Parmesan Rosemary Bread

This is a great bread to serve with soup and makes a killer grilled cheese sandwich. I made the grilled cheese sandwiches for my girls and ended up making myself one because it was sooo good!

1 loaf of Rhodes frozen dough
2 Tbsp of chopped fresh rosemary- about 2 sprigs
2 tbsp Parmesan cheese, shredded
1 Tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper

Place a loaf of Rhodes frozen dough in a loaf pan and let it rise for about 7 hours. Preheat oven to 350. Brush the top of the loaf with olive oil and sprinkle with chopped fresh rosemary. Sprinkle salt, pepper and 2 Tbsp of shredded Parmesan cheese on top of the bread. Bake for 25 min.

Calzones

Calzones are delicious and very easy to make. In this recipe, I fill them with salami and pepperoni but feel free to use your favorite Italian meats. You can also use 1lb of cooked Italian Sausage instead of the sliced meat.

8 slices of salami

24 slices of pepperoni

6 slices of Provolone cheese

1 container of Pillsbury pizza dough- use the regular thicker crust if it's available

1 jar of pizza sauce

1 Tbsp of olive oil

A sprinkle of herbs- you can use an Italian seasoning blend or a combination of rosemary, oregano, garlic powder and red pepper flakes

Preheat oven to 425. Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray. Spread the pizza dough on the cookie sheet and cut into fourths. Layer each piece of dough with 2 slices of salami, 1 slice of provolone, 6 slices of pepperoni and a 1/2 slice of provolone. Roll up calzones and place on baking sheet. In a small bowl, mix olive oil with a sprinkle Italian seasonings. Brush mixture on the calzones and bake for 15 min or until golden brown. Serve with pizza sauce.

Banana Cake-Dairy/Soy Free

I usually make banana bread or muffins with ripe bananas but yesterday I wanted to try something different. This recipe uses a boxed cake mix. It probably took me 10 minutes to mix everything together and get it in the oven. The cake is incredibly moist. If you don't have a bundt pan, use a 9x13 pan and reduce the cooking time. If you put a toothpick in the cake and it comes out with a bit of crumb on the toothpick, then the cake is ready!

1 box of vanilla or yellow cake mix

2 very ripe bananas, mashed

1 tsp baking soda

3 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup of butter, softened-Earth Balance Soy Free if doing dairy/soy free

2/3 cup of rice milk or milk

2 Tbsp lemon juice

Glaze

1/4 cup of powdered sugar

3-4 Tbsp of rice milk or milk

1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Spray pan with cooking spray. Put 2/3 cup of milk in a small bowl, add 1 Tbsp of lemon juice and set aside. In a large bowl, mix cake mix and baking soda. Mash bananas in a small bowl. Add eggs, milk, vanilla, mashed bananas and butter to cake mixture. Mix by hand or with a mixer for 2 min. Pour into greased pan and bake for 38-40 min if using a bundt pan, less for a 9x13 pan. Allow cake to cool on a cooling rack. To make the glaze, mix powdered sugar and vanilla in a small bowl. Use a whisk and start by adding a few Tbsp of milk at a time. The glaze should be thinner than a frosting. Drizzle over cake and enjoy!





Slow Cooker Chili Verde

This was my first attempt at chili verde and it was pretty darn good. The base of this chili is green tomatillo salsa instead of the typical red chili.  I like spicy food and a half jar of medium salsa gives this dish plenty of heat. I always add a beer when making any chili because it gives the chili a great flavor. You can definitely leave that out and add a bit of water instead. I served this with Tostitos Scoops, cheese and sour cream. YUM!

1 1/2 jars of salsa verde
1 can of diced tomatoes- regular or Mexican blend
2lbs of boneless pork roast or shoulder, cubed
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
1 beer, optional
1 cup of frozen or canned corn, optional
salt, pepper, cumin or chili powder for seasoning the pork
oil for cooking

Add a bit of oil to a large pan on medium heat. Add garlic and onions and cook for a few minutes. Add the cubed pork and cook until all sides are browned, aprox 5-10 min. You may add some spices to the pork as it cooks. I used cajun seasoning because that is what I had but cumin or chili powder would work well. Add browned pork to the crockpot and top with salsa and tomatoes. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. If using the beer and corn, add to crockpot after chili has been cooking for 3 hours. You can leave the meat in cubes or shred it as I did. To shred it, remove the meat, shred with a fork and then add pack to the chili and cook for 30 more min. Serve with cheese, sour cream and Scoops.

Italian Sausage Soup

This is super easy and perfect for fall. The best part is you can play around with the ingredients. Feel free to use whatever fresh or frozen veggies you have, beans or no beans, you get the picture. Taste before adding any salt. The beef broth is pretty salty and you can add some water if necessary.

I made this in the crockpot but you can also cook it in a large pot on the stovetop. Be sure to add the spinach and noodles towards the end of cooking or they will both become very mushy.

1 pound Italian sausage, removed from casing

1 clove garlic, minced

3(14 ounce) cans beef broth- 1 regular and 2 low sodium

1 cup of water- if necessary

1(14.5 ounce) can Italian-style stewed tomatoes, undrained

2 cups of sliced carrots

1 (14.5 ounce) can great Northern beans, drained

2 cups of green beans, corn, broccoli, or zucchini

2 cups of baby spinach

1 cup of elbow macaroni or other small pasta

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon salt, if necessary

shredded Parmesan cheese, if desired

To make in the crockpot- Remove sausage from casing and brown with garlic in a pan. Place sausage in the crockpot with the remaining ingredients. Cook on low for 2-3 hours. Give the soup a taste and adjust seasonings if necessary. Add noodles 30 min before serving and spinach a few minutes before serving. Top with Parmesan cheese if desired.

To make on the stovetop- In a stockpot, brown sausage with garlic. Stir in broth, tomatoes and carrots. Taste the soup before adding salt and pepper because the beef broth is quite salty. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer 15 minutes. Stir in beans and zucchini and turn on low heat. Add noodles 15 min before serving and spinach 5 min before serving. Total cooking time on the stovetop is 45-60 min. Top with Parmesan cheese if desired.

BBQ Chicken Sandwiches

Early yesterday morning, I knew I was going to make something in the crockpot with chicken but I wasn't sure exactly what I was going to make. Once again, my favorite website Allrecipes.com came to the rescue. There are so many recipes and often several different variations. The reviews are so helpful and the people who write them are home cooks and not gourmet chefs so it's easy to relate.

The original recipe calls for boneless chicken breasts but I used a combination of bone-in dark meat and boneless breasts because that's what I had. Regardless, you will need to shred the chicken at the end. I added a bit of spice rub and extra BBQ sauce after I shredded the chicken to give it a bit more flavor.

6 boneless chicken breasts
1/2 bottle of BBQ sauce plus additional before serving
1/2 cup of Italian dressing
2 Tbsp of Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup of brown sugar
Spice rub (optional)

Mix BBQ sauce, Italian dressing, W sauce and brown sugar in a bowl. Place chicken breasts in the slow cooker and pour mixture over the chicken. Cook on low for 6-8 hours of high 3-4 hours. Before serving, remove chicken and shred. Save 1 cup of the cooking liquid and discard the remaining liquid. Place chicken back in the slow cooker, add 1 cup of the liquid and additional BBQ sauce and spice rub if desired. Cook on low for an additional 15-30 min to warm the shredded chicken. Serve on buns and top with french fried onions if desired.

Queso Dip

This is my favorite queso dip. You can make it and serve immediately or put it in a slow cooker on low for a party. The spicy sausage gives the queso a great flavor. You can use diced tomatoes or salsa in this recipe. If you like a thicker queso, use the tomatoes. Otherwise, use the salsa. Another option is to add a bit of salsa after you add the tomatoes to thin it out a bit.

1lb Bob Evans Spicy Sausage
1 16oz package of Velveeta, cut up
1 10oz can of diced tomatoes with chilies, undrained
or
16 oz jar of salsa

Cook the sausage in a pan on medium and drain on a paper towel. Return sausage to the pan and add cheese and tomatoes. Cook and stir frequently until cheese is melted. Serve immediately. If you are taking this to a party, you can cook the sausage ahead of time, then add the cheese and tomatoes and microwave before serving. Serve with scoops or tortilla chips.