Spicy Buffalo Black Bean Tostadas

It's true that necessity is the mother of invention. I found myself in need of lunch this afternoon. I also found myself with a nearly empty refrigerator, and a napping child....therefore a trip to the store just wasn't going to happen. (We all know it would have a been a trip to Chipotle, anyway.) So, a big thank you to my favorite kid for forcing me to look outside the box and come up with what turned out to be a very yummy, healthy lunch.

So what did I have on hand? Well, corn tortillas, black beans and red hot sauce. From that base, I expanded a little. Here's the recipe:

Spicy Buffalo Black Bean Tostadas

-2 corn tortillas

-cooking spray (about 1-2 seconds on each tortilla)

-sea salt

-1/2 avocado, mashed

-1/2 cup black beans

-Franks' Red Hot Wing Sauce

-1/2 cup romaine lettuce

-4-5 chopped cherry tomatoes

First I sprayed two corn tortillas with the cooking spray, and popped into a 425 degree oven for about 15 minutes. They crisped up perfectly! I just found a recipe like this for tortilla chips on Pinterest, which is what made me try it like this. It really turned out great! 

Once you've got your tortillas all crispy, spread your avocado evenly over both. Top with black beans, lettuce, tomatoes, and hot wing sauce. 

This was extremely simple and VERY filling!! I mean seriously, just look at all this food! (No, I did not eat an entire container of hummus. I had exactly 2 Tbsp left in the container). 

Nutritional Info: Calories: 370 Fat: 14 grams Carbs: 48 grams Protein: 13grams

(Information from myfitnesspal.com) 

Spicy Tuna Pita

I made up the YUMMIEST tuna sandwich I think I've ever made for lunch today. It really started with the idea of doing an open-faced tuna sandwich. I skipped the mayo entirely, so I could have my yummy pita bread. :) I added lots of flavor with the delicious hot cherry peppers found in the deli section. If you haven't tried these yet...go buy them right now. I add them to almost everything, and they add so much flavor! Not to mention, at 5 calories a serving you'll hardly notice it in your calorie intake.

This recipe is so easy! I can't stress just how easy it was to put together! It was also very filling. You can thank the pita bread and hummus for that. :) 

Spicy Tuna Pita

-1/2 can (about 2.5 oz) of albacore tuna in water

-1 tbsp mustard of your choice

-1 Tbsp hot cherry peppers

-2 Tbsp roasted red pepper hummus

-1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese

-3-4 kalamata olives, diced

-1/2 cup sliced cherry tomatoes

-1 soft pita (white or wheat)

-more hot cherry peppers for topping (optional)

In a bowl, I mixed the tuna, mustard and hot cherry peppers. Trust me, you won't miss the mayo! Spread the tuna mixture on top of a pita. Crumble goat cheese over tuna, and broil for about 5 minutes or until the cheese starts to melt. It won't take long, so keep an eye on it. 

Top with diced olives, tomatoes, hummus and cherry peppers. Delicious!!

Calories: 471, Fat: 17grams, Carbs: 43 grams, Protein: 31 grams

Skinny Apple Tart

The original French apple tart from Barefoot Contessa

You know that question, "If you could have anyone over for dinner that is currently living, who would it be?" For me the answer to that question is simple...Ina Garten of Barefoot Contessa. That is, as long as she is cooking. That woman has the absolute best recipes I've ever made. Almost all of which are very high in fat, which is probably what makes them all so darn tasty. Random fact: Did you know that Ina's husband Jeffery, who frequently appears on the show, was the Undersecretary of Commerce for International Trade and former Dean of the Yale School of Management? Let's just say the Barefoot Contessa shop didn't move them to the Hamptons.

My dearest Ina makes this delicious French apple tart that is just soaked in butter. It is SO good. I could eat it for dessert every night. I decided to try and lighten up this recipe and see if it even turned out to be edible. Sure enough, it was pretty tasty. Don't get me wrong, Ina's version is better. Butter makes everything better, right? However, if I can't have the real thing and lose thirty pounds then I will settle for the skinny version. All joking aside, the skinny version turned out to be delicious in it's own right! If I wasn't comparing it to Ina's then I would think this little tart is the bee's knees.

• 3 granny smith apples, sliced thinly
• 4 sheets phyllo dough
• 1 Tbsp apricot jam
• 1 Tbsp butter, melted
• 1 spray cooking oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a tart pan with oil. Lay out phyllo dough very gently in the tart pan and allow the excess to hang over the side. Using 1/2 Tbsp of apricot jam, spread across the phyllo dough. I like to mix the jam with a splash of water and microwave for about 10 seconds. This makes it really easy to spread and helps the jam to go a little further. Layer apples as decoratively as you like. I like to do a circular pattern. Fold over phyllo dough to create a top crust. In a ramekin, mix together remaining apricot jam and butter. Brush on top of the apples and phyllo dough. Bake for 35 minutes, or until golden brown. 

This is really delicious!!

My Low-Fat Version of CPK's Barbecue Chicken Pizza

One of my all time favorite treats is the Barbecue Chicken Pizza at California Pizza Kitchen. While certainly not the most fattening thing on their menu, it still weighs in with a whopping 30 grams of fat and 930 calories. I decided to try my hand at lightening up this bad boy!

I used a whole wheat, ultra thin pizza crust which saved the most calories. I also used a boneless, skinless chicken breast to save more calories. 

• 1 pre-packaged, ultra thin, whole-wheat pizza crust
• 1 grilled boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced
• 1/2 cup fat free mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 red onion, sliced
• 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
• 2 Tbsp barbecue sauce (I used Sweet Baby Ray's)

Turn on oven broiler. I like the oven extra hot for pizzas. The closer to a brick oven, the better! If you have a pizza stone, use it. If not, a regular pizza pan will work fine. To assemble the pizza, top crust with barbecue sauce, chicken breast, onion and cheese. Broil for 3-5 minutes, until the cheese is melted.  Top with cilantro.

My version. :) 

This version saves so many calories! 1/6 of the pie comes out to 221 calories, 3.5 grams of fat, 35.5 carbs, 1 gram of fiber, and 17.8 grams of protein. That's 6 Weight Watchers PointsPlus to those of you counting. Pizza is always going to be a splurge, but compared to the numbers you see on the pizza from CPK, this one beats it any day! Not to mention it tasted great!

Rice Noodles and Veggies

This dish came to fruition simply because I hadn't been to the store in longer than I care to admit! I had been to the farmers' market that morning and I picked up some delicious cherry tomatoes, red and yellow bell peppers, and zucchini. Zucchini must grow like crazy in Central Texas, because the zucchini you find at any given farmers' market are huge.  I only used half for this recipe, but for a normal size squash you would use the entire thing.

Normally, I probably would have served these veggies with whole wheat farfalle or penne. I had brown rice noodles, so that's what we got! This recipe turned out to be a really nice, light meal that was easy to prepare. I hope you all enjoy this as much as my family did!

• 1/2 package brown rice noodles (I use Maifun)
• 4 cups water
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into bite sized pieces
• 1 yellow bell pepper, cut into bit sized pieces
• 1 zucchini, sliced into 1/4 inch pieces then halved
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
• 1 Tbsp basil, julienned 

In a large pot, boil water. The rice noodles will cook almost instantly, so don't cook them until you are done with your sauce. In a separate pan, saute onions and garlic in olive oil until onions appear translucent. Add all vegetables, and let cook until slightly tender, but still have some bite.

Add rice noodles to boiling water, and remove after about 30 seconds. Add to pan with vegetables. Reserve a 1/4 cup cooking liquid from the pasta and add to the vegetable and noodles. You could probably substitute chicken broth as well. 

Sprinkle parmesan cheese and basil over the top. Enjoy!

Cioppino Stew

I am a huge fan of the Food Network show, Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives. I don't know what it is, but there is just something that appeals to me about Guy Fieri. :) On one recent episode, he went to Duarte's in San Francisco and indulged in Cioppino Stew. Now, being from Texas, this rich seafood stew is not something you see on menus in this area. In fact, from what I can tell, people on the west coast must hog this dish because I can't seem to find it anywhere else!

The original Cioppino Stew from Duarte's in San Francisco

After seeing this episode my mouth started watering for this deep red stew filled with goodies from the ocean! It's a fish stew that originated in San Francisco, although it's considered an Italian dish. This delectable soup usually consists of crab, mussels, scallops, and white fish simmered for hours in a tomato, wine and saffron broth. Served up with crusty bread, it is perfection. I've never tried this dish in San Fran, but needless to say it is on my bucket list!


Since I can't seem to find Cioppino anywhere in the great state of Texas, I decided to just make it myself. I didn't have all of the seafood ingredients on hand, and since I'm the only seafood eater in my house I wasn't going to spend a ton to make this just so I could eat it. I decided to use only shrimp, tilapia, and lump crab meat. I found several recipes only, but I decided to mix them together and come up with my own concoction. Here is what I did:


Seafood:

3 filets tilapia
1/2 pound shrimp
1 cup lump crab meat

Sauce:

2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 14 oz. can of crushed San Marzano tomatoes
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 tsp saffron
1 cup seafood stock (I wasn't about to use this from a box. You can ask the fishmonger if they have any on hand. Thankfully, at Whole Foods they do.)
1 cup chicken stock
2-3 bay leaves


Salt and pepper to taste
Chopped parsley for garnish

First, I sauteed the seafood in 1 Tbsp. of olive oil. Start with the tilapia, and add the shrimp when the tilapia is almost done. It won't take very long at all. The crab meat will be cooked, but I add it to this just to coat it with a little oil. Add a small amount of salt and pepper, but not too much. Break up tilapia into bite sized chunks, and set aside.

In the same pot, add remaining oil and saute onion, bell pepper, garlic and saffron strands. When onions are translucent, add tomatoes, wine, seafood stock, chicken stock and bay leaves. Add seafood to mixture, and bring to boil. Once it comes to a boil, bring down to medium low heat and let simmer for 35-40 minutes.

Remove the bay leaves, top with parsley and serve with a crusty garlic bread.

This turned out sooooooooooo good. I'm sure my version doesn't even compare to those found in San Francisco, but in the meantime I am more than pleased with this substitution!

Mine may not be as pretty, but it sure was tasty!

Skinny Chicken Tikka Masala

Many of you know that I am currently on Weight Watchers. I started about 4 weeks ago, and I'm already down 7 pounds! WooHoo! I just love Weight Watchers. When I was about 20 years old, I lost nearly 60 pounds on the plan. I even kept most of it off until I had a baby in late 2010. Now I've started again, and I can't wait to start seeing results. 

You've probably heard me mention one of my favorite food blogs, Skinnytaste. It's full of delicious recipes that are designed to fit into a healthy lifestyle. This particular recipe for Chicken Tikka Masala came from this site. I did modify it just a bit, but only because I lacked some ingredients. I've always been leery of Indian food, simply because the smell is so different from that of traditional American cuisine. The only thing I've tried so far is Tikka Masala, which is a pretty common dish. This recipe was incredibly easy to make. I think it took all of 20 minutes to make. It might take longer if I hadn't already had the chicken pre-cooked. Even still, an easy dish.

Ingredients:

• 2 tsp canola oil or you could use butter
• 1 small onion, minced
• 1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 1/2 cups crushed tomatoes
• 4 oz fat free yogurt (I used Chobani)
• 1/2 cup 1% milk
• 1 tbsp cumin
• 1 tbsp garam masala or curry powder (Garam masala is a mix of several Indian spices) 
• 1 tsp turmeric (optional)
• 1/2 tbsp chili powder
• salt to taste
• 16 oz (2 boneless) chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
• 4 tbsp fresh cilantro (or to taste) I forgot this one!!

Directions:

Heat oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until golden. Add the crushed ginger, stir for a few minutes then add the garlic and cook another minute. Add cumin, garam masala, turmeric, chili powder, and salt; mix well until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, yogurt and milk. Simmer on low heat until sauce thickens, about 10 minutes. Add chicken and simmer for 10 - 15 minutes or until cooked through. Add a generous amount of chopped cilantro and serve with Bamati Rice or Naan.

Here is the nutritional information according to Skinnytaste:

Servings: 4 • Size: 3 oz chicken + sauce • Old Points: 4 pts • Points+: 5 pts
Calories: 190.4 • Fat: 4.5 g • Carb: 12.8 g • Fiber: 2.0 g • Protein: 24.5 g • Sugar:5.1
Sodium: 99.3 (without salt)

tarka Indian Kitchen- Round Rock

I don't think I've mentioned on here, but as of Monday...I am a vegetarian. I'm not making this choice because of any political reasons. I still believe that cows were put on this Earth to feed man. I have decided that at least for the next 30 days, I'm going to give this lifestyle a shot because of the numerous health benefits. It's been two days, and I honestly haven't missed meat yet. 

Anyway, recently when I mentioned to some friends that I would be making this lifestyle change, they told me that Indian food was a great cuisine for vegetarians! When I was pregnant, I worked in an apartment community that was predominately folks of middle-eastern descent. At that time, having never tried Indian cuisine before,  and having an extra sensitive sniffer I had pretty much sworn off all Indian food before trying any of it. I pride myself on being able to try new things without hesitation, so I didn't want this to be any different! Today a friend of mine marched up to a local Indian kitchen and decided to give it a whirl! 

We went to tarka Indian Kitchen in Round Rock. The atmosphere was lovely! Reminded me  of Pei Wei a little bit, just brighter. For a party like us, that was slightly nervous about the unknown, the atmosphere was welcoming and familiar. 

We both ordered the Tikka Masala. My friend got hers with chicken, and I got mine with Paneer (a creamy Indian cheese). I decided to get this because it seems to be a pretty popular dish, and I wanted to err on the side of caution. The masses can't wrong, right? Ha! At least not when it comes to food. I'm so glad this was my first experience with Indian food. It was absolutely delicious. Not only were the serving sizes perfect, but it was so tasty! I got mine "medium spicy". I can handle heat, but the difference between TexMex heat and Thai heat is outrageous, so I didn't know what their definition of heat was yet. I could have easily done hot, the medium was just a little spicy, but only enough to tingle. Served with Basmati Rice, which is one of the best rices out there in my opinion, it was a perfect lunch! It had an interesting flavor, I can't really compare it to anything I've ever had. I would get it again in a heartbeat, and now I'm more open to trying other dishes, too. Oh, if you go, get the garlic naan. OMGsh....so good.

tarka Indian Kitchen is in Round Rock across the street from IKEA. 

201 University Blvd., Round Rock, TX 78665

Delicious Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos

I haven't been cooking as much as I normally do, because I'm dieting. Blah...I've decided I'm much more likely to stick to a healthy diet if I can make the food more interesting. I've just got to readjust the way I think about cooking! Replace the unhealthy fats with good ones, use more veggies, etc...

I was craving Mexican food over the weekend, and had everything I needed to make some deliciously baked, low-fat chicken taquitos.

This recipes makes 10 taquitos, each one being a serving. They are really filling and really delicious!

3 cups shredded chicken breasts
1/2 cup reduced fat, low sodium chicken broth
4 Tbsp fat-free cream cheese
1 Tbsp cumin
10  white corn tortillas
Cooking spray (I use canola oil in my Misto) 

For dipping:
Your choice of salsa
Fat-free sour cream
Guacamole (love that good fat!)


Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

Set aside your shredded chicken breasts. Personally, I throw chicken breasts in the crockpot on high for fours hours with about 1/2 cup of chicken broth. They come out very moist and tender. You can shred them with a fork and use them for many recipes!

In a pan, melt cream cheese and stir in chicken broth and cumin. You'll want to whisk together until it resembles a cream sauce. Then you'll add your chicken and fold together.

After that, add about 2 tablespoons of the chicken mixture to each corn tortilla. It helps to put the tortillas in a napkin and microwave for about 30 seconds so they are more pliable. Fill all of the tortillas, and lay on a baking sheet. Spray with your choice of cooking spray. This will help them get nice and crispy. Bake for 20 minutes, or until crispy.

Even though they are not fried, I still let them rest on a paper towel to get any excess grease off. There really shouldn't be much, but I figure anything counts.

Serve with your favorite fat-free condiments! They were delicious!


Nutritional Information: Serving size: 1 taquito, 144.9 calories, 2.5 grams of fat, 0.8g sat fat, 0.6g polyunsaturated fat, 0.7g monounsaturated fat, 43.4mg cholesterol, 61.2mg sodium, 247.4mg potassium, 12.1g carbs, 18.1g protein.

Teriyaki Chicken Thighs

The inspiration from this recipe came from Skinnytaste, which is probably one of my favorite food blogs! They have tons of Weight Watchers friendly recipes, that are almost always delicious. This came from the Asian Glazed Chicken Thighs. Mine is slightly different, and probably has a few more calories from the flour that I added at the end to thicken the sauce. (Their method just did not work!)

By the way, the really fantastic part about this recipe is that is cost less than $3/per serving! Honestly, it cost me quite a bit less because I already had most of the ingredients on hand.

Here's the ingredients:

1 package of 4 chicken thighs, skin removed
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 cup water
1 tsp sriacha sauce
3 Tbsp honey (or agave nectar)
2 Tbsp garlic, minced
2 tsp coconut oil
1 tsp flour and 2 tsp cold water

In a large pan, melt coconut oil. On a medium high temperature, place chicken, skin removed in pan, and cook on each side for about 4-5 minutes. Just enough to crisp it up. In another bowl, mix balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, water, sriacha sauce, honey and garlic. Pour over chicken and once it comes to a boil (which won't take long), reduce to a simmer on low. Let it sit covered for 20 minutes.

After twenty minutes, take off the cover, and bring back up to high. By this point, the soy sauce mixture will be getting a little thicker. Let it boil, and turn the chicken often, so it gets coated. After about 5 minutes on high, after the sauce has had a chance to reduce a bit, add the flour and water that you have mixed together. (Make sure there are no clumps before you do.) Once you add the flour, stir frequently. It will become a much thicker sauce almost instantly. Once it's thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, it's done!

Plate your chicken and top with extra sauce and chives! You could also add sesame seed, I just couldn't find any at the store.  I served with steamed broccoli and basmati rice. It was REALLY, REALLY, REALLY good. I'm usually not a huge fan on chicken thighs, but they are so inexpensive that I'm really glad to have found a recipe that the whole family loves!

NOT my Aunt Dee's Manicotti

As you can probably already tell from some of my recipes, some of my favorite foods are italian food. There is just nothing better to me than a saucy pasta dish paired with a piece of fresh, crusty bread and a glass of fine red wine. No, my family is not Italian. Not even close. I didn't grow up eating a ton of wonderful Italian food with huge Godfather-esque family gatherings. My family gatherings usually looked more like an episode of Green Acres. (I wouldn't have it any other way!) However, my husband is one fourth Italian! That has to count for something! 

 

I digress...my Aunt Dee is famous for her manicotti. In fact, I can't really remember her making anything else! I'm sure she did, but her manicotti is so good that's all I seem to remember! She would let go of the recipe, unfortunately. Maybe one day when she's old and gray I can get it from her, but until then, I've had to come up with my own! I decided to go with a manicotti with a meat sauce, and spinach and ricotta filling. It turned out so good! I still can't compare it to Aunt Dee's manicotti, but it was darn tasty! Also, my version is low fat!

 

 

Ingredients:

Sauce:

1 28 oz. can Cento Whole Tomatoes

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 lb. 95/5 lean ground beef

6 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup yellow onion, chopped

1 small red bell pepper, chopped

1 tsp fennel seed

1 tsp crushed red pepper

1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

 

Filling:

 

1 package manicotti noodles (I found whole wheat at Whole Foods, if you want to go that route)

1 16oz tub part skim or fat free ricotta cheese

1 package frozen spinach, drained

3-4 ounces fresh parmesan cheese

1 cup part skim mozzarella cheese, shredded

First, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Start a pot of water to boil on the stove for your noodles. Salt and add just a few drops of olive oil to the water. Drop your manicotti noodles once it comes to a rolling boil. Leave for about 1-2 minutes, then turn off. I drain the noodles at this point. I don't want them to cook all the way, because they will cook more in the oven. Set noodles aside.

You can start on your sauce while you are boiling the noodles if you are a multi-tasker. Personally, when I have the time, I start the sauce early in the day and let it simmer for a few hours. I almost never have that kind of time, though. Isn't that what a crockpot is for, anyway? Works just as well! Saute your ground beef in a pan with your olive oil. Once it is browned, add onion and bell pepper and continue to cook until onion is translucent. Add can of tomatoes, garlic, fennel and red pepper. You can use an emulsion blender if you have one to break up the tomatoes. After a few minutes they break down on their own and you can do it with a fork, if you don't have one. I like to use the whole tomatoes, because they seem to have more of that fresh flavor. I'm a tomato fanatic, so I'm kind of picky. Once it comes to a boil, let simmer on a medium-low heat until needed to pour over stuffed noodles. 

 

While your sauce is simmer, it's time to mix the filling and stuff those puppies! To get the spinach where you need it, it will either need to already be defrosted or you can do it in the microwave. I just put in frozen in a microwave-safe bowl for about 4 minutes. Once it is out, you can cool it down by putting it under running water. You'll need to squeeze out any excess liquid with a cheesecloth or thin kitchen towel. (A clean one, obviously). Mix together in a large bowl with the ricotta cheese. I add a little bit of Parmesan cheese to this mixture, too. 

 

Now, for the stuffing. I can't ever get them to stuff without breaking the noodles. I go ahead and break the noodles myself, and treat them like a tortilla. I slather the mixture on with my cute little baby spoon, and wrap it up just as if I were making enchiladas and put it into the casserole dish. Check out my baby spoon. :)

 

 Before you add any noodles to your dish (I use a glass 13x9 casserole dish), add about 1/2 cup of sauce to the bottom. That way the noodles have something to sit on.

 

 Add the noodles, top with the remaining sauce. Yes, you will have a lot. Yes, it will fill up the pan. You don't have to add this much, but like I said before, I like it extra-saucy. 

 

Top with your mozzarella cheese and bake until top is golden and bubbly. That will probably take about 35 minutes or so. Let it set for about 20 minutes before serving. It will still be warm and gooey, but the sauce won't run everywhere when you cut it. Before serving, top with parmesan and fresh chopped basil. 

 

No, it wasn't my Aunt Dee's manicotti, but it sure was good! This would make a great freezer meal, too!

Yummy Orange Dreamsicle Bars

The other day, my husband called me in the middle of the day and asked "What are we having for dessert tonight?" We rarely actually have a dessert after dinner, so obviously his sweet tooth had attacked. My first thought was lemon bars. As you have probably heard me mention before, I always have lemons on hand. I usually keep them on display in a wood bowl on our dining table. They are aromatic, and oh so pretty to look at. We had just had lemon bars a few weeks before, but that's all I had the ingredients for...until I remembered I had a big bag of Cuties in the refrigerator that needed to be eaten. I then wondered what these easy to make bars would taste like with oranges instead of lemons.

I followed the classic recipe for lemon bars, only substituting the oranges for a small amount of orange juice and juiced oranges.

First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Next, to make the crust I used the following:

1/2 cup of butter, softened
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup oats
1 cup all-purpose flour (Yes, I used bread flour. Made no difference to me.)

Mix all of these ingredients together in a mixer or even with a fork until they look crumbly. You'll then pour them in a 9x9 casserole dish and press together to form a crust.

Then you will bake for about 15-17 minutes until it is golden and a little firmer. While it is baking, you can make the orange mixture. For that you will need:

2 eggs
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
3 oranges, juiced
1/8 cup orange juice

Whisk together until incorporated.  Pour on top of the baked crust while crust is still hot. Then continue to bake at 350 degrees for an additional 20 minutes. Let cool for at least 30 minutes. Slice up into squares and you have orange bars that taste just like a dreamsicle! I will say, the next time I do this I may not use quite as much sugar, because they were a tad on the sweet side for my taste. I think it really depends on your taste, because my husband thought they were perfect.

Recipe: Mini Rye Pizzas

At my husband's request...I'm blogging about these "little pizzas" as they are referred to around my house. My MIL has always made these for her FOUR, yes four strapping boys every Christmas. My husband and I always thought she invented the recipe until I found some similar online. Although, I think her version is better than any I've found online!

These are so simple, so fattening, and so worth the calories! That's probably why they only get made once a year. :)

1 loaf of mini rye bread, usually found in the deli section
1 lb hot Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage
1 cup Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce
1 tsp oregano
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1/2 cup, possibly more to taste, Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp minced garlic
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 lb brick of your favorite meltable cheese, cubed

Saute the sausage in a pan until completely cooked. Add all other ingredients and mix well. Top each little piece of rye bread and put it under the broiler until top is slightly browned and cheese is bubbly. Serve or freeze immediately. These are truly delicious!

Recipe: Red Hot Apple Pie

This is hands-down one of the easiest dessert recipes I have ever made. Not to mention, most appealing to the eye! I made this last Christmas, but it's also a great recipe for Easter. It's hard to believe Easter is right around the corner! It's amazing how time flies when you have kids!

Here is your shopping list for this recipe:

1 package of TWO (2) frozen, deep-dish pie crusts
2 cans of apple pie filling
1 box of red hots
4 Tbsp. of butter

In a large bowl, mix apple pie filling and red hots. Let sit for about 30 minutes. The filling will become this gorgeous red color. I placed one of the pie crusts in the bottom of a deep dish pie pan, and cut the other into 1/4 inch strips with a pizza cutter. Place the filling into the pie crust.

I place 4 pats of butter around the pie, just to add a bit of richness. This is a holiday recipe, so no calories spared! I chose to weave the top, but you can just place the whole thing on top if you like. I like to display the filling, just because the color is so pretty! Flute the edges as desired. Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes, or until the crust starts to become a nice golden color. It tastes delicious and adds a nice pop of color to your festive table!