Easy Breakfast Bread Pudding

I LOVE Pillsbury Crescent rolls.  They're so soft and flaky ... yum!  Since it's just me and my husband though, one package (8 rolls) tends to be a bit much for us to eat in one meal.  That's why whenever I make them to go with dinner, I save half of them to make breakfast bread pudding.  You'll want to make sure to leave your rolls sitting out overnight so they get a little hard.  The recipe below serves one, so just multiply it by however many people you're preparing it for.


Ingredients


2  day-old Pillsbury Crescent rolls
1 packet flavored instant oatmeal (the flavors I've tried so far include Honey Bun, Maple & Brown Sugar, and Cinnamon Swirl, but you can experiment with your favorite flavors)
3/4 c. milk
2 Tbsp. brown sugar

Directions


Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Stuff Crescents into a 16-oz. oven safe dish.

Cover rolls evenly with oatmeal.

Slowly pour milk into bowl, trying to wet the oatmeal as much as possible.  Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over the top.  Place bowl on a cookie sheet (in case your pudding bubbles over) and bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes.  So easy, filling, and tasty!

Southwestern Jalapeño Cheddar Burgers

My husband and I came up with this burger recipe last night.  The recipe is inspired by the ingredients in pico de gallo, one of our favorite foods to snack on.  Also, if you like the cilantro ranch sauce, you can double the recipe and it makes for a great dip for chips, veggies, etc.

Burgers


Ingredients:

1.5 lbs. ground beef
2 jalapeños, minced (if you prefer less heat, remove the seeds ... I like my burger with a little kick to it, so I leave all the seeds in)
1/2 Tbsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 c. shredded cheddar cheese

Cilantro ranch sauce (see recipe below)
Sliced tomato, for garnish
Sliced onion, for garnish
4 - 6 hamburger buns (toasted, if you prefer)

Directions:

In a large bowl, mash up ground beef with your hands.  Add jalapeños, salt, and pepper; knead to incorporate fully.  Add Worcestershire and work it into the meat (beef should now be slightly sticky).  Add cheese and knead until all ingredients are mixed in evenly.

Divide beef into four to six patties, depending on how big you want your burgers to be.  Grill on both sides until burgers reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees on a meat thermometer (if you don't have access to a grill, you can cook them in a pan on your stovetop).

Garnish with tomato, onion, and cilantro ranch sauce.

Cilantro Ranch Sauce


Ingredients:

1/2 c. ranch salad dressing
2 handfuls of cilantro
juice of 1/2 a lime
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

Directions:

Place all ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.  I like to use my Magic Bullet for this one, as I think the smaller capacity of the blending chamber lends itself well to small quantities of sauce.

Mini Deep Dish Pizzas

After my holiday travel-induced cooking hiatus, I am finally back in my kitchen!  These pizzas are easy to make and really fun to eat ... perfect for a weeknight meal.  I don't really use exact measures when I make these, so feel free to use however much sauce, cheese, toppings, and seasoning as you want ... there's really no wrong way to do the filling; it's based on whatever you like.


Ingredients


Nonstick cooking spray
1 Roll refrigerated pre-made pizza dough (Pillsbury or similar)
Marinara sauce (since this is something I make when I'm a little strapped for time, I just use sauce from a jar ... this is also a great way to use up leftover sauce)
Shredded mozzarella cheese
Pepperonis, or whatever your favorite pizza topping is
Garlic salt
Garlic pepper
Dried oregano
Dried basil

Directions


Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Spray six-cup muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray.

Unroll pizza dough.  Use a wide-mouth cup (something with a diameter a couple inches longer than that of the muffin cups) to press circles in the dough.  Use a paring knife to trace through the circles and cut out the dough.  If you can't get six circles out of the original sheet of dough, feel free to knead the scraps back into a ball and then flatten it out again.  For this, I like to start with a rolling pin, and then hand-toss it to get the dough nice and thin.  Once you have your six circles, press them down into the muffin tin cups, like you're making a pie crust.  The dough might shrink down into the tin a little bit; this is okay.

Spoon a little bit of marinara sauce into the bottom of each cup.  Sprinkle in a little mozzarella, and then add your pepperoni or other pizza toppings.  Add another spoonful of sauce, and sprinkle in seasonings.  Top with cheese so each cup is filled to the top.

Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.  Let cool for five minutes, and use a fork to pop mini pizzas out of muffin tin.

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

I must have six different recipes for chocolate chip cookies floating around my kitchen, but every single one of them yields the same result ... cookies that are chewy when they are still hot out of the oven, but dry and crunchy by the next day.  I wanted a cookie that would stay moist, so I got to experimenting and came up with the following recipe.  I baked a batch last night, and today they are still nice and chewy ... just what I've been looking for!


Ingredients


3/4 c. melted butter
1/4 c. shortening
1/2 c. sugar
1 c. firmly packed brown sugar
2 whole eggs + 1 yolk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 (12-oz.) package semi-sweet morsels

Directions


In a large bowl, beat melted butter, shortening, sugar, and brown sugar at medium speed of an electric mixer. While mixer is running, add eggs and yolk (it's important that the eggs don't have a chance to rest in the creamed mixture so the heat from the melted butter doesn't start to cook them).  Mix in vanilla.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.  Add to creamed mixture; mix  until combined.  Stir in chocolate chips.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Drop dough by heaping teaspoon onto ungreased cookie sheets.  Bake 8 - 10 minutes.  Cool for 7 - 10 minutes on cookie sheet before transferring to wire rack to cool completely.  (Cookies will be pale when they first come out of the oven; they'll continue to cook a little bit on the hot cookie sheet and will develop more of a golden color as they cool).

Spinach and Artichoke Pasta

One of my favorite appetizers (especially when it's chilly outside) is hot spinach and artichoke dip ... I could totally just down a bowl of it and call it a meal.  So I figured ... hey, why NOT turn it into dinner?  I did a little experimenting and came up with this recipe for a pasta dinner:


Ingredients:


1 egg
1 (8-oz.) package cream cheese
1/2 c. milk
1/2 c. shredded Parmesan cheese
4 small or 2 large cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 can artichoke hearts (approx. 14 oz.), roughly chopped
1 (10-oz.) box frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1/2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
1 lb. penne pasta, prepared al dente

Directions:


Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Beat egg in a large bowl.  Add cream cheese, milk, Parmesan, and 1/4 c. of the mozzarella; beat until smooth.  Add chopped garlic, basil, salt, garlic salt, and pepper; beat until mixed.  Spoon in spinach and artichoke hearts; stir until all ingredients are combined.  Add pasta; stir until coated.

Grease a 2 1/2 qt. casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray.  Spoon mixture into casserole dish; top with remaining 1/4 c. mozzarella cheese.  Bake for 18 - 20 minutes, or until just browned on top.  Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.

Crêpes

I had a fair amount of cream cheese pecan frosting left over from those cookies I made last night, but don’t worry … it’s not going to waste.  It actually makes a pretty tasty filling for crêpes.  Most of the recipes I’ll be posting on this blog will either be original, or will reflect alterations that I’ve made to someone else’s recipe.  This entry is an exception.  This recipe is totally not mine, but since it’s such a great opportunity to show how you can use that leftover frosting, I’m including it anyway.

Fact:  It is physically impossible to say "crêpe" without also saying "Nutella" in the same breath.

Crêpes

Ingredients:

1 c. all-purpose flour

1/4 tsp. salt

1 1/4 c. milk

2 eggs

2 Tbsp. melted butter

Vegetable oil

Directions:

Combine flour, salt, and milk, beating at medium speed of an electric mixer until smooth.  Add eggs and beat well; stir in melted butter.  Refrigerate batter for 1 hour.  (This allows flour particles to swell and soften so crêpes will be light in texture.)

Brush bottom of a 6-inch crêpe pan or heavy skillet with oil; place crêpe pan over medium heat until just hot, but not smoking.

Pour 2 Tbsp. of batter into pan [my crêpe pan is 8 inches instead of 6, so I use about 3 Tbsp. of batter per crêpe].  Quickly tilt pan in all directions so batter covers pan with a thin film.  Cook about 1 minute.

Lift edge of crêpe to test for doneness.  Crêpe is ready for flipping when it can be shaken loose from pan.  Flip crêpe, and cook for about 30 seconds on other side.  (This side of crêpe is usually spotty brown and is the side on which the filling is placed.)

Place crêpes on a towel, and allow them to cool.  Repeat until all batter is used.  Stack crêpes between layers of wax paper [I just use paper towels] to prevent sticking.

Cream cheese pecan frosting ... er, I mean filling.

Nutella

I like to roll mine up into little crêpe taquitos, but you can also fold them in half or sandwich them crêpe-quesadilla style.

Cranberry-Oatmeal Cookies with Cream Cheese Pecan Frosting

Christmas time is upon us, which means it's time for ... BAKING SEASON!!  This is one of my favorite holiday recipes.  It's a twist on your traditional oatmeal raisin cookie; the dried cranberries give it a festive seasonal touch, and anything covered in cream cheese is just automatically better.  Warning ... these babies are RICH!  (Recipe adapted from The Southern Living Cookbook.)


Cranberry-Oatmeal Cookies


Ingredients:

1 c. cold butter
1 1/2 c. sugar
1 egg
1/4 c. water
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
3 c. quick oats (uncooked)
1 c. dried cranberries

Directions:

Cream butter; gradually add sugar, beating at medium speed of an electric mixer until light and fluffy.  Add egg, and beat well; add water and vanilla, mixing well.

Combine flour, soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg; add to creamed mixture, mixing well.  Stir in oats and dried cranberries.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Drop dough by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.  Bake at 375 for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned on the edges (cookies will still be a little tacky on top, but are actually done).  Cool slightly on cookie sheets; remove to wire racks to cool completely.  Frost with cream cheese pecan frosting.



Cream Cheese Pecan Frosting


Ingredients:

1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 c. butter, softened
2 c. powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 c. chopped pecans

Directions:

Put cream cheese and butter in a large bowl and beat at medium speed of an electric mixer.  Add powdered sugar and vanilla; beat until light and fluffy.  Stir in chopped pecans.