Homemade Brownie Bites

fresh homemade brownies, straight out of the oven

This recipe came from my mom, she used it to make brownies for her family when she was young and could get it done within one commercial break. I started making them for the house church I help lead every Thursday night. It is a simple recipe, you can even make it without an electric mixer. I bake them in a casserole dish and then cut them into little bite size pieces so that I have enough for the people at house church. Everyone loves these brownies, they are moist, sweet and delicious. Thanks to my mom for the great recipe, I hope I can memorize it soon. Here it is if you want some simple yummy brownies.

Lori's Brownies:

1 1/2 cup flour

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

1 cup shortening or butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 teaspoon salt

7 tbsp cocoa powder

mix these ingredients together, butter cake pans or shallow casserole dishes. (do not use a loaf pan, it will take forever to cook, I learned that one from experience.) Pour in the batter and cook for 25 to 30 minutes at 350 degrees F. Enjoy:)

Bean Fiasco Turned into Dinner For One

Nacho's with black beans, brown rice, cheese and salsa

Most of the time I am hesitant to make a nice dinner for myself, mostly because I don't want to use the effort just for one person. However, making nachos is simple, fast and delicious. The other night Shane and I made black bean and rice quesadillas for dinner. I had some left over rice and beans, so I put them in a tupperware container to save them. I shook the container to mix it and Shane said, "shake it like you mean it" then he took the tupperware and shook it really hard. Unfortunately I had not secured the lid so rice and beans exploded. they went all over Shane's clothes, all over my dress, and all over the counters, stove and floor. We were both shocked and all I could do was laugh. Luckily we got it all cleaned up and I removed the stains from our clothes. The moral of the story: make sure the lid is secure before shaking the contents.

Anyway, having the left over rice and beans is what gave me the idea to make nachos. All I had to do was place chips on the plate, top them with cheese, rice, beans and salsa and placed it in the microwave for 1 minute. It was so delicious I made it two nights in a row. Hopefully next time, we wont lose half of the contents of the rice and beans so that I can make more nachos:) Until next time.

Three Cheese Tortellini

Three Cheese Tortellini with a marinara meat sauce, Mediterranean spices and parmesan cheese. Sides include buttered garlic toast and applesauce

This is a really simple dish. I got a package of pre-made tortellini, so all I had to do was cook them. These can be a little pricy meaning $4-$5, (which is pricy on a college budget), So I do not always get them. While the tortellini was cooking I made a marinara sauce out of half a pound ground beef, garlic, salt, pepper and a Mediterranean spice blend. Once the meat was browned I added half of an 84 cent can of marinara sauce and let it simmer.

Once the pasta was cooked I emptied the water and mixed the sauce and tortellini by folding it into the pot. (Folding is a careful way of mixing ingredients if you were not sure.) This way I didn't puncture any of the tortellini by stirring it in. Then I popped some bread in the toaster, spread it with some garlic and butter, sprinkled parmesan over the pasta and served the applesauce. I love Italian food and it is so simple to make, so there will be a variety of Italian ideas on this blog. Hope you are enjoying it:)

Homemade Cinnamon Rolls: Mmm Mmm Good

Fresh, homemade cinnamon rolls covered in a vanilla glaze and topped with diced roasted almonds sprinkled on top

I had a little extra time on my hands tonight because I finished my homework and didn't have to go to work. So I decided to make cinnamon rolls. This process is tedious and took me about two hours overall but it was well worth it. First I made the dough, and let it rise for about 45 minutes. While it was rising I made the simple vanilla glaze which only consists of powdered sugar, water, vanilla extract and butter. When the dough was ready I rolled it out and spread the melted butter, brown sugar and cinnamon on it. Whenever I roll up the cinnamon roll I always end up losing a lot of the filling. I am not sure how to avoid this so if any of you have any tips, please let me know.

Pre-baked cinnamon rolls

I buttered each pan and sprinkled a little brown sugar on it before placing the rolls down. Then I put them in the oven for about 25 minutes, so they would not overcook. After that I let them cool and then dipped each in the glaze and sprinkled almonds on top. Then I had all of these cinnamon rolls and no one to share them with, so I invited my friends Paul and Gray to come over and try them. Both guys gave a good review so I will be making these again when I get the chance. I you want this recipe just let me know:) Until next time.

Braum's Delight

Braum's Peanut Butter Hot Fudge Sundae, made with peanut butter cup ice cream and complete with whipped cream and a cherry

I, like many other college students, am on a budget. However every once in a while it is necessary to splurge on ice cream. I work every weekend so I don't ever get a chance to have a lot of fun. This last Friday night Shane and I had a measly dinner because I had not gotten a chance to go to the grocery store. Naturally we were still hungry, but I had to get to work. He drove with me because I was a little apprehensive about the ice. After work he picked me up and I was ravenous. Ice cream sounded sooo good. So we went to Braum's. For those of you that are not Southerners, that is a great ice cream/grocery place, and I got this delicious Sundae for under 3 dollars! I'm not advocating this for every weekend, but once in a while treat yourself to some ice cream, it's good for your soul!

Chicken Parmigiana

Chicken Parmesan and Minestrone soup. Sides include oven roasted carrots and garlic bread

Everyone loves Italian. For this meal I started by slicing the carrots for the side dish. I love carrots but I feel like it is too easy to over cook them when they are prepared in water. So i found an alternative. I slice them into sticks, cover them in olive oil and some Italian seasoning and placed them in a 400 degree oven until they were browned (usually about 20 to 30 minutes depending on how thinly sliced the carrots are.) This is my new favorite side dish, the texture is great and it has a very savory flavor. IF you do not like Italian seasoning they also taste great with salt and pepper. While these are in the oven I worked on the chicken.

I prepared a chicken breast the same way I did for the Chicken curry recipe (stove top) but when it was cooked I covered it in marinara sauce and parmesan and placed it in the oven until the cheese melted nicely. Then I heated up some left over minestrone soup and made the garlic bread using leftover bread. I also like to add a little Italian seasoning to the garlic bread to "kick it up a notch" (as Emeril would say.) Overall this is a really simple and delicious meal that I will definitely be making again.

Honey Baked Ham

Baked ham with a honey glaze, sides include a pre-made rice mixture and applesauce. Shane was especially excited to eat this one

This meal was inspired by my mother, and it pales in comparison to hers. However, I still consider myself an amateur chef, so there is plenty of room for improvement. I got the frozen ham form Walmart and it was a little too salty. I'm not sure if it was my fault or the actual meat was salted. Regardless, it was still an enjoyable meal. All it took was making the glaze which included honey, brown sugar and cinnamon. I used a small ham so it only took about an hour to cook. During this time you can study or do any homework, you may have while waiting for the ham to cook.

Simple Chicken Curry

Chicken Curry, sides include a quick serve rice mix and canned green beans (which I do not recommend and will not be using again)

I love yellow curry, but I always thought that it would be hard to make and expensive. but it's not. I made this meal in about a half an hour. Thawing the chicken before hand will really save you a lot of time.

Before you start, place the thawed chicken breast on a frying pan, cast iron if you have it (you actually intake more iron by using them, and they heat up fast.) Salt and pepper both sides of the chicken, put a little olive oil on the pan and cook on medium heat until the chicken is cooked thoroughly. While the chicken is cooking, start the sauce.

The sauce is really simple. I started with some chopped white onions. I placed the onions on the bottom of a small pot and browned them with butter. after they got sufficiently brown, about 7-8 minutes, I added about a half cup of milk and a few tablespoons of flour. the ratio of milk and flour depend on how think you want your sauce. if it seems a little runny add more flour, if it is dry add more milk until you find a perfect consistency. once this consistency is reached, I added a few teaspoons of yellow curry powder, which can be found at Walmart for a good price. Then I added salt and pepper to taste.

The leftovers of this meal made a great casserole. I sliced the chicken up and mixed it with the rice and corn. Then i sprinkled parmesan cheese over the top and put it in the oven just until the cheese melted. It was a completely different meal, using the same food. This is a great way to save money and fully use your resources.

Good Ol' Meat Loaf

I made this meat loaf my junior year. It was scrumptious. All it really takes is some ground beef, eggs, oatmeal, tomato sauce and some spices. The side dishes include canned sweet potatoes with a dash of cinnamon, cooked broccoli and a fresh sliced mango. Here is a great Meatloaf recipe to try it yourself.

Classic Meat Loaf

1 lb ground beef

1/2 cup oatmeal

1 egg

1/2 onion, chopped

dashes of salt, pepper, oregano, thyme

2/3 can tomato sauce

Mix ingredients together with your hands and place in a greased loaf pan for 1 hour at 350 degrees. Take out, cool and serve.

A Few Must Haves

Noodles are an essential must have to make quick easy meals

Shredded Cheese is great to have on hand for a variety of dishes

Tortillas can be used for wraps, burritos, flat bread etc.

Ground beef can be used for Mexican, Greek, American, Italian meals

This sauce is great to have on hand for a quick Italian dish

Apple Sauce is a great cheap side dish that can go with almost anything

Food Snob

I was never a gerber baby. From a young age I was fed a food processed version of the gourmet meal my mother made for the family each day. The result is that I was destined to become a food snob.

Like many other college students, I am unsatisfied by the so-called food served in the cafeteria. At most private colleges there are only two ways to take yourself off the meal plan. One move off campus, or two get married. These options may seem simple but they are far from it. Thus I eat in the cafeteria.

This blog was created in an effort to show that one can cook good, healthy food on a college student's budget. You may be thinking that as students we don't have time to cook, but I am here to tell you that a good hearty meal can be made in 20 to 30 minutes. Now don't think that this is something you have to do every night, it's not. Just choose a few nights a week to make something splendid. I promise that it is well worth the time and effort. So just try it...