When The Moon Hits Your Eye

In my opinion, pizza and pasta are two dishes that should be served EVERY week.  Heck, I'd be happy if either/or were served EVERY NIGHT.  When I found this recipe I about fell out because it combines the best of both worlds!  A pizza pasta bake?!  Now that's amore!

Pizza Pasta Toss

1 box penne pasta

1/4 cup Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing

2 oz. pepperoni, quartered {I used pre-sliced Armour pepperoni and MUCH more than 2 oz.!  We LOVE pepperoni!!}

2 green peppers, chopped

1 small red onion, chopped

24 oz. jar spaghetti sauce {I used Classico Tomato & Basil...HIGHLY recommend!}

1 cup shredded five cheese italian blend

Cook pasta as directed.  Meanwhile, heat dressing on med high heat in a non-stick skillet.  Add pepperoni, green pepper, & onion.  Cook & stir for about 8 minutes...or until veggies are crisp and tender :) 

 

Add spaghetti sauce & mix well.

 

Simmer for about 5 minutes covered and toss in pasta.  Mix & coat pasta evenly.

Toss in the 5 cheese blend and stir until nice & gooey :)  Serve & enjoy!!!

I seriously can't believe how much this tastes like pizza!!  But with the pasta texture!!  Seriously you guys...best of both worlds!!! 

Now, this little number would really be fantastic with any kinda toppings you can think of!  The original recipe called for mushrooms and black olives, but I forgot the mushrooms and we're not huge fans of the black olives :(  Boo.  But it was still amazing!!!  Let me know if you can think of any other toppings that would be delish!

Keepin’ Up

I seriously can’t believe I’m keepin’ up with meal planning!  I love how much easier it makes everything so I think it’s safe to say I’ll keep at it for a while :)  After a VERY busy weekend, I’m ready to take it easy in the kitchen.  And since things are crazy busy at work with all the end of year greatness, I don’t wanna spend much time cooking.  SO, I decided on tried and true recipes this week and I can’t wait to have some of these again!!  Makes me look forward to dinner with my little fam :)

Monday:  Hot Chicken Salad on Thin Sandwich Rounds & Chips

Tuesday:  Taco Pie

Wednesday:  Meredith’s Hammer Chicken & Veggies {I haven’t tried this one yet, but it looks too easy & yummy to skip!!}

Thursday:  Family Picnic at School :)

Friday:  Buffalo Chicken Wraps

3-Day Memorial Weekend:  Leftovers & Out To Eat…I think ;) 

Happy last week of May!

Giveaway Winner

Happy {Jimmy Buffett} Saturday! We’re a little excited about spending the day tailgating, but before we head out, I’ve gotta share some exciting news! We have a winner from Monday’s Leen The Graphics Queen Giveaway. Congratulations are in order….

Random.org

Thank you to everyone who entered and became a fan of Leen’s! Isn’t her sweet little shop just FABULOUS?! I’m getting ready to place another order and I CAN’T WAIT!!!!

@thewhitakers…please email me at pearlshandcuffsandhappyhour@gmail.com to claim your prize!!!!

Have a GREAT weekend!!!!

I Stink At Making Crock Pot Meals!!!

I do!!!  I LOVE crock pot recipes, but I stink at preparing them!!!  I always forget to set out the ingredients before I leave for the gym in the morning.  Luckily, Mr. Spouse had a late night at work and I was able to get home in the afternoon and throw everything together for this meal before he got home!  This is SO easy peasy and AMAZINGLY DELICIOUS!!!  And it made my house smell so yummy!!  You gotta try it!

CROCK POT SALSA CHICKEN

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 cup salsa {I used Joe T. Garcia's}

1 pkg. taco seasoning {I used McCormick's}

1 cup sour cream

Place chicken, soup, and salsa in the crock pot.  Pour taco seasoning on top.

Cook on low for 6 hours, or if you're last minute like me, cook on high for 2-2 1/2 hours.  Pull the chicken out and shred and return to the crock pot.

Stir in sour cream and heat until ingredients are combined. 

Now, I screwed up.  Shocker.  I mixed the soup, salsa, taco seasoning, & sour cream together and then poured it over the chicken and let everything cook for a couple of hours.  I clearly wasn't paying attention.  Anyway, it was still AMAZING and yummy, but it wasn't creamy enough to serve over rice {the recipe said to serve with rice}.  I'm thinking it might have been creamier if I added the sour cream last?!  I don't know, but I'd screw up the recipe on purpose again because it turned out great!!!!

  Instead of rice, I wrapped up the chicken in tortillas and served these as soft tacos.  Mr. Spouse was IN.LOVE and said we DEFINITELY have to make this again, SOON!  SO, if you decide to whip this up for dinner and follow the recipe the right way, let me know how it turns out!!! 

What A Week!

To say things are busy in the world of Team Carroll might be the understatement of the year!  I am SO behind on EVERYTHING!!  The end of the school year is nothing short of crazy :)  I'm still meal planning, but WAY behind.  I finally sat down yesterday to plan out the rest of the week and then go grocery shopping...with my two boys.  Ummm...it might've been the WORST grocery store trip of all time.  The check out lady even said, "this won't last forever, mom."  UGH.  I had one kid on the hip screamin' at the top of his lungs the entire hour we shopped, and the other kid runnin' around like a banshee.  At one point, he fell off the side of the cart, smacked his head on the hard floor, and...because I wasn't paying attention...I accidentally ran over his foot in the process.  Not my best Mommy moment :) All I have to say is that I ADMIRE stay at home moms now more than ever!!!!  The fam will be in town this weekend for the big {Jimmy} Buffett tailgate {WOOT!!}, so I included a couple of bonus days :)

Now...without further ado...this week's crazy menu!

Monday:  Plain and Simple Soft Tacos {last of the groceries!}

Tuesday:  Creamy Marinara Chicken Pasta & Cheesy Bread

Wednesday:  Mom's Chicken Cacciatore & Mashed Potatoes

Thursday:  Sweet & Sour Chicken with Rice

Friday:  Spicy Jalapeno Sliders & Seasoned Cheese Fries

Weekend Breakfast for the fam:  Jimmy Dean Breakfast Pizza

Weekend Dessert for the fam:  Not Yo' Momma's Banana Pudding...{a Paula Deen FAVORITE!}

Every other weekend meal:  OUT TO EAT!!!!

With the exception of Monday's super simple tacos, everything else is NEW!  Lemme' just tell you that I made the Creamy Marinara Chicken Pasta last night and OMG...TO DIE FOR!  Scroll down for the recipe!

Penne For Your Thoughts?!

It seems like EVERY pasta dish I cook up these days is made with penne!  Of course, that's usually not what the recipe calls for, but it's my FAVORITE kind of pasta!  This dish is NO exception.  I'm sure this AMAZING sauce would be tasty on any variety, but I really love the way it tasted with penne.  You have GOT to add this one to your pasta repertoire because it's AMAZINGLY easy and RIDICULOUSLY delicious!!! 

Creamy Marinara Chicken Pasta

2-3 chicken breasts, sauteed & shredded

1 bag of baby spinach

1 24oz. jar Marinara {I used Bertolli's..mmmmm}

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

Olive Oil

Cook pasta according to package.  Meanwhile, saute chicken in olive oil & season with salt & pepper.  I used coarse black pepper because it's my favorite :)  I also cut my chicken into chunks so it would cook through faster!

 

Once chicken is thoroughly cooked, drain and shred. 

Return chicken to the pan and add spinach, marinara, cream, parmesan, and red pepper.  Cook on medium high and mix well.  

  

Cook until spinach is wilted :)

Drain pasta, return to pot, and toss in chicken & sauce mix.

 

To say that this is delicious might be the understatement of the year :)  I could've helped myself to a gajillion bowls...and trust me...I almost did!!!! 

Cream Cheese Greatness

I found this recipe a while back and printed it out with the intentions of making it that night.  Well, I guess I didn't get around to it and somewhere along the way I lost the recipe and couldn't remember where I even found the original!  I guess I must have used it as a bookmark when I was reading my latest issue of US magazine because that's where I found it a few weeks later!  HA!!!  I wish I knew who to give credit to for this recipe, but for the life of me I can't remember where I found it.  They said it would be good, but that was an understatement...these enchiladas are TO DIE FOR!!!!!!!!!!

TO-DIE-FOR CREAM CHEESE CHICKEN ENCHILADAS

2-3 chicken breasts, shredded {OR rotisserie chicken}

1 {8 oz.} pkg. cream cheese

1 28 oz. can green enchilada sauce {I used Las Palmas}

1 can black beans, drained & rinsed

2 cups cooked rice {I used boil in a bag because I can't cook rice to save my life!!!}

Tortillas {I used Mission flour tortillas, but homemade would be muy delicioso!}

1-2 cups shredded monterrey & colby cheese

Cook chicken and shred; boil rice.  Mix the shredded chicken, cream cheese, and 2 cups of the enchilada sauce together.  This mix makes A TON!!!!

Pour half a cup of the enchilada sauce into the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish. 

Layer the rice & black beans to your taste…

 

and top with the chicken mixture in each tortilla.

Roll up each of the tortillas and place them in the baking dish seam side down. 

Top with 1 cup of the enchilada sauce…  

and 1-2 cups of shredded cheese.  The more, the merrier so we piled on the full two cups :)

Cover the baking dish with foil and bake at 375 for about 25 minutes.

Uncover the enchiladas, turn on the broiler, and broil for about 3-5 minutes uncovered...just long enough to brown the cheese.  Swoon.

Y'all...these are honest to goodness downright AMAZING!!!!  I could eat these every night and be happy as a clam!  SO good!!!  Like I said before, this mixture makes A LOT of enchiladas.  These would be GREAT to serve if you were having a dinner party or bringing dinner to someone.  If you do decide to make these for a dinner party, pick up an extra can of the enchilada sauce to spread on the baking pan & on top of the enchiladas with each batch you bake. 

RUN to your nearest grocery store and pick these ingredients up as soon as you can!!! 

Welcome! & Another Monday Giveaway

I LOVE adding little random touches to the house. Recently, I wanted to add a little something to the front door. I’m a little obsessed with vinyl, so I hopped on Etsy to find something perfect for what I had in mind. I was SO happy to come across Leen The Graphics Queen! Her shop is DARLING! And she had SO much to choose from!!! So I picked out the perfect little Welcome vinyl decal and impatiently waited for it to arrive :) I couldn’t wait to rip open the package and get it on the door!!! And speaking of package, it was packaged so cute!

And I LOVED all the little details…because seriously, it’s ALL about the details! She included a cute little thank you note, step-by-step instructions, darling little business cards, and a bonus bird decal. LOVES!!!!!!

SO…time dress up the boring black door. See?! Plain and boring…and kinda dirty. Yikes!

I adhered the vinyl to the door and followed the too easy instructions. IMPOSSIBLE to screw up!!

I removed the backing and VOILA!!! I LOVES!!!!!

My once plain and boring door finally has a personality! And I LOVE IT!!!! I love that my house welcomes me home after a long day at work :) The PERFECT addition!

I LOVE IT!!! And I LOVE Leen’s shop!!!!!

Now here’s where things get exciting :) Leen is giving you guys a chance to win a $50 gift certificate to her DARLING shop!!!

You read that right…$50!!!!! EXCITING!! Wanna chance to win?! Here’s what you need to do…

1. Visit Leen’s Etsy shop and leave a comment telling me what you would buy with your gift certificate if you win.

2. Become a fan of Leen The Graphics Queen on Facebook

3. Become a follower of Leen The Graphics Queen blog

4. Become a follower of Pearls, Handcuffs, & Happy Hour

5. Become a fan of Pearls, Handcuffs, & Happy Hour on Facebook

Please leave a separate comment for each entry.

The winner will be announced on Friday, May 21st!

GOOD LUCK!!!

Swoon.

As I was browsing through Blogland this week, I found some things that made me swoon…*sigh*.

This vintage sideboard/buffet from A Life of Blue made my heart swell. I want.

These MUST.HAVE hallway signs at A Place For Us are on my to do list. Loves.

I’d LOVE this family tree art from Bugaboo’s Creations…it would go PERFECT in our bedroom!

This DARLING beyond darling “Tee Time” party from A Small Snippet of Our Life makes me wanna host one just like it! PRESH!

I MUST copy this plate wall from Cottage & Vine. I big puffy heart LOVE it!!!!

I’m takin’ out the Silhouette & scrapbook paper this weekend to make these signs because I have the WORST luck when it comes to ringing doorbells & sleeping babies! How Does She?! has the BEST ideas!!!!!

And I found this a few weeks ago at Imperfectly Beautiful , but I keep going back to it because I REALLY wanna make this for my guest bedroom! TOO cute!

I can already tell it’s gonna be a BUSY summer!!! 14 more days ‘til summer break! WOO HOO!!!!

How To Welcome New Neighbors To The ‘Hood

When we moved into the neighborhood a few years ago, our sweet neighbors brought over the obligatory “welcome to the neighborhood” brownies. Score. Recently it was our turn to pay it forward. Have I told you that we just got brand new neighbors...right next door?! I am SO excited! This sweet little family is from Michigan and they have TWO BOYS...just like us! The kicker is that the two boys are the EXACT same age as my two littles! LOVE IT! To welcome them to the neighborhood, I put together a few little treats so that we'd rank as their favorite neighbors. I can already see a gazillion cookouts, playdates, pool trips, happy hours on the patio in our future ;)

Can't go wrong with a plate of brownies and chocolate chip cookies. Ummmm...Mr. Spouse might have stolen half the batch of cookies, so I had to bake brownies to cover the giant plate! I found the plate/platter at Target a few months back for a whopping $1!!! I bought a few of them with the intention of giving them away at some point...SO glad I finally got to!

The basket has a few little things...NOTHING big.

Of course, my boys wanted to give their boys a little something special, so sidewalk chalk and bubbles won out.

And a little somethin' for momma...a YUM Tyler candle...warm sugar cookies. Unpacking isn't fun, but if the house smells good, who cares?!

And take out menus! Being new to the area, it's important to have these on hand at ALL TIMES. Who wants to cook while you’re unpacking?! NO thank you!!!!

I hope we didn’t come on too strong ;)

How do you welcome new neighbors into your neighborhood?!?!?!