Yummy Recipe Wednesday! (Cheesy Sausage Casserole)

Hello again everyone and welcome to the first Yummy Recipe Wednesday of 2015. Hopefully you didn’t make any New Year resolutions to eat healthier or you’re going to miss out on the delicious recipe I have for you today. Over the years I’ve had lots of different breakfast casseroles. Most of them are made using bread which is fine but it adds a bit of an odd texture to the casserole in my opinion. The breakfast casserole recipe I have for your today actually uses a shredded potato “crust” instead of bread and incorporates cottage cheese into the egg mixture which adds a nice moist texture to the casserole. Personally I think this recipe is great just the way it is but if you wanted to spice it up a bit you could add a can of green chiles or some pepper sauce to the mixture as well or even use a spicy sausage. Give this a try and I promise your friends and family will be asking you to make it again. As always, feel free to leave comments below and be sure to follow @RecipeBlogger on Twitter if you aren’t already so you don’t miss a single new post.

Cheesy Sausage Casserole

• 1 lb Sage Flavored Breakfast Sausage
• 4 cups Frozen Shredded Potatoes, thawed and drained
• 1/4 cup Butter, melted
• 12 oz Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese
• 1/2 cup Onion, diced
• 1 (16 oz) container Small Curd Cottage Cheese
• 8 Large Eggs
• 1/4 tsp Garlic Powder
• Salt and Pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C); lightly grease a 9x13 inch casserole dish.
2. In the prepared baking dish, stir together the shredded potatoes and melted butter; season with salt and pepper and then press the mixture into the bottom and sides of the baking dish to form a “crust”.
3. Bake the potato “crust” in the oven for 20-30 minutes or until the potatoes just start to brown.
4. While the potatoes are in the oven, cook the sausage and onion in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat until the onion is soft and the sausage is evenly browned; drain the grease off and set aside.
5. In a large bowl combine the sausage, sharp cheddar cheese, onion, cottage cheese, eggs, and garlic powder; season with salt and pepper and then pour the mixture over the browned potato “crust”.
6. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted into center of the casserole comes out clean; let cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Yummy Recipe Wednesday! (Pecan Pie Bars)

Hello again food lovers and welcome to another Yummy Recipe Wednesday. Christmas is only 8 days away so hopefully your shopping is done and now you’re just planning out what to fix for Christmas dinner. As you may have discovered if you follow my blog, I’m not a huge fan of sweets/desserts. However, holidays are when I probably eat the most desserts and Pecan Pie is my absolute favorite dessert of all time. I still remember the individual Pecan Pies that my grandma used to make that were out of this world good. Well today I bring you a twist on the traditional Pecan Pie with these Pecan Pie Bars. They have all the delicious flavor of traditional Pecan Pie but it a nice hand-held, easy to eat form. One word of warning when making these, be sure to line your pan with parchment paper or foil or you will regret it come time to do the dishes. As always, feel free to leave comments below and be sure to follow @RecipeBlogger on Twitter if you aren’t already so you don’t miss any new posts.

Pecan Pie Bars

• 2 cups All-Purpose Flour
• 1/3 cup White Sugar
• 1/4 tsp Salt
• 2/3 cup Butter
• 3 Eggs
• 1 cup Light Corn Syrup
• 1/2 cup White Sugar
• 1/2 cup Brown Sugar
• 2 Tbsp Butter, melted
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1 2/3 cups Chopped Pecans

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C); lightly grease a 9x13 inch pan lined with parchment paper or foil.
2. In a large bowl stir together the flour, the 1/3 cup sugar, and the salt; cut in the 2/3 cup of butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs, then sprinkle the mixture evenly over the prepared pan and press in firmly to form a crust.
3. Bake the crust for 20 minutes in the preheated oven.
4. While the crust is baking, in a large bowl mix together the eggs, corn syrup, 1/2 cup white sugar, 1/2 cup brown sugar, the 2 Tbsp melted butter and the vanilla until smooth; stir in the chopped pecans and then spread the filling evenly over the crust as soon as it comes out of the oven.
5. Bake for 25-30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until set, rotating the pan about half way through cooking; to test for doneness, gently shake the pan and if the filling jiggles, keep baking. When you get just a slight bit of movement at the center, they are ready to be taken out of the oven. Don’t cook them until there’s no movement or they will come out too dry.
6. Allow to cool for 30 minutes then refrigerate for 4 hours to overnight before cutting; after cooling, use a pizza cutter or knife to cut into 24 bars.

Yummy Recipe Thursday! (Sweet Glazed Holiday Ham)

Hello again and welcome to a Yummy Recipe Thursday posting. Today marks the midway point between Thanksgiving and Christmas so I figured it was as good a day as any to have a recipe post. I intend to return to the normal Wednesday posting schedule next week but it’s a busy time of year so we’ll just see what happens. Today I bring you a wonderful recipe for a holiday ham that’s so delicious and really easy. It’s actually so easy that even a first-timer couldn’t go wrong using this recipe for their ham. This ham turns out so moist and the sweet glaze makes the flavor of the ham just out of this world. If you don’t have a rack to go in your roasting pan, just put the ham directly into the roasting pan and it’ll turn out fine. Also, if you have pineapple chunks instead of rings you can use 1 chunk and 1 cherry per toothpick and just put them all of the ham. Give this a try and let me know your thoughts in the comments below. As always, be sure to follow @RecipeBlogger on Twitter if you aren’t already so you don’t miss a single new recipe post.

Sweet Glazed Holiday Ham

• 1 (10 lb) Fully-Cooked, Bone-In Ham
• 4 cups Boiling Water, or as needed
• 1 cup Packed Brown Sugar
• 2 Tbsp All-Purpose Flour
• 2 Tbsp Dry Mustard Powder
• 1/4 cup Honey
• 1 tsp Fresh Lemon Juice, or as needed
• 1 (20 oz) can Pineapple Rings, drained
• 1 (10 oz) jar Maraschino Cherries, drained
• Toothpicks

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C); place the ham on a rack set in a roasting pan and carefully pour about 1/2 inch of boiling water into the pan beneath the ham.
2. Bake the ham in the preheated oven for about 2 hours, or until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the meat (do not touch the bone) reads at least 140 degrees F (60 degrees C.)
3. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C.).
4. In a bowl, mix together the brown sugar, flour, dry mustard, honey, and lemon juice as needed to make a thick, smooth paste; brush the ham generously with the glaze.
5. Skewer 1 maraschino cherry per toothpick; place the pineapple rings all over the ham using the skewered cherries in the middle of the pineapple rings to hold them in place.
6. Return the ham to the oven and roast for 15 minutes; baste the ham and fruit with the glaze and juices that have collected in the bottom of the pan.
7. Return the ham to the oven and roast for an additional 15 minutes; let the ham rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing.

Yummy Recipe Wednesday! (Candied Pecans)

Happy Day-Before-Thanksgiving everyone and welcome to another Yummy Recipe Wednesday! I decided I would keep today quick and simple since I’m sure you’re probably preparing for the big feast tomorrow and who has time to sit and read a bunch of my ramblings right now. These candied pecans are absolutely amazing and so quick and easy to make. They’re perfect to set out for people to snack on while they’re waiting for the food to finish cooking and the rest of the guests to finish showing up. They also make great gifts if you’re looking for something to give out for Christmas this year. Give these a try, you really can’t go wrong. As always, feel free to leave comments below and be sure to follow @RecipeBlogger on Twitter if you aren’t already so you don’t miss a single post.

Candied Pecans

• 1 Egg White
• 1 Tbsp Water
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1 lb Pecans
• 1 cup White Sugar
• 1 Tbsp Ground Cinnamon
• 1 tsp Salt

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, beat the egg white with water and vanilla extract until frothy; stir in the pecans and mix to coat.
3. In a separate bowl, combine the sugar, cinnamon, and salt.
4. Add the sugar/cinnamon mixture to the pecans and stir to combine; spread the coated pecans onto a baking sheet.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes; store extras in an airtight container.

Yummy Recipe Wednesday! (Creamy Herb Pork Chops)

Hello again food lovers and welcome to another Yummy Recipe Wednesday. So as I was sitting here trying to decide what recipe to post today, I realized that I post a pork chop recipe about once per month. This is definitely not something that I planned but it somehow worked out that way so I’m continuing this pattern with another delicious pork chop recipe today. Today’s recipe is yet another super simple recipe and as with everything I post on here it’s absolutely delicious. My only suggestion with today’s recipe is to use the steak seasoning sparingly or you could end up with a very salty dish. There’s really not much else to say about this one, the flavors speak for themselves. Give this a try and I’m sure it’ll become a regular recipe in your dinner rotation. As always, feel free to leave comments below and be sure to follow @RecipeBlogger on Twitter so you don’t miss a single new post.

Creamy Herb Pork Chops

• 4 Thick-Cut Pork Chops
• 1 tsp Montreal Steak Seasoning, to taste
• 1/2 cup butter, divided
• 2 1/2 Tbsp All-Purpose Flour, or as needed
• 1 Tbsp Dried Basil
• 1 tsp Instant Beef Bouillon Granules
• 1 tsp Freshly Ground Black Pepper
• 2 cups Milk

1. Season the pork chops on all sides with Montreal steak seasoning.
2. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add the pork chops and cook until browned and slightly pink in the center, about 7 to 10 minutes per side. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 145 degrees F (63 degrees C).
3. Transfer the pork chops to a plate and return the skillet to medium-high heat; add the remaining butter to the pan as needed so that about 3 tablespoons of pan drippings remain in the pan.
4. Mix the flour, basil, and beef bouillon together in a bowl; stir black pepper into the skillet with the pan drippings and cook for 1 minute.
5. Whisk the flour mixture into the pan and cook, stirring constantly, until browned, about 2 minutes.
6. Whisk the milk into flour mixture and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick and bubbly, about 4 to 6 minutes.
7. Pour the sauce over the pork chops and serve.

Yummy Recipe Wednesday! (Doritos Chicken & Cheese Casserole)

Hello again fabulous foodie friends and welcome to another Yummy Recipe Wednesday. Today I bring you a casserole that I was just introduced to last week by a co-worker and have made twice already. This casserole is so easy to make, tastes so good, and is really budget friendly. It’s the perfect dish for entertaining friends and/or family and this would be perfect to make for the upcoming holidays. I may even give this a try with leftover turkey after the holidays are over. On that note, you can use 3 cups of cooked chopped chicken as a substitute for the canned chicken but personally I find it unnecessary. My co-worker used canned chicken when she made it and I did as well so if you want to save a little time just use the canned chicken. Also, I used a store brand nacho cheese tortilla chip instead of Doritos and it turned our perfectly. Give this dish a try for yourself and I promise you won’t be disappointed. As always, feel free to leave comments below and be sure to follow @RecipeBlogger on Twitter if you aren’t already so you don’t miss a single new post.

Doritos Chicken & Cheese Casserole

• 1 bag Nacho Cheese Tortilla Chips, crushed
• 2 (12.5 oz) cans Chunk Chicken Breast
• 1 cup Sour Cream
• 1 can Cream of Chicken Soup
• 1 can Corn, drained
• 1/4 cup Minced Onion
• 2 cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese, divided
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1/2 tsp Pepper
• 1 tsp Garlic Powder

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
2. Spread half the bag of crushed chips in the bottom of a 16x9 casserole dish.
3. In a large bowl, mix together the remaining ingredients, reserving 1 cup of the cheese; add the mixture evenly on top of the crushed chips in the casserole dish.
4. Top the casserole with the remaining Doritos and cheese.
5. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until bubbly.

Yummy Recipe Wednesday! (Southern Grits Casserole)

Hello food lovers and welcome to another Yummy Recipe Wednesday. If you grew up in the south, live in the south, or just love grits then today’s recipe is definitely something you’re going to want to try. I personally love grits, if seasoned properly, and I love breakfast in general so this recipe was a no-brainer when I found it. Even if you have someone in your home that isn’t a big fan of grits, I still think they’ll enjoy this casserole. If you’re making this for a pot-luck or family gathering you can also put this in a slow cooker, after mixing all of the ingredients together, instead of in the baking dish. When I do this in the slow cooker, I just add all of the cheese in with everything else instead of saving a cup to put on top. Also, be sure to taste and season your grits to your liking before mixing everything together. The grits are the key to taking this dish from good to awesome. Give this recipe a try and let me know what you think in the comments section below. As always, be sure to follow @RecipeBlogger on Twitter if you aren’t already so you don’t miss a single new post.

Southern Grits Casserole

• 6 cups Water
• 2 cups Uncooked Stone Ground Grits
• 1/2 cup Butter, divided
• 2 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 tsp Garlic Powder
• Salt and Pepper, to taste
• 3 cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese, divided
• 1 lb Ground Pork Sausage
• 8 Eggs
• 1/2 cup Milk

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C); lightly grease a large baking dish.
2. In a large saucepan, bring the water to a boil then stir in the grits; reduce heat, cover, and simmer about 5 minutes, until liquid has been absorbed.
3. Mix in 1/4 cup of the butter, the Worcestershire sauce, and the garlic powder; season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Once the grits are seasoned to your liking, stir in 2 cups of cheese until melted.
5. In a skillet over medium-high heat, cook the sausage until evenly browned; drain any excess grease and then mix it into the grits.
6. Beat together the eggs and milk in a bowl and pour them into the skillet; lightly scramble the eggs then mix them into the grits.
7. Pour the grits mixture into the prepared baking dish, dot with the remaining butter, and top with the remaining 1 cup of cheese.
8. Bake the casserole for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until lightly browned.