Frank's Cheesy Tater-Tot Casserole

We had some hamburger meat that needed to be eaten before it spoiled.  So Frank asked me what I wanted for dinner.  I saw a picture of a tater-tot casserole and it looked good so I picked that.  He went to the store while I was at work and all I said he needed to get was tater-tots, a can of cream of whatever he wanted like celery or something, and some cheese.  Well, Frank then decided that he was going to make the cheesiest casserole ever to be made on this planet.  Here is how the adventure began...

First the ingredients:
2 lbs of ground beef
1 bag of tater-tots
1 can of cream of chicken (or any substitute)
Small amount of cheese

Directions:
1.  Start with browning the ground beef. You will want to drain the beef after you are down cooking it.

2.  Layer the bottom of a baking dish with the ground beef and mix in the can of cream.  It may not look like a lot of cream, but it will balance out.  This is with 1 1/2 cans which we found out is too much.

3.  The next too steps are a matter of preference.  I like the shredded cheese to be put down, then the tater tots on top. Frank likes the tots on the bottom and cheese on top.  Since this is his recipe he did it his way.  He layered the tots.  Then he put even more cream of cheddar.  At this point I think even he was questioning on whether it was a but too much.  Oh and let me tell you it was.  But this is about attempting to be domestic.  We live and learn.  Just make sure that you learn from us!

4.  The Frank layered the top with a little cheese.  Now the reason I like the tots on top is because they get real nice and crispy. And because it is baked it is crunchy, but not greasy.  Frank likes a real nice melted cheese layer. So like I said earlier, either way is good.

5.  Finally cook the dish in the oven using the directions from the tater tots package.  For us it was 35 minutes at 350 degrees.  And this is what it turned out...

We ate this with sweet peas.  It was really good when I ate the peas and casserole in the same bite.  I suggested to Frank that next time we try having the peas in the casserole.  He thought it would be a good idea.  I think it would almost be like a shepards pie but with tater tots. This recipe has potential for different variations for sure.  Stay posted for our attempt #2 for this casserole.  

*I think this would be a good meal to freeze.  But since I've never done frozen meals I didn't try it.

Any suggestions or learning tips from your experience with this kind of meal?

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Here is my second attempt at a recipe from Pinterest.  I've decided that since it is just me and my husband that I would make my co-workers be my guinea pigs. There is no way Frank and I can eat all of the recipes I make before they go bad.  So I'm surfing Pinterest at work :) and I stumble upon this pin and I asked my co-worker Kassy if it sounds good. She said, "Yes, and you should make it tonight!"

Now, normally I leave my "experiments" for the weekend, but I was inspired to do this one right away.  It doesn't hurt that it is only 3 ingredients and I've been itching to use my new Kitchen Aid. By the way, do you know how hard it is to leave a Kitchen Aid in the box without using it for 3 months? I hate moving! But I'm glad that we now have our house set up enough for me to make a mess in the kitchen and not have to move a bunch of random things to do it.

This is the original website where I found the recipe.  http://www.instructables.com/id/Scary-Easy-Pumpkin-Chocolate-Chip-Cookies/?ALLSTEPS

Here is a breakdown of the recipe with my own pictures at my attempt:

The shining red thing on the right is my new KitchenAid. Thank you Helen for the amazing wedding gift!

• 1 box of cake mix (I used the spice flavor that was suggested, but I read from others that carrot works well too)
• 1 15 oz can of Pumpkin Puree
• 1 bag of chocolate chips

The rest is so simple!

1. Mix the cake mix and pumpkin puree together until the mix is thoroughly worked in. (At this point I had to refrain from eating the batter because it smells just like Thanksgiving.  I may or may not have tried it.  And it may or may not have been ah-mazing followed by a weird after taste.)
2. Fold in the chocolate chips.
3. Put on baking sheets. (The original recipe called for parchment paper, but I just used foil)
4. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

The 

I tried small and large shaped cookies to see which would come out best.  The cookies that were on the top rack (left) came out perfect.  The ones on the bottom rack (right) were slightly burned, but still good.  

The retain the exact shape that they have before they go into the oven.  I wonder how I can make the shape come out better than just throwing it on the sheet with a spoon.  Do you think a piping bag with a large whole would work?  Anyways, on to the taste test...

Well Frank tried them and gave it a thumbs up. I guess that means my attempts at being domestic are going well!  I read from some of the comments on the original post that some people have tried variations.  Here are some variations that I think might be cool:

 *Christmas: white cake mix/peppermint white chocolate chips

 *Valentines Day: red velvet cake mix/dark chocolate chips

 *St. Patricks Day: white cake mix with green food coloring/mint chocolate chips

What are some variations that you think would be good?

Why did I start a blog?

I decided to start a blog because, like many people, I have been inspired by Pinterest! Seriously. I have followed the links to all of these amazing blog posts from people who are into some of things that I am. I was really able to relate to some of these posts, but felt a disconnection from the overall blogs.  So I decided to start a blog on what I'm doing and experiencing in life.  And I'm hoping that someone can find my blog helpful and useful as I have found others to be.

I am a wife, a soon to be mother, and a Soldier in the US Army. I struggle with all 3 of these "hats" but I do enjoy my life.  I am a crocheter and a crafty person.  I have a problem with starting projects and finishing them though. So my craft room looks like a bunch of half finished projects.

I hope someone finds use of  my posts and I look forward to hearing feedback from people!