December 31, 2012

Jack's Final Adventures

Night 35


Night 36


Night 37


Night 38



Night 39- Christmas Eve Morning

After Marley got over her fear of Jack, I think she really enjoyed it. She keeps asking when he's coming back, so maybe he'll make a few visits throughout the year just to keep an eye on her. She did say that next year he'll watch Mason instead of her. 



Check out all 6 posts of Elf on the Shelf Ideas here

December 28, 2012

Cheesecake Dip

I could eat cheesecake every day! So when I saw this recipe on Pinterest, I decided to make it to bring to my family Christmas. 


1 jar marshmallow fluff
2 cans cherry pie filling
1 box of graham crackers
1 8oz cream cheese (softened)
2 small tubs of cool whip

(I made this in a bowl because my 9x13 dish was being used for another recipe, but it would probably work best in a cake pan) 


Crush up one sleeve of the graham crackers and place on bottom of dish. 

In separate bowl mix marshmallow fluff and cream cheese until smooth (I warmed mine in the microwave to make it a little easier to mix) Then mix in the cool whip, one tub at a time. Place on top of graham crackers. 


Pour cherries on top (you can use any kind of topping you want) 

Use remaining graham crackers to dip! Enjoy! 



This was SO GOOD! My younger cousin said "you don't need the crackers, just use a spoon" So I guess he really liked it. I had some left overs and I may have eaten it with a spoon. 

December 27, 2012

Chicken Parmesan Casserole

This recipe looked very interesting to me. I usually eat breaded chicken when I have chicken parmesan so to see the breading on top of the whole thing was different, so of course I had to try it out.


2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 cups marinara sauce
1/4 cup chopped basil
8 oz mozzarella, shredded
4 oz Parmesan, grated
1 (5-oz) package garlic croutons


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Put olive oil and garlic on bottom of 9x13 baking dish.


Layer chicken and sauce next.


Sprinkle on the basil. Then put half of mozzarella and half of the parmesan cheese on top.


Add all the croutons and cover with remaining cheese.



Bake for 35 minutes at 350 degrees.


This was very good! There were no left overs. I also made some noodles to eat with it. However, next time I make it I will put a layer of noodles on the bottom of the dish so they're baked with it and I will smash the croutons so there aren't such big pieces. Otherwise it was very good!





December 19, 2012

Jack- Week Five

Night 28


Night 29


Night 30


Night 31


Night 32


Night 33


Night 34


Check out all of our Elf adventures here



December 18, 2012

Stove Top Casserole

This recipe looked pretty simple and pretty good so I gave it a try.


1 package stove top stuffing (prepared as directed on box)
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup milk
chicken breasts
1 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese


Mix milk and cream of chicken soup until smooth. Mix in 1 cup of the cheese

Place chicken on bottom of 9x13 inch pan. Pour milk/soup/cheese mix over top and cover with rest of the cheese. 


Cover with prepared stuffing.


Bake at 375 degrees for 35 minutes. 


This was really good, but I think for next time I will use 2 boxes of stuffing so that it's covered more and I love stuffing so to me there's never too much of it! 

December 17, 2012

Crockpot Potato Soup

I LOVE me some potato soup. I am always trying different recipes in search of the best one. This recipe is pretty good.

1- 30 ounce bag hash brown potatoes (I used the cubed ones)
3- 14 ounce cans of chicken broth (for some reason I only bought 2 at the store so that's what I used)
1- can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 package cream cheese
pepper



Put everything in the crock pot except for the cream cheese. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. Add cream cheese 1 hour before serving. Mix well until cream cheese melts.



Like I said I love potato soup, however, this wasn't the perfect recipe. My search continues...


December 13, 2012

Pizza Casserole

This is the second time I've made this recipe. However, the first time was well over a year ago before I even started my blog.

Pizza Casserole (original recipe found here)


1 bag egg noodles
1 package pepperoni
1 1/2 pound hamburger meat (browned and drained)
large jar of spaghetti sauce (I used two small ones)
Cheese ( I used provolone but mozzarella is good too)


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Boil noodles until soft. Drain. 


Add thin layer of sauce to bottom of 9x13 inch baking dish


Layer half of the noodles on top. Next, layer half the meat. Then half of the sauce. Rest of the noodles and half of the cheese. 


Next layer the rest of the meat, rest of the sauce and rest of the cheese. Your final layer is pepperoni. 


Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and continue baking for 15 more minutes. 


Let cool for 10-15 minutes. 



It's so good! 

December 12, 2012

Jack- Week Four

Night 21
In a stocking


Night 22
In the tree

Night 23
Again, I fell asleep without moving him, but when I woke in the morning he wasn't in the tree where I left him. Mike luckily moved him before he left for work. It was fun searching the house for him with Marley. Found him on the kitchen fan.

Night 24

Night 25
Enjoying the cat food

Night 26
 In the Christmas wreath

Night 27
He brought Marley and Mason each a christmas book.


Check out all of our Elf on the Shelf posts here.