Tag: easy

Cheeseburger Casserole From SkinnyTaste – Tried It Out Tuesday

Cheeseburger Casserole From SkinnyTaste

I recently came across a Cheeseburger Casserole recipe from SkinnyTaste and I was intrigued so by it, I just had to give it a whirl! I would have never even thought of enjoying a cheeseburger in casserole form until I saw this brilliant recipe of hers. My family really enjoys their cheeseburgers and we love our pasta too so this seemed like a winner winner cheeseburger dinner!

If you are not familiar with SkinnyTaste be sure to check out her website for some brilliant recipes that will help keep you on track with a healthy lifestyle. I made a gluten-free version of her Cheeseburger Casserole and my family enjoyed this recipe. I will be whipping up this dish again in the near future. Keep reading to hear more about this unique casserole dish.

Cheeseburger Casserole is a simple & easy recipe

What I really loved about this recipe from SkinnyTaste was the simplicity of creating it. The recipe was easy to follow and the ingredients were very simple to prepare. I started out by boiling the pasta and browning the beef. There was very little prep involved. I used two shallots in this recipe and had to slice those, easy peasy! The recipe calls for garlic as well and I just use my trusty Spice World squeeze bottle. I love simple recipes… who doesn’t?? They are wonderful on busy weeknights or when you are feeling too lazy to cook.

 

Ingredients I used for the SkinnyTaste Cheeseburger Casserole
Ingredients I used for the SkinnyTaste Cheeseburger Casserole

Gotta have my grass-fed beef in my Cheeseburer Casserole!

I recently made the switch to grass-fed beef. Grass-fed beef is not only more beneficial to your health but I believe it tastes better than regular beef. The grass-fed beef that I purchase at Kroger is also organic. That means that the cows graze on pesticide-free grass. Grass-fed cows also mean that the meat is free from added hormones that are typically given to cows. Sometimes I think of my body as an automobile. Your body needs good to fuel to run. You don’t want to put crappy fuel into your car so why would you want to put bad fuel into your body? Grass-fed beef costs a bit more than regular beef but I believe that the added benefits are worth the extra cost.

A few modifications to the Cheeseburger Casserole recipe

I made a few modifications to her recipe for my family. Instead of using an onion I used two sliced shallots. I discovered shallots earlier this year and prefer their taste and often swap onions for shallots now. I also incorporated some onion powder to the meat while browning it. I love the added flavor that onion powder lends to ground beef. Also, instead of using Dijon mustard I went with my favorite mustard by Boar’s Head. The mustard is a Delicatessen style and it gave the dish a wonderful flavor.

Browning the grass-fed beef
Browning the grass-fed beef
Grass-fed beef, tomatoes, shallots, and minced garlic
Grass-fed beef, tomatoes, shallots, and minced garlic

 

Gluten-free eating

Another swap that I did with this dish was that I used gluten-free noodles. I use Kroger’s ClickList and wanted some rotini pasta but they were out of stock and they gave me penne pasta instead. That was fine with me but I do think that rotini would have been best. I used Ronzoni brand and I believe that they do make a very tasty gluten-free noodle. I don’t think they taste much different than regular pasta. This dish would have been great with Banza’s chickpea pasta as well. They are another one of my go-to brands for gluten-free pasta.

Getting cheesy

A great cheeseburger has to have great cheese. I love Tillamook’s shredded cheese and I ended up pouring the entire bag of cheese all over this Cheeseburger Casserole. The recipe calls for 2 cups of cheddar and the one bag of cheese was equivalent to two cups. I used a sharp cheddar and this was a great choice for the casserole. Tillamook creates some damn good cheese. It is my go-to brand for shredded cheese. I also use their mozzarella on my homemade pizzas. They take great pride in creating their cheese and I can always rely on Tillamook to deliver a quality product.

Tillamook Sharp Cheddar Cheese
Tillamook Sharp Cheddar Cheese
SkinnyTaste Cheeseburger Casserole before going in the oven
SkinnyTaste Cheeseburger Casserole before going in the oven

Pickles on a casserole?

Who would have thought that pickles would be an acceptable topping on a casserole dish? I’m telling you guys, this works and the pickles actually turned out to be my favorite part! Any type of pickles will work well with this casserole. I ended up going with bread and butter pickles. Dill pickles would we splendid on this as well!

Giving it a whirl

I was so excited when my oven beeped and my casserole was ready to dig into. Check out that ooey, gooey melted cheddar, OMG! I love anything with melted cheese on it and this recipe did not disappoint. When the casserole came out of the oven I topped it with some bread and butter pickles. This dish was love at first bite. The cheeseburger really translated well into a casserole dish. I was amazed! This is a dish that I would gladly make for my family again since we all enjoyed it.

Cheeseburger Casserole from SkinnyTaste
Cheeseburger Casserole from SkinnyTaste

 

Kid-friendly meal

My daughter, Chloe, really enjoyed this recipe and she really got a kick out of those pickles that we topped the casserole with. Pickles are an ingredient that you wouldn’t normally use in a typical casserole. For us, the pickles were actually our favorite part of this dish! The more the merrier! The next time I whip up this recipe I will definitely be adding an abundance of pickles on top!

Who is SkinnyTaste?

SkinnyTaste was created by Gina Homolka. She is an author, recipe creator, and a photographer. She is a pro when it comes to the recipe world. SkinnyTaste began in 2008 and now has 3 million monthly viewers on her website… can you say goals?? I would love to someday achieve greatness like her. Her philosophy of eating is to eat seasonal, whole foods and to maintain portion control while eating. Her website has a wide variety of recipes for several different diets. I am sharing this with you today because her recipes are top-notch. Yes, I am a food blogger and yes she is a food blogger. I don’t see her as competition. When I fall in love with something I feel the need to share it with the world. I am sharing her recipe website because I believe in her philosophy and I like to encourage people to eat the right way.

Does this look like a recipe that your family would enjoy? What other SkinnyTaste meals sound great to you? Leave me a comment and fill me in!

You can see all of the recipes at SkinnyTaste on her website. The Cheeseburger Casserole recipe can be found HERE.

 

 

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Simple, Easy Vegan and Paleo NICE Cream: RECIPE that anyone can do!

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Simple! Easy! Healthy! Vegan + paleo friendly nice cream! This is naturally sweet and does not contain any added sugars!
It is so simple to whip up your own small batch of ice-cream at home that is healthy and good for you! This ice-cream has the consistency of soft serve and will make about 2-3 servings.

You will need:

  • 2 frozen bananas
  • 1 chilled overnight can of cream of coconut or full-fat coconut milk (the cream of coconut will be creamier)
  • 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
  • and any toppings you desire.
  • a food processor of blender

Place your frozen bananas in a food processor or blender along with the cream of coconut or coconut milk (CAUTION: do not use any liquid from the can just the coconut), and a teaspoon of vanilla. Blend this up completely. This may take awhile with the frozen banana chunks. Also serve immediately. If you decide to freeze your batch the texture will get a bit icy so I prefer to serve right away.

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Here I have my vanilla nice-cream topped with a blackberry & wine reduction sauce. You can find the recipe on my blog (just swap out the raspberries for blackberries).

Other examples of what you can do with this recipe are shown below. Get creative!

If you have a craving for chocolate use some about 1 tablespoon of cacao powder.

Fruit craving? No problem! Add any fruit you desire. In the photo below I used fresh strawberries. My favorite fruit mix in is dragon fruit (also known as pitaya. Those fruits can get a bit pricey so try a powder. A little bit goes a long way and still has incredible health benefits.

Does your diet need a boost in fiber? Try chia seeds in your next batch of nice cream.

Wanna pack in some protein? Top it with a nut butter. Try this one from Nuttzo.

You can add in any other mix-ins you want and top it any way that you want. The possibilities are endless here! Enjoy! Please be sure to share this post with your friends and let me know in the comments if you enjoyed this recipe.

 

 

 

Disclaimer: This post contains Amazon affiliate links. I do receive a small commission if items are purchased through these links. All opinions stated here are my own.

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Amped Up Grilled Cheese RECIPE With Dave’s Killer Bread & Tomato Soup

I know… I know… she’s lost her mind writing her first recipe about a grilled cheese and tomato soup BUT I just had to. It’s a hot day here in Michigan. I was hungry. I had a craving. It may not even be a recipe but more like a fabulous insider tip on how to maximize the taste of your meal. Check out what I did with a loaf of Dave’s Killer Bread and some Annie’s Organic Tomato Soup!

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I don’t usually purchase loaves of bread (been trying to keep the carbs down low) but Dave’s Killer Bread is the most beautiful bread I have every laid my eyes upon. Seriously… bread… beautiful??? Trust me on this guys. I am also a firm believer in #noboringgrilledcheese. I made up that hashtag by the way. I can’t use a boring white loaf of bread and that plastic-like American cheese. I guess I am a grilled cheese snob. Call me what you will!

I went with the 21 Whole Grains & Seeds loaf. Dave’s Killer Bread uses all organic ingredients. This particular loaf has 5 grams of protein, 5 grams of fiber, omega 3s, and a huge assortment of whole grains all jam packed into one slice.

I started out by brushing a bit of some melted Organic Valley ghee (it is a clarified butter) onto the bread. I mixed in a bit of garlic powder and Italian seasonings into the melted ghee to pump up the flavor of the bread. Who doesn’t love garlic bread?

I then laid on a couple slices of Sargento Tomato & Basil Jack cheese. I really love the Italian flavors of this cheese. Perfect to go with my garlic bread that I just whipped up.

Got my grilled cheese all prepped and ready to go. I spray my pan with some Simple Truth Extra Virgin Organic Olive Oil.

Now it is time to warm up with Annie’s Organic Creamy Tomato And Bunny Pasta soup. I doctored this soup up by grinding up some garlic salt and peppercorns into it, along with some Italian seasonings and crushed red pepper flakes. This soup is great on its own but I like to add my own little twist to it.

You will want to set your burner on medium and warm the grilled cheese up for a few minutes. Make sure you flip it too so both sides get that golden touch to it. You will know when the grilled cheese is done. It has to be nice and melty. I don’t do anything fancy at this point. It really is no different than warming up a plain grilled cheese.

Now it is time to plate your grilled cheese masterpiece and scarf it down. I really should have slowed down while eating this and savored it more but it was just so damn tasty. Oh and don’t forget to dip that amped up sandwich into your creamy tomato soup. Enjoy this for lunch or dinner and I do believe this would be super kid-friendly, especially with that adorable bunny pasta in the soup.

I would like to know how do you prepare your grilled cheese at home? Do you have any secret recipe you would like to share? Is there a special bread that you enjoy? Let me know in the comments.

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