I love getting my Kraft Foods: Food & Family magazine in the mail. I enjoy checking out new products, reading tips, getting coupons and of course gawking at the wonderful recipes. Unfortunately my kids are in their super picky stage so I can’t try half the recipes in there unless I’m willing to make two meals, but I don’t always let that stop me. This past weekend I tried the Apple-Cranberry Slaw found in the Fall 2010 issue.  I’ve fallen in love with the texture of cranberries and apples in my slaw and definitely want to experiment more with that combination!

Ingredients

1/3 cup Kraft Zesty Italian Dressing

2 tablespoon maple flavored or pancake syrup

1 pkg. (14oz) coleslaw blend

1 apple, chopped

1/2 cup dried cranberries (Craisins)

1/4 cup chopped red onions

Directions

Pour dressing and syrup in large bowl and mix together.

Add in apples, craisins and red onions and stir together. (Unfortunately I was out of red onion so I substituted yellow onion.)

Toss with coleslaw blend. A blend with red cabbage would be beautiful but I had to make do with what I had. Enjoy with ribs like we did, which tasted fabulous, or perhaps try with a chicken salad croissant. The possibilities are endless!

Only 90 calories and 2.5 grams of fat per 3/4 cup serving. 8 servings

This recipe and more can be found at Kraft.com.

If you enjoying sharing your love of cooking or baking on your blog or you just enjoy getting inspiration from others, check out this newer weekend meme from Oh My! Sugar High.

Every weekend we’re on the hunt for the tastiest recipes created by moms, dads and friends like us. You don’t have to be a chef or fancy baker to create beautiful dishes and delicious recipes. We want to see and share in your love of cooking and baking right from your own kitchen. We hope you’ll find new recipes to add to your family menu and new friends along the way. To join in, just share your most recent or favorite photo recipe on your blog and hop back to the Oh My! Sugar High baking blog to share your recipe on the weekly linky.

Visit Oh My! Sugar High Saturday Sweet Shots #6 and see all the amazing food already posted. Be sure to add your link to a favorite recipe so we can stop by and be inspired!

If you love to share your favorite recipes on your blog or you just love getting inspiration from others, check out this new weekend meme from Oh My! Sugar High.

Every weekend we’re on the hunt for the tastiest recipes created by moms, dads and friends like us. You don’t have to be a chef or fancy baker to create beautiful dishes and delicious recipes. We want to see and share in your love of cooking and baking right from your own kitchen. We hope you’ll find new recipes to add to your family menu and new friends along the way. To join in, just share your most recent or favorite photo recipe on your blog and hop back to the Oh My! Sugar High baking blog to share your recipe on the weekly linky.

Visit Oh My! Sugar High Saturday Sweet Shots #2 and see all the amazing main dishes and delectible baked goods already posted. Be sure to add your link to a favorite recipe so we can stop by and drool!

I’m not gonna lie (or brag or anything), my husband made us some A-M-A-Z-I-N-G baby back ribs on his first try and is sharing his instructions below!

After scouring the internet for some great advice on how to properly cook baby back ribs on the grill, my husband and I settled on a great rub recipe that I found from allrecipes.com and cooking instructions he found from the rib master Craig at  amazingribs.com. And really, if the site is named amazing ribs you figure you have a good shot at getting some fabulous ribs from following the instructions found, right?

REALLY. Because our ribs for the 4th of July turned out heavenly. Heavenly. Like melt in your mouth good.Like we loved it so much we already made this recipe again this past weekend good.  Trust me. And no worries about them being spicy. The rub does not give you spicy ribs, just very flavorful! All I ask is that you promise me not to boil your ribs first. I learned that is blasphemy in the world of ribs so just don’t do it.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon cumin

1 tablespoon paprika

1 tablespoon chili powder

salt and pepper to taste

oil

water

BBQ sauce

baby back ribs

Directions

PREP THE RIBS

Mix rub ingredients using cumin, paprika, chili powder, salt and pepper.  Prepare ribs by cutting off extra meat and mescentary (shiny stuff on bottom). Slice meat between the bones for easy cutting later. Rinse ribs, including any small pieces of meat included.

Rub oil (we used peanut) on both sides of ribs then sprinkle some rub on top and lightly rub it in. (Do NOT rub hard into the meat or you may end up with dark colored/spicy ribs). This makes enough for well over 3 lbs of ribs.  Wrap the ribs  in aluminum foil, shiny side in for Texas Crutch style. Fold foil so it will hold water but leave an opening. Add 1 tablespoon water in the foil with ribs. Seal.

PREP THE GRILL

Prepare the gas grill for dual zone cooking. If you have a grill with 3 burners, remove grill from two adjacent sets of burners and place water pan in so that it will fit below the grill. Replace grill. I used a pie pan for my water pan and it didn’t get very dirty. Start burner on the side that doesn’t have the pan. (I had to run my burner on high.) Warm grill to 225 degrees.

COOKING

Place your ribs in the foil on the side with the water pan below, bone side down. Do NOT place the ribs in direct heat. Add 2-4 oz of wood (mesquite… I used dried oak since it was what we had on hand.) on hot side. As Craig says, there is no need to soak. Close the top monitor the temp to keep it between 225 and 275 degrees. No need to open the top for an hour.

Remove the foil. (there will be lots of liquid, you might want to add it to your water pan. The foil will not be that hot. Add 2 more
oz of wood. (As Craig says, you can always add more wood next time, but you can’t unsmoke your meat if there is too much smoke) Place the ribs back bone side down (while cooking on the cool side they will always be bone side down).

Set timer for another hour.

Any smaller pieces of meat you included will be done. either eat them dry, or add barbecue sauce with silicone brush. Brush one side and place that side down over the hot part of the grill then brush other side. Wait 1 to 2 minutes and flip it, wait another 1-2 minutes and the sauce will be caramelized and yummy. Remove the small bits of meat.

Rotate the ribs and drop the lid and cook another hour.

After cooking another hour my ribs were done. You may wish to check the temp of your ribs and make sure they are cooked (170 – 175, measuring the top part of the meat.) Because I needed more room in my grill, I removed the water pan before I glazed them. I put the ribs in a jelly roll pan. (Be careful, your grate will be hot.)

Once the water pan is out, and your grill is back to normal, turn up the burners and get the grill nice and hot and you have a nice big area to work with. Add barbeque sauce to one side of the ribs and brush with your silicone brush. Put that side down on the grill and wait 1-2 minutes for it to glaze. While cooking, add barbeque sauce to the other side. Flip the ribs and cook the other side 1-2 more minutes.  I cut them into thirds and enjoyed my masterpiece ribs!

For more information visit the recipe and cooking instructions courtesy of all recipes.com and amazingribs.com

If you’re busy like me, you want breakfast to be FAST and probably on the go. That’s why I like food that will cook in the toaster while I’m rushing around preparing to leave for the day. Today I tried Aunt Jemima Homestyle Waffles. It’s a great value at 10 waffles in a box for $1.50, plus nutrition,  with calcium, no preservatives,  and 7 vitamins and minerals. Waffles can be cooked in a toaster, microwave,  or in a conventional oven in minutes. The waffles were tasty and quick to prepare.

Other delicious varieties of Aunt Jemima breakfast products are available as well, such as Scrambled Eggs and Sausage, Mini Pancakes, Griddlecake Sandwiches, Cinnamon French Toast, Buttermilk Waffles, and Buttermilk or Whole Grain Pancakes.

A brand new variety of Aunt Jemima frozen pancake has just been released, called Aunt Jemima Frozen Confetti Pancakes. These are homestyle pancakes filled with colorful sprinkles and can be served to your family in one minute. It’s a creative way to make breakfast fun. If you are looking for a great way to celebrate a child’s birthday birthday, try this recipe using this new product!

Confetti Birthday Pancake

Ingredients:

• 3 Aunt Jemima Frozen Confetti Pancakes
• 1 sliced orange
• 1 sliced strawberry
• Whipped cream
• Sprinkles
• Birthday candle

Directions:

1. Heat up 3 Aunt Jemima Frozen Confetti Pancakes and stack one on top of another

2. Decorate edge of top pancake with whipped cream

3. Add pieces of sliced orange on top of whipped cream – approximately ½ inch apart

4. Add a dollop of whipped cream to the center of the top pancake and top with strawberry slices

5. Add sprinkles

6. Place the finishing touches on your creation by adding a candle to the center of the top pancake

7. Make a wish!

Watch for them in your grocer’s freezer. For more information about these products and more, visit Aunt Jemima Frozen Breakfast.

I made these muffins recently when my out of state in-laws were visiting. They were a big hit! I had to make a few substitutions for the ingredients I had on hand. I used sour cream instead of plain yogurt and milk chocolate chips instead of  semi-sweet. They turned out fabulous!

Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins

makes 12-16 servings

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup plain yogurt (or sour cream)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup mashed ripe bananas
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips (or milk chocolate chips)

In a large bowl, add combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In another bowl, combine the egg, oil, yogurt (or sour cream) and vanilla.

Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened.

Fold in bananas and chocolate chips.

Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full. The recipes says it makes 16 muffins but I like muffins that go over the top of my muffin cups so I made 14.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

Enjoy!

This recipe and so many more can be found at allrecipes.com.

Hello Hello!

Since I’m new here, I want to slightly introduce myself more through sharing some basic things I love. And what not better to share than a CRAZY healthy and yummy Power Smoothie.

This is such a basic recipe that can be transformed however you choose to swing your taste buds for the day. They say that all blenders aren’t created equal, and knowing people with amazing blenders (Vita-Mix) I believe that. I have a typical blender and it works just fine for this recipe! So any blender should do.

I love this smoothie and often will eat this for breakfast, though it also makes for a great snack. I will make my daughter one first, typically. We have a fairly dairy-free household, my daughter is all dairy-free and I seem to be on the wagon except when ice cream or yogurt calls my name! For my daughter I use either Silk Soy Yogurt or a Coconut Milk yogurt, and I use soy or rice milk for all of our smoothies since that’s what we drink in our house. But for my smoothie, I have become an addict of Greek yogurt!

If you haven’t tried it yet, do it! And if you have, you know what I mean! The biggest difference in Greek-style yogurt is that it is strained, meaning that some of the liquid (whey) has been removed from it, resulting in a yogurt that is much thicker, milder, and richer-tasting, as well as significantly higher in protein and calcium. This means that compared to other yogurts with the same fat content, the Greek-style yogurt tastes richer. I will also often eat a small bowl as dessert – its that yummy! Before using Greek-style, I would use Stonyfield – Bannilla which went well with this type of smoothies.

I always use banana as a base for whatever kind of smoothie I make as well. Any kind of fruit is simply lovely; berries are a must in mine. Freezing the berries and other fruit overnight adds great chill and froth to the smoothie as well.

POWER SMOOTHIE

Basic ingredients:

1 banana

1 c. yogurt

½ c. soy milk (rice, almond, cow- depending on what your household does)

Add additional ingredients

Blend and Enjoy!

Make sure to pour into small fun glasses for those little ones in your life!

Additional ingredients: (This is the fun part! Mix and match and change it up)

Fruit- raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, mango, nectarine, kiwi, pear, apple or oranges. Berries seem to be the simplest if you aren’t too familiar with smoothies- they are still really some of my fav ingredients. Mix of fresh and frozen fruit add a nice texture.

Greens- These are great for adding calcium and goodness to your body! Spinach, collards, kale, and chard are great. This may be for those looking for an adventure in smoothie-land, sort of the next step up after the basics.

Almonds (or other nuts)- Make sure to soak these overnight so they blend well. Almonds are high in fiber and they say eating almonds in moderation promotes lower cholesterol levels, prevents heart disease and can help with weight loss. It also helps boost energy.

Flaxseed, hempseeds- Flaxseed is one of those power foods that is amazing for your body. I found this great info on flax seed:

* Omega-3 essential fatty acids, “good” fats that have been shown to have heart-healthy effects. Each tablespoon of ground flaxseed contains about 1.8 grams of plant omega-3s.

* Lignans, which have both plant estrogen and antioxidant qualities. Flaxseed contains 75- 800 times more lignans than other plant foods

* Fiber. Flaxseed contains both the soluble and insoluble types.

Flaxseed and Hempseed are also a complete protein. I’ve also heard of people adding oatmeal which I have yet to try.

I hope you try this smoothie and simply banana, milk, yogurt, and a handful of frozen berries will be a delicious and healthy start! And little ones will love this too! I promise!!

Oh and a mama heads up- make sure to rinse the glasses or fill glass with water after done drinking- the smoothie makes for a hardened headache if left too long empty! I know this from experience!

Please, comment if you tried this smoothie and what ingredients you like to add to your smoothies. Have you made smoothies before? What’s your specialty?

I love trying out recipes for the grill, especially those as easy as this one.  With these hand foil packs you can serve an entire meal all at once and even use them for outdoor eating with very little cleanup.

Ingredients 4 servings

1 pkg (14 oz) smoked turkey kielbasa or polska kielbasa, sliced

2 large potatoes, cut into wedges (I substituted baby red potatoes)

1 each medium green, sweet red and yellow peppers, cut into 1-inch pieces (I only used red and green because they were HUGE)

1 medium onion, chopped

4 tsp. lemon juice

4 tsp. olive oil

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. pepper

1/4 tsp. salt

Divide the kielbasa, potatoes, peppers and onion among four double thickness heavy-duty foil (about 18″x12″).

Drizzle with lemon juice and oil.

Sprinkle with garlic powder, pepper and salt.

Fold foil around kielbasa mixture and seal tightly. Grill, covered, over medium heat for 30-40 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Open foil carefully to allow steam to escape.

The potatoes and sausage did not get a golden brown because I used more lemon juice and oil than the recipe call for. (I just drizzled it over) It took about 40 minutes but could have been reduced if I had made the foil pack lay more flat with the potatoes on the bottom.

The flavors were absolutely phenomenal. My husband couldn’t resist taking bread to soak up the excess juices. Yeah, that good. My favorite part was the clean up or rather the lack thereof.  I’m definitely going to make this again!

The recipe featured is from the Taste of Home, June & July 2010 issue.

I have always been a huge fan of Mexican Fried Ice Cream. Done right it is absolutely heavenly but making it yourself isn’t all that much fun. I’m not a huge fan of frying anyway and since I’ve watched my mom make it and seen what a project it is, I  haven’t attempted it myself. Instead I simply order it in a restaurant where I can enjoy the end result without the mess.

Browsing my latest Taste of Home cookbook I found this fabulous recipe for Mexican Ice Cream. It looked delicious and since there was no frying involved I thought it would be worth a try. The coolest part is the recipe was created by Ben Phipps, a 10 year old boy!

Mexican Ice Cream

Ingredients 4 servings

2 c. vanilla ice cream

2/3 c. Frosted Flakes crushed

(recipe originally called for 1/2 c. but I added more to even out the sugar mixture & I’m very happy I did)

1/4 c. sugar

1 t. cinnamon

honey to drizzle

Place four 1/2 cup scoops of ice cream on waxed paper lined baking sheet. I let my ice cream get a little too soft before creating and it melted some but they still tasted great. Freeze for 1 hour or until firm

Crush frosted flakes in a bag.

Add cinnamon and sugar and shake to mix.

Add coating mixture to shallow baking dish.

Shape ice cream scoops into a ball and roll in coating.

Drizzle honey on top. Sundae toppings would also be a great addition such as hot fudge or strawberry sauce, whipped cream and a cherry on top!

Have fun and enjoy this easy alternative to Mexican Fried Ice Cream. You’ll be amazed that the taste is almost identical. I am definitely going to make it again as it is absolutely fabulous!

KitchenAid made my day month year when agreed to let me test out this KitchenAid Artisan 5Qt Tilt Head Stand Mixer. The extra fun part was picking out a color! Isn’t this green apple mixer a real beauty? So far I’m loving how much easier it is to bake but also that it is pushing me to be more adventurous in the kitchen.

One area I’ve never tried is baking breads. I like to make the occasional cinnamon rolls but I always cheat and never make them from scratch. For whatever reason I’ve been afraid of yeast. I know it is somewhat touchy to work with and I stayed away for fear of messing it up. I also never thought to attempt to make my own bread because frankly, I always assumed I’d wait to get a bread machine for that.  The idea of relentlessly kneading and waiting forever for the dough to rise just seemed like too much work.

I used to think that. That is, until I wanted to test out the dough hook and decided to take the BYOB (Bake Your Own Bread) plunge.

I opted for the Rapid Mix Cool Rise White Bread recipe from the instruction and recipe booklet included with my mixer. I chose this recipe because it specifically states it is a faster and easier recipe for new bread makers. And since I’m a total bread making newbie I went with this more temperature tolerant recipe that adds the yeast to dry ingredients.

To make this bread, simply place 5 1/2 cups flour, 2 T. sugar, 3 1/2 t. salt, 3 packages of active dry yeast and 1/4 c. butter or margarine (softened) in your mixer bowl. Attach bowl and dough hook to mixer. Turn to Speed 2 and mix about 20 seconds. Gradually add 2 cups very warm water (120 to 130 degrees Fahrenheit) and mix about 1-1/2 minutes longer.

To see this in action check out this video I made that includes the entire process of making this bread with the KichenAid Stand Mixer.

Continuing on Speed 2, add remaining 1/2 cup to 1-1/2 cups flour (1/2 cup at a time) and mix until dough clings to hook and cleans side of bowl, about 2 minutes. Knead on Speed 2 about 2 minutes longer. While this might sound like a long, hard process, remember that the mixer is doing all the work so it is really quite simple.

Cover with plastic wrap and a towel. Let rest for 20 minutes. (Yes, I know those are penguins and snowflakes on my beloved Press and Seal but cut me some slack. I live in Minnesota where 8 months out of the year this is actually totally fitting!)

After 20 minutes your dough will have risen considerably. Divide the dough in half.

On a lightly floured surface, roll each half into a rectangle, approximately 9×14 inches.

A rolling pin will smooth the dough and remove gas bubbles.

To create the loaf shape, starting at the short end, roll the dough tightly.

Pinch to seal the seam.

Pinch the ends and turn them under.

While they didn’t turn out perfect, they did look like little loaves! I’m sure with practice I will get even better!

Place the dough, seam side down, in greased 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 1/2 inch loaf pans. (I had to improvise since I didn’t have two of that size.)

Brush each loaf with oil and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Refrigerate 2 to 12 hours. When ready to bake, uncover dough carefully. Let stand at room temperature 10 minutes. Puncture any gas bubbles. Bake at 400 degrees 35-40 minutes.

Remove from pans immediately and cool on wire racks.

Mmm…..bread. Doesn’t it look yummy?

Ok, if plain bread doesn’t get you, how about some lightly toasted bread with butter?

No? Then how about a little grape jelly on top? It tasted fabulous with my coffee in the morning.

Still not making you drool? Well if those don’t get you this one certainly will! This french toast turned out divine. Almost sinfully good. Because of the denseness of the bread, it almost seemed like a pastry. Light and fluffy on the inside and certainly more filling than any other french toast I’ve tried!

Now I’m officially on a homemade bread kick. My husband is begging me for a cinnamon raisin bread so I just might make his day soon and surprise him! I’m certainly going to be experimenting with different types of bread and can’t wait to share my experiences with you!

If you have a KitchenAid mixer and haven’t yet attempted to use the dough hook for making homemade bread, I highly suggest you try. It isn’t as complicated or time consuming as it might seem and I really enjoyed a sense of accomplishment at the end! Not to mention how extra good it tasted that night with our walleye.

If you don’t have a KitchenAid mixer what are you waiting for? Splurge and get yourself one or ask for one for your next birthday or Christmas gift.  It is currently on sale and has free shipping. How can you resist?

And if that doesn’t sound likely, never fear. Watch for my review and giveaway post this week and learn how you can win one on my blog. Maybe YOU will be the lucky reader who wins this amazing mixer in your choice of color!

Disclosure: I received a sample for the purpose of this review but no other type of compensation was received. This has no bearing on my completely honest review above. The opinions and experiences I’ve shared with these products are my own and yours may differ.

I’ll admit that this isn’t exactly a recipe but mostly just an easy, quick solution for either taco leftovers or a fun way to put a spin on a taco salad. Tacos in a Bag, also known as Walking Tacos, works great for any situation where clean up or sitting down to eat might be difficult. Because all of the ingredients are added to a bag of tortilla chips, only a fork is required to enjoy. I’ve seen them used for local sidewalk sales, camping and even Relay for Life.  It is also a fun for kids to make their own!

I had left over taco ingredients so I made one recently for something different.

Ingredients

• individual sized bags of Doritos (or other favorite type)
• taco meat
• cheese
• lettuce
• tomatoes
• sour cream
• salsa or taco sauce
• green onion (optional)
• olives (optional)

Crush your bag of tortilla chips so that you have bite size pieces.

Next add taco meat and cheese

throw in some lettuce

tomatoes and sour cream

and top it off with salsa (my personal favorite) or taco sauce. It is important to add one of these to keep it from being dry and to make it more like a taco salad.

Add a fork and enjoy! Simply throw the bag away when you are finished.  Yummy!

Have you ever made Tacos in a Bag? When have they come in handy for you?

With all the wonderful recipes available at Duncan Hines, it wasn’t hard to find one to want make myself. I love carrot cake with cream cheese frosting so the Duncan Hines® Moist Deluxe® Decadent Carrot Cake mix really jumped out at me. Since I’d never made anything like this myself before I couldn’t wait to try these gorgeous Carrot Raisin Cupcakes out.

Ingredients

1 box Duncan Hines® Moist Deluxe® Decadent Carrot Cake
2 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 eggs
1 cup hot water (add carrot/raisin pouch and allow to stand 5 minutes)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup drained crushed pineapple (variation: 1/2 c. white chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate chips)
* 1 16oz container Duncan Hines® Creamy Home-Style Cream Cheese Frosting

Add carrot/raisin pouch to the 1 cup of water and allow to stand for a minimum of 5 minutes. In a mixing bowl, add cake mix, flour, baking powder, eggs, oil, drained pineapple, and carrot/raisin/water mixture.

Mix by hand until completely blended, approximately 50 strokes.

Pour batter into paper-lined cupcake pans 2/3 full. Bake cupcakes for 20 – 22 minutes or until tops spring back when lightly touched. Cool in pans for 15 minute on wire rack, then remove from pans and cool completely on rack before frosting.

My entire family went nuts for these cupcakes! I love the cake and cream cheese frosting combination but most of all I love the moist and flavorful carrot cake. Is it wrong that I think it feels a bit healthier than the usual cake? So much so I ate them two mornings in a row with my morning coffee. It was so scrumptious and they reminded me a bit of a a wonderful muffin and I used that excuse to justify eating them so early. They do have pineapple, raisins and carrots in them after all. How healthy, right?

They went so fast that I HAVE to make these again, and soon. They were all gone within 3 days, as scary as that is to admit.

How would you like to get your spring baking groove on with a little help from Duncan Hines? How about a fun spring baking basket to sweeten the mood?

{ Giveaway }

Duncan Hines would like to give one of my lucky readers a spring baking basket including assorted Duncan Hines products and baking accessories as shown in the picture above. This is a $50 value!

MAIN ENTRY: Browse the recipes at Duncan Hines and tell me something you’d love to try!

Want more entries? (How can you resist these scrumptious cupcakes?!) After answering my question do any of the following and leave a comment telling me what you did. Each is worth one entry unless otherwise noted. Your comment is your entry so please leave the appropriate number of comments for each extra entry.

-Spring into Spring! Enter the Mr. Clean Giveaway at The Shopping Mama & tell me below!
-Become a fan/like Duncan Hines on Facebook
-Follow Duncan Hines on twitter
-Become a fan/like Baby Loving Mama on Facebook
-Follow my blog
-Subscribe to my feed in a reader or by email
-Follow me on twitter and tweet about this giveaway (You can do this daily!)

Win a Duncan Hines Baking Basket ARV $50 & Carrot Raisin Cupcakes Recipe @babylovingmama @RealDuncanHines http://bit.ly/dciOjv #giveaway RT!

-Add my button to your blog
-Add my Spring into Spring event button to your blog
-Blog about this contest and link back here and to Duncan Hines (3 entries)

This contest will end on 5/17/10 at 11:59 pm CST. U.S. residents only. The winner will be drawn via random.org and will have 72 hours to respond to winning notification email before I draw another winner or do a live giveaway.

Disclosure: I received a baking mix sample for the purpose of this review but no other type of compensation was received. This has no bearing on my completely honest review above. The opinions and experiences I’ve shared with these products are my own and yours may differ.

If you are searching for an easy, one dish recipe and you love Mexican, then this Mexican Bubble Pizza will be a hit at your house!  This simple recipe is easy to follow and will have your family asking for seconds! (Trust me on this one. It is fabulous!)

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 lb lean (at least 80%) ground beef
1 package (1 oz) taco seasoning mix
3/4 cup water
1 can (10 3/4 oz) condensed tomato soup
1 can (16.3 oz)  refrigerated buttermilk biscuits
2 cups shredded Cheddar or Marble Jack cheese (8 oz)
2 cups shredded lettuce
2 medium tomatoes, chopped
1 cup  salsa
1 can (2 1/4 oz) sliced ripe olives, drained, if desired
1 container (8 oz) sour cream
3 green onions, sliced, if desired

Heat oven to 375°F. In 10-inch skillet, cook beef over medium-high heat 8 to 10 minutes or until thoroughly cooked, stirring frequently; drain. Add taco seasoning mix, water and soup; mix well. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat to low; simmer 3 minutes. Remove from heat.

Separate dough into 8 biscuits. Cut each biscuit into 8 pieces. Add pieces to beef mixture; stir gently.

Spoon mixture into ungreased 13×9-inch pan.

Bake 18 to 23 minutes or until sauce is bubbly and biscuits are golden brown. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake 8 to 10 minutes longer or until cheese is bubbly

To serve, cut pizza into 8 squares. Top each serving with remaining ingredients.

This recipe is courtesy of Pillsbury and created by Karen Hamilton from the 2000 Bake Off Contest. You can find this recipe along with many others at Pillsbury.com.

Disclosure: This recipe is posted simply because my family enjoys it and I thought you would too. Be sure to let me know if you try it and what your family thought!

SPREAD EASTER CHEER WITH BUNNY PANCAKE DESIGNS FROM AUNT JEMIMA FROZEN BREAKFAST

This year, get into the Easter spirit with a fun and festive breakfast that can be ready in minutes! Hop into the kitchen and get creative making bunny shaped pancakes even the tiniest pair of hands in your family can help decorate. Aunt Jemima Frozen Pancakes make it possible for even the most novice cooks or time-starved parents to prepare a warm, delicious Easter themed breakfast.

Aunt Jemima Frozen Pancakes has a variety for every family member including Homestyle, Buttermilk, Low Fat Buttermilk, Whole Grain, Mini, Blueberry and the newest flavor in the frozen pancake family –Confetti. Aunt Jemima Frozen Breakfast has added colorful sprinkles to their Homestyle Pancakes, offering parents a wholesome breakfast choice that makes breakfast time fun for kids! Aunt Jemima Frozen Pancakes can be found in the freezer section of grocery stores across the country for a suggested retail price of $2.59.

For a fun way to bring Easter cheer to the breakfast table, try this tasty Easter Bunny pancake design.

Easter Bunny Pancake

* 1 Aunt Jemima Frozen Pancakes
* 2 slices of cantaloupe
* 2 blueberries
* 1 strawberry
* 1 teaspoon syrup
* 2 mini marshmallows

Directions:

1.) Heat up 1 Aunt Jemima Frozen Pancake

2.) Cut two thin slices of cantaloupe for the ears, fold over the tip of one slice to make the floppy ear

3.) Add two blueberries for the eyes

4.) Cut a strawberry in half and place flat side down for the nose

5.) Drizzle syrup for the mouth

6.) Add two mini marshmallows for the teeth

This would be a fun way to let your kids help in the kitchen or to generate smiles, any day of the year!

{ Giveaway }

Aunt Jemima is offering TWO of my readers TWO Aunt Jemima product coupons for a free frozen breakfast food item (up to $3.50).

MAIN ENTRY: Visit Aunt Jemima Frozen Breakfast and tell me which breakfast product is your favorite or which one you’d love to try!

Want more entries? (Don’t even try to deny it!) After answering my question do any of the following and leave a comment telling me what you did. Each is worth one entry unless otherwise noted. Your comment is your entry so please leave the appropriate number of comments for each extra entry.

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Ingredients

2 lbs ground beef

1 pkg (6 oz) Stove Top Stuffing for chicken

1 – 1/4 cup water

2 eggs

Instructions

Preheat oven to  400ºF.   Line two baking pans (15x10x1-inch) with foil. Spray with cooking spray.

Mix ingredients until blended. Shape into 32 (1-1/2-inch) balls, using 1/4 cup for each.

Place meatballs into each prepared pan. Bake 16 to 18 min. or until done (160ºF).

Tips

Because this recipe makes 32 rather large meatballs, freeze half this batch to be used for later use. Be sure to leave them loosely packed in a freezer bag and flat so they freeze separately. Then thaw overnight for a super fast dinner solution.

This recipe came from Kraft Foods Kitchens and I love it because it so easy and it makes enough for two meals! Trust me, these meatballs are quite large , very filling and really extend 2 lbs of hamburger. I have seen some people complain that they wish their was more flavor and others will say it has tons of flavor. Feel free to add some extra spices your family enjoys to taste.

You can see this recipe along with other great complimentary recipes for a Tomato-Basil Cream Sauce and Creamy Brown Gravy.

Nothing says winter cooking like a steaming bowl of soup. With the current frigid temperatures here in Minnesota nothing works better to warm you up while filling your tummy than this wonderful Italian Soup. It combines two of my favorite things, tomato soup and sausage and is fairly quick and very easy to make.  This recipe was originally discovered by my mom from a Pillsbury cookbook many years ago but I was unable to locate it on the Pillsbury website. It has been a favorite in my family and I’m certain it will be a favorite in yours as well!

Italian Soup

1 lb. Italian Sausage (hot or mild)

1/2 c. chopped green pepper

1/2 c. chopped onion

28 oz. diced tomatoes

(2) 8 oz. cans tomato sauce

2 c. water

1 T. instant chicken bouillon/cubes

1/2 t. garlic powder

3/4 c. macaroni or small pasta shells

shredded cheese for topping (we like cheddar)

Directions: Brown sausage, green pepper and onion. Drain. Stir in all other ingredients except macaroni. Cover and simmer 15 minutes. Stir in macaroni. Cover and simmer an additional 12 minutes or until pasta is tender.

Serves 4-6.

Tastes great served with cornbread, garlic bread or breadsticks! Works great for leftovers and can easily be made into a double batch.  Hope you love it as much as we do!