Comfort Food Edition: Twice Baked Potatoes

Sometimes, you just need carbs. Does that sound familiar to anyone else? Yesterday was one of those days for both Jase & I, so for dinner, I wanted to make one of his favorite meals- Twice Baked Potatoes! These little carb-happy dinner delights are easy, delicious, and will satisfy any comfort food craving. 

Please note: this is a picture from google and I feel like it has WAY too much cheese on the top...but you get the idea :)

I modified a Pioneer Woman recipe awhile back to include broccoli, and we love it! Enjoy!

Ingredients: 

8 potatoes, rinsed and scrubbed

1 stick butter

1 C Sour Cream

1 C bacon bits 

1 C shredded cheddar cheese

Broccoli: as much as you want, cut into little florets with the stem removed

Lawry's seasoning salt

First, wash and scrub the potatoes. Poke a few holes in them with a fork and stick them in a 425 degree oven for 1 hour, 15 minutes. 

When the potatoes have ~20 minutes of cooking time left, steam your broccoli, drain, and then rinse with cool water to prevent it from continuing to cook and turn that pea-green color...I hate that. You want your broccoli to be deep green.

Cut up 1 stick of butter and throw into a big bowl with the sour cream and bacon bits.

When the potatoes are finished cooking, pick them up with a hot pad (be careful: they will be VERY hot!) and slice length-wise. Scoop out the insides, being careful not to break holes in the shell, and add to the bowl of butter/sour cream/bacon. Then, mash them all together! You can make the mixture as lumpy or as smooth as you want, adding milk for extra smoothness. Add Lawry's seasoning salt and pepper to taste, as well as the shredded cheddar cheese. Mix all together, and lastly, add the broccoli. 

Scoop the potato filling back into the potato shells and top with extra cheese, if you so desire. Pop those potatoes back in a 350 degree oven for 15-20 minutes, until thoroughly cooked. Remove and enjoy!!

Double Broccoli Quinoa- My All Time Fav Recipe!

I can't believe that I haven't posted this recipe yet-- I found it a few years ago and it is easily my all time favorite dinner dish to make. In the past, I've made it for roommates, friends, my family, and Jase- and it's unanimously loved. Warm and full of yummy things, it's the perfect meal. 

Picture and recipe via

Ingredients: 

3 cups cooked quinoa*

5 cups raw broccoli, cut into small florets and stems
2 medium garlic cloves
2/3 cup sliced or slivered almonds, toasted
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
2 big pinches salt
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup heavy cream
Optional toppings: sliced avocado, crumbled feta cheese

Heat the quinoa and set aside (*instructions for cooking quinoa at the end of the recipe) 

Then, barely cook the broccoli by pouring 3/4 cup water into a large pot and bringing it to a simmer. Add a big pinch of salt and stir in the broccoli. Cover and cook for a minute, just long enough to take the raw edge off. Transfer the broccoli to a strainer and run under cold water until it stops cooking. Set aside.

To make the broccoli pesto puree two cups of the cooked broccoli, the garlic, 1/2 cup of the almonds, Parmesan, salt, and lemon juice in a food processor. Drizzle in the olive oil and cream and pulse until smooth.

Just before serving, toss the quinoa and remaining broccoli florets with about 1/2 of the broccoli pesto. Taste and adjust if needed, you might want to add more of the pest a bit at a time, or you might want a bit more salt or an added squeeze of lemon juice. Top with the remaining almonds, some sliced avocado, feta, or any of the other toppings!

*To cook quinoa: rinse one cup of quinoa in a fine-meshed strainer. In a medium saucepan heat the quinoa, two cups of water (or broth if you like), and a few big pinches of salt until boiling. Reduce heat and simmer until water is absorbed and quinoa fluffs up, about 15 minutes. Quinoa is done when you can see the curlique in each grain, and it is tender with a bit of pop to each bite. Drain any extra water and set aside.

Breakfast Scones!

I am a sucker for all things bread, and scones are definitely one of my favorite breakfast foods to make! I found this basic recipe on Skinnytaste, one of my favorite food blogs, and fell in love. You can easily substitute the blueberries for any fruit of your choosing. I made these with fresh strawberries one Sunday morning and it was heavenly!

Picture & recipe via

Ingredients: 

2 cups flour

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tbsp baking powder

1/4 cup frozen butter

3/4 cups light buttermilk

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup fresh blueberries

Preheat the oven to 400°.

In a large bowl, mix all the dry ingredients. Using the large holes of a cheese grater, grate the frozen butter into the flour. Mix well with flour. In a medium bowl, mix the buttermilk, egg and vanilla. Using a fork, slowly stir in the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, until all the mixture is moistened. Fold in the blueberries.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Drop large spoonfuls onto the cookie sheet (do not press or compact). Bake in the center rack 18 minutes. Remove and let them cool about 5 minutes before eating.

Rolo Cookies!

Picture and original recipe via

This is just about the easiest cookie recipe in the world. Not to mention the most addictive! 

Ingredients

1 pkg. Rolo's
1 box Devils Food Cake mix
2 eggs
1/3 c. oil

Mix cake mix, oil, and eggs. Take a small ball of dough and form a ball around the rolo. (Only use enough dough to cover the rolo so it can spread through the cookie.)

Place on greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 7-8 minutes. Yields about 3 dozen.

Let them cool for a bit then sprinkle with powdered sugar. 

Enjoy!

Turkey Rice Soup

 

Perfect for the winter weather! I don't remember how I found this recipe, but I discovered a screen shot of it on my iphone last week and couldn't wait to try it! I made it for my family and they loved it! Plus the recipe makes so much that I had tons of extra to take over to a neighbor in need of a warm meal. 

 

Ingredients:

32 oz. cooked & shredded turkey

5 carrots, sliced or diced, whichever way you prefer

1 stalk celery, sliced

1 onion, chopped

2 quarts water

4 chicken bouillon cubes

1 can cream of chicken soup

salt & pepper to taste

2 cups uncooked rice

In a large pot, boil rice, veggies, bouillon and water together for 20 minutes.  Add turkey, cream of chicken soup, salt and pepper and bring to a boil again.  Cook 5 more minutes and enjoy!

Quinoa & Brocolli Casserole

I'm back!

Seriously, I know it's been months since I've posted anything, but during my blogging hiatus I have gathered so many delicious new recipes... I'm excited to share them all with you!


I don't know if I've mentioned this before, but I love quinoa. If you haven't had the delightful experience of trying quinoa yet, here's your chance.

I found this lovely recipe on Pinterest and modified it a bit....and it was a huge hit! I've made it several times now for Jase & I, and for my family, and everybody loves it. It's comfort food made healthy, and I love that. Enjoy!

Ingredients

• One 10oz can low-sodium Cream of Broccoli or Mushroom soup
• 1/3 c. reduced fat mayonnaise
• 2 Tbs milk
• 1 1/4 C. shredded cheese of your choosing- cheddar, colby-jack, etc. 
• 1/2 tsp Splenda or Sugar
• 1/4 tsp Black Pepper
• Dash freshly grated nutmeg
• 2 C cooked broccoli
• 1 1/2 C cooked quinoa
• Parmesan Cheese

If you have never cooked quinoa before, don't fret. It's super easy. To make 1.5 C cooked quinoa, follow these steps: 

Rinse 3/4 C quinoa in a fine sieve. In a small saucepan, combine the quinoa, 1.5 C water, and 1/4 tsp salt. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and cover. Cook 18-20 minutes, or until fluffy and the white tail is visible. Fluff with a fork.

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and coat a shallow (8×8) casserole dish with vegetable cooking spray.

In a large bowl combine the soup, mayonnaise, milk, shredded cheese, Splenda, pepper, and nutmeg until well mixed. Stir in the quinoa and broccoli.

Spoon mixture into prepared casserole dish.  Sprinkle on a couple tablespoons of Parmesan and bake for 35-40 minutes or until bubbly on the edges and golden. 

Makes 8 generous 1/2-cup servings.