Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Mama Francesca Cheese. However all opinions and the recipe are 100% my own.

I think I have confessed here on my blog before that my family and I split ways when it comes to Italian food. For some reason they need to be coaxed into eating it. I have decided to stop this crazy nonsense of me sacrificing the flavors I love for them to be happy, when in reality they absolutely love it. Instead I am going full force ahead and serving everyday meals laced with Italian flavors. For instance, I have been serving bubbly cheesy garlic bread fresh out of the oven with our dinners at night, and NO ONE can resist it, especially me. I can’t just say it is the inviting warmth of the hot bread, I have to give credit to the incredible parmesan cheese I’ve been using: Mama Francesca. The premium cheese has really taken a front and center spot in my home since discovering it at Walmart a few weeks ago. Did I mention the price point can’t be beat for a cheese of this caliber? It taste great and is being used at least twice a week, not only by me but by my fiance too (and he’s a tough sell.) I have even managed to work the lovely Mama Francesca parmesan into my homemade salad dressings. Okay, it’s  become a permanent fixture on my grocery list and I don’t foresee it coming down. When you find something this good, you just can’t imagine living without it.

I’m really looking forward to the new Mama Francesca “The Tereztto” which will be  launching in Wal-Mart on 4/21/2014! Another way for me to keep making my meals feel more Italian!

Ingredients:

• 1 – loaf french bread
• 3 – tablespoons butter (room temperature)
• 2 – tablespoons mayo
• 3 – tablespoons Mama Francesca Parmesan cheese
• 2 – tablespoons minced garlic

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Take loaf of french bread and slice it down the middle (creating to long slices of bread.) 
3. Place butter, mayo, parmesan cheese, and minced garlic in a bowl.  Mix to combine.
4. Evenly spread butter/parm mixture on each slice of bread.
5. Place slices of bread on a cookie sheet.
6. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
7. Then place under the broiler for 3 minutes or until golden brown. 
8. Cut and enjoy with a hearty meal.

         Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Mama Francesca Cheese. However all opinions and the recipe are 100% my own.

I never seem to tire of cheese.  The thought of cheese excites me.  It makes me want to plan an entire meal around it or just slice it up with a cracker.  I run the gamut on the types I like and usually will hunt high and low for a specialty cheese.  Come on, does this really need explaining?  My logo to this blog is a little mouse.  That didn’t happen on accident.  I say it loud and proud,  “I’m a cheese girl!”

You can only imagine my utter delight when I happened to come across the premium Mama Francesca Cheese (available in a variety of flavors) at my local Walmart.  I nearly jumped for joy.  I adore parmesan cheese and it can sometimes be a little bit of a pain to find a nice one at an everyday market that’s affordable.  For some reason most people only think of parmesan cheese as a spaghetti topper, and forget to explore all the other wonderful things you can do with it.  I like to mix it into my mashed potatoes or make it into a pesto or encrust my chicken in it and fry it to a crisp, or simply make parmesan crisps out of it for soup or salad.  It doesn’t matter what you do it, as long as you buy it and eat it right away.

Ingredients for parmesan crisps and creamy zucchini soup:

• 5 – tablespoons Mama Francesca cheese ( I used Perfetto flavor)
• 1 – tablespoon olive oil 
  
• 6 – garlic cloves
• 1/3 – cup leeks (chopped)
• 9 – zucchini (chopped in rounds)
• 1 – tablespoon dried basil
• 1 – teaspoon chile flakes (the kind you use on pizza)
• 1 – teaspoons Lawry’s seasoning salt
• 1/2 – teaspoon black pepper
• 1 – bay leaf
• 4 – cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 3/4 – cup 1/2 and 1/2

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees fahrenheit.
2. Line a cookie sheet with a baking mat.
3. Pour 1/2 tablespoons of Mama Francesca cheese into little circle on the mat. Make sure they do not touch. 
4. Bake the cheese for 5 to 6 minutes or until golden crisp. 
5. Set to the side to cool on baking sheet until ready to use.
6. In a large pan over a medium flame add in olive oil and allow to get hot.
7. Add in leeks and garlic and saute for about 2 minutes.
8. Cut zucchini into rounds. I used a variety of zucchini. 
9. Then add in zucchini, dried basil, chile flakes, Lawry’s, black pepper, and bay leaf. Mix to combine. Continue to saute for about 5 to 10 minutes, or until the center of the zucchini starts to become translucent.
10. Pour in the broth and bring to a boil.
11. Boil the zucchini until fork tender for about 10 to 15 minutes.
12. Then remove bay leaf from soup.
13. Working in batches, pour 1/3 of the zucchini soup into a blender with 1/2 and 1/2. Blend until completely smooth/pureed.
14. Pour smooth/pureed zucchini mixture into a bowl, and continue with the rest of the zucchini soup until all is pureed.
15. Serve in a bowl hot and top with parmesan crisp and EAT IT!

I hold my love for Idaho Potatoes in a special place. I hold it there all year long and at certain times it needs to burst out of it’s cozy snuggly place in my heart and show it’s true colors. February is always a great time to let my potato affection reveal itself in the light of  Potato Lover’s Month.

I have a growing boy in my house who requests potatoes with every meal. I usually make a batch of baked potatoes at the head of the week and as we get into the middle of it I find other ways to enjoy them. One of my favorite is the mojo potato. It puts the spunk back into my step and makes me fall in love.

Watch the video below to see how to make mojo’s out of leftover baked Idaho Potatoes:

Ingredients for mojos:

• 3 to 4 – leftover baked Idaho Potatoes (cold)
• 1 – egg (whisked in a bowl)
• 1 – pouch fried chicken coating mix
• 1 – teaspoon Lawry’s
• 1 – teaspoon corn starch
• 1/2 – teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 – teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 – teaspoon garlic powder
• vegetable oil

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by The Idaho Potato Commission. The recipe and all opinions are 100% my own. 

Thank you to my crew of two for this shoot! Mando Lopez and Tony Molina you guys ROCK!!!!!

Are you ready?  The count down for the big game is upon us and everyone is buzzing about it.  Who’s your team, Seattle or Denver?  Or are you like me…. Who cares?  What’s on the menu?!  For me it’s a reason to get together with friends, eat good food, watch a bunch of awesome commercials and wait for the show in the middle of the game.  I know my opinion isn’t the popular one in America but I bet there are a lot of closet, non-pigskin freaks that will be watching (unless we are talking about chicharrónes of course.) Let’s stay on the subject at hand.  I will be joining in on the fun with the rest of America on Feb.2nd.  My family has been invited to a friends house and I am in charge of bringing something savory that is cheer-worthy.  It didn’t take me long to decide on individual mac and cheese servings packed with bacon,  jalapeno, cheddar cheese, cream cheese, and topped with potato chips.  Like always I was able to find all my ingredients at my favorite one stop shop…. Walmart.  (I got the cute football napkins there too. Extra point!)

GOOOOOOOOOOOOO CRUNCHY BACON JALAPENO MAC AND CHEESE!!!!!!!

Ingredients for crunchy bacon jalapeno mac and cheese:

• 4 – jalapenos (charred, peeled, and diced)
• 1 – pound bacon (cooked and crumbled)
• 2 – cups Barilla macaroni
• 3 – cup cheddar cheese (grated)
• 7 – stalks green onion (chopped)
• 2 – 8 ounce packages of Philadelphia cream cheese
• 1 – stick butter
• 1 – tablespoon of minced garlic
• 3 – cups half and half
• 1/2 – teaspoon Lawry’s seasoning salt
• 1/2 – teaspoon ground mustard
• 1 – bag of Lay’s potato chips (crushed down to crumbs)

Directions:

1. Place jalapenos on an open flame and char/ burn the skin. 
2. Place jalapenos in a ziplock for 30 minutes to steam.  Set to the side. 
3. In a large frying pan over a medium flame fry the bacon until it is fully cooked, then remove from oil and drain on a paper plate.  Crumble and set to the side.
4. Bring a large pot filled with water to a boil.  Add in macaroni and boil as directed on package.  Drain and place in a bowl.
5. Add bacon, cheddar cheese, and green onion to macaroni, and mix to combine. 
6. Cut 1 package of cream cheese into 1/2 inch cubes and add to macaroni mixture.
7. Peel and chop jalapenos into cubes (deseed and throw stems away).
8. Add jalapenos to macaroni mixture mix well. 
9. Preheat oven to 375 degrees fahrenheit.
10. Butter 10 – ‘3 inch’ ramekins. 
11. Fill each ramekin with macaroni mixture.  Set to the side. 
12. In a large frying pan over a medium flame add butter and garlic.  Melt.
13. Add in 1 package of cream cheese, mix to melt into butter.  It will still be a bit chunky.
14. Add in half and half and continue stirring to melt in the cream cheese. 
15. Add in Lawry’s and mustard to cream cheese/butter mixture.  Mix to combine.
16. Slowly pour 1/3 cup of cream/butter mixture into each ramekin.  
17. Top with potato chip crumbs. 
18. Bake for 30 minutes.
19. EAT THIS NOW!  

I seriously pride myself on being a potato girl. I never shy away from my favorite carb, nor do my boys. I believe Mando’s first word was “papa” and he wasn’t making reference to his father. My son follows closely in his dad’s footsteps, asking for potatoes with every meal. It’s kinda funny, the times we have been out at a Chinese or Japanese restaurant and my son tries to order french fries, that’s a true sign of a potato lover. There are so many varieties of potatoes in the US, and I have tried a great deal of them.

Not long ago Walmart asked me to try a new potato by the name of Albert Bartlett Rooster Potato, which up until now have only been sold in the United Kingdom. This potato starts off with pink skin and cooks golden yellow, and it is only sold exclusively to Walmart here in the United States. I quickly investigated this product to see what they were all about, and they only cost $2.87 for a 2 pound bag at my local Walmart . With promises of being buttery, nutty, and fresh I had to give them the old Presley try. I examined the packaging and found that this potato is very versatile. You can roast, mash, bake, fry, and boil it…. not quite in that order but you get the picture.  I decided since I don’t have a good mashed potato recipe on my blog, I would try my hand at this recipe. Enjoy it at your holiday table. Enjoy!

Ingredients for loaded mashed potatoes:

• 6 to 8 – Albert Bartlett Rooster potatoes (peeled and cut into 4 pieces per potato)
• 1 – stick butter (sliced)
• 3 – tablespoons sour cream
• salt to taste
• 2 – cups grated cheddar cheese
• 1 – cup bacon (cooked and crumbled)
• 1/2 – cup green onion (chopped)

Directions:

1. In a pot filled halfway with water over a medium flame, bring water to a boil. Meanwhile peel and cut potatoes. 
2. Add in potatoes and cook in boiling water for 15 minutes. 
3. Remove from flame and drain out water.
4. Smash potatoes with a masher and add in butter and sour cream, continue mashing until smooth. 
5. Salt to your liking.
6. Gently fold in 1 1/2 cups grated cheddar cheese.
7. Next mix in bacon and green onion. Continue mixing until fully combined. 
8. Pour the mashed potato mixture into a casserole dish, and sprinkle the top with remaining cheddar cheese.
9. Place under the boiler on high for 5 to 7 or until crisp.
10. Enjoy!

The funny thing is I learned how to make a complete Thanksgiving meal from start to finish in my early twenties. It was something I wanted to know how to do. I felt by having the classic all American feast under my belt, it was like earning a well deserved medal. My Auntie Rosie showed me the basic ropes and since then I have made my way testing and switching up ingredients every year to get to my ultimate dinner on the table. I personally crave the combination of sweet with my savory. I like to have several options for candied dishes on my big plate of savory to mix and match between cranberry sauce and turkey or yams with stuffing. Some people think of the yams as a dessert when paired with marshmallows, but seriously they belong on the main plate. There is plenty of other desserts to choose from and yams and apples shouldn’t be one of them.

This simple dish can be made up to 2 days ahead of time and stored in the fridge. When ready for the big feast… pop it in the oven to bake. Check out this easy to make recipe and find all the ingredients at your local Walmart….. I did.

Ingredients for apple yam crumble:

• 1 – cinnamon stick
• 4 – medium sized yams (peeled and cut into 1″ cubes)
• 6 – small granny smith apples (peeled, cored, and sliced)
• 1/2 – cup brown sugar
• 4 – tablespoons of butter
• 1/4 – cup honey
• 1 – cup mini marshmallows

CRUMBLE:

• 1 – cup brown sugar
• 1 – cup graham cracker crumbs
• 1/2 – cup flour
• 1/2 – teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 – teaspoon salt
• 1/2 – cup chopped pecans
• 1/2 – teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 – stick butter (melted)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit.
2. In a medium saucepan halfway filled with water over a medium flame add in cinnamon stick and bring to a boil.
3. Peel and cut yams and apples. 
4. Boil yams in water for 10 minutes. 
5. Drain yams and remove cinnamon stick.  Set yams to the side.
6. Butter a 11×8 casserole dish, and add apples and boiled yams in. Mix to combine.  Set to the side. 
7. In a small saucepan over a medium low flame melt sugar and butter together. Mix until combined. Add in honey and mix until fully incorporated.
8. Pour over the yam and apples. Mix to ensure all yams and apples are coated in sugar honey mixture. 
9. Top with marshmallows. Set to the side. 
10. Let’s make the crumble.
11. Add sugar, graham cracker, flour, cinnamon, and salt to a bowl. Mix to combine.
12. Add in pecans, vanilla, and melted butter. Mix with hands until fully combined.
13. Spread crumble over the entire top of yams and apples. 
14. Bake for 35 minutes.
15. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes.
16. Enjoy! 

Disclosure: This is part of a sponsored campaign with the California Milk Processor Board and Latina Mom Bloggers. However, all opinions expressed and recipe is are 100% my own.

I always scramble at Thanksgiving… with a mad dash to the market to try and get everything in one shopping trip. Of course I’m not completely delusional …  I realize some items need to be bought the day before or the day of the feast. What I do like to buy when I am in one of my Thanksgiving shopping frenzies are a couple gallons of milk. It helps make my mashed potatoes dreamy, my rice dish creamy, and my hot chocolate steamy. I keep my milk coupon in my purse and save a dollar on two gallons. It’s a good way to pocket a buck. 🙂 When I run dry on ideas I always turn to Toma Leche cookbook for more recipe ideas. Click here if you’re looking for some MILKY inspiration! I decided to make a video of one of my favorite rice dishes that I always serve at the holiday table…. plus it doubles down as a main dish for the vegetarians. Happy Thanksgiving!

Ingredients for creamy mushroom chile rice casserole:

• 1 – stick butter
• 1/2 – cup onion (chopped)
• 1/2 – tablespoon minced garlic
• 2 – cups long grain rice (uncooked)
• 8 – ounces mushrooms (sliced)
• 1/2 – teaspoon dried basil
• 1 – teaspoon Lawry’s seasoning salt
• 4 – cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 – cup roasted chiles (chopped) (I used anaheim)
• 1 – cup of whole milk
• 16 – ounces sour cream
• 2 – cups grated pepper jack cheese

Directions:

Watch the 2 minute and 27 second video above to see exactly how to make it! Serve this lovely rice dish this holiday season for a casserole of perfection…. Enjoy!