Breakfast in the Crockpot

When I saw this recipe I thought it would be nice to have a ready-made breakfast on a Saturday morning but instead made it for dinner the night before because I couldn't wait. It was so simple and quick. This breakfast casserole has everything you need in it so no side dishes are necessary. We had it with a littl fresh fruit on the side. It reheats nicely the next day so you can enjoy it again!
* I substituted turkey sausage crumbles in place of the regular ones to make it more of a healthy meal!

Slow Cooker Sausage Breakfast Casserole

Ingredients

• 1 pkg. (26 ounces) frozen shredding hash brown potatoes
  1 pkg. Jimmy Dean® Hearty Original Sausage Crumbles
  1 cup (4 ounces) shredding mozzarella cheese
  1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredding parmesan cheese
  1/2 cup julienne cut sun dried tomatoes packed in oil, drained
  6 green onions, sliced
  12 eggs
  1/2 cups milk
  1 teaspoon salt
  1/4 ground black pepper  

Directions

1. Spray a 6 quart slow cooker with cooking spray. Layer 1/2 of the potatoe on the bottom of slow cooker. 
2. Top with half of the sausage, mozzarella and Parmesan cheese, sun dried tomatoes and green onion. Repeat layering.
3. Beat eggs, milk and pepper in large bowl with a wire whisk until well blended. 
4. Pour evenly over potato-sausage mixture.
5. Cook on low setting for 6-8 hours or on high setting for 3-4 hours or until eggs are set. 

Yield:

12 servings (about 1 cup each)

Minnie's Chocolate Pie from THE HELP

Last summer I was infatuated by the book The Help. Then the movie came out and was equally as brilliant as the book. I decided I wanted to taste chocolate pie, especially the one from the movie. It looked delicious - without the special ingredient which would be from Minnie to Hilly only! :) I tried this recipe out with my in-laws and it was a success!!!

Minnie's Chocolate Pie (without the special ingredient) ;)

1packaged pie dough crust
1 ½ cups sugar
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 large eggs, beaten
3/4 cup evaporated milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla
¼ teaspoon salt
Whipped cream for serving

Oven to 350. Ease the pie crust into a 9 inch pie pan and crimp the edge decoratively. Prick the crust lightly with a fork. Line the crust with foil or parchment and fill pie with weights or dried beans. Bake for 15 minutes or until set. Remove the weights or dried beans. Bake for 15 minutes longer, just until the crust is dry but not browned.

Meanwhile in a bowl whisk the sugar with the cocoa powder, butter, eggs, evaporated milk, vanilla and salt. Whisk until smooth.

Pour the filling into the pie shell and bake for 45 minutes until the filling is set around the edges but the center is still a little jiggly. Cover the crust with foil halfway through baking. Transfer the pie to a baking rack to cool completely before cutting. Serve with whipped cream.

A light and delicious pasta toss...

This might be one of my favorite dishes to date. I never knew I liked asparagus until this dish came along. After making this dish I went and bought a HUGE amound of it at Sam's to steam for side dishes during the week. Not only is this dish completely delicious and simple to make, but it's fairly healthy as well! I actually couldn't remember the recipe or find it when I went to make it - so I can tell you from experience that this works however you want it to work! :) Hope you enjoy!

Spring Asparagus and Tomato Pasta with Feta Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Yield: 4

A quick, easy recipe for Spring Asparagus and Tomato Pasta with Feta. Perfect for quick lunches or weeknight suppers.

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound fettuccine, or your favorite pasta
• olive oil
• 1 pound asparagus, cleaned and cut into 1" pieces
• 1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
• feta cheese

Instructions

1. Bring about 2 quarts of water to boil. Add about 3 tablespoons olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the water for flavor and to prevent the pasta from sticking together as it cooks. Add pasta and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, for about 10 to 12 minutes to your preferred tenderness.
2. Meanwhile, drizzle about 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil into a skillet over medium heat. Add asparagus and saute for about 7 minutes. Add tomatoes.
3. Drain pasta and place into skillet with asparagus and tomatoes. Toss to combine and add feta hunks to pasta. Drizzle with a little more olive oil if needed and add salt and pepper to taste.

Martha's Honey-Glazed Carrots

As many of you know I am a little obsessed with the Martha Stewert Show as a stay at home mom! I love trying things off of her show and even am a Martha Stewert Living magazine subscriber. Anyways the other day I tried her honey-glazed carrots recipe and they might be my staple vegetable for company from now on. They are absolutely delicious!!!!

Honey-Glazed Carrots with Cilantro

Yield Serves 4  

Ingredients

• 6 medium carrots, halved lengthwise and cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 tablespoons dry white wine, low-sodium chicken broth, or water
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

1. In a large skillet, combine carrots and olive oil; add just enough water to cover carrots (about 2 cups). Cook over medium-high until water is evaporated and carrots are tender, 15 minutes. Cook, tossing often, until carrots are light golden, 2 minutes. Add honey and wine, broth, or water; cook, stirring and scraping up browned bits with a wooden spoon, until carrots are glazed, 2 minutes. Stir in cilantro.

Let's Talk Turkey....

Chad and I have always loved turkey burgers. We usually buy the Jennie-O pre-packaged individual frozen burgers. They are quite delicious but I have always wanted to try making my own burgers. I found a recipe in Real Simple Solutions that was perfect (and healthy)!!!

Turkey Burgers With Zucchini and Carrot

Serves 4| Hands-On Time: 25m | Total Time: 25m

 

Ingredients

• 3/4 pound ground turkey
• 1 medium zucchini, grated
• 1 medium carrot, grated
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 large egg
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 slices crusty bread
• 4 small leaves Boston lettuce
• 4 tablespoons mayonnaise (optional)
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice (optional)

Directions

1. Heat broiler. In a large bowl, combine the turkey, zucchini, carrot, garlic, thyme, salt, pepper, and egg. Form the mixture into 4 patties.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the patties, turning once, until no pink remains, 4 to 5 minutes per side.
3. Meanwhile, place the bread on a baking sheet and brush with the remaining oil. Broil until golden brown and crisp, about 1 ½ minutes.
4. Transfer the bread to individual plates. Top with the lettuce and burgers. If desired, combine the mayonnaise and lemon juice and serve with the burgers.

* We always just skip the crusty bread and dip part. We serve the burgers on buns of our choice and add light mayonaise or BBQ sauce! YUM!

Four Days of Weight Watchers Magazine Recipes....starting with FISH!

I decided to make 4 new recipes this week from my new Weight Watchers Recipe Magazine. I wanted to start with this fish recipe because fish feels so light and today is a particularly warm day so light is just right today!
I have always been intrigued by crab cakes - never tried one - but they intrigue me! So when I saw this recipe for Dilled Salmon Cakes with Tzatziki Sauce I was hooked (no pun intended)! After making it Chad agreed this is a dish we need to make again in the near future!!!

Dilled Salmon Cakes with Tzatziki Sauce

Makes: 2 servings Total Time: 15 min

Submitted by: marciaeh5

Category: Dinner Entrees Sub Category: Fish & Seafood Entrees

what you need

• 2-6 oz. cans boneless, skinless pink salmon in water, drained
• 1/3 cup dry breadcrumbs
• 3 Tbsp. chopped green onions
• 1 Tbsp. chopped fresh dill
• 1 large egg
• 1/8 tsp. fresh ground pepper
• 2 tsp. canola oil
• 1/4 cup plain low-fat yogurt
• 1/4 grated seeded peeled cucumber
• 1/2 tsp. grated lemon rind
• 1/8 tsp. salt

make it

Combine first 6 ingredients in a medium bowl. Shape mixture into 4 (1/2 inch-thick) patties.


Heat oil in a large nonskillet over medium-high heat. Add salmon patties to pan; cook 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until browned.


While patties cook, combine yogurt and remaining ingredients. To serve, spoon cucumber sauce over salmon cakes.

Notes

YIELD: 2 servings (serving size: 2 salmon cakes and about 1/4 cup sauce).

** As a side dish I made a cherry tomato, cucumber salad with a light homemade balsamic vinaigrette!