More granola

I had such a craving for more granola, so I looked up a recipe that didn't use pumpkin (I am out for now). I came across this recipe on orangette blog.

Granola

3 cups rolled oats (I used quick cooking)
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup shredded coconut
2 Tbsp sugar
Pinch salt
6 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 cup chocolate chips (I used semisweet chocolate chunks, but any chip would do- you could even mix up different flavors of chips)

1. Preheat oven to 300F
2. In small sauepan over medium-low heat, combine honey and oil and heat until runny.
3. Meanwhile in large bowl, combine oats, pecans, coconut, sugar, salt. Pour honey/oil mixture over oat mixture and toss to coat. I use my hands to press together to get a few chunkier pieces
4. Pour mixture onto greased baking sheet and bake at 300F for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and toss. Continue baking for 10 more minutes (or until oats are golden).
5. Allow to cool and add in chocolate chips (I added mine in when the mixture was still warm, and the pieces melted slightly allowing granola to stick to them, making a crunchier snack. I prefer it this way. To get the chips to set though, I had to store in the refrigerator).

YUM!

Italian Pulled Beef

I came across this recipe a while ago. A chuck roast was on sale, so I decided to buy it and give the recipe a try. Another success. So easy and so tasty!

Italian Shredded Beef

5 pound chuck roast (I had a 7 bone roast)
29 ounce can diced tomatoes (any kind will do, but I used Hunts diced tomatoes with basil, garlic, and oregano)
3 cloves of garlic minced (you may want to use more depending on your preference)
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Put chuck roast into a slow cooker. Add tomatoes and garlic. Allow to cook 6 hours or until meat is cooked through and shreds.
2. Shred meat and serve.

NOTES-
Now that I have made this, I would probably add a small can of tomato paste to sweeten and thicken the sauce.
Also, I recommend skimming off some fat prior to serving.
You can serve this over pasta or on buns as a sandwich.

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

Our freezer was completely full and with Thanksgiving coming up, I needed to make space for my turkey. In the freezer was a half bag of frozen chicken breasts, so I decided to start there. Whenever I see a bag of frozen chicken breasts, a few meal ideas come to mind...chicken enchiladas, chicken parmesean, or stuffed chicken breasts. I was craving chicken enchiladas, so I decided to go with those. When I started getting everything together, I realized I didn't have a can of green chilis like the recipe calls for. I did notice though that we had a can of Rotel tomatoes with green chilis, so I decided to use them. Usually I do not put tomatoes in my enchiladas, but I had no choice. It turned out delicious! I didn't feel like rolling the enchiladas because I was in a hurry, so I made a casserole. It was a hit!

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

1 can cream soup (we only had cream of celery and it worked fine, but I would recommend cream of chicken and I use low fat)
1 1/2 cups sour cream (I use low fat)
1 - 1 1/2 pounds cooked chicken breasts cubed
1 onion diced
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 can Rotel tomatoes with green chiles
1 package tortillas
2 cups shredded cheese (I usually use sharp cheddar, but a mexican blend would work great as well)

1. Preheat oven to 350 F
2. Saute diced onions over medium heat until translucent. Add chili powder and stir to combine. Mix in cooked chicken and Rotel tomatoes and heat through.
3. Meanwhile in a medium bowl, stir together sour cream and cream soup. Stir until well combined.
4. Add half or 2/3 of sour cream soup mixture to chicken and tomatoes. Stir well until combined. Heat through and remove from heat.
5. Prepare a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray. Layer the bottom of the dish with tortillas. Cover with chicken/tomato/cream mixture. Top with layer of tortillas. Spread remaining sour cream mixture over top. Sprinkle with cheese.
6. Cover pan with foil and bake at 350F for 15 minutes. Remove foil and continue to bake until cheese is melty.

Au Gratin Potatoes

Mom made us a DELICIOUS ham for dinner and I was trying to think of something to go along with it. We had half of a bag (1.5 pounds) red skinned potatoes left from a dinner last week, so I decided to use them up. I didn't want to make mashed potatoes and risk us being tired of them by Thanksgiving. I decided to go with an au gratin potato dish. It was a hit!
Now my review, it called for a whole onion. While it was very tasty, I would prefer less onion, and I think it would be fine with even no onion. Just something you may want to keep in mind.

Au Gratin Potatoes

1.5 pounds potatoes (I used baby red potatoes and I left the skin on)- sliced to 1/4 inch thick slices
1 sweet onion (optional, or use less) diced
2 garlic cloves minced
3 Tbsp butter (I used Smart Taste margarine)
3 Tbsp flour
1/2- 1 tsp salt
2 cups milk
1.5 cups cheese (I used a mixture of colby-jack, american, and italian cheese)

1. Preheat the oven to 375F
2. Arrange half of the potatoes in a greased 1 quart casserole dish. Cover with onions and garlic. Cover with the rest of the potatoes.
3. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Add flour and whisk to combine. Cooke for 1 minute. Add milk and whisk until thickened (almost boiling- I usually have to turn my heat up, but if you do, make sure to whisk continuously). When thickened, add cheese and whisk until combined.
4. Pour cheese mixture over potatoes. Cover with foil and cook at 375F for 1 hour (or until potatoes are cooked through)

Pumpkin Granola

I had half of a can of pumpkin left over from my previous pumpkin endeavor (pumpkin oatmeal cookies) that needed to be used. I had recently made peanut butter cookies, and was not wanting to make something with lots of butter. I did a search and came across this recipe. Due to it looking so yummy and being low in fat (no oil unlike many granola recipes....who knew granola had oil??), I decided to try it. YUM! So easy and so delicious!

Pumpkin Granola (adapted from Two Peas and Their Pod blog)

5 cups rolled oats
1 cup pecans (optional)
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup pumpkin puree (I used Libby canned pumpkin....NOT pumpkin pie mix)
1/4 cup applesauce
1/4 maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
Mix ins (optional)- dried cranberries, white chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, use your imagination

1. Preheat oven 325F
2. Cover baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray.
3. In large bowl, combine oats, pecans, spices, and salt. Stir well to combine.
4. In medium bowl, combine brown sugar, pumpkin, applesauce, maple syrup, vanilla. Whisk to combine.
5. Add wet ingredients to oat mixture and stir well until coated. Put mixture on prepared baking sheet and spread out. Bake at 325F for 20 minutes, then stir and bake 15 minutes longer (or until browned).
6. When finished baking, add in mix-ins.

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

Last year at Christmas time, I discovered the MOST amazing oatmeal cookie recipe. It is absolutely my favorite! They are chewy and so delicious! Tonight, I had a can of pumpkin that kept calling to me. I was undecided between making pumpkin blondies and some type of cookie. I asked for my families opinions and they wanted a cookie....so I decided to try making my beloved oatmeal cookie recipe a little healthier by substituting some of the butter with pumpkin. It worked! The cookie is more like a caky texture, but still so yummy!

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 cup pureed pumpkin (I used Libby's canned pumpkin- NOT the pumpkin pie mix)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1-1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1-1/2 cup quick cooking oats
Mix ins (optional)- I used butterscotch chips and chocolate chips (I preferred the butterscotch chips, I would probably leave out the chocolate chips or replace them with white chocolate chips)

1. Preheat the oven to 375 F
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer (or medium sized bowl if using a hand mixer), combine the butter and sugars. Cream together on medium- medium-high speed.
3. Add pumpkin, egg, vanilla extract to creamed butter and sugar mixture. Beat until well combined.
4. Add flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon to the wet ingredients. Mixing with low speed, mix until combined. Add in oats and mix until well combined. If using mix-ins, add them in after the oats.
5. Drop dough by Tbsp on greased baking sheets. Bake at 375F about 8-10 minutes or until edges are golden.