French Onion Soup

Hey all, it's Zach speakin' again.

I'll be honest, I have a love-hate relationship with this soup. Let me explain by talking about something completely different. Just bear with me on this one...

I'm gonna tell you about our dog Copper. Copper LOVES people. To a fault. He loves people so much that they tend to hate him in return for all the attention he gives them. Whenever we are around other people, suddenly Sarah and I are the bad guys as we attempt to contain the copious amounts of energy emanating from our loving canine. He runs from us, he whines when we put him in time-out, and he even throws tantrums if we insist he listens to us. In fact, just today I got so frustrated with him that I fantasized about him running away and never returning. Yet, in the end, my love always returns for this ever needy pet.

Now, I'm sure most of you are asking one of two questions right now... "Why do you still love Copper?" Or it's more likely you're asking, "what in the world does this have to do with french onion soup?" I'll answer both questions whether you care or not. I think the reason I still love my dog is the tremendous amounts of sacrifice and energy I put in to taking care of him. You can't sacrifice SO much and NOT get something rewarding in return.

The same applies to this dang soup! It's gonna take some effort, but in the end you'll love it.

The inspiration from this recipe comes from myrecipes.com. It even tells you the nutrition facts!

Serves 6-10.
Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 white onions, thinly sliced
• 2 red onions, thinly sliced (I know, that's A LOT of onion)
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup of cooking wine (we don't own any other kinds of wine...)
• 8 cups sodium free beef broth
• 1/4 teaspoon FRESH thyme, chopped (please, please don't use the dried up crap.... I did, and my first try was a disaster)
• 1 bay leaf
• 8 slices of french bread
• 8 slices of swiss cheese

Directions

1. Warm up your olive oil in a very large skillet/pot. Add your onions and saute on medium-high heat for 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and add your sugar, pepper, and salt. Continue to cook for 20 minutes, stirring frequently (maybe constantly... sacrifice).
2. At this point the onion should be all brown and caramelized and such. Turn the heat back up, add your wine, and cook for 5 minutes to allow the alcohol to cook out.
3. Add your broth, thyme, and bay leaf, stir. Let simmer on low heat for 1 hour.
4. Toast your french bread with the swiss cheese. Serve with your soup and enjoy!

hope you like this labor of love. If you don't, well, you did it wrong (like I did the first time).

-Zach

Sonic Grape Limeade {Copycat}

Can I just say that I can't even count the number of people I know that are addicted to diet coke? I'll bet Sonic sees their Happy Hour as the best thing they ever did because of this. Which is amazing to me because I can't stand the stuff. Yep. I said it. I hate diet coke! But grape limeade on the other hand? Swoon. I could drink this stuff all day!

I can still remember the first time I tasted its deliciousness. It wasn't at a Sonic, but rather a local restaurant in the town where my high school was. Some friends and I went to grab some lunch and I saw a sign advertising 'lime ricky's' and I asked what the heck that was. After learning it was just grape and lime together, I tried it and I've been hooked since. Sonic really does make their money off of me because of this stuff. And their Oreo blasts. Maybe there will be a copycat for that in the future? Until then, enjoy this delicious drink and be amazed at how much it really does taste like the real thing!

Makes one large pitcherful
Ingredients:

• 1 {12 oz.} can limeade concentrate, thawed
• 2 pkgs. grape kool-aid
• 1 {2 liter} bottle sprite
• Fresh limes {optional}

Directions:

1. Combine limeade and koolaid until no koolaid lumps exist.
2. In a large pitcher or bowl, mix together the limeade/grape mixture and the sprite until well combined. {Don't stir too vigorously, or the carbonation in the Sprite will all go away. Listen to someone who knows from experience.}
3. Slice your limes and add it to the mix.

Enjoy!

-Sarah

Linking up here.

Work It Wednesday {#27}

Welcome to this week's Work It Wednesday! Real quick - in the past, I've tried to pin the featured posts and spotlight one or two peeps during the week and quite frankly - I haven't done a very good job at it. I just wanted you to know that I'm going to try extra hard to do those things from now on, because you guys deserve some extra attention! That's all. Also, I've been noticing some people linking up a lot of the same things week after week and also linking up like 15-20 different things as well. I've changed the rules of the linky party a little bit, so as to keep content fresh and new, so be sure to check those out! Thanks y'all. :)

Anyway, there's been a little somethin' somethin' I've been dying to tell you guys, but haven't gotten around to it. Can I get a drum roll please?...

{Follow me on Instagram! @sarah_highheelsandgrills}

That's right, folks. Zachary and I are moving and building a house! I'm super stoked about it all. It was suppose to be done June 24th, but I got an e-mail yesterday saying that because of all the snow, we should plan on it being finished in the middle of July. Which works out perfect with our sweet pea's due date being July 23rd. I've always wanted to move with a newborn. ;) 

In all reality - this is our 5th move in 5 different states {Oh yeah, did I mention this move will be right over the border into Colorado? Say goodbye to the Cheyenne wind and hello to the Rocky Mountains. Holla!}, so we've gotten pretty good at the whole packing up and moving thing. I just wish that I could bring our little babelet home to the cute nursery I've alway envisioned instead of what will either be the very empty house we're living in now or the crazy messy unpacked house we'll be moving into. Oh well. If there's one thing I've learned while being married to a military man, it's that things will never go as planned and you've just got to learn to fly by the seat of your pants. We're really excited for this new adventure and to be first time home owners!

Now that I've finally been able to get that off my chest, let's take a look at some features from last week, shall we? The most viewed link was:

Copycat Chick-Fil-A Nuggets and Sauce from Love, Pomegranate House.

Remember when I confessed here that I'd just recently tried Chick-Fil-A for the first time? These chicken nuggets are what keep me going back! They look great Talitha!

Now for my favorites from the week:

Low Sugar Strawberry Freezer Jam from Dessert Now, Dinner Later

Tips on Keeping Shoes Looking New from Angela Says

Broccoli Cheese Soup in Homemade Bread Bowls from Love Bakes Good Cakes

Easy Tape Mani from Glimpses of the Moon

Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble from Caramel Potatoes

Thank you everyone for participating in Work It Wednesday! Everything look so great! If you were featured, be sure to grab yourself a featured button here! Now...let's get down to the nitty gritty. All I ask is that you remember 3 simple rules:

#1 - Link up anything {recipes, crafts, projects, tutorials, etc.} that has been made by you. I don't care what it is as long as it isn't a shop, giveaway, advertisement, link party or something of the like. Please try to limit your link ups to no more than 5 per party. Also, please don't link up things that have already been linked up before. Let's keep the content fresh and new!
#2 - Please link back to us in some way, shape, or form. I understand how annoying this can be sometimes, so I've had a cute little button made for your convenience! You can also put a text link at the end of your post or even put our link in your party page. Just please give credit where credit is deserved!

<center> <a href="http://highheelsandgrills.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n9xFnGSn5N8/UYEyWzWUnpI/AAAAAAAADM4/MvvWQFftSOA/s1600/HHGworkit_zps95a16620.png" /></a></center>
#3 - Please please PLEASE don't link and run. The whole point of a link party is to make connections and friends with people. Put a stop to selfish blogging right now and make someone's day by commenting on at least two blogs! 
If after doing these 3 things, you decide you want to subscribe to us via E-mail, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Pinterest, Twitter, or Instagram, I definitely would not object! Thank you all. With that being said, work it friends and show me what you've got!!

Parmesan Chicken Pasta

Zach here. I apologize for no Man Monday this week folks. The responsible-bring-home-the-bacon job kinda sucked the life out of me for the last several days.

Picture this:  You're wandering the house feeling your stomach growl. You're too lazy to go buy any food because you haven't been home for seven days and all you want to do is sit around. You see a jar of spaghetti sauce, some noodles, frozen chicken, and parmesan. *light bulb moment* Chicken Parm right?! Well, it might not be the stuff you buy at that "olive" restaurant, but with only a few ingredients, it's pretty dang good.

Makes 4 servings
Ingredients

• 4 chicken breasts, thawed
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 egg
• 1 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon onion salt
• 2 cups spaghetti sauce of your choosing (I won't feel bad AT ALL if you use my recipe :)
• your favorite pasta, cooked
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375º.
2. On a cutting board, pound out your chicken to about 1/2" to 3/4", just enough to tenderize it a little and to allow an even cooking.
3. Blend your egg in a bowl. Then, mix your bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, and onion salt together in a separate, shallow bowl.
4. Get your olive oil nice and warm on medium high heat in a skillet.
5. While the oil is heating up, grab a chicken breast, dip it in the egg, then coat it with the bread crumb mixture on both sides.
6. When your oil is hot, place the breaded chicken in the skillet. Cook till golden brown on both sides.
7. This next part is something I did because I'm not a fan of greasy chicken. You can cut it out if you want. Put a cookie-cooling rack on a cookie sheet, thus creating a raised surface for your chicken to rest when in the oven. Put your chicken on the cooling rack and stick the whole contraption in the oven for about 10 minutes. This allows the grease in the chicken to drip off (onto the cookie sheet and not in your oven) AND it allows the chicken to crisp up a bit.
8. Serve the chicken on a bed of your favorite pasta and pasta sauce. 

Enjoy!

-Zach

Linking up here.

Gooey Corn Flake Crispies

Today is the day where the mister comes home from a week's worth of work!! To say I'm excited is a bit of an understatement. I don't know what you ladies out there are like when your husband is gone, but let's just say, this week wasn't my proudest week. I kept thinking, "I really need to clean the house." And then I'd think, "But Zachary won't be home for a few more days..." and I'd continue with just one more episode of 'Parenthood' or something of the sort. Let's just say that the resulting disaster of a house is a little overwhelming and I've got a lot on my plate today. ;)

I'm sure some of you can relate to having to do a million things in one day, which is why I thought it was fitting to share this recipe. It is probably one of the easiest recipes on this blog to date. It only has four ingredients and takes minutes to put together. I present to you, Gooey Corn Flake Crispies!

They're a lot like rice krispies, but don't ask me why  - they taste a million times better. I don't know if it's the added crunchiness or what, but I like them way better than rice krispies!

Makes 12-14 Crispies
Ingredients:

• 35 regular size marshmallows
• 1/2 cup {1 stick} butter, salted
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 4 & 1/2 cups corn flakes

Directions:

1. Melt butter and marshmallows together in a large pot until only a few lumps of marshmallows remain. {Don't cook it much longer or your resulting Crispies will set up hard.}
2. Remove from heat and add vanilla; mix well.
3. Stir in corn flakes and mix until all the flakes are coated.
4. Drop by spoonfuls onto wax paper and let cool.

I first tried these out on my Sunday School kids to see if they liked them and by the time they were done eating them, they were all asking me to write down the recipe, so their parents could make them at home. I'd say it was a success! Enjoy.

-Sarah

Linking up here.

Easy Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas

So, do you want to know something about me? Before I was married, I didn't know how to cook worth a darn. {And I'm still not even that good.} I'm pretty sure I lived off of those frozen chimichangas from Wal-Mart and the Cup O' Noodles made by Ramen. Those ones are still a favorite, but I can't say that my stomach exactly agrees...

Anyway, in my opinion, enchiladas are pretty much one of those things that you learn to make when you first start cooking. They're quick, they're tasty, and most of all they're easy. Well, in the last 2 and 1/2 years we've been married and I have tried my hand at cooking, I've never made enchiladas before. {And the years before definitely don't count because I never cooked a thing.} Zachary has made some yummy Chipotle Chicken Enchiladas, but we all know he's a better cook than me, so whatevs. What I'm trying to say here is: this is my first attempt at enchiladas and if you're an enchilada noob like me, this is the first recipe you should try! I was blown away by how good they tasted and the cool thing is - there is no canned cream of chicken soup or enchilada sauce! It's all from scratch which, take it from someone who knows, makes you feel like one high class homemaker! That's all. Enough of my ranting. Go try these. You won't regret it.

Adapted from food.com
Makes 8 yummy enchiladas
Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 1 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breast, diced {I found this to be about 2 medium sized breasts}
• 1/2 white onion, chopped
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 8 {8 in} flour tortillas
• 1 & 1/2 cups monterey cheddar cheese, divided
• 1/4 cup butter, salted
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 {14.5 oz.} can chicken broth
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 {4.5 oz.} can chopped green chiles

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. In a large skillet, heat oil on medium-low heat. {How long do you heat it? Here's a fun trick - Use a wooden spoon and dip the handle in the oil periodically. As soon as bubbles begin to form around it, that's when you know it's hot enough.}
3. Add the chicken, onion, salt, and pepper and cover, stirring occasionally; cook until chicken is no longer pink inside.
4. Distribute the chicken evenly between the 8 tortillas and top each one off with 1 & 1/2 Tbsp. of cheese.
5. Roll tightly and place, seam side down, in a greased 9x13 inch baking dish.
6. Meanwhile, melt butter in a medium saucepan.
7. Add flour and stir until mixture begins to bubble.
8. Add chicken broth slowly and bring to a boil.
9. Remove from heat and add sour cream and chiles.
10. Pour your sauce evenly over the enchiladas and top with remaining 3/4 cup cheese. {Or more...no judgements here.}
11. Bake uncovered for 17-20 minutes. 
12. Use any additional toppings you might like - sour cream, green onions, etc.

There's nothing better than a good hearty meal that doesn't stress you out or take hours to make. Enjoy!

-Sarah

Linking up here.

Work It Wednesday {#26}

Welcome to this week's Work It Wednesday! I'm so happy to have you here! No. Really. I am. Things have been a little lonely around these parts this week. Zachary left for work last Sunday and was suppose to come back this Friday, but said yesterday that it won't be until Saturday now, possibly Sunday. It's the pits. I know it could definitely be worse, but it doesn't make it any easier not having him here. 

Can I just say that I am not a fan of being home alone? {And if you're a creepy stalker and you're reading this, just never mind the part where I said I'm home alone. Deal? Deal.} Good thing I have my trusty ol' Copper to keep me company! 

Some days, this pup drives me absolutely crazy. Like when I mention the word 'walk' and he goes nuts and gets all hyper, or when he attacks every person he meets with kisses and slobber because he just loves them so much, or when he chews up my socks - for the millionth time. But on days like today, I couldn't be more grateful for his companionship and cuddles. Especially at night. Because I'm still afraid of the dark. {Don't judge.} 

Anyway, my point is, thanks for being here tonight to join the party and keep lil' ol' me company here on the world wide web! You rock and I hope you know it.

Now, let's get to last week's features shall we? First up:

French Toast Bites from Busy Mom's Helper

I love me some french toast! This looks absolutely delicious too! Now, for my favorite links from the week:

Spring Wreath Tutorial from Plucky's Second Thought

Raspberry Lemonade Smoothie from Willamette Valley Wonder Woman

Disney Princess Cake Pops from Elaine on The Pint Sized Baker

Gray and White Chevron Dresser from Happy, Healthy, and Domestic

Santa Fe Burger from Cooking with Curls

Thank you everyone for participating in Work It Wednesday! Everything look so great! If you were featured, be sure to grab yourself a featured button here! Now...let's get down to the nitty gritty. All I ask is that you remember 3 simple rules:

#1 - Link up anything and everything {recipes, crafts, projects, tutorials, etc.} that has been made by you. I don't care what it is as long as it isn't a shop, giveaway, advertisement, link party or something of the like. Also, please don't link up things that have already been linked up before. Let's keep the content fresh and new!
#2 - Please link back to us in some way, shape, or form. I understand how annoying this can be sometimes, so I've had a cute little button made for your convenience! You can also put a text link at the end of your post or even put our link in your party page. Just please give credit where credit is deserved!

<center> <a href="http://highheelsandgrills.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n9xFnGSn5N8/UYEyWzWUnpI/AAAAAAAADM4/MvvWQFftSOA/s1600/HHGworkit_zps95a16620.png" /></a></center>
#3 - Please please PLEASE don't link and run. The whole point of a link party is to make connections and friends with people. Put a stop to selfish blogging right now and make someone's day by commenting on at least two blogs! 
If after doing these 3 things, you decide you want to subscribe to us via E-mail, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Pinterest, Twitter, or Instagram, I definitely would not object! Thank you all. With that being said, work it friends and show me what you've got!!

Bisquick Chicken Nuggets

Welcome to another Man Monday!

Most recipes that I do for Man Monday are either original, or I change a few things to my liking. Well, today I've pretty much just used a great idea I came across. Enter: Bisquick.

Did you know that you can make like a bazillion things from Bisquick? Well, one morning, I was making Sarah pancakes (I got a few best-husband-ever points for that, by the way) and I noticed this recipe on the side of the box. A few hours later, I made 'em for lunch. Sarah and I were both completely blown away at how good they were. I mean, come on! Most of the time, stuff that tastes really good sure isn't easy to make, and it sure doesn't come from a box mix. Right? Not this time.

Makes 3-4 servings.
Ingredients:

• 3 boneless skinless chicken breast halves cut crosswise into 1/2" strips (I cut them smaller to make nuggets rather than strips... cause I'm still a kid-ish)
• 2/3 cup Bisquick mix
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1/2 tsp garlic salt
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1 egg, slightly beaten
• 3 Tbsp butter or margarine, melted

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 450°
2. Line cookie sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray.
3. In a resealable freezer bag (a big one), mix bisquick, cheese, salt, and paprika.
4. Dip half the chicken nuggets into the egg and then place in the resealable bag. Seal the bag and shake what yo' mamma gave ya. Place the chicken on the cookie sheet and repeat the process for the remaining chicken.
5. Drizzle your butter over the chicken, and bake for 12-14 minutes, turning them over halfway through. Make sure to check one before you eat 'em. No salmonella issues peeps!

I hope you enjoy this recipe. I'm pretty sure we'll be making them a lot more in the future. Peace!

*Zach puts a pretend walkie-talky up to his face and says,* "Over and out. Chkkkkrrrr."

Linking up here.

Chorizo Bean Burritos

Zach here.

I love Mexican food. A lot. In fact, growing up my parents would always take us out to the restaurant of our choosing on our birthday and nearly every single year I would pick a Mexican joint. Anyway, for those of you who live under a rock, Cinco De Mayo is coming up. Unfortunately for me, my job is making me work on said beautiful Mexican holiday. Now, most of you are probably saying, "So. What's the big deal? Just eat your treasured Mexican food when you get home." Well, smart-alec, my job doesn't allow me to just come home whenever I want. In fact, this go around I will be gone for several days.

Why am I boring you with all this? Because I'm gonna stick it to the man and celebrate Cinco De Mayo while at work *Zach puffs out his chest in defiance.* Luckily, I have an awesome recipe that is delicious and SUPER easy to save and take to work in a tiny cooler.

These things take about 15 minutes to make, the filling is freezable, and they can be toted around wherever you work.

Makes about 10 tacos/burritos/enchiladas/whatever you want to turn them into.
Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp olive oil, or veggie oil, or whatever the heck oil you want (except motor oil)
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/3 cup chopped onion
• (Optional) 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper or chipotle pepper
• 1 tube (10 oz bag) beef or pork chorizo
• 1 can (16 oz) refried beans
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (or Mexican blend... I mean, it is Cinco De Mayo)
• 10 small tortillas (I used corn tortillas)

Directions:

1. Heat up your oil on medium heat in a good size pan/pot. Add your onion and garlic. Let that sizzle for about a minute. Add cayenne/chipotle pepper if desired and mix.
2. Add your chorizo and cook for about 4 minutes; breaking up the meat with a spatula as you go.
3. (OPTIONAL STEP) I don't know about you, but I like my food with as little grease as possible. I mean, I have a hard time enough as it is keeping my saddle-bags away. Sooo, right here I strained my chorizo to get a good bit of the grease out and returned to the pan.
4. Add the whole can of refried beans and your lime juice to the chorizo. Mix well.
5. Finally, you can add the cheese. Mix well. Once you have a good-melted-cheese consistency, the mixture is doneplete!
6. Butter your tortillas and heat them up any way you like (grilled, fried, toasted, etc. etc.). I like to use an oven rack and put it directly on the gas stove top. Turn on the flame and place your tortillas right over the heat. Flip just as you see some crispy parts and repeat for the other side.
7. Place about 2 tablespoons of the chorizo/bean mix on each tortilla. Add any other garnishes or condiments you want and enjoy!

See? It was easy, and it tastes great! Now you don't have uno (see what I did there?) excuse to not celebrate Cinco de Mayo via food. Adios!

-Zach

Linking up here.

Work It Wednesday {#25}

Welcome back to another Work It Wednesday! I was kind of hoping that I could get this up super early last night and it would make up for the fact that I didn't get a WIW up at all last week, but I kind of failed. Miserably. But, I do have good reasons for it!

I woke up the other night to some really painful contractions and everyone just told me that they were Braxton Hicks and I shouldn't think anything of it. So I didn't. Then I went to my doctor's appointment yesterday and they monitored me and had enough concern to send me to the hospital where they could do more extensive monitoring. They found that I'm dilated to about 1 cm and I've been having contractions as close as 3 minutes apart and as far as about 10 minutes apart. I don't think it's that much to get worried over, but the doctors were a little nervous because apparently this isn't very common in someone that hasn't already had a baby or had cervical work done. Especially since I'm only 28 weeks along. So, in short, I spent the majority of my night in a hospital bed, strapped to monitors and such and wasn't able to get this party going. Sorry about that! I sure hope you will all understand!

Now, for the reasons you're all here. The most viewed link from last week was:

Spanish Rice and Sausage Skillet from Your Home Based Mom

Not only does that look amazing, but did you know it only takes 20 minutes to make?? Now that's my kind of meal! My favorite link ups from last week are:

Buttery Cornbread from The Salty Kitchen

Blueberry and Banana Muffins from Annie's Noms

Copycat Tucano's Fried Bananas from Clarks Condensed

Easy No Yeast Cinnamon Rolls from Back for Seconds

Buttermilk Beignets from Chocolate Chocolate and More

Thank you everyone for participating in Work It Wednesday! Everything look so great! If you were featured, be sure to grab yourself a featured button here! Now...let's get down to the nitty gritty. All I ask is that you remember 3 simple rules:

#1 - Link up anything and everything {recipes, crafts, projects, tutorials, etc.} that has been made by you. I don't care what it is as long as it isn't a shop, giveaway, advertisement, link party or something of the like. Also, please don't link up things that have already been linked up before. Let's keep the content fresh and new!
#2 - Please link back to us in some way, shape, or form. I understand how annoying this can be sometimes, so I've had a cute little button made for your convenience! You can also put a text link at the end of your post or even put our link in your party page. Just please give credit where credit is deserved!

<center> <a href="http://highheelsandgrills.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n9xFnGSn5N8/UYEyWzWUnpI/AAAAAAAADM4/MvvWQFftSOA/s1600/HHGworkit_zps95a16620.png" /></a></center>
#3 - Please please PLEASE don't link and run. The whole point of a link party is to make connections and friends with people. Put a stop to selfish blogging right now and make someone's day by commenting on at least two blogs! 
If after doing these 3 things, you decide you want to subscribe to us via E-mail, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Pinterest, Twitter, or Instagram, I definitely would not object! Thank you all. With that being said, work it friends and show me what you've got!!