Brown Rice Veggie Mix Recipe

As much as I really enjoy eating meat, especially beef and chicken, sometimes I like to make a meatless meal. It doesn't hurt to skip eating meat a few times a week, in fact it can be a nice break for me. And let's face it, meat is expensive.

I do make and eat quite a lot of brown rice, often making it ahead and keeping it for when I want to eat it during the week. Brown rice is healthier that white rice, and I love it's nutty, earthy flavor.

This recipe is super easy to make, and you can vary the veggies if you don't have these on hand. The bell pepper gives it a touch of color, and red bell peppers are so good for you.

Recipe for Brown Rice Veggie Mix

Ingredients:

4 cups cooked brown rice
3 tablespoons olive
1 onion, chopped
1 read bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1-1/2 cups broccoli florets
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Directions:

In a large frying pan, heat olive oil on medium heat. Add onion, bell pepper, and broccoli. Sauté vegetables until softened, about 6-8 minutes.
Stir in rice and heat through. Stir in balsamic vinegar, and serve.

Makes 4 servings.

Little Caesars Bacon Wrapped Crust Deep!Deep! Dish Pizza Review and Giveaway

Its no secret I have a love for Pizza. Even so much my 5 year old seems to know since he was "interviewing" me and asked what my favorite food was, I hesitated and he said its pizza! When I asked my son what he wanted to do on my next day off he said he wanted to have a pizza picnic at the park. I thought that was an awesome idea and it is something we try to do every so often. Some people bring sandwiches and chips to a picnic we bring pizza and bread sticks. 

Since Little Caesars is HOT-N-READY and affordable it is our go to pizza place for pizza at the park. We wanted to try the new Bacon Wrapped Crust Deep!Deep! Dish Pizza. Pizza and Bacon are always a delicious combo but this is the first time I have ever eaten a bacon wrapped pizza. I must say it was delicious. Its a very filling pizza like the deep dish I have eaten before just better cause there is bacon on it!! 

Little Caesars proudly introduces their HOT-N-READY Bacon Wrapped Crust Deep!Deep! Dish Pizza, for just $12 bucks. That’s a large, 8 crunchy corner slices of Deep!Deep! Dish Pizza topped with pepperoni and bacon, then wrapped in over three and a half feet of crispy bacon. No calling ahead or waiting for your pizza, because it’s HOT-N-READY everyday between 4pm to 8pm only at Little Caesars, world’s fastest way to pizza. Available for a limited time at participating locations, $12 plus tax. 






We had a wonderful time with our pizza picnic at the park and even had leftovers. My son was wanting seconds as soon as we returned home. You can find the nearest Little Caesars Pizza to plan your own pizza picnic or other pizza adventure by using the store locator.

You can win a $20 Little Caesars Pizza gift card to have your own pizza adventure with the new Bacon Wrapped Crust Deep!Deep! Dish by entering the Rafflecopter giveaway below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway


*Limited to US residents 18 years old and above. Giveaway starts March 23 2015 and ends on April 6, 2015 at 12:01 am EST. Winner will be emailed and has 72 hours to respond before another winner is selected. I was not paid for this giveaway or post. The opinions on this item are 100% mine and may vary from others. The sponsor is responsible for providing the prize. I was sent gift card to review the pizza for this post.

Pear Upside-Down Cake Recipe

Yesterday when I was in the grocery store, I couldn't help noticing all the gorgeous looking fruit available. Everything just looked so ripe and luscious, especially the pears.

Since I love desserts made with fruit, like my Apple Cake, and my Pineapple Upside-Down Cake, I decided to make this Pear Upside-Down Cake with the pears I had bought.

It turned out delicious, and my family had a great dessert on a busy weeknight, which they really appreciated. I didn't have a lot of time to make these kinds of cakes when my five kids were growing up. So much of motherhood is just getting through the day with everyone clean and fed.

So it's nice to be able to spend the time making a cake like this now. It's not really that food is love, or maybe it is, but taking the time to make something for the people you love.

 

Of course everything tastes better with a scoop of ice cream on it, right? This cake is well worth the effort, and holds together really well, perfect for taking it to a friend's house to share it, or even on a picnic.

Just make sure your pears are nice and ripe, and try to use Bosc or Anjou variety. And when you flip it over onto the cake plate when it's done, I let it rest for a couple of minutes like that so the cake comes out in one piece.

Recipe for Pear Upside-Down Cake

Ingredients:

3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 firm but ripe pears (like Bosc or Anjou) peeled, cored, and sliced
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a 9-or-10 inch round, metal cake pan, over medium heat, melt 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter with the brown sugar. Stir until butter melts and mixture is slightly caramelized, about 1 minute. Remove from heat. Arrange pears slices, slightly overlapping, in a neat circular pattern on top of the caramel.

In a medium bowl, using an electric mixer, beat remaining 1/2 cup butter with flour, baking powder, salt, granulated sugar, eggs, milk, and vanilla for 1 minute on low speed. Increase speed to high and beat 3 minutes longer. Pour batter over pears in the pan.

Bake 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center. Run a thin spatula around the edges of the cake and then invert onto a heat-proof cake plate. Let rest for 2 minutes and then remove pan.

Serve cake warm with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream if desired.
Serves 6-8.

Cherry Bread Pudding With DOVE® Fruit

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and it's advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #CollectiveBias #LoveDoveFruits

Ever since my kids were little, we have been a family of snack lovers. As in we can't get into the car, walk down the street, or sit down to watch TV without having a snack in hand. My kids are all grown up now, but my grandchildren love snacking too, and we are always looking for yummy new snacks to try.

So when I came across DOVE® Fruit at Walmart, I knew I had found something delicious that we could all enjoy. DOVE® Fruit are whole pieces of real fruit, dipped in DOVE® creamy dark chocolate.

Since I'm such a fruit lover, and I never say no to dark chocolate, these have become my favorite new snack. I get to indulge in something sweet and delicious, and it's a much better choice for me than some of the other snacks I sometimes have on hand.

My favorite kind of DOVE® Fruit has to be the Cherry, so I used them to make Cherry Bread Pudding. I love bread pudding because it tastes so good, and it's one of those old fashioned desserts that make me nostalgic just thinking about it.

Even though I love the Cherry variety the best, the Cranberry and Blueberry aren't far behind. My grandkids eat lots of fruit, especially blueberries, so they really loved the Blueberry kind.

These also make a great addition to yogurt, granola, and cereal. And when I'm running out the door and know I'll be needing a snack, it's so easy to toss a bag in my purse to enjoy when I start feeling hungry.

I made my bread pudding with whole wheat bread and non-fat milk. It's a healthier version of how I used to make it, and I think it tastes just as good.

I'm finding that little changes add up, so using the whole wheat bread makes me feel better about indulging in some of my favorite foods. The chocolate in the DOVE® Fruit melted into the bread and tasted so good. The cherries had just the right amount of tanginess to satisfy me and my craving for a great tasting dessert. Yum!

Recipe for Cherry Bread Pudding with DOVE® Fruit

Ingredients:

2 cups non-fat milk                                           
1/4 cup butter 
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 cup sugar 
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 cups soft whole wheat bread cubes
1 cup Cherry DOVE® Fruit  pieces

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a medium saucepan, heat milk and butter until butter is melted and milk is warmed.
In a large bowl, mix milk, eggs, sugar, cinnamon and salt. Stir in bread cubes until bread is completely moistened. Stir in DOVE® Fruit pieces.
Pour into baking dish and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a knife inserted comes out clean.
Serve warm or cold with whipped cream, if desired.

Makes 5-6 servings.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Look for DOVE® Fruit at a Walmart near you. I found them at this display near the checkout stands, but you can also look for them in the candy aisle.

I always use coupons to save money whenever I can, and you can save too by using the $1.00 off coupon available here for your DOVE® Fruit purchase.

And you can find some really great recipes to inspire you on the DOVE® Fruit social hub. 

What about you, have you tried DOVE® Fruit yet? What's your favorite variety, Cherry, Blueberry, or Cranberry? Please leave me a comment and let me know.

Chicken and Rice Bake Recipe

This is a recipe that my family really loves, and I love how easy it is to put together. It uses two cups of cooked, cubed chicken. I try to have cubes of cooked and frozen chicken in the freezer, and this really helps to make this a quick meal for a busy weeknight dinner.

The black beans and tomatoes give it a healthy boost, and I'm finding that the kids will eat it as long as I don't add any hot sauce to the recipe, and serve it with corn muffins.

The leftovers, if there is any, can be put into a warm tortilla with salsa and sour cream the next day for a yummy lunch. And it's a great make-ahead recipe too. Just pop it back into the oven awhile and it still tastes great.

Recipe for Chicken and Rice Bake

Ingredients:

1-1/2 cups white or yellow rice
1 cup chopped onions
3/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups cubed, cooked chicken
1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained
1 (10oz.) can diced tomatoes and green chilies
1 cup frozen corn
2 cups grated Mexican style cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Prepare rice according to package directions.
2. Meanwhile, sauté onion and bell pepper in hot oil in a medium skillet over medium heat 10 minutes or until tender.
3. Combine hot cooked rice, onion mixture, chicken, beans, corn, diced tomatoes and chiles, and 1- 1/2 cups cheese in a large bowl. Spoon into a lightly greased 3-qt. or 13- x 9-inch baking dish and sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese.
4. Bake, covered, at 350° for 30 minutes; uncover and bake 10 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Serves 6.