Weekly Menu 11/24-11/30

Monday: Venison chili
Tuesday: Leftover chili with hot dogs, yummy I love chili dogs!
Wednesday: Soup and Grilled Cheese (easy for our busy day Thurs)
THANKSGIVING: Turkey, ham, stuffing, corn casserole, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, rolls, olives, pumpkin roll, pumpkin dip
Friday: Off to the in-laws-Sunday!

Pizza Bake

One of my and my hubby's favorite dishes is the Hoagie Bake. We make it alot of Friday nights. It's either that or pizza. Well I thought I could combine the two. This is what I came up with and man are we glad I did because it was EXCELLENT!

2 cans Recipe Creations
30-40 slices pepperoni
3 slices provolone cheese
1/3 cup mozzerella
1/3 cup shredded Pizza combo cheese
6 Tbl spaghetti or pizza sauce

Preheat oven to 375. Spray bottom and sides of a 9X13 pan.

Place one can of dough in bottom of pan. Spread 3 Tbl of sauce over top. Sprinkle with mozzerella then place 15 pepperoni over the cheese. Place the 3 slices of Provolone over the pepperoni cutting to fit. Place the rest of the pepperoni over the cheese. Spread rest of the sauce over the pepperoni followed by the shredded cheese. Place the second roll of dough over the cheese.

**I used the glass pan that is smaller than the 9X13 and just rolled the dough to cover all the sides and top and make a little bit more of a crust.

Bake 18-20 mins until browned.

Chocolate Carmel Bars

My mother-in-law has 2 issues of the Taste of Home Cookbook and I made this with her for dessert one night. Well I started craving them and wanted to bake so I made them for me and hubby.

Ingredients:

2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided
2 cups quick-cooking oats
1-1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups cold butter, cubed
2 cups (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped pecans
1 jar (12 ounces) caramel ice cream topping

Directions:
In a large bowl, combine 2 cups flour, oats, brown sugar, baking soda and salt. Cut in butter until crumbly. Set half aside for topping.
Press the remaining crumb mixture into a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking pan. Bake at 350° for 15 minutes. Sprinkle with the chocolate chips and pecans.
Whisk caramel topping and remaining flour until smooth; drizzle over top. Sprinkle with the reserved crumb mixture. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack for 2 hours before cutting. Yield: about 4-1/2 dozen.

Weekly Menu 11/16-11/23

Tonight: leftover pumpkin bisque and grilled cheese/turkey panini's (ENDED UP: Breakfast for dinner, pancakes, sausage rolls, eggs YUM)

Tomorrow: Chicken with Crash potatoes and roasted asparagus (ENDED UP: I ate lunch late with my BFF and DH had a sandwich)

Tuesday: Spaghetti and meatballs (ENDED UP: Chicken with Crash potatoes and roasted asparagus)

Wednesday: Meatloaf with steamed green beans and new potatoes (ENDED UP: Meatballs, Parmesan Orzo with corn)

Thursday: Out (ENDED UP: Sloppy Joe muffins, mac-n-cheese blue box, green beans)

Friday: Pizza Friday of DH's choice (it's his birthday weekend)--I'm going to make our hoagie bake but with pizza items only!!! I am excited!

Saturday: Out for DH's birthday

Sunday: I'm making dinner for DH and having my parents over--we are having Pretzel Dogs, Crash potatos (to introduce my parents to them), Fruit salad, Apps-goat cheese and cheese triangles and then Better than sex cake!

Hamburger Stew

This was a quick and easy was to use up some hamburger I had on hand. It's a mixture of recipes I found on Bisquick.com . It was comfort food on a plate. It will stay in our rotation of meals and will be nice to have on cold days!

1 pound hamburger browned and drained
2 jars beef gravy
1 can corn (Hubby's veggie of choice you could sub whatever you want)

2 1/4 cup bisquick
2/3 cup milk

mashed potatoes of your choice (we just made boxed)

Place hamburger back in skillet after drained, place gravy and veggies in skillet as well. Place over medium heat and bring to a boil.

Spray a 4 qt casserole dish with Pam. Pour stew into casserole dish. Mix Bisquick and milk together. Drop by tablespoons on top of stew. Bake at 425 for 20-25 minutes until biscuits are browned and stew is bubbly.

Meanwhile make mashed potatoes.

Serve stew over mashed potatoes with the biscuits along side.

Crystal's Turkey Casserole

This originated off a Rachel Ray recipe I had cut out her magazine, who knows how long ago. However there were a lot of ingredients I just didn't want to use so I made it to our tastes. This was a GREAT meal and we will make it again and again!

1 pound turkey breast fillets
2 cups mexican cheese
2 cups crushed tortilla chips (basically enough to balance the turkey)
1 cup taco sauce (we use this instead of salsa you could sub that)
1/2 cup chicken broth

Bake and then cut turkey into bite size pieces. (I had the oven on already baking something so I threw the turkey in a pan and baked it alongside).

I used the same pan (a 9x13 glass pan) that I cooked the turkey in and placed the cut up turkey, tortilla chips and taco sauce all together and mixed all together. Pour chicken stock over the top. (It's basically to keep the tortilla chips soft).

I then placed the cheese over the top. (I wish I had mixed it in, I will next time).

Bake at 350 for 40 minutes until the cheese is golden.

Oatmeal Scotchie Bars

So I was heading to my sister-in-laws to help out with her newborn baby. I knew I wanted to make some things to take with me for dinner and snacks. I had a bag of butterscotch morsels by Nestle I wanted to use. So I made some Oatmeal Scotchies but made them in bar form and they were wonderful and the in-laws loved them as well!

1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract or grated peel of 1 orange (I used the vanilla)
3 cups quick or old fashioned oats
11 oz package of Nestle Toll House Butterscotch Flavored Morsels

Preheat oven to 375.

Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, eggs and vanilla in large mixer bowl. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in oats and morsels. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets. (I used a jelly roll pan lined with parchmant paper).

Bake cookies for 7 to 8 minutes for chewy and 9 to 10 minutes for crip cookies. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely. Makes about dozen cookies.

For bars; prepare dough as above, spread dough into prepared pan. Bake for 18-22 minutes or until light brown. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into bars. Makes 4 dozen bars.
Me and my new nephew!

My mom's lasagna

My mom has been making this lasagna for as long as I can remember. It's the best lasagna I have ever tried (it even beat out my grandmas). I made 2 of these one to leave at home for my hubby to have a hot dinner while I am at the In-Laws for the weekend where I am taking the other one. Sorry for not taking a picture I promise to next time I make it! Okay I remembered to get pictures while I made it this time, however I still don't have one of the complete product, but with as much as I make it I'm sure I'll be able to get it!

1 clove garlic
1 1/2 lbs ground beef
Brown together and drain.

Stir in 1 32oz jar Prego, 6 oz tomato paste
Simmer for 20 minutes




Cook lasagna noodles (this is the first time I am trying the no-boil noodles, I'll update how it goes)

Cheese mixture: 2 tbl parsley flakes
1/2 to 3/4 cup cottage cheese
8 oz mozzerella cheese
1/2 cup parmesan cheese

Layer noodles, meat sauce and cheese mixture ending with cheese mixture in 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until cheese is brown and bubbly. Let sit 10 mins. before serving.

"Red Lobster" biscuits

2 cups Bisquick
2/3 cup milk
1 cup shredded cheedar cheese
1/4 cup melted butter or margarine
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Mix Bisquick, milk and cheese together. Drop by rounded tablespoon on baking sheet. Bake at 450 for 8-10 minutes. Mix butter and garlic powder. Once taken out of the oven spread biscuits with butter mixture.

Pumpkin Pie Bars

Here is another allrecipes.com recipe. I had some leftover pumpkin from the pancakes so I was needing to use it up. These are really good. I will probably be making these for Thanksgiving this year.

1 (18.25 ounce) package yellow cake mix
1/2 cup melted butter

3 eggs
3 cups pumpkin pie filling or canned pumpkin with 2 tbl pumpkin pie spice and 1/2 cup sugar
2/3 cup milk (I used 1 12oz can of evaporated milk)
1/2 bag of chocolate chips (I added this)
1/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup butter
I also used 1/2 cup of pecans in my topping

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (190 degrees C).
Grease the bottom of a 9x13 inch pan.
Pour one cup of yellow cake mix into a medium size mixing bowl; set aside.
Combine remaining cake mix, 1/2 cup melted butter and 1 egg; mix well.
Press into the baking pan.
Combine pumpkin pie filling, 2 eggs and milk in a medium size mixing bowl; mix until smooth. Pour evenly over the crust in the 9x13 inch pan.
I put enough of the chocolate chips over the pumpkin mixture to cover.
Pour the sugar and cinnamon and pecans into the mixing bowl containing the 1 cup of yellow cake mix. Cut in the butter until the mixture looks crumbly. Sprinkle this mixture over the pumpkin filling.
Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until a knife inserted into the bars come out clean. Let cool before cutting.
Store in fridge.

Crystal's saucy crockpot chicken

I knew I had some frozen chicken breasts I wanted to throw in the crockpot for dinner but I had no idea what I wanted to go in with it, so I opened my cupboards and this is what I came up with. It was very moist and so very good, even though it was just a throw-together, I will make it again.

3-4 frozen chicken breasts
1 can cream of chicken with herbs soup
1 can cheddar cheese soup
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Place items in the crockpot in the order listed.

Cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours.