbs. cream cheese (fat free if you are going for extra healthy)
2 tbs. corn starch
1 tbs. butter
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
1tsp. salt

Now if you have a great blender (like a Vita-Mix) that chops everything up and heats it for you, just stick in all the ingredients and blend on high for 6 minuets.

Now if you don't have one or just want to cook it over the stove here is the plan.

Roast peppers on a pan in the oven until they are soft (mine normally have some black on them that peels off) Chop into little pieces and blend in blender with milk an garlic clove.

When the mixture is smooth poor it into a LARGE sauce pan. Turn heat to medium and add the remaining ingredients. Stir constantly. When the cream cheese and mozzarella have disolved and the  sauce has reached the temperature you want it to be take it off the stove and poor over your favorite pasta. We think the crab stuffed pasta from Costco is really delicious with it(not shown in picture), but it can go over anything.

Happy eating,
Miss Riss

Maple Pumpkin Cookies {Food Friday}

Happy Food Friday. One of my favorite things about fall is the food people cook during this season. Everything just has to be something to eat while you snuggle up with good book or a classic old movie. And if for some reason you should happen to have made to many of something (say cookies) then it is the perfect season to share all the extras.

Here is a cookie recipe for Maple Pumpkin Cookies. It make allot of cookies so you will be able to share. I am not sure where I found it but it wasn't pinned to any of my boards so sorry if you put this on the internet before me. 



Set oven to 350 F

Cream together
2 c. Sugar
2 c. Canned Pumpkin
2 c. Shortening
2 eggs and mix well

Then add
2 tsp Baking Soda
1 1/2 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
1 tsp. Salt
4 c. Flour

Mix again. Soon one inch balls 
onto pan. Cook for 10 minuets

Frosting
6 tbs. melted butter in a sauce pan.
8 tbs. milk
1 c. brown sugar

Let brown sugar dissolve and cool a bit.

Add
2 c. Powdered Sugar
1 1/2 tsp. Vanilla

Drizzle over hot cookies.

I hope you enjoy them.
Miss Riss

Simple Seasoned Chicken {Food Friday}

I found the original recipe on pinterest {which you can see here on my pinterest board) My only problem was I didn't have the Italian dressing mix. Being to lazy to run out and buy chicken (and since I am trying to use what I have in my kitchen before I buy more) I decided to use ranch instead and oh how happy I am that I did. My husband (whose has a very different set of taste buds then my own) even likes it.

Here is what you do.

Let 6 chicken breasts thaw over night in the fridge. 
Rinse out glass pan before you spray it (this seems to help keep the chicken extra moist).
Roll chicken in the mixture below and place it in the pan.

1/2 c. grated parmesan cheese
1 package ranch dressing mix
1/2 tsp. garlic powder

Cook for 25 minuets at 400 degrees F.

I really do like this recipe and I hope you enjoy it.

Miss Riss

Caramel Apples

I love caramel apples. I have fond memories of my grandma making them. Now a days people put all sorts of things on them. Jenny and I decided to try. These are our attempts.

 

They look OK in the pictures but overnight the caramel fell lower and lower. It was a sad thing to wake up to so I must ask. Does anyone know a better caramel recipe where the caramel will stay on the apple? If so PLEASE share.

Here are some suggestions that a friend of a friend recommended.
-Chill the apples in the fridge for at least 24 hours so they are nice and cold when you dip them in the caramel -keep the caramel on low heat just barely enough to keep it smooth so it isn't so thin and runny
-chill the pans you put them on also
-use a non-stick baking pan instead of the cheaper ones. The caramel doesn't run near as much on the thicker colder non-stick pan.

Best of Luck and a Happy Halloween,

Miss Riss

Deviled Eggs

I really really really like Deviled eggs.

In a fit of craving (and a need to take them to a friends house for dinner) I searched for recipes on line. Nothing. Oh they had recipes but nothing that I had all the ingredients to (who knew there were SO MANY spices in the world?) After exhausting all the recipies on the internet cooking data base I gave up and made my own recipe. It turned out pretty good. Here it is.

6 Hard boiled eggs
1/4 c. Mayo
1/4 tbs. honey mustard
1/4 tsp. Garlic
1/4 tsp. mustard seasoning
1/8 tsp. crushed red peppers
1/8 tsp. salt
paprika

Mix all ingredients except for paprika and the whites of the eggs together with the boiled yellow yoke. Spoon mixture back into the white part of the egg. Sprinkle paprika over the top.


Happy Eating,
Miss Riss

Food Friday: Chicken Enchilada Casserole

This recipe is easy, in-expensive and my man loves it. He loves it so much that I didn't get the chance to take a good picture. This is all I got.

Yah, not the most flattering picture, but I have learned that some of the best tasting things don't look fantastic.

Here is the easy-peazy-recipe. 

1-1 1/2 c. cooked cubed chicken
1 family sized can of cream of chicken soup
1 c. sour cream
1 can diced green chilies
grated cheddar cheese
about a dozen corn tortillas

Heat oven to 350 degrees
Mix chicken, sour cream, cream of chicken soup and diced green chilies together.
Spray 9x13 pan.
Put a thin layer of the mixture in pan. Cover with tortillas and then put another layer of the mixture over the tortillas. Alternate these layers until it is a centimeter below the top of the pan.
Sprinkle a good amount of grated cheese over the top.
Cook for 30 minuets in the oven.

Something extra:
I like to top mine off with spinach and tomatoes.


Happy cooking,
Miss Riss