Mini Quiches

Love, love, love this recipe! I've tried many other complicated ones, but this has to be the quickest and easiest ever!

These are so perfect to make at the beginning of the week - a quick re-heat in the morning and you've got a delicious breakfast! I love having an egg or two in the morning, as the protein really helps sustain me and keep me motivated during all of my early-morning computer work! 

The other great thing about these is that they are insanely customizable! Pretty much anything you'd put in an omelet would be great. I totally would have thrown in some bacon had I had any left! Sausage, peppers, onions, salsa... whatever you want! Or nothing at all! I did ham and cheddar simply because that's what was in my fridge!

Ham & Cheddar Mini Quiches

• Approx. 6 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• Cubes of ham
• Cheddar cheese

Again, you can use whatever you want and however much of it you want, so besides the eggs-to-milk ratio, everything else is up to you!

1. Preheat oven to 325°
2. Chop ham into tiny pieces appropriate for muffin-sized portions
3. Whisk eggs and milk together
4. Divide evenly in a lightly greased muffin tin
5. Add ham
6. Sprinkle cheese on top
7. Bake on middle rack for 25 minutes, or until tops begin to golden (fork should come out clean)

They'll sink a little once they've cooled

 

If you're planning to pack them up for later in the week...

1. Allow to cool completely (doesn't take long for an egg to get cold, amiright??)
2. Wrap individually in plastic wrap
3. I like to eat them two at a time so I then pair them up in freezer bags
4. Refrigerate for up to three days or...
5. Freeze up to one month

To reheat...

1.  Take plastic wrap off!!
2. Wrap in a napkin or paper towel
3. Microwave on HIGH for 30-50 seconds

bad times :'(

Nutella Crescent Rolls & Queso Blanco Dip

Did a couple pins this past weekend! Mike and I had a BBQ to go to so who do I consult for some delish grub to bring? Why, my buddy Pinterest of course.

I'll start out with the one that could have used some improvement. The BBQ hostess and I are Nutella fanatics, so of course I had to bring something Nutella related! And what's easier thaaaaan...

Nutella Crescent Rolls (original Pin)

• 1 8ct. pkg of crescent rolls
• Jar of Nutella
• 1/4 cup of powdered sugar

Omg easy.

1. Preheat the oven to 375°. Open the crescent rolls (idk why but the *pop* always startles me!), separate them, and roll them out on a flat surface.
2. Spread them generously with Nutella.
3. Roll crescents per package directions, starting at the wide area and ending at the point.
4. Place on lightly-greased baking sheet.
5. Bake at 375° for 10-12 minutes, checking often after about 8 minutes.
6. Done baking when golden brown; remove from oven and sprinkle powdered sugar on top.

Super, super simple to make, but in the original recipe when she says to lather the Nutella on, she means it! I didn't bother checking our jar before grocery shopping so I wasn't working with a whole lot of Nutella. I didn't "lather" so much as I just "spread." They ended up being pretty tastey, but the bread-to-Nutella ratio was off... definitely needed more Nutella. They were kind of powdered sugar-topped crescent rolls with a hint of Nutella. Good to know for next time!!

My pride and joy of the weekend was an amazing dip. Mike and I frequent a particular Mexican restaurant in Ann Arbor and we always get queso blanco to have with the complimentary chips and salsa. We love it so much that we usually order the same small meal each time - what we've dubbed the "Mike & Sabrina Special." Mike will get one hard shell beef taco and one soft shell beef taco, and I'll get the same thing just without lettuce. Oooh the warm, soft shell... the freshly shredded cheese... along with our queso blanco, it's absolute bliss!

So you know I've been searching for a queso dip recipe that wasn't too complicated! A little search on Pinterest and BAM! Up pops this one!

Crock-Pot Queso Blanco (original pin)

Let me start off by saying that the only crock-pot I have is a teeny tiny one that just plugs into the wall. Seriously. It only holds 16 ounces. No temperature gauge, nothing. I ended up halving the recipe because there was no way all of that cheese was going to fit!

• 1 lb white American cheese
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 Tbs pickled jalapeño juice

1. Cut cheese into chunks, put in crock-pot (the smaller the chunks, the quicker it'll melt).
2. Add milk and jalapeño juice.
3. Simmer until melted.

Source

I ended up forgetting to take any sort of photo but the one above basically looks exactly like how my dip turned out.

I'm sure you fellow domestic disasters are loving me right now, yeah? Seriously, how could this dip get any easier? It sounded too good to be true so I was sure it wasn't going to taste like the kind from the restaurant. But to my surprise (and excitement), I was wrong! It was uh-mazing!

I made it the night before the BBQ so I transferred it into some tupperware and refrigerated it. It was a solid block of cheese when I put it back in my little crock-pot after arriving at the party, so I added a tiny bit of extra milk, a little more jalapeño juice, and even cut up 2-3 slices of pickled jalapeños to give it a little more kick. It was fantastic. I'm soooo glad I purchased enough ingredients for a whole batch because the half batch was devoured at the BBQ. The following day I used the rest of the cheese and made a little pot for just my hunny and I ;)

BBQ View

Mike and I on the patio

Orange Dream Layered Squares

Ugh, I've got a major pinover this morning! Or pinterestover? Ok, how about we just call it a Pinterest hangover and be done with it! You know how that goes... it's almost bedtime, you're a little bored, you don't want to start a new episode of something or put a movie in because you know you need to snooze soon.

So what do you do? Get on the computer. Maybe surf Facebook or Imgur. The Cheezeburger Network? You can haz! Next thing you know it's a good couple hours past your bedtime and you've got a zillion Pinterest tabs open of things you want to check out before you commit to pinning!

Don't deny it - this happens to you, too! And now here we sit the next morning, ready to nod off because we got to bed too late. Oooh Pinterest, what have you done to us?!

If there's one thing you should know about me, you should know that nothing ever goes right for me. Every time I attempt practically anything new, there are all sorts of hiccups. I've flooded glass-top stoves with Hamburger Helper boil over, dented metal pan lids by running cold water over hot pans, creating a vacuum. I've tried to improvise when I didn't have any mixing bowls by using the biggest Pyrex dish I had, resulting in whipped cream and cream cheese all over the counter backsplash and my own chest. I've tried to split up room temperature crescent rolls, pour Yorkshire pudding mix into a too full muffin tin of boiling oil, and even managed to somehow ruin pre-made sugar cookie mix.

So, as you can imagine, I get pretty excited and proud of myself when something goes according to plans! I've made the following dessert a couple times and it's been a hit! It's easy peasy (perfect for ME!), quick, and scrumptious! Who doesn't like orange creamsicles?!

Orange Dream Layered Squares (original pin)

• 6 graham crackers (I prefer honey), finely crushed
• 2 Tbsp butter, melted
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 1 3oz pkg orange flavor Jell-O
• 1 8oz pkg cream cheese, softened and divided
• 1 8oz tub thawed whipped cream, divided
• 1/2 cup cold milk
• 1 3.4oz pkg vanilla instant pudding
• 1 tsp orange zest (I did not include)

1. Mix graham cracker crumbs and melted butter; press onto bottom of 8-inch square pan. Refrigerate while preparing rest of recipe.
2. Microwave orange juice in a microwavable measuring cup on HIGH 1 min. Add to orange Jell-O mix in small bowl; stir 2 min. until completely dissolved.
3. Gradually add juice/Jell-O mix to half the cream cheese in medium bowl, beating with mixer after each addition until blended.
4. Whisk in 1 cup whipped cream; spread over crust. Freeze while preparing next layer.
5. Beat remaining cream cheese and milk in separate medium bowl until blended. Add dry pudding mix; beat 2 min. Stir in remaining whipped cream and zest; spread over gelatin layer. Refrigerate 3 hours.

Theirs

Mine

Not as gorgeous, of course, but when does it ever work out that way? I thought it was quite presentable for not being done by a professional and not perfected for photos! What's even better is that there were only four of us at dinner that night and I only went home with three pieces left!

The best thing about nailing a new recipe on the first try? My boyfriend exclaiming, "Call the Food Network and get this girl a show!!" ♥

“Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole.”

Gah! Sorry! I know, I know... WHERE HAVE I BEEN?! WHERE ARE THE CUTE PUPPIIIIEEEEESSS?!?! I apologize for not updating in so long. I figured I'd explain myself seeing as I'm still getting a bit of traffic.

I'm no longer volunteering at the animal rescue. It's a wonderful and honorable thing that every single person at the Friends of Michigan Animal Rescue does and I can't begin to describe how selfless these people are. It was a great privilege to work with them but I, unlike them, am not completely selfless. Eventually it became too difficult for me so I decided to stop.

I completely understand the point of the place - take in animals that are in need and find them loving homes. So it makes sense and is a great thing that FMAR has a pretty steady turnover rate. These animals are being cared for and adopted into homes where they will be loved and happy and never have to worry about being abandoned again. That's what we want!

It was such a blessing of a coincidence that I started volunteering right before FMAR received those eight puppies from the horrible breeding operation in Allegan County. They needed so much work and love that they were there for such a long time. Every time I went to the rescue I could count on my little Randy, Skeeter, Junior, Jasper, Mopsy, Cindi, Buttercup, and Greta being there. I'm a small dog kind of person so I grew so attached to all of them. I was with them from the very beginning, through their flea treatments, socialization, experiencing outside, and learning to walk on leashes. It was the best thing ever to see these little babies grow and learn and open up. It just makes your heart overflow.

But then they started finding homes. Such wonderful news for each and every one of them... but bad news for Sabrina. One by one they'd disappear each time I visited. In their place there would be a new cutie that I fell in love with, but then they would be gone in just a couple visits. Not many need the work the Allegan puppies needed, so they have no problems getting adopted right away. Going in to find my love from the last visit gone became too much for my heart to handle. I wanted to keep all of them! I wanted them all to come home with me so I could be the lucky one to love them forever!

Eventually it became too much, so I had to stop. Major kudos to the many people who can do that every day. You are amazing people bringing so much joy into the lives of many animals and people. Thank you!

But don't despair... this isn't the end of Yes, This is Dog! I plan on keeping up with this blog, so make sure to check back. It won't be completely centered around dogs, but I think it'll still be a good time ;)