Tuesday, February 26, 2008

Tori's Tasty Tuesdays - Tortilla Beef Bake



This is something that we've had many times (including tonight!) - it's easy and delicious!





Ingredients:
1-1/2 pounds ground beef

1 can (10-3/4 ounces) condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted

2-1/2 cups crushed tortilla chips, divided

1 jar (16 ounces) salsa

1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

In a skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Stir in soup. Sprinkle 1-1/2 cups of the tortilla chips in a greased shallow 2-1/2-qt. baking dish. Top with beef mixture, salsa and cheese.

Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until bubbly. Sprinkle with the remaining chips. Bake 3 minutes longer or until chips are lightly toasted.


See how easy that is? :-)

Sunday, February 24, 2008

Hockey pics....

Here are a few photos from last night's hockey game! Before the game, we went out for pizza with all of my dad's family, so I snapped a few photos there too. Hope you have fun looking at them!

::Nikki and Aunt Delaine at the restaurant::

::Me and my dad::

::My cousin, Brian, and his fiance, Lindsay::

::Uncle Darwin and mom::

::Grandma and Grandpa::

::Me, Deanna, and Aunt Carolyn::

::Nikki with a stuffed bear that she won in the claw machine::

::Uncle Bob and Aunt Delaine at the game::

::Nikki with one of her favorite hockey players::

::Nikki with another favorite player::

Saturday, February 23, 2008

Wii....

After our hockey game last night, our Pastor and his family invited us over to his house and we had fun playing with their Wii! I found out that I'm not as bad at bull riding as I would have thought! :)

::Faceoff at the hockey game...sorry it's a little blurry - my camera doesn't catch movement real well::

::Me and our pastor's daughter, Ashley, Wiiing::

::Nikki and our pastor's son, Drew, in a heated game::

::Notice how much calmer Drew is than Nikki?? She gets really excited::

::Ashley::

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Tori's Tasty Tuesdays - Cinnamon Rolls

After my last post about baking, I thought it would be fun to let you in on some of the recipes our family enjoys using. So, I am introducing something new: I came up with the name Tori's Tasty Tuesdays (clever, right?) and will be posting a new recipe every Tuesday.
The recipes will range from main courses to side dishes to desserts - if you enjoy cooking, this is something you will not want to miss! Due to schedule conflicts, though, I may not be able to get a new one posted every Tuesday. :) Now, to be perfectly honest, I have to confess that I am not the cook in the family - Deanna is. She loves to cook, so most of these recipes come from her recipe box and she's the one who usually makes them! :)
This week's dish are delicious cinnamon rolls that Deanna made last week:
Ingredients:
1 package of yeast
1 cup warm water
1 tbsp. sugar
1/2 c. melted shortening
3/4 tsp. salt
3 eggs
1/2 c. sugar
4 cups flour
melted butter
cinnamon/sugar
Directions:
1 pkg yeast dissolved in 1 cup warm water. Add 1 tablespoon of sugar and let stand 10 minutes. Add: 1/2 c. melted shortening and 3/4 tsp. salt. Beat 3 eggs lightly and add 1/2 c. sugar and beat again. Add to above mixture. Beat in 4 cups flour. Let stand until doubled.

Brush with melted butter, cinnamon and sugar.



Roll dough up and cut in 1 inch pieces. Let rise until light. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.

Spread powder sugar glaze when warm (powder sugar and milk)

The finished product!

Sunday, February 17, 2008

How true....


Thursday, February 14, 2008

Holiday baking...

I hope your Valentine's Day was as enjoyable as mine! :) We had a lovely day doing school, baking cookies, and watching a movie. We got MORE snow - ugh! I'm getting a little tired of that.....but anyways, here are some pictures of the official cookie makers! :D

::Dad and Mom were so sweet and got each of us girls a little bear and chocolate for Valentine's Day! How sweet!::

::Mom and Nikki with the finished product!::




::The three hardworking chefs::

::I was trying to get creative here....::





::I was the official picture taker/assistant froster...I realized after I downloaded all the pictures that I wasn't in any! So Mom graciously asked if I would like her to take a picture of me with the cookies! [smile]::
Happy Valentine's Day!

Sunday, February 10, 2008

Random photos....

A few pics from last night's hockey game:

::Nikki doing the YMCA with another girl::


::We tried to get a good picture....::

::And tried.....::


::And finally got one!::

::Dad and Deanna::

Happy 18th Birthday, Deanna!

Eighteen years ago today, my big sister, Deanna, was born! She has been such a wonderful big sister all these years - she is a great encourager, helper, shopping mate, and she loves the Lord - what better big sister can you ask for?? :) She has always been there for me, ready to encourage and help me. I'm proud to call her my big sis - happy 18th birthday, Deanna! I look forward to watching you continue to grow in the Lord and seek His will and direction for your life! Love ya! :) Here are a few pics from our day thus far:

::Deanna and I with 18 beautiful carnations - all dressed up, ready for church!::

::Mom and Deanna::

::Big sis and little sis::

::Father and daughter::

::Deanna enjoying her enchilada at a Mexican restaurant after church::

::More pics with the birthday girl - she had a graduation theme - doesn't she look swell in that cap?::



::Deanna and Nikki at the restaurant::

::Awwww.......::

::The soon-to-be graduate with her birthday diploma::

::Random picture of the wrapping paper::

::Deanna with her carrot cake::

::This is kind of a strange picture - I know it looks like she's about to choke herself, but she's really just blowing out her candles!::

::Modeling a new outfit::

Facts about Deanna:

  • If you would ask her what her favorite food are, she would say: scalloped corn, broccoli and cheese, and Chinese.
  • She enjoys mowing the lawn.....is it just me or does that strike you as odd?
  • She enjoys ping-pong
  • Her two favorite movies are State Fair and The Princess Diaries 1 & 2.
  • She loves to cook!
  • Started piano lessons when she was four
  • Hasn't drank any pop since October of 2007
  • Once made it to a state piano competition

Please join us in wishing her a happy 18th birthday! Love you, Deanna! :)