Bacon Covered Pancakes

Pancake Covered Bacon

I found this idea on Pinterest (chicagoist.com) and thought it would be a sure hit with my children. It was.

To make it a quick morning breakfast, I bought the pre-cooked bacon. Then I made a batter using 1/2 white flour mix and 1/2 whole grain mix. After warming up the bacon on the grill, I patted the oil off and poured the batter on top. Cook and flip like normally.





I had a few extra, so I popped them in a ziplock and will save them for another day :)
Love having ready to go food for those busy mornings. Not to mention, this is such an easy snack on the go if your in a hurry!

Homemade Strawberry Sherbert

Homemade Strawberry Sherbert

When it came time for Big B's turn to choose a recipe to make for our Summer Cooking Day, he knew EXACTLY what he wanted to make. Homemade Strawberry Sherbert. He went online and researched a few recipes and came up with one to try. He found this recipe on Gettingwell.com. We had fun trying something new and the end result was delicious! I think he was pretty pleased.

Homemade Strawberry Sherbert

2 cups chopped fresh strawberries

1/2 cup sugar

2 1/2 cups buttermilk

1/2 cup half and half

2 tsp. lemon juice

1 tsp. vanilla extract

pinch of salt

Combine berries and sugar in a small bowl and let sit, stirring occasionally until the sugar has begun to dissolve. About 30 minutes. Transfer the berry mixture to a food processor or blender and process until smooth. Meanwhile, combine buttermilk, half-and-half, lemon juice, vanilla and salt in a medium bowl. Press the strawberry mixture through a fine sieve into the bowl. Stir mixtures together, cover and chill for at least 2 hours or up to 1 day. Whisk the sherbert mixture and pour into the canister of an ice cream maker. Freeze according to manufacturer's directions. Once frozen, dish up and enjoy a nice bowl of cold sherbert. Perfect for a summer day!

Hot Fudge Pudding Cake

Hot Fudge Pudding Cake

Today was our "cooking day" at home. It was fun to spend time together creating something delicious! Big "C" has been begging to make this recipe for a couple of weeks now and finally we made the time. Who knew summer could be so busy? This recipe is so simple and so fun. It is pretty much like a big lava cake where the bottom of it turns into chocolate pudding. YUM! This recipe was in my grandmother's collections and is definitely an oldy but goodie! Add some whipped cream or cream to this chocolately surprise and give it a whirl!

Mmmmm. See the pudding on the bottom?

Warm cake and pudding with cold whipped cream. Delicious!

Wha La!

(I know I SERIOUSLY need some new hot pads!)

Hot Fudge Pudding Cake

Stir together in a bowl:

1 c. flour, 3/4 c. sugar, 2 tsp. baking powder, 2 Tbsp. cocoa, 1/4 tsp. salt

Stir in:

1/2 c. milk, 2 Tbsp. melted shortening, 1 c. chopped nuts (optional)

Topping:

1 c. brown sugar, 4 Tbsp. cocoa, 1 3/4 c HOT water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread batter in 9 inch square pan; sprinkle with mixture of brown sugar and cocoa. Pour hot water over entire batter. Bake for 45 minutes in a 350 degree oven. Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Peppermint Scones... Thursday Cooking Day

Chocolate Chip Peppermint Scones...
Thursday Cooking Day!

Thursday's are our official cooking day for the summer. We had so much fun today spending time together in the kitchen. My little girl chose the recipe for today which came out of the "Pink Princess Cookbook" ... of course.
These scones were perfect for my little people to help make and they loved using different shaped cookie cutters. Plate these up with a big glass of milk, OR if you are in the mood, you could have a big hot cup of cocoa like my son did. It was just way to tempting for him. Luckily, we had a massive hail and rain storm right while we were enjoying our snack, so it seemed very appropriate. Try having a cooking day with your children... I promise it is time well spent!




Chocolate Chip Peppermint Scones


1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt
1 cup milk chocolate chips
1 cup plus 2 tbsp. whipping cream
1/2 cup crushed peppermint candies
Powdered sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a large mixing bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt until well combined. Add chocolate chips and toss to coat. Pour 1 cup whipping cream into mixture, stirring just until ingredients are moistened. Turn mixture onto a lightly floured surface. Knead gently until soft dough forms (about 2 minutes). Pat dough out to about 1" thick. Cut into shapes.
Place scones 1 inch apart on foil-lined baking sheet. Brush each scone with the remaining 2 tbsp. whpping cream and sprinkle with crushed peppermint candies.
Bake 15 - 20 minutes or until very lightly browned. Serve warm and dusted with powdered sugar.

Yields 12 scones

Hootenanny Pancakes - A Real Kid/Crowd Pleaser

Hootenanny Pancake

I love this recipe! It takes me back to my childhood when on special occasions, my mom would make this for us. It was always so exciting to see the pancake puff up in the oven... and there were always dibs on the corner pieces with all the yummy, buttery crusts. Well, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree as this is one of my children's favorite breakfast now. Anytime we have a birthday or holiday, a Hootenanny Pancake is what they want to wake up to.

Hootenanny Pancake

In blender, beat

10 eggs

1 C. milk

1/4 tsp. salt

Whip about 9 - 10 minutes

While the egg mixture is blending, place 1/2 cube butter in a 9x13 inch baking dish in a 425 degree oven until the butter bubbles and sputters up.

After waiting about 10 minutes for the egg mixture, gradually add 1 1/2 cup flour and continue to beat another 3 -4 minutes.

Pour the batter into the butter. Bake 25 minutes at 425 degrees. Remove and serve! The outside edges will rise up like a large souffle. Use syrup, jam or your favorite fruit topping and enjoy!

Chocolate Cake Balls

Chocolate Cake Balls

I have been wanting to make these delicious little morsels since the first moment that I saw them on Bakerella. I just didn't have the time UNTIL .... I recently drove down to Texas with my mom and children to visit my sister and her family. My cute niece, "S" loves to cook and she whipped out the ingredients to make these Cake Balls. I was so excited. They do take a little bit of time, but they are simple and worth the wait. These little bite size pieces of heaven will cheer anybody up.. and a little goes a long way. One cake mix makes about 70 cake balls, so package some up and give to a neighbor or throw them in the freezer ... OR you will eat them ALL!

Bake a cake (any flavor)

After it has cooked and cooled some, smash it with a fork into cake crumbs.

1 bowl of cooked cake crumbs :)

Add one container of frosting (again, any flavor.... You can get really creative with combinations)

Mix the cake crumbs and frosting together

With your hand, roll crumbs and frosting into 1" balls and chill for a couple of hours

In a double broiler, melt some chocolate and dunk chilled cake balls in and coat.

After you cover the with the chocolate, place on a parchment lined pan and top with your favorite toppings. We used sprinkles, toffee, and white chocolate

Wha La! Enjoy!

My neice takes all of the ingredients babysitting and does this as an activity with the kids. They love it and everyone can participate.

Creamy Lemon Pasta

Okay, this is one you must give a whirl. It is a dish that can be dressed up or kept simple ... the results will be delicious no matter what! My husband (who is not a huge pasta fan) LOVED it and said I could quote him saying that this was his favorite pasta. Yeah.... Happy wife! I got the base for this recipe from The Pioneer Woman. She is AWESOME! Then I added a few of my favorite ingredients that brought a smile to my face. This fed my whole family (kids loved it as well) and then had plenty of left-overs for lunch the next day. I was one happy girl when I remembered this was in my fridge! Selfishly, I hurried and ate some for lunch before anybody else realized it was still there.... Well, so I don't get mother-of-the-year award. It was worth it!


Creamy Lemon Pasta

1 lb. of penne rigate
4 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 gloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups sliced mushrooms
2 cups sour cream
zest of one lemon
juice of one lemon
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
3/4 cup - 1 cup of shredded fresh parmesan (the more the merrier in my book)
7.5 oz. jar of marinated artichoke hearts
2-3 chicken breast, shredded
Handful of fresh parsley, chopped

Cook noodles, drain and set aside. (I like to drizzle a little olive oil on the noodles so they don't stick to each other) Melt butter and olive oil together on medium heat. Once melted together, add mushrooms and garlic, saute until mushrooms are golden. Stir in 2 cups of sour cream until smooth. Add lemon zest, lemon juice and salt. Stir together. Add artichoke hearts, chicken, paremsan cheese and fresh parsley. After the ingredients are all blended , pour over the cooked noodles and toss well. When you serve, you could add a little more lemon juice on top with a fresh sprinkle of parmasan cheese and parlsey. Really, really good!

** If you want to keep this more simple and kid friendly, follow the Pioneer Woman's recipe and leave out the following: mushrooms, chicken and artichoke hearts. It is so refreshing and delicious. A perfect dish for Spring. Enjoy!

Kid Friendly Chicken Enchilada's

So, I didn't intend on adding this because it is one of those recipes that you throw together last minute. However, my children gobbled these enchilada's up, so I thought maybe it was worth adding to this blog. Yesterday, I roasted probably 20 chicken breast (long story), so I had chicken ready to shred and use. This was a perfect use for it. Enjoy!




























Kid Friendly Chicken Enchilada's

4-5 cooked chicken breast, shredded
1 10 oz. can of mild enchilada sauce
1 can of fire roasted tomatoes
1 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
2 cups of mexican blend cheese
olives
cilantro
8 flour tortillas

With a hand blender (affectionatly called the "boat motor" in my family), blend the enchilada sauce, roasted tomatoes, onion and garlic powder. Coat each tortilla with the sauce, add chicken, cheese and another spoonful of sauce down the center. Roll up and place seam side down in a 9x13. Top with left over sauce, cheese and olives. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
After you take it out, add your fresh cilantro and Enjoy!