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!

Shout Out for Help -- Butternut Squash Edition

I've never had butternut squash. I have no idea what it tastes like, or if it's worth it to try and make something with it.

But inexplicably, I bought one.

Now, YES, I could go online and find a recipe with a high rating and try it. But my hope is that someone might see this over the next week and give me THEIR favorite recipe for one lone butternut squash.

Pretty please?

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.

MIA: One SD Card Reader

I have posts. Oh, I have posts.

Posts about quick, yummy pizza. Some about really messy children. Superheroes. Pumpkin Whoopie Pies.

But I can't find my card reader.

So ... these posts must wait.

Sigh.

Halloween Cupcakes

I made these for the heck of it last week, and ended up giving most of them away because I was eating all of them wanted to be nice.

The base is my rich double chocolate cake, turned cupcakes. It makes about 36 cupcakes, so I had more than enough to share.

But that doesn't mean I wanted to.

Buttercream ... I want to write you a sonnet. You are smooth and rich and so velvety creamy. Me + You = love.

Try and enjoy!!

Quick Wreath

Just a quick project I did to replace the wreath I made a few months ago and haven't ever liked.

I bought these at HobLob for $3.99/each. They were 40% off this week, though, so awesome!

They're supposed to be candle decorations, which would have been adorable, too, but I cut each leaf off the round and hot glued the crud out of a Styrofoam wreath ($4.99 at HobLob, plus 40% off coupon) to make:

Won't lie. It's not done. It definitely needs some bling or ribbon ... something.

But it's much better!

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 :)