C'mon, Check Out My Meatballs!

Meatballs!  Besides calling my kids that, I love to eat them!  I hope you do too - cause that is my meal to share today!  An easy family favorite... 

Crock Pot Meatballs!

You will need (the winded version):

Frozen Meatballs!  I choose to use Turkey meatballs...and I made 96 meatballs. 

Red Spagetti Sauce - homemade sauce or bottled sauce will do! 

Diced Veggies -  approx. 2-3 cups - onions, mushrooms, squash, zucchini, green pepper, carrots, or any others that you might like. 

McCormack Grinders Italian Seasoning

Optional:  Cheese, Garlic (Powder, Salt, or even Fresh... add if you like)

1. Plop the meatballs in your crock pot....set to Low Temperature. I have a 96 piece bag!

2. Add either your own sauce or any other sauce you like, approx. 32-48 oz.  I tend to use about half of the number of meatballs! For today, since I have 96 meatballs, I used approx. 48 oz. of sauce. Here is a pic as I am adding the sauce in... Turkey Meatballs are sooo yummy!

3. Add the diced veggies.  I've added onion, green pepper, mushrooms - they are very small because I try to hide them from my kids!  LOL!

4. Stir it all together; coat meatballs and veggies well. 

5. Sprinkle some garlic salt or garlic powder, or even a fresh clove of garlic. 

6. Grind the McCormack Grinders Italian Seasonings.  I used about a 1/2 tsp for my large amount. Stir. 

Cook for  4-6 hours on low. Remember to check your meatballs at 4, 5, and 6 hours depending on your crock pot and temperature settings.  Here are mine after a good stir and 6 hours of cooking... 

Now at the end... you have some choices for your dinner. You could boil some pasta and serve the meatballs over.  Just toss the cooked pasta in with the meatballs and serve... OR you could do what we did and make mini Meatball Hoagies!  My boys love them, and they are yummy!  Sprinkle the cheese goodies on top if you like... We didn't tonight, but it is my fav topping!

This big batch is perfect for lunch later in the week or a second meal one night! Easily freezes too!  Hope you've enjoyed it!  

Thanks for visiting!  If you have any recipes that you are looking for a fast version for, let me know -- I love a good challenge!  Have a great Monday!

Originally created and posted by me for Jennifer Fox Designs: Here!

Jenn

(jk703)

READ THIS! :) Another Interruption..... :)

Hi everyone... yummies are on my head since I'm cutting back... so I'm going to share a recipe with you that in my family we call it BARK!  SOOOOOO yummy.... and SOOOOO bad for you!  Do not make this if you don't plan on bringing 90% of this to a party or something!  Otherwise, you WILL sit on your tush and eat it all!  Trust me!  I'm down 2 out of my 10 and thought instead of making it and eating it, well... I'd share the love... um, spread that poundage elsewhere!  (giggling)

Quick and easy dessert.... remember -- MUST take out of your house!! LOL!

Pics aren't great untouched... but I had to share sooner than later!  You ready?!  

Chocolate Bark (That is what we call it, lol!)

1 sleeve of saltine crackers
1 stick of butter
1/2 cup light brown sugar
12 oz chocolate chips
1 cup chopped pecans
Wax Paper
Non-Stick Cooking Spray
Aluminum Foil
Flat Jelly or baking pan.

Directions:
PREHEAT oven to 400F.
Line a flat 15x10x1-inch baking pan or jelly roll pan with foil; grease foil.
Spread crackers evenly into prepared pan. (Like my son, Shayne, lol)

Place butter and sugar in saucepan. Bring to boil on medium-high heat, stirring frequently.

Reduce heat to low; boil 3 min.

Immediately spread over crackers. I use a wooden spoon to try to smooth it around and get any dry spots.

BAKE 5-7 minutes. The crackers may look like they are floating... be careful.. slip and slide crackers.

Take out and sprinkle with chocolate chips. Don't eat them.... the end is worth it!

Turn the oven OFF!
Put the cracker/buttery/chocolate heavenly mess back in the oven.  Bake for 5 minutes.
Sprinkle with walnuts.

Cover with Wax paper.
Smoosh the walnuts into the chocolate by pressing with a oven mitt or towel on the wax paper.

Cool -- freezer for an hour, fridge for a few hours, covered garage or outside if cold.
Break into pieces and just try to give it away!  :)

There are times that I don't really spread the chocolate very well... and it still comes out really good. Another thing that I have done, is when breaking up the pieces, to make it easier I've let it cool covered in the garage overnight - but if I don't have time, I cool it in the freezer.

You can change up the recipe for other yummies that you like!  I've tried white chocolate and walnuts, milk chocolate with pretzels, white chocolate with crushed candy canes and milk chocolate, butterscotch and nuts.  Double it up, and make different combinations!  Mix it up!

OH... just to make it more fattening, lol -- To make bark sandwiches, I've used fluff in the middle of two pieces... so sweet though, but kids love!

Hope that was fattening enough?!?!  I have created a new tag for some of my recipes - Fattening!  :)




LOL!  Anyway... hope you enjoyed this recipe!
Thanks for visiting!
Jenn (jk703)

An Interruption for DESSERT!!!!

Beep... Beep... A 30 Day Bloggity Blog Challenge Interruption... Beep... Beep... 

lol!  I'm playing, but I'm having fun!  My friend Linda (Scrapporreia) was telling me about a recipe for Brownies with Oreo's inside.  She explained them a bit, and sent me a link with a recipe!  It sounded divine!  I was just a little too lazy to look at the recipe, so I tried my own version!  Ready.... Set... Let's Go... gain a pound just by reading!  :)

You will need 

Box of Brownie Mix (and the stuffts to make it, as noted on the box)

Oreo's -- (I STRONGLY suggest Double Stuff!)

Non-stick Cooking Spray

Cake Icing... I used a Whipped Vanilla Icing. 

Muffin or Cupcake Pan

OK... Let's get started... it is pretty easy... 

Start by making the brownie mix as they advise on the box.  I used this kind -- it was all I had in the house at the time. It actually worked out really well... I'll share why later!  

I also used Oreo cookies... and they were Double Stuff!  YUMMY!  You could probably substitute another similar cookie or candy if you'd like... but I liked the whole Oreo and vanilla center idea!  Spray your pan... trust me - you DON"T want it to get stuck in there!  Once your brownie mix is stirred up and ready to go... plop an Oreo right in!  See!!!  

Get the Oreo all covered with Brownie mix as well as you can!  This is actually the hard part!  My mix was kind of chunky and didn't want to stick to the Oreo. I just kept kind of spooning the mix on the Oreo and spreading it around! OK.. Plop it into the muffin pan... See the pic below... I was worried that I didn't have enough brownie mix because it wasn't as liquid-y as my brownies normally were... it wasn't an issue.  

I popped them in the oven and let them cook per the boxes directions.  It was about 18 minutes... I pulled them out, and this was what they looked like!  They looked so good and smelled really really good!

 Now, the fun part... I have a sweet tooth, and took my Vanilla Icing and spooned some on top -- like a flattened cupcake. Here is my little masterpiece!  The chocolate brownie is good all on it's own, but adding the whipped topping really adds a different sweetness from the chocolate!  Try it!

Here's is what the inside looks like!  I took a bit and exclaimed to my husband... "Oh... I gotta get a shot of this - Check it out!"  He just rolled his eyes at me!  Oh well.... lemme tell you -- he ate 4!  

OK!  That is all... so easy, and I didn't follow a recipe!  lol!  There is one ingredient that you have to have after making these... Willpower... not to eat more than one! 

To think... this isn't even my "just by reading it, you'll gain 10 pounds" recipe... that one will be soon... when I make it next!  

I would love to know if you make them, what you ended up putting inside, and how it tasted to you!  Hope you enjoy it!

Thanks for visiting!

Jenn (jk703)

Day 4 & 5: Meet Mom and Dad... and some yummies!

Hi everyone!  Me again... yup... like it would be anyone else... lol... just playing!  I always seem to start my blog posts with Hi Everyone!  Can't help it!  I enjoy blogging, but can't properly start with out that beginning!

Day 4 -- Meet My Folks... ok... I have a couple of layouts that I MUST share!  They mean the world to me, and I wouldn't be who I am if I didn't have them!  Good and Bad... it made me... me!

Geek Chic Scraps -- Thankful For You
Graham Like the Cracker Tuesday Template 10/5
Font is Pea Steele

Geek Chic Scraps -- Thankful For You
Graham Like the Cracker Tuesday Template 10/5
Font is Pea Steele

Day 5 -- MUNCHIES!!!!

MY all time favorite snacky recipe is Pizza Squares... I know it sounds normal... but there is NO sauce?!  lol... Here is the recipe... when I make them next, I will take a pic and post the recipe again...

You will need:
1 10 oz. Refrigerated Pizza Dough
2-3 cups of Shredded Mozzarella Cheese (at least 2)
1-2 oz. Shredded Parmesan Cheese (at least 1)
2 Tbs. Fresh basil Leaves OR 2 Tsp. Dried basil Leaves
2/3 cup Mayonaise (I use the Fat Free, Low Cal one)
2 Garlic Cloves, Pressed
6 Plum Tomatoes (may need more depending on size)

Oven should be set to 375*.
Spray pan with non-stick spray.
Roll out pizza dough onto a 13x9 baking pan.
Press pizza dough toward the edges, try not to make holes like me! (lol!)
Sprinkle about 1 to 1 1/2 cups of the shredded mozzarella cheese all over the pizza crust.
In a separate bowl, combine: 1 to 1 1/2 cups remaining mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, mayonnaise, basil, garlic.  Add any other spices you would like...
Mix really well.
Slice and arrange tomatoes in a single layer - covering the pizza dough.
Spoon the cheese mixture onto the tomatoes. (I put some on each tomato, and then in any bare spots).
Bake 20 minutes - or until the top of the cheese is a light brown, bubbly, yummy mess!
Slice into squares with a Pizza Cutter!

EAT!  :)


I love that, and I bring this along with Guacamole to almost EVERY party I go to... I have one more really yummy recipe, but that will be another blog post - just reading it makes you gain 10 pounds!


Hope you've enjoyed your visit... and that you'll come again!
Jenn (jk703)