Pin a Day: Baked Tortellini Casserole

A few weeks ago, I tried a new recipe with the hopes of finding a great new pasta dish.  This Baked Tortellini Casserole was just okay.  It was pretty easy to make, made plenty of leftovers, but overall was just average tasting.  In attempts to make it a little healthier, I used ground beef instead of ground turkey, which may have affected the flavor a bit.  So, I cooked the meat with the onions, garlic, and seasoning.  Then I added in the tomato sauce and tomatoes.  I mixed the meat sauce with uncooked tortellini and added it to the casserole dish topped with mozzarella cheese.  I baked it for about 30 minutes and served with salad.  It was fine, but not the best tortellini or pasta dish I've ever tried.  I'd probably only do this again if I planned to add more spices or a more flavorful meat.

Pin a Day: Pink Champagne Cupcakes

On Sunday, I had a work meeting with a sparkly theme so I wanted to bring a sparkly treat.  I searched Pinterest and found this recipe for Pink Champagne Cupcakes.  The recipe was simple, using a white cake mix, egg whites, oil, red food coloring and champagne.  I used Andre because I didn't need expensive champagne.  It would probably work great with a pink or strawberry champagne as well.  I tried a new tool that my mom bought me for pouring the batter into the muffin tins and unfortunately I was not impressed.  Basically, you pour your batter into this tube and squeeze it into the cups.  I felt like it was messier pouring this way and I lost batter.  I only ended up making 18 cupcakes instead of my normal 24.  I let my cupcakes cool completely before I mixed up my frosting.  I softed the butter, added vanilla, red food coloring, a tiny bit of champagne, and powdered sugar, mixed, and was ready to ice.  I was losing time and patience so I frosted by hand rather than piping the frosting on.  I topped the cupcakes off with sparkling sugar, loaded up my carrier, and headed to my meeting.  My cupcakes were a hot with several people trying more than one.  I was happy the recipe turns out so well and I'm looking forward to trying more recipes for my new team.

Pin a Day: Slow Cooker French Dip Sandwiches

On Friday, I had a chance to try out another new recipe.  I picked Slow Cooker French Dip Sandwiches.  This was an excellent choice.  Mike and I really enjoyed these and I always love a slow cooker recipe.  I coated the roast in my favorite Salt Lick rub and browned it on both sides in my cast iron braiser. While it was browning, I mixed up the spices and liquids to add to the crockpot.  I put it all in on high for about 5-6 hours to let it cook.  After I picked Mike up from work, I fixed a salad, cooked some tater tots, and shredded the roast.  It practically fell apart as I was shredding it.  I cut some rolls and found some sliced havarti cheese in the fridge and dinner was ready.  The meat was juicy and tender and the creamy havarti melted great on the sandwich.  I really liked this sandwich and as a rare bonus, I followed the directions, and do not need to make any changes in the future.  

Pin a Day: Chicken Enchilada Pasta

This week I ended my 8 month sabbatical from working and while I was tired after going back to a semi-routine, I still managed to find some time to try a few new recipes.  On Tuesday, I made Chicken Enchilada Pasta.  I liked that it was pretty easy to make, made plenty of leftovers, and had great flavor.  I also got to put my beautiful cast iron to good use.  I started by boiling water for my noodles, cooking chicken and having my sous chef chop onions and peppers.  I had more chicken than I needed so Cecil definitely benefited with chicken all week.  I cooked my noodles while preparing my sauce.  My braiser was definitely full by the time I finished adding everything.  Cast iron retains heat so by the time I was to add the sour cream, I turned off the heat and gently stirred in the sour cream, to avoid curdling.  The final step was to gently pour the sauce on the noodles, which I did with very little mess.  We enjoyed ours as is, but you could definitely add a dollop of sour cream or chopped olives to garnish it.  We enjoyed it several nights and days as leftovers and will likely make this again when we need more leftovers.

Al Capriccio Was His Name-o

After a late lunch and some shopping, the last thing I wanted to do last weekend was make dinner.  I also didn't feel like driving very far.  We played around on Yelp and realized there was a pizza place by our house that we hadn't tried yet, so we headed out to Al Capriccio Pizzeria.  It was a small place with a few tables in a strip center.  It was not crowded and we sat immediately, got drinks, and were able to browse the menu.  We opted for cheese fries and the buffalo chicken pizza.  The cheese fries were really yummy. The bacon and cheese were perfect and the actual fries were crisp and salty.  The pizza was hot and gooey.  In fact, the first piece I got slid right off onto the floor.  The buffalo chicken had great flavor, although the pizza was a little bit greasy.  The food was great, the restaurant was quiet, but the service was only okay at best.  I have a feeling we will be back and it's close enough that we could take it to go or order as well.

This Little Piggy Was a Noble

Saturday we headed back to a place we'd been before in their new location.  The Noble Sandwich Company (formerly the Noble Pig) is fairly close to us and we've been wanting to check out its new location.  The new location was really nice and bigger to accommodate its popularity with a nice dine in area and beautiful patio.  Unfortunately, we didn't make it in time for breakfast, we really need to plan ahead for that.  I opted to order the same sandwich I tried last time, the Noble Pig. This sandwich had ham, pulled pork, bacon and provolone served on toasted wheat bread along with homemade chips and a taste of pickled veggies.  My sandwich was huge and delicious.  All the meat was juicy and well seasoned.  

Mike chose a sandwich with Italian sausage, roasted tomato, herbs, and provolone on toasted white bread with chips and a bigger portion of pickled veggies.  (Mike likes pickles.)  Both sandwiches were tasty and we were full after eating here.  It was a great meal and we look forward to visiting again in this new convenient location.

Pin a Day: Crockpot Bacon Cheeseburger Soup

So recently, my recipe attempts have been meh at best.  That changed on Tuesday with this Crockpot Bacon Cheeseburger Soup.  I was a little nervous after the cheeseburger casserole and beer cheese soup were less than fabulous.  The recipe took a little bit of prep time, but overall was pretty easy and I made a few modifications that made it a little bit healthier.  As the meat and onion were sautéing, I prepped all the other ingredients and put them in the crockpot.  I substituted low fat cream cheese for the cream cheese.  I put all the ingredients in my crockpot for 7 hours.  I stirred it every few hours and at 6 hours, before I left to pick up Mike, I turned it down to warm because it was starting to bubble.  When we got home, I made a thickening agent with flour and skim milk.  I added the thickening agent and 2% cheese to the soup and let it cook another 10 minutes while the pretzels rolls were heating up.  We really enjoyed the soup.  Mike even commented that we should add it to our regulars because it was one of the best soups we've had in a while.  Upon cleaning the pantry, I realized that I had forgotten to add the tomatoes so that may change the overall flavor, but the soup was great without them.  This soup was perfect for the delightful fall weather we've experienced this week.

Pin a Day: Garlic Ranch Chicken Pizza

This weekend we tried a yummy new recipe.  We typically go out to eat on Saturdays, but we wanted to be home to watch the baseball game, so I cooked.  The recipe I made was Garlic Ranch Chicken Pizza.  This turned out pretty good.  I broke it down in a few steps while I was making the recipe.  I cooked the chicken on my stovetop while the oven was preheating and microwaved my bacon. While the chicken was cooking, I cut up some cherry tomatoes and mixed the garlic ranch sauce.  Once the oven was preheated, I prebaked the crust for about 5 minutes, pulled it out and assembled my pizza.  While the pizza cooked, I made a quick salad to complete the meal.  The pizza was yummy.  The garlic ranch sauce was great and you can't go wrong with chicken, bacon, and cheese.  My only complaint was that the crust wasn't crispy enough and I think I just needed to cook it at a higher temperature.  This recipe was definitely worth trying and will be one we eat again.

Pin a Day: Skinny Cheeseburger Casserole

I haven't been cooking as much as I should lately.  Partly, I just haven't been in the mood, partly I've made things that have made lots of leftovers so there wasn't much need to cook.  One day last week, I tried Skinny Cheeseburger Casserole.  This was a relatively easy recipe to complete and it made plenty of leftovers.  Our only complaint was that it was just okay.  I think this recipe could be improved by adding more seasoning and transforming it from a cheeseburger casserole into more of a taco casserole.  I followed the directions perfectly, but I just didn't love the outcome.  This meal definitely made plenty of leftovers, which Mike has been doctoring with a little bit of hot sauce.  This recipe may be perfect for someone who like things a little blander, but wasn't quite right for us.

Pin a Day: Asian Cole Slaw

I've been trying lots meal and dessert recipes from Pinterest.  Now, I decided it was time to try some sides.  I love a non creamy slaw so I tried this Asian Cole Slaw.  It was easy to make and delicious.  I skipped the almonds, but otherwise I followed the directions.  I loved the tangy dressing mixed with the crunchy ramen and slaw.  It was much better than my last attempt at slaw, which was horribly overdressed.  I'm glad I found this recipe and feel like it will be a new menu staple.

Pin a Day: Crockpot Beer Cheese Soup

I'm trying to trick fall into coming to Texas, because 80s-90s does not scream fall to me.  One way I'm trying to do this is by cooking some fall foods.  On Tuesday, I tried Crockpot Beer Cheese Soup.  I've had beer cheese soup and sauces before so I had high expectations.  While this soup was pretty easy to make, it was only okay to eat.  I like that it had vegetables so I could pretend that it was quasi healthy.  I cheated and bought shredded carrots and small sticks of celery for ease of cutting.  The only thing I really had to prep was an onion.  This was an especially potent onion and I was crying so much I could barely see to cut.  I added my veggies, broth, local beer and seasonings to the crockpot and let it cook about 6-6.5 hours.  When I got home from picking up Mike, I added the cheese, cream, and cornstarch while I heated up some pretzel rolls.  The pretzel rolls were a great addition to the cheese, which really wasn't thick enough or flavorful enough.  I'm still in search of an excellent beer cheese soup recipe, but this one would do in a pinch.  

Cecil trying to get to the Beer Cheese Soup 

Pin a Day: Brownie Peanut Butter Cups

Another part of lazy Sunday was baking.  I tried out these Brownie Peanut Butter Cups.  They were super yummy and fairly easy to eat.  I did make one alteration in using dark chocolate chips instead of semisweet chocolate chips.  The other thing I changed was using muffin cup liners instead of greasing the muffin tin.  I hate greasing muffin tins and the liner makes them a little more portable.  One nice thing about this recipe was that it only makes a dozen cups so I didn't have to worry about a ton of leftovers.  First, I made the brownie batter and let it cool.  This is important so the chips don't melt whenyou mix them in.  Next, I added the chips and baked the brownie cups.  After they baked, I melted peanut butter, put that and more chips on top, and let them cool.  Last night after dinner, we finally got to try them.  They were pretty dense, but delicious.  These required an accompanying glass of milk and will easily enforce portion control because they are so rich.  This is definitely a great treat for any chocolate and peanut butter lover.

Pin a Day: Crockpot Lemon Chicken

Oh lazy Sunday, how I love you!  What better way to enjoy than by crocking and baking.  The first thing I made was Crockpot Lemon Chicken.  This recipe should have been really easy to make, but I had a kitchen disaster on my way to prepping it.  I opened the fridge and my chicken had leaked goo all over the shelf and down into my produce drawer.  I felt like I had to clean up that mess before starting a new project.  Once that was cleaned up, I melted the butter, added the lemon pepper and soup, and put everything in the crockpot.  I turned the crockpot on low and set the timer for 5 hours.  I was baking, cleaning, and exercising and it took a long time to smell anything.  In fact, I didn't notice until I saw Cecil stick his nose up in the air.  With about 30 minute left, I started my green beans and rice on the stovetop.  We served the chicken on a bed of rice and it was so tasty.  This chicken would also be great shredded.  I was pleased by the light lemony taste.  It paired well with green beans and will definitely be added to our fall favorites.

Pin a Day: Crockpot Tortellini and Sausage

Not all Pinterest recipes are fabulous, some are just meh.  Yesterday, I made one of those meh recipes, Crockpot Tortellini Sausage.  I wanted a crockpot recipe that would be done when I picked up Mike from work.  My first mistake was waiting until 4 pm to start cooking it.  We got home at 6:30 and it still needed time to cook.  At 8 pm, we were really hungry and decided to eat.  It ended up being more like a soup than a creamy pasta dish.  The flavor was okay, but the consistency just wasn't that great.  We will eat the leftovers, but will not be trying this one again.  Perhaps, it could cook longer to thicken the sauce, but then the tortellini might be overcooked.  I'm not super disappointed though and look forward to the next new meal we try later this week.

Pin a Day: Cheesy Chicken Bacon Broccoli and Rice

Today was a lazy Sunday, which gave me plenty of time to try a new dish for dinner.  Tonight, I made Cheesy Chicken Bacon Broccoli and Rice.  It was such a yummy dish, but it was a little time consuming.  First, I made the bacon, which I cooked in the microwave.  Next, I cooked the chicken.  Then, I cooked the onions and broccoli while the rice cooked. Next, I combined the vegetables, meats, rice, and 2 cans of Rotel.  The last step was to make the cheese sauce.  I've always had some difficulty with sauces due to my lack of patience and focus, but tonight the stars aligned and my sauce turned out fantastic.  The texture and taste were both perfect.  I added the sauce to the mixture and it was ready to serve.  There were so many great flavors that melded together well.  We both ate big portions and had plenty of leftovers.  This will be a meal I'll make again, likely on another day when I have plenty of time.

Pin a Day: Pumpkin Bars

I love fall!  It's my favorite time of year with great weather and even better food- soups, apples, and PUMPKIN!  I've been burning pumpkin candles  drinking pumpkin beer and coffee, in hopes of making it feel more like fall.  As I blog today, we are experiencing our first glimpse of short lived fall weather.  Yesterday, I made Pumpkin Bars.  I tried a great recipe last year and wanted to see if I could top them.  These bars were delicious with the adjustments I made.  The recipe included a recipe for cream cheese frosting, which I love, but Mike does not, so I skipped the frosting.  It also called for using a 15 x 10 pan, which I don't have, so I used a 9 x 13 instead.  My bars ended up fluffy and cake like, versus a more chewy bar.  The flavor was delicious, just like fall.  A few options for adding a touch of flavor might include chocolate chips or chocolate frosting.  This is the first of several delicious pumpkin treats I hope to try this fall.

Bouquet of Flores

We were determined to have a relaxing Labor Day weekend and we definitely succeeded.  On Friday, we headed to Flores Mexican Restaurant on recommendation from my friend, Linda.  When we arrived, we got one of the last parking spots and we told there was a 40 minute wait.  We decided it was worth it and waited in the very crowded lobby.  When we were seated, we could tell that it was busy throughout the restaurant.  We still had time for happy hour margaritas so we got those first.  The margaritas were just okay, but still tasted fine on a hot night.

They served us chips and salsa, but we decided to order some queso, too.  The chips were giant, but could have used a little more salt.  The salsa had good flavor, without being too spicy.  The queso was a yellow queso and again had good flavor and was not spicy at all.

Despite being incredibly busy, our meals came very quickly.  I love steak tacos so I chose Joe's Tacos with the fajita beef.  They were delicious.  I loved the homemade tortillas, creamy guacamole, and amazing steak.  The rice and beans weren't bad either.  The plate was huge and on a different night, I definitely could have split it.  Mike picked the chimichangas and on our waitress's recommendation, he also got the fajita beef.  His was half covered in verde sauce and half covered in queso.  It was also huge and tasty.  We were very happy with our dining experience and definitely plan to go back again soon.

Joe's Tacos

Chimichangas

Pin a Day: Crockpot Pulled Pork

All summer long, I have been trying new recipes, with the hopes of finding some new staples.  One dish I keep trying is Crockpot Pulled Pork.  So far, my favorite has been the pulled pork with pineapple, but this recipe for Crockpot Pulled Pork, was pretty good too. This recipe was easy to make and perfect for a day when I was picking Mike up from work.  I rubbed the pork tenderloin with a Salt Lick rub and put it in the crockpot.  I also sliced up some strawberries and made a pasta salad ahead of time.  After I picked up Mike, I made the sauce and put it on the pork for another 45 minutes and we were ready to enjoy. This recipe was easy and pretty tasty, but I must say that the Pineapple Pork is still my favorite.

Mars Attacks

Last Wednesday was a night of firsts for me!  I finally went to see the famous bats and went to my first live music show in Austin.  My friend, Lauri, and I had an exciting evening planned.  We started off with some yummy pizza at Z Pizza in South Austin.  Next, we headed over to the famous bat bridge.  It was pretty stinky, but we found a spot with a great view.  There was a nice breeze so it was a perfect night to wait for the bats to come out.

View from Bridge

Then, as the sun started to set, the bats came out and started their journey south.  It was crazy to watch them all fly together.  The really crazy part was the occasional bat that would get confused and fly towards us.

Bats!

More bats

View of the Capital

From the bat bridge, we headed to the Saxon Pub for the night's main event, the Charlie Mars concert.  The Saxon Pub was a tiny place and although we got there early, we had to wait outside for the previous concert to finish.  By the time we got inside, we were hot and thirsty.  The show got started almost right away and Charlie played for about 1.5 hours.  It was the first time I'd heard him.  He reminded me a little bit of Jason Mraz.  The show was fun and mellow.  We had a great evening and I'm so glad I got to try some new things.

Saxon Pub

Beer

Charlie Mars

Pin a Day: Healthy Chicken Gyros

Yesterday I had some free time on my hands, so I decided to make a recipe that was a little more time consuming.  I had wanted to attempt it earlier, but I kept running out of time.  So, I finally made Healthy Chicken Gyros.  I had the ingredients for a while, but kept forgetting there was some make ahead of time elements.  The tzatziki sauce needed at least 30 minutes to chill in the fridge and the chicken needed at least an hour to marinate and I wanted to be at the gym, so I made everything right after lunch.  For the tzatziki sauce, the biggest challenge was peeling and then seeding the cucumber.  I really don't like cucumbers, so this was something new for me.  I chopped that up in the food processor and the added the other ingredients and mixed it all up.  I just left it in the pitcher from the food processor(once I finally detached it from the base!) and chilled it.  Next, I mixed the marinade for the chicken, trimmed and halved my chicken breast, mixed it together and then chilled.  At dinner time, I cooked some rice and Mike chopped up some red onions and tomatoes.  The chicken took a long time to cook in the skillet because it was so thick.  Next time, I may try my grill pan.  The plan was to serve the chicken in pita pockets because I couldn't find gyro wraps at either Target or HEB.  Unfortunately, my pitas were moldy, so we ate our gyros on tasty tortillas.  The overall effect was delicious.  The chicken was moist and tender.  The sauce was great and added a hint of flavor.  Next time, I will have to make some cous cous or tabouli as a side, but this was an excellent first attempt at a new style of cooking.  I loved that this was a healthy dish and Mike loved all the favors.