Texas Fudge - A Breakfast Casserole

 Texas fudge is a delicious breakfast casserole that my Mom-in-law taught me to make.  It's easy, you can prepare it ahead of time (night before!), and everyone loves it!  Warning, there are copious amounts of cheese in this dish... if that make you nervous, look away!  If you're like me... add a little extra cheese and LAUGH.

What you need...

6 eggs

8 ounces of heavy whipping cream

3-5 tablespoons of milk 

2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese

2 cups of shredded Monterrey jack cheese

2 4oz cans of chopped green chillies

Get it done...

Preheat oven to 350

Beat together by hand the first five ingredients (eggs, cream, milk, & cheeses)

Spray 9x13 pan with non-stick spray

Spread chillies evenly across bottom of pan

Pour egg mixture carefully over chillies

If you are preparing ahead of time, you can stop here... or cook it about 1/2 way through.  Put it in the fridge (I don't leave it for more then 24 hours).  

Bake at 350 for 40 mins or until golden on top and a knife comes out clean

We love it, and have this regularly on the weekends, since I can just pop it in the oven when we get up.  This makes it an ideal dish for Christmas or Thanksgiving mornings, too!  It's even really amazing reheated.  I'll make us a big one on Sunday, and Todd eats it for breakfast for the first half of the week.  

Enjoy!

Pulled Chicken with Cole Slaw

This meal is ALWAYS a hit.  Got a bunch of people with varying tastes?  Serve this!  I'm telling you, everyone acts amazed at how great this is and asks me how to do it...and it's simple!  I tagged this as a three ingredient dinner...and that's pushing it, but it basically is.

When I make this I always buy the big package of boneless chicken breasts.  If there's no "big" package then get a few 2 packs of them.  I usually try to do one breast per person (hardy, har, har), but usually I have big time leftovers.  Which, is a good thing around here.  The chicken reheats beautifully and I use it for Todd's lunch or my lunch during the work weak.

Throw the chicken in the crock pot with a cup or two (I'm not an exact-o cooker all of the time) of chicken broth.  If you don't like using chicken broth you can add plain water and fancy it up with some garlic salt and a little pepper.  I do that when we're out of stock.  Cook the chicken on low for 4-6 hours or on high for 2-3 hours.  At that point the chicken will be cooked through and you can break it into chunks.  No need to "shred" it quite yet.  Add in a bottle of your favorite wing sauce.  Any will do... but I usually use Frank's Red Hot in mild.  It's still got some kick, but if you have someone who can't hang with the heat it's not too bad.  If you want NO heat you can use honey BBQ sauce, it's still delicious.  

**Note...there are also recipes online to make your own BBQ sauce.  I've done this before and it's super yummy, but takes more time...and that was before I had a baby girl to keep up with.**

Let the chicken cook a bit longer.  You really can't mess up chicken in a crock pot, I promise.  Once the wing sauce has time to cook in, get to shredding.  I always get Todd to do this part for me... it's a bit of a pain to get it exactly right.  He's the master of it.

While Todd's shredding I make the coleslaw.  By I make the coleslaw I mean I add the mayo and vinegar to the bag of coleslaw mix.  You can make your own, too.  I have an amazing recipe for coleslaw from my Mother in law that I'll post someday...

For the buns the best are the King's Hawaiian rolls.  They are a bit pricey, but taste soooo dang good.  If you opt for regular hamburger buns it's good to get the harder rolls in the bakery.

Sooo good... what is it about these!?

I serve these with the slaw right on the roll with the shredded chicken.  I think it's the only way, but I love coleslaw (something my Grandmother did to me), so I'll eat it on the side, too.  Other good sides are a big salad, chips, veggie chips, fries, & onion rings.  No pics of the actual sammys because when they came out, we scarfed them... whoops.

Our Favorite Picks for Chips!

What you need...

4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 bottle of wing (or BBQ sauce)

1 package of rolls 

1 bag of coleslaw

1 bag of chips (or fries, onion rings, potato salad, etc.)

Get it done...

Cook the chicken on low for 4-6 hours or on high for 2-3 hours.  Break into large chunks once cooked through.  Add wing sauce.  Cook another 20-30, or 45 mins.  Shred chicken.

Prepare coleslaw.  Put shredded chicken on buns topped with coleslaw, throw chips on plate & serve!

These are my go-to when we host a party or big gathering of friends.  They are easy and "buffet style" friendly!  

Enjoy!

Spinach Pie aka Spanakopita

Spinach Pie is another recipe that Todd's Mom taught me and we love it just a little more than is healthy!

When I make it, we literally eat it for every meal until we are out of it.  I hope your family loves it as much as we do!  Here's how it goes...

What you need...

1 package phyllo dough

1/2 lb of melted butter

1 large container of small curd cottage cheese 

12-16 oz of frozen chopped spinach (I just use the whole bag of frozen spinach)

2 eggs

14 oz crumbled feta

2 T dried oregano

1 T garlic powder

1/2 C dried minced onion

Get it done...

Preheat oven to 350

Microwave spinach 2-3 mins; drain excess water

Combine all ingredients except phyllo dough and melted butter, mix well

Unfold phyllo dough; place one sheet in bottom of a 9x13 pan prepared with non-stick cooking spray

brush sheet of dough with melted butter

Doesn't have to be perfect...see the left side of mine, LOL!

Repeat to make 8 layers of dough brushed with butter

Spread 1/2 of the spinach mixture evenly over all

Layer 8 more sheets of dough brushed with butter

Spread other 1/2 spinach mixture over all

Going into the oven

Finish with dough sheets brushed with butter using whatever you have left.  

Bake at 350 uncovered until the top is golden.  About 25-35 mins.

Flaky golden goodness!!

ENJOY!

Grandma's Yummy Party Potatoes

Can I just say first... as I write this post I'm enjoying a cup of coffee in our office with the windows open....while Simone sleeps in!  Bliss!

Anyways, I wanted to share this recipe since I made the party potatoes on Easter Sunday.  I neglected to take a picture, but these are the best holiday food.  You can double the recipe if you have a huge group, but this serves 12-16 already.

What you need...

2lb bag of frozen hash browns.  (Note, I can only ever find the one pound bag...so I just buy two)

1 Cup of diced onion (you can fore go the onion if you have a Dad like mine who hates them!)

1 Can cream of celery soup

1 16 oz carton of sour cream

1/4 lb of butter, melted

2 Cups of shredded cheddar cheese

Salt & pepper 

Crushed potato chips (I used ruffles) for top... Also totally optional, as I usually make these without the chips.

Get it done...

Preheat oven to 375

Mix all ingredients (except chips) together in a big bowl

Spread in an ungreased 9 x 13 pan

Bake 60 mins at 375

To add the chip topping pull out about 10 mins early & sprinkle crushed chips on top.  Return to the over for the remaining 10 mins.

These can be prepared the night before (I love that part), but just don't bake.  Another tip, if your potatoes are browning too much on top, cover the pan with foil and continue to cook.

These potatoes are always a hit!  It was love at first bite for me!  They go well with everything, and we're on a roll... I've made them for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter.  I'm going to make up a holiday just to have them again. ;-)

Enjoy!

Here Comes Peter Cotton Tail...

Simone's First Easter Basket

We had a great Easter weekend!  It was a busy one, but we had loads of fun with our family and friends!  Saturday we headed out to celebrate our friends Heather & Arlie's baby shower for little Logan, who arrives in May.  It was adorable!  We're so happy for those two and Jackson who now gets to be a big brother!

Heather & Arlie's Race Car Shower for Logan

We did up a sweet welcome wagon for baby Logan with books, outfits, diapers, bottles, etc., etc., etc..  I also found him a custom name bag for toys, diapers, whatever on Etsy.  Heather got a little hospital kit from us with candy, soft socks, hair ties, & chap stick...all of the things I HAD TO HAVE post labor.  It was really different shopping for a boy, although... it really makes me think a little Todd would be fun.  SOMEDAY, maybe...........  Anyways, between the four of us we've already married off Simone to Logan.  Poor kids, they have no choice.  

Saturday evening we caught some snacks & a quick prickly pear beer at Hillside Spot.  I even asked Todd when is the last time we didn't stop in on the weekend.  I think we're going on six weeks straight.  If you live in the area you should check it out.  And, holler at us on the patio!

Yum, BEER!

After hanging with Todd's brother & our Nephew Landon on Saturday night, Sunday morning came fast!  We hurried to get everything set up and ready to rock before our company arrived.  It was a beautiful day and the kiddos were even in the pool.  Although, I'm not sure how... it's insanely cold!  My Dad's girlfriend Julie brought over this huge playhouse that the kids could color & play in.  It was a total hit!  

A few highlights from Easter

We feasted on ham with a peanut butter & honey glaze, Grandma's party potatoes (I'll do a post with this recipe...they are amazing!) recipe is up!,  honey glazed carrots, deviled eggs, coleslaw, fruit, guac, and some peep cupcakes & rice crispy treats.  I was really impressed that everything came out great and with a wide range of tastes in our family, everyone was happy! 

Our Easter Menu

The boys even had some shenanigans going on...

When things died down and everyone headed home our family of three hung out on the patio enjoying the beautiful evening.  

Please forgive the exhausted mommy look...

Simone had a great first Easter!  Watching her enjoy time with our family and our little matching dresses made my day complete!!

Hope you all had a wonderful day with your loved ones! xo