Join Me in My Addiction!

Thank you for visiting my blog...and for allowing me to share with you my addiction. I love to collect recipes. I love to read cookbooks. I have been collecting recipes for as long as I can remember, and on any given day there are one or two (or more!) cookbooks residing on my nightstand!

This blog is chronicling my adventure as I fulfill my resolution of trying (at least) one new recipe each week. I hope that you enjoy!

I invite you to join me in my journey, simply by clicking the "Join this Site" link below. And please feel free to comment on any of the recipes, and pin away. Thanks, I look forward to sharing with you!

Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Turkey Noodle Soup

Hard to believe that I am talking turkey a month after Christmas!  But the turkey leftovers are long gone, except for the turkey that my Dad froze for us after he cleaned off the turkey at Christmas - and so, it is time for a Turkey Noodle Soup.  Here is my recipe:

Turkey Noodle Soup
Turkey Noodle Soup | Addicted to Recipes


1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
10 cups turkey or chicken stock (I used organic chicken stock)
2 potatoes, peeled and cubed
3 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 stalks celery, sliced
Dash of red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon parsley
2 cups egg noodles
2 cups of turkey, diced

In a large pot, sauté the onions in the olive oil until the onions start to soften, approximately 3 minutes.  Add in the minced garlic.  Sauté for 2-3 minutes.  Add in the chicken stock, bring to a boil and then reduce the heat.  Add in the potato cubes, simmer for 5 minutes.  Add in the carrots, celery, red pepper flakes, pepper and parsley.  Simmer for 15 minutes.  Add in the noodles and continue to simmer for another 10 minutes.  Add the diced turkey, allow the turkey to warm through.  Serve and enjoy!

VERDICT
A nice, hearty soup in the middle of winter, no matter how mild winter is this year :-)  A nice change to chicken noodle soup.  Tasted great!

Monday, January 27, 2014

Meal Plan Monday

Meal Plan Monday | Addicted to Recipes
Here we are...Monday again. Hard to believe...it's nearly February!  How was your weekend? Ours was relatively quiet...the usual swimming / hockey / tennis / groceries / laundry - it wasn't crazy busy and still seemed to fly by.  We've got a busy week coming up, so I've planned ahead with our meals:

Sunday - Lasagne (chock full of veggies, cuz that's how I roll)

Monday - Leftover lasagne

Tuesday - Crock Pot Pulled Pork Sandwiches and Coleslaw -  I'm trying a new recipe this time, but if you want to check out some of my other pulled pork recipes, this one for Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork is very popular, as is this one for BBQ Pulled Pork.

Wednesday - Leftovers

Thursday - Soup in the slow cooker...just not sure which one yet :-)

Friday - Leftovers / clean out the fridge... and Mama's going out for dinner with the girls!

Saturday - Hockey tournament...looks like take out.

Happy planning!

Sunday, January 26, 2014

Turkey Pot Pie with Puff Pastry

Ahh yes, turkey leftovers.  We hosted Christmas dinner at our house this year, which means we had lots of turkey leftovers.  I got to experiment and try some new to me recipes for those turkey leftovers.  This time we went for a delicious Turkey Pot Pie, great comfort food!

Turkey Pot Pie | Addicted to Recipes

Here is my recipe:

1/4 cup butter
1/3 - 1/2 cup onion, diced
3/4 cup carrot, washed, peeled and sliced
2/3 cup frozen peas
1/4 cup peppers (I used red and yellow)
2 stalks celery, washed and sliced
2 1/2 cups turkey or chicken broth (I used organic chicken broth)
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup dry white wine
2 cups turkey, chopped
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
Salt & pepper to taste
Puff Pastry (2 sheets)

Preheat oven to 350F.

Turkey Pot Pie | Addicted to Recipes
In a large saucepan, melt the butter.  Add in the onions, sauté until soft.  Add in the other vegetables, continue to sauté for 2-3 minutes.  Reduce heat, pour in the white wine, continue to cook until the wine has cooked off.  Add in the chicken broth and seasoning, bring to a boil.  Add in the flour to thicken.  Once thickened, add in the turkey, heat through.

Line a pie plate with puff pastry (I used the pre-made butter puff pastry, found in the frozen food section), fill the pie with the turkey mixture.  Top with another sheet of puff pastry.  Pinch the two sheets of pastry together, add in a few "breathing holes" on top of the pie (I just used a knife to cut a few slits into the top of the pie). 

Bake in oven for 30-35 minutes, or until top of pie is golden.

Serve and enjoy!

VERDICT:
This was a big hit with our family.  Everyone inhaled their dinner...and my hubby asked if I was making another one for dinner the next night.  Looks like this is a keeper :-)

Thursday, January 23, 2014

Throwback Thursday

Valentine's Day is fast approaching, so I thought it was fitting if I shared a Valentine's inspired recipe for this week's Throwback Thursday!  These cookies are so pretty.  A bit of work (especially if you are home alone with the kids!) - but they are well-received!

Here is this week's Throwback Thursday Recipe - Valentine's Heart Cookies! (link to the original recipe in the title).

Valentine's Heart Cookies | Addicted to Recipes

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Breakfast Cookies

Yes, you read that right.  Breakfast Cookies! Here at Addicted to Recipes, I'm a big cookie lover, always have been, probably always will be.  Y'all also know that I also love muffins.  But I've been into shaking things up a bit, and decided I wanted to try some breakfast cookies.  I saw some for sale at the grocery store the other day, so I took the little flyer about the cookies, read the ingredients, did some research, improvised, and this is what I came up with.
Breakfast Cookies | Addicted to Recipes

Breakfast Cookies

1/2 cup peanut butter (I used natural peanut butter)
1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 egg, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour (I used whole wheat)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup oats
1/2 cup coconut (I used medium shredded)
1 cup (combined) of flax seeds, raw pumpkin seeds, raw sunflower seeds, raisins, cranberries, pitted/diced dates

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a large bowl, beat together the peanut butter, honey, butter, egg and vanilla.

In a second bowl. combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, oats and coconut.  Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing just to combine.

Fold in the seed and fruit mixture.  Spoon onto prepared cookie sheet. Bake 9-11 minutes, remove from oven and cool slightly before moving to a cooling rack.  Store in an airtight container. Makes 2 dozen cookies.

VERDICT:
I love these, perfectly easy grab and go snack, especially for my work morning.  I can't send these to school or daycare because of the peanut butter, but we can take them to work.  The kids like them too...which is great for a "healthy" cookie!

Monday, January 20, 2014

Meal Plan Monday

Meal Plan Monday | Addicted to Recipes
Hello friends, Happy Monday!

I hope you had a great weekend. Ours was fairly quiet, our toddler was feeling under the weather, so he and I did a lot of hanging out and cuddling.  Our oldest has his usual activities over the weekend - hockey, swimming and tennis, and I did get a special visit in with a good friend on Friday night (before baby's fever hit).  However...I still didn't get the laundry caught up!

Here is this week's meal plan:

Sunday - Ribs (done two ways - Maple Glazed Ribs for the kids, and Sweet & Spicy Ribs for the adults), Dawn's Baked Beans, Roasted Broccoli

Monday - Pork chops, leftover baked beans, salad

Tuesday - Taco Tuesday! With Homemade Taco Seasoning.

Wednesday - Leftovers

Thursday - Homemade Hamburger Helper

Friday - Leftovers

Saturday - Undecided (yup, two weeks in a row, undecided on our Saturday dinner!)

What's on your meal plan this week?

Sunday, January 19, 2014

Cranberry Banana Maple Muffins

Yum, muffins.  We all know that I love them.  I know, they aren't always the best for you, but hey...a girl likes what a girl likes!  Maybe in addition to being Addicted to Recipes, I am also addicted to muffins!  I actually took a bit of a break from the muffin baking through December - with the holidays and all the places we had to be all the time, baking seemed to take a back seat for a while.  But it's January, and I'm back on track!

I was taking stock in my fridge and came on some cranberries that needed to be used, so these muffins were born!

Cranberry Banana Maple Muffins
Cranberry Banana Maple Muffins | Addicted to Recipes

1 1/3 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup oats (I used quick oats)
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

1 egg, slightly beaten
2 tablespoons maple syrup
3 bananas
1/2 cup butter, melted

1 to 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries

Preheat oven to 375F.

Mix together the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, oats, baking powder, salt).

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the wet ingredients (egg, maple syrup, bananas, melted butter).

Add the dry ingredients to the wet, mix to combine.  Fold in the cranberries.

Spoon batter into lined muffin cups.

Bake for 20-25 minutes.

VERDICT:
Our oldest told me that these are his "favouristest muffins ever!" - which says a lot for our first time having these.  These were a hit with the whole family.  The sweetness of the maple syrup is there, as is the tartness of the cranberries.  Next time I would probably put in a few more cranberries (on the 1 1/2 cup side).  Enjoy!


Thursday, January 16, 2014

Throwback Thursday

Hello everyone!  Welcome to my new series here on Addicted to Recipes - Throwback Thursday!  Each Thursday I will share an old favourite recipe (or two, depending on my mood!).  

Here is this week's throwback recipe - this is one of the first recipes that I posted here on the blog, and to this day it is a family favourite.  Click on the recipe title to take you to the original post.  Enjoy!


Our favourite, fall off the bone ribs.  Hands down #1!

Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Spinach and Feta Breakfast Muffins

Last week I shared my recipe for Breakfast Muffins, this week I made them again, with a different set of flavours.  I had some spinach in the fridge, and some oh-so-good feta cheese.  Spinach and feta go well together, and I remembered a friend who (when pregnant) loved feta in her scrambled eggs - so I figured these must be a good idea.  Here is the recipe:

Spinach and Feta Breakfast Muffins
Spinach and Feta Breakfast Muffin | Addicted to Recipes

12 eggs
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon dry mustard
1/8 teaspoon onion powder
Fresh spinach, washed, stems removed, and torn into bite sized peices
1 cup feta cheese - crumbled - (I used TreStelle) - or more or less feta depending on your preference!

Preheat oven to 375F.

Prepare muffin tin - I buttered mine - you could also line with paper, but would recommend that the paper be buttered or sprayed with cooking oil.

Beat eggs. Add in seasonings.

Start to fill your muffin cups - in the following order:
- Spinach
- Feta

Over the spinach and feta layer, pour your eggs. Fill about 2/3 full (as when baking, these will GROW!).

Bake for approximately 25 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool before removing from muffin tin. These can be stored in the refrigerator for a week in a sealed container. Great grab-and-go breakfast!

Don't forget to check out these other great breakfast recipes! All-American Breakfast Nests and Baked Egg Cups.

VERDICT:
Again, so tasty, and just the perfect little snack / second breakfast for my desk at work.  These, like the other Breakfast Muffins, would also be great for the kids on busy mornings when you might be short of time to make their breakfast.

Monday, January 13, 2014

Meal Plan Monday

Meal Plan Monday | Addicted to Recipes
Hello friends, happy Monday to you!  Welcome to Meal Plan Monday here at Addicted to Recipes.  I hope that your week is off to a good start.  I think that I may be fighting a bug...ack!  Doing all I can to fight it...please send your healing thoughts!  I do have my meal plan ready for the week - here it is for you!

Sunday - Beef Stew, German Apple Cake (plus Broccoli Cheddar Soup for lunch, and whipped up a batch of Cranberry Lemon Muffins for our lunches/snacks this week)

Monday - Leftovers (Beef Stew, Cashew Chicken)

Tuesday - Pork Chops, Roasted Broccoli, Salad

Wednesday - Leftovers

Thursday - Spaghetti & Meat Sauce, Salad

Friday - Caramelized Salmon & Salad (we ended up not having the salmon last Friday as we had lots of leftovers, so it's on the menu for this week!)

Saturday - Undecided...yup, even a planner like me can be undecided, 6 days in advance ;-)

Happy planning!

Sunday, January 12, 2014

Breakfast Muffins

Yes...more muffins from me!  But this time I was looking for something different, more breakfasty.  I have a recipe for Breakfast Cookies which I will sharing soon, but today I am sharing a recipe for Breakfast Muffins.  I've made similar things in the past - check out these recipes for All-American Breakfast Nests and Baked Egg Cups.

Breakfast Muffins
Ham and Cheese Breakfast Cups | Addicted to Recipes


12 eggs
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon dry mustard
1/8 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
1/2 cup ham or bacon, cooked and diced
2-3 green onions, washed and chopped
1-2 cups cheddar cheese (I used old/sharp cheddar)

- Feel free to add in other vegetables, based on your preference and what you have on hand.  You could easily add peppers, onions, broccoli, and more!

Preheat oven to 375F.

Prepare muffin tin - I buttered mine - you could also line with paper, but would recommend that the paper be buttered or sprayed with cooking oil.

Beat eggs.  Add in seasonings.

Start to fill your muffin cups - in the following order:
- Ham or bacon
- Vegetables
- Cheese

Over the ham/vegetable/cheese layer, pour your eggs.  Fill about 2/3 full (as when baking, these will GROW!). 

Bake for approximately 25 minutes.  Remove from oven and allow to cool before removing from muffin tin.  These can be stored in the refrigerator for a week in a sealed container.  Great grab-and-go breakfast!

Makes 12-15 muffins.

VERDICT:
These are pretty tasty.  The tang of the sharp cheddar cheese is oh-so-good.  These are perfect for me, as I tend to have a "second breakfast" each morning at work, these are easy to throw into my lunch kit.  One thing though, these STICK to the pan.  I must figure out how to make them less sticky.  Would love your suggestions!

Friday, January 10, 2014

Keep Calm and Cook on - January

It's time for the January edition of Keep Calm and Cook On!!  



I don't know about you, but January can be one of those BLAH months...if we could afford it, I would love for us to be on vacation for part of January (one day when we make our millions...or get to stop paying for daycare LOL)... so I thought that this month's edition of Keep Calm and Cook On would be an easy one...I would love for you to share either your top recipe or your personal favorite recipe from your blog!  Thanks for sharing with us!

Thursday, January 9, 2014

Keep Calm and Cook On - December Features



Hello to all my "Keep Calm and Cook On" Friends!  I hope that you had a stellar December, I know we sure did.  So much fun being with family and friends, hard to believe it's all done and now in's January.  Looking forward to our next break, which is Family Day in February.

There were so many amazing appetizers shared during the Keep Calm and Cook On - December party.  I'm featuring the top 8, as chosen by my readers!


Here we go:

Sweet Chicken Bacon Wraps from A Nest in the Rocks



Game Day Recipe Smoked Salmon Spread from Turnips to Tangerines



Cranberry Meatballs from Sunflower Supper Club



Blue Devil Bacon Jalapeno Poppers from Sumptuous Spoonfuls


Blue Devil Bacon Jalapeno Poppers

Spicy Crackers from SteakNPotatoesKindaGurl



Homemade Garlic Bread from Momcreiff



Pampered Chef's Veggie Pizza from Fancy Frugalista



Mozzarella Cheese Sticks from Noshing with the Nolands



Be sure to come back for the Keep Calm and Cook On - January party...party goes live Friday!

Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Fresh Spring Rolls

We are big fans of finger foods in our house.  My dear husband especially, he loves appetizers (wings, crab buns, and so on).  Being the new year, and since it has been exceptionally sunny so far this winter (an anomaly for us...as beautiful as our valley is, come January we are often buried in valley cloud. Take these gloriously bright and sunny days and add in the new year, when we all try to "do better" in one way or another, I was inspired to make something new for a snack for us - one on the fresh, springlike, healthy side.

Enter spring rolls.  And I don't mean the deep fried kind that you find at restaurants or in the frozen-food section at the grocery store.  These are "my style"...with fresh vegetables, fresh taste, and a little bit of zip from one of my favourites, feta.  I've never made any sort of fresh spring roll before, so I winged it based on what I had in my kitchen (except the rice paper, I did have to go buy that).  Here is what I did to put them together.

Fresh Spring Rolls
Fresh Spring Rolls | Addicted to Recipes

Chicken (thigh or breast - I used boneless thighs)
Rice paper - I used the larger ones (22 cm)
Rice vermicelli
Fresh spinach
Carrots
Cucumber
Red pepper
Feta cheese - I use TreStelle
Tzatziki (you can make your own, or use store bought - I had store bought on hand, so that's what I used)

Prepare the rice vermicelli noodles - I brought a pot of water to boiling, added in the noodles, cooked for about 3 minutes, strained, rinsed with cold water, and left in the colander in the sink while I prepared everything else.

Poach the chicken, cool and cut into pieces.

While the chicken is cooling, prepare your vegetables. Wash the spinach, remove stems.  I used organic baby spinach.  Wash, peel and julienne your carrots, wash and julienne the cucumbers (I left the peel on for added colour).  Wash and julienne the red pepper.  I set up all of the filling into an assembly line in the following order:  Rice paper, spinach, vermicelli, chicken, feta, tzatziki, carrots, cucumber, red pepper.


Prepare the rice paper, one sheet at a time, by soaking in warm water for 10 seconds, then lay flat on your work surface.  Add each ingredient to the roll - don't overfill!  I made these the same way I make soft tacos - put the ingredients more towards one end of the paper, fold over the sides, and roll it up to seal it all in.

Fresh Spring Rolls | Addicted to Recipes

The prep time for the filling takes way longer than the rolling time, and once you get into a rhythm with the rolling, you can burn through making rolls pretty quickly. 

VERDICT:
Quite simply, we inhaled these. So fresh, so good for us.  The tang of the feta and the tzatziki was just so good.  My hubby wanted dip too (appetizer guy!) - but he still enjoyed them just as they were.  We liked them so much that we made them again the next day :-)  These will be great come summer!


Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Goodness Me Stuffed Mushrooms

Our New Year's Day dinner got a little delayed, hubs was a little under the weather and I didn't want us to prepare a beautiful steak dinner that he wasn't gong to enjoy, so once he was feeling better we moved ahead with our plan.  I had planned to sauté some mushrooms in garlic and butter to go with our meal, but after a fridge clean-out, I discovered some cheese and cream cheese which left me inspired to try making stuffed mushroom caps for the first time.  I wasn't really sure what to do, but this is what I came up with:

"Goodness Me!" Stuffed Mushroom Caps

12-15 mushrooms, washed and stems removed (but keep those stems!)
Goodness Me! Stuffed Mushrooms | Addicted to Recipes

2 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 brick (1/2 cup) cream cheese, softened
100 g Havarti cheese (I used TreStelle Roasted Garlic Havarti)
2 tablespoons panko

Preheat oven to 350F.

Wash the mushrooms and remove the stems.  Set the caps aside. Chop the stem pieces into small pieces.

In a frying pan over medium heat, melt the butter.  Add in the chopped stems and the minced garlic.  sauté approximately 5 minutes.  Reduce heat to low.  Add in the onion powder and pepper.  Mix well.  Add in the cream cheese, stir frequently as the cream cheese is melting.  Add in the Havarti, again, stir frequently as the cheese is melting.  Remove from heat. 

Using two small spoons, scoop the cheese mixture into the mushroom caps.  Fill them up!  Place each cap on a baking sheet (I lined mine with foil for easier clean-up afterwards).  Once all your caps are filled, sprinkle a little panko on top.

Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the panko is golden.  Remove from oven, and enjoy!

VERDICT:
Hubby LOVED these.  Oldest son hates mushrooms and cream cheese, but he willingly gave one a try.  Didn't like it, but at least he was willing to try! Our youngest spit the mushroom out, but he was fond of the filling (all that cheesy goodness, who wouldn't?!...well, except our oldest LOL).  And I loved them too.  They were tasty.  Slightly rich, perfect for our steak dinner.  Hubs is already asking me to make them again :-)

Monday, January 6, 2014

Meal Plan Monday

Hello everyone!  Happy Monday to you!  Is it a "back-to-school" and "back-to-work" day in your house like it was for us?  I am pleased at how surprisingly well our morning went - no crises, no running late, everything was smooth sailing.  Yeah!

Both of our kids were ready for back-to-school and back-to-daycare this morning.  2 weeks at home with Mom must not be as exciting as playing with friends all day, LOL.  We had a great Christmas break, but as always, it is nice to get back to routine.

Speaking of routine, here is this week's meal plan.  You may notice some carry-overs from last week.  Despite our best laid plans, our menu changed up a bit last week when we had extra leftovers and changes of plan.  Here is this week's meal plan:

Meal Plan Monday | Addicted to Recipes
Sunday - Sweet & Sour Chicken, Salad and Peas

Monday - Leftovers

Tuesday - Homemade Pizza

Wednesday - Savoury Fish & Rice

Thursday - Beef Barley Soup (Crock Pot)

Friday - Caramelized Salmon (recipe coming soon!), Salad

Saturday - Crock Pot Cashew Chicken (recipe coming soon!)

Enjoy everyone!

Sunday, January 5, 2014

Detox Water

I don't make a lot of resolutions, but when I do, I tend to stick with them.  For example, this blog started as a New Year's resolution 2 years ago and I'm still here, doing my thing!  So, one of my resolutions this year is to drink more water.  I know, a no-brainer, but in my world, I'm a bit of a coffee addict.  I drink coffee all morning (my cut-off time is noon) and then I feel I don't drink enough until the evening, when I sometimes enjoy that glass of wine at the end of the day.


Detox Water | Addicted to Recipes
Well, given the amount of coffee (and sometimes wine) that I drink, I also feel that my body needs a bit of a cleanse.  So I figured that I would add a few things to my water to increase it's taste appeal and hopefully add a few other benefits too, like some extra nutrients and maybe some detox effects too!

Here is my Detox Water:

Lemon
Lime
Cucumber
Mason Jar
Filtered Water

Wash the lemon, lime and cucumber.  Slice. Put into a mason jar. Fill with water. Seal, and refrigerate overnight. Simple. So excited about this!

Do you make your own detox water? What do you put into it?

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Top 10 Recipes from 2013

Here we are, the first day of 2014.  HAPPY NEW YEAR!  I spent some time this morning looking at my stats from 2013 so that I could pull together a list of my top 10 recipes from 2013.  What a great list@ And what great memories from all those wonderful meals.

Here are my TOP 10 RECIPES from 2013 (click recipe title to go to the full post)

10) Chunky Pecan Bars - Just made these the other day...took them to work...got RAVE reviews :-)

Chunky Pecan Bars | Addicted to Recipes

9) Chicken & Corn Chowder - Slow Cooker

Chicken and Corn Chowder | Addicted to Recipes


8) Spaghetti Squash Mac N Cheese

Spaghetti Squash Mac N Cheese | Addicted to Recipes

7) Easy Cornbread - Slow Cooker

Easy Cornbread | Addicted to Recipes


6) Pink Chantilly with Cranberries

Pink Chantilly with Cranberries | Addicted to Recipes

5) Dawn's Baked Beans - Slow Cooker - Our youngest just LOVES these!
Dawn's Baked Beans | Addicted to Recipes


4) Parmesan Baked Potatoes - Oh so good...all that butter and parm!

Parmesan Baked Potatoes | Addicted to Recipes

3) Beef in Beer Pot Roast - Slow Cooker

Beef in Beer Pot Roast | Addicted to Recipes

2) Broccoli Cheddar Soup - Slow Cooker - a favourite in our house!

Broccoli Cheddar Soup | Addicted to Recipes

1) CINABUN CAKE!  My #1 recipe of 
all time, this one has been on fire this fall.  Such a simple recipe, and the ingredients are all typical pantry staples.  So good!

Cinabun Cake (Cinnamon Bun Cake) | Addicted to Recipes