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

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!

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!

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.

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 :-)

Meal Plan Monday

Hello everyone! How were your Christmas holidays?  We had a fantastic time, celebrating with family and friends.  We've had lots of company, which has been very fun.  We are looking forward to a quiet New Year's Eve and a few more days off before it's back to school and back to work (for me, my hubby went back to work on the 27th).  Now that we are getting back into a routine (and now that we have finally run out of turkey!) - I am back to meal-planning.  Here is our meal plan for this week:

Sunday - Homemade Turkey Soup (recipe coming soon!), Dinner Buns


Monday - Slow Cooker Meatballs, Rice and Corn

Tuesday - Tandoori BBQ Pork Chops, Perogies, Grilled Peppers

Wednesday - Steak, Baked Potato, Caramelized Brussel Sprouts, Green Salad

Thursday - Beef Stroganoff (recipe coming soon!), Green Salad

Friday - Sweet & Sour Chicken, Rice, Green Salad

Saturday - Leftovers / Fridge Clean Out (we have a busy day at the hockey rink, no time to cook, good thing for leftovers!)

See you next week, for my first meal plan for 2014!

Meal Plan Monday

Hello friends, welcome back to Meal Plan Monday! 

We have another busy week around here, with sports (volleyball, hockey, swimming, tennis), late work nights, and various other projects on the go. 

BUT, I did get our meal plan made...and here is what we're having this week:

Here is our plan for this week:

Sunday - Beef Stew and Butter Rolls

Monday - Leftover stew and rolls

Tuesday - Taco Tuesday

Wednesday - Tandoori Chicken, Rice, Peas and Naan Bread

Thursday - Fish and Chips

Friday - Clean out the fridge night! Leftovers :-)

Saturday - Christmas party...we're having Greek!

Have a great week!

Snack Happy with Snackbox - Special Offer and #Giveaway!

Are you looking for a unique gift for someone in your life?  Are you a snack lover, with a sense of adventure?  Have you heard of Snackbox?  I've seen Snackbox online, always thought it looked pretty cool (I have a snack-loving husband, and I'm always on the search for healthier quick choices to stash in my desk at work) and recently we were given the opportunity to try a Snackbox of our own.  I didn't know what to expect when our Snackbox arrived...but WOW!  What a neat idea!  It's truly a gift of discovery, when you sign up for (or gift) the program, each month a box full of delicious and healthy snacks are delivered right to your door.

Inside our Snackbox we had:

• Aurora Creations Gobi Spice
• Enerjive Quinoa Skinny Crackers
• Teas'Tea
• Bella Viva Orchards Pear Slices
• Cocolico Toffee Coconut Dark Chocolate
• La Fourmi Fruit & Nut Medley
• Lara Bar
• Sensible Portions Veggie Straws
• My Smoothie Green
• Pirate's Booty Cheese Puffs
• True to Nature Hemp Protein Bar

What an awesome variety of snacks...and in our house, we had not tried any of them before they arrived in our Snackbox.  This is a great way for us to try new snacks and find some new favourites. 

I also love that included in our Snackbox was an information card telling us about each item in our box, the retail price, and the list of retailers where to find everything.  Really makes things EASY for a planner like me :-) The folks at Snackbox have really thought of everything!

SPECIAL OFFER for Addicted to Recipes fans!  If you would like to give Snackbox a try for yourself, I have a COUPON CODE for you!  The coupon will give you $15 off your first Snackbox.  Coupon valid until December 31, 2013, your code is AddictedtoRecipes.  Don't miss out on this great deal, head on over to Snackbox today!  1, 3 and 6 month gift subscriptions are available.

Now, I am so excited to tell you that ONE LUCKY READER of Addicted to Recipes is going to win a Snackbox!  Contest open to Canada only, enter via the Rafflecopter below.  Good luck!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Resolve to Maintain a Healthy Lifestyle with Special K

The season of indulgence is behind us now.  Now we are back to reality, the grind, and our annual "fresh start".  How many resolutions did you make this year?  I made a few, you can check them out here.  

One thing that I am hoping to do this year is get back into running.  I was never a superstar runner, but I always enjoyed running.  It was great "me" time, something every Mother could use more of :-)

How are you doing with your resolutions?  Me? I'm doing alright!  I've started back to the gym a few times a week.  I'm a fair-weather runner, so running in the winter is not my thing.  But I am perfectly happy on a cardio machine, building my endurance up for running outside.  Hopefully I will get there, but in the meantime, I am happy to be more active!

There are tonnes of resources out there to help you with your resolutions - whether they be to lose weight, eat better, or like me, get more active.  One that I've been checking out is My Special K.  It's an online resource that anyone to use to help track our goals and feel good about ourselves.  You can start your own My Special K Plan at www.myspecialk.ca - head on over to check it out and make your own plan too!

Thank you Kellogg's for providing me with some new exercise gear and fuel to help me with my goals!

Scrumptious Sunday Recipe Link Party #44

I sure hope everyone had a fantastic Christmas!  Did you get out for Boxing Day shopping?  We decided it was a "stay at home in the pj's" kind of day - a little quiet after all the hustle.  We had a wonderful Christmas, the kids were spoiled by family and friends, and Santa too!  They had a blast, and that's the best part.  Seeing their joy :-)  Oh how I love Christmas!

Alrighty, I won't bore you any more...it's time for Scrumptious Sunday Recipe Link Party #44. 


This week, being the last link party for 2012, I invite you to share your favourite recipes posts from 2012!  Head on over to the party and link up!

Don't forget, all featured recipes will be shared on my blog, and on my Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest pages!

Christmas Leftover Linky

Christmas has come and gone...and oh what a Christmas it was! We had a wonderful time celebrating with my family, my brother and sister-in-law hosted, and in a few days we will celebrate with my in-laws as they are coming to visit!  I feel so spolied to be surrounded with loving family and friends! Santa was good to us....hope he was good to you too!

Now that all the cooking and baking is done, the next big question is...what to do with all the leftovers?!  And so...this link party was born.  I invite you to share your posts with recipes for Christmas leftovers!  Help all us fellow cooks out!  I look forward to reading all of your recipes :-)

Kellogg's Rice Krispies Make Christmas Fun!

Recently I received a gift box from Kellogg's containing great ingredients to make Christmas themed Rice Krispie treats.  My oldest son and I were pretty excited as we love to create in the kitchen.  The box included regular and Vanilla Rice Krispies, marshmallows, Wilton decorating supplies, and wrapping bits so that we could make gifts out of our treats!

We spent part of our Sunday creating these treats - making our Rice Krispie squares as per the standard recipe, and then quite a bit of time decorating and creating our masterpieces!  Here is a sampling of our art:

Thanks Kellogg's for the providing me the means to add a little extra quality time with my son!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Scrumptious Sunday Recipe Link Party #43

It's that time again!

Time to share your recipes - here is the link for this week's Scrumptious Sunday Recipe Link Party!

I sure hope that you all are well...not too stressed about the holidays!

Wishing you all the best!  And thanks for stopping by to share your recipes!

Don't forget, all featured recipes will be shared on my blog, and on my Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest pages!

Merry Christmas!!

Scrumptious Sunday #42 - Features

Apparently I am on a cookie kick!  You'll see why below :-)  And I'm always on a slow cooker kick (especially with hockey season...perhaps you've seen some of the recipes from my Slow Cooker Thursday series, such as Beef Barley Soup and Tuesday Tortilla Soup!).  I am super stoked about the new Crock-Pot that I recently received...there's a review coming next week :-)

Back to those cookies....this weekend I am SURE that oldest and I will be baking special cookies for Santa.  I've also got plans to make special Christmassy Rice Krispie Squares with all the treats that recently arrived from Kellogg's.  But I do need to come up with a good cookie idea...and there were lots to choose from in this week's Scrumptious Sunday! Thank you!

Please go visit all these hard-working bloggers and check out their recipes!

If you are featured, please grab a BUTTON and display it proudly!

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Here are this week's features:

 

34 Slow Cooker Soups, Stews and Chilis from Mommy's Sweet Confessions

 

 

My 10 Favorite Christmas Cookies from Hezzi D's Books and Cooks

 

 

Salted Caramel Coffee Toffee Cookies from The Better Baker

 

 

Chocolate Cookies stuffed with Vanilla Salted Caramel from DJ's Sugar Shack

 

 

Cinnamon Shortbread from With A Blast

 

 

All of these recipes will be pinned to my Pinterest account, posted on Twitter, and shared on Facebook!

Just a reminder, this week's Scrumptious Sunday Link Party goes live Saturday - at 8 pm PST. Can't wait to see what you bring to the party!

Warm Gingerbread Pudding Cake

Hello everyone!  You are probably wondering, where did Slow Cooker Thursday go?!  Well, hockey is on hiatus until after Christmas, so we have our Thursdays back, and I've decided to take a break from Slow Cooker Thursday until the new year.  Instead...today you get this FABULOUS cake recipe...please read on, and enjoy!

It's hard to believe that Christmas is almost here.  Are you ready?  I'm nearly there.  My gingerbread kick continues, which is strange because as I've mentioned before, I am not a fan of molasses, which is in every gingerbread recipe I've seen.  However, when I found this recipe for "Warm Gingerbread Pudding Cake" I knew that I needed to try it.  The recipe had me at "Warm" :-)  I found the recipe in one of my favourite cookbooks, "Whitewater Cooks with Friends".  Here is the recipe:

1 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon ground ginger
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg, room temperature, slightly beaten
1/2 cup molasses
1/2 cup warm water
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cups hot water
5 tablespoons butter, room temperature

Preheat your oven to 350F.

Grease an 8 x 8 glass baking dish with cooking spray or butter.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, ground ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, cloves and salt.  Mix well.

With your mixer, beat butter and sugar together until well combined.  Add in beaten egg, mix until just blended.

In a glass measuring cup or glass bowl, combine the molasses and warm water.  Stir to combine.

Slowly add the flour mixture, alternating with the molasses mixture, into the butter mixture.  Mix well.

Pour the batter into your greased dish.  Sprinkle (cover) with brown sugar.

Mix the 1 1/2 cups of hot water with the 5 tablespoons of butter.  Stir to melt the butter.  Very slowly, very carefully pour the water mixture over the cake batter.  Do not be afraid, you dish will look like a whole lot of water...but have faith!

Very carefully, place your dish in the oven.  Bake for 35-40 minutes.  When the top is cracked, the cake is done.

Serve warm with ice cream or whipping cream.

VERDICT:
We really enjoyed this cake.  Even me, the not-really-a-fan of molasses, I liked it too!  I loved the harder top layer and the ooey-gooey inside too.  It was quite comforting, and with the melted ice cream all over it...oh yes...very tasty!

Scrumptious Sunday Recipe Link Party #42

Hello everyone! I sure hope this post finds you well.  And not too overwhelmed that we are less than 10 days to Christmas...eeks!

I don't know about you, but there seems to be so much happening all at once.  Important people feeling under the weather, prepping for the holidays, trying to create the magic for the kids and have some extra fun this time of year.

I have 3 days of work left for this calendar year, and I am so looking forward to the break :-)  A few weeks off at home with my children, hubby, extended family...and hopefully a little time to catch up on all things blog!

With out further delay...I am happy to say that Scrumptious Sunday Recipe Link Party is LIVE for this week.  I would love for you to pop over and share some fantastic recipes!

Peaches and Cream Cookies

Every year I host a Christmas Baking Exchange at my house.  It's always fun, a little crazy, and we all end up with an amazing selection of baking treats!  This year we had a great variety of treats, including butter tarts, Candy Cane Skor bars, and White Chocolate Cherry Shortbread.

For my contribution, I decided to go with Peaches and Cream Cookies.  A few years ago one of my friends made some cream cheese cookies for the exchange which were to die for, and this recipe spoke to me as one to try, because of the cream cheese.  Here is the recipe:

Peaches and Cream Cookies (Source: Taste of Home Best Loved Cookies & Bars)

1 cup butter, softened
1 package (3 oz) cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg yolk
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups flour
Peach Jam

Cream the butter, cream cheese and sugar together in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy.  Beat in egg yolk and vanilla.  Add the flour and mix well.  Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350.

Shape dough into 1 inch balls.  Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets.  Using the end of a wooden spoon handle, make a 1/2 inch deep indentation in the centre of the ball.  Fill the indentation with about a 1/4 teaspoon of peach jam. 

Bake for 9-11 minutes, or until set.  Remove to wire racks to cool.

VERDICT
These were a tasty little cookie.  I love cream cheese cookies.  I could have used more of the jam with the cookie though, so next time I will make a bigger indentation and add more jam.  I shared these with my Grandparents, and my Grandma reported that my Grandpa was particularly fond of them - yay!  Another winner :-)

Chewy Ginger Cookies

Christmas is coming, Christmas is coming! I have really been craving gingerbread cookies lately.  Which is funny, because I am not really a fan of molasses, yet I've been on a gingerbread roll.  Sometimes I confuse myself LOL.  I've been wanting to make gingerbread cookies, and I like cookies that are soft and "dippable" in tea.  I came across this recipe and thought I should give it a try!

Chewy Ginger Cookies (Source: Taste of Home, Best Loved Cookies and Bars)

3/4 cup shortening
1 1/4 cups sugar, divided
1 egg
1/4 cup molasses
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups flor
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

Preheat oven to 375.

Cream shortening and 1 cup of sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy.  Add in the egg, molasses and vanilla. Mix well.

In another bowl, mix together the flour, cinnamon, ginger, baking soda, salt and cloves.   Slowly add to the creamed mixture and mix well.

Roll into 1 inch balls.  Rolls balls in the remaining sugar.  Place on ungreased baking sheet, approximately 1 1/2 inches apart.

Bake for 9-10 minutes or until lightly browned.  Cool on wire racks.

VERDICT:
These were very close to what I was looking for!  They were a tad crunchy for me, but I think if I bake them for about 1 minute less they will be just perfect!   A nice, tasty, Christmas treat!

Scrumptious Sunday Recipe Link Party #40

Hello everyone! Happy Sunday to you!  A little late getting today's post up - we've had a long week with sickies in the house, sleepless nights, early mornings, and lots of naps.  Today we were all feeling human again, and after my 7:30 am grocery trip, it was off to hockey and our oldest's hockey team Christmas party.  The party was a lot of fun!  Lunch for everyone, and the team rented one of our indoor soccer fields so we all got to "play" soccer (even the toddler was out hacing a blast running on the field).  Without further delay...

It's time to PARTY! Come on over and share your recipes...Scrumptious Sunday Recipe Link Party #40 is now open!

Don't forget, all featured recipes will be shared on my blog, and on my Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest pages!

Scrumptious Sunday #38 and #39 - Features

Hello everyone! I hope that this post finds you well!  What a week we have had.  The "bug" seems to have hit our house...the kids and I seem to be hit hardest, so far hubs is a-ok.  Though he did do something to his knee this week and is walking like an old man.  We're quite the crew :-)  I sure hope this bug passes, I have lots to get done, parties to host and attend, and of course, gear up for Christmas!

As promised, I have two weeks worth of features for you.  If you are featured, please grab a BUTTON and display it proudly, you've earned it!

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Here the features from Scrumptious Sunday #38:

DIY Hot Coco Mix from Back to the Basics

 

Banana Nut Muffins with Oatmeal Streusel from Sugar Cookies to Peterbilts

Spicy Cranberry Chutney from Atkinson Drive

Cinnamon Roll Ring from Growing Up Gabel

Baked Caramel Cheesecake from With A Blast

And here are the features from Scrumptious Sunday #39:

Berry Cheesecake Muffins from Lady Behind the Curtain

Cranberry Salsa from Sunflower Supper Club

Skinnylightful Asian Chicken Broccoli Slaw Salad from Skinny Kitchen

51 Decorated Christmas Cookies from sugarkissed.net

Hanukkah Cookies from Lizy B

All of these recipes will be pinned to my Pinterest account, posted on Twitter, and shared on Facebook!

Just a reminder, this week's Scrumptious Sunday Link Party goes live Saturday - at 8 pm PST. Can't wait to see what you bring to the party!

Scrumptious Sunday #36 - Features

Another week is done...and I am so happy to be on a 5 day break from work!  Don't get me wrong. I totally love my job, where I work and what I do...heck I've been there for over 16 years, so I must like it!  But it is nice to have a little break.  It was a school day today so the oldest was off to school, and since we were paying for daycare already, the baby went to daycare...and I went shopping!  Seriously, today is the first day in FOREVER that I spent several hours on my own.  Yes...on.my.own!  I got some Christmas shopping done, and picked up a few new things for me :-)  I felt totally spoiled, and a little bit guilty.  And to top it off, we even had a double date tonight with some really good friends.  There's nothing like a delicious dinner with lovely friends to end off the day!

It's time to get to this week's features.  You shared over 80 fantastic recipes last week - thank you so much!  Lots of great fall-themed, comfort food.  So awesome!  It's always hard to pick 5...but here we go with this week's features!

If you are featured, please grab a BUTTON! Congratulations, you've earned it!

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I am such a bread junkie, and sourdough is one that I love!  Sourdough Bread from Half Baked Harvest

 

 

I also love appies!  Curry Crab Stuffed Mushrooms from This Gal Cooks

 

 

This one sounds intriguing!  I've never had a hamburger soup before.  And sounds like something my hubby would love.  Warm You Up Spicy Cheeseburger Soup from The Daily Dish

 

 

Fish and chips...never made the before from scratch, but now I have a recipe!  I love fish & chips!  Battered Fish & Chips from Tartan Tastes in Texas.

 

 

This is fantastic...using up those leftovers!  Leftover Halloween Candy Blondies from Lady Behind the Curtain

 

 

All of these recipes will be pinned to my Pinterest account, posted on Twitter, and shared on Facebook!

Just a reminder, this week's Scrumptious Sunday Link Party goes live Saturday - at 8 pm PST. Can't wait to see what you bring to the party!