Pasta Salad and Mystery Rolls

Yes...I know, I'm on a blogging kick today.

I guess that is what happens when I've spent the past couple days cleaning my house from top to bottom, and I've run out of things to do.

That's not entirely true.

I've just run out of things that I have a desire to do.

Honestly...my house is very clean right now.

Anyways, I made the easiest throw together pasta salad, loaded with LOTS of fresh veggies and left over grilled chicken, and mystery rolls for lunch today.  It was a HUGE hit with Big A, and that is saying something.  The boy is NOT a fan of meat and/or veggies.  But if you sprinkle cheese on the top of it, he will dang near eat just about anything.

So, when he wolfed down two plates of pasta salad I knew it was a recipe worth posting.

Doesn't that just look yummy?!!!

For the mystery rolls you will need a can or two of refrigerated biscuits, a stick of butter, and crumbled blue cheese.

Place the butter and cheese in a pan.  Place in oven and heat until melted.

Pull biscuits apart and cut each biscuit into 4's.

The cheese and butter will need a good whisk

Coat biscuits with butter/cheese mixture

Place on a baking pan and bake at 375 until a nice golden brown.  About 7 minutes.

YUM!!!!

Now for the salad...

Bowtie pasta, Parmesan cheese, grilled chicken, salt, pepper, feta cheese, balsamic vinaigrette,  and whatever fresh veggies you feel like using.  I used tomato, green pepper, parsley, cucumber, broccoli, and cauliflower

Dice chicken up

Add veggies to pasta

Add Parmesan, feta, and cheddar cheese, and dressing

Combine.

As Rachael Ray would say, YUM-OOOO!!!!!!

And here it is folks...a quick, easy, and tasty way to use up some of those fresh veggies

This is where the magic happens...

(SITS girls- I gave linked to the wrong link...this is the original...here is today's!)






And I am absolutely NOT talking about that kind of magic.


Ya'll need to get your heads out of the gutter. Ha!


I'm talking about cooking.


You know, the magic that happens in my kitchen.


The 'Heart of a Home' as some call it.

It happens right there, in and on that very stove.

And prep work...well, that would happen here.

It's not my dream kitchen by any means.  Some days I have so many 'projects' going on that my sink is overflowing and I run out of prep room, and I think to myself "I wish I had a bigger kitchen." But then I snap back to reality and realize just how blessed I really am.  

It's where the majority of my days are spent pouring my heart into meals that I know will be nutritious for my family.  It's a place of serenity and peace.  A place where memories are made.  A place where we gather every.single.night when daddy gets home from work.

We sit here and discuss what everyone did that day, and what they want to do that evening.  

It's a place of love and laughter.  A place of family tradition.

I guess that is why it's called "The Heart of the Home"

What does the 'Heart of your Home' look like?  

**side note: pictures weren't taken in 2008, they are from today I just have yet to set the date on the camera. lol**

A new author

My very hip friend, Kate, will be joining us from time to time as a guest blogger on here.


Kate has traveled the world, and I mean literally.  She's a AIDS/HIV activist, graduated with her associates the same year she graduated high school, worked for CPS until becoming a stay-at-home mom a few months ago, had dreams (which may still come true) of joining the Peace Corps, she's a liberal, a gardener, inspiringly eclectic, a mother, a best friend, B.E.A.U.T.I.F.U.L., and an AMAZING cook.


Even though she's younger than me, I aspire to be like her when I grow up.


Seriously.

See..


I told you she was beautiful.


If we lived closer (I'm in Indiana; she's in Texas) I guarantee our time would be passed spending it in the kitchen at one of our houses baking/cooking.  Distance is the darnedest thing!  


We are settling for the next.best.thing....


Guest blogging recipes/insight from her.


I, personally, can't wait to get this show on the road.

Bacon Onion Cheddar Biscuits

OH.MY.GOODNESS!!!!....I can't even begin to describe what pure heaven these biscuits are.

PURE PER-FECTION!!!!

Ingredients you need to make these fabulous, mouth-watering biscuits.

• 2 c  All purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 c vegetable shortening
• 10 Tbsp milk
• 4 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 whole egg
• 10 slices bacon, fried and crumbled
• 1 c. finely diced onion
• 1 c grated sharp cheddar cheese
• 1/4 c extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tsp garlic powder

Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt; using pastry cutter, cut in shortening until combined.

Combine milk, egg, and oil in separate bowl.

Peel one large onion...

finely dice

melt butter in saute pan

and saute the onions

Yummmmm....bacon somehow makes everything a littleLOT better.

Chop it into small pieces

Add shredded cheddar and bacon to flour mix

Add the onions

Then the milk mixture, and mix

Place in a greased muffin pan and bake for 20-22 minutes at 375

We're almost there.....

Mix together olive oil and garlic powder

Coat the biscuits

Goodness sakes these things are good.

Blueberry Crumb Cake

I've been drooling over all the scrumptious looking recipes over at the Pioneer Woman's site today.  How does one person have SO many fabulous recipes?


Big A decided to tell me today while grocery shopping that we should have more desserts after supper.  So, when we got home we searched the dessert tab under 'Cooking' on Ree's lovely site, and decided tonight we would start with Blueberry Crumb Cake.


For this recipe, you will need: fresh blueberries...of course, eggs, cinnamon, vanilla, sugar, salt, baking powder, milk, all purpose flour, and butter

Fresh blueberries are the bomb!!!  

Cream butter and sugar

Add in an egg

Whisk away

Now for some vanilla

Keep on mixing

Add flour and milk alternately until completely incorporated.

DO NOT OVERBEAT!!!

And lastly......

Stir in the blueberries

It almost reminds me of chocolate chip cookie dough :)

Spread in a greased baking dish

And now, onto the topping......

Combine butter, cinnamon, sugar and flour

Cut together using a pastry cutter

I could eat this right out of the bowl..it is THAT good.

Top blueberry mix, and sprinkle with additional cinnamon

Bake for 40-45 minutes, and VIOLA!!!

Blueberry Crumb Cake

Ingredients:

• 1/2 stick butter
• 3/4 c. sugar
• 1 whole egg
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 c. all purpose flour
• 2 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 c. milk
• 2 c. blueberries

Topping:

• 3/4 stick butter
• 1/2 c sugar
• 1/2 c flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• cinnamon to taste

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt.  Set aside.
3. Cream 1/2 stick butter with sugar.  Add egg and mix until combined.  Add vanilla and mix
4. Add flour and milk alternately until completely incorporated.
5. DO NOT OVERBEAT!
6. Stir in blueberries.
7. Grease 9 x 13 pan, and pour in batter.
8. Combine topping ingredients and cut together using pastry cutter.  Sprinkle over top of cake.
9. Bake 40-45 minutes or until golden brown.
10. Cut into squares and serve.

Serves: 15

Total prep time: 15 minutes

Total cook time: 45 minutes