March Madness food. Eat it.

Things I love:
1. Jesus
2. my husband
3. March Madness

March Madness is just a good time. And being a Jayhawk typically gives me a great reason to get excited for the madness. We don't care about the Super Bowl (we actually recorded the game and fast forwarded through the game for the commercials and half time show) but when it comes to KU basketball, we are all in!

Last weekend when my parents were in town, we watched KU win the Big 12 tournament. And I made some yummy appetizers to eat instead of real dinner. Do you love bacon? Keep reading. On Friday night I made a big pot of chili and some cornbread. I used the leftovers for the rest of the weekend.

Big 12 Tournament Championship menu:
1. Bacon wrapped smokies
2. Cheese dip and chips
3. Veggie tray
4. Cupcakes

March Madness Bacon Wrapped Lil Smokies Serves 4-8...depending on how many you eat
Caleb went to a friend's house recently and raved about these little smokies. So I asked how to make them and it is super easy. And turns out, super delish.
Ingredients:
-one package of little smokies
-about 3/4 lb bacon (I like center cut)
-brown sugar

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Wrap a large cookie sheet with aluminum foil.

2. Wrap each smokie in bacon. It takes 1/3 slice of bacon to wrap a smokie. I believe there were 42 smokies in the package I got...so it took about 14 slices of bacon to wrap em all up. You could hold them  in place with a toothpick, but I just kinda tucked them underneath.

3. Cover the whole thing with brown sugar.

4. Bake for about 25 minutes or until the bacon crisps up a little bit. The bacon will continue to crisp as it cools for a few minutes after.

5. Enjoy. Get fat. You can't stop eating these. They are so dang good.

Pumped up Cheesy Dip Serves 4-8
We've all had this a million times, but I like it with some good extras.

Ingredients:
- 1 lb Velveeta cheese (just use the 2% kind, no one will ever know and you can pretend its better for you)
- 1 can Rotel
- 1/4 cup diced onions
- 1 1/2 cups leftover chili

1. Dice up your processed cheesy goodness and throw it in a pot. Heat it up.

2. Add your can of rotel (don't drain), onions, and leftover chili.

3. Let it get all melty. Eat it with some tortilla chips. Mmmmm.

Oh yes.

Look at that bacon goodness. Your mouth is watering.

Eat some veggies just for good measure. Wash it down with a cupcake. I bought mine. Why make them when you have an awesome cupcake store just a few feet from your front door?

And for early games or post-Madness breakfast...
Morning after Madness Casserole Serves 8-12
I love breakfast. I eat breakfast food any time of day. This casserole is so good and so easy and serves like a million people...unless you are really hungry. Then you can just keep it to yourself.


Ingredients:
- Sourdough bread, 6 slices
-1/2 pan of leftover cornbread
-1 lb sausage
-8 eggs
-1 1/4 cups milk
-1 cup sharp cheddar cheese
-Salt and peppa


1. Cube all your breads up, set them somewhere out of the way, and let them dry out for a day.


2. Cook up your sausage, breaking it up into little bits instead of forming it into patties. Drain.


3. In a 9x13 casserole dish, throw in all the breads. Spread out the sausage on top of the breads. Sprinkle your cheddar cheese on top of the sausage. 


4. Whisk the eggs and milk together, add some salt and peppa. Pour the mixture over bread/sausage/cheese goodness.


5. Cover the dish with aluminum foil. Stick in the fridge overnight.


6. The next morning, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Pull your casserole out of the fridge and put it straight into the oven. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until eggs are cooked through. Take the foil off about 15 minutes before the end of the baking process.

7. Let sit for a few minutes. Serve with some fruit salad. And coffee, duh. And have a beautiful day.

It's good because of the texture differences. Soft middle, crunchy top, gooey cheese. Yes please.

(This casserole would be good with some add ins like mushrooms, onions, peppers, tomatoes, ect, ect, ect. But I just kept it simple this time.)

Good morning.

That's all I've got for you. I was going to post it on Friday night but then I was tired from work. Saturday night I went out to dinner with one of the other Kiewit girls whose husband also abandoned her for the weekend. And last night I watched my boys get a ticket to the Sweet 16! Caleb was in Kansas City for a "meeting." Which sounds like vacation to me, since every time I call him, he is doing something fun. And I'm pretty sure the meeting lasted like an hour. He is heading to Omaha for more "meetings" and then coming back on Thursday I think. Meanwhile, I'm bringing home the bacon...

Have a wonderful Monday and a great week!