Louisana Sausage Coffee Cake

Louisianna Sausage Coffee Cake

1lb breakfast sausage (Jamestown is a favorite)

1/2 Cup chopped green onion (about a bunch)

1/4 Cup grated Parmesan Cheese

1/2 Cup grated Monterey Jack Cheese OR Swiss Cheese

1 egg, beaten

2 T fresh parsley

2 Cups bisquick

3/4 Cup milk

1/4 Cup mayo

Brown sausage, onions and drain. Add next 4 ingredients. Make batter of bisquick, milk and mayo in another bowl. Spread HALF of this batter in a greased with cooking spray 8" square dish.

Pour in sausage mixture. Spread remaining bisquick mix on top. (This will be hard to spread so always best to use spatula that has been under hot water to make life easier!)

Bake at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

dinner & dessert

Don't these get you excited? Well, the recipes are on my other blog. Click HERE !

spicy beef and new orleans red rice skillet dinner

This recipe has such a long title! I'll sum it up for you ~ yum.


Spicy Beef & New Orleans Red Rice Skillet Dinner
recipe from The Deen Bros take it easy cookbook
1 T olive oil
1 lb ground beef
2 1/4 t salt
2 celery ribs, diced
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 green pepper, seeded and diced
2 cups chicken broth
one 14 oz-can tomato puree
1 1/2 cups uncooked long-grain rice
1 teaspoon sugar
2 t Tabasco or other hot sauce

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. Crumble the beef into the skillet and season with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt. Brown the beef, breaking it up, for 5-7 minutes, or until the meat is no longer pink. Drain.

Reduce the heat to medium high and saute the diced celery, onion and green pepper in the skillet for about 5 minutes, or until tender. Add the browned beef, chicken broth, 1 1/2 cups of water, the tomato puree, rice, remaining 1 3/4 teaspoons salt, and the hot sauce. Bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat to medium low and cook, covered, for 40 minutes, or until the rice is tender.

more recipes

Been posting recipes on my main blog lately ... click HERE to find them!

turkey and cheese in puff pastry

This is amazing. My friend, Nancy, made this over the weekend for our stitching Christmas luncheon party and well, I hope she didn't see how many pieces I devoured. The original recipe calls for soppressata salami but she used deli turkey as I did tonight and it. is. fabulous. It makes an ideal appetizer but I fixed it for an early simple dinner. Yum!

Turkey & Cheese in Puff Pastry
adapted from Ina Garten's cookbook, How Easy Is That?
1 package (2 sheets) puff pastry, such as Pepperidge Farm, defrosted
2 Tablespoons Dijon mustard
12 thin (not paper thin) slices Deli turkey
6 oz Gruyere cheese, grated
1 egg beaten with 1 Tablespoon water for egg wash

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place a piece of parchment paper on a sheet pan.

Lay one sheet of puff pastry on parchment paper lined sheet pan. Brush on all of the Dijon mustard. Top with turkey evenly avoiding edges for closure. Brush egg wash along sides. Top with other sheet of puff pastry. Brush top with egg wash and seal sides. Cut three slits in top for steam.

Bake 20-25 minutes, turning once during baking.
Enjoy!

sausage and cheese balls

A family favorite around the holidays, this easy recipe is so addicting and filling!

Sausage and Cheese Balls
12 oz shredded cheddar cheese
1 lbs hot, spicy sausage (mild is fine too!)
1/2 cup water
2 cups biscuit baking mix
1 teaspoon baking powder

Combine all in a mixing bowl; cover and chill even overnight. Roll mixture into balls and place on greased baking sheets. Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.

lemon brown sugar cookies

Lemon Brown Sugar Cookies
2 1/2 Cups all purpose flour
2 t baking powder
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1/2 Cup packed brown sugar
1 t grated lemon zest
2 eggs

Sift together the flour and baking powder.

Cream together the butter, sugar, and lemon zest in a large bowl until light. Beat in the eggs, then stir in the flour mixture thoroughly. Place the dough on a sheet of plastic wrap and form the dough into a disk. Wrap the dough and chill it for at least 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface and cut out shapes with cookie cutters.

Bake for 5-8 minutes, until pale golden. Remove from the baking sheet and cool on racks.

Decorate as desired.

chicken and dumplings

We had our first snow of the season here yesterday so last night had to be comfort food. This was a thrown together recipe and it worked ~ it was delicious!! Oh my was it ever good.

Chicken and Dumplings
1 package chicken breasts (there were 4 in the pack)
water
chicken broth
salt
pepper
dried thyme
dried dill weed
olive oil
small onion, chopped
celery, chopped
1 Tablespoon minced garlic
cream of chicken soup (I only used 1/2 the can)
1 package frozen peas/carrots/green beans/corn (the bag was 32oz and I used half)
Bisquick mix and milk - for dumplings

Poach chicken breasts in dutch oven with enough water to cover. Add 1/4 cup chicken broth. Season with salt, pepper and dried thyme. Simmer on medium heat for 10-15 minutes until cooked. Take chicken out and set aside to cool. Shred and sprinkle dried dill.

Reserve 3 cups of this liquid.

Make dumplings a la Bisquik box in a bowl.

In same pot, add 2 swishes of olive oil. Saute celery, onion and garlic for about 4 minutes. Add veggies, reserved liquid, 1/2 can of cream of chicken soup and shredded chicken. Simmer for 5 minutes and then bring to a slow boil. Add dumplings, one at a time. Cover for 20 minutes. Serve hot!

stuffed chicken roll ups

Needed something yummy and simple for tonight's dinner so decided to try this recipe. Served with sweet potatoes.

Stuffed Chicken Roll Ups

1 package stuffing mix (I used stove top cornbread mix)
2 eggs, beaten
1 package thinned boneless chicken breasts
2 cans cream of chicken soup
3/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon paprika

Combine stuffing and 1 cup of water. Let stand for 5 minutes. Stir in eggs.
Spread evenly over each piece of chicken.
Roll up chicken from one short end to enclose stuffing.
Place seam sides down in 13x9 pyrex dish.

Mix soup and milk; pour over chicken .
Sprinkle with paprika.

Bake uncovered @ 400 degrees for 45 minutes or until done. (The original recipe says to cook 30 minutes but mine weren't done by then - maybe they were thicker or I stuffed them more ... so be sure your chicken is done before serving.)

easy texas chili

I used to not like chili. (Didn't use to like football either.) At all. Then I liked it but if there was a bean (black, pinto, chili) anywhere in it, forget it. Now ... I love chili with the beans. What has happened to me? Who knows ... well, it might be that when I was preggers with Zack, I craved black beans like there was no tomorrow. Weird and the lad now begs for black beans at any chance so there ya go!

So, since it's football weather and ideal for chili ... it's on the menu today for an early dinner while the Patriots play. I have 2 chili recipes that I use and they are very similar and both are Southern Living recipes. This one uses chili beans while the other uses black beans and I think cumin too but this is the one for today and it's gonna be good. Once it's all prepped, then I put it in the crockpot to simmer. Off to make the cornbread!

Easy Texas Chili
1 lb ground chuck

1 small onion, chopped
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 (16oz) can chili hot beans, undrained
1 (6oz) can tomato paste
1 1/2 cups water
1 Tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt

Combine first 3 ingredients in a Dutch oven (or deep pasta pot); cook until beef is browned, stirring until it crumbles. Drain and return to Dutch oven. Add beans and remaining ingredients; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Yield- 6 cups.

mini meatball sandwiches

I saw this recipe over the weekend and deemed it to be made soon. Tonight! They were very tasty and something we all ate ... yes, even the picky eater Ben. Zack had seconds and I lost track how many sliders DH had. I'm the cook so I can have as many as I want, right? :) Very good eats ... now to clean the kitchen.

Mini Meatball Sandwiches
recipe from Pioneer Woman Cooks
1 pound Ground Beef
½ cups Panko Bread Crumbs
1 clove Garlic, Minced
½ teaspoons Salt
Freshly Ground Black Pepper
½ cups Milk

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
½ whole Medium Onion, Diced
1 jar (large) Marinara Sauce
12 whole Dinner Rolls (or Slider Rolls) - I used mini potato rolls
4 slices Provolone Cheese, Cut Into Four Wedges Each

Mix meat with bread crumbs, garlic, salt, pepper, and milk. Knead together with hands. Roll into heaping tablespoon-sized rolls.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and cook for one minute. Add meatballs between the onions and brown for one minute. (You might have to do this in two batches, depending on the size of your skillet.)

Pour in jar of marinara; shake pan gently to mix. Put on lid and allow to simmer for 20 minutes.
When ready to serve, cut each dinner roll in half. Place a wedge of Provolone on the top and bottom of each roll. Spoon a meatball with the sauce onto the bottom bun; top with the top bun.

Bacon Jack Quiche

So it's been a sickie house all week and we're all on the mend, hopefully, finally. I was in need of some comfort food tonight but nothing too ambitious ... quiche sounded perfect. Here's what I came up with and named it after the ingredients. It is very, very, very good!!

Bacon Jack Quiche
6 slices thick bacon, cut in 1/2-inch pieces
4 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 cups milk
1/2 small onion, diced
2 cups cheddar jack blend cheese, shredded
9" frozen pie crust

::Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

::Take frozen pie crust out of its ugly tin pan. Place into a pretty pie pan. Spray pan with Pam.

::In hot skillet, add cut up bacon and cook until crispy. Drain on paper towel. Admire cooked bacon and move on to next task.

::In a good-sized bowl, beat 4 large eggs with 1 teaspoon kosher salt. (Kosher salt makes eggs really fluffy!) Next add nutmeg, pepper, milk and mix well. Add onion and shredded cheese. Mix again well.

::Sprinkle bacon evenly on bottom of pie crust. Gently pour egg/cheese mixture over bacon. Nice.

::Carefully put pie pan in preheated oven and bake 1 hour or until knife comes out clean.

::Let set about 10 minutes (if you can stand it) and serve with salad.

Pioneer Woman's Apple Tart

These were so much fun to make! One box puff pastry makes 4 tarts; I used 3 apples (granny smith and jonagold). This couldn't have been simpler to prepare and bake; the apple slices have to be paper thin and displaying them on the dough is really a treat. The presentation is fantastic and the result, most tasty.

Click HERE for recipe!

scalloped tomatoes

I. love. this. recipe. You read it right, scalloped tomatoes ... not potatoes. This is one of Ina Garten's newest recipes in her cookbook, How Easy Is That?, and well, it's hands down even better than bruschetta and I adore bruschetta. I didn't use fresh tomatoes but rather can and it was out of this world good. My mom had fixed this side dish over the week-end and I clearly needed to have more.

Scalloped Tomatoes (adapted from Ina Garten recipe)
5 Tablespoons olive oil
2 cups (1/2 inch) diced bread from a round rustic bread, crusts removed
3 (14-1/2 oz) cans diced tomatoes, drained
1 Tablespoon minced garlic
2 Tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
handful fresh basil leaves, roughly torn
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350.

Heat 3 Tablespoons olive oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add bread cubes and cook until evenly browned, about 5 minutes.

Drain tomatoes and pour in a large bowl. Add garlic, sugar, salt and black pepper. Add mixture to skillet. Cook 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add basil. Toss around to mix.

Pour tomato mixture into a shallow baking dish. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and bake for 35-40 minutes.