Zuppa Toscana

h/t: Olive Garden copycat recipe
difficulty: easy
1/2 - 1 lb. italian sausage
2 large baking potatoes, peeled and cubed
1/2 cup chopped onion
4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cans chicken broth
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 cups spinach, chopped
4 cups water
Place onions, potatoes, chicken broth, water, and garlic in a pot. Cook on medium heat until potatoes are done (20 to 30 minutes). Add cooked sausage, bacon, salt and pepper to taste, and simmer for another 10 minutes. Turn to low heat and add spinach and cream. Heat through and serve.
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This was requested by a friend, after she saw me bring the leftovers to work for lunch! This is a simple recipe, and is just as delicious as the Olive Garden version. The whole taste of the soup will depend on how spicy the sausage you add in. I use Bob Evan's Italian Sausage, in the green tube with the breakfast sausage.
This is complimented well with a crusty French loaf , and a fresh salad.

Chicken Pot Pie

h/t: family recipe, inspired by Sarah's recipe
difficulty: medium
3 cups shredded frozen hashbrowns
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 oz. can evaporated milk
2 cups cooked chicken, chopped
1 cup frozen mixed veggies
1 tsp white pepper
1 package sliced swiss cheese
1 pie crust

lay the swiss cheese as shown, on top of the filling...remember to cut slits in the crust... you could even do shapes if you feel adventurous

I use this type of ready-made, easy roll-out crust...found in the bakery aisle

cook to a golden brown...

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine ingredients in large bowl. Stir together, then pour into empty pie plate. Cover with sliced swiss cheese, then with the pie crust. Cut slits in top of pie crust to vent. Bake for 45 minutes at 375, increase heat to 425 and bake for another 10 minutes.
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Well, I've been on hiatus for a while, trying new recipes at my leisure, and updating new favorites. Due to my typical lack of comments, I didn't realize how many people were reading this blog within my family. Until someone brought it up at a recent party, and a bunch of people acted disappointed I had not added recipes recently.
So, I'm back, and better than ever. I already have several family recipes ready to go here. Plus, a bunch of brand-new ones that we can try together, due to the abundance of cookbooks I received for Christmas!
Drop me a email or a comment if you try one of my recipes. And don't feel shy about sending me one of your favorites for me spotlight!

Pecan Pie

h/t: Big Mama
difficulty: medium
1 unbaked 9" pie crust
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. salt 1 tsp. vanilla 1 cup light Karo syrup 3 eggs, beaten 1 1/2 tsp. fresh lemon juice 1 cup pecan halves
1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips

In saucepan, brown butter until golden. Don’t let it burn. Set aside to cool. Add sugar, salt, vanilla, syrup and eggs. Mix well. Add lemon juice and pecans. Pour into unbaked pie shell and bake at 425 for 10 minutes. Then, reduce heat to 325 and bake for 55 minutes.
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This was an unbelievably wonderful recipe. I made it the night before Thanksgiving, and put it in the fridge overnight to chill. I like my pies cold. I will advise you to make sure and put the pie on a cookie sheet to catch drips.

Greek Lemon Chicken Soup

Greek Lemon Chicken Soup
h/t: from The Pampered Chef "It's Good For You" cookbook
difficulty: easy to medium
2 cups chopped cooked chicken (I buy this already cooked & chopped)
2 cups chopped carrots (I buy this already chopped up)
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 pressed garlic clove
1 can 98% fat-free cream of chicken soup
14 1/2 ounces fat-free chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2/3 cup uncooked white rice

Chop chicken, carrots and onion and into soup pot with lemon juice, soup, chicken broth and black pepper. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Add in the uncooked rice, cover and simmer over low heat for 15-20 minutes or until rice is tender.
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This is a low fat, low cholesterol, and low calorie recipe! But seriously, the chicken broth adds lots of taste! It is wonderful, light soup that is perfect for nice crisp Fall evenings. This fed Cory and I with a healthy portion left over for Cory's lunch tomorrow. I think this would be a very good recipe for company, it was very pretty in the bowl.

Fabulous French Pork Chops

Don't let the "French" in the name scare you, this is a super-easy crock pot recipe!


French Pork Chops
difficulty: so easy it almost makes itself
1 (14-ounce) bag frozen sliced carrots
1 (8-ounce) package sliced fresh button mushrooms
1 (15-ounce) can pinto beans
4 boneless, thick-cut, pork loin chops, rinsed and patted dry
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 can condensed cream of potato soup
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 cup sherry cooking wine

Combine carrots, mushrooms, and beans in the bottom of a 5-quart slow cooker. Season pork chops with salt, and pepper. Place in slow cooker on top of vegetables. In a small bowl, combine potato soup, Dijon mustard, tomato sauce, and sherry. Pour over pork chops. Cover and cook on low setting for 4 to 6 hours.
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I have made this recipe twice now. Once I dumped it in the crock pot the night before, and had my husband take it out of the fridge and turn it on when he came home for lunch. And the other time, I made it on a Sunday that we were actually home all day. Just keep in mind it only takes four to six hours to cook.

This is a delicious meal, but a slight warning: this is not a pretty dish when it is done. Maybe if I scooped out the veggies and put them on a tray and then carefully arranged the pork chops on top of it, they might look better. But where is the easy in that? I would rather scoop everyone's share out of the crock pot itself, less dirty dishes that way. So, just keep that in mind.

Bottom line? Very yummy, and super easy!

Pumpkin-Chocolate Muffins

These are incredibly good. I made them in the afternoon for a snack for everyone, and we all loved them. They are very rich, and I could only eat one, and so could everyone else. I made them in my Pampered Chef stoneware muffin pan, which holds twelve muffins.


Pumpkin-Chocolate Muffins
h/t: inspired by Splendid Sustenance
difficulty: easy
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 can pumpkin
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons dark Karo syrup
bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 400˚ and lightly grease a 12 muffin tin. Sift flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and spices together in large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together pumpkin, milk, oil, and molasses. Pour wet ingredients into the dry and mix. Stir in half a bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips. Fill the muffin cups 2/3s full. Bake 18-20 minutes, until toothpick or knife inserted in center comes out clean. Wait until they cool to pop them out of the pan.
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This recipe is definitely going in my keep pile. I think it's a bit rich for just normal breakfast, but I can see it going well with coffee and tea if you had friends over for brunch.

Scrumptious Sausage Gravy

I thought it fitting that the first recipe I featured on my new blog contain some sort of “gravy” to honor my chosen name! So my friend Charing suggested the tried and true Southern sausage gravy and biscuits. Everyone has their own way of making their gravy but this is how my Mom, my Aunt Cici, and now me, make ours.

Scrumptious Sausage Gravy
h/t: family recipe
difficulty: easy to medium
One 12-ounce tube bulk pork sausage
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1.5 to 2 cups milk (depending on how thick you like your gravy)
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Baked Biscuits (my family likes Pillsbury Grands! Biscuits)

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage, break it up with a spoon, and cook, stirring occasionally, until well browned and cooked through, about 7 minutes or so.
Using a slotted spoon, transfer the sausage to a bowl, leaving the rendered fat in the skillet. Whisk the flour into the fat and cook, stirring, breaking up the flour clumps for about 1 minute. Continue whisking, and pour the milk into the skillet and bring the gravy to a boil. (keep in mind you can always add more milk, but you can’t take it away) Lower the heat and simmer gently for 2 minutes. Stir in the sausage and season with pepper. Split the baked biscuits in half and divide them among plates. Top each biscuit with some of the gravy and serve immediately.
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The first couple times I made this, I must be honest, it didn’t turn out too well. However, like a lot of things in the cooking world, once you get the hang of it, it only gets better. So don’t be discouraged if your first couple gravy attempts are too thick or to thin. Keep at it, and let me know how it goes!