Bird's Egg Nest

I made these cute little treats with my daughter today so that she would have something to welcome Spring in to give to her teachers at school.

Aren't they cute? They're super easy too.

Here's how to make them.

Makes 2 1/2 dozen cookies

12 oz. package chow mein noodles
12 oz. package butterscotch morsels
1/2 Cup of Peanut butter (I added this - it didn't call for it in the original recipe)
90 egg-shaped candies (I used Cadbury chocolate eggs)

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat. Pour the butterscotch morsels and p.butter in a microwave-safe bowl and place them in the microwave. Heat for 30 seconds then remove to stir. Return to the microwave and heat again for 30 seconds. Stir until melted. Add in the chow mein noodles and mix till combined. Use a 1/4 measuring cup to portion out the cookies onto the baking sheet. If the mixture starts to solidify in the mixing bowl, you can reheat for 15 to 30 seconds to melt. Place three egg-shaped candies in the center of each cookie. Allow to set for at least 5 minutes before serving or transferring.

Done.

Parents Review: They are yummy! They taste like the haystacks my mom and I make for Christmas time.
Kids Review: It's sugar. They loved it.

Honey-Soy Broiled Salmon

David and I really like Salmon. There are many, many ways to cook salmon. This is just one of those ways.

Ingredients

1 scallion, minced
2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
1 pound center-cut salmon fillet, skinned and cut into 4 portions
1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds

Directions

1. Whisk scallion, soy sauce, vinegar, honey and ginger in a medium bowl until the honey is dissolved. Place salmon in a sealable plastic bag, add 3 tablespoons of the sauce and refrigerate; let marinate for 15 minutes. Reserve the remaining sauce.

2. Preheat broiler. Line a small baking pan with foil and coat with cooking spray. Transfer the salmon to the pan, skinned-side down. (Discard the marinade.) Broil the salmon 4 to 6 inches from the heat source until cooked through, 6 to 10 minutes. Drizzle with the reserved sauce and garnish with sesame seeds.

Tips: How to skin a salmon fillet: Place salmon fillet on a clean cutting board, skin-side down. Starting at the tail end, slip the blade of a long knife between the fish flesh and the skin, holding down firmly with your other hand. Gently push the blade along at a 30° angle, separating the fillet from the skin without cutting through either.

To toast seeds: Cook in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant and lightly browned, 2 to 4 minutes.


I didn't toast the sesame seeds on this batch because I was out, but they really do add a lot of flavor. I usually like to serve my salmon with a baked potato and broccoli. Yummy!

Parents Review: Great meal! Another great way to cook salmon is just in a little olive oil in a frying pan. Sear on both sides until cooked through and salt and pepper. Squeeze with lemon when cooked. Make a quick sauce of mayo, chopped pickles and some of the juice and put it in the fridge an hour or so before you eat. It's such a great little tartar sauce for your salmon.

Kids Review: They both love salmon. Little Girl just needs ketchup to dip it in.
:-)

barbecue pork sandwiches

It's another Crockpot recipe! My friend Carli told me how to do this way back when and I loved how easy and tasty this one was. And when I see easy, I mean EAAAAAAAA-SY.

Throw your pork roast (I like Pork Sirloin Roast) into the crockpot on low and cook it in either apple juice or apple cider vinegar. The latter one stinks a little bit while cooking, but it totally moistens your meat and makes it tasty and juicy. Let it cook all day and the last hour - throw in your favorite barbecue sauce after shredding your meat up with 2 forks. Let it get all warmed up and yummy and throw it on top of your favorite bun or bread.

I served mine with potato wedges and broccoli and loved it.


Parents Review: I have only tried it with the vinegar and would really like to try the apple juice next time. It is very tasty and it's fun because it's different than what I usually make.

Kids Review: They both really liked it!

Easy Chicken Taco Night - Crock pot style

I love Easy.

I love chicken.

I love taco Night.

I love my crockpot.

This recipe is a total home-run in my book. I adapted this recipe from one of my favorite sites - A year of Slow Cooking. It's all crockpot - all the time. Love this site!!

Here's a pic of the results in your crock pot after slaving away cooking for several hours on your countertop.

I literally threw a couple of half frozen chicken breasts in the crock with all the ingredients. I also threw in about 1/4 cup of taco seasoning too. I know the recipe has that as an option and I just thought it would be more flavorful that way. After it cooked for about 5 or 6 hours - I just opened it up and shredded the chicken with a fork and stirred it all up.

Here's a link to the recipe

Parents review: We enjoyed it. It was so easy and I just added some of my Trader Joe's salsa verde on top, along with sour cream, cheese and guacamole or avocado. Really great.

Kids Review: Baby Boy loved it and gobbled it up. Little Girl hated that it was "all mixed together". She took 3 bites and then ate chips with it, which was good enough for me that night.

Quick Whole Wheat Yeast Rolls

Yes. These yummy rolls actually look like muffins. I know. I had no idea how these would turn out. I don't do a lot of yeast bread baking because sometimes they seem too finicky for my liking. These were SO GREAT.

My mom and dad came into town tonight and I had some chicken parmesan in the crock pot and I wanted to make some whole wheat rolls to go with it. I ate 2, even though my stomach told me one was plenty. They were so yummy!

Here's the recipe.



The only things I changed was I made 1 1/2 recipe so I would have 12 rolls/muffins, I used 3/4 whole wheat flour and only 1/4 of regular white flour, and I basted a little butter over the rolls before I popped them in the oven.

Parents Review: You really should try them. They weren't hard and the yeasty-bready- smell in the house made my taste buds water. They did not disappoint. David and I both thought they were a hit.

Kids Review: Loved!

Touchdown Chicken Fajitas

This is a house favorite. It's my "go to" recipe for easy chicken fajitas. I love the fresh little avocado salsa you make to go with it and the crunchy italian flavored veggies.

Here's the recipe for this yummy dinner.

The only thing I don't use in the recipe is the jicama and this is because I don't really know what it is and I don't think the recipe misses anything from it.

I like my fajitas wrapped up in a whole wheat tortilla and topped with some of my Trader Joe's Salsa Verde. David likes his by itself like a little hodge-podge on his plate. Either way - Yum!



Parents Review: It's very tasty. Lots of flavor with this chicken and we usually just grill it on the George Foreman

Kids Review: They really enjoy it. I don't put the avocado salsa on theirs, but they love just some chopped up plain avocado and some refried beans on the side. Huge hit!

Pork Roast with potatoes and veggies

Don't get scared. I know I am making roast again, but I promise this one isn't like my other roast fiasco..

This one actually tastes good!!!

And, it's pork instead of beef.

My sister had us over for dinner a few weeks ago when we were up in my hometown for my nephew Cooper's baby dedication at their church. She cooked us a pork sirloin roast, and Dave and I were in love. Have you girls ever used this cut of meat before? I hadn't and the texture is so moist and so awesome. It has a ton of flavor, and very little fat.

Kim had just seasoned hers with some spices she had there, and I just improvised my own and it turned out awesome. Here's what I did.

3-4 lb. pork sirloin roast
1 packet lipton onion soup mix (it's all I had on hand, and I thought it would work)
1 can beef broth
a few splashes of red wine (I think I used 1/4 - 1/2 cup)
cubed yukon gold potatoes and sliced carrots

Throw everything in the crockpot and cook on low all day. Oh my word! Yummy! No fuss. No work. Tastes perfect.

Parents Review: We gobbled it up and I could've ate so much more than I did. Restraint. Restraint.

Kids Review: They kept saying "yummy mommy. I like it." Mak didn't love the cooked veggies, but again - nothing new. She ate some raw veggies instead. :-)



Leave me a note if you've stopped by today, OR become a follower if you haven't done so already. I would also love to know if you try this roast. It's a great one. I will be making it again soon!

Happy eating!

Pretzel Pizza Bites

I made these Pizza Pretzel Bites that I found on a really fun recipe blog site called Two Peas and Their Pod. I've only been to their site a few times, because I actually believe they are vegetarian, so a lot of their recipes aren't totally my thing, but this one was DEE-LISH. Here's a link to their post with the recipe and also their very beautiful pictures that put mine to shame. :-)

It also was very TEDIOUS. Shew! Wow. I've never made anything like this from scratch and it was a job. I actually think I would like to try their pretzel bites with a home-made cheese sauce and it would probably only be half the time since I wouldn't have to roll each one out, stuff it, pinch it closed and then do that all again 5 dozen more times. Yikes.

I made them for my lifegroup girls when we all got together on Friday night. They were a huge hit, but again, I don't think I have enough time to ever make them again. :-)




I used Turkey Pepperoni and Mozzarella cheese. I don't think I put enough in there, but it was great anyway!!

Parents Review: Dave and I loved them and kept popping them like candy

Kids Review: Mak wasn't a fan of the pepperoni inside, but no huge surprise there. Michael - I had to cut off because he ate so many!

I am cooking a pork roast in the crockpot right now with taters and veggies and the smell is awesome. I will post the recipe this week.

Have a great night!