A Cheesy Potato Casserole Recipe from Half Baked Harvest

I made this cheesy potato casserole with buttery Ritz crackers from Half Baked Harvest the other night at we ate it for two days straight. It was so good, bursting with flavor and crunch that (thankfully) made the whole family feel satisfied.

The secret to the yummy flavors, in my opinion? The Worcestershire sauce mixed with the garlic and butter!! Worcestershire sauce is something I never think to cook with, but every time I do, I remember how it always enhances and amplifies the recipe and then swear I’m going to use it again. And then I don’t. It’s a vicious cycle.

This casserole is so delicious and so rich, with the cheese and creamy potatoes all mixed together and then topped off with buttery, garlicy Ritz crackers. I’m excited to make this in the fall and winter, as it definitely feels like a meal better suited for colder weather instead of the 95 degree weather I made it in. #oops

Thank you, Tieghan, as always, for creating and sharing the most beautiful, yummy recipes. Check out this cheesy potato casserole here, and see the rest of her recipes on HalfBakedHarvest.com.

An Easy, Made Up On-The-Spot Red Wine Pasta

I had some leftover noodles from dinner the other night just sitting in the fridge that I really didn’t want to just throw away, so I used a few ingredients that I had on hand (and pretty much made the recipe up as I went along ) to turn them into an actually delicious, super quick meal! Here’s what I used…

Ingredients

• A few tablespoons of olive oil

• 2 cups of cherry tomatoes, halved

• 3 cloves of garlic

• 1 and 1/2 cups of red wine (I used a cabernet)

• 1 tablespoon of butter

• salt & pepper to taste

• 1 tablespoon of basil (or more, to taste)

• parmesan cheese to garnish

My sister and her girlfriend made us dinner last week, so we had some cherry tomatoes on hand (I never think to buy those for some reason, but they’re so good!). I cut them in half, poured a heaping amount of olive oil into a pan, and threw the tomatoes in. I generously sprinkled some salt and pepper while mashing the tomatoes to create a sort of sauce.

Then I quickly minced three cloves of garlic and put that and a little amount of butter in the pan and stirred for about 30 seconds, letting it all get nice and fragrant on medium heat. I added some basil (I wish it was fresh but it wasn’t!) and then about a cup and a half of red wine and let it all simmer for a few minutes.

I didn’t measure ANY of this and usually don’t when I make recipes, which sort of makes it hard to replicate them exactly the same way every time. But I always say to use your best judgement! You know the amounts of the things you like (how much garlic, salt, etc.) so experiment and have a little fun with the ingredients.

Anyway, I then tossed the noodles from the night before into the pan and stirred it all together while topping it off with some parmesan cheese (also not fresh!).

I made this on a whim because I didn’t want the noodles to go to waste- we had all already had pizza for dinner that night so this was just going to be for lunch the next day. But it was so yummy that little sis even had a bowl after she already had her dinner, which never happens (it’s hard enough to get her to eat her own dinner every night, let alone a whole other meal with ingredients she usually doesn’t prefer). It was rich with flavor and felt fancy. Cherry tomatoes add such a burst of flavor to whatever they’re in. I need to remember to add them to the list when I go to the store next time!

Happy cooking, friends! x

A Quick, Sweet & Healthy (ish) Breakfast

I came across this recipe a few months ago and have been making it almost every morning since.

I was reading Cup of Jo one day and saw this post where food writer Jenny Rosenstrach (of Dinner a Love Story) shared three “throw-together” breakfast ideas, which all looked delicious, but one in particular caught my eye.

She calls it “blueberry pancake toast” and it’s so quick and easy to make, with bursts of flavor thanks to the blueberries and Dave’s Killer “Good Seed” Bread, which she specifically says to use. And I’m serious about the easy part, as the only ingredients are

• bread

• blueberries

• almond butter

• maple syrup

Just pile it all on top like the picture above and enjoy. Thanks for the yummy breakfast idea, Jenny!!

Bourbon Bundt Cake

Today I’m sharing a recipe I’ve never made before (or even thought about making!).

We did a collaboration with Maker’s Mark a few weeks back and had two big bottles of bourbon, so PJ thought it would be fun to make a bourbon cake, just like his grandma used to when he was young. A bourbon cake, in theory, sounded good to me, but I had never tried one, so I was a bit skeptical.

After putting it off for weeks, I finally made the cake yesterday and I am happy to report it was delicious! It was warm and sweet and comforting, as only cakes can be. I was afraid the bourbon would be overpowering in flavor but it wasn’t- it was just the right amount, as evident by the number of pieces I’ve already had.

Also, full disclosure: I totally butchered the buttercream glaze. It didn’t turn out at all how I envisioned and was more like clumpy icing, so do with that what you will. It tasted great, though! Just wasn’t the prettiest to look at (which honestly I’m completely okay with food not looking that good but tasting yummy). I’m really not a huge fan of bundt cakes, but PJ (who generally doesn’t like cake) loves them, so I need to perfect my glazing recipe ASAP!

Sharing the bourbon bundt cake recipe I used from The Wood and Spoon below:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (230 gm) unsalted butter, at room temperature

• 1–1/4 cup sugar (250 gm)

• ¾ cup (150 gm) brown sugar

• 4 large eggs, at room temperature

• 1 cup (240 gm) buttermilk, at room temperature

• ¼ cup (60 gm) good quality bourbon

• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

• 2–3/4 cups (385 gm) all-purpose flour

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• ½ teaspoon baking soda

• 1 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter, sugar, and brown sugar together on medium speed for 4 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl and add the eggs one at a time. Scrape the sides of the bowl and stir in any unincorporated egg.

3. In a separate bowl combine the buttermilk, bourbon, and vanilla extract.

4. In another bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, soda, and salt.

5. Add half of the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and stir just until barely combined on low speed.

6. Add half of the liquid ingredients and stir to combine.

7. Repeat this process to incorporate the remaining dry and wet ingredients.

8. Fold the batter together using a rubber spatula to ensure everything is well incorporated.

9. Lightly grease and flour a bundt pan and spoon the batter into the pan. Bake in the preheated oven until the cake has risen and a toothpick inserted comes out clean, about 45- 50 minutes. Allow to cool for 20 minutes in the pan, then invert the cake on to a cooling rack to cool completely.
   

And for the bourbon glaze (the one I didn’t use), here is what you’ll need for that:

• 2 cups powdered sugar

• 2 tablespoons bourbon

• ¼ cup heavy whipping cream, plus more as needed

Whisk together the powdered sugar, bourbon, and ¼ cup of heavy whipping cream. Add additional cream 1 teaspoon at a time until your glaze is the desired consistency. Add additional powdered sugar to thicken as needed. Spoon the glaze over top of the cake.

Happy baking, friends! Hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Cinnamon Oatmeal Banana Bread

Good morning, friends, and happy Friday!

I made this cinnamon oatmeal banana bread last night and wanted to share it here because it’s the perfect warm and yummy treat for the weekend. I don’t know what I was expecting while making it, but this bread is the definition of comforting. It’s like a giant hug or an oversized sweater in your mouth, which is especially welcome right now because as I look out the window while writing this, it’s a frigid 24 degrees.

We had some old bananas that I was holding onto for weeks (that PJ smartly told me to freeze until I was ready to actually make something with them) to make some sort of cinnamon banana bread, but at the last minute I decided I wanted to add oatmeal into the mix, too. Cinnamon oatmeal banana bread? Is that even a thing? A quick Google search revealed that it in fact was a thing, and it was a thing that looked absolutely delicious. So I started baking.

I ended up going with this recipe from My Gourmet Connection. Fair warning: PJ asked if I cut the sugar any, which I didn’t, so if you like your breads a little sweet, you may want to add a bit more sugar than what the recipe calls for. I thought it tasted great as is (the kids did, too!), but I think we could all use a little more sweetness in our lives, don’t you?

Full recipe and directions below, directly from My Gourmet Connection:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup quick cooking oats

• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten

• 1/2 cup milk

• 3 medium ripe bananas, mashed

• 1/3 cup vegetable oil

• 2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1/3 cup sugar

• 2 teaspoons baking powder

• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the topping:

• 1/3 cup quick cooking oats

• 2 teaspoons sugar

• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

• 2 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease the bottom of a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan.

2. Combine the topping ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.

3. Combine the oats with the milk and set aside for 10 minutes to soften. Add the bananas, oil, eggs, and vanilla extract to the softened oats. Mix well.

4. Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Add in the banana mixture and combine until dry ingredients are moistened.

5. Spread the bread batter in the prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle the topping evenly over the top and pat down gently into the surface of the bread. Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until the edges pull away from the pan slightly and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

6. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then remove to a wire cooling rack.

Hope you have the coziest weekend ever, and happy baking!

Spiced Maple Cake from Half Baked Harvest

Ever since I first saw Tieghan from Half Baked Harvest post her recipe for this Spiced Maple Cake a few weeks ago, I have been itching to make it. So the other night I broke out the eggs and mixing bowl and got to work.

Baking this cake made the entire house smell delicious, leaving each room with a sweet, rich maple syrupy smell that seemed to represent all the warm, comforting feelings this seasons brings. It was like a big, giant hug, and couldn’t we all use more hugs right now?

PJ compared it to more of a crumble than a traditional cake, and I have to agree. The icing was my absolute favorite ever- maple! And by favorite ever, I mean I have never made it before but after I did, it is now my favorite. It was so sweet and yummy and decadent. I highly recommend making this cake to start the new year off right.

Happy baking, friends!!

The Creamiest, Coziest Potato Soup Ever

Freezing cold days = soup for dinner. Every time. It’s just the way it is, I don’t make the rules!

I made this creamy potato soup the other night and it hit all the right spots. We all came back for seconds and honestly I probably could have come back for thirds. If you’re looking for a yummy, easy soup to make tonight, I highly recommend this one. Taken directly from sugarspunrun.com, here is what you’re going to need:

Ingredients:

• 6 strips (uncooked) bacon cut into small pieces

• 3 Tablespoons butter unsalted or salted will work

• 1 medium yellow onion chopped (about 1.5 cup/200g)

• 3 large garlic cloves minced

• ⅓ cup all-purpose flour 42g

• 2 ½ lbs gold potatoes peeled and diced into pieces no larger than 1” (this was about 6 Large potatoes for me/1.15kg)

• 4 cups chicken broth 945ml

• 2 cups milk 475ml

• 2/3 cup heavy cream 155ml

• 1 ½ teaspoon* salt

• 1 teaspoon ground pepper

• 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon ancho chili powder**

• 2/3 cup sour cream 160g

• Shredded cheddar cheese, chives, and additional sour cream and bacon for topping optional

Directions:

• Place bacon pieces in a large Dutch Oven or soup pot over medium heat and cook until bacon is crisp and browned.

• Remove bacon pieces and set aside, leaving the fat in the pot.

• Add butter and chopped onion and cook over medium heat until onions are tender (3-5 minutes).

• Add garlic and cook until fragrant (about 30 seconds).

• Sprinkle the flour over the ingredients in the pot and stir until smooth (use whisk if needed).

• Add diced potatoes to the pot along with chicken broth, milk, heavy cream, salt, pepper, and ancho chili powder. Stir well.

• Bring to a boil and cook until potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork (about 10 minutes).

• Reduce heat to simmer and remove approximately half*** of the soup to a blender (be careful, it will be hot!) and puree until smooth (half is about 5 cups of soup, but just eyeballing the amount will be fine. Alternatively you can use an immersion blender.).

• Return the pureed soup to the pot and add sour cream and reserved bacon pieces, stir well.

• Allow soup to simmer for 15 minutes before serving.

• Top with additional sour cream, bacon, cheddar cheese, or chives. Enjoy!

Happy cooking, friends, and stay warm!! xo

Chicken Tortellini with Basil Pesto & Veggies

Pesto. Chicken. Cherry AND sun-dried tomatoes. Asparagus. Did I also mention you can make it all in one pan? This one’s a winner, y’all.

I came across this recipe the other night from Julia’s Album and once I saw the colors and all the yummy veggies, I knew I wanted to make it for the family. You know how picky little sis has been lately, so I knew this one wouldn’t be that popular with her, but had a feeling everyone else would enjoy it.

What also drew me to this recipe was how few ingredients it called for. Not only are they healthy, delicious, and fresh, there aren’t that many of them! AKA my favorite because it doesn’t take long to make. However, I switched out the ravioli for tortellini because I couldn’t find any ravioli at the store. It was still so good and the kids ate it all up. Also, I have never in my life cooked with sun-dried tomatoes before (why did no one tell me they’re so yummy and flavorful?!), so this was a much needed and welcomed switch-up from our regular dinner rotation ingredients.

Here’s what you’re going to need:

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 lb chicken breast boneless skinless, sliced

• salt

• 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes , drained of oil, chopped

• 1 lb asparagus , ends trimmed, cut in half

• 1/4 cup basil pesto

• 1 cup cherry tomatoes , yellow and red, sliced in half

• 10 oz ravioli

Directions:

1. In a large skillet heat 2 tablespoons olive oil on medium heat.

2. Add sliced chicken breast (seasoned with salt) and 1/4 cup of chopped sun-dried tomatoes. Cook everything on medium heat for 5-10 minutes, turning chicken slices over a couple of times until the chicken is completely cooked through.

3. Remove the chicken and the sun-dried from the skillet, leaving the oil in.

4. Add asparagus (ends trimmed), seasoned generously with salt, and 1/4 cup of sun-dried tomatoes to the same skillet.

5. Cook on medium heat for 5-10 minutes until the asparagus is cooked through. Remove the asparagus to a plate.

6. Cook ravioli according to the package instructions, drain.

7. Add cooked chicken with sun-dried tomatoes back to the skillet.

8. Add basil pesto.

9. Stir to coat and cook on low-medium heat until the chicken is reheated, 1 or 2 minutes. Remove from heat.

10. Add cooked ravioli and halved cherry tomatoes to the skillet with the chicken. Stir to combine. Add more pesto if desired.

11. Season with more salt if needed.

12. Serve the chicken, ravioli, and cherry tomatoes together with asparagus.

Hope you enjoy all the pretty colors and yummy flavors like we did, and head to Julia’s Album for more delicious recipes like this one! xoxo

A Chocolate Banana Bread Recipe

Here’s the story: we had a lot of bananas. We had a taste for something chocolatey. We knew what we had to do.

We had to make chocolate banana bread, naturally. Actually, we had originally planned to make a banana pound cake that Thomas’ sister made and had sent him the recipe for, but PJ got a taste for chocolate (always) so we decided to make this one first. And we gotta say, we don’t regret it. It’s the perfect mix of banana and chocolate and it’s so moist, almost tasting cake-ish, in all the best ways of course.

Here’s what you’re going to need, taken directly from Two Peas and Their Pod:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour

• 1/2 cup Dutch process cocoa

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

• 3 large brown bananas   (1 1/2 cups mashed)

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled

• 1/4 cup canola vegetable oil, or melted coconut oil

• 3/4 cup  packed light brown sugar

• 1 large egg, at room temperature

• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

• 1 cup  semisweet chocolate chips, divided

Directions:

1. Heat your oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and sea salt. Set aside.

3. In a large bowl, mash the ripe bananas with a fork. Add the melted butter and oil and stir until combined. Stir in the brown sugar, egg, and vanilla extract. Stir until smooth.

4. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, don’t overmix. Stir in 3/4 cup of the chocolate chips.

5. Pour batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of chocolate chips over the top of the bread. Bake for 50-65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out mostly clean, you might have some melted chocolate chips on the toothpick and that is fine. You just don’t want a lot of gooey batter. Check at 50 minutes, just to be safe. Oven times vary.

6. Remove the pan from the oven and set on a wire cooling rack. Let the bread cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Run a knife around the edges of the bread and carefully remove from the pan. Let the bread cool on the wire cooling rack until slightly warm. Cut into slices and serve.

7. Note-the bread will keep on the counter, wrapped in plastic wrap, for up to 4 days. This bread also freezes well. To freeze, cool the bread completely and wrap in plastic wrap and aluminum foil. Freeze for up to 1 month. Defrost before slicing.

Enjoy friends! :)

Crockpot BBQ Shredded Chicken

File this one under the actual easiest dinner of all time.

Thomas’ older sister gave us this recipe and we’ve loved the easiness and convenience of it. Actually, not sure you could even classify this as a recipe because there are only two steps, so we’re keeping it short and simple today and sharing how to make the juiciest, most delicious bbq chicken:

Ingredients:

• 4-5 boneless chicken breasts

• 1 bottle of your bbq sauce of choice

Directions:

1. Put whole chicken breasts in the crockpot and pour as much bbq sauce as you want to cover them completely. We say the more the better!

2. If chicken breasts are frozen, put crockpot on high for 4 hours. If chicken breasts are thawed, it should only take about 2-3 hours.

3. Shred the chicken directly in the crockpot.

4. ENJOY.

See what we mean? So incredibly easy and the best part is the kiddos love it, so it’s become a weekly dinner rotation in our house. We usually have enough for leftovers so we eat it for lunch the next day, too. We eat it on regular hamburger buns and make broccoli and either chips or some kind of potatoes in the air fryer. Oh! And a bbq chicken baked potato would be delicious, too.

Okay that’s all. Enjoy :) xx.