Very Strawberry Brownies

               

  Here's a quick and easy dessert recipe to make for your Valentine. Very cute, very pink, and yes, VERY strawberry! Now, I know you're probably thinking "if they're not chocolate, why are they still called brownies?" Well, it's the brownie TEXTURE we're going for here. They start out with a regular cake mix, but then when you pour the glaze over the still warm pan, it kind of sinks in a little bit, giving them a more brownie like texture. 

  So here's the thing.. when I was first looking at this recipe, there's were no extracts or dried strawberries, and I worried that it might wind up tasting like that artificial strawberry flavor (you know, like strawberry quik?) So I decided to amp it up a little. I saw another version of it that included the strawberry extract... but the aha moment was when I added the strawberry powder to it. BOOM. Huge strawberry flavor!! I thought "Why am I not adding this to every strawberry thing ever?" Definitely a game changer. 

 I made them for a group of friends at a recent party I hosted. One of my friends said they're VERY STRAWBERRY so that became the name! 

 Make them for your Valentine to show them how much you love them and they'll love you right back!

 

 

 

Brownies
1 box strawberry cake mix
2 large eggs
1/3 cup salted butter, melted
1 tsp strawberry extract (optional, but recommended)
1 tbs freeze dried strawberry powder (optional, but recommended)

Glaze
3/4 cup powdered sugar
2 tbs strawberry preserves
1 tbs lemon juice
1 tbs cream

Heat oven to 350F.
Line a 9x9 baking pan with parchment paper, leaving about 2 inches hanging over the edge. Set aside.
In a mixing bowl, combine all brownie ingredients. Batter will be very thick. Press evenly into prepared pan. Bake about 20 minuted or until an inserted tooth pick comes out clean.
Let it cool slightly, but leave them in the pan.
Mix all glaze ingredients until smooth. Pour over warm brownies.
Cool or chill completely.
Using the parchment overhang like a sling, lift the entire batch out of the pan before cutting into 9 large squares or 16 small ones.

Garnish with a strawberry on top of each one as shown, if desired.

Tips:
The extract and freeze dried strawberries are optional, but seriously they made all the difference for the recipe. Thats what makes them VERY strawberry! In fact, I don't think I'd ever make this recipe without them. You can easily find them on Amazon.
Also, you can double the whole thing and bake in a 9x13 pan. 

Btw. I saw a tiktok video with this recipe and she called them "pinkies", but I just couldn't bring myself to do it.

Hot Dog Stew

 

 Ok, I know this might sound weird, but just go with me on this one. 

I was in the mood to make something homey and comforting, so I did a quick inventory of my fridge and pantry. The first thing I noticed was a package of ground beef. That's a good start. I continued browsing my pantry and found cans of baked beans, which made me think of Trisha Yearwood's Baked Bean Casserole. Great! I'll make that. But that calls for bacon. Hmm... I'm out of bacon.. what else do I have? AHA! a package of hot dogs! I thought "well, it's not very likely that I'll be grilling hot dogs any time soon, and you can't go wrong with franks and beans." Perfect. From there, I just sort of used Miss Trisha's recipe as a guide, while not really using exactly the same ingredients. I didn't want it to be too sweet or too spicy, so I omitted the brown sugar, and kept the seasonings simple. And this is where I landed!

 After it was finished, I thought, "ok, now, how am I gonna serve this?" Cheddar cheese and sour cream on top? Well, I had it in my mind that it should be a stew, (NOT a chili), which made me think of my Mother's chicken stew that we used to pour over mashed potatoes. Great idea!

 The result was exactly what I wanted. It was simple and warm and hearty and satisfying. It also makes for great leftovers. It's a great mid-week meal, and it easily feeds a crowd. And it was easy as throwing things into a pan.

 Sometimes the best recipes are the ones you just come up with on the spot, dontcha think? Feel free to take this one in any direction with whatever you have in your pantry! Enjoy!

A few glugs of oil
1 onion, chopped
2 bell peppers, any color, chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb ground beef
1 pkg 8 hot dogs, sliced into coins
1 can pork and beans
1 small can Rotel tomatoes
1-2 fresh tomatoes, diced
2 tbs ketchup
2 tbs mustard
Splash of Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
Chili powder to taste
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup cold water

Mashed potatoes for serving


In a large pan, heat oil over medium heat, then sauté onions, peppers, and garlic until they soften.
Add ground beef, breaking it up as it cooks. After it browns, add the hot dog slices. Stir and simmer for about 10 minutes. Add remaining ingredients except flour and water, and gently stir until well combined. Simmer for a  good 15-20 minutes.
To thicken it, make a slurry with the flour and cold water. Add to pan and gently stir to combine. Simmer for another few minutes until thickened.
Serve over a big pile of fluffy mashed potatoes. 

 

 

Tips:

As stated above, you can clearly go in any direction with whatever you have in your pantry. You can also play around with the flavors. Want it to be more like a soup? Add some chicken broth. Want it to be more like a chili?  Add some tomato sauce and ground cumin. Want some heat? Add some chopped jalapeno peppers. Or crushed red pepper flakes. Or cayenne pepper. And for a serving variation, instead of mashed potatoes, serve it over a pile of rice, or just in a bowl as it is! It will all work!

 

Baked Mushroom Dip

  Whenever I'm looking for party dips to serve, I like to have a variety for my guests. So I'll choose some appetizers that are warm, some that are cold, some that have meat, and some that are meatless. I might do something seafood, and maybe I'll do a simple veggie dip, or even just pretzels and chips. The way I see it, if I have a nice cross section of appetizers, then it's more likely that even the most particular of guests will be able to find something they like.

  It also opens up the possibilities of trying new recipes, which is exactly where this recipe comes in. I wanted to make something for Christmas, but I didn't want to just do the usual spinach dip or chips and salsa, etc. Side note, I usually list the author of the recipes I post, but full disclosure, I can't even remember where I saw this one. I suppose it doesn't really matter anyway since I made a few changes here and there. Oh well, the most important thing is that OMG it's delicious! I brought it to Christmas dinner and it was a huge hit!! It's also really easy to throw together, even for the novice cook.

 So if you plan to host or attend any parties in the near future, give this one a try. It's SO flavorful and it's nice to try something new and a little different.

I bet your friends and family will love it! 

Great then.

 

 

 

1 lb baby bella mushrooms

1-2 cloves garlic

a drizzle of oil or a pat of butter

8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
1 tbs chopped fresh parsley

Black pepper to taste
1/4 cup breadcrumbs


Preheat oven to 350°F. 

Finely mince mushrooms. Place in a skillet along with the minced garlic and the oil or butter. Saute over medium heat until the mushrooms cook down a little bit and evaporate some of their moisture. Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, combine softened cream cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, Parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese, and parsley. Mix until well combined. Stir in sauteed mushroom mixture.
Transfer the mixture to a small baking dish, spreading it evenly. Sprinkle the top with breadcrumbs (and a little more Parmesan cheese, if desired). Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until bubbly and the top is lightly golden. Serve with slices of baguette or your favorite crackers.

 

 

 

 

Tips:

Use any kind of mushrooms you like! I happen to like baby bella mushrooms (also known as Cremini mushrooms), but any kind will work. You could even use a couple different kinds, just to switch things up a bit!

This recipe originally called for twice as much Parmesan cheese plus additional salt. I found that to be a little bit salty, so I reduced the amount of cheese and completely omitted the extra added salt. But you do you! Do you like a lot of Parmesan cheese? Add a lot! Come to think of it, I think I might add a little more mozzarella cheese next time, just for funsies. And just to switch things up, I've also served this with the addition of artichoke hearts. Just drain and chop them, then stir them in with the mushroom mixture. 

And if you REALLY wanna be bougie, use it to fill large mushroom caps, then place them on a tray, top with some buttered bread crumbs and bake. Delish!

 

Holiday Cinnamon Rolls

 

  Did you ever see any of those trending videos of people baking canned cinnamon rolls with heavy cream poured over them? Well, this is just a variation of that theme. Only this time, instead of heavy cream, I used egg nog! Now, I know egg nog is sometimes divisive, but frankly, I love it, so I went with it. It turned out perfectly! Seriously, when I made it for our Christmas Breakfast, every single person raved about how delicious it was. I'm not even kidding when I tell you you'll be tempted to go back for a second piece! It's just that good. It's DEFINITELY worthy of a holiday brunch. Make this the next time you want to impress someone. I promise you'll be a hit!

 

2 cans regular Pillsbury cinnamon rolls
1-2 cups egg nog

1/2 cup (1 stick) melted butter
1/2 cup brown sugar

Cinnamon

Nutmeg
Craisins and/or chopped pecans (optional)

 

Arrange rolls in large shallow baking dish. 
Drizzle egg nog around the rolls to fill in all the spaces, just enough to cover the bottom of the dish.
In a small bowl, stir together melted butter, brown sugar, and spices. Drizzle about a tablespoon over each roll. Sprinkle with craisins and pecans, if using. Cover with foil and bake at 350ºF for about 40-45 minutes. Remove foil and check to make sure the center ones are done. If the dough is still raw in the middle, put it back in for a few more minutes, uncovered. When the rolls are done, remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Using the containers of icing that were included with the rolls, spread icing over warm rolls and let the icing melt right in. Top with more craisins and pecans. Serve warm. Try not to eat the entire pan of cinnamon rolls in one sitting.


Tips:

I used a large rectangular casserole dish, which fits 15 rolls, perfectly. The problem is that 2 cans of rolls equals 16. So what do we do with the extra roll? I just split it into a couple layers and added them on top of a couple of the other rolls. They bake up together anyway, so who's to know otherwise?

The spices are just to taste. Do you like a lot of cinnamon, add a lot!
Use any kind of nuts or dried fruits you like!
If you don't like the icing that comes with the rolls, mix it with some whipped cream cheese. That'll make it taste more like home made. And seriously, does anyone NOT love cream cheese icing? 

If you're not making this for your holiday brunch, just use regular heavy cream!

Peas and Pancetta

  So, since Thanksgiving is rapidly approaching, I was looking for some interesting and different ideas for holiday side dishes, and I happened upon Ina Garten's recipe for Peas and Pancetta. First off, if you're not familiar with pancetta, it's like bacon, but it's just cured, not smoked. Anyway, the recipe sounded great, so I decided to try it. To be quite honest, I thought it was ok, but I immediately knew I'd want to change a few things. Full disclosure, I wound up changing literally everything in the recipe except for the peas and pancetta. Only just small changes, but changes nonetheless. 

 In addition to the two main ingredients, the original recipe called for olive oil, shallots, and fresh mint. Frankly, I don't see what the shallots brought to the party that would be different from just using a regular onion. And if I'm being genuinely truthful, shallots always feel a little pretentious to me. Does anyone really keep a supply of shallots in one's pantry? And conversely, does anyone NOT keep a bag of onions handy? You see my point. I also wondered why we were using olive oil when butter would have been so much better. I mean, you usually put a pat of butter on your regular steamed peas, am I right?? And the biggest deal breaker, I think, was the addition of the fresh mint. Maybe it was originally included to add a freshness to the dish, but it was absolutely not working for me. (Sorry, Miss Ina!) So I chose fresh thyme leaves and parsley as a substitute. For me, thyme makes everything taste and smell like Thanksgiving, and fresh parsley gives everything a fresh hit. So I gave it a try with all of my tweaks, and I must say, I enjoyed it MUCH better! 

  So, here it is. I can't exactly take credit for this recipe, because it wasn't really my idea to start with, but I will happily take credit for the updates. And who knows? Maybe you'll read this and think, Nope, the original sounds much better! and to that I say, Go for it! Cooking is subjective, right? You make it that way YOU like it! That's what makes it fun! That's what I did! 

You should too! 

Enjoy!

2 or 3 tbs butter

4 oz diced pancetta

1 red onion (or onion of your choice), finely diced

1 24oz bag frozen peas

1 tsp fresh thyme leaves removed from the stem

Salt and pepper 

Fresh parsley

In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the pancetta, and stir to render some of the fat for a few minutes, then add the finely diced onion. Stir and cook until the onions soften and the pancetta starts to brown, a good 10 minutes. Add the frozen peas, (no need to thaw!) and the fresh thyme leaves. Cover the pan and let it cook for a few minutes, stirring every so often, until everything is heated through. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve topped with an addition pat of butter and a sprinkle of fresh parsley.

Tips:

One of the best things about this recipe is that it comes together in only a few minutes. The peas stay plump and bright green and sweet and delish! The only down side is that it's not really a good make-ahead sort of dish. I tried making it in advance, figuring I'd just heat it up for serving, and the peas weren't as bright green, and they weren't as plump and fresh. So if you're making it for a holiday meal, stir it up right before you sit down to the table so it's nice and hot when you serve it. 

 One other thing.. be sure you don't over cook the peas. They can go from bright green and lovely to grey and shriveled in a snap. You really only want to cook them until they're just heated through and no longer frozen. If you can't find pancetta, just use regular bacon!

 

 

Perfect Slow Cooker Boneless Turkey Breast

   Every year, when Autumn starts creeping in, I'm always searching for different recipes and methods of cooking all of our holiday favorites. This year, my new favorite thing is cooking a boneless turkey breast in the slow cooker. Now, if you know me, you know about my love of slow cookers and the fact that I have an entire collection of them, (only 10, but who's counting?)
 Anyway, I first tried this method with a tik tok Cranberry Turkey recipe, and I loved the method so much that I thought "ok now lets try this with your usual traditional herbs and spices." I mean, you just can't beat the aroma of a Thanksgiving turkey cooking all day, am I right?
 The result was AMAZING! It's literally fall apart tender, flavorful and juicy as can be, and it absolutely smells and tastes like Thanksgiving. And the good news is, you can customize it for the amount of people you're serving. If you only have 3 or 4 people, you're good to go. If you have 6 or 7 people, just use a larger slow cooker and make two! And so forth. Oh! And here's the kicker: I wondered whether you even have to defrost the turkey, and guess what? You don't! You can literally take it out of the freezer, frozen solid, and throw it into the crock pot. Who knew? The only thawing I did was I held it under running COLD water until I could detach the frozen gravysickle packet. That was it! You do have to cook it for a longer stretch of time, but that seemed to be a worthwhile trade off. And it comes out exactly the same! Game changer.
Bonus: It also frees up your oven for all of your other casseroles and side dishes. Actually, come to think of it.. now that all the worry and stress about your turkey is sorted, what other side dishes are you gonna make??? Make lots, invite friends, and enjoy!

 

 

 

 

1 (3lb) Butterball frozen boneless turkey breast
1/2 tsp poultry seasoning blend
1/2 tsp ground sage
Salt and pepper to taste
4 pats of butter (about 1/2 stick)
1/4 cup white wine

Simply throw all ingredients into a crock pot, leaving the webbed netting on the turkey breast. 

Cover and set your slow cooker to low.
If your turkey breast is completely thawed, cook it for 6 hours.
If it's frozen, cook it for 8 hours.
Remove from slow cooker to a cutting board. Use scissors to remove the netting. Be careful! It's hot! Using a very sharp knife, slice into nice thick slices and serve.

For the gravy;
After removing the turkey from the crock pot, add a slurry made of 1/2 cup COLD water or chicken broth and a 1/4 cup flour to the slow cooker. Whisk to combine until it thickens. 

Pour gravy over everything!

Tips:
 Gravy- Be careful not to add too much wine. Once I just eyeballed it and it came out tasting much too winey for me. I found that measuring 1/4 cup was just the right amount.
 Seasoning- If you'd like to use fresh herbs instead of dry, go for it! You definitely can't go wrong with sage and thyme!
 Slicing- I found that using a really sharp knife will help you to make cleaner slices. That sounds kind of obvious, but if your knife is dull, the meat will just fall apart instead of making nice pretty slices. Presentation is everything! Also, making thicker slices helps to that end as well!
 And lastly, this recipe also works really well with a whole oven-stuffer roaster chicken. My biggest crockpot literally fits a whole 9 lb bird. Crazy, right? Just be sure to completely thaw it, remove the bundle from inside the cavity, rinse and dry it, then add a jar of chicken gravy to the listed recipe since it doesn't come with a gravy packet. Boom.

Joey's Slow Cooker Cowboy Lasagna

 

 

 

  If you know me, you know that I love canning. Pressure canning, water bath canning, steam canning, Love it. Not only does it provide me with a well-stocked pantry full of shelf stable food, but also I find it to be very therapeutic. It’s a great way to reduce stress and turn off your brain for a while. Some people like knitting and crocheting, I like canning.
 Anyway. recently I was pressure canning pints of chili for chili dogs, and I also did a big batch of Sloppy Joes. Most of the jars sealed up perfectly, but then there were a few that didn’t seal.  So that left me with two choices. I could either process it in the pressure canner again, or I could just put it in the fridge and eat it sooner than later.
 I opted for B.
I transferred all of the unsealed jars to a larger container. And then I got to thinking.. “well, now, what am I gonna do with all this chili/meat sauce?” I could do a hot-dogs-and-chili sort of casserole, I could make nachos, I could just simply have a bowl of warm chili with some shredded cheese and sour cream on top… hmmm..
 Then I thought, what about a lasagna? Only instead of Marinara sauce, I could use the chili as the meat sauce. Perfect!  I thought, oooo that sounds like it should be called Cowboy Lasagna. So I googled it, and whadya know,  Cowboy Lasagna is already a thing! Who knew? I googled some more and found a few different recipes and it basically this was my flight of ideas:
 … hmm.. this one has sausage in it.. I just happen to have some sausage!  great.. … next.. peppers, onions…awesome..  got ‘em, perfect… what else… cheese? Yup.. Cheddar and Mozzarella.. so far so good.. what else.. a few spices… ground cumin, paprika, definitely…. It needs something fresh… parsley! YES…. Keep googling other recipes… oh look.. this one has pepperoni on the top.. I have that too!
 It kind of cracked me up, because it felt like I was cleaning out my fridge and using up all of my leftover ingredients that all just happened to work for this recipe. I guess my biggest “outside the box” moment was when I added a little cream over the noodles instead of doing ricotta or cottage cheese. I really just wanted to focus on the meat sauce and noodles, instead of doing a whole cheese layer. Adding a drizzle of cream was just the right amount of richness. One might even call that the A HA moment. Well, that and the fact that I had half of a container of heavy cream in the fridge, waiting to be used up.
 So there we have it. Cowboy Lasagna, all thrown together while I was on my lunch break, and ready by the time I arrived home for dinner.  Easy, delicious, comforting, and perfect for a Fall dinner. 

If you like chili, you’ll love this one!



Vegetable oil
1 lb Italian sausage (hot and/or mild)
2 bell peppers, any color
1 medium onion
4-6 cups of your favorite chili
A handful of chopped fresh parsley
A few shakes of each:
            Ground cumin
            Paprika
            Dried oregano
            Salt
            Black pepper
1 box uncooked lasagna noodles
16 oz shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
16 oz shredded Mozzarella cheese
Heavy cream
Pepperoni slices


  Add a few glugs of oil to a large skillet. Remove sausage casings (if needed) and brown the sausage over medium heat, breaking it up as you go. Add the chopped peppers and onions, and continue to sauté.
When the meat is brown and the veggies are soft, pour everything into a giant mixing bowl. Add the chili, parsley, oregano, and spices. Stir until well combined.
Spray your biggest slow cooker with non stick cooking spray. 

Spread a cup or two of the meat mixture across the bottom.
Now do a layer of dry lasagna noodles, breaking them into smaller pieces as needed to complete the layer. Drizzle just a little heavy cream over the noodles, (not too much!) then sprinkle with a little of each kind of shredded cheese.
Do this 2 or 3 more times, or as many layers as your slow cooker will allow.

Meat, noodles, cream, shredded cheese.
Now place slices of pepperoni  across the top and sprinkle with a little more chopped parsley. Cover and cook on low for 5 hours. At this point, it'll be very soupy, so it's best to turn off the heat and let it set up for a bit before cutting into it. Serve with a big dollop of sour cream on top.


Tips:
All of the amounts are just guide lines. If you like a lot of something, add a lot!
If you don’t have chili already made, you can use Hormel, or just make a meat sauce with ground beef and tomato puree, then add chili seasonings to it. If you're not sure what spices go in chili, it's easiest just to add a packet of ready made chili seasoning, like Chili-O. 

If you'd like a spicier lasagna, add the pepperoni slices to each layer, not just the top!
I didn’t add beans, but you absolutely can. Any kind you like! Just rinse and drain them, then toss them into your meat mixture. Red, black, any kind you like! You could even just add a can of regular pork and beans, sauce and all. Or even a can of corn. It will all work!
Feel free to add any kind of hot peppers, crushed red pepper flakes, Tabasco Sauce, or any other kind of heat, as much as you dare. You do you!
If you don’t have a slow cooker, this recipe can also be made in a regular 9x13 casserole dish and then baked in the oven. Bake it at 350º, covered, for about an hour. And while it’s baking, go on Amazon and buy yourself a slow cooker.