Mini Caprese Bites

I was looking for appetizer recipes a few days ago and found these on Southern Living's website...they looked fun and easy so I couldn't wait to try them. These were super simple and perfect for spring....we had a crawfish boil today with Kevin's family and I made these for a little appetizer....we finished them all! The recipe called for fresh mozarella balls...the only ones I could find were in the special cheese section, and I opted for the marinated/seasoned ones...they were great! These are pretty much all the things that make a caprese salad....just on a stick...how convienient?

Mini Caprese Bites

You will need:

-1 pt grape tomatoes, halved

-1 tub fresh small mozarella balls, cut into thirds

-1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

-2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

-1/4 tsp kosher salt

-1/4 tsp pepper

-6 thinly sliced fresh basil leaves

-kosher salt and pepper to taste

-toothpicks, or skewer

*Thread one tomato half, one piece of cheese, and other tomatoe half onto pick, set into serving dish

*Whisk together oil, balsamic vinegar, salt/pepper and drizzle over top of tomatoes

*Sprinkle with basil and more salt/pepper to taste...I also added a few more drizzles of balsamic vinegar, just because we like it. Enjoy!

Broccoli Cheddar Soup

After searching for a really good broccoli-cheddar soup recipe, trying one (and miserably failing), I found this one. I actually combined a few recipes that looked the best to me and came up with this one....the reviews on it compared it to Panera bread, so it had me sold. It actually wasn't too hard, I bought a prewashed bag of broccoli and baby carrots in the salad section at Kroger's and chopped them myself. Whatever you choose to do...it's worth it, this is really good. I've discovered Hannah likes broccoli soup just as much as I do. I was proud of Hunter for dunking his bread in it, and Kevin said this recipe was a keeper! * *I used an immersion mixer at the very end to "liquify" the soup. I think the recipe called for you to transfer it to a blender, but I remembered I had one of these and it worked great...fun too. I prefer my soup a little on the thin side, but if you prefer yours thicker it would probably be just as good leaving it alone without blending it, and keeping the broccoli chunky. Enjoy!

You will need:

-1 tbsp butter

-1/2 medium onion, chopped

-1/4 cup melted butter

-1/4 cup flour

-2 cups half and half

-3 cups chicken broth (I used low sodium)

-3/4 cup milk

-1/2 cup chopped carrots

-1/2 lb fresh broccoli **like I said, I bought a prewashed bag of broccoli and baby carrots...I roughly chopped the broccoli anc chopped the baby carrots into thin strips

-salt and pepper to taste

-1/4 tsp nutmeg

-8oz shredded sharp cheddar cheese *I used almost the whole 8 oz bag to the soup, and saved a little to top it with

*Saute onion in 1 Tbsp butter until tender and set aside

*Cook melted butter and flour over med-high heat for 3-5 minutes, whisking constantly

*Stirring constantly, slowly add your half and half

*Then add your chicken broth, stirring the whole time you are pouring it in

*Simmer for 20 minutes

* Add broccoli, carrots, and onions and cook over low heat for about 20-25 minutes until broccoli is tender

*Add salt/pepper to taste

*The soup should be thickened now, I used the immersion blender at this point to thin the soup

*Add the shredded cheese and up to 3/4 milk if desired (and I blended it a little more)

*Stir in nutmeg right before serving

*Serve hot and top with a little more shredded cheese

**once again, if you don't want to blend the soup just chopped your broccoli and carrots up really well. I also added in the milk at the end to get the right consistency I wanted....all up to you and how you like it!!

broccoli, carrots, and onions

flour and butter couldn't leave out my helpers

I also made these little croutons for dipping. We had these at my Dad's a few weeks back and I was addicted. All you need is a long (skinny) french baguette loaf of bread. Thinly slice and spray with spray butter (I used Parkay). Sprinkle with garlic salt, and broil on low for just a few minutes....make sure you watch them, because they'll burn fast....so good!

SOPAPILLA CHEESECAKE BITES

Kevin came home from work a few weeks ago requesting me to make this recipe after one of his co-worker's wife made it for the office. I've had another variation of this before somewhere, and remembered it being good, so I decided to give it a try. Let me just say that this one is a keeper for sure! This was so easy, took me all of about 10 minutes to prepare, and soooo good. The recipe says serve hot or cold....I chilled mine in the fridge for a few hours before cutting them into bites. These little bites won't last long....they are sooo good. I made them to take to my dads house last night to see my brothers. We polished off the rest of them this afternoon, my excuse was that I didn't have enough room in the fridge to put them back in....so we HAD to eat them:)

SOPAPILLA CHEESECAKE

-3 (8oz) cream cheese packages, softened

-2 cups sugar

-2 cans crescent rolls (large)

-1 stick butter, melted (I used real unsalted butter)

-2 tsp cinnamon

*Preheat oven to 350

*In a 9x13 dish, lightly grease with cooking spray on bottom of dish

*On bottom of dish, lay flat 1 can of crescent rolls (push seams together)

*Mix all of the SOFTENED cream cheese with 1 1/2 cups sugar until creamy

*Spread cream cheese over rolls, and top with 2nd can of crescent rolls.

*Pour stick of melted butter on top

*Mix 1/2 cup remaining sugar with cinnamon in a small bowl and sprinkle over butter

*Bake at 30-35 minutes Serve warm or cold Enjoy!

Crab-Stuffed Mushrooms

My Dad came over for a visit a few weeks ago and told me about this really good stuffed mushroom recipe that he found online, so I decided to give them a try because they sounded so delicious...... and if my Dad says they're good, then in my book that means they're good. Well, he was right, they definitely did not disappoint. I made these for Superbowl snacks a few weeks ago, and they turned out great. It took a little time for all the prep work, but Kevin helped me chop, so it wasn't to hard. I didn't stick to the measurements of the recipe b/c I bought more mushrooms than what it called for, but it still turned out great. Perfect for a snack or even a meal...we even re-heated them and had leftovers the next day, and they were just as good! My Dad said he used a non-pasteurized lump crab meat he bought from the local seafood market, but I couldn't find it so I bought a fresh container of crab claw meat at the seafood department at Krogers. I'm sure the fancy crab meat would have been amazing, but these turned out pretty darn good!

Crab-Stuffed Mushrooms

You will need:

-2 packages of BABY BELLA MUSHROOMS (I think I used 3 packages, probably too many)

-1 stick of butter

-3 green onions-finely chopped

-3-4 tablespoons finely chopped red bell peppers

-lump crab meat (I used an 8oz container from the seafood department)

-1 cup bread crumbs (I used 1/2 plain and 1/2 garlic roasted b/c that's what my Dad used)

-1/4 tsp salt

-1/4 tsp tony chachere's ( I just sprinkled in as much as I needed)

-1/8 tsp pepper

-1 Tbsp finely chopped parsley

-a little bit of shredded mozarella to sprinkle on top of mushrooms if desired

-Wash mushrooms and trim the end of the stems. Pop remaining stems out.

-Finely chop the remaining stems and set them aside

-Arrange mushroom (caps down) in baking dish sprayed with PAM

-Melt 2 Tbsp of butter and brush over tops of mushrooms

-Melt remaining butter in skillet over med heat and cook red bell peppers, green onions, and chopped mushroom stems a few minutes until vegetables are tender

-In a large bowl combine cooked vegetables, bread crumbs, crab meat, seasonings, and parsley

-Fill each mushroom with stuffing mixture, PILING it up over tops of mushrooms

-Sprinkle with a little mozarella if desired

-Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes

Roasted Sweet Potato Wedges

This little snack is simple and easy, and super kid-friendly. My kids used to LOVE baby food sweet potatoes, but for some reason I've never been able to get them to eat them again. I tried to trick them and just tell them they were french fries, but they didn't buy it. They each ate three of them, which is a success in my book.....I, however, polished off the rest of the plate. These are great as a side to a main dish or just as a fun snack:)


You will need:
-8 tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter
-1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
-2 or 3 sweet potatoes, scrubbed and cut lengthwise into wedges
-1 1/2 tsp salt
-1 tsp pepper

*Preheat oven to 400
*Melt butter in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Remove pan from heat and stir in cinnamon.
*Add sweet potato wedges and toss to combine
*Season with salt and pepper
*Spread potatoes on a foil lined baking sheet and roast them, stirring occasionally, for 20-25 minutes or until tender.

5 Layer Beef Taco Pie

This is yet another recipe I got from the Deen Brothers cookbook, it looked so good I couldn't resist trying it. Tacos are a favorite at our house, and this is basically just tacos....but layered, and with a crunchy layer of baked cheese on top. This is fast and easy, and a great way to put a new spin on plain old tacos. I served this with guacamole and re fried beans and called it a day. This recipe will definitely be making a repeat appearance soon in our kitchen!

You will need:

-1 1/2 cups crushed tortilla chips (I used tostado's scoops)

-1 pound ground beef

-one packet taco seasoning mix (I used Kroger brand-mild)

-1 cup salsa of your choice (I used Clint's Texas Salsa-mild...this is our favorite salsa)

-3/4 cup sour cream

-1 avocado, halved, peeled and cut into cubes

-1 cup shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese

*Spray a broiler proof 9 inch deep dish pie plat with non-stick spray. Spread 1 cup of crushed tortilla chips on bottom of pie plate.

*Brown ground beef for 5-7 minutes until no longer pink. Drain drain drippings from the meat.

*Add taco seasoning packet and 2/3 cup water to the meat. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has evaporated. Transfer the meat to the pie plate, spreading it on top of chips.

*Preheat your broiler to low

*Spread salsa over the meat, then sour cream over the salsa. Scatter avocado cubes over the sour cream, and the remaining 1/2 cup crushed tortilla chips over avocado. Top with the cheddar cheese.

*Broil for 3-5 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbling. ***Make sure to watch the cheese.....I broiled mine for 3 minutes and if hadn't checked it , the cheese would have burned.....I caught it just in time and it turned out perfect!

Easy Banana Bread

I found this recipe last year on a blog and I love it because it is so simple and so good, not to mention it makes the whole house smell amazing! No mixer needed for this one...

You will need:
-4 ripe bananas, mashed
-1/3 cup butter, melted
-1 cup sugar
-1 egg lightly beaten
-1 tsp vanilla
-1 tsp baking soda
-pinch of salt
-1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

-Preheat oven to 350
-In a large bowl mash bananas well (I usually use a potato masher for this)
-With a wooden spoon mix melted butter into mashed bananas
-Mix in the sugar, egg, and vanilla
-Sprinkle baking soda and pinch of salt into bowl and mix in
-Add flour last and mix well
-Pour into a well greased loaf pan
-Bake 1 hour