Skillet Brown Sugar & Cinnamon Apples With Marie Callender's Pot Pie

This Marie Callender’s pot pies shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #WarmthInACrust #CollectiveBias

I am all about comfort food.  I grew up at the time when frozen meals were just hitting the freezer section at the local grocery store. Yes, I'm old...Anywho, during the winter months, nothing warms my heart and takes me back to my youth like a freshly baked pot pie from the freezer.  I'm all about a good flaky crust and that is why I love Marie Callender's Pot Pies the best! They are packed full of veggies and and the gravy is so yummy!  Yep, they are ten times...no a hundred times better than the pot pies I grew up on.

I decided to grab a family size Marie Callender's pot pie the other day when I was shopping at Walmart. The pot pies can be found in the freezer section right by the other Marie Callender's meals.  I figured that was easier to get a family size than trying to decide what flavors Mr. B & his mother might want. They got what I wanted LOL! I also grabbed some apples so that I could make my skillet brown sugar & cinnamon apples to go along as a side dish.

Baking the pot pie is as simple as preheating your oven, making sure to poke some holes in the top crust and placing on a baking sheet in the oven for 1 hour and 35 minutes.

While the pot pie is baking I made up the skillet brown sugar & cinnamon apples.

I peeled, cored and cut up 6 good sized apples. I then melted the butter in a heavy skillet, added the apples and then the cinnamon, brown sugar and some freshly grated nutmeg.

Then just cook until the apples are tender.

By this time, the pot pie is done and it's time for dinner!

Just look at that gravy just oozing out! Oh to the yum!

Tender vegetables, all white-meat chicken and gravy, all packed under a perfectly flaky and golden crust that's made from scratch!

Convenient, fast and the truest sense of homemade, enough to fool anyone! Now that's my idea of comfort food! What's yours?

You can visit Marie Callender’s to learn more about the product and then visit their website for more great recipes. You can also find Marie Callender’s on Facebook at Marie Callender’s Meals.

Skillet Brown Sugar & Cinnamon Apples

1/4 cup butter

6 apples, peeled, cored and chopped

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Directions:

Melt butter in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Saute apples, brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg until the apples are tender and golden, 15-20 minutes. Serve warm.

Whip Up A Party In Your Mouth With Yoplait Greek 100 Whips!

This article is sponsored by Yoplait Greek 100 Whips!

You may remember a few weeks ago I reminded you that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. I have been doing really well in having a good breakfast each morning. Now, I'm here to tell you about that other important part of a day, SNACKING! Yes, snacking can be important too. Especially if you keep it healthy. Done right, it can actually be a party in your mouth.

Because I really love Yoplait yogurts, I was really excited to learn about their new product, Greek 100 Whips!. They are super light and fluffy, like a mousse actually, are only 100 calories with zero fat and they come in 8 fantastic flavors like Vanilla Cupcake, Black Cherry and Lemon Meringue. Plus, you can use them in recipes too! In fact, here are a bunch of tasty recipes for you to take a look at.

Now, how can YOU have a party in YOUR mouth with the new Yoplait Greek 100 Whips!?  Oh so simple my friends! I just opened up a package of a Vanilla Cupcake flavored Yoplait Greek Whips and...Cue some house music...

BAM! Snack party time with no guilt! That's right, a party can be as simple as adding some fun sprinkles! Whip it up!  Whip it real good! You can even dance around while you eat it. I won't say nothing! Pinky swear!

I know you are going to want to try some of the Yoplait Greek Whips! for yourself, so, here's the Yoplait Greek 100 Whips! coupon page so you can save a buck when you go to buy your own. Isn't it time for you to make your snack time, party time??

Crystal Farms Sharp Cheddar Cheese & Apple Panini

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Crystal Farms Cheese for IZEA. All opinions are 100% mine.
(Be sure to check out the giveaway at the end of this post!)

Sometimes, Mr. B is so easy to make a quick weeknight meal for.  One of his favorite foods is as simple as a sandwich. When I asked him the other night what he wanted for dinner he answered "can we just have sandwiches?". But of course!  I went digging through the fridge and pantry and saw that we had some Crystal Farms cheese, a couple of apples and some ciabatta bread. I just knew that these ingredients could come together and make a pretty fine sandwich.

As much as we love marble jack cheese, I chose to go with the sharp cheddar for this sandwich as I knew it would complement the golden delicious apple really well. 

I have been buying Crystal Farms cheese products for some time now. They have been around since 1926 and are committed to providing the highest quality cheese to their consumers. I like that the products are all-natural, contain very little preservatives, and are a terrific source of calcium. For those of you on special diets, they are also gluten free!  Bonus points for tasting yummy too!

Now, on to sandwich making!  Thinly slice some cheese and do the same with an apple. Cut your ciabatta bread and add a good spread of some deli mustard on each cut side.  Layer on the apples and the cheese on one slice of bread and then place the other slice of bread on top. Spread just a small amount of butter on the top piece of bread. Set on a preheated panini press and close the top. 

If you don't own a panini press, no worries, just use a hot non stick or cast iron skillet. Heat until the cheese has melted and the bread is nicely toasted. 

Oh I love the sight of ooey gooey cheese! The apples are warm and soft and add just the right amount of sweetness.  The deli mustard brings that perfect blend of spices to the sandwich.

Oh yeah!  It was a hit!  My mother-in-law loved it even more when she found out Crystal Farms cheeses are lactose tolerant! And Mr. B? Well let's just say this has already been requested again for dinner!

You can find tons of other recipes using Crystal Farms cheese by following Crystal Farms on Pinterest or by visiting Crystal Farms Favorites.

Wait!! Don't leave yet!  In honor of my upcoming birthday, you can enter to win this awesome La Creuset Serving platter! 

All you have to do is leave a comment below telling me what your favorite cheese recipe is! This giveaway ends at 12:12 PM (Mountain Time) (the exact time I was born) on Sunday February 15th and is only open to US mailing addresses (NO PO BOX). 

8 Chicken Wing Recipes For The Big Game

If you have been following me for any length of time you know we are big football fans in this house.  We are very loyal to our boys in the Blue & Orange and we were pretty disappointed that they aren't playing in the Big Game this year. Never fear, we will still get together with friends and watch the game! Our favorite finger food for watching the Big Game are wings!  Bone-in, boneless, baked, fried, sweet, or spicy, heck, we'll even eat them if they are made healthier, you just can't go wrong with setting a few trays of wings out!  With that in mind, 8 of my bloggy buddies offered up some of their very favorite wing recipes for me to share with you today so you can be ready for some football!

Sweet & Spicy Wings - The Nerd's Wife

Hot Wings My Way - Brittany's Pantry

Zero Carbs Boneless Buffalo Wings - Peace, Love & Low Carb

Aunt Cass' Chicken Wing & Sauce Recipes - Survival Guide For The Working Mom

Game Day Oven Baked Hot Wings - Life With Captain Fussybuckets

Grilled Hot Wings - How To Have It All

Slow Cooker Sweet Chili Hot Wings - Num's The Word

Boneless Buffalo Wings - A Mindful Mom

There you go!  8 awesome chicken wing recipes to impress even the toughest, most die hard fan!  Now, which one will you be serving for the Big Game?

Like what you see? 

Well then, follow me by email and never miss a new post

Click here to see where I may be partying this week. 

AND

Don't forget to come by on Tuesday's

for the link party.

SNICKERS, Skittles & Starburst Big Game Day Cake

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. As always, all opinions are mine alone. #BigGameTreats #CollectiveBias

Just because our favorite team didn't make it to the big game, (insert sad face) it doesn't mean we won't be watching, if only for the commercials!  We will be gathering with friends and everyone will be expected to bring food and snacks. Our neighbor is in charge of smoking some ribs, someone else will bring wings, and there will be chips and dips galore.  

I decided I would contribute a fun, Big Game Day Cake, using SNICKERS®, Skittles®, and Starburst®.

List in hand, I headed to Walmart for my supplies. The SNICKERS, Skittles & Starburst are all found in the same aisle.  SNICKERS in the chocolate candy section and just a bit down, I found the Skittles & Starburst right next to each other in the bagged candy section of the aisle!  Score!

Now, on to the cake making!

To make it easy on myself, so that I can also enjoy the big game, I bought a vanilla cake mix, a tub of vanilla frosting, some green food coloring and can of cupcake icing with decorating tips. 

I baked the cake per the instructions on the box.  While it cooled, I emptied the tub of icing into a bowl and added the green food coloring until it was as grassy green as I wanted it to be. After icing the cake with the frosting, I delicately striped on the yardage lines with the cupcake icing using the smallest tip. (Okay, maybe not as delicately as I would have liked, but our friends are just going to dive into this cake no matter how uneven the lines are)

My mother-in-law then made up the goalposts using yellow pipe cleaners from my craft stash.

We then sorted out some Skittles and Starburst candy for the colors of the teams playing in the Big Game. I cut some SNICKERS and they became the field judges aka referees. We added more of the candies at each end zone to represent the fans.

I really like how it turned out and I know it is going to be the hit of the party! C'mon, wings, chips and dip are the usual for the big game, but a cake like this? Everyone loves #BigGameTreats, am I right? 

Now that I've shared my my game day treat with you I want to hear what you plan on making for the Big Game! Just leave a comment below.

Red Velvet Muddy Buddies~Love Bakes Good Cakes

I am super excited to have my dear buddy Jamie from Love Bakes Good Cakes visiting with her recipe for Red Velvet Muddy Buddies today!  Jamie and I go waaay back and she is my go-to for whenever I need a new recipe in my arsenal. Take her Basic Brownie recipe for example.

I make these quick and easy brownies at least once a month! 

Now, without further ado, kick back and get to know Jamie!

Woot, woot! I am super duper excited to be back at Kathe's place!! It's been awhile! :) I guess I should introduce myself .... I'm Jamie and I blog over at Love Bakes Good Cakes and eat. drink. yum. I love to share family-friendly recipes on both of my blogs - and I love to hang out with my pal, Kathe!

Since Valentine's Day is less than a month away, I wanted to share an easy little treat with y'all today. Who doesn't LOVE Red Velvet and muddy buddies {aka puppy chow to some folks}?! It seemed like a natural thing to put the two together and create this addicting mix!

Just a little side note - since the M&M's® Red Velvet flavored candies are a seasonal item, feel free to switch them out for regular M&M's® candies if they're not available later on in the year - this will still be just a yummy! :) Also another note - the LorAnn Red Velvet Bakery Emulsion can be found with the party stuff and cake decorating stuff at your local big box store - or you can find it at places that sell cake decorating items! I love the stuff - it provides not only the red coloring, but a great Red Velvet flavoring! Also note, you can find the Hershey's Chocolate Spread near the peanut butter and jelly. Be forewarned, you will want to spread it on everything!

I think I've covered all my "where to find this product" info .... now, about that recipe ....

Red Velvet Muddy Buddies
Printable recipe
Yield: 9 cups

Ingredients:

8 cups Chex cereal
1 cup white chocolate chips
½ cup Hershey's Chocolate Spread
¼ cup butter or margarine
1 tsp. LorAnn Red Velvet Bakery Emulsion
1 cup Red Velvet cake mix, dry
½ cup powdered sugar
1 cup M&M's® Red Velvet flavored candies

Method:

Measure the cereal into a large bowl and set aside.

Microwave the white chocolate chips, Hershey's Chocolate Spread and butter in a 1-Qt. microwave-safe bowl on HIGH power for 1 minute. Sir. Microwave an additional 30 seconds or until the mixture can be stirred smooth. Stir in the LorAnn Red Velvet Bakery Emulsion. Quickly pour the mixture over the cereal, stirring until evenly coated. Pour the cereal mixture into a 2-gallon zip-top bag.

Add the dry cake mix and powdered sugar to the bag. Seal the bag and shake until well coated. Spread on waxed paper to cool.

Once cool, mix in the M&M's® Red Velvet flavored candies. Store in an airtight container.

Other Posts You May Enjoy:

M&M's® Red Velvet Cookie Cake

Red Velvet Cinnamon Rolls

The Most Important Meal of the Day With Yoplait Light Yogurt

Thank you to Yoplait Light for sponsoring today’s discussion. All opinions are 100% my own.

Since I was let go from my job I am trying to stick to a schedule at home. I spend several hours, first thing in the morning, at my computer sending out resumes and filling out applications. I also have a cleaning schedule set up so that each day I tackle cleaning chores such as: scrub the toilets, sweep the floor, do laundry or whatever. I even have it on my schedule to take on bigger projects that I had wanted to do but, because I worked full time, I never could get to them. 

One thing I didn't have on my schedule was remembering to eat breakfast. Not a bad thing if you're trying to lose weight but, a very bad thing if you are trying to concentrate and keep on task. I'd find my brain getting foggy and my body waning as the morning went along, especially if I was taking on a deep cleaning project. You've heard it as have I, breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  Numerous studies have shown that even a simple breakfast can increase productivity and even help with weight loss.

So, now I have it on my schedule to make sure I start my day off right.  I'm not one for a hearty farmer style breakfast during the week. I want flavor but I don't need my belly to be full full!  That's why I love Yoplait Light Yogurts! There are so many great flavors at only 90 calories!  They are great for a dessert, a quick late night snack or, for me, a great addition to a healthy breakfast! 

I love the Yoplait Light White Chocolate Strawberry flavor!  It's my favorite and when paired with a banana, I feel like I am indulging in some decadent dessert. It's the perfect breakfast for when I need that quick boost of energy and is packed full of calcium!   

There so many other great flavors of Yoplait Light including, but not limited to, Boston Cream Pie, Raspberry Cheesecake, Key Lime Pie, Harvest Peach and Strawberry. 

I can even take a Yoplait Light Yogurt like blueberry and add a crumbled graham cracker to it for a different take on my breakfast!  In fact, Yoplait came up with a bunch of tasty Snack Hacks, all of which are 150 calories or less!!

Now, by adding "EAT BREAKFAST" to my daily schedule, and making sure I have my (now very clean) fridge (it was on my schedule to do) stocked with Yoplait Light Yogurt, I find myself getting more done more efficiently each day! The brain fog is gone!!

Now, make sure to visit the Yoplait Pinterest page for more ideas and inspiration on snack hacks and let me know which one you're going to try!

My Christmas Wish List For My Mother-In-Law

This post is brought to you by the awesome people over at Wayfair. All opinions in this post are mine. 

Since my mother-in-law moved in with us last month and is no longer working, she has been helping out in the kitchen while I am at work. Let's just say I am getting a tad spoiled by having dinner on the table when we get home. That's not to say I haven't cooked up a few things of my own, but she is enjoying using some of my favorite tools and has expressed that when she finds a new place of her own, there are few things she'd like to have. So, since Wayfair asked me to put together a kitchen Christmas wish list, I decided to create one just for her!

John Boos Maple Butcher Block Cutting Board - She has been cutting up veggies up a storm and loves my butcher block cutting board so, why not get her the best? This Boos cutting board is top of the line and will last her many years!

Le Creuset Cast Iron Oval French Oven - Just the other day we came from work to a bubbling pot of stuffed cabbage, one of Mr. B's favorites. She went on and on about how much she loved using my cast iron dutch oven and how she was going to have to get one for herself. Hint taken!

Calphalon Tri Ply Stainless Steel Saucepan with Lid - I am a huge fan of Calphalon pots and pans and now, she is too! Especially the stainless steel saucepans I have.

Wusthof Gourmet 18 Piece Knife Block Set - A good knife set for her is a no brainer! I have used her knives before and they are dangerously dull.  Getting her a great set like this Wusthof one will give me peace of mind!

Cuisinart 6 Quart Electric Pressure Cooker - She was amazed at how safe and fast my electric pressure cooker is!  I made both Mongolian Beef and the rice for it for dinner over the weekend and she was shocked at how tender the beef came out.  Dinner was on the table in less than an hour and I only used this tool to get it there. 

Calphalon Unison Nonstick 2 Piece Fry Pan Set - She mentioned in passing that she wished she had some smaller good non stick frying pans, since it will be only her that she will be cooking for most of the time. This two-piece set from Calphalon should be just the ticket!

Lodge Skillet with Assist Handle - She also mentioned (hinted?) that she wished she had a better cast iron skillet with a better way to move it from the stove to the table. Lodge is my favorite brand for cast iron and when I saw this one with the assist handle, I knew it had to be added to the list.

Bialett Taste of Italy3-qt. Stoneware Lasagna Pan - I believe every kitchen should have a good lasagna pan and this 3-qt stoneware one is the perfect size for when she invites us over for dinner...mom's lasagna? Oh yeah!!

I can't wait to wrap up some of these and have them under the Christmas tree! I think she will be thrilled to get any of them to add to her kitchen at her new home! 

Now tell me, what is on your kitchen wish list?

Like what you see? 

Well then, follow me by email and never miss a new post

Click here to see where I may be partying this week. 

AND

Don't forget to come by on Tuesday's

for the link party.