Baked Cheesy Broccoli Rice Cups

I have been experimenting with different recipes to try and use creative and yummy ways to get my little boy (and myself) to eat more veggies!  This is a recipe that I had saved in a drawer and I am unsure exactly where it came from, but I have also seen very similar recipes on various Pinterest pages!  It is the Baked Cheesy Broccoli Rice Cups and it is so darn good!!

 
Baked Cheesy Broccoli Rice Cups

Ingredients
1 cup quick-cooking rice (such as Minute Rice)*
1 cup chicken broth
1 bag of frozen broccoli (approx 10-oz), thawed and steam cooked
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1/4 cup Ranch dressing
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper

Directions
Steam-cook the broccoli. Let cool, then chop into small bite size pieces.
Bring 1 cup of chicken broth to a boil and add the Minute-Rice. Cover and remove from heat.  Wait 5 minutes for rice to fully absorb the broth. Fluff with a fork and set aside to cool slightly.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine all ingredients into a large mixing bowl, using only 1/2 cup of the cheddar cheese, and stir until combined.
Spray muffin pan well with cooking spray.
Scoop mixture into muffin cups (I used a large spoon and filled the cups fully).
Top with remaining 1/4 cup shredded cheese.
Bake for 25 minutes or until tops are lightly browned and edges are starting to get crispy.
Let cool slightly before serving.
Enjoy!

I have made these many times before, and each time I am still amazed at how good they are!  I forget that I am eating broccoli.  My son likes broccoli normally, but usually refuses anything with rice.  This, he eats as much as he can! Success!

Eggplant Pizza Bites (AKA OMG YUM)

I was really craving Eggplant Parmesan the other day while grocery shopping, so I snagged a ripe looking eggplant with all intents on making it for dinner that night.  Once the groceries were put away though, I forgot all about the eggplant (shoved into the veggie drawer) and made something different.  I rediscovered that eggplant last night...thankfully before it had molded away...and no longer craved Eggplant Parmesan.  But I still needed to use this veggie before it went bad.  I decided to try out an Eggplant Pizza Bites recipe I found online at FirstBites.org.  It looked fairly easy, and best of all I had everything I needed in the cabinet.  I did alter the baking time, as my eggplant seemed to cook faster, and omitted the salt since it has enough flavor already.

Eggplant Pizza Bites

Ingredients

1 eggplant, sliced thinly (about 1/2 inch thick)

Olive oil

Bread crumbs (I used Italian style because that is what I had)

Grated Parmesan Cheese

Garlic powder

Tomato sauce (i used about 1/4 of a small can)

Mozzarella Cheese

Parchment paper

Additional toppings as desired: Pepperoni, tomatoes, mushrooms, artichoke hearts, etc

Directions 

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Slice the eggplant.

Lay the slices onto parchment paper and brush topsides with olive oil.

Sprinkle some bread crumbs onto the topsides of the slices.

Sprinkle some Parmesan onto the topsides of the slices. 

Lightly sprinkle the topsides with garlic powder.

Bake for 20 minutes.

Flip the slices over and repeat the process:

Sprinkle some bread crumbs onto the new topsides of the slices.

Sprinkle some Parmesan onto the new topsides of the slices. 

Lightly sprinkle the new topsides with garlic powder.

Bake for 20 minutes.

Spread a small spoonful of tomato sauce onto the topside of each slice.

 Sprinkle as much mozzarella cheese as you desire onto the topside of each slice.

Add additional toppings as you like.

Bake for 5 minutes.

Enjoy!

I did notice that the skins do bake up a bit tough to chew, so I peeled the skin off of the ones I gave to my little boy. These turned out amazingly yummy!  My little Dragon especially liked that they were a perfect size for him to pick up and eat. 

 Yummmm!!

 

 

Homemade Baked Banana Chips

I have never really loved bananas.  They are okay. I like them in banana cream pie and chopped up and mixed in with my chocolate chip ice cream, but a banana by itself will never really appeal to me.  Plus, when they get really ripe, they make my throat itchy.  I know, I'm weird.
My son, on the other hand, loooves bananas.  But he only like them when they are still green.  Once they ripen and get a bit mushy, he is done with them.  And I'm not going to eat them then, because they make my throat itch.  So we usually have some bananas leftover that have to be creatively used either before they ripen or shortly after. Last week, I used a pair of overly ripe bananas to make Banana-Nut Bread.  This week, I am going to attempt Banana Chips.

This is a very simple recipe, and I see it pop up on Pinterest a lot, so I hope it actually works and tastes good.  I'm curious to see if Radin likes banana chips too.  If so, I can make batches of these for snack packs on the go.

You basically just need a few bananas, some lemon juice, and an oven.  Cut up your bananas into think slices, dip them into the lemon juice, and place them on a cookie sheet.

I lined my cookie sheet with parchment paper, but I don't think it is necessary.  Now pop them into the oven at 200 degrees for 2 hours, flip them, and put back into the oven for another 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Currently, my bananas are in the oven for the first two hours.  I will update at the two hour flip mark and then again when they are done!  I really hope this turns out okay, as it sounds super yummy and like a good snack for Radin.

I checked the bananas after an hour because they smelled so good, yet also smelled like they were close to getting burnt.  The banana chips were already pretty crispy, so I decided to go ahead and flip them early.

Baked Banana Chips

Ingredients

2 bananas

lemon juice

Directions

Preheat oven to 200 degrees.

Slice bananas into thin medallions.

Dip bananas into lemon juice and place onto baking sheet.

Bake for 2 hours at 200 degrees.

Flip bananas and bake for another 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until crispy.

Let cool and enjoy!