Veggie Pizza!

So, I've kind of been doubting whether or not I'm going to follow through with this blog thing. And, I've decided I have too many good recipes that I need to share, I can't stop now. To make up for lost time, I am going to write two blogs tonight. Be excited, be very excited.

Tonight I am going to share a family recipe, we call it veggie pizza. This recipe comes from my mom. I don't remember when she started making it, but my siblings and I have been hooked ever since our first taste. Anyone that tries it always falls in love with it :)

First, I am going to share a little bit about my mom. She's always been an inspiration to me. She is a strong woman of many talents. She is a GED instructor and has a real gift when it comes to teaching and helping people. She is also a single mom of four kids, tough job... especially when we can all be pains at times. I'm a princess of course... my mom will laugh when she reads this. But for serious, she has always been there for me no matter what. Always loves me and gives me great advice. She is also a great cook and has shared some very special recipes with me over the last few years. So, this post is dedicated to my mom. One of the most important people in my life, love you mommy :)

Okay, back to the veggie pizza. My mom makes this a lot for parties, lunches, holidays, really anytime. I started making it when we have people over but also for an easy weeknight dinner.

Ingredients:
1 package Pillsbury crescent flat dough roll
1 block (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
1/2 packet ranch dressing seasoning mix
3 carrots
2 stalks celery
5-6 raw broccoli florets
1 small plum tomato (or a few slices of any tomato really)
1/4 sweet onion
finely shredded mexican or cheddar cheese

Directions:

• First, roll out the crescent dough on a cookie sheet or other baking pan. I personally use parchment paper because it makes for easier clean up when we're done. I bake the dough for about 12-14 minutes on 350 degrees. While the dough is cooking, I normally pull the cream cheese out of the fridge and let it sit out to soften. When the dough is done cooking let it cool.
• I normally let it cool for about 15 minutes and then I start working on the veggies while it continues to cool.
• I use a hand food chopper from pampered chef to chop all my veggies. I have used my food processor before but they were a little too finely chopped for my taste. I start off with the carrots, peeling and chopping. Then repeat with the celery and broccoli. I cut the tomatoes and onion by hand. **
• Mix the block of cream cheese and the half packet of ranch seasoning in a bowl, I've found the easiest way to do this is with a fork. Spread the cream cheese evenly over the dough with a spoon, careful not to rip up parts of the dough.
• Layer your veggies on! I always do mine- carrots, celery, broccoli then I split it into half. My half continues with onions and tomatoes and then the whole thing topped off with cheese. We cut it into 8 squares for dinner, smaller when it's an appetizer or for a party :)



**Of course all of the veggies and topping are at your own discretion. My husband doesn't like tomatoes or onions, so I leave those off his half. Sometimes we add some shredded chicken. It's really whatever your heart desires.

I really love this recipe and it will always remind me of my mom and home in general. It's an extremely easy recipe and extremely pleasing to the tummy. I hope you all enjoy... stay tuned for another recipe later tonight :)

minestrone soup

I haven't done a whole lot of cooking in the last few days, cooking for one just isn't as fun. Now that my husband is back from the field, it's back to the kitchen... which I am very happy about. Tonight I cooked minestrone soup. Not too exciting, but I was trying to re-create Olive Garden's version that I absolutely love. It's not the same but it's delicious. Hot soup for a cold winter day, 13 degrees here.

Anyways, I'll get down to it. Here's the recipe :)

Ingredients:

• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, minced
• 1/2 cup chopped zucchini
• 1 cup frozen italian cut green beans (I couldn't find italian style here, so I used regular cut green beans)
• 1 stalk celery, minced
• 4 tsp minced garlic
• 4 cups vegetable broth (DO NOT use chicken broth)
• 2 cans (15 oz each) red kidney beans, drained
• 2 cans (15 oz each) great northern beans (or any small white beans), drained
• 1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes, drained
• 1 cup shredded carrot
• 2 Tbsp minced fresh parsley (I used dried, 1 Tbsp)
• 1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp dried basil
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• 3 cups hot water
• 4 cups fresh baby spinach (I didn't have spinach today and didn't feel like going to the store, so I left this out today)
• 1 cup small shell pasta

Directions:

1. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large soup pot.
2. Saute onion, celery, garlic, green beans and zucchini for about five minutes or until onions begin to turn translucent.
3. Add vegetable broth, tomatoes, beans, carrots, hot water and spices to the soup pot.
4. Bring soup to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
5. Add spinach leaves and pasta, cook for 20 minutes.

 

Short blog tonight but wanted to get something up here. Pretty easy recipe and it makes enough for about eight people. Hope you all enjoy :)

tuxedo brownie cups

So, I've kinda been in a bit of a funk lately. I think it's because it's cold and slightly depressing with it being dark all the time here. Welcome to North Country I guess. It could also be because my husband is still in the field which leaves me with too much down time... I'm bored.

I forgot to mention something in my initial introduction, sort of like a warning about my blog. I'm not a fancy cook. And I don't claim that all of my posts will be healthy, actually, most of them will probably be unhealthy. I have a sweet tooth and LOVE sugar, this does not benefit me being a type I diabetic. I'm okay with it. Anyways, I just wanted to disclose that not everything I post will look pretty but I promise it will taste delicious.

I'm sharing a recipe today for a dessert. Tuxedo Brownie Cups. One word- A M A Z I N G :) I had these or the first time years ago at one of those home parties where they try to convince you to buy everything and try to suck you into hosting a party of your own. My mom made them and they were gone in minutes. I'm not sure where the recipe came from though, sorry. I thought these would be cute for valentines day too. Needless to say, I'll be making them again soon.

Ingrdients:
Nonstick cooking spray with flour (I use Baker's Joy)
1  package fudge brownie mix (plus ingredients to make cake-like brownies)
2  square (1 oz each) white chocolate for baking
2  tbsp milk
8  oz cream cheese, softened
1/4  cup powdered sugar
1  cup thawed, frozen whipped topping
1  pint small strawberries, sliced
chocolate for decorating, optional

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Spray cups of a mini muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray with flour. Prepare brownie mix according to package directions for cake-like brownies. Fill wells of pan two-thirds full. Bake 14 minutes or until edges are set. (Do not overbake.)
2. Remove pan from oven; immediately press tops of brownies to make indentations in the center. I use a rounded measuring spoon, works perfectly. Cool in pan 15 minutes. Remove brownies from pan; cool completely. Wash pan; repeat with remaining batter.
3. Combine white chocolate and milk in large microwave-safe bowl; microwave for 1 minute. Stir until smooth; cool slightly. In large mixing bowl, combine cream cheese and sugar; mix well. Gradually stir in white chocolate mixture until smooth. Fold in whipped topping.
4. Pipe cream cheese mixture into brownie cups; top with strawberries. Refrigerate 1-3 hours before serving.

These are always a favorite when I make them. This recipe makes about 4 dozen brownie cups. I also top the brownie cups with mini hershey bars and hersheys cookies & cream bars. I'm sure it would look really nice with curled pieces of chocolate on top. Like I said, I'm not that fancy though.

Let me know what you guys think :)

quesadilla explosion salad

Since moving to New York I have learned that there are some things that I will always miss from Florida. For starters, the grocery store Publix. They have amazing sweet tea and rasberry tea from the deli. Amazing subs and chicken tenders. Did I mention they have the BEST chocolate chip cookies from the bakery?! Oh, and they have great potato salad and coleslaw. If you can't tell, I miss this particular grocery store. I also miss Chik fil a. Mmmm... chicken. I also miss Carrabba's and Red Robin being closer than an hour and a half away, some of those copy cat recipes to come later.

One of the places I miss the most... Chili's. Chili's has great queso, salsa, fajitas and pretty much everything else. I'm here to share my love of the quesadilla explosion salad. The combination of dressings on that salad is what makes it amazing! I've come up with my own rendition and it's pretty freaking delicious. My husband and I are obsessed with it. We eat this pretty much once a week or every other week.

Ingredients:

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 bag lettuce of your choice (I use romain hearts)

1 can whole kernal corn

1 can black beans

1 onion, diced (I use a medium sweet onion)

2 plum tomatoes, diced (you can really use any tomatoes)

tortilla strips for salad toppings

mexican cheese (optional)

Kraft Southwest salad kit (marinade and dressing; picture of product to follow)

First, I cut the chicken into bite sized pieces and cook over the stove. I pour the fajita sauce over the chicken in the beginning and middle of the cooking process. While the chicken is cooking, drain and rinse the black beans. Also, drain the corn (DO NOT rinse). Cook until no longer pink in the middle.

Next, layer the salad (all quantities are up to your tastebuds):

• lettuce
• corn
• black beans
• tomatoes
• onions
• chicken
• tortilla strips
• mexican cheese

The secret to this salad is all in the dressing. When I think of the salad I think about the unique dressing that Chili's uses. They use a unique combination of a ranch dressing and a balsamic vinaigrette. Ryan likes using the BBQ ranch that the salad kit comes with. I use equal amounts of ranch dressing and balsamic vinegar. I know it sounds extremely weird but the combination is great. Just try it :)

I included a few pictures for clarification and drooling. Also, I found the salad kit at walmart. This has got to be one of my favorite dinners!

**Sidenote: it should make about three servings, depending on appetite. If we're super hungry we can normally finish it in two servings but generally we have leftovers for lunch :)

hi, I'm jamie, nice to meet you :)

So... I don't even know where to start. This is my first time attempting this blogging thing. I've read a few blogs, one of my closest friends has a blog and I read it every time she posts. I've also read a few cooking blogs. So, I'm giving it a try...

I'm going to start off slow, forgive me if it's not up to speed. Now seemed like the perfect time to start writing because my husband is in the field for the next week and I haven't been working that much- plenty of free time :)

I'm going to start off by telling you a little about myself. I am an army wife and very proud of my husband, Ryan. I'll give you the short story of us. We met on a Wednesday, he met my entire family over that weekend, we started dating the next Tuesday, said "I love you" within the first month and five months after we met he was leaving for basic training and AIT at Fort Benning. We had talked about getting married before he left but decided we should wait. He was home for two weeks in December for Christmas Exodus then it was back to the grind at Fort Benning. He graduated February 26, 2010. I only saw him for an accumulated 10 or 12 hours before he was on a plane to Fort Drum, NY. We decided we needed to get married. I flew up to New York and we got married on March 19, 2010; I flew back home to Florida three days later. He deployed in April and I didn't see him until mid January 2011. Those two weeks of R&R were amazing and way too short. Any army wives reading this will know exactly what I'm talking about. He went back to Afghanistan before January was over. I packed up all our stuff all by myself and I moved to New York the day after my birthday. I was settled into our new home, our first home of our own, by the middle of February. Ryan got home the first week in March. We had only seen each other ONE month total out of the last EIGHTEEN and spent our first year of marriage on opposite ends of the earth. It was hard but I'm just happy to have him home!

Anyways, I've always been a fan of cooking... I confess, mostly baking sweet and yummy stuff. But since I am now a wife and don't have anyone to cook FOR me, I have become quite the little Suzie Homemaker, so I've heard anyways :) Before I moved away from my family in Florida I had my dad teach me a thing or two at Sunday night dinners. My dad inspires me in the kitchen, he's a great cook. My mom is too and my grandma... actually my family is full of pretty good cooks. So, I started doing a lot of cooking, cooking things I've never cooked and venturing out of my comfort zone. My husband is always inviting people over for dinner and everyone is always asking for leftovers. Cooking is my escape and how I de-stress. When other people smile because I made something delicious I am truly happy.

My dad and mom, both inspirations to me :)



I hope you all like what I have to blog about, all comments and suggestions welcomed!

I'll post some yumminess later, stay tuned :)





Check out one of my favorite blogs, The Adventures of an Army Wife; http://samanthancurtis.wordpress.com/about/