Pork Nachos

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! I hope that everyone has a great day, full of good food and costumes. This past weekend we carved our pumpkins. We decided it would be fun to use the drill. Jim did a bunch of different size holes in his pumpkin. It looks really cool when it is lit up.

 

I love this picture because Ginny is in the background checking out a bird. Totally oblivious to Jim and the loud drill and the fact that there is pumpkin goo EVERYWHERE!












I decided to do a traditional smiley face. Gotta love a holiday where adults can be young again. Tonight we are going trick or treating with my nieces. The one is Mia Hamm and the other is being a hunter girl!

The plan for dinner tonight is to pick up pumpkin shaped pizzas from the local pizza shop. Easy Peasy....Want to know what else is easy? These nachos. 

The only hard part was I couldn't get the cheese container open. Seriously? I had to wait for Jim to get home to open it. It was probably good though, because I would have eaten these all by myself, and that would have been bad!

They looked so good Jim had to sneak one during the photo shoot.

I think these lasted for about 5 minutes after I took the pictures.

Ingredients

1 cup pulled pork
1/2 bag of nacho chips
1/2 container stadium style cheese

Warm the pork in the microwave for about 30 seconds just to warm it up. Warm up the cheese in the microwave per the directions on the container.

Take a large plate and fill it with nacho chips. Then top with the pulled pork. Finally coat the chips and pork with the cheese. 

Eat and Enjoy!

This post originally appeared on Laura's Baking Talent.

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I was in some training today at work, and I got to see a friend that I hadn't talked to in awhile. He was telling me how he got the opportunity to travel to both Italy and Germany for work.  I could tell that he loved the experience and it was great to hear about his trip. I however turned the conversation to food... hmm like we weren't expecting that. I wanted to know if the food in Italy was as great as I would expect it would be. He said yes. Then I went on a rant of how I wanted to go to Italy to try EVERYTHING.. and someday it would be awesome to go to France and try all the desserts... and then I brought up how I loved the guacamole when I went to Mexico. When I came back from Mexico I was in guacamole withdrawal, so I had to perfect my recipe.. want the recipe check out guac waffles n waffles guac. 

Anyone want to send me on an all expense paid trip around the world so that I can try the food in every country???  Hmm... didn't think so. Maybe if I win the lotto this week : ) So the idea for this pizza actually came from our trip to Yellowstone. About half way through the week.. I decided we needed pizza. I saw this pizza combination on the menu and I knew it would be perfect for the blog.

So make a cowboy pork n onion pizza and it will be like you traveled to Montana with me : )

Ingredients

Pizza Dough

1 1/3 cup warm water
1 Tbsp sugar
1 1/4 oz package active dry yeast
3 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
3 3/4 flour, plus more for sprinkling the dough
1 1/2 tsp salt

Pizza Toppings

cornmeal, enough for dusting the pan
2 cups of BBQ sauce
1 onion chopped
1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup pulled pork

For the pizza dough whisk the warm water and sugar in a small bowl. Sprinkle the yeast on top of the sugary mixture, and let it sit till its foamy (about 10 minutes). Then stir in the olive oil.

In a large bowl mix the flour and salt. Make a hole in the center and pour in the yeast mixture. Gently stir the mixture until it makes a rough dough. Flour the surface you will use for kneading the dough. Turn the dough out on it and knead it for about 5 minutes. Sprinkle with flour as needed. Brush two medium sized bowls with olive oil. Divide the dough and put one half in each bowl, turning it so that it gets covered with the olive oil.

Cover the bowls with plastic wrap and set aside at room temperature, wait for them to double in size. This will be about 1 1/2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.  Dust the pizza pan with corn meal. Roll out the dough in the pizza pan.  I used a 14" pizza pan and wanted a really thick crust so I ended up using both bowls of dough. Once its rolled out put it in the oven for 5-7 minutes.

Once the crust is out of the oven. Add most of the bbq sauce to the crust like its the sauce for the pizza.

Then add the half of the cheese and the chopped onions.

Next add the pork and the rest of the bbq sauce.

Lastly add a little more cheese. More cheese = Better pizza.

Bake for 8-10 minute. Slice up the pizza and serve.

Eat and Enjoy!

The pizza recipe originally appeared on Laura's Baking Talent.
The pizza dough recipe is from Food Network Magazine March 2011 The Italian Issue (Pasta Pasta Pasta, The Best of Pesto, 131 Great Recipes, Vol 4 Number 2).


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So this past week should have been renamed "Animal" week for Jim and I. It started with taking the cats to the vet last Saturday. It is kind of like a mini challenge or "adventure" to capture both cats and get them in the carriers. It was kind of funny we got them in the carriers and then in the car, and Ginny decided that we must be doing something awesome so she jumped in the car too. She would not come out of the car, until Jim finally picked her up and carried her inside. The appointment went good though. Harry was pretty much the same as last year, which is good for our older man cat. Tonks though.. big news drum roll lost a pound. Yeah Tonks! Her weight has been a big struggle for us this year and we finally got an automatic feeder which has made everyone happy.

Then on Sunday we brought the fish inside. This was really an all afternoon process for Jim, because those fish are sneaky and like to hide in the big pond. So he has to drain some of the water away to find them. They are now inside and I love seeing them everyday. They get super excited about feeding time, you can hear them splashing in the water. If they weren't fish and Tonky wasn't a cat they would probably be kindred spirits.

Then on Wednesday I got to take Ginny to the vet. Of coarse she is super fit from all the running around the yard she does.. and the long walks we took this summer. The only thing is that she would not take the dog treat from the vet, which always makes him a little sad. We really enjoy our vet, but I will be glad to not see him for a year now :) That is unless he will make me a deal and accept baked goods for payment :)

Lastly we are watching my friend Lesa's dog this weekend. We love Luke (or as we call him Luca). He adds a new perspective to the whole household. Remember he made a cameo appearance when I made Veggie Pizzas.

So this week is BBQ pork week. We are starting out with Pulled Pork Sandwiches which we made the first day. Then I will show how we used the leftovers in the other two recipes this week. I made these a few weeks ago but love slow cooker meals. I put a pot roast in the slow cooker before church today and it smells amazing. Too bad I can't eat for another 4.5 hours : )

Ingredients

1 boneless pork shoulder ( 2 lbs)
3 onions sliced into rings
1/2 cup BBQ sauce

Put the pork shoulder in the crock pot. Top it with the onions and BBQ sauce. Cover with the lid. Cook on LOW for 8-10 hours or on HIGH for 4-5 hours.

Take the pork out of the crock pot and put it on a cutting board. Cut away any fat and throw it away. Take two forks and shred the meat into bite size pieces (see picture above).

You can return the meat to the slower cooker to soak in the BBQ sauce or you can stack it on your sandwich and drizzle some of the sauce from the crock pot onto the sandwich.

For the sandwich just put the pulled pork on the bread or bun of your choice. Top with the your favorite toppings.

Eat and Enjoy!

This was adapted from Kraft Magazine.

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It snowed today. Not lots of snow it was really just flakes in the air, but it was snow. There was also this hail like wintery mix for like 20 minutes at lunch. I have a feeling its going to be a cold weekend for HALLOWEEN parties. When I was little my mom always had a plan to make my HALLOWEEN costume super warm. Because sometimes in Michigan it just SNOWS on HALLOWEEN.

If you want some thing to warm you up though its these cupcakes. They are moist and Carmelly delicious.They are also the first cupcake I have done for the blog :)  I have to admit it is also the messiest recipe I have made so far for the blog. I was telling my mom about these cupcakes on the phone and I was telling her how I got carmel EVERYWHERE... and she was like I would have used wax paper. Ofcoarse! Don't you just love moms :- )  So make these because they are CUTE and YUMMY, but remember to cover the counter with waxed paper or something... or clean the caramel quickly before it cools.

So before I go into the recipe here are the last of the HALLOWEEN songs. Have you enjoyed them? What was your favorite song this week?  Did I miss any good HALLOWEEN songs that you can think of?

Ok who doesnt like a little Will Smith during his Fresh Prince of Bel-Air stage...
Nightmare on my Street - Will Smith listen to it here.  Buy it here: A Nightmare On My Street

You can't get more ghosty then this... Who are you gonna call?
Ghostbusters - Ray Parker Jr. listen to it here.  Buy it here:Ghostbusters (From "Ghostbusters")

For some reason I just thought of that Sprint commerical with the... zombie
I Walked with a Zombie - REM listen to it here.  Buy it here: I Walked With A Zombie

I had to throw in another country one... and Eric Church is AWESOME!
Creepin - Eric Church listen to it here. Buy it here: Creepin'

Anyone else watching Sleepy Hollow..
The Headless Horseman - Bing Crosby here.  Buy it here: The Headless Horseman

Ingredients

1 package spice cake mix
2 cups chopped peeled tart apples (about 3 medium sized ones)
1 cup carmel bits
4 Tbsp milk
1 cup chopped pecans
24 popsicle sticks

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line the cupcake pan with muffin cups.

Make the cake mix per the directions on the box. Then fold in the chopped apples. Fill the muffin cups about 2/3's full.

Bake for 20 minutes or until the toothpick comes out clean. Allow the cupcakes to cool for 10 minutes before taking them out of the muffin pan. Then let the cupcakes cool completely on a wire rack.

Place the carmel bits and the milk into a small saucepan and cook them over low heat. Do not leave the carmels... keep stirring them. Stir until they are completely melted.

Drizzle melted carmel over the cupcakes. Sprinkle with pecans and stick in a popsicle stick.

Eat and Enjoy!

This recipe was adapted from Taste of Home Fall Baking Cookbook (200 Oven Fresh Treats! and 120+ Kitchen tips and how-tos)


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Who is excited for the continuation of  HALLOWEEN week!  I am. I am. So today's recipe involves no baking no cooking... yup that is right. You may think I'm a little crazy. Laura you are writing a baking blog... there should be some form of baking in the recipe. I know. I know. 

So there is a story behind these ghosts. When I was in elementary school we were having a HALLOWEEN party and the rule for bringing in treats was that none of the treats could be homemade. So my mom and I came up with this cute idea to wrap oatmeal creme pies into napkins to make little ghosts. Pretty cute huh? My mom is a genius. 

Its been a long time since I was in elementary school but I'm guessing some still have rules like that. Plus this is a great way to deal with allergies. Someone who is allergic is going to know if they are ok with an oatmeal creme pie whereas there is a lot of guessing with homemade treats. These are also great for all you non bakers out there... Oh I know you are there and some of you may read my blog. I am so enertaining :)

The other genius things is that you can make them ahead of time. Have time tonight... but you know that next week is going to CRAZY! Then buys some Little Debbies and get started. 

 












These are the basic things that you need. 

White Napkins (I got party size at the dollar store)
1 Package of Round Pre-Wrapped Treats (Little Debbie Oatmeal Pies or Fudge Rounds)
Something to tie around the ghost. I used white curling ribbon but you could use yarn, string etc. 
A black sharpie

 












So start out by unfolding the napkin and spreading it out on the table. Then put the oatmeal pie in the center of the napkin.

 














 Then scrunch the napkin around the ghost like so. Make sure that the head part is relatively smooth. 

 
















Then tie the ribbon around the ghost to secure it. 

The next step is to make the ghost faces. You have to be a careful to not press too hard with the sharpie... because it will accidently tear the paper. 

So I have to admit something... I made the first three ghost faces.

 











Then I took Ginny for a walk and told Jim that he could work on the rest of them if he wanted too. He is so much more artist then I am. These are his ghosts.

 











Oh.. and here are the other ghosts he did. The one in the middle is the McKayla Maroney not impressed ghost. 

I never knew he had such a hidden talent for ghost faces... Maybe we should all be ghosts this year for HALLOWEEN.

Now that we are fully trained on making non baked ghosts.... Here are the HALLOWEEN Song picks for today :)

This song has to be the first one people think of when they are asked for a Halloween Song
Monster Mash - Bobby "Boris" Pickett listen to it here.  Buy it here:Monster Mash

You have to watch out for those gypsies....
Love Potion #9 - The Searchers listen to it here. Buy it here: Love Potion No.9 (Album Version)

My brothers would be disappointed if I didn't put in some 80s classic rock
Running with the Devil - Van Halen list to it here.  Buy it here:Runnin' With The Devil (Album Version)

Today's country pic.. doesn't get more country than this...
Ghost Rider in the Sky - Johnny Cash listen to it here.  Buy it here: (Ghost) Riders In The Sky

This may be the second Halloween Song you would normally think of for Halloween....
Thriller - Michael Jackson listen to it here.  Buy it here: Thriller

See ya on Thursday with another recipe and more HALLOWEEN song picks.

This post originally appeared on Laura's Baking Talent.

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