Baked margarita spaghetti squash

Review by Lyndee:

Ingredients:

1 spaghetti squash

2 tbsp olive oil

1 large roma tomato (chopped)

2 tbsp finely chopped fresh basil (I used dried)

¼ cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

1 tsp garlic powder

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Using a large knife, slice the spaghetti squash in half lengthwise.  Use a spoon to remove the seeds and center strings.  Drizzle the two halves with olive oil and sprinkle with the salt, pepper and garlic.  Place the squash, open side down on a cookie sheet and bake for 30 minutes.   Remove from the oven.  Check to see if the squash is soft and easily comes up with a fork into a spaghetti like texture.  If it’s too hard, bake for another 10 minutes.  Remove from the oven, scrape and fluff the stringy squash with a fork.  Leave the squash in the skin. Turn the oven to broil.  Add the tomatoes and basil into the squash.  Stir and top with mozzarella cheese.  Broil for 3-4 minutes or until the cheese is melted and starting to brown.  Allow to cool for 5 minutes before serving.

This was really good.  Easy to make.  Healthy and gluten free.  I’m a big fan of spaghetti squash so it was fun to find a new way to enjoy it.  

Rolo bars

Review by Lyndee:

Ingredients:

1 box (18.25 oz) yellow, vanilla or white cake mix, dry

5 oz evaporated milk

1/4 cup butter, melted

40 Rolo Candies, unwrapped and cut in half

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°.  Spray a 9×13 pan with cooking spray.  With your mixer, beat cake mix, evaporated milk and butter until combined. Mixture will be thick and sticky. Divide batter in half and press 1 half into the bottom of the pan. Bake until just set, approximately 8-9 minutes. Remove base from oven and place Rolo candies, caramel-side down on top. Drop remaining batter on top of Rolos in teaspoon sized amounts. Bake for 24-26 minutes longer until top begins to golden. Cool completely before cutting into squares.

These were easy to make.  Cutting up the Rolo’s is a little annoying but was definitely worth it. Do not overcook your first bake when you are trying to set the crust! It’s going to continue baking after you put on your Rolo’s and the rest of the batter.  These went over well at the fundraiser and were a nice sweet treat.  

Not your average grilled cheese BLT

Review by Lyndee:

2 slices French bread

1 slice cheese (I used American but any flavor you love would work)

4 pieces bacon (cooked)

1 slice of tomato

Butter one side of each piece of bread.  Set a piece butter side down in the pan.  Add half a piece of cheese, the bacon, tomato and then the other half of cheese and the top bread (butter side up).  Grill in the pan until golden brown and the cheese becomes melty. 

I had a hankering for a grilled cheese the other day. But I kind of wanted a BLT too.  And I had a tomato on the counter that needed to be used up.  When I went to look at our bread supply I realized we were out of sandwich bread so my choices were a hamburger bun or a loaf of French bread.  This is when I decided I was going to make a grilled blt, minus the lettuce because let’s be real, warm lettuce is gross.  This was amazing!! I actually moaned when I took the first bite. I instantly sent a picture to my sister bragging about the best grilled cheese, BLT, random sandwich I have ever made that can be made in under 10 minutes.  Winning! 

Parmesan & garlic green bean fries

Review by Lyndee:

Ingredients:

French Green Beans (I used fresh green beans. Wash and snap off the ends)

2 teaspoons Olive Oil

1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder

1 tbsp parmesan cheese

pinch of Pepper

Salt to taste

Pre-heat oven to 425°.  Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and add green beans.

Drizzle oil, parmesan, and garlic powder over the green beans. Toss the beans in the mixture.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until crispy. I like to mix them up about half way through. Sprinkle with salt when done. Serve them with Cajun Aioli (mayonnaise mixed with Cajun seasoning). Enjoy!

I’ve been trying to come up with new sides that are low carb and when I found these, I was excited.  I love green beans and I had a bag of fresh ones, so it seemed like the perfect fit. Simple to make and a fun twist on your conventional veggies.  I thought they tasted excellent.  So good, I didn’t even bother making the aioli because I just ate them as is.  I’m a big fan of these and will definitely make them again.  

French Dips in the Crockpot

Review by Lyndee:

2-4 pounds of some type of roast meat (rump roast, chuck roast, etc!)

1 can (10.5 oz) beef broth

1 can (10.5 oz) french onion soup

1 bottle or can (12 oz) beer (or equal amount of water or broth)

french rolls or other crusty rolls

sliced cheese (Swiss, Provolone…I used pepperjack)

Place your roast in the crockpot and pour the broth, french onion soup and beer on top. Cover and cook on low heat for 7-8 hours. About 30 minutes before eating, take out the meat and shred. Place meat back into the juices and stir to flavor all the meat. Split your rolls and top with sliced cheese. Bake at 200 degrees for about 10 minutes or until rolls are nice and toasty. Top rolls with shredded meat and add a cup of the au jus (yummy meat juices) on the side to dip your sandwich in. 

This recipe was awesome! It couldn’t have been any easier to make and the taste was superb.  Such a great variation to our traditional roasts in the crockpots I’ve always made.  I will definitely be making these again.

Crockpot Italian chicken

Review by Lyndee:

Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 block cream cheese

2 cans cream of chicken

1 packet Italian seasoning

Salt & pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in the crockpot.  Cook on low for four hours.  Serve over pasta or rice. 

It doesn’t get much easier than this recipe.  I love the dump it in the crockpot and go method.  And this was delicious! I added a sprinkle of garlic and some parmesan cheese over egg noodles and I’ve been eating it for lunch all week.  Yum! 

Cheddar bacon ranch rollups

Review by Lyndee:

Ingredients:

2 blocks cream cheese

6 strips bacon (cooked and crumbled)

1 cup shredded cheddar

1 ranch packet

Pack of flour tortillas

Let cream cheese soften to room temperature.  Add ranch packet, cheese and crumbled bacon.  Spread on onto tortillas.  Roll up and set in fridge to chill for a few hours.  Slice up before serving. 

These were ok.  Not my favorite rolls ups ever. Just a bit bland.  I think next time I would add some green onion and a little garlic powder to the cream cheese mixture.  Or maybe a few more pieces of bacon. They were definitely easy to make though and they all got eaten at the party so that’s what counts.