Pink Lemonade Pie

What would summer be without a slice of refreshing Pink Lemonade Pie? It's cold, it's sweet, it's tart all in one. This is such a super simple pie to make and it only takes 4 ingredients!

Here's what you will need:

6 oz. can frozen pink lemonade concentrate (thawed)
14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
8 oz. Cool Whip, thawed
1 graham cracker crust

Combine first 3 ingredients and pour into crust. Place in freezer to set before serving. Store in freezer.

I often us around 8 oz. of pink lemonade concentrate to make it more tart and I also add a drop or two of red food coloring to make it more pink.

Depending upon the size of your graham cracker crust, you may have some filling left over. The last time I made this pie, I had some left over, so I just poured it into a small bowl and served it with these cute little alphabet and numbers animal cracker-type cookies. It was a big hit. You could also serve it with graham crackers or graham cracker sticks. My kids especially liked eating it as a dip.

Enjoy!

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Sour Cream Pound Cake

Several years back, while we were still living in Alabama near my brother, we went to his house for dinner with friends. For dessert, his assistant from work brought this INCREDIBLE cake. It is unbelievably moist and oh so chocolaty! She graciously shared the recipe with me and it has been a favorite of ours ever since. This recipe truly is my "go to" cake recipe for whenever I need to bring a dessert to work or just need my chocolate fix and don't want to go to a lot of trouble. I know this will surely become a favorite of yours, as well.

Here is what you need:

1 pkg devil's food cake mix
1 (3.9oz) pkg instant chocolate pudding mix
4 large eggs
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup warm water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 pkg. semi sweet miniature chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Spray bundt pan with cooking spray.

3. Combine everything except the chocolate chips in a large mixing bowl. Mix on low for 1 minute, then increase speed to medium for 2 minutes. Batter will be very thick.

4. Fold in the chocolate chips.

5. Bake for 45-50 minutes. Do not over bake! (If you test with a knife, it may come out covered in chocolate due to all of the chocolate chips in the cake. Just make sure the actual cake batter is done)

6. Allow to cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Then run a knife around the edges of the cake. Turn out onto cake plate. We like to eat it while it's still warm from the oven!

Enjoy!

Pepperoni Rolls

Many, many years ago, a friend served up some delicious pepperoni stuffed rolls at a get together I attended. I believe I asked for the recipe, but for whatever reason, she did not want to part with the recipe. I always wondered how she made them. Over the years, I kept telling myself I was going to try and figure it out. Well, last week, I did just that. This may not be a new recipe to some folks out there, but this was the first time I had ever attempted it. It's super easy and was a HUGE hit with the whole family!

Here is what you will need:

Frozen dinner roll dough
Pepperoni slices, chopped into small pieces
Grated mozzarella cheese
Pizza sauce
1/4 c. Butter, melted
1/2 tsp. Garlic powder
Grated Parmesan cheese

1. Place frozen dough on a cookie sheet sprayed generously with cooking spray. Cover with plastic wrap, that has also been sprayed generously with cooking spray. Allow dough to rise for approx. 3 hours. The dough will be very puffy (see picture above). (Note: try not to place dough balls too close together or they will "grow" together and be harder to get apart for the next step).

2. Take one roll and pull it out, stretching it out in all directions. It will flatten it out.

3. Place 1-2 tablespoons of pepperoni pieces in the center of the dough.

4. Next, top with 1-2 tablespoons of grated mozzarella cheese.

5. Now take the edges of the dough and fold them over the filling. Squeeze the edges together, sealing them closed.

6. It will look like this. (Sorry for the blurry pictures. I'm not a good one-handed photographer!)

7. Place all the rolls in a greased casserole dish and cover with plastic wrap. Allow rolls to rise one hour.

8. Remove plastic wrap and bake at 350 for 18-20 minutes. Rolls should be golden brown.

9. Remove from oven and brush with melted butter, mixed with garlic powder. If desired, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Allow to cool approx. 5-7 minutes.

Serve with warmed pizza sauce for dipping.

I plan on experimenting with other pizza toppings. The possibilities are endless! This would also be a fun meal time activity for kids to help with, as well. Enjoy!

Not just a batch of cookies...

Memories. Life is full of them. When I was young, one of my favorite things to do was to help my mom bake up a batch of chocolate chip cookies. I remember sneaking spoonfuls (or maybe "finger-fulls") of the yummy dough when mom wasn't looking. I remember sitting on the floor in front of the oven and watching the dough magically transform into cookies! I remember how good it made the house smell and how I couldn't wait for them to come out of the oven so I could snatch one up while it was still hot.


Now I'm the mom that's making, or should I say "baking," up some memories with my kiddos. Today I whipped up a batch of chocolate chip cookie dough. Amazing how something so simple brings such pleasure to the life of my children.

Josh enjoying the cookie dough

To some people, it might seem like I am just baking cookies. But, hopefully, when my kids are older, they will look back on days like today, when all we did was make a batch of cookies, and remember the smells, the tastes, laughter and hopefully the love that went into making the cookies. Time and time again, I am reminded that life is short. We only have our children for a short time before they go off into the world and hopefully carry our legacy with them. A legacy of love, life lessons, laughter and most importantly, faith.

It seems as though the days of summer are flying by and soon school will start again. The daily "rat race" of activities and responsibilities will be upon us. Deep sigh. My kids are growing up so fast. I wonder if I'm doing all I can to prepare them for this ever-changing world. Can we ever do enough? We simply must do our best, day to day.

So...today I baked cookies. Cookies that will not only fill up their tummies, but also their hearts and minds with memories of time spent with their mom. Nothing fancy. Just a batch of homemade cookies...


Have you baked up a memory lately?

Chocolate Chip Cookies:

2 sticks butter or margarine, softened
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
2 c. all-purpose flour
1/8 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 pkg. semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. In a large mixer, cream butter and both sugars until light and fluffy.
2. Add egg and vanilla and beat until mixed in.
3. Add flour, soda and salt a little at a time, until fully incorporated.
4. Add bag of chocolate chips and mix well.
5. Drop by heaping spoonfuls onto greased cookie sheets.
6. Bake at 350 for approx. 13 minutes or until lightly golden.
7. Enjoy!

Sausage & Egg Casserole

Everyone loves a good, quick breakfast casserole and this recipe has become a favorite in our household. I changed up the original recipe a bit to suit our family's taste. It's great for breakfast, brunch or even "breakfast for dinner" nights.

What you will need:

6 slices white bread, cut into bite-size pieces
1 lb. bulk sausage (I use Jimmy Dean mild sausage)
1 bag frozen bell peppers and onions mix (I use Kroger brand 3-pepper and onion), chopped
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
6 eggs
2 cups milk
1 tsp. salt (I think I use less)
1/4 tsp. pepper

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Fry sausage and (chopped) bell pepper/onion mixture in large skillet. Drain off grease.

3. Place bread pieces in bottom of 9x13 casserole dish that has been sprayed with cooking spray.

4. Top with cooked sausage and pepper/onion mixture.

5. Add cheese on top of sausage mixture.

6. Beat eggs, milk, salt and pepper with whisk until well blended. Pour over all the ingredients in your casserole dish.

7. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until casserole is lightly browned and the center is set.

8. Serve hot with fresh fruit. Enjoy!

Note: When it comes out of the oven, it will be puffed up. As it cools it will "deflate" a bit, but it still tastes great.

(In the future, I plan to try this recipe and substitute shredded hashbrowns for the bread. I haven't tried it yet, but I think it would be great!)

Happy Breakfast!!

Easy Chicken Tacos

This recipe is one of my kids absolute favorites and it's one of my favorites because it is sooo easy! Now that I am a working woman again, it's great to be able to put it in the crockpot in the morning and know that when I get home, it's ready.

Here is what you will need for this recipe:

3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (frozen is fine)
1 can chicken broth (I use reduced sodium broth)
2 pkg. taco seasoning

1. Pour chicken broth in crockpot. (If you do not have a can of chicken broth, you can use 2 cups of water with 2 chicken bullion cubes, crushed and stirred into water.)

2. Add both packages of taco seasoning. Stir to combine with broth.

3. Add chicken breasts, making sure that the chicken is mostly covered by the broth mixture. If you are going to be gone all day, you can add a little water to make sure there is enough liquid covering the chicken.

4. Cover with lid and cook on low all day. If you need them done sooner, you can cook it on high for 4-5 hours.

5. If possible, 1-2 hours before serving, shred chicken with forks and let it soak up more of the seasoned juice. (If I'm home during the day, I start shredding it earlier in the day and let it continue cooking.)

6. Serve on flour tortillas with your favorite taco toppings.

Enjoy!!

Blue Ribbon Strawberry Pie

Each year my family anxiously awaits the beginning of the fresh strawberry season. It's because of this pie! This pie is one of my all-time favorites and so simple to make. Back when I was a child, I actually won a blue ribbon at the Washington County Fair with this recipe. The blue ribbon is long gone, but my memories of sharing this pie with family and friends, still remain. My mother taught me how to make this incredible pie and I thought I would share it with you.

Here is what you will need for this pie:

1 cup water
1 cup sugar
2 Tablespoons Light Karo syrup
3 1/2 Tablespoons cornstarch
3 Tablespoons strawberry Jello (unprepared powder straight from the box)
dash of salt
1/2 teaspoon red food coloring (optional)
fresh strawberries, washed, dried and hulled
1 regular pie crust (not deep dish crust) empty baked according to package directions

1. In a non-stick sauce pan, combine water, sugar, Karo syrup and cornstarch. Stir until smooth and cook on medium-high heat, stirring regularly until it bubbles and thickens up.

2. Then add the strawberry Jello powder and red food coloring. Remove from heat and allow to cool for about 10 minutes (it does not have to be totally cooled before you use it), while you get your strawberries ready.

3. Cover the bottom of your pre-baked pie shell with strawberries, with the points facing up. Arrange the strawberries as tightly together as you can. You can also cut up a few strawberries to fit into the empty spaces between the whole berries. (If you prefer an easier to cut pie, go ahead and cut up ALL the strawberries, instead of leaving them whole. When I'm making this pie for my family, I usually cut up all the strawberries, but when I'm taking it to someone, I leave them whole for a prettier presentation! See picture below)

4. Next, carefully pour the strawberry/jello mixture over the strawberries, making sure that each strawberry gets covered with the mixture. Do not overfill!! If you fill it to the edges, it will overflow in the fridge, once some of the gel slides down off the berries. You will NOT use all of the strawberry/jello mixture.

5. Chill pie in the refrigerator for 3-4 hours so that the gel is set. Serve with whipped cream.

NOTE: I have found that if you DOUBLE this recipe, that you have enough strawberry/jello mixture to make 3 pies.

Here is a picture of what the pies look like if you cut up the strawberries, instead of leaving them whole. I took these pies out to the dealership that sold me a new vehicle this week! They were a big hit!
I hope you enjoy this pie as much as we do! It just tastes like summer to me!

Have a blessed day,
Melony