Monkey Bread Anyone?

My girlfriend was out visiting and I mentioned to her that I found this recipe for Pizza Monkey Bread....I started to explain that you use the same biscuits that you use for Cinnamon Monkey Bread but instead of the cinnamon and sugar you add pizza sauce, pepperoni's and cheese, and then bake it in a casserole dish rather than the bundt pan. I'm starting to go into detail and she stops me to say that she has never even had regular monkey bread....WHAT? ... everyone's had monkey bread! My husband was in disbelief as well, so off he went to the store to pick up some biscuits.



The bread came out delicious, as always, although it was a bit on the sweeter side for her liking. But still very good.

Soon I plan to test out the pizza monkey bread --- also, want to try to create some other versions of this delicious treat!

** Photo compliments of Troeger Photography

Green Chili Tortilla Rolls

The recipe for these Green Chili Tortilla Rolls is also in my cookbook, Our First Year., but lately what I have been doing is adding chicken to the recipe and it has been coming out even better than before!

I've been mixing together 2 cups of chicken broth (or adding chicken bouillon cubes to 2 cups of water) and then adding lime juice, lemon juice, seasoning salt, cayenne and garlic. Then I pour that over 3 frozen boneless skinless chicken breasts in an 8 x 8 casserole dish. Then I cover it with tin foil and place it in a 350 degree oven for about an hour. The chicken is so moist and shreds perfectly. I then add about 1/2 cup of chicken to each tortilla roll before melting the cheese in the oven!! YUMMY.

You can use this chicken process with any seasonings to add to many of your dishes.

My parents own an ice cream parlor...

My parents own an ice cream parlor, which tends to be dangerous and non-supportive of my post pregnancy diet and weight loss goals. Well, we haven't visited in quite a while and during that time my mom has been baking all kinds of new desserts. I do most of their marketing so every time she tells me about a new dessert I am practically drooling on my computer keys. Yesterday I took the kids to visit....and well, to satisfy all these cravings I've been having.


Let's just say I went a little over-board! But hey, if we lived closer, I wouldn't have to force all this homemade goodness in to one days worth of my calories. Luckily I've been working out pretty well this week, and coming off of last week of being sick, I'm in a pretty good place to take in a few more calories...hehe. (although it totally wipes out all the work I did prior to yesterday...ugh....weekend power-walking may be called for).

My morning first started with an APPLE PIE MILKSHAKE!!! Um, can you say amazing? They blend together their homemade apple crisp with vanilla ice cream. So delicious. What I found wonderful, was the fact that you could smell how amazing it was going to taste, before it even hit your lips.



My milkshake was quickly followed by lunch, which I played it safe and ordered a salad, but of course had to have a side of my own personal creation. Boysenberry Cheese Bread. Usually I order it with caramelized onions, but yesterday I wasn't feelin it. So I went straight to the homemade boysenberry jam covered in melted cheddar cheese. Yummy.

After lunch I just HAD to try my mom's newest creation - a boysenberry pocket pie served ala mode....



And for the car ride home...and Espresso Milkshake to keep the eyelids open. I also brought my hubby home a slice of my mom's Chocolate Cream Cake!



Talk about amazing!!! So while we're on the subject of my parents ice cream (Chaparral Homemade Ice Cream @ www.chaparral-icecream.com ) I thought I'd post a few more pictures of the desserts mom had yesterday for everyone to enjoy!


Apple Crisp ala mode


Hot Fudge Sundae


Chocolate covered marshmallows


Homemade cookies


Cake pops


Peanut butter cake


Mint Chocolate Chip Cupcakes


Peanut butter cup cupcakes


Chocolate cream cupcakes


So are you planning your trip to AZ already?

Hearty Lasagna Dinner

Hearty Lasagna Dinner...need I say more?

To be honest, although both my husband and I LOVE Italian dishes, what usually pops out of our kitchen is usually something Mexican.... Tacos, Burritos, Mexican Pizza's, Enchilada's.....but lately we've been on an Italian kick and he has been CA-RAVING Lasagna. I hadn't made my lasagna dinner in quite some time...actually I can't even remember the last time I made it. Had to grab my cookbook (Our First Year) to read the recipe.





As you know, I don't eat red meat, so I made a separate dish just for me and my daughter. Both came out stupendous!



I actually cannot believe I don't make it more often...

Out to lunch comes home...

If you are one of my personal friends or follow me on facebook, you'll know my love for Pita Jungle. My fav lunch spot quickly became the must stop spot for all my out of town friends, our go to hot- spot for girly get-togethers, and one of my many guilty pleasures.

One of my girlfriends who visits often from California has grown to crave PJ and I'm sure she'll soon be making visits just to satisfy her food craving rather than to see me. Anyways, she is hosting a bridal shower for her sister this summer, and asked me to recreate one of the salads from Pita Jungle that we always order. The Spinach Pesto Pasta Salad --- doesn't the name say it all???

Well, I'm happy to say, the recipe has been recreated and it is A-MAZ-ING!!! Although not exactly the same as PJ, its pretty darn close and definitely a gourmet make at home delight!


(this photo only shows the spinach and pasta)

We mixed together a delicious Pesto blend that I found at Sam's club, with balsamic vinaigrette, lemon juice, whole wheat spiral pasta and feta cheese. When making for our guests we used tri-colored pasta and added veggies (tomatoes/mushrooms) for added color.

In all honesty - since creating this salad - I've made one pretty much every day for myself to enjoy. SERIOUSLY!!!

Now, if I could only recreate their Mango Lemonade....I'd be in business.

YUM.

Red Velvet Heaven

My husbands family recently visited, so between the two of us we wanted to "show off"....I mean provide them a delicious meal for the evening. My hubby took a half day from work and started up his smoker, to smoke ribs with his very special "secret" bbq sauce drenched over top. Since hubby was covering dinner, I planned dessert for the evening, which was my favorite Paula Deen recipe (so far). It's her Red Velvet Bundt Cake and its soooooo amazing!

I was first struggling with what to make at first, since I asked my husband what his dad's favorite dessert was and his reply was "banana splits". Since I wasn't going to make banana splits I called upon my sister in law (who lives very close to my in laws) and asked her what dad likes for dessert. "Cake and Ice cream is always a go to for dad!"

I then decided to bake up the red velvet cake for a few reasons. One being that its so moist and dense there's no way you could possibly not like it and two...I LOVE decorating it.

Come to find out, my father in law had never even tried Red Velvet Cake (um, hello dad, you're REALLY missing out here) So I was glad to provide him with his first taste....and he Approved!

It was wonderful seeing our parents and we were so happy to provide them with such a yummy delicious meal for the evening.

Wonderful Wanda's

For the longest time I have been calling this place Wacky Wanda's! hah. My husband finally corrected me and said, "It's Wonderful Wanda's" while laughing under his breathe about my mistake. So anyways, Wonderful Wanda's is our new favorite breakfast spot. It's located just down the road from us, and so far they have the best Breakfast Burrito's in ARIZONA!!!



Back in California, we had at least 4 breakfast spots within walking distance that all had killer burritos! All the right mixin's and wrapped in a delicious homemade tortilla. We've now been in Arizona for almost 4 years now, and it's taken us this long to actually find a place we enjoy for mornings when we get our burrito cravings. (and don't want to make them ourselves....because let me tell ya....Burritos at Casa de Douma *our home* are sooooo yummy!)


(the recipe is in my cookbook -- Our First Year )

When we go to WONDERFUL Wanda's I usually get the plain burrito that includes: Potatoes, Cheese and Eggs. And my hubby tends to switch it up between the: Royal Burrito or Blue Ribbon Burrito, but today he ventured off and got the Country Burrito which includes Sausage Gravy in it! HE LOVED IT!!!

Needless to say, Imma thinkin we'll be making a few *extra* trips over the next weeks he liked it so much!

They also serve lunch, but we haven't made it over there yet to test out those menu items. Here is their website if you'd like to check them out:
http://www.wonderfulwandas.com/index.htm