Pumpkin Seeds

'Tis the season...to carve pumpkins!

One of my favorite things about carving pumpkins, however, is not the pumpkin, but eating the delicious seeds. I make my seeds differently each year, and this is what I did this year...they were delicious. :)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Separate your pumpkin seeds from the rest of the pumpkin goop, and rinse them with water.

In a saucepan, add the seeds to water, about 2 cups for each 1/2 cup of pumpkin seeds. Add a half tablespoon of salt for each cup of water that you use (more if you like it really salty, but I thought the 1/2 tbsp was fine).

Bring the water and seeds to a boil. Remove from heat and drain.

Spread about a tablespoon of olive oil on the bottom of a roasting pan. Spread the seeds out over the roasting pan in a flat layer. I lightly salted the seeds as well, but you probably don't need it since you boiled them in salt water....what can I say, I like my food salty. :)

Bake the seeds on the top rack until they start to brown to your satisfaction, anywhere from 10-20 minutes. Remove from oven, and let cool before eating.

Enjoy!!

Sugar Cookie Recipe

A boring Thursday night led to cookie making for a friend and I! Although sugar cookies were a little more labor intensive than I had remembered, it was very fun, and delicious!

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Mix together:

1 cup butter

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

2 tablespoons milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix these ingredients together, then add to above mixture:

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoon baking powder

3 1/3 cups flour

Form mixture into a ball and refrigerate for an hour. We tried to skip this step, but it just makes it way harder to make your shapes, because the dough is so soft....definitely refrigerate!

Take dough and flatten with a rolling pin, use flour on the surface and your rolling pin so it doesn't stick as much.

Cut out your shapes and put onto baking sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

We also made this frosting:

1/4 cup butter

2 cups powdered sugar

3 tablespoons milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 tablespoons white corn syrup

Frost and enjoy!

*Recipe from Ashley Lickteig and family

Cheeseburger and Fries Casserole

Just ran across a heading on the Midwest Living website:

Our Best Casserole and Hot Dish Recipes

Cheeseburger and Fries Casserole

Doesn't it look yummy? :)

Turkey Chili and Baked Potatoes

Acorn squash yesterday.
Chili and baked potatoes today...It's Fall y'all!  (just a little paula dean impression for you)
Turkey Chili
Great Baked Potatoes
Sweet Potato Gratin

Pumpkin Fluff

Have had a request for pumpkin fluff. :)

1 (regular size) can pumpkin
1 package (regular) sugar free/fat free vanilla pudding  (instant)
Pumpkin pie spices - as much as tastes good to you
1 container cool whip

Mix the pumpkin, pudding, and spices together. Fold in cool whip. YUM. Low-fat yummy treat.

Morning Smoothie

I was just telling Sara about my new discovery and she asked me to post it. :)
Background:
I like watching TV shows where people talk about how they lost weight. A long time ago I saw one where this woman and her family ate their evening meal at breakfast time. They would sit down and have their largest meal of the day, and literally, like eat a pork chop or something at breakfast. I'm thinking this woman must have been a stay-at-home mom because there is NO WAY I am cooking before my work day.  And of course, she had lost scads of weight with this system.

Anyway. So, this lady (we'll call her pork chop lady) had said that eating the largest meal of the day at breakfast was a key to her success...you are able to burn off the calories over the course of the day...you jump start your metabolism, etc.

Recently I saw a woman with a similar (but much more realistic for me!) idea.  She had lost like over a hundred pounds and said that she was convinced her morning smoothie was a key to her success.

Morning Smoothie:

1 cup soy milk
1 cup no-fat yogurt
1 cup frozen fruit/berries (don't skimp on the berries, you little [dutch] wives you!) :)
1/3 cup tofu
1 serving protein powder
(flax seed)

Blend blend blend til smooth.

The lady (We'll call her smoothie lady) said she puts flax seed in hers. I don't know a thing about flax seed so I haven't used that yet.

Here's what I've been using

• 8th Continent Light Vanilla soy milk
• whatever yogurt you like (I'm using Stonyfield YUM)
• strawberries and blueberries
• Melissa's firm tofu
• 1 scoop Champion ProScore 100 protein powder

TOFU - Melissa's is an 18 oz package....serving size said 1/3 cup = 1 serving, 6 servings per package. So, for $2, I have six shakes worth of tofu, so I cut it into six pieces and refrigerated the leftover. (You can refrigerate the leftover tofu. You do have to change the water daily....but other than that it should be fine in the refrigerator.)

I use Champion Pro Score protein - and I get it from this website -
vitalady.com

$30 for 2 pounds. (On the champion website, it's almost $50 for two pounds....but you will pay shipping to vitalady...but sheesh.) Anyway.

I thought I would like chocolate better, but I'm kind of loving the strawberry.

The first day I made a shake I figured out the calories according to the ingredients I used....it was like 330 calories and 80% of the protein I needed for the day. Yippee.  

Smoothie lady said that for the rest of her day, she would do 3 oz of fish or chicken at lunch and 3 oz at supper, and lots of fruits, vegetables, and a little whole grain. She said she ate a minimum of two apples per day.

I am excited about this idea and plan. 

Yummy Pork Chops

I got this from my Fiancé's Dad. It's pretty good and we change the meat up when we get tired of pork chops. My filet mignons are currently marinading in the fridge as we speak.

Prep Time: 24 hrs
Cook Time: 20 min.
Ready In: 24 hrs
Yields: 8 servings


INGREDIENTS:
4 - Cups soy sauce
2 - Cups salad oil
2 - Cups Brown Sugar
1 - Cup worchestershire sauce
1 - Cup white vinegar
1 - Bottle (4 fl oz) Liquid Smoke
3 - teaspoons garlic powder (1/2 small container)
6 - teaspoons celery seed (1 small container)
6 - teaspoons dry ground mustard (1 small container)
6 - teaspoons ground ginger (1 small container)
8 - Iowa Chops - 1+1/4" center cut Pork Chops


DIRECTIONS:
In mixing bowl combine first 10 ingredients and mix very well.
Marinade chops in mixture 24 hrs. in refrigerator, turning once. (top to bottom)
Grill chops to 165 degree F (just turning white / no pink) over medium to high heat of grill or over campfire coals at height to 10-12 above good bed of coals. Baste chops with mixture and turn frequently (some charing may occur as the brown sugar in the mixture burns). Reuse leftover marinade ONLY if kept refrigerated. NEVER serve used marinade as table sauce, health hazard if not fully cooked.
Serve with a baked potato, brown beans, bread, and a light salad and watch them fight for the leftovers.

Grandma's Strawberry Cheesecake Dessert

When I'm lucky, my Grandma Driesen makes this for dessert on Sunday afternoons.....it's my favorite summer dessert! Gotta love the fresh strawberries!!

First Layer, mix:

1 package graham crackers (crushed)

2 tablespoons sugar

1/3 cup butter

Press in 9x13 pan. Put in fridge while you mix the following.

2 - 8 oz. cream cheese (room temperature)

3/4 cup powdered sugar (or white sugar)

2 - 8 oz. cool whip

Beat until creamy. Pour onto graham cracker crust. Cool in fridge while preparing final layer.

Prepare 1 package Janket Danish Dessert according to package instructions. (Boil with 1 3/4 cup water). Allow to cool, and then mix with 2 pints of strawberries to cover the cream cheese layer.

ENJOY!!!!

*Recipe from Grandma Driesen

Heavenly Bars

It's time for desserts! This is probably one of the most unhealthy bars I make, but I LOVE THEM!!! They are DE-lish.

Melt together:

2 cups brown sugar

1 cup corn syrup

2 cups peanut butter

Add:

4 cups Rice Krispies

1/2 package of vanilla pudding mix (French vanilla gives the middle layer a better color, but it doesn't matter...)

Spread this layer on a large cookie sheet-like pan, or two 9x13 pans, the bars are meant to be thin.

Beat together:

1 stick of oleo

4 cups powdered sugar

1/2 package of pudding mix (the other half of the package you previously used)

8 tablespoons of milk

Spread over the first layer, and chill.

Frost with:

3/4 cup peanut butter

3/4 cup chocolate chips

ENJOY!!!!

*Recipe from Carmel Cookbook

Lasagna

The recipe off the Barilla no boil lasagna box! 



If you have a regular 9x13 pan, follow these instructions


Lasagna

1 box barilla no boil lasagna
2 eggs
1 container (15 oz) ricotta cheese
4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (divided) 
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
1 lb bulk Italian sausage or ground beef – cook, crumble, drain with onions and garlic
diced onions, to taste
garlic, to taste
2 jars marinara sauce (not chunky- traditional is better)

mushrooms, optional
roasted red peppers, optional

Preheat oven to 375. Spray 9x13 baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. Remove 16 sheets of lasagna from box. Do not boil. In medium bowl, beat eggs. Stir in ricotta cheese, 2 cups of mozzarella and parmesan cheese.

When layering lasagna, slightly overlap sheets. Lasagna will expand to the edges during cooking. Spread fillings to edges to seal in and cook the lasagna during baking.

Layer as follows:

Spread ½ jar of sauce on bottom of greased pan
Layer
o    4 or 5 sheets of lasagna
o    half of ricotta mixture
o    half of browned meat
o    remaining sauce from 1st can
o    1 cup mozzarella

o    4-5 sheets lasagna
o    remaining ricotta mixture
o    remaining browned meat
o    ½ of second jar of sauce

o    4 -5 sheets lasagna
o    remaining sauce from second jar
o    remaining 1 cup mozzarella

Bake covered with foil until bubbly, 50-60 minutes. Uncover, continue cooking 5-10 minutes until cheese is melted. Let stand 15 minutes before cutting.


If you have a DEEP 9x13  pan (3" deep), follow these instructions for layering:

Lasagna


1 box barilla no boil lasagna
2 eggs
1 container (15 oz) ricotta cheese
4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (divided) 
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
1 lb bulk Italian sausage or ground beef – cook, crumble, drain with onions and garlic
diced onions, to taste
garlic, to taste
2 jars marinara sauce (not chunky- traditional is better)

mushrooms, opt
roasted red peppers, opt

Preheat oven to 375. Spray 9x13 baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. Remove 16 sheets of lasagna from box. Do not boil. In medium bowl, beat eggs. Stir in ricotta cheese, 2 cups of mozzarella and parmesan cheese.

When layering lasagna, slightly overlap sheets. Lasagna will expand to the edges during cooking. Spread fillings to edges to seal in and cook the lasagna during baking.

If you have a deep 9x13  pan (3" deep), follow these instructions for layering:
Spread 1 cup of sauce on bottom of greased baking pan.
Layer 4 uncooked sheets, 1/3 of ricotta mixture, half of browned meat, 1 cup of mozzarella cheese, and 1 cup of sauce.
Layer 4 uncooked sheets, 1/3 of ricotta, and 1 ½ cups sauce
Layer 4 uncooked sheets, the remaining ricotta, the remaining meat, and 1 cup of sauce
Layer 4 uncooked sheets, the remaining sauce, and the remaining 1 cup of mozzarella. 

Bake covered with foil until bubbly, 50-60 minutes. Uncover, continue cooking 5-10 minutes until cheese is melted. Let stand 15 minutes before cutting.