Leftover Pot Roast Noodle Soup!

After making my beef roast this week, I had tons left over. Normally I cook a small roast so after packing our lunches for the next day, there isn't any left over but this time I had to do something with the 3 cups or so that was left.

 

I decided to go searching the web for ideas on how to use it up. I found a ton of ideas but unfortunately, none that I loved. I did find a couple that I used for some inspiration and came up with this one.

OH. MY. GOODNESS!

I will be cooking big roasts from now on so I can make this soup!

It was that delish...if I do say so myself. :)

 

 



Leftover Pot Roast Noodle Soup  Click here for a printable PDF of the recipe

 

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp butter

2 stalks of celery, diced

2 carrots, peeled and diced

1 medium onion, diced

salt, to taste

pepper, to taste

1 Tbsp dried parsley or fresh if you have it. I didn't.

1 tsp garlic powder

3 tubs of Knorr Homestyle Beef Stock

10 1/2 cups of water

3 - 3 1/2 cups of leftover pot roast, cut into small bite-sized pieces

4 cups of egg noodles, uncooked

sour cream

horseradish, prepared from a jar.

 

Directions:

1. In a large Dutch oven, sauté celery, carrots and onions in butter until translucent and soft.

2. While you are sautéing the trio, add the salt, pepper, garlic powder and parsley.

3. Next add the beef stock tubs and water and bring to a simmer.

4. Add leftover pot roast and continue to simmer for 5 minutes.
5. Add noodles and cook until done.

The Topping: When I say I'm making pot roast, the first words out of Curtis or Allison's mouth are: "Do we have horseradish?" So with that being said, I needed to figure out how to optionally add it to the soup. All I did was take sour cream and stir prepared horseradish into it. Then I put it into t zipper bag, cut the tip off the corner of the bag and piped it onto the soup.

Enjoy!

Thank you for stopping by my kitchen!
 

 

 

Zesty Slow Cooker Beef Roast!



My normal way of making a pot roast is in the slow cooker. I cut up a large onion into big pieces and put them in the bottom. Then I put the roast on top and on top of that I sprinkle on a Lipton French Onion soup packet, add about 1/2 cup of water and cook it slow from 9-10 hours. After I take it out, I take out most of the juice and whisk in one can of cream of mushroom soup to make a yummy gravy for the roast and mashed potatoes.

However, this time I changed it up a little bit like my BFF, Susan does. She adds Italian dressing from the bottle on top. It was a nice touch that adds a zest to it.  The drippings were even delicious drizzled over the mashed potatoes. Yum!



Zesty Slow Cooker Beef Roast

Ingredients:
1 beef roast (I usually use a rump roast or a chuck roast)
1 large onion
1 packet of Lipton French onion soup mix
1/3 bottle of Italian dressing (approximate measure)

Directions:
1. Spray slow cooker with non-stick spray.
2. Cut up the onion into large pieces and place on the bottom of the slow cooker.
3. Place roast on top.
4. Sprinkle the packet of French onion soup mix on top of roast.
5. Pour dressing on top of soup mix.
6. Pour 1/2 cup of water in bottom of slow cooker.
7. Cook on slow for 9-10 hours.

Enjoy!

Thank you for stopping by my kitchen!

Zuppa Toscana!

If you've ever been to Olive Garden, you may have tried this soup. It's my favorite of all of their soups. I found this recipe on Pinterest from the blog, Jaime Cooks It Up! You can click here for her recipe. My adjusted version is below.

Zuppa Toscana
adapted from Jamie Cooks It Up!

Ingredients:
1 pound Sweet Italian Sausage
1 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 large white onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 slices bacon, cooked & crumbled or 4 Tsp. bacon pieces
8 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
1 cup heavy cream
2 large russet potatoes
3 cups kale, washed & chopped into small pieces (leaf part only, no stems)
salt and pepper (as needed)
Parmesan cheese, shaved 

Directions:
1. In a large soup pot, brown up your sausage with the red pepper flakes.

2. While the sausage is cooking, cut your potatoes in half lengthwise, then cut the halves lengthwise again and then cut them into thin slices.

3. Once the sausage is cooked remove it to a plate, and add your onions, garlic and bacon into the soup pot. Saute them, stirring frequently until the onions are transparent.

4. Add the broth and water to the soup pot.

5. Carefully add the potatoes. Bring the soup to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and let the potatoes cook. It should only take about 10 minutes.

6.Once your potatoes have cooked through, add the heavy cream and the sausage. Cook the soup just until it is heated through.

7. Add your kale, let cook for 1 minute and then remove from the heat and serve.

8. Top with shaved Parmesan.

 

Enjoy!

 

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Holiday Pretzel Treats!

I found this recipe years ago on the Family Fun website. Since then I have seen it done every which way possible. Some make it with Rolos and press a pecan on top . . . although I'm not a big caramel fan. You can also make it with Hershey Hugs, Reeses Pieces, Peanut M & M's and well, you get the picture. Let your imagination run wild and have some fun with the kids with this one!

Holiday Pretzel Treats

Ingredients:
Bite-size, waffle-shaped pretzels (Snyder's Snaps)
Hershey Kisses or Hugs
M & M's candy

Directions:
1. Heat the oven to 170 degrees. Set a number of bite-size, waffle-shaped pretzels (one for each treat) in a single layer on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, then top each pretzel with an unwrapped Hershey Kiss or Hug.

2. Bake 4 to 6 minutes (the white chocolate will melt more quickly), until the chocolates feel soft when touched with a wooden spoon. Remove the cookie sheet from the oven and quickly press an M & M's candy in the center of each Kiss.
3. Allow the treats to cool for a few minutes, then place them in the refrigerator to set, about 10 minutes.

Enjoy!

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Marsala Chicken & Mushroom Casserole!

I found this recipe on Rachael Ray's website. My family loved it, so it is definitely a keeper!

To be honest, I haven't really made many of Rachael Ray's recipes. I feel that some of them have too many ingredients or ingredients that I don't want to buy to use only one time.

Fortunately, I had everything on hand for this recipe but in true Cindi fashion, I changed it up a bit. Her recipe includes rice. My daughter is not a rice fan so I substituted cooked linguine. Click here to go to the original recipe which includes the rice.

Okay, I just realized the picture doesn't look that appetizing but trust me, the flavor is delish!

Marsala Chicken and Mushroom Casserole

Ingredients: 
2 tablespoons butter 
15 ounces sliced mushrooms 
1 1/2 tablespoons flour 
1 1/2 cups Marsala wine
1 1/2 cups heavy cream 
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
Salt and pepper 
3/4 lb. (pre-cooked weight) cooked linguine
2 cups coarsely chopped rotisserie chicken 
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:
~Preheat the oven to 350 degrees . In a large skillet, heat the butter over medium-high heat until just melted. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle the flour on top and stir in for 1 minute. Stir in the Marsala and cream and simmer, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, about 3 minutes or so. Stir in the parsley, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. 
~In a greased 9-inch-by-13-inch casserole, spread the linguine in an even layer; top with the chicken. Pour the mushroom gravy on top. Cover snugly with foil and bake until bubbly, about 30 minutes. Discard the foil, sprinkle the Parmesan on top and bake for 5 minutes more.

Enjoy!

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Sweet & Sour Kielbasa!

This recipe is perfect to take to a Christmas party or get together. You'll be sure to bring home an empty dish!

It is easy to put together with only four (4) ingredients. Since it takes 3 hours to bake in the oven, I usually do it the day before and just heat it in a slow cooker.

Sweet & Sour Kielbasa

Ingredients:
3 lbs. kielbasa
1 - 8 oz. bottle of Chile sauce
1 - 8 oz. bottle of tap water
1/2 cup of brown sugar
1  - can of unsweetened crushed pineapple

Directions:
~ Slice kielbasa in 1/2" diagonal pieces
~ Combine all ingredients
~ Bake covered at 350 degrees for 3 hours.

Enjoy!

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Creamy Pesto Chicken & Pasta!

I found this recipe on the back of a can of Campbell's Cream of Chicken soup. The original name is Creamy Pesto Chicken & Bow Ties but I used penne pasta so I changed the name.

This recipe is super easy but definitely has the "wow factor." The recipe below is from the Campbell's website with minor alterations. I thought the sauce was a little too thick so I reserved some of the cooking water from the pasta and thinned the sauce down a little bit. I think I used a little over a 1/4 of a cup. I think next time I'm going to sprinkle in some freshly diced tomatoes when I add the pasta to the sauce. It will not only add color but compliment the creaminess of the sauce. After I plated it, I sprinkled fresh shaved Parmesan and a little fresh parsley on top.


Creamy Pesto Chicken & Pasta

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (about 1 pound), cut into cubes
1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Campbell's® Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup (Regular or 98% Fat Free)
1/2 cup pesto sauce
1/2 cup milk
3 cups penne pasta, cooked and drained (reserve some of the pasta water)

1. Heat the butter in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until well browned, stirring often.

2. Stir the soup, pesto sauce and milk in the skillet and heat to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Cook for 5 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Stir in the pasta and cook until the mixture is hot and bubbling. If the sauce is too thick, use the reserved pasta water to thin it down until you feel it's the right consistency.

3. Garnish with shaved Parmesan cheese and chopped parsley and enjoy!

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Southern Banana Pudding!

I saw this recipe on a blogging buddy's blog today and had forgotten all about it. I had it years ago at a picnic. It was so good that I told myself that I would make it someday. Well a ton of years later and thanks to Darlene for the reminder, today is the day! I dropped Allison off at school and went directly to the store for the ingredients.

It is so easy and the recipe is right on the large box of JELL-O Banana Cream Pudding!

I noticed that Darlene didn't put the Cool Whip on the pudding which is a great idea if you have some people that don't care for it. I'm not a big fan of it on pie but I'm okay with it in a dessert like this. I followed the directions on the box and knowing my family is fine with Cool Whip, I went ahead and put it on top.

Southern Banana Pudding

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups cold milk
1 large pkg. (5.1 oz) of JELL-O banana cream instant pudding
30 vanilla wafers (I used generic and they were a little smaller so I ended up using more)
3 bananas, sliced
1 tub (8 oz.) Cool Whip topping, thawed

Directions:
~Beat milk and pudding mix with whisk for 2 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes.
~Arrange layer of wafers on bottom and up side of 2-quart bowl.
~Top with layers of 1/2 each of the bananas and pudding.
~Repeat layers.
~Cover with Cool Whip and refrigerate for 1 hour.

**I added some crushed up vanilla wafers on top for garnish. You could also decorate the top with sliced bananas dipped in lemon juice. The crushed wafers were easier and I like things easy peasy!

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Garlic Herb Chicken!

I made this for dinner last night and it was a big hit.

It's a variation of a recipe I saw on Cheryl a.k.a. Tidy Mom's blog and she changed a recipe she saw in a cookbook to get her recipe. I love being inspired by other bloggers!

Anyway. Hers was actually Breaded Pork Medallions but I used Chicken and they weren't medallions so I changed the name to what was comfortable for me.

Here's a link to her recipe. Mine is below.

Garlic Herb Chicken

Ingredients:
4 (4 oz.) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
4 triangles of Laughing Cow Garlic & Herb Spreadable Cheese
1 1/2 cups Italian style bread crumbs (I used Cheryl's measurement because I didn't measure mine. I just dumped it in the bowl.)

Directions:
~Preheat oven to 375°
~Rinse chicken breasts in cold water and pat dry with paper towels.
~Place chicken on a large cutting board and cover with 3 layers of plastic wrap. Pound with a kitchen mallet until about 1/4" to 1/2" inch thick. This will allow for even cooking and also gives you a very tender product because it breaks up the meat a bit.
~Using a butter knife, spread one triangle of cheese on the top of each breast.
~Coat each side in the bread crumbs.
~Place on a sheet pan which has been sprayed with non-stick spray.
~Spray the top of each breast with more non-stick spray.
~Bake for 20-25 minutes or until chicken is done.

I served mine with Parmesan parsley noodles and vegetables. Yummy!

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Menu Plan Monday ~ Mar. 28th!

It's Monday again so you know what that means!

Yes! Menu Plan Monday!

When you are done seeing what my family is having for dinner this week, click on the button below to see what others are cooking up this week!

Anything in Green letters is a link to the recipe!

Monday - Chicken Noodle Soup

Tuesday - Sloppy Joes with Homemade Fries (Allison's request) and Green Beans.

Wednesday - Mesquite Marinated Pork Chops, Scalloped Potatoes and Lima Beans.

Thursday - Pizza Pasta (didn't have this yesterday so I moved it to this week), Tossed Salad and Rolls.

Friday - It's Good Friday so we are heading to the Fish Fry at the local Fire Hall with my parents, sister and niece and nephew.

Saturday - Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup.

Sunday - Easter Dinners with my family around Noon and in the evening with Curtis's family.
I'll be taking Pistachio Pudding Cake with me!

Thanks for stopping by my kitchen!