Twice Baked Potatoes

I am the Queen of Leftovers. 

I love them.  I love to eat leftovers from restaurants.  I love to reheat meals from early in the week, especially on days I don't feel like cooking.  But most of all I love to take a bunch of random pieces and repurpose them into a new meal.

Amanda stayed in Solon tonight which threw off the meal plan (yep, I have a meal plan!) so I decided to improvise with leftovers and push back our Tuesday meal to Wednesday.

The ingredients: a potato, leftover chicken from a Greek chicken wrap, green onions (duh!), shredded sharp white cheddar cheese that's going to be used in a Super Bowl recipe.

I baked the potato for a hour at 400 degrees.  When it had cooled a bit, I scooped out the middle while leaving the skin.

I mixed the potato with the green onions, chicken and cheese.  I added a tiny bit of margarine, some milk, some Frank's hot sauce & some seasonings like garlic salt, pepper & chili powder.  I then placed the mixture back into the potato and baked for another 15 minutes.

I usually have potatoes lying around and adding the chicken, green onions & cheese helped to stretch a potato into a heartier meal.  I've made twice baked potatoes before but today was the first time that I thought to add Frank's.  Let me tell ya, it was a good addition! 

Cricut Cards

I decided to use this lazy Sunday to make a few cards using my Cricut machine.  Let me just say, I am even more obsessed with it than I was last time... and I'm fairly certain I will continue to get more and more obsessed.  Because it. is. awesome.

Here are a few of the cards I made:

Bethany, when I send this to you (and it's perfect for you, right?!), pretend like you've never seen it before :)



Quinoa Tabouli

It's all Greek to me... at least for this weekend!  And I'm hoping that some English teachers are reading this post so the allusion is noticed ;)

I had vegetables left over from the Greek salad so I decided to try to make tabouli; instead of bulgar, I used quinoa.  I like tabouli and I really liked the quinoa substitution but I don't think it had much flavor.. which is obviously something that can be fixed next time.

I used about a cup of cherry tomatoes, a cup of cucumbers, 2/3 cup green peppers, 1/4 cup green onions, 1/2 cup parsley and a 1/2 cup cooked quinoa.

I used some olive oil, half of a juiced lemon, some cumin, dill, garlic salt & pepper as the sauce.  I don't think I used enough dressing & I don't think I had enough seasonings.  All in all, I think it's a decent recipe (and is healthier than traditional tabouli) but could use more flavor.

Greek Salad (and Pierogies!)

My Grandma Bajerski made my FAVORITE meal in the world: homemade pierogies.  There is nothing like her pierogies.  I've tried to eat the frozen ones but they're simply not good.  I've tried to eat them at restaurants but they're too doughy.  I've tried them at farmer's markets & the fillling isn't how I like it.  My grandma makes the BEST pierogies.  So when I saw her yesterday and she gave them to me, you can imagine my excitement!  She sent the uncooked pierogies home with me so that I could make them for my roommate and my taste-testing boys (I wonder where I get my need to feed the masses... must be genetic!) so I thought I'd have some for dinner. 

I didn't want to eat just pierogies so I made a Greek salad to go with them.  The nice thing is that this salad can be used as a side dish or you could add grilled chicken & make it a main dish.

I used romaine lettuce for it.  I halved it length-wise and then cut very thin strips.  I've always liked my salads finely chopped & evenly mixed...to the point of being obsessive-compulsive about it (imagine that!).

I also played with my new camera a little bit.  I thought it took pretty nice pictures.  I was in a rush to eat so I didn't really mess around too much but I liked what I saw in that little bit of food photography!

I then added artichoke hearts, cherry tomatoes, chick peas, green peppers, a bit of red pepper, green onions, red onions, cucumbers & parsley.  I finished it off with some goat cheese because I didn't have any feta.

I tossed it all together & evenly distributed my salad dressing in order to make my perfect side salad!

I then paired it with my pierogies & it was HEAVEN.  Ryan's exact response: "they don't taste anything like the frozen ones.  Now I see why you freak out over them.  They were bomb" -- looks like a resounding endorsement to me, though I wasn't worried!

The only thing that could've been better than pierogies & a side salad is pierogies & my grammy's kielbasa.  I'll tell ya what, us Pollocks can make a meal :)

Breakfast Braid

I was in Columbus for the weekend & decided to make breakfast for Robyn on Saturday morning.  There were a few bumps in the road but all in all it was delicious & I plan on making it for my taste-testing boys sometime in the next few weeks!

Ingredients:
1 package of reduced-fat crescent rolls
5 eggs
seasonings (cayenne pepper, garlic powder, salt & pepper)
6 slices of bacon, cooked & crumbled
green onions, diced
cheese, shredded (we used cheddar but I think pepper jack would be delicious!)
sriracha, optional... I guess.  It was sooo good so I'd definitely recommend it!

Directions:
Cook the bacon, pat out the grease with a paper towel & crumble into smaller pieces.

Season the eggs with cayenne pepper, garlic powder, salt & pepper and scramble.

I thought that the precut slits in the crescent rolls would inhibit my braiding ability so I got the brilliant idea to roll it into a ball with the plans of rolling it back out myself.  The only problem: I didn't check to see if Robyn had a rolling pin.  We were resourceful & used a (clean!) bottle of Pam.  In hindsight, I would've checked first.. and decided to leave the crescent roll the way it was!  Here is the picture of my failed crescent roll.

I then layered the ingredients over the (raggedy) crescent roll: half the bacon, some green onions, half the eggs, some cheese, the rest of the bacon, more green onions, the rest of the eggs, more cheese. 

I cut slits in the dough & "braided" them over the mound of breakfasty goodness.

I cooked it for 13-15 minutes but it was still pretty doughy so I put it back in for another 5 or so.  I think part of the problem was that the dough was thicker than normal (again, because of the back-fired dough rolling, ugh!) so it took longer to cook.  Ya live & ya learn, I suppose.

It still turned out really well & I've got to be honest: I think the lumpiness of the dough actually made it look prettier in the end.  And check out that dish -- Robyn looked all over for some "seasonally appropriate" dishware (proof both that she reads the blog & knows what a dork I am) and while this isn't seasonal per se, how perfect is the shape?!

If this isn't something you'd like to wake up to on a Saturday or Sunday morning, something must be wrong with you.  I mean, really -- look at that deliciousness!

Add some Sriracha & you're good to go!  The nice thing about this recipe is that the possibilities are endless; you could use sausage, ham, veggies, etc.

Cricut Quotes

I recently purchased a Cricut machine & I am o.b.s.e.s.s.e.d. 

I haven't had the time to use it to make any cards and I don't have the space to scrapbook anymore (but I have been dreaming about the day when I have a craft room in my house!) so I've had to settle for smaller projects.

My sister found a picture of this quote with the differing colors on Pinterest so I thought I would use the Cricut to cut out letters for this quote & then I framed it for my bedroom.

My sister liked it  & wanted me to make something for her bathroom.  This is a close up of the lyrics she used (who doesn't need more Michael references in their homes?!) and a picture of them hanging in her bathroom.

I'm excited to find more projects & crafts in the coming winter months!

Oreo Cupcakes

I saw this recipe on Pinterest & made them the same night I was making stuffed peppers.  I've decided that I need more counter space and a double oven... in my rented apartment.  While I don't have the money or ability to have a double oven, I had to improvise by cooking the peppers in the boys' apartment upstairs.  Consequently, I was running around between apartments, cleaning up the dirty dishes & cooking millions of things at once.  My point in all of this is that the pictures are lacking because I was a crazy busy person while I was cooking & cleaning ;)

The title of this blog is "Grate Expectations... with the possibility of epic failure."  In my opinion, this was a failure -- not "epic" but a failure nonetheless.  That being said, some of my friends have eaten several cupcakes and have enjoyed them so I suppose you can be the judge.  I thought they were wayy too sweet.  And quite honestly, had wayy to many steps to be worth it!

Ingredients:
24 Oreos, halved (with cream filling) -- I got VERY good at twisting!
2 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
8 tbsp. unsalted butter
1 2/3 cup sugar (probably why they tasted so sweet!)
3 large egg whites, room temperature
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup milk
20 Oreos chopped in fairly big pieces
4 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
3 tbsp. unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 tbsp. vanilla extract
2 c. confectioners' sugar
1 tbsp. heavy cream
Oreo cookie crumbs (because crazy people like to garnish their cupcakes at 11:45 PM when they're finishing cooking)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners -- seriously, how cute are these?!

Place one of the Oreo halves with cream filling in the bottom of the cupcake liners.  I'll tell ya what, the surprise Oreo crust is a fan favorite!

In a small bowl combine the flour, baking powder & salt & mix together with a fork.
In a large bowl combine the butter & sugar and beat until light & fluffy.  Blend in the egg whites one at a time.  Make sure to scrape the edges of the bowl between each egg addition.  Blend in the vanilla extract.  Beat in half of the dry ingredients.  Add the milk & beat in the rest of the dry ingredients until just combined.  Gently fold in the oreos to the batter.

Bet you believe me now that there are too many steps!

Fill the cupcakes about 3/4 of the way & bake for about 20 minutes.  You should be able to insert a toothpick into the center & have it come out clean.  Let them sit in the pan for about 5 minutes between moving to a wire rack.

To make the frosting, combine the cream cheese and butter and beat on high for 2-3 minutes.  Blend in the vanilla extract.  Beat in the confectioners' sugar & blend until smooth.  Add the heavy cream & blend until combined.  Then increase the speed  & whip for 2-3 minutes.

Frost the cupcakes & sprinkle the crumbled Oreos on top.  I also garnished them with the leftover cookies that had been halved to make the surprise Oreo crust.

While they look tasty, I don't really think they're worth the time -- they do LOOK good though!

Stuffed Peppers

My sister & I absolutely love my mom's stuffed pepper recipe.  I think I've made it one other time but it was years ago so I thought I was due.  All in all, they turned out pretty well -- not as good as my mom's but that's not surprising! 

Ingredients:
2 lbs. ground beef
1 cup cooked rice
2 eggs
various seasonings (garlic powder, onion powder, seasoned salt, pepper, etc.)
7-8 peppers
1 stalk celery, diced
1/2 an onion, diced
3 cans tomato soup

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Wash the peppers, cut off the tops & cut out the seeds & pith.

Cut a hole in the bottom of the peppers so the water can drain as they cook.

How fresh & tasty do those peppers look?!

Now you'll need to prepare the meat.  Combine the meat, eggs, rice & seasonings together.
Roll the meat into baseball-sized balls & put them inside the peppers.

Saute onions & celery in a large pot. 

When they're soft, add the 3 cans of tomato soup.  Also, add about a half a can of water.  Mix together.  Add the peppers & meat to the pan & put some of the sauce on top of the meat balls while they cook. 

Cover the pot & cook for 2-3 hours.  I took them out of the oven after a little over an hour, squeezed out some of the water from the peppers & put a bit more sauce over them.  Put them back in the oven for another hour or so.

Take them out of the oven, serve with mashed potatoes & enjoy!  These are a perfect winter dish & are pretty easy to make.

Spicy Whiskey BBQ Sliders

This was my first attempt at a recipe from The Pioneer Woman. I decided to do it on a Sunday so that I would have a bigger audience of taste testers. I made 12 sliders & 10 were eagerly eaten so I would say this recipe was a good one!

Ingredients:
2 lbs. ground beef (I wanted to use bison but it was triple the price so I went with lean beef!)
12 small rolls
Butter Salt & pepper
1 onion, diced
1/3 cup jarred jalapeños
1/2 cup whiskey
1 cup BBQ sauce

Directions:
Divide the meat into 12 patties. Season the patties with salt & pepper.

Melt a little bit of butter in a pan & cook the patties in 2 separate batches so they cook evenly. Cook them at medium-high for 3-4 minutes on each side. Make sure that they cook thoroughly but without burning. When you're done with the first batch, cook the next set of 6 sliders.

Set the sliders aside & cook the onions in the grease from the burgers. Because I used such lean beef, I didn't have much grease. If you use fattier beef, you may want to drain some of the grease. Cook the onions for 3-4 minutes, or until tender.

Add the whiskey & deglaze the pan. Cook the onions in the whiskey for 2-3 minutes. I'm not a huge whiskey fan (I had to get it from my dad because we don't even have any here!) so I was a little nervous to cook with it. Even though the smell seemed potent enough to get me drunk, it was a much milder taste once it had cooked off.

While the onions are cooking, butter the buns & place them in a separate pan to brown.

Add the jalapeños & BBQ sauce to the onions & stir together.

Place all the burgers into the pan & let it all simmer together. Flip the burgers so the sauce fully coats the burgers.

When making your sandwiches, make sure to get plenty of sauce, onions & jalapeños on every bun. We had the sliders with some tots. Now I know that my taste testers aren't very picky (their alternative options involve take out & some sort of personal effort!) but these seemed to be a hit!

Split Pea Soup

Split pea is my favorite soup but I hadn't ever made it so when I got a ham bone from a co-worker I figured I'd give it a shot.  It turned out so well & was super easy!

Ingredients:
1 package of split green peas
1 potato (diced)
3 (skinny) carrots (diced)
2 stalks of celery (diced)
7 cups of water
1 ham bone
1/2 onion (diced)
1 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of pepper
A bit of a few other seasonings (paprika, chili powder, marjoram, garlic powder)

Place the onions, potatoes, carrots, celery & seasonings into a crock pot.

Rinse the green peas.  Add the 7 cups of water & the rinsed green peas to the crock pot & mix together.  Add the ham bone.  Cover & cook on low for 8ish hours.

Take the ham bone out & use two forks to shred the meat.  Add it back to the pot, stir & serve.  We ate it with pumpernickel bread & a caprese salad... in seasonally appropriate dishes :)

Enjoy!

Avocado Chicken Salad

I saw a photo of this on Pinterest and HAD to try it.  I love chicken salad & I figured adding avocado would make it even better!  I wasn't at home when I made it & they didn't have any mayonnaise so I simply substituted the avocado for the mayo.  When I make this again, I'll probably add a tiny bit of mayo because it was a little dry.  Not only is this much healthier than traditional chicken salad but the avocado flavor was a really good addition.

I simply shredded rotisserie chicken, diced up a cucumber, sliced up green onions & smashed up an avocado.

They didn't have many seasonings so I just added some garlic powder & sea salt.  When I make it again, I'll probably add some pepper, cayenne pepper & paprika. I mixed everything together and added some olive oil.

We ate it on wheat ciabatta crostinis with olive oil & sea salt -- LOVE. 

Paula Deen's Cream Cheese Blossom

I got this recipe from a coworker...who got it from Paula Deen.  I made it for New Year's weekend but the colors certainly would work well to take to a Christmas party.

Ingredients:
2 8oz. packages of cream cheese, room temperature
20 pistachios
1 clove of garlic
3/4 container of pesto
sun dried tomatoes
package of slices provolone
You'll also need a medium sized bowl, saran wrap & a food processor

The first step is to line the bowl with saran wrap.  I used two pieces to be sure that the entire dish was covered.

Place a slice of provolone at the bottom of the bowl.  Then line the rest of the bowl with provolone, reserving 3 slices for later.

Combine the cream cheese, pistachios & garlic in a food processor.  Spread about 1/4 of the mixture over the provolone slices.

Add the pesto layer over the cream cheese layer.

Add about half of the remaining cream cheese over the pesto.  I forgot to photograph this step.  Chop the sundried tomatoes in the food processor (add oil if they're too dry) and add them over the cream cheese layer. 

Add the rest of the cream cheese over the sundried tomatoes.  I think the layers were supposed to be distinct and separate but mine were not.  I'm not sure if I had too many sundried tomatoes or what.  Obviously the proportions do not affect anything but the aesthetics so it's really nothing to worry about.

Place the remaining slices of provolone on top of the final cream cheese layer.

Wrap up the cheese ball & place in the freezer until firm.

Flip the ball over and place on a plate.  And, if you're anything like me, serve using your seasonally appropriate spreaders :)

The layers aren't as distinct as Paula's but the ball was delicious!