Sunday, November 27, 2011

Pumpkin Granola Bars

Yummy! I never knew how easy it was to make homemade granola bars. It is also much cheaper than buying a six pack of premade granola bars. These pumpkin chocolate chip granola bars have amazing flavor!


Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Granola Bars
Yield: 10-12 granola barsCook Time: 30-35 minutes
ingredients:
3 1/4 cups old fashioned oats
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
¾ cup brown sugar
½ cup pumpkin puree
¼ cup applesauce
¼ cup honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips

directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray an 8 by 8 baking pan with cooking spray and set aside.

2. In a large bowl, whisk oats, spices, and salt together. Set aside.

3. In a medium bowl, whisk brown sugar, pumpkin, applesauce, honey, and vanilla extract until smooth. Pour over oats and stir well, until all of the oats are moist. Stir in chocolate chips.

4. Evenly press oat mixture into prepared pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. The pumpkin keeps the bars moist, so make sure they are golden and set-you don't want them to be under baked. Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes.

5. Using a sharp knife, cut into bars. Remove from pan and let cool completely.

Chex mix

I have never made my own Chex mix before, but it was really easy. I did it all in the microwave, but think next time I will use the oven to make it easier to coat the pieces with the seasoning. Very easy to do and much cheaper!




3 cups Corn Chex® cereal
3 cups Rice Chex® cereal
3 cups Wheat Chex® cereal
1 cup mixed nuts
1 cup bite-size pretzels
1 cup garlic-flavor bite-size bagel chips or regular-size bagel chips, broken into 1-inch pieces
6 tablespoons butter or margarine
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons seasoned salt
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder


1. In large microwavable bowl, mix cereals, nuts, pretzels and bagel chips; set aside. In small microwavable bowl, microwave butter uncovered on High about 40 seconds or until melted. Stir in seasonings. Pour over cereal mixture; stir until evenly coated.
2. Microwave uncovered on High 5 to 6 minutes, thoroughly stirring every 2 minutes. Spread on paper towels to cool. Store in airtight container.
Oven Directions Heat oven to 250°F. In large bowl, mix cereals, nuts, pretzels and bagel chips; set aside. In ungreased large roasting pan, melt butter in oven. Stir in seasonings. Gradually stir in cereal mixture until evenly coated. Bake 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Spread on paper towels to cool, about 15 minutes. Store in airtight container.

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Crockpot Mac And cheese

Yummy crockpot Mac and cheese. I found this on pinterest. It isn't a true crockpot set it and forget it receipe. You have to keep an eye on it for curdling. It was tasty nonetheless.




1 1/2 cups milk
One 12 oz can evaporated milk (I used skim, evaporated milk keeps the egg and milk from curdling)
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted, cooled to room temp
3 large eggs
1/2 tsp salt
3 cups (12 oz) shredded cheese (I used an Italian blend, recipe calls for Italian fontina cheese)
1/2 pound elbow macaroni or mini penne tubes, par cooked and drained (this means cook them for about five minutes until tender but not completely cooked)
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Spray the inside of your slow-cooker with cooking spray or grease it with olive oil. Combine milk, evaporated milk, eggs, butter, and salt in slow-cooker and whisk until until smooth (or you can use an immersion blender to do the whisking for you).

Add the shredded cheese (not the Parmesan) and macaroni, sprinkle with black pepper (and whatever other spices you want to use). Stir gently with a spatula to coat evenly.


Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese on top. Cover and cook on HIGH for 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, reduce the temperature to LOW and cook for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, until custard is set in the center and the pasta is tender. The macaroni and cheese may sit in the cooker on the KEEP WARM setting for 30 minutes before serving. Before dishing it up, I sautéed some bread crumbs with olive oil and sprinkled them over the top to make it a little fancier.

Crescent roll calzone

These were fast and easy. They were pretty tasty too. You can't fit much in them, so I don't know that you could put much more than sauce, pepperoni, and cheese. Basic, easy meal.



1 Can refrigerated crescent rolls
Pepperoni
Shredded Mozzarella cheese
1/4 C jarred pizza sauce, plus more for dipping
Garlic Powder
Dried Oregano
Dried Basil
Heat oven to 375°F. Grease or spray cookie sheet.
On cookie sheet, unroll dough and separate into 4 rectangles; press each into 7×4-inch rectangle, firmly pressing perforations to seal. Spread 1 tablespoon sauce on. Place four slices of pepperoni on top of sauce. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons cheese over sauce and pepperoni. Fold dough over filling; firmly press edges with fork to seal. Sprinkle the top of each calzone with garlic powder, dried oregano, and dried basil.
Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until deep golden brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheet. Serve warm.

Monday, November 7, 2011

Creamy Chicken Wild Rice Soup

I have been cooking, I swear, I just haven't had time to blog about it and/or take pictures. I have been making a lot of homemade baby food, which I am sure nobody wants to try and make on their own, plus it just requires steaming the food and pureeing it. We had this soup tonight for dinner and it was very tasty. It was the perfect weeknight dinner because it didn't require a lot of prep. We put the chicken in the crockpot the night before so we didn't have to wait four hours for it to cook. Can't wait for leftovers for lunch tomorrow!



Ingredients:

4 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 package of Rice-a-Roni long grain and wild rice
1/2 tsp salt (plus more to taste)
1/2 tsp pepper
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup butter
2 cups half and half (I used fat-free half and half)
1 cup grated carrots (I diced mine)
1 cup diced celery

Directions:


Combine broth, water, carrots, celery, chicken and rice (along with seasoning packet) in a large slow cooker. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 4 hours. Take out chicken and shred with two forks and then add back into slow cooker. In a small bowl combine salt, pepper, and flour. In medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in flour mixture by tablespoon to form a roux. Whisk in cream, a little at a time, until fully incorporated and smooth. Stir cream mixture into slow cooker and then let cook on low for 15 more minutes.