Sausage Quiche

This quiche is relatively quick and easy! You may also notice throughout my cooking posts that we have an unhealthy obsession with Rotel. We use it ALL the time because it's so good. Husband said this was the best quiche I ever made. I guess that makes it a winner!

Sausage Quiche

1 pie crust (I use the Pillsbury refrigerated ones)
1 lb. hot sausage
1 can hot Rotel, drained
1 1/2 cups sharp cheddar, grated; I usually get generous with the cheese :)
2 eggs
1/4 cup sour cream
1/3 cup milk
1/4 cup ranch dressing
dash pepper
dash cumin

Brown and crumble the sausage in a pan. Drain. Whisk the eggs together in a medium-large bowl. Add the remaining ingredients. Add the sausage into the mixture. Preheat oven to 350. I like to bake the pie crust first for about 7-10 minutes (you don't have to). Pour the mix into the pie crust.

Bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick is clean when inserted into the middle of the quiche.

Notes: This was excellent! I think 1 more egg would help. Also, I used 85% of the cooked sausage. You could probably use it all or add just a hair more of the other ingredients to get the ratio perfect. This is relatively spicy, but you can always turn down the heat. Yum!!

Brunswick Stew

What should you do with your leftover Boston Butt? Make some Brunswick Stew! Husband absolutely loves this stew!

Brunswick Stew

Boston Butt leftovers (about 1 1/2 lbs. of the meat)
chicken broth (~1/2 cup?)
3/4 can of peas, drained
1 can creamed corn
1 small can lima beans, drained
1 medium onion, diced
1 can crushed tomatoes
2 healthy tbls. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tbls. sage
ketchup
black pepper
1 lb. baking potatoes, boiled and mashed

If you already have the meat cooked and shredded, then your prep is really a breeze. Cut the potato into chunks and boil. Add the onions to soften. Drain the potatoes and mash. Combine everything in a large dutch oven over low heat. Eyeball the ketchup. It should be pretty thick because it is a stew!

Simmer for about an hour, stirring occasionally to prevent any burning on the bottom (Mine burned a little on the bottom b/c I think I had the heat up too high initially). Serve it up and enjoy!

Notes: This is a very old recipe handed down. The original calls for this to be doubled. I cut it in half to adjust for the amount of meat we had leftover and it will still make plenty.

Miller High Life Pulled Pork

Ah...spring has finally arrived in Charleston! The tourists are here, the boat is ready and the windows are open for fresh air. Time for picnic food. I make this pulled pork when I get the craving for barbeque and the macaroni salad is new and delicious.

Miller High Life Pulled Pork

1/2 sweet onion, rough chop
3 cloves fresh garlic, chopped
worcestershire sauce
Tabasco
cajun seasoning
black pepper
1 Boston Butt (I think ours was ~5lbs.)
1 12oz. can beer, I call this Miller High Life pulled pork because that's what was in our fridge, any beer will do
your favorite barbeque sauce (husband loves Dreamland bbq sauce, we buy it every time we go home to Alabama)

Turn the crockpot to low. Add onions and 1/2 of garlic to the bottom. Place the Boston Butt on top and douse with worcestershire sauce and Tabasco. Sprinkle on the dry seasonings and the remaining garlic. Pour the can of beer around the butt to fill up the crockpot. Cook on low for 7-8 hours depending on the size. Your house will smell a-mazing.

When the Boston Butt is done (it will noticeably pull away from the bone) remove from the crockpot and shred with a fork. I always add some of the juices from the crock over it to keep it moist.  The husband said any time I want to make this "feel free." There are plenty of leftovers that have endless possibilities.

Macaroni Salad

16 oz. elbow macaroni (or any small pasta size)
celery, about 4-5 ribs, chopped
1/2 red onion, minced
~ 3 tbls. sweet and spicy pickles, chopped
~ 1 tbls. or more of the pickle juice
12 oz. jar roasted red peppers, chopped
1/2 cup mayonaise
2 tbls. dijon mustard
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. paprika
black pepper
sliced green onions for garnish

(ignore the lime in this picture I didn't use it)

Boil elbow macaroni in salted water to al dente. Drain and add to large bowl. Add vegetables and give it a stir.

Add wet ingredients and spices and mix to combine. Top with green onions. Serve immediately or chill for 1-2 hours. Great leftover as well. This is my favorite macaroni salad so far! I really like the flavors and crunch from the celery.

Calzones at Home

I was watching the Pioneer Woman on the cooking channel and she made these delicious calzones. (Who doesn't love the Pioneer Woman??) They looked so tasty we decided to give it a whirl (and changed up a few things).

Verdict: Husband ate 4 in one night!

Calzones

1 tube thin pizza crust (by the canned biscuits at the grocery)
15 oz. ricotta cheese
3 eggs
parsley, chopped (eyeball it)
breakfast sausage (HOT)
pepperonis
sliced mushrooms
green pepper, rough chop
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
italian seasoning
red pepper flakes
black pepper
marinara sauce for dipping

Crumble and brown the sausage in a skillet and drain off excess fat. Set aside. Saute the onion in the same pan just until softened. Turn off heat.

Combine ricotta cheese, 2 eggs, parsley, parm cheese, mozzarella, and seasonings in a medium mixing bowl. Fold in onions. This is your calzone filling.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. (I put foil on my sheet and then sprayed it down.) Slice the pizza crust into whatever size you would like your calzone to be. Some of ours were bigger (for husband) and some smaller. Spoon a healthy amount of the filling in the middle of the pizza crust and top with whatever you like...mushrooms, bell pepper, sausage, pepperoni...we made each one a little different.

Fold the edges to cover everything. Beat one egg and brush the outside of each calzone until covered. Bake for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with marinara sauce. YUM!

Note: The filling is enough to make probably 8-10 calzones. Next time I would probably cut the filling in half for just the two of us. The prep on this recipe can be a little bit time consuming, but I say it's worth it!

Southwest Eggrolls

I had some leftover egg roll wraps and some ground beef I needed to use, so I came up with this concoction. It turned out quite tasty!!

I realize this isn't exactly healthy, but it is goooooood.

Southwest Eggrolls

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can mexicorn, drained
1 can Rotel (HOT), drained
~1lb. lean ground beef
~4 ozs. cream cheese
cumin
chili powder
package egg rolls wraps (usually near the produce at the grocery)
vegetable oil (about 1/4 cup)
mexican blend shredded cheese, sour cream or any other toppings you would like to add

Cook the ground beef and drain off excess fat. Mix all the filling ingredients together. (I added the cheese on top before I rolled up the egg roll, but you probably could do it either way.) Give this a good toss.

Heat a skillet over medium high heat with enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan.

Assemble a medium-sized amount of the mixture onto the middle of the egg roll (place diagonally). Top with anything you like.

Roll up the egg roll carefully and dab on some water with your fingers to seal. Place the eggroll in the hot skillet and cook on each side about 3 minutes or until golden brown. Ideally the pan is hot enough so that the roll does not get too soggy. Also, if you are lucky enough to have a frier or Frydaddy or something like that it would probably turn out better. But the way I made these, great reviews!!

Drain the eggroll on a paper towel and serve! YES!

Pasta Fagioli

Another cold and rainy day. After running my 5k, I really wanted something warm and hearty to eat. Why not make a big pot of pasta?

Pasta Fagioli

3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 onion, chopped
4 oz. pancetta
2 cups uncooked pasta (your choice, I used medium shells)
2 cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed
4 cups chicken broth
olive oil
rosemary
thyme
black pepper
crushed red pepper flakes
3 bay leaves
crushed tomatoes (about 14 oz.)
parmesan cheese for topping (and some spinach leaves, if you like)
Also, a glass of Pinot Noir really brings it home

Give the bottom of a dutch oven a healthy swirl of olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the onion, garlic and pancetta. Cook until the onion is slightly tender.

Add the chicken stock, beans, herbs and spices and tomatoes. Bring to boil and then reduce heat to simmer for about 20 minutes with lid on. Next add the pasta and continue to cook about 10 minutes or so until pasta is done.

Serve with any toppings you like and enjoy!

This was my take on a recipe by Giada off foodnetwork.com

Yucky Bananas??

Ok, so by now you may know that I HATE wasting food. When your bananas get too mushy and too gross to eat raw, do the next best thing...make banana bread. YES!!

Banana Bread:
1 cup sugar
3 ripe bananas, peeled and mashed
1 1/4 cup flour
1 tsp. baking soda
8 oz. chopped walnuts (if you like)
2 eggs
2 tsps. vanilla extract
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup softened butter

Combine the dry ingredients first in a medium mixing bowl. Add the softened butter and use a mixer to combine. Add the rest of the ingredients and continue to mix. Fold in nuts. Spray a 9x5 pan and preheat oven to 350. Pour mixture into greased pan and bake for 1 hour. When time is up, insert a knife in the middle, when it comes out clean, banana bread is done. Let it rest and slice to serve. This always smells so good in the kitchen!! Enjoy!