Easy Breakfast Egg & Sausage "Muffins"

I've got another recipe to share that has helped to make mornings easier around here.

The recipe is one that our intern at work found and made for a volunteer's appreciation brunch. He told me what was in it and I'll admit, I didn't like the sound of it.

The ingredients are pretty basic: Eggs, Milk, Cheese, Sausage (or ham, or bacon), and stuffing mix. Yeah, that last one threw me too.  But let me tell you, it was good. Like REALLY good.

Originally, it's made as a casserole, but I thought it might be kind of fun (and time saving) to try out single serving sized "muffins."

Mornings are so hectic around here, and I almost never eat breakfast before leaving the house. If I do, it's usually gulping down a bowl of cereal and half a cup of coffee while I'm doing my makeup.

Now I just grab a couple "muffins" from the freezer and heat them up at work so I have a hot breakfast when I'm ready to eat it.

The recipe is really easy, and you know how I like easy! You just throw the ingredients together, pour the mixture into greased muffin pans, and bake.

Seasoned Egg & Sausage Muffins

makes about 12-18 "muffins," depending on your how much you fill the cups

6 eggs, beaten

2 cups milk

1 cup cheddar cheese

1 1/2 cups breakfast sausage, cooked, drained and crumbled

2 cups dry stuffing mix

1/2 tsp salt

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Prep your muffin pans by greasing them generously with cooking spray.

3. Mix all of the ingredients together in a large bowl.

(notes: I used a box of Stove Top Sage Stuffing Mix. The box is exactly two cups. For the sausage, I used half of a bulk package - not links).

4. Scoop mixture into individual muffin tins. (I didn't measure it out, but it's about 1/2 a cup). I wasn't sure how the eggs would puff up, so I didn't want to overfill.

5. Place muffins pans into the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes. I started checking them after about 17 minutes. I knew they were done when I inserted a knife and it came out clean, and they were a nice, golden brown. 

6. Allow to cool slightly, transfer to plates, and serve with breakfast breads and fruit.

My son (who isn't a huge fan of eggs) chowed down two of them. The seasonings are perfect.

Try it out - I bet you'll like it too!

For breakfast on the go: Place muffins in a labeled freezer bag. Wrap in a paper towel and pop them in the microwave for about a minute. Perfect for a hot breakfast, and so much better than cereal!

Original recipe found here.

Come join #DairyBreakfastClub recipe party at TidyMom along with The California Milk Advisory Board and RealCaliforniaMilk.com

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Two Toned Painted & Stained Dresser

I finally finished a project this weekend and couldn't wait to share it with you!

I am working on updating my son's room and giving him more organization and a more "big boy" look and feel. If you've been around a while, you might remember his pirate room on a budget that we did when he was three. It was bland and boring, even for me, the lover of all things "simple."

The new room will have more of an overall industrial feel, with a little Star Wars thrown in for good measure, (and to please the kid).

The first project I decided to work on was the dresser. This where a lot of his toys are stored, since we have a built in dresser in the closet.

Just for fun, here's a before shot of the dresser:

I'm really pleased with how it turned out, even if the stain didn't cover quite the way I'd envisioned.

First, I sanded the drawers with the palm sander I bought just for this project.

Can I just stop here for a moment to profess my love for power tools? Seriously big, giant, inflated, puffy heart LOVE. I don't care if it's a drill or a hand sander or a table saw, I'm. in. love. Now I need some pink safety glasses. 

Anyway, back to the dresser...

I sanded down to the wood. Disclaimer - this is the first time I've used a power sander so I'm not sure I did it exactly right.

I rubbed on Minwax stain in Weathered Grey, and wiped it off immediately, but a couple of drawers came out a bit splotchy. I tried to even it out but that just didn't work. I'm ok with it though. I kind of like how it came out.

The dresser color is "Wet Cement" by Behr. It took two coats to cover the blue stripes on the top but the rest covered in just one coat.

The silver handles on the dresser are from Target.

I've got several elements left to finish, but I'm hoping to be able to show it to you in a couple of weeks!

Dresser vignette: 

Mirror - Target half off clearance $11.98

Lamp: Target clearance $13.98

Lego Storm trooper clock: Toys R Us $27.99 (purchased with TRU Rewards Dollars)

**UPDATED - To see the whole room, click on the photo below!

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S'mores Valentine Treat & Free Printable

Yesterday I shared our Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Peeps treats, and today I'm using them to make individual s'more treats!

My kids will be taking these to their preschool and Sunday School teachers, and delivering a few to some of our neighbors.

They are super easy for kids to help put together, too.

You will need:

Two graham cracker squares (one sheet, broken in half at the score line)
One Marshmallow Heart Peep
1/4 of a regular sized Hershey chocolate bar

To assemble, just place each item into a 4" x 9" cellophane goodie bag.

I forgot to photograph the back, but it has a spot for "To" & "From," as well as directions for the recipient to put their treat together.

Of course the bag topper is a freebie printable for you! If you'd like to download it, click here.

In case you missed it, yesterday I shared some tips on making chocolate covered Valentine's treats, which also included another free printable!



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Chocolate Covered Peeps Valentines & A Free Printable

Valentine's Day is the perfect time to share sweet little treats with your favorite people. And what goes together better than chocolate and marshmallows?

(ok, maybe chocolate and peanut butter, but we're nut-free, so marshmallows it is!)

I've got a cute Valentine's Day treat idea to share with you today, complete with a free printable.

To make your chocolate covered Peeps, you will need:

Peeps Marshmallow Hearts

(they come in packages of nine, and are available at most stores - I got mine at Target), 

Melting Chocolate

Sprinkles (optional)

Let's talk about the chocolate for a moment. People have emailed asking me what kind of chocolate I use, and can you use chocolate chips. Short answer: Yes you can use chocolate chips. Longer answer: I prefer to use Wilton Candy Melts.

You can get them at cake supply, party supply, and craft supply stores. I know for a fact that Michaels and Party City carry them. If you are at all able to get to one of those stores, do. The Wilton chocolate melts so much nicer and smoothly. It just looks prettier all the way around; and it doesn't get super hard, but more of a soft hard (this feels like dirty talk, but I promise, we're still talking about chocolate). It's just easier to work with and harder to ruin. 

Ok, so now you have your materials. 

Grab a glass dish (I prefer to use a glass measuring cup as it's deeper for dipping). Pour some chocolate melts (or chips) into the cup and microwave in 20-30 second intervals, stirring with a metal spoon in between. If the chocolate is mostly melted but you see small lumps, just keep stirring, don't put it back in the microwave as it will likely burn the chocolate making it unusable. Chocolate tends to hold it's shape as it melts so the stirring is important.

I've found that it takes about a minute and a half.

Another important rule - make sure your dish and spoon are COMPLETELY dry. Even a drop of water will cause the chocolate to seize and will ruin the whole batch of chocolate.

Ok, so now you know how to melt the chocolate, time to make your Valentines! 

{I wasn't able to photograph the steps, so I'm hoping the directions will suffice!}

These instructions will work with any kind of marshmallow, but I am kind of partial to the Peeps, because they're so cute!

Lay out a large piece of waxed paper over your work surface, and set up your assembly line:

Dip a marshmallow carefully into the chocolate, add sprinkles, and lay on the wax paper.

You can even get your kids in on the action, but they might want to eat all of your treats.

Continue until all of your treats are completed. Allow chocolate to cool and harden before wrapping. Chocolate chips take longer to harden than the melts. 

Wrap in a cello bag with a cute tag at the top.

If you like the bag topper, you can download the printable here.

(I do not recommend downloading the jpeg below - you will get much better quality using the link to the PDF).

"Valentine, you're the chocolate to my marshmallow"

It works as a special Valentine's party treat label too!

Serve your marshmallow Peeps on a platter, or dip regular large marshmallows and coat with sprinkles for marshmallow pops.

Check back tomorrow, when I'll have another Valentine's treat and free printable for you!

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Easiest Valentine's Mantel EVER!

Have I mentioned I'm not a big fan of Valentine's decor (or Easter, or 4th of July...)? I can fit all the decorations I have for each of those holidays in one box. Probably a shoe box.

But my kids like it so I try to make the best of it and put a couple of things up to make them happy.

Turns out it kinda made me happy too!

When it comes to decor, I like things pretty simple. And easy. Easy is good.

So after stringing up my burlap heart garland, I decided to take down the Christmas wreath (don't worry, I still have one on my front door) and add a couple of things to prettify the mantel. (Sidenote - I'm totally surprised that "prettify" is a word. I kind of liked thinking I made it up. "Sidenote," however, is not).

I enlarged the chalkboard printable (get it here) to 11" x 14", put it in a white frame, and set it next to the canvas.

I love this photo of my kids, taken by my friend Lorrie Prothero. She asked them to look at each other; instead they knocked foreheads, on purpose.

The whole mantel took me five minutes to pull together.

See, even if you're not one to decorate for Valentine's Day, with a few supplies you can pull together this simple mantel.

Take a photo of your kids, add a cute printable and a simple garland, and you're done. Cheap, simple and easy, just like me!

Wait, that didn't come out right...


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Burlap Heart Garland {Valentine's Day}

When I decide I'm going to be crafty I go all out.

Ok, not really, but when I get an idea for something I want to do, I jump on it, whether I have all the materials I need or not. I've gotten pretty good at improvising!

For example, I really wanted to make a burlap heart garland.

I wanted to use twine, but I couldn't find my large needle.

But then I couldn't find the twine either so I ended up breaking out the mini sewing kit I've had in my toolbox since college (ahem, 15 years ago), that I've never used, figuring a needle and thread would do the job.

In my search I found some cute little red pom poms that we used as Rudolph's nose in a project a couple of years ago.

I grabbed the burlap out of another closet, scissors from the kitchen, and I was ready to craft.

Three different rooms, and four different cabinets later. Let's say it together, "Kristin you really need to get more organized!"

Anyhow, I laid out the burlap and just cut the hearts free hand, 'cause I'm a rebel like that.

I threaded my needle with some light brown thread and strung the hearts, with the red poms in between.

I hung the garland on my mantel and delighted in the fact that I've actually put up Valentine's decor. I'll share how I decorated the rest of the mantel tomorrow.

Do you decorate for Valentine's Day?


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Game Day Appetizers Wrap-Up

In case you missed the yumminess last week, here's a list of all of the delicious appetizers that were shared during the Game Day Appetizer series. Any of these tasty dishes would be perfect to get you ready for the big game! Links to each post can be found below.

Jalapeno Artichoke Dip

Nine Layer Dip

Best Baked Wings

Quick & Easy Mexican Bites

Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts

Sheepherder Dip

Thanks again to Melissa, Kristen, Sarah, Amber and Courtney for sharing their prized recipes with us!!
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Best Baked Chicken Wings EVER!

Happy Saturday everyone! So glad you stopped by today for the final recipe in the Game Day Appetizer series! It's been so fun to have my friends over for the party. I wish I could have you all over on game day too!

I'm thrilled to share Courtney with you today, from Sweet C's Designs.

Welcome Courtney!

Hey guys ! I am so excited to be over here at A Simply Klassic Home today. I love Kristin and her blog! In case we've never met, I am Courtney of Sweet C's Designs. When Kristin first asked me to add a recipe to this series, I was super excited. Giddy even. My Broncos seemed bound for the big game.

And then they broke my heart.

But don't feel too bad, I will still have a great time watching our favorite TV event of the year with a lot of great food to cheer me up. And the top food we will be serving? BAKED CHICKEN WINGS.

I love chicken wings. LOVE chicken wings. Is there anything better while watching a football game and drinking a cold beverage? Nope- for me, it's pretty much all about wings. So if you are looking for the perfect snack, (or meal) for the big game, look no further- I am sharing my not-so-secret recipe for the best wings ever.

What makes my wings the best? Well, it is all in the method and my little secret spices- and I don't fry them. Or add extra butter. Yup, I just season, slow braise, and then serve. They come out fall off the bone tender, with crispy skin, tons of flavor- and outside of pouring wings in a bag, shaking, and tossing in the oven- you really aren't doing much work.

I always get so many people asking my secret, I want to share it with you!

For these to-die-for wings, you'll need:

2 pound Chicken wings (I buy the big packages at my grocery store or Sams club with the whole wing still together)

1 bag French's mild Chicken wing spices

1 bag French's hot Chicken wing spices

2 tablespoons cayenne pepper, divided ** reduce to 1 teaspoon for medium, 1/2 teaspoon for mild

2 tablespoons red pepper flakes, divided

2 tablespoons paprika, divided

2 tablespoons of garlic powder, divided

Baking sheets, lined with foil if you prefer

Preheat your oven to 250 degrees while you toss 1/2 your chicken into one of the bags provided with your French's wing spices, as well as one tablespoon of each spice. Toss the remaining half in the other bag. Dump 1/2 mild and 1/2 hot spices in each bag with wings, close the bags, and shake. Place onto a baking sheet, and let the wings bake for one hour.

After one hour, flip the bags over onto the other side, and increase the temp to 350, cook for another 30 minutes.

Next, open the bags (carefully- this will be very, very hot), and pour the wings and juices onto your baking sheet. Turn the oven up to 450, and bake for another 30 minutes, or until all of the "juices" reduce- flipping every 10 minutes or so (just be careful you don't pull the skin and wing off the bone, as they do stick a bit to the baking sheet.

Slide your tongs under like a spatula before lifting to flip and you should be fine). When done, slowly drizzle any remaining liquid left in the baking sheet over the wings for even more flavor.

I like to serve these in a big pie plate with celery and blue cheese (or ranch) nearby. Don't forget to add a bowl next to them for guests to dump their spare wing bones!

If you want some more fun football party ideas, hop on over to Sweet C's to check out my chewy molasses footballs and some fun football party snack stations!

***********************

Thanks Courtney, that's definitely a recipe I'm going to be trying out soon! 

It's been fun to share all these appetizer recipes with, but even more I loved having my friends stop by to share their favorites as well! 

To view each post in this little series, click here.

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Sheepherder's Dip from Crazy Little Projects {Game Day Appetizers}

Hey guys! This is Amber from Crazy Little Projects taking a step out of my comfort zone (I'm 

more at home sewing and crafting I think) to bring you a game day appetizer. You ready for this?

Don't you just love football? What-you don't? OK, try this. Don't you just love the food that goes along with football? You do? I thought so.

I'm not a professional football watcher (I do love college football though) but when this time of year rolls around and everyone starts talking about football parties and all the food that goes along with it, my mouth starts to water and suddenly I care more about who wins the big game than I did before.

I'm teaming up with Simply Klassic Home for her Game Day Appetizers series along with a few other great bloggers. An appetizer a day-sounds great right?

and today I am showing you one of my favorites. It's a little unconventional-I've never had it anywhere else, but my mom has made it for years. And it is really good. It's gone fast whenever she makes it. 

So trust me and try this. It also only takes about 5-10 minutes to whip it up.

Sheepherder's Bread Dip Recipe:

2 (8 oz) packages of cream cheese

10 oz of sour cream

1/2 green pepper

1/4 yellow onion

2 (2.5 oz) packages of chopped beef (I usually get the Buddig brand-near 

the lunch meats in your store)

Dash of Worcestershire sauce

1 large sheepherder's bread loaf (or bread bowl of any kind)

(You may also want to get a loaf of french bread for extra bread to shred)

Combine the sour cream and cream cheese and mix until smooth. Chop the green pepper, onion and beef into very small pieces and add them to the sour cream and cream cheese mixture. Add your dash of Worcestershire sauce. Mix it all together. Cut the top out of your bread and hollow it out. Scoop your dip into the bowl. Shred the bread from the bread bowl and any excess that you have. Dip the bread in the dip and enjoy!

Note: This dip is way yummier if made ahead of time. Try to make it the day before or at least several hours before to give the flavors time to settle in.

Come back tomorrow to see what Courtney from Sweet C's has to share!

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