Creamy Cheesy Potatoes

Life has been hectic around here but good. We painted rooms this past weekend. I should post before and after pictures….Noah’s room used to be camouflage sponge painted…NOT.GOOD. We are working on a navy blue and white chevron feature wall instead. Much better.

I’m going to keep this short so I can get back to business. These potatoes are simply the best, most delicious and easy side dish. They only require 4 ingredients (not counting the salt and pepper). You couldn’t really ask for more in a holiday side dish (or any time of the year).

I was a little skeptical when I tried this recipe because it just didn’t seem like there was enough to it but I was totally wrong. The cream gets thick and bubbly while the cheese gets ooey gooey delicious. I could pretty much eat them every day if my pants would allow it.

Creamy Cheesy Potatoes
recipe from Get Off Your Butt and Bake

About 5 – large potatoes (or enough to fill a 9×13 glass baking dish)

1 pint (2 cups) whipping cream

Salt and Pepper

2 tsp. parsley flakes

2 cups grated cheddar cheese

1. Cut your potatoes into thin french fry strips and then lay them in a 9×13 glass pan.

2. Pour all of the cream over the top of the potatoes then salt and pepper them generously. Sprinkle at least 2 cups grated cheddar cheese over the top and sprinkle parsley flakes on top of the cheese.  Cover with foil, and poke a fork through the top of the foil 2 or 3 times to allow a little steam to escape.

3. Cook at 400 degrees for about 1 hour, 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

Parmesan Crusted Filet Mignon

If you are having a small holiday celebration, this is a perfect option over the big traditional ham. I actually made these quite awhile ago for our anniversary and they were a huge hit. The combination of the tenderness of the steak with the crunchy, cheesy texture of the crust was incredible and over the top. I went with a surf and turf vibe so I served these delicious steaks alongside Scallops with Dill Sauce, twice baked potatoes and a simple salad.

The fact that you make the crust ahead of time also makes this a quick, simple option for the holidays so that you can focus on family and all the important things during this time of year.

I know it would be great for us during this transition in our lives. We are packing up and moving today which is such a bittersweet feeling. We are ready for this new adventure but sad about leaving our friends and our first home. But I know it will be great for our family! And I am so ready to cook for real again instead of just throwing random stuff together with all the frozen and pantry items I didn’t want to move!

Parmesan Crusted Filet Mignon
recipe from Live Love Pasta

4 filet mignons
salt
pepper

Crust:
¼ cup unsalted butter, softened
¼ cup panko
¼ cup parmesan cheese, grated
2 cloves garlic, minced
sprinkle of salt
sprinkle of pepper

1. Prepare the crust at least 3 hours in advance. Combine all the crust ingredients and mash together to form a ball of “dough.”  Place the ball into the center of a sheet of plastic wrap. Wrap the ball and form it into a log. If you plan to use it that day refrigerate it, otherwise freeze it.

2. Begin heating your cast iron pan on high heat. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Sprinkle the filet on both sides with a little salt and pepper just before cooking. Grill in cast iron pan 2 minutes per side. I usually use my cast iron grill pan for this but you can also use a regular cast iron pan. Once you get a nice sear on both sides put the steak in the oven for 6-8 minutes (if your steaks are 2-inches like mine were, 6 minutes will give you about medium-rare and 8 should be about medium). After 6 minutes remove from the oven and top with ½ inch slices of the crust. Place under broiler about 2 minutes or until browned.

Jello Cookies {Christmas Tray 2012}

When I saw these, I thought Noah would love making and playing with the dough. Turns out, he just wanted to eat the dough.


And do this.

And this too.

He did enjoy rolling them in the jello powder and flattening them on the baking sheet. There was a whole lot of “Noah do it” going on in our kitchen. He is totally at that stage. I’m glad he wants some independence but man, it’s annoying sometimes.

I guess these weren’t the best cookies to make for Christmas. I literally stood in front of the jello for like 5 minutes trying to decide what flavors to use. None of them were particularly Christmas-y but I was dying to make these so I had to make it work. I thought cranberry could work but who likes cranberry jello? Not me. I finally settled on lemon and black cherry…yellow and dark red seemed to say holiday to me.

I think the colors turned out for Christmas. Not typical green and red but still festive. They taste like zingy sugar cookies covered in the sour sugar from gummy worms. Yum!

Jello Cookies
recipe from I {Heart} Naptime

3 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 cups salted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
4 (3 oz) pkg. jello (any flavors)*
Gel food coloring

1. Beat butter in large bowl with mixer until creamy. Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Blend in egg and vanilla. Mix flour and baking powder in a separate bowl. Gradually beat in flour mixture.

2. Divide dough into 4 sections. Sprinkle 2 Tb of jello onto each section. Knead together with dough. You may want to add a bit of food coloring to make the dough more vibrant (I had to, especially with the lemon).

3. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Roll in the extra jello from the packets. Place, 2 inches apart, on baking sheets. Flatten with bottom of bowl.

4. Bake 8 to 10 min at 350 on lined baking sheets. Cool on baking sheets 2 min. Remove to wire racks and cool completely.

*I only used 2 jello flavors so I doubled the amount of powder in each half (rather than fourths).

Avocado Deviled Eggs

Although I made these little green beauties for St. Patrick’s Day, I thought they could do double duty on holidays and be served on your Easter buffet as well! Wouldn’t they add such a color splash and Spring feeling to your plate? They are yummy, creamy and refreshing which would be a nice change to an often heavy, casserole laden meal (not that I’m complaining).

And be sure to check out my hard-boiled egg tutorial to avoid that nasty green-gray ring!

Avocado Deviled Eggs
recipe from Martha Stewart

10 hard-boiled eggs
1 avocado, peeled and pitted
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup mayonnaise
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

1. Peel eggs and cut in half, either lengthwise or crosswise. Carefully scoop out yolks, and arrange whites on a platter or tray.

2. In the bowl of a food processor, process egg yolks, avocado, lemon juice and mayonnaise until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Transfer egg yolk mixture to a pastry bag fitted with a large star tip. Pipe mixture carefully and very neatly into egg halves. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use, up to 3 hours.

Recipe linked to Mangia Monday, Tasty Tuesday, Totally Tasty Tuesday, Cast Party Wednesday, What I Whipped Up Wednesday, Full Plate Thursday and These Chicks Cooked.

Broccoli Cheese Casserole

Today I am bringing you another favorite holiday dish that would be perfect for your upcoming Easter celebration! This is one of those recipes that I inherited when I married Joel that was kind of like the passing of the torch. I was given several recipe cards of Joel’s favorite dishes when we married and this was a definite favorite on the list. It always appears at every holiday meal and is usually one of the few dishes that completely disappears before we are done eating.

This is an incredible holiday side dish because it’s super simple to throw together and only involves 4 ingredients. We usually put this together hours before it needs to be baked so it keeps the stress low. I sometimes double the cracker topping for some extra crunch.

Updates on our New Orleans trip coming soon! Man did we eat some good food!

Broccoli Cheese Casserole

32 oz. frozen broccoli florets
16 oz.  Velveeta, cubed
1 sleeve Ritz crackers, crushed*
1 stick butter, melted

1. Steam broccoli and place in a casserole dish. Mix in cubed velveeta (it doesn’t have to melt).

2. Mix crushed crackers and melted butter together until throroughly combined. Top broccoli with cracker crumb mixture.

3. Bake for 20-30 minutes at 350 degrees F.

*I use whole-wheat Ritz crackers and can’t tell the difference.

Recipe linked to Mangia Monday, Totally Tasty Tuesday, Tasty Tuesday, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday, Cast Party Wednesday, What I Whipped Up Wednesday, Full Plate Thursday and These Chicks Cooked.

Super Bowl Roundup

Looking for some yummy Super Bowl eats and treats for the big game this Sunday? Well, you are in luck. Check out this huge list of delicious appetizers, main dishes and desserts that are perfect for munching, snacking and grazing on all night long.

Guacamole

Chorizo Nachos

Baked Loaded Jalapeno Poppers

Mini Corn Dogs

Honey Garlic Meatballs

Juicy Lucy’s

Buffalo Sloppy Joe’s

Cheesesteak Pizza

Buffalo Mac-n-Cheese

Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Football Brownie Bites

Fruit Pizza

Pretzel Cookies

Burnt Sugar Almonds

Caramel Corn

Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes {Crazy Cooking Challenge}

I can’t believe it’s time again for another Crazy Cooking Challenge! This month’s challenge is mashed potatoes. I searched throughout the blog world for the perfect recipe and of course I found way too many! But when I came across this Slow Cooker Mashed Potato recipe at Real Mom Kitchen, I knew I had to try it.

With an unbelievably busy toddler running around the house all day, I don’t always have as much time as I would like to prepare dinner. And I mean busy. I climb on a dining room chair to kill a spider and I pretty much immediately hear splashing. I turn around quickly assuming he is a few feet away, playing in the cat’s water. But he’s not there. Then I have a brief moment of panic as I realize he is instead playing in the toilet. Awesome. So then I wash his hands with lots of soap as I sing “Happy Birthday” twice (that’s how long you should wash your hands…I’m kind of a germaphobe). By the time this scenario has wrapped up, I’ve completely forgotten what I was originally doing. Such is life with a little man I suppose. Now you understand my immediate attraction to this recipe, don’t you?

Plus, this would be perfect for holidays or big gatherings when the oven and stovetop are full to the brim. The sour cream provided a great creaminess and tanginess that went perfect with the pot roast they accompanied. I think they would be amazing with some roasted garlic mixed in at the point when the milk is added. Mmmm, garlic.

Make sure to scroll through the links and vote for my recipe as the Ultimate Mashed Potato recipe. Thanks for showing some love!

Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes
recipe from Real Mom Kitchen

5 lb baking potatoes, peeled, cut into 1-inch chunks
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup butter, cut into chunks*
1 cup sour cream (I used light sour cream)
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 to 1 cup milk, warmed

1.In 4- to 5-quart slow cooker, place potatoes, chicken broth and butter.
2.Cover; cook on High heat setting 4 hours to 4 hours 30 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
3.Add remaining ingredients except milk. Mash, crush or smash potatoes using potato masher, or beat with electric mixer on low speed until well blended. Do not overmix. Stir in enough milk for desired creamy consistency.
4.Cover and keep warm on Low or Warm heat setting until serving time, up to 2 hours. Stir before serving and you may need to mix in additional milk if potatoes have stiffened while on the warm or low setting.

*I may have pulled a Paula Deen and added more butter than stated…….

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Recipe linked to Sharing Sunday, Sunday Funday, Mangia Monday, Tasty Tuesday, These Chicks Cooked, What I Whipped Up Wednesday, Totally Tasty Tuesday, Full Plate Thursday and Fusion Fridays.