Pin it Do it: Something yummy!

I am back with another Pin it Do it Challenge! (sorry for all those who came by for the last two weeks looking for the challenge.. we were on vacation!)

The pin I used this week was from my recipe board which I originally found here. It was a recipe for Chicken Parmesan Meatloaf. Remember,  I have a love of Italian food so this one sounded right up my alley! And it was. I followed the directions exactly and if I made it again there is nothing I would change. It was the right blend of seasoning, a great texture and SOOOO easy to make! You can even make it ahead, freeze it and then bake it when you need it. It got 5 out of 6 thumbs up from the family so that means it makes it into our regular rotation.

from "What's Cooking Chicago"

We'll I have to go... I'm in the midst of changing over wardrobes for all four kids... ugh!

Link up below and show us all the great ways you brought Pinterest into real life this week! Happy Pinning!

Mini Lasagne Cups

I love Italian food... tomato sauce, cheese, pasta, cream... in any combination... mmm!  One of my favourites is lasagne but it's not really a favourite of the kids so I don't make it very often.  When I saw a recipe for mini lasagne cups I though I might be able to convert them.  Look at these tiny individual lasagnes... aren't they cute?

Here's the recipe (Adapted from Kevin {and}Amanda)

Mini Lasagna Cups

For the sauce
1 TBS olive oil
1 medium onion (diced)
2 medium carrots (chopped)
1 lb lean ground beef
1 lb italian sausage
salt & pepper to taste
1 can tomato paste
1 28oz can crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup apple sauce

For the cheese filling
1 cup part skim ricotta cheese
1/2 cup Mozzarella cheese (shredded)
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese (grated)
1/2 cup fresh baby spinach (chopped)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

48 wonton wrappers
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Saute onions and carrots in olive oil in a large skillet  until tender.  Add sausage and hamburger continue to cook over medium high heat,  drain.  Add salt, pepper, paste, crushed tomatoes and apple sauce.  Cook for 10 minutes on low heat, stirring occasionally.

In a large bowl, combine the ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan, spinach,  salt and pepper and stir to combine.

Coat two 12 cup  muffin tins with cooking spray, and arrange a wonton wrapper in each cup. Fill each cup  in this order:
sauce (enough to cover bottom of cup)
a little cheese mixture
spoonful of sauce
a little grated cheddar
wonton wrapper- press down gently
sauce
grated cheddar

(there will be a little less than  half the sauce remaining... I will use it later in the week for spaghetti or it can be frozen.)

Bake at 375 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes until the cheese is melted and the wonton wrappers are golden. Cool in the muffin tin for 5-10 minutes before serving.

makes 24 lasagnes or 6 servings.

SO what was the verdict??  5 out of 6 of us liked it so definitely a recipe I will try again.
Even though there were lots of ingredients, it was an easy recipe (my version has more ingredients than the original).  They were fun to make... I even had the kids help fill the muffin tins with the various layers. 

Enjoy!

A Sweet Bit of Heritage

It's May and in Bermuda that means it is heritage month and tomorrow, May 24  is Bermuda Day.

In preparation for the holiday we spent part of our group time last week reading and talking about our Bermuda heritage so I thought it would be fun to make a traditional Bermudian treat that I loved as a child.

The kids were excited that we would be making our own candy... what kid wouldn't be excited about that!!   They helped by measuring the ingredients and greasing the muffin pans They enjoyed keeping track of the candy themometer, reporting each time it reached another 5 degrees.  

This was the first time I had made it and it was easy... I followed the recipe exactly and had no surprises.  The hardest part for the kids was waiting for the candy to cool and harden.. all I heard all morning was, "Is it done yet?" and "When is it going to be ready?"  But I think they would agree that when they finally got to taste it it was worth the wait!

Here is the recipe I used:


Glass Candy
(from "What's Cooking in Bermuda by Betsy Ross)


3 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
1 tsp vinegar
1 tsp butter
food colouring (we used blue but the candy turned out a greenish blue)
flavouring (we used lemon which didn't really change the taste much)
pinch of salt

Place sugar, water and vinegar in a pot over low heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved.  Boil gently without stirring 20 minutes.  Add butter.   Continue cooking for about another 10 minutes until crack stage is reached, 290 degrees on a candy thermometer.  At this temperature tbe mixture will become brittle when a little is dropped into cold water.

Remove from stove.  Stir in salt and desired flavouring and food colouring without scraping the sides of the pot with the spoon.

Pour about 1/8inch thickness into about 20 muffin tins (I used mini muffin tins filled about 1 inch) that have been well greased with shortening (not butter).  When cool turn pan upside down on table and with a few taps (or big hard bangs in our case) the candies will fall out.  Wrap individually in wax paper.


Enjoy!

Happy Bermuda Day!!

What's for Dinner?

I like to cook. It's not my favourite thing but I do get a certain enjoyment being in the kitchen. The one thing I hate is deciding what to cook. Especially when pressed for time or when 3 hungry kids are asking "what's for dinner?"

One thing I do like to do is entertain although having had 4 kids in 6 years I have had very little time to do so.  When I entertain I like to plan out a menu, get creative and then spend time preparing food so that my guests can have an enjoyable culinary experience.

One day as I was throwing together something entirely uninspired with very little thought,  completely out of necessity for my hungry brood, I started thinking... these 5 individuals that I share my life with are the most important people in my life.   If that is the case, they deserve the same thought and care when preparing their meals that I give when I am entertaining.  Now don't get me wrong... I do put thought into what I am feeding my family, making sure it is a balanced meal, trying to find things that they like, but sometimes the attitude behind cooking for them is "Oh, this is such a chore".  Right then I knew they deserved better... I had to bring the joy back into feeding my family.

The most important thing I have to do in order for this to be a joyful experience is that I have to be organized.  At the beginning of each month, I have been making a list of 20- 25 meals that I want to make.  Some are my basic, old faithful recipes like chili, chicken fried rice, BBQ chicken, spaghetti,  but others are new recipes that I want to try.  I have some cookbooks that I may look through from time to time but most of my new recipes come from the internet.  I have a few trusted sites that are my go to recipe sites like The Pioneer Woman (PW), Brown Eyed Baker, A year of Slow Cooking (Crock pot recipes) to name a few.   Before I grocery shop each week I look through my list and make a menu for the week. What I choose will depend on what activities we have planned and how much time I will have to prepare each meal.  Once I use a recipe on the list, I cross it off and make a note of the result.  If it is a winner I put it on the list for the next month.  I have recently been ranking the meals depending on how many thumbs up I get from the family.  Each person gets one vote so until Marcus can participate a winning meal gets 5 thumbs up.  I am happy when it is at least 3 thumbs up but it makes the do again list if it is at least 4 thumbs up.

Another important thing is that the recipes have to be fairly uncomplicated... I like a challenge but with 4 kids running under my feet (well... 3 running, 1 crawling) it has to be something that isn't going to add to my level of stress!  They also have to be economical.  Healthy is good too although I have a weakness for anything with cream and butter.. I'm a Paula Deen kind of girl!!

Once my fridge and cupboards are stocked with the necessary ingredients, menu is planned and recipes are printed, I can then exhale and enjoy the task of feeding my family.

I'll try and share more about my adventures in the kitchen each month, the recipes that worked and the ones that didn't but for now, what about you?  How do you plan your meals? What are some of your go to recipe sites?  Please share... I am always looking for new things to try!!

Linking this to Works for Me Wednesday at We Are That Family... head over to see what great tips others have.

Happy cooking!

Yummy Valentine's Day Dessert

I was in the grocery store at 4:45 today (store closes at 5pm) to get stuff for dinner (because I still can't get myself back on track with meal planning thus I am in the grocery store EVERY day ugh!) This week I vow to get back to being ORGANIZED!!! Anyway, I decided that since I hadn't really done anything for Valentine's Day (not a holiday we really celebrate although JDF and I did go out for dinner with another couple last night) I would make a special dessert for dinner. I have this perfect recipe for biscuits that my friend Amie shared on her Facebook wall about a month ago. I have made them about 3 or 4 times since then and the recipe truly is EASY, NO FAIL and DELISH!! Today I increased the sugar to 2 TBS, used a heart shaped cookie cutter to cut the biscuits, sprinkled sugar on top and baked them. I let them cool then served them with sliced strawberries and pink whipped cream. It was a hit! Fast, easy, simple... Happy Valentine's Day!!