A few weeks ago I needed a last minute desert for a party, so I searched the pantry to see what I could come up with. There are recipes all over Pintrest and the blog world for different ways to make a box cake, so I gave it a try with what was on hand... Chocolate cake mix and blueberry  pie filling.  The results were a very pleasant surprise, perfectly moist cupcakes with just enough fruit taste to set them apart from your usual chocolate. I made them on a Thursday  thinking they would be eaten Friday night, but the get together was delayed until Sunday. I was a little worried they would be dried out after a few days in my cupcake container, but they were just as moist and perfect as the day they were baked (and I know, because I sampled one both days)! 

KC is actually better in the kitchen than me, so as often as possible I sweet talk him into cooking. It pretty much only works on the weekends, and breakfast is usually his meal of choice. Lately biscuits and gravy has been his go-to breakfast, so I got him to write up his recipe for you. We've tried to put a "healthy" spin on an unhealthy but delicious breakfast.

Much of this recipe is made to taste, but here are some basic measurements to get you started:

1 lb. lean, ground turkey sausage (If all you have are links, you can remove the casing and cook the same way.)

2-4 tbsp. flour (I haven't tried with whole wheat, but 1/2 and 1/2 regular to whole wheat flour may work.)

Parsley, fennel seed (crushed), fresh cracked pepper to taste

Skim milk

First, cook the turkey sausage, but do not drain it. As you're cooking, add the parsley, fennel seed (crushed), and fresh cracked pepper (and whatever else you like). Next, add the flour. This part is based on how much fat is in the pan. Start with a little, mix it in, and add more as needed. The last step is to add the skim milk to get the gravy to the consistency that you want it. If it's too thick, add more milk. If it's too thin, keep simmering till it's right.

KC and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary this week... and in true Marine Corps form, we weren't together to celebrate it. Oh well, we've missed a lot of the minor holidays this year, and there will only be more with deployment on the horizon! He's on his way home now and I just whipped up a little desert so we could have something special with our semi-homemade pizza tonight. I stumbled on this desert on food.com, and it sounded so perfect I didn't even alter it. it was together in 3 minutes, and I licked the mixing bowl clean! 

Butterfinger Pie

1 12oz tub Cool Whip

8oz  cream cheese

1 bag fun sized butterfingers, or 6 normal bars, crushed

 (I used my magic bullet blender)

1 graham cracker crust

Mix first 3 ingredients and put in crust. done! 

I used a stand mixer and let the filling mix for a couple minutes until it was pretty thick.

Chocolate crust would be good too.

Comfort food at is best! This meal is cheap and filling. I don't remember where I came across this lentil and brown rice base originally, but I've been playing around with it for a while and this is definitely my favorite version!

 I have realized since I started blogging that a lot of my recipes are just really not pretty... But I promise they are tasty! 

I have seen and tried lots of mug cake recipes over the years with varying degrees of success and failure... you probably know what I'm talking about. They generally include cake like ingredients and are microwaved for a minute or so in your favorite coffee mug. My last attempt a month or so ago was an utter failure. No, thats a half lie... it was a little number including nutella and it tasted GREAT, but it exploded all over my microwave and was a pain to clean out. It was like cement in there (and on the outside of the mug), but gooey deliciousness inside the mug. 

But the other night....

 My. Mind. Was. Blown.

This is SO simple, SO good, and Makes SO much mix.

(I can hear my dad mocking me as he reads this. I tend to overuse "so," and he's really good at making fun of me...)

1 box angle food cake mix

1 box any other cake mix (I recommend something chocolaty)

Mix the two together in a large ziplock or container. 

In a mug, mix 3 tbsp. mix and 2 tbsp. water. Microwave for one minute. 

Top with a big dallop of cool whip right from the tub.

Now, go lay on the couch, turn on biggest loser (that's what I did anyway) and enjoy this lazy, lazy desert. And think about how many more cakes you can make -or mason jars full you could give as gifts- with that huge bag of mix! 

(also, these are ~200 calories without the cool whip, so don't feel guilty!)

Today is Scout's first birthday!

 We found Scout on craigslist last spring. Some guy in Jacksonville, FL (where we are from) had two Black Mouth Curs (we had never heard of the breed, but we found our it's what Old Yeller was) and they "accidently" had puppies. But I'm pretty sure it wasn't really an accident, he told me the accident story once and he told me he wanted his dogs to have puppies once. 

Either way, we were living in Virginia at the time and decided one night we wouldn't get a second dog until we got settled in to KC's first duty station, which could be up to a year later (Marlin, our other dog, was about a year old at this time). Well, the next day we continued looking at craigslist puppies that needed homes anyway and saw him. And I was going to be heading to Jacksonville very soon because my dad was having surgery.  So, we caved. I had my father in law go pick him up... he paid a whopping $20 for him... and I got him about a week later when I went home. The two in the picture were the only 2 left, and they were living under the guys back porch. The man sprayed them with a hose until they came out. My father in law said Scout was the more friendly and outgoing of the two, and the family with two little girls that were also there wanted the other one because he was sweet and shy. 

KC has been in and out of the field and on a super weird schedule for a couple weeks... He's only off on fridays, goes to his office for the day occasionally so we meet for lunch, and sometimes comes home for a couple hours in the evening with no notice. So... I have been making  dinners for one, but that are also easily multiplied, quick, and hearty enough to fill him too if he happens to come home. 

These were total winners. Too bad he didn't get to enjoy them! 

They reminded me of Chili's southwest egg rolls.

1 c. shredded cheese

1 c. black beans

1 c. corn

chopped pickled jalapeno to taste (I used 4 slices)

(you could easily add a meat in place of or in addition to the beans and corn)

Mix all ingredients (minus the  tortillas, obviously.) If you have time, put the mixture in the fridge to let the flavors blend for a few hours. Spoon about 1/4 cup into a shell, roll up, and place an inch or so apart on lightly greased cookie sheet. bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until slightly crisp.

I used sour cream with a little ranch dressing mix, salt, and pepper for the dip. It probably would have been even better with a little taco seasoning mixed in. 

I really wish  I had a picture of this to share with you, but it was a last minute bake and I completely forgot! I used pears, but you could try lots of different fruits. I love that all of the ingredients are usually in my kitchen. It's easy to throw together for last minute guests, or to use up the forgotten fruit in the back of the fridge. I think the brown sugar baked in the fruit makes this delicious!

filling:

~3 cups fruit (peeled, seeded and chopped-I used 3 pears)

1 tbsp. lemon juice

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1 tbsp. flour

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

crisp topping:

1/2 c. oats

1/4 cup butter, softened

1/3 c. packed brown sugar

pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 375. Toss fruit in lemon juice then mix in cinnamon, nutmeg, flour and brown sugar.  Put mixture in a greased 8x8 or 9x5 baking dish. In another bowl mix oats, butter, brown sugar and salt- go ahead and use your hands, it works best. Crumble over fruit.  Bake 30-45 minutes. Top with whipped cream or ice cream and enjoy!

We eat a lot of chicken tortilla soup around here, it's one of my favorite meals (after buffalo chicken sandwiches)! I usually just make it up as I go, but yesterday I wanted a little change. I stumbled upon  "Easy Three Ingredient McAllisters Chicken Tortilla Soup," and immediately thought of my dad. McAllister's was  a frequent after church stop for my parents (until it closed with no warning a few months ago), and dad always ordered this soup! 

The recipe called for: 

1 24 oz. jar of salsa

 1 8 oz. package of cream cheese

16 oz. chicken stock

optional: beans, chicken, shredded cheddar, etc

Sounds pretty good, but I knew I wanted to pep it up a little. KC told me he liked this more than my usual, and it comes together pretty quickly!

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 small onion, chopped

~1 c. bell pepper, chopped (I used frozen)

~1 c. corn (frozen or drained can)

16 oz. chicken stock

12 oz. salsa verde

12 oz. red salsa 

1 can beans, black or cannelloni (drained and rinsed)

 1c. cooked brown rice (I used an Uncle Ben's ready rice package, there have been lots of coupons for them lately. You could skip the rice, but I wouldn't!)

chicken (I used 2 breasts, well seasoned with taco seasoning, baked and chopped)

8 oz. package cream cheese

Saute garlic, onion and peppers with a little olive oil in large pot. Add corn, chicken stock, salsa, beans and rice and bring to a simmer. Cube the cream cheese and stir in until melted. Season as needed and serve. Serves 2 (me and a very hungry Marine) with leftovers for my lunch the next day.  You could easily serve this with quesadillas to feed for 4 or so. 

 When I moved out my parents gave us a few old lamps to brighten our new place. Two of them are adorable, antique, and fit right into our living room and guest room. One of them had a great shape, but the gold-and-marble motif was just a little outdated, so it stayed tucked away in an unpacked corner of our office. 

Today that little guy got a quick update!

I started by cutting a small piece from a grocery bag and taping over the workings with painters tape. From there all it took was a few coats of Krylon Oil Rubbed Bronze and he's as good as new!