What's Coming Ahead in October....

So, I've decided to make 

October 

all about 

Pumpkin!!

Get ready. I'm gathering a ton of delicious pumpkin recipes for your tasting pleasure and don't be surprised if one shows up at your place of business or home. 

-That is, if you participate:)

French Onion Soup

First I want to give a "shout out" to a follower from Poland who sent me a recipe to try yesterday. I can't wait to try it out and maybe even post it for everyone else. Thanks so much!! :)

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• Okay, so, I really like french onion soup, but I NEVER make it. Well, tonight that changes. Here goes something yummy! Let me know how it turns out for you and leave a comment telling me how you changed it to fit your personal taste.  (IE: jalapenos? lol) I really hope you enjoy it!

• French Onion Soup:
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• 1/3 cup unsalted butter cut into pieces                      2 tablespoons olive oil
•     2 large yellow onions sliced                                       2 cups water
•     2 cans low sodium chicken broth                             2 cans beef broth
•     1 teaspoon dried thyme & bay leaves (optional)       salt and pepper to taste                                   
•     4 slices or cubed French bread                                 4 slices provolone cheese
•     2 slices Swiss cheese, diced                                   1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
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1. Melt butter with olive oil in an 8 quart stock pot on medium heat. Add onions and continually stir until tender and translucent. 3-5 minutes.
2. Add beef broth, chicken broth, bay leaf, and thyme. Season with salt and pepper, and simmer for 30 minutes.
3. Heat the oven broiler.
4. Ladle soup into oven safe serving bowls and place one slice of bread on top of each (bread may be broken into pieces if you prefer). Layer each slice of bread with a slice of provolone, 1/2 slice diced Swiss and 1 tablespoon Parmesan cheese. Place bowls on cookie sheet and broil in the preheated oven until cheese bubbles and browns slightly.

Tuesday's Dinner Recipe! (On Wednesday) :)

• No Fry Chimichangas:
• Ingredients:
• 1 pound shredded beef/ pork or BBQ beef/ pork
• 1 16-ounce can re-fried beans
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion 
• 3 8-ounce can tomato sauce, divided
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 12 large flour tortillas, warmed
• 1 4-ounce can chopped green chilies
• 1 4-ounce can chopped jalapeno peppers
• 1/4 cup oil in a spritzer bottle (or) nonstick cooking spray
• 1 1/2 cup(s) (6 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese 
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• Heat oven to 350 degrees
• FYI: You can use beef chuck roast and shred with a fork, but that is very time consuming and dirties one more dish. So I prefer to use beef/ pork already shredded from the frozen section at Sams. I get the BBQ pork and it comes in a disposable baking dish. Just put it in the fridge overnight the day before you want to use it and you're good to go.

1. Stir in all your ingredients(save the tortillas and cheese) with your meat.
2. Warm tortillas. Place a small handful of cheese and a good spoonful of ingredients in the middle of a tortilla. Be sure to use a slotted spoon and let most the juice drain out before adding it to the tortilla to prevent sogginess.
3. Fold the bottom, right, and left sides in toward the middle and roll over to close completely. Line all your little rolls up in a baking dish. Spray tops with butter or olive oil. 
4. Cover with foil and bake on middle rack for about 10 min. Uncover and continue to bake until tops are lightly browned. (5-10min.) If you prefer, you can turn them over and brown both sides.

It's Tuesday!

So here is the first of recipes for you to try at home and let me know how it goes.

One-Dish Lasagna

I really like to layer my lasagna because I am traditional and I like the pretty look of it, but when I need to get more done then just dinner, I like to exchange hands-on/ prep time for baking time. It will take 50 minutes for my lasagna to bake, but my oven will be busy, not me. 30 of those minutes would be spent waiting for water to boil and noodles to cook, if I didn't use oven-ready noodles. Not to mention the tedious task of getting them out without them sticking to each other or tearing. So, Let the oven do the work, right?  It doesn't look quite as pretty as the traditional way, but as my mom used to say, "It all goes down the same" and it tastes great!

These are the ingredients and recipe use, but be sure to scroll down and see some of the other options you might want to choose for your own lasagna. I've listed options for making your lasagna spicy, sweet, healthy, or just plain easy. 

My shopping list for this meal is as follows:

Non-sauce ingredients:
1 (9-12 oz) box oven-ready lasagna noodles
1 (15oz) container of cottage or ricotta cheese
3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup Parmesan
1 cup Colby-Jack (optional for extra topping)
2 eggs
1 lb. ground beef or turkey (see options below)
1 (15oz) jar sweet yellow & red roasted peppers 
1 small can sliced black olives
1 (28oz) can crushed tomatoes
1 (6oz) tomato paste
1 yellow/white onion, diced (see options below
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1/8 cup brown sugar
1/2 Tbsp. each of dried Rosemary, Thyme, Basil, & Oregano
1 Tsp. each of Sea salt and Black pepper
1/2 cup water

Tools you'll need: 
deep skillet, large bowl & spoon for mixing, baking or casserole dish, measuring cup, heavy duty foil

Preheat oven to 375
1. Brown the meat in skillet
2. Combine all ingredients, save a 1/2 cup each of your cheeses for topping, in your mixing bowl
3. Begin to layer your dish- ingredients first, then noodles. Repeat until you have about 3 layers finishing with ingredients. You want as much heat and steam in the dish while cooking as possible, so cover tightly with heavy duty foil.
4. Bake for 50 min. let rest for 10 min. Uncover and eat

What if I want it spicy or sweeter?

• For a spicy taste, use Italian sausage, fire roasted tomatoes, crushed red pepper flakes, or Cajun seasoning
• For a sweet taste, use the sweet peppers I listed above and 1/8 cup brown sugar

How can I make it healthier?

• Use vegetables rather than meat. Eggplant, broccoli, squash, or mixed veggies. The taste is easily disguised. My children didn't even know they were eating spinach!

How can I make it even easier?

• Use precooked, sliced chicken
• Use veggies rather than meat.
• Instead of chopping up an onion, go to your local grocery store and pick up a bottle of dried white/yellow onions in the Mexican/ International food isle. 2 tbsp = 1 med. onion. (This is what I use)

Happy Labor Day!!

We slept in, played on the computer, ran around the house, cooked some food, loved on our dogs and cats, and started planning the rest of our week. 

Oh! and I heard a Christmas song on the radio to kick off the official start of our fall season. It was "The Christmas Song" and I absolutely loved singing along to it. 

What did you do today? Did you hear any Christmas music? 

Delicious Dinner Ideas for You

Hi everyone!

Hooray for Labor Day!! It's been a busy season here in the Dixon home and I am thinking I am not the only one. Am I right?

Well, I've decided to start sharing some of my dishes for you busy moms in hopes that by cooking a little more on the weekends you can have more prepared for the week.

Every Tuesday evening I will post a new family dish or dinner idea for you and your family. Try them and let me know how they work out for your family and what you did differently.  I look forward to hearing your input!!

Cheeseburger Meatloaf