We are Back!

...and ready to start cooking again :)

Life get's in the way sometimes and slows us down... keeps us from doing the things we love. We took a little break but now we are back and are ready to start doing what we love again - cooking, crafting, and blogging. So stay tuned, the recipes and the fun ideas will keep-a-comin' :D

We'll start you off with something easy - like crazy easy - and amazingly good.

Crock-Pot Shredded Beef Sandwiches

The ingredients are simple: 

A Large Roast (your favorite cut) - place it in the crock

A Packet of Beefy Onion Soup - sprinkle it over the roast

A Jar of Pepperoncinis (use 1/2 a jar or more) - spread it over the top (juice and all)

If you purchased a very lean cut of beef then you may want to 

add 1/4 of water (but no more) and it is probably not necessary.

Cook in the crock all day on low (or for 4 hrs on high) until the meat is tender enough to shred. Leave all the juice in there (cuz it is full of flavor). Cut some rolls, pile on the beef, and it is the perfect dinner or party food. It makes amazing left-overs and is great as a cut roast too.

Enjoy!

S'more Pie

We don't have a campfire in our kitchen... but we can still have S'mores! This easy to make pie will be ready to devour in mere minutes.

S'more Pie
1/4 cup Butter
1/2 cup Milk Chocolate Chips
1/2 cup Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips
1 cup Cocoa Pebbles Cereal
1/2 bag Mini Marshmallows
1/8 cup Mini Chocolate Chips
1 Ready Made Graham Cracker Crust

Combine butter, milk and semi sweet chips in a microwave safe bowl  and cook for 1 min and stir, if not melted try for an additional 15 seconds until melted.  Do not over microwave as the chocolate will seize.  Add the cocoa pebbles and mix well and pour into graham cracker crust and press down with the back of a spoon to make it even.   Top with mini marshmallows and sprinkle mini chocolate chips on top.   Broil for 3-4 minutes watching very closely to not burn your marshmallows.

What's for Dessert?

Mini Pumpkin Trifles

Perfect individual servings of a tasty pumpkin treat. Layer it however you like... there's no wrong way. We used granola (or praline), then pumkin, then cream, & so on until our serving dish was full. One of our kiddos has a nut allergy so we made some with granola and some with praline, but you could use both. Go shopping, & search for some cute new glasses, we did!

Granola Layer

1 cup quick oats

2 Tbsp brown sugar

2 Tbsp butter

1/2 cup Toffee bits (we used the ones with Milk Chocolate in them)

Add the first 3 ingredients to a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 1 minute. Then stir. If the butter isn't fully melted then micro for another 30 seconds. Mix in the toffee bits and then micro for another 30 seconds. Take it out of the micro and stir. Put aside.

Pralines

1 cup brown sugar

1/8 cup water

1/8 cup evaporated milk

1 Tbsp butter

1 tsp Vanilla

1 cup toasted chopped pecans

This is a stovetop recipe. Before you start, line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and keep ready - you will need it at the end.

Add the first 3 ingredients to a medium sized pot and boil (stiring continually) until the mixture reaches soft ball stage (take a small bowl of water and drop a TINY bit of the boiling mixture into the water - it will cool almost immediately - put your finger in the water and make sure that the candy mixture will form a soft ball). Turn the heat off and remove the pot from the heat. Add the butter, vanilla, and pecans one at a time (stirring continually).

Pour the mixture onto the parchment lined cookie sheet and spread it out. It will be hardening as you do this so move quickly. Let it cool all the way down and pop one of these yummy pralines in your mouth - heavenly!

Pumpkin Cream

1 pkg instant pudding (we used cheesecake but you could also use vanilla)

2 cups cold milk

3/4 cup canned pumpkin

1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Prepare the instant pudding by mixing in the 2 cups of cold milk and refrigerating for the required time. You want it to be pretty firm. Then stir in the canned pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice. Mix throughly and put back into the Fridge until you are ready to layer.

Whipped Cream

1 cup heavy whipping cream

4 Tbsp granulated sugar

2 tsp Vanilla

Use a hand mixer or your Kitchenaid and whip until it makes stiff peaks. You'll know when it is done. Nothing beats home made whipped cream - but sometimes cool whip and/or canned whipped cream is easier. So use what you'd like. 

Pecan Bars

Toasted pecans over a sweet shortbread type crust make these pecan bars irresistible. The will be devoured as soon as they are completed. Enjoy them with a cool glass of milk or a warm mug of hot cocoa. The perfect nutty treat!

Crust Layer

2 cups flour

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 cup butter

Cut the 3 ingredients together with a pastry cutter or with the back of a fork until it is all small pebbles. Then press into the bottom of a 9x12 pan. Cook the crust for 20 - 25 minutes at 350 degrees.

Pecan Layer

1 cup brown sugar

3 Tbsp butter (melted and cooled)

1/4 tsp salt

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 c toasted chopped pecans

In a bowl, stir together the first 3 ingredients. Then add the eggs and vanilla, mix well. Finally stir in the pecans. Spread the entire mixture over the cooled crust and bake...

15 minutes at 350 degrees

Then turn the oven down to 250 and bake for 10 minutes more.

Remove from oven and let cool completely before cutting into bars.

Pumkins - Not just for October!

 Pumkins can be kept out during the months of October and November... they are not just for Halloween! Consider them a fall decoration. Since we live in the Arizona desert, they create a cool autumn feel in our homes. Wendi went Pumkin crazy this year (heck she does a few every year) and here are some of our favorites.

Ribbon Pumpkins - I found my white and black pumpkins at Michael's (if you can't find them in white or black they can be easily painted - or you can leave them orange if you like them better that way). Pick a ribbon that you adore and tie a big bow. These have velcro dots attached to the back of the bow and the top of the pumkin so they can be removed for storage. The ribbon pumkin is the easiest (if you can tie a good bow).

Bling Pumpkins - These are also quite easy. You just need to find the scrapbooking section of your craft store and look for these swirly bling stickers. It is on one of the larger sticker sheets (a full page). Pull them from the sticker sheet and adhere to the pumkin (you'll probably want to cut some of the swirls to make it look more filled in, if you end up with some empty spaces). The stickers will lift if left alone so they need a layer of MOD PODGE (it looks just like white glue in a container). Just use a foam brush to put a thin layer of the MOD PODGE over the blingy stuff and let dry overnight.

Glitter and MOD PODGE - For the Glitter Pumpkins you can either use MOD PODGE or Spay adhesive (we used the spray) and coat the pumkin with the sticky stuff, then roll in glitter (whatever color of glitter you like). The blue pumkin was painted with blue acrylic paint first and then the blue glitter was added. This gets messy so you might want to do it outside! The black and orange polka dot pumpkin was created using cheap paper nakins (black with orange polka dots on them) found in the clearance aisle. The napkins were cut into about 1 inch strips. Put a thin layer of MOD PODGE (if you don't own it yet - you gotta get it) on the pumkin and then adhere the napkin strips to cover it all. You'll need another layer of MOD PODGE over the napkin as well. Let dry overnight.

White Bean Hummus with Balsamic & Garlic Tomatoes

I'm a sucker for
White Bean vs.
Garbanzo Bean Hummus... 

not exactly sure why
(I like both) but if I am making it at home,
White Bean it is!

White Bean Hummus

2 cans White Beans

5-6 cloves Garlic (3 1/2 tsp minced)

1/2 c Tahini paste

1 T Soy Sauce

1 tsp Salt

1 1/2 tsp Cumin

1/4 c Lemon Juice

1/4 tsp Tobasco Sauce

Add all ingredients into a food processor and process until smooth. If more liquid is needed use water one tablespoon at a time until you reach the desired consistency.

Balsamic & Garlic Tomatoes

2 T fresh Basil (chopped)

4-5 Roma Tomatoes (small chop - seeds removed - approx 1 1/2 cups)

2 cloves Garlic (1 tsp minced)

1/4 tsp Pepper

1/2 tsp Salt

2 T Olive Oil

2 T Balsamic Vinegar

Add all ingredients into a bowl and stir until throughly mixed. Can be served immediately but the flavors will mature if refrigerated for an hour or so before serving.

Serve with Pita Chips or Pita Bread or Sliced Baguette.

Busy Bees (Pumpkins)

So... we haven't posted in awhile.

Our kiddos were on fall break and life got in the way (doesn't it always). But... we were busy bees (well, Wendi was) in the crafting department. She is a pumpkin freak and she went pumpkin crazy.

They are beautiful!!

So here is the rough shot of all her pumpkins and we'll post closer up shots later with brief directions to make some of your own.

Sundried Tomato Pesto Spread

1 cup crumbled Feta
8 oz Cream Cheese
1/3 to 1/2 cup Pesto
3 T diced Sundried Tomatoes
2 T toasted Pine Nuts


*Let cheeses come to room temperature (so they are softened) and mix them together. Spread the cheese mixture evenly at the bottom of a serving dish.

*Next, spread the pesto on top of the cheese layer.

*Then, sprinkle on the diced tomatoes and finish with the toasted pine nuts.


Serve with a fresh, cut baguette or pita chips.