Bacon (or Sausage), Egg, and Cheese Muffins

Early last Sunday morning, I was serving breakfast to the 14 people who make up our church Leadership Team. So Saturday evening, I was preparing said breakfast, so that I didn't have to wake up any earlier than necessary. I was bringing yogurt, granola, and fruit to make parfaits, muffins, and mini-donuts for any kids who might be there, but I knew that if it were me, I would want something savory and something substantial. I'm not a huge breakfast casserole fan, plus they take forever to cook, so I ruled that out. I finally landed upon the best solution: a riff on the Sausage Biscuit Things that my boys always loved.
On Saturday, I fried bacon, browned sausage, and scrambled eggs. I had stumbled upon the most awesome creation ever, crescent roll sheets. Have you seen these? A thing of beauty, I tell you. They made this breakfast almost too easy.

Bacon (or Sausage), Egg, and Cheese Muffins

2 packages crescent dough sheets

4-5 slices bacon, cut into small pieces, fried to crispy perfection

1/2 pound breakfast sausage, fully cooked

6 eggs, scrambled

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 375. Spray 2 standard sized muffin tins with non-stick spray. Onto a lightly floured surface, or a plastic cutting board, unroll one package of crescent dough. Distribute half of the scrambled eggs evenly across the dough, then the bacon, then 1/2 cup cheese. Roll up the dough "jelly-roll" style. Cut the log in half, then half again, and into 12 equal pieces. Place 1 piece in each section of the muffin tin. 

Repeat the process with the remaining dough, using the breakfast sausage, remaining eggs, and remaining cheese. (If making these ahead, simply cover the pans with plastic wrap or foil, park them in the fridge overnight, and bake them the next morning!)

Bake the muffins for 20-25 minutes, until puffed and golden brown. 

Roasted Sausages and Vegetables

AKA- The night that Facebook saved dinner.

I bought some Italian sausage because it was on sale and I had a coupon which doubled. Cheap dinner is always a good idea. I usually use it to jazz up our standard cheese pizza, but I didn't want to walk back over to the opposite side of the grocery store to get mozzarella cheese. So last night, the sausage was staring me in the face, taunting my nearly empty fridge and cabinets. I turned to my friends on Facebook for inspiration. What we hit on was, in a word, success. An easy, delicious, success. You can basically throw whatever you have in here and it will probably taste pretty darn good.

Roasted Sausages and Vegetables

1 package Italian sausage links, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 russet potato, scrubbed but not peeled, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 large carrots, peeled, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
fresh rosemary or thyme, if you have any- I had rosemary

Preheat oven to 400. In a baking dish or on a large baking sheet, toss together the vegetables with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Place the sausage pieces on top, along with 3 sprigs of rosemary (I didn't even strip the leaves off the stems- just threw the whole thing in there!). Roast for 30 minutes, stirring everything about half way through the cooking time, until the sausage is cooked through, the veggies are softened and starting to caramelize beautifully.
Serve with Easy French Bread.

Pork Loin Pitas with Feta Sauce

I would never try to recreate the gyros from our favorite Greek dive. So I'm not even going to refer to these as gyros. What they are is a quick, delicious, hearty sandwich that everyone in my family enjoyed. They were perfect with garlic fries!

Pork Loin Pitas with Feta Sauce

feta sauce from Everyday Food

1 pork tenderloin (around 1 lb)

salt and pepper

dried oregano

4 pitas

2 oz feta cheese

juice of 1/2 lemon

1-2 tbs water

shredded lettuce

Trim pork tenderloin of any excess fat and cut into bite-sized pieces. Pat dry with paper towels. Season with salt, pepper, and oregano. Heat about 2 tbs olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the pork and cook, turning occasionally, until browned on every side and cooked through, about 10 minutes. (Even though I patted the pork dry, it still let off a lot of moisture, so I cranked the heat up to medium high until the water cooked off, then lowered it back to medium to let the meat brown and cook through.)

In a food processor, combine feta cheese, lemon juice, water (start with 1 tbs and add from there), and salt and pepper. Process until smooth.

Warm pitas in the microwave or wrap in foil and warm in the oven. Fill with pork, top with lettuce and feta sauce.

Pork Fried Rice

I became obsessed with fried rice when I was pregnant with S. To me, it is the perfect lunch- hearty, healthy, and fast.

Pork Fried Rice
adapted from Everyday Food Magazine


2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons plus 1/4 teaspoon soy sauce
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
1 bunch scallions, white and green parts separated and thinly sliced
1/2 pound ground pork
2 carrots, shredded
1/2 cup snow peas, sliced
2 cups cooked brown or white rice (about 3/4 cup uncooked rice)
2 tablespoons rice vinegar


In a wok or large nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over high. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, lightly beat eggs with 1/4 teaspoon soy sauce to combine. Add eggs to wok and swirl to coat bottom of pan. Cook, without stirring, until almost set, 1 minute, then fold in thirds with a spatula. Transfer cooked eggs to a work surface and cut into 1/2-inch pieces.


Add 1 tablespoon oil to wok and swirl to coat. Add garlic, ginger, and scallion whites and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, 30 seconds. Add pork and cook, breaking up meat with a wooden spoon, until just cooked through, about 3 minutes. Add carrots, snow peas, and rice and stir to combine. Add cooked egg, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, and vinegar and cook, stirring constantly, until rice is coated, about 1 minute. Let cook, undisturbed, until warm, about 1 minute. Top with scallion greens and serve.

Swedish Meatballs

Rookie Cookie don't judge me now, but part of this recipe comes courtesy of Sandra Lee. I know! I know! But I was young and didn't know better. (Plus, it's pretty stinking good.)

These are a staple in our house once the cooler weather comes along. I made them last night and everyone but the little one devoured them. He decided he only wanted the egg noodles, so he went to bed hungry and angry with me. So I ate his share as well. I even hid some finely chopped fresh spinach in the meatballs, fully expecting N to stick up his nose at them and refuse to eat them. I was delightfully proven wrong!

Swedish Meatballs

adapted from Martha Stewart and Sandra Lee

for the meatballs:

adapted from Martha Stewart Living Feb 2005

8 oz each ground sirloin and ground pork

1/4 tsp onion powder

1/2 cup sour cream

1 large egg, lightly beaten

3 tbs fine dry breadcrumbs

1 1/2 tsp salt

freshly ground pepper

1/2 tsp ground allspice and 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

Preheat oven to 375. Combine ingredients with hands. Shape into 1 3/4 inch meatballs. Freeze on a rimmed baking sheet 15-30 minutes. Re roll in hands. Bake at 375 for about 30 minutes, until golden brown and fully cooked.

for the sauce:

adapted from Semi-Homemade Cooking

1/4 cup vegetable oil

3 tbs flour

1 (14oz) can reduced sodium beef broth

1 1/2 cups whole milk

1/4 cup sour cream

1 package egg noodles

Heat oil in large skillet over med heat. Add flour to skillet and cook 1 minute. Stir in broth and milk, season with salt and pepper. Simmer until sauce thickens, about 5-7 minutes. Off heat, stir in sour cream. Combine meatballs with sauce. Cook egg noodles in boiling salted water to al dente. Drain, transfer to large bowl. Spoon meatballs and sauce over egg noodles and serve immediately.

Project Food Blog Challenge #2- The Classics

First of all, thank you to everyone who voted for me last week. I made it to round 2! And if talking about my family and my blog were a challenge, well this is quite a bit more of a challenge. When I saw that the requirement for round 2 of Project Food Blog was to tackle a classic dish from another cuisine, my mind started racing. I want to participate in the challenges, but I also know the palettes of the boys I cook for. I want to stretch all of us a bit, but I also want them to eat.

I've never been anywhere. Seriously. So I didn't have a region of the world to draw inspiration from. I emailed a friend who's family serves as missionaries in Russia. I figured she has first-hand knowledge of Russian cuisine, something I am completely unfamiliar with. However, when I saw that I only had two days and a (very) limited grocery budget to work with, I decided to look for a meal that would incorporate ingredients I already had on-hand. My husband spent about 3 weeks in Germany before we started dating, so I thought that would be the way to go. (And it seems only appropriate, seeing as how Oktoberfest is going on right now.) I'm pretty sure he ate nothing but sausages, beer, and Pizza Hut while he was there, so he wasn't much help in the "classics" department (though I admit he understood what I was making once I revealed the menu). I grabbed my trusty Joy of Cooking and let it guide me to a meal that, while maybe didn't stretch our taste buds too much, did allow me to stretch my culinary muscles just a bit.

Schnitzel and Kartoffelklösse (Potato Dumplings)

adapted from Joy of Cooking

1 pound boneless pork sirloin chops, pounded to less than 1/4 inch thick

1/2 cup flour, spread on a plate

2 large eggs, beaten with 1 tbs milk, on separate plate

2 cups fresh bread crumbs, spread on 3rd plate

3 tbs vegetable oil or butter, or a combination of both

lemon wedges for serving, optional

Heat oven to 180. Season pork with salt and pepper. Dredge pork lightly in flour, shaking off excess. Drip into egg mixture, then coat with crumbs, pressing down on the crumbs slightly to let them adhere. Heat oil and/or butter in large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook pork in batches, being careful not to crowd the pan, until nicely browned, 1- 1 1/2 minutes per side. Remove to paper towels to drain, them keep warm on a platter in the oven. Add more butter or oil to the pan as needed to cook the other batches. Sprinkle the pork with additional salt and pepper to taste.

Potato Dumplings

3 medium baking potatoes, scrubbed

1 large egg

1/4 cup flour

3/4 tsp salt

2-3 quarts water, seasoned with 1 tbs salt

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted

1/2 cup dry bread crumbs

Cook potatoes in a large pot of boiling water until tender. Drain, cool, and peel. Push them through a potato ricer or force through a sieve with the back of a spoon. (My husband had the genius idea to use the bottom of a glass to push the potato through. Much easier!) Combine with the egg, flour, and salt. Stir with a fork just until blended and fluffy. Gently shape into 1-inch balls. Bring water to simmer in a large pot. Drop dumplings into water and cook for 10 minutes. Drain.

Stir together melted butter and bread crumbs. Sprinkle over the dumplings and serve.

(Sadly, the 3 dumplings you see pictured are the only ones I could salvage. The rest turned into potato soup. So, add more flour if your dumplings seem too wet.)

Basil, Chili, and Garlic Chicken/Pork

Until tonight, I hadn't made this dish in a few years, when N was a baby. I had forgotten just how delicious and easy it is.

The recipe calls for chicken breasts diced and browned. The first time I made it, I didn't have any on hand and used ground pork instead. We loved it, and actually prefer it to the chicken. This dish is a great combination of sweet and spicy, and can easily be adjusted to cater to picky tastes. I usually sneak in some chopped fresh spinach, since it resembles the basil and doesn't change much in the way of flavor. I would have done that tonight if my spinach hadn't looked as sad and neglected as it did.

Basil, Chili and Garlic Chicken/Pork
From Every Day with Rachael Ray, February 2007

2 tablespoons fish sauce (I omit this)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
4 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons crushed red pepper
1/2 pound thin Asian rice noodles or vermicelli pasta (I always serve this over brown rice)
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 cup thinly sliced onion, plus 1 cup finely chopped onion
8 cloves garlic, finely chopped (about 3 tablespoons)
12 oz. ground pork OR 1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
1 cup torn fresh basil leaves

1. In a small bowl, combine 1/2 cup water with the fish sauce, soy sauce, sugar and crushed red pepper. Stir to dissolve the sugar; set aside.

2. In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the rice noodles until al dente. Drain and set aside.

3. While the noodles are cooking, heat a wok or large, deep skillet over medium-high heat until hot, about 1 minute. Add 2 tablespoons oil, then the sliced and chopped onion, and garlic. Stir-fry until fragrant and softened but not browned, about 3 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and set aside.

4. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil to the skillet and heat for about 1 minute. Working in 2 batches if necessary, spread the chicken in a single layer in the pan without crowding and cook, undisturbed, until the edges change color, about 1 minute. Turn and continue cooking, tossing now and then, until lightly browned all over, 2 to 3 minutes. (Alternatively, cook ground pork until fully cooked and no longer pink.) Add the reserved sauce and onion mixture and cook, tossing occasionally, until the chicken is cooked through and evenly coated, 2 to 3 minutes longer. Remove the pan from the heat and add the basil, tossing until slightly wilted.

Serve the chicken over the noodles (or the pork over the rice).

Pulled Pork Sandwiches with Homemade Barbecue Sauce

I've made these before, forever making me the world's largest fan of pork shoulder. But last night I upped the ante a bit and made my own barbecue sauce. It was tasty, though not everything that I wanted it to be. The husband liked it, and that always helps.

I love this pork shoulder. It makes a TON but can easily be frozen. Make the pork early in the day, before it gets super hot outside and the thought of turning on the oven makes you want to cry. Then just reheat it in the sauce before supper time!

Pulled Pork Sandwiches
from Everyday Food

1 boneless pork shoulder (about 7 pounds)
salt and pepper
1/2 cup water

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Using a sharp knife, score the fat (but not the meat) on 1 boneless pork shoulder (7 pounds) in a diamond pattern. Season with coarse salt and ground pepper. Place pork, fat side up, in a roasting pan or large Dutch oven with 1/2 cup water. Roast until some fat has rendered, about 45 minutes. Remove pan from oven and reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees. Tightly cover pan with foil or a lid. Cook until meat is very tender, about 4 hours. When cool enough to handle, remove fat from top of roast. Using two forks, shred meat into bite-size pieces, discarding any large pieces of fat.

How to store: Refrigerate shredded meat in airtight containers, up to 3 days, or freeze in 2- or 3-cup portions, up to 3 months.


Barbecue Sauce
adapted from Joy of Cooking

makes 4 cups
1 1/2 cups ketchup
1 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 tbs dry mustard
1/4 cup chili powder, or to taste
1 tbs grated fresh ginger or 1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 tbs vegetable oil

Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring often. Simmer for 5 minutes.

Sauce will keep, covered and refrigerated, for up to 2 weeks.

Crock Pot Lasagna

Well, this is certainly the easiest lasagna you'll ever make. And, if you're not a huge fan of ricotta (like me), this is one of the tastiest lasagnas you'll ever make as well. This is my new favorite pot-luck recipe.

(photo by Everyday Food Magazine)

Slow-Cooker Sausage Lasagna From Everyday Food Magazine

Serves 8
1 pound Italian pork sausage, casings removed
1 pound ground beef sirloin
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 medium carrots, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 can (6 ounces) tomato paste
1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes in puree
9 lasagna noodles
2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella (8 ounces)

In a 5-quart Dutch oven or heavy pot, cook sausage and beef over medium-high, breaking up meat with a spoon, until no longer pink, 4 to 6 minutes. Add onion, carrots, and garlic; season with salt and pepper. Cook until onion has softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in tomato paste, then tomatoes; bring to a boil, and remove from heat.
Spoon 2 cups meat mixture into bottom of a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker. Layer 3 noodles (breaking them as needed to fit), 2 cups meat mixture, and 1/2 cup cheese; repeat with two more layers (refrigerate 1/2 cup cheese for topping).
Cover slow cooker, and cook on low, 4 to 6 hours. Sprinkle lasagna with 1/2 cup cheese. Cover until cheese has melted, about 10 minutes.

Helpful Hint
To fit lasagna noodles into a round slow cooker, break off corners as needed. You don't have to precook the noodles. When the lasagna's done, they'll be ready, too.

Mustard Pork Chops

Oh, Nigella. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways...

Well, I can't really, but to name just a few, your American Breakfast Pancakes are my weekend go-to's, your Snickerdoodles are truly divine (and will be gracing my kitchen tomorrow), you were right- my kid does love couscous(!!!), and now, you've got my boy eating pork. Thank you, Domestic Goddess. Thank you.

from Nigella.com

Mustard Pork Chops

Adapted from Nigella Express (a Christmas gift that will keep on giving...)

Serves 2- easily adjusted for more
2 pork chops, about 1 lb total weight (I used 3 boneless loin chops)
2 tsp garlic oil (I forgot to make this and just used olive oil)
1/2 cup hard cider (I just used chicken broth)
1 tbs whole-grain mustard
1/3 cup heavy cream

Cut the fat off the chops, and then bash them briefly but brutally with a rolling pin between two pieces of plastic wrap to make them thinner. Heat the oil in a pan, and then cook the chops over a moderately high heat for about 5 minutes per side. Remove them to a warmed plate. Pour the cider (broth) into the pan, still over the heat, to deglaze the pan. Let it bubble away for a minute or so, then add the mustard and stir in the cream. Let the sauce continue cooking for a few minutes before pouring over each plated pork chop.