Month: September 2020

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Easy Fritos Bean Dip Appetizer for all occasions

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Easy Bean Dip

I love this Easy Fritos Bean dip recipe, because it always goes. It works great when you need a quick and easy recipe for a party appetizer. People love it and are always asking me for the recipe. It can take on any shape and can be decorated for different for any holiday and all occations.

Easy Fritos Bean Dip Video

Bean Dip Recipe

Ingredients:

1 8-ounce package of cream cheese, softened

1 9 ounce can Fritos Bean Dip

4 ounces of shredded cheddar cheese

3-4 green onions, sliced

1-2 Roma tomatoes, diced

10-12 black olives, sliced

Instructions:

Blend the Fritos bean dip and softened cream cheese until smooth and uniform. Hint: If you can’t find Fritos Bean dip, try this Copycat Recipe.

Spread the mixture in a dish or on a plate. This is where you can get creative with the dip. Because the dip can take on any shape, you can put it in a football shaped dish for a Super Bowl game day party, or a Christmas Tree shaped dish for a Christmas party. Get creative!

Top with the shredded cheese.

Layer with tomatoes, onions and olives.

Easy Bean Dip
Easy Bean Dip

This is another opportunity to get creative. For example, you could arrange the toppings like Christmas ornaments on a tree shaped platter. You can also pipe on sour cream using a frosting bag to create some fun designs. See my Easy Bean Dip Recipe Halloween designs below.

Halloween Themed Appetizer

Spider Web Halloween themed Bean Dip Appetizer.

To make your Easy Bean Dip more festive for a Halloween party you could decorate it like a spider web. For the spider web I used a piping bag with a #4 tip to pipe on full fat sour cream. I topped with a couple of spider rings which I removed before serving. I still wanted the other toppings so I added them to the edge of the design. If you are really crafty you could make spiders out of olives.

Grave Yard Halloween Themed Bean Dip Appetizer

For more Halloween appetizer fun you could also make your Easy Bean dip into a grave yard. For the grave yard, I piped full fat sour cream on Wheat Thins using a piping bag and a #2 tip. Then I arranged the crackers like grave stones. I added a bat ring and a couple of skull rings too, but I removed them before serving.

If you are planning a Halloween party, check out my post on Halloween Costumes.

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Guacamole Recipe

guacamole
national guacamole day

Today is national guacamole day! So I thought I should share my favorite guacamole recipe. Be sure to check out my links below to learn how to pit an avocado with a chef knife and how to mince garlic without a garlic press. Making you own guacamole sure beats buying the store bought variety. Enjoy my favorite guacamole recipe.

Ingredients:

3 Avocados

1 medium onion finely chopped

3 garlic cloves

juice of one lime

3 roma tomatoes diced

2-3 jalapenos diced

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons fresh cilantro minced

Directions:

Pit peel and mash the avocados. See how to pit an avocado for a quick tutorial. Mince the garlic. See how to mince garlic without a garlic press. Slice the lime in half, to obtain more juice place the halves in a microwave for 15 seconds before juicing. Mix all ingredients. Enjoy this guacamole recipe with tortilla chips.

Love jalapenos? Check out my jalapeno popper recipe.

How do you pit an avocado?

Slicing and pitting an avocado is a simple process if you know what you are doing. All you need is a chef knife a kitchen towel a cutting board and a spoon to scoop out the delicious nutritious fruit. Anyone can enjoy making their own guacamole!

, you

How do you mince garlic without a garlic press?

I’m not a big fan of crowding my kitchen with tools and utensils that are only able to form one task, uni-taskers as Alton Brown likes to say. One thing no kitchen needs is a garlic press. It is so easy to peel and mince garlic with a good quality Chef knife. The Chef knife can be used for may other things and takes up less space than a garlic press. Every kitchen needs a chef knife, no kitchen needs a garlic press. Enjoy making your own home meds guacamole!

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Best Beet Green Recipe

Sauteed beet greens
Beet greens with sour cream and lemon juice

Why I eat Beet Greens and you should too

I have to credit my father-in-law for this delicious sauteed beet green recipe. He is quite the chef. I’ll probably have plenty more of his tasty recipes to share. This one is a delicious way to use a food many people throw away! Wasting food is terrible, but wasting delicious and nutritious food is even worse. According to Jo Robinson, author of Eating on the Wild Side beet greens are more nutritious than the beets themselves.

My father-in-law was a child during world war II. Because if this he grew up learning to use all of the food that was provided. Some of his childhood stories make 2020 sound like a picnic. Next time your teens are complaining about wearing masks or giving up football have them read Stolen Childhood. This book is a story similar to what my father-in-law went through and a great explanation for why he has so many tips and tricks for using up left overs and scraps. Through him I learned that beet greens are not scraps!

Where to find Beet Greens

Back to the beets. First you will have to find beets with the greens still attached. Many chain grocery stores will remove them and throw them away! I know it’s really sad. You could grow them your self, find them at a farmers market or a good organic produce store. Don’t get discouraged. If you do manage to find beets with the greens attached, as an added bonus you will know you have found yourself a fresh beet. The beet roots will last a long time on the grocers shelf, but the greens will begin to wilt sooner, which is probably why they tend to remove them. Buy beets with the greens!

Sauteed Beet Greens Recipe

Now for the sauteed beet greens recipe. Start by removing the greens from the beets. Save the beets for later. I’ll share some great beet recipes soon.

Ingredients:

Stems and leaves form 3 beets

1 medium onion

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/4 cup sour cream

Directions:

Soak the beet greens and thoroughly wash them.

Chop the stems and leaves. Set aside Mince one onion. Saute onion in a frying pan with the olive oil until softened. Add the chopped stems and leaves and continue to saute until softened. Add the lemon juice and toss to coat.

Sauteed beet greens with onions and lemon juice

Remove from heat and stir in the sour cream.

Best Beet Green recipe
Prepared beet greens

Serve warm. This dish makes a delicious side for beef or chicken.

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Prepare Ahead Breakfast Sandwiches

make ahead breakfast sandwich
homemade breakfast sandwich

These easy prepare ahead breakfast sandwiches are delicious and they are sure to take some stress out of your morning routine. I like to prepare them on the weekend when I have some extra time. They can be frozen and used for hectic mornings during the week.

Recipe for make ahead breakfast sandwiches

Ingredients:

12 Eggs

12 English Muffins

3/4 cup half and half

1 finely chopped onion

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1.5 pounds ground bulk breakfast sausage

12 slices of cheddar cheese

Directions:

Egg mixture ready for the oven
Egg mixture ready for the oven.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Crack 12 eggs into a mixing bowl. Add the half and half, onion, salt a pepper. Whisk until smooth. Pour into a greased 9 x 13 inch pyrex casserole dish. Bake uncovered until lightly browned, approximately 25 minutes. Allow to cool, then cut into 12 squares.

While the eggs are baking, toast the English muffins. I like to use my toaster oven for this. I just love my toaster oven because it is also a convection oven, and air fryer. It’s so handy we use it almost every day. If you don’t have a toaster oven, you could also place the muffins on a sheet pan and broil then for 5-10 minutes.

Sausage Patties in a Ballarini Parma Forged Aluminum Nonstick pan

Divide the 1.5 pounds of bulk breakfast sausage into 12 pieces and smash into patties. Fry on the stove top until cooked through. For easy clean up I recommend using the Ballarini Parma Forged Aluminum Nonstick pan pictured. Set the sausage aside on a paper towel lined plate to cool and drain.

Once the eggs, sausage, and English muffins have cooled you can assemble the sandwiches. Place one egg square, one sausage patty and one slice of cheese in each English muffin. I recommend breaking up the cheese slices so they do not hang over the edge of the muffin. If the cheese hangs over the edge it will make a mess when you reheat the sandwich.

How to prepare breakfast sandwiches for freezing

To Prepare the sandwiches for freezing you will need:

12 moist paper towels

12 10×10 inch pieces of parchment paper

12 zip lock sandwich bags

Wrap each sandwich first in a moist (not wet) paper towel, then wrap with parchment paper. Slide each wrapped sandwich into a zip lock sandwich bag. Pinch out the air and place in your freezer.

How to reheat frozen make ahead breakfast sandwiches

Remove the breakfast sandwich from the freezer. Take the sandwich out of the bag, and remove the parchment paper. Place the paper towel wrapped frozen sandwich on a plate and microwave for 2 minutes. Remove the paper towel and enjoy a delicious breakfast and stress free morning!

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Check out my easy pack ahead salad ideas for another way to reduce your morning stress.

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Salads for packed Lunches – Save Time and Money

4 tasty salad ideas for packed lunches
4 tasty salad ideas for packed lunches

Salads are healthy

It’s that time of year again. Time to start packing some lunches. Are your kids getting tired of sandwiches? Maybe it’s time to switch things up and try something new. How about a packing a nice healthy and delicious salads for lunch? It’s good to get kids started early with a nice variety of veggies in their diet. Try these tasty salads for packed lunches.

Use your leftovers and save money

These tasty salads are also a really good way to use some of your meal leftovers. I love finding creative ways to use my leftovers. Approximately 30-40 percent of the American food supply is wasted.1 We should all do our part to use our leftovers. Teaching the next generation not to waste food is a huge part of that. Teach your kids to eat the leftover food! Eating your leftovers is also a huge cost savings, it’s estimated that on average, each American household wastes over $1800 of food each year!2 Using up your leftover food leads to having more money for other things and a happier less stressful life.3 Here are 4 salads my family enjoys:

4 Tasty Salads for packed Lunches

#1 Caesar Salads for packed lunches

Caesar salad for packed lunch
Caesar salad for packed lunch

Caesar salad is very simple. Traditionally romaine lettuce is the base, although you could also add some baby spinach or other greens for variety. Croutons, Parmesan cheese and a good Caesar dressing is really all you need. I prefer to buy my Caesar dressing in the refrigerated section of the produce department. My favorite is Marzetti Supreme Caesar dressing. If you would prefer a heartier option add some sliced grilled chicken or fresh bacon bits. This salad is an excellent choice when you have some left over grilled chicken. I used a 2 compartment container, but a 3 compartment container would be ideal for packing because you could keep the dressing and croutons separated until you are read to eat lunch.

#2 Pasta Salads for packed lunches

Pasta salad is another family favorite. I usually use Organic Garofalo Tricolor Rotini as the base, but any leftover pasta will do. Just add your favorite veggies. I like to make this one after family pizza night. I add the unused pizza toppings like chopped red onion, black olives, salami strips and mini pepperonis. Other excellent options to mix in are sliced cucumber, mini baby mozzarella balls, and cherry tomatoes. I dress my pasta salad with Kraft Zesty Italian and McCormick Pinch Perfect Salad Supreme. Once again I used a 2 compartment container for this salad. It works great this way because I can add some fruit on the side. A single compartment container would work well for this salad. I love Fit and fresh containers because the lids stay on well and the have an optional freezer pack you can use with them.

Pasta Salad packed for lunch
Pasta Salad packed for lunch.

#3 Taco Salads for packed lunch

Taco salad is the perfect salad to pack for lunch on Wednesday, following Taco Tuesday. I usually just pack up all of the leftover toppings I sliced for Tacos. Chopped lettuce, tomatoes, and onions. Top with cheese and some leftover taco meat. I mix up sour cream with salsa for the dressing and put it on the side to mix in when ready to eat. I used a two compartment container to pack this one, but once again a three compartment container would be better because you could add a side of tortilla chips! Fit & Fresh makes a great 3 compartment container that would work well for this too.

#4 Super-food Salads for packed lunch

I call this super food salad because it is dressed with poppy seed dressing which works well with so many super healthy foods. I used mixed greens with romaine, dried cranberries and pumpkin seeds on my salad. This salad also loves all types of nuts, seeds, berries, cabbage, broccoli, spinach, and Swiss cheese. Get creative with it. I buy my poppy seed dressing in the refrigerated section of produce. Marzetti has a great one. This salad works well, packed for lunch in a 2 compartment container but would also work well in a three compartment container if you want to keep your nuts or seeds crunchier you could separate them when packing and mix them in when ready to eat lunch.

  1. https://www.usda.gov/foodwaste/faqs
  2. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ajae.12036
  3. https://www.verywellmind.com/simple-ways-to-relieve-money-stress-3144552

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