Maple Scones

 

I love scones but I find the ones that you buy in the store are often dry and crumbly. I also find that I want them much more than I make them and I don't know why as they are so easy to make and I really should be making them much more!

These ones looked awesome as I absolutely love Maple anything so I was eager to give these a try. These were super easy to make. I do not have a food processor so I used a whisk and then cut in the butter by hand. I think I need to invest in a food processor but at the same time this was easy to do. 

After I mixed in the wet ingredients I did refrigerator after I cut them up until they were ready to bake. After they came out of the oven I gave them sufficient time to cool down before I made the glaze. The glaze was sooooo good and I wish I could have coated the whole scone!!

These were so awesome and I highly recommend them! 

You can find the recipe here: https://dinnerthendessert.com/maple-scones/

Beef Lo Mein

 I tried making this recipe before but I realized at the last minute that my steak had expired so I ended up winging a version that ended up really good but I was excited to try the recipe properly.

This recipe is super easy to make and everything is really straightforward. I ended up using steak that was precut for stirfry for convenience and it was really good. 

I followed the directions as is except that I used Chinese Steamed Noodles and used two carrots instead of just one. 

This recipe takes no time at all to make which was awesome and a great time saver on a busy night!

You can find the recipe here: https://dinnerthendessert.com/beef-lo-mein/

Penne Alla Vodka

 Years ago I made an incredible vodka pasta and it has remained one of my favorites but I can not remember where I found the recipe so I was on the hunt for another one. The one I made had sausage in it so this one was going to be completely different and I was ok with that.

I liked the idea of using prosciutto with the sauce as it isn't something I cook with very often but I do like how it crisps up and the taste of it so I was ready to give this one a try. 

I think I wish I would have actually used more than what the recipe called for if you enjoy some extra protein in the pasta. 

The sauce is super easy to make and straightforward but just be careful to make sure that the garlic doesn't burn. I think the 5 mins of cook time after the vodka is added can be changed if you are cooking for kids as if the temperature is not high enough then the alcohol will not cook off.

This was a really good recipe and I look forward to trying more! 

You can find the recipe here: https://copykat.com/pasta-alla-vodka-sauce/?utm_source=pinterest&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=social-pug

Philly Cheesesteak Sliders

 This was a recipe that looked easy enough to make and I was super excited to have it so I scheduled it in there.

Now I order most of my groceries on line and we don't always have the products I need so I knew that this one would unfortunately have some substitutions.

They did not have the Hawaiian Slider Buns at my grocery store so I ordered white buns which they were unfortunately out of so I ended up with Whole Wheat. I believe that this made a huge difference as white and Hawaiian Buns are much softer so we ended up with a harder and chewy sandwich.

The second thing was that my store did not carry shaved steak so I ended up getting a pre-packaged Philly Cheesesteak meat which was already marinated. I think that this also changed up things as it was much more "mushy" than what the recipe called for.

I did get the cheese whiz and was on my way. That being said I don't think my daughter put enough on as it wasn't as runny as what I would have preferred.

I think these were still good and had I had everything that the recipe called for it would have been incredible!

You can find the recipe here: https://www.mybakingaddiction.com/philly-cheesesteak-sliders/

Caramel Apple Scones

 I was super excited to give these ones a try as I love caramel and apples! 

I ended up having to make these over two days as I ran out of time but I only made the apples the first day and then mixed everything up together on the second day.

These were super easy to make and I found the addition of Greek yogurt interesting. That being said I wish I had a little more yogurt as I found the scones rather crumbly and hard to form together. 

These scones were so delicious though and I really enjoyed them! The icing was incredible and I probably could've eaten a whole bowl of just that!

You can find the recipe here: http://joandsue.blogspot.com/2014/05/caramel-apple-scones.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+JoAndSue+%28Jo+and+Sue%29

Homemade Chicken and Dumplings

 This is the ultimate comfort food and so freaking delicious! This was something I had never made before but was super excited to try. Somehow in all of the excitement of trying the new recipe I missed getting a picture so I have used the picture from the author's blog and I can tell you that mine looked good but not as good as this one! 

I cooked up the veggies as directed and then went onto making the roux. I went good and slow with the roux and it turned out awesome! I was so happy with how it turned out as sometimes it can be a real tricky thing to get it perfect and still hold onto the creamy feel to the soup. 

I was totally freaking out about making the dumplings and did it as close to the instructions as I could. I don't know if mine tasted as good as hers did but I thought I did a pretty good job. 

Now back to the soup and I only added chicken as I hate peas and thought I had parsley but I didn't so I just skipped it. I know I am missing out on more flavor but I really didn't want to leave to get parsley. 

My dumplings were definitely not anywhere close to perfection with how they looked going on but overall I thought I did a great job for my first time! This is something I would make again. 

For the leftovers I found that they could have used a little more liquid so I think after dishing out the food for dinner I would go back and add some more chicken stock just so the leftovers are less thick.

You can find the recipe here: https://www.browneyedbaker.com/chicken-and-dumplings/

HOMEMADE MAC AND CHEESE

 I seriously have to say that homemade mac & cheese is one of my most favorite meals ever. My grandma used to make it and it would make me so happy every time we had it. I think that is one of the reasons it means so much to me as it makes me remember her in the kitchen and pretty much everything about her. 

To be honest I may have made this one before as I often forget on pinterest to write notes about the ones I have tried and have really never thought about going back on here to see which ones I have tried.

This one is super easy to follow and I think one of the things I love most about it is that it only uses real cheddar and not any of the cheese loaves. 

We added the panko on top and it was pure perfection!! 

This one I can't wait to have again!

You can find the recipe here: https://lilluna.com/cheesy-mac-and-cheese/