Friday Favorites- 8/7/15

Today I'm linking up with the Momfessionals blog, A Little Bit of Everything blog, and Grace and Love blog to blog about some Friday Favorites!

ONE

These two people: My brother and my sister-in-law. BOTH of them have birthdays today!! Happy Birthday Jeremy and Mandy! It's crazy that Lee and I each have one biological sibling and both of them have the same birthday! Lee and I both look up to them both so much. If we can be half the parents they are someday, our kids will be in good hands! I hope they both have the best day, because they more than deserve it.

My Sister-in-Law & I at the concert last weekend!

My brother, sister-in-law, Lee, and I at a concert back in May. 

TWO

Los Bravos Mexican Restaurant

Los Bravos... my favorite Mexican restaurant! I can't wait to eat here tonight with two of our BFF's. It seems like time with friends is hard to come by these days because everyone is busy with jobs, houses, families, and everything else that goes along with being a grown up, so I'm always excited to get some quality time with friends.

THREE

Kenny Chesney

Yep... Kenny Chesney... he's making the list two weeks in a row, because last Friday I was super excited to go to his concert, and this week I'm still talking about how AWESOME his concert was! Arrowhead Stadium was packed full for this concert and Kenny, Jason Aldean, Cole Swindel, Brantley Gilbert, and Old Dominion all put on one heck of a show!

My brother-in-law, sister-in-law, Lee, and I tailgating before the concert! 

FOUR

These Chipotle Garlic Fish Tacos I made when we got home on Sunday... so good! Definitely a good, quick summer dinner idea. Check out my recipe from earlier this week.

Tilapia fish tacos... yum! 

FIVE

Italian Meatballs... another favorite from this week. Check out my recipe. They were so good, and super easy to make! 

Happy Friday, friends!! I hope you all have a great weekend!

Italian Meatballs

Italian Meatballs... yum! 

On Monday this week, I made pasta and Italian meatballs. Pasta is Lee's favorite food, and I scored some huge brownie points with this recipe! I had never tried meatballs before, because I assumed they were a hassle to make, but guess what? They are so easy! Here's how I made them:


Ingredients
1 lb ground pork sausage (or if you prefer, use ground beef, turkey, or chicken)
1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 heaping tablespoon of pesto
1 tablespoon of minced garlic
1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning (Or if you just use Italian sausage instead of plain sausage, you can omit the Italian seasoning)
1/4 cup shredded Italian Cheese for each 2 plates you serve

Start by pre-heating your oven to 400 degrees. Mix your sausage, bread crumbs, Parmesan, pesto, garlic, and Italian seasoning together in a bowl. Line your cookie sheet with aluminum foil for easy clean up (optional). Spray your foil with cooking spray. Form your sausage mixture into golf ball size meatballs, and place on your cookie sheet. Bake them for 15-20 minutes, or until cooked through. This recipe makes 12 or so meatballs, depending how big or small you make them.

While my meatballs were baking, I boiled some pasta, drained it, and added pasta sauce to the noodles and cut some veggies for a salad. When Lee and I made our plates, we sprinkled some Italian cheese on top.  These meatballs take about 10 minutes to assemble, 20 minutes to bake. So in 30 minutes or less you can have dinner on the table. That sounds like a win to me!

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Chipotle Garlic Fish Tacos

Chipotle Garlic Fish Tacos... This is a great dinner to make on a busy week night, because they only take about 20 minutes to make! I know everyone knows how to make tacos, so this really isn't so much of a recipe...its more of a dinner idea. Lee and I made these last night and they were so good! Here's how we made them:

Ingredients

2 thawed fish fillets (Choose whatever kind of fish you like best! I love Tilapia, and Lee loves Salmon, so we thawed one of each)

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped bell pepper (I used yellow, but any color will work)

3 chopped button mushrooms

1/4 cup shredded Colby-Jack cheese

Chipotle Garlic Seasoning

Garlic Salt

2 flour tortillas

spinach leaves (or lettuce if you prefer)

salsa (optional)

guacamole (optional)

This makes enough for 2 large tacos, which is enough to serve 2 people, but can easily be doubled to serve 4.

To start, pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. For easy clean-up, line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray. Lay your fish fillets out on the pan and sprinkle them with chipotle garlic seasoning. Once your oven is heated, bake them for about 10 minutes, or until cooked through.

While your fish fillets are baking, drizzle a skillet with extra virgin olive oil, and throw in your onions, peppers, and mushrooms. Sprinkle some garlic salt and chipotle garlic seasoning on them. I didn't measure my seasoning, but if I had to guess, I'd say I probably used about a teaspoon of Chipotle Garlic and a 1/2 teaspoon of Garlic Salt. Once the veggies are soft, remove your skillet from the heat.

These are the two seasonings I used on my tacos. The Chipotle & Roasted Garlic came from Schnuck's and the Garlic & Sea Salt grinder came from Aldi.

Once your fish and veggies are both cooked, then you can assemble your tacos. On my tortilla, I started by spreading guacamole all over the middle. Then I cut my fish fillet into bite size pieces and placed them in the tortilla. Layer on your shredded cheese, veggies from the skillet, drizzle on some salsa, and top with spinach leaves. Then roll up your taco an enjoy! We ate our tacos with a side of queso, salsa, and chips.

You can switch this up and use any kind of fish, and any kind of veggies! It's tasty, healthy-ish, and quick to make. What more could you want in a dinner? Enjoy, friends!

Here is a pic of my tilapia taco prior to adding my spinach on top. 

This one is Lee's salmon taco. He also added a few chopped tomatoes to his. 

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Friday Favorites- 7/31/15

Today I'm linking up with the Momfessionals blog, A Little Bit of Everything blog, and Grace and Love blog to blog about some Friday Favorites!

ONE

Faith

I love this quote! This week has had some ups and downs for me. Its just hard when I so badly want to become a mother and it just isn't happening! Sometimes I just need to remind myself that even though we haven't gotten pregnant yet, that doesn't mean that it never will! This week I am reminded to stay faithful, and trust that God has a plan. 

TWO

These boots! I know its not boot season yet, and we still have plenty of time to wear our sandals and flip flops, but I bought these boots this week. I ordered them from Nordstrom Rack for $13 and some change! Less than $14 for a pair of boots?! How could I pass that one up?? I'm pretty excited about getting these in the mail next week.

THREE

Kenny Chesney

Yep... Kenny Chesney... Can't wait to see him in concert this weekend! Not only am I excited for the concert, but I'm especially excited to have a weekend away with my hubby, my sister-in-law, and my brother-in-law! Love them!!

FOUR

This weather... I love a little summer heat here and there, but the weather these past two days has been amazing! Warm and sunny, but not super humid and sticky! If it could stay like this for the next 6 weeks or so, I would be thrilled!!

FIVE

Pizza Dip... So yummy! Check out my recipe that I posted this week. If you're getting together with friends this weekend, you should try out this dip! Once you cook your meat, you just dump all of the ingredients in your slow cooker! 

Happy Friday everyone!! I hope your weekends are wonderful! 

Pizza Dip

Pizza dip... this one is always a crowd favorite. Almost every time my family gets together, someone  requests that I make this. I like this dip because it is usually something that everyone likes, even the picky eaters.  Here's how I make it:

Ingredients

1 lb. Italian sausage (I have used both sweet and hot in the past- both are good!)

5 slices bacon

1 cup chopped pepperoni (about half of the normal 8 oz. bag)

36 oz. pizza sauce or marinara sauce

1 cup shredded Italian cheese (mozzarella or any Italian blend, but it should be something other than Parmesan)

8 oz. cream cheese

8 oz. sour cream

1-8 oz. container of grated Parmesan cheese (2 cups) 

1 heaping tablespoon of pesto

1 tablespoon of minced garlic

water if dip is too thick (optional)

Start by cooking your Italian sausage and drain any grease. Dump the cooked sausage into your slow cooker. 

Next, fry up your bacon, remove it from the grease and chop it up. Dump it into your slow cooker as well. 

Starting with the marinara sauce, put the rest of your ingredients in the slow cooker one by one and mix them all up.  If your dip is a little thicker than you'd like, its okay to add a little bit of water. I usually put about 2 tablespoons of water in each of my marinara sauce jars and shake them up to get any excess sauce off the jar and dump all of that into my Crock Pot. 

Keep your slow cooker on low for about 2 hours, or until the cream cheese melts and the dip mixes together evenly. After that, change your heat setting to warm. 

This dip is hearty and filling, and so so good! You can mix and match it with other meats, or even add your favorite veggies. 

My favorite thing to serve Pizza Dip with is garlic bread, but it is also great with bagel chips or crackers. Enjoy!