Halli's Perfect Guacamole

You know how you're always trying to find the perfect balance in a guacamole? Haha, or is that just me? I swear when I go to make a guacamole, I can never get the proportions right. Well this search ended when my cousin magically made me the perfect guacamole one day. She had been working on it for months, trying to perfect it. And that she did. It's DIVINE and PERFECT. I can eat the entire bowl. Make it, but then be prepared to eat the entire thing:)

2 large avocados

almost 1/2 tsp garlic salt

almost 1/2 tsp onion salt

1/2 tsp regular salt (you can adjust this for your own saltiness)

1/4 tsp lemon pepper

2 tsp lemon or lime juice

2 Tbs sour cream

Mix it all up in a bowl with a fork, smashing the avocados. Then eat the BEST guacamole you've ever had!! Enjoy!

Philly Cheesesteak Taquitos

 I always need an easy, on-the-go dinner. With kids in sports it's a must!

This is the perfect dinner for spring-time baseball games and the kids LOVE them! They're basically mess free for the car too:) 

Ingredients:

Olive oil

12-16oz roast beef deli meat, chopped small

2t Worcestershire sauce 

1 green pepper, finely chopped (or whatever color pepper you have on hand)

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 8oz package cream cheese, softened

10-12oz provolone cheese (I usually buy the deli slices)

10 flour tortillas

Directions:

In a large skillet over medium-high heat add the oil, beef and onion. Cook until tender. Add the Worcestershire sauce and pepper if desired. Cook and stir for 3-4 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly.

Preheat oven to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper (or silpat liners) and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine the beef mixture and cream cheese until thoroughly combined.

Spoon 2-3 tbsp. of the beef mixture onto each tortilla. Tear up provolone cheese and put a layer on top of the beef mixture. Roll the tortilla around the filling as tight as you can. Place seam-side down on the baking sheet. Repeat with remaining tortillas and filling. Make sure the taquitos are not touching.

Spray the tops of the taquitos lightly with cooking spray or brush lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Bake 15-20 minutes or until the taquitos are crisp and golden brown. Enjoy!!

*Adapted from Love Bakes Good Cakes

Pesto Toast

This is one of my favorite lunches folks! It's just so hearty, fresh and filling, but doesn't make you feel gross after eating it. My kind of meal! And really, you can make it your own. Add whatever toppings sound good at the time. I've even done a pizza twist to it and added pizza sauce instead of pesto with peppers, onions and pepperoni as toppings. I have to give a big shout-out to my sister in law, Jen, for steering me toward this gem. I don't know what I would do without it in my life:)

1 slice of bread (I use Dave's Killer Bread)

2t pesto (or as much as you want!)

Handful of Spinach

Fresh Garden Tomato (OK store bought is good too)

Diced grilled chicken

Sprinkle of Mozzarella Cheese

Dash of Italian Seasoning

Place your oven setting on high broil. Put bread on a cookie sheet. Spread on pesto and then layer your toppings in whatever order you want. I layer this way: spinach, tomato, chicken, mozzarella, Italian seasoning. It's best if the cheese is on top so that it gets nice and bubbly and brown. Broil in the oven for a few minutes. I usually just keep an eye on it until it looks perfectly bubbly. Remove and sit and enjoy your healthy, filling lunch!

Meatball Sub Bubble Up

This is a quick weeknight meal that won’t disappoint. It’s kid friendly and takes no time at all to throw in a pan and bake. 

1 can Grands Biscuits

1 bag frozen meatballs (as many as you prefer)

2 cups spaghetti sauce, pizza sauce or marinara, whichever you prefer

1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Cut the uncooked biscuits into 8ths. Place in an even layer in a greased 9x13 pan. Cover with sauce. Place meatballs on top of the biscuits in an even layer. You can fill the dish, or spread them out sparingly, it depends on how much you like meatballs. Sprinkle with cheeses. Bake at 375 for about 30-40 minutes, until biscuits are cooked through. Enjoy!

*From Life With the Crust Off

Bubble Pizza

Sometimes I need a FAST and easy dinner that I know the kids will love.

Who am I kidding I need that ALL the time!! I’m noticing if it takes longer than 15 minutes to prepare a meal, I’m going to be outnumbered and stressed and I hate feeling that way. Especially at the end of the day. I’ve been very keen on these FAST dinners lately and they are saving me!!

 

This is so delicious and fast and sure to be a favorite. 8x8 feeds my family of 5, but 3 of them are small children that eat hardly anything. If you’re cooking for a lot of kids or adults, I would double it.

 

1 (12oz) can Grands biscuits

1/2 to 1 jar pizza sauce, depending on how saucy you like it

Mozzarella cheese, about 1 1/2 cups

Any of your favorite pizza toppings. I use Pepperoni, cut into 4ths so it’s easier to eat and sautéed onions, garlic and peppers.

 

Pop open the can of biscuits and cut them all into 4ths. Place them in a greased 8x8 pan. Top with the sauce, cheese and toppings. Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes. You want to make sure that the middle dough is cooked through so it takes longer than you would think to bake. Then sit back and enjoy the fastest dinner ever made!

Italian Sausage Pasta

I saw a form of this on Pinterest, and knew I needed to make it. The original was kind of a spicy Mexican dish, but I thought it would be better Italian style. Our family LOVED this dish!! The best part to me was that it took about 25 minutes to make and it’s ALL IN ONE PAN! I needed a dinner like this to put in my rotation because I’m so burnt out on dinner. There’s basically no prep and you put everything in one pan, put the lid on, set the timer and dinner’s done in about 15 minutes. Life saver. An I can’t believe how delicious it is! LOVE, love love it.

1 lb smoked sausage (beef or turkey), cut into bite sized pieces

8 ounces penne pasta

1 small onion, diced small

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups chicken broth

1 can Italian diced tomatoes

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

In a large skillet, add about 1T olive oil and heat on medium high. Add sausage, onions and garlic and cook until lightly browned. Add chicken broth, tomatoes, milk and pasta with a little salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce to medium low. Simmer until pasta is tender, about 15 minutes.

Remove from heat and stir in cheese. Then enjoy this one-pot wonder! This fed my family of 2 adults and 3 small children perfectly with no leftovers. Enjoy!

*Adapted from kevinandamanda.com

Tortellini Soup

This is my NEW FAVORITE FOOD! It is beyond delicious AND beyond easy. You can either put it in a crockpot or can cook it on stovetop. I love it’s versatility. I love how it’s delicious the next day for lunch and dinner:) I just love it, OK! You will agree with me in saying it’s your favorite meal as soon as you make it. 

1 lb Jimmy Dean Sausage

16oz package frozen tortellini

1 small package fresh baby spinach

2 cans Italian style diced tomatoes

4 cups or 1 box chicken broth

1 (8oz) package cream cheese

1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Brown sausage and then put all ingredients into the crockpot or soup pot, chunking up the cream cheese. If using the crockpot, cook on low for 3-4 hours. If doing stovetop, cook on med-low for about an hour or so, until tortellini is tender. ENJOY!!!

* From Little Fellows

Butter Shrimp

This is my new favorite dish. I’ve been on a crazy seafood kick lately and this just hits the spot! YUMM!! It’s also so easy and fast to make, which this momma ALWAYS loves. It goes perfect atop warm, parmesan noodles also…just FYI.

Do you want to splurge and make a decadent meal that super quick, but delicious? Then make this. Oh, and it was DIVINE as leftovers the next day for lunch!!

1 pound medium raw shrimp (fresh or frozen, but thawed – I like to buy the frozen at Costco)

1 lemon

1 stick butter

1 packet Italian Seasoning Mix

1/2 pound spaghetti, cooked

parmesan cheese

Line a jellyroll pan with foil. Slice a whole lemon VERY thinly. Place a layer of lemon slices over an entire jellyroll pan. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter.

In the meantime, add a layer of shrimp to the top of the lemons, making sure they aren’t overlapping.  After the butter is melted, add the seasoning mix and stir. Pour over shrimp.

Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Either eat alone or with spaghetti. After I cooked my spaghetti, I added a dash of olive oil and then about 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese. Don’t forget to pour a little butter sauce on top of the noodles…TO DIE FOR!!

Pizza Casserole

Well, this immediately became our new family favorite. It is DELICIOUS!! And it’s so easy to just throw together at the last minute, which I love. It also can feed an entire army, which was OK because we just ate it for leftovers day after day after day…DELICIOUS. 

1 can Pillsbury uncut crescent roll dough (Top crust)
1 can Pillsbury pizza dough (bottom crust)
Pizza sauce
Basil pesto in olive oil (homemade or store bought)
Pepperoni
Jimmy Dean Sausage
diced onions
sliced mushrooms
diced green peppers
Shredded pizza cheese - blended Italian cheeses
Italian seasoning
Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray clear 9 x 13 casserole dish with cooking spray. Set aside.

In a small skillet, saute mushrooms, onions and green peppers until they begin to soften.
While the veggies saute, line the casserole with the pizza crust. Brush on a layer of basil pesto. followed by a layer of pizza sauce. Sprinkle on some Parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning.
Add a layer of pepperoni, then sausage crumbles, sauteed veggies, and shredded Italian cheeses. Repeat the layers.

Add the top crust of uncut crescent dough. Stretch it out carefully to cover the casserole. Add a little sauce to the top and another light layer of pepperoni, mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.

Bake for 20-30 minutes, I used a glass casserole dish so I could visually check the bottom crust for doneness. If the top starts to over brown, place a piece of aluminum foil over the top until it finishes cooking.  Let stand for a few minutes and then slice and serve.

*From The Shady Porch