Vegetarian Chili - Picky Eater Approved!

 

I know what you're thinking. Vegetarian? NO meat? Surely you have gone off the deep end.

Well, even though I may have gone a little crazy, that has nothing to do with the food I cook. ;) 

Let me tell you...everyone had second helpings of this. EVERYONE. Including my super picky husband. He didn't even care that there wasn't meat in it. The kids loved it! My daughter hates onions, but I didn't even tell her there was any in here ha! I was worried about the jalapenos being too spicy, but it was just right!

I got this recipe from eMeals and this site has changed my life. Well, at least the meal planning part of my life. As a member of Markerly, I was able to sign up for a free 12 month weekly meal plan and I love it! I use the Portion Control meal plans from Walmart. 

I don't do Weight Watchers, but one serving of this Chili is 6 points for all those who want to know!

Vegetarian Chili

Ingredients

*1 tablespoon vegetable oil

*1 cup diced onion

*1 cup diced green bell pepper

*2 tsp. minced fresh garlic

*2 fresh jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped

*2 (15 oz) cans black beans, drained and rinsed

*2 (15 oz) cans diced tomatoes, undrained

*1 cup water

*1 tablespoon chili powder

*1 tsp. ground cumin

*1/2 tsp. salt

*15 oz. can yellow whole kernel corn, drained

Directions

*Heat vegetable oil in a large stock pot; add onions, bell pepper, garlic, and jalapenos. Saute 5 to 7 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Stir in black beans, tomatoes, water, chili powder, cumin, and salt. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and cover. Simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add corn and simmer 10 minutes. Enjoy!

Fall Fancy Linkup + Giveaway + Pumpkin Pie Coffee Creamer!

Hey everyone! Been awhile, huh? I promise I will be back on schedule with my blog soon. I have a bunch of excited posts for you!

For all of you who are visiting for Fall Fancy, hellooooooo! I'll introduce myself. I'm Lauren. I'm 24 years young, married for 5 years to my best friend, and we have two beautiful/crazy children; Kenzie, 5, and Tucker, 3. I'm a full-time student and will be graduating with my Associates in Early Childhood Education next year! I love coffee, spending time with friends & family, and my Dachshund, Dobby.

Since this is a Fall Fancy link-up, I'm showing you a simple recipe for Pumpkin Pie Coffee Creamer!

Ingredients:

14 oz. can of Sweetened Condensed milk

1 can of Pumpkin Puree

1 cup of milk

(If you prefer a creamier creamer, haha, use heavy cream instead of milk).

dash of Cinnamon 

Recipe:

Combine milk or heavy cream and about two heaping spoonfuls of pumpkin puree to a sauce pan. Simmer for about 15 minutes. Add dash of cinnamon.

Let mixture completely cool.

Pour into storage container. I use a mason jar. 

Then add condensed milk, shake, and refrigerate.

This keeps for about a week. You can be the judge lol.

Enjoy!

HOW DOES IT WORK?
Add your link below and your post will be displayed on ALL 8 of our sites! 
We're having a giant interlinked blog party! 

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LAUREN: Tennessee Honey

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 & COURTNEY: Baxtron{Life}

Link up any Fall or Holiday inspired post that showcases your blog beginning 
NOW through Tuesday November 12th!!  

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WE ARE THE FIRST 8 LINKED UP!

Make new friends!!  Increase YOUR readers!!!

GRAB THE BUTTON AND TELL ABOUT THE PARTY!!!!!

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Honey/Lemon Fruit Sauce

So, you know I’ve been trying to eat healthier, count calories, blah blah. I’m trying to be creative when it comes to healthy food. Because it can seriously be so bland. For example, ground turkey. That shiz is for the dogs. For reals. UNLESS it’s cooked IN something.

But anyways. My post is not about turkey. It’s about a fruit sauce I created and wanted to share with you!

I used fresh strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries (my favorite!), but I’m sure you can add/take away what ever fruit you want.

Here’s the ingredients:

Yep. That’s it! I used Greek yogurt for mine, but I’m sure a Vanilla Greek yogurt would be DELISH.

Directions:
Take 1oz of yogurt, 1 Tbsp. of honey, and freshly squeezed juice of half a lemon and put in a container. I put mine in a small mason jar so I could shake it up, but I’m sure you can stir it.
And voila!

Pour over your fruit salad, and enjoy!

Strawberry Yogurt Holy Goodness of the Earth Bundt Cake.

 Yeah, it was THAT good.

At least I thought so. Maybe it was because I made it myself from scratch and got to use my bundt pan for the first time.

And the fact that I probably ate HALF of that sinfully delicious masterpiece by myself.

 

Ingredients

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
3 Tb. lemon juice, divided
Zest of 1 lemon
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour, divided
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
8 oz. plain Greek yogurt
12 oz. fresh strawberries, diced
1 cup powdered sugar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease and flour a 10 inch Bundt pan (10-15 cup pan.) Sift together the 2 ¼ cups of flour, baking soda and salt. Mix in the lemon zest and set aside.
2. With an electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in 1 Tb. lemon juice. Alternate beating in the flour mixture and the yogurt, mixing just until incorporated.
3. Toss the strawberries with the remaining ¼ cup of flour. Gently mix them into the batter.
4. Pour the batter into the Bundt pan. Place in the oven and reduce the temperature to 325 degrees F. Bake for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
5. Allow to cool at least 20 minutes in the pan, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely. Once cooled whisk together the remaining 2 Tb. of lemon juice and the powdered sugar. Drizzle over the top of the cake.
6. Eat your heart out. And your self-esteem.  

This recipe was originally found here.

Mini Turtle Brownie Bites

These bad boys are just flat out delish.

Actually, anything with dark chocolate and caramel will rock my socks off.

Are you drooling yet?

What if I told you that the recipe was super simple, too?

Oh yes. Get out your baking apron and get in the kitchen ladies (and gentleman, if any....).

What You'll Need:
*1 box dark chocolate brownie mix, plus ingredients to prepare mix
*1/2 cup chopped pecans
*dark chocolate frosting
*1/2 coarsely chopped pecans (for turtles)
*12 caramels
*1-2 tablespoons whipping cream

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 36 mini (1.5 inch) muffin cups with paper cups.
2) Prepare brownie mix according to package directions. Stir in chopped pecans.
3) Spoon batter into muffin cups, filling 2/3 way full. Bake 18 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Allow cupcakes to cool.
4) Frost cupcakes and place roasted pecans on top.
5) Cook and stir caramels and 1 tbsp cream in small saucepan over low heat until caramels are melted and mixture is smooth. Add additional cream if necessary to thin mixture. Spoon caramel evenly over cupcakes.
5) ENJOY!!!

Let me know if you tried these! I would love to hear your opinions!
 

Cheesy Chicken Lasagna!

My first official recipe post! :)

I'm all about finding easy, delicious, husband approved meals. And thanks to Pinterest, I'm able to find all sorts of goodies! This meal is a huge hit with my family. 

The original recipe is found at Real Mom Kitchen.

Cheesy Chicken Lasagna

Ingredients:

2 (12 oz) cans evaporated milk (not fat-free)
1 (1 oz) pkg. dry Ranch dressing mix
3 C. cubed, cooked, chicken
1/8 tsp pepper
8-10 oz lasagna noodles, cooked
1 1/2 to  2 C cheddar cheese, grated
1 1/2 to  2 C mozzarella cheese, grated

As you can tell, I'm an "off brand" kinda girl. I also have ADD a horrible memory and forgot to take a picture of other ingredients. But I think you get the idea lol.

Directions:

First, cook the chicken (I boil mine) and the lasagna noodles at the same time.

When the noodles are done, place them in cool water so they won't stick together.

In a heavy saucepan, combine the evap milk and Ranch mix, heating on low until dry ingredients are dissolved. Stir frequently.

Stir in chicken and pepper.

Simmer, uncovered, for 25 minutes, stirring frequently.

Layer noodles, poultry sauce, and cheese in a well-buttered 9x13 pan.

Before cheese layer.

CHEESE!!!

Repeat layers. (Mine usually makes enough for 3 layers)

Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

  YUUUUMMMMMM. Look at that cheesy goodness.

I recommend this recipe with garlic breadsticks.

And it's also great with Dr.Pepper. But that's just me. 

Mason jar and classy pink straw, optional.

I hope you enjoy this as much as we do!!

Happy eating!

"Storms" & Brownies

Well the "huge" storm we were supposed to get last night blew my wicker chair off my porch. That is all. Now don't get me wrong, I'm VERY glad we didn't get what they were calling for [see this post], but I just wish they wouldn't put everyone in such panic mode! I know, I know...better safe than sorry. But still. They made it sound like West Tennessee was going to be wiped off the map.

Some cities probably did get some sort of damage, and for that I am deeply sorry! I hope there were no deaths or injuries! Tornadoes are so scary :/

Anyways, I'm fuming over American Idol. Scotty? REALLY? Why? I didn't realize I was watching Country Idol. Isn't there another show for that? I LOVED Haley and I'm sure she will go far in her career [which I will follow!] but she does need an attitude adjustment. She needs to realize she's in the limelight now.

So last night I made these brownies from Kevin & Amanda. They didn't look like the delicious picture. :( I am not the best baker lol. I give them 3 stars [and only because I'm SURE I didn't do something right.] Maybe you should try them and make them like they are supposed to be. :)