Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Sausage & Gravy Pizza aka Ugly Breakfast Pizza


For some reason I keep meaning to post this recipe for breakfast pizza but then decide no, It's my favorite and my creation.  I've never shared the recipe because I like being begged to make it for my family and friends.  This pizza is so so easy to make though and not hard to guess how it is made so I'm gonna guess that my friends and family are just lazy with a capital 'L'.  Really, it's that simple to make.

I based it on the breakfast pizza my elementary school cafeteria served. When you really want to channel the school cafeteria vibe shape the pizza into a rectangular pizza.  Actually if you do this the easy way and use Pillsbury pizza dough your going to end up with a rectangle anyways!

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Pin All the Things! 03/25/12


This week as gone by so quickly!  How many of ya wet out to the movies to see Hunger Games?  I opted out.  I'm not a fan of opening weekends and this movie is really popular so I knew it would be crowded.  I love going to the movies but lately it's become annoying.  Cell phones, light up shoes and whiny babies (and adults).  They've all conspired to make going to the movies un-enjoyable.  The last movie I saw in the theater was Puss in Boots on Thanksgiving last year.  Barely anyone in there except the family with the child with light up shoes who couldn't sit still. Whole theater to sit in and they choose to sit in the same row as us.  Those shows were very bright!  The movie was very good though and I can't wait to see Hunger Games next Friday.  I'm sure the theater will still be packed but I just can't wait for the DVD to come out, lol!

Last weekend I picked up a couple of cute items I thought I'd share with you.

My favorite place in the world in Bath & Body Works.  I really love their candles.  I keep trying other brands but theirs are just so smelly-ful!



I picked Peach Bellini.  It smells sweet and fruity.


Peter picked this one out.  It's more minty than lemony which makes me sad.  Peter absolutely loves.  I think it's a bit weird but not bad.

I randomly saw the following item at the grocery store near the cake mixes.  It's so cute!


It's a cupcake holder!  So awesome.  Now I can pack cupcakes in my lunch for work.  It will probably still be a little messy but better than simply sticking it in ziplock baggie.

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Das V-8 Stew (a post written by my Husband)


I'm feeling severely lazy tonight so my husband helped me out by writing the following.  I think he did a great job.  All pictures and pictured food are me, all opinions his=)  -H


"V-8 Stew"
a guest post by Mr. Penguin
aka The Husband


My wife, in case you readers don't know this already, is a wonderful cook.  She's brought dozens of her own recipes into out marriage, as well as taking on many of my family's classic dishes.  This one, however, is one of hers; V-8 Stew.  It's so-called, appropriately enough, because the key ingredient is V-8 vegetable juice.

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

St. Patrick's Day 2012


This year, like every year before, we celebrated St. Patrick's Day by staying in.  No green beer at the pub for us!  This year I decided to make the best corned beef and cabbage ever.  In years past I would  just stick the hunk of meat in the crock-pot with some potatoes and carrots.  But you know what?  That is not good eats!  It's a side of greasy beef and limp veggies THAT'S what that is!

I looked around the 'net and came to the conclusion that crock-pot cooking is not the way to go but low and slow in the oven might do the tasty trick.


So gather up some sliced yellow onion, your favorite beer (or your significant other's favorite beer if your like me and have no clue about what a good beer is because you think beer is icky), a corned beef with seasoning packet and some water (not pictured).

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Pin All the Things!


This week has been so busy!  I did a lot of cooking and photos for upcoming blog posts and cooked an awesomely huge St. Patrick's Day dinner.  You would have thought it was a major holiday or something!  I made corned beef, cabbage, potatoes and carrots, biscuits and rice crispie treats for dessert.  It took 4 hours to make all that food and maybe 20minutes to devour it.  Amazing.

I also started (and completed!) a couple of projects I pinned last week.  My goal board is done and my baby quilt is almost done (I ran out of thread!).  The baby quilt was a challenge, I cannot find freezer paper anywhere.  I substituted contact paper instead and while it works I wouldn't recommend it.  Also I made the mistake of leaving it pieced out on the table.  My fellow housemates mistook it for a new tablecloth.  Not good!

Thursday, March 15, 2012

The Food Track Bazaar

Source
Know what's better than food?  Mobile food!  I found the most awesome monthly event in my town.  It's called the Food Truck Bazaar and it's a gathering of food trucks from all around Orlando.  Our local event is every 1st Monday of the month at the Convention Center.  For some weird reason I figured it wouldn't be a very crowded event but boy was  wrong!  if you go be prepared for long lines and rubbing elbows.  There is also alcohol being served so it can be mite bit rowdy but I would still say it is family friendly.  No one was getting drop down drunk (that I noticed).

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Where Granola Bars Become Cereal


I keep seeing a recipe for homemade chocolate chip granola bars, most recently on Brown Eyed Baker.  My husband loves chewy granola bars.  I like them too but prefer the crunchy ones (or I would if they didn't shed crumbs all over the place).  The recipe looks deceptively simple.  Yes, that's right.  Deceptively simple.

I'm not really sure where I went wrong.  I took step-by step pictures so maybe someone out there can help me figure it out?  Okay, just kidding I don't need help figuring out what happened.  After reading the comments of other brave should who tried out this recipe I have learned I am not the only one to have a difficult time with it.  Maybe it was too much butter, maybe I didn't cook the syrup long enough or maybe I didn't pack down the cereal mixture hard enough.  Maybe a combo of all three?  Anyway, I do plan on making them again.  Learn from my fail:


Saturday, March 10, 2012

Pin All the Things!


I've decided that since I spend a lot of my free time on Pinterest I would like to share what I pinned this week.  If you don't know what Pinterest is I feel sorry for you, your lucky, you should check it out!  It's a marvelous time waster way to keep track of the things that inspire you as you browse the web.  Feel free to join and follow me as I pin all the things!

Thursday, March 8, 2012

The Corndog Muffin

I keep seeing these corn dog muffin things on Pintrest.  I pinned the recipe and then forgot about them.  Then lo and behold my Aunt posts on her facebook that she is making them and even posts pictures.  Her verdict: yummy! I like corn dogs but my husband really really likes corn dogs!  They're a freezer staple around here so this recipe is pretty much guaranteed to be loved by him.  Me, I'm not the keen on the idea.  There just isn't something right about them.  I like my corn dogs on a stick and preferable deep fried or at least extra crispy.  Unlike my husband who will microwave them.  Ew!


Despite my misgiving I decided to give them a chance and bake up a batch myself.  I figure at the very least they will be excellent in my lunch the next day and Peter will love me long time for making him his favorite food.  Also my if my Aunt says they are yummy then they must be.  I just trust her that much.

Well I make them.  And they are okay.  Peter and our roommate ate them up.  Me, I just couldn't.  Do they taste bad?  Absolutely not!  They taste great.  Is it the same as eating a corn dog from the fair, definitely not.  To me they were just too weird.  Is it a muffin?  a corn dog?  a mutant with super powers?  My mind just can't figure it out and thus I am inexplicable unable to eat these things.  They are just too weird for my taste buds.  I actually think it's a texture problem.  I'm not a savory muffin fan.  All muffins are sweet and/or fruity.

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus and Cookbook Review


 I pack a lunch for work almost everyday.  I rarely go out for lunch because it is such a hassle.  I work at a courthouse so I would have get through the security when I got back and at least 15-20 minutes would have to be devoted to just getting to may car and finding a good parking spot when I returned (which just isn't going to happen!).  I also try to pack things that don't need re-heated because I have limited access to the microwave.  I have a thermos that I'll use when I am not feeling particularly lazy in the morning and have time to heat up leftovers or a can of soup/pasta to put in it but whatever I pack in it isn't particular piping hot; more like lukewarm.  Which is sad because it very cold in my office and crave hot soup sometimes.


I get so bored when all I have to pack in my lunchbox is a sandwich.  I really try to get creative and love bento style lunches.  I also try to eat a healthy and balanced lunch.  I recently discovered I like hummus, especially the stuff with roasted red pepper in it.  I have stumbled across a few recipes but never dared to try them because roasting a red pepper would a pain in the butt.  I was wrong.  It's so simple a caveman can do it (no offense to any cave-people out there).


I also happened to buy a wonderful cookbook at Kohl's.  It's called The Top 100 Recipes for a Healthy Lunchbox by Nicola Graimes.  It has a ton of beautiful pictures and real easy to follow recipes.  I'm hoping to spice up my lunchtime choices with this awesome resource.  So far I have only tried her hummus recipe and if they are all as wonderful as this was I am not going to be disappointed.