Jalapeno Bites

I got this recipe from my soon to be sister-in-law Paula this past Monday. I would have loved to have gotten the recipe under better circumstances but what can you do. On Saturday, Daniel's Dad passed away and on Tuesday we held his viewing. Monday night all the immediate family gathered at our place for dinner and some much needed time together. Isn't it sad that the only time you see family that's in another state is for funerals or a wedding? We made a vow to spend more time together and I hope it's one that we all stick to.

Anyway, the hubs loved these. When I say loved I mean he ate a ton on Monday, then ate a ton more after the viewing on Tuesday, and then was saying how he could eat some more on Wednesday. These will definitely be made again and he's already thinking of ways to kick them up a notch.

Jalapeno Bites

~Paula Harris

Ingredients:

12 jalapeno peppers

1 8oz. block of cream cheese, softened

1 C. parmesan cheese

1 lb. bulk sausage

Directions:

1.) Pre-heat oven to 350.

2.) Brown sausage in a medium skillet over medium high heat.

3.) Slice each pepper lengthwise to make 24 while browning sausage. Scrape out all of the seeds and set aside.

4.) In a small bowl mix together browned sausage, softened cream cheese, and parmesan cheese.

5.) Stuff about a tablespoon or so into each pepper half.

6.) Bake peppers in oven until bubbly and golden brown.

Paula advised that you can also use the zesty sausage and grill the peppers if you would like. Daniel is looking forward to wrapping a piece of bacon around them and grilling them.

This and that thrown all together...

Somebody has been a horrible, horrible blogger but what can I say other than you all should be used to it by now. I have been updating the food blog more so take what you can get from me...lol.

We have had a very busy month since I last posted, Cadence turned two months old, we celebrated Easter, Mothers Day, and a few nice days outside when it wasn't raining...which seemed to happen this entire month. We live right along a river which means when it rains like this we flood, and we flood bad. There are only three or four ways to our house on a normal non flooded day, but the flooding this month has been so bad we've been forced down to one and that was pushing it on one day in particular when Daniel thought he might have to turn around and stay at his Mom's. Seriously, I had to go to another town to do my shopping and it was no fun.

On a more fun note here are a few pictures that I have taken during the past month or so. They are backwards from earliest to latest in the month but folks, it's eleven o'clock at night, Addison has kept me up the past several nights, and I'm working on the lap top which makes things more challenging when it comes to rearranging everything. I'm sure you'll forgive me once you see all of the adorableness of my daughters. Is adorableness a word??


First up from tonight's dinner, sister was loving her fajitas and cottage cheese. Do all children get this messy when they eat? We're about to the point that we just strip her down to her diaper because without fail, she gets food everywhere. I actually found chunks of dinner in her diaper when I changed her.
And from before dinner...my precious little baby sporting her very first pony tail. I can't believe how grown up she looks when her hairs pulled back. I sent a picture of her to my sister via cell phones tonight and she didn't even realize it was Addison at first. Yeah Nikki, I'm sending you a picture of some random child I picked up and titled it...her first pony tail...lmao!

Next up, Mother's day. Mother's day was so special for me this year. Last year money was extremely tight for us and Daniel wasn't able to buy anything in advance, he did buy me a gorgeous ring while I waited in the food court at the mall, but I guess I had my first Mother's day all hyped up in my head and what happened wasn't what I imagined. He was able to do so much better this year. He bought me a family bible. There's something about having a bible meant just for your little family with the date of when you became man and wife, births, and deaths that really makes this whole family thing real. I will cherish it for the rest of my life. We spent Sunday evening with my Mom and my siblings and we can't get together without playing a couple rounds of cards. Addison crashed half way through dinner so she didn't join us, but Cadence stuck around to make sure nobody was cheating.

Earlier on Mother's day we spent some time with Daniel's Mom. Instead of going out and fighting off the crowds at some restaurant we picked up some broasted chicken, potato salad, baked beans, and mac and cheese. We had a nice lunch just being together and not dealing with other people. It was during this lunch that Addison was introduced to her very first chicken leg. The child cracks me up.

Next up, the weekend after Easter. We spent that Saturday evening at my Aunt Robin's and Uncle Dan's for my cousin Heathers birthday. We decided to go over early because they live right across the street from a school with a really nice playground. What kills me is that this school is my old school, and this playground is the very same one that I grew up playing on. Who knew all those years ago when we were playing pretend during recess, that so and so was married to this guy, and a couple of us were their kids, that I would actually be standing there watching my own real children play on it. It tends to remind you that you're getting older.

Heather took this family shot of us which I LOVE. Part of the reason why we went over early, besides to play on the playground, was so that I could take pictures of her boyfriends children. I am so glad she was able to get a good one of us...I took lots of good ones of them.

Here's Addison going down the big kid slide...check out her hair.

Prior to us leaving, Cadence thought she would try her hand at the Wii. Don't you just love that little smirk? If you look closely there is a little hand at the bottom right of the picture. What you don't see is that Addison had just snatched Cadence's bottle and was talking to her as if she was reassuring her it was all right. I can imagine Cadence was smirking because she knew she had just back washed in it prior to Addison taking it...lol.

Next up to bat....Easter. I am so upset about Easter I can hardly talk about it. I had been sick with another Crohns flare the previous few weeks and of course Easter was no exception. I barely ate and was in no mood to do anything but wish the day would hurry up so that I could get home. Can you believe that I took no pictures of the girls and their Easter baskets? I feel like such a horrible Mother. I did manage to take this one only because it was to funny not to. This was after my daughter, who has you can see from the beginning of the post, has no table manners, had stuffed an entire deviled egg into her mouth. Once again, the child cracks me up!

Next, Cadence's two month birthday. I can't believe how different she looks from birth and her one month photo. Her eyes are getting bluer and her cheeks are starting to fill out. She has calmed down so much these past few weeks that we are actually able to really enjoy her. She's smiling at us big time and about two weeks ago she started to giggle. She loves her big sister and as you can see below the feeling is mutual. Addison is so loving towards her...well most of the time anyway. Addison tries to feed her her bottle, give her her gas drops, and likes to help pat her on the back to burp. Addison loves to say Sissy and first thing every morning when I put her down from her crib she waddles over to the pack and play and on tip toes peers in on her "Sissy". She also likes to snatch Cadence's blankets off of her when she's in the swing and then tries covering her back up. Of course we have to make adjustments because the blanket usually winds up over her sisters face. Addison has also started trying to share her toys with her Sissy. We look over and there lays a stuffed animal or something on Cadence in the swing. I pray that these two continue to love one other and that they grow up being best friends.

The official two month shot. Just look at that hair, and those eyes, oh those eyes just melt me into a million pieces.

Another loving moment between sisters.

And last but not least, family time. Daniel's Dad is in very bad shape. We expect the call letting us know he's went to be with our Lord any day now. Daniel's Dad was in his forties when Daniel was hatched so he's in his mid-seventies now. Between strokes and a few heart attacks he's been dealt a pretty crappy hand. My heart aches not only for my husband who is so proud of his daughters and wishes his Dad could be around to watch them grow up, but it aches for my daughters and future children as well. I am saddened that they will never truly remember him or that he won't be able to watch them grow. The relationship that I had with my Grandma Murphy is so precious to me, but I had her for twenty four years, even though I feel anger towards the fact her other grandchildren had her for much longer but appreciated and loved her much less. Addison and Cadence and their future brothers or sisters won't have any time with him and Daniel will no longer have his father. I can't imagine a time when I won't have one of my parents. To be honest I can't even think about it without giving myself a panic attack. The thought of death, especially my own, is something that's been bothering me a lot lately.

Anyway, since Charlie won't be around to watch them grow, I wanted to make sure they had something to remember him by and to remind them that they did have him for a little while. During our latest trip to the nursing home I made sure to cart my camera with us so that I could snatch a family shot. Here it is...I hope not only Daniel, but the girls as well, will treasure it.

Well, that's been our month in a nut shell. I promise I will try to do a little better with updates. I feel like the girls are growing by leaps and bounds so I really need to keep caught up with their everyday shenanigans.

Sausage and Crescent Roll Bake

This is a perfect recipe for all of you who are planning a Mothers Day brunch of some sort, however I made ours for dinner one night along with some scrambled eggs and it worked out just fine.

My sister Nikki shared this recipe with me a few years ago during an evening of wedding preparations for her upcoming nuptials. Simple ingredients, simple to prepare, and easy to serve...what more could you ask for.

Sausage and Crescent Roll Bake

Ingredients:

2 rolls of crescent rolls

1 lb. Bob Evans regular sausage

2 blocks of cream cheese (8 oz. each)

1/4 finely diced onion

Directions:

1.) Brown sausage and diced onion on medium high heat.

2.) Once browned, turn off heat and add both blocks of cream cheese. Gently mix sausage and cream cheese together until cream cheese is completely melted.

3.) In a lightly greased 9x13 baking dish roll out one container of crescent rolls to form one sheet.

4.) Add sausage mixture to bottom layer of crescent roll and gently spread to cover the entire bottom.

5.) Add second container of crescent rolls to form top layer making another sheet.

6.) Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit until top is golden brown. Serve immediately!

Baked Chicken and Sharp Cheddar Taquitos

Boy do I have a recipe for you to try! What's even better is that you can try it Thursday to celebrate Cinco De Mayo. We will be celebrating our wedding anniversary that day so I did a Mexican themed dinner for us this past Sunday instead.

Baked Chicken and Sharp Cheddar Taquitos~

Source: For the Love of Cooking

Ingredients:

1 rotisserie chicken, meat removed

1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced

1/4 cup cilantro, chopped (I forgot to add this to ours)

2 tbsp. red onion, diced

2 tbsp. poblano pepper, diced ( I used an anaheim pepper)

Juice of one lime

Dash of cumin

Dash of oregano (I omitted)

Dash of garlic powder

Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste

Corn tortillas

Cooking spray

Sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

Directions:

1.) Remove all meat from chicken then chop into pieces.

2.) Place the meat in a large bowl. Add the diced bell pepper, chopped cilantro, diced red onion, diced poblano pepper, lime juice, and the seasonings to the top of the chicken meat. Toss all of the ingredients together. Taste and add more seasonings if desired.

3.) Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

4.) Wrap ten corn tortillas in damp paper towel and microwave for 1-2 minutes to soften.

5.) Place a bit of cheese in the center of the tortilla then top with chicken mixture and roll.

6.) Place, seam side down, on a baking sheet that's been coated with cooking spray. Finish rolling the rest of the taquitos, then spray each of them with cooking spray.

7.) Place in the oven and bake for 5-6 minutes then turn over and cook for an additional 5-6 minutes or until crispy and golden brown. .

8.) Serve with guacamole, salsa, sour cream, or hot sauce. Serve immediately and enjoy!

The picture I have shown is pretty crappy...that thing in the back of the picture is a failed recipe that I spent forever making only for us to not enjoy it one bit. If you want a better picture of the actual taquito please go the For the Love of Cooking blog.

Quickie Meatballs

This is one of those dishes that I know won't be winning any awards anytime soon but I wanted to post it anyway because I know my Uncle Dan will love it. What's great about it is how quickly it is to make and how few ingredients are involved. I put it together trying to use up some odds and ends in the pantry/fridge.

Katie's Quickie Meatballs~

Ingredients:
1 dozen homestyle frozen meatballs
1 can golden mushroom soup ( I HATE regular mushroom soup but I am actually starting to like this golden mushroom soup stuff)
black pepper
dried onions


Directions:
In a medium pot add frozen meatballs, golden mushroom soup, 1/2 can of water, a few dashes of black pepper, and about a teaspoon of dried onions. Allow to simmer on medium heat for about twenty to thirty minutes.

That's it, how much easier can it be? Now I realize it's not fancy but it was actually pretty good. I served ours with pierogies and mashed potatoes for Addison, hence the fact I had both on my plate. We had a lazy dinner night obviously...we watched the news and ate in the living room...Addie was served from my plate! HA

Speaking of watching the news, is anyone actually getting up at 4 a.m. to watch the big royal wedding? I am really tempted to do so but we'll see if I can drag this bag of bones outta bed when it comes times.

Strawberry Cheesecake Bars

Here's another sweet treat for everyone and it's another one I found from the Recipe Shoebox blog. Both my Mom and Daniel really enjoyed this but even though I thought it was good I wasn't head over heels for it. Next time I may switch things up a bit by using graham crackers for the crust and strawberry pie filling instead of the ice cream topping.


Strawberry Cheesecake Bars
~Recipe Shoebox

Ingredients:
1- 16oz. package of Pecan Sandies cookies, divided
1 1/2 tbsp. butter, melted
11 ounces cream cheese softened (I could only find the 12oz. container)
2 eggs
2/3 cup sugar
pinch salt
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. almond extract
2 cups sour cream
1 1/4 cups strawberry ice cream filling or strawberry pie filling

Directions:
1.) Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 9x13 inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. In a food processor, process all but six of the pecan sandies. Mix with melted butter and lightly press onto the bottom of the pan. Set aside.
2.)In a large bowl, combine the cream cheese, eggs, sugar, salt, vanilla, almond extract, and sour cream. Beat on high for 4-5 minutes.
3.) Spread half of the cheesecake batter over the pecan sandie crust. Pour 3/4 cups of the strawberry ice cream topping over the cheesecake batter.
4.) Spread remaining cheesecake batter over the strawberry layer and then spoon the 1/2 cup of strawberry ice cream topping over the batter.
5.) Being careful not to cut into the surface of the cookie crust, swirl the strawberry mixture with a butter knife.
6.) Bake for 25-35 minutes or until center is jiggly, but not liquid. While baking process remaining six cookies. During the last ten minutes of baking, sprinkle the cookies on top of the cheesecake. Chill for at least eight hours and cut into squares.

Creamy Chicken and Tomato Pasta

Have you all seen the commercials for the new Philadelphia Cooking Cremes?

I have and after a couple of weeks of deciding whether or not I was going to give them a try I finally decided I would give it go. I am so glad that I did. I pulled this meal together in less than a half an hour and what's more important, the hubby ate two helpings and what's even better, Addison ate all of hers without sharing any with the dogs...that right there is proof it must be good!

Creamy Chicken and Tomato Pasta~

Source: Yours truly

Ingredients:

1 lb. rotini pasta, cooked

1 lb. chicken tenders, cut into bite size pieces

1 10 oz. Philadelphia Cooking Creme Italian Cheese & Herb

1 14.5 oz. can petite diced tomato

salt

pepper

garlic powder

Directions:

1.) In a large pot bring water to a boil and cook pasta accordingly.

2.) In a medium size skillet on medium to high heat add two tablespoons of butter and add chicken, season generously with salt and pepper and add two to three dashes of garlic powder. Cook until no longer pink in center.

3.) To the cooked chicken add cooking creme and tomatoes and allow to simmer until pasta is cooked.

4.) Add pasta to the chicken and creme mix and simmer for another few minutes.

I served ours with green beans and Pillsbury bread sticks...quick and easy, what more could you ask for?

And on a side note, I love green beans but when you make them out of the can they are so bland. I always add a beef bouillon cube to mine along with a couple teaspoons of dried chopped onions and I boil them until there is very little liquid left. Talk about yummy!