GG's Deviled Eggs

I never really knew how much I liked Deviled Eggs, until I had GG's. My stepmom- who my kids call GG- makes fabulous deviled eggs. I requested them for our Easter get together, and told her that I was going to take pictures of her doing it and post it. I have never attempted deviled eggs before- OK, that's a lie. I did one time, and they were almost unedible... So I needed to watch her do it- I'm a visual learner.

The prep:
boiled eggs, yolks removed and cut in halfyolks smashed with fork, seasoned with salt and pepper
The filling:
mayo (Or miracle whip), mustard, chopped sweet pickles, finely chopped onion
salt and pepper, and vinegar (not pictured)Miracle whip (about 1/2 cup for 14 eggs- 28 halves), mustard (1 tsp.), vinegar (JUST a splash)
Mix wellAdd mayo mixture to yolks
Add chopped sweet pickles (1/4 cup), and onion (just a tsp or 2)
Season with salt and pepper, mix well
Fill in egg halvesThere you have it!!!
I had always heard of adding sweet relish, and then after thinking about it, I like the sweet pickles by themselves better. The relish is very runny, and would make the filling more liquid, which makes it harder to fill and work with. I think the sweet pickles is the way to go!
THANKS, GG!!

Strawberry Cream Cheese Buns

I love my Google Reader. It's so much easier to check that for all my blog updates, rather than actually going to each blog. It's really a great time saver, especially since I love to check up on so many food blogs. It's a time saver, and who doesn't love those??!! I learned a great tip yesterday. I was at a dinner for moms and they had an organizing expert come and talk to us. One thing I love, besides fruit and cream cheese together, is organizing. I am not a great cleaner, but I love organizing!! She had plenty of great tips, but one I liked was to turn on a timer when you get on the computer and get off when your timer goes off. So you don't end up wasting your whole day on the computer when there are pressing issues to get to. Like these babies....

This recipe is from Bake or Break

Strawberry Cream Cheese Buns
1 cup + 3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 cup milk
1/4- 1/3 cup preserves ( I used strawberry in some, and blackberry in some- you could also use raspberry)

Mix 1 cup flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a small bowl.

Beat cream cheese, butter and sugar together.Add one egg at a time.Add flour mixture, alternately...with milk.Add last 3/4 cup flour and mix until combined.
Scoop batter into muffin tins. I used a small ice cream scoop.I got 18 regular sized muffins out of the batter. Put 2 small dollups of strawberry (or raspberry, or blackberry)
preserves on each scoop of batter.Swirl the preserves into the batter with a knife.
Bake at 350 for 16-19 minutes.
These are a little dark, they went a minute or two long. Just one of the many side effects of having two preschoolers around the house- you don't always get to oven in time...
These were lovely. They are a little sweeter than muffins, more cake-like. The preserves are a nice touch. They are not wow-y, but they are easy and yummy. My kids LOVE them.

Spaghetti and Meatball Bake

I didn't have a recipe for this- but I'm sure I'm not the first one to do something like this. I love baked dishes, though. I had spaghetti and meatballs on the menu, but I really didn't want to do my meatballs. They are time consuming and messy. So I thought I would just make smaller meatballs and bake them (usually I brown them on the stove and then bake the rest of way in my sauce). Then I thought, wouldn't it be great to just throw all the parts for spaghetti and meatballs together and bake that? Yes, yes it would.

Baked Spaghetti and Meatballs
1 lb. ground beef
1 egg
bread crumbs
milk
Italian seasoning
spaghetti
tomato sauce
heavy cream (or ricotta cheese)
mozzarella cheese
Parmesan cheese

Form the meatballs. I made them small, so they would cook fast and
they wouldn't be too big for the baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes at 375.

Set meatballs on a paper towel to drain.
In a large, deep baking dish, put in cooked spaghetti, tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese and some cream. I wanted to use ricotta, but mine was a bit fuzzy so I threw it out and poured some cream in. No real measurements, sorry friends.
Add the meatballs (I didn't use all my meatballs)
Stir together well. Add more cream or cheese or sauce to your liking.
*I'm adding cream for 2 reasons. First, sometimes casseroles dry up in the oven, and I thought the cream would help keep it moist. Second, my husband loves creamy tomato sauce.
Top with more mozzarella. Bake for 20-30 minutes on 375.
YUMMY!!
I really liked this- alot. The cream was a nice touch, the dish didn't dry up in the oven. It was creamy and cheesy. This would be a great dish for freezing.