Breakfast Pizza

We had some good friends come over today for our annual little Christmas party that we do before heading in our separate directions to spend time with family. We had such a great time, and enjoyed some yummy food.

These directions make 8 servings but you can easily half the recipe and  bake it in an 8x8 instead.

Ingredients:
2 pouches (8.5 oz each) Betty Crocker Pizza Dough (prepared as directed, just add hot water)
8 slices of cooked bacon, crumbled
2 cups of country gravy prepared ( I used the pouch kind that you prepare with boiling water)
12 servings or 3 cups egg beaters
1/2 cup shredded 2% cheddar cheese
any extra veggies you want to add :)


Preheat oven to 400.
Lightly spray 9x13 glass baking dish with pan spray. Spread prepared pizza dough in bottom of pan, covering as evenly as possible. Spread the prepared gravy over the top of the dough. Sprinkle with crumbled bacon. Pour eggs over top of this mixture. **If you notice any high points of dough sticking out, push them back under the mixture.** Sprinkle with cheese.
Bake for about 30-45 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through.

Serves 8 at 8 Points+ each

Sooooooooooooooooooooo good. Everyone told me how good it was and I know they weren't lying to me :)

Thank you Stacy and Drew for coming and having Christmas with us!<3

Linked at: Recipe of the week: Eggs

Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Balls

We are still on the mission to find the "perfect" snack. After perusing food blogs, we went back to Chocolate Covered Katie and decided to recreate this recipe.


Ingredients:
1/4 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup + 3 tbs raisins
2 tbs peanuts
1/8 tsp vanilla extract
Optional Coating:
1/4 tbs baking cocoa
2 tbs flax seed meal


Combine all ingredients in food processor (except coating ingredients) until mix is well incorporated. It may seem like it will never mix, but trust me, it does :). divide in to equal servings and roll in to balls. I made  6 out of mine, but I think 12 is really more size appropriate.  If you want to coat them, mix the two dry ingredients and then roll balls in the coating.

Ed liked these. I liked these. The coating is good, but a bit bitter until you get it mixed with the dough part.

Without Coating:                                                With Coating:
12 servings @ 2 PPV                                      12 servings @ 2 PPV
6 servings @ 3 PPV                                         6 servings @ 4 PPV
3 Servings @ 6 PPV                                        3 servings @ 7 PPV

                            

Apple Pie Ala mode Smoothie (Hot or Cold!)

My Weight Watchers Leader Sheri, shared this awesome recipe with us! Her original version is as follows:


3 PPV each serving: (Makes 2 servings)
1 WW Vanilla Smoothie Pack
1 cup FF milk
1 cup of "fried" cinnamon Apples
4 Ice cubes


Cut Apples in slices and cook in a skillet with Cinnamon until tender. Refrigerate. When cold, Blend all ingredients in blender. Really taste like an Apple Pie A la mode....I'm serious! YUM!


I tried it and it was GOOD, but I wanted to take a different spin on it. I wanted to make it hot!


1 cup FF or 1% milk
1 cup water
1 WW vanilla smoothie packet
1 whole apple "fried" up as above


Mix water and milk together with apples and heat in a microwave safe container until hot. Mix in blender with smoothie packet until smooth. Serve and Enjoy!
Have the whole thing for 7 PPV or make 2 servings @ 3 PPV each!

Banana Cinnamon French Toast Casserole

It all started when Lorin shared a recipe with me for French Toast Casserole :)
Recipe can easily be multiplied to serve more, or to make a head to freeze and reheat later.
Original recipe credit goes to: Healthy Tipping Point

Ingredients:
6 Slices Light White Bread
4 large eggs
1 tbs vanilla
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tbs cinnamon
1 medium banana (peeled and sliced or mushed. I mushed mine)
1/4 cup raisins

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375. Liberally spray baking dish, I used an 8x8 square.
Cube bread in to chunks, dump in to prepared dish. In a separate bowl, mix eggs, milk, vanilla , cinnamon and banana (if mushed. If sliced/chopped wait to stir in when you mix in  the raisins.) Once mixture is well combined, pour over the bread cubes and stir until all bread is coated. Carefully fold in the raisins (and banana if you didnt mush it), until well combined.

Bake for 30-40 minutes or until cooked through. Original recipe called for 20 minutes, and I think that would be appropriate if you sliced the bananas, but since I mushed mine, it added more liquid-ish and needed more time. Just keep a check on it every 5 minutes past 20.

Serve and enjoy!
Makes 4 servings @ 5 PPV each
Makes 2 servings @ 9 PPV each.

This was really super good. Can't wait to try it with other fruits in it!

Thankful Thursday {Week 5}

Linked up at the Thankful Thursday Blog Hop

I think this is week 5? I forgot to do it yesterday! GAH!
Today will be a super easy and possibly silly one. I am thankful for technology. All sorts of it. Phones, computers, TV's, DVD players and camera for starters. <3 Love being able to talk and communicate with friends and family and people I quite possibly wouldn't have met other wise. (Weak post today, but I need to get to work!) MAKE IT A GREAT ONE!

Peanut Butter Pretzel Granola Bars

Per request of my loving husband, he wanted a snack bar that was peanut butter chocolate something that was easy to eat and didn't have too much chew ( I will be posting the super chew bar recipe soon!) This has tons of ingredients (compared to my norm) and it smells scarily like a huge peanut butter cookie, so PLEASE :D bake at your own risk. Original Recipe credit goes to How Sweet Eats.

Ingredients:
1 cup old fashioned rolled oats
1 cup puffed wheat cereal
1 cup crushed pretzels ( I used rods, that's all I had!)
2 tbs ground flax seed
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white flour
1/2 cup dry roasted peanuts, chopped (I completely pulverized mine!)
2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
3 tablespoons melted butter
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup honey
100g semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350.


In a bowl, combine oats, flour, puffed cereal, pretzels, brown sugar, peanuts, and flaxseed, and stir to combine. Add in peanut butter, and mix with a spoon to break it up and create a “dough,” mixing it in as much as you can for at least 5 minutes. Mix melted butter with vanilla extract and add to dough, then mix. Add in honey and stir to moisten completely. Fold in chocolate chips.


Spray a 9 x 13 inch baking dish with non-stick spray and press the dough into the pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Remove and let cool completely before cutting – there may be minimal crumbling but they should hold together completely. If you find they are crumbling, stick them in the fridge to chill for a few minutes and try again.


Then, depending on how good or bad you want to be, this makes:
10 servings @ 10 PPV each
12 servings @ 9 PPV each
14 servings @ 7 PPV each
16 Servings @ 6 PPV each <~ Ed sized
20 Servings @ 5 PPV each

Very Yummy. Very Awesome. Very Evil!


Linked at : Ingredient Spotlight: Dry Cereal

Egg Bake with Hashbrowns

:) On the search for yummy, filling, healthy breakfast that can be cooked ahead and reheated. It started with Salsa Egg Bake but I needed a larger serving that would be filling for both Ed and myself. And this was created. You could simplify it some for yourself by using frozen hasbrowns, but I have a 10 lb bag of potatoes that needed to be cooked (all 10 lbs are NOT in this recipe :D ) Feel free to add more veggies to your liking.

Ingredients:
12 eggs (or you could use egg beaters)
8 tablespoons hot salsa (or mild, know your preferred spice level)
1/2 cup white flour
2 tbs water
1/2 cup shredded cheese
2 slices of chicken bologna, diced (or whatever meat/ lunch meat you have on hand)
2 lbs of potatoes, peeled and shredded.
5 teaspoons vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 375.
HashBrowns First:
Preheat large skillet over medium heat. Add oil. For the hashbrowns, once the potatoes have been shredded soak them in a large bowl of cool water. Drain them through a colander and back to a bowl of fresh water until the water runs clear (this is getting out some of the starch so the potatoes don't turn gray and yucky looking.) Pat the potato shreds a bit to remove some excess water, then transfer to hot pan with oil. Stir to cook, allowing them to sit and brown some.
Spray  9x13 baking dish and pour in the cooked hash browns, spreading evenly on the bottom.
Mix together the remaining ingredients in a mixing bowl, then pour evenly over the hashbrowns.
Bake for 30-45 minutes or until knife inserted comes out clean.

YUM! :)
depending on how big you want the servings:
6 servings @ 10 PPV
8 Servings @ 8 PPV each
16 Servings @4 PPV each.

Ed and I both had this for breakfast today with some fried apples and it was sooo yummy! Ed had a 8 PPV serving size and mine was the smaller. and I am FULL :)

***Alternatively, you could cut the ingredients in half and bake in  an 8x8 dish, but I was looking for breakfast for the both of us for most of the week :)

Linked At: Recipe of the week: Eggs

Manwich Pasta

As a kid, I was VERY anti-manwich. I figured I still was, til I started cooking for my hubby. I am still not a huge fan of gloppy meat on a bun, but we have had Manwich Steaks (in the crock pot) and I finally got around to figuring the exact stats (and not losing them, YAY!) for Manwich Pasta. You can make it as simple or fancy it up some with whatever veggies you want. Serve with a side salad and you are doing awesome YUMMY things!

Ingredients:
224g (or 8 oz, or 4 serving sizes) Ronzoni Garden Delight Rotini, cooked al dente
1/2 lb 93/7 ground beef, browned
1 can Manwich, any variety (I used the bold variety this time)
1 can of corn, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup water
and I threw in about 1/2 small can of mushrooms.

This is so easy, I probably don't need to type directions :) (Double yay!)
Cook your pasta, brown the beef.
Once the beef is cooked, pour in the Manwich, stirring well. Put 1/2 cup water in manwich can and swish around to get all of the extra yumminess out, pour in to meat mix. Mix corn with meat mix. Combine meat and pasta in an 8x8 pan (or really whatever you want)
All done!

Makes 4 large servings @ 11 PPV each
or 6 Servings @7 PPV each

Thankful Thursday: Week 4

Linked up at the Thankful Thursday Blog Hop

Today is another time appropriate post :) I am uber thankful for my BFF Lorin :)

Even though we are about 8 hours apart now, I think we are closer than ever. She

has an amazing heart and is so so smart. She helps keep me grounded 

and has taught me so much about being a friend. Thank you my dear 

for continuing to be a part of my life and helping make me a better person :)

PS:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Thankful Thursday: Week 3

Linked up at the Thankful Thursday Blog Hop

Another week already? Time flies when you are having fun!

This weeks "thankful" item seems to be an appropriate pick for this time of year. I am ever so thankful for my husband. Halloween will be our second wedding anniversary. I can hardly believe it has been 2 years! We have been "together" for nearly 9 years and through the ups and downs, it is sometimes hard to believe just how far we have come. If you do the math, I was barely 19 when we first started dating. And he is eight years older than me. I am so glad that we worked though any issues and gave each other the time necessary to grow and learn that growing together is even more beautiful than growing apart. He helps keep me strong and focused. I just cant say enough how much I love him and how much he means to me.

Thankful Thursday {Week 2}

I realized last night that I forgot to so this yesterday. OOPS :)
After some thought ( I am trying to save some "good ones" for up and coming week :D ) I have realized that another thing I am thankful for is our house. I mean this with sincerity and not bragging or boasting.
 Our house, the fact that is is OURS makes it special :) This is our sanctuary. Our place to cook food, have fun, watch birds and bugs. Invite friends over to make memories. This is our home. Our foundation for what ever the future may bring. <3 Moving to South Carolina has been one adventure after another. It is really hard sometimes missing friends and family, but we have more close now and I have comfort in the fact that most of the others are just an 8 hour car ride (or less!) away.  It has been almost 5 years since we have been here and those have been pretty awesome overall. Weddings, babies, friends getting houses of their own. I am excited to see what the next 5 bring. YAY HOUSE! :)

The only improvement I can think of would be a poofer machine, to make it easier to give visits and receive visits from dear friends and family who live further away.

Secret Recipe Club: Jalapeno Popper Chicken Burgers

Hello and welcome to my newest installment for the Secret Recipe Club! For those who may be unaware, this is a group of food bloggers that are "secretly" assigned a special blog each month to choose a recipe and recreate it in their own kitchen. Sounds like love, doesn't it? :)

I was so excited for my assignment this month. I was given The Lady Behind The Curtain. I had been following her blog for a little while and she always has such great ideas and recipes. You should check her out!

After a long decision, I finally decided to do my version of her Jalapeno Popper Burgers, delicious looking in their own right, but hubby doesn't like cream cheese. I went with a different cheese for the filling and the results were yummy.


Ingredients:
Burger:
1 lb ground chicken ( you could use 100% ground chicken breast to lighten it up some more)
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/2 tsp lemon pepper seasoning
1 tsp garlic pepper grinder seasoning
Filling:
4 tsp diced jalapenos, jarred with juice
1/2 cup shredded Colby and Monterrey jack cheese
Coating:
33g (or 3 servings) shake and bake coating (optional)

Preheat oven 400.
Mix Burger ingredients together, combining well.
Mix the filling ingredients in a small bowl, mixing well, breaking cheese in to small pieces, until it begins to stick together.
Measure burger mixture in to 5-6 equal size portions; do the same with the filling. Make flat patties out of the burger mixture and spoon one serving of the filling in to the center of each. **if the burgers don't see to want to close around the cheese, set aside some of the filling. you can place it on top of the burger when you bake it**Wrap meat around cheese and pepper until well sealed. Set aside. On a plate or something :) spread out the coating and coat each side of each burger. Place each burger on a baking sheet, sprayed with pan spray and bake at 400 for 20 minutes, turning halfway. Serve and enjoy :)

Makes 5 burger @ 5 PPV each
Makes 6 burgers @ 4 PPV each

Salsa Egg Bake

Need a new breakfast recipe? I know I did.
This was simple, yummy and filling. And Ed liked it; SCORE!
Use Egg Beaters to slim it down if you want.


Ingredients:
6 large eggs
2.2 oz (63 g) Oscar Mayer Smoked Ham Lunch Meat
4 tbs hot salsa
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup (28g) Colby Jack Shredded Cheese
1 tbs water

Preheat oven to 375; spray 8x8 glass pan with pan spray.
Beat eggs in a medium sized mixing bowl. Add water and salsa. Beat until well combined. Slowly mix in the flour until most lumps are gone. Pour egg mixture in to glass dish. sprinkle with ham, top with cheese.
Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown and inserted knife comes out clean.
Serve and Enjoy :)

makes 4 servings @ 5 PPV
makes 6 servings @ 3 PPV
or if you are a hearty eater (Ed I am looking at YOU!) 2 servings @ 10 PPV

Something a Little Different: Thankful Thursday {Week One}

See below for full details.

Since my first is early in the day, I will make this an easy and related one. I am thankful for Weight Watchers. As trite as it may sound, the balance and support offered by the program, meeting and people I have met is amazing. It has helped teach me to control myself (most times!) and to push to be what and who I want to be. Pure inspiration. Three years at goal and holding strong. I don't wanna go back!

Around 12/2007

Summer 2011

Original Premise:
Do you remember on Facebook last year how we were suppose to put, in our status, something we were thankful for each day up until Thanksgiving?

Well, we have 8 Thursdays {including Thanksgiving Day} left until Thanksgiving. So, I thought it would be fun to have a "Thankful Thursday" Blog Hop. Every week we each type a post telling one thing we are thankful for. If you want to put more than one that is okay too.

Just explain in your blog what you are thankful for each week for 8 weeks {8 posts}, link up your post(s) here, and then link it back to this post, in your post. Add if you are following my blog and I will be sure to follow you back! (Put *Follows* or {Follows} in your title.) And don't forget to add which "Week" each post is ~ 1 through 8!

So what are you thankful for? Can't wait to hear!

**Just please remember this is a family-friendly blog. Thank you!**

Skinny Monkey Bites

We have been trying to find "better"snack alternatives for both Ed and myself and in the process stumbled across this recipe at Once a Month Mom. The ingredients are basic and the prep is easy enough. Definitely a winner for me!

Ingredients:
3 bananas, mushed (mine weighed 406 g total, without peel)
2 cups old fashioned oats
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter (I used skippy natural)
1/4 cup unsweetened baking cocoa powder
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat over to 350. Mush banana in a large bowl. Once smooth, mix in the peanut butter, apple sauce and vanilla extract. In a separate bowl combine the oats and the cocoa til well combined. Mix wet ingredients with dry ingredients thoroughly. Let mixture stand for 15-20 minutes ( I skipped this step, impatient me!) Spoon out by teaspoon fulls on to cookie sheet, bake for 10-12 minutes.

Original recipe states yield 30, I got 33 out of mine.
based on 33 bites:
1 is 1 Points+
2 is 2 Points+
3 is 4 Points+
4 is 5 Points +

I enjoyed these; Ed said they are very banana-y.

Creamed Corn Bread

Love this recipe. I may never make another type again!

Ingredients:
1 14.7 oz can cream corn
1/2 + 1/8 cup yellow corn meal :)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 egg

 Preheat oven to 425. Combine above ingredients in a mixing bowl, then pour into a 9 inch round pan. Bake for about 15-25 minutes or until cooked through. Serve and Enjoy!

Ed and I both LOVED this. Super Yummy. The consistency is definitely a corn bread and not a corn pudding but still moist.
Makes 8 servings @ 2 Points+ each or 4 servings @ 5 Points+ each

 

Secret Recipe Club: Maple Ginger Pork Loin

Good Morning and welcome to my 4th installment of the Secret Recipe Club. If you are unfamiliar, each month, we are assigned a "secret" blog from which we pick  a recipe and make it. Who's blog you have stays secret to them until the reveal date. It is so much fun!

For September, I was assigned Glenda's Blog Busy At Home. She has so many great tips and tricks for all sorts of things all over the house as well as great recipes. I chose to make her Maple Glazed Pork Loin. She prepped her's to freeze and cook in the crockpot. I did the same thing, but then discoverd my baby crock pot had a crack in the bottom of it, so I baked it in the oven instead. So I pulled the loin out of the freezer and allowed it to thaw and marinade before baking.This was such a great hit! My hubby enjoyed the mash up of all the flavors!


Ingredients:
1.5 lb Boneless Pork Loin
1/2 cup BBQ sauce ( I used Kraft light)
1 tsp ground ginger
1/4 cup sugar free maple syrup
1/2 tsp orange extract
1/4 cup lemon juice
3 sweetner packets ( I used splenda)

Mix all of the ingredient, except the loin) until well combined. Place loin in a ziplock and pour the marinade over it. Freeze to cook in the crock pot, or bake later. Or you can allow it to sit in the fridge and marinade over night.

When you are ready to bake, preheat oven to 375. Spray an oven safe pan and pour the meat and marinade, coating the meat well. Bake covered for about 1 hour -1 hour 15 minutes. Uncover, baste and continue baking for another 15 minutes or internal temp is safe.

Allow meat to rest for about 10-15 minutes, then slice while still hot, allowing the chops to rest in the remaining marinade. Serve and enjoy!

Makes 6 servings @ 5 Points+ Each.

also linked at:
Fall Crawl Day