Recipes to Make You Famous!

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I have to share a few recipes I have tasted recently that were TO. DIE. FOR.  Some of these came from friends, and some from websites, but it is my duty to pass them onto you, as Thanksgiving and Christmas are just around the corner!

Now, I am not like the Pioneer Woman who can whip up things from scratch and then make a cookbook.  But I have found that if I taste something divine and then make it myself when company comes over, people don't really care where you got the recipe. They just care that it tastes good!  Make these recipes, and I assure you, they will make you famous.

(If you want to see past recipes that will make you famous, click here).

Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake
(Click title for link)

This is a recipe from Paula Deen, and you can't go wrong with any of her recipes.  Sure, it has 2 sticks of butter in it, but it is the best pumpkin recipe you will find.  Many people who have tasted this have told me that they like it better than pumpkin pie (and it still has that consistency, so you feel like you're having pie). Even those that don't like pumpkin pie seem to love this!

Chile Relleno Breakfast Bake
This recipe came from my friend Melanie, who found it on Page 49 of the Penzey's Spices Grilling Catalog.  Now, I am NOT a fan of Chorizo, but my husband is.  Melanie baked this recipe using Soyrizo from Trader Joe's (made from Soy), and I gave it a try.  I was totally addicted to this dish, as was every other woman that tried it!  Martin practically did a cartwheel in our kitchen when he tasted this; I have never seen him react with such joy to a dish in my life!  :)  I halved the recipe in an 8x8 pan for our family.


Ready in a snap, this recipe from Kathy Rodriguez is
sure to kick start your morning.

1⁄4-1⁄2 Cup butter (1⁄2-1 stick) {I did 1/2 stick}
2  7 oz. cans diced green chiles, drained
1⁄2 lb. chorizo sausage, browned and
drained (optional) {I did the entire package of Soyrizo from TJs}
1 8 oz. pkg. shredded cheddar cheese  {I did the full pkg of cheddar and a sprinkling of Monterey since I had it on hand}
1 8 oz. pkg. shredded Monterey Jack
cheese
4 eggs
2 Cups milk
1 Cup biscuit mix
1 tsp. CHILI POWDER or SOUTHWEST
SEASONING
1⁄2-1 tsp. PENZEYS FRESHLY GROUND PEPPER,
to taste


Preheat oven to 350°. Melt the butter in a 9x13 glass baking dish. Layer the chiles over the butter. Sprinkle with the browned chorizo, if using. Layer the shredded cheeses over the sausage.
In a separate bowl, mix together the eggs, milk, biscuit mix, CHILI POWDER and PEPPER. Pour over the other ingredients in the pan. Bake at 350° for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown.


Prep. time: 10 minutes
Baking time: 30-40 minutes
Serves: 10-12


New Orleans Corn Bisque with Smoked Sausage
(Click link for recipe)

This was so good.  We had it on a cold night with hot french bread.  My boys aren't big soup fans, so I made them breakfast for dinner.   This is a great recipe and was easy to make.

Last Minute Christmas Recipes

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This year we had 9 Christmas get-togethers to attend, and in the end I will have made a total of 12 dishes - Yikes!  I've been searching for new and different (but easy) recipes to make this year and thought I'd pass on a few.  Hope this helps if you're looking for some last minute recipe ideas!

Appetizer -

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Red/Green Tortilla Chips with Cranberry Lime Salsa

This recipe was easy and fast to make, and met with rave reviews.  

Spinach Artichoke Dip 

One of my favorites; serve it up warm in a bread bowl - so yummy!

Main Dish-

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I bought a smoked ham from Costco this year and it was really good. Definitely a good substitute for HoneyBaked Ham since that will run you about $80+, and Costco's was about $22.

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I also purchased chicken tamales from Costco and they were really good.  Another good main dish if you don't want to slave over the stove for hours.  They are not homemade but do taste like it!

Side Dish-

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Corn Casserole 

Easy and people love it!

Dessert-

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Andes Mint Brownies 

WOW. I have made these twice and had a lot of people ask for the recipe.  If you are in a rush and want to simplify this recipe, instead of making the first layer (brownies) from scratch, you could buy a mix of dark chocolate brownies and that would work too. Then make the second and third layers from the recipe.

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Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake

This recipe has been on my blog before, but this one is always a winner!  A great substitute for pumpkin pie.

If you need more recipes, you can visit my past blog post on Christmas recipes here, or follow my recipe board on Pinterest. Thanks for stopping by and Happy Cooking!!

Christmas Recipes!

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If you read my post yesterday, you know that we've been doing a lot of entertaining around here this week. Tonight we are (almost) all feeling the effects, with 3 of us having sore throats and coughs. Martin is a trooper though and is taking care of all of us.

I tried out some new recipes this year and wanted to share them with you. They were all AMAZING! No kidding - if you need any recipes, try these- they work and they are delicious!! (The pictures are not mine - they are from the site I got the recipe from). The funny thing is, while writing this post I realized how much cooking I've done this year, and I don't even really like to cook. But when you have recipes you know are going to be good, it is more fun!

Turkey Brine (You soak your turkey in this overnight and it makes for the most moist, delicious turkey after you cook it the next day!)

Green Bean Casserole (this one is not made with the traditional cream of mushroom soup, but a homemade sour cream base- even Martin loved this and he's not a fan of this casserole normally)

Potato Casserole

Homemade Pumpkin Pie

Homemade Crust

(No Bake) Peanut Butter Cup Pie (This pie practically has made me famous around here lately. I got it from a Kraft magazine that I receive and it was to DIE for!)

Sugar Cookies (Hands down the BEST Sugar Cookie recipe I have ever used. Be sure to refrigerate the dough for at least an hour before cooking, or at least stick it in the freezer for 30 min.)

Buttercream Frosting

Cranberry Scones (You can give this mix out in a jar as a gift! Each batch makes 2 gifts)

Holiday Jam (this one is challenging but the jam turned out beautifully!)

Do you have a favorite holiday recipe? Share it with us by leaving a comment and connect back to your blog. Have a great Christmas week!!

Easy Summer Dinner Recipe

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Jen at Graham Like The Cracker is hosting a Dinner Blog Train that she kindly asked me to join. How fun!

My first recipe is too easy to even be called a "recipe," but if you're looking for a very easy summertime dinner that does not involve cooking, this is it. My food processor has been up in my closet for about 10 years - seriously - until I recently pulled it out again. I decided to whip up a "chopped salad" since I had one at a restaurant recently and loved it. Something about salad chopped up into itsy bitsy pieces makes it so easy to love, and tastes so much better for some reason!

Here is my recipe for Chopped Salad:

-1/2 head of romaine lettuce
-5 Broccoli pieces
-5 Large Mushrooms
-5 Baby Carrots
-5 Tomatoes
-Any other veggies you want

Simply load all of this into your food processor, and pulse until it is in tiny pieces. Dish into 2 bowls, and sprinkle with shredded parmesan cheese. Slice some avocado and place on top. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and add dressing of your choice. I personally love Bernstein's Italian Dressing for this salad. You can also add chopped turkey, blue cheese crumbles, sliced egg or bacon pieces to this salad for protein. YUM!

I've also added chicken to this, and used BBQ Sauce and Ranch for the dressing for a BBQ Chopped Salad.

Now - for my boys - who won't eat just salad for dinner....

I picked up Dinosaur Chicken Breast Nuggets from Costco -

Microwavable Brown Rice packets from Trader Joes -

A bit of the Chopped Salad (or a veggie of your choice)

And some fresh fruit.

They ate up every bit!

Please take a moment and go visit the other great recipes listed as part of this blog party. Next up: Pam at Keeping Life Creative!

You can also visit the other recipes in this blog train by visiting:
Jen
Kelleigh
Julie
and Pam

If you'd like to link up, just leave a comment below with your blog entry!

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Also, don't forget to enter to win my giveaway that ends this Friday!

Valentine's Day Appetizer- YUM!

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I recently joined a fun group called the "So Cal Lady Bloggers," and this week we are having a Romantic Progressive Dinner, just in time for Valentine's Day.  Each person in the blog hop has a great recipe to share with you.

If you would like some yummy recipes to whip up for your loved one this Valentine's Day, you have come to the right place.

I was assigned an appetizer dish, and I found an easy but fantastic twist on traditional bruschetta.

Strawberry Bruschetta
24 slices French baguette
1 Tbls. butter, softened
2 cups chopped fresh strawberries
1/4 cup white sugar, or as needed

Directions: Preheat your oven's broiler. Spread a thin layer of butter on each baguette slice. Arrange in a single layer on a large baking sheet.  Place bread under broiler for 1-2 minutes, until lightly toasted.  Spoon some chopped strawberries onto each slice, then sprinkle sugar over the strawberries.  Place back in broiler for 3-5 minutes, until sugar is carmelized.  Serve immediately.

The best part of this recipe is that not only is it extremely easy and inexpensive, but it is beautiful and presents well.  You can also use less sugar if you'd prefer. Some might want to experiment with using Splenda or another alternative sugar, but I'm not sure how that would fare under the broiler.  Also, if you do not have baguettes available, try Triscuits.

Next up in the blog hop is another great appetizer, hosted by Jeanne at The Jolly Tomato. She will be sharing the recipe for Bruschetta Hearts.

You can visit all of the other amazing recipes in this blog hop by visiting the So Cal Lady Blogger's Page.

Thanks for stopping by!

Cupcakes!

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For my birthday last month I got two cookbooks filled with cupcake recipes, so tonight I thought I'd try one out. They are Banana Cupcakes with Chocolate Frosting, from the book 100 Best Cupcake Recipes. They really taste amazing, at least to me! :)



Here is the recipe if you want to try them out! (I cut the recipe in half but this is the entire recipe.)


Banana Cupcakes
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 medium mashed bananas (about 1 cup)
chocolate frosting

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 18 muffin cups with paper baking cups. Combine flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and allspice in large bowl. Add oil, eggs, milk, and vanilla; beat with electric mixer at medium speed 2 minutes or until well blended. Beat in bananas until well blended. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling 3/4 full. Bake 25-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool for at least 10 minutes. Frost.


Bakers One Bowl Fudge Frosting
1 pkg. (8 squares) Bakers Semi-Sweet Baking Chocolate
1 pkg. (16 oz.) powdered sugar (about 4 cups)
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
2 tsp. vanilla
1/3 cup milk

Directions: Microwave chocolate in large microwaveable bowl on high 2 minutes or until chocolate is almost melted, stirring after 1 minute. Stir until chocolate is completely melted. Cool 5 minutes. Add sugar, butter and vanilla. Beat with electric mixer on low speed until well blended. Gradually add milk, beating until well blended. If frosting becomes too thick, beat in additional milk by teaspoonfuls until of desired consistency.

Christmas Entertaining

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This past week we have held 3 Christmas parties and it has been so much fun. In our old house we could not host a lot of parties because it was too small and would cause tons of stress for us. Here, our living room is still not that big, but there's more house to spread out into, as well as a great patio in our backyard.

The living room all ready to go...

On Sunday, we had our worship team and youth leadership over for a total of 27 people, who ALL very joyfully crammed into our living room for a fun white elephant gift exchange. We turned the bedrooms into a "game room" (i.e. the boys' room with a large TV and the Wii set up), a "movie room" (i.e. our room where we put a TV and had the movie "Elf" playing), and for the backyard we borrowed an outdoor heater so people could eat out there and stay warm. Everyone seemed to have fun, and we had TONS of food that people brought. I whipped up a huge batch of spaghetti and a caesar salad, and then we had food ranging from restaurant ribs to pizza to homemade enchiladas and fried chicken. YUM!!!

Filled with some of our guests:

The "Game Room":

The Dining Room:

One of the tables of food (there were 2):

On Tuesday we had our church staff over for a traditional turkey dinner. Our pastor had poached the turkey overnight and it was the best turkey we have ever eaten. SO juicy and moist!! I got the recipe and recreated it for our family Christmas dinner yesterday. If you are cooking a turkey, visit this recipe to do it yourself. It really was easy!

The Church Staff Luncheon:

Last night we had my family over and had another turkey dinner, this time made by me. I loved setting the table, and made little placecards out of ornaments. Again, very easy and simple yet beautiful when the candlelight reflected off of the ornaments!

We also all took a drive to visit "Sleepy Hollow" which is a huge neighborhood near us where every house is connected by lights and they all have elaborate Christmas displays out front. Every night around 1000+ cars drive through the neighborhood, and our youth group has been selling hot chocolate and cider as a fundraiser. It is beautiful!! I'll try to post pictures soon, but you can view a few of them (not my own) here.

Tomorrow I'm going to post some of my very favorite recipes that I either ate or made this week, so if you're in need of some Christmas recipes this week, check back soon!

Stupid Things People Do... and Pancakes!!

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Last night I got the brilliant idea to save $70-80 and highlight my hair myself. It has been years since I've attempted this, because the few times I tried this I ended up with orange hair or too-yellow hair, or big blotches. I thought this time would be different. I was wrong. See for yourself.







The good news is that Martin is on sabbatical, so I won't have to see many people I know for the next 4 weeks!! :) And I can hide the big blonde patch pretty easily. The bad news is that I need to either let it grow out or pay the money to get it fixed! Oh well.... live and learn! I am beyond the point where things like this bother me too much anymore! (I have found that since becoming a mom, the phrase "oh well, who cares?!" comes out of my mouth more than it used to!)

PANCAKES...
I got inspired by reading MckMama's blog on pancakes, to start trying my own pancake recipes. Micah LOVES eating pancakes for breakfast, but I know that just plain old white pancakes are not that nutritious for him. I picked up some Bob's Red Mill Whole Wheat Bran and Flaxseed Meal, and I have been sprinkling them in just about everything! I take plain pancake mix (or I make it myself, but only when I have time), and I add some wheat bran and flaxseed (not too much or the pancakes will become tough). If you do add a little too much, just add more water. Anyway, Micah doesn't notice at all, and the lite syrup seems to cover any slight taste their might be. When I add blueberries, he especially loves them and will snack on them all day long!



You can also sprinkle the flaxseed meal in yogurt, fruit smoothies, applesauce, etc... Just a little and they'll never know it is in there! Flaxseed meal can also be used as a substitute for egg in many recipes. You can use the whole wheat flakes for baking cookies, cupcakes, etc... Just sprinkle some in your regular batter and you have just added more nutrition!

**You can find Bob's Red Mill packages at your regular supermarket, in the healthy food aisle, or at Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, or any natural health food store. They run about $3 a bag.

P.S. This is my 180th post! I am going to do my first ever blog giveaway on my 200th post, so stay tuned!!

The Big Giveaway!

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If you are hopping over from the 5 Minutes for Mom's Ultimate Blog Party '11, WELCOME!  I am so glad you have stopped by, and this is the best time to visit, because I am hosting a BIG giveaway this week!  (Scroll down past the info. about me if you'd just like to enter the giveaway)

I am a huge fan of 5 Minutes for Mom and always enjoy their Ultimate Blog Party.  Recently I was honored to be a guest blogger for them and wrote an article entitled "Taking the Leap: Thinking About Starting a Photography Business?"

Here I enjoy blogging about my family, my faith, photography, home decorating, recipes and more.

I invite you into my messes.....

(Left: Micah, now age 5 / Right: Jaden, now age 3)
You can read about the food coloring incident here.

My parenting adventures

(The story behind this photo is here)

My cooking experiments

This dinner disaster was blogged about here.

My photography mishaps

My home decorating "hits" AND "misses"

And my walk with the Lord.

Photo courtesy Anne Elliott

So why should you follow this blog and all of it's messiness?  Because it is here that I hope you will be encouraged, laugh a little, and know that you are not alone.  AND.....

This week is The Big Giveaway!  There are two great items being given away this week.

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Giveaway #1 - The Ultimate Blog Makeover!!! 

SH Blog Design is donating an extreme blog makeover where one winner will receive a custom header with coordinating background, font colors, 1-2 columns, post title image, sidebar image, custom signature, and a link button. The winner can choose any digital scrapbooking paper kit from SH Blog Design selection to use in the design.  

Visit the SH Blog Design website for samples. Even if you don't win this giveaway, Shannon offers affordable blog designs starting at $50.  She also designs custom invitations.  Thank you Shannon for donating this awesome prize!
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Giveaway #2- Snippity Clip-Its!!!

Snippity Clip-Its offers fun, affordable, creative accessories for every little princess! This giveaway is for a bundle of goodies: a Busy Bee Headband and Buggin' Around Bee Clips (a $15 value)!   Become a Fan of Snippity Clip-Its on Facebook and leave Shannin some love!

Snippity Clip-Its is also having a Spring Blowout Sale, so visit their page today to see photos and place your order. Whether you are a mom, a grandma, an aunt or a friend, these make great gifts for little girls!  Thank you Shannin for your donation of this prize!
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To enter this giveaway:

1) Become a follower of this blog and leave a comment letting me know which item you would like to win.

2) You can gain up to 2 additional entries by becoming a Facebook fan of Snippity Clip-Its and/or following the SH Blog Design blog, and then coming back here and leaving a comment letting me know you did so.

3) Tweet and/or Facebook this giveaway for up to 2 additional entries (and again, be sure to leave a comment letting me know you did so).

Feel free to copy and paste this tweet:  I just entered The Big Giveaway!  You can enter to at:  www.wonderyearsof2.blogspot.com @jmebowman @5MinutesforMom #UPB11

(In all you have 5 chances to enter, so your chances of winning are pretty high!)

This contest will run from April 1-April 8th.  Entries will close on midnight of April 8th. Winners will be announced on Saturday, April 9th.  Thank you for entering and good luck!

NOTE:  Be sure if you enter this giveaway that you have contact information connected to your account where I can reach you!  Or simply leave your email address in the comments.  Thanks!