Pinterest MUST DO List

So, I know that the Pinterest train is already well on its way. And I'm not late hopping on board -- I've been riding along for quite a while.

HOWEVER, I feel that my "make" to "want to make" ratio is, well, terrible. I think I can count on two hands how many of the recipes/trick/tips I've tried. It's just EFFORT, man! You have to WANT it.

But I'm going to give you guys a few of my MUST DO items -- because I've done them and they've become part of my every day (or every week/every month, etc.) life.

HOW TO GET RID OF MOLD FROM (OR JUST REALLY CLEAN) YOUR BATHROOM GROUT
If you've ever had mold growing along the grout lines of your tub, or if it's just dirty or old or gross or NOT WHITE, do this. So easy. SO VERY EFFECTIVE.

HOW TO GET RID OF REALLY CLOGGED DRAINS (WITHOUT CHEMICALS!)
No picture needed. No chemicals, either.

BEEF AND BARLEY SOUP
OMG. My kids FLIP for this. It's so easy, so inexpensive and so, so delicious (and healthy!). It takes me back to my childhood and makes me feel like I'm cooking one of those meals that my kids will come home for ... something only Momma can make. Aren't those the best kinds?

BANANA BITES -- FROZEN. WITH CHOCOLATE. OMG.
So, this isn't rocket science. This really isn't even cooking. But this IS delicious and the perfect way to quell a chocolate craving. Or a sweets-of-any-kind craving. Sliced bananas. Frozen. Dipped in chocolate. Kept frozen. Oh, yes. She put peanut butter on hers, which is FINE. But I'm a purist. Really, though, you can't go wrong.

BEST CHOCOLATE CHEESECAKE RECIPE EVER.
And no, I'm totally not exaggerating. Although, technically, maybe this doesn't count as a Pinterest find because I pinned it from a recipe I first tried in college. I think. Regardless it's just ... it's just so good, guys.

OK, so those are all for now. I recommend all of these over and over and over, cross my heart. A lot of things on Pinterest ... you just don't know. But these, I keep coming back to. Enjoy!

Buttery Chicken Noodle Soup

Yikes, guys.

This not having an SD card reader thing STINKS.

So, we're going way back.

This is the result of much trial and error on my journey to find the perfect chicken noodle soup. The addition of a little butter at the end of this dish really brings it all together. Warm, delicious comfort food!

Buttery Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon Olive Oil
1 whole Onion, Finely Diced
6 whole Carrots, Diced To 1/4" Rounds
3 cloves Garlic, Minced
8 cups Water
8 cubes Chicken Bouillon
4 whole Raw Chicken Breasts, Diced In Bite-sized Cubes
½ teaspoons Ground Thyme
2 teaspoons Parsley Flakes
Pepper To Taste
1 pound Whole Wheat Egg Noodles
1 Tablespoon Butter
Thinly Sliced Parmesan Cheese, To Serve

Directions:

In a Dutch oven over medium heat, add olive oil and let it warm up. Add onions and carrots and saute for 2–3 minutes. Add garlic and heat for 1 more minute, stirring to make sure it doesn’t burn.
Add water and bouillon cubes to the pot. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to a low boil.
Add chicken, thyme, parsley flakes and pepper. Cook for 3–4 minutes, then add noodles.
After 6-7 minutes, the noodles should be tender. Add butter and stir until it melts. Spoon into bowls and top with thin slices of parmesan cheese.
Enjoy!

Quick Tortilla Pizza

Quick recipe guys -- but oh, so yummy.

Ingredients:
4 whole wheat tortillas (medium)
8 tablespoons pizza sauce
4 oz mozzarella, shredded (shred it yourself, if you can!!)
Optional toppings: pepperoni, olives, mushrooms, red pepper -- you know what you like :)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Layer 2 tablespoons of sauce on each tortilla. Top with optional toppings, then 1 oz of cheese per tortilla.
Bake on the bottom rack (directly on the rack) for 4 minutes. Move to the center rack and cook for 3 more minutes.
Remove, cut, chew.

Yum.

Roasted Red Pepper Meatloaf

Yum.

Oh man. Can I just tell you how AMAZING this meal is? How great it smells? How wonderful it tastes?

I'm sad it's over. I really am.

Roasted Red Pepper Meatloaf

Before baking.

Warm and yummy.

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
½ cups milk
1 whole egg
¾ cup Panko bread crumbs
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
½ cup finely chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ teaspoons salt
¾ teaspoons dry ground mustard
½ teaspoons black pepper
1 cup ketchup mixed with 1 tablespoon brown sugar
3 large red peppers, sliced into eight 1.5" rounds
Eight slices of bread (optional, but totally worth it)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix first 10 ingredients with your hands in a bowl.

Divide the mixture into eighths and fill into the pepper rounds. Make sure you smoosh (yes, smoosh) them down to completely fill them.

Top each pepper round with the ketchup mixture and place on top of a slice of bread.

Set each bread/pepper on top of a baking sheet and bake for 35-40 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 160 degrees.

Cool for 10 minutes, serve and sigh with happiness.

I have to say, you can totally omit the bread, but it gets so fantastically toasty and crunchy and becomes the PERFECT way to enjoy this meatloaf.

She liked it :)

Spicy Oven-Roasted Cauliflower

This is hands-down my favorite way to eat cauliflower—and the only roasted vegetable so far that I’ve been so enamored with. The red pepper flakes give it a great kick, but you can easily leave them out if you’d rather not feel the burn!

Ingredients:

1 head Cauliflower, Chopped Into Smaller Pieces
2 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 cloves Garlic, Minced
¼ teaspoons Onion Powder
½ teaspoons Red Pepper Flakes
Kosher Salt And Pepper To Taste
⅛ cups Finely Grated Parmesan Cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450°F.
Toss cauliflower in olive oil, garlic, onion powder, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Make sure each piece is evenly coated.
Coat a baking sheet with non-stick spray and add cauliflower. Roast for 25-30 munites, turning once.
Remove from the oven and top with parmesan cheese.
Enjoy!

Spicy Tuscan Soup ... For your SOUL

I hate to do back-to-back food posts, but today's thrifting adventure was a BUST. At Goodwill, they have a "color of the week" -- if your item is tagged with that week's color, you get the item for 50% off. So I've tried to make thrifting extra hard fun by only buying things that are currently on sale.

Which, sometimes (like today), poses a problem. I just couldn't find anything I wanted so badly I was willing to bash my head against the wall use my sewing machine for.

So SOUP! This is my all-time, never-to-be-beat, absolute FAVORITE soup. It's my version of a Tuscan soup served at a certain Italian chain restaurant that rhymes with Schmolive Garden. It's spicy, smooth, hearty and warm. So very good.

Spicy Tuscan Soup

Stick with me, folks. I'll get better at pictures :)

Ingredients:
1 pound Spicy Breakfast Sausage
1 whole Medium Red Onion, diced
2 slices Bacon, chopped
3 cloves Garlic, minced
3 whole Potatoes
1 quart Warm Water
3 cubes Chicken Bouillon Cubes
1/4 bunch Kale, roughly chopped
1/2 cup Heavy Cream
Salt & Pepper to taste


Directions:
Crumble sausage into a Dutch oven and heat over medium-high heat until cooked through. Drain and set the sausage aside.
Chop onions and dice bacon; add to the Dutch oven. Reduce heat to medium and cook until onions are clear. Add minced garlic and cook for 1 minute.
Slice potatoes in half lengthwise and cut into 1/4″ slices. Add warm water, bouillon cubes and potatoes to the Dutch oven and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes until potatoes are almost done.
Add remaining ingredients as well as the sausage and simmer for 5 more minutes. Let cool and serve with warm garlic breadsticks.


Please make this soup. It will warm your heart and, in the words of my daughter, dance in your belly.


Enjoy!!