Jolene's Recipe Journal

We're big football fans here, and we're even bigger fans of football food!  Ever since my son was little, we've always had special game day meals.  Nachos are a staple, and so are mini corn dog muffins .  This year I decided I wanted chili, and I've been testing out a few recipes. This Spicy Touchdown Chili caught my eye because in addition to the usual ingredients, it also has bacon! I made a few changes to the recipe.  I used hot Italian turkey sausage instead of pork.  For all of the beans, I bought reduced sodium versions.  Instead of the beer, I used beef broth.  Because I couldn't find the diced tomatoes with onions, I upped the fresh onion to a medium sized one. I love this one because you can make it early in the day, pop it in the slow cooker and not have to miss any of the game.  While it's great by itself, it also would make awesome nachos, or poured on top of a baked potato or a nice grilled hot dog.  I was very happy with the h...

I've found some great new recipes during #NationalOatmealMonth.  First I made Honey Oat Pan Rolls , then Overnight Cherry Almond Oatmeal. When I was searching for recipes to make for this month's Muffin Monday, I found these Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Muffins from Cheryl B. on the Taste of Home website. I made absolutely no changes to the recipe, but I am not sure which type of oats I used. I poured them into a resealable canister a while back and forgot to mark if they were quick or rolled.  I also used cinnamon applesauce because that's what I have on hand. These mix up in no time, and I like to use a cookie scoop to fill the tins.  Mine cooked perfectly in the stated time.  They were great both warm or at room temperature.   Next time I'll do them as minis, they'll make perfect lunch box treats for my guys! Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Muffins Print With Image Without Image Yield: 12 Author: Jolene's Recipe Journal Ingredients 1/2 cup butter, softened 3/...

Happy National Chocolate Cake Day! Did you know that chocolate cake wasn't even a thing until 1847?  I had no idea!  It seems that chocolate was primarily used for drinking prior to that. Now I love a good cup of hot chocolate, but I can't imagine a celebration without chocolate cake! I looked through lots of recipes on Pinterest and cookbooks trying to chose what cake I wanted to make. This Old-Fashioned Fudge Cake from Mary S. caught my eye because it made a 6" round, which is the perfect size for just the 3 of us.   The cake itself isn't overly sweet, so it balances nicely with the frosting.  The only thing I'd do differently next time is to split the cake into two layers and put some of the frosting in between.  It spreads and pipes beautifully and then sets up nicely.  I used a rotary grater on some chocolate chips for the top of the cake.    Thanks to Camilla for hosting our #NationalChocolateCakeDay celebration, and to all of t...

If someone had said to me five years ago that I'd be hosting an event for National Peanut Butter Day, I'd never have believed it.  My son was EpiPen required peanut and tree nut allergic.  On the rare occasion we had peanut butter in the house for my husband's work lunches, it was like watching a sci fi movie, with haz mat suits, bleach spray and multiple washings of utensils. Luckily for us, his peanut numbers dropped lower and lower with each subsequent year's testing, until finally he was deemed "cured" of his allergy.  Ironically, he doesn't enjoy peanut butter at all, but I've completely fallen in love with it. I especially like the types that are sweetened with maple or honey. My go-to way to enjoy peanut butter is spread on slices of tart apple and then sprinkled with pumpkin seeds.  Super simple.  When I went searching for a recipe for this event, I was looking for something similar, simple but full of different flavors and textures. I ...

Today is National Cheese Lovers Day! When I think of cheesy foods, the first thing that comes to mind (and my absolute favorite) is pizza.  I was flipping through one of my Taste of Home cookbooks and spotted these Waffled Pizza Bites from Deidre C. Waffles are another one of my favorite foods, so the idea of combining the two of them together just sounded so good to me!   I love that the recipe starts with a couple of cans of crescent roll dough, I always keep some on hand.  If you can snag the un-perforated sheets, then it saves you from having to pinch seams. I'm going to admit, I used more cheese than what was called for. I had 2 cup bag of mozzarella, and I combined it with the 1/2 cup Parmesan.  I made them two ways.  The first set I did as the recipe stated.  The second, I spooned some sauce inside.  Not a lot, maybe 1/4 cup or so. You don't want to overload it so that it oozes out or you'll have a mess to clean up. These were go...

Here in the New England, we are anticipating a winter storm that's supposed to be a whopper.  That means a good bit of time out in the cold, snow blowing and shoveling, and one of the things that makes that tolerable is knowing I can come inside to a nice warm bowl of soup. I've really upped my soup game in the past two years.  Basil Turkey , Italian Sausage Minestrone , Satisfying Tomato were some of our favorites.  But chicken is the protein we eat the most, and I'm always looking for new ways to serve it up. I found this recipe on the cards that are enclosed in my Taste of Home Special Delivery Winter box. I immediately put it in the to try pile because I had everything on hand except for the baby spinach.  I made a changes, such as using chicken breast, low sodium broth, an orange pepper, and a can of mixed beans instead of just the kidney beans. It doesn't really get much easier.  Just a few minutes prep and then you can just walk away. You can e...