Easy Chili

As fun as the holidays can be they can also be stressful.  And I don't know about you but even though I love to cook and bake I don't want to be in the kitchen all day on Christmas.  Been there, done that and don't want to do that no mo'!

I got this amazing, easy chili recipe from my wonderful Sister-In-Law Chelsy.  It is a family tradition of theirs to have it every Halloween and when we visited them in October she made it for us! 

And when I say it is easy, cheap and delicious I truly mean it! The ingredient list is small but packs a punch when it comes to flavor.  It is also extremely light on your wallet!

I hope you make it! It is a healthy, hearty and well balanced meal that will be enjoyed by everybody!

1 can black beans

1 can pinto beans

1 can red beans

1 can dark red kidney beans

1 can light kidney beans

1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes

1 packet taco seasoning

12 oz jar salsa

1 lb ground beef, browned (I have never added this but you can if you want to)

Combine all together in a crock pot.  Cook over medium heat for 4-5 hours or until heated through.  Serve with tortilla chips, shredded cheddar cheese and sour cream.  Enjoy!

Baked Ziti

Recipe slightly adapted from The Pioneer Woman

First off I just want to say that this dish will make you want to sing Christmas carols! It is so comforting, delicious and festive! It's the perfect casserole to have during any cold, Winter months.

If this were the Olympics I would give this dish a "10".

2 T. olive oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 onion, diced

1 lb Italian Sausage

1 lb ground beef

28 ounce can whole tomatoes, with juice

2 cans (14.5 ounce) tomato sauce or marina sauce

2 t. Italian Seasoning

1/2 t. red pepper flakes

salt and pepper to taste

16 ounces ziti, cooked until not quite al dente

15 ounce tub whole milk ricotta cheese

1 1/2 lb mozzarella cheese, grated

1/2 c. grated parmesan cheese (freshly grated from a block)

1 egg

fresh or dried parsley

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Heat oil in large stock pot over medium heat.  Toss in garlic and onion and heat for 5-8 minutes until onions are cooked down a bit and softened.  Add the sausage and beef and cook until browned.  Drain off most of the fat.  

Add tomatoes, tomato juice or marinara, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning and red pepper flakes.  Stir and simmer for 25-30 minutes to let all the flavors blend.

While this is simmering, cook your pasta till it's cooked right before the al dente stage.  You want it to still have a bit of a bite to it so it doesn't get too soggy later on.  Drain and rinse with cold water to immediately stop the cooking process.

After the tomato sauce has simmered measure out 3-4 cups of sauce into another bowl and let it cool down.  

In a separate bowl combine the ricotta cheese, 2 c. mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, egg and a little bit of salt and pepper.  Stir just a couple times, you still want it to be slightly lumpy.

Pour the pasta into the bowl with the ricotta mixture and combine.  Add in the cooled tomato sauce mixture and combine.  Spread half of this in a 9x13 pan.  Top with half of the leftover tomato sauce.  Then top with half of the leftover mozzarella cheese.  Repeat the layer again with the pasta, tomato sauce and ending with the cheese.  

Bake 25-30 minutes until nice and bubbly.  Let stand 5 minutes.  Top with a little fresh or dried parsley.  Enjoy! 

Last Minute Gift Idea - Cookie Mix

Happy Holidays ya'll! I hope that you have completely immersed yourself into the Holiday season and have really enjoyed all of the magic that this time of year brings.  

I made sure that this year I started decorating for Christmas even before Thanksgiving so that I could REALLY enjoy this time of year.  The reason why I did this is because it seems like Christmas comes and goes ridiculously fast! So for those of you who didn't start decorating before Thanksgiving and who need a last minute present idea, this simple and cheap project is for you.

First off, this project is all about deception.  People are going to think that you slaved away putting together a "homemade" cookie mix for them when in actuality, you are just giving them a pre-done mix from good 'ol Betty Crocker.  

Now some of you at this point may be turning up your nose at this project because it's not "homemade".  But hear me out! I have cooked with some of these mixes and they are awesome! I love to cook and bake and I find that these mixes are very close to "homemade" tasting.  

For my cute little cookie mixes I used her Gingerbread mix (oh my heavens does it smell and taste delightful!) but I only have a picture of the Pumpkin Spice because I accidentally deleted my Gingerbread picture.  That was definitely a "blonde" moment.  

Any who, for this simple project I just plopped the cookie mix into an adorable red damask plastic bag from Michaels (I believe it was 24 for $1.99), wrote out a tag with the instructions and then tied a cookie cutter onto the bag with some tulle and raffia.  And wa-la! I have an easy and great present to give! 

Sante Fe Stuffed Peppers

Recipe adapted from Skinny Taste

First off, Happy Holidays! I hope everyone is having a wonderful time getting ready for Christmas.  It really is a special time of year and since I have a lot of time off of work this month you will see a lot more recipes from me in the next couple weeks.  I know, I know.  I just made your day right? I thought so.

The only problem is that there are just too many recipes out there I want to try! Fo sure (yes I meant to put "fo sure" instead of "for sure".  I'm ghetto like that yo!) over the next couple weeks you will see Baked Ziti, The Best Blueberry Muffins and Pumpkin Cheesecake With Pecan Gingersnap Crust (I made this at Thanksgiving and it is the best cheesecake I have ever had.  Praise be to the powers who created this recipe!).  I also have a cute, cheap and fast Christmas gift idea for you that will be posted tomorrow.

Okay, so let's get this party started!

This recipe is truly delicious.  The best thing about it are the flavors.  It is spicy without being too spicy, meaning that it is great for anyone!  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.  I enjoyed it so much that I ate 3.  Yikes!

6 green bell peppers (tops cut off, seeds taken out and cut in half lengthwise)

1 lb ground beef (the leanest you can find)

kosher salt

8 T. diced white onion

2 jalapenos, diced

2 large tomatoes, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced (I just use the jarred stuff from Costco)

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

2 1/2 t. cumin

2 t. taco seasoning

1 1/2 c. frozen corn

3/4 c. shredded cheddar cheese

3/4 c. shredded pepper jack cheese

For Garnish: light sour cream and chopped green onions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray large stock pot with cooking spray.  Toss in your beef and some kosher salt to taste and cook until browned.

Add onion, jalapeno, tomatoes, garlic, black beans, cumin and taco seasoning.  Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 10 minutes.

Uncover and throw in the corn.  Crank up the heat to about medium to medium high and cook for 8-10 minutes or until any residual liquid is gone.

Lay your peppers in a 9x13 and also an 8x8 pan (we're making a lot of food here folks!).

Evenly spoon your beef mixture amongst the peppers (I did mine using a large cookie scoop).

Give those babies a bath and pour in a tiny bit of water into each pan so that it barely, barely covers the bottom.

Tightly cover both pans with foil and stick 'em in the oven for 45 minutes so that the peppers can soften (you could probably get away with 30-35 minutes if you want leftovers because otherwise they may become too soft for leftovers).

Take 'em out and uncover.  Sprinkle with the cheddar and pepper jack cheeses.

Bake for an additional 5 minutes.

Take out and garnish with a side of light sour cream and green onion.

Gooey Turtle Bars

Recipe from Six Sister's Stuff

Yesterday was a day for a treat.  And these bars hit the spot.  Oats, carmel, pecans, chocolate chips.  Could life get any better? I hope you try this.  They are really scrumptious.

2 1/4 c. flour

2 1/4 c. old fashioned oats

1/2 c. light brown sugar

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. baking soda

2 sticks butter, room temperature

12 oz. jar caramel topping

2 c. pecans, roughly chopped

2 c. milk chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a large bowl combine flour, oats, brown sugar, salt and baking soda.  Stir to combine.  Mix in butter till fully incorporated.  Press 2/3 into a cookie sheet and pat down.  Bake 10 minutes.  Take out and evenly drizzle caramel over top.  Top with pecans, chocolate chips and then remaining crumb mixture.  Pat down.  Bake 15 minutes.  Let cool slightly before cutting into bars.  

Black Bean & Sweet Potato Turkey Chili

Recipe by Our Best Bites

First off this chili is delicious.  I also need to brag about the fact that it is only 1.5 grams of fat per cup and 14 grams of protein.  Don't let that scare you off though! This chili is hearty and filled with great flavor.  I have never cooked with mushrooms or sweet potatoes before but I'm sure glad I did! There is so much good stuff in here for you.  Onion, garlic, pepper, pumpkin, etc.  It's a healthy and scrumptious meal. Enjoy!

1 T. olive oil, divided

1 medium onion, diced (any color)

4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

1 bell pepper, diced (any color)

2 jalapenos, minced

20 ounces ground turkey breast

8 ounces mushrooms, minced

2 t. cumin

2 t. kosher salt

1/2 t. pepper

1 t. oregano

1 t. chili powder

1 1/2 t. smoked paprika

1 1/2-2 lbs sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed

28 ounce can diced tomatoes (do not drain)

2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, drained and rinsed

32 ounces beef broth

15 ounce can pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)

1/2 t. cinnamon

1 T. unsweetened cocoa powder

Optional: light sour cream, sliced avocado, chopped cilantro, fresh lime juice, shredded cheese

Heat a large skillet or stock pot to medium-high heat.  Add 1 1/2 t. olive oil and add onion, garlic, bell pepper and jalapenos.  Saute for about 5-8 minutes until veggies are tender and fragrant.  Add to slow cooker.

In same skillet, heat remaining 1 1/2 t. olive oil.  Add turkey and mushrooms and stir to combine.  Sprinkle in cumin, salt, pepper, oregano, chili power and smoked paprika.  Add turkey mixture to slow cooker.

Add sweet potatoes, tomatoes, beans, broth, pumpkin, cinnamon and cocoa powder to slow cooker and stir to combine.  Place lid on pot and cook for 4-5 hours on high or 8-10 on low (I cooked mine 3 1/2-4 hours on high and it was done).  

When done, turn off heat and let chili sit with lid off for 10-15 minutes to thicken.  Season with additional salt to taste before serving.  If desired, serve with sour cream, sliced avocados, small squirt of fresh lime juice, a little shredded cheese and any other toppings desired.  

Yields: 16 cups (It will fill a large crock pot to the very top)

Peppermint Chocolate Chip Cookies

I went Christmas crazy today! I had the day off and was super bummed about how the election turned out last night and I needed to do something fun.  So I spent the whole day getting out Christmas and decorating! It's like Mrs. Claus's house up in here yo.

After all the decorating I just wanted to bake.  At Wal-Mart I had bought a bag of Andes Mint Peppermint Baking Chips and thought it would fun to make a chocolate chip cookie with those thrown in.  They turned out so yummy! A very fun Christmas cookie to gift.  Keep in mind that this basic chocolate chip cookie dough recipe I used is for bakery sized cookies.  So they are huge! Merry Christmas ya'll!

2 c. flour
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
3/4 c. unsalted butter, melted
1 c. brown sugar, packed
1/2 c. white sugar
1 egg

1 egg yolk

1 t. vanilla

1 c. milk chocolate chips
3/4 c. Andes Mint Peppermint Baking Chips
Melted milk chocolate chips
Andes Mint Peppermint Baking Chips for garnish

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Mix flour, baking soda and salt together.  Set aside.  In a stand mixer, combine butter and sugars until light and mixed well.  Add egg, egg yolk and vanilla.  Beat until light and fluffy.  Add dry ingredients a little at a time.  Mix in chocolate chips and peppermint chips.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.  Using an extra, extra large cookie scoop or a 1/4 measuring cup line up your cookie dough on the cookie sheets.  Make sure there's only 4 cookies per cookie sheet.  These will be large.  Bake each sheet one at a time for 15 minutes.  Let cool 5 minutes.  Drizzle melted milk chocolate chips on top of cookies and put a few pieces of Andes Mint Peppermint Baking Chips on top.  Repeat process on remaining batches.  Enjoy with milk or hot cocoa!