Simple Yet Gourmet

I love soup. I love it even more in a delicious bread bowl. This Creamy White Chili really hit the spot when served in the Italian bread bowl. The chili is creamy and slightly spicy without being overpowering and comes together in a snap. The bread bowls require a little more preparation, as all yeast breads do, but the end result is worth it. The outside is chewy while the inside is moist and fluffy. This combination is great for warming up on a cold winter's night!

My kids know that on Sunday mornings I make muffins for breakfast. This Sunday I was getting bored with my same old recipes so hunting I did go! I found this little treasure at Mels Kitchen. I added chopped nuts and a sprinkle of brown sugar on top, but other than that I thought the recipe was perfect! If your low on breakfast goodies to impress your family, give this one a try.

When it comes to salads, the McCain family is in love with the chop salad at Maggiano's Restaurant. Well, it is a long drive to Denver to enjoy the wonderful salad, so I found the recipe, changed it some and created the loved salad here at home. My brother Ryan came for a visit and told me it tasted just like it, so it must be true. For those strange people who don't like blue cheese, I promise you will love it in this salad, just ask my blue cheese hating husband! The recipe for the dressing makes a ton, so I always half the recipe, still having plenty for a couple other salads later in the month! (It stores well in the refrigerator.)

Have you ever cooked a dish and made to much rice? Well do I have a recipe to solve that problem. Growing up, my mom made some super yummy treat, but one of my all time favorites happen to be rice pudding. Its funny how each one of us kids have our favorite and when we go home for a visit, my mom knows just what treat to make to please each of us kids! What a great mom!! When I made the soup I posted yesterday, I cooked a little extra rice and surprise my kids with some warm rice pudding. The picture is not the greatest, they were in a hurry to eat it, but you get the idea. We do like it warm, but you are free to cook it and refrigerate it for later or the next day. This was the first time I have ever made it for my kids and Jeremy has asked me for the last few days when I am going to make it again!

Apparently there are a lot of Mulligatawny soups out there, but I had never heard of it. This is a veggie, chicken and rice soup, with a bit of curry and a sweet crunch of green apple. I know the combinations sounds strange, but believe me, the flavor is unbelievable. Mike wasn't feeling so well this week, so I decided to try something other than my classic chicken noodle soup, it was a hot with everyone in my family. This has become my new favorite soup. Give it a try, its perfect for a cold winter day with a slice of oatmeal bread or garlic knots on the side. Enjoy!!

I figured it was time for a new breakfast post! I am always on the hunt for new recipes that incorporate whole grains. It makes me feel like a good mom when the kids leave with a belly full of good, nutritious food to start their day. This recipe was a feel good mom recipe! On Monday I added peaches and almond extract, then topped each bowl with a splash of vanilla almond milk. Another morning I did blueberries and almonds with vanilla extract, but topped this bowl with a splash of just plain milk. The next time I make it, I want to do diced apples and substitute the brown sugar with applesauce. The great thing about this recipe is you can make what ever combination your family will eat! This is a quick recipe for those busy mornings and a breakfast that even the husbands might like, Mike did!

I am warning you, this is a very dangerous dessert! I found this recipe on The Pioneer Woman and thought it looked interesting. Between the flaky crust, warm apple and caramel sauce this dessert is sinful. Mike and the kids get really excited when they find out this is one the menu. We love to serve it warm with vanilla ice cream on the side. I promise you, this will become a favorite of yours once you try it!

Okay, so I think I have finally come up with a chili recipe that I really like. For those of you who have a Sprouts Market around you, you might have tried there chili when they have it for the soup of the day. My dad was the one who turned me on to the wonderful dish. Whenever he comes to visit we take a trip over and fill our bowls until the lids don't fit and eat it in the car on the way home, love my Dad! I tried to find the recipe, but had no luck, so I made up my own! I combined a few recipes and added my own ingredients and have come up with this recipe. We love it over pasta, with sour cream, cheese and crushed tortilla chips on top. Always good for a cold winter night!

These happen to be my favorite cupcake! I love cream cheese frosting, chocolate chips and chocolate cake! Well this recipe combines all of those yummy ingredients to create a mouthwatering treat. The middle of the cupcake has a surprise of cream cheese and chocolate chips. I like to add toffee bits to the cream cheese filling sometimes for an added crunch and flavor. The cake is moist the frosting sweet and the middle, divine!! I haven't meet anyone who hasn't loved this cupcake!

These cookies may not look like much but as the saying goes, "looks can be deceiving!" Chocolate, toffee, and oatmeal combine to make a truly delectable cookie. I made these cookies when my sister Emmalee and her husband Jon, and my other sister Becky with her boyfriend Isaac came over. To say that they liked these cookies is an understatement. The plate of cookies was devoured in about 10 minutes. Okay, okay, so I had a few myself. What can I say? They were delicious!

I have a confession to make. Although I love cooking and I enjoy an good lasagna I have not even attemped to make one in the past 4 years. I know, pretty sad. The reason? The last time I made an attempt, it was less than mediocre. So not worth the effort. Well, I decided to give it another try after finding this recipe on Annies-Eats. It was great! Aaron and I both loved it! The flavor and the consistency was what I had imagined it would be. It did require some time to put it all together, but it was definately worth it. Plus it makes a bunch, so I'll be whipping out the leftovers out in a few days for a yummy meal with no work. Try it out, you'll be glad you did.

These bars are one of my favorite treats! I first made a similar type recipe in high school. I was flipping through one of my Mom's Family Fun magazines and saw this recipe. Upon reviewing the list of ingredients I knew immediately that I would love these! I was right. Unfortunately, I lost the recipe. Fast forward a few years. I found this recipe in one of my favorite cookbooks and couldn't wait to try it again. It was just as delicious as I remembered. Even Aaron likes these, and he generally doesn't like anything with coconut in it.