Category Archives: Super Easy to Make

May 14, 2011 · 10:06 pm

Hershey’s No Bake Cookies

I was in a pinch one time and had to make some cookies for a meeting I was going to, but I had two napping kids who I didn’t want to wake up and take to the store and really, I didn’t want to take them to the store when they woke up either. So I rummaged around in the pantry. I had some Hershey’s cocoa powder and this recipe was on the back and-bonus-it turned out I had everything I needed to make these cookies. This recipe has been around forever and if you haven’t made them yourself, you have probably had some at a picnic or some other such gathering. Either way, they are yummy and easy to make.

Ingredients:
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup milk
4 tablespoons cocoa
1 stick butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 cups quick oats

Instructions:
Combine the sugar, milk, cocoa and butter in saucepan. Cook over medium to high heat until mixture boils 1 1/2 minutes, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat and add vanilla, peanut butter, salt and stir quickly. Add oats and stir together. Will be stiff.

Drop by tablespoon onto waxed paper. Let dry. Makes about 2 dozen.

What did the family think? I don’t think anyone in this house has ever turned down a cookie. 🙂

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Filed under After School Snacks, Definitely Making it Again, Desserts, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

May 4, 2011 · 2:39 pm

Beer Bread

I love homemade bread, but I don’t like baking anything that has yeast in it…all the waiting and kneading…I don’t have time for all that. I haven’t had beer bread in years, but it is so good and you don’t need any yeast…the yeast’s in the beer. 🙂 When I came across this recipe I just had to make it.

Ingredients:
3 c. self-rising flour
3 tbsp. sugar
1 (12 oz.) bottle beer (or can)

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Mix together until blended. Pour into greased loaf pan. Bake 45 minutes or until top is lightly browned.

Did I change anything? Just make sure your beer isn’t too “hoppy” unless you want your bread to taste like hops.

What did the family think? They haven’t made it home yet to eat any, but I ate some and it was deeelish. I slathered some butter and honey on it while it was still warm. Yum!

from cooks.com

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Filed under After School Snacks, Bread, Breakfast, Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Side Dish, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

May 3, 2011 · 10:27 am

Nachos

This is not a new recipe for MommaCooks, just a previous one with a tiny twist. Our oldest isn’t a big fan of tacos and will usually just eat the filling and not the tortilla, but he does love tortilla chips, so I decided to make nachos using the taco filling (from Jessica Seinfeld) that I normally make.

Ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef or turkey
1 14-oz. can crushed or diced tomatoes, with their juice
2 T cup sweet potato, carrot, or butternut squash puree (use baby food)
2 T wheat germ
1 packet taco seasoning
Tortilla chips

Garnish: cheese, sour cream, avocado, salsa…whatever you like on your tacos

Instructions:
Cook meat in large nonstick skillet. Drain fat.

Stir in the tomatoes and their juice, vegetable puree, wheat germ and seasoning mix.
Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the meat is no longer pink and the mixture begins to thicken, 8-10 minutes.

Make nachos by putting tortilla chips on a plate and topping with meat mixture. Add your favorite toppings.

Did I change anything? I added the wheat germ and reduced the amount of puree.

What did the family think? It was a hit!

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Mexican, Super Easy to Make

April 25, 2011 · 2:07 pm

Cream Cheese Scrambled Eggs

We pretty much only eat eggs that are scrambled around here. Occasionally I can sneak some hard-boiled eggs into the line-up, but that is rare. So, I have been toying with some variations on the scrambled egg. My mom used to always make scrambled eggs like this and I LOVED them…they aren’t super fancy, but they sure are good.

Ingredients:
Eggs
Cream Cheese

Instructions:
Scramble eggs in a skillet as you normally would. When eggs are just about done stir in about 1/2 tsp. of cream cheese per egg and stir until melted. You can always add more or less depending on your preferences.

What did the family think? YUM!

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Filed under After School Snacks, Breakfast, Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Lent, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

April 22, 2011 · 9:14 am

Springtime Lunchbox Wrap

My hubby takes his lunch to work about 99% of the time and since he doesn’t like to take leftovers, that really limits what can go in his lunchbox. He has probably been eating a turkey and cheese wrap practically every day for the past five years. He has been toying with some other options and was looking for a vegetarian alternative as well, so he came up with this and it is mighty good.

Ingredients:
Sandwich wrap, we have been using spelt…whole wheat would be good too
Hummus-any flavor, we have been using roasted red pepper
Lettuce or spinach leaves
Cucumber, sliced
Shredded Carrots

Instructions:
Spread the hummus on the wrap and then pile on the toppings making sure not to add too much so that you can actually roll it up.

What did the family think? Hubby and I have been having these for lunch all this week and they are so good. I think I also like them because they are light and “springy” and I love how different foods start making their way onto our plates as spring and summer arrive.

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Filed under Easy, Lent, Sandwich, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

April 21, 2011 · 7:47 am

West Caribbean Crock Pot Chicken

Liz, pianist and parent volunteer extraordinaire, was getting her kitchen remodeled and had to come up with some Crock Pot recipes because about the only thing functioning in her kitchen at any given time were the electrical outlets. This is one of her yummy creations…

Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts, cubed
1 can (15 oz) chickpeas/garbanzo beans, drained
1 cup frozen chopped onions
1 cup frozen chopped green peppers (or frozen tri-color chopped bell peppers)
1/3 cup raisins
1 jar (8 oz) peanut satay sauce
1 can (14 oz) chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 1/2 teaspoons diced garlic
1 can (15 oz) cut sweet potatoes, drained and sliced small (the plain kind, not the candied kind)

Ingredients:
Place cubed chicken breasts into 4-quart slow cooker. Add chickpeas, onions, peppers, and raisins.

In a large bowl, stir together satay sauce, chicken broth, red pepper flakes, and garlic. Pour into slow cooker and stir.

Cover and cook on HIGH setting for 3- 4 hours.

We had this served over couscous. Rice would work, too.

Stir in sweet potatoes. Cover and cook on LOW setting for an additional 1 hour.

Did I change anything? I didn’t have any garlic so I threw in some garlic powder instead.

What did the family think? This was really, really good. Hubby and I loved it. Our oldest was a little leery at first, but it turned out that he liked it. Our youngest protested the moment he saw it (which I knew he would) but quickly changed his tune when he realized that his brother was going to get to play video games after dinner with Dad and he wasn’t going to get to because he was still stuck at the dinner table.

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Filed under Chicken, Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Make Ahead of Time, Stew/Soup, Super Easy to Make

April 18, 2011 · 8:41 am

French Bread Pizza

This is just something I threw together because the boys seem to think that French Bread Pizza day in the school lunchroom is THE best thing ever. I wanted to show them what French Bread Pizza is supposed to look like because the ones they are serving at school look like charred bricks.

Ingredients:
Loaf of French bread
Italian seasoning (optional)
1 jar pizza or spaghetti sauce
Favorite Pizza toppings
Mozzarella cheese

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Cut bread in half so it looks like a hot dog bun. I then cut it into smaller rectangular pieces so that I could make individual pizzas.

I sauteed some Italian sausage and peppers together. While that was cooking I sprinkled Italian seasoning on each piece of bread and spread pizza sauce on top of that. I then topped some of the bread pieces with the Italian sausage/pepper mixture and cheese and then the others I just sprinkled with cheese.

We had this with strawberries and salad.

What did the family think? Well, I made the Italian sausage pizzas for me and hubby and the cheese ones for the boys, but when the boys saw the Italian sausage ones THOSE were the ones they wanted. Luckily, there was enough of those for everyone and everyone was happy.

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Italian, Lent, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

April 14, 2011 · 4:04 pm

Crockpot Country (Hamburger) Lentil Soup

Hubby found this recipe and thought it would be good on baseball nights since when the boys have a game we don’t get home until pretty late. He was right…it was perfect after we got home from sitting through a pretty chilly baseball game…it was warm and it was ready to eat. This could also easily be made without the hamburger too if you are looking for a vegetarian option.

Ingredients:
1 cup dried lentils
1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes
8 ounces lean ground beef, turkey or chicken (browned)
3 ounces celery, thinly sliced (3 stalks)
3 ounces baby carrots, thinly slieced (good-sized handful)
1/2 small onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups broth (I used chicken broth.)
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 -2 bay leaves

Instructions:
Brown ground beef.

Combine all ingredients in 4-5qt crock pot.

Cook on low at least 10 hours or high for 6 hours.

Remove bay leaves before serving.

What did the family think? The boys didn’t eat this since I fed them early because of the baseball game (and because I knew they wouldn’t like this…the only soup they like is miso soup and an occasional chicken noodle). Hubby and I liked it though and it was nice after sitting in the cold for two hours.

from food.com

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Filed under Easy, Lent, Make Ahead of Time, Stew/Soup, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

April 12, 2011 · 8:44 am

Chocolate Glazed Pound Cake

Very little effort and you get a dessert that everyone loves and it looks like you’ve been in the kitchen all afternoon preparing it. (It only takes about three minutes.)

Ingredients:
6 oz. chopped bittersweet chocolate
1 stick butter, cut up
1 T honey
1 pound cake (we found one already made in our grocer’s bakery)

Instructions:
Microwave chopped bittersweet chocolate with butter and honey on 75 percent power until melted, about 2 minutes. Whisk until smooth. Place a loaf of pound cake on a rack and drizzle with the glaze.

What did the family think? I am not sure which they enjoyed more…the finished product or the pool of chocolatey goodness that collected underneath the cake…lots of little fingers scooping up the extra chocolate.

from Food Network

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Filed under After School Snacks, Bread, Definitely Making it Again, Desserts, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Six Ingredients or Less, Super Easy to Make, Vegetarian

April 11, 2011 · 7:40 am

Sour Cream Noodle Bake

My youngest said this was the best dinner I had made in a long, long, long, long, long, long time. Thank goodness because if you have been following MommaCooks you know that he has been impossible to feed lately. He wasn’t the only one who liked it either….it was a success all the way around.

Ingredients:
1-¼ pound Ground Chuck, Turkey or Chicken
1 can 15-ounces Tomato Sauce
½ teaspoons Salt
Freshly Ground Black Pepper
8 ounces, weight Egg Noodles
½ cups Sour Cream
1-¼ cup Small Curd Cottage Cheese
½ cups Sliced Green Onions (more or less to taste)
1 cup Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Brown ground chuck in a large skillet. Drain fat, then add tomato sauce. 1/2 teaspoon salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Stir, then simmer while you prepare the other ingredients.

Cook egg noodles until al dente. Drain and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine sour cream and cottage cheese. Add plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Add to noodles and stir. Add green onions and stir.

To assemble, add half of the noodles to a baking dish. Top with half the meat mixture, then sprinkle on half the grated cheddar. Repeat with noodles, meat, then a final layer of cheese. Bake for 20 minutes, or until all cheese is melted.

We had this with a salad and some super yummy chocolate pound cake for dessert (that recipe will be popping up here on MommaCooks later on this week).

What did the family think? Everyone LOVED it! Hubby and I went back for seconds and our oldest even had thirds!

from The Pioneer Woman

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Filed under Definitely Making it Again, Easy, Everybody Ate It, Super Easy to Make