The Secret’s in the Sauce

Since making these delicious sliders back in December, I’ve been itching to try them again.  When I came across this recipe, I decided to go a different direction.  I’ve always been a pot roast kinda girl, and anything that can be cooked in a crock pot gets my approval sight unseen.  This recipe is pretty much amazing.  Great for dinner…an appetizer…or even something special to take to a party.  We couldn’t get enough.  Truly.  The key to these little sliders is the sauce you MUST make to accompany it.  Don’t skip it.  It’s what makes the slider!!

 

CROCK POT POT ROAST SLIDERS WITH CREAMY CHIPOTLE SAUCE

1 3/4 lb. beef roast

1 cup water

1 cup salsa {I used Joe T. Garcia’s, Mild}

1 envelope onion soup mix {I used Lipton}

1 envelope dry Italian dressing mix {I used Good Seasonings Zesty Italian}

1 envelope Au Jus mix

King Hawaiian rolls

Swiss cheese slices

 

CREAMY CHIPOTLE SAUCE

1/4 cup sour cream

2 tbsp. chili sauce {I used Heinz}

2 tsp. creamy horseradish sauce

 

Since Mr. Spouse is in charge of all crock pot meals, I didn’t get a picture of the ingredients prior to cooking.  However, this one is pretty dang easy.  Whisk together the water, salsa, and the 3 envelopes {onion soup, Italian dressing, Au Jus}.  Place the beef roast in the crock pot and then pour the seasoning mix on top.  Cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-5 hours. 

Before you’re ready to prep your sliders, mix up the creamy chipotle sauce.  Just combine the sour cream, chili sauce, and creamy horseradish sauce in a small bowl and mix together until combined. 

Slice the rolls in half and place a slice of cheese on one half and then slather on the chipotle sauce on the other.

The swiss cheese was pretty fantastic, but I’m thinkin’ that pepper jack would’ve been stellar, too.  Now, I skipped this step because I wasn’t fully reading the recipe, but you can take the bottom halves of the rolls {with the cheese}, place on a baking sheet, and broil for about 2 {ish} minutes or until the cheese is melted & the edges are slightly brown & crisp.  Like I said, I accidentally skipped that part, but ohmiword…they were still AMAZING. 

Now place a generous helping of pot roast onto on half of each roll.

Place the other half of the rolls on top of the pot roast and get ready to sink your teeth into one of the most delicious little sandwiches your taste buds have ever met :)

Like I said before, DON’T be shy with that creamy chipotle sauce.  I promise you’ll see why when you try it for yourself.  Even though this pot roast is definitely good enough to stand on it’s own, trust me when I say that the secret’s in the sauce!!!!!

I’ll Have What She’s Having

Remember that line from When Harry Met Sally?  Pretty sure I accidentally watched that movie at a friend’s house when I was younger…WAAAAAY before I had ANY clue what the heck Meg Ryan was doing in that scene.  I thought she was having a siezure.  When I found this recipe on Pinterest, I about fell out….totally reminded me of the line, “I’ll have what she’s having.”  Chocolate-y, caramel-y. gooey marshmallow-y goodness…it just looked too dang good to pass up.  Recently, a couple of the girls on my team passed a certification test so I figured it was the perfect time to test out the recipe to gift {and eat for myself, too…of course!}  The title of the recipe says it’s better than sex.  I won’t comment on that…I’ll let you be the judge!!!

 

BETTER THAN SEX CHEX MIX

8 cups {1 box} chocolate Chex cereal

3/4 cups packed brown sugar

6 tbsp. butter or margarine

3 tbsp. light corn syrup

1/4 tsp. baking soda

1 cup miniature Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups {halved}

1 cup miniature marshmallows

1/2 cup caramel bits

1 tbsp. heavy whipping cream

1/2 cup milk chocolate chips

1/2 cup white chocolate chips

1 tsp. coarse sea salt {all I had was fine sea salt, so I used that instead}

That’s quite the line up of fat inducing greatness.  Trust me when I say it’s worth every.single.calorie.  Just incase you’re having trouble finding the Chocolate Chex cereal, I found mine at Target & Kroger.  Right next to my favorite, Cinnamon Chex.  Yum. 

First up, let’s go ahead and pour the entire box {8 cups} of cereal into a large bowl.

In a separate bowl, mix together the brown sugar, butter, and corn syrup.  Microwave on high for 1 minute, remove, and stir.  Pop it back in the microwave for another minute{ish}, remove, and stir again. Toss in the baking soda and stir until dissolved.

   

Pour the brown sugar mixture over the cereal and stir until evenly coated.  Take a few bites.  And then a few more.  Put the cereal mix into the microwave and heat on high for about 3 minutes.  Stir the mixture every minute. 

When the cereal mix is removed from the microwave, spread it all out in an even layer onto a wax paper lined baking sheet.  Then sneak a few more bites.

Let this cool for about 10 minutes and when it’s cool to the touch, break it all up into bite-sized pieces.  Now take your marshmallows and spread them evenly over the cereal.  Do the same with the peanut butter cups.  You don’t have to cut the pieces in half, but I did because I don’t like biting into large pieces of candy.  Wha?!?!?!  I know. 

If you haven’t sampled it yet, what are you waiting for.  Do yourself a favor and take a bite.  In a small microwavable bowl, mix together the cream and the caramel bits {you can find these next to your chocolate chips and such in the baking aisle}.  Microwave for about a minute.  I removed mine at about 30 seconds to stir and it was the perfect consistency.  You don’t wanna burn it, so keep your eye on it!  Once it’s nice and gooey, drizzle it over the cereal mix.  I used a spoon to drizzle and it worked perfect. 

Now heat the chocolate chips in another small microwavable bowl {without the cream} and heat it in the microwave for about 40 seconds to a minute…make sure to keep your eye on it so it doesn’t burn.  Remove and stir.  Then drizzle.  Do the same with the white chocolate.  Wash. Rinse. Repeat. 

As you can see, some of my drizzles were more like downpours, but it was amazing just the same.  While everything is still nice and melt-y, sprinkle on the sea salt.  OH.MY.WORD.  Pop the baking dish into the fridge until everything has a chance to set & harden.  Don’t forget to grab a handful to sample while you’re waiting.  Once it’s ready, remove and ENJOY.

Trust me when I say you’ll DEFINITELY want what she’s having :) 

Better than sex?!?!?!  You be the judge!!!!

Shrimp is the Fruit of the Sea

Do y’all remember that line from Forrest Gump?  That’s one of Mr. Spouse’s favorite movies.  I’ve seen it so many times I’m sure I could quote the whole thing.  I can’t say the word “shrimp” without thinking about the scene with Bubba & Forrest on the boat…the one where Bubba tells Forrest all about the different kinds of shrimp.  “Dey’s uh…shrimp kabobs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo…”  This particular shrimp I’m about to share with y’all should’ve been on Bubba’s list.  He would’ve LOVED it.  This is probably one of my new favorite shrimp dishes.  SO unbelievably flavorful and downright DELICIOUS!!!!

 

FETA & SHRIMP WITH RICE

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 (14.5 oz.) cans diced tomatoes

1/4 cup minced fresh parsley

1 tsp. dried dill

1 to 1 1/4 lbs. medium sized raw shrimp, peeled & deveined

salt & pepper, to taste

2/3 cup crumbled feta {pretty sure I used the whole tub!!!}

Rice {white or brown}, optional

 

I’m typically running through the grocery store, furiously racing around trying to get everything I need for that night’s dinner before I have to pick my boys up from the sitter.  This is why you see frozen shrimp…I don’t have time to wait at the counter!  PLUS, these were on sale…like, BIG sale :)   I digress…

You’ll need an oven-proof skillet to get started.  I used my cast iron skillet because A.) it’s oven-proof and B.) it never gets the play it deserves so it was owed some action.  Heat your oil in the skillet on high heat and add the onions.  Cook for about 3-5 minutes, just enough time to let ‘em soften a little.  Toss in the garlic and cook for about 30ish seconds, just until they’re fragrant.  YUM.  Now go ‘head and toss in the tomatoes and bring to a simmer.  Cook ‘em up for about 10ish minutes or so and let the juices thicken.

While the tomatoes are simmering, cut up your fresh parsley. 

Remove the tomatoes from the heat and add in the parsley, feta, salt, & pepper.

Stir until well mixed and then toss in the shrimp and stir a little more.

Place the skillet in the oven and bake for about 10-12 minutes at 425.  While the shrimp were baking, I made some rice.  Okay, I boil-in-a-bagged it.  The only way I know how.  Don’t judge.  Remove from the oven and get ready to taste one of the most amazing shrimp dishes ever. 

I served my helping over rice and ohmiword.  HEAVEN.  I seriously can’t even begin to tell you how much I LOVED this!!! It makes enough to serve about 4. It was *almost* better the next day when I reheated it for lunch :)  I was the envy of the teacher’s lounge…for about 5 seconds…because that’s how long it took me to consume every last bite. 

If you’re a fan of shrimp & feta, this is your recipe!  Do yourself a favor & try it soon!!

Go Stuff Yourself

I FINALLY have my computer back from the hospital.  She and I have been spending some time getting reacquainted.  I’ve got LOTS of new recipes to share with you, so let’s get started with one of my most FAVORITES.  Honestly, I could eat this one EVERY.SINGLE.NIGHT and that’s seriously no joke.  I love stuffed peppers, but they’ve never been my favorite.  I’ve tried them with ground beef, salsa, taco seasoning, you name it.  They’ve just been sorta “meh”…until I found this recipe.  Now I can’t get enough.  And the fact that they’re healthy is an added bonus!!!  If you’re looking for the *perfect* stuffed pepper recipe, look no further my friends!  I swear this one is it!!! 

 

ITALIAN STUFFED PEPPERS

adapted from Kalyn’s Kitchen

Brown rice {I used 1 boil-in-a-bag because I can’t cook rice to save my life…white rice would work, too}

4 large green peppers

1 large onion, diced

2 tsp. + 1 tsp. olive oil

2-4 links Italian Turkey Sausage {I’m pretty sure I used about 3ish links for this recipe…you could use regular Italian sausage if you prefer}

1/2 tsp. oregano

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

salt & pepper, to taste

Shredded mozzarella cheese

 

Here’s what you’ll need to get started:

Thankfully, this stuffed pepper recipe isn’t one that requires you to boil your peppers before cooking.  LOVE IT.  However, you’ll need to do a little prep work.  First, cut off the bottoms of your peppers so that they sit flat in your baking dish.  I used an 8x8 because they fit all nice and snug inside.

Then cut off the caps {set those aside} and shell out the innards until they’re nice and pretty.

  

Remember when I told you to set the caps aside?!  Well, I hope you listened.  You’ll wanna chop those up to use as part of the stuffing.  Don’t forget to dice the onion while you’re at it.

  

Now go ahead and heat 2 teaspoons of olive oil in a large skillet.  Toss in the diced pepper and onion and saute for about 3-4 minutes. 

Now remove the pepper and onion and set aside in a bowl.  Add 1 teaspoon of olive oil to the skillet and brown the sausage.  Like I said before, I’m pretty sure I used about 3 links for this recipe.  I like my stuffing a little meatier, so that was the perfect number for me.  Once the sausage is browned, add the peppers and onion back to the skillet and then toss in the oregano and mix well.  Saute for about 2-3 minutes so that the flavors have a little time to blend.

Then add the cooked rice, salt, pepper, and parmesan cheese and mix well.  Saute for another 2 minutes. 

Now it’s time to stuff.  Take that amazingly delicious mixture and spoon it…very generously…into your hollowed out peppers.  Use your spoon to make sure the stuffing is nice and compact inside the peppers.  Fit as much in as you can :)  Trust me on that.

 

Ohmiword.  I’m salivating as I type.  For real.  That stuffing is what dreams are made of.  I could eat it all by itself.  In a dish.  With a fish.  You get my point.  Now toss it in the oven and bake at 375 for about 30 minutes.  Remove peppers from oven and top ‘em with shredded mozzarella.  Use as much…or as little…as you wish.  Bake for another 10-15 minutes or until the cheese is browned and bubbly.

 

Shut the front door.  These are outta-this-world AMAZING.  True story.

I’m not kidding when I say I could eat these every night.  Not sure Mr. Spouse would enjoy the repetition…after all, men do like variety…so I try to fit this in at least once a week or every other week.  I *might* be obsessed.  Usually, Mr. Spouse and I can only eat 1 serving for dinner.  They’re quite filling.  I like to refrigerate the other two and eat them as leftovers for lunch for the following two days.  They heat up extraordinarily well!!  You can freeze these for about a month or two, but the peppers will be a little softer in texture.  Food doesn’t make it long enough to see the freezer in my house.  Especially these.  Do your tastebuds a favor and whip these up as soon as you can!!  Now what are you waiting for?!?!  Go stuff yourself already!!!!

Sorry, I Don't Eat Buffalo

Do y'all remember that episode of The Newlyweds with Jessica Simpson??  The one where she was all, "Sorry, I don't eat buffalo" in response to Nick asking if she wanted some buffalo wings.  Pretty sure I loved that show back in the day and that comment made me laugh something fierce.  Only because I'm certain I made the same comment at some point before I really knew what the heck buffalo wings were really about.  Dang.  I went through a period of time where I wouldn't touch ANYTHING related to buffalo wings. And then I got married and that's all Mr. Spouse wanted to eat.  I learned to love them and now I'm pretty much obsessed with any and everything that has the word "buffalo" in it.  I could eat Buffalo Chicken Dip for breakfast, lunch, and dinner and I'm pretty sure it would suffice for dessert, too.  When I found this recipe for Buffalo Mac & Cheese, it was a no brainer.  I knew it would be in my kitchen...and in my belly...almost immediately.  And it was.  And ohmiword...AMAZING.

BUFFALO CHICKEN MAC & CHEESE

1 lb. pasta { I used Piccolinni...the little shells}

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked & cubed

1 tbsp. flour

4-6 tbsp. butter

1 1/2 cups milk

4 oz. grated monterrey jack cheese {half a brick.  plus more for topping}

1/3 cup sharply shredded cheddar cheese

1/3 cup buffalo wing sauce  {Frank's Red Hot is my favorite!!!}

1/3 cup Panko bread crumbs

Ranch dressing, to taste

Here's what you'll need to get started...

Cook pasta according to package directions, drain, and return to pot.  While the pasta is cooking, heat saucepan over medium heat and add the butter.  Add the flour once the butter is melted and bubbly.  Whisk together to create a little roux and then cook for about 1-2 minutes until it starts to get a little golden in color.  Feelin' all Top Chef now, aren't ya?!?!

Add in the milk and turn the heat down to low.  Stir until the milk thickens and add in the cheeses. 

Stir until the mixture is smooth.

Now add in the wing sauce...YUM...and mix well.  You can add some salt & pepper to taste if you want.

Lightly grease a 9x13 baking dish and add the pasta & cubed chicken.  Mix well so that the chicken is evenly distributed throughout the pasta. 

Pour cheese sauce on top and make sure everything's evenly coated for maximum yumminess.

Now sprinkle with bread crumbs and extra cheese.  I think seasoned croutons or crushed Ritz crackers would be even better than the Panko.  Don't get me wrong, the Panko was really good, but I've got a longstanding affair with croutons & crackers, so that's what I'll use next time.

Bake at 375 for about 25 minutes or until cheese is golden brown.  Remove from oven and drizzle with extra wing sauce.  OH.MY.YUM.

I went a step further and served mine up with homemade ranch dressing.  GET.OUT. The only thing that would've made it better would've been a shovel so I could've gotten more in my mouth with each bite.

I really hope Jessica has come to her senses and hopped on the buffalo bandwagon. This is just TOO dang good to pass up.  For real.  And with the Superbowl right around the corner, this is definitely a dish you want to have handy.  It'll be gone in no time.  The homemade ranch really made it, so make sure you have that handy!!!  I served this little dish with 7Up biscuits and I was in Mr. Spouse's good graces all week long :)  They weren't kidding when they said the way to a man's heart is through his tummy!!! 

A Soup for Busy Moms

If you haven’t figured it out by now, I love soup.  Especially when it’s cold outside.  I pinned this little soup from Rachel Ray a while back and I’ve been dying to try it.  So, I went to pull it up and realized it required a few more steps than I was prepared to handle.  I love Rachel Ray and all, but I’m pretty sure she doesn’t teach 6 & 7 year olds all day and then come home to two VERY overactive boys under the age of 5.  By 6:00, easy is the name of the game.  Unless I’m trying to escape crying and screaming…which is pretty much a nightly occurrence…and then I *might* enjoy being in the kitchen longer than normal.  All that to be said, I took Ms. Ray’s recipe and tweaked it to fit this busy momma’s schedule.  And ohmiword…couldn’t have been easier…or tastier!!!

THE BUSY MOM’S CHICKEN & RICE SOUP

adapted from Rachel Ray

1 rotisserie chicken {I used ALL the meat}

1 box {32 oz.} chicken broth

1/4 cup lime juice {2 limes}

1 cup salsa {I used Joe T. Garcia’s, mild}

1 can diced tomatoes with onion

1 cup frozen corn {or more if you like corn!}

1 cup frozen chopped veggies {celery, green pepper, and onion}

2 tbsp. chopped cilantro

1/3 cup Mexican cheese

1-2 boil-in-a bag bags of rice {this is the only way I can cook it :)}

 

Here it is, in all it’s EASY glory.

Shredding the chicken was the most time consuming part of this whole recipe.  Praise the Lord.

First up, bring chicken broth, lime juice, and salsa to a boil.

Add in the diced tomatoes, frozen corn, and frozen chopped veggies.  I definitely let the frozen items thaw out before I tossed ‘em in.  Cook on medium high heat for about 10-12 minutes, reduce to low and add the shredded chicken.  Cover and let simmer for about 20-30 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook your rice.  I’m a cheater and I always use the boil-in-a-bag version.  I boiled 2 bags for this recipe.  Drain and return to pot.  Now take a spoonful{ish} of rice and dump it into your bowl.

Spoon a very generous helping of the soup mix on top of the rice.  The more rice you add, the thicker your soup will be, so proceed with caution :) 

Y’all.  This *might* be my new favorite soup.  Just sayin’.  As you can see, my soup is a little on the thick side here.  I added a little more rice than I probably should have, but ohmiword.  SO good!!!  And filling as all get out, too!!!  You might want to have an extra quart of chicken broth on hand.  You can always add more to the soup mix if you need to.  Infact, I ate this for lunch the very next day and there was a bit of reduction in the “soupiness”, so I added some chicken broth to the mix before I heated it up and it was perfect!!! 

I dressed her up with some avocado, mexican cheese, and sour cream and I could hear the mariachi bands start to sing. ¡Esto es la gloria! Seriously.  And you can’t tell me this doesn’t look easy.  Sure, it’s not ready in 5 minutes, but 5 minutes is about all it takes to prep :)  This is the kinda soup this busy momma LOVES!!!!

Life is a Bowl of Cherries…or Burritos. Whatever.

Y’all know I have a ‘thang’ for Mexican{ish} recipes.  This one is no exception.  Most of the Mexican inspired dishes I whip up for Mr. Spouse are typically creamy and full of fatty goodness.  Surprisingly, this one is not!  And…drumroll…it’s still just as good, if not better!!!  Of course, we can thank Pinterest and The Cheeky Kitchen for this fabulous find.  For those of y’all on a low carb{ish} diet, this is a recipe you definitely need in your arsenal of {low carb} yummies.   And if you want something a little heavier, just add a tortilla and make yourself a little burrito bowl taco!  Versatile & delicious…quick & easy.  Now that’s MY kind of meal!!!

CHICKEN BURRITO BOWLS {AKA:  HEALTHY CHICKEN SALAD}}

adapted from The Cheeky Kitchen

2 chicken breasts, boiled & shredded

2 limes, freshly squeezed

1/2 tbsp. cumin {I REALLY like cumin, so I tossed in a little extra :)}

salt to taste

1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 green bell pepper, diced

1/2 onion, diced

1 can black beans, drained

1 tub pre made pico de gallo {if you have a great recipe for this, then you’ll need about 1- 1.5 cups.  I bought mine in the produce section at Kroger.  Cheap and easy…and yummy, too!}

Jalapenos, to taste {optional}

So here’s what it’ll look like before you start.  I seriously love laying out all my goods before I start cooking so that I don’t run around the kitchen as I’m trying to prep.  My chicken didn’t want to be photographed, so she’s missing from this pic :)

Boil chicken ‘til cooked through, remove from pot, and shred.  Place in a large{ish} bowl and mix with cumin, salt, and lime juice.   In other news, are those not the cutest little measuring spoons you’ve ever seen?!  That was a little stocking stuffer from one of my firsties at school…he got ‘em from Anthropologie just incase you’re wondering.  I swear my food tastes better when I’m using these…they always add a little pinch of sass to whatever I’m cooking ;)

Now toss in the peppers, cilantro, onions, black beans, and pico.  Mix well to combine.  If you check out the original recipe, you’ll notice that she only used half a red pepper, half a green pepper, a whole onion, and no pico.  I’m sure it would’ve been excellent that way, too.  I’m just a big fan of peppers and pico!!

OH.MY.YUM. 

I like my dishes spicy and the jalapenos were the perfect finish to this little dish.  I served these both in a bowl and with homemade tortillas.  I had it both ways and ohmiword…both were outstanding.  I took it to work with me the next day and ate the leftovers for lunch, without a tortilla.  Lemme tell ya what…it was even better!!!  The flavors had time to combine and it was like a little slice of heaven with every bite.  This dish would be great topped with a little dollop of sour cream and {lotsa} diced avocado, too. 

Seriously people.  You definitely want this in your mouth. I can see this being a constant staple in our dinner AND lunch rotations!  DELICIOUS!!!!