Breakfast Casserole

We had a breakfast get together with some friends this weekend. We seem to do this about every 6 months to a year. I am a huge fan of breakfast, so mixing breakfast  and good friends is even better. We also always have very delicious food. My friend made some amazing cinnamon rolls which I am hoping she will post on her blog. I was in charge of making a breakfast casserole. I have made a few different kinds of breakfast casserole but always love trying new recipes. This recipe was so easy to make and turned out delicious. Everyone loved it! I threw it together the night before then let sit in the fridge until the next morning when I was ready to bake it. This way I didn't have to wake up early to make it but it was still warm for everyone to eat. I will definitely be making this recipe again!

Breakfast Casserole

Prep: 15 min. Bake: 35 min. + standing
Yield: 12 Servings

Ingredients
1 pound sliced bacon, diced (I used turkey bacon and loved it)
1 medium sweet onion, chopped
6 eggs, lightly beaten
4 cups frozen shredded hash brown potatoes, thawed
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
1-1/2 cups (12 ounces) 4% cottage cheese
1-1/4 cups shredded Swiss cheese

Directions
In a large skillet, cook bacon and onion until bacon is crisp; drain. In a large bowl, combine the remaining ingredients; stir in bacon mixture. Transfer to a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish.
Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 35-40 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting.

Recipe Source: Taste Of Home

Grandma's Dutch Oven Chicken (Crock Pot Style)

This is a recipe for my grandma's Dutch Oven Chicken. I will be honest, it is not one of the photogenic foods out there, but oh it sure does taste great! My grandma would always make this in a crock pot, and I always loved it. A few years ago I decided to see if it would work in a crock pot. I love crock pots because I don't really have to think about it. I through everything in it, leave for several hours, and come home to a house that smells amazing! Well lucky for me the crock pot version of this meal works great!

Grandma's Dutch Oven Chicken (Crock Pot Style)
Prep Time: 20 min
Cook Time: 4-6 hrs
Servings: 6-8

Ingredients:
6-8 chicken breasts
6-8 slices of bacon
3 cans cream of chicken soup
16 oz sour cream
8 oz monterey jack cheese - shredded
1 small round container chicken flavored stove top stuffing
1 cube (1/2 cup) butter

Cut bacon into smaller pieces. Lay bacon on the bottom of the crock pot. Place chicken on top of bacon. In a medium bowl combine sour cream and cream of chicken soup. Pour soup mixture over top of chicken. Sprinkle shredded cheese over top of soup mixture. Sprinkle dry stove top stuffing mix over top of cheese. Place small chunks of butter evenly over top of stuffing mix. Cover with lid of crock pot and let cook on low for approximately 6 hrs.  My crock pot cooks a little hot and it was done in about 5. Test a piece of chicken for done-ness prior to serving.

Fantastically Unhealthy Pasta Sauce

This recipe is a slight variation of the sauce I use on my gnocchi. It is absolutely wonderful and I love it. This is something I will only let myself make every once and a while because it is not good for my thighs, but oh how my taste buds love it! It is creamy, full of flavor, and it has bacon and pine nuts in it! I bought a huge bag of pine nuts at Costco a while back and have loved using them on all sorts of things! This sauce is great with practically any kind of pasta. If you feel like you are lacking in the cholesterol department give this recipe a try it will not disappoint.

Amazing Pasta Sauce

1/2 cup butter

2 ounces crumbled bacon

1 tsp dried basil

1/4 cup pine nuts

1 cup cream divided

2 oz cream cheese

Parmesan Cheese

Beat 1/2 cup of cream until whipped, set aside. Melt butter in a sauce pan, add pine nuts and cook until the nuts begin to brown. (While waiting, begin boiling a pot of water for the pasta.) Add 1/2 cup cream (not the whipped 1/2 cup of cream, but the other normal 1/2 cup of the cream) to the butter and pine nuts and bring to a light boil. Cook for one minute, then turn the heat down to low. Add basil, bacon and cream cheese. Let simmer on low until cream cheese in well incorporated. Then fold in the whipped cream. Pour over pasta and top with parmesan cheese as desired

Pesto Pizza With Bacon And Pine Nuts

I am always looking fun new things to eat for dinner. I have mentioned before that I struggle with dinner ideas. The other night as I was driving home this pizza came into my mind. I have always loved pesto. Add a little pine nuts and bacon and why wouldn't it be amazing. I went home and started on the dough. I know I love pesto, pine nuts and bacon in pasta but I wasn't quite sure how it would taste on pizza. I threw it all together and stuck it in the oven. It smelled amazing before we even put it in the oven. The smell got even better as it baked. This pizza quickly made it to my favorites list.

Pesto Pizza with Bacon and Pine Nuts

Dough

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
1 tsp dried basil flakes
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Toppings

1/4- 1/2 cup pesto
1/4 cup pine nuts
1-2 cups mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup crumbled bacon (about 5 strips cooked bacon)

Combine flour, salt, sugar, yeast, basil, and garlic in a large bowl or in a stand mixer with dough attachment. Mix in oil and warm water. Spread out on a large pizza pan. Let dough rise in pan for a few minutes while you prepare the rest. Place pine nuts in a skillet with a small amount of butter. cook over medium heat stirring occasionally until nuts begin to turn a golden brown color. Set aside. Spread desired amount of pesto on the pizza dough for the sauce. Top with Mozzarella cheese. Top with bacon and pine nuts. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes.