Category Archives: Super Easy to Make

August 27, 2010 · 11:16 pm

Meatballs in a Hurry

These are great in spaghetti and for meatball sandwiches. They freeze well, too.

Ingredients:
Cooking spray
1/2 lb. ground turkey or chicken
1/2 lb. ground Italian sausage
1 egg, beaten
1/3 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Lightly grease a baking pan with cooking spray.

In a medium bowl combine the remaining ingredients and mix together using your hands.

Form golf ball size meatballs and place on the prepared baking sheet about one inch apart.

Bake for 15 minutes and then turn over and bake for another 5 minutes.

What did the family think? These are so easy and the family acts like I am some sort of gourmet because I made them homemade meatballs. They loved them!

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Everybody Ate It, Italian, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make

August 19, 2010 · 11:11 pm

Pesto, Roasted Red Pepper and Artichoke Appetizer

This is SOOOO good. I try not to even eat it because if I take one bite…it’s all over. I can’t just have one bite!

Ingredients:
8 oz. cream cheese block, softened
1/4 cup mayo
1/4 cup pesto
1/4 cup chopped artichokes (from a jar)
1 cup roasted red peppers, chopped
Triscuit Thin Crisps

Instructions:
Mix cream cheese and mayo together. Spread on a dinner plate or serving platter.

Spread pesto on top. Top pesto with artichoke hearts and top artichoke hearts with roasted red peppers.

Serve with Triscuit Thin Crisps.

Did I change anything? The recipe calls for adding mozzarella on the top. Sometimes I add it, sometimes I don’t. It’s good either way.

What does the family think? Every time we have a gathering (family or friends) this stuff is gone in a heartbeat.

from Kraft Foods

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Everybody Ate It, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

· 10:51 pm

Egg Salad Sandwich

Sometimes the simplest easiest things are the best.

Ingredients:
6 eggs, hard-boiled and cooled
1-2 T mayo (more of less to taste)
Salt and pepper, to taste
A tiny squeeze of lemon
2 celery stalks, washed and chopped
2 tsp dijon mustard (more of less to taste)
2 T chives, chopped
Lettuce, Garnish
Good bread, toasted (or not)

Instructions:
Crack and peel each egg. Place eggs in a medium bowl with mayo, mustard and salt and pepper. Mash eggs with a fork, but not too much. You still want them a little chunky.

Stir in celery, chives and lemon juice.

Toast the bread-or don’t.

Assemble sandwich with egg salad, lettuce and a thin layer of mayo on the toast/bread. Enjoy!

Did I change anything? I added the mustard. It gives it a bit more flavor than just having mayo. I have been told this sandwich is good with some bacon in it.

What did the family think? My husband has been taking these sandwiches to work lately and he really likes them. I love them and so do my parents who are here visiting and did a taste test for MommaCooks today.

from 101 Cookbooks

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Lent, Sandwich, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

August 6, 2010 · 10:26 pm

Fresh Lime Soda

I used to make this ALL the time when we lived in Arizona…perfect for a hot summer day.

Mix in a pitcher:
3/4 cup squeezed lime juice (about 6 limes)
3/4 cup honey syrup* (more of less to taste)
4 cups club soda or sparking mineral water

Serve chilled or over ice.

*To help honey mix with cold drinks, make the honey syrup by mixing:
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup boiling water

Stir until honey liquifies.

Did I change anything? This is a great recipe if you want to make some just for yourself or if you have a lot of people to serve; the recipe can easily be doubled or cut in half. Also, I have never made the honey syrup. I just make the drink at room temperature, add the honey and taste as I go along until I like the sweetness and then add the ice.

What does the family think? I have never made it for them. It’s a “me” drink. 🙂

from Simply Vegetarian

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Filed under Beverages, Definitely Making it Again, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make

July 28, 2010 · 10:40 pm

Fresh Blueberry Sauce

This is a very tasty and very versatile sauce and a great way to use some of those summer blueberries…

Ingredients:
2 cups fresh blueberries
1/3 cup sugar
1 T fresh lemon juice
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. vanilla
Pinch of cinnamon

Instructions:
Wash blueberries, place in pan and crush them with the back of a spoon. Add sugar, lemon juice and salt to pan, mix well and bring blueberry mixture to a boil. Boil for one minute. Add vanilla and cinnamon, chill and serve over ice cream, waffles or pancakes.

What did the family think? Our oldest and I LOVE this is. It is so yummy and so easy to make. We first had it as a sample at our grocery store. Our favorite way to eat it is mixed with just a little bit of vanilla yogurt and then using a graham cracker to spoon it into our mouths. Summer goodness!

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Filed under Breakfast, Definitely Making it Again, Desserts, Easy, Make Ahead of Time, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

July 24, 2010 · 11:30 pm

Mango Lassi

A year or so ago, I had some leftover frozen mangoes in my freezer and I was trying to figure out what to do with them….

Ingredients:
1/2 cup frozen or fresh mango chunks
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 T sugar (more or less to taste)

Instructions:
Blend all ingredients until smooth. Pour into a glass and enjoy!

What did the family think? I don’t know because I didn’t share with them. 🙂 Okay, I did let my hubby have a sip and he liked it and our oldest likes mango juice, so I am sure he would like this, too. I usually make these after the kids have gone to bed.

from bigoven.com

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Filed under After School Snacks, Beverages, Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

July 22, 2010 · 9:37 pm

Popcorn, Apples and Cheese for Dinner

Okay, I know this isn’t a recipe idea, but it’s about food and it’s about dinner and I thought it was a really cool idea, so I had to share. I am reading Coop by Michael Perry (which is a delightful book) and part of the book is about him sharing anecdotes about his life growing up on a farm. He comes from a large family and one of the traditions his family had was that every Sunday they would have popcorn, apple slices and cheese for dinner. The coolest part about their Sunday tradition though, in my opinion, is that on those Sundays, while they were munching on their popcorn around the dinner table, everyone was allowed to read during dinner. They could bring a magazine, a book, a newspaper, whatever, but everyone read, no matter how old. I love it! The author also goes on to talk about how now that all of his brothers and sisters are grown and many of them have their own kids, they all meet up at their parents’ house each Sunday and guess what’s for dinner???? You guessed it. They don’t read anymore, there’s too many people, but it’s time that the adults get to spend together chatting and the cousins run around the house. It’s simple things like this that memories are made of.

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Filed under After School Snacks, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

July 20, 2010 · 7:54 pm

Summer Corn Salad

Easy and great with either corn from the cob or canned corn…

Ingredients:
2 cans of corn or 5 ears of corn (either boiled or grilled)
3 T olive oil
1 tomato, diced
Fresh cilantro, to taste
1/2 red onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, diced
Salt and pepper to taste
1 lime, juiced

Instructions:
Place all ingredients in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Stir well. You may want to place in the frig for a while to let the flavors mix or you can serve it right away.

What did the family think? Hubby and I liked it…very summery and fresh. Kiddos were not impressed.

from Food Network

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Filed under Salad, Super Easy to Make

July 17, 2010 · 9:20 pm

Puff Up Pancakes

You know that look people get on their faces when they bite into something they have never tasted before and it turns out to be a little taste of heaven in their mouths? That’s the face our boys made this morning when they ate this. Wowzer…so good!

Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter
5 eggs
1 1/4 cup flour
1 1/4 cup milk
1 tspn. vanilla

Instructions:
Melt butter in a 9×13-inch pan in oven while oven is preheating to 425 degrees.

Mix eggs, flour, milk and vanilla with wire wisk.

When butter is melted and oven is ready, add batter to 9 x 13 pan and bake for 20-25 minutes.

Serve with butter and maple syrup or maybe fresh fruit and powdered sugar.

What did the family think? Too good for words.

This is a fun recipe to make because it puffs UP. Our boys thought it was pretty cool how puffed up it got. That said, make sure you put it on a middle or lower rack in your oven.

from The Farmer’s Wife

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Filed under Breakfast, Definitely Making it Again, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

July 10, 2010 · 10:04 pm

Cinnamon and Cocoa Popcorn

I read an article somewhere on-line today about the top ten foods kids should be eating. Two of them were cocoa and cinnamon. It also said a good way to get your kids to eat these two things was to put it on their popcorn. So, after a post-dinner swim tonight, the boys decided to settle in and watch a movie and they requested popcorn. Perfect! I happened to have some cinnamon and cocoa on hand. I asked them which one they wanted. Our youngest said neither and the oldest said he wanted the cinnamon and cocoa combined.

Ingredients:
Popcorn
Cinnamon and/or cocoa
Large Ziploc baggie

Instructions:
Place popped popcorn in a large Ziploc baggie. Sprinkle with cinnamon and/or cocoa. Zip up the Ziploc and shake. Serve.

What did the family think? Like I said, our oldest tried the cinnamon and the cocoa together. He ate it for a while and then decided the cocoa tasted like coffee (which he doesn’t like). He said next time he wanted to try it with just cinnamon. That said, I think I put in too much cocoa. Next time I will start off with a little cinnamon and then add more if he says he wants more. I will do that with the cocoa too if I can get him to try it again. Sometimes less is more.

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Filed under After School Snacks, Easy, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make