Cheesy BBQ Ranch Burgers

I don't know about y'all, but I'm over this winter non sense. I need some sunshine and warm spring/summer air on my skin. Stat! 

I'm looking forward to our first spring and summer in our new home!  I can't wait to see our giant trees in front and back full of green beautiful leaves, as well as the bushes in my front garden in full bloom! Not to mention filling up our pre-drained hot tub and watching Joseph chase fireflies in our back yard. But most of all, I'm all about BBQs and front porch sittin with a nice glass of wine.. Seriously.. Can you tell I'm ready for spring? Haha! 

Since our grill is in the storage shed and well it's supposed to snow tonight.. I'll just whip out my handy George Foreman grill on my stove top and cook up some burgers. 

:: Cheesy BBQ Ranch Burgers ::

 1 lb Ground Beef 

1/2 cup BBQ sauce 

1/2 sleeve of saltine crackers ( not pictured) 

3/4 cup shredded cheese of your choice

1 tbs ranch seasoning 

1/2tsp lemon pepper

1/2 minced Onions

1 Pinch of Minced garlic (optional) 

1 George Forman Grill ( you can also use just a simple skillet ) 

:: Notice my RUDYS BBQ SAUSE! Gotta love that sweet sweet Sauce!:; 

Crunch up your saltines leaving just a few clumps, Mix meat and all ingredients in a bowl with the crunched up crackers.

Once mixed your hamburger should feel thick and not a squishy-runny feel. If runny, just add a few more crushed crackers. 

:: Always Wash hands before and after handling raw meat:: 

Roll your hamburger meat to the size of your liking. ( remember they will plump up a bit when cooking)  I made that little one for J ! One Lb of ground beef will make a few good sized patties.

Back in 2007, I won a George Foreman grill and I am proud to say, this sucker is still kicken strong to this day! I LOVE it. It was perfect when I lived alone and still perfect with my family. Yes, I will be buying another if and when this baby ever dies. ( heaven forbid that's any time soon) 

Thanks to 

Www.GeorgeForemanCooking.com for the handy temp chart, I'm always at ease with my cooking. Of course, I will always make a slight cut and check my meat before serving. (I get kinda paranoid about that.. Especially with J eating the meat.) 

 Pic Source - George Foreman Cooking

After your George Foreman is ready for cooking, add your delicious patties. Do not close the lid, you'll need to use this like a normal grill and flip your burgers. Cooking each side for about 5-8 minutes. 

 

I had about 5 good sized patties, so I also cooked a few in my skillet. Cooking each side for about 5-8 minutes. 

Note-You won't need cooking spray on your skillet. 

Enjoy! 

-Nicole 

:: Please note, all opinions of George Foreman are my own, I just simply love it.:: 

Virtual Recipe Swap!

Lets swap recipes!

I have just joined in with Susan at The Foodette  and Doree from Top Notch Mom for a virtual recipe swap! YUM!

Last year for Christmas my Mother-In-Law gave me a wonderful personalized recipe binder to put some of my own or favorite recipes in! How cool, huh?
I have a few that I have added, but what better way to add some more?

Join in with us, Check out The Foodette's Blog for all of the details and Link on up!
Hope to see you there!

-Nicole

Southwest chicken- potato Soup

I have this theory, 

soup is good ALL year round.
Yes, I am from Texas..where our summers are the type that melt your face off, and you can bake cookies on your car dash! Lol

Ok, seriously though.. Soup IS good for your soul, Especially when it's home made and simmering all day long in the crock pot, causing your whole house to smell like a spicy heaven!

I posted a picture of my simmering crock pot on my Instagram and had many people ask me for the recipe!
Well folks, here ya go!

(Bare with me, I'm the type of person who find a recipe and tweaks it..soo this is from my tweaking lol) 

 

Please excuse my hideous rental home counter top ;)

You will need

-Crockpot
- 1 can of no salt added Tomato sauce 8oz
-1 Can of enchilada sauce (mild)
- 1 cup cheese of your choice ( I used Monterey Jack- but I'm also obsessed with Colby Jack)
- 2 chicken breasts (no need to pre cook)
- 1Jalapeño     ( or more depending in size and how spicy you want to get)
- 6 small red potatoes washed and diced

As for the spices

-  Onion ( powder or use a small diced onion ) 
- Garlic Powder
- Chili Pepper
-Seasoned salt
- Minced Garlic
- Dry Chives
 -Paprika

In your crockpot, 

Add your can of tomato sauce and your can of enchilada sauce.

Fill each can with water and add the water into your crockpot 

Turn your crockpot on low

I add about two extra cups of water after that depending on how thick I want the soup. You can up to 4cups and be ok!

Add your spices too! I'd say I did about 1tbs to start off of each.

( seriously y'all, I'm an eye ball kind of girl..and a taste as ya go lol.) 

And I may have added a bit more of garlic and onion ;) 

Cut up your chicken breast and your red potatoes into cubes.

Throw them into the crockpot and stir.

Dice up a jalapeño either big or small pieces and add to crockpot

( wash your hands after doing this and don't touch your nose...or lips..or eyes) 

Add one cup of cheese and stir yet again! 

Cover with your lid and let the magic of the crockpot do its thing! 

Aka- leave on low for 5-7 hours 

Stirring once an hour if you can. 

Once you are drooling over the delicious smell and the soup is ready, serve in bowls with sliced up avocados,tortilla chips, a slice of lime to garnish and a pinch of cheese on top! 

*Note*

I have a very picky husband! -sigh- I would have also added some fresh corn (or canned Mexican corn) 

And maybe even some beans! Yum! 

:: My husband suggested adding one of the Creamy Ranch packets to the mix instead of your season salt! 

Try it out, add your own mixtures to it and let me know what you think! 

7 Months

7 Months old!

Boy has it been a whirlwind just since last month! 

J is one wild child! 

Since my last update, we have taken a road trip to IL for a family reunion, where J got more than enough attention and love from Family! 

 

J and I ventured out for a TWO hour drive to the airport. yeaahh.. 

We picked up my Mom and Sister and loaded up the car for our 8 hr drive! 

It was wonderful having those two drive with me and spoil J! Made the trip a lot faster and less stressful on me for sure. 

 My Grandma made this cute hat, with intentions of it to be a little bigger than it was.. Oops! We all got a chuckle out of J wearing it though! 

July 5th- (6 months old)The day J started crawling. I'm talking little wobbly and kinda scooting crawling. 

By the end of July he had his crawl Down. And was he on the move! 

By the time August 5th came around, J decided to pull up on EVERYTHING! 

And a few times would give me a slight heart attack! 

Yes, he is standing on top of his piano and is very pleased with himself! 

Food- we've moved on to more finger foods and things that J can chew/Gum. 

Little cubes of cheese and Gerber easy pick up foods. 

I am still making a lot of his food for him, now we just have a little more variety. 

7 month stats- 20lbs! Whoa!  6 teeth have surfaced 3 on bottom and 3 on top.  However it looks like there may be more coming through. He is still a month ahead of schedule and of course loves the nurses at the Dr Office. After his Shots they gave him a big red shiny sticker. It helped his tears a bit.. But he wouldn't let go of me. 

We have retired J's baby bath and moved to the tub. It was a bitter sweet moment for us. J loves to stand in the tub though. Seriously, I think I'm going to have a runner on my hands. 

We're pretty sure he's going to be walking soon.. He has started to stand a bit on his own and all he wants to do is pull right up. 

We have had many spills and a few tears from them, but he realizes he's ok and starts playing again. 

 Our Hotel stay before my Mom and Sis went back to Tx. We took J for his first Big Pool experience. (Indoor pool) it was a little chilly so we sat in the hot tub and let him splash.. J loved watching the older boys jump in the pool and horse play. 

His eyes are still BLUE!  We're really hoping they stay, however I'm sure they will change to brown. 

I have found that when the batteries in Js toys get low.. The toys will start randomly playing their tunes.. Or moving. This is the CREEPIEST thing ever! Especially when J is down for a nap and I'm in the other room.. And hear "let's go for a drive! Push me!" 

Yeaahhhh.. 

I would turn it off.. But J decided to throw it and broke the handle.. I suppose ill break out the screw driver and change the batteries hahah! 

Sleep- we have been trying to keep J on a routine. With these teeth ALL coming through at once it's been rough nights. My husband and I decided on a routine and it's been helping with sleep. 

-Bath time for 10-15 mins in a warm bath with night time soap. 

-PJs and night time diaper and lotion. 

-Bottle mixed with some Baby cereal. 

And if he's not already asleep by the time he finishes his bottle we play a little till he starts rubbing his eyes and then rock him to sleep in his nursery. 

 I like to keep pandora on low with the Nursery station on. It's so soothing sometimes I almost fall asleep while rocking him! Ha! 

This routine has started to work. And J has been sleeping almost through the night! I always forget to think about his Teeth and maybe that's why he wasn't sleeping.. When I saw during his bath how many had come through, I felt kinda bad. Poor guy had so many at one time! 

I am trying to wean J off of BFing. I wanted to make it to a year, but these teeth are not helping things. Almost 8 months is good for me though. And trust me, this boy is HEALTHY! 

Alright, nap time for my little man. 

Later Y'all! 

-Nicole 

Six Months!

That's HALF A YEAR, PEOPLE!

I can't even believe it. The first few months home felt like every day dragged on.
I'm pretty sure it was because I had NO clue what I was doing, I learned day-by-day. Maybe it was also because I wasn't working.  But now, every single day flies!

J is learning new things every day. When we wake up, I'm excited to see what the day will bring..and yes, most days I'm still groggy. (Thank goodness for coffee!)-Free Coffee perks might I add!)



Food-
We've been doing solids since month 4, Our Doctor let us know that J is a month ahead of schedule on all of his stats! He is loving the foods too!
I'm making J's food, I wouldn't have it any other way! Its time consuming for sure but it is so great and I feel much better about what we are giving him!
I am also BF'ing J along with Formula for when I'm at work.

How awesome is this Ciao! Baby High Chair? Seriously? I found it on sale and snatched it after drooling over this sucker for Months!  

 

Mmmm Blueberries! 

Sleep-

 Yeah, not so much. J will get in a few naps or none during the day. He will sleep for an hour when we first put him in his crib at night and then wake up. I normally am able to rock him back to sleep and he will wake up at about 4-5am for a feeding. *Sigh* I still don't know how I'm kicking it with low sleep. But, It's worth it every time I see him smile! 

We went to a Farmers Market, Joseph had too much fun.. Luckily the weather was really nice and we all sat around the cars and enjoyed some delicious food! 

Bragging Rights- As of 7-5-13, J is a crawling machine! He is a laughing, bubble blowing, noise making machine! J also has TWO sharp little bottom teeth, with a third starting to poke through! He is sitting up on his own and grabbing for foods! 

Keeping this post short this time, I'm getting a nice little migraine.   

Night Y'all!

-Nicole