As I’ve mentioned before, one of my family’s favorite meals on a cold winter’s night is beans-n-ham-n-cornbread.  I’ve shared my recipe for Crockpot Beans and Ham, but I’ve never shared my sweet cornbread recipe before.  Well, here it is.  It’s not as sweet and cakey as, say, Marie Callender’s, but we think it’s just right.

Ingredients:

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F.  Grease a 9″ square baking pan.

Combine all dry ingredients in a bowl.

Combine milk, eggs, oil and melted butter in a small container (I used a 2 cup measure); mix well.

Fold liquid mixture into flour mixture; stir just until blended.  Pour into the pre-greased baking pan.

Bake for 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.

Enjoy!!

Hope that everyone who celebrates it had a Merry Christmas!!

Here is my gift to you – our favorite super easy fudge recipe, inherited from Art’s mom.  We make it every Christmas.  I hope you enjoy it as much as our family does!!

Ingredients:

1 can (14 oz.) sweetened, condensed milk

1 package (12 oz.) semi-sweet chocolate chips

6 oz. butterscotch chips

1 tsp. vanilla

Directions:

Grease bottom and sides of a square pan (8x8x2).  My mother-in-law lines the pan with foil first so it’s easier to lift out the fudge.  But you will still need to grease the foil, so it’s up to you.

Heat milk, chocolate chips and butterscotch chips in a 2 qt. saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly, until chips are melted and mixture is smooth.  Remove from heat.

Stir in vanilla.  Spread in a pan and refrigerate until firm (at least 1 1/2 hours).  Cut into 1 inch squares and serve.

Enjoy!!

Two weeks ago I posted my recipe for Hazelnut Hot Chocolate with Hazelnut Whipped Cream using Torani Hazelnut flavored syrup.  This week I used the Gingerbread flavored syrup I received from Torani to make gingerbread pancakes.  They turned out so yummy I knew you would want the recipe.  So here it is:

Ingredients:

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 tsp. Torani gingerbread syrup (or to taste – Bud thought it needed more.  I thought it was perfect.)

Complete pancake mix (we used Hungry Jack) water

Directions:

Prepare pancake mix according to directions on box.  (You can make as many as you want  – there is enough filling to make about 22 pancakes).

In a separate bowl, combine the butter, brown sugar and gingerbread syrup.  Mix well and pour into a small plastic storage bag.  Squeeze out the air and seal the bag.  Cut off one corner of the bag (the smaller, the better.)

Pour a 1/3 cup of batter onto a well-greased skillet.  Squeeze on filling in a circular motion.

Cook until bubbles form throughout, then flip.  Continue cooking until golden brown.   (In between pancakes, be sure to wipe off the griddle with a clean damp rag and regrease).

Enjoy!!

What recipes would you make with Torani syrup?  Leave a comment below.

This is a sponsored post on behalf of SheSpeaks and Torani.  All opinions are 100% my own.

One night last week Willow decided to try her hand at making a pizza.  We had been drooling over the packs of prosciutto at Trader Joe’s, so she decided to make a prosciutto pizza with pesto sauce.  The experiment turned out so yummy we decided to share it with you:

 Ingredients:

2 packs, refrigerated pizza dough

1 container Genova pesto sauce

1-2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 12 oz. bag Quattro Formaggio shredded cheese

1 4 oz. package sliced prosciutto, shredded

Directions:

Knead together the two packs of pizza dough and pat into the edges of a 16″ diameter pizza pan, folding over the edges to make a crust.  Mix the pesto sauce with 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil and brush over the pizza dough to make a thin layer.  Top with quattro formaggio and shredded prosciutto.

Bake in a 450F oven for 10 minutes, then check every 1-2 minutes thereafter, until crust is golden brown.  Allow to cool about 5 minutes before slicing.  Serves 6.

Enjoy!!

I was so excited when SheSpeaks asked me to be a Torani blogger.  My family loves Torani for Italian ices and the kids love making soda in the SodaStream with Torani flavorings.  When I found out I would be getting hazelnut and gingerbread flavors, I was a little nervous.  I had never thought about using Torani syrups in hot beverages.  Was I up to the challenge?

After some debate with the kids, we came up with a recipe for each of the flavorings.  You’ll have to wait until next week for the gingerbread recipe.  This week the recipe is:

Hazelnut Hot Chocolate with

Hazelnut Whipped Cream

Ingredients:

your favorite hot chocolate mix

six ounces of milk per person

2 cups heavy whipping cream

3 Tbsp. sugar

4 Tbsp. Torani hazelnut syrup, plus a teaspoon

Directions:

Chill metal bowl and beaters in the refrigerator or freezer until cold.  Beat whipping cream, sugar and 4 Tbsp. of Torani syrup on high speed until soft peaks form.

Heat milk in microwave for 1 1/2 minutes on high.  Stir in hot chocolate mix and 1 tsp. of Torani syrup.  Top with hazelnut whipped cream to taste.

Enjoy!!

Click here for my recipe for gingerbread pancakes using Torani gingerbread syrup.

What recipes would you make with Torani syrup?  Leave a comment below.

This is a sponsored post on behalf of SheSpeaks and Torani.  All opinions are 100% my own.

Sometimes I like to experiment in the kitchen.  It is relaxing to me to try to come up with a new recipe based on whatever I have around the house.  Last week I came up with a new concoction that I absolutely love and is so healthy for you: Tomato-Vegetable Medley Recipe!!  I hope you like it as much as I did.

Ingredients:

Directions:

Heat oil over medium heat.  Add onions and garlic and saute’ until translucent.  Add tomatoes, beans and Italian seasoning.  Cook until heated through.

Serve over prepared spaghetti noodles and top with Parmesan cheese.

 Enjoy!!

Nothing says comfort food on a cold rainy night like a hot bubbly soup.  Recently I discovered this spicy bean soup with wild rice recipe on Sparkpeople.  I tweaked it a little and I love it!! You can modify the spices to suit your own tastes, but I think the cumin and red pepper flakes give it just the right amount of kick.

Ingredients

Directions

Saute’ onions and garlic in 1 Tbsp. oil, until translucent.

Add 2 cups water, beans, rice and spices.  Simmer for 2 hours.

Top with Mozzarella cheese and serve (makes 3-4 servings).

Enjoy!!

One of my favorite easy, healthy dinners to make is stir fry. Normally, when Art is home I make a chicken stir fry.  While he is away I thought I would try a pork variation.  It turned out delicious, so without further adieu, here is my pork stir fry recipe!!

 Ingredients:

Directions:

Spray non-stick skillet with cooking spray; heat over medium-high heat.  Add pork, garlic and ginger; stir fry 2 to 3 minutes  or until pork is brown.

Add green onion, carrots, 3/4 cup of the broth, the soy sauce and sugar.  Cover and cook over medium heat 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add broccoli, mushrooms and bell pepper.  Cover and cook about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until pork is no longer pink in center and vegetables are crisp-tender.

Mix cornstarch and remaining 1/4 cup broth; stir into pork mixture.  Cook, stirring frequently, until sauce is thickened.  Serve over hot rice.

 Enjoy!!

I’m not a huge hamburger fan anymore.  Oh, don’t get me wrong, I can go for a juicy bacon cheeseburger once a month like any woman (ladies, you know what I mean   but the rest of the month, when my family is barbecuing hamburgers, I prefer either a veggie burger or a grilled or broiled portabella.  Since I am not a barbecue chef like hubby or Bud, I am sharing my broiled portabella recipe with you today.

Ingredients:

4 portabella mushroom caps

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1/4 cup Italian dressing

4 thin sandwich rounds

Directions:

Turn on the broiler and position the rack as close to the heat source as possible.

Trim the stems of the mushroom caps to within a quarter inch of the cap.

Brush both sides of caps with Italian dressing.

Cut 3 or 4 slits in the top of each cap and insert the minced garlic into the slits (personally I use 1 clove per cap but for most people that is probably too much garlic).  Broil for 4-5 minutes per side.  Serve with or without toasted thin sandwich rounds.

Enjoy!!

One of my favorite healthy meals for fall is cheesy spaghetti squash.  It is fast, cheap and super easy to make.  You don’t have to be a big squash fan to enjoy it.  The marinara sauce and cheese make it taste like a differently textured pasta.

Ingredients:

one spaghetti squash

1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1 cup marinara sauce

 Directions:

Pierce the squash at least five times, then cook it in the microwave on high for 12 minutes, rolling it over a turn every three minutes.

Remove from microwave, cut off the ends and cut it in half.  Scoop out the seeds, just like you would with a pumpkin.  The halves should look like this when you are done:

Scrape the strands from both halves into a bowl, using a fork.  Top with cheeses and marinara sauce and toss.  Return to squash halves.

Microwave each half for 2 minutes on high, then top with more Parmesan cheese.

Enjoy!!