Hot Dog Wrap-Ups

This is a high caliber recipe perfect for feeding toddlers when you have just had a baby. Don't expect the toddler to actually eat much of it though.

Hot Dog Wrap-Ups

2 T soft butter

3 slices bread

3 slices American cheese

3 hot dogs

1) Spread softened butter on one side of the bread with a table knife. Put buttered side down on a cookie sheet.

2) Put a slice of cheese on each bread slice.

3) Put a hot dog diagonally across each slice of cheese.

4) Fold the opposite corners of bread over the hot dog. Push a toothpick through each corner to keep bread turned upwards.

5) Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until the bottom of the bread is golden brown.

Can be topped with your favorite hot dog "toppers".

Meh, it was okay. It was a hot dog on a piece of toasted bread with cheese. 

Green Jello Salad

I was looking for an easy side dish for dinner the other night and this was perfect.

Green Jello Salad

Ingredients:
Lime Jello
Cottage Cheese

Directions:
Set jello then mix in 1/2 tub of cottage cheese in blender (or beat well by hand or beaters).  Pour in bowl or set again.

We liked it.  I was lazy and just beat it by hand, so it was chunky and didn't "set" the second time, but it was still good.  Simply, quick, my type of food.

Salt Dough

I wanted to be a fun mom and do a project with Little Chubb. It conveniently merged a Pinterest idea, a Cupboard recipe, and being 'fun' all in one.

2 c. flour
1 c. salt
1 c. water

Mix flour and salt. Slowly add water while mixing until uniformly moistened. Remove from bowl and knead for 6 to 10 minutes. Bake in low oven, 300 degrees.

Little Chubb had fun helping me roll out the dough. He would roll a long snake, then we would make a letter, and he would tell me what it was. I was mildly pleased with how things turned out. The dough rose while baking so it made my craft project turn out a little funky. I'm not sure if I am going to keep it for next year or just toss it.

Those strings didn't stay that long. I trimmed them before Easter...

Here is my conclusion.

First, I didn't realize that people actually kneaded salt dough. But, I did, and I couldn't tell any difference.  This pretty much doubled the time of the entire activity.

Second, 300 degrees was not low enough of an oven. My cut outs browned pretty quickly, so I turned it down lower (I think 200 degrees) and cooked them longer.



Third, and most important, salt dough is horrible on dry skin particularly if it is on the palm of your hand. The skin on my hands hurt from kneading the dough. So, take my advice and don't do this if you also suffer from eczema on the palm of your hands.

Skillet Tomato Beef Pasta

"Hey, I can do that!"

That is what the Del Monte ad said and I believed and made this Skillet Tomato Beef Pasta.

This is the lazy way to write down the recipe.  Click to enlarge.

Trying to use up our year supply of pickled beets...

We liked this and it was ridiculously easy.  The Hungry Runner Boy thought it was too dry because there was no sauce except for the natural juices.  I didn't mind it.  We both liked the flavors from the Italian spiced tomatoes.  If you are not a cook, but would like to make more meals at home, read this recipe and then say, "Hey, I can do that!", then do it!

Hearty Sausage Sandwich

Mom has made this recipe or something similar a few times before. It's a good casual meal for a group. It's in the section of a Taste of Home about budget meals. I got the bread and sausage on good sales because they were expiring, but I doubt I could otherwise make it for 98 cents a serving. Maybe food prices have really increased that much in six years.

Picture by Taste of Home

Hearty Sausage Sandwich

Ingredients
1 pound Johnsonville® Mild Ground Italian Sausage
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, cubed
1/4 cup chopped fresh mushrooms (I used canned)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup water
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1 loaf (1 pound) unsliced Italian bread
1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Directions

In a large skillet, cook the sausage, onion and green pepper over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Drain. Add the cream cheese, mushrooms, Parmesan cheese, water and oregano. Cook and stir until cheese is melted.
Cut bread in half horizontally; hollow out top and bottom, leaving a 3/4-in. shell (save removed bread for another use).
Place bread bottom on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with half of the mozzarella cheese; top with sausage mixture and remaining cheese. Replace bread top. Bake at 375° for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted. Yield: 6 servings. From the April & May 2008 Taste of Home

It was fine. Nothing has sounded good to me lately, but for some reason this did, yet it didn't hit the spot. I was dubious about it really serving six. I cut it into six pieces. I ate one and was surprisingly filled. Brian ate two pieces. I used canned mushrooms, fat free cream cheese (I thought I had gotten neufchatel), and French bread instead of Italian.

Sun Valley Stuffed Potatoes

I have a little pamphlet from Albertsons titled "The Many Uses of Potatoes". Sometime later, I'll add the little information it gives on potatoes, but right now I want to share what we had for dinner last night.

Sun Valley Stuffed Potatoes

4 Idaho potatoes
1 egg
1/4 c. milk
2 tbsp. butter or margarine
1/4 c. finely chopped green pepper
2 tbsp. finely chopped onion
1 c. (4 oz) shredded cheddar cheese
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. dried leaf basil

Scrub potatoes, dry and prick with a fork. Bake in 425 degree oven 55 to 65 minutes, until soft. Immediately cut slice from top of each. Carefully scoop out potato without breaking skin. Place potato in a large mixing bowl. Beat in egg, milk, and butter; beat until smooth. Stir in remaining ingredients. Bake in 350 degree oven 25 to 30 minutes. Yield: 4 servings

Basically, this is a jazzed up twice baked potato. I was a little skeptical because of the onion and green pepper, but the basil covered the taste of onion and green pepper. They were pretty good, and turned out to be quite filling. However, it takes a good amount of time so you have to be on your game about getting the potatoes in the oven to bake the first time.

Big Chubb enjoyed them and said that just one plus our other food filled him up. Little Chubb was excited to scoop food out of the potato skin and eventually ate a decent amount of it, too.