Macaroni and Cheese Calzone

Do you enjoy eating Macaroni and Cheese but hate that it isn't portable? Well now it is!

Introducing the Macaroni and Cheese Calzone! It's all the macaroni and cheese flavor you love with the addition of tasty sausage in a great convenient hand-held edible container! 

This is sure to be a great hit with your family, and leftovers are a snap! Just cover any non-eaten calzones with foil wrap and store them in the fridge until you are ready to eat them again. Now you can take macaroni and cheese on the go, to school, to the park, even to the movies with you which will save you on the cost of popcorn. Enjoy!

• 1 14oz box of your favorite Macaroni and Cheese, cooked and prepared how the package states (I used Kraft Mac 'N Cheese)
• 12 oz of your favorite Sausage (I used 4 3 oz Apple Gouda Sausages), cooked and sliced
• 1 package Active Dry Yeast (.25 ounces worth)
• 1/4 cup Olive Oil
• 1 cup Warm Water
• 1 tsp Sugar
• 1 tsp Salt
• 2 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
• 1/2 cup Cheddar Cheese, shredded

Step 1: To make the dough, start by dissolving the yeast in the cup of warm water. You want to make sure the water is warm and not hot in order to give the yeast a little jump start. Once it has been dissolved add in the sugar, salt, and 1 Tbsp Olive Oil. Mixture together and slowly start to add in the flour. Knead the dough on a lightly floured area or just play with it in your hands until it becomes elastic. Place 1 tsp of Olive Oil in a bowl and place the dough in there, making sure to cover it with the oil (this will help prevent the dough from drying out). Cover the bowl with a paper towel and let sit for about an hour (or until the dough doubles in size).

Step 2: While the dough is sitting, make your Macaroni and Cheese and cook your sausages if you haven't already. Slice and dice the sausages to a size you like, and then throw the pieces in with the macaroni. Set aside.

Step 3: Once the dough has finished resting, preheat your oven to 375 degrees Farenheit and then break your dough into two equal pieces. Set once piece aside and with the other break it in half again. With a rolling pin, roll each of these dough pieces into separate circles. Place a good amount of the macaroni and sausage mixture in the center, then sprinkle some shredded cheddar on top of the macaroni, and finish by folding one side of the dough on top of the other side and pinch the edges closed. Do this with your remaining dough until you have four calzones. If you have extra macaroni, set it aside and eat it later.

Step 4: Take out your cookie pan and place a piece of parchment on it. Place the calzones on the parchment paper and then take a knife and carefully cut a hole or two in the top to prevent the calzones from exploding in the oven. Before you place the calzones in the oven brush them with the remaining oil to help give them a nice crust when they finish baking. Bake in the oven for 35 minutes. Enjoy!


Note: Serve these calzones with a side of cheese sauce or pasta sauce, or both! :D


 Yield: Makes 4 calzones

Super Stuffed Chili Cheese Sliced Baked Potatoes

Beware! These are not for the faint of heart!

There is so much gooey deliciousness going on here that at first we just sat and stared at this meal's awesomeness. You will not need a side dish with this, and if you can finish this in one sitting I will be impressed!

Seeing an image on Pinterest of a sliced baked potato (you slice the potato but don't cut it all the way so it is still attached) I used that for my inspiration. And since baked potatoes in themselves are already a tasty meal, I decided to add everything in my house that I felt would be a good match; I was not disappointed! We feasted on gloriously stuffed potatoes that night and went to sleep with full, happy bellies. Plus since we have leftovers, we enjoyed the meal the following day for lunch (we usually take leftovers for lunch, makes packing out lunches easier on me).

Feel free to add or remove components to make this meal suit your tastes as we did, and most of all have fun with this dish. Enjoy!

• 2 Russet Potatoes
• 2 Tbsp Butter
• 2 tsp Cayenne Powder
• 1 tsp Garlic Salt
• 2 slices of Bacon (cooked and crumbled)
• 10.5 oz can Chili
• 1 Jalapeno (diced)
• 1/4 cup Green Onion (chopped)
• 1/4 cup Onion (diced)
• 1 Avocado (mashed)
• 1 cup Cheddar Cheese (shredded)
• 1/4 cup Milk
• 1 tsp Flour
• 1 tsp Chives

Step 1: Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Wash and scrub your potatoes to get them clean. Once cleaned off, take a knife and carefully start slicing the potato, but make sure not to cut it all the way through. You want the potato to remain together to make it easier to eat. Next make your butter sauce by combining 2 Tbsp of melted butter with 1 tsp cayenne and 1 tsp garlic sauce. Place the potatoes on a baking sheet and cover with the butter sauce, making sure to get some of the butter in between your slices and on the skin. Then place the sheet in the oven and cook for 50 minutes.

Step 2: When you have about 15 minutes left you will want to start heating up your chili and making your cheese sauce. For the sauce, start by dissolving the flour in the 1/2 cup flour. Once dissolved, place mixture on a sauce pan and combine it with 1/2 cup cheddar cheese,  the cayenne, and the chives. Stir until cheese is melted on medium to medium low heat. At the same time, heat up your can of chili in either the microwave or stove top (I cooked mine on the stove at low heat).

Step 3: Once the 50 minutes has passed, take the potatoes from the oven. Then start dressing it by first placing 1/2 shredded cheddar cheese in the potato cracks. Follow with the chili, and then top with the cheese sauce you made, jalapenos, green onions, onions, and avocado. Serve with sour cream, your favorite hot sauce, and diced tomatoes. Enjoy!


Yield: Makes 2 potatoes

Greek Deviled Eggs

Made these for the same party I brought the Cheddar Bacon and Jalapeno Deviled Eggs to and these Greek Eggs were by far the favorite! Enjoy!

• 12 Eggs
• 3/4 cup Mayonnaise
• 10 Black Olives (diced)
• 3/4 cup Feta Cheese
• 2 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
• 1 Tomato (diced)
• 1/2 cup Fresh Basil (chopped)
• 1 Tbsp Black Pepper

Step 1: Place all the eggs in a pot big enough to hold all of the eggs. Cover eggs with cold water and cook the eggs uncovered until the water boils. Once the water starts boiling, turn off the stove and cover the pot. Let stand for 15 minutes.

Step 2: After the 15 minutes pass, place all of the eggs into a bowl of cold water to stop the cooking process. Place bowl in the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour to completely cool. Once cooled, peel all of the eggs.

Step 3: Slice each of the eggs in half and place the yolks in a bowl, set the whites aside. Mash the egg yolks. In another bowl, combine the olives, feta cheese, balsamic, tomato, basil and the mayonnaise. Add the mashed egg yolks on top and mix together.

Step 4: Place the yolk mixture in a Ziploc bag and cut off the corner. Place the egg white hole-side up and using the Ziploc, squeeze the yolk mixture into the holes of the eggs.

Step 5: Once all the eggs have been filled, sprinkle any leftover feta, basil, and the black pepper over the tops of the eggs. Enjoy!


Note: If you have any leftover yolk mixture, save it and make an egg sandwich with it later, or cut open an avocado and place the egg mixture in the spot where the seed is and enjoy!


Yield: 1 dozen eggs

Cheddar Bacon and Jalapeno Deviled Eggs

Yes it's egg season! 

Now I love a lot of things: puppies, grilled cheese, garlic, bread... I can go on and on! However I can't forget eggs as they are definitely on my list of things I love. Hard boiled, soft boiled, poached, sunny side up, scrambles; if you can cook an egg I will most likely eat it.

That being said, for my first party of the Spring time I decided to bring with me two different types of deviled eggs. I have been seeing a new trend online with bacon-jalapeno everything, so I decided to apply this trend to my deviled eggs. I also made some Greek Deviled Eggs, but I will post that recipe up tomorrow. Enjoy!

• 12 Eggs
• 3/4 cup Mayonnaise
• 6 strips Bacon (cooked and crumbled)
• 1/4 cup Shredded Cheddar
• 2 Jalapenos (diced)
• 2 tsp Cayenne Powder
• 1 Ziploc Bag

Step 1: Place all the eggs in a pot big enough to hold all of the eggs. Cover eggs with cold water and cook the eggs uncovered until the water boils. Once the water starts boiling, turn off the stove and cover the pot. Let stand for 15 minutes.

Step 2: After the 15 minutes pass, place all of the eggs into a bowl of cold water to stop the cooking process. Place bowl in the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour to completely cool. Once cooled, peel all of the eggs.

Step 3: Slice each of the eggs in half and place the yolks in a bowl, set the whites aside. Mash the egg yolks. In another bowl, combine the bacon (set aside a tiny bit of bacon to top the eggs with), jalapenos, 1 tsp cayenne, and the mayonnaise. Add the mashed egg yolks on top and mix together.

Step 4: Place the yolk mixture in a Ziploc bag and cut off the corner. Place the egg white hole-side up and using the Ziploc, squeeze the yolk mixture into the holes of the eggs.

Step 5: Once all the eggs have been filled, sprinkle the rest of the bacon, cheddar cheese, and cayenne powder over the tops of the eggs. Enjoy!


Note: If you have any leftover yolk mixture, save it and make an egg sandwich with it later, or cut open an avocado and place the egg mixture in the spot where the seed is and enjoy!


Yield: 1 dozen eggs

Cheesy Sweet and Tangy Fried Pork Chops

The 2 things I have found that my boyfriend loves almost as much as video games (keyword "almost") are my cat Catatafish and delicious food. Well let me change that, it would be a tie for second between video game and delicious food with Catata coming in fourth and me in first (I've told him it is ok to love video games more than me but he just won't listen).

Anyways, one of our new found loves with food is using the deep fryer. I was fortunate to receive a deep fryer for Christmas after all the hints I gave him ("Babe! These stuffed mushrooms would be delicious deep fried!" or "Omg, can you imagine what real authentic deep fried fish and chips would taste like?!") and I have to say it was one of the best gifts ever aside from my fancy knives.

So when dinner came around my eye caught the deep fryer and I knew it was time to bust the bad boy out! Since we love us some country fried steaks, I decided to deep fry us some pork chops! And since I had recently just talked to my mom, the combination of pork, apple sauce, and sauerkraut were stuck in my head (I mentioned to her I was cooking pork and she informed me of my Nana's favorite way to eat them as the combo I just mentioned). Going off of this combo I decided to use apple in the marinade and add some cheddar cheese to the mix since sauerkraut and cheddar go well, and apple and cheddar go well, so why wouldn't all three! The meal came out way better than expected, which made me super happy that I wrote it all down! If you make these, I am sure you won't be disappointed! Enjoy!

• 2 Tbsp Honey
• 2 Tbsp Brown Sugar
• 2 tsp Apple Cider
• 1/2 tsp Mustard Powder
• 1/2 tsp Cayenne Powder
• 1/4 cup and 2 tsp Flour
• 4 3 oz Pork Chops
• 1/2 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
• 1/4 cup Milk
• 1 tsp Butter
• 3/4 cup Sauerkraut
• Oil for frying in (I use peanut or canola oil, but any oil will do)

Step 1: Combine the honey, brown sugar, apple cider, mustard powder, cayenne powder, and 1 tsp of flour in a bowl. Mix well until it is smooth and not lumpy. Cover the pork chops in this mixture and set aside. 

Step 2: Set up the deep fryer and turn to 350 degree Fahrenheit. If you don't have a deep fryer, use a nice sized pan with a large enough rim that will be able to hold enough oil to cover the steaks while cooking (turn stove top to medium high).


Step 3: Go back to your pork chops and place 1/4 cup flour on a plate. Cover the pork chops in this flour on all sides and set aside (you may or may not need more flour, so keep it on hand). Once the frying oil is hot enough, start cooking the pork chops for 5 minutes each.

Step 4: While the pork chops are cooking, pull out a small sauce pan and combine the milk, butter, cheddar cheese, and 1 tsp of flour and melt at low to medium low heat. Stir every so often to make sure the cheese melts. At the same time in another sauce pan, heat up the sauerkraut on low heat.


Step 5: Once the pork chops finish, place them on a plate and cover them in the sauerkraut and then smother them in the cheese sauce. Before serving, add a pinch of black pepper if you wish. Enjoy!


Yield: 2 servings (2 pork chops each)

Avocado, Egg, and Crab Mash

There is nothing in this world that I think an avocado can ruin. I'm sure there might be something out there, but thankfully for me I haven't found it yet! The only issue I have with avocados is that I buy so many, that I don't end up eating them all. So when I have time for a quick and easy meal, I try to make it around the avocado.

This concoction is great for a quick meal, can be added into a sandwich, placed inside an omelette, even served as a dip with your favorite chips. What you do with this mash is completely up to you! I turned it into a sandwich with a slice of cheese and it was delicious! Next time I think I might make a breakfast burrito with this and some scrambled eggs. However you end up eating this, just know that it will be delicious! Enjoy!

• 1 Avocado
• 1 Hard Boiled Egg
• 1/3 cup Crab Meat (diced or flaked)
• 1 Tbsp Mayonnaise or Miracle Whip
• 1/4 tsp Lemon Pepper
• 1/4 tsp Garlic Salt
• 1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper
• 1/8 tsp Curry Powder
• 1 tsp Mustard

Step 1: Cut open the avocado and scoop into a bowl. Add in the hard boiled egg and mash together until the egg and avocado mix together. Next add in the crab meat, mayo (or Miracle Whip), and mustard and stir. Lastly add in the seasoning and mix until everything is blended together and then enjoy!

Yield: Makes 2-3 servings.

Pesto Spaghetti Squash

Growing up we never really had too many squashes in our meals. So when I heard that there was such as a Spaghetti Squash, I didn't believe it at first, honestly. I had to Google it in order to make sure it was in fact a real thing. And sure enough, it is real!

 When making this meal for the first time, I wanted to use items I would normally incorporate with pasta, such as pesto and sauteed mushrooms. Combining all of these things together creates a wonderful dish that most people would enjoy; I know I did! Enjoy!

• 1 Spaghetti Squash
• 1 Onion (sliced)
• 3 Tbsp Butter
• 4 White Mushrooms (sliced)
• 1 cup Kale (stems removed)
• 1 tsp Garlic Salt
• 1 tsp Crushed Red Pepper
• 1 tsp Italian Seasoning
• 2 Tbsp Pesto
• 1 tsp Olive Oil
• 1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese (grated)

Step 1: Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Slice open the Spaghetti Squash length-wise, and then spoon out the seeds from the middle. Grease a cookie sheet and place the squash on the pan with the skin of the squash on the pan and the flesh facing up. Cook the squash for 1 hour, and then remove from the oven and cool for 10 minutes. Once you can handle the squash, take a fork and start scrapping out the insides. The squash will come out of the shell in a string-like form. Place in a bowl and set aside.

Step 2: On the stove over med-high heat, sautee the onion in 1 Tbsp butter. Once the onion starts to turn translucent, add the kale and mushrooms to the onion and reduce the heat to a med-low.

Step 3: Next add the squash to the pan. Add 2 Tbsp of butter, the garlic salt, and the Italian Seasoning and cook for a a minute or two until everything is mixed. Remove from the stove and place in a big bowl.

Step 4: Once in the bowl, add the olive oil and pesto to the mixture. Mix around, and then slowly add in the parmesan cheese. Mix until pesto and cheese is evenly spread, then serve! Enjoy!

Yield: Makes 4-6 servings.

Bacon and Blue Cheese Brussels Sprouts

Farts. Call me immature, but since I was a kid I have always found humor in farts. The only thing not-so-funny about them is the smell, and boy does cooking this dish really make your kitchen smell like a fart explosion (mainly step 3).

I had never had Brussels sprouts until this dish, and I can honestly say that I learned so much in how these change with heat that I will be able to improve upon them in the future! Leave it to me to take something that is super healthy and make it 'questionable'; but that is my style some of the times!

• 12 Brussels Sprouts
• 1 tsp Olive Oil
• 1 tsp Garlic Salt
• 2 strips of Bacon
• 1 Tbsp Bacon Grease (you will get this when you cook the bacon)
• 1 Tbsp Cream Cheese
• 1 Tbsp Blue Cheese

Step 1: Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Then you will need to trim the Brussels Sprouts and make sure all the yellow or brown leaves are off. Coat the sprouts in the Olive Oil and Garlic Salt. Place the coated sprouts on a greased cookie sheet and cook for 50 minutes, turning the sprouts every 10 minutes to make sure all the sides of the sprouts cook evenly.

Step 2: While the sprouts are cooking, start cooking your Bacon. When both slices are finished, save 1 Tbsp of the Bacon Grease and throw the rest away (you will not need to wash the pan just yet).

Step 3: Once you have the Bacon Grease, place it back in the same pan you were using and turn the heat up to a medium-high. Add the Cream Cheese and Blue Cheese to the grease and cook until the cheeses melt and you have a cheese liquid. Turn off heat and let sit.

Step 4: Cut the bacon into tiny pieces. When the sprouts are finished, place them in a bowl and add the bacon. Heat up the cheese sauce again until it warm and then coat the sprouts and bacon with the cheese sauce. Roll them around in a bowl, top with Blue Cheese crumbles if you'd like, dish out onto a plate and enjoy!

Yield: 12 sprouts; serves 2 people.

Country Fried Onion and Mushroom Steak

Me: 'What do you want for dinner tonight?'
Him: 'Tacos!'
Me: 'We don't have tacos. :('
Him: 'What do we have?'
Me: 'Pork, chicken, steaks... I could do a Salisbury with the mushrooms I bought?'
Him: 'That could be cool...'
Me: 'OH I KNOW! It will be waiting for you when you get home! :D'

And that is usually how our meal planning works half of the time. Thankfully I came up with the brilliant idea (using him for inspiration because hey, I don't want to surprise anyone unless I know they are going to love my food experiment) to try to make some Country Fried Steaks with an onion and mushroom gravy; one of his all-time faves when we go out to eat. After deciding what should go in it, I just had to figure out whether or not to pan-fry them or use the deep fryer. After a few minutes of no decisions, he suggested to try both out, so we did! 

We both thought that the deep-fryer would be the winner, hands down. But to our surprise, the pan-fried steaks came out much better than the deep fried ones! Cooking in the pan allowed the breading to soak up all the delicious flavored that were being released by the pan, giving it a fuller taste than the deep fried one. Because of that I opted to only give directions for the pan-fried recipe, however if you really want to deep fry them please do so for 4 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Enjoy!

• 4 3-ounce Steaks
• 3/4 cup Breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese (grated)
• 1 Tbsp Green Onion (was 1 stalk for me)
• 1 Egg
• 1/2 Milk
• 2 Tbsp Butter
• 2 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 1/4 cup Onion
• 1/4 cup Mushroom
• 1/2 cup Beef Broth
• 2 Tbsp Flour
• 1 Tbsp Cornstarch
• Salt and pepper to taste

Step 1: Combine bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, and green onion in a container. Beat egg until fluffy and then add 1/4 cup Milk and whisk. Once combined, dip steak in egg batter and then press in the flour concoction until coated. Do this for all 4 steaks.

Step 2: In a sauce pan, heat butter and olive oil over medium heat. Once butter melts, turn heat to medium-high and place steaks in the pan. Cook for about 3-4 minutes each, or until golden brown. Be sure not to move them for at least the first two minutes to help the breaking stick to the steak or else it might fall off.

Step 3: Once steaks are down, remove them from the pan and turn the stove to medium heat. Add onions and mushrooms to the pan and cook in the pan until soft. Slowly add in the milk, broth, flour, and cornstarch to the onions and mushrooms. Make sure to stir while adding in the ingredients in order to mix them properly. 

Step 4: After gravy has been mixed, turn heat to low temperature and let sit for a minute. Stir again, and then turn off heat and let sit for another 1-2 minutes. Gravy will thicken up as it cools a bit.

Step 4: Cover steaks with gravy and enjoy!

Yield: 4 servings.