It is tradition to get together every Christmas Eve with my husband’s family. This a is a big group as two of the families have five kids each.  As you can imagine we make hearty, fun bulk recipes for this crowd.  One year my sister-in-law made a favorite of my husband and his sister’s when they were younger, their Grandma’s Pretzel Jello Mold.   I had never seen this before, and the combination of the salty pretzels, sweet jello and whipped cream cheese was AMAZING.  It has become a staple in my house for parties, BBQ’s, and of course Christmas Eve.  I am not near as ..read more

Summer is finally here and while I love comfort foods, I also love the freshness of the foods in spring and summer seasons.  We can’t wait to plant our garden, nurture it and watch the miracle of growing our own food.  I have done this for years with all my kids, and I know as a family we certainly enjoy the crunch of a cucumber straight from the garden, or the juiciness of a tomato or melon right off the vine more then what we buy at the store the rest of the year.  That said one of my favorite summer recipes for any night, but certainly for picnics, parties or pot lucks, is th ..read more

I grew up eating pork roast, sauerkraut and mashed potatoes as a staple for Sunday dinner and New Year’s Day for good luck. As I got older and started cooking it myself, I realized how messy the kitchen got to have this meal. So I found a way to make this in my Ninja Foodi with my pot-in-pot without losing the tenderness or flavor of the pork. Full disclosure I have the larger 8 quart Ninja Foodi . However you can still do this with one pot and the stand in the 6 quart. I will call out where this would be different if two pots don’t work. What You Need 2 -3 lb Pork roast, cubed in 2-3 inc ..read more

This fruit salsa is so good and so versatile I make it fro everything from summer picnic, to more formal holiday parties, to just because. I got this recipe from. My step-daughter and her husband when I was visiting 10+ years ago and ever since I made the first time I consistently get requests. It is so easy, so good and makes enough that it is a go to for any pot luck or dip day. This is so easy to make, the chopping of the fruit is the hardest part. My little guy loves using the Pampered Chef Handy Scrapers to pick everything up as a I chop it and add to the bowl. Also while this only uses o ..read more

I grew up eating pork roast, sauerkraut and mashed potatoes as a staple for Sunday dinner and New Year’s Day for good luck. As I got older and started cooking it myself, I realized how messy the kitchen got to have this meal. So I found a way to make this in my Instant Pot with my pot-in-pot without losing the tenderness or flavor of the pork. Full disclosure I have the larger 8 quart Instant Pot. However you can still do this with one pot and the stand in the 6 quart. I will call out where this would be different if two pots don’t work. What You Need 2 -3 lb Pork roast, cubed in 2-3 inch ..read more

My hockey player was breaking the bank with his ask for granola bars, especially the protein packed ones. He wanted them fro school, before and after early practices, a quick grab after a game or practice. I could not keep up even buying in bulk at a big box store. When he wanted to upgrade to the protein ones, I had to figure out an alternative as those were two to three times the cost of the regular ones for half as many. Along came the Black Friday Pampered Chef sale and up pops the silicone Pampered Chef Snack Bar Pan. It was a sign. I purchased it immediately and waited anxiously. While w ..read more

This is one of my favorite soup recipes.  It is a great way to use every bit of a holiday ham bone and makes for a very hearty soup.  Instant Pot Navy Bean and Ham Soup is easy to make in the Instant Pot and only takes a handful of ingredients, most you may already have on hand.   I have been converting stovetop recipes to my Instant Pot and the soups are easy to convert.  I was at first concerned about the beans cooking enough, but matching it up with the pressure cooking for beans it worked out well.  Besides this soup only gets better with each leftover serving ..read more

This is one of my favorite soup recipes.  It is a great way to use every bit of a holiday ham bone and makes for a very hearty soup.  Ninja Foodi Navy Bean and Ham Soup is easy to make in the Ninja Foodi and only takes a handful of ingredients, most you may already have on hand.   I have been converting stovetop recipes to my Ninja Foodi and the soups are easy to convert.  I was at first concerned about the beans cooking enough, but matching it up with the pressure cooking for beans it worked out well.  Besides this soup only gets better with each leftover serving ..read more

So easy my husband made it and wrote this post. Ninja Foodi Bacon Wrapped Chicken was SUPER easy on the Ninja Foodi Grill and tasted amazing! My wife was running late so I was left to throw this together. I pulled up the recipe and went to work. The rub comprised of a half dozen spices and some honey.  Together they gave the chicken a sweet heat. Not too hot as my daughter came back for seconds. What You Need 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts 8-12 slices bacon 1/4 cup grasped oil (or vegetable oil) 1/3 cup brown sugar  2 tablespoons honey, plus more for basting  3 cloves min ..read more

Growing up meatloaf was not one of my favorite meals.  In fact, when the two older boys were younger I almost never made it.  However, I did make stuffed meatballs with a secret sauce.  One night I got a little lazy and made one big stuffed “meatball” and if became Ninja Foodi Stuffed Meatloaf.   This is a very easy recipe with just a handful of ingredients and a savory topping.  I think the sauce makes it unique.  It is an almost even mixture of ketchup and Worcestershire sauce gives it a nice glaze and tangy taste. Ingredients for Ninja Foodi Stuffed Meatloaf 1 ..read more