(Carrie's Famous) Tater Tot Shepard's Pie

In the beginning of this month I had the pleasure of escaping on vacation with a group of dear friends of mine for a whole week to Cape Cod.  We were all of 15 - 9 women and 7 children (ages 7 months - 9 years old) in one lovely house over looking the water.....

We enjoyed one sunset after another...each one more beautiful and full of magic than the one before.

Watching the sun set each evening was just one of the many highlights of our vacation.  FOOD...absolutely scrumptious food was a huge part of our vacation too.  Making sure those kiddos were well fueled for all their swimming and low-tide adventures was very important.  Carrie, as seen below with her adorable little doggie named, Saki ....

....made 3 scrumptious, kid-friendly casseroles that were gobbled down with happiness by all.  One of the three casseroles that she made was a Tater Tot Shepard's Pie.  It was SO good!  When we came home from vacation it was one of the first meals I made for my family.  They loved it as I know you guys will too.

(Carrie's Famous) Tater Tot Shepard's Pie

Ingredients:

1 1/2 ground beef or turkey

1 medium onion, chopped

1 tsp garlic salt

1/2 tsp ground pepper

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 can cream of corn

1 can sweet corn, drained

1-2 cups grated cheddar cheese

1  bag frozen Tater Tots

Directions:

1.  Over medium heat saute chopped onion until soft.  Add in ground meat and cook to brown. Turn off heat and then drain grease.  Stir in garlic salt, ground pepper and Worcestershire sauce.  Pour meat mixture into a 9x13 baking dish.

2.  Over ground meat mixture layer spoon can of creamed corn and drained can of sweet corn. Sprinkle a layer of grated cheese over corn.

3. Layer frozen tater tots over grated cheese.....

....and then sprinkle with more cheese to finish it off.  Pop into preheated 350 degrees oven.  Bake for 25-30 minutes (check after 20 minutes to make sure casserole is not getting too brown).

Serve up some yumminess!

Happy Tater Tot Shepard's Pie Baking!

Cauliflower and Broccoli Salad

Ahhh the beauty of summer has arrived.  HOT days filled with trips to a near by beach, ice cream cones, the smell of sunscreen (and bug spray) along with BBQ's with good friends all make summer-time so special.

Yes, I am a lover of summer.  Another thing I love to do (as many of my friends know) is talk about food.  I LOVE to discover new recipes that friends have made.  And I especially LOVE it when they pass on those recipes to me.  There are some people out there that do not like to share their recipes...which I feel is a crime! - but that's just my feeling on that issue.  I honestly think that it is one of the highest forms of a compliment when someone requests a recipe of mine.  I always feel flattered that someone enjoyed the dish or baked goodie that I made and shared with them enough to want to eat it again AND to make it themselves.  Enough said.  I think you get my point. 

Needless to say whenever my friend Diane and I see each other (especially just after the weekend) we most often chat about food and what we have made over the weekend or in the past.  Diane always surprises me with something wonderful.  Recently she passed along a lovely recipe for Cauliflower and Broccoli Salad.  As soon as she started listing off all the yummy ingredients of this salad I knew I had to make it.  Fresh broccoli and cauliflower...YES....chopped red onion...oh yeah!...crumbled feta cheese...for sure!...diced grape tomatoes...absolutely!....all tossed with a lovely dressing (that I thought I had ALL the ingredients for...not so much).  With all those yummy characters in mind I would like to share with you today my version of Diane's Cauliflower and Broccoli Salad.  I will also provide you with the original ingredients that are in Diane's salad...you know the ingredients that I didn't have on hand....;-)

Cauliflower and Broccoli Salad

(many thanks Diane for passing along this recipe to me)

1/2 head of cauliflower - chopped up into bite size pieces

1-2 good size bunches of broccoli - chopped up into bite size pieces

1/2 red onion - chopped

1 heaping cup grape tomatoes - cut into quarters

2-4 oz. feta cheese - crumbled

1 dry packet of Italian dressing (this is where I changed up Diane's recipe for lack of dry RANCH dressing on hand)

2 Tbsp water

1/3 cup balsamic vinegar (Diane's recipe called for red rice vinegar)

1/2 cup olive oil (canola oil could be used in substitution)

Directions:

1. Place cut up cauliflower and broccoli into a large bowl.  Add in chopped red onion and quartered tomatoes.  Set aside.

2. Make dressing by combining dry salad dressing mix, oil, vinegar and water in a jar that can be covered tightly with a lid. Once lid is securely place on jar shake for a minute or two until well combined.  Pour dressing over veggies and toss gently to coat.  Fold in feta cheese.

3. Refrigerate salad for a good hour (if not longer if possible).  All the flavors of the dressing will melt into the veggies as it hangs out in the fridge.

Serve with happiness!

Of course you could always add in any of your favorite veggies to this refreshing summer salad.  Red peppers, cucumbers or black olives are a few additions that come to mind.  Go ahead be daring and toss in different veggies.

Happy Cauliflower and Broccoli Salad Making!

Cheesy Beef Mac

Once again my girl, Siggy has provided me with a yummy and quick week night meal for the Fam (meaning EVERYONE - young and old - loved this meal in my household). AND this recipe makes a ton! - hooray for left-overs for the next day! - OR sharing with others.

Siggy makes this recipe with ground turkey which allows it to be lower in fat but I made mine with 85% lean ground beef.  Choose your ground meat and go for it!

Cheesy Beef Mac

(recipe adapted from Siggy Spice)

Ingredients:

1 lb box elbow macaroni

4 Tbsp EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)

1 large green pepper, chopped

1 large onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 1/2 - 2 1/2 lbs ground beef (or turkey or chicken....you choose) - I used 1 1/2 lbs of 85% lean ground beef

1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes

2 (14.5 oz.) cans tomato sauce

1 can condensed cheddar cheese soup

1-2 tsp dried parsley

1-2 tsp dried basil

salt and pepper to taste

2-3 cups shredded cheddar or colby jack cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Cook macaroni according to package directions.  Once fully cooked, drain and set aside.

2. In large skillet or dutch oven, heat 2 Tbsp EVOO.  Add ground meat and brown. Drain meat and set aside.

3. Add remaining 2 Tbsp EVOO to skillet or dutch oven, heat over medium heat.  Add in onions and green peppers.  Saute until soft.  Add in crushed garlic.  Cook all together until garlic is nice and fragrant.  Be careful not to burn the garlic!

4. Add in crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce and condensed cheese soup.  Stir to combine well.  Add in spices and allow to simmer over medium low heat for a good 15-20 minutes so as to allow all the yummy flavors to come together.  Taste and add in salt and pepper as needed.

5. Add in reserved browned meat to tomato sauce.

6. In a LARGE bowl combine macaroni and meat/tomato sauce.  Carefully stir to combine well.

7. Pour yummy noodles, sauce and meat into casserole dishes.  As Siggy did, I used a 9x13 and an 8x8.....yup it makes a TON!!! Top with cheese and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until cheese melts into a golden brown happiness and casserole is heated all the way through.

Enjoy with a nice piece of bread and a side of salad! :-)

This post has been linked to....

This Mommy Cooks

Yummy Zucchini Cookies

Have you ever heard of Zucchini Cookies?  I've heard of Zucchini Cake, Zucchini Bread and Zucchini Muffins as baked goodies but cookies made with zucchini is something totally new to me.  I feel like I have just discovered America like Christopher Columbus....it's a whole new world to me now knowing that Zucchini Cookies exist! :-)  And man oh man are they gooooood!!! These cookies have yumminess and healthiness all wrapped up in one happy place.  The spices, raisins and nuts all go perfectly with the shredded zucchini that make up this cookie recipe. Of course if you don't like raisins or nuts (or even one of the spices) just omit them - you will still have a delightful cookie.

To make this cookie recipe even better I am honored to say that a friend of mine passed this recipe onto me which makes it a "Close to my Heart" recipe.  Thank you Stacey! Stacey's mommy made these cookies for her all throughout her childhood.....precious!!!

I decided to make these cookies for my parents as a "Welcome Home" gift this past weekend.  They had been off camping in their RV in Vermont so what better why to say "Welcome Home" than leave them a pretty jar wrapped with a ribbon filled with Yummy Zucchini Cookies!!!  To top off the surprise I used a zucchini from my mother's garden to make the cookies. Needless to say both my mom and dad were tickled pink with happiness to have these cookies waiting for them when they returned home. :-)

Yummy Zucchini Cookies

Ingredients:

I just looove the ground cloves in this recipe....

1 cup zucchini, grated

1 tsp baking soda

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter, at room temperature

1 egg, beaten

2 cups flour (I used whole wheat white flour just to get that extra kick of healthiness out of the recipe...white flour is fine too)

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2  tsp ground cloves

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup nuts, chopped (I used walnuts...pecans would be yummy too)

1 cup raisins

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Then cream together butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy....

2. Add in beaten egg - mix well.

3. Add to butter mixture - flour, baking soda, all spices (you desire) and salt...

....mix well.

4. Grate zucchini....

....then add to batter along with raisins and chopped nuts....

....mix to combine.

6. Place tablespoonfuls (I used a medium Pampered Chef scoop) of cookie batter on greased, parchment paper lined or Silpat lined cookie sheets.....

....Bake for 12-15 minutes....and then magic!!!

Wait a minute or two and enjoy!

Happy Yummy Zucchini Cookies Baking!

This post has been linked to....

Tuesday at the Table

Siggy's Bread Sticks

I recently shared with you my homemade sauce recipe - these little bread sticks go lovely with that sauce! And they can be easy whipped up within just a short period of time. 

 I was so sad when all the sauce was gone and along with these bread sticks.  I would warm up the sauce gently and then dip the sticks right into it....sooooo yummy!!!

For those of you that don't know Siggy (Siggy Spice that is), she has a great food blog full of delicious dishes, treats, creations and ideas.  And not only is she an amazing and creative cook but she is also absolutely adorable and extremely nice.  I've been so fortunate to get to know her through my experience of food blogging!  I really look forward to continuing our friendship in the future. :-)

Siggy's Bread Sticks

(recipe from Siggy Spice)

Ingredient's

1 1/2 cups warm water

1 Tbsp instant (rapid rise) yeast from a jar - as Siggy so brilliantly points out, the yeast packets don't hold a full TBSP thus the jarred yeast is preferred.

2 Tbsp sugar

3 1/2 cups flour

1/2 tsp salt

2-4 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil - unfortunately, I was completely out of EVOO so I used Canola oil...which was OK but not the best

1 Tbsp garlic salt (love this stuff!!!)

1-2 tsp herbs/seasoning of your choice - I used parsley, basil and a little thyme - Les Herbs de Provence would be great for this recipe!

4 Tbsp melted butter

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Mix together water, yeast, sugar, flour and salt in a large bowl.....

....and knead for three minutes.

2. Let dough rest for ten minutes....

and then magically it will turn into this lovely risen dough....

3. Turn on oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly flour your hands....

...and place dough on a cookie sheet that has been coated with 1-2 Tbsp of EVOO.  Spread dough out to cover the surface of the cookie sheet.....

4. Brush dough with 1-2 Tbsp of EVOO to lightly cover.  Sprinkle with herbs and garlic salt.  With a pizza cutter cut dough into bread sticks.....

....then cover entire dough with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.

5. Remove plastic wrap and place in preheated oven.  Bake for 15-17 minutes until golden brown.  Remove from oven and brush melted butter all over top.....

....and then sprinkle with parm cheese....

As Siggy says, "serve, eat and break out in a little diddy bread stick dance!"

YUM-O!!!

Happy Siggy's Bread sticks Baking!

Blueberry Pudding Cake

Blueberry picking season would not be the same if I didn't make my dear friend, Cindy's lovely Blueberry Pudding Cake recipe.  It's not only absolutely OUT -OF- THIS -WORLD yummy but it is quick and easy peasy (as Cindy would say!) to make.  LOVE it!...as I know you will too. :-)

Blueberry Pudding Cake

(recipe from the amazing Cindy L. at The Creative Closet)

Cake Ingredients:

2 cups blueberries (I tend to use closer to 3 cups) - fresh is best...frozen is fine too

3 Tbsp Crisco (NOT oil)

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup milk

1 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

Topping Ingredients:

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp cornstarch

1 cup boiling water

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8x8 pan and then place blueberries in bottom of pan...

2. Combine Crisco, sugar, milk, flour and baking powder in a medium size bowl.....

.....mix by hand, fork or spoon.....

3. Spread batter over berries......

....and then make the "topping".

4. Combine 1st three ingredients of "topping" - sugar, salt and cornstarch.....

.....mix well and then sprinkle over the blueberries/batter in pan....

5. Now pour the cup of boiling water all over topping....

6. Bake for 50-60 minutes (this is the hardest part of making this delicious dessert...you have to wait for it to bake!!!).  Bake until golden brown on top. When it comes out of the oven it is all puffed up and gorgeous and then it falls down a bit...unfortunately, I didn't get that special moment on camera to share with all of you - so you'll just have to make it for yourself to find out!

Served with a good vanilla ice cream is the bomb...

Ohhhhh HEAVEN!

And as Cindy suggests, don't be afraid to double this little gem of a recipe - just make it in a 9x13 pan instead of an 8x8.

This post has been linked to...

Potluck Sunday at Mommy's Kitchen

Tempt my Tummy Tuesday

Happy Blueberry Pudding Cake Baking!

Melt-In-Your-Mouth Blueberry Cake....a "Close to my Heart" recipe on a Fruity Friday

I love it when I can post a "Close to my Heart" recipe on my blog!  This opportunity allows me to honor a recipe that has been given to me by either a friend or family member.  And today (on a "Fruity Friday") I am fortunate to share a recipe from a beloved childhood friend of mine named, Kerrie.  I've known precious Kerrie for most of my life....we've grown up together, we've laughed, cried, played and sang together, we have riden horses and ponies together, we have worn leg-warmers together in the 80's, we've had BIG hair in the 90's, we've had children side by side and all the time our friendship continues to grow and strengthen.  Amazing....simply amazing to have such a precious life-long friend.  Loving you Kerrie!

Everytime Kerrie gives me a recipe I jump for joy for I know it's going to be out-of-this-world delicious!  I'm sure you will agree once you make this cake yourself....you will come begging back to me for more recipes that Kerrie has given me.  I know you will. I just know it! :-)

Here we go....

Melt-In-Your-Mouth Blueberry Cake

Ingredients:

1 stick unsalted butter, softened

1 cup sugar + 1 tbsp sugar for topping

2 eggs (separated)

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups flour + 1 tbp flour to coat blueberries

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/3 cup milk

1 1/2 cups blueberries (fresh is best, frozen is fine)

Directions:

*Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.*

1. Coat blueberries with 1 tbsp flour in a medium size bowl....set aside.

2. Whip butter until soft and then add sugar, egg yolks (one at a time) and vanilla extract.

3. Combine dry ingredients in a small bowl. Add flour mixture alternately to the butter mixture with the milk (starting and ending with the flour mixture).

4. Beat egg whites....

.......until they form stiff peaks......

5. Gently fold beaten egg whites into batter.......

6. Gently fold in blueberries to batter - just until combined.

7. Pour batter into a greased 8x8 pan (Kerrie suggests using a glass pyrex dish if you have one).  Sprinkle cake with 1 tbsp sugar - if you wish......

8. Place in oven - bake for 35-45 minutes.  It will be a light golden brown when it is done....along with a heavenly delicious smell! :-)

Serve warm or cooled...enjoy!

See how the top gets all crispy from the baked sugar....wowsers!

Happy Happy Fruity Friday!

but most of all......

Happy Melt-In-Your-Mouth Blueberry Cake Baking!

~avril :-)

This post has been linked up to.....

All The Small Stuff

I'm Loving It @ Tidy Mom