Bacon Dog Nachos

So...what's for lunch? It's hard to keep the kiddos satisfied with food options during the summer months. Anyone else have this issue?

My youngest was set on having nachos for lunch! Nothing else would suffice. I tried to offer up other things...but NOOOOOOO! We didn't have any taco meat, and we weren't making taco mac (recipe HERE)  until tomorrow. My older son made up a cheese quesadilla. I offered that up. Still a no go as I got the response, "Does that sound like nachos?" D'oh! So time to scrounge & see what we have...

So here's what I came up with:

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BACON DOG NACHOS

Ingredients:

~ 2 handfuls tortilla chips
~ 1/4 C taco sauce &/or picante sauce
~ 1-2 hot dogs
~ 2 T bacon bits
~ 1/2 C shredded cheese


Directions:

* on a microwave-safe plate, place tortilla chips

* drizzle the sauce around the chips

* thinly slice the hot dog(s) (we had a couple of left over ones from grilling) & scatter on top of the sauce & chips

* spread the shredded cheese on top the sliced hot dog(s)

* sprinkle the bacon bits over the top of the cheese

* place in the microwave for about 30-45 seconds or until the cheese is melted

* it's ready to eat

Yield: 1-2 servings

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After serving up this concoction to my youngest, he got really excited & said he liked.

On of scale of 1-10...he gave it a 10 (with 10 being the best)!

So...it's a good way to use up left over grilled hot dogs or taco leftovers.

ENJOY!

Smashed [Leftover] Potatoes

I think there's something about the Irish in me that makes me want & really love potatoes. And then my eyes get bigger than my stomach...and sometimes I misjudge how much of a potato dish to fix for family &/or company. So I usually end up with a lot more than I bargained for!

At Easter time, I made some lazy cooker mashed potatoes that were pretty good, but I have kiddos that don't like the texture of mashed potatoes. It's OK...I heard the gasps. I understand. It breaks our hearts, too.

Now then, the other night I fixed up a bunch of baby red potatoes. I quartered them, seasoned them how I wanted, boiled them...and had a lot left over! Go figure.

We are really bad about using leftovers. But we had another meal coming up that I knew I could reuse those 'taters!

Here's what I did:

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SMASHED [LEFTOVER] POTATOES

Ingredients:

~ baby potatoes, quartered
~ 1/2 stick of butter
~ 1/4 C parsley, chopped or dried
~ salt & pepper, to taste
~ water to cover potatoes
~ 1/4 C milk
~ 1-2 boullion cube(s); I used chicken flavor


Directions:

* after cutting baby potatoes into quarters, place in a large pot

* cover the potato quarters with enough water to cover the potato pieces

* add butter, parsley, salt & pepper to the water

* bring water to a boil

* turn burner temp down slightly & allow to boil for about 20-30 minutes or until potatoes are tender

* turn burner off & allow the potatoes to sit in the water
(I allowed them to sit until after dinner, when I served the quartered potatoes, I continued onto the next step while doing cleanup & putting away leftovers)

* drain most of the water off the potatoes until there's maybe a half inch of water in the pot

* with a spoon, fork or potato masher, begin breaking down the potatoes

* add the milk & continue smashing gently

* here is where I placed the mixture into an airtight container, threw in the bouillon cube, closed it & allowed it to sit in the fridge for a day or two; you may skip the refrigerator step if you are moving right into making the smashed potatoes right now, just make sure the bouillon cube is good & dissolved

* if you stored the potato mixture in the fridge, pull it out & place the mixture into a medium sauce pan or a large pot if you have a lot

* begin reheating the potato mixture by placing the burner on mid heat & stirring occasionally; the bouillon cube may not have dissolved while in the fridge, so begin stirring it around until it's broken up into the potatoes

* you may need to smash some of the potato lumps a bit more, if you'd like, as you are heating & stirring

* you may want to add a little more salt & pepper, but that is up to you

* (re)serve & consume

Served with smoked ham, steamed green beans & rolls
*GORGEOUS*

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If you prefer much creamier mashed potatoes, feel free to whip them up with a handheld mixer, because just having them smashed will have them a bit lumpy.

And, yes...the skins are left in there! And you know what? My hubby liked 'em. He did. No...my kiddos refused to try them. Cowards.

My hubby did make an interesting comparison: he told me they reminded him of "grandma's house potatoes." I don't exactly know what he meant by that, but I said I was taking it as a compliment & we would move on from there!

So...if you have leftovers that you want to reuse, just repurpose the potatoes & it's a whole new dish a day or two later! And...you've saved money by not purchasing stuff for a whole new side dish.

To change it up a little more, feel free to add garlic powder &/or cheese. No one will know that you had these same potatoes a night or 2 before unless you tell them. It could be our own little secret!

You're welcome.

ENJOY!

S'More [Bacon] Trail Mix

It's summertime, people! That means there has been more baseball tournaments kicked up or attending your favorite baseball team's game(s), swimming, vacations, and...camping!

Now then, I'm not what you'd call an "outdoorsy person". I will go camping, but I'm picky about it. I will go in the woods, but it had better be in a camper...or better yet...a cabin. I'm not a fan of the heat & needing to apply 8 layers of super high sunscreen. I feel like I put in my dues doing years of tent camping on family vacations as a kid. From KOA to KOA as we'd go from state to state. I'm in a different phase of life & would prefer the indoors now.

I will make a few exceptions, however. I love a cool morning on the deck with my coffee in the peaceful stillness while smelling the moisture of the dew as it accentuates the green smell of the grass & leaves. Or, if at the lake since my hubby & sons love the camping scene, I love going out with the early morning fishers in the boat. It's quiet, still, peaceful listening to the water. Yeah...that.

But I'll admit that I do love a good campfire/bonfire/firepit going. I do love roaring & crackling of the fire while roasting up marshmallows...and even more so adding the marshmallow to graham crackers with chocolate. Mmm-mmm-mmm...gimme s'more of that!

Now then, since not everyone enjoys that scene, I came up with a cheater to-go s'mores that anyone can have at nearly anytime!

As it turns out, there was recently quite the baconfest going on in Colorado. Mmmmm...bacon...
So my hubby would keep me up to date on what was going down at the baconfest. And one of the things served was bacon s'mores! BACON S'MORES, people! WHAT??? Mmmmmm...

My hubby has been kind enough to make me chocolate covered bacon before. Yeah...only part of why I love him. And if you can have chocolate covered bacon...why not add some marshmallows & graham? Right? So I started researching & decided to make it a fun trail mix!

So, here's what I did:

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S'MORE [BACON] TRAIL MIX

Ingredients:

~ 1 C Golden Grahams cereal
~ 1 C Teddy Grahams (honey flavor)
~ 1/2 C Milk Chocolate Chips (I used Hershey's)
~ 1/2 C Milk Chocolate M&M's
~ 1 C mini marshmallows
~ 1 C mini marshmallow bites (little dehydrated ones)
~ 1/2 C bacon bits

Directions:

* Place all the ingredients into a large bowl

* Mix together

* Consume


+ Yield: about 9 servings of about 1/2 a cup each

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I love the idea of the different textures & the presentation of this trail mix. There's still the graham in the cereal, the marshmallows & the Hershey chocolate for the traditional look of the s'more. You can always stop at those ingredients if you'd like. But I wanted to bump up the color, the sizes...plus...I had to add the bears for the woodsy-campy feel! Oh...and...uh...BACON!

You can always use turkey bacon bits or imitation bacon bits, too. Or you can leave out the bacon all together if it's something you think is too weird.

Something else you can do for a switch up is by adding nuts or seeds of sorts. You can also maybe use Reece's Pieces or peanut butter M&M's if you want to add a bit of the nutty taste to the mix. You can even add mini pretzels or pretzel sticks, also! Or switch up the chocolate to dark chocolate or white chocolate for something different.

And? You can enjoy them while camping, while on the go, when out watching fireworks, or just while watching the TV from your couch or from inside your blanket fort in the living room. It's S'mores-to-go, people! It's not gooey...the only real mess you'd make is if you spilled it. But it's still easy clean up!

*Note: Use just the M&M's or hardshell candy if you plan on being in the heat for a while.

The jar on top as no bacon.
The jars below are marked with "B" since the have bacon.

Oh...and just store in snack-size plastic baggies, or small jars (like mason jars or reuse baby food jars to hold it). Then you can just pick up some s'more snacking & head out the door! Or it's easy transport when you go camping. Recharge some childhood-like memories with this mix! S'mores, M&Ms, Teddy Grahams, marshmallows...I mean...C'mon!

ENJOY!