Mom's Cornbread Casserole

My mom made this for my dad and I when I was staying with them, and I knew I had to make it for B as soon as he got home. He loved it! It's a quick, easy recipe that has easily become one of my favorites.

Mom's Cornbread Casserole

1. Start with a box of Firenza cornbread mix. 

2. Mix the ingredients according to the recipe on the box, and add a little sprinkle cheese.

{Yes, my family calls grated/shredded cheese "sprinkle cheese". You "sprinkle" it, get it?}

4. Brown 1 lb. of ground meat on the stove.

5. Add frozen corn {as much as you'd like}, salt and pepper.

6. Pour meat and corn into the bottom of a 9x13 pan.

7. Cover meat and corn with cornbread mixture.

8. Add more sprinkle cheese on top.



 9. Bake according to cornbread recipe.

10. Enjoy!

Like I said, this is extremely good! When my mom made it, she made a delicious salad to go with it. I don't make as good of a salad as my mom, so I've been enjoying it with a sliced avocado. Yum! 

Stuffed Strawberries

I cannot take credit for this recipe. It was given to me by Deidra Froebel at one of my wedding showers. Thanks, Deidra!

I have now made these yummy strawberries for two different wedding showers, and each time I received numerous compliments and requests for the recipe. Enjoy!

Stuffed Strawberries

Ingredients:

20 whole, large strawberries

8 oz. cream cheese

1/4 cup powdered sugar (add more for sweeter filling)

1/4 tsp. vanilla

2/3 cup chopped pecans

Directions:

1. Cut a thin slice from the bottom {skinny end} of each berry. This helps them to stand upright.

2. Cut a thin slice from top of each berry to remove the leafy part.

3. Use strawberry corer to remove the middle of each berry. {Mine is from Bed Bath & Beyond.}

4. Mix all ingredients {except strawberries, obviously} and place mixture in either a Ziploc or other plastic pastry/icing bag.

5. Cut the tip off the bag, and squeeze mixture into strawberries.

6. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve!

**If you want to make these for your family/friends but don't want to go to the trouble of taking the middles of the berries out, feel free to make the filling and simply dip the strawberries as you eat them. It tastes just as good... Trust me ;)

Tonight's Dinner

This morning I came across a recipe on Pinterest and had to try it. Here's what we had for dinner:

Crock Pot Chicken Tacos- Click HERE for recipe.

It was SUPER easy to make, and tasted delicious! If you don't have energy to cook at the end of your day (not the case for me, but I'm just saying), this is perfect. I've made a few Crock Pot recipes that require a lot of "prep work" like cutting veggies, peeling potatoes, and even cooking the meat on the stove BEFORE you put it in the Crock Pot. This recipe requires none of that. Put the ingredients in the Crock Pot in the morning, and eat dinner in the evening when it's done. Enjoy!

--The recipe makes a lot! The original blogger suggests several other dishes to make with the leftovers, or you can use fewer chicken breasts. We will be freezing part of our leftovers to enjoy later.

Happy Cooking!

My First Roast!

Tonight we had a roast for dinner, and as I told Michelle 'It was pretty darn good!' Ive never made a roast before, so it was definitely a learning experience.

Before I went to the grocery store on Monday, I flipped through a few cook books trying to find something new and yummy to make this week. I found this roast recipe in a Crock Pot cook book that Brandon's Aunt Lavonne gave us at one of our wedding showers. She gave us the Crock Pot, too. Thanks, Lavonne!!

The recipe called for a 2 lb. boneless chuck roast. When I got to the store, I realized I had NO idea what that was (Mom, don't laugh!). I walked through the meat section twice, and then realized that I didn't know if I should be looking in the beef section or the pork section (Seriously, no laughing!). I called my mom to ask her what the heck I was supposed to buy, but she didn't answer. I'm not at all afraid to ask questions, so when I spotted a meat-section-worker (not sure what his real title was), I waved him down. "Sir, I'm making a roast for the first time. My recipe calls for a...(digging out my list to remember what it's called)...2 lb. boneless chuck roast. Do you know where I could find that?" He smiled, chuckled, and politely found exactly what I was looking for. (It's with the beef, for those of you who were also wondering.)

So after getting home with all the ingredients, the plan was to eat the roast on Thursday night. I had skimmed the recipe to see how long it was supposed to cook, but I didn't read it too closely. I woke up Thursday morning, and was excited to get the roast cooking! As I gathered the ingredients I read the first step: "Marinate roast and first two ingredients in refrigerator for at least 8 hours, turning occasionally." 8 hours! If I marinated the roast for 8 hours and cooked it for 10 hours, we could eat dinner at about 3:00a.m. on Friday morning. Well, that wasn't going to work. So I put the roast and seasonings in a large Zip-Lock on Thursday evening and ordered us a pizza. (So much for Goal #2.)

Finally, after following all the directions and putting everything in the Crock Pot, my first roast was cooking early this morning! I checked on it throughout the day and could not wait to taste it! I also loved how yummy our house smelled all day :) Brandon got home from work, and I added the last few ingredients. We sat down to eat, and it was delicous!

As I looked at our meal, I thought "This is something my mom would make." And if I can make something that my mom would make, then maybe I'm turning out to be an okay cook ;)


**Please, no judgements on the pizza. I've been fighting a cold since Monday and had no energy to make anything else. And it's okay to indulge every now and then, right??

Cooking with 'The Chew'

One of my new favorite cooking shows is The Chew on ABC. Viewers can find ideas on family dinners, fun table settings, entertaining and parties, yummy holiday recipes, and more. The show is hosted by five individuals, all from different backgrounds, who bring something unique to each episode. One day when I visit New York I want to sit in the front row of the audience, so I can be one of their tasters. Everything always looks so yummy!

Each host on the show has his or her own cooking style. My two favorites, so far, are Daphne Oz and Carla Hall. Daphne, Dr. Oz's daughter, is very health conscious, and her nutrient-rich recipes are loaded with health benefits. Carla's southern upbringing plays a role in her cooking, and I would describe her food as 'warm and cozy'. It's just good, southern comfort food. Yum!

I am hooked on Daphne's 'Superfood Breakfast Smoothie'! It has psyllium husks, which keep you feeling full and help with digestion, and Ester-C to boost your immune system. You can make it your own by substituting your favorite fruit and fruit juice. It's a great way to start each day!

Click HERE for recipe.

Tonight for dinner I made Carla's 'Mac & Cheese', and I loved how it turned out! It has a much different taste than the Kraft 'blue box' mac and cheese that we all loved as kids. I like to think of it as a more mature version :) Brandon said it was a little dry for him, so next time I'll probably put less macaroni in the cheese sauce and leave out the breadcrumbs. Making this dish was so fun, and I felt like a real chef when I was cooking it!

Click HERE for recipe.
(This can also be made gluten free by using gluten free pasta,
gluten free flour, and leaving out the breadcrumbs.)

Happy cooking!!