Easy Peasy Pepperoni Rollups { Game Day 2018}

Can you believe another season of football is nearly over? Me neither! If you're already thinking ahead to game day parties, I have the yummiest, easiest recipe for you! Made with crescent rolls, pepperoni, cheese, and RAGÚ® Homemade Style Pizza Sauce, it's sure to be a hit! I love that it's a less messy version of pizza, and it's great for kids too. I always serve it with some extra RAGÚ® pizza sauce on the side for dipping, and there are never any leftovers! The smaller size is perfect for little hands, but also great for grownups who are trying to eat and cheer at the same time! 

Besides game day parties (and any parties in general) this recipe also finds its way into our weekly meal plan pretty regularly. It's super fast to make which makes it perfect for busy school nights or even lazy weekend nights when you just want to curl up on the couch and watch a movie, football game, or your favorite tv show! It's so easy to make that if you showed your kids once, they could make it by themselves with just some help from you to safely operate the oven. Yes, it's THAT easy! Here's how you make it! 

Pepperoni Roll-ups

Crescent Rolls

Pepperoni Slices

RAGÚ® Homemade Style Pizza Sauce

Mozzarella Cheese Sticks

1. Unroll the crescent rolls onto a cookie sheet. 

2. On each roll spread a spoonful of Ragu Homemade Style Pizza Sauce

3. Layer Two pepperoni on top of the pizza sauce

4. Cut each cheese stick into fourths, then cut each fourth in half lengthwise

5. Top the pepperoni with a cheese slice and then roll up the crescent roll 

6. Bake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees

7. Serve hot with extra RAGÚ® Homemade Style Pizza Sauce for dipping

Who are you rooting for in the Superbowl? And more importantly, what are your go-to Superbowl snack recipes? You can find RAGÚ® Homemade Style Pizza Sauce at Walmart, along with RAGÚ® Pizza Quick Traditional Style. You can buy, collect, and score with the Walmart Winning Lineup Rewards program - find out more HERE. 

Ham & Cheese Hashbrown Nests

I'm a big fan of simple, easy dinners, and this recipe is just that. It requires minimal ingredients, including Simply Potato® shredded hashbrowns which cut out a good chunk of prep work. They are fresh, not frozen so you don't have to add extra thawing time. The recipe comes together quickly and doesn't have a long cook time which makes it perfect for busy mornings or hectic school nights.

Here's how you make it! 

Ham & Cheese Hashbrown Nests 

3 cups Simply Potato® shredded hashbrowns

2 cups shredded cheddar (or other cheese)

1 tablespoon olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Thin sliced ham (deli is fine)

4 eggs 

1. Set the oven to 425

2. Spray a muffin pan with non-stick spray

3. In a bowl mix the hashbrowns, olive oil, 1 cup cheese, salt and pepper. 

4. Press the hashbrowns down into the muffin tins, making sure to pack it against the sides and bottom and leaving a well in the middle. 

5. Bake for approx. 15 minutes until the hashbrowns are set. 

6. Layer ham and cheese into the middle of the hashbrowns, then add one egg on top. You can pour the egg in as is, or scramble it first if you prefer. I found one egg to be enough for about 3 nests. 

7. Return the pan to the oven for approx. 15 minutes, or until the eggs are set. 

8. Remove the pan from the oven and allow it to cool slightly. Slide a knife around the edges of each nest to loosen it, then remove from pan gently. 

And that's it! What I love most about this dish is that you can customize it to your own tastes. Other deli meats can easily be swapped out for the ham, and you can use pretty much any cheese you prefer. Pepper Jack would be great for those looking for more of a kick, or even a creamy gouda. 

You can find Simply Potatoes at your grocery store in the refrigerated breakfast section. Mine was near the eggs, sausage, and bacon. And you can click HERE for even more recipes! 

Mini Strawberry Cheesecakes

 

The Cheesecake Factory has always been one of my favorite restaurants. I can remember eating there for the first time in downtown Chicago with a friend, amazed and overwhelmed at all the choices. After I moved to Florida I had one right near my house and it became our go-to restaurant. It's the perfect choice for date night, family nights, and we always go with out of town guests. In the early years of our marriage it wasn't uncommon to find us at home on the couch with a movie and a bag of to-go cheesecake that we had picked up after work. 

And now, Cheesecake Factory has made it even easier to have their signature dessert at home with their Cheesecake Factory At Home Cheesecake Mixes. We tried them out this weekend, and they do not disappoint! I think we were all a little skeptical that they would taste like the real thing, but they are 100% legit. These are so easy to make and are perfect for parties, book clubs, holiday dinners, and of course, Netflix nights at home! We used the Strawberry mix to make mini cheesecakes and I loved the result. I tend to think most things are cuter in mini size, but it also means each person can have their own, and there's no slice cutting involved! 

I mixed up the crust and the filling according to the directions on the Strawberry Premium Cheesecake box, but split the crust and then the filling into a muffin pan instead of a cake pan. I had enough to make about 9 mini cheesecakes. Once they were cool I removed them from the pan, drizzled some of the strawberry topping on, and then garnished with my favorite homemade whipped cream and strawberry slices. To make the whipped cream simply whip 1 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream with 8 tablespoons of powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon of nonfat dry instant milk, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla until it's fluffy and holds it's shape. Then dump it into a piping bag to swirl on top. 

I'm already dreaming up a salted caramel chocolate version for Thanksgiving dinner! Which flavor would you make first? 

Nancy's Breakfast Casserole

It's about that time of year.... the time when we start thinking about the holidays, cozy recipes, and entertaining loved ones. This breakfast casserole is a family favorite, perfect for slow (or hectic!) holiday mornings. I can be prepped the night before, then just throw it in the oven in the morning, and spend the extra time with your family. My Aunt Nancy wants you to know that she did not come up with this recipe herself. It was given to her by a coworker many years ago, but everyone in our family calls it Nancy's casserole, so I do too. It's been passed down through many a bridal shower and is just perfect for cool fall or snowy winter mornings. We'll be curling up with a big slice while we watch the Macy's Day parade!

Here's what you need: 

2 packs of Immaculate Baking Company Organic Crescent Rolls

1 lb. pork sausage (I like maple!)

4-5 tsp. fresh minced garlic

2 eggs

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

1/4 cup melted butter

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees 

2. Press one crescent pack flat into a casserole pan

3. Cook Sausage and Garlic until browned, drain. 

4. Mix Sausage and garlic with two eggs, and cheese. 

5. Spread over crescent rolls in the pan

6. Roll second can of crescent rolls over mix & seal edges

7. Melt butter and pour over top crescents

8. Bake 22 minutes, until golden and soft

Enjoy! 

Right now you can get $1 off Immaculate Baking Company products, just click here for the coupon! Their mission to create wholesome baking products (with some organic and gluten free options) ensure your holiday food is good for ALL your party guests! 

Hearty Fall Chili with Sweet Potatoes & Lentils

It's fall ya'll! At least my calendar says it is anyways. My local weather radar says something completely different, but that doesn't stop us from wanting to snuggle up on the couch with all the cozy blankets and the newest episode of This is Us. Who's watching tonight??

It's true what they say, you can take a girl out of the North, but you can't take the North out of the girl. I long for crisp leaves, cool nights, and warm comfort food this time of year. I can only get one of those here in Florida, so I make the best of it. Comfort food it is! I was playing around in the kitchen this afternoon, playing with a chili recipe I had on hand and adding in a few things here and there that I needed to use up and thought sounded good. I tossed it all together in a big stock pot, crossed my fingers and prayed for the best. Miracle of all miracles, it actually turned out amazing. The smooth sweet potatoes and the hearty lentils are the perfect addition to traditional chili. Be sure you make a big batch because you're going to want leftovers! This recipe can easily be made vegan or vegetarian by omitting the meat and optional cheese & sour cream.

Hearty Fall Chili with Sweet Potatoes & Lentils 

• one pound ground beef
• three sweet potatoes
• one cup uncooked truRoots Sprouted Beans & Lentils Medley
• one can beans (kidney, black, whatever you like)
• two cans petite diced tomatoes
• one can beef consomme
• one packet chili seasoning 
• shredded cheese (optional)
• sour cream (optional)

1. Cook truRoots lentil medley according to the package directions
2. Peel and dice sweet potatoes, steam in a double broiler until soft
3. Brown beef in a pot, drain fat and return to pot
4. Add chili seasonings, tomato, beans, beef consomme, sweet potatoes, and lentil medley to the pot with the beef, stir, and let simmer approx. 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. 
5. Dish up and serve topped with shredded cheese, sour cream, tortilla chips, or anything else you like! 

Now through October 7th you can save 30% on truRoots at Target using the cartwheel app. Just click HERE to save! 

Now, what's a girl gotta do to get some hot cider apple donuts for dessert around here??? 

10 Easy School Night Meals

This is it. The last weekend of summer. Can you hear my tears? They're falling like rain I tell you. Life gets real interesting when our house has two parents working plus little man and all his activities. During the week my one goal is to get dinner on the table as quickly as possible. The reason is two fold: 1. I'm exhausted from teaching all day, and 2. the sooner we eat dinner the sooner we start our bath and bedtime routine. Here are some of our tried and true weeknight dinners. The ones that are quick, easy, and for the most part cheap. They don't take much prep, or they can be prepped the night before. 

1. Spaghetti // I make a simple meat sauce (beef and garlic browned in a pan. drain. add in a jar of past sauce and a cup of grated parmesan) and serve over noodles with garlic toast (butter bread. sprinkle on parmesan and garlic salt. broil until golden) and call it a night. If I plan ahead I make a big batch of Nonna's meatballs on the weekend and freeze them. Then I can just defrost what we need and add those on top. 

2. Pulled Pork // THIS is my favorite pulled pork recipe. I marinate it the night before and then toss everything in the crock pot in the morning. I also make up the salsa the night before. All I have to do when I get home from work is boil a pot of rice and shred the pork. 

3. Flank Steak // another easy crock pot recipe. Toss it all in the crock pot and you're done. Serve over rice or shredded cauliflower or even mashed potatoes. Recipe HERE.

4. Sheet Pan Fajitas // I recently discovered THIS recipe for fajitas and it could not be easier. Everything cooks on one pan and you can use steak, chicken or shrimp. 

5. Breakfast // always a winner at our house. Little man eats breakfast food better than anything else. I will mix up some pancakes or waffles (from a box mix) and then fry up some eggs and bacon to go with it. 

6. Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup // a classic. If I know the day is going to be super hectic I'll assemble the sandwiches the night before and keep them in the fridge until I'm ready to put them in the pan. 

7. Baked Meat + Veggie // I'll pop some chicken or pork chops or steak in a pan with some salt, pepper, and maybe garlic powder and then pull a bag of veggies from the freezer and cook them in the microwave. If I'm feeling extra fancy I'll cook some steak fries or sweet potato fries to go with. 

8. Sausage Bake // slice turkey sausage thin, add some diced potato and sliced pepper and toss with a few tablespoons of olive oil and some salt, pepper, garlic powder and any other seasonings. Then I lay it all out flat on a pan and bake at 350 until everything is getting nice and golden. 

9. Quiche // THIS is my favorite quiche recipe and I love to assemble them on the weekend and then bake before freezing, so that all I have to do during the week is defrost in the fridge during the day and then reheat that night. 

10. Chicken Salad Sliders // We pick up premade chicken salad either at Publix or Aldi and spread it on mini hamburger sliders for a fun change from hamburgers. We usually serve with some chips and fruit. 

And of course when things get really crazy we'll pop in a frozen pizza or a skillet bag (Jacob loves Bertolli Chicken Alfredo) or run through the drive through at Chick-fil-a, it's all about balance! What are your favorite quick and easy meals?

Ice Cream Playdough

Ok Mommas, (Daddys, babysitters, etc.) It's the middle of June. Summer is in full swing. Are your kids bored yet? Are you pulling out your hair trying to keep them entertained? I've got an easy activity to add to your arsenal! It was a big hit here and I know your kids will love it too....

ICE CREAM PLAYDOUGH.

Ok so the name is a little bit misleading, it's not made with ice cream, but it does end up looking like ice cream once it's made. It's super simple to make: 

1 can of frosting (any flavor you like!)

2 1/2 to 3 cups of powdered sugar (until it's not sticky anymore)

Just add the whole can of frosting to a bowl and then 1/2 cups at a time mix in powdered sugar until it's no longer sticky. A stand mixer works best for this, or you can be like me and use a wooden spoon and get in your arm workout for the day. I'm all about two birds with one stone. 

You can use different flavors of frosting (think strawberry, key lime, funfetti!) to make different colored playdough that looks like various flavors of ice cream. Our frosting was chocolate so we made chocolate ice cream playdough. 

Once it's made you'll want to dump into a container for your kids to play with. Then you'll want to round up some play tools! If you have a sand ice cream set or a toy ice cream set those would work awesome for this, but I don't so I worked with what we had - silicon muffin liners, a waffle cone, sprinkles, various dishes, a spoon, and an ice cream scoop.

Jacob had an absolute blast scooping, dumping, decorating, and pretending to eat and serve his ice cream. If your kids get carried away and decide to eat some - no worries! Those two ingredients are completely edible, thought they MAY give your kids a major sugar rush. So maybe try this out after nap, not before. 

St. Patrick's Day Parade + Leprechaun Crunch Recipe

Oh my goodness. Who else is feeling the wrath of Daylight Savings time today? I swear it was invented by someone who hates parents. There just is not enough coffee in the whole world to make it through until bedtime.

This weekend was our town's annual St. Patrick's Day parade! It's one of our favorite weekends of the year! There's a big festival with rides, crafts, FOOD STANDS, and of course, the parade! It's always crazy busy but thankfully this year it wasn't too hot, thanks to a nice breeze.

My favorite part is when the bagpipers march down, with their beautiful music; and I always cry when they all the veterans get wheeled past. There was a fire troop from Dublin in the parade this year and when they passed the gigantic Irish flag flying from a top two fire trucks they stopped to salute, which I thought was very touching. Jacob of course loves all the fire trucks, police cars, and floats with music - anything that makes noise! He was also super interested in the Army helicopter that was on top of one of the floats, that thing was huge, I was a little afraid it wasn't going to clear the tree lined street but they had the propellers lined up just right to fit down the parade route! 

There's always quite a bit of waiting involved with parade day since you have to arrive early to get a seat. We passed some of the time watching them raise the ladders on two of the fire trucks and then hoisting up the big Irish flag, but after that we had to grab a seat and once you sit you're stuck. A smart mom, comes prepared. I made a yummy snack to bring this year - leprechaun crunch, and it was a huge hit!

Here's the simple recipe!

Leprechaun Crunch

Ingredients:

Mini Marshmallows

Pretzels

Chocolate Teddy Grahams

Green M&Ms (the mint variety, or pick the green ones out of a regular bag)

Chocolate Chips

Lucky Charms Cereal

Green Melting Chocolate (or melt white and add green food coloring)

Green Sprinkles

1. On a cookie sheet, mix together mini marshmallows, green M&Ms, pretzels, lucky charms cereal, teddy grahams, and chocolate chips

2. In a double broiler* stir melting chocolate continuously until melted

3. Pour Chocolate over the mixture in the pan

4. Immediately top with sprinkles

5. Place in fridge until the chocolate is set and hard

6. Break apart chunks and enjoy!!

* To make a double broiler: Fill a frying pan with enough water to cover the bottom of the pan, bring to a boil and remove from heat. Place a DRY bowl in the pan and add your chocolate inside the bowl. Stir continuously until melted. Do NOT let the chocolate get wet or it will be ruined!

We're 4 days and counting away from spring break! Have a great week friends!!! XO