Five {Food} Things Friday

I like to eat.

And I like cooking more and more.

I can only imagine that this is not going to end well for my hips.

Anyway, here are my top five favorite recipes as of late.

I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

1. BubbleCrumb.com's Crock Pot Chicken and Dumplins.
I'm always looking for a good crock pot recipe and this is one of the best I've tried. Very easy. VERY good! {As a side note, I used Herbs De Provence in place of Parsley...and I next time I plan to add extra broth at the end...which she says is optional.}

2. Pioneer Woman's Homemade Ranch Dressing.

I love, love, love this dressing. I eat it by the spoon full. For real. And then I lick the bowl when it's all gone. {Sorry, I just had some for lunch today and I'm not quite over it yet.}

3. Pioneer Woman's {God love her} Olive Cheese Bread.

So yummy. Not exactly good for you. But, gooooood! I made this as a dip {served with pretzel chips} for a BCS Championship party...and saved some for our family to use as a spread on french bread to go with spaghetti...and still had some left over to snack on {as a dip} all week. And it freezes well, too!

4. Southern Living's Chicken-and-Wild Rice Casserole.

I haven't actually made this one yet, but my sister-in-law made it over Christmas and it was a big hit. It's on our menu for next week...and I'm thinking it'll get bumped up in the lineup. It's one of those complete-meal-in-one-dish sort of things and it's tasty to boot!

5. Cooking in Cast Iron's Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Onions.

I couldn't find this one online, but it is SO GOOD that I am willing to type out the whole thing for you. Please, I beg you. Try this recipe. Don't like brussels sprouts? Well, you just haven't tried these brussels sprouts. Seriously. Try them.

5 T olive oil

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 T mustard seeds

8 slices smoked bacon, chopped

1 1/2 lb brussels sprouts, trimmed

Sea salt and cracked pepper

2 c chicken broth

1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced

2 T honey

In a braiser or dutch oven, warm 3 T of the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, mustard seeds, and bacon and saute until the bacon is crisp, 2-3- minutes.

Add the brussels sprouts and cook, stirring occasionally, until they begin to turn golden brown, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Pour int the broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cove, and simmer until tender, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a frying pan over medium heat, warm the remaining 2 T of  olive oil. Add the onions and saute until dark golden brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in the honey. Reduce the heat to low and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft and caramelized, 5-8 minutes.

Uncover the brussels sprouts and cook until the liquid is reduced by one-fourth, about 5 minutes.

Top the brussels sprouts with the caramelized onions and serve right away.

Then call and thank me for making you try brussels sprouts. :)