How do you like your chili?

It's another cold, snowy day in Colorado and chili feels like the perfect dinner!  Each of us eats ours differently and I thought it would be fun to take pictures.  There aren't any special ingredients or tricks to the recipe.  We had this on another cold night where some warm comfort food was needed.

This is mine - With some cheese and green chile.

Let's Get Crafty!
2 lbs. stew meat
1 onion, diced
1 can beef broth
1 can diced tomatoes (I used a bullet type blender to puree them)
1 package chili seasoning
Toss it all in the instant pot and cook on stew for 30 minutes.

I used quick release once the time was up and stirred in:

2 cans of chili beans, undrained

I did this separately because I didn't want the beans to turn mushy with the stew cook time.  It also helped to cool the chili down just enough to jump into eating dinner.

This is Connor's - With some cheese and the chili poured over the cornbread

This was Emily's - She had already dived in.

Definitely no cheese for her and her cornbread was on the side.

Here's my Husband's - Lots of cheese and green chile.

Happy Sunday Funday Friends!  I hope everyone has a great day and stay warm.

Mississippi Roast with a Twist

Okay.  Here' the thing... I've seen this recipe on Pinterest on so many sites for years and thought it looked delicious.  Why haven't I made it?  Because- seriously!  A whole stick of butter!  What?!  Looks delicious? Absolutely.  Healthy? Not so much. 

I followed the recipe in general and then did a little trick at the end that I think really helped to reduce all that butter while still holding onto a lot of flavor.  Please let me know what you think.  :)

I added some extra peperoncini to mine straight from the jar because I'm in love with the bite they give.

Let's Get Crafty!
1 beef roast, mine is around 3lbs here (and yep!  It's frozen.)
1 package au jus gravy (Seems to be a toss up of people using this or trading it for onion soup mix.  We might just give that a try next time and see which we like the best.)
3 tablespoons ranch mix (equal to 1 envelope)
1/2 cup peperoncini

Put the roast in the slow cooker first.  Add the mixes next with the peperoncini on top of that.  Then the stick of butter.  I threw this together one morning before running out the door for work and knew it would have a good 13 hours to cook.  With the roast being frozen - I did low for 8 hours and then it cooked on warm another 3.

Oh the view!  A beautiful sight to behold after a full day of work with 

hungry kids asking for snacks as soon as you hit the door. 

My trick to lighten it up?  I took the roast out to shred the meat to shred

and then I cleaned out the crock pot and added the meat back to it.

The meat was still super moist and full of flavor without actually 

dripping in the buttery sauce.

Thanks for stopping by!  I hope you have a great day!

Sweet Potato Casserole - Lightened Up!

Making sweet potato casserole this year was a first for me and I'm excited to share a lighter version from Cook the Story's blog.  There's no butter or cream in this side and I felt like it had a lot of flavor and wasn't missing anything.  The secret weapon here is lowfat vanilla yogurt.

Let's Get Crafty!
Preheat oven to 350

3 lbs of sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks to cook.  I used some help from the instant pot here.  After adding in the sweet potatoes - I added a couple cups of water before locking the lid.  Manual setting for 10 minutes was just perfect.

While those are cooking- I pulled together the other flavor components in a mixing bowl large enough to also hold the sweet potatoes when they were ready:
1 cup lowfat vanilla yogurt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Pinch of nutmeg

Once the sweet potatoes are done and mashed, add them to the yogurt mixture and mix well.  There were optional ingredients for a pinch of salt and brown sugar.  I didn't add either of those because it felt sweet enough to me knowing that some marshmallows were  also going to be thrown into the party soon.

There's also mention of adding egg or egg whites.  I didn't do either of those things either.... I thought it sounded weird.  If you're a "must have eggs in my sweet potato casserole" person - 4 large egg whites or 2 large whole eggs were added and mixed in after the sweet potatoes were mashed and added with the yogurt mixture.

Spray pam in your casserole baking dish and add in the sweet potato mixture.

Cover with foil and back for 30 minutes.

Oh the toppings.  We used some marshmallows and chopped pecans.

After adding the toppings - bake for another 10 minutes, uncovered.

Turkey For Christmas?

Our tradition growing up was having turkey for Thanksgiving and then ham for Christmas.  I actually made this turkey the day after Thanksgiving but have been waiting to share it closer to another holiday where someone might be excited to see.

I have a secret - I love roasting turkeys.  Love it.  When they are on sale before Thanksgiving, I try to get one to make close to the holiday and then a couple to have on hand for when I'm in the mood to make a turkey.  I was only able to grab the one this year, but I think that will make next year's extra turkeys even more fun.

Let's Get Crafty!
Preheat the oven to 325.

Herb butter:
1 stick butter, melted
1 tablespoon minced garlic (I take help from the store here and use the jarred garlic)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons chopped rosemary (I was soooo happy to still have some from my herb garden)
Mix all together well and cover the skin of the turkey.  I like to lift the skin from the breasts and put some under the skin between the meat and the skin.

I also took a page from my Brother-In-Law's book and put foil on the wings and ends of the drumsticks.

Now it's time to stuff that bad boy with some chopped onion, celery and carrots.  We used up the last of the carrots from our garden here.

Bake at 325 for about 15 minutes for every pound.  Ours was 12 pounds and took just under 3 hours to cook.  The picture below is about half way through.  I like to cook it covered for the first 1/2 of the time and then pull it out - butter the top and put it back in the oven.  Once the color is browned and roasted just like you like it - but the foil back on to finish the cooking process.

It's turkey time!

Thanks for stopping by!  I hope you have a great day.

Egg in a Mug

Are you looking for different ways to eat more than just cereal and oatmeal for breakfast?  This is a quick and fun recipe to throw into the mix.  Especially during this time of year where there is so much candy and yummy treats floating around... it makes a good breakfast feel that much more important to me.

Let's Get Crafty!
Spray your large coffee mug with Pam to avoid sticking.  I've started using a separate bowl to whisk everything together and then pouring it into the cup.  This has helped even more with reducing sticking.

Scramble together well along with your add-ins: 

2 eggs
1 tablespoon 1/2 and 1/2 (or whatever you put in your coffee)

What kind of add-ins do you like?
I added in some bacon, shredded cheese and salsa

Microwave on high for 2 minutes

Thanks for stopping by!  I hope you have a great day!

Ranch Chicken or Pork Chops

I'm a big fan of this recipe!  It's quick and easy to get in the oven when you have thawed chicken or pork chops on hand.  There's something that makes my heart happy at the end of a long day about throwing dinner in the oven with little fuss or muss.

Let's Get Crafty!
4 Bone-In Chicken Thighs:
Preheat oven to 375

Mix together well:
1/2 cup light mayo
2 tablespoons dry ranch mix
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Divide the mixture evenly between the four pieces of meat.  Top each with panko crumbs.

Bake for 30-40 minutes

Boneless Pork Chops:
I followed the same recipe for the mixture and panko and added extra cheese today because I was just feeling like more cheese and man oh man.  It was tasty!  These were 4 bone-in pork chops and I cut out the meat so dinner would cook faster.

Picture photo bomb by my husband!

Bake 25 minutes at 350
Bake another 5 minutes on a low broil (I got a little impatient with the low broil and turned it to high.  It was awesome!  I love the crunchy texture from the panko.  I think I'll do it the same way next time for just 3 minutes.)

Thanks for stopping by!  I hope you have a great day!

Doritos Chicken Casserole

This recipe was shared with me by someone at my first job out of college.  I remember making it for the first time and loving the process of preparing it as much as I loved eating it.  We've had it so many times over the years and it's still a big hit.

Let's Get Crafty!
This is like a mexican lasagna of sorts where there are layers that get pulled together and then baked.

Preheat the oven to 375
Spray pam in a large casserole pan

Here's the lineup of ingredients and the amounts:
3 cups shredded chicken (I like to grab a rotisserie chicken when we are pinched for time)
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 cup light soup cream
1 can mild rotel
1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese
Family size bag of nacho cheese doritos

Follow these layers 3 times:
Layer 1:  Mix together 1 can cream of chicken soup, 1 can cream of mushroom soup, 1 cup sour cream and 1 can rotel (mild for the kids) - use 1/3 of the mixture for each layer.
Layer 2:  Nacho cheese doritos  (about 2 cups per layer) - I like to loosely lay them evenly on top of the casserole and then gently press them down.  Not too much - just enough to help them lay flat.
Layer 3:  Shredded cheddar cheese (1/2 cup per layer + some extra for the top... if you so desire.)
Layer 4: Chicken (1 cup per layer)

After adding the final chicken layer - I like to finish it with another cup of doritos and some final cheese.

Bake covered for 30-35 minutes.  Uncover and switch to a low broil for 5-10 minutes to make the cheese deliciously brown.

Thanks for stopping by!  I hope you have a great day!

Philly Cheese Steak Egg Rolls

This idea came from two things in the fridge that we needed to use.  Egg roll wrappers and roast beef deli meat.  In the past I made some of those fabulous philly cheese steak stuffed peppers so this was a twist on that idea.

Let's Get Crafty!
Preheat the oven to 425

Let's get those veggies going and softened up:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup onion, diced
3/4 cup peppers, diced (I used a yellow and red combo because I love the colors!)
Saute for 5-6 minutes on medium low until softened and starting to brown.

Then it's time to get more ingredients added to the veggies to pull the filling together:
1 can french onion soup
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
7 oz roast beef, cut up into slices
Throw everything in with the veggies and simmer for a few minutes until the cheese melts and it's all combined nicely.

Roll 'em up:
1 package egg roll wrappers (this recipe made 11 for us)  Be sure to use tongs putting the meat on the egg roll wrappers.  This helps limit the moisture so it doesn't make a big mess while baking!

Spray them individually with Pam to help them brown up in the oven.

Bake for 20 minutes until they are slightly browned and crispy.

I LOVE using egg roll wrappers to use up leftovers in the fridge in a fun way.  To use the remaining 9 we had from the package we also made taco egg rolls with some leftover turkey taco meat and added some frozen corn and cheese.

So... I'm a lover of sauce... Are you curious about the sauce shown in the picture?  I let the liquid cool that had the meat and veggies in it and added 1/4 cup sour cream.  It worked perfect!  I added some green chiles to mine to kick up the heat.

Thanks for stopping by!  Hope you have a great day.

Oven Fajitas - Round 2 and 3 and 4!

Here's Tuesday! We used up our leftovers from the oven fajitas in a few ways by making some queso to eat with naan bread turned into "chips" and inside burritos.  I even set aside 1/2 cup to take to work for a salad!

Let's Get Crafty!

Preheat oven to 350

For the queso:

1 1/2 cups leftover over chicken and veggies from the night before, cut up into bite size pieces

10 oz velvetta

1 can rotel

Mix it all together.  Put in the microwave a couple minutes to start the cheese melting.  Then I threw it in a baking dish to cook with the naan bread.  (I needed to stir it a couple times during baking and it came out all melty and beautiful.)

I so wish the picture could do justice to this queso!  

For the naan bread:
Cut into bite size pieces
Layout in single layer on baking dish (I really like the pampered chef large pizza stone for this)
Spray the bread with non-sticking spray
Lightly sprinkle taco seasoning on top
Bake approximately 15 minutes (start checking after the first 10 minutes)

For the burritos:

We made 4 burritos with the filling for each as follows:

1/2 cup refried beans

1/3 cup queso

Handful of diced green chiles

Full disclosure... I didn't eat a burrito.  Mark said they were delicious.

Last but not least - the salad:

Just a couple quick notes on the salad... I made a quick corn salsa with some corn, chopped tomatoes, chopped jalepenos, lime juice with some salt and pepper.  I like to do this right in a snack size ziplock.  I

For the salad dressing I used 1 tablespoon fat free greek yogurt, 1 tablespoon light sour cream and some taco seasoning.  I added a little and then tasted it starting with 1/2 teaspoon.  

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you have a great rest of your day.

Oven Fajitas

Who loves fajitas?  I know I do.  I especially love them at a restaurant when they come out of the kitchen on a sizzling skillet.  These aren't on a sizzling skillet but they are quite tasty and I love the way some of the onions caramelize and get crispy edges in the oven.  It takes on a flavor that's reminiscent of those sizzling fajitas.

I made these on a Monday night when I knew I wanted something easy to cut up a couple things and throw it in the oven without a lot of fuss.  This meal delivered. 

Going in the oven!

Let's Get Crafty!
Preheat oven to 425

Mix all this together and set aside to combine while cutting veggies:
4 chicken breasts, sliced into smaller pieces
1 envelope fajita seasoning (we had this on hand- if we hadn't then I would have just used taco seasoning or chicken taco seasoning)

Get your veggies going:
1 large green pepper, sliced
2 small onions, sliced
1 medium yellow squash, cut into half moon slices
(Use whatever you have... mushrooms, more peppers, jalepenos... so many wonderful options!)

Line a large sheet tray with foil (if you want to cut down on dishes)

Spread the veggies out and add the chicken - mixing all together to get some seasoning on the veggies too.  After mixed well - spread everything out into one layer as much as possible.

Bake for 20 minutes - stir around and then toss back in for another 5-10 until chicken is cooked through.  (I'm somewhat paranoid about undercooked chicken... so I tend to cook mine a little longer than others might.)

Coming out!  Love the colors!

My husband and kids ate these inside burritos with cheese and salsa.  I had some on a plate without the burrito shell and added some cheese and salsa to the top.  Stick around for a look at how we use the leftovers tomorrow!  Have a great day.  Thanks for stopping by.

Instant Pot Stew

I know I've been stewing it up here lately between the Crock-Pot and trying it in the oven... but I just had to give stew in the instant pot a try.  This is essentially my slow cooker recipe that I adapted to the IP.

The beauty of stew is you are in charge of throwing in the veggies you like or keeping out the ones you don't like.  Hate mushrooms?  Keep them out.  Love peas?  Throw them in.  (I would wait and add these in frozen in the saute while thickening at the end so they hold some texture and don't get mushy on you.)

Let's Get Crafty!

Get all the veggies in the pot:
2 potatoes, chopped (I chop mine big so they stand up well to the pressure cooking)
4 mushrooms, sliced
3 stalks of celery, sliced (leafy stems and all!)
1 cup baby carrots (already small and ready to be dumped into the pot)
1 onion, diced

Put the meat in first then spread the seasoning packet over the top.  
Add the beef broth and then give everything a good stir.
1 1/2 pound roast, diced into bite-sized chunks (absolutely buy stew meat already cut up, if you would rather!  This roast was 3.49 per pound and I just couldn't bring myself to spend an extra 2.25 per pound for them to dice it for me.  I certainly buy it up when I can catch it on sale.)
1 package onion soup mix
2 cans low sodium beef broth

Cook beef/stew for 40 minutes.

Once the pressure is released and the pot is open- change the setting to saute.  Whisk together 2 tablespoons cornstarch and some cold water to add to the pot and help thicken it up.   Stir for a couple minutes until thickened and then you are ready to eat.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great day!

Cheeseburger Soup in the Instant Pot!

Here's a recipe where I took what I would have done on the stove and adapted it for the instant pot.  I LOVE that I can saute, pressure cook and then saute again all in the same pot.  One pot equals less work equals happy family.

Let's Get Crafty!
Turn the instant pot to saute and add:
1 lb hamburger
1 onion, diced
3 stalks celery, sliced
Saute for about 6-8 minutes until the hamburger is cooked through

Add to the party:
1 1/2 cups carrots, diced (these were our final ones we just pulled from the garden.  They made it through the middle of November!)
4 red potatoes, peeled and diced on the larger side
1 tablespoon dried parsley
2 cans low sodium beef stock

Pressure cook on the manual setting for 5 minutes.  Yep - just five minutes.  The meat is already cooked and the onions and celery are already softened some.  I put the carrots in last with the potatoes to help them hold their texture.  I'm not a fan of mushy carrots.  Timing worked like a charm.

Let's make it cheesy and creamy by switching the instant pot to saute and adding in:
1 cup milk you have on hand for drinking, we've switched to 2% here lately
8 oz velvetta, diced small
Let this simmer for a few minutes until the cheese is melted

Thicken up the soup:
Whisk together two tablespoons of cornstarch and some cold water.  Stir into the IP and stir until thickened.  This should only take a minute or two.

Serve with your favorite mix-ins.  Mine are cheese and bacon today... because... well... cheese and bacon can only make something delicious taste even better.  Green chiles would be another great addition but we didn't have any thawed.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great day!

One Pot Sausage and Pasta

Well... it could be one pot.  But I was trying to bust it out faster and sometimes having the veggies cook with the turkey sausage takes longer... So tonight this was a two pot meal.

Let's Get Crafty!
Saute together until softened:
1 tablespoon butter
1 onion, diced (I used half of an onion because it was so big)
1 yellow pepper, diced (or whatever you have on hand.  I like yellow because I seem to get the kids to noticed them the least and they eat them on accident and like them)
After a few minutes when the moisture had been absorbed - I added about 1/2 cup chicken stock to keep it simmering.  (This is my trick to using less butter and oil.)

Fry on both sides are beautifully browned:
1 tablespoon EVOO
13 oz Turkey Smoked Sausage link (I like Hillshire Farms)  I like to cut the link in half and then slice it.  It looks fancier sliced on the diagonal... depends on my mood.  Tonight I was trying to bust out dinner after football practice and cut it as fast as I could.

Combine the veggies, sausage and the following - bringing to a simmer:
1 1/2 cans low sodium chicken stock (1 full can and the other half of the 1/2 can was added to the veggies)
1 can rotel, mild (drained)

Once simmering add the pasta and cover:
I love the Campanelle pasta.  Pasta feels like it tastes even better to me when it looks fun.  These cook to al dente in 10 minutes.  From a 1 lb package I used about 2/3.

As a general rule with pasta and water when cooking it in the dish... best to have not enough water and add more than too much.  You can always add more stock but if you drain the excess water then you are also taking out all that wonderful caramelized flavors from the meat and veggies.

Let's add that creaminess:
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
1/8 cup fat free half and half (whatever you like to put in your coffee)
Stir these in once the pasta is done and the pan has been removed from the heat.  This really gives the dish a Wow!

It's the long Thanksgiving weekend and I came across this little gem that I completely forgot to share!  Here this is talking about football practices and we've humped into basketball practices now.    This recipe is an awesome go to on a weeknight when you don't know what to make for dinner and have forgotten to defrost any meat.  I like to buy the turkey sausage when it's on sale a keep one on hand in the fridge to cook up in a pinch.

Thanks for stopping by!  I hope you have a great Saturday!