Lately, I like everyone else on planet earth have become obsessed with using Pinterest to find new and interesting recipes. I don’t always remember to take photos of the recipes that I make, let alone actually pin the recipes, but I still love finding new, unique, easy and cheap recipes. I thought I should share a few recipes with you here.

Apple Crisp Recipe

I recently tried making apple crisp on my own. If you ask any of my close friends they will tell you that I have an obsession with apples. Any apple product is something that I must try. All candles in our home are apple cinnamon, there is apple shampoo in the shower, apple flavored drinks, and usually a healthy supply of apples in our fridge. When my friend J and her boyfriend D appeared on my doorstep with freshly picked apples, I was more than happy to take a few off their hands.

I had to do a little research to find a recipe for apple crisp, and I modified it to my taste buds, but it came out delicious! It wasn’t as good as the apple crisp that I used to have in elementary and high school, but until a lunch lady lets me in on that recipe, this one will have to do. Want to try the recipe? Check out the recipe at allrecipes.com. After I’d run out of apples, I used my leftover oatmeal to make some great oatmeal raisin & cranberry cookies.

Barbecue Beef Pouch Potatoes

One of my all-time favorite recipes comes from my Mom. All of my really great creations usually come from her. I don’t have a photo of it, sorry! But I will print the recipe here, although I’m not certain who to give credit to since it’s probably not actually my Mom’s invention. Like another one of my favorites of hers (20 minute main dish), it’s truly simple and it ends up being quite delicious.

What you need for BBQ Beef Pouch Potatoes:

• 4 sheets heavy duty aluminum foil, each 12 inch squares.
• 7-ounce can vacuum-packed whole-kernel corn
• 1 packet taco seasoning
• 4 ounces Cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup salsa

Directions For BBQ Beef Pouch Potatoes:

Heat oven to 450 degrees.

In a bowl, mix potatoes, ground beef, corn and taco seasoning. Place equal portions, about 1 1/2 cups each on the right hand side of the foil. Fold over the left side and make a pouch, sealing well. Place on a baking sheet in the center of the oven. Bake for 35 minutes.

Top each serving with 1/4 cup of the cheese and 2 tablespoons of the salsa.

My Mom says “it is usually easier to mix up the taco seasoning and the ground beef first and then add the potatoes and corn too. Enjoy!”

Yes, that’s right, you don’t have to cook any of those ingredients, just throw them in some tin foil, pop ‘em in the oven and in about 35 minutes they’ll be ready. D really liked this recipe, so I’ll definitely be adding it into rotation like a good little house husband. Next time I make it, I’ll try to grab a picture, although it doesn’t come out looking all that pretty. It’s still delicious!

BBQ Turkey Meatloaf

This one came from Anderson Live. Gina and Pat Neely were on showing Anderson how to cook Neely’s BBQ Turkey Meatloaf. Again, I didn’t get pictures of this one, but D really enjoyed this recipe as well. But I must admit that I didn’t really follow the recipe from Anderson Cooper. I made it my own because Neely’s recipe called for a lot of ingredients that I couldn’t afford to go out and buy and items that I just plain don’t like (onions) and ingredients that left me clueless as to where I would find them (crab boil seasoning). If you know where to find everything and you like onions, I encourage you to try Neely’s recipe as described on the show because it looked delicious. But if you’re like me, check out the simple recipe that I ended up with. So below is my modified Turkey Meatloaf recipe:

Ryan’s Modified BBQ Turkey Meatloaf

What You Need for Ryan’s Turkey Meatloaf:

2 pounds lean ground turkey

1 ½ cups bread crumbs

1 ½ cups BBQ Sauce

1 large egg

Directions For Ryan’s Turkey Meatloaf:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, mix beaten egg, 1 cup of the BBQ sauce, 2 pounds lean ground turkey, and 1 ½ cups bread crumbs, mix all together with your hands.

Transfer the meat mixture to a cookie sheet or baking pan.

Bake for 35 minutes. Remove and add the reserved 1/2 cup of BBQ sauce to the top and continue to bake for 20 more minutes.

Now, I certainly didn’t measure any of this. I know that I purchased 2 pounds of turkey but I have no idea how much BBQ sauce went into the meatloaf and no clue how much went on top. I also do not know how much bread crumbs went into the making of this meatloaf. I encourage you to experiment but also try using Neely’s recipe as a guide.

D says that the meatloaf tastes even better the day after, so it may be worth trying to mix your meatloaf together and let it marinate for a few hours before baking to soak up all of that BBQ flavor.

Share Your Favorite Recipes

This concludes this segment of Cooking With Ryan. Have a favorite recipe? I’d love to hear it and try it out! Leave it in the comments below!

Check out my recipe for Chicken Pot Pie Cupcakes!