Meatball Sliders {Wednesday Wins}

We recently had these meatball sliders for dinner, and o my goodness, they were delicious!  These are perfect for dinner with a fresh salad.  The meatballs are stuffed with Italian seasoning goodness.  And the Italian bread rolls go perfectly.  Top them off with a little mozzarella and Parmesan and you've got a great Italian dinner!

They'd also be just as perfect for a potluck party!  You can make the meatballs and rolls smaller if you'd like to feed more people.  To keep the meatballs and sauce warm, just pop them in a crock pot after they've been cooked.  They'll be welcome at any occasion!

I just used my mom's recipes for both the meatballs and the Italian bread and tweaked them both a bit to work for this meal!

Italian Rolls
Adapted from: My Mom's "Mess Up" bread 
Makes: 12 rolls
 
Ingredients:
3/4 cup warm water
1/2 tablespoon margarine, softened
1/2 tablespoon oil
2 cups + 2 tablespoons bread flour
2 1/4 teaspoons sugar 
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon yeast
butter, for greasing
 
Directions: *If you have a bread maker, just put all the ingredients in your bread maker and set for dough.  This should take care of all of the kneading and the first rise, so you can start at step 7. For those of you that don't have a bread machine:

1. Add yeast to warm water and stir.
2. Put 1 cup flour, the salt, and the sugar in a large bowl, add water and yeast; mix thoroughly for 2 minutes.
3. Add oil and margarine; mix thoroughly for 2 minutes.
4. Add remaining flour until dough is firm, but still elastic.
5. Knead on a floured surface for 5 minutes.
6. Place into a well-greased bowl.  Cover and let rise for 1 hour.
7. Grease a 7x11 pan with butter.
8. Divide dough into twelve rolls and shape into balls as best as possible.  Place the rolls into the pan.
9. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour.  (While the rolls are rising and baking, you can prepare the meatballs.)
10. Bake at 375 degrees for 25-40 minutes until nice and golden brown.

Meatballs
Adapted from: My mom
Makes: 12
Ingredients: 
1/2 pound ground beef
1/2 pound Italian sausage
1/4 cup milk
1 beaten egg
3/4 cup Italian bread crumbs
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon salt 
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
1-2 cups marinara sauce
 
Directions:

1. Combine eggs, milk, Italian seasoning, salt, and Parmesan in a large bowl.
2. Add enough breadcrumbs to make a ball.
3. Add meat and mix well.  Beware, the best way to do this is with your hands, but they will get really, really cold!
4. Roll into 2 inch balls.  Adjust the sizes so that you end up with 12 large meatballs.
5. Place in a skillet and brown slowly on a low heat, stirring often.
6. Drain on a paper towel.
7. Cover with your favorite marinara sauce. 

Once the rolls are out of the oven and the meatballs and sauce are warm, split a roll, place a meatball covered in sauce in the middle and cover with some mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses.  Chow down!

I hope you enjoy this delicious dinner!

A Lovely Weekend {Lundi Little Lovelies}

Well, frankly, I don't have much good to say about today.  So it's a good thing that I already had some collected little lovelies from my weekend!

I picked up this adorable notebook set at Target on Friday, and I just love them.  Aren't they so cute!  (FYI, I'm basically a notebook collector; when I see a cute notebook, I just can't resist it!)

Lolo with the photobomb!

I am making progress on the scarf.  It will definitely be finished this week!  Which is saying quite a lot considering that I completely un-wove everything I had already done (even the progress I'd made last week), and started over with a different weft color.  And that was about as tedious as ripping stitches out of an almost finished garment.  But, I'm so much happier with it now.  I just hate making a project when I know I'm not going to like the finished project.  At least now that's not going to happen!

I went on a run on Saturday morning on the beach.  It was glorious!  Seriously.  I've never run on the beach before, and now I'm wondering why!  I had my swimsuit on so I could get a little tan at the same time, barefoot, no headphones, just running right at the edge of the water listening to the waves.  It was amazing!  And it turns out that I ran three miles (with a little water break at the halfway point).  And I wasn't even feeling it.  I felt like I could have kept running forever.  I loved it!  I can't wait to go again tomorrow!

I made some streusel bars for Bible study yesterday, and since I had a little extra, I made a little personal dessert just for me.  I had it today: warm blackberry streusel with a scoop of melting vanilla ice cream on top.  Oh yum!  I will definitely post the recipe soon, so watch out for that!

Lastly, I mentioned that last week we had an impromptu no evening snack week.  And I am proud to say that I made it a whole seven days without having dessert after dinner.  Haha!  So I can do it, I just don't like to.  I really don't think the benefits outweighed the annoyance.  So, that probably won't be happening again.  Lol.

I've got some great recipes to share for several upcoming posts!  Stay tuned for deliciousness!

A Few E-Cards to Make You LOL {Sunday Funday}

Today I would really just like to make somebody laugh.  So, rather than try to come up with some mildly funny story, I'm just going to steal a few e-cards from one of my Pinterest boards.  I hope a few of them make you laugh out loud and maybe that you relate to a few too!

Enjoy!

 (Click on the photo to be taken to the source.)

 

Am I the only person who experiences this quite often?!

(Could not find the source on this one)

It's not exactly nice, but I'm still willing to bet you've done this at least once in your life.  I'm pretty sure I have.

 

So. True.

Oh yeah.  All the time.

 

This happens to me ALL THE TIME when I'm cooking!

 Then I have a comprehensive list of the things I accomplished that day.  So it's totally rational, right?!

I hope you laughed at least once!  If not, then you probably think I'm a weirdo, because I love all of these!

Loaded Baked Mashed Potatoes

This side dish comes straight from my mom.  And before that, I'm pretty sure she got it from heaven!  These potatoes are absolutely perfect!  Combining the best of both loaded baked potatoes and mashed potatoes, you can not go wrong with these!

Of course, it takes some old-fashioned elbow grease to get the perfect lump-free mashed potatoes.  My dad usually mashes the potatoes at my parents house.  And he is a boss at it.  By the time he's done mashing, those potatoes couldn't form a lump if they wanted to.  They're perfectly creamy.  It's delightful.

So, before I drool all over my computer, I'm going to type out the recipe and finish this post!

Loaded Baked Mashed Potatoes
From: My Mom
Serves: 4-6
**Note: All of the amounts in this recipe are estimated.  Start with the smaller amount and keep adding and tasting until you create the perfect flavor for your family.

Ingredients:
4-6 medium baking potatoes
4-6 ounces cream cheese
1/3 - 1/2 cup sour cream
4-6 tablespoons butter
salt and pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/3 cup cheese
1/4 cup bacon bits

Directions:

1. Peel the potatoes and cut into small chunks.  Boil in a large pot until potatoes are soft and break apart when stuck with a fork.  Drain water.
2.  Starting with the smaller amounts add cream cheese, sour cream, and butter.  Mash really, really well.
3. Add garlic salt and salt and pepper to taste.  Continue stirring/mashing.  Taste and add more of anything as desired.
4. Add cheese and bacon bits; stir.  The potatoes can now be served, however if you want to prepare them early, or if they need heating up again, continue to step 5.
5. Place in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes.

You can enjoy these delicious potatoes as a side dish to just about anything.  These are a holiday staple at my parents' house, and we wouldn't have it any other way!

Meatless Meals

**I'm a little low on recipes to blog this week, because I'm currently in the middle of a "No Dessert Week".  Meaning that I'm trying not to make or eat dessert after dinner this week.  This was a spur of the moment thing on Sunday night, because Thomas is trying to lose just a few more pounds and I could certainly do without a few too.  But, I didn't plan a super interesting menu for this week, so I'm slacking on having a recipe to blog.  I will try and come up with something in the next few days though.  In the mean time, here is a more general food post!

Whether you're on a budget or just looking for a little more variety in your menus, trying out some meatless meals could be just what you need!  Thomas and I try to eat meatless at least once a week.  It's nice on the budget and great to change things up.  We eat a lot of chicken around here, so rather than having to splurge on steaks, we go meatless.

The thing about trying meatless meals if you haven't is that you feel like you're going to notice it missing from your plate.  But if you plan it right, you'll see that you don't really miss the meat.  You just have to make sure that you have plenty of variety on your plate to keep you interested.

Now, if you're a picky eater out there, these are definitely some meals you will like.  Thomas is pretty darn picky about some things, and there are certainly foods I won't eat also.  So there's nothing "new age" in here like quinoa or tofu or chickpeas.  We're a little more basic than that.

So, without further ado, here are some really basic meatless meals.

Pasta:  This is probably the easiest type of meal to go meatless on.  You can easily make almost any type of pasta without meat.  One of Thomas' and my go-to meals is basically spaghetti with cheese in the marinara sauce instead of meat.  It's super easy to just mix some cheese into your sauce when you would use meat.  The cheese takes the sauce to a whole new level, so you really don't even notice the meat missing.  Serve any pasta with a salad and some garlic bread, and you've got a great, balanced meal.

Try this delicious homemade lasagna without meat.  There are so many layers of flavor that it doesn't even really need meat.

These stuffed shells are also a great way to skip the meat with pasta.

Potatoes:  Potatoes are so versatile that you can easily take them from a side dish to the main course.  Here are some ideas:
Loaded Baked Potatoes.  Serve with some cooked veggies or big salad and some bread or rolls.
Potato Soup:  Just Google it, and you'll find tons of recipes for all different kinds of potato soups.  Even Loaded Baked Potato Soup!

Veggie Soup:  I've got a great, super easy recipe for Veggie Soup right here.  Just omit the meat, and you've still got a flavorful, hearty meal!

Pizza:  This is another really easy one.  You can do any pizza meatless.  Sure, it's a little more boring that way, but it's still a great meal.  One of my favorite lunch meals is French Bread pizza.  Just cut yourself a few slices of your favorite French bread and fix each piece like a mini pizza.  It's delicious and super quick.  They only need about 10-15 minutes to bake.  These are also great for families because each person can be responsible for making their pizza however they want.  Kids love getting to put on their own toppings and have their very own pizza.

And as you've probably noticed:  serve everything with a salad and some type of bread!  I just love salad and bread to complete a meal!  Enjoy!

Nail Polish Reviews

So, since I didn't post the Lundi Little Lovelies post yesterday, I'm just going to pretend that today is still Monday and post it anyway.

My most exciting news is that my mom and one of her sisters is coming to visit very soon!  I can't wait!  I haven't seen my parents since June (if you don't count the facetime conversation on Christmas).  That's why I've started working on my tan.  Of course, they're going to want to go to the beach as much as we can handle, so I want to make sure I've got a base tan to prevent me from getting super crispy.  The last time my mom was here was two years ago, so I'm excited to take her out to all of the favorite places we've developed and everything.  She's my best girlfriend, so I can't wait to spend every moment I can with her!

In other news, yesterday I started working on a weaving project I've been ignoring for a while.  I'd like to finish it so I can move on to a new project.  That's my only problem with weaving.  When I start a project and decide I'm not in love with it, I have trouble finding the will to finish it.  So, I've started working on it again, and I'd like to have it finished this week or next week.

A while back, I mentioned here that I bought a sample pack of OPI's clear polishes.  Since then, I've used each of these a few times, and I thought I'd go ahead and review them for anyone who's interested!  Just click on the name of each polish for a link to check out more details and purchase them on Ulta.com.

From Left to Right:

1. Original Nail Envy - This is a nail strengthener, and the one I have is the original formula.  My nails have been pretty weak and brittle lately, so I've tried this out both as a base coat before a colored polish and as a stand alone clear polish.  I like it best as just a clear polish for when I don't feel like putting a color on my nails.  I'm not sure how well it works because I haven't seen a ton of improvement in my nails, but I also haven't been wearing this polish non-stop.
2. Chip Skip - I really, really like this as a base coat for my color polishes.  It basically gets any gunk off of your nails to make sure that the polish sticks to them.  I've used this several times as a base coat and I've found that it really prolongs the life of my nail polish.  My nail color seems a lot less likely to chip, and the polish lasts several days longer than normal.
3. OPI Top Coat - This, as far as I can tell, is OPI's standard top coat.  There's nothing incredibly special about it, but I do like it.  It goes on smooth and clear.  It's shiny, and I like the way it finishes off a color polish.
4. RapiDry Top Coat - This is the only one of the four polishes that I don't like.  It did not smooth out on my nails at all, so they looked really streak-y.  It does dry really quickly, but I would much rather have a polish that takes a little longer to dry and actually looks good.  I disliked the way my finished nails looked so much that I almost took everything off and started from scratch.  

So there you have it.  I really liked three of these four polishes, so this little sample pack was definitely a great purchase!  Now I know what full-size purchases I would make in the future!  I would definitely call that a little lovely!

Traditional Boston Cream Pie

Last night we went over to some friends' to have dinner and hang out, and I was tasked with bringing the dessert for the night.  There was really only one thing on my mind to make: Boston Cream.  So I decided to try my hand at traditional Boston Cream Pie.  Which, interestingly enough, is actually a cake.  But it's still called pie.  Hm.  

And since I only needed half of the cake batter for the pie, I used the other half for some sprinkled cupcakes for the kiddos to eat!

I was so happy with how it turned out.  The cake was light and fluffy, and the custard was thick enough to not squish out of the cake.  And I loved the taste of the chocolate icing I used.  I also baked the cake and filled it Thursday night because I wanted the cake to have some time to soak up the custard before we ate it.  Yummy!

It also was not difficult to make because I started with some basic mixes (boxed yellow cake and pudding mix) but altered their recipes a bit to give it more of a made-from-scratch taste.  This recipe is definitely less time consuming than a completely homemade pie. 

Most Boston Cream Pies have a very thin glaze on top.  But you know how much I love my chocolate, so I used one of my go-to chocolate icing recipes that allows you to make a little thicker glaze.  It still flowed down the sides of the cake as it's supposed to, but it firms up pretty quickly so that you get a thicker layer of icing.

Boston Cream Pie
Makes: one 9" pie
***Note: It is easiest to prepare the entire cake mix even though you only need one 9" cake (half of the mix) for this recipe.  I used the whole cake mix and made one 9" round cake and used the rest of the batter for cupcakes.  The ingredients listed below are for making the entire box of cake mix.

Ingredients:
For Cake:
1 "Duncan Hines Golden Butter Recipe" boxed cake mix  *See note below to use a different cake mix.
4 large eggs
7 tablespoons butter, softened
1/2 cup milk
For Custard:
1 box vanilla pudding mix (2 oz.)
1 3/4 cups cold milk
For Icing:
4 ounces milk chocolate, finely chopped
4 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar
3-5 tablespoons hot water

Directions:

1. Preheat oven as directed on the cake mix box.  Grease and flour a 9" round cake pan.  (Also prepare a cupcake pan for leftover batter.)
2. Prepare your cake by mixing the cake mix, eggs, softened butter, milk with an electric mixer as directed on the box.
3. Pour half of the batter into the prepared 9" pan.  Use the rest of the batter for cupcakes or whatever you want!
4. Bake as directed for a 9" pan.
5. When the cake is done, remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
6. While the cake is cooling, prepare the custard by whisking together the pudding mix and the 1 3/4 cups of very cold milk.  Place in the fridge to firm up.
7. When the cake is completely cool, use a serrated knife to cut it in half horizontally.
8. Separate the two layers.  Spoon the chilled pudding onto the bottom layer of cake, spreading it out almost to the edges.  Then place the top layer of cake lightly on top of the pudding.  *This is where I stopped and let the cake to sit in the fridge overnight to allow the pudding to soak into the cake layers a little bit, but this chill time is not necessary.
9. Prepare the icing:  Melt the 4 ounces of chopped milk chocolate and 4 tablespoons of butter in the microwave in short increments, stirring in between.  Once it is melted, stir in the vanilla and powdered sugar.  The mixture will form a paste.  Add the HOT water one tablespoon at a time.  Mine usually takes about 4 tablespoons.  You want the icing pretty runny because it will firm up very quickly once it hits the cold cake.
10. Pour icing carefully onto the cake, spreading it around and encouraging it to drip down the sides.
11. Store in the fridge.

**To use a different boxed cake mix, make these changes to the directions on the box:  Add an extra egg.  Use softened butter instead of oil.  Use milk instead of water.  This gives your cake a more homemade taste and just takes it to another level.

I hope you enjoy this traditional decadent dessert! We certainly did!