Halloween Partay: Mac & Meat and Pepperoni Rolls

Not the prettiest picture, sure but, one of the most delicious spreads out there.


Gosh, I love cheese. And meat. And carbs.


Look at those pepperoni rolls! And mac and meat! Which is just like hamburger helper from what I understand of hamburger helper. But this one uses the blue box and your own ingenuity. 

Mac and Meat!

Pepperoni Rolls!

A truly perfect pairing.

So, I am having a huge halloween party at my house today. Huge. Hugest party I have ever had. So, there is a lot to do and stress over and pick at. 

Luckily I have comfort food like this to munch on and chill with. 

Also, I will try and post pics of the party/food and drinks sometime next week. Maybe as my Friday post. 

We'll see how together and adult I can be ;)

My Aunt Tootsie is a dietician and one of the best "throw things together" cooks I know. 

You know what I mean. One of those people who just tosses things together and they are just randomly deliciously perfect. 

These are two of her classics that she would make for us kids when there were seven of us and just 2 moms. 

I've been thinking lately of updating the Mac & Meat Recipe even further by adding some cooked veggies. Some more color and taste. It's just sooooo good and comforting as is that I am tentative to mess with it t all. Let me know what you think.

Mac & Meat

-1 box family size kraft mac and cheese

-1 can cream of mushroom soup

-1 lb ground beef

Prepare the mac and cheese and brown the meat. Once both are cooked, throw all ingredients together and enjoy.

Pepperoni Rolls

-4 packages biscuts

-1 package pepperoni 

Take a piece of pepperoni, fold a biscut in half around folded pepperoni piece. Lay out on cookie sheet, bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes.

Irish Scones: My Family's Recipe

Oh my gosh. One of the top requested recipes of all time in my family are these spectacular Irish Scones. This is a reprise of a previous post which included this recipe. I don't care though, I just remade them and needed them to show up on my blog again with their treat-studded glory. 

They are half gone before they've even cooled off in our house. It's insane.

But trust me when I say the insanity is warranted. 

These are a handed down and well made Irish family staple. You need this recipe. From all the things I've posted to date, THIS is the thing you need to print off or write out or whatever. This recipe is one every family needs to have, every person should have.

Raisins are the classic choice but, chocolate chips make them decadent. For the breakfast scone, I would always go with raisin. But if you are a chocolate fan in any way, you need to make 1/2 the batch with chips instead.

I could NOT decide in this case which to make. So, I made these with chocolate covered raisins and cranberries. 

They made my toes curl.

Yes. They are THAT good. 

You must must make them. Must. Here is the much "mmmm'd" over recipe. Make and enjoy :)

Irish Scones

-4 cups flour

-2 teaspoons baking powder

-1 teaspoon baking soda

-1/2 teaspoon salt

-1 cup sugar

-1 stick butter

-1 pint sour cream

-2 eggs

-2 cups raisins (Or chocolate chips)

Combine all dry ingredients, cut in the butter, add raisins, beat eggs in sour cream and then blend all. 

Drop on a greased sheet, letting the rough peaks stay in shape. Bake at 375 for 15 minutes or until golden.

The Best/Easiest/Best Cupcakes Ever. EVER.

Happy my birthday to you! 

Last Wednesday that is. The 12th. But still! Imma keep on celebrating.

I present, the BEST friggin' cupcakes I have ever, EVER had. And trust me when I say, I have had a LOT of fridgin' cupcakes. 

Like, a lot. 

It's pretty much a large part of my charm/curves.

And yet despite my cupcake history, I can tell you: these are the best. When this recipe is made into cake, this is the best cake. It is delicious, spongy, not too dry, not too crumbly: it essentially just rocks. 

I found it on a blog I love to follow: Cupcakes and Sprinkles. It was a recipe for "The Best Chocolate Cake" and as soon as I read it, I knew I wanted to make it. However, at the time, the reason I was even LOOKING for cake recipes was for my little brother's birthday. 

And he has very specific tastes. 

"Yellow cake with chocolate icing" he insisted for the hundredth time. 

"What about chocolate cake? With vanilla icing?" I pleaded. 

"I mean I guess..." he eventually said. "I just like yellow cake with chocolate icing more..."

Ha, great. As if I could do what I wanted to do NOW. When he was being all nice and adorable. So, I decided I could still make this recipe. Just with some yellow cake adaptations. 

Which meant, instead of the called for chocolate cake mix and chocolate pudding, I was going to bust out a yellow cake and butterscotch pudding.

Oh yeah? Didn't I mention? This uses cake mix. 

For all of you who I just lost by saying the words "mix"- I am going to have to BEG you to try this recipe. It is really really worth sacrificing to semi-homemade-ness. Please give it a try, just because it has so much delicious to it that you will never, ever, regret it.

Please and thank you :)

The Best Cake EVER

Recipe Source: kevinandamanda.com & cupcakeswithsprinkles.blogspot.com
 

1 box Cake Mix
1 pkg Jell-O Instant Pudding
1 cup Sour Cream
1 cup Vegetable Oil
4 Eggs, beaten
1/2 cup Milk
1 teaspoon Vanilla
(If chocolate cake, add 2 cups Mini Semisweet Chocolate Chips) 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 

2. In a very large bowl , mix together everything except chocolate chips if attempting chocolate cake. Batter will be thick. Stir in the chocolate chips. Pour batter into cake pan(s) of choice. 

3. For cooking time, use the cooking times on the back of the cake box as a guide and usually add 10 mins to whatever it says. Then do the toothpick check, and if it’s not done, check on it every 5 mins after that.

*I made a yellow cake with yellow cake mix and butterscotch pudding. The recipe originally called for devils food and chocolate pudding. I really want to make a cherry cake with french vanilla pudding or a carrot with butterscotch. So many options! Let me know what you guys try but, whatever you do: MAKE THIS CAKE!

Happy My Birthday To You! And the Winner is...

Today, I turned 24! I played laser tag with my friends and ate ice cream like a real grown up and truly felt all the blessings I have in life present around me.

It was glorious. More on that tomorrow morning. After sleep. And caffeine. 

Laser tag really takes it out of you.

The important thing right now is the winner of our giveaway. Ladies and gentleman, our winner is: Mercedes J Kamencik!

Mercedes submitted via my facebook page and said along with her submission: "I am just really starting to begin my food journey to healthier eating and a book like this would be fantastic to help me along the way!

To all of you who submitted via facebook and e-mail with interest in the book, I encourage you to look into it yourselves! While scoring a free copy is always fun, buying a copy for yourself might well be worth it! I promise, this book has a ton to offer a family with food allergies and dietary needs. 

Thank you, all of you, who submitted for a chance to win! I really loved doing a giveaway so, I think we'll have to do this again soon :)

New recipe Friday! Get excited. <3 Meg

The Science Of Cooking Giveaway! HURRY!

Hello again! This is just a reminder that I am giving away a REALLY cool book about the science of cooking and you have until 12 PM (EST) to enter before I pick the winner and post later this evening. To recap for those of you just joining in on the fun: 

For some reasonJoy Bauer (for those of you who don't know, that's the nutritionist from The Today Show!) and her people think I am a responsible/interesting blogger because they offered me a chance to promote her new cookbook on my page! Specifically Joy's book Food Cures which I could give a copy away to my readers after a review. 

My readers being you guys. 

So get excited! I am pretty much excited FOR you! This book is INSANELY cool- it has all kinds of recipes to create a flexible diet to any stomach/health issues (lactose, gluten free, etc) as well as an index of foods to help with certain nutrional balances, stomach/health symptoms, and descriptions of the overall science behind food working within your body.

A serious hat's off to Joy and her team for doing all this research and creating such a great book. They did a top notch job here. To whoever wins this, it's a great treasure in the kitchen, illuminating so much about cooking and nutrition that I had never realized. I may be a novice but, I really do think that even an expert hand in the kitchen would find this book worthwhile. I really want my own now that I have been sneaking peeks into the reader copy!

To enter for a chance to win the giveaway, you have to "like" my page on Facebook if you haven't already (click here or on the icon in the sidebar) and leave a comment on the page about either your interest in the science of food or your personal need for more nutritional balance! Or (which seems to be the preference) you can write me at clutzyscribbler@yahoo.com with your information! Make sure to leave your full name (if it's not on your facebook account/email) and submit by 12 PM EST TODAY!!! In slightly less than 4 hours the giveaway closes!!!  I will then reveal the winner tonight in my birthday post! Then we can iron out the minor details like where you'd like me to ship you Joy's book.

  Best of luck to all of my readers! AGAIN, if you don't have FB or you have questions regarding the contest, write me an e-mail at clutzyscribbler@yahoo.com and I can enter you that way or answer whatever I've neglected to explain. 

3 and a half hours left! Here goes!

My First Ever Cookbook Giveaway! & Walkin' Tacos (The Epic End of Summer o' Stress 2011 and Beginning of a New Era: Fall)

It's fall here in DC and suddenly I find myself looking around in confusion wondering where summer went. I have stopped travelling long enough to have all luggage and bags unpacked. I have finally tackled the laundry and unpacked all the moving boxes. The next wedding I have to plan into my life isn't until New Years Eve. I look back at what transpired this summer and in my head all I see is a chaotic blur of equal parts fun/fab friends/sunshine/adventures/many lovely Weddings that all choked me up.... and stress/moving boxes/airplanes/hospitals/floods/hectic-ness.

I am both sad it's wrapped up and amazed I survived. Torn between savoring every photo and moment and trying to block it out. In the bad sides, the only thing missing was the plague of locusts. On the good, the only thing missing was more time to savor each blessing that came my way. Of which there were/are many. Or more time at the beach with my family.

Definitely that last one but, even if I had spent my whole summer with my family at the beach, I am sure I would still be grumbling that it wasn't enough time. I am a very lucky, very blissed out, gal when it comes to the blessings and people in my life. Especially my family. I only spent one week going around Chicago/Wheaton/Wisconsin this summer with my family and it was definitely not enough time.

The point of all that rant I suppose was these 3 things. 

1) I am sorry I vanished at points throughout the summer and then again for end of August/Apparently ALL of September. We'll just pretend September didn't happen. It seems like it was on fast forward anyway, I'm sure you all understand.

2) I love you all for being so patient with me and understanding of the few inches away I was from cracking under stress and grasping at the summer fun moments while I could. I know you all never ask anything of me as a writer/foodie/blogger but, the few posts I promise you need to be provided. The lack of consistency is my fault and I apologize. I know I come off as foodie/flake but! I am trying.

3) While at our lakehouse though, my mom organized one of the coolest meals I have ever seen. Pioneer Woman did a post on these recently too, (although hers were more involved and called "pie" which I don't get). They are a great, summer, meal that I look forward to for my next (hopefully calmer) sunshine season.

Walking Tacos.

What's that you say? Just an ordinary Fritos bag. But why is there a fork sticking out of it?

A Doritos bag? That's still not food, Meaghan! You've been gone from blogging too long and don't know what you're posting about!

Okay, I'll stop writing in the 3rd person/being weird. What appears to be an ordinary bag of chips is no such thing when you peek inside! Ta-da!

The insides reveal something akin with a taco salad but wrapped up inside individual chip bags! Basic idea: make all the fixin's for tacos but neglect to get tortillas or hard shells. Simply set up a taco bar for you/your friends/your fam and let people dump taco ingredients into bags of gently crushed chips.

Holy yum.

These pics are from the Walkin' Taco bar my mom set up at the lakehouse from 4th of July weekend. Yes, that's how long it has taken me to upload the pictures and write a post. I've already felt guilty enough, ok! Give me a break. 

The lovely thing about Walkin' Tacos is that you can make the meal disposable for easy clean up without feeling like a giant waster for using paper plates and napkins. It's just using the chip bags as dishes! Our lake is usually filled with 30-40 of our friends and family (mostly family, yes we are Irish Catholic) so meals like this one keep my mom sane. We chopped up some watermelon, cooked about 4 lbs of taco meat, and set up the taco bar for everyone's enjoyment.

Trust me/look at how good that looks. No one was complaining. I tried Doritos and Fritos (2 bags, but this is a safe place, no judgement) and both of them were amazzzzzing. Want to give it a try with chicken instead of beef and Ranch Doritos sometime soon too. Yummmmmmmm.

Alright, that's enough of that now. I am sure you will all be anxious to make Walkin' Tacos so I can stop talking about their amazing factors and we can talk about my giveaway! That's the good part, after all! 

Despite my own guilt/reservations about my skills as a blogger, for some reason Joy Bauer (for those of you who don't know, that's the nutritionist from The Today Show!) and her people think I am doing something right because they offered me a chance to promote her new cookbook on my page! I was so excited, I probably spent the most spastic response back they've received to date and so the cycle of confusing e-mails began! Ha, eventually though it was accomplished that they would send me Joy's book Food Cures and I could give a copy away to my readers after a review. 

My readers being you guys. 

So get excited! I am pretty much excited FOR you! This book is INSANELY cool- it has all kinds of recipes to create a flexible diet to any stomach/health issues (lactose, gluten free, etc) as well as an index of foods to help with certain nutrional balances, stomach/health symptoms, and descriptions of the overall science behind food working within your body.

A serious hat's off to Joy and her team for doing all this research and creating such a great book. To whoever wins this, it's a great treasure in the kitchen. I really want my own now that I have been sneaking peeks into the reader copy!

To enter for a chance to win the giveaway, you have to "like" my page on Facebook if you haven't already (click here or on the icon in the sidebar) and leave a comment on the page about either your interest in the science of food or your personal need for more nutritional balance! Make sure to leave your full name (if it's not on your facebook account) by 12 PM EST on Wednesday, October 12th and later that night for my birthday post (yes, 10/12 is my bday! To quote Hannibal, I love it when a plan comes together), I will reveal the winner! I'll then ask you to e-mail me and we can work out the minor details like where you'd like me to ship you Joy's book.

  Best of luck to all of my readers! If you don't have FB or you have questions regarding the contest, write me an e-mail at clutzyscribbler@yahoo.com and I can enter you that way or answer whatever I've neglected to explain. I am sure I am forgetting something, this is why I shouldn't be allowed to drink Diet Coke. Hyperactive blog posts are always my most scattered/least informative.

I look forward to hearing from all of you guys and can't wait to reveal the winner! Good luck to all of you and SO EXCITED to be back in the blogging game!

Thank you again to you readers who continued to support me, write me, and believe in me through my absence as well as a big thanks to Joy Bauer and her team for believing my blog to be a good spring board for their amazing cookbook and supporting me throughout this process. 

Giveaway #1! Here we go :)