Breakfast Splits

We have been trying to find some new ideas for breakfast while the kids are off of school. They love idea of these breakfast splits because they get to make them themselves and you can set up a "buffet" type breakfast with the ingredients.

Split a banana... place vertical in bowl and spoon yogurt (can freeze the yogurt prior too! flavor of your choice, I used strawberry banana) in between the banana slices. Top with fresh cut fruit (strawberries, blueberries, pineapple, etc)  and then add some granola. The flavor combinations are totally up to you and the possibilities are endless!  *my kids added mini chocolate chips as well*

Sausage Egg and Cheese Breakfast Sliders with Syrup Glaze

 Are you a fan of the Mcgriddle from McDonalds? Well, if you are these breakfast sandwhiches are perfect for you to make at home. They are super easy and taste just like a mcgriddle, which won over quite well with my kids when I made these. The entire house scarfed these up within minutes. You bake the sausage and eggs in a glass pan to make them rectangular shaped and also makes the recipe that much easier to make. I got the recipie here , but I will add the recipe below for convenience!

Sausage Egg and Cheese Breakfast Slider Sandwiches with Syrup Glaze

Ingredients

• 2 - 12 roll packages of Hawaiian Sweet Rolls

• 2 - 16 oz Jimmy Dean Sausage, Original flavor

• 12-14 large eggs

• 1- 11 count package Great Value colby jack cheese slices

• ¼ cup butter

• ¼ cup syrup ( I used slightly less syrup & still tasted great)

Instructions

1. Spread sausage evenly in the bottom of a 13x9 baking dish and pat down. Scramble eggs in a bowl, then pour into a second 13x9 well greased baking dish and bake at 350F for 18-22 minutes or until the eggs are set and the sausage is 170F.

2. Slice through the Hawaiian rolls horizontally and place the bottoms of the rolls in a 13x9 baking dish.

3. Layer the sausage, eggs and cheese slices on top and then place the tops of the rolls on top.

4. Use a knife to follow the lines of the rolls and slice through the layers to form individual sandwiches.

5. Melt the butter in a microwave safe dish. Stir in the syrup until it is completely combined and appears creamy.

6. Brush the syrup mixture over the top of the sandwiches allowing it to drip between the cracks.

7. Bake at 350F for 10-15 minutes or until heated through and the cheese is melted.

8. Serve hot, and enjoy!

Summer Highlights Spray

I love using natural products and adding my essential oils to my everyday routines. Below is a recipe for a Summer Highlights Spray. Spray it on your hair before going out into the sun and you will start to get some great highlights after awhile. The lemon is used for highlighting and the geranium is used for conditioning. I bought my glass 4 oz bottles from amazon here https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01695MZ9S/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

You can buy the essential oils from your preferred company or use the same as I use and order directly from me here http://mydoterra.com/rebeccajohnson3

You Will Need

16 Drops Lemon Essential Oil

16 Drops Geranium Essential Oil

4 oz Spray Bottle

Distilled Water

To Make add essential oils to spray bottle and fill the rest with water. Spray on hair before going out in the sun.

Key Lime Pie Dip

I made this recipe for the Fourth Of July and it was a huge hit in my household. It's like, fluffy, and delicious without being too sweet. Not to mention it is extremely fast and easy and has very few ingredients. What else is great about this recipe is that once you try it, you will be going nuts thinking about all the different pudding and pie combinations you can try just like this. I found the recipe here http://www.shakentogetherlife.com/2016/03/key-lime-pie-dip.html

I will also include the recipe below for convenience

Ingredients

• One EDWARDS® Key Lime Pie

• One small box of instant lemon pudding mix

• One cup of cold milk

• 8 oz.of thawed whipped topping

• Your choice of dippers: graham crackers, shortbread cookies or pretzels

• Lime (optional for zest and garnish)

Instructions

1. Remove pie from freezer and allow to thaw about 10 minutes.

2. While the pie is thawing, mix up the base for the dip.

3. Whisk together milk and pudding mix.

4. Allow pudding mixture to set for a minute or so.

5. Fold in thawed whipped topping - mix just until pudding mixture and whipped topping are combined.

6. Cut two slices (1/4) of the pie into bite sized pieces.

7. Gently fold the pieces of pie into the dip.

8. Spoon dip into serving bowl.

9. If using the lime, grate fresh lime zest over the top of the tip and garnish with a lime wedge.

10. Serve with graham crackers, shortbread cookies or pretzels

Hot Italian Giardiniera

We love Chicago Style Italian Beef Sandwiches in our household. We take beef roasts and throw them in the crock pot to make our own. One thing I did not attempt before was making my own giardiniera. Wow, that's all I can say after making this recipe. I will NEVER go back to store bought. The best thing about making your own is that you can play around with what you want to add and make it as hot or not as you want to. The recipe I used was from http://allrecipes.com/recipe/81581/hot-italian-giardiniera/?lnkid=pin3327&crlt.pid=camp.wkcjzkrrni05

I do not post anything on the blog that I have not personally tried or like myself. Here is the recipe below with pictures from my first time making my hot Italian giardiniera.

Ingredients

• 2 green bell peppers, diced
• 2 red bell peppers, diced
• 8 fresh jalapeno peppers, sliced
• 1 celery stalk, diced
• 1 medium carrot, diced
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh cauliflower florets
• 1/2 cup salt

• water to cover
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 (5 ounce) jar pimento-stuffed green olives, chopped
• 1 cup white vinegar
• 1 cup olive oil

Directions

1. Place into a bowl the green and red peppers, jalapenos, celery, carrots, onion, and cauliflower. Stir in salt, and fill with enough cold water to cover. Place plastic wrap or aluminum foil over the bowl, and refrigerate overnight.
2. The next day, drain salty water, and rinse vegetables. In a bowl, mix together garlic, oregano, red pepper flakes, black pepper, and olives. Pour in vinegar and olive oil, and mix well. Combine with vegetable mixture, cover, and refrigerate for 2 days before using.

Cooked Beef Brisket

I tried another pinterest recipe tonight (my finished product above) and WOW oh WOW! This recipe is not only super easy, but DELICIOUS as well! It is rubbed with spices and marinated over night and then slow cooked in the oven at 275 degrees for 5 hours the next day.The original post and recipe is found here http://www.thefoodieaffair.com/2015/06/22/oven-cooked-barbecue-brisket/  I am also posting the recipe below (I used Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce *original*)

Delicious Oven Cooked Barbecue Brisket

Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

6 hours

Total time

6 hours 10 mins

Author: Sandra @ The Foodie Affair

Recipe type: Main Dish - Beef

Serves: 8

Ingredients

• 5-6 pounds brisket
• 1 teaspoon celery salt
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion salt
• 2 ounces liquid smoke
• 1 ounce Worcester Sauce
• 1 cup prepared Barbecue sauce (your choice)

Instructions:

In a small bowl whisk together celery salt, garlic powder and onion salt. Season both sides of the brisket. Place meat in a foil lined baking pan that is enough to fully enclose the meat. Pour Liquid Smoke and Worcester Sauce over the meat and as it drips to the side lift meat up so the liquid also seasons under the meat

Crimp the foil tightly over the meat. Return to the refrigerator and marinate overnight

Bring the meat to room temperature (30 minutes) and bake at 275 degrees for 5 hours. Remove foil and pour about 1 cup of barbecue sauce over the meat. Bake for an additional 60 minutes with the foil open.

Cool and slice into thin pieces.

Chicken Pizza Bake

I found this awesome recipe on pinterest here ~ https://www.pinterest.com/pin/253046072790010369/

As you know, I love to try different recipes from pinterest. I can't tell you how many amazing recipes I have found on there, but sometimes when you try those mouth watering recipes they turn out... well.... not so mouth watering haha This recipe was a HIT in my house. The recipe was super easy and fast. I did substitute a bag of shredded cheese instead (pizza blend)  and seasoned the breasts with Italian seasonings, salt, pepper, and garlic powder, but for the rest I followed the recipe accordingly. I feel like this recipe is so versatile too, you could make it your own and still turn out perfectly. The recipe below is from pinterest

Ps ~ Did I mention this is low carb? BONUS!!

Low-Carb Pepperoni Pizza Chicken Bake

(Makes 6-8 servings, depending on what else you serve with it.  Recipe developed by Kalyn and Jake, with a few tries that weren't quite right but got eaten anyway!)

Ingredients:
1 jar (14 oz) pizza sauce, reduced to 1 cup
(Use the lowest-carb sauce you can find, or make your own pizza sauce and omit the sugar.)
4 large boneless-skinless chicken breasts (6-8 oz. each)
1 T olive oil
1 tsp. Greek oregano (sometimes just called oregano)
1 tsp. garlic powder
6 oz. piece of part-skim Mozzarella, sliced about 1/4 inch thick
2 oz. sliced pepperoni (regular or turkey pepperoni)
  
Instructions:

Preheat oven to 400F/200C.  Put the pizza sauce in a small saucepan and simmer over low heat until it's reduced to one cup, about 20 minutes.  Don't skip this step or the dish will be watery.

While the sauce reduces, trim the chicken breasts and cut each one crosswise to make two same-size pieces.  Put chicken pieces one at a time inside a heavy plastic bag and use a meat mallet (or something heavy) to pound the chicken until it's as thin as you can get it without it shredding apart.  (Don't worry if some pieces break apart a little.)  Mix the Greek oregano and garlic powder in a little bowl and then sprinkle both sides of each piece of chicken with the mixture.

Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in the largest non-stick frying pan you have (you may have to do this in 2 batches if your pan isn't big enough.) Add the chicken pieces and cook 1-2 minutes on each side, just long enough to brown the chicken but not long enough to cook it through.

Choose the smallest glass casserole dish you have that will fit all the browned chicken pieces, and lay the chicken in the dish in a single layer.  Cut the Mozzarella into slices and cut the slices as needed to make enough pieces to mostly cover the top of each piece of chicken.

By now the sauce should be nicely reduced, so spread sauce over the top of each chicken breast.  (Use it all.)  Top each piece with sliced Mozzarella and pepperoni slices, covering the top of each piece of chicken as much as you can.

Bake uncovered about 25-30 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and starting to brown and the pepperoni is slightly crisped.  (Some pieces of pepperoni will slice off the chicken, try not to obsess about that like I did.)  Serve hot.

Jet Cleaner

This is the first year we have owned a Jet Tub and I never really thought that the jets/pipes would need to be cleaned. I mean, I have scrubbed the heck out of the inside of the tub, but the jets? Well, my husband brought it up and I went on the hunt for a good cleaner. Worth a try right? well holy cow, this cleaner amazed me! I guess dead skin, gunk, fungus all get in those pipes and jets and just hang out. Here is the product I used and I can't say enough good things about it ALONG with the link to amazon.  http://amzn.com/B008VGMWCO

*no I did not receive this product for free or asked to review it*

Lemon MINT water

I have this newest obsession... Ice water with fresh lemon and mint! I was at Walmart (which is a pretty rare occurrence for me) and I found in the produce section, a live mint plant *organic*. I couldn't resist. I started cleaning a few leaves a day and tossing them in a glass with lemon, ice, and water (sparkling or regular) and wow! it is soooo delicious. The mint and lemon work very well together and are quite refreshing. Mint also carries great health benefits such as soothing the digestive tract, blood cleanser, reduces the growth of bacteria and fungus, and may help prevent different types of cancer. I say... DRINK UP!

BUTTER STEAK

I am a HUGE pinterest fan and I am ALWAYS trying new recipes. I have to say there are some that I am glad I tried and some that I am sad to say just didn't work for me.

When I come across a really good recipe I stick it in my regular cooking pile. If you like yummy steak, this is the recipe for you. I found this recipe off of "Lauren's Latest" a blog with some great food recipes. Here is a picture of how MY STEAKS looked with Lauren's recipe & yes, it's true... you can buy cheap cuts of steak and they turn out wonderfully.

It all starts off with some butter in a pan. Sweet sweet butter. Turn your pan up so its screaming hot. For me, thats medium high. If you turn our burner on high, I swear it’ll burn the place down. Also, preheat the oven to 350.

Next comes our lovely Sirloin. We had some awesome steaks in this one! Salt and pepper the one side of the meat, place it seasoning side down into the pan and then add the s&p to the other side.

It’ll look something like this. Sizzle away, boys! You want the one side to get dark and yummy looking. Kind of vague with the description…..I can do better: cook your meat 3-4 minutes on the first side without touching it or moving it around. Movement=bad.

Now, when you are ready, flip your steaks over, top them with butter and throw them into your hot oven for 5 minutes, keeping them in the same skillet! Did I mention you need to use an oven proof pan? Oops...

So, after 5 minutes, take them out of the oven, transfer them to a plate and cover them with foil. Let these babies rest! They’ve been through a lot, after all

After 5 minutes, take the foil off and slice thinly and for everything that pure and holy, cut against the grain!!

HOMEMADE BATHROOM SPRAY

You can find the spray bottle I bought and use on amazon here : http://amzn.com/B00I88FV64

FRUIT WATER

Fruit Flavored Water

I bought these super cute pitchers at Target and have been filling them at dinner-time to offer a much healthier drink option for my family. I fill the pitcher 1/4 full with ice and then add 1 cut up lemon and a few sliced up strawberries. Fill the rest of the way with water. You can leave this sit while you cook dinner to give the water time to infuse and take on some of the flavor. The great thing about infused water is that you get a nice sweet fruit flavor without all the added sugar and calories of juice or soda. Not to mention that adding different fruits to your water add antioxidants and vitamins for your body.