Cinnamon Sugar Waffle Biscuits

Okaaaaaaaaaaay. This recipe might win the official ‘Fast, Cheap, and Easy’ award. Because, dude. And … dude. And, for real … DUDE.

Okay. So … here’s what you need:

1 can Pillsbury GRANDS biscuits

cinnamon sugar (1/3 cup sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon; mixed)

 

These directions are rough, pay close attention:

Dip raw biscuits in cinnamon sugar mixture to coat on both sides. Place in heavily greased waffle iron.

 

Cook until your waffle iron says their done. That. Stinkin’. Easy.

They’re so good, I have to eat them plain … no syrup. My kids ate them with jam. I think I’ve made these 5 times since the first time I made them a few weeks ago. SO easy a 15 year old boy could do it. ;)

1 Hour French Bread

I saw this easy 1 hour French bread recipe floating around Pinterest last week. I looked at it. It looked terribly easy. However, I knew it wouldn’t have enough flavor. So I tweaked the recipe and added sugar and salt … nothing worse than going through the hard work of yeast bread only to have it not taste like anything. Trust me. There’s a bread recipe in my husband’s family cookbook from waaaaaay back. And it is waaaaay bad.

I apologize in advance for iPhone pictures … my USB cable got chewed by my puppy and I can’t upload pictures to my computer. Tragic. Okay. Here we go.

Here’s what you need:

2 1/2 cups warm water

2 TBS yeast

3 TBS sugar

2 tsp salt

3 TBS olive oil

6 cups flour

* 1 egg white mixed with 1 TBS cold water

 

Here’s what you do:

Combine yeast and warm water (not hot – you’ll kill your yeast). Sprinkle sugar on top and let the mixture sit for about 10 minutes. You’ll notice that the yeast has gotten all bubbly. Add the oil and salt, and slowly mix with a paddle blade in your electric mixture for about 5 seconds. Add flour and let the mixer ‘knead’ the dough together (on medium high speed) for about 1 minute. Dough will pull away from the bowl and be very sticky. Place a hot wet towel over the top of the bowl and let it rise in a warm oven (not hot) for 20 ish minutes. (I usually turn my oven on until it reaches about 150 degrees, then turn it off)

Once the dough has doubled in size, turn it out on a floured surface, divide it in half, and shape into loaves. (If you need it to fit in bread bags, just divide it in four and make short loaves, like ciabatta)

Cut slits on the top of the bread and let the bread sit while your oven heats to 375*. Bake bread at 375* for 20 minutes. While it’s baking, mix up 1 egg white and 1 TBS cold water. After 20 minutes of baking, open the oven and brush the egg white on the bread while it’s still in the oven … I used a long BBQ brush because I didn’t want to take it out of the oven and have the bread fall. After you’ve brushed it with the egg mixture, bake it for another 4-5 minutes. The top will be a gorgeous golden brown.

This bread is chewy, soft, and sooooooo tasty!! Enjoy!

Caramel Cinnamon Rolls with Caramel Icing

 

Oh my good gracious. Y’all are gonna want to be my BFF after making these. Don’t worry. There is plenty of me to go around. ;)

For this entire recipe, you are going to need:

THESE!!!! (Although, if you don’t have them, the recipe will still be delicious and caramel-y without them)

2 T yeast

4 T sugar

3 cups warm water

2 tsp salt

8 cups flour

cinnamon

2 cups packed brown sugar

2 sticks of butter

1/2 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 cups powdered sugar

 

Now. Here’s what you do …

 

Dough:

Dissolve together (and let sit for 5-10 minutes):

2 TBS yeast

4 TBS sugar

3 cups warm water

Add:

2 tsp salt

8 cup flour

Then, mix everything together until it forms a ball. Place a warm, wet towel over the top of the bowl. Place the bowl in a warm oven for 20 minutes to allow the dough to double in size. (I turn my oven on for a minute, until it reaches about 150 degrees)

Just before you are ready to roll out the dough, melt 1 stick of butter and get some brown sugar, cinnamon, and caramel bits ready.

Flour the surface you will roll the rolls out on. Dump the dough onto the floured surface. Using a floured rolling pin, roll the dough out into a rectangle shape (if you can … I’m not good at that part!). Then, spread the melted butter all over the dough … all the way to the edges, leaving not un-buttered spots. Then sprinkle LIBERALLY with brown sugar. Then sprinkle with cinnamon. Then sprinkle with caramel bits. It should look like this:

(Again, a little more rectangle-ish, would be best … but I just went with it)

Now you need to roll it up. Start rolling it up from the longest side, if that makes sense. You want a LONG roll to cut, not a short FAT roll. Okay? Okay.

Now. To cut … some people get all crazy and use dental floss and such. All I’ve got is mint dental floss and that just ain’t happening, people. I used a sharp, serrated Cutco carving knife and cut the roll into 3/4” pieces. Lay them flat on a GREASED casserole dish, leaving room around each roll so it can raise again. Like this:

After you’ve cut out all the rolls and put them into casserole dishes, you need to put those casserole dishes back into your warm oven. Set the timer for 20 minutes again, and let them rise for 20 minutes (they should be filling the dish now, without spaces). Like this (Sorry, Instagram picture):

Remove both casserole dishes from the oven, and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Once the oven is heated, bake the rolls at 350 degrees for about 23-25 minutes. They’ll be golden brown on top.

** While they are baking, make your icing:

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 stick of butter

1/2 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 cups powdered sugar

Combine brown sugar and butter in a small sauce pan. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook for 1 minute. Slowly whisk in milk, return to a boil, and cook for 1 minute, while whisking continually. Pour mixture into a mixing bowl. Stir in vanilla and salt. Whisk in powdered sugar until smooth (I used an electric mixer for this). Immediately spread glaze over warm rolls. Icing will set up fast. (It’s more like a thick glaze)

(Sorry. ‘Nother Instagram picture.)

Holy cow. SO YUMMY!!!

I could barely take any pictures before having to dig in!!

Y’all enjoy! Bet you don’t go back to regular cinnamon rolls! I know I won’t!!

Sausage, Egg, and Cheese Biscuits

Guys. Sometimes, when I walk through Costco, something magical happens. They just hand me free food. And usually, I realize that even though I didn’t think I was hungry and didn’t think I wanted to try my 18th different kind of hummus, I really do. It’s great. Love Costco for that.

Well. A couple weeks ago, as I was wandering through getting my usual, this nice southern momma handed me half of a sausage biscuit. I’m usually not a sausage fan (and I still can’t really say I am, but my hubs and kids LOVE sausage), but in a moment of politeness, I took it. And, it was delicious. And it was stupid easy to make. And I was like, “Wait. I can do this kind of sausage for my lovers.” And then the heavens parted. And I wore a halo home. And my kids carried me around the house cheering something about me being the best mother ever. Yeah. Something like that.

Any. Way.

HaRk! A sausage, egg, and cheese biscuit. In MY kitchen!

Here’s what you need (at Costco):

Frozen Pillsbury Buttermilk Biscuits

Goolsby’s Country Sausage (Cause, with a name like Goolsby’s, it’s gotta be good, right?)

Eggs

Cheese

 

Directions:

Preheat oven and cook biscuits according to package. On an electric skillet, cook up as many sausage patties as you need. These ones cook fast and don’t produce tons of grease. In a frying pan, cook up some eggs (are y’all laughing at how stupid and self explanatory this recipe is? cause I am). Place cheese on top of egg for the last 30 second to melt. Assemble your breakfast biscuits.

I like to go all crazy one morning every couple weeks and cook up a dozen sausage biscuits. Then I let them cool completely. Put each one in a ziploc sandwich bag … then put them all into a gallon sized freezer bag … and BAM! Sausage biscuits in 30 seconds on school mornings.

My apologies. This isn’t really a recipe. More of just an idea … and recommendation. Those biscuits are yummy. And I’ll vouch for this brand of sausage. That is all, people. Enjoy. :D

Easy Korean Pork (or Chicken) BBQ

Alrighty. All you fast, cheap, and easy people … if you haven’t already done so, I would like to encourage you to check out the condiment aisle at Target. Specifically, Target’s ‘Archer Farms’ brand. Why? Because they don’t throw nasty garbage like high fructose corn syrup into their condiments and sauces. Can we all just agree to boycott anything with high fructose corn syrup in it? Please?!

Okay. So … I decided to try the Korean Style Barbecue sauce … um … it’s good. Real. Good. But, it’s a little spicy. My kids ate it, but had to grabs drinks of water in between each bite. I did add a few TBS of brown sugar to it, which I think helped the heat. But, it’s good, people. I promise. Here’s what you need (+ brown sugar):

1 cup Korean style barbecue sauce

1 cup cooked, diced pork (I used leftovers that I diced up and froze from a couple weeks ago because I’m sneaky like that)

1 pkg chow mein noodles

1 bag sugar snap peas

2-3 TBS brown sugar

1 small onion, diced (if you have it … I was out)

 

Directions:

In a skillet over medium-high heat, saute diced onion and pork together. Add bbq sauce and simmer for about 5 minutes so the meat can soak in the flavor. While it’s simmering, add the chow mein noodles to a pot of boiling water (they take 3 minutes to cook, literally). After the meat has simmered for about 5 minutes, add in the bag of snap peas and heat throughout (about 2 minutes). Drain noodles and throw them into the skillet. Toss to fully coat noodles with sauce. Serve with a tall glass of water (it’s not that hot, but it does have a kick). Super yummy. Stupid easy.

Pineapple Bread

Y’all have probably figured out by now that I make a lot of ‘bread’. Never regular bread. Never really use yeast. Always seems to have some sort pureed of fruit in it. Well. That’s because I can my own fruit. A lot of it. And … my kids are punks. And they go through cycles of eating my canned fruit and refusing my canned fruit. Which means I have a lot of canned fruit to use … somehow.

So. Behold. I give you Pineapple Bread … It’s delicious. I promise. Party on, y’all.

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 cup pureed canned pineapple (drain it then throw it in the blender)

2 cups flour

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350*. Combine butter, sugar, eggs, and pineapple using electric mixer. Add cinnamon, soda, and salt. Mix until combined. Then add flour and combine. Pour into greased 8x8 baking dish (that’s the key – ditch your loaf pan!!!), SPRINKLE THE TOP WITH SUGAR, and bake for 25 minutes. Set the timer for 20 minutes and check on it.

* Sometimes I go all crazy and sprinkle it with brown sugar on top.

Meatball Surprise

Don’t you just love Pinterest?! I found this recipe on there and thought, “My kids would LOVE that!” And. THEY DID.



Here’s what you need:



24 meatballs (I just used Costco’s, but you could make your own)
4 cheese sticks (cut into 6 pieces each)
1 pkg Pillsbury Flaky Layers biscuits
Marinara Sauce

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350*. Divide biscuits into three (peel the layers apart, leaving three thin biscuits). Wrap the biscuit around a meatball and piece of cheese and close tightly. Place on greased cookie sheet, leaving space between each one, like this:



Then spray with olive oil (think … olive oil cooking spray). Then sprinkle with garlic salt. Bake at 350* for 15-17 minutes, or until golden brown on top like this:



Serve with marinara sauce for dipping. YUM! My kids went crazy!

Peanut Butter Kisses

Happy Valentines, y’all. I’ll be celebrating with these little babies. I know you wanna make them. And I promise you, this recipe is the best one. Chewy. Gooey. So yummy. Go make some. Now.

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup peanut butter (I always use crunchy)
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cups flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

Hershey’s Kisses

Directions:

Thoroughly cream butter, peanut butter, sugars, egg, and vanilla. Sift together dry ingredients; blend into creamed mixture. Shape into 1-inch balls (I used a Pampered Chef scoop). Place 2 inches apart on greased cookie sheet (who really ever bakes on ungreased no matter HOW greasy the dough is?). DO. NOT. FLATTEN. Please. ;) Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. No more no less. Do not overcook ... take them out when they are barely golden. Top with a Hershey kiss and allow to cool completely. Makes about 30 cookies.

Ranch Chicken Salad

Okay, so I didn’t actually use chicken in my recipe … I diced up the left over pork chops from a couple nights before. (Oh. Yes. I. DID.) They were tender. And they look like chicken. And my kids didn’t care. Waste not, want not.

Here’s what you need:

1 1/2 cups diced chicken (or leftover pork chops ;)

1/2 ish cup mayo

1/2 ish packet of ranch dressing mix

1/2 cup diced green pepper (or celery, or cucumber … whatever you have)

Directions:

Combine all ingredients and let rest in fridge for 1 hour, so that the herbs in the dressing sort of marinate and soften. Serve on rolls, a French loaf, sandwich bread, lettuce wraps, pita chips … whatever you’ve got! My kids LOVED this. But, then again … they are Texans … and would probably dip a boot in Ranch dressing and eat it.

Enjoy, y’all!!

Ugly Bread

This bread is dang ugly … but soooooooooo yummy. It kinda ‘deflates’ into a dense looking bread, but it’s really moist and tender and so yummy. You’re going to love it! (sorry … a few more ingredients than I usually require you to have, but they’re all pretty basic) It’s caramel-y … and seriously like a party in your mouth. Go use your old bananas before they liquefy!!!

3/4 cup butter, softened

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened

2 cups sugar

2 large eggs

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups mashed bananas (like, 3 bananas)

1 cup chopped pecans, toasted

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

 

1/2 brown sugar, 1/4 cup butter, 1 tsp cinnamon (for topping)

 

Directions:

Cream together butter and cream cheese at medium speed using electric mixture. Gradually add sugar, beating until light and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition. Add salt, soda, and baking powder. Mix in flour. Stir in bananas, pecans, and vanilla. Spoon batter into 2 greased 9x9 baking dishes or muffin tins (ditch the loaf, trust me).

In a separate bowl, melt 1/4 cup butter. Add 1/2 cup packed brown sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon. Stir until well combined. Sprinkle evenly across the top of each dish.

Bake at 350° for 30-40 minutes or until a long wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean and sides pull away from pan, shielding with aluminum foil last the 15 minutes to prevent browning, if necessary. Check on it at 30 minutes and assess the situation. ;)

Peanut Butter Frozen Hot Chocolate

Oh good gracious. It’s like a Reese’s Peanut Butter cup in a glass. It’s going to rock your world. And, you’re gonna die when you see how stupid easy it is. You’ll forgive me for not being your beer drinking buddy. I promise.

Here’s what you need:

4 pkgs hot chocolate mix

1/2 cup peanut butter

3 cups milk

10-12 ice cubes (add them one at a time)

 

Directions:

Pour milk into blender (you don’t have to use almond milk, that’s just what we drink). Pour in the 4 packets of hot chocolate mix. Add peanut butter. Blend on high until smooth. Then, while blending on high, drop ice cubes, one at a time, into the blender. Stop adding ice when the desired consistency is achieved.

* This stuff is dangerous because, inevitably, you always have these 3 ingredients in your house. Uh oh.

Sobered Up Pork Chops

So, I saw a similar recipe to this on Pinterest … but instead of Ginger Ale, it called for a bottle of beer. And it was called ‘Drunken Pork Chops’. Y’all. Believe it or not, I’ve never bought beer in my life. I’ve never drank it either. I know. Can we still be friends?



For the crock pot:
8-10 pork chops (I used boneless)
2 cups ginger ale
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup ketchup
1 small onion, diced
potatoes and carrots
garlic salt and pepper

For gravy:
3/4 cup milk
2 TBS cornstarch
2 chicken (or pork, if you can find it) bouillon cubes
salt and pepper to taste



Directions:

First of all, do yourself a massive favor and buy some slow cooker liners. They’ll change your life. Special thanks to my girl, Andrea, for introducing me to them.

Put your pork chops in the crockpot. As always, mine were frozen solid. Shake a little garlic salt and pepper on top of the meat. Throw the diced onion on top. Whisk together to the ginger ale, sugar, and ketchup. Pour it over the top and let it cook for 8 hours on HIGH. For the last 1.5-2 hours, throw in a bag of baby carrots and a few potatoes, cut into bigger chunks.

When the meat is tender, remove all the carrots and potatoes and pour the juices into a sauce pan to make a gravy. Add the bouillon cubes to the juices and bring to a boil. Add the cornstarch to the milk and whisk until the cornstarch is dissolved. Then, pour milk mixture into the broth and whisk to prevent any lumping. Gravy should thicken quickly. If not … repeat the whole milk mixture thing. ;) Salt and pepper the gravy to taste. I added pepper because it was a little sweet.

Enjoy.

Peach Bread

A couple weeks ago, my sweet sister-in-law Angela came over for family dinner and brought peach bread. When she told me what it was, I was like “Dude. I’ve never heard of that before.” Then I tried it and I was like, “Dude. How have I lived without this in my life.”

Especially because I love canning. I can my own peaches, pears, pineapple, apple pie filling, salsa, spaghetti sauce, cherries, blackberries, pepper jelly, bbq sauce, marinated peppers, orange marmalade, applesauce … okay, I’ll stop. And you know what? I’ve got TONS of peaches to use.

So, I asked her for her recipe … but she just moved into a new home and she’s got 4 babies under 7 years old and she’s a little swamped. So a couple days ago, I got a wild hair and thought I could make my own recipe using my favorite banana bread recipe as the blueprint. And you know what? IT WORKED!!!! Bam. So. Here you go …



1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 cup pureed canned peaches (drain them then throw them in the blender)
1/2 cup chopped pecans (if you want)
2 cups flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350*. Combine butter, sugar, eggs, and peaches using electric mixer. Add cinnamon, soda, and salt. Mix until combined. Then add flour and combine. Pour into greased 8x8 baking dish (that’s the key – ditch your loaf pan!!!), SPRINKLE THE TOP WITH SUGAR (I forgot to do that, but it changes everything and makes it so delicious), and bake for 25 minutes. Set the timer for 20 minutes and check on it.

Holy cow. So yummy!!! And, seriously GENIUS if you need to use up some of your canned peaches from food storage.

Ritz + Candy Bars = H.E.A.V.E.N.

OMG. Oh. Em. Gee.

The next time someone asks you to bring a dessert somewhere, do yourself a favor and make these. Seriously. They are the epitome of fast, cheap, and easy. And, holy cow, they are good.



I saw a similar recipe on Pinterest using Rolos … and I thought … ‘Mmm, that would be GOOD’. But, dude, I don’t have Rolos. And I rarely, if ever, buy them. BUT, I did have a bunch of bite sized candy bars that I bought at Costco to bribe my Sunday school class. BINGO!

So … here’s what you need:



Ritz Crackers
A boat load of bite sized candy bars (or Rolos, if you have them)

Directions:

Heat oven to 250*. Lay a pan full Ritz crackers, salty side down, on a cookie sheet. Place one candy bar on each cracker. Bake in oven for 5 minutes. Place another Ritz cracker, salty side up, on top, and press down to create a ‘sandwich’. Holyfreakingcrap. These are so dang good.



I used Snickers, Milky Way, and Milky Way Midnight … Milky Way is by far my favorite. And for real … ask me to bring a dessert? You’re getting these. Stupid easy. Stupid delicious. WINNING!

Egg, Bacon, and Cheese Breakfast Burritos

I will take a better picture of the breakfast burrito rolled up … in the morning when I feed my kiddos. For now, here is the recipe:

2 cups bacon bits (I used Costco’s precooked bacon bits)

2 dozen eggs

3/4 cup sour cream

1/2 cup cheddar cheese

2 cups cheddar cheese

salt and pepper

frozen uncooked tortillas (but, cooked, of course – I use Tortilla Land from Costco)

 

Directions:

Even if you’re using precooked crumbled bacon, you’ll still want to brown it up and get it nice and crispy. Use a stock pot. Once the bacon bits are crispy, add the eggs and salt and pepper. Cook the eggs until they are just almost done. Add the sour cream and stir until it’s well incorporated. Add 1/2 cup cheese and stir. Remove from heat. DO NOT cook the eggs all the way if you are making these to freeze. They’re gonna be reheated and they’ll taste WAY better if the eggs aren’t cooked within an inch of their lives. ;) **The sour cream makes all the difference in the world in this recipe. Do not skip it!

You want the mixture to appear a little ‘wet’, like this:

Spoon about 1/2 cup of the mixture onto the center of each cooked tortilla. Sprinkle with cheese. Roll up, tucking in the sides. Store in a snack size bag like this:

And then in a gallon size freezer bag, like this:

To heat from frozen, microwave for 35 seconds on one side, flip it and then another 35 seconds. These usually heat up faster than the beef and bean ones.

Beef, Bean, and Cheese Burritos

First of all, I rarely make these just to eat for dinner … they are dinner … PLUS about 30 more burritos. If I’m gonna be making burritos, I might as well roll dozens at a time and freeze them for easy meals later.

This is one of my favorite recipes. It’s adapted from Pioneer Woman's burrito recipe … just a little more simple.



4-5 cups homemade refried beans (if you MUST you can use a few cans of store bought, *cringe*)
1-2 lbs ground beef
1 can red enchilada sauce (I use mild)
cheddar cheese
frozen tortillas (that have been cooked, of course … I use Tortilla Land, from Costco)

Directions:

Brown the ground beef and season with garlic salt. Add the can of enchilada sauce to the beef and simmer for a few minutes to break up the tough chunks of beef. Add the refried beans (as much or as little as you want). Add a handful of cheddar cheese (not too much). Stir everything until it’s well combined.
Place about 1/2 cup bean mixture in the center of a tortilla, sprinkle with cheddar cheese, and roll up, tucking sides in. Store in snack sized Ziplocs … and then in gallon sized freezer bags. Like this:



And this:



To heat them from frozen, just cook on one side for 45 seconds, flip it over, and cook another 45 seconds. Infinitely better than store bought burritos. And it will cost about $.35/burrito. Verses $1/burrito. Even cheaper if you don’t add the beef!

Beef Pot Pie

Mmm. One of my favorite things to do with leftover roast. Beef. Pot. Pie.

Here’s what you need:

1 – 1 1/2 cups roast (if you don’t have leftover roast, I suppose you could use ground beef)

1 cup diced potatoes (just use your leftovers)

1 cup peas and carrots

2 prepared pie crusts (the kind that come rolled up)

beef bouillon, milk, and cornstarch (to make some gravy)

 

Directions:

Dissolve 3 bouillon cubes in 1/2 cup water. Bring to a simmer. Add 1 TBS cornstarch to 1 cup cold milk. Whisk milk mixture into boiling/simmering bouillon mixture. Whisk to prevent any lumps from forming. Add roast, potatoes, peas, and carrots. Heat through.

Grease a pie pan and unroll one pie crust onto bottom of pie pan. Pour the beef gravy mixture on top of the pie crust. Unroll a second pie crust on top and tuck the edges under. Cut a few slits on top of the pie crust to vent. Bake at 425* for 20 minutes.

* This serves about 5-6 people. If you have a bigger family, double the filling … the pie should be able to hold it.

When it comes out of the oven, just rub a little salted butter around on the crust. You’re going to love this one! YUM.