Potato Skins a la Velveeta

These potato skins are just flat out awesome. If you are looking for a low fat version, I can not give you one. It would be a travesty to do such a thing to a potato skin. These are filled with butter, sour cream, bacon and two kinds of Velveeta. These will probably just osmosis right to your thighs, but it's worth it. I promise.

I'm going to give you the basics of the recipe and then you can adjust quantities for however many potato skins you want to make. And I don't have to tell you that you will get two potato skins per potato because you are smart that way.

Potato Skins A La Velveeta

Potatoes (either baking or Yukon Gold)
1 pkg bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
1 16oz carton of sour cream (NOT fat free)
1 pkg regular Velveeta
1 pkg Mexican Velveeta
Real butter
Salt and pepper

Bake the potatoes and set aside until cool enough to handle. Cut in half and scoop out most of the inside, leaving some potato on the skin. To assemble, spread a small amount of butter over inside of skin. Then layer, salt, pepper, bacon, sour cream, Mexican Velveeta and regular Velveeta. Repeat until all skins are filled. Bake at 400 until cheese is bubbly, about 10 minutes.

The reserved potato can be made into mashed potatoes. Now that is a win-win situation.

Pulled Pork Sandwiches with Spinach Pesto Pasta Salad

This is a super easy meal that I make on the weekends. The pork sits in the crockpot all day simmering in a rub of minced garlic, cumin, seasoned salt, chili powder and cayenne(nothing says I love you like a touch of heat) and the pasta is tossed with homemade spinach pesto and sauteed red peppers and zucchini. I've brought my kids up on less traditional food and they love any kind of pesto. This is one of their favorite pasta dishes and the pulled pork, well, they smother it in barbecue sauce and hope like heck they get to eat this in heaven.

Pulled Pork Sandwiches

2 pound boneless pork roast, trimmed of fat
3 garlic cloves minced
2 teaspoons seasoned salt
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup water
Sourdough sandwich rolls
Barbecue sauce

In a bowl, combine garlic, seasoned salt, cumin, chili powder and cayenne. Rub all over pork roast and place roast in crock pot. Add water. Cover and cook on low 8 hours.

When pork is done cooking remove from crockpot and place in a large bowl. Take two forks and begin pulling pork apart, shredding into small pieces.

Assemble sandwiches using sourdough rolls. Stuff with pulled pork, drizzle with barbecue sauce and top with lettuce, or topping of choice (my kids like Miracle Whip spread on the sourdough roll). Serve with Spinach Pesto Pasta (recipe below).

Spinach Pesto Pasta













2 cups spinach, washed, patted dry and torn
3 cloves garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 red pepper, seeded and thinly slices
1 medium zucchini, quartered and sliced
1 box whole wheat bow tie pasta

Combine the spinach with the garlic and pulse a few times in a food processor. Slowly add the olive oil in a constant stream while the food processor is on. Stop to scrape down the sides of the food processor with a rubber spatula. Add the grated cheese and pulse again until blended. Add a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

In a skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add red pepper and zucchini. Saute until softened, about 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Cook pasta according to direction and drain. Put pasta into a large bowl. Add 1/2 of the pesto and toss until well coated(you can add more pesto if needed). Add red pepper and zucchini and toss. Top with additional Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Store remaining pesto in an airtight container, refrigerated for up to 3 weeks.

Giant Popovers

Giant Popovers

6 tbsp. butter, melted
6 eggs
2 cups of milk
2cups of flour
1 tsp. salt



Beat eggs until frothy. Add milk, butter, flour and salt. Beat well with mixer. Pour batter into well greased muffin tins. Bake at 375 degrees for 1 hour. Make a slit in the top of each popover to let steam out. Bake a few more minutes. Makes 18.


No, this is probably not a good diet recipe. I ran out of bread today and did not want to make a trip to the store, so I made these. My family really likes them.

Hamburger Vegetable Soup (Low Fat)

This food blog has been a challenge to me because I am a very 'fly by the seat of my pants' type of cook. I throw in this or that, season to taste and don't really think much about the amount of ingredients I use. I don't treat food as a science, it's more of a relationship of seasonings, textures and pleasing others. Sherri asked for some hamburger recipes and this is a soup that I like to throw together when it's bitterly cold outside (such as today when it's snowing) and I need something to warm everyone up.

Hamburger Vegetable Soup

1 pound extra lean ground beef
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 teaspoons Hungarian paprika
Dash of red pepper
1 small sweet onion, chopped
2 large celery stalks, chopped
2 large carrots, peeled and diced
1 medium zucchini, quartered and sliced
1 14oz can diced Italian tomatoes
3 14oz cans low fat beef broth
2 cups water
2 cups whole wheat egg noodles or bow tie pasta

In a large stock pan brown hamburger with onions and garlic. Add seasoned salt, cumin, paprika, red pepper and stir until seasoning are well incorporated. Add carrots, celery and zucchini. Cook, stirring often for about 3 minutes. Add tomatoes, broth and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add noodles, cover and simmer until noodles are tender (about 10 minutes). Serve with a crusty loaf of sourdough bread for dipping.

**I put the leftovers in individual serving containers, freeze and take to work for lunch.

The Casserole With No Name.....

A Casserole for Sherri
1 lb of ground beef
1 can of Healthy Request Tomato Soup
1 cup of chopped tomatoes
3 raw potatoes, diced
1/3 cup of instant rice, uncooked
1 chopped onion
1 and 1/2 cups of chopped carrots
1 cup of chopped celery
1 tsp of parsley flakes
salt and pepper to taste

Brown the ground beef in a cooking skillet sprayed with butter flavor cooking spray. Spray the crock pot, too. Combine meat, tomato soup, and tomatoes. Sir in potatoes, rice, onion, carrot, and celery. Add parsley flakes, salt, and pepper. Mix well to combine. Cover and cook on Low for 8 hours.
Sherri, I have decided to let you name this casserole, since I posted it for you.



Can be a diet recipe if you use 90% lean ground beef.

Annie's Great Start Scramble

Jon and I started our 30-day diet. I know, diet is a horrible word, but when you say diet and eat something like this, it's not so bad. I like to make scrambles and throw in a mix of vegetables, meat and cheeses. For this one, I used what vegetables I had, topped it with some Parmesan cheese and salsa and this was enough for both of us. I also whipped up a fruit smoothie with mixed frozen fruit, yogurt and juice (I'll post that recipe later). It's a good way to kick start any day.

(For this recipe, I used only half of the vegetables I cooked so that I will have enough for another scramble.)

Annie's Great Start Scramble
5 eggs
1/4 cup low fat milk
1 medium zucchini
1 red pepper
1 cup torn spinach leaves
1 clove garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
Parmesan
salsa

Combine eggs and milk in a bowl and whisk about 1 minute. Set aside. In a skillet, over medium-high, heat about 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add garlic and stir for about 30 seconds. Add zucchini, red pepper, spinach leaves and season with pepper only (salt brings out water and the vegetables will be watery when added to the eggs). Saute until the red pepper and zucchini are slightly cooked, but still have some crunch, about 3 minutes. Spray another skillet with cooking spray, and heat on medium. Add eggs. Scramble until just soft and add 1/2 of the vegetables. (Set aside the other 1/2 for another scramble). Stir until well mixed and eggs are completely cooked. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Top with shredded Parmesan and salsa. Serves 2.

Sausage, Sauerkraut, and Noodle Bake

I told Annie I would post some recipes from when I was "being good" on a diet. This is one of my favorites. Of course, low fat sausage does not taste quite as tasty as regular sausage, but it beats carrots and celery with a stick!

Sausage, Sauerkraut, and Noodle Bake

1 16 oz package of low fat cooked smoked sausage or kielbasa, cooled and sliced
2 cups of cooked noodles, rinsed and drained
1 16 oz can of sauerkraut, drained
1 can of Cream of Mushroom soup (Healthy Request or 98% fat free)
1 small can of mushrooms, drained
A dash of black pepper
A dash of paprika (I know! Finally! You know, it's not like we could have put it in an Apple Pancake....)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix together the sausage, noodle, and sauerkraut in a bowl. Add mushroom soup and black pepper. Mix well. Pour into an 8x8 covered casserole dish sprayed with cooking spray. Cover. Bake for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake for 15 more minutes.