Fettucine with italian sausage, mushrooms, tomatoes, and basil

Once again I found this recipe on www.fortheloveofcooking-recipes.blogspot.com I loved this pasta dish and I thought it was even better the next day. Sorry I don't have a picture. Just trust me, it's yummy!

5 links johnsonville sweet basil italian sausage, removed from casing (I just used a non-name brand italian sausage)

8 oz. buttom mushrooms, quartered

1/2 onion, thinly sliced

1 c. grape tomatoes

1 tsp. dried oregano

1 tsp. fennel seeds, crushed

1 1/2 c. chicken broth

11 oz. fettucine (I used more)

2 c. baby spinach

1 c. fresh mozzarella, chopped into small cubes

3 Tbsp pine nuts (pine nuts are crazy expensive right now, so you could omit these)

handful of fresh basil leaves, chopped

Remove sausage from casing and cook for 2-3 minutes, then add onion and mushrooms. Continue to cook until the mushrooms are golden and onions are tender (and meat is cooked through). Add the minced garlic, grape tomatoes, oregano and crushed fennel. Stirring constantly. Add the chicken broth. Break up most of the tomatoes by piercing them with a spatula, then simmer sauce for 7-10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Cook the pasta, per instructions, while the sauce is simmering. Drain the pasta, then place into the sauce along with the spinach, cheese, pine nuts and basil. Toss to coat evenly. Enjoy!

Eggnog Quick Bread

I found this recipe on Allrecipes. I was a little hesitant to try it, I'm not sure why. I love eggnog, I just wasn't sure about eggnog in my bread. But it was great, the whole family loved it.

2 eggs, beaten

1 c. eggnog
2 tsp. rum flavored extract
1 c. white sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. butter, softened
2 1/4 c. flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
3 Tbsp. vegetable oil

Prehead oven to 350 degrees. Grease bottom of 9x5" loaf pan or three mini loaf pans. Blend together the eggs, eggnog, rum extract, sugar, vanilla, and butter. Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg. Add the eggnog mixture and stir just enough to moisten. Pour into prepared pan. Bake bread for 40-60 minutes (until a toothpick comes out clean) I usually cook for about 30 min, then put foil over the top to prevent overbrowning and cook the rest of the way. Cool for 10 minutes and enjoy!

Sausage, Potato and Cheese Waffles

This recipe is from one of the magazines I subscribe to--I tore it out, so I don't know which one. These are like an entire breakfast cooked up into one waffle, and they are really tasty. The best part is that you can make the waffles ahead of time, freeze them up to 3 weeks, and then just pull them out and pop them in the toaster like an Eggo waffle when you need a quick and filling breakfast.

About 4 links breakfast sausage, casings discarded
1 baking potato, grated and excess water squeezed out (or just use 1 C. or so of frozen hash browns)
4 T. butter
1 3/4 C. flour
1 T. baking powder
1/2 C. shredded cheddar cheese
1 tsp. dried parsley
1 1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/4 tsp. pepper (I put a little less in mine and it was plenty pepper-y)
2 C. milk
2 eggs, lightly beaten

In a medium skillet, cook the sausage over medium-high heat, breaking it up with a fork, for 5 minutes. Add the potato and butter, lower the heat and simmer until the butter is melted, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool for about 10 minutes.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cheese, parsley, salt and pepper. Stir in the milk and eggs until smooth. Stir in the sausage-potato mixture.

Cook in waffle maker.

Beef and Bean chimi's

This recipe comes from one of my favorite cooking blogs, "for the love of cooking." I made it last night and it was a huge hit. I did cook mine a little differently, but I think either way they would be great.

1 lb. lean ground beef

1//2. sweet onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. paprika

1tsp. chili powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp oregano

salt/pepper

1 can of chili beans (I did not drain)

Cook ground beef and onion until thoroughly cooked, add garlic and spices, and cook 4-5 more minutes. Add the can of chili beans and let simmer for a few minutes.

Layer tortilla with beef mixture and cheese. Place seam side down in a the hot skillet and cook for 3-4 minutes until golden brown. (I did it a little differently, I sprayed a 9x13 with cooking spray. I also lightly sprayed the top of the tortillas and broiled them on low for a few minutes. Watch closely, you don't want to burn them. You just want a nice crispy outside shell. I served these with sour cream and salsa. So good!

SoNo brownies

I recently checked out "The SoNo baking company" cookbook from the library. It's an amazing cookbook! I decided to try out their brownies. I have to admit that brownies are one of the few things that I prefer out of the box...but these brownies beat out the boxed mix anyday.

1/2 c. flour
1/2 c. unsweetened cocoa
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking powder
pinch of soda
1/2 c. butter
1 c. sugar
1 Tbsp. light corn syrup
2 large eggs, room temp
1 Tbsp pure vanilla
1 c. semi-sweet choc. chips

Preheat oven to 350. Spray 8" dish with cooking spray. (or if you're like me, you double the recipe and spray a 9x13"!) Whish flour with cocoa, salt, baking powder and soda. Set aside. In saucepan, melt butter. Remove from heat. Add sugar and corn syrup and whisk. Whisk in eggs one at a time, add vanilla. Add dry ingredients. Fold in chocolate chips. Bake for 30min. Delish!

Beach Street Lemon Chicken Linguine

I found this recipe on some random blog I stalk, so I decided to make it tonight. It is bona fide DELISH--even the kids liked it.

Ingredients:
1 lb. linguine
2 tablespoons olive oil
Zest from one lemon
Juice from one lemon
3 green onions, chopped (white and green parts)
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Marinade:
½ cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed (smashed with the back of a large knife or saucepan)
1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning (cut this down to 1 1/2 teaspoons if you want less heat but don't omit entirely or you will lose great flavor)
Juice of one lemon
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 chicken breasts, sliced

Combine the marinade ingredients in a bowl and whisk lightly before pouring into a ziploc plastic bag. Pat chicken dry and toss in marinade to coat. Refrigerate 3-12 hours.

When ready to cook, preheat skillet over medium heat and pour contents of plastic bag (both marinade and chicken) into the skillet. Saute over medium-high heat until chicken is cooked.

Combine juice of one lemon, lemon zest, olive oil, green onions and fresh parsley together in a small bowl. Set aside.

While the chicken is sauteing, cook linguine in boiling salted water until done; drain and return to warm pot. Pour lemon juice/olive oil/green onion mixture over pasta and mix lightly. When chicken is finished cooking, add hot pasta mixture to the skillet with the chicken and toss well. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste and toss in parmesan cheese. Serve warm.

Bunny Bread

I adapted my recipe from the Taste of Home magazine.

Ingredients

• 2 loaves (1 pound each) frozen bread dough, thawed (I made homemade bread dough and then just used these instructions to form the bunny.)
  
• 2 raisins
• 2 sliced almonds
• 1 egg, lightly beaten

Directions

• Cut a fourth off of one loaf of dough; shape into a pear to form head. For body, flatten remaining portion into a 7-in. x 6-in. oval; place on a greased baking sheet. Place head above body. Make narrow cuts, about 3/4 in. deep, on each side of head for whiskers.
• Cut second loaf into four equal portions. For ears, shape two portions into 16-in. ropes; fold ropes in half. Arrange ears with open ends touching head. Cut a third portion of dough in half; shape each into a 3-1/2-in. oval for back paws. Cut two 1-in. slits on top edge for toes. Position on each side of body.
• Divide the fourth portion of dough into three pieces. Shape two pieces into 2-1/2-in. balls for front paws; shape the remaining piece into two 1-in. balls for cheeks and one 1/2-in. ball for nose. Place paws on each side of body; cut two 1-in. slits for toes. Place cheeks and nose on face. Add raisins for eyes and almonds for teeth.
• Brush dough with egg. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 30-45 minutes. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to a wire rack to cool.
• Yield: 1 loaf.