Jolene's Recipe Journal

Welcome to the monthly recipe round-up featuring myself and ten other bloggers. February means it is time for recipe ideas that are fitting for Valentine's Day - sweet treats, chocolate, romantic dinners, pink and red foods, and more! Check out all the recipes we have to help you plan out your meals and festivities for this month. ~Breakfast~ Strawberry Rhubarb Jam Oatmeal Muffins from Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck White Chocolate & Raspberry Crescents from Blogghetti Beet Pancakes from Savory Moments ~Sides & Drinks~ White Hot Chocolate from Pies and Plots Cupid Floats from Jolene's Recipe Journal Rustic Tomato Lentil Soup from Girl Gone Mom Homemade Spaetzle w/ Dill from Faith, Hope, Love, Luck ~Main Dishes~ Shrimp Scampi from Crafty Cooking Mama Grilled Ribeye w/ Garlic Blue Cheese Mustard Sauce from Cheese Curd in Paradise Lasagne for Two from Palatable Pastime Jerk Scallops w/ Pineap

We're big football fans here, and we're even bigger fans of football food!  Ever since my son was little, we've always had special game day meals.  Nachos are a staple, and so are mini corn dog muffins .  This year I decided I wanted chili, and I've been testing out a few recipes. This Spicy Touchdown Chili caught my eye because in addition to the usual ingredients, it also has bacon! I made a few changes to the recipe.  I used hot Italian turkey sausage instead of pork.  For all of the beans, I bought reduced sodium versions.  Instead of the beer, I used beef broth.  Because I couldn't find the diced tomatoes with onions, I upped the fresh onion to a medium sized one. I love this one because you can make it early in the day, pop it in the slow cooker and not have to miss any of the game.  While it's great by itself, it also would make awesome nachos, or poured on top of a baked potato or a nice grilled hot dog.  I was very happy with the heat level, but you

I've found some great new recipes during #NationalOatmealMonth.  First I made Honey Oat Pan Rolls , then Overnight Cherry Almond Oatmeal. When I was searching for recipes to make for this month's Muffin Monday, I found these Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Muffins from Cheryl B. on the Taste of Home website. I made absolutely no changes to the recipe, but I am not sure which type of oats I used. I poured them into a resealable canister a while back and forgot to mark if they were quick or rolled.  I also used cinnamon applesauce because that's what I have on hand. These mix up in no time, and I like to use a cookie scoop to fill the tins.  Mine cooked perfectly in the stated time.  They were great both warm or at room temperature.   Next time I'll do them as minis, they'll make perfect lunch box treats for my guys! #MuffinMonday is a group of muffin loving bakers who get together once a month to bake muffins. You can see all of our lovely muffins by following o

Happy National Chocolate Cake Day! Did you know that chocolate cake wasn't even a thing until 1847?  I had no idea!  It seems that chocolate was primarily used for drinking prior to that. Now I love a good cup of hot chocolate, but I can't imagine a celebration without chocolate cake! I looked through lots of recipes on Pinterest and cookbooks trying to chose what cake I wanted to make. This Old Fashioned Fudge Cake from Mary S. caught my eye because it made a 6" round, which is the perfect size for just the 3 of us.   The cake itself isn't overly sweet, so it balances nicely with the frosting.  The only thing I'd do differently next time is to split the cake into two layers and put some of the frosting in between.  It spreads and pipes beautifully, and then sets up nicely.  I used a rotary grater on some chocolate chips for the top of the cake.  Thanks to Camilla for hosting our #NationalChocolateCakeDay celebration, and to all of the other Festive Fo

If someone had said to me five years ago that I'd be hosting an event for National Peanut Butter Day, I'd never have believed it.  My son was EpiPen required peanut and tree nut allergic.  On the rare occasion we had peanut butter in the house for my husband's work lunches, it was like watching a sci fi movie, with haz mat suits, bleach spray and multiple washings of utensils. Luckily for us, his peanut numbers dropped lower and lower with each subsequent year's testing, until finally he was deemed "cured" of his allergy.  Ironically, he doesn't enjoy peanut butter at all, but I've completely fallen in love with it. I especially like the types that are sweetened with maple or honey. My go-to way to enjoy peanut butter is spread on slices of tart apple and then sprinkled with pumpkin seeds.  Super simple.  When I went searching for a recipe for this event, I was looking for something similar, simple but full of different flavors and textures. I

Today is National Cheese Lovers Day! When I think of cheesy foods, the first thing that comes to mind (and my absolute favorite) is pizza.  I was flipping through one of my Taste of Home cookbooks and spotted these Waffled Pizza Bites from Deidre C. Waffles are another one of my favorite foods, so the idea of combining the two of them together just sounded so good to me!   I love that the recipe starts with a couple of cans of crescent roll dough, I always keep some on hand.  If you can snag the un-perforated sheets, then it saves you from having to pinch seams. I'm going to admit, I used more cheese than what was called for. I had 2 cup bag of mozzarella, and I combined it with the 1/2 cup Parmesan.  I made them two ways.  The first set I did as the recipe stated.  The second, I spooned some sauce inside.  Not a lot, maybe 1/4 cup or so. You don't want to overload it so that it oozes out or you'll have a mess to clean up. These were going so fast, I had to hide