Mashed Potato Balls

This year, I decided to add some additional creativity to my leftovers. When I make my next day mashed potatoes, reheating leftovers seems to go okay, but with regular mashed potatoes after a day, they just aren't the same when you warm them. So, having seen a pin on Pinterest a while back for Fried Mashed Potato Balls, I decided to see how that worked for us. I, of course, didn't actually have the right ingredients, so I improvised a little, but the family enjoyed the results. The recipe that inspired is here.

Fried Mashed Potato Balls

2 c mashed potatoes
1 egg
1/2 c shredded cheese (I used an Italian blend, but any flavor should do)
1/4 c grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 c bread crumbs (I don't actually measure, put a little on a plate and then add as needed)

Combine the mashed potatoes, eggs, and cheese in your bowl. Form into small balls and roll in bread crumbs. Place in hot skillet with oil. Turn, allowing them to brown on all sides.

I suppose that you could also make these using fresh mashed potatoes, but you would want to let them cool before adding the other ingredients.

Disclaimer

Pumpkin Bread

After making the Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake for Thanksgiving, I found myself with leftover pumpkin. I only had a large can at home, so my leftovers were just over 15 oz. I wanted to make something easy with the pumpkin, so I looked for a bread type recipe in my collection. I have made some in the past, but I don't think this was the one - unfortunately, I hadn't written any of them in my cookbook, so I was left guessing. I decided to add chocolate chips to one of the loaves of bread, I didn't have minis, which I prefer in bread, so I used regular chocolate chips.

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup canola oil
3 eggs
1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin (or 15 oz fresh pumpkin)
3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat oven to 350.

Spray the bottom of two bread pans with cooking spray.

Blend the flour, baking soda, spices and salt, set aside.

Combine the sugar, eggs, oil and pumpkin in a bowl. Stir with a whisk until combined.

Fold in the dry ingredients, stirring until combined. If you are adding chocolate chips, add them and stir to combine.

Pour into two prepared bread pans. Baked for 50 - 55 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cool for a few minutes in pans before turning out.

Disclaimer

Pizza Sticks

It always seems that we get stuck in a bit of a rut when it comes to meal planning. It's not that we don't eat a variety of items, it just seems that every few weeks, I get to the point where nothing sounds exciting and I struggle to plan a menu. Which is something that I hate - it really is so much easier to go into the week with a plan than it is to wing it. The good news is that sometimes, those weeks lead to new ways to enjoy familiar food. The other week, as we were trying to clean out the fridge before vacation, was one of those weeks. I knew the things that I had to use up, but we were so busy planning and packing for vacation, that I never really looked at what I had to lay out a menu plan. Fortunately, one night this lead to a new meal/snack for our menu - Pizza Sticks. We paired it with salad for a nice balanced meal, but they would be great for snack time too. I might consider cutting the biscuits and cheese in half and making smaller portions for a snack or appetizer.

Pizza Sticks
1 can refrigerated large size biscuits (we used Grands)
8 servings string cheese
pepperoni, optional
pizza sauce (we make our own with tomato sauce)

Preheat oven to 350.

Flatten the biscuit, long ways. Place a row of pepperoni along the biscuit, if using. Top with string cheese.

Roll the biscuit around the cheese, being sure to seal the seam and to seal the ends.

Place on a baking sheet, leaving space between the sticks. Bake for 18 minutes.

Warm the pizza sauce and serve with the pizza sticks.

(Tried to cut one in half, but realize that it doesn't really show the gooey cheese center very well)

Disclaimer

Braised Short Ribs

Last weekend, we went out to dinner with friends and I tried a meal that included braised short ribs, some fish and polenta. The fish was okay, but the short ribs were amazing. I decided that it was a meal that I would love to make at home. So, as I tend to do, I did a search on the internet. No one recipe that I found was really quite what I was looking for, so in my typical style, I combined several recipes to get to one that worked for me.

I forgot to buy the polenta, so we served it with rice and corn on the side. I used the braising liquid to make a quick gravy to serve as a sauce for the meal. The meal was met with great feedback from the whole family.

I think that next time, I might swap out my braising liquid and use 1 cup strong coffee and 1 cup beef broth or 1 cup red wine and 1 cup beef broth. I definitely will try making it with polenta too.

Braised Short Ribs

Ingredients:
2 pounds boneless beef short ribs
1/4 cup flour
salt
pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 medium onion, diced
10 Roma tomatoes, chopped
1 teaspoon thyme
12 fluid ounces soda pop
1/2 cup beef broth

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325.

Dry the ribs off, season with salt and pepper and dredge in flour.

Pour the olive oil into a skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the ribs, about 5 minutes on each side.

Place the garlic, onions, tomatoes, and thyme in the bottom of a roasting pan.

Top with the ribs and then pour in the pop and beef broth.

Cover tightly with foil.

Place in the oven for 3 hours. Allow the meat to rest for about 5 minutes before serving.

Disclaimer

Oreo Cream Cheese Cookies

My husband is a big cheesecake fan, but it isn't always the easiest dessert to take with you to a gathering. So, when we were invited to a gathering and he mentioned wanting cheesecake, I decided to find a portable version and discovered these cream cheese cookies. They sounded delicious, so I gave it a shot, making a few adjustments including increasing the batch size.

Now, clearly, they don't have that silky texture of a cheesecake, but from a flavor perspective they definitely are a cream cheese cookie and deliver the flavor. Everyone loved them and I think they were even better the second day (I had left some of the batch at home for us).

Oreo Cream Cheese Cookies

Ingredients:
1 cup butter softened
6 ounces cream cheese softened
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups flour
1 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips
2 cups Oreo Cookies, crushed

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 F.

In the bowl of a stand mixer on medium speed, cream together butter and cream cheese until thoroughly combined.

Add sugar and vanilla, mix well.

Add flour one cup at a time and mix on low just until combined. Stir in chocolate chips with a rubber spatula.

Pour Oreo crumbles into a bowl. Scoop dough out and roll into roughly 1.5" balls, then roll in cookie crumbles, coating thoroughly. Be sure to cover the dough balls really well in crumbs, as this is what holds the cookie together while baking.

Space cookies about 1-2" apart on sheet. Bake on center rack about 14-15 minutes and allow to cool on sheet several minutes before removing to wire rack to cool completely.

I actually ran out of Oreo cookie crumbs the one time, so I swapped out the end of the batch to graham cracker crumbs. They were equally delicious in my opinion.

Disclaimer

Penne Rustica

There are many meals that we make at home that are based off of restaurant dishes. Perhaps one of our favorites is our version of Penne Rustica, which is based off the dish of the same name from Macaroni Grill. This dish is full of flavor and when made with milk, is reasonable in calories too. According to the Cook'n software calculation, this recipe, which serves six is only 378 calories per serving. For such a flavorful and satisfying dish, I feel like this is a great amount of calories. And with six servings, there is enough for dinner and leftovers for lunch.

Penne Rustica

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons garlic chopped
3 tablespoons Marsala wine
2 1/4 cups milk
1 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon Dijon style mustard
2 teaspoons chopped rosemary
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon minced, fresh thyme
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 ounces prosciutto chopped
2 chicken breasts
12 ounces penne prepared, al dente
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon paprika
4 sprigs rosemary

Preheat oven to 500.

For the sauce: saute butter, garlic, and rosemary until garlic begins to brown.

Add Marsala and cook for 5 minutes. Add the milk, Parmesan cheese, chicken broth, cornstarch, mustard, rosemary, salt, thyme, and cayenne pepper. Whisk until smooth. Bring mixture to a simmer and keep it there for 10 minutes. Cover sauce and remove from heat.

Grill chicken until cooked through. (I frequently use my grill pan and a bit of liquid smoke, when the weather doesn't permit grilling outside.

For the Penne Rustica: in a glass or ceramic dish, combine pasta, chicken and prosciutto.

Add sauce and stir. Top with Parmesan Cheese and Paprika.

Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until top is browned.

Remove from oven. Garnish with fresh rosemary sprigs, if desired.

You can always split the dish between several ramekins and make it as individual dishes as well.


Disclaimer

Tomato Basil Pasta

Recently, while exploring Pinterest, I have been seeing a lot of Pins for 'one pot wonder pasta'. It really sounded like a simple and tasty option. I figured it could be good on its owned or enhanced with a bit of grilled chicken. I liked that it all cooks in one pot, so the pasta absorbs the flavor of the broth and tomatoes. I used this version as my source.

The family really enjoyed this. I served it with my homemade French Bread. My son was hesitant at first to try it, but wound up eating the whole bowl that I served him.

Tomato Basil Pasta
Serves: 6

12 ounces pasta
1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 large onion, julienned
4 cloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flake
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 sprigs basil chopped
4 1/2 cups vegetable broth
2 tablespoons olive oil

Place all of the ingredients in a large pot, in order, drizzling the oil on top.

Cover pot and bring to a boil.

Reduce to a low simmer and keep covered and continue to cook for about 10 minutes or until most of the liquid has evaporated, stirring occasionally.

Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with Parmesan cheese.

Disclaimer