Here’s a little recap of what we were up to in January: January 10th was Dennis & Lisa’s 25th wedding anniversary as well as Dennis’ birthday! We shared our Instant Pot Potato Soup recipe which… More
Instant Pot Potato Soup
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 lb russet potatoes
- 4oz cream cheese
- 4 slices of pre-cooked bacon
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 32oz chicken broth
- 1 tbs onion powder
- 2 tbs garlic powder
- 1c milk
- 2 tbs cornstarch
- 1 c shredded cheddar cheese
- chives for seasoning
Directions
- Cut cream cheese into small cubes and set aside to soften. Spray bottom of Instant Pot insert with cooking spray or lightly oil.
- Wash and dice potatoes; put directly into pot. Pour in chicken broth and all seasonings. Stir.
- Place lid on pot and set to sealing. Cook for 10 minutes on HIGH.
- When cook time is up let the pressure naturally release for 10 minutes and then quick release remaining pressure. While letting the pressure release manually cook the bacon & in a small bowl mix the milk & cornstarch.
- Remove lid from the pot & set to saute. Once the soup is simmering pour in the cornstarch mixture and stir. Add in the cream cheese and cheddar cheese, stirring until melted (about 4 minutes).
- Turn off Instant Pot and allow to cool about 10 minutes before serving.
- Top with crumbled bacon & chives.
Serve and Enjoy!
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2023 Reading Challenge
Last year I participated in the Goodreads reading challenge; my goal was 15 books, and I ended up reading 25. This year I am doing that again, but challenging myself to read 45 books. I also decided to take it a step further & participate in the 12 books recommended by 12 friends challenge and choose my own books based off of the challenge I wrote below.
Feel free to follow along on my Goodreads page and our Instagram to join in the challenge with me!
Cool Whip Easter Eggs
What You’ll Need:
- 1 8oz container cool whip per 1 dozen eggs
- Hard boiled eggs
- Food coloring of choice*
- Container(s) for cool whip**
- Something to stir the cool whip & dye together.
- The food coloring can stain so if you want to avoid that, you’ll need gloves
- Paper towels or a few towels you don’t mind possibly getting stained.
*I used gel food but powder & liquid food coloring works just as well.
** Casserole dishes or aluminum pans work great!
Directions:
- Add cool whip to containers of choice ( if you’re planning on doing individual colors you’ll want a few small containers but if you’re planning on tie-dying the eggs then I recommend the casserole dishes.
- Add food coloring to your cool whip & mix with a knife or skewer to leave a swirl design.
- Roll your eggs into the cool whip and let sit for 10 minutes.
- Gently wipe & dab the cool whip off the eggs. If this is too messy you can fill a medium sized bowl with cool water and dip the eggs in the water to rinse, then set aside to dry.
Lisa’s Sweet Potato Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 15 oz can of sweet potatoes (with nothing added); drained
- 3 tbs margarine cut into cubes
- 1-2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 cup brown sugar; packed
- 1 cup crushed pecans
Preheat oven to 350° and grease a 9×13 casserole dish
Directions
- Pour sweet potatoes in a large bowl & add margarine, cinnamon, & brown sugar.
- Mix with hand mixer until combined.
- Pour into casserole dish and use the back of a spoon to smooth out the top.
- Sprinkle crushed pecans and extras cinnamon to taste over the top.
- Bake for 30 minutes
Serve and Enjoy!
To Make Ahead:
Follow all directions but don’t bake it. Instead, cover & refrigerate. When ready to bake remove from fridge & allow to reach room temp (about 20 minutes) then bake according to directions above.
Cinnamon Apple Pie
Ingredients
Filling
- 4 large Green Apples; peeled, cored, & diced
- Pie crust (you can find our recipe here)
- 1/2 cup Granulated Sugar
- 1-2 tsp Cinnamon
Topping
- 1/2 cup Granulated Sugar
- 3/4 cup Flour
- 1/3 cup Butter; softened
- 1 tsp Cinnamon
Directions
- Preheat oven to 450° if you made your own pie crust; if using store bought then preheat oven to 350°. Grease 9 inch pie plate. We use this recipe.
- Put apple cubes in a large bowl and add the sugar and cinnamon. Stir until the apples are fully coats and then set aside.
- Put the butter in a medium sized bowl and add the sugar.
- Sift the flour and cinnamon into the butter and sugar. Stir until crumbly.
- If using homemade pie crust: you want to put it in your pie plate and bake at 450° for 10 minutes when this is done turn the oven down to 350°. If using store bought pie crust: put the crust in your pie plate; don’t prebake.
- Pour apple filling into pie plate and cover evenly with crumbs*
- Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until the edges look golden brown.
* If I have left over pie crust I’ll sometimes cut that and use it on top of my pie over top of the crumb filling. You can make a design or do the standard lattice.
Serve and Enjoy!
Great Grandma’s Classic Crisco Pie Crust
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour; sifted
- 3/4 tsp table salt
- 3/4 cup Crisco shortening (I used the sticks of Crisco & cut it into cubes)
- 3-6 tbs cold water
Directions
- Sift flour into a large bowl and sprinkle table salt over top.
- Cut shortening into the flour until the shortening pieces are the size of peas (I use a butter knife in each hand and make slicing motions into the flour).
- Add water one tablespoon at a time until all the Crisco “peas” are moistened. You don’t want to use too much water, you only need enough to form a ball from the dough. Be sure that you don’t overmix, the crust will get tough.
- Form the dough into a ball and set out on a floured surface.
- Cut the dough ball in half and roll up each half into a ball. Set one half aside.
- Using a rolling pin (we recommend this one to ensure you get the right thickness) roll out each half of your dough to 1/8″ thick.
- If using a pie recipe that requires the entirety of the pie to be baked then follow those specific directions for baking the crust.
For Pastry Filling: Bake at 450° for 10-12 minutes and let cool completely before filling.
To Freeze: After rolling out pie dough flour the top, flip the dough over & flour the back. Lay out a large piece of shrink wrap on a clean surface and gently lay the pie dough onto the shrink wrap. Fold one end of shrink wrap over an edge of the dough and gently roll up the dough so that there is shrink wrap between rolled layers & on the outside of the dough roll. Let warm up a little before unrolling.
10 Easter Basket Stuffers for Young Kids
10 Easter basket stuffer ideas for kids that aren’t candy!
#1 Name Letter Shape Puzzle: These beautiful baltic birch personalized puzzles make a great gift for kids who are learning their letters, shapes, and how to spell their name! Handmade by BloomOwl on Amazon these puzzles come in a variety of colors and are made with non-toxic paint as well as food grade sealer!
#2 Pastel Felt Easter Eggs: These fun & colorful Easter eggs are made with 100% from wool!
#3 Stacking Montessori Rainbow Toy: This 7 piece colorful rainbow by EcoWorkShop is made with eco-friendly material & child-safe wood stain.
#4 Jumbo Dinosaur Eggs: Each of these jumbo eggs features a fun dino car inside!
#5 Crochet Bunny: This plush crochet bunny features embroidered and is stuffed with a high quality poly. This bunny would make the perfect gift for a little one to cherish for years to come.
#6 Wooden Interlocking Letter Name Puzzle: Here’s another name puzzle but this time the letters interlock so it can sit on a shelf or dresser. This beautiful puzzle made by Little Wooden Wonders in Minnesota is made with solid hard wood & is custom cut at time of order.
#7 Hedgehog Push Toy: Handmade by Dennis here at Cherished Cottage, this hedgehog toy is made from solid wood & painted/stained using non-toxic material so it’s child safe!
#8 Construction Vehicle Filled Easter Eggs: a dozen multi-colored Easter eggs filled with a variety of construction trucks and vehicles.
#9 Custom Name Crayons: Fun & colorful crayons come in a clear box that shows off the child’s name. The reviews state that the crayons ship fast and come the colors are vibrant.
#10 Big book of Easter Mazes: For ages 4-12 this book of 120 mazes is a fun activity to keep the kids busy Easter morning while they’re waiting to hunt for eggs or have Easter dinner with family.
We’d love to have you join the Cherished Cottage family! You can find us on Facebook and Instagram .
** The opinions/views shared in this post are solely that of the author. Some links might be affiliate links.
Air Fryer Twice Baked Potatoes
Ingredients
- 4 large Potatoes
- 2 tbs Sour Cream
- 1/2 cup Cheddar Cheese; divided
- 2 slices bacon; cooked and chopped
- olive oil
- kosher salt
Directions
- Using a fork, poke holes in each potato. Then put the potatoes in a microwave safe dish and cook on high for 7-8 minutes. You know they’re done if you can easily stick them with a fork.
* potatoes will be hot* - Cut each potato in half the long way and carefully scoop the insides out into a large bowl. Make sure not to get too close to the skin, you want to leave some potato around the edges and bottom so it doesn’t tear.
- Place the skins upside down on your air fryer tray/basket. Lightly oil the skins and sprinkle with a little salt. Place in air fryer at 350° for 4-5 minutes to make the skin a little crispy.
- While the skins are cooking mash up the potatoes until they’ve reached your desired consistency.
- Add sour cream, 1/4 cup cheese, and bacon to the potatoes. Stir until combined.
- When skins are done turn them over and use a spoon to fill each one with the potato filling.
- Cook potatoes in air fryer at 400° for 8 minutes.
- Add remaining 1/4 cup of cheese on top of potatoes and return to air fryer at 400° for 2 more minutes.
Serve and Enjoy!
Taco Pie
Ingredients
- 1lb ground beef
- 1 tube Original Pillsbury Crescent Rolls
- Bag of original Fritos
- 1 package Taco Seasoning
- 16 ounce Sour Cream
- Shredded Cheddar Cheese
- Lettuce
- Assorted toppings of choice: olives, tomatoes, taco sauce, salsa, etc.
Directions
Preheat oven to 350°
- Spray pie place with cooking spray & get crescent rolls and sour cream out of fridge to warm up a little.
- In a large skillet add ground beef and taco seasoning.
- Cook ground beef until thoroughly browned; about 7-10 minutes.
- Drain grease from cooked beef (if necessary) and set aside.
- Remove crescent rolls from packaging and gently shape them into the pie plate like a pie crust.
(This doesn’t have to be perfect, just try to cover the bottom and sides of the plate as best you can.) - Spring crust with about 1-1 1/2 cups of crushed Fritos; the amount can vary by preference & size of pie plate.
- Scoop ground beef over top of Fritos.
- Spread sour cream over beef evenly and then top with shredded cheese.
- Bake 20-25 minutes
- Cut up or shred lettuce and assorted toppings while pie is cooling.
Makes about 8 “slices”
Serve and Enjoy!
How to Make Frozen Pierogies in Air Fryer FAST
How to get crispy pierogies in the air fryer fast.
Ingredients
- 1 bag or box of frozen pierogies
- Cooking spray or 1 tbs of Olive Oil
Directions
- If using Olive Oil be sure to coat both sides of pierogie in the oil, if using cooking spray give each side a quick spray to coat.
- Place pierogies in single layer in air fryer basket or on air fryer tray. If they overlap they won’t cook as thoroughly.
- Cook for 5 minutes at 340°
- Flip pierogies and cook for another 5 minutes.
Serve and Enjoy!
Stay up to date on coupons and new recipes by joining our email list! You can subscribe here & stay up to date on all the happenings here at Cherished Cottage.
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