Tator Tot Casserole

Tater Tot Casserole 

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground beef or ground turkey

• 1 medium onion, chopped

• 1 can (10.5 oz) cream of mushroom soup

• 1 can (10.5 oz) cream of chicken soup

• 1 cup sour cream

• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

• 1 package (32 oz) frozen tater tots

• Hot sauce, for an extra kick

• Salt and pepper to taste

• Optional: chopped green onions or parsley for garnish

Instructions:

1. Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C).

2. Cook Meat and Onion: In a large skillet, cook the ground beef or ground turkey over medium heat until browned. Add the chopped onion and cook until softened. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

3. Mix Ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, combine the cooked meat and onion, cream of mushroom soup, cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and half of the shredded cheddar cheese. Add hot sauce to taste and mix well.

4. Assemble Casserole: Spread the meat mixture evenly in the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking dish. Arrange the frozen tater tots in a single layer on top of the meat mixture.

5. Bake: Bake in the preheated oven for 45-50 minutes or until the tater tots are golden brown and crispy.

6. Add Cheese: Remove the casserole from the oven and sprinkle the remaining shredded cheddar cheese on top. Return to the oven for an additional 5-10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and bubbly.

7. Serve: Garnish with chopped green onions or parsley if desired. Serve hot and enjoy!

Cinnamon Bread

Photo location: Pakistan

If you ever invite neighbors or friends into your home for holidays or any occasion, this delicious cinnamon bread will be a crowd pleaser and make your kitchen and home smell inviting with the lovely scent of cinnamon all around. Nikole Hahn, a missionary, shared this recipe which has become a tradition in Pakistan. The recipe video is 1 minute long. 

If you live at high altitude, you can click here to make adjustments. Baking time, temperatures, and ingredients might need to be adjusted if you live above 3,000-foot elevation.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 3 teaspoons cinnamon (I like to dump my cinnamon in the bowl)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 eggs

Instructions: 

1. Grease the bottom of a loaf pan. You can sprinkle the bottom with a little flour to keep it from sticking, but I like to use cinnamon instead. After baking, the cinnamon on the bottom of the pan prevents sticking and gives a crispy cinnamon crunch to your bread.
2. Preheat the oven to 350* (or 375* if you are between 3,000 and 4,000 elevation level).
3. Mix dry ingredients together first. Then, add all the wet ingredients. Don’t overmix. Mix until smooth.
4. Pour batter into the loaf pan and bake for almost an hour. It will be done when the bread feels firm to the touch, and you can insert a knife in the middle and the knife comes out clean.
5. Use a knife to gently separate the bread from the sides. Wait a minute, then turn upside down on a cooling rack or plate.

Eat with your favorite topping hot out of the oven. The smell of cinnamon will fill your home with warmth and memories.

Taco Soup

Dunguaire Castle in Galway

This original recipe was shared by Mandy Post who serves in Galway, Ireland with her husband Jason and their four children. Mandy and Jason moved from Texas to Galway to help establish Galway City Baptist Church and disciple college students nearby by opening up their home for fellowship and dinner, their taco soup becoming a huge favorite. It has made a significant impact in their community as they seek to share the love of Christ with the students and mentor them. Equipping them to lead and train a next generation to know Jesus and make Him known across the globe. Here's a 3 minute video demonstrating how to make their taco soup and Mandy discussing her life-changing experiences with the students. 

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• one large onion chopped
• 2-3 cloves garlic minced
• 2-3 sliced or chopped chilies
• 2 pounds ground beef
• 2 cans of corn (or 2 cups frozen corn)
• 2 cans of beans, drained and rinsed (kidney beans, black beans, pinto beans)
• 2 cans stewed or chopped tomatoes
• 1 16 oz can tomato sauce
• 2 packages taco seasoning (or add your own seasonings to taste: salt, cumin, chili powder, paprika)
• corn tortilla chips
• sliced or cubed avocado, sour cream, and cheddar cheese for toppings

Directions:

On medium high heat, sauté the onions and garlic in the olive oil in a large soup pan till soft, about 2-3 minutes. Add the chilies and cook for 1-2 more minutes. Add the ground beef and brown until cooked through. Once meat is finished cooking, add the corn, beans, tomatoes, and tomato sauce, mixing well. Then stir in the taco seasoning, and let the soup simmer for 15-20 minutes on low heat. Serve over tortilla chips with desired toppings. Enjoy!

Sweet Caroline

Last year I had this sweet potato casserole made by Denise Jonas, the mother of the Jonas Brothers, who owns a restaurant with her husband in North Carolina. She appeared on a news segment showing the news anchors how to make this delicious casserole. I’ll be honest, this recipe was really sweet. Even when I substituted the pineapple juice with orange juice, it was still pretty sweet. But it’s good! Definitely a good side dish or dessert to have on Thanksgiving or Christmas. Add some vanilla ice cream on top to give it another sweet kick if you want. Though honestly, it’s sweet enough by itself. Hope you enjoy! ^_^

Filling Ingredients

6-7 light sweet potatoes, peeled

3/4 cups sugar

1 stick butter

3-4 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

almond milk, as needed

Topping Ingredients

2 tablespoons flour

1 cup light brown sugar

1/3 cup melted butter

1/2 cup orange juice or pineapple juice

1 cup chopped pecans

Directions

Filling

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Place sweet potatoes in a large saucepan with water to cover. Cook over medium high heat until tender.

Drain and mash potatoes while still hot.

In a large bowl, mix together the sweet potatoes, sugar and butter.

Add eggs and vanilla extract, and milk if needed.

Mix until smooth. Transfer to a 9×13 inch baking dish.

Topping

In a medium bowl, mix the flour and light brown sugar.

Add the melted butter.

Add juice until the consistency is medium thick.

Stir in the pecans.

Sprinkle the mixture over the sweet potato mixture.

Bake in the preheated oven for 30-40 minutes and serve hot.

Random note:

I remember listening to the Jonas Brothers in high school. I had a HUGE crush on Joe, the middle brother. I still think Joe is the handsomest brother even now…If I ever visit North Carolina, going to their family restaurant in Belmont is on my list because you needed to know that lol. Merry Christmas!

Bananarama Chocolate Chip Waffles

Cobra Kai actress Mary Mouser, who plays Samantha Larusso on the show made these deliciously wonderful Bananarama Chocolate Chip Pancakes on her YouTube channel.

If you’ve seen Cobra Kai on Netflix, then you know about the famous Bananarama Chocolate Chip Pancakes Daniel Larusso whipped up for Sam on the show in one episode. I took notes while watching Mary make the pancakes herself but decided to spin my own twist to it by turning it into waffles instead. Because waffles are superior to pancakes can I get an amen? Lol. All lame joking aside, here’s the written instructions for this recipe.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup all-purpose baking flour

2 tablespoons regular granulated white sugar

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1 cup + 2 tablespoons low fat milk (I used 2 percent)

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 tablespoons unsalted melted butter (I skipped the butter the second time because it was too buttery for my taste when I first tried this, so you can reduce the butter or skip it altogether)

1 small over ripe banana (the riper the banana, the tastier it is)

Directions

Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Add the banana and mash it with a fork until almost smooth. Whisk in eggs then add milk and vanilla extract and stir everything altogether. After this step, pour in chocolate chips if you want and combine that with the mixture. Once that’s done, pour the mixture in a waffle maker or in a pan if you’re making pancakes and if you need more specific visual instructions, go watch the video lol. Mary Mouser is adorable and has a fun personality.

Once it was finished, I poured semi-sweet chocolate chips on top and added slices of banana along with some sweet maple syrup.

If you make these yourself I hope you enjoy them as much as I did and if you haven’t watched Cobra Kai, I hope you’ll give that show a try while eating these yummy pancakes or waffles at the same time. The show is badass just like this recipe. Enjoy! ^_^

Taylor Swift Chai Sugar Cookies

Fall has now arrived! The trees are losing its leaves and changing colors, the days are getting shorter and chillier, school's back in session with football season, and it's the perfect weather for wearing cardigans, boots, and sweaters while sipping on Starbucks (or Baxter's) coffee. What's also in season is baking delicious chai sugar cookies by Taylor Swift! She tweaked the original recipe by adding chai spices and nutmeg. Now all it needs is some Taylor Swift albums playing in the kitchen while you're baking and to accompany the pleasant aroma of the signature sugar and spices wafting inside the home. 

A perfect Autumn cookie with chai spices and extra nutmeg inspired by Taylor Swift. Happy Fall!

For the Cookies:

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil (I like canola or sunflower oil)
• 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
• Pinch of fresh cracked black pepper
• 1 large egg
• 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract or the seeds of 1 vanilla bean pod
• 2 cups (250 grams) all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• Cinnamon sugar for rolling

For the Glaze:

• 1 1/2 cups (180 grams) powdered sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, plus more for sprinkling the top of the cookies
• 3 tablespoons whole milk or eggnog

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Using a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter in a large bowl on medium speed for about 1 minute.  Add the vegetable oil.  It may not fully incorporate with the butter, but that’s ok.  Add the granulated sugar, powdered sugar, and all of the spices. Beat to combine.
3. Add the egg and vanilla, beating on medium speed until completely incorporated.
4. Stir in the flour, baking soda and salt all at once using a wooden spoon or the mixer set on low.
5. The dough will be soft. Refrigerate the dough for 1 hour or freeze for 15 minutes just so it’s easier to handle.
6. For large cookies, dollop 2 Tablespoons of cookie dough onto the cookie sheet about 2 inches apart.  For smaller cookies use 1 Tablespoon for each cookie.  Press the dough evenly with your fingers or palm to 1/4-inch thickness.  Roll each cookie dough in a small bowl of cinnamon sugar.
7. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes for larger cookies or 8 to 10 minutes for smaller cookies.  Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for at least 10 minutes before transferring to racks to cool completely.
8. In a medium bowl, whisk together the glaze ingredients to thick but spreadable. Spread each cooled cookie with graze just over the center, leaving the edges of the cookie free of glaze. Sprinkle with a bit of fresh nutmeg if you have it. Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.

No Bake Key Lime Pie

I made this yummy and tasty dessert key lime pie which is actually perfect for the summertime, and I’m proud of how this turned out! It was super easy to make and will definitely be one of my dessert staples to use.


Instructions

1 cup condensed milk
1/2 cup lime juice
8 oz container cool whip
1 graham cracker pie crust

Mix condensed milk and lime juice. Fold in cool whip. Pour into graham cracker pie crust and refrigerate overnight. Enjoy! ^_^

Beef and Potato Bake

I tried this simple and delicious beef and potato bake recipe made by Jessa Duggar Seewald. But instead of using sweet potatoes like she used, I had regular potatoes and cooked the meat in a skillet for a little bit before putting it in with the potatoes, seasonings, and onions to bake in the oven. Once it was done, I added some ketchup to the beef because it was a bit dry but it tasted really good! It was a very hearty meal and had good flavor. I think it’s best to eat it during the wintertime or fall season when the weather gets really chilly in my opinion. =) Hope you enjoy this as much as I did!