Category: OKK MEMES & PRIOR CONTRIBUTORS

Healthy Helpings – Deep-Dish Pizza Casserole

Deep-Dish Pizza Casserole
Source: WW 15 Ingredient 15 Minute Cookbook (2002)
1 pound ground round
1 (15 ounce) can chunky Italian-style tomato sauce
Cooking spray
1 (10 ounce) can refrigerated pizza crust dough
1 1/2 cups preshredded part skim mozzarella cheese

Cook meat in a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until browned, stirring until it crumbles. Drain, if necessary, and return to skillet. Add tomato sauce, and cook until heated.

While meat cooks, coat a 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking dish with cooking spray.

Unroll pizza crust dough, and press into bottom and halfway up sides of baking dish. Top with meat mixture. Bake, uncovered at 425 degrees F for 12 minutes.

Top with cheese, and bake 5 additional minutes or until crust is browned and cheese melts. Cool 5 minutes before serving.

Servings: 6 – 6 WW points per serving

Monday Munchies ~ Hot Beef Dip

Just in time for football season!!


HOT BEEF DIP
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1/2 cup chopped red onion
8 ounce can tomato sauce
1/4 cup Country Bob’s All Purpose Sauce

8 ounce package cream cheese
1 cup grated Monterey jack cheese
2 teaspoons minced garlic, jar
1 tablespoon parsley
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon Frank’s red pepper sauce

  • Brown Hamburger.
  • Add onion and garlic.
  • Drain off fat.
  • Add all other ingredients.
  • Stir until well blended.
  • Transfer to slow cooker ad keep warm.
  • Serve with tortilla chips.

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Tasty Tuesday is hosted by Jen over at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam. Vintage Recipe Thursday is hosted by Joy of desserts. Tuesdays at the Table is normally hosted by Andrea over at My Chihauhau Bites but Andrea is taking a break while she has her baby and is being hosted by Cole for a while. Crock pot Wednesday is hosted by Dining with Debbie. Slow Cooking Thursday is hosted by Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom. Crock Pot Wednesday is hosted by Dining with Debbie.
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Simply Delicious Sunday ~ Crab Salad & Homemade 1000 Island Dressing


CRAB SALAD & HOMEMADE 1000 ISLAND DRESSING
CRAB SALAD
8 ounces Louis Kemp Crab, finely chopped
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
1/3 cup minced red onion
salt and pepper
mayo (about 1/4 cup)
Romaine lettuce
Roma tomatoes, sliced
Snap peas, halved

  • Wash lettuce, peas and tomatoes. Arrange on plate. Salt and pepper.
  • Mix crab, celery, onion, salt and pepper together until well blended using enough mayonnaise for desired consistency.
  • Place a large scoop of crab salad over the romaine mix.
  • Serve over chopped romaine lettuce, sliced tomatoes and snap peas.
  • Top with dressing.

1000 ISLAND DRESSING
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons sugar
3 teaspoons sweet pickle relish
1 heaping tablespoon minced red onion
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper

  • In a mini blender blend all ingredients to desired consistency.

He all but licked his plate and drank the rest of the dressing straight from the bottle.

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Simple Supper Saturday – Italian Chicken

Welcome to Simple Supper Saturday! This week is my super easy baked Italian chicken …
Marinate chicken breasts in Italian dressing for a couple hours, drain marinade, dredge chicken lightly in Italian bread crumbs. Melt a couple tablespoons of butter in baking pan, place chicken in pan and bake for 30 minutes at 350 or until juices run clear and chicken is golden brown – turn chicken halfway through cooking time. Serve with some fresh veggies or salad and dinner rolls.

Oh and be sure to make enough chicken to have plenty leftover – Next week I’ll be posting an easy, yummy leftover chicken recipe that you won’t want to miss!

I can’t wait to see your simple supper ideas this week!

Healthy Helpings – Smothered Chicken with Pierogies

Smothered Chicken with Pierogies
4 servings – 7 WWpoints each serving

1 dozen Mrs T’s Frozen Potato & Cheddar Cheese pierogies (I used a box of the mini sized, I think this makes it easier to serve if you want to give equal portions of pierogies to each person. There are 28 small ones compared to 12 big ones!)
1 can (10 3/4 oz) low fat cream of chicken soup
1 can (4 oz) sliced mushrooms, drained (I used 8 oz fresh and sauteed)
1 c frozen peas
2 cups cubed or shredded cooked chicken

Preheat oven to 350. Spray 2 qt casserole with cooking spray. Thaw pierogies in boiling water for 5 minutes, drain and place in casserole dish.

In large saucepan, combine soup, mushrooms, peas and chicken. Cook, stirring, about 5 min or until heated through. Pour over pierogies. Bake 15 minutes.

(My great nephew joined us for dinner unexpectedly the night I prepared this, and he gave it two thumbs up… he didn’t think he liked mushrooms, but in this dish he said they were good!)

Chocolate Caramel Cookie Bars

hosted by Joy & Kristen over at tHe KrAzY KiTcHeN

Don’t forget that every time you link a recipe to the tHe KrAzY KiTcHeN this week you earn an entry into our Country Bob’s All Purpose Sauce giveaway.


CHOCOLATE CARAMEL COOKIE BARS
2 cups flour
1/2 cup self-rising flour
dash salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 sticks butter, softened
3/4 + cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup sugar, divided 1/4 + 1/2
2 eggs
1 teaspoon PURE vanilla extract
1 cup Kraft caramels
4 tablespoons milk
7 ounces unsweetened chocolate
1 cup Heath Bar Crunch pieces
PURE

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Spray 15×10 jelly roll pan with PURE.
  • Cream the butter in electric mixer.
  • Add brown sugar until well blended.
  • Add 1/2 cup sugar, vanilla and eggs, blending again until uniform in consistency.
  • Gradually add the flours, cinnamon and salt until well blended.
  • Press cookie dough into jelly roll pan.
  • In a double boiler melt together the milk, caramels and chocolate until smooth.
  • Spread the caramel chocolate over the cookie layer.
  • Bake 20-25 minutes or until cookie portion is set.

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Simply Delicious Sunday ~ Asiago Garlic Mushroom Ravioli

HOMEMADE PASTA DOUGH
2 to 2 1/2 cups flour, divided 2 cups and 1/2 cup
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
3 eggs
1 tablespoon cold water

  • Place 2 cups of the flour and salt in a large mixing bowl.
  • Make a well in the center of the flour.
  • Add the eggs and water to the flour.
  • With your hands or a wooden spoon, gradually mix all together until well blended.
  • Gather into a ball and knead on a floured surface until smooth, about 10 minutes.
  • Add remaining flour as necessary to prevent the dough from sticking to your hands or the kneading surface.
  • Divide the dough into fourths.

FILLING
2 tablespoons butter
1 large bunch green onion, minced
1/2 pound mushrooms, cleaned and chopped
3 teaspoons minced garlic, jar
1/2 cup freshly grated Asiago Parmesan cheese
1 eggs, slightly beaten
Salt and pepper to taste

  • Melt the butter in a small skillet and cook the onions, stir and cook until onions are transparent.
  • Add mushrooms and simmer until tender.
  • Remove from heat and transfer to a mixing bowl.
  • Stir in the rest of the ingredients.
  • Season to taste.

ASSEMBLY

  • Divide the pasta dough into 4 balls and roll out one at a time about 1/4 inch thick.
  • Place 1 heaping tablespoon of filling about every 2 inches apart on the sheet of pasta.
  • With a brush dipped in water draw lines between the mounds.
  • Then place a second sheet of pasta evenly over the first sheet, but work quickly ~the dough must remain pliable.
  • Press down between the mounds to form the ravioli envelopes. The wet areas of the pasta sheet will help seal the ravioli.
  • With a ravioli cutter or a serrated knife separate from each other.
  • Cook ravioli in large kettle of chicken broth or salted water. Boil slowly for about 10 minutes. Drain. Always add 1 tablespoon of oil to the cooking water for a better noodle.
  • Layer ravioli and sauce.
  • Sprinkle fresh grated Parmesan cheese on last layer and serve, hot.

BBQ Ribs


These are so good, a perfect simple weekend meal and great for the football gameday buffet!

All you’ll need are a couple racks of ribs, BBQ sauce, foil and your oven. I love Sweet Baby Ray’s brand BBQ sauce or of course you can whip up your own. I also like to oven roast corn on the cob at the same time to go with the ribs.

1. Baste ribs with BBQ sauce, wrap in foil, and refrigerate for several hours, overnight is even better.

2. Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Place wrapped ribs on a baking sheet. If you decided on roasted corn, now is the time to rub corn with butter, salt and pepper, wrap in foil and put on a baking sheet alongside the ribs – bake for about 3 hours.

3. Open rib packs, baste with a little more BBQ sauce and broil for a few minutes until the BBQ sauce starts to caramelize.

That’s it – add a salad or coleslaw and dinner’s ready.

Join me at Seaside Simplicity for more simple but delicious recipes!

What Did You Bake Today: Monkey Bread


Weekends are our favorite time for sweet breakfasts. Monkey bread is one of my sons’ favorites. It is easy to throw together because it starts with ready to bake canned biscuits. I have seen quite a few variations of this dish. This one is ooey gooey yummy! Monkey Bread:
3 cans buttermilk biscuits (10 to a can)
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 stick butter
Cut each biscuit into 4 pieces. Combine sugar and cinnamon in a gallon size ziplock bag. Shake biscuit pieces in the sugar/cinnamon combo and layer into a greased tube pan. Melt brown sugar and butter and boil for 1 minute. Pour over biscuits. Bake 350 degrees for 35 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes in the pan before inverting on a plate.

What Did You Bake Today?

Brown sugar cookies recipe – Save Room for Dessert

Like sugar cookies? You’ll love brown sugar cookies! These cookies go well with ice cream, coffee, tea, or even as a cookie pie crust. Try them.


Enjoy!
See you next Wednesday for another Save Room for Dessert.
Don’t forget to visit the other participants, and to comment on their blogs.
(Stop by Joy Of Desserts to enter my latest giveaway, too!)


Brown Sugar Cookies Recipe
makes about 15 cookies

1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, separated
1/3 cup milk
1 cup flour, sifted
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup chopped nuts

Cream butter. Add sugar. Beat egg whites and egg yolks separately. Add beaten eggs whites, beaten egg yolks, and milk. Sift flour with baking powder and salt. Add to egg and sugar mixture. Add nuts. Continue mixing thoroughly. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto well-oiled baking sheet. Bake at 400 F. for about 15 minutes.

Be sure to leave a link to your participating recipe in McKlinky, rather than just to your main blog, and let us know what your recipe is.
EX: Tamy @ 3 Sides of Crazy (Banana Cake)

Simply Delicious Sunday ~ Spiced Apple Ginger Pie

SPICED APPLE GINGER PIE


SPICED APPLE GINGER PIE
FILLING
7-8 firm, juicy Granny Smith apples, cored, peeled and sliced
1/4 cup golden rum
1/2 cup water
1 cup golden raisins
2 tablespoons butter
2/3 cup+ packed brown sugar
1/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon vanilla
2 tablespoons honey
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CRUST
1 1/2 cups crushed gingersnaps
1 1/2 cups crushed vanilla wafers
1/2 cup crushed walnuts
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon grated orange peel
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons lime juice
1/4 cup melted butter

  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  • Mix water and rum together and soak raisins in the mixture while your are preparing the apples.
  • Drain the raisins retaining the rum mixture.
  • In a large skillet melt the butter. Add the rum mixture.
  • Add apples and simmer until apples are tender, about 15-20 minutes.
  • While apples are simmering, prepare crust. Finely grind the vanilla wafers, ginger snaps and walnuts together. I use my mini Cuisinart and do it in just a few small batches to get the crumbs extra fine and then cut everything else in with a pastry blender. Add the seasonings, melted butter, lemon and lime juices until well blended.
  • Press 1/3-1/2 of crust into a greased deep pie plate.*
  • When apples are tender, sprinkle sugars, flour and seasonings over the apples.
  • Fold in the lemon juice, vanilla, honey and raisins.
  • Simmer until gooey.
  • Pour into the pie plate and top with remaining crust.
  • Bake 50-60 minutes until golden.
  • Cool.
  • Serve with vanilla ice cream.

*I sometimes sprinkle 1/3 of the crust mixture between layers of apples.
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Simple Supper Saturday

I always shoot for very simple suppers on week nights and had to make my menu plan super easy this week since I’ve been working ten hour days. On Sunday I made an large (bulk) eye round roast beef with a minced garlic and herb rub. I made all the yummy sides for Sunday – homemade country mashed potatoes, fresh green beans and dinner rolls. For the first leftover meal on Monday I sliced it very thin and served warm and piled high on “everything” bagels with chips and coleslaw. The second easy leftover night is the dinner I’m featuring here today …


This is a beef stew I made simply by cutting the rest of the leftover roast beef into bite sized chunks, plus 6 cubed potatoes, baby carrots, and a package of mushrooms cut into halves. I added the pan drippings from the roast (fat skimmed from the top), 4-5 cups of water, a packet of beef stew seasoning and thickened with a little cornstarch dissolved in cold water – simmered until the veggies were done (about 30-40 minutes) and then served in big shallow bowls over Pepperidge Farms puff pastry cups.

It was delicious, quick, easy, made a very pretty presentation, and it was a big hit with the whole family!