Monkey Bread

Does it seem like everyone is talking about Monkey bread these days? I had never even heard of it until a few years ago but apparently it's been around forever! I have several friends who have this every Christmas, or on birthdays, etc etc etc. I had seen it at many a potluck, Christmas treat swap, and in recipe books. Yet I'd never made it or even tried it. It looked delicious but I was convinced that it was going to be hard to make. BUT then I found out that you can make it with canned biscuit dough...and suddenly I was on board!

There are about a million recipes around for it, so I figured I'd give the Pillsbury recipe a try since they were supplying the main ingredient. I changed it around a bit as I usually do. You can see the original recipe at pillsbury.com.

So, I feel like I'm the last person to hear about this yumminess. But just in case there is another lost soul out there trying to navigate this world without Monkey bread, I thought I'd stick it on the blog. Better late than never! I even got fancy and took pictures of each of the steps! So fast, so delicious, so pretty, so dangerous...I give you Monkey Bread! You're welcome :)

Monkey Bread
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
3 cans refrigerated biscuits (cut into 1 in. pieces) Only use 2 cans if using the Grand or Jumbo size
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup butter (melted)

Cut biscuits into fourths and place in a gallon sized ziploc bag.

Add granulated sugar and cinnamon. Close bag and shake until biscuits are coated.

Arrange biscuit pieces and pecans in a bundt pan. In a small bowl mix melted butter and brown sugar together. Pour brown sugar mixture evenly over biscuit pieces.


Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes. (Mine took around 42 minutes before it wasn't doughy in the middle). Let cool 10 minutes. Invert onto plate and serve warm!

Poppy seed Chicken

I love trying new recipes. My friend Bonnie made this for us and my girls loved it! So I got the recipe from her and made it this week.

Not only is it super delicious, it was quick and easy to get on the table. I used a rotisserie chicken from the store which made it even faster! I think it would be great with shredded chicken from the crock pot too. And of course crushed up ritz crackers makes anything great!

Poppy Seed Chicken
3 cups cooked chicken (diced or shredded)
1 can cream of chicken
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup milk
1/3 cup butter
1 sleeve Ritz Crackers (crushed)
1 1/2 T. poppy seeds
2-3 cups cooked rice

Place cooked chicken in the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Combine cream of chicken, sour cream and milk. Pour over chicken. In a small bowl combine butter, crushed crackers, and poppy seeds. Sprinkle cracker mixture over chicken mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until bubbly. Serve over rice.

Blueberry Breakfast Cake

So, here's another yummy Pinterest find! The original recipe is from Alexandracooks.com. I chose it based totally off of the pictures! Check out her website to see some awesomely delicious looking pictures of this recipe and rest assured it was as good as it looked!

It seems like lately I've been making everything with buttermilk! Every time I eat something delicious and wonder what is making it so good...the answer is always buttermilk! It was kind of funny because I was already thinking this when I read her blog and realized she was feeling the same way.

This recipe was quick to throw together. Plus I used frozen blueberries that I had on hand...so it really wasn't very expensive either. I was making it for a large crowd so I doubled it to make a 9x13 pan size and it turned out great! I will definitely be making this the next time I have a brunch or something to go to. It was great the next day too...so you could definitely bake it the night before and have it ready to go for breakfast!

Blueberry Breakfast Cake
½ butter, room temperature
2 tsp. lemon zest or more — zest from 1 large lemon
7/8 cup + 1 T. sugar
1 egg, room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. kosher salt
2 cups fresh blueberries
½ cup buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Cream butter, lemon zest and 7/8 cup of the sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined.

Meanwhile, toss the blueberries with ¼ cup of flour, then whisk together the remaining flour, baking powder and salt. Add the flour mixture to the batter a little at a time, alternating with the buttermilk. Fold in the blueberries.

Grease a 9-inch square baking pan with butter or coat with non-stick spray. Spread batter into pan. Sprinkle batter with remaining tablespoon of sugar. Bake for 35 minutes. Check with toothpick. (Note: Baking for as long as 10 minutes more might be necessary.) Let cool at least 15 minutes before serving.

NOTE: Since I doubled the recipe and used frozen blueberries it took my cake about 55 min. before it was done. Just keep checking your cake and you will know when it looks ready to come out because it will look like this...

Southwestern Crock-Pot Chicken Wraps

So this is one of my favorite recipes that I have from my sister-in-law Beth! I make it all the time...but it had been awhile since I'd made it last. I checked her blog to double check I remembered it right and found that she'd updated it! So I made it the updated way and it was super yummy as always!

I love crock pot meals any day...but they are especially awesome on a Sunday! We tend to always have extra people floating around on the weekends and crock pot meals are always great for feeding a crowd. This recipe is no exception! It makes a nice big pot full of food to feed a large group. If you want to make a smaller portion it is pretty easy to halve...or Beth recommends freezing the extra chicken.

She also makes it often to take to people when they need a meal brought in. (Then you could use half for your family and half for another family) I am always in need of new ideas of meals to take to people so I thought it was a great idea! Those of you who live close to me...maybe this will end up on your doorstep someday...try to act surprised :) Anyway, she has some great suggestions on her blog of how to transport it neatly and you can see those by clicking on this link: Beth's Southwestern Crock-pot Wraps.

I'm going to re-copy the recipe here too though. I hope you don't mind Beth! Hope you all enjoy it as much as my family does!

Southwestern Crock-pot Chicken Wraps
Crock Pot Chicken:
2 lb. frozen chicken breasts or tenderloins (a whole bag)
2 cans Rotel (Do not drain) (any brand diced tomatoes with green chile will do)
1 chopped onion (I usually only use about 1/2)
1 package dry chicken gravy mix
Spices (Beth doesn't measure them and either do I. Just give a few shakes of your favorites: garlic powder, marjoram, parsley, etc. or an Italian seasoning blend will work great)

Other Wrap Ingredients:
6 cups cooked rice
2 cans corn (I used 4 cups frozen corn and it worked too!)
shredded cheese
1 package flour tortillas

Combine all crock pot chicken ingredients in a crock-pot. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 3-4 hours. Shred chicken and leave in crock-pot until ready to serve.

When ready to serve, cook rice and corn. Heat tortillas. Layer rice, corn, chicken and cheese on a flour tortilla and wrap into a burrito. Enjoy!

Hot Roast Beef Sandwiches with Dip

Here is another quick fix meal that my whole family loves. Growing up we used to have hot turkey pastrami sandwiches dipped in Au jus all the time! I buy turkey pastrami whenever I go to Sam's club but it's a bit pricy at the ol' Smith's Grocery here (the only place in town). I usually use roast beef now since it's a bit cheaper. Both work great, so give it a try either way!

These are great paired with sweet potato fries! You can buy them or make your own. Click here for my sweet potato fry recipe.

I know that a sandwich might not count as a recipe, but it is a great quick meal idea. Give it a try the next time you are pressed for time!

Hot Roast Beef Sandwiches
6 sub rolls
1/2 lb. thinly sliced roast beef
2 cups fresh mushrooms (sliced)
1 T. butter
6 slices provolone
1 can beef broth (An easy version of au jus)
mayo or mustard optional

In a medium frying pan, cook mushrooms in butter until golden brown. Meanwhile, heat beef broth until boiling.

Slice each roll in half lengthwise. Fill with sliced roast beef, provolone and cooked mushrooms. Heat in microwave, just until cheese is melted. Serve sandwich with au jus for dipping.

Rainbow Oreo Cookies

Aren't these the cutest thing ever? My neighbor Tracy brought us dinner the other day and this is the dessert she brought with it. My girls just about flipped! They were so excited! They thought they were so fancy that they gobbled up all their dinner just to get a closer look at these fun cookies! So, I decided I had to pass this cute idea on.

I'm sure my girls would love if I made this for them again...but I'm also excited to have a quick and cute dessert that I could take to other people. Need something for a last minute party? A church potluck? Taking dinner to friends? A cute surprise for a child's lunchbox? BAM! Sprinkle up some Oreos!

Also, you could definitely fit these to any holiday by using different colored sprinkles! And...why stop at Oreos really! I mean what food wouldn't look awesome dipped in white chocolate and covered in rainbow sprinkles? Thanks again for the super fun dessert Tracy!!


Rainbow Oreo Cookies
24 Oreo cookies (Any variety! My neighbor used the strawberry cream kind and they were yummy)
1/2 cup melted white chocolate
1/2 cup rainbow sprinkles

Melt the white chocolate according to the package directions. (Most packages of white chocolate chips have microwaveable melting directions if you want to melt it quickly). Place sprinkles into another bowl. Dip an Oreo about 3/4 of an inch into the melted chocolate and then dip immediately into the sprinkles. Place dipped Oreo on a large piece of waxed paper or another non-stick surface to set. Repeat with the rest of the Oreos. Enjoy!