WINNER WINNER!!!

Well, it's official! My first ever blog giveaway is closed and the winner is..........


AMY RICHARD


Congrats, Amy! I know you'll love your new apron and think it's just adorable! I'll email you to get your mailing information so that we can get it sent to you right away!

Thank you to Olivia at Dancing Zebras for offering one of her cute products to one lucky winner! Please don't forget to check out her facebook page and see all the great things she makes - I know she'd love to make each of you your very own, one of a kind apron!

Thanks to each of you that entered and made this so much fun for me! I'll keep the recipes coming and who knows, you just might see another giveaway sometime soon! :)

My First Give-Away!!

I'm so excited to be hosting my first ever blog give-away! One of my sweet friends at church, Olivia, has a home business and has graciously offered up one of her adorable handmade (and super trendy) aprons! This girl does it ALL! She makes aprons, knot dresses for little girls, baby bedding, and more! She has just recently gone to some of our local children's boutiques and is going to start selling some of her products in these stores. Her work is high-quality and as cute as it gets!

What better to give away on a recipe blog than an apron? I actually own one of these and wear it all the time! It ties around the waist and is so cute! And who says you can't look cute while you are cooking? :)

Here are some pictures! Just imagine how adorable you'll be cooking in your kitchen in this!





So here's what you need to do! Two ways to enter and get your name in the drawing - 1. Become a follower of this blog and leave a comment letting me know you are a follower - include your email address so I can contact you if you are the lucky winner. (If you are already following my blog, leave me a comment and let me know!). 2. Go to Facebook and "Like" Olivia's business page - Search for "Dancing Zebras" and "Like" it - come back and leave me another comment to let me know that you are now a fan of Dancing Zebras and your name will be entered twice!

I'll be drawing the name out this Friday afternoon, March 4th. and will post the winners name on here - so make sure to check back!!

Thank you, Olivia! I'm excited for some lucky girl to get this adorable apron! Make sure and check out all of her products and get in contact with her via her facebook business page to order any of her great items! You won't be disappointed!

Good luck!! (Email me if you are having problems leaving a comment and I'll add your name! cmcash4476[at]gmail[dot]com

Easy Pasta Salad

I tried this recently at a girl's night and just had to have the recipe. I really love pasta salads. They are great as a side dish for nights you are grilling, as a take-along dish for potlucks, girl's nights, or just great all alone as a light lunch. This one is really simple but such a great combination of flavors. Thank you, Katie, for sharing this one with me!

Pasta Salad

1 lb. Box Spiral Pasta - Cooked, drained and rinsed with cold water
1 Bottle Zesty Italian Dressing
1 Small Can Sliced Black Olives (I left these out as we don't care for olives)
1 Cup Cherry Tomatoes, Sliced in half
1 Package Monterey Jack Cheese Cubes
1 Package Mini Turkey Pepperonis

Once noodles are done and rinsed, pour all ingredients into a large mixing bowl. Toss with dressing and chill until ready to serve. You could add a couple of tablespoons of Parmesan Cheese and mix that in as well! Enjoy!

Easy Chicken Dinner

Ok, this one, I'm almost embarrassed to post. It requires no culinary wizardry at all. But, it's good. And it goes in your crock-pot. And if you throw in a salad or some apple sauce you have a full meal with very little effort. What busy mom or working girl doesn't like that idea. A good, complete meal cooking for you while you go about your day. Here's what you need to do and you can go ahead and start calling me Emeril at any time. :)

Crock-Pot Chicken Dinner

4-6 Chicken Breasts (frozen or thawed)
2 Cans Whole New Potatoes, drained
1/2 Bag Baby Carrots
1 Can each - Cream of Chicken and Cream of Mushroom Soup
Salt, Pepper, Garlic and Onion Powder to taste

Dump it in your crock-pot, stir, set to high for 4-5 hours or low for 6-8 hours. Easy, peezy, lemon squeezy.

Crock-Pot Pork Chops with Apples and Stuffing

That's a HUGE recipe title, isn't it? I didn't know what else to call it. I could have just called it "delish", cause it is! My friend from St. Louis sent this to me a couple of months ago and I've made it twice now. Once in the oven and then once in my crock-pot and they turned out a lot more tender in my crock-pot so that's the version I'm going with from now on. If you like the pork/apples/stuffing combo - this one is a winner! A little sweet, little savory and oh so good! Here's what you need:

Pork Chops with Apples and Stuffing

4-5 Boneless Pork Chops
1 Can Apple Pie Filling
1 Box Chicken Flavor Stove Top Stuffing
Salt and Pepper, to taste

Lightly season pork chops with salt and pepper on both sides. Pour can of apple pie filling in the bottom of the crock-pot. Place pork chops on top and cook on low for 6 hours or on high for 4 hours. About 10 minutes before you are ready to serve, cook Stove Top Stuffing as according to package directions. Spread over pork chops and serve.

Serve with a veggie or any sides you might like with pork!

BBQ Chicken Pizza

A friend from church recently told me about her homemade BBQ Chicken Pizza and I knew I had to give it a try for myself. I used one of my favorite things - a rotisserie chicken from Walmart - these things are so useful in so many different recipes! I also bought the refrigerated pizza dough by Pillsbury (found by the canned biscuits) - which was so good! This came together really fast and everyone loved it! It's nice for a little change every once in a while! Add a side salad and you have a great meal and a lot healthier than regular pizza! Enjoy!

BBQ Chicken Pizza

White Meat (skin and bones removed) from a Rotisserie Chicken - Chopped
1 Can Refrigerated Pizza Dough - Rolled out fairly thin
Red Onion - Thinly sliced
BBQ Sauce - Any kind (I used Sweet Baby Ray's - Honey BBQ Flavor)
Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

Roll out pizza dough and place on lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake for about 4-5 minutes at the temperature stated on the can. (This will help to crisp up your dough a little before adding your ingredients.) Take out of oven and layer the following: BBQ Sauce, shredded chicken, red onion, cheese. Bake the remaining amount of time or until crust is lightly golden and cheese is melted.

Homemade Meatballs

I am a sucker for spaghetti and meatballs - I just love it! This is my mom's recipe and they are WAY better than those frozen meatballs you can buy at the grocery store and they take no time to mix up. I have also made these, then put them in some marinara sauce and let them simmer for an hour or so and they make some super good meatball subs! Top them with provolone cheese and/or parmesan and they are a great meal! Very versatile! :) Enjoy!

Meatballs

1 lb. Lean Ground Beef
1 Cup Italian Style Bread Crumbs
1 tsp. Garlic Powder
1/2 Cup Milk
1 Egg, Beaten
Salt and Pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl and shape into balls. Place on lightly greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 for about 30 minutes or until no longer pink. Add them to your sauce and let simmer until ready to serve.