Sloppy Joe Pockets.. Quick and OH SO GOOD!

I got this idea from the Pillsbury site... They looked so hearty and filling that I had to give them a try!

Ingredients you'll need--

1lb Ground beef (I got the leanest I could find!)

1 Can Manwich or sloppy joe mix

An onion and pepper (if you'd like)

1-2 Cans of Pillsbury crescent roll dough

1 Egg (for an egg wash if you want shiny pretty pockets) I skipped the egg this time

First, brown your hamburger meat... If you didn't use lean meat you may need to drain the fat after you brown it.

Add your onion and pepper if you choose to do so, just toss them around a bit until your onion is translucent. Now add your sloppy joe sauce mixture and cook until heated. Transfer to a clean mixing bowl to cool before stuffing pockets.

I am impatient and stuck my meat mix in the freezer until it cooled down a lot and then finished cooling in the fridge.

Spread out your crescent dough on a flat cookie sheet. I lined mine with parchment paper to prevent any big messes and the pockets from sticking. You may want to press the seams of the dough triangles together to prevent any large rips while stuffing.

Pull your chilled sloppy joe filling from the fridge and scoop spoonfuls onto your dough. It took about 1 or 2 for my pockets.

It's a little tricky to seal them, but you'll get the hang of it after the first one. Once they are stuffed and sealed you can take your egg and a few teaspoons of water and whisk them together... Brush the tops of your pockets to give them a nice golden shine during baking.

Bake for about 15 minutes at 375 or until the crescent is golden brown and cooked through. I can tell they're done by the buttery crescent smell in the air ;)

Fresh from the oven and ready to bust open from their buttery, flaky cocoons! Mmmmm 

Nom, I, NOM, could, NoM, not stop, nOm, eating these things! They hit the spot and reheat well! You could add an endless variety of fillings to these... I know I'll be experimenting in the near future. What kind of combos are you going to try?!  I'll be making a coffee pastry this week.. so don't forget to check back!
Lovessssss,

*A Perfect Roast Chicken* Oh, and Risotto too!

I love a nice hearty meal every once and a while! Here's what I had for dinner last night. It was the icing on yesterday's 'cake' :)

Take your ingredients out...(chicken, butter, herbs and seasoning of your choice, and whatever vegetables you have in the house) Let your chicken and butter rest a bit (maybe 20 mins) Preheat your oven to 425dgrs.

OMG! IT'S NAKED!?! hehe

Clean your bird under cold running water. (inside and out.. and remove any insides that are leftover) Pluck any extra feathers and scrape the skin with your knife good to get rid of the gross stuff! :) (Notice that little feather poking out on my chickens butt?!! That's when you know it's fresh! haha)

Pat your chicken dry with a clean towel or a paper towel. Dry skin will help your bird get a nice crispy skin. Mmmm ...Now throw that thang onto your roasting rack.

Chop up some veggies and toss them in the bottom of your roaster.

I used some celery,

carrots, onion, and garlic. Chop chop! Drizzle them with just a little olive oil.

Now break out your spices! I used some fresh ground sea salt, black pepper, garlic power, rotisserie chicken seasoning, and paprika.

Now take that softened butter and coat your chicken ALL over! Inside and out. Notice the crazy butter chunks? That's what you want! Mush it good!

Now sprinkle your spices. Don't be stingy either!

Rub it all in reeeeeaaaal nice! Get all the crack and make sure to sprinkle some in the bird cavity and on your veggies.

*Cluck cluck* She's so happy.

Now add  your herbs if you'd like.. I used a sprig or two of rosemary. YUM! Give yourself about 10 minutes and your house will smell amazing!

Here comes the fun part! Grab a lemon. Roll it around crazily on your countertop to soften it up and get it juicy. Now STAB IT!!! mwahahaha.. (with tons of holes lol)

Stuff this bad boy into your chicken. This is going to give it such a fresh taste.

NooOooOO 'Help me! It's hot in here!!'

Pop your thermometer in there and cook about 2 hours or until your internal temperatures reach 180 degrees in the breast.

Flavorful crispy skin and juicy meat! *Drool*

Now for the side Items!

This stuff is tasty! Lundberg Alfredo Risotto. I try to find a lot of organic food and this tops the list as one of my favorites.

First brown your risotto with just a bit of butter until is starts to sizzle a bit and smell 'nutty'

The smell is fabulous at this point.

Add your milk and water. (1/2 cup milk, 2 cups water as box directs)

Add your seasoning and stir occasionally for about 20 minutes. Tada! A creamy and fun side dish!

OH BOY!

Plate up, garnish with an extra sprig of rosemary and you are in for a treat!

** The Most Delicious Lasagna **

Nothing can top mom's lasagna... but this comes darn close! I'm a veggie loving fanatic and Mike doesn't do much veggies at all! For this tower of lasagna goodness I split it half and half. This was the perfect meal after a long snowy day! Customize it to fit your tastes... or try it as it is :)

Ingredients you will need-

1 Box dry lasagna noodles

1/3 cup parmesan/Italian blend cheese (I used a blend of parmesan, provolone, asiago, and romano.. feel free to make it cheesier to please you!)

2 cups mozzarella cheese

1 egg

Olive oil

15 ounces of ricotta cheese

1/2 cup turkey sausage

1 cup ground beef

1 jar of your favorite pasta sauce

2 cloves of garlic (possibly more depending on your taste)

4 carrots shredded

1-2 zucchini shredded

8 button mushrooms

About two good handfuls of fresh baby spinach

2 tablespoons fresh basil

First things first! Let's start the lasagna noodles! Heat your pot of water to a boil and then salt your water and add a tad bit of oil.

Once it's a raging boil add your noodles. I add the whole box... I don't usually need all of the noodles, but it's best to have more, than not enough!

While your noodles are cooking (about 12 mins) go ahead and get your 9inch spring form pan sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Set it aside and start on your meat!

I used turkey sausage and ground sirloin. The combination is perfect for this dish... Just enough flavor from the turkey sausage, but not overwhelming. (Not to mention much healthier than the pork sausages) Cook your meat until browned and then set aside in a separate bowl.

'hello meatsss'

Get goin on the veggies!

Shred up your carrots. ('what's up doc')

And now the zucchini....

*Pretty*

Chop up your garlic real fine.. or grate it like I did :) Then toss it in the bowl!

Since I only did half of my lasagna with veggies I used about 4 mushrooms.. Go ahead and double it for the whole thing.

Take your carrots, garlic, zucchini and mushrooms and throw them into your pan (It should still have the good stuff from the meat ;0) .. the 'drippins') Saute them on about medium high until tender, then add your spinach.

Cook just until spinach wilts... Then remove to another bowl

Your noodles should definitely be done by now. Drain them and rinse them in cool water. Set them a side. 'See you soon noodles!'

Mmmm Basil! Tear off a few leaves of your basil and chop them up finely.

Stir them in to your veggie mixture.

Now start on our cheese mixture! Mix your ricotta, egg, and some of your parmesan cheese mix.

Ready to go! :)

Now we can start layering our lasagna! First add about 1/4 cup of sauce to the bottom of your pan. Then, put down your layer of noodles, a layer of veggies and meat, some ricotta mixture, more sauce, mozzarella, and then noodles again.

Keep layering...Yum! The veggie half is mine! ;0)

Notice I cut my noodles to fit the pan better. You can do this if you want.. or just stuff em in there.. hehe

More cheese please! I loaded this thing with cheese!.. Some mozzarella.. and some of the parmesan mixture..

Hmm... looks kinda like a Chicago deep dish pizza lol

Say cheeeeeeese! .. Ok.. that was 'cheesy!' hehe.. No, really, I'll stop now.. lol

By now your work area should look like a bomb site lol

Pop your lovely lasagna in the oven @ 375º for about an hour or until heated through.

Hellooooo tasty!

Layer... by layer.. by gorgeous layer

I didn't have much time to take pics.. by this time my stomach was ready to pounce!

Alright, Your turn!!! Get cookin ♨