National Cherry Cheesecake Day

Today is National Cherry Cheesecake Day and I want to reshare with you a very popular cheesecake recipe.  Back at Christmas I made this Cherry Cheesecake Dip and it was a hit.  So if you don't want to make the big cake for cherry cheesecake day this dip will more than make up for that.

Cherry Cheesecake Dip

It doesn't have to be National Cherry Cheesecake day or Christmas to make this dip.  This recipe will make every day special.

Chili's Copycat Cajun Chicken Pasta

My husband likes this pasta dish at Chili's so I thought I would surprise him by making it at home.  Next time I try it there's a few tweaks I am going to make to the recipe.

The cast of characters.

Start with 2 Tablespoons butter in a skillet.

I cut the chicken into strips.  You could start with strips.

The recipe calls for 4 teaspoons of cajun seasoning.  I didn't measure it and I probably should have.  I poured it into a zip lock bag with the chicken and shook it well.

The chicken is coated well.

Cook about half a box of penne pasta per the directions on the box.

Cook the chicken in the melted butter.

The chicken is getting nice and brown.

In the pasta pot melt the remaining 2 Tablespoons of butter. Here is where I would change the recipe a little and add about a 1/4 cup of flour to the butter.

Add 3 cups half and half.

Add 1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper seasoning.  I didn't have any so I added Monterey steak seasoning.

The chicken is just about done.

Add salt and pepper and 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder.

Add the cooked pasta to the mixture.  The problem with not adding flour is the sauce never got thick.

Mix the pasta well.

Add the chicken to the top of the pasta.

Here is a finished one with tomatoes.

Add some fresh Parmesan cheese on top.

My husband's plate.

Mine with no tomatoes.

Chili's Copycat Cajun Chicken Pasta Recipe

8 oz penne past cooked and drained
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
4 teaspoons cajun seasoning
4 Tablespoons butter
3 cups half and half
1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper seasoning
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
2 tomatoes diced
1/2 cup parmesan cheese shredded

Peach Smoothie

I have enjoyed making smoothies in the afternoons for a quick pick me up.

Stuff you can easily keep on hand for those days when you need a treat.

Start with 1 cup orange juice.

Add 1 cup of peach Greek yogurt.

Add a squirt of honey.

Add a heaping cup of frozen peaches.

Now blend.

Enjoy.

Happy Birthday

Today is my daughter's birthday.  I don't know where the time has gone.  Here are a couple of my favorite pictures of her.

In honor of her birthday I am going to reshare my recipe for Birthday Cake Popcorn.  With this easy recipe you can celebrate your birthday every day.

Birthday Cake Popcorn

Cowboy Lasagna

I love finding these cowboy recipes.  They make me want to curl up with a good John Wayne movie during dinner.  Something tells me you wouldn't find this recipe at the chuck wagon.  It was a keeper though.

Not too many ingredients.

Chop up an onion. Cook the onions in a little olive oil.  Then brown the ground beef.  Drain well.

I drained the can of whole kernel corn.  The recipe didn't say one way or the other so you can do it either way you want.

I chopped up some of my fresh parsley from my garden.

Put the tater tots in the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish that has been sprayed.

Sprinkle have the cheese on top of the tots.

Add the corn to the beef.

Add the tomato soup

The recipe called for a generous sprinkling of Worcestershire sauce.  So add however much you like.  I used my Archies sauce.

Add 2 Tablespoons parsley

3 Tablespoons dried mustard. Salt and pepper

Mix well and let simmer for about 10 minutes.

Put the meat mixture on top of the tots.

Cover with the remaining cheese.

Top with remaining parsley.  Place in a preheated 350 oven for 30 minutes.

The baked lasagna.

Enjoy!

Cowboy Lasagna Recipe

1 lb of ground beef
1 medium onion chopped
steak sauce generous sprinkling
3 Tablespoon parsley divided
1 can tomato soup
1 can whole kernel corn
3 Tablespoons ground mustard
1 32 oz pkg tater tots
salt and pepper
4 cups mozzarella cheese

Roasted Brussel Sprouts, Sweet Potatoes and Bacon

I know some of you are rolling your eyes, brussel sprouts again.  They are not as bad as you might think if you make them the right way.  They are very good for you too.  It won't hurt to have them every now and then.

When I pulled the ingredients out for this dish it made me think of fall.  I know fall is a long way off but it felt like fall when I made this dish.

Peel a couple of sweet potatoes.  The recipe calls for 2 big sweet potatoes.  Mine were small so I used 4.  So depending on the size of your potatoes will depend on how many you use.

Cut them into cubes.

The recipe called for fresh brussel sprouts but I had a bag in the freezer so I just thawed them.  They were small so I didn't cut them in half like the recipe calls for.  Look at the bright colors.

Drizzle the potatoes and sprouts with olive oil.  Toss them well to coat.

The recipe called for 1 teaspoon of dried thyme.  I might leave this out next time.

Sprinkle with some sea salt.

black pepper

Toss well to mix the spices.

Spread out on a sprayed cookie sheet. Place in a preheated 400 oven bake for about 25-30 minutes.  After about 15 minutes I stirred them a little bit.

Fresh from the oven.  You can leave them in the oven a little longer if you want more browning on the edges.

Sprinkle the bacon on top.  Toss and serve.