Month: January 2021

Easy Ramekin Pecan Pies

Easy Ramekin Pecan Pies

by Engineered Mama ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

One Thanksgiving I wanted to find something different for desert. After searching a while I just wasn’t happy with any of the pie recipes I was finding. I wanted something… different, but not too out there. I came across these little ramekin pecan pies and they were just different enough to be a great Thanksgiving desert. Bonus: you don’t have to make the crust yourself! They didn’t disappoint! The only problem I found with the recipe from Tablespoon.com was that it didn’t yield quite as many as the recipe called for. This could be because my ramekins happen to be a little deeper than most ramekins. This recipe yields approximately 9-12 ramekin pies. Enjoy!

Ingredients

  • 2 packages Pillsbury™ Refrigerated Pie Crust (4 crusts)
  • cooking spray
  • 1 1/2 cup pecan halves
  • 1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans
  • 1 cup maple syrup
  • 1 cup dark corn syrup
  • 6 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 4 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 4 tablespoons bourbon
  • 4 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 4 eggs lightly beaten
  • 4 egg whites lightly beaten
  • 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
  2. Grab 12 ramekins and lightly coat the insides with cooking spray.
  3. Roll out the Pillsbury™ pie crusts. Using a large cookie cutter (or any large round glass/cup) cut out circles and place each crust inside each ramekin. If there is crust leftover, you can add it to the edges for a rustic look. Place the ramekins with crust in the freezer for 15 minutes.
  4. Combine all remaining ingredients, except for pecan halves, in a large bowl. Whisk until nicely combined.
  5. Pour the pie filling into each ramekin.
  6. Top each with 3 pecan halves.
  7. Bake mini pies for 35 minutes, or until the center is set.
  8. Let cool about 15 minutes and enjoy!
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$4 Mascara and Yes… It’s Phenomenal!

$4 Mascara and Yes… It’s Phenomenal!

by Engineered Mama ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

essence has done it again, people! Their products never cease to amaze me. They’re as affordable as it gets, yet they can compete with the super duper expensive brands. How do they do it?!

I always see Thrive mascara ads on Facebook (thanks, Facebook ad people, but you’re not getting me this time!) and wonder if it is REALLY that great. I have friends who have tried it and didn’t really care for it all that much, although they said the results were great-long, thicker lashes. So, I went on the hunt for a dupe. I found one… for $5. Actually, less than $5! I was able to score this mascara for $3.75 on Prime Day, BUT… it’s only $4.99 regularly, so win-win.

I couldn’t add to cart fast enough on this one. essence’s Lash Princess False Lash Effect Mascara adds insane length to lashes, but doesn’t feel stiff or brittle. I would compare it to Benefit’s Roller Lash mascara (yes… one of my favorites!). One of my all time favorite drugstore brand mascaras is Lash Paradise and I honestly think essence’s formula blows it out of the water… especially because of the price! It’s also gluten and cruelty free, you know, in case you’re overly concerned about the gluten in your mascara…

The only complaint I have is that because the formula is a little waxy like Benefit’s Roller Lash you have to bake under the eye like crazy so it won’t transfer and give you that raccoon look. They do have a waterproof version, but I honestly think it’s a little stiff and brittle for my liking. It does stay put a little better and is hard to remove even with eye makeup remover. It’s vegan and cruelty free, which is also great. For $4, you CANNOT beat it!

Slow Cooker Pork Chops and Vegetables

Slow Cooker Pork Chops and Vegetables

by Engineered Mama ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

I love slow cooker recipes I can start in the morning, forget about all day, then voila… an entire meal in a pot. That’s this recipe. No adding something at the end or sogginess. It cooks perfectly and all of your vegetables, starches, and gravy is included! I adapted this recipe from an original by The Seasoned Mom.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. bag of baby carrots
  • 2 celery ribs, halved lengthwise and cut into 3-inch pieces
  • 8 small red potatoes, quartered
  • 8-9 boneless pork chops, about ¾-inch thick (about 1.5 lbs. total)
  • 1 (1 ounce) envelope dry onion soup and dip mix
  • 1 lb. fresh baby portabello mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 cup frozen peeled pearl onions, or 1 regular onion, sliced
  • 2 cans (10.5 ounces each) condensed cream of mushroom soup (NOT diluted)

Directions

  1. Place carrots, celery, and potatoes in the bottom of a large slow cooker. Top with pork chops. I use a lot of pork chops so we can have leftovers throughout the week. Layer the pork chops if there are too many for a single layer. Sprinkle dry onion soup mix seasoning over the pork chops.
  2. Add mushrooms and onions on top of the pork.
  3. Cover with cream of mushroom soup (not diluted).
  4. Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 2-3 hours.
Easy Thai Peanut Chicken Wraps

Easy Thai Peanut Chicken Wraps

by Engineered Mama ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

I love wraps and order them out a lot. Why? They’re easy. I came across a Thai Peanut Chicken Wrap recipe and figured it sounded easy enough, so I gave it a shot. It was DELICIOUS. I’ve adapted the original recipe to things I usually keep on hand or to make my life a little easier (don’t we all need to make things easier on ourselves right now????). You can find the original over at Simply Whisked. You can also buy peanut sauce in most stores and use in this recipe if you’re short on time.

Ingredients

For the chicken wraps:

  • 3 cups coleslaw mix
  • 1 cup shredded carrots (optional, add if your coleslaw mix doesn’t contain carrots or if you like extra carrots in your wraps)
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
  • 2 cooked chicken breasts, chopped or sliced (I bake a large pan of chicken breasts with olive oil, garlic powder, and pepper at the beginning of the week to use for recipes later, but any cooked chicken will do!)
  • 6 large tortillas

For the peanut sauce:

  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup olive oil (or vegetable oil)
  • 1/4 cup extra crunchy peanut butter (if you don’t happen to have extra crunchy on hand, you can add peanuts to the wraps to add extra peanut flavor and crunch)
  • 3 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4–1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
  • 1 large garlic clove, minced

Directions

  1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the peanut sauce ingredients.
  2. In another bowl, add the cabbage, carrots, and cilantro (also add peanuts if you are using creamy peanut butter instead of extra crunchy). Pour the sauce over the mixture and stir. Let this sit while you prepare the tortillas and chicken.
  3. Heat up the tortillas for about 10 seconds in the microwave to make them easier to work with.
  4. Divide the chicken and coleslaw between each tortilla
  5. Roll tightly, securing with toothpicks if necessary.
Copycat Chipotle Guacamole (and Tips on How to Make Sure it WON’T Turn Brown in 5 seconds!)

Copycat Chipotle Guacamole (and Tips on How to Make Sure it WON’T Turn Brown in 5 seconds!)

by Engineered Mama ♥ 2 Comments

Ok… if I had known how easy it is to replicate Chipotle’s guacamole I would have been eating it for every meal of the day. Seriously. I honestly can’t believe I never even thought about the ingredients that go into it and how simple they are! I found this “recipe” (I used quotes because it’s so simple it’s not really even a recipe!) from Culinary Hill.

Ingredients

  • Large Haas avocado (moderately still firm… no mushy avocados here!)
  • Lemon juice
  • Lime juice
  • Fresh cilantro, finely chopped, to taste
  • sea salt, to taste
  • red onion, diced (I didn’t have any onion on hand, so I used onion powder and it was surprisingly delicious)

Directions

  1. Halve the avocado and scoop out each half with a spoon (NO chopping aloud!). Save the pit… it will come in handy later!
  2. Mash the avocado whole in a bowl.
  3. Add lemon and lime juice to the avocado and mix well. This step helps keep the avocado from browning quickly and gives it some great flavor.
  4. Finely chop the cilantro and red onion and add to the bowl. If you don’t happen to have onion, onion powder works great to add some flavor.

How to Keep Guacamole from Turning Brown

Place the pit in the middle of the guacamole mixture to keep it from turning brown quickly. Add Saran Wrap over the guacamole and press firmly against the guacamole before adding a lid to help minimize oxidation. Voila! Your guacamole may hold for 5 minutes instead of 5 seconds. You’re welcome.

Easy Stovetop Queso

Easy Stovetop Queso

by Engineered Mama ♥ 2 Comments

I’ve always wanted to make my own queso, but thought there’s no way I could get close to restaurant recipes… until now! I altered a recipe from Sumptuous Spoonfuls using ingredients I already had on hand and it turned out AMAZING!

Ingredients

  • 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 cup chopped onion (I didn’t have a fresh onion on hand, so I used frozen diced onion and it worked out great!)
  • 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 oz cream cheese (I think I had lower fat cream cheese, so that’s what I used for this recipe)
  • 6 oz quesadilla cheese, shredded
  • 4 oz pepper jack cheese, shredded (I didn’t happen to have any on hand, so I used colby jack instead)
  • 1/2 – 1 cup heavy cream
  • 2-4 Tbsp jalapeno, to taste (optional)
  • 3 Tbsp salsa, or to taste
  • 1/4 – 1/3 cup finely chopped cilantro, optional (I planned on using the cilantro, but loved it without, so I used it for garnish)

Directions

  1. In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute until tender and translucent.
  2. Reduce heat to medium low and stir in the cream cheese, quesadilla cheese and pepper jack cheese along with 1/2 cup of the whipping cream. Stir until the cheeses melt, then stir in the chopped jalapeno and salsa. Taste and add more jalapeno and/or salsa for heat and fresh cilantro (optional).
  3. If the dip is too thick for your liking, stir in some more whipping cream (or milk) until it is the desired consistency. Serve warm with tortilla chips.