Cranberry and Rice Stuffed Acorn Squash

Let's talk about squash. 

Does that word rub you the wrong way the same way it does me?

When I was a kid, I wouldn't have been caught dead eating squash, 

I probably would have rather had brussel sprouts (which I'm STILL not a fan of)

 than squash! 

Thankfully there is zucchini,

the gateway squash, 

as I've always enjoyed zucchini and while I've hated the idea of squash,

I figured that if I liked zucchini, 

then maybe the other squashes couldn't be too bad!  

Now that I have matured 

(insert another thankfully here)

I am so grateful for all of the varieties of squash

AND

all of the awesome recipes to make with them. 

Today I want to share with you 

Cranberry and Rice Stuffed Acorn Squash.

The combination tangy cranberries, chewy rice, creamy squash

and the fabulous flavors of Italian sausage,

this is one heck of fall festival in your mouth!  

This party started by browning 1# of bulk Italian sausage 

while the oven was preheating to 450 F. 

Then, the acorn squash was cut in half

and the seeds were scooped out. 

The baking started with 15-20 minutes at 450 F, 

cut side down,
until started to soften.  

Once the sausage was done, it was drained on a paper towel.

The paper towel helps to separate and collect the grease 

which prevents it from moving on to the next steps in the process. 

One cup of brown minute rice was added to 1 cup of boiling or broth

for a quick 5-minute cooking session. 

When the rice was nearly done, the sausage was added to the rice pan

along with 1/2 cup of dried cranberries.

And, viola, the gluten free stuffing is ready!  

And, looks delicious!  

After the first pre-cooking session, 

the squash was flipped over and coated with some butter. 

Piled high with the stuffing mix. 

Sprinkled with Parmesan and 

back to the oven for the next 20-30 minutes at 350 F until nice and soft!

These came out of the oven ready to be devoured. 

Perfect for these brisk, fall evenings. 

RECIPE:

Prep Time : 20 minutes

Bake Time : 35-50 minutes

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

1# bulk Italian Sausage

1 cup of minute rice - uncooked

1 cup water or broth

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1 acorn squash

4 tbsp Butter

Grated Parmesan cheese - to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450 F. 

Brown sausage and drain well. 

Cut Acorn Squash in half and remove seeds. 

Bake cut side down for 15-20 minutes. 

Make 1 cup of Minute rice according to instructions. 

Combine cooked rice, sausage and cranberries. 

After the first 15-20 minutes of baking, flip squash over and butter. 
Reduce oven to 350 F.

Fill with cranberry, rice and sausage stuffing. 

Top with Parmesan cheese. 

Bake for 20-30 minutes. 

Baked BBQ Monterey Chicken

Welcome to November and all of the wonderful things that come along with it,
including an extra hour in your day and brighter mornings.  

How did you use your extra hour yesterday?

We definitely felt less rushed all day and enjoyed a long evening
including baking as well as a couple games of Scattegories and Would You Rather?

I think we are going to have to implement some evening walks or something else active 

to break up the evening and fend off my desire to go to bed at 7 pm.

Despite having longer evening hours, 

I am certain that doesn't mean you want to spend more time cooking, 

so this easy Baked BBQ Monterey Chicken recipe is just the recipe for you.

Just start with a layer of BBQ sauce in the bottom of the baking dish.

Then, place the chicken in the dish.  

I used 4 large chicken breasts, about 3 lbs, that I cut into 3 tenders each.

The tenders were topped with more BBQ sauce and brushed to spread evenly.

Then baked at 375 F for about 30 minutes, until the chicken is cooked to 165 F.  

Finally, the BBQ chicken was topped with
shredded cheese and crumbled bacon 

 and broiled for the last 5 minutes before serving to your hungry dinner guests!

Knowing what I know now, 

I would have loved to serve these tasty chicken tenders over a bed of lettuce 

for a perfect combination of flavors and textures.

Seems like once the cooler temps move in, so do the cooked veggies, 

as I'm always looking for something to warm the body and soul.  

But warm and flavorful protein on a bed of lettuce 
would be an ideal combination!

RECIPE:

Serves 4

Prep time : 5 minutes

Cooking time : 35 minutes

Ingredients:

3# Chicken Breasts - cut into 3 tenders each

BBQ sauce of your choice - we use Sweet Baby Rays
2 cups Shredded Cheddar cheese 
6 slices of bacon - crumbled

Directions:
Prepare the 9x13 baking pan with a layer of BBQ sauce. 
Place the chicken tenders in the pan and top with more BBQ sauce. Spread evenly. 
Bake at 350 F for 30 minutes or until internal temp reaches 165 F. 
Top with shredded cheese and crumbled bacon. 
Broil for 5 minutes. 

Serve with rice and a salad. 

Beef Barley and Vegetable Soup

Happy Friday and Halloween!

Since Mother Nature decided this would be the nastiest day of the year, thus far, 

I thought maybe I would try to counteract her elements outdoors

 with something warm and cozy indoors.

This hearty, comforting Beef Barley and Vegetable Soup started with

2.5# of ground beef browning in the stock pot. 

Added to that was 1 tbsp of seasoning salt

1 small chopped onion and

1 tbsp minced garlic

all cooked until there is no more pink left in the beef. 

While that was browning, chop up some veggies…

3 carrots and 3 stalks of celery were prepped for their turn to join the pot.  

Toss 'em in!

Next add 4 cups of beef broth and 

6 cups of water for the barley to soak up. 

As well as 1 can of diced tomatoes…sadly tomato season is done around here, 

Once all of the liquid is added, seems like all of the pictures look the same. 

Then, pour 1 cup of barley  into the pot and simmer for an hour.  

If you need to, you can throw this together much quicker.  

As there is also quick cooking barley, which is just as good!

I always have both on hand and choose according to how much time I have. 

Many nights I prep dinner before the kids get home, 

so letting it simmer for an hour is perfect. 

The final additions to the soup are the extra veggies that I have in my fridge waiting to be used up. 

Tonight was spinach and coleslaw.  

Those are two veggies that can be added to many dishes without much notice. 

Frozen mixed veggies would also be a great way to round out this meal.

Of course, my family loves to top their soup with cheese, 

so shredded mozzarella was the choice tonight.

I love how this soup continues to thicken as the barley cooks!  

Beef Barley and Vegetable soup has always been one of my favorites!

RECIPE:

Ingredients:

2.5# of ground beef

1 tbsp of seasoning salt

1 onion - chopped

1 tbsp minced garlic

3 carrots - chopped

3 stalks of celery - chopped

4 cups of beef broth

6 cups of water

1 can of diced tomatoes

1 cup of barley (quick cooking barley will significantly reduce the cooking time)

2 cups of fresh spinach

1 cup of shredded cabbage

Shredded mozzarella 

Directions:

• Brown the beef in the stock pot over medium heat, along with the salt, onion and garlic. 
• Next in goes the veggies and liquids, order is not really important…as long as the carrots, celery, broth, water and tomatoes make it into the pot, along with the barley. 
• Simmer for nearly an hour until the barley is tender. 
• Finally added the quick cooking veggies, like spinach and cabbage, or frozen mixed veggies until they are warm. 
• Serve and top with mozzarella or the cheese of your choice. 

Oreo Balls

Just in time for Halloween, these festive Oreo balls are like a party in your mouth!  

And, they will certainly be welcome after the holiday passes. 

They are quite easy, just 3 required ingredients 

and the most time-consuming part is allowing them to partially freeze between steps.

I first saw these a few years ago in the Kraft Food & Family magazine and
have been enjoying them ever since!

Start with one package of Peanut Butter Oreo cookies,

these things are dangerously good, 

so don't buy to the cookies too far in advance of making the treats! 

I chopped them up using my trusty, mini-chopper…

works great to make nice uniform crumbs. 

Then one 8 oz package of cream cheese was softened in the microwave

and added to the Oreo crumbs. 

Using a fork, the crumbs and cream cheese were thoroughly combined. 

I have found that it is much, MUCH easier to 

form cold, stiff, partially frozen dough into balls.

So, I pop this into the freezer for about 30 minutes…

(in the mean time, you can get dinner started!)

 When the dough was chilled, 

about 36 Oreo balls were formed.  

I generally err on the side of smaller, bite-size balls. 

They can get big fast,

 especially when coating with melted chocolate. 

Pop the dough balls back into the freezer for about 30 minutes 

so that they are easier to manage

and don't melt apart in the chocolate. 

That is also NO fun…spoken from experience. 

Once the dough was ready for coating, 

4 oz of white chocolate was melted in the microwave according to the instructions. 

I generally opt for a smaller, deep bowl

so that not too much chocolate is wasted on the sides. 

Using a toothpick, the Oreo balls are dipped in the melted white chocolate and

swirled for complete coverage.

Set onto wax paper, 

sprinkled with orange sugar and 

topped with a pretzel stick for the stem.  

Four ounces of chocolate covered about 1 dozen Oreo balls. 

So, then melt and dip accordingly until finished.  

I highly recommend melting about 4 oz of chocolate at a time…

it starts to cool and harden fast and 

I don't recommend the texture of chocolate that has been melted too many times. 

RECIPE:                Makes about 3 dozen Oreo Balls

Ingredients:

1 package Peanut Butter Oreo Cookies

8oz Cream cheese - softened

12 oz of white chocolate for baking 

Orange sugar

Pretzel Sticks

Directions:

Crush Oreos in food processor to achieve consistent crumbs. 

Combine with softened cream cheese. 

Freeze for 30 minutes to harden for ease of handling.

Form into Oreo balls, erring on the smaller side. 

Freeze for 30 minutes to harden for ease of handling. 

Melt white chocolate about 4 oz at a time. 

Using a toothpick, dip and swirl the Oreo balls to cover. 

Place on wax paper, sprinkle with Orange sugar and add the pretzel. 

I generally store in the refrigerator or freezer to keep the texture firm. 

Buffalo Chicken Tacos with Bleu Cheese Slaw

Welcome to football Sunday! 

I have the perfect recipe for your Sunday Night Football party tonight.  

Just put some chicken in a slow cooker, so you can enjoy this beautiful afternoon and 

just add the fixings for the game tonight.  

Just start with a package of chicken tenders, this was 1.75# in the slow cooker with 

1 cup of chicken broth along with 

1 tbsp minced garlic, 

1 tsp of onion powder and 

fresh ground black pepper. 

Let this cook for 3-5 hours on high. 

And the chicken was cooked. 

From the slow cooker to the plate for shredding. 

Juicy tender meats shred so easily after a few hours in the slow cooker. 

My new go-to starting ground for dinner. 

When in doubt, throw some meat in a slow cooker and I'll figure out the rest later. 

The chicken was placed back in the slow cooker, 

be sure to drain the cooking broth first. 

About 1/2 cup of Hot Sauce and 1/2 stick of butter were added to sauce things up a bit. 

Stirred it all up a bit and kept it on low until we were ready to eat.  

The ultimate topping for these tacos is bleu cheese slaw. 

Perfect combination of familiar flavors and textures.  

All you need to do is stir up 3 simple ingredients...

3 cups of shredded cabbage, 

1 cup of bleu cheese dressing and 

1/2 cup of bleu cheese crumbles.

RECIPE:

Ingredients:

1.75# of chicken tenders

1 cup of chicken broth

1 tbsp minced garlic

1 tsp of onion powder

Fresh ground black pepper

1/2 cup of Hot Sauce

1/2 stick of butter

Soft taco shells

BLEU CHEESE SLAW

3 cups of shredded cabbage, 

1 cup of bleu cheese dressing and 

1/2 cup of bleu cheese crumbles

Celery for garnish

Directions:

Cook the chicken in the slow cooker on high for 3-5 hours or low for 5-7 hours along with the broth, garlic, onion and pepper. 

Shred the chicken, pour out the cooking broth. 

Add the chicken back to the slow cooker, top with hot sauce and butter. 

Leave in slow cooker on low until ready to eat. 

For the slaw, top 3 cups of cabbage with bleu cheese dressing and crumbles. 

Assemble the tacos by placing the chicken in the taco, topping with the slaw and garnishing with celery. 

Pumpkin Nutella Oatmeal Muffins

Hope you are enjoying the highlights of fall…

I know we are!

Football, Colorful trees, Bonfires, Apples and, of course, Pumpkins. 

Funny thing though, in my house, when my kids request something…

they never quite get exactly what they are asking for, 

but are generally pleased with what they get instead.  

In this case, Ryker asked for banana muffins and 

while taking on some of the male traits in my house, 

I selectively heard "muffins".

So, I was more than happy to fulfill his request.  

I'm pretty sure that if these were straight up pumpkin muffins, 

he would have been somewhat disappointed.  

However, the Nutella in the middle, makes these out of this world.  

The creamy, nutty, chocolate-y middle 

was a perfect contrast for the oatmeal and pumpkin muffin. 

But, don't take my word for it…try it for yourself. 

I just started with a basic pumpkin bread recipe and made my own tweaks along the way.  

About 1 cup of pumpkin puree, 1/2 cup of canola oil, 1/2 cup of light brown sugar, 1/4 cup water and 2 eggs were measured into my trusty mixing bowl. 

After mixing, it looked like I went into the baby-food making business.  

Not so much. 

I happen to be a huge fan of oatmeal in my baked goods, 

so instead of adding flour next, 

I added 1 cup of quick oats, 

I could balance out the flour later once I knew the consistency. 

Then, I only went with 1/2 cup of sugar. 

Especially when adding embellishments like chocolate or Nutella, 

the baked goods themselves can thrive on less sugar. 

Then, for the minor ingredients, the traditional pumpkin spices were added,

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp ginger

along with 2 tsp baking powder and 1/2 tsp salt. 

After mixing that all up, I decided that about 1 cup of flour would yield the desired consistency. 

Yep, looks about right!

Before I get too far ahead of myself, the oven needs to be pre-heated to 350 F. 

Then, a sprayed muffin tin can be filled 3/4 full with the muffin batter. 

Now, about 1 tbsp of Nutella was plopped into each muffin tin. 

Then, just using a knife, the Nutella was gently swirled into the batter. 

Upon completion, there was just a hint of the Nutella visible from the top. 

They were popped into the oven for 20-25 minutes. 

This is what mine looked like after 22 minutes. 

RECIPE:

Ingredients:

1 cup of pumpkin puree

1/2 cup of canola oil

1/2 cup of light brown sugar

1/4 cup water

2 eggs

1 cup quick oats

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp ginger

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup flour
Cooking spray

3/4 cup Nutella - divided into Tbsp

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 F.
Blend together the first 5 wet ingredients. 
Then add the next 8 dry ingredients. 
Pour muffin batter into sprayed muffin tins, filling about 3/4 full. 
Add about 1 tbsp of Nutella to each tin and gently swirl with a knife to incorporate. 
Bake for 20-25 minutes and allow to cool. 

I love having baked goods around. 

My kids were able to enjoy them for breakfast and after school snacks

AND

I was able to share a few with friends!