*Cowboy or Cowgirl Casserole*

First off I wanted to say sorry I have been so MIA lately.  I kind of put my blog and checking other blogs and really reading any blogs on hold for awhile while I concentrated on the Summer with my kids and while I started up my YouTube Beauty Channel.  I have also been on a diet that doesn't allow for pretty much any food but a specific purchased food from the Doctor so cooking is hard for me, but I have gotten back into just cooking for my family and having willpower to eat what I should be eating! So, I'm going to get better at posting.  Here is an old classic Tater tot casserole.  I never had this as a child so I don't know, but everyone tells me this is the same thing.

 Brown the meat, with the already cooked onion and garlic

 lay the tater tots on the greased pan...

 add meat mixture to soup and sour cream, add corn..

 spread over the tater tots

Cowboy Casserole
adapted from a recipe at Taste of Home

1 1/2 pounds ground beef (I used 80/20)
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 can (15.25oz) whole kernel corn, drained
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup milk
4 tablespoons sour cream(I used plain greek yogurt)
1 bag (30 oz) frozen tater tots 

Before I got ready to make this casserole, I let the tater tots sit on the counter to defrost for an hour or so. The original recipe used still frozen tater tots, but I felt they wouldn't cook as well if they were still frozen solid.

In a large skillet cook the onion until tender and translucent. Add the chopped garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Add the beef and cook over medium heat until no longer pink. Drain the mixture and place into a large bowl and set aside.

In a small bowl combine the soup, milk and sour cream. Whisk until smooth. Add to hamburger mixture and stir to combine. Add corn and 1 cup of cheddar cheese. Gently mix to combine.

Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish. Layer half of the Crispy Crowns on the bottom, pour the hamburger mixture over the top and then layer with the other half of the Crispy Crowns. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese and bake at 350 for 25 - 30 minutes, or until golden brown and crunchy.

Baby Food

So, this is why I haven't posted much... I have been cooking, but mainly old recipes that I have already posted, I haven't tried anything new recently and I have been doing a whole lot of baby food making... so if anyone is interested in me doing a post on how/what I am making, then comment below and I will devote a post to that! Otherwise, this is just an explanation... oh yeah, and, I've been obsessed with watching youtube for make up tutorials and pinning things on Pinterest, so my blog has been on the back burner... it's lame, I know, sorry!

Hot Peanut Butter & Jelly

I was super bored the other day and wondered how this would be for the kids... I just used crescent rolls and added peanut butter and jelly in the center, rolled it up and then baked according to directions on the package.  The girls loved it and ate them up! worth a try is you are bored of the same lunch option every day!

Frozen Pudding Pops

Add pudding and Milk to a large bowl....

 Make sure you stir..

 

 Mix up different colors..

 Pour into cups

stick popsicle sticks in...

 Yummy, Ava  & Ella like it!

Frozen Pudding Pops

(Or as Ella calls them "Nummies"

1 Large box of Instant Vanilla Pudding

4 clear plastic cups, smaller size

3 cups of milk

Food coloring of your choice

4 popsicle sticks  (i used the thick kind)

Mix pudding, separate into bowls and add food coloring. 

Pour into cups in layers

Stick popsicle sticks in and put in freezer until frozen... enjoy

Hiding veggies

I can't find ways to get Ella to eat very much, she is SLOW, I mean poky the Puppy slow.  Ava won't eat much green things, unless I am eating it and she isn't in her highchair, there is something about being naughty not in your highchair that makes food taste better? yes, no? So anyways, they both LOVE pizza, so here we go, I just added cooked peas and green beans and put them in the food processor and then added it to the sauce. They loved it! Now I know this isn't a new idea, so I am not thinking I created this... it is just a reminder to those... who have picky eaters, that this is an idea.

Homemade Fruit Roll- Ups

after you blend the fruit with sugar in the food processor, then break it down in the pan, bring to boil.

Spread on the wax paper.. bake in oven at 200 for 5 hours.

 

 

Homemade Fruit Roll-Ups

- 8 Apricots cut up

-6 strawberries, cut up

-1 1/2 cup of blueberries

-1/4 cup of sugar

-1/4 cup of honey

Put fruit into food processor, add sugar and honey, blend.  Pour mixture into pot on stove and bring to boil while stiring.  Line a cookie pan with edges with wax paper, spread mixture over wax paper evenly.  Put in oven on 200 for3- 5 hours.  My oven went as low as 190 and that is what I did.  Take out, once cool cut in strips and lay on wax paper, roll up and store in plastic bag in fridge.

Pizza Pockets-Kid friendly

mmm, the kids loved this!
use garlic crescent rolls, top with sauce, pepperoni and mozzarella cheese
use two triangles that make a rectangle to cover
seal together sides
Bake at 375 for 13 minutes.


Pizza Rolls
2 packages of Garlic flavored Crescent rolls
1 can of pizza sauce
1 package of pepperoni
10 slices of mozzarella cheese, or shredded cheese

or
Any toppings you like

lay crescents in a rectangle as shown in picture, spread sauce, pepperoni, then cheese, top with crescent top and seal edges. Bake at 375 for 13 minutes. Cut up and enjoy!