Frozen Yogurt & Sausage with Lentils

We have a new Yogurt Shop in town called Wild Cherry so I had to share it with you. It's so yummy.

This is a recipe I adapted from http://oneperfectbite.blogspot.com/

Check out her blog when you get a chance.

This is my version of her Rice and Red Lentil Pilaf. I added Jalapeno Chicken Sausage and ready cooked lentils from Trader Joes. This was the first time I've used tumeric as a spice and I loved it.

Do you have any blogs you cook from? I'm always looking for good recipes.

Starbucks Oatmeal Cookies

I'm always on the hunt for a fabulous cookie recipe and this one is a winner. I think it was last year that Starbucks was giving away recipe cards for their bakery items. I found this in my recipe folder and decided it was time to try it. Verdict- so delicious and will make a perfect addition to the Christmas cookie list. Yes, I'm already thinking about Christmas. LOL The cookie has dried cranberries and raisins so I like to think they are healthy enough to have more than one each day.

You can find the recipe here;

http://www.food.com/recipe/starbucks-outrageous-oatmeal-cookies-383224

Apple Bread French Toast

I decided it was time to break out the bread machine. Something about the cooler Fall temperature had me craving homemade bread. I don't have the patience to make it by hand so I throw all the ingredients in the bread machine and it does all the hard work for me. I put this together Friday night and then woke up Saturday morning to Apple Bread. YUM! Actually, I woke up at 2am smelling wonderful delicious bread but restrained myself from getting out of bed and devouring the entire loaf. Instead, I waited until a decent morning hour and decided it would be perfect for french toast. It was total bliss. As was the nap I took after eating 4 slices with whipped cream.

What are you craving now that Fall is almost here?

Egg Casserole

This is a great brunch or even dinner dish that can be made quickly and for a lot of people.

I served it with avocados, salsa, tortilla chips and sprinkled with queso fresco.

Ingredients:

9 eggs

3 TB melted unsalted butter

1/2 Sour Cream

1/2 Cup Milk

1 tsp kosher salt

1/4 C chopped green onions

1 C grated pepper jack or cheddar cheese

Queso Fresco for topping

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 deg. In a large bowl combine eggs, butter, sour cream, milk, salt and green onions. Mix well and pour into a greased casserole dish. My dish was 8 x 11. Bake for 25 minutes and then top with cheese and continue to bake for another 15 minutes or until puffed and golden brown. Sprinkle with queso fresco and Enjoy!

Recipe blooper- I didn't read the directions thoroughly and put the cheese in the egg mixture before baking. It was still really yummy but didn't have the nice cheesy crust.

Sugar Cookies

Since summer is coming to an end, I was craving brightly colored, sunny and fun sugar cookies. I decided to spend a day baking and decorating for surprise treats to give to my family and friends. Don't get me wrong, I can't wait for Fall. I love love love pumpkin. But there is something about the bright pinks, yellow, and blues that I'll miss about summer.
Below is the best sugar cookie recipe I have ever made. It turns out perfect every time I use it.

Sugar Cookies

Cream together:
1 cup room temperature unsalted butter
2/3 cup granulated sugar
Once the mixture is light and fluffy beat in 1 Egg. It's best of the egg is room temperature. Then add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.

In a separate bowl combine:
2 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt.

Slowly add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix until well combined.
Chill the dough at least 1-2 hours before rolling out. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees until cookies are lightly golden around the bottom edges.

Bon Ami- Isn't the Label Cute?

I wanted to share this product with you. I wasn't asked to do so by the company but felt compelled to because it's great and won't scratch your pans or dishes. Plus, the label is too cute and it's an eco friendly product. I've used it for many years. My only complaint- it's hard to find. I can find it at one grocery store near me and that's it. Hopefully, more stores will start to carry it. If you try it out left me know. Or if there are any other eco friendly products that you use and would like to share, please leave me a comment or send me an e-mail. I'm always up for trying something new.

Labor Day Eats

Cranberry Orange Scones by the Barefoot Contessa. I made these for brunch before we headed to the beach. The scones are flaky, buttery and delicious. I've made them several times and they are always a hit. Especially with a little lemon curd (which you can get at Trader Joes).

Fruit Salad. I will miss summery strawberries but I'm excited for pumpkin.

Chocolate Cake. It's a bakery cake our friends brought over for after dinner. I may have had 2 slices- YUM!

Noodle Kugel. Yes, that's what it is called. LOL I saw the Barefoot Contessa make it and knew I had to try it. Unfortunately, it was not a crowd pleaser. Something about raisins, cinnamon and pasta all together was not the best combo. Oh well. At least I tried.

The grocery store was out of ham. Well, except for the kind in the tin can which EWWWW, I refuse to buy that. So, I settled for pork shoulder. Can you say salty? I will definitely do the water bath, rinse all the salt off before you cook it, next time.

My Honey made ham and bean soup with the leftovers. It was delicious. It was so fun sharing the kitchen with him. Now we have soup for lunch for the week. Oh and some cookies, which I'll be sharing in another post.

How was your Labor Day?

Isn't a 3-Day weekend a wonderful thing?