Whole30: Chili!

Whole30: Chili, the best thing on earth.

So… I love making chili.  And I am going to share the 3 chili recipes that I have had success with thus far in my Whole30 career.  I didn’t make these up, and I really recommend that you follow @whole30recipes on Instagram...life changing.  It has given me a ton of new stuff to try out. 

I usually make one chili or soup for the week, and then two or three other entrees and rotate them for lunch and dinner.

Crock pot chili

• 1lb beef chuck
• 1 onion chopped
• 2 carrots chopped
• 2 minced garlic cloves
• 1 diced bell pepper
• 28oz can diced tomatoes (check ingredients)
• ½ cup beef stock (check ingredients)
• 1 tbsp paprika
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 2 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp coriander
• 1 ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp pepper

Toss in the crock pot on low for 6-8 hours.

 

Next up, Southwest Cowboy Chili from Nom Nom Paleo:

http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2014/02/southwest-cowboy-chili-from-nom-nom-paleo.html

This was SPICY after letting it sit for a day.

And, last but not least (and my FAVORITE!): Bacon Bison Chili

http://www.ourpaleolife.com/2013/08/bacon-bison-chili/

You don’t have to use bison, but it’s super delicious, so you should.

Pumpkin Dip

Hey! You should make this! 

It's delicious. I served it with a mixture of Gala, Fuji, and Granny Smith apples, as well as thin ginger snaps. And only 107 calories for 2tbsps!

Then, go to Safeway and buy a pumpkin dish from the seasonal aisle to make it festive.

Mini Ham Sandwiches

Because nothing makes you more creative than a short timeline, I decided to make my "football food" for Coburn's birthday at 3. Party starts at 4:30, and...I was picking up a friend at the airport at 4. Way to go with your excellent time management skills! Good thing I'm teaching life skills to the future generations: we're screwed. Sorry!

Anyway. I decided to make these little delicious ham sandwiches that I saw on Pinterest. But, because God likes to intervene in mysterious ways that I don't understand, my phone would not load the recipe that I had pinned. So, I made it up, loosely based on what I remembered from my 3am pinning frenzie the night before (I watched a show about Hollywood murders, then tried to go to bed... Another brilliant idea by Erin).

You will need:

9x13 pan

Package of Hawaiian sweet rolls

Chive and onion cream cheese

3 Aged Swiss sandwich slices 

1 package Thinly sliced Black Forest ham

1/2 tbsp Onion flakes

1 tbsp Worcestershire 

3/4 cup melted butter

1/4 Parmesan cheese

You don't have time for music. You are in Marshawn Lynch Beast mode. Turn the stove on and put the butter in a pan to let it melt. Don't let it burn!  Open the Hawaiian sweet rolls and cut them in half. Now, place all of the bottoms in the pan. 

Layer two pieces of ham on each roll. Tear the Swiss cheese slices into four pieces each and place those on too. Next, spread the chive cream cheese on the top buns and place them on top. 

Your butter should be well past melted by now and hopefully you have already removed it from the heat. Add all of the other ingredients, except for the Parmesan, into the butter and mix. Pour the mixture over the top of the rolls. Sprinkle the Parmesan over the top. 

Put some foil over it, grab your coat, and drive to the airport ( or if you are normal, leave it sitting for at least 20 mins).

Send a text to Yoda telling her you need the oven two minutes before you show up.

Put the little sandwiches in a 350 degree oven for 15-20 minutes. 

Delight in how your little sandwiches bring Packer and Viking fans together for more than two seconds. And then win the real reward: hanging out with Jasper.

Acorn Squash Slices

Shannon, this is for you. I hope you can have brown sugar. Maybe you need to send me a list of foods you can have. 

Anyway, I bought an acorn squash for God knows what reason. It just felt right.

Then I did my usual "let this thing sit in the fridge forever" trick. It really inspires me to get creative. 

I cut the squash in half, gutted it, then sliced it.

Next, I realized that my cookie sheet was at school, so I put all of the slices in a ziplock bag. Guess how many days it took me to remember to bring the pan home..... 3. Luckily, there was no mold growing, and so far I'm not sick. I think we're in the clear. 

So, I tossed in some olive oil and brown sugar and shook it around in the bag. 

My oven was already at 400 degrees from making corn bread muffins (substitute coconut dream for milk and you'll never use cows' milk again). Lay the squash flat on the cookie sheet and cook for 5 minutes. Take a fork and turn over the pieces. Cook for about 15 more minutes.

I actually totally forgot about them and I think they were in there for more like 20-25, so they are a little more soft, and the pan was harder to clean because brown sugar and olive oil make black tar that requires a copper scrubber to remove. 

So, don't do that. Set a timer.

But, delicious either way!

Cilantro Lime Brown Rice

I did it! After three different versions I think I figured it out.  I have recreated the Chipotle Cilantro Lime Rice!
So you will need:
1 tbsp. oil
2 cloves of garlic (minced)
some salt
1 cup brown rice
2 cups of chicken broth (or if you are a veg head, vegetable broth)
juice of about 1 lime
1/3 cilantro (chopped)

So, take the garlic, rice, some salt and pepper and toss it in a pan with the oil.  Mix that stuff around for about 2-3 minutes, until the rice is starting to look a little translucent.  Next, add the broth and lime juice and pinch of salt.  Bring all of this to a boil.  Cover before you turn it down to low.  Set a timer for 40 minutes.
I use this time to check what's going on in the world, or Facebook stalk.  Maybe you could paint your nails, or take a shower.
Come back in 40 minutes and remove the rice from the stove.  Fluff that stuff up with a fork, mix in the cilantro and dig in.
It's not as good reheated, so invite over some friends to eat with you, or just consume an ungodly amount of rice.  Or cut the recipe in half.

Here is how the recipe looks on my fridge:

Again, you're welcome.

Sauted Apples and Balsamic Pork

So, this month I decided that I would have a budget and do the "envelope" method.  So, if you get the great joy of hanging out with me this month, please excuse me as I dig through my bag and try to take cash out of the appropriately labeled white envelope.

 Anyway, this endeavor made me really think about buying food.  I eat out a lot, and I throw away a ton of food too.  It's actually pretty horrible.  I buy groceries and then I am too lazy to make anything with them and end up eating a burrito instead.  So, I made a nice little grocery list, and I have been cooking up some gems!  I spent $75 on food that I am hoping will last two weeks.  So far I am almost one week in and I already have almost a week of leftovers freezing! It's like I'm a regular budgeting house wife or something.
anyway, here is a recipe that I made up for the pork chops that I bought.  As always, if there isn't a measurement...just toss it in.

You need:
Two pork chops
balsamic vinegar
butter
an apple thinly sliced
salt and pepper

So, put about 2 tbsp. of butter in a pan and melt it.  Add the apples and sauté until softened.

Place your two pork chops in a baking dish.  Salt and pepper those bad boys.  Dump the apple concoction on top.  Toss in some chunks of butter.  Pour in the balsamic vinegar (about 1/3 cup) but making sure that the apples are saturated and that there is some liquid in the bottom of the dish.

Toss in the oven for about 30 mins.  Use a meat thermometer to determine if it's done or not.  I think you can get worms or something from raw pork...gross.

Roasting a Chicken and Making Some Stock

Do you find yourself at Fred Meyer much more frequently than you should? Have you started referring to it as just "Fred's," like you're going to your friends house? Is this just a problem Alexis and I have? Will Jasper's 1st birthday be in the Starbucks seating area of the Greenwood store? I wonder.

Anyhoo... I was wandering around like a vagabond the other day when I decided to buy a whole chicken. Impulse buy. It sat in the fridge until I thought, shit, that thing is going to go bad! I better cook it! That was at 7:30 on a school night. Not recommended. It turned out pretty good for my first roasted chicken (I've done a turkey before and I'm thinking that story will make a November debut on my other blog...)

So here is what I made up from my minimal experiences with catching turkeys and ovens on fire.

Sesame Roasted Chicken

You will need:

Whole chicken

Sesame oil

Sesame seeds

Meat thermometer 

Corningware (you really need a roasting pan, but this huge ass Corningware that Chris Galloway gave me was perfect)

Pepper

So, take all the gross shit out if the inside of the chicken. Rinse it out and then pat it dry. There was a whole bunch of fat hanging down from the chicken's "bottom", I cut that off. Plop the bird into a pan. Flip its' wings behind its' head.

Now, you're going to stick your hand in between the chicken skin and meat on its breasts. Don't get too excited, it's actually pretty gross.

Once it's separated, take some sesame oil and spread it on the meat under the skin.

Spread some all over the outside of the bird too. Next, grab some sesame seeds and sprinkle them on the chicken. Crack some pepper over it and put it in the oven at 375F for about 1 and a half hours (thermometer should read 180),

Look at that beautiful bird!

Now, it's almost 11. Stick that thing in the fridge and go to bed. When you wake up in the AM, check your phone to find out that two staff are sick. Look longingly at the chicken thinking about all the great things you could do with it if you were only a stay at home unwed, childless woman. 

When you get home, pick the chicken. 

Then, realize you do not have a carrot, celery, or an onion. Being the intelligent, multi tasker that you are, throw on your gym clothes and walk to the gym. After working out, stop at QFC and buy the necessary ingredients.

Now, I will share my experience: as I checked out at QFC, the checker told me to have a great night. I exited and was literally drenched in water. Like, I looked like I got sprayed with a hose. God had decided to create some sort of freak storm system that lasted for only the entirety of my venturing outside of my house. Not to worry, I'll just walk a mile up hill in my wet socks since I'm all sweaty anyway. 

So, here is how to make chicken stock from your chicken carcass.

You need:

A chicken carcass 

Garlic

Pepper

2 bay leaves

Thyme

Basil

1 Onion

1 Carrot

2 stalks of Celery

6 cups of water

Put all if this shit in a pot (chop it up first), if I didn't give you a measurement just shake until it looks right.

Bring it to a boil. Cover it, turn down the heat to medium low, and go take a shower. In about 2 hours, turn it off and drain it into a bowl.

 Let it sit for about 30 minutes then transfer into jars for storage. 

Done and done. 

Overnight Jar Oatmeal

We need to have some real talk. This is my serious face:

Like my pink lipstick? Neither do I. 

Anyway: Snickers and Caffeine are not food groups. So, that's what I needed to say. I feel better. Here is how I dealt with my issue, it's just a suggestion.

This recipe is from Crystal. She saved my life this summer. I was on this really healthy eating kick of starting my day with coffee and a donut from the Safeway Starbucks, not eating again until 4 which would be a Snickers Almond and either a Pink Rockstar or a Go Girl! Energy drink. Sometimes I would sneak in a burrito.  I cried, a lot. Now I know why! I was starving and full of caffeine and sugar. 

Anyway, my cry for help went out via text one night and this was what really got me back on track. Eating a good breakfast does wonders. 

You will need:

A jar or container with a lid

Oats (doesn't matter if they are minute or not)

Stuff to put in your oats 

Some sort of milk product

Isn't that super specific? My first go around I used almond milk and brown sugar. Start by putting in the oats (whatever you think is a good serving size), then pour in the milk until it covers the oats and is a little bit over (I wanted to write 2-3 centimeters, then thought you would all judge me, but now I'm doing it anyway). Drop in the other goodies, give it a little swirl or stir, put the lid on and put it in the fridge.

Go to bed. Do all those adult things like flossing, washing your face, putting on anti wrinkle cream, putting in your sexy bite guard. In the morning, you will have a delightful little treat waiting for you!  

I have done a ton of variations and so far I have found coconut dream as your milk, dried cranberries, and brown sugar are staples. There are tons of options!

Roasted Veggie and Kale Salad

So, this salad takes a lot of prep, but come fall I am imagining all sorts of variations. And, I always think that I'm going to be one of those people that preps ingredients to just have laying around in the fridge to casually toss together into an amazing salad. I think that would require me to stop making casserole and eating Mac and Cheese, so no thanks.

I had this salad at Starbucks the other day for lunch. It was pretty good, and after adding some of the salmon that I shared at the beginning of the week, it was a well rounded little meal. 

I decided to recreate it. I have some suggestions of things to do differently, and my measurements aren't exact, because generally when I cook I just throw shit in until it tastes right. So, approximations of final measurements are below, along with some smart ass remarks.

Listen to something you can sing along to while you make this, because you're going to be chopping, roasting, steaming, and tearing for a while. I chose Wavves, then put on 500 Days of Summer until I started sobbing and my new MAC mascara blinded me. Then I listened to Beachwood Sparks and Dinosaur Jr. So, do what you will.

You'll need:

A bunch of kale

1 butternut squash

1 head (bunch? Crown?) of broccoli

1 bunch of beets (approx 1lb)

1 cup cooked brown rice

1 head of red cabbage

Cooked salmon (or some other protein, I bet beans would be good, or chicken, or steak, or if you're a real hippie: tofu)

Dressing:

1/3 cup tahini

1/3 cup water

2 cloves garlic (minced)

1 tbsp sugar

Alright, get your apron on. Turn up your music and touch up your lipstick. 

Wearing lipstick while cooking is not only recommended in books about being a good hostess from the 1940s (because you never know when someone might drop by) but it keeps me from eating all the ingredients because I don't want to mess it up.

The oven is going to be at 400 F forever, so turn on a fan. 

Start prepping your ingredients. Cut your butternut squash in half lengthwise, carve out the seeds, and put 1/2 in a shallow baking dish. Put in the oven and bake for about 40 mins. The other half can go somewhere else to do something special with later (your choice...send me ideas, mine is sitting in the fridge). While this is happening, wash the rest of your produce. Cut the beets into quarters. Wash the kale, tear it into bite sized pieces and toss it in your salad spinner ($3 at ikea!!). You could use this time to cook your brown rice as well (except it won't be done yet).

Take your beets and toss them in a ziplock with olive oil and pepper. Shake it something fierce (I had a ex boyfriend tell me he missed me something fierce one time...I thought it was adorable until he got another girlfriend, anyway back to the salad). 

Place on a baking sheet in anticipation of the butternut squash being done. Pull out the squash and do a switcheroo job. As the beets are roasting, take a fork and begin trying to peel the skin off of the squash. Godspeed!

Cut it up into little squares and then repeat the ziplock olive oil trick.

Switch! Beets out, squash in.

Cut up your broccoli and steam it. You still want it to be crunchy.

Slice the cabbage.

When the squash is done let it cool. Put all if these ingredients in the fridge. Go to a Grey Gardens themed party. Go to sleep. Wake up in the morning to grey skies. Put on MAC dubonett as a "fall" alternative to your normal whore of Babylon Russian Red.

Toss everything together in a... You guessed it PYREX bowl.

Whip up your tahini dressing. Throw that in there too. Eat up!

Soy Ginger Salmon

Nom nom nom. This is pretty tasty and easy to do! I whipped up the marinade and then went to rescue my dad who had managed to lock himself out of his house. The spare key that is normally hidden was on my key chain of course, because being a hot mess runs in our family like a hot temper, being hot, and all other hot things (eating hot pockets, for example). Anyway, the salmon sat in the fridge marinating for about 6 hours.

Then, I cooked that shit up and ate it while listening to the Rilo Kiley Pandora station and drinking flavored carbonated water, because that's how I roll.

You'll need:

1 and 1/2 tbsp brown sugar

1/3 cup soy sauce (I actually used liquid aminos because I am secretly a dirty hippy)

1tbsp red pepper flakes

2tbsp honey

1tsp fresh ginger (grated)

1 clove garlic (minced)

Now, put on your apron. The more frills the better. You should probably also be wearing your new fabulous red lipstick, Ruby Woo. Matte perfection. Ok.

Put all if the ingredients in a bowl (Pyrex, duh) and whisk it up. Take your salmon fillet and toss it into a 1 gallon freezer ziplock bag. Pour the marinade in, making sure to get the brown sugar out of the bottom of the bowl. I think it's the most crucial ingredient. My grandma Joanne once made a comment about how my Uncle Scott added sugar to his spaghetti sauce. I think this was a "bad" thing. Whatever, that sauce was delicious, and sugar makes everything better. You go Uncle Scott!

Now, seal the bag and let it sit in the fridge. 

Go save your dad, then drive to school and sit at your desk. Maybe write a parent letter and make some copies. 

When you come home, get out that Skanka pan, oil that baby up and cook your salmon!

I also cooked some red potatoes as a side. Super simple: boil potatoes, drain, add dill weed and garlic salt, toss in your racist Paula Deen pan and cook with a tiny bit of olive oil until brown. 

Yum yum. Dinner is served (who needs vegetables anyway?)

Carne Asada round número dos

Ok. Take all your ingredients for yesterday with one exception: swap out the cumin for ground chipotle pepper. Don't measure anything, just guess. 

Toss all your ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth. 

Coat the steak in the mixture and let it marinate over night.

Go get your nails shellacked. Pick a super obnoxious red.

Now, because your nails look so fancy, invite your friends over to eat Carne Asada tacos. 

When they are done, they will all lay on the floor and you will play a variety of rap music including, but not limited to Ludacris, Wu Tang Clan, and Outkast.

Katie's getting married!

Carne Asada...kinda

I love mexican food. This is common knowledge. For my birthday I insisted on burritos and far too much tequila. If I am feeling sad, I go get a taco. If I'm celebrating something, I'm going to cheers you with a burrito. If I'm bored I'll go to the store and get supplies for carnitas. 

So, it's Monday, and I find myself at Central Market in Shoreline. I was hungry, so I had no right to be grocery shopping. I ended up with the most ridiculous assortment of crap (bin bin rice crackers, bulk orzo, a snickers almond, and two bottles of kombucha) but also the ingredients for Carne Asada. So... here is how I made it...I'm Irish and from Ballard, so it's SUPER authentic.

What you'll need:

1 jalapeño, gut and seed that little guy

2 cloves of garlic minced

1/4 cup olive oil

A shit ton (or handful) of cilantro, chopped

About 1 tablespoon white vinegar

Salt and pepper

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1lb steak (mine was labelled "carne Asada" but you could use flank...I think it's the same, who cares? It's beef, it's thinly sliced.)

Chop all of the shit up and whisk it together. Pour it over your meat. Let it marinate  in the fridge while you go hang out with Lindsay and eat a sandwich. Then take a nap.

After your nap, wash your face and then grill your Asada. I used my new grill pan from ikea because I live in an apartment and don't have a grill. The grill pan is Skanka brand, so it was my obvious first choice when selecting which one I needed. 

Make sure to turn in the vent for your stove and turn the burner to hi. Oil the pan so your Asada doesn't stick.

It only needs the tiniest bit of grill time. Then let it "rest" for a few minutes. I reapplied my makeup. That seemed to be the perfect amount of time.

After it is done resting, slice it up and make a taco, burrito, or whatever the hell you want.

Speed ice cream

So, I hate waiting for literally 24 hours to eat delicious ice cream. This made me decide to read seventy million cooking blogs and figure out how to make a custard taste of ice cream without having to actually make custard. I'm a genius, I know. And also very humble. So here is a blueberry ice cream recipe. Apparently blueberries have had one hell of a season because they are practically handing them away like zucchini at the store.

Without further bullshit, here you are:

You need-

2 cups blueberries

2 cups half and half

1 can sweetened condensed milk (it should be 14oz)

1 cup heavy cream

1 tsp. vanilla

So, get out your "vintage" blender and blend up those blueberries.

Set them aside. Combine all other ingredients in a bowl and whisk them together. Pour this mixture into the ice cream maker.

Sit on the couch and begin writing your blog entry about this and do the dishes that you just got dirty.

Now would also be a good time to put on some music, maybe sit on the balcony for a bit. It takes my ice cream maker about 25 minutes to get to the consistency of soft serve, which is what you're going for. 

Once you are at soft serve status, pour in the blueberry purée. 

You'll need a spatula to get it out of the blender, and it will take a good 5 minutes to look like you actually added it, but be patient because you get to eat this ice cream today!the blueberries are going to make the ice cream soupy again, so let your ice cream maker do its thing and go change your sheets.

Look at you go! Made your bed and now you can sit in it and eat ice cream!

OMG it's 2013.

Total and epic fail on having a "more serious" blog, but whatever. I bought an ice cream maker attachment for my Kitchen Aid, and shit got real... Real delicious

Here is what you need, followed by unhelpful, yet witty instructions and some irrelevant information:

1 cup whole milk

2 cups heavy cream

3/4 cup sugar

A pinch of salt (what does that even mean?) I just tossed some in

2 cups (approx) fresh mint 

5 egg yolks

Chocolate chips

Hella Pyrex

A wooden spatula

Fine mesh sieve

Egg separator

Ice cream maker

Are you ready? First, get your mind in a good place. This takes forever and you don't get to eat it until tomorrow night. Next, put on some tunes. I played the mix tape I found at my parents' house featuring great hits like "be about yo paper" by The Click....

Anyway, we live and learn right?

1. Add milk, 1 cup of the heavy cream, salt and sugar to a saucepan. Cook on medium heat until the sugar dissolves (aka...forever, but do not turn the heat up or you'll be an angry badger).

2. Add the mint leaves and stir that shit up. Make sure the leaves are totally covered in the milk substance. Stick a lid on it and set it on a trivet (or if you're Rose, a trundle). Let it sit there and don't open it up for 1 hour. Go find something else to do, or prep the rest of your steps. I did a combination of pacing my apartment, checking Instagram, and deciding which Pyrex I would use.

3. After an hour, put the sieve over a bowl (a white and pink Pyrex) and pour the mint mixture over the top. Press down on the mint leaves to get out all of the flavor.

Now, return it to the pot and rewarm it.

4. Now if you were smart and listened to my earlier suggestion, you would already have 1 cup of heavy cream sitting in a Pyrex with the washed sieve sitting on top, and this would be next to a bowl of 5 egg yolks that you had already mixed until smooth. If not, get your shit together.

5. Now, get ready to whisk your heart out. Slowly pour the warmed mint mixture into the egg yolks. I mean slow, if you go to fast, those little chicken embryos are going to cook up into some nasty mint and milk scrambled eggs.

6. Take this new concoction and... You guessed it! Put it back in the saucepan. Now you are going to constantly stir until the mixture thickens. It should coat the back of the wooden spatula. So, if you pull the spatula out and run your finger down the middle, the mark your finger leaves should not fill up with milk concoction. Comprende? 

7. You're almost done, I swear.... For tonight at least. Take the new mixture over to your pre-setup bowl of cream with the sieve. Pour the mint/egg/milk into this bowl. Mix it up. Let it cool on the counter for a bit, then put it in the fridge overnight.

8. Go to work. Or whatever you do during the day. When you get home, pull out your ice cream maker and set it up. Pour the mint concoction in it and let that bad boy do its job. The ice cream is going to be almost like soft serve. When it's done, mix in the chocolate chips and then put it in a container in the freezer for about two hours to harden the rest of the way.

This stuff is so good! I've been making everyone come to my house and eat it!

I am inspiring people to clog their arteries!

Mindy, a regular at THE CoffeeShop, was so inspired by my original Tater Tot Casserole that she whipped up her own version....who doesn't love bacon? If you don't, get off my lawn..and blog.

Bacon & Blue Cheese Tater Tot Casserole

8-10 Slices Bacon
1 lb. ground beef
1 tsp. dried thyme
I cup chopped onion
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 tsp. minced garlic
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
½ lb. crumbled blue cheese
1 32 oz. bag frozen tater tots

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9x13 inch glass casserole dish. Cook bacon until crisp. Drain and cool. Chop bacon. Brown ground beef and thyme in bacon fat. Drain in a colander. Heat olive oil and cook onion and garlic over medium heat until soft, about 5 minutes. Mix together beef, bacon, onion mixture and soup. Spread evenly in bottom of casserole. Sprinkle crumbled blue cheese over meat mixture. Top with a single layer of tater tots. Bake for one hour.

Nom, nom, nom.  What twist can you put on it? I already have a mexican version up my sleeve.


 

Turkey Tater Tot Casserole

In honor of Thansgiving, my newest take on tatertot casserole:

You will need:
1lb ground turkey breast
a bag of tots
1 can of cream of celery soup
2 minced cloves of garlic
1 tbsp olive oil
1 bag of pre shredded "pepper cheese" (it is sold at Fred Meyer, and I have no idea what makes it different from pepperjack cheese, but it is delicious and not the same)

Preheat your oven to 350
While you are waiting for that little guy to heat up, turn on your overhead fan and then heat up your olive oil in a frying pan.  When it is all nice and warm, cook up your garlic.  Once it is about to burn, remember that you are trying to do something "domestic" and add in the ground turkey.  Cook over med-hi until browned all the way through. 
Now, you get to make your layered tot casserole.  Pick from one of your many pyrex casserole dishes.  Place a layer of tots, then a layer of cheese.  Now put in all that delicious turkey, smother it in the cream of celery soup. Take a spoon and smear it around real good!  More cheese! More tots! More cheese!
Bake in the oven for about 40 minutes.  For the last two minutes, witch the over over to broil and get the top of the casserole nice and crsipy.
If you're from the midwest, crack a cheap beer and get out the ketchup, it's time to eat!

Bridal Shower appetizers

Being the Maid of Honor is a full time job.  But, the perfect full time job for me!  I get to craft, plan, and be in total CONTROL of stuff.  Perfect!  So, here are the things that I have been making/doing so far this summer.  Instructions/ Recipes are included individually below this entry.  If you click on the hyperlink, it will take you directly to the entry/instructions/recipe.  You’re welcome.  Also, I wore an awesome new dress that I made, but I don't have an entry ready about it so, hold your breath, and you can also wear a 60's inspired dress with a "spool" print.

Delicious and HEINOUS Roasted Roma tomatoes.  SOOOO good.  Check out Christina’s blog at Foodie with a Life.  She may roam the aisle of grocery stores and creep out the owners of small businesses, but she makes good food easy for the rest of us.

Super classy crackers with an Italian spread and some sliced cucumber

Here are what mine looked like....I used crackers like a true Ballard girl:

Stuffed Zucchini with goat cheese

Roasted Red pepper with Mozzarella and Basil

Chocolate Mint pudding in a flowerpot

Strawberry cake with chocolate and strawberry Pocky fence

Stuffed! On zucchini

I love Zucchini.  The slut of vegetables.  They absorb the flavor of what ever you cook them with, or they taste like...squash, SHOCKING!  So, here is how to wow your friends with a delicious little appetizer!
You need:

• zucchini
• goat cheese
• olive oil
• pepper 

After browsing recipes I found one for zucchini that I thought would be great.  Then I got to the store and forgot what ingredients I needed to make the filling, so I just decided that a basic creamy goat cheese would work. Apparently the recipe called for one of those flavored spreads...but too bad, it was delicious with what I improvised.
Take the zucchini and cut the top and bottom off.  Cut the zucchini lengthwise into 1/4 inch slices.  Brush each slice with olive oil, pepper them, and place on a cookie sheet with foil on it. Turn the oven to broil and place the zucchini in the oven.  Keep your eye on it, they will burn very quickly and easily.  Use tongs to flip the zucchini over.  Pull then out as soon as they are done (this may require you to take some out before others).
Once the zucchini is cool enough to touch, form little balls of goat cheese and place them at one end of the zucchini strip.  Roll the zucchini up around the goat cheese and then secure with a toothpick.

It's SOOOO delicious.
Also, these were so good that I ate them all and didn't take a photo. CRAP.

Roasted Red Pepper and Mozzarella with Basil

This appetizer really reminded me of working at Red Mill as a child slave.  Just kidding! Every Saturday morning I would go into the Mill at 10am, and peel roasted Anaheim peppers.  To make these little yummers, you'll need

• 3 red bell peppers
• a ball of mozzarella
• fresh basil

Put your oven on broil.  Line a cookie sheet with foil.  Place the red bell peppers on the cookie sheet and place them in the oven.  The peppers will turn black.  Turn them with the tongs until they are black all the way around. Take them out of the oven and place in a bowl.  Put a cutting board or a plate over the top of the bowl so that the peppers steam.  Leave them there for about 15 minutes.  When they are done steaming take them out of the bowl and place them on top of the cutting board.  Let them cool down unless you want to burn your hands and cry like a little girl.
After they have cooled, pull the stem off, and cut them down the middle.  Flatten them out and seed them.  Cut into 1/2 inch strips.
Now, take small lumps of mozzarella and place them on one end of the red pepper strip.  Roll the pepper around the mozzarella and then put a toothpick through the pepper and the cheese to hold it together. Roughly chop up some basil and toss it on top. Look at that, it's a little rolled up piece of heaven!

A Pot of Dirt

Garden inspiration really did a number on me. So, I drove out to Michael's and bought clear glass flower pot shaped votives.  To make these little cuties, you'll need this stuff:

• clear flower pot votive holders
• cook&serve chocolate pudding mix
• milk
• mint extract
• chocolate flavored goldfish crackers (smashed into a million pieces)
• flowers

So, make your pudding,put a few drops of mint extract in it.  You're going to stir forever, so either listen to music, or be engaged in a  conversation with someone that is trying to "study" for their Bar exam at 3am.

After making the pudding, your arm is going to fall off.  Don't worry, pick it back up and attach it to your shoulder.  If it won't stick, my Dad always suggests duct tape.  Pour the pudding in to the containers.  Put them in the fridge to set.  While the pudding is setting, take the chocolate goldfish crackers and put them in a zip-lock bag.  Slam the shit out of it on the counter.  Now it looks like dirt!
Check out the pudding.  Once it is set, take a large spoon and dump the smashed goldfish on top.  Finish them off with a flower that you cut from your overgrown yard.