Ham Asparagus Gratin

I got today's recipe from here a couple of years ago.  I love it because I love asparagus and surprisingly my kids like it too.  Even the baby was chomping on the gooey goodness.

Ingredients
1 can cream of Asparagus Soup (I have used cream of mushroom, also, and it tasted great)
1/2 cup milk
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups cooked cut asparagus
1 1/2 cups cubed cooked ham
2 1/4 cups rotini pasta, cooked and drained (about 4 cups)
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese or Swiss cheese (about 4 ounces) 

Directions:
Heat the oven to 400°F.

Stir the soup, milk, onion powder, black pepper, asparagus, ham, pasta and 1/2 cup cheese in a baking dish.  Bake for 25 minutes or until the ham mixture is hot and bubbling. Stir the ham mixture. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake for 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

printable recipe here.
 

Muffin Tin Ham & Eggs

I had seen a bunch of recipes like this on Pinterest and decided to give it a try this morning.  They tasted great and are completely customizable to what you have on hand. This is what I did.

Ingredients (per tin)
2 slices of deli sliced ham (I just used the sandwich sliced meats I had for sandwiches)
1 egg
spinach
salt & pepper

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  First spray your muffin tins with some cooking spray.  Then I pushed in the meat slices, making sure that they left a "well" in the middle for the egg.  The meat slices tried to pop back up, so push them down well.

Next, take a couple of leaves of spinach and put on top of the meat.  Then, crack and egg and drop it in on top of the spinach and salt and pepper to taste.   I actually added the spinach last, but will do it the other way next time.

It should look something like this:

 Then pop it in the oven for about 15 minutes.  My yolks were completely cooked in that amount of time, so if you would like yours still runny, lessen the time.

Once they are done, pop them out with a spoon and serve!  YUM!

Remember that you can use whatever ingredients you like; mushrooms, cheese, onion, red or green pepper, diced green chilies, bacon, bacon bits, etc...

I made a whole dozen because that is what my tin holds.  I just took the extras out and put them in an airtight container in the fridge.  They will heat up nicely in the microwave for a quick breakfast on the go!

Macaroni Deluxe Casserole

This is a recipe that I've had in my recipe binder since before I got married.  It is a family recipe from a friend.  I forgot to snap a "pretty" picture of it before we started chowing down.  The kids loved it and so did the hubby, so it might make an appearance on my dinner table more often.

Macaroni Deluxe Casserole (printable recipe here)

Ingredients:

3/4 lb hamburger 
1/2 green pepper (I used a red pepper) 
1 chopped onion 
1 can tomato soup 
1 can cream of mushroom soup 
1/2 large can of evaporated milk 
1 1/2 cups uncooked macaroni 
1 cup grated cheddar cheese (optional) 

Directions: 
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sauté onions and peppers.  Add hamburger and salt and pepper.  Meanwhile, cook pasta and drain.  Once meat is browned, drain.   In a casserole dish, combine macaroni, soups, milk and meat mixture.  Top with grated cheese. 
Mix and bake at 350 for 30 minutes. 

Dirty Rice with Ham and Black Beans

I decided to try a little twist on one of our family favorites.  I made up a batch of Cajun Dirty Rice but instead of using sausage, I used ham.  I also added a can of black beans.

My Altered Recipe for Dirty Rice with Ham and Black Beans
1 1/2 cups uncooked long grain rice (i use instant most of the time)
1/2 pound ham, cooked
1/2 cup yellow onions, diced
1/2 cup green bell pepper, diced
1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon cayenne powder (you can add more, but this is the right amount of spice for my family)
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup olive oil

Cook rice according to package directions. In a large skillet, saute onions, peppers, and garlic.  Add ham and heat through.  Place rice and the remaining ingredients in a large skillet and simmer until the liquid is fully absorbed and the rice is hot and fluffy.

Ham Fried Rice

It's a new year!  So I changed the title of the blog yet again to keep current.

Last night I made a yummy version of an old favorite.  This recipe goes back to my childhood, as my mother made this all the time.  It is cheap, quick and tastes great.  I made another version of this a while ago using bacon instead of ham.  Not as good, but still edible.

Ham Fried Rice

2 Eggs
2-3 Green Onions, sliced
3 cups cooked Rice
2 cups cubed pre-cooked Ham
Soy Sauce
Black Pepper

Cook your rice according to the package directions.  Scramble eggs and set aside.  In large fry pan, cook onion slightly.  Add egg and ham.  Cook until ham is heated through.  Add rice and stir to combine.  Add soy sauce and black pepper to taste.

I didn't have any green onions on hand last night, so I just used regular yellow onion.

Buffalo Chicken

Another yummy chicken crock-pot recipe from my friend Collette.  This one is for Buffalo Chicken.

Buffalo Chicken

Ingredients:
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 bottle Frank's Redhot Buffalo Wing Sauce (*see note below)
1 package dry Ranch Dressing

Directions:
Put chicken in crockpot.  Pour 3/4 to whole bottle of Frank's sauce over chicken.  Pour entire pouch of ranch dressing over chicken.  Cook on low for 6-8 hours.  Shred chicken.

*The wings sauce was a little too spicy for my kids.  We've had better luck with using the Frank's Redhot Thick Sauce. I have been wanting to try a batch using their Kickin' BBQ Sauce, which is really good.

Meal Ideas:
My friend Collette likes to serve this on King's Hawaiian rolls for sandwiches.  We have use the meat in quesadillas, tacos and burritos and on chips for nachos.

Protein Energy Balls

So not a meal, but a good healthy snack alternative.  I got this recipe from my friend Collette, who is one of the healthiest eaters I know.  Plus she really is an awesome cook!

The top recipe is as I received it, the recipe at the bottom is with my notes.

Protein Energy Balls

1 C Oats

2/3 C Peanut Butter

1/3 C Honey

1 Scoop Vanilla Protein Powder

½ C Coconut

½ C Mini Semi Sweet Choc Chips

½ C Flax Seed

½ C Sunflower Seeds

Vanilla

Mix all of the ingredients together with an electric mixer, adding vanilla last.  You want them to be sticky, but not too sticky that you can't roll them into a ball.  If needed, add more vanilla or sprinkle water with your fingers for the desired consistency.

Store in air tight container in the fridge.

Makes about 20 1-inch balls.

Protein Energy Balls

1 C Oats (I've used quick oats and regular.  Not much of a difference.)

2/3 C Peanut Butter (To keep these healthy, make sure to use the healthy natural kind, like Adams)

1/3 C Honey

1 Scoop Vanilla Protein Powder (you could use another flavor, but it will change the over-all flavor)

½ C Coconut

½ C Mini Semi Sweet Choc Chips (they need to be semi-sweet, not milk chocolate to keep them healthy)

½ C Flax Seed (I bought mine at Maceys on the baking good aisle)

½ C Sunflower Seeds (get the unsalted, unroasted kind)

Vanilla

Quick Beef Stroganoff

Last night I made some yummy Beef Stroganoff.  I loosely followed this recipe from Kraft Foods.  Their recipe is for a crockpot meal and uses stew meat.  I wanted it quick and easy and I wanted to use ground beef.  Basically, I used what I had on hand.

Here's what I did -

Quick Beef Stroganoff
Ingredients

• 1.5 lb.  ground beef
• 10 oz.  canned mushrooms
• 1/2  onion, chopped 
• 1 clove  garlic, minced 
• 1 beef bouillon cube
• 2 tsp.  paprika 
• 1 tsp.  salt 
• 1 1/2 cups sour cream (I like things saucy, so the 1 cup they suggested wouldn't cut it!)
• 1 Tbsp. dijon mustard 
• 4 cups egg noodles, uncooked 
• 2 tsp. dried parsley 

Directions:

In large pot, cook pasta according to package directions.

Meanwhile, lightly oil, large skillet.  Saute onion, garlic and mushrooms, until tender.  Add ground beef and cook until brown.  Drain grease.  Return meat mixture to medium heat and add beef bouillon (and a 1/2 cup water), paprika, and salt.

In a separate bowl, mix sour cream and dijon mustard.

When pasta is al dente, drain and add to skillet with meat mixture.  Mix to combine.  Then add the sour cream mixture and mix more.  Add parsley to top.  Serve in skillet.

Serve with green beans or the vegetable of your choice!  Enjoy!

Potato and Bratwurst Skillet Dinner

A few weeks ago I tried a new recipe, Potato and Bratwurst Skillet Dinner.

Ingredients

• 4 (tablespoon) vegetable oil
• 4 (whole) red potatoes, sliced 1/4-inch thick
• 2 (bratwurst) bratwurst, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 (small) onion, chopped
• 1/2 (cup) chopped green bell pepper
• 4 (tablespoon) soy sauce
• 2 (tablespoon) orange juice
• 1/4 (teaspoon) salt
• (to taste) Pepper

Directions

1. In a heavy skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add the potatoes; cover and cook for 6 minutes or until browned and crisp-tender, stirring occasionally.
2. Add bratwurst, onion and green pepper. Cook and stir for 5 minutes or until meat is heated through and vegetables are crisp-tender.
3. Combine the soy sauce, orange juice, salt and pepper; add to the skillet. Cook and stir 1-2 minutes longer or until meat and vegetables are evenly coated.

My review:

It was good but too salty.  Next time I will not add any additional salt and I will cut back on the soy sauce.  I used Red Wine sausage that I purchased at Costco that I have been loving.  I also used russet potatoes because that is what I had on hand.  The recipe was good, but again way too salty. I will likely make it again and try to cut back on the salt.

Pasta Stuffing Sausage Casserole

This was one of those meals that you just kind of throw a bunch of stuff together and hope for the best.  It was awesome, the kids loved it and I will definitely be making it again!

Ingredients:

• 1 box Chicken flavor Stove Top, prepared according to package directions
• 2 cups penne pasta (cooked al dente) 
• 1 bag frozen mixed vegetables, heated
• 3 sausage links, I used these, yummy!
• 2 cans cream of chicken soup
• 1 cup sour cream 
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup Swiss cheese, grated
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Cook Stove Top, pasta an frozen vegetables according to package directions.  Grill sausage and cut into slices.  Lightly spray a casserole dish and preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spread Stove Top on bottom of casserole dish.  Next add pasta to create a layer, then vegetables and finally the sausage.  In a separate bowl, mix soup, sour cream, milk, and salt and pepper.  Pour over the other ingredients.  Top with Swiss cheese.  Put in oven until heated through about 20-30 minutes.