Cauliflower Au Gratin

Well, hello there!  Something new that I made recently that was SO GOOD and such a good substitute for something like macaroni and cheese for The Dish Washer's low carb diet.  

Cauliflower Au Gratin

• 2-1/2 pounds cauliflower florets
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 Tbsp. butter
• 2 Tbsp. flour
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1-1/4 c. milk
• 3/4 c. shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 425ºF. Spread out the florets on the baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Toss to coat Place them in the oven to roast for 10 minutes.  After 10 minutes, stir the florets with a wooden spoon. Return to the oven and roast for about 15 minutes longer till the edges brown/caramelize and the cauliflower is tender.

While the cauliflower roasts, in a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour, salt, and pepper. Stir to form a thick paste.  Slowly whisk in the milk, ¼ cup at a time. Heat the milk mixture over medium heat for a few minutes, whisking frequently, till it thickens and begins to bubble around the edges. Do not let the sauce boil. Whisk in the grated cheddar cheese and stir till melted. Reduce heat to lowest setting, stirring frequently, until ready to assemble the gratin.

Place cauliflower in a baking dish.  (I used and 8x8)  Pour the cheese sauce evenly across the top of the cauliflower florets. Place the assembled gratin into the oven and bake for 20-30 minutes till edges begin to brown and the cheese sauce is bubbly.

Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Popcorn Ball Bars

Don't let the mouthful of a title fool you!  These are easy to make and delicious!  This was the other dessert that I made for the dedication lunch.

Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Popcorn Ball Bars

2 (16 oz.) pkg. refrigerated cookie dough
3 c. mini marshmallows
1 (3.3 oz.) bag popcorn, popped (about 10 cups) - remove all remaining unpopped kernels
2/3 c. Karo syrup
1/2 stick butter
1 (10 oz.) bag peanut butter chips
1 c. chocolate chips

In a 9x13 baking dish, press cookie dough into bottom of pan.  Bake 10-15 minutes at 350 until puffed and edges are golden brown.  While baking, heat Karo, butter and peanut butter chips over medium-low heat until melted.  Sprinkle marshmallows on top and return to oven for 1-2 minutes until puffed.  Pour melted peanut butter mixture over popcorn and mix well.  Spread on top of marshmallows and push down if necessary.  Melt chocolate chips in microwave and then put in sandwich bag with end snipped.  Pipe on top of popcorn mixture.  Allow to set.  (I gave mine overnight.)  Cut into bars and serve.

Pecan Pie Cake

Yesterday was a special day for our family as we dedicated Baby Pea at our church.  While the worship service is the most important part of the day, feeding our family as a thank you for participating is definitely something that I wanted to do.  I decided to serve soups because it would be easy to keep them warm while away at church.  We had Bacon Cheeseburger Soup, Creamy Chicken Divan Soup and Pork Green Chili.  For dessert I tried some new recipes.  This Pecan Pie Cake was my favorite of the day and there is no picture because it is GONE!  It is very easy to make and will definitely be made again.

Pecan Pie Cake

2 c. sugar
2 sticks butter, softened
1-1/2 c. self-rising flour
4 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2 c. chopped pecans

Cream butter and sugar; add remaining ingredients, stirring by hand.  Pour into 9x13 baking dish and bake for 30-40 minutes at 350 degrees.  Allow cake to cool.  Crumble cake.  Prepare cake frosting.

1 (16 oz.) container cool whip
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened

Cream milk and cream cheese together until smooth.  Fold in whipped cream until combined.  In a large serving bowl/dish, layer 1/2 of cake crumbs.  Spread with 1/2 of frosting.  Repeat layers once more.  Keep chilled until ready to serve.

Tomato & Egg Sandwich

This was my favorite sandwich from the summer.  I know it might seem gross, but it is delicious!  And super simple.  I just boiled a couple of eggs and kept them in the fridge during the week until I was ready for them.

Tomato & Egg Sandwich

bread
mayo
tomato
hard boiled egg
green onion
pepper

Smear mayo on each slice of bread.  Lay tomato and egg slices down.  Top with chopped green onion and pepper to taste.

Bacon & Tomato Dip

This is something that I haven't made yet.  I ripped it out of my insurance company's magazine a couple of months ago and want to try it.  The paper keeps sitting on my desk, and honestly, is in my way.  So, I thought I would go ahead and post this recipe just to clean off my desk.  :)  It sounded delicious to me.  Maybe something good to make for a early season tailgate.

Bacon & Tomato Dip

4 oz. cream cheese
1 c. sour cream
1/2 c. mayo
1/2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 c. diced green onion
1/4 c. diced green pepper
1 tsp. minced garlic
pepper, to taste
1 c. crispy, crumbled bacon
1 large tomato, diced, seeds and juice discarded

Mix together cream cheese, sour cream, mayo, cheese, onion, green pepper, garlic and pepper.  Add bacon and tomato and mix thoroughly.  Serve with corn chips.

**I've now made it and it is delicious.

Carmelitas

Well, hello there!  We've spent a couple of months settling in with new baby.  Again, blessed with food from friends and family to keep me out of the kitchen for a VERY long time.  But I had to share this one recipe.  I've had it pinned for a while waiting for the perfect time to make it (which really isn't now for the post baby diet).  However, I've been thinking about it since I watched the Olympic trials in Oregon and saw Carmelita Jeter run.  And then last week, she's certainly been in the spotlight in London...making me think of these dang cookies!  As you can see by looking at her, she probably doesn't eat stuff like this.  But looking at me, I do!  They are incredible!  I followed the exact same recipe that was online, but I actually think it was too much butter.  Well, I also used milk chocolate chips instead of semi-sweet because they are my favorite...just personal preference.  I may try to cut back on the butter and follow the recipe below next time.

Carmelitas

32 caramel squares, unwrapped
1/2 c. heavy cream
1/2 c. butter, melted
3/4 c. brown sugar, packed
1 c. flour
1 c. rolled oats
1 tsp. baking soda
6 oz. milk chocolate chips (or semi-sweet)

Combine caramels and cream in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir until completely smooth; set aside. In a separate bowl, combine melted butter, brown sugar, flour, oats, and baking soda. Pat half of the oatmeal mixture into the bottom of an 8x8" pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Remove pan from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips over crust. Pour caramel mixture over chocolate chips. Crumble remaining oatmeal mixture over caramel. Return to oven and bake an additional 15-20 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned. Remove from oven and cool completely before cutting.


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Now that I got that out of my system, it is time to get back on track.

Loaded Turkey Potato Skins

I hope you are starting to load up on those fresh fruits and vegetables!  In fact, this morning we went to the farmer's market close to our house and loaded up on some corn, peas, butter beans, blueberries and our first Chilton county peaches of the season before heading to the park.  I haven't been making many new things around here lately.  I have been putting foods up in the freezer at lightning speed in preparation for Baby Pea, but all of those recipes have already been shared.

This is the one new thing I have made recently.  We are a big beef family!  In fact, cattle put shoes on our babies' feet and food on our table.  The Dish Washer is pretty hard to please when it comes to replacing ground beef with turkey, so whatever I make better be good.  I found this recipe on Skinnytaste and changed it up a bit to what we like, using a can of Rotel tomatoes and omitting the corn and black beans.  He definitely said he could eat it again, so I thought I would share to remember the recipe.

Loaded Turkey Potato Skins