Roasted Garlic White Sauce Pizza

One of our last days of freedom and we decided we needed some pizza. So of course we turned to our handy dandy pinterest food boards! (Blues clues anyone?)

Here is our finished pizza, as you can see, we didn't put on the onions. Charissa is not a fan of onions....
Here is the original recipe.

So you will need:

• 2 chicken breasts (cooked, chopped & sprinkled w/ garlic salt)
• 1 container refrigerated Pillsbury Classic Pizza Crust
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 6 garlic cloves, roasted & minced (we used 3, but they were kind of large)
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup skim or 1% milk
• 1/4 cup half & half
• 1/4 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
• 3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 teaspoon dried/ground thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon + 1 teaspoon (or more) dried parsley, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt

Just a heads up, our sauce was pretty thin, which is fine, but we ended up with some left over. I would suggest adding maybe a little cornstarch to it while it's hot (remember to always mix it with a little water or milk first and make sure it's completely dissolved before adding it to the heat!). We just used the left over as dipping sauce, but in my opinion, it's a little gross if it's cold. 

On a scale of one to ten, I'd say this is about a 2 or three on the easy scale (one being SUPER easy), so don't be afraid since there are a fair amount of ingredients!

I'd also give it at least 3 stars out of 5 for taste! Charissa and I ate almost the whole pizza by ourselves. Which maybe wouldn't have happened if we'd had a side to go with it. I don't know why we never think of sides... does that happen to anyone else? 

Love to all of you :)

Tomato Vinaigrette Grilled Chicken

Hello :)

So we made this chicken this week. It was pretty good, oddly, if you pour the vinaigrette over the broccoli it's spicy... but the chicken isn't. Weird.

This was a rough day for me, mostly because I made it hard for myself by expecting things that didn't happen, like the dishes being done. I don't know why the dishes bother me so much. So when I ran to the store to get ingredients for this recipe, I also got Brookside chocolate covered pomegranate deliciousness.

Now before you worry about me eating my feelings, don't worry, I only had a few ;)

Anyway this chicken was really easy. Especially if you have a George Foreman grill.

You'll need:

Cherry tomatoes (1 cup halved)

1 clove garlic

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon lemon juice

2 tablespoons water

1 tablespoon red onion (chopped)

salt and pepper to taste

4 chicken breasts

So if you looked at the original recipe, yes, I switched the amounts of red wine vinegar and olive oil. What can I say, our family loves vinegar. In fact, you know how in my big fat greek wedding the dad uses windex for everything? That's what we do with vinegar.

Anyway, you just blend up all the ingredients and stick 6 tablespoons of it in a bag with the chicken for a little while. We only marinaded ours for like 30 minutes, but it was still delicious! Especially if you put some if in on the chicken after you cook it :) Then we just grilled it on our George Foreman, great for this time of year when it's cold outside!

Let me know if you try it!

The Valentines Series: Better than Thin mint poke cake

 Ok, so I made it huge. It had to be, look at how delicious that is!

We made this for our Valentines Dessert! It was delicious. I wouldn't advise starting with that large of a piece though. It's pretty rich!

Funnily enough I don't love BTS cake. But this, was great! Here's the original pin.

What you'll need:

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 box chocolate cake mix
• 1 12 oz. can Hershey's chocolate fudge
• Eggs, oil... (whatever your box cake calls for)
• Mint extract
• 1 package keeblers thin mint fudge cookies
• 16 oz cool whip

How to:

1. Bake your cake! (9x13 pan)
2. Let it cool
3. Poke holes in your cake. I used the bottom of a wooden spoon, because that's what the pin says to do... my holes got larger and larger because the cake stared sticking to my spoon. Take it how you will. Evenly space them.
4. Pour sweetened condensed milk into holes. I used half the can because I don't like my cake to be too moist.
5. Crush your cookies and divide in half
6. Heat up your hot fudge for about 30-40 seconds just so it's soft.
7. Mix in half of your cookie crumbs and pour over cake.
8. Mix your cool whip with a couple drops mint extract. If you want your cake to look more... grasshoppery, for lack of a better word, you can add a little food coloring to make it look green.
9. Spread over cake.
10. Put the other half of the cookie crumbs on top and chill for at least 4 hours!

I give it 4 stars! We still have leftover cake! Like a lot. Throw a party, or eat it all yourself. I won't judge ;)

The Valentines Series: Dinner

For Valentines day, Charissa and I didn't have valentines, so we decided to make dinner. It was AMAZING! We made these cheesy rolls and the spicy garlic lime chicken that I showed you guys before. We doubled the spices this again.I don't think that we're ever going back!
We also had sparkling cider, because not only was it valentines day, but it also marked the 100th day straight of writing 1000 words. That's right, goal accomplished!



Anyway, you'll need:

• Mozzarella cheese
• olive oil
• one container of grands flaky biscuits
• Parmesan cheese
• oregano
• salt

How to:

1. Preheat your oven (according to package) and flatten out your rolls
2. place a hunk of cheese in the center (be as generous as you want ;) )
3. Wrap the dough around the cheese
4. Place the seams toward the bottom on a greased pan  
5. Brush on olive oil, parmesan cheese, and oregano on top
6. Cook for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown :)
7. Enjoy the cheesy goodness!

I'd give these rolls 3 and half stars. Next time I would use more cheese. Like I said, be generous!

I hope that all of you enjoyed your Valentine's Day! 

Homemade Mac n' cheese

So blogger friends, I've come to hate taking pictures of all the steps for making pins. Like seriously, hate. So unless someone protests, I'm just going to post the end product. And the recipe. And the original pin. Basically all the other things, just not the step by step. UNLESS I change a step, then I will take pictures of that. 

We made this mac and cheese last Thursday. It's really simple. Like most of the things I post about. Pretty much I started this blog because I'm just a normal girl. A girl who didn't cook a lot (um... we cooked every day the last two weeks...) who taught herself how to french braid only a year or two ago, doesn't craft, may have sewn her prom dress in high school, but it was a really long time ago. Anyway, I wanted to do this blog so you could see what really works, what only seems like it works, and that pretty much anyone can have the life that they want, be the person that they want to be, if you just decide to do it. Also, that we can all be creative. I've made up a few pins, made up a few recipes, and found some amazing things. So yeah, there's my random rant...

Anyway here is the recipe :)

Here's what you'll need:
1 tablespoon salt
2 cups uncooked pasta of choice
2 tablespoon butter
2 cups grated cheese
1 teaspoon corn starch
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk, warmed

How to: 
Cook the pasta al dente (2 minutes less than instructions).  While the pasta is cooking, prepare the sauce.  Melt the butter in a large saucepan on medium heat.  Whisk in the flour.  Slowly add the milk while whisking, creating a smooth sauce.  Slowly whisk in the cheese until melted.  Do not overcook.  Mix in the cooked pasta. 

You may want to double the recipe if you're cooking for your family. We split it between three people and we all loved it (4 stars), but it was only one bowl a piece. I guess if you're doing it as a side then that's ok. 

Healthy Fettuccine (unplanned dinner party)

We have been planning to make this for two weeks. We finally made it last Tuesday. Just a heads up, it makes a TON of food. Here's the original pin.

You'll need:

1 lb. fettuccine noodles 

3 cans vegetable broth (or 6 cups)

2 large heads of cauliflower

4 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tablespoon butter

1 teaspoon salt

pinch nutmeg

pinch pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil 

1/4 cup heavy cream

 Bring vegetable broth to a boil and cook the cauliflower until it's nice and soft. About 10-15 minutes.
While that's cooking, melt your butter and saute the garlic for about 5 minutes.
While you're doing both those things, you get to be even more of a multi-tasker and cook your fettuccine.

 Put all your cauliflower in the blender with about 2 cups of your broth and puree until smooth. Add the olive oil, nutmeg, salt, pepper, and sauteed garlic and blend that in.

Transfer your puree to the skillet that you sauteed the garlic in and add the cream! Stir it all together and pour over your pasta. :)

We also grated some fresh Parmesan over the top and it really made the dish if you ask me! We then had to invite 3 friends over to help us eat it... And send some with them for their lunch tomorrow. And we still had leftovers. So remember that! Or reduce the recipe! Or you can have an unplanned dinner party like us :) I'm not complaining, it was good times.

I know what you're thinking, pureed vegetables?? Gross! Trust me, I kind of thought the same thing, but it really is delicious! And, everyone that ate it loved it! So there's at least 5 people saying it's good, so give it a try and let me know if yours is as tasty :)

Crock Pot Creamy Italian Chicken

I'm just going to say right here, you can totally skip the chicken in this recipe if you want to. The sauce is hearty enough that the chicken doesn't matter too much and is still delicious without it. In fact, my little sister said that if we make it again, she'd rather do without the chicken. 

So there it is. Also, I learned that chopping garlic makes Charissa cry. Who knew?

Here's what you'll need:

1-2 pounds chicken breast chopped into cubes (you could really just cook them in the slow cooker and shred if you're lazy... like me)

1/4 cup water or chicken broth

1 packet dry Italian dressing mix

1/2 cup chopped onion (we skipped this because Charissa hates onions)

1 clove garlic, minced

1 can cream of chicken soup

1/2 cup chicken broth

1 block cream cheese, softened

1 box rotini pasta

Add the chicken, Italian mix, and 1/4 cup water or broth to the slow cooker and cook on low for 4 hours

Then cook your pasta while you work on the sauce :)

Mix the soup, cream cheese, and chicken broth with your garlic. Mix it till it's smooth, we used a whisk to really avoid any lumps.
 Add it to your chicken and cook for one more hour.

Just before you serve, add your pasta and Enjoy!

Slow cooker buffalo chicken Nachos :)

This was our Sunday dinner last Sunday. It was AMAZING and let me just say, it's a great set it and forget it meal. And bonus, it's only a couple ingredients :)

Here's what you'll need:

3 chicken breasts

12 oz. bottle buffalo wing sauce (we used Frank's medium)

1 packet dry ranch mix

Put it all in the slow cooker and cook for 7-9 hours on low.

 When the chicken is tender enough to shred, shred it and put it back in the sauce for about an hour :) Ours ended up being about 2 or 3 hours because our Dad dropped by unexpectedly.

We didn't buy any rolls so we just toasted up some white bread and ate it as sandwiches, but you know what's REALLY tasty?

Make some nachos, put the chicken on top and the tomatillo dressing from THIS POST and you get the most tasty nachos I have ever had outside a restaurant

. OH, and here's the original pin

Tomatillo Ranch Chicken

Ok, so I have no idea when we made this one. Last week I think. We've tried recipes for Cafe Rio dressing before and this one was pretty similar... didn't stop it from being pretty amazing! Ok, I lied, we made it before the wedding on Saturday.
It was pretty simple!

Here's what you need:

• 1 cup mayo (my sister told me it HAS to be mayo, not miracle whip...I have no idea the difference)
• ½ cup buttermilk
• 1 package hidden valley ranch dressing mix
• 2½ teaspoons garlic
• 1 cup cilantro
• 4 tomatillos, husked and chopped
• ½ teaspoon lime juice
• 3-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts

oh, here's the original pin

Looks tasty doesn't it? :)

 Pretty much you put everything but the chicken in the blender and blend till it's smooth

 Marinade the chicken in one cup of the dressing (set the rest aside) for at least 30 minutes. I think we did about an hour.
Bake the chicken at 375 for 25-35 minutes.

We also cooked some rice in chicken broth. Then put the remaining dressing over the chicken and rice. We did one cup rice, and next time I would do at least 2. We had plenty of left over dressing too. Just refrigerate and it makes for great dipping sauce with tortillas or nachos... or even salad! :)

Please don't judge my lack of more awesome dishes... Ha ha 

The Celtic Braid

Last Saturday a super awesome lady named Stephanie got married. She used to be Charissa and I's relief society president.She's actually the reason that Charissa decided that the single's ward wasn't the worst thing in the world. 

We went to her wedding reception, which is really kind of an honor because we never go to wedding receptions. Even for people we like. Well, we go sometimes...Anyway, we were downstairs watching the Hobbit with my bother Michael and our Nephew Toby and she told me to braid her hair. After several unsuccessful attempts at making something up, I turned to pinterest. This is what I found :)

It was actually pretty simple. I would recommend dampening the hair down, at least where you're braiding. It's pretty much just a waterfall braid. Braid your sections you dropped (I recommend only doing 4 or 5) and then adding those in like a french braid farther down.

 Here is the result! I was pretty happy with it! We also had a complete stranger compliment it, so that's how you really know that you did a good job :)

Happy braiding!

Stuffed Shells

So my mom has been out of town for two weeks, which meant that my little sister and I got to run the house. Of course we threw a few parties (my mom tells us to) but we also were pretty responsible and made dinner almost every night, something that doesn't happen even when my mom is home. 

This was the first thing we made...

It actually turned out pretty well. We cheated the recipe a little because we didn't want to make our own sauce. 

Here is the original pin

Mine did NOT look like that when we were finished, but it was still really good! So if you don't want to cheat, go ahead and follow her recipe :)

Here are all the things we used! You'll need: One 15 oz. container ricotta cheese, 1 egg (beaten), 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1 cup grated mozzerella cheese, chives (we just added how much we wanted, the original recipe called for 1 bunch), 25-30 jumbo pasta shells, pasta sauce (we didn't even use half the jar).

 Mix together your ricotta and egg

 Add in your mozzarella, chives and salt!

 Mix it all together!

 After cooking your shells, let them cool a few minutes before you fill them! (don't burn your hands!)

 Cover the bottom of your pan with sauce. (Spray it with non-stick first!)

 Place your filled shells in the pan! We had more shells and filling, but ran out of room in the pan, so if you're doing this recipe, you might want to try a little larger pan (even though this pan claims to be a 9x13...I do not believe it.)

 Drizzle the sauce over the top and bake! I would even use more sauce next time around.

They were delicious and easy to make! Try it out!

It was even delicious the next day as left overs!

Soup OR Bowl Party

I don't know about you guys, but I grew up watching Boy Meets World. And if you've seen all the episodes, I'm sure you must remember the episode where the boys have to get tickets to the super bowl and Topanga can't help them.  

Ever since this episode it has been my dream to have a Soup OR Bowl party. Mostly because I don't like football and so the day has no meaning for me. But, I also love celebrating just about anything. Even fake holidays (like Pi day, just you wait...)

So I threw a Soup OR Bowl party. The idea being that you can have soup, but you can't have the soup in a bowl. 

 We also made pumpkin chocolate chip cookies for the party, and guess what, I'm sharing the recipe with you :)

1 Cup shortening

3 cups sugar

2 tsp. vanilla

3 eggs

2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. baking soda

1 12 oz. package chocolate chips

4 1/2 cups flour

2 tsp. cinnamon

2 tsp. nutmeg

2 cups canned pumpkin

Cream together shortening, sugar, and vanilla. Add remaining ingredients. Mix well. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-14 minutes. 

It makes a ton of cookies! Like 5 dozen or something. So what you can do is scoop them into balls, put them on a cookie sheet and freeze. Then put them in a bag so that you can cook them up anytime you want! 

Anyway, here are some highlights from the party!

 The cups for the soup :)

 Believe it or not, my friend Josh organized the spoons like that. I was pretty impressed.

Our movie selection. We ended up watching Meet the Robinsons, in which I completely forgot that my friend's last name was Robinson and made a total fool of myself. Then died laughing for about 10 minutes...

I also tried out the bag roll tip. It worked like a charm! How did no one think of this before?

And last, a picture of  the after party in the pirate ship :) (all our couches arranged like a ship and filled with pillows and blankets)

Hope you guys enjoyed the super bowl!