Nanny's Kielbasa & Sauerkraut

Here's the recipes for my Grandma's AMAZING kielbasa and sauerkraut - a staple in our house. I serve this with creamy homemade mashed potatoes or pierogies.

-3/4 stick of margarine or butter
-1 small onion, chopped
-32 ounce jar of sauerkraut
-2-3 packages (14 ounces each) of polish kielbasa (I use the turkey kielbasa)
-1/4 cup pastina (Miniature star shaped pasta - find it in the pasta aisle. I put these in tomato soup too!)
-1-2 tablespoons caraway seeds (optional)

Melt butter in a pan and saute onion for a few minutes. Meanwhile, thoroughly rinse sauerkraut. (I dump the sauerkraut in a colander and rinse and squeeze it with my hands for about 5 minutes). Add sauerkraut to onion, add 1 cup of water, and lightly simmer uncovered for about 45 minutes. Check and stir often to make sure there is still some water on the bottom of the pan...just enough that the sauerkraut doesn't burn.

After 45 minutes, cut kielbasa into 1 inch pieces and add it to the pan. Add pastina and caraway seed, stir and cook until kielbasa is warmed through.

From the kitchen of Helen Midagliotti.

Carolyn's Easy Shepherd's Pie

I usually like my Shepherd's Pie made with peas, but this one is super tasty (and easy). I couldn't stop with one helping.  I love to double this and make a second "pie" to freeze.
-1 pound of ground beef or turkey
-1 packet of meat loaf seasoning (I used McCormick's)
-1 small onion, chopped
-1 clove of garlic, chopped
-1/2 teaspoon salt
-1 can of diced tomatoes
-1 can cream of mushroom soup
-2 cans of green beans, well-drained
-2 pounds of potatoes, peeled and cubed
-2 tablespoons butter or margarine
-2 tablespoons cream cheese or 1/3 cup sour cream (I used sour cream - isn't everything better with sour cream?)
-2/3 cup warmed milk (more or less as needed)
-Chopped chives (optional)
-2 cups shredded cheese (I used co-jack)

Brown the ground beef in a large skillet and drain fat. Add in meat loaf seasoning, onion, garlic and salt. Simmer for 15 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and soup. Simmer 15 minutes longer. Pour this mixture into a greased 9X13 inch baking dish. Cover the meat mixture with the drained green beans.

Meanwhile, boil potatoes until fork tender (usually about 10 minutes). Drain well. While hot, mix (I use an electric mixer or an old fashioned potato smasher depending on my mood!) the potatoes with the butter, cream cheese or sour cream, chopped chives, and salt and pepper to taste. Add about 2/3 cup of warm milk (more or less as needed) and mix until you get a spreadable consistency. Spread the mashed potatoes over the green bean layer. Dish may be covered and refrigerated overnight at this point if wanted.

Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes (longer if it has been refrigerated) until heated through. Remove from oven and cover with 2 cups of shredded cheese. Return to oven just until cheese is melted (5 minutes) and serve hot. 

From the kitchen of Carolyn Hill.

Mustard Baked Pork Chops

Tasty and super easy recipe. Scott and Adam do not like mustard, but they scarfed up these pork chops!

-Pork chops (I used 3, 1 inch thick boneless chops)
-Mustard (I used spicy brown mustard)
-Flour
-2 cans of chicken with rice soup and 2 cans of water (I only added 1 can of water and it was still quite watery. My suggestion is to just add the canned soup)

Cover pork chops with mustard and then dip in flour. Place pork chops in a pan with a little oil and brown for a few minutes on each side. Then, place pork chops in a 9X13 inch baking pan and add the cans of soup/water. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove foil and bake another 30 minutes.

From the kitchen of Stephanie D'Amico.

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

I think I need to stock my pantry with canned pumpkin...

Cooking time: 1 hour + Preheat oven to 350 degrees
-3 cups white sugar
-1, 15-oz can of pumpkin puree
-1 cup vegetable oil
-2/3 cup water
-4 eggs
-3 ½ cups flour
-1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
-1 tablespoon nutmeg
-2 teaspoons baking soda
-1 ½ tsp salt
-1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
-½ cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Grease 3 1-lb. size coffee cans or 3 9x5-inch loaf pans. Combine sugar, pumpkin, oil, water, eggs. Beat until smooth. Blend in flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, salt. Fold in chocolate chips and nuts. Fill cans ½ to ¾ full.

Bake until knife comes out clean. Cool on wire racks before removing from cans or pans.

From the kitchen of Gena Navitskis.

Sweet Potato Autumn Stew

I had this for the first time during my Grand Canyon trip and it is YUMMY! Perfect on a crisp fall day which we are finally getting here in Texas in November. I had it will chicken, but you can make it with beef too.

-1 teaspoon vegetable oil
-1 pound lean beef stew pieces, cubed chicken breasts, cubed
-1/2 cup chopped onion
-1 clove garlic, minced
-3 1/2 cups water
-3 teaspoons beef or chicken bouillon granules (or you can substitute 3 1/2 cups beef or chicken broth for the water and bouillon)
-1 (14.5 ounces) sliced stewed tomatoes (not drained)
-2 cups peeled, diced sweet potato
-1 1/2 cups diced red potato
-1 cup sliced mushroom (optional)
-1/4 teaspoon allspice
-1/4 teaspoon cloves
-1/2 teaspoon salt
-1/2 cup frozen petite green peas

NOTE: you can substitute any veggie you want. I usually do a bit less potatoes and add 1 or 2 cups of chunked butternut squash--awesome taste and healthier too.)

Heat vegetable oil in large stock pot over med-high heat. When hot, add meat, onion, and garlic. Cook 4 to 5 minutes or until done. Add water, bouillon, tomatoes, both potatoes, mushrooms, spices, and salt. Bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat; simmer for 25 minutes or until veggies are tender. Add peas and cook 5 more minutes. Excellent garnished with sour cream and served with hot crusty bread.

I'm sure this can be made in a crock pot, but I've never tried.

Calories: 250, Protein 29g, Carb 43 g, Fat 7 g (saturated 2 g), cholesterol 69 mg, sodium 560 mg.

From the kitchen of Bethany Keller.

Pumpkin Bread

I have a few fall recipes to share with you. I could eat an entire loaf of this pumpkin bread by myself!

-3 cup sugar
-1 cup vegetable oil
-4 eggs, beaten
-1 16oz can pumpkin (this is the smaller can)
-3 1/2 cups flour
-2 teaspoons soda
-2 teaspoons salt
-1 teaspoon baking powder
-1 teaspoon nutmeg
-1 teaspoon all spice
-1 teaspoon cinnamon
-1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
-2/3 cup water
-pecans if desired

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream sugar and oil together. Add eggs and pumpkin. Mix well. Sift together dry ingredients. Add water. Mix all ingredients together (add nuts here if you wish). Pour into two well greased and floured 9x5 inch loaf pans. Bake for 50-60 min or until knife comes out clean (this is the key step--don't overcook, but don't undercook either...the last few minutes the bread will set up pretty quickly, and remember it will continue to cook a bit out of the oven). Let stand 10 minutes, remove from pan to cool. It's easy to double the recipe and then freeze for weekend mornings/holidays.

From the kitchen of Bethany Keller.

Parmesan Encrusted Chicken

-4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
-2 cups crushed corn flakes
-3/4 cup grated parmesan
-1 stick of butter, melted
-1 envelop buttermilk ranch dressing

In a bowl, mix together dry ingredients. Dip chicken breasts in butter and then coat in the dry ingredients mixture. Spoon a little of the butter over each chicken breast. Bake on a greased cookie sheet at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

From the kitchen of Jenny Iverson (page 129 in the Bolar Cookbook).

Breaded Pork Tenderloin in Wine Sauce

I could have eaten the entire pork tenderloin myself.

-1-2 pound pork tenderloin
-1 stick of butter
-1 cup bread crumbs
-2 T Parmesan cheese (I used freshly shaved)
-1 t basil
-1 t garlic salt
-4-5 green onions, chopped
-white wine (I used red)

Melt butter and set aside. Combine bread crumbs, cheese, basil, and garlic salt. Roll pork in butter and then bread crumb mixture. Bake at 375 defrees for 45 minutes. Chop green onions and saute in butter and a little wine. Pour over pork and bake for another 5 mintues or so.


This recipe works well for chicken as well.


From the kitchen of Lisa Stone.

Crockpot Enchiladas

Super simple and tasty. Scott downed 3 servings tonight. This recipe is a keeper!

-1 pound ground beef (I used ground turkey)
-1 small onion, chopped
-1 clove garlic, minced
-1 can cream of mushroom soup
-1 (4 ounce) can of chopped green chiles
-1 (10 ounce) can enchilada sauce
-10 corn tortillas
-3 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
-paprika
-chopped fresh cilantro

In a large skillet, cook beef, onion, and garlic until browned. Stir in soup and chiles. Spray 4 quart crockpot with nonstick spray. Spread about 1/4 cup of the enchilada sauce in bottom of slow cooker. Place 3 tortillas over sauce, overlapping, and breaking in half to make an even layer. Top with 1/3 of the beef mixture, spreading evenly. Drizzle about 1/4 cup enchilada sauce over beef mixture. Sprinkle with 1 cup of cheese. Repeat layering twice, using 3 tortillas and half of the remaining beef mixture, enchilada sauce, and cheese in each layer. End by layer 3 more tortillas over your creation. And pour remaining enchilada sauce on top. Sprinkle with just a little cheese and paprika over top. Cover and cook on low for 4 1/2 - 5 1/2 hours. Spoon our helpings with a spatula and sprinkle individual servings with cilantro.

From the kitchen of Steffanee Masten (p. 110 in the Bolar Cookbook)

Pork Chops with Baked Apples and Stuffing

-6 boneless pork loin chops, 1 inch thick
-1 (6 ounce) pkg. stuffing mix (I used Stovetop for Pork)
-1 (21 ounce) can apple pie filling with cinnamon
-1 T vegetable oil

In a skillet, brown pork chops in oil over medium-high heat (do not cook through). Set pork aside, keep warm. Prepare stuffing according to package directions, set aside. Spread pie filling into a greased 9"X13" baking dish. Place pork chops over pie filling and spoon stuffing on top. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for about 35 minutes or until pork is cooked through.

From the kitchen of Jessica Kabel.

Mexican Lasagna Take 2

This tastes just like chicken enchiladas.

-1 lb shredded chicken breast
-1 package whole wheat tortillas
-2 cans cream of chicken soup (light)
-16 ounces sour cream (light/fat free)
-2 cups shredded 4-cheese blend

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Boil chicken with salt and pepper. Shred with fork. Mix sour cream and cream of chicken soup together in a separate bowl (your lasagna “sauce”). Spray bottom of 9x13 pan with Pam. Build your lasagna in layers in order: start with a small amount of sauce on the bottom, cover with tortillas (your lasagna “noodles”), add chicken and cheese. Continue your layers and end with sauce and cheese on top. Cover with foil and bake from 1 hour at 350. Remove foil for last 15 minutes if you want to brown the cheese. Cut like you would a lasagna.  Top each serving with a little salsa.

From the kitchen of Jennifer Blueter

Mesquite BBQ Drumsticks

I finally got Scott to type up his drumstick recipe for me. I am still not a huge fan of meat on bone, but this chicken is awesome. The boys love it. Happy grilling!

-2 handfuls dry mesquite woodchips in heavy aluminum foil x 2
-chicken drumsticks (I think he usually buys a package of 10)
-Kraft Zesty Italian salad dressing

Poke some holes in foil to allow smoke to escape. Place over indirect heat in 300 degree grill. Replace with 2nd set of woodchips about 30 minutes in for fresh smoke.

Place chicken on grill without any marinade. Turn chicken every 5 minutes. After about 20 minutes, begin pouring Kraft Zesty Italian dressing over chicken. Will use about ½ of a 16 oz. bottle. The dressing has oil in it and will cause flare ups.

Cook chicken about 45-55 min.

Pineapple Cheeseball

-1 block of cream cheese, softened
-1 medium onion, diced small
-1 8 ounce can crushed pineapple, drained
-chopped pecans

Mix all and leave some pecans for rolling on the ball for decoration. Refrigerate overnight or much longer for better taste! Serve with crackers.

From the kitchen of Angela Smith.

Asian Lettuce Wraps

I am not a big Asian food lover. However, I do love me some P.F. Changs!!! Is anyone else obsessed with the lettuce wraps there? I was completely craving lettuce wraps last night and decided to try and make them with what I had in the fridge. Here's what I came up with. Scott is asking for them again so I guess that's a good sign!

-3 pounds ground turkey
-12 green onions with tops, chopped
-1 T garlic, chopped
-2 cups of carrot (chopped or shredded)
-1/2 cup + 1 T hoison sauce (you find it in the Asian food aisle)
-6 T soy sauce
-1/2 T Sirachi hot sauce (you find it in the Asian food aisle)
-2 cups of jasmine rice
-2 1/2 cups of water
-1 head of iceberg lettuce

Put the jasmine rice and water in the rice cooker and hit start. We love our rice cooker! Before starting on the meat, prep your iceberg lettuce. Remove the core and then slice the head in half. Carefully peel off layers of lettuce - you are going for as many solid pieces of lettuce as you can...they should resemble a taco shell. Rinse each piece of lettuce and drain on paper towels.

Meanwhile, add about 2 tablespoons of olive oil (or sesame oil) to a wok or skillet. Add turkey and brown.  Add in onions, carrots, and garlic and cook until carrots are tender (about 5 minutes). Add hoison, soy and sirachi sauces - simmer for 5-10 more minutes.

To serve, scoop a little rice into a piece of lettuce. On top of the rice, add some of the meat mixture, wrap the piece of lettuce closed like a burrito and enjoy!

**Mushrooms and peanuts would also be great in this recipe but I didn't have any at home to try it.
**I only used 1/4 t sirachi because I made this for the kids. I'd probably add more if it were for me...I love it spicy!

Quick Pasta Carbonara

An easy and quick carbonara...everybody loved it! Leftovers were great too.

-1/2 pound of pasta (my favorite is penne)
-6 slices of bacon
-1/2 cup cream cheese, cubed
-1 cup frozen peas
-1 cup of milk
-1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
-1/2 t garlic

Cook pasta as directed. Meanwhile, cook bacon in a large skillet. Drain bacon slices on paper towel. When cooled, chop bacon up. Reserve 2 tablespoons of bacon grease in the skillet but drain the rest. Add remaining ingredients to skillet. Cook and stir until heated through and bubbly. Drain pasta and add to skillet. Add chopped bacon. Stir and serve.

As you can see, I popped some grape tomatoes in just before serving this batch.

Mexican Lasagna

-1 pound lean ground beef (or turkey)
-1 (1 ounce) package taco seasoning mix
-1 (14 ounce) can peeled and diced tomatoes with juice
-1 small can of corn
-6 (10 inch) whole wheat tortillas
-1 1/2 cups prepared salsa
-1 cup shredded Mexican mix or Cojack cheese, divided

Brown the ground beef and drain fat. Stir in the taco seasoning and tomatoes. Line a greased 9x13-inch baking dish with half the tortillas. I cute the tortillas in half and line the straight edges around the edges of the casserole dish then fill in the rest randomly. Spoon the beef mixture into the dish, sprinkle with 1/2 cup cheese, then top with the remaining tortillas. Spread salsa over the tortillas (make sure they are all coated with salsa) and sprinkle with the rest of the cheese. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 to 30 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly. Cut in pieces and serve just like you would a regular lasagna. 

*I use the kind of salsa with black beans in it. If you use plain salsa, you could also throw in half a can of drained black beans into this casserole as well.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

This is an appetizer that my friend made for our Super Bowl party a couple months ago. It was so tasty that I just had to get the recipe. It tastes like buffalo chicken wings dipped in blue cheese...need I say more?

-1, 8-ounce package cream cheese
-2 cups cooked chicken (a store-bought rotisserie chicken works best), shredded
-1/2 cup buffalo wing sauce, recommended brand = Texas Pete
-2 tablespoons butter, melted
-1/2 cup blue cheese dressing (eyeball it) **you can substitue ranch if you don't like blue cheese
-1/4 to 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (eyeball it)

Preheat oven to 300°F. Cover the bottom of an 8x8" dish or pie plate with cream cheese. In a large mixing bowl, combine the shredded chicken, wing sauce and butter, and pour over the cream cheese-filled dish or pie plate. Top with just enough blue cheese dressing and mozzarella cheese to cover (adding too much cheese will cause a thick skin to form that will make eating the dip difficult once the cheese cools). Heat the dip in the oven for 20 minutes. Serve with Scoops (Tortillas or Fritos) alongside for dipping.

From the kitchen of Katie Talbert.

Cashew Chicken

Scott has been on earlies this week for what seems like the first time in ages. Therefore, he's actually been home at a decent time to eat with us...motivating me to actually cook a little this week.

I tried a new recipe from my Bolar cookbook last night (page 94 for you ladies who have it)...a super easy and tasty cashew chicken meal. All the boys loved it (except Adam who doesn't like anything these days unless it's his idea to eat it).

-2 boneless/skinless chicken breasts (I used 4 breasts instead)
-cornstarch
-olive oil
-5 T white wine vinegar (I used red wine vinegar because that's all I had on hand)
-5 T soy sauce
-5 T sugar
-1 cup green onions, chopped
-2 cups mushrooms, sliced
-1 cup cashews
-ginger
-minced garlic
-red cayenne pepper flakes
-sesame seeds

Cut up chicken into bit size pieces (this is done more easily when chicken is still slightly frozen) and coat with cornstarch. Place about 4-5 tablespoons of olive oil in a wok or large skillet and brown chicken. When brown, place chicken on a plate with a paper towel to drain and set aside. In a bowl, mix vinegar, soy sauce, and sugar. Add a little olive oil to wok and then add sauce. Add green onions and mushrooms and saute and stir for about 2 minutes. Add chicken and stir so that chicken is coated with the sauce. Add ginger, minced garlic, pepper flakes, and sesame seeds (I added about 1 clove of garlic and a few healthly shakes of all the rest....not quite as much of the pepper flakes). Stir in cashews. Simmer for a few minutes. Serve with rice.

This time I omitted the red pepper flakes and only dashed some on top of the adults plates...I didn't want to make the dish too spicy for the kids.

I served this with some crunchy chow mein noodles for topping and fortune cookies for dessert.

From the kitchen of Alison Pardee.

Mediterranean Pasta

I had the most AMAZING pasta dish at my friend Katie's last night and had to share the recipe. This was restaurant quality pasta and she swears is wasn't too difficult to make. I can't wait to make this for Scott!

-3 tablespoons olive oil
-1 pound skinless boneless chicken breasts, sliced diagonally
-1 (8 1/2-ounc) jar sun-dried tomatoes, julienned (1 cup)
-2 tablespoons garlic, minced
-1 pound fresh angel hair pasta
-1/4 cup fresh basil
-1 (8 1/2-ounce) can artichoke hearts in water, quartered and drained (1 cup)
-1/2 cup kalamata olives, pitted (1/4 pound)
-6 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
-1/4 cup heavy cream
-2 teaspoons dried oregano
-Salt and pepper, to taste

Boil water for pasta in a pasta pot, fitted with a strainer. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Brown chicken strips until no longer pink -- about 3 minutes each side. Add sun-dried tomatoes and garlic to skillet. Saute for 2 minutes. In the meantime, add the fresh pasta to boiling water, cook until al dente, about 5 minutes.

Now add the basil, artichoke hearts, olives and feta cheese to the skillet. Saute 1 minute then stir in the cream. Strain the pasta and transfer to a large pasta bowl. Add the chicken saute to the pasta and toss. Season with oregano, salt and pepper before serving

From the kitchen of Katie Talbert (courtesy of Tyler Florence)

Ork's Bacon Bites

These may sound gross, but they are AWESOME. Our friend Ork made them for us at a cookout at his house last summer and I was hesitant to try them...dates, no thank you. My mind was changed immediately. I've made them for a few parties and friends are always hesitant until they taste them. They are one of those appetizers that you just keep eating more of!

-Bacon
-Package of pitted dates (you can usually find them by the nuts in the shell in your grocery store)
-Soy Sauce
-Hot sauce - we use Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce but any hot sauce would (Sriracha can be found in the Asian food aisle)
-Toothpicks

Cut bacon slices in half. Take a piece of bacon and wrap it around a date and secure with a toothpick. Continue until you have as many wrapped dates as you want. Layer in a tupperware container. Sprinkle with soy sauce until the dates are all sitting in a layer of soy sauce. Add hot sauce to taste (we do a couple tablespoons). Seal the tupperware. Shake the container occassionaly to make sure the dates get throughly coated. Let marinate for 30-60 minutes. Grill or broil until bacon is cooked through. I usually broil them since I usually need to keep an eye on the kids while prepping. Ork always grills them on his smoker and they taste even better that way.

These will blow your mind, I promise!

From the kitchen of Joerg Podschun.

Pork Piccata

I haven't made this for a while, but it was tasty. I originally found it while looking for a recipe to use up the jar of capers I had in my fridge.

-8 thin boneless pork cutlets
-1/4 t salt
-1/4 black pepper
-1/3 cup all-purpose flour
-2 T olive oil
-1 cup chicken broth
-3 T capers
-2 T lemon juice
-1 T butter

Season both sides of pork with salt and pepper. Dredge in flour and shake off excess. Discard remaining flour.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork and saute for 2 minutes per side. Remove pork to a plate and keep warm.

Add broth and simmer 2 minutes, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of skillet. Stir in the capers and lemon juice. Return the pork to the skillet and simmer gently for about 1 to 2 minutes, until pork is heated through. Whisk in the butter.

Serve with mash potatoes and peas and garnish with lemon and parsley, if desired.

Per serving: 366 calories, 21 g fat (7 g sat), 35 g protein, 7 g carbs, 0 g fiber, 582 mg sodium, 101 mg cholesterol.

All Day Flank Steak

This is one of our crock pot favorites in this house. Super easy, pretty health, and yummy!

-1 1/2 - 2 pounds flank steak
-1 large onion, sliced
-1/3 cup water
-1 can chopped green chiles
-2 T red wine vinegar
-1/2 t chili powder
-1 t garlic powder
-1/2 t sugar
-1/2 t salt
-1/8 t black pepper

In a large frying pan, brown steak on both sides. Put steak in crock pot. In frying pan, saute onion for 1 minute, then add water, green chilies, vinegar, chili powder, garlic powder, sugar, salt and pepper and saute for another minute. Pour over steak and cook on low for 7-8 hours or on high for 4-5 hours. Slice steak and serve with onions and pan juices. I serve it over rice.

When I am really running low on time, I just throw all the ingredients into the crock pot and it still turns out great.

From the kitchen of Lisa Stone.

Tamale Casserole

This is like a super easy, mexican pot pie. I usually make it with ground turkey and serve with a dollop of sour cream (and jalepenos for me) on top.

-1 pound ground beef or turkey, browned and drained
-1 can kidney or black beans
-1 small can chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, sliced (I omit this ingredient...too spicy for my kids and it's just as yummy without it)
-1 green pepper, sliced
-1 small yellow onion, diced
-1 can enchilada sauce
-Fresh or canned mushrooms
-2 garlic cloves
-Salt and pepper to taste
-1 pkg. cornbread (or muffin) mix (and ingredients need to prepare it)

Brown the meat and put it in the slow cooker. Stir in everything except the cornbread. Mix cornbread according to package. Pour cornbread mixture over ingredients in slow cooker. Cook on low, 5 hours.

**I mix all the ingredients together in the crockpot except for the corn bread mix. I set the crock pot on low. Five hours prior to dinner time, I prepare the corn bread mixture, layered it on top of the mixture already in the crockpot and kept the crockpot on low for another 5 hours.

Are you still cooking?

I hope you are still cooking because I have been on a cooking hiatus. I loved posting to this blog because it helped motivate me to continually try out new recipes. One of my goals for this year (yes, I am starting my New Year's resolutions a little late this year) is to get back to my cooking and blogging.

First of all, I need to know...who is really reading (and USING) this blog (besides Kate, of course)? Just as I requested on my personal blog recently, show me some love in the comments section if you stop here regularly. If you ever make any of these recipes, PLEASE comment. I'd love to hear how your meal turned out.

I love ya Kate...you motivate me to continue this blog. Thanks for continuing to come back, especially after I have been a slacker for so long.

At Kate's request, I have been on the hunt for some more crock pot recipes to post. If you have one to share, please e-mail/FB me with it or just post it in the comments section. I usually like to try out recipes before I post them. However, as I've mentioned, I've been a little bit of a slacker in the kitchen lately. I will post some crockpot recipes as I get them and let you know if they are one's that I have actually made.

I am ALWAYS looking for new recipes to try. With two little boys and very little time to get dinner prepped, cooked, and on the table, I am especially interested in simple and quick recipes that still manage to have a lot of flavor. Send them my way, PLEASE!

Keep the comments coming and become a follower of this blog!

Fall Off the Bone Ribs

-2-3 pounds baby back ribs
-1 medium onion, thinly sliced
-1 green pepper, thinly sliced
-1 yellow pepper, thinly sliced
-1 red pepper, thinly sliced
-Lawry's seasoned salt
-Black pepper

Season ribs with a generous portion of Lawry's on both sides. Sprinkle black pepper on both sides. In a large baking dish (I use a turkey roasting pan), layer peppers and onions around ribs. Refrigerate for 24-48 hours. Bake at 300 degrees for about 8 hours or until meat is tender. I've never tried it, but you could also make this in a crock pot.

The meat will literally just fall of the bone it is so tender. I love to make pulled pork sandwiches with the leftovers. No additional seasoning required. Just put the leftover meat (minus the bones) in a crock pot with a little water so the meat doesn't scorch. Put it on low or high until warm through. Serve on fresh hoagie buns or kaiser rolls. YUM!

From the kitchen of Tava Musial.