I'm Just Playing with Food!

We Have a Winner!

2011-01-16T15:03:00.000-08:00

We have a winner of the $35 gift certificate to csnstores.com!!

I input numbers 1-46 on my random.com number generator and out of 1-46, it chose #6!!!

Congratulations to grandgiveaways who made the 6th comment on the giveaway posting. Thanks to grandgiveaways for their daily commenting and commitment!

I sincerely appreciate everyone's commenting and support of this little blog. I know it's nothing compared to PioneerWoman or Annie's Eats, but I'm working on it! Your support means so much!

I also want to encourage everyone to keep checking back for daily recipes and to keep your eye out for an announcement about a brand new website I'm in the process of creating! Although the design will look much like the current design of this blog, it's an actual .com website and I am really looking forward to revealing it to everyone once it's finished!

Congratulations, again, to grandgiveaways! I'll be e-mailing you with your gift certificate code!!

Cherry Crisp

2011-01-15T07:00:00.000-08:00

Remember! Today is the LAST day you have to leave a comment on the January 8th post titled "Another Giveaway From CSN Stores!" You have until 11:59 p.m. tonight to leave a comment to be entered into the drawing for the $35 gift certificate to use any way you want at the CSN Stores website! Good luck and thanks for your support!

I thoroughly love my Blueberry Coconut Crisp, but I wanted to change things up one night. I had an extra can of lite cherry pie filling in my pantry and, in the midst of my recent cleaning sprees, I pulled it out knowing I needed to get it used up and clear up the space on my shelf. I knew I also wanted to try to cut out some of the calories so I decreased the amount of butter in the original recipe. The result was, I have to say, as equally delicious as the blueberry crisp. In a rush, I forgot to decrease the amount of flour, oats, and brown sugar to match the decrease in butter. The crisp topping was not as crispy this time, so I have made those modifications in this recipe. I would definitely make this again and am looking forward to switching things up with other fruits!

Cherry Crisp
Source: Me
Yields: one 8x8 dish

Ingredients:
1-20oz can of lite cherry pie filling
3/4 cup flour (I used whole wheat flour)
3/4 cup quick cooking oats
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup cold butter, cubed

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, toss together the flour, oats, and brown sugar. Cut in the cold butter until the mixture resembles small peas. Press half of this mixture into the bottom of a greased 8x8 glass baking dish. Cover with all of the cherry pie filling. Cover with the rest of the brown sugar mixture. Bake in oven for 30 minutes until the cherry pie filling is bubbly. Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Broccoli Mac n Cheese

2011-01-14T07:00:00.000-08:00

Remember, you have just today and tomorrow to enter the drawing for the $35 gift certificate to CSN Stores! Enter the drawing by leaving a comment on the post titled "Another Giveaway from CSN Stores!" dated January 8th! Good luck and thank you for your support!

I knew I wanted a really simple and quick, yet satisfying side dish to accompany my Oven BBQ Chicken from yesterday. I came across this particular mac n cheese from Stephanie Cooks, and really liked that it was similar to other Mac n Cheese recipes I've used before and have enjoyed. I have always thought that adding broccoli to mac n cheese would be good, but I just never tried it. I decided to do so on Oven BBQ Chicken night! ComputerMan was less than thrilled that there were vegetables in his mac n cheese; I, however, thoroughly enjoyed it. He always tells me he doesn't like his broccoli cooked. Somehow I always "forget." Oops. One thing I will say about the broccoli, though: don't be a cheapskate like me and get the frozen bag of broccoli "cuts" which has the tops as well as the stem parts. Some of the pieces were just too tough. I'll splurge next time and spend the extra 50 cents to get just the broccoli tops!

Broccoli Mac n Cheese

Source: Stephanie Cooks

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

2 T butter

2 T flour

2 cups milk

8 oz shredded cheddar cheese (I like medium sharpness)

salt and pepper to taste

10 oz frozen broccoli, defrosted and roughly chopped

8 oz pasta shapes (I used shells, but any short shape would work)

1/2 cup grated parmesan

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Bring a large pot of water to boil on the stovetop. Cook pasta according to package directions. Once the pasta is almost done, throw in the broccoli and allow the water to come back up to a boil. Boil the broccoli and pasta together until the pasta is done and the broccoli is just starting to become tender--you just want to take a bit of the bite off. Drain and set aside.

Melt the butter in a pan over medium-high heat. Whisk in the flour and cook together for a minute. Slowly whisk in the milk and bring to a boil for 5 minutes until it starts to thicken up. Add in the shredded cheese and melt it, stirring in a figure-8 motion. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Turn off heat. Add in the broccoli and pasta and toss to combine. Transfer to an 11x7 greased baking dish. Top with the grated parmesan and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until it's bubbly and heated through! Enjoy!

Oven BBQ Chicken

2011-01-13T07:00:00.000-08:00

You only have a couple of more days to enter the $35 gift certificate drawing! Just scroll down (or click 'older posts' if necessary) to find the post titled "Another Giveaway from CSN Stores!" and follow the directions given. Good luck and thanks for your support!

I really, really love the taste of BBQ chicken done on the grill. The taste of the smoke mixed with the rich, bold flavors of the barbecue sauce means serious comfort food in my book. My dad is King of the Grill so when ComputerMan brings in food off the grill it brings back so many fond memories of countless grill meals my parents made together growing up. I still look forward to getting to my parents' house and having Dad's food fresh from the grill. I hate the heat of summer, but it's all worth it when you get to bite into a juicy burger or steak, a tender chicken breast, or even a perfectly cooked hot dog straight from the grill.

Since Southern California has been experiencing some weird amounts of rainfall and exceptionally low temperatures, the desire to get out to the grill definitely has not been at the top of ComputerMan's list lately. Plus, we're out of propane and don't feel like going to the store to get some more! I still love the taste of BBQ in the winter, so I knew I needed to find a good oven BBQ recipe to help hold me over till summer. This definitely was a winner for both of us; it's simple and delicious all at the same time. ComputerMan suggested that it be added to the menu rotation! Enjoy!

Oven BBQ Chicken
Source: adapted from Cooks.com
Serves: 2-4

Ingredients:
2 large chicken breasts, cut in half or thirds
season salt
garlic salt
pepper
1 T Worcestershire
1/2 cup favorite BBQ sauce (we use KC Masterpiece or Sweet Baby Ray's)
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup flour

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400. Coat the cut up chicken with the Worcestershire sauce in a large bowl or zip lock bag. Season with the season salt, garlic salt, and pepper. Heat oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Coat the chicken the flour. Transfer the chicken to the hot oil, shaking off excess flour. Fry until the chicken is golden brown (it won't be totally done in the middle--that's okay). Transfer the chicken to a 9x13 baking pan lined with aluminum foil (makes clean up a whole heck of a lot faster). Mix the honey and BBQ sauce in a bowl. Drizzle half of the sauce mix over the chicken, coating both sides. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and the remaining sauce over the chicken, coating both sides again. Bake for 10 more minutes. Remove from oven and serve immediately. Enjoy!

Creamy Citrus Ginger Salad Dressing

2011-01-12T07:00:00.000-08:00

Before I start, don't forget to enter Saturday's giveaway for csnstores.com (see posting titled "Another Giveaway from CSN Stores!" dated January 8th!)

Sometime long, long ago I received this nifty little salad dressing bottle with some quick and easy dressing recipes on the bottle and a lines for measuring ounces of liquids. This bottle has kind of been one of those things I've put in and taken out of the "donate" box when I get into a cleaning mode. It takes up space on a shelf that could use some more room, but I always think that "one day it'll come in handy." One day I just decided to mix up one of the dressings and go for it since I had some yummy croutons (see yesterday's post) to go atop my lunch salad. This dressing came together really quick and was definitely a great alternative to my typical red wine or balsamic vinaigrette that I usually use. If you don't have a nifty salad dressing bottle, just measure out the ingredients in a glass measuring cup and whisk everything together, or measure everything out and mix together in a mason jar. I'll let you know when I try the other recipes from my bottle!

Creamy Citrus Ginger Salad Dressing
Source: My Nifty Salad Dressing Bottle
Yields: 6 oz dressing

Ingredients:
2 oz. non-fat plain yogurt
4 oz. orange juice
2 T lemon juice
1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp sugar
1/2 to 1 tsp ground ginger (I used 1/2 tsp because I was worried it would overpower the dressing--it didn't; I'll use 1 tsp next time)
1 tsp ground pepper
dash or two of salt

Directions:
Measure everything in a glass measuring cup and whisk together rapidly. Serve immediately. OR Measure everything in a glass measuring cup, transfer to a glass mason jar, screw on the lid and shake vigorously to mix. Serve immediately.

The salad I made was with green leafy lettuce, big slices of tomato, sliced turkey lunch meat, some shredded Mexican cheese, shredded carrot, and a big handful of yesterday's Herbed Croutons!

Herbed Croutons

2011-01-11T07:00:00.000-08:00

Before I start, don't forget to enter Saturday's giveaway for csnstores.com (see posting titled "Another Giveaway from CSN Stores!" dated January 8th!)

After making the Baked Apple French Toast for our special breakfast guest, I had the ends of the French bread, as well as a slice from the middle, leftover and definitely did not want it to go to waste. These days I'm using the very last of everything to make sure I'm not wasting any money at all. I was able to get a good little pile of bread cubes from the bread ends and knew I could quickly make some croutons while getting ready to head out to run a few errands. These are so simple, quick, and adapt easily to suit your tastes. I used these in a big salad I'll show you tomorrow!

Herbed Croutons
Source: Me
Yields: about 1 1/2 cups of croutons

Ingredients:
2-4 slices day old French bread
pepper
garlic salt
dried thyme
olive oil for drizzling

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Arrange the bread cubes in a single layer on a metal baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil making sure you have enough to coat the cubes well. Toss the bread cubes so that all the sides receive olive oil. Sprinkle pepper, garlic salt, and dried thyme on to suit your tastes. Toss cubes together again to evenly distribute seasonings. Bake in oven for 15-20 minutes, or until the bread cubes are toasty golden and crunchy. Once they are done, transfer to a plate lined with paper towel to cool and store in a ziplock baggie for a couple of days!

Other good seasonings would be oregano, onion powder, Italian seasoning, parmesan cheese, or rosemary! Get creative!

Twice Baked Potatoes

2011-01-10T07:00:00.000-08:00

Before I start, don't forget to enter Saturday's giveaway for csnstores.com (see posting titled "Another Giveaway from CSN Stores!" dated January 8th!)

So, yeah, this idea also came from Summer of The Wannabe Ranch Wife! I really do have my own ideas--I promise! She just has so many good ones that it's hard to ignore them and try to be creative on my own sometimes! And, yes, we do spend a TON of time together! But, that's the way we like it and we don't plan on changing things, so don't make us! Plus, Mario gets along so well with her boyfriend, Zak, that it just makes life easy. In fact, they are eerily similar in ways that always shock us! But I digress. Shocker, I know. These twice baked potatoes are the perfect snack or simple meal for those evenings when you don't feel like having a big dinner (a very rare occasion in my house). During our late night baking extravaganza, I started to get munchy and asked Sum if she had anything I could snack on. Since the oven was already on, she threw a couple of these in for me and they totally hit the spot! I had a bag of potatoes I needed to get used up before they grew too many of those weird root things, and it was a total success! Thanks, Sum! Enjoy these!

Twice Baked Potatoes
Yields: this is for 6 large potatoes, or 12 halves
Source: Summer

Ingredients:
6 large Russet potatoes, scrubbed clean
some olive oil
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup to 1 cup milk
2 to 2 1/2 cups shredded cheese (I used a Mexican blend, but you can use just cheddar if you want)
1 tsp garlic salt (or more to suit your tastes)
salt and pepper to taste
diced green onions for garnish and ranch for dipping

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375. Once potatoes are scrubbed clean, pour some olive oil in your hands and thinly coat the potatoes. Arrange the potatoes on a large metal baking sheet and bake for about an hour, or until a fork can easily be inserted and removed from the middle of the potato ("fork tender").

Allow potatoes to cool slightly and cut in half lengthwise. Scoop out the insides of the potato into a large mixing bowl. Be careful to not scoop right through the skins, those need to be left in tact. I leave a very thin (1/8 - 1/4") layer of potato in the skin.

Once you've scooped all the insides into the bowl, add in the butter, 1/2 cup milk, 1 cup of the shredded cheese, garlic salt, and salt and pepper. Mix together using a hand mixer until the potatoes are creamy (like mashed potatoes). Add in more milk if they aren't creamy enough, adjust your seasonings, and mix together well. (The picture below is PRE-mixing.)

If you're willing to part with a large zip lock bag, transfer half of the mashed potato mixture to the bag, press out the air, seal shut, and cut off the tip of the bag so you have about a 1-inch opening. Evenly pipe the potatoes into the skins. Fill your bag up when needed and repeat until all the skins are filled.

Use a spoon or knife to spread the mashed potato mixture into all the crevices of the skin and to create a flat surface for the cheese.

Top the filled skins with as much cheese as you want (clearly, I like A LOT of cheese).

At this point, you can do one of two things. You can put them back into your oven at 400 degrees and allow them to heat back up and melt the cheese. Serve immediately with diced green onions (some crumbled cooked bacon would be good too) and ranch. OR, you can put them in the freezer without baking and all them to freeze individually overnight. The next morning, transfer them to a large zip lock bag and keep them in the freezer until you're ready to eat them. When you are, preheat the oven to 400 degrees and pop the frozen potatoes into the oven and allow them to fully reheat and melt the cheese--about 45 minutes to an hour. Serve with diced green onions, crumbled bacon, and ranch, or whatever other toppings/dips sound good!!

Quick Lunch/Snack Idea

2011-01-09T07:00:00.000-08:00

Before I start, don't forget to enter yesterday's giveaway for csnstores.com (see posting titled "Another Giveaway from CSN Stores!" dated January 8th!)

I was in a sort of munchy mood one afternoon (not totally atypical for me) and I wanted to use up some tomatoes in the fridge. I had seen a commercial earlier in the day that inspired this quick lunch, and I'm really looking forward to doctoring it up again soon with some other toppings! This is a very versatile and easy sandwich to make that can be customized to suit anyone's tastes! Here's how I did it, plus some other ideas that I have running through my head! Enjoy!

Quick Open-Face Tomato Sandwich
Serves: 1
Source: me

Ingredients:
2 slices white bread
3 slices turkey lunch meat
3 slices ripe tomato
2 slices provolone cheese
2 T extra virgin olive oil, plus some for drizzling
1 T freshly grated parmesan cheese
a sprinkling of dried oregano

Directions:
Toast the bread to your desired doneness. Place on a small baking sheet and drizzle with the 2 T of the olive oil. Top with the turkey and provolone cheese. Place directly under the broiler on high. Leave the oven door open so you can babysit the cheese--it will burn very quickly! Once it is bubbly and golden brown in a few spots, quickly remove it from the oven and top with the sliced tomato, drizzle with a bit more olive oil, sprinkle on the grated parmesan and the dried oregano. Enjoy immediately!

Other Ideas I Plan to Try...like soon:
-pumpernickel, rye, French or Sourdough bread
-havarti, swiss cheese, or blue cheese crumbles
-2 or 3 slices of crispy, cooked bacon (maybe leftovers from breakfast?)
-sliced avocado
-smear some Dijon mustard on the bread after drizzling with olive oil
-roasted red pepper or sundried tomatoes instead of fresh tomato

Let me know if you come up with some fun variations on this and share the wealth!!

Another Giveaway from CSN Stores!!

2011-01-08T17:10:00.000-08:00

This giveaway is now closed. Check back for another one some other time!

How I Spend my Saturday Afternoons:
Facebook, e-mail, blogging and searching blogs, and looking at csnstores.com dreaming of everything I want to buy!!

Man, I love this csnstores.com company! They are the coolest thing in the world--I've found so much great stuff from this website, and I spent some time today browsing their luggage stores to start finding some new luggage for the two of us. We have two GIGANTIC suitcases, but no small or medium sized ones to take on weekend trips up the coast (hint, hint, honey!).

A representative from csnstores.com contacted me before the holidays offering me the chance to run another giveaway here at justplayingwithfood! I jumped on the opportunity, realized it was the craziest season in the year, and had to back out. She gave me the chance again, so here you go! Here's YOUR CHANCE TO WIN A $35 GIFT CERTIFICATE TO CSNSTORES.COM. There are over 200 different stores that you can shop at, so the possibilities of spending that money are virtually endless!

Here are the rules for the giveaway:
-leave a comment at the end of this posting in the comments section; the comment can be totally random or related to this posting in some way
-along with your comment, leave your first name and your e-mail address so my representative from csnstores can contact you with the gift certificate code once you've won
-you can leave one comment every 24 hours starting today (Saturday, January 8th) and until next Saturday, January 15th, and 11:59 p.m.; I'll announce the winner on Sunday, January 16th

Have fun and good luck!! I'm going back to my dreams of the California Coast!

Cinnamon Bread

2011-01-08T07:00:00.000-08:00

One of my bestestest friends, Summer of The Wannabe Ranch Wife, called me up one evening and asked if I'd be interested in doing some late night baking. Um, hello, yes!!! We have spent more time in the kitchen together than I have with any one else and she's one of the few people I actually trust to help me get things done (read: do things for me when I don't want to). We were raised very similarly and have basically identical outlooks on life, so when we're in the kitchen together it's like I'm cooking with myself. Back to the late night bake-apalooza! We made a whole bunch of yummy treats that didn't get photographed because a) I forgot my camera, and b) they were eaten too quickly! Bah! These last couple of slices managed to survive a quick photo shoot before being scarfed down for my breakfast one morning. Toasted with a big scrape of butter on the top, this bread is heavenly! Summer totally gets the credit for putting this whole thing together, but I guess I'm posting it here because I did do the yeast for the bead. Again, the lines are blurred when it comes to dividing up my work and hers because we just piggyback off each other's tasks at hand. Love that girl!

Cinnamon Bread
Source: adapted from PioneerWoman
Yields: 1 glorious loaf of bread

Ingredients:
1 cup milk
6 T butter
2 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
2 eggs
1/3 cup suagar
3 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 T cinnamon
egg and milk mixed together for brushing
softened butter for greasing the the loaf pan

Directions:
Melt butter in a medium sized microwave safe glass bowl. Add milk to the melted butter and heat until very warm, but don't boil. It should be warm to the touch, but not hot. Once it's there, sprinkle the yeast over the top and stir gently; allow to sit for 10 minutes. There should be some foamy bubbles; if not, the yeast is dead and you gotta do it over.

Combine flour and salt.

In your mixer bowl, mix sugar and eggs until combined. Pour in milk/yeast mixture and combine. Add half the flour and beat on medium until combined. Add the other half and combine.

Switch to a dough hook and knead/beat for 10 minutes on medium. If dough is real sticky, add 1/4 cup flour and beat again for 5 minutes.

In a warm metal bowl (put it in a sink of hot water and dry right before you need it), drizzle in a little canola oil, then toss the dough in the oil to coat. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set in a warm place for 2 hours. Note: we used rapid rise bread machine yeast, so it only took 1 hour to rise for us.

Turn dough out onto a floured work surface. Roll into a 18-24 inch long rectangle that is no wider than your loaf pan you plan to use. Smear with 2 T melted butter. Mix sugar and cinnamon together, and sprinkle it over the dough. Sprinkle the brown sugar over the cinnamon-sugar. Roll bread together starting at one end and rolling toward the other; keep it tight and contained. Pinch seam to seal.

Smear loaf pan with softened butter. Place seam side down in the pan and cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise for 2 hours (again, this didn't take but an hour because of the yeast we used).

Preheat oven to 350. Mix an egg with some milk and brush over the top of the bread. Bake for 40 minutes. Serve toasted with butter or as French toast!

Buttermilk Blueberry Pancakes

2011-01-07T07:00:00.000-08:00

Along with the Baked Apple French Toast from yesterday, I also served these Buttermilk Blueberry Pancakes at breakfast when we hosted Mario's cousin. This recipe makes the perfect amount of pancakes if you're serving several other items for breakfast. The batter is so light and fluffy and the blueberries act as a sort of garnish on these pancakes. I love buttermilk pancakes so this was the perfect addition to something I already love! Enjoy!

Buttermilk Blueberry Pancakes

Yields: 12 pancakes

Source: Taste of Home

Ingredients:

2 cups flour (I used all-purpose, but you could also use whole wheat to healthy-ify them)

1 T sugar

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 tsp baking powder

2 cups buttermilk

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 T canola oil

1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Directions:

In la large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and baking powder. Combine the buttermilk, beaten eggs, and oil in another medium sized bowl. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir together with a fork until just moistened. Don't overmix the batter or it will create dense and flat pancakes. There will be a few lumps of dry ingredients--it's okay!

Pour batter by 1/4 cupfulls onto a greased hot griddle (I used a large frying pan). Sprinkle 1 T blueberries on each pancake. When bubbles form around the edges and tops of the pancakes, flip them and cook until the second side is golden brown. Serve with butter and syrup!

Fruit Salad

I also served this big fruit salad with breakfast that morning so we wouldn't feel so guilty eating bacon, sausage, eggs, pancakes, and the Apple French Toast! Obviously, you can adapt this to suit your tastes, but I just used what I had on hand: 4 large bananas, 1 bundle of seedless red grapes, and 4 medium oranges! I had a lot left over--this would easily serve 8 people!

Baked Apple French Toast

2011-01-06T07:00:00.000-08:00

One Sunday morning we got to host breakfast for Mario's cousin from Kentucky whom he hadn't seen in six years! It was great to get to meet her for the first time and enjoy getting to know yet another member of his gigantic family! I quickly called my mom for this recipe knowing that it would be a sure-fire hit with everyone at the table--and, indeed, it was! The apples are sliced thinly so they cook beautifully and create a really nice cinnamon-sugary crust on top of really moist French bread. Selfishly, I made a large 9x13 dish of this so that there'd be leftovers for breakfast the next couple of days, knowing full well that I'd be the only one really craving it for more than one day! It reheats beautifully and is so yummy and filling with a cup of hot coffee on a cold morning! Enjoy!

Baked Apple French Toast
Serves: 6-8
Source: a newspaper clipping Mom has

Ingredients:
1 large loaf of French bread
3 cups milk (I used 1%, but you can use whole or 2%; non-fat wouldn't be very good)
1 T vanilla
2 tsp cinnamon
4 eggs, beaten
3/4 cup sugar
3 Granny Smith (green) apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
2 T cold, unsalted butter

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Spray a 9x13 glass baking dish. Slice the French bread in 1 1/4 - 1 1/2 inch slices and arrange bread in a single layer on the bottom of the dish. You'll have to pack the bread in tightly and you might even have to tear up a slice or two to fill in gaps. I had one slice leftover that couldn't fit in the dish, plus I cut off the two ends since I didn't want two real crusty pieces. Combine eggs, milk, 1/4 cup of the sugar, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Pour 1/2 of the liquid over the bread, distributing evenly. Cover the bread with all the sliced apples, arranging them in an even layer. Pour the rest of the liquid over the apples. Mix the rest of the sugar (1/2 cup) and the cinnamon together and sprinkle over apples. Cut the butter up into small cubes and arrange over the the cinnamon-sugar. Bake uncovered for 35-40 minutes. Cool just 5 minutes and serve with butter and syrup.

Simple Dinner

2011-01-05T07:33:00.000-08:00

I really love meals that allow me to use up things I already have in the pantry or cooked food already in the fridge. To use up some extra potatoes and leftover ham, I decided to throw together Scalloped Potatoes and Ham one evening. It was such a comforting and hearty dish that really warmed us up on a chilly Southern California evening! Though the picture is very monochromatic, the dish is super flavorful and delicious when served with a simple green salad! Enjoy!

Scalloped Potatoes and Ham

Preheat oven to 350.

Peel 4-6 Russet potatoes (4 large to 6 medium). Thinly slice and layer in a 9x13 glass baking dish. Add in some cooked, cubed ham (bacon would be good too) and you can even add in a little bit of chopped onion and garlic. Get as fancy or stay as simple as you want!

To make the sauce, add 3 tablespoons butter to a sauce pan and melt it over medium heat. Add 3 tablespoons flour and a little pepper (no salt). Cook together for 1-2 minutes. Add in 2 1/2 to 3 cups of milk (use anything except non-fat milk here). Stir continuously over medium-low heat until mixture thickens. Season with salt to taste once you turn off the heat.

Pour the white sauce over the potatoes. Bake covered at 350 for at least an hour--it could take more though depending on how thin you slice your potatoes. You can uncover it and allow it to brown a bit on top for an additional 5 minutes after the potatoes are fully cooked. You could even sprinkle some cheddar cheese on top and melt that. Again, get as fancy or stay as simple as you want!

P.S. Don't blame me for these somewhat vague instructions...I just learned to be like this with this particular recipe from my mom!

Christmas Treats Re-cap, Part 4

2011-01-04T07:00:00.000-08:00

And, finally, since we own a small computer repair business, some goodies for our faithful business clients. The most fun part about these goodies is that one of my best friends, Summer of The Wannabe Ranch Wife, came over to help me prepare everything! She really gets the credit for the majority of the sugar cookie decorating and all the credit for the brownies, but we had tons of fun baking together. In fact, I went over to her house a couple of weeks later and did some late night baking with her! We've decided to make it a regular tradition!

I arranged everything in tins, and provided some loose items too, and then tied everything up in snowman cellophane and Christmas ribbon. I inserted handmade Christmas cards and finished the whole thing off with personalized tags.

This banana bread recipe is a definite favorite; anyone who tries it can't believe how moist and delicious it is. The secret is to use REALLY ripe bananas!

I've made sugar cookies before, so the recipe isn't anything new, but I had lots of fun decorating these with Summer this year!

These are my favorite brownies in the world! The original recipe, 5-Minute Fudgy Brownies, is a childhood favorite and all we did this year to jazz them up and "Christmas-ify" them was take them out of the oven 5 minutes shy of finishing, quickly sprinkle an entire bag of broken Andes Peppermint Bark mints on top and pop them back in the oven for the remaining 5 minutes. They were SO yummy!

Christmas Treats Re-cap, Part 3

2011-01-03T06:59:00.000-08:00

Also for our Sunday School Christmas party:

-Peanut Blossoms

This is definite favorite recipe from childhood. My mom used to make these using the little chocolate stars, so I always called them Star Cookies. I think I enjoy these out of everything that the Christmas dessert table has to offer. Call me a nostalgic sap, but these are the best because of the memories attached to them!

Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups flour

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 cup butter at room temperature

2/3 cups creamy peanut butter

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 bag Hershey's Kisses (unwrap about 30 to start with)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375. Cream together butter, peanut butter, and both sugars. Add eggs. Blend in dry ingredients. Mix well. Shape dough into walnut-sized balls. Roll each ball in a small bowl filled with some white sugar. Place on a greased cookie sheet. Bake 8 minutes. Remove from oven and press a Kiss onto each cookie so they crack around the edges. Baked another 2-5 minutes longer until golden.

Christmas Treats Re-cap, Part 2

2011-01-02T07:04:00.000-08:00

For our Sunday School Christmas party:

-Coconut Chocolate Chunk Blondies

I really enjoy reading other blogs and finding new recipes that I can make a staple in my repertoire of tried and true favorites. This recipe from BrownEyedBaker certainly has hit home with me--I made it twice in the month of December! Enjoy this one! I doubled the original recipe to make a 9x13 pan, but it easily halves to make an 8x8 pan.

Ingredients:

2 cups flour

1/4 tsp salt

8 oz unsalted butter, melted and cooled to room temperature

2 cups light brown sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

2 cups sweetened flake coconut

2 cups chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9x13 baking pan. Combine the flour and salt; set aside. Stir together the melted butter and brown sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg and vanilla extract until well blended. Slowly beat in the flour mixture until blended, then stir in the coconut and chocolate chips. Scrape the batter into the 9x13 pan and smooth even with a rubber spatula. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until set in the center but still soft. Do not overbake. Let the bars cool completely before cutting into squares.

Christmas Treats Re-cap

2011-01-01T06:27:00.000-08:00

I don’t normally do a lot of Christmas baking because we certainly don’t need all those sweets in our house. But, I did get a chance to make some goodies for different occasions this year. The next several days will provide you with a rundown of some of the sweets I made this year.

For our Choir and Orchestra Christmas party:

-Glazed Peanut Butter Bars

These reminded me of home for some reason. They were simple, yet satisfying, and very low-maintenance. That basically describes my upbringing: simple, but totally satisfying because we always had everything we needed, and very low-maintenance since our family is very anti-drama. Why do I enjoy teaching junior highers so much, then? Hmmm. Anyways, enjoy these tasty treats! I was able to get 48 bars out of the pan, and then they even got cut in half again since they were being served to a large group of people.

Ingredients:

Bars--

3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

2 tsp water

2 eggs

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 cups quick cooking oats

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

Glaze--

1 1/4 cups milk or semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup butterscotch chips

1/2 cup cream peanut butter

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, cream butter, peanut butter, both sugars, and water. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Combine flour, oats, baking soda, and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture.

2. Spread into a greased 15x10x1 inch baking pan. Bake at 325 for 18-22 minutes or until lightly browned.

3. For glaze, melt chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, and peanut butter in a microwave safe glass bowl--melt in 30 second increments, stirring after each 30 seconds until totally melted. Pour over warm bars and spread evenly. Cool on a wire rack before cutting into squares and removing from pan.

Christmas Dinner (Kinda Sorta) Re-cap

2010-12-31T06:05:00.000-08:00

I got to host Christmas dinner at our house this year which was a pretty big deal for me. I’ve done Easter Sunday, but never Christmas. We had a small crowd for dinner, but I still wanted to make sure that everyone was satisfied and full. Here is a run-down of some of what I made for Christmas. I say “some” because, well, I forgot to take pictures of everything before we ate it--hence the weird title of this post!

To accompany the pot roast, roasted chicken, green beans, sweet potato soufflé (which I am making again soon and will post pictures thereof!), and mashed red potatoes:

-Maple Oat Dinner Rolls

Found in the Taste of Home magazine, this recipe was a hit! Computer Man couldn't stop eating these! The saddest part of the whole deal was that I didn't realize I forgot to pass the bread basket around until we were done eating! My friends and family we had over politely agreed to eat a mercy roll after their plates were already cleaned and ready to be taken to the kitchen. I froze the leftovers and am looking forward to using them with Beef Stew some night!

Ingredients:

1 package (1/4 oz) active dry yeast

1/2 cup warm water

1/2 cup warm strong brewed coffee

1/2 cup old fashioned oats

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup real maple syrup

1 egg

3 T shortening

1 tsp salt

3 to 3 1/2 cups bread flour

1 T butter, melted

Directions:

1. In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast into 1/4 cup of the warm water. Add the coffee, oats, sugar, syrup, egg, shortening, salt, remaining water, and 2 cups of the flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough flour to form a soft dough--add the flour in 1/4 cup at a time. I needed a full cup, but yours might be different.

2. Turn onto a flour surface; knead until smooth and elastic about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about an hour.

3. Punch down dough. Turn onto a floured surface; divide into 4 portions. Divide each portion into 6 pieces; shape each into a ball. Place in a greased 9x13x2 baking pan. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes.

4. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown. Brush warm rolls with melted butter. Remove from pan to a wire rack.

To end the meal:

-Buttermilk Cake with Caramel Icing

Also a Taste of Home recipe, I had a bit of trouble with this cake. The first time around, I beat way too much air into the cake and when it baked it puffed up and then fell as soon as I took it out of the oven. Even after 10 extra minutes of baking, the center was totally raw and the whole thing was inedible. This was the first time I'd ever made a cake in the fluted tube pan, but I knew it shouldn't have been such a colossal disaster and I was determined to remedy the situation. I knew immediately that too much air had been beaten into it, but I felt like there had to be something else going on. I googled the recipe and found it on the Taste of Home website. I found out that the recipe I had was significantly different from the online version--of which everyone had raved! I tried the online version and had total success! I have provided you with the correct version as well as ways to avoid beating in too much air like my awesome self!

Ingredients:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

2 1/3 cups sugar

3 eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 cups flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 cup buttermilk

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at time until they are just incorporated. Turn the mixer off after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Combine flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Add to creamed butter mixture alternately with buttermilk, beating until just incorporated after each addition.

2. Pour into a greased and floured 10 inch fluted tube pan. Bake in a 350 preheated oven for 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the enter comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely.

3. For icing, combine 1/4 cup cubed butter, 1/2 cup packed brown sugar, and 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat; cool for 5-10 minutes. Whisk in 1 cup powdered sugar. Drizzle over cake. Enjoy with vanilla ice cream!

Whew! I Think I Can Breathe Now!

2010-12-30T18:04:00.000-08:00

I'm finally coming up for air after weeks of preparing for holiday company, parties galore, and lots of eating! :) I have a bunch of recipes to share with you before we close 2010 and welcome 2011! I recently purchased a domain name so I'm looking to maintain this food blog a lot more in the coming year--I have to get my money's worth! Look for a new website soon! For now, though, let me give you a few of the things I've gotten to make this holiday season! Before I share my food recipes, I have to share this picture of our puppy we got back in July. It's been a long 6 months of training and, although we're still working out some of the kinks that are part and partial with a pound puppy, I'm proud to share this holiday photo of one of the best pound puppies around: Athena!

This is Foxy, our first pound puppy we adopted just 2 weeks after being married. We have had AWESOME pound puppies!!! :)

Hearty Vegetable Spaghetti

2010-11-18T08:00:00.000-08:00

No, this is NOT a vegetarian dish! I rarely get away with that! This was another one of those "use what you have" meals. I had planned to make spaghetti with meat sauce one evening, but when I started thinking about it more--and looking in my fridge to see what else I had available--I decided to make it a meat and vegetable sauce. I really didn't feel guilty about having a big plate of this since I topped my pasta with all those veggies and protein! This is such an adaptable meal--add in whichever veggies you like to make it suit your tastes. For example, instead of squash and zucchini (leftover from the Italian Stew night), you could add in bell peppers, broccoli, carrots, or sugar snap peas. You could also use whole wheat pasta to add another layer of healthiness to the dish! Let me know what you come up with! Enjoy!

Hearty Vegetable Spaghetti
Source: Me
Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:
1 lb spaghetti
1/2 lb ground beef
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 squash, diced
1 zucchini, diced
1 4oz can sliced mushrooms
2 tsp each onion powder, oregano, thyme
28 oz can whole tomatoes OR 1 jar marinara sauce (if you're using the marinara sauce, just use 1 teaspoon each of the onion powder, oregano, and thyme)
salt and pepper to taste
grated Parmesan

Directions:
Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, brown beef 3-4 minutes. Add the squash, zucchini, garlic, and mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper and the onion powder, oregano, and thyme. Cook together until the veggies are tender, about 7-10 minutes. Add in the can of tomatoes (or marinara sauce) and break up the tomatoes into smaller chunks. Simmer together about 5-7 minutes, or until sauce thickens a bit. Toss the sauce with the cooked spaghetti and garnish with the grated Parmesan.

Shepherd's Pie with Cheddar Mashed Potatoes

2010-11-17T08:00:00.000-08:00

I've really been trying to get better at just using what I have in the fridge and pantry to make dinner instead of spending a lot of money on groceries. While I do have a certain amount of money budgeted for the grocery store, and could just run out quickly to get a few things, I prefer to save that money for my big, once-a-month shopping trip. Therefore, it's imperative that I just use what I have to make dinner some nights. While I do plan out my meals for the entire month, life sometimes gets in the way and I can't make it to the store when I wanted and that kind of leaves me stranded every once in a while. Luckily, I'm getting better at thinking on my feet and whipping something up like my mom is able to do. Man, she's good at that. My sister and I still joke that she can use a toothpick, a cotton ball, and a button to make a prom dress. She's just as good when it comes to gettin' something on the stove quick, and it always turns out delicious. Someday I'll be just as good!

Shepherd's Pie with Cheddar Mashed Potatoes
Source: Me
Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:
3-4 large Russet potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped
2 T cream cheese or sour cream
1 egg yolk
1/2 cup chicken broth, heavy cream, or milk
3 T butter
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 tsp dried parsley
1 lb ground beef
2 medium carrots, diced
1 small onion, chopped
2 T butter
2 T flour
1 cup beef broth
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 can peas, drained
1 can corn, drained

Directions:
Boil potatoes in a large pot until fork tender, about 12-15 minutes. Take one potato chunk and add it to a bowl containing the egg yolk; mix together to temper the egg (makes sure that the egg doesn't scramble when you mix it into the hot potatoes); mix in one more potato and then transfer this egg mixture to the rest of the potatoes. Add the cream cheese (or sour cream), the chicken broth (or cream or milk), the 3 tablespoons of butter, cheddar cheese, and dried parsley. Use a hand mixer to whip the potatoes until they are creamy and contain no chunks.

While the potatoes are boiling, brown the beef for 3-4 minutes. Add in the carrots and onion and season with salt and pepper. Cook together for 7-10 minutes to take some of the crunch out of the carrots.

In a small pot, melt 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons of flour together. Whisk in the beef broth and the Worcestershire sauce. Thicken one minute, stirring constantly with the whisk. Add to the meat mixture and stir in the peas and corn. Cook together for 5-7 minutes. Transfer to a 9x13 glass baking dish. Top with the potatoes and spread evenly over the meat mixture. Turn broiler on high and place dish under the broiler, about 6 inches away from the heat source. Broil for 6-8 minutes, or until potatoes are golden brown. Serve with a simple green salad!

Italian Stew

2010-11-16T08:00:00.000-08:00

As the weather continues to cool down, I get the urge to make thick, hearty stews and roasts in the CrockPot. Mario loves stews, so I knew this recipe would be right up his alley. I really enjoyed the ease and simplicity of this recipe. It was thick and rich and the perfect meal to eat while curled up on the couch with a blanket on my lap! I love no-fuss, one-pot meals, and will definitely be coming back to this one time and time again! Enjoy!

Italian Stew
Source: Taste of Home
Serves: 6-8

Ingredients:
1 lb bulk Italian sausage (if you're using the links, remove casings)
1 medium yellow squash
1 medium zucchini
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups beef broth
1 cup water
1 14.5 oz can stewed tomatoes
1 8oz can tomato sauce
2 medium carrots, thinly sliced
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
pepper to taste
1 9oz package refrigerated cheese tortellini
1/3 cup chopped green pepper (optional)
2 T minced fresh parsley
Grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:
Before I begin, I'm telling you it's no mistake that there is no salt needed in this recipe. The Italian sausage and the beef broth are salty enough. In fact, the original recipe does not require an extra cup of water, but I added it in because it was too salty for my taste.

In a large pot or Dutch Oven, cook the sauce and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink and onion is tender; drain off any excess grease. Add garlic and cook and stir for 2 minutes. Stir in the beef broth, water, tomatoes, tomato sauce, carrot, basil, oregano, and pepper to taste. Bring to boil; reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes; taste and adjust seasonings as necessary. Gently stir in the tortellini, zucchini, squash, green pepper (optional), and parsley. Cover and simmer on medium-low heat for 25 minutes. Serve with a grated Parmesan cheese and a slice of Texas toast!

Giveaway Winner!

2010-11-13T17:19:00.000-08:00

According to Random.org, the winner of the drawing was #6 out of the 6 comments received! Congratulations to one of my nearest and dearest friends from high school, Dana!!! She's getting married on 9/10/11 next year--how cool is that?!?! I hope you enjoy your gift certificate, Dana!!

Much love,

Michelle

Sweet and Sour Chicken

2010-11-09T08:00:00.000-08:00

When I was in high school, I worked at a local Chinese restaurant. I loved working there...except when it was 100 degrees outside and I had to be behind the steam tables or in the back kitchen chopping vegetables. I remember one time my boss asked me to go get something from the back storage room, and to this day I still have no idea how I was supposed to know what she wanted. She had a really thick accent so all I could make out was "Bock da bock." When she got so frustrated that I wasn't understanding, she went to go get it herself. She came with to-go cups for sodas. I don't know how "Bock da bock" was supposed to convey "To-go cups for sodas," but I quickly learned to get to-go cups whenever she asked for them. Aside from the language barrier, working there was a lot of fun. My boss was such a good cook; her Chinese food (although she was Cambodian) was so delicious. I have never been able to find anyone who can make Lemon Chicken, Chow Mein, or Hot and Sour Soup like she could. I used to get to bring home scads of leftover Chinese food, which was a bonus for my family since they all really enjoyed her food, too! Every time I eat at a Chinese restaurant I think of my days working there and my mouth starts to water! When I found this Sweet and Sour Chicken recipe over at BrownEyedBaker I was surely skeptical because I know that homemade Chinese food rarely compares to restaurant food--and nothing compares to the stuff I got to eat in high school. But, I was pleasantly surprised! The Sweet and Sour sauce is really, really good; it's not too sweet nor is it too sour--the flavors all balance really well together. This will definitely be a part of the regular menu rotation. Enjoy!

Sweet and Sour Chicken
Serves: 3-4
Source: Inspired by BrownEyedBaker but changed to suit my cooking style

Ingredients:
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup cornstarch
2 eggs slightly beaten
1/4 cup canola oil

3 medium carrots, peeled and sliced thinly on an angle

1 cup sugar
5 tablespoons ketchup
1/3 cup white vinegar
1 1/2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon garlic powder

2 cups white or brown rice
3 1/2 - 4 cups water

Directions:
Put the rice and water in a medium sauce pan. Cover and bring to a boil. The rice takes about 25 minutes to cook. Fluff with a fork when the water is dissolved and the rice is tender.

Put the cut-up chicken, the salt and pepper, and the cornstarch in a large, resealable Zip-lock baggie. Making sure the bag is tightly closed, shake the chicken to coat all the pieces with the corn starch. Beat the eggs in a large bowl and transfer the coated chicken pieces to the egg; discard the rest of the corn starch. Toss the chicken in the eggs. Heat the oil in a large skillet or a wok over medium-high heat. Carefully add the chicken to the hot oil. Allow to brown evenly on all sides and cook through entirely (this takes about 15-20 minutes depending on how big your pieces of chicken are). After about 10 minutes of browning the chicken, add the sliced carrots.

While the chicken is cooking, whisk together the sugar, ketchup, white vinegar, soy sauce, and garlic powder in a medium bowl. Once the chicken is thoroughly cooked and there is a nice, golden brown, crispy coating on the chicken, pour the sauce over the top of the cooked chicken and allow to cook together about 5-7 minutes; the sauce will reduce and thicken up. Serve the chicken with the rice and garnish with chopped green onions (optional).

Baked Potato Soup

2010-11-08T08:00:00.000-08:00

After our Halloween party, at which we served giant baked potatoes, I had about 100 potatoes left over that I knew I had to start using. This dish was inspired by 2 different Taste of Home recipe cards I had clipped as well as the looming mountain of cooked potatoes sitting in my refrigerator! There are a few changes I will make next time, but I already put those in the recipe instructions below. This was a hearty and delicious soup that really could have stood on its own, but I decided to bake up a few chicken nuggets and served it with a green salad. The only thing that would have made this dish better? The temperature NOT being 90 degrees in November!!! Oh well! Enjoy!

Baked Potato Soup
Source: Me and Taste of Home
Yields: 6 servings

Ingredients:
3 large fully cooked baked potatoes, cubed (I just left the skins on, but you can peel them if you have an aversion to potato skins)
2 T butter
salt and pepper to taste
onion powder to taste (or 1 small onion diced)
thyme to taste (I think I used about 1/2 tsp)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups milk (or 1 cup heavy whipping cream)
1 14.5 oz can low sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup crispy cooked bacon, crumbled
4 green onions, diced
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
dollop of sour cream for garnish

Instructions:
Melt butter in a large stock pot. Add potatoes and slightly brown, about 5 minutes. Add in the garlic and diced onion if you're using an actual onion; if you're using onion powder don't add it in yet. Cook together about 2 minutes. Pour in the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Add in salt, pepper, thyme, and onion powder (if you didn't use a regular onion). Let simmer together about 5 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings at this point. Don't add in too much salt because you still have to add in the bacon which adds its own salt. At this point you can add in the milk (or cream) and the shredded cheese. Stir constantly in a figure eight motion until all the cheese is melted being careful to not let the milk burn. Once the soup is thoroughly heated through and the cheese is melted, turn off the heat and mix in the bacon and green onions (I added the bacon in too soon and it didn't retain its crispiness, so wait till the last minute!). Serve immediately with a dollop of sour cream on top for an added creaminess! This would have been delicious in a bread bowl, but I can't afford the carbs! :)

Another Giveaway--Just in Time for the Holidays!

2010-11-07T07:00:00.000-08:00

This giveaway is now closed. Check back for another one sometime soon!
The holidays are quickly approaching--YAY! I don't really get stressed out like so many shoppers out there do; I don't suffer from the "Holy boogers! I haven't gotten anybody anything!" panic attack like a lot of people I know. I spend so much of my time making goodies and handmade cards that rushing to the mall to "just find something" seems a bit thoughtless; I really like handmade, personalized gifts. However, one of the greatest things Mario and I ever did was order a really great ladder for my dad and had it shipped directly to his house--I think this was for his birthday, not Christmas, but you get the point. Online shopping is so convenient because you don't have to wait in line! That's what I really like about CSNstores.com! They've got sooooo many things to choose from that you could get virtually everyone on your list taken care of while your ooey, gooey Christmas goodies bake away in the oven! I've been browsing their website a lot lately and here are some things I found that I love that really give you a taste of what they've got to offer:

We seriously have one of the coolest houses in the world; it's 100 years old and has a beautiful, large dining room where we have a counter height table and 8 chairs, plus a buffet table, a wine tower, a bookshelf, and even a piano! I would LOVE to have a formal dining room one day though so I can have one of these dining tables:

We just rearranged our living room to make room for our Christmas tree and a chair and ottoman set like one of these that we'll eventually order:

(I really like the Sage Paisley)

Finally, something like this one be nice to have in the kitchen so you have both moveable counter space as well as extra storage:

Here's what's great about CSNstores.com: they are offering you another chance to win a gift certificate code to use on any of their websites (there are over 200 csnstores) including Cookware.com! This time around, you can enter to win a $35 gift certificate that you can use to buy anything for anyone from their website; you can take care of someone on your list, or use it for yourself! All you have to do is leave a comment on this post and you're entered to win. The comment can be totally unrelated to my Christmas rants, my furniture placement, and ooey, gooey, goodies. Just leave a comment and make sure you include your name so I know who you are. You can leave one comment every day until Friday, November 12, 2010 at 11:59 p.m. I'll choose a winner on Saturday the 13th and have my people get in touch with your people to let you know you've won! Good luck to you all and thanks for visiting!

Creamy Not-sagna

2010-11-06T08:00:00.000-07:00

I have to give Rachael Ray the credit for the whole "not-sagna" thing. I recently found a new show she has on Cooking Channel called Week in a Day. The premise is that she makes a week's worth of food one day and then has it all on hand to use throughout the week. She'll use the roasted chicken from Monday again in a dish on Thursday night. Obviously, this isn't a novel concept, but I really enjoy watching her so somehow it seems new and fresh. This dish was inspired by one she had made on an episode, but I definitely changed it up to match the ingredients I had and to suit our tastes. Mario really enjoyed this and took for lunch for a few days. I, of course, made enough to feed a small village, but it was so cheap and really delicious on day 2, 3, and 4! Enjoy!

Creamy Not-sagna
Source: Me and Rachael Ray, kinda
Yields: 6 servings

Ingredients:

1 lb lasagna noodles broken

28 oz can crushed tomatoes

3 oz cream cheese

1 sm or ½ medium onion diced

3 cloves garlic minced

Salt and pepper

1 T Italian seasoning (or ½ T each dried basil and oregano)

1 tsp dried parsely

1 T olive oil

½ lb ground beef or turkey (I used beef, but I wish I would've used turkey)

1-1 ½ cups mozzarella depending on how cheesy you want it

Freshly grated parmigiana cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400. Cook broken lasagna noodles according to package directions. Heat olive oil in a skillet with high sides. Add ground beef (or turkey), onion, and garlic; season with salt and pepper. Cook beef until no longer pink. Add can of crushed tomatoes to beef, season with Italian seasoning. Simmer on stove top for 5 minutes. Add the cream cheese and adjust seasonings to taste. Drain pasta and return it to the pasta pot. Pour the meat sauce over the cooked pasta and toss to coat. Transfer to a 9x13 baking dish. Top with shredded cheese and bake until bubbly and lightly browned. Garnish with freshly grated parmigiana cheese. I would have liked to have added a couple of diced carrots and a green bell pepper in with the onion and beef, but I knew that wouldn’t have gone over well with Mario!

Baked Pork Chops & Apples

2010-11-05T08:00:00.000-07:00

This was seriously one of the easiest and satisfying dishes I've ever made. I had had this Taste of Home recipe card for years and never got around to trying it. I finally put it up on my recipe and menu board and vowed to try it. Of course, Mario chose to eat his stuffing and pork chop separate and forego the apples...strange, strange man. Because this dish really only requires 3 ingredients you may not have on hand, it can be thrown together on the fly and serve a family for very little money! I especially loved that this dish sort of kicked off the Fall baking season for me! Enjoy!

Baked Pork Chops & Apples
Source: Taste of Home
Yields: 6 pork chops

Ingredients:
6 pork chops (I prefer bone-in, but you can also use boneless)
1 21 oz can apple pie filling
1 6 oz box turkey, chicken, or cornbread stuffing mix
2 T olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400. Season pork chops with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Brown pork chops on each side; don't worry if they're not totally cooked because they'll finish cooking in the oven. Meanwhile, prepare boxed stuffing mix according to directions. Spread apple pie filling in the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish. Top with browned pork chops. Put a spoonful of prepared stuffing on top of each pork chop, evenly distributing the stuffing. Cover dish with tin foil and bake for 35 minutes; remove foil and bake another 10 more minutes uncovered. Apples will be bubbly and the stuffing will be slightly browned on top. Enjoy with a green salad!

(Note: I baked mine in individual dishes because I only need to make one for myself with the topping and apples. This recipe halves easily and you can use the remaining apple pie filling to make a small apple crisp to enjoy for yourself when no one else is around!)

Halloween Party Faire

2010-11-04T12:07:00.000-07:00

I know I'm about a week late, but here's what happened at our house! We teamed up with another couple in our Sunday School class this year to host the annual Halloween party! Computer Man and I really enjoy decorating the house up for October, November, and December. For Halloween, he goes all out with fog machines, strobe lights, and tombstones outside while I like to decorate the inside with blacks, oranges, purples, and greens. We were so excited to have everyone over this year...and then we got sick! We were so bummed, but the show must go on! We rallied all the strength we could and got the last of the decorations up as the first couple arrived. It's tough working when you've got a fever! Oh well, we still managed to enjoy ourselves and everyone said they had a really good time! Here are some shots of the table as well as some food that I made! Enjoy your November decorating--I know I am!

Halloween Party Table: Appetizers and Main Dishes (except for the baked potatoes that were still in the oven; they filled up that giant gaping hole)

Drinks and Desserts (Lemon-Lime Water, Orange Party Punch in the Skull Bowl {1 qt orange sherbet, 2 liter Sprite, 1 tube thingy of frozen orange juice concentrate, 1 cup apple or pineapple juice}, Dragon's Blood Fruit Punch and a table full of calorie-laden treats.)

Mummy Cupcakes (use tip #46...I think...and drag strips across top of cupcake leaving a space for eyes...I should've left a space for the mouth, too; dot two eyes in the empty space.)

Spider Web Cupcakes

(pipe 5 rings on top of cupcake and drag a toothpick from center to edge 7 times to create web effect; top with a fake mini spider!)

It's the Great Pumpkin Cupcake (I used the Big Top Cupcake mold, shaped the top to be round, frosted it with orange buttercream, used a circle tip to make the vines, and topped it with an extra square of cake that I spread brown buttercream on...bad grammar..."an extra square of cake ON WHICH I spread brown buttercream." There. Now I can sleep tonight.)

Seven Layer Bean Dip

1 28 oz can refried beans

4 avocados and 2 packets of guacamole mix plus the juice of 1 lime

2 cups shredded Mexican cheese

16 oz container sour cream

4 oz can of diced green chiles, drained and a 4 oz can of sliced black olives, drained (I mixed these together to make one layer because otherwise I'd have to call this Eight Layer Bean Dip and that's just wrong because we always call it Seven Layer Bean Dip--that's just how we roll in my family)

1 cup chopped lettuce

2 tomatoes, chopped

(I piped some extra sour cream on top to make a spiderweb)

A bunch of tortilla chips

A big, long spoon so you can dig down deep to get some of everything on your plate; don't use those stupid little appetizer plates, just go for the big one!

Make guacamole at least 30 minutes in advance; squirt the lime juice on it and mix it up so the avocados don't brown. Use a trifle dish or whatever other deep dish you want. Layer in the order given...or in whichever order you'd like...or not at all...or leave some stuff out to make it a 4 layer bean dip...or add stuff in to make at 10 layer bean dip...or, okay I'm done rambling. How about you just enjoy this?!

Creamy Taco Mac

2010-10-21T08:00:00.000-07:00

One of my nearest and dearest friends (K) and I have grown up together since we were in the 7th grade. Our dads met at work and found out that they each had daughters the same age, at the same school, and in the same grade. Our families had moved to the area at about the same time and our dads were working in the same department. We were destined to be friends. I don't get to see her very often (although she did come stay with us at the end of September for a few days--it was glorious!), but I always think of her whenever I eat Hamburger Helper. To begin, I'm definitely not "above" having Hamburger Helper and I think it's quite convenient in a pinch. Regularly they are on sale for $1 at the grocery store so I can feed us for under $5 if I have to. Growing up, we ate a lot of Hamburger Helper since we were on a fixed budget. That being said, as K and I became closer and closer, she was always at our house. If she was there during dinnertime, it seemed like we were having was Hamburger Helper! Again, the $1 price tag is quite intriguing! Serve with a salad and a can of corn or green beans and you've really got a good meal to serve a family! When my mom found out that K was coming to stay with us for a few days, she sent me a box of Hamburger Helper as a joke and I told K that that was what I was making for dinner to welcome her! She died laughing because she really can only remember eating it at our house! Good times! When I stumbled on this recipe at Annie's Eats, I knew I wanted to try it to see if it lived up to the ease of the boxed meal. It really did, and it was much healthier, too! Maybe I'll make this for K next time she comes!

Creamy Taco Mac
Source: adapted from Annie's Eats
Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:
1 lb ground turkey
8 oz. dry pasta (like tubes, bowties, shells, elbows, or curls)
1 small or 1/2 medium onion, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 (14 oz) can Rotel's (or Mexican style diced tomatoes)
1 packet Lawry's taco seasoning
3 oz. cream cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
salt and pepper
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
3 green onions, diced

Directions:
-Bring a large pot of water to boil. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup pasta water; set the water aside. Return pasta to large pot.
-In a large skillet, cook the onion and ground turkey over medium-high heat until no longer pink. Once the turkey is cooked, add in the garlic and cook another 30 seconds.
-Mix in the diced tomatoes and taco seasoning and let simmer for about 5 minutes.
-Transfer the turkey-tomato mixture to the pasta pot. Add in the cream cheese, sour cream, and reserved pasta water. Stir until the cream cheese is melted and sauce is well blended. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Simmer over medium-low heat 3-5 minutes to reduce the sauce a bit. Remove from the heat and top with shredded cheese and green onions!

Healthy Muffins and Family

2010-10-20T08:00:00.000-07:00

If you get to live near to, or within a reasonable driving distance from, your parents BE THANKFUL! My parents live 2000 miles away and we only get to see each other a couple of times a year--if that. We used to live in Northern California, but I moved to Southern California for college and just before I graduated they moved back "home." My whole family is native to South Dakota and I still call it "home" even though I haven't lived there in over 20 years. I love the weather of Southern California, I love my church, I love my friends and the little bit of family I have down here, but I really miss being close to my parents. A few weeks ago they came to stay with me and Mario for a few days before we went to a wedding in Vegas. It was SO MUCH FUN having them here in our new house. So, again I say, if you have the convenience of seeing your parents whenever you want, consider yourself blessed and cherish the time you have with them!! My parents have recently gotten on a health kick and I knew I wanted them to have a healthy breakfast option when they were at my house. My mom and I haven't had the chance to bake together in years so instead of having these muffins ready before they came, I asked her if she'd help me make them. We used to bake cookies and all sorts of fun things together when I was a kid, so this was surely a treat! These muffins are really delicious and you really can't feel guilty having 2 of them! They fill you up and make a delicious breakfast alongside a cup of coffee and an orange! I love you, Dad and Mom!!

Blueberry Applesauce Muffins
Source: Annie's Eats
Yields: 12 muffins

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/4 quick cooking oats
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 T canola oil
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 cup blueberries (frozen works just fine)

Directions:
-Preheat oven to 375. Either line a muffin tin with paper liners or spray well with Pam.
-Mix together the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
-Add in applesauce, buttermilk, brown sugar, oil, and egg.
-Mix together until just incorporated.
-Gently fold in the blueberries with a spatula.
-Divide batter evenly between the muffin cups.
-Bake for 16-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
-Cool on a wire rack.

BBQ Chicken Pizza

2010-10-19T08:00:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite things to do is order pizza on a Friday night and sit down to watch a good movie with a cold Diet Coke, a bunch of friends, and just veg the whole evening. But, some nights, like Tuesdays, we can't really invite a bunch of people over because there's work the next day, so I like to recreate those fun nights for just the two of us every once in a while. I think this pizza was delicious; Mario is totally satisfied with plain cheese, but you already knew that from previous pizza posts. You'll notice that just half of the pizza had red onions, so I still had to modify it slightly for his tastes. (Note: the recipe is designed for an entire pizza full of the red onions!) He did enjoy this, so that was good, but I know he won't be requesting this on his own. Ever. Oh well! Enjoy!

BBQ Chicken Pizza
Source: Me
Serves: 4

Ingredients:
1 pizza dough
1 1/2 cups Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
1/2-3/4 cups of your favorite BBQ sauce
1/4 red onion thinly sliced
1 chicken breast, seasoned with salt and pepper, grilled and sliced
3 green onions, diced
1/4 cup roughly chopped cilantro

Directions:
-Preheat oven to 500 (if you use a pizza stone, allow it to heat up with the oven plus leave it in there an additional 30 minutes after the oven is preheated).
-On a piece of floured parchment or wax paper, spread the dough out to the size of your pizza pan or stone.
-Spread a thin layer of the BBQ sauce on the dough, leaving about 1/2 border.
-Top with the cheese, grilled chicken, red onion, green onion, and cilantro. Drizzle more BBQ sauce over the top.
-Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until the crust is browned and the cheese is melted and bubbly.

Baked Chicken Parm

2010-10-18T17:51:00.000-07:00

I know, I know, it has been sooo long since I last posted something. We have been so busy entertaining out-of-town guests and trying to keep up with crazy schedules! I made this delicious dish one evening knowing that Computer Man would enjoy it after a long day at work. It was a big hit with both of us and he enjoyed having the leftovers for lunches!

Baked Chicken Parmesan
Source: Me
Serves: 6

Ingredients:
3 chicken breasts
1 cup Italian style bread crumbs
1 egg
1/2 cup flour
2 T butter+1 T olive oil
2 cups shredded mozzarella
1 jar favorite marinara sauce
1 lb. spaghetti

Directions:
-Preheat oven to 400.
-Cook spaghetti according to package directions.
-Pour the marinara sauce in another saucepan and heat on medium.
-On a cutting board, cut each chicken breast in half so that there's a top and bottom; don't cut it down the middle, cut it so that there are two equal, but thinner, halves. Place each half in a large resealable plastic bag and pound it a handful of times to make it even thinner. Season each half with salt and pepper, coat in some flour, then egg, then the breadcrumbs. Set aside until all 6 halves of the chicken breasts are coated.
-In a large skillet, heat the oil and butter until the butter is melted. Put 3 halves in the skillet and cook on each side for 5 minutes. Remove from skillet, set aside and repeat with the last 3 halves.
-In a 9x13 glass baking dish, arrange the 6 halves on the bottom. Top with enough sauce to cover each half; set remaining marinara aside. Top with mozzarella cheese.
-Bake until the cheese is melted and the chicken is totally done--if it didn't cook all the way in the skillet.
-Serve over hot spaghetti noodles and top with freshly grated parmigiana cheese.

How I Got Organized

2010-09-02T06:00:00.000-07:00

There are parts of my life that are über organized and there are others that look like they were put through the food processor with those onions last night! Husband has funny little quirks like making sure the TV remotes are all in a straight row, and I have funny little quirks like the urge to mess up his little row of remotes! But, when it comes to things like my belovéd bookshelves, my recipe collection, and laying out the 14 Hershey's Kisses I just got out of the pantry, there has to be straight lines and organization! I was also that kid whose room would appear to be organized (because my sister's wasn't and she was the one who was always getting in trouble--ha!) but I'd also have a "junk drawer." I also go through spurts of productivity, and, having recently just went through one, I'm hoping this spurt sticks. Being an unemployed teacher means I have a whooooooole lot of time on my hands to cook and clean, but I've been in a slump. I finally stood up one day and announced to all my little dust bunnies, "I will no longer be disorganized!" They ran and hid underneath the entertainment center...I'll vacuum them up tomorrow.

How I Got Organized
My friend, Summer, put up these corkboard tiles for me in my kitchen several weeks ago and then I added the vinyl at the top. Those wall words are so expensive! I use my Cricut and Sure Cuts A Lot to create custom vinyl work all over my house! :) These tiles are so handy--I love them! I keep my monthly menu, weekly shopping lists, and my printable recipes for the month arranged neatly on the board. By having these things in public view, it makes it easy for Husband to see what we're having for dinner. I think he really appreciates this organization because he took the September menu from me before I put it up and started commenting that he was excited to try certain meals, suggesting additions and deletions, and noticing my days of grocery shopping so he could plan our finances accordingly.

After having made myself plan out meals for all of August and having such a huge success with it, I planned all my meals for the month of September. I feel confident now that this organizational system works so I'm ready to share it with you! You'll notice on my menu that I made sure to incorporate days for leftovers and days when I'd do grocery shopping because I stick better to schedules and routines.

About a week before a new month starts, I sit down at my computer with several cookbooks, the internet, colored pens (for fun!), weekly grocery list template (see below), a Diet Coke, my chapstick, and go to town! I scour recipes trying to find something that we'll both like, we haven't tried yet, and that doesn't have a bunch of expensive, one-time use ingredients. I use Microsoft Publisher to create and maintain our monthly calendar. It's a 12-page document that I just open up and edit one page at a time. By keeping a single document that contains the entire year I'm able to look back to see what we ate each month so that I'm not too redundant.

I also created a weekly menu planner and grocery list template which I use while looking through the recipes and planning out my month of meals. It's helpful because I take the whole thing with me to the grocery store (along with my coupons!). In the past, I'd write down things like "Gruyère cheese" or "15 oz. can black beans" and get to the store only to question my sanity and the validity of those items and cross them off the list. Then I'd return home to make dinner and find I needed Gruyère cheese or a 15 oz. can of black beans for a recipe that night! Using this template forces me to refer to what I'm making for the week and not question a single item on the list.

In the end, I am a much happier and more organized wife and shopper. I am saving boatloads of dollars by shopping sales and using coupons deliberately, and dinner is actually getting cooked at a decent time. E-mail me at michelle.azar.636@gmail.com if you want any of my templates. I've gotta go vacuum up those dust bunnies!

The Wheelsagna Bus Go 'Round and 'Round

2010-09-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

I love being a teacher and I love it even more when I actually have a classroom and job to go to everyday! It's been tough for teachers this year in California. Almost 30,000 teachers were given pink slips this past school year and very few jobs were ever posted to which we could apply. Any jobs that were posted received anywhere from 200-400 applicants. Needless to say, I was not one of the lucky applicants to receive a job this school year. This only would have been my 6th year teaching so I know that teachers with double or triple the experience deserved the jobs before me, but it's just a tough pill to swallow! At any rate, to commemorate the beginning of my first school year not in school, I thought I'd get a little cheesy and try to name a dish after something school-related. This fakeout lasagna was the perfect choice. Remember that song, "The wheels on the bus go 'round and 'round, 'round and 'round,..."? I loved getting to do all the fun motions like the windshield wipers, the horn, etc. Such fun times! I'm a nerd, I know. I love school and everything school-related! This is the perfect dish to make after a long day at work and school! Enjoy and best of luck to all you teachers and students out there!

Wheelsagna
Source: adapted from Tasty Kitchen
Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:
1/2 lb mini wagon wheel pasta (or any fun shape like bowties, tubes, or curly pasta)
1/2 lb ground beef or turkey (the original recipe called for 1 pound but I thought it was too "meaty")
3 cups marinara sauce
1 T olive oil
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cups sour cream

Directions:
-Boil pasta. Meanwhile, brown the meat in small pan. After noodles are cooked, drain, return them to the pot, and drizzle with the olive oil. Mix in the marinara sauce. Add in the fried meat, seasonings, cheese, and sour cream. Fold together and allow it all to combine and melt together over low heat for about 5 minutes. Serve with a simple green salad! So quick and easy!

Fresh Mozzarella Pizza

2010-08-31T06:00:00.000-07:00

Eating on a budget does not have to be as hard as it sounds to some! I have found that creativity goes a long way when it comes to feeding us on a strict budget. It's fun to have something that tastes so delicious feel like it was a really expensive meal when it really wasn't! For this pizza, I did splurge a little bit with the fresh mozzarella, but it was well worth it in the end. This is such a simple, yet delicious pizza that we devoured the whole thing! Enjoy!

Much food love,
Michelle

Fresh Mozzarella Pizza
Source: Me
Serves: 2-4

Ingredients:
1 pizza dough (we always use Fresh and Easy dough; this time I bought the Rosemary Focaccia and it was amazing)
1 (16 oz) container marinated boccacini mozzarella (don't discard the olive oil; it's good for dipping!)
1/3 to 1/2 cup marinara sauce
freshly grated parmesan cheese
flour or cornmeal for sprinkling

Directions:
Preheat the oven and your pizza stone to 500 degrees. Allow your dough to reach room temp before you use it. Once it's ready to use, lay a piece of parchment or wax paper out on the counter. Sprinkle the flour or cornmeal on the parchment paper. Stretch your dough out and work into a circular shape. Lay it down on the flour/cornmeal and shape it so you have about a nice size circle (about 10-12 inches in diameter). Spread the sauce on the dough. Arrange the mozzarella balls on top of the sauce; use the entire container. Bake at 500 for 8-10 minutes. Sprinkle the parmesan cheese and a few drops of the olive oil from the mozzarella container on top of the pizza. Serve with a green salad.

Sliders and Strings

2010-08-30T06:00:00.000-07:00

I'm always curious about trying new and interesting burgers, but find myself reverting back to the standard ground beef, yellow cheese, lettuce, tomato, ketchup, mustard, and red onion. I always want more from my standard burger and every time I go to try a new flavor I get scared that Husband won't like it. But, this time he actually recommended trying ground turkey burgers! I was so thrilled that he actually suggested it that I immediately knew I'd use the ground turkey for a recipe I'd printed off of PioneerWoman a few weeks back. The original recipe called for ground beef so I was worried about the substitution. Wow! I am glad I tried this variation on an incredible recipe! We are looking forward to eating these again in regular burger size!

Turkey Mushroom and Swiss Sliders
Source: adapted from PioneerWoman
Serves: 2-3 hungry adults

Ingredients:
Burger Sauce:
1/3 cups mayo
2 T ketchup
1 tsp Cayenne pepper (less if you want to cool it down)
Burger Topping:
2 T butter
1/4 yellow onion, finely diced
4 ounces fresh white mushrooms, chopped finely
3 dashes Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper
Burger:
1 T butter
1 lb ground turkey (or beef, or chicken)
2 T heavy whipping cream
2 dashes Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper
4 slices swiss cheese, cut into 4 for a total of 16 squares
8 slider buns, split in half, buttered, and toasted

Directions:
-Mix ingredients for the sauce in a small bowl; set aside.
-Toast the buns under the broiler.
-Melt the 2 T butter in a large skillet. Add the onion, mushrooms, Worcestershire, salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat for 5-8 minutes, stirring frequently, until the onions are translucent. Transfer to a separate bowl.
-Mix ground turkey, heavy cream, Worcestershire, salt and pepper in a bowl. Use your hands to form 8 small patties; make an indentation in the middle of each patty with your thumb (to keep them from plumping up too much when they cook). In the same skillet used for the onion mixture, melt the 1 T butter over medium-high heat. Add 4 patties at a time, indented side up. Cook for 5 minutes, then flip. Spoon generous portions of the onion mixture on top of the patty, then top with 1-2 slices of swiss cheese, depending on how cheesy you want your burger. Place lid on skillet and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes, until burgers are cooked through and cheese is melted. Remove to a plate and keep warm while you finish up with the rest of the meat.
-Spread the spicy sauce on both halves of each bun. Place patties between the buns and serve with the following onion strings.

Onion Strings, or Manna from Heaven
Source: PioneerWoman
Serves: 2-3 hungry adults

Ingredients:
1 huge yellow onion
2 cups buttermilk (I goofed and used heavy whipping cream instead and they were still amazing, but use buttermilk)
2 cups flour
scant tablespoon salt
pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne
1-2 qts cooking oil (veg or canola)

Directions:
-Heat oil to 375.
-Slice onion into super thin rings and transfer to a large, rectangular dish. Cover with the buttermilk and allow to sit for at least an hour.
-In a large bowl, mix together the flour, salt, pepper, and cayenne.
-After the onions have had a nice long bath in the buttermilk, transfer a couple of tong-fuls of onions to the flour mixture and toss to coat well. Shake off excess flour and put them in the hot oil. Fry for just a couple of minutes until they're golden brown--they brown quickly so watch them like a hawk!

Good Food, Good Books

2010-08-29T15:47:00.000-07:00

Alright, I'll admit it: I'm a book nerd. I have a floor-to-ceiling bookshelf filled with books I've read, want to read, won't read, should read, and probably should not read because my Grandma wouldn't approve. Everything from Shakespeare to One Hundred Years of Solitude line the many shelves. My husband is allowed one shelf; it contains 2 economics books, one high school yearbook, one contracting book, a soccer trophy from the 8th grade, and a few of my books that wouldn't fit on the other shelves. In my classroom library, I have over 400 novels that I let my students borrow so that they can't say that there aren't any good books from which to choose; of course, they'd end the sentence with the preposition: "There aren't any good books to choose from." In the words of Cathy the comic strip lady, "ACK!"

Nevertheless, one of my all-time favorite things to do is curl up on the couch in my PJs with a good book, droop my big zebra blanket over my lap, set my bottled water, Diet Coke, a sweet and a salty treat on the TV tray next to me, and start reading. I'll sit there as long as it takes to get a good chunk of the book read--if not the whole thing. When I was in 3rd grade, I challenged myself to read all of Charlotte's Web in one day--and I did it! I was so proud of myself and that is still my favorite book to this day.

Admittedly, I read all types of books, but my favorite genre is Christian Fiction. I love the imagination it takes to create a fiction novel, but I also really appreciate the values and cleanliness of Christian Fiction. I think our world gets far too wrapped up in sex and the physicality of relationships. It's not that I'm opposed to non-Christian Fiction because it certainly takes talent to artfully string together any meaningful phrase that can hold a reader's attention, it's just that Christian Fiction offers something that is both entertaining as well as uplifting. That being said, I want to promote a friend's Christian romance fiction novel she wrote and self-published! My friend, Heidi Marshall, and I played in the band together in high school and both went to Azusa Pacific University so I'll be able to say, "I knew her when..." :-). Here's Heidi's description of her work as the writer of More:

"Remember 16 months ago when I decided to write a book?

It's been quite a journey! What started out as some ideas scribbled on index cards is now an actual novel. Well, a digital novel. I self published my book, More, and I'm excited to share it with all of you. And with strangers, too. And with those of you who are strange.

It's a light-hearted Christian romance fiction novel. I wanted to write a book for people like me - who believe in true love (awwww), but get tired of reading all those "romance" books out there that are just about sex. And vampires. And vampire sex. This story is about a young woman trying to navigate adulthood with all of its victories and failures, joys and sadness, community and lonliness, and basically trying to not end up a crazy cat lady. I hope it will make you laugh and think.

If the book had a back cover, this is what it would say:
Twenty-something Kate Henry lives a simple life in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. She fills her days managing a bookstore that she loves, spending time with her best friends and their young children, and trying to convince herself that she will someday have what she’s always wanted – a family of her own. Wounded by a father who abandoned her, Kate is desperate to find a man who wants to know and love the real her. The real her who talks to inanimate objects, loves to cook for others, and named her favorite pillow Mr. Darcy.

Will the reliable lawyer Ian realize after ten years of friendship that Kate is the one? Will the exciting and spontaneous Ben sweep her off her feet? After facing one heartbreak after another, Kate begins to wonder if perhaps she was meant to be alone. She faces some life-changing decisions, but always manages to keep her sense of adventure and humor.

It's available in ePub format (which works on most eReader devices except for the Kindle.) iPhone, iPad, Sony Reader, Nook - or you can read it on your PC or Mac by downloading free software (I recommend Adobe Digital Editions).

Thanks everyone!"

You can buy the book here and you can also read the first chapter by downloading the preview file. I hope you enjoy reading this book!

Recommended sweet treat: 5-Minute Fudgy Brownies
Recommended salty treat: Dilly Crackers
Recommended clear beverage: Water
Recommended fizzy beverage: Diet Coke

Much food love,
Michelle

Perfect Roasted Chicken

2010-08-27T19:15:00.000-07:00

I'd much rather endure subzero temperatures and have to warm myself up with extra layers and extra hot hot chocolate than suffer through the triple digit days we've been experiencing here in Southern California. Yes, Dad, I know running that A/C costs money, but I have to do it!! That being said, why would I decide to roast a chicken when the outside temperature is just a few hundred degrees cooler than the temperature inside my oven?! Why, why, why? Because roasted chicken is THE BOMB!!!!!! Man, I almost couldn't handle the sound of the buttery skin crackling in the heat while the potatoes boiled on the stove. That was a long two hours let me tell you! I served this chicken with some light and fluff mashed potatoes and one of the simplest vegetable side dishes in the world! Enjoy this meal...on a Sunday afternoon...when it's not over 100 degrees outside... :)

Much food love,
Michelle

Perfect Roasted Chicken
Source: Me
Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:
1 roaster chicken, about 4-5 pounds
1/2 stick unsalted butter, cubed
salt and pepper
dried parsley
dried thyme
(other good seasonings might be garlic salt, oregano, or marjoram)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425. Meanwhile, clean out the inside of the chicken discarding the insides. Wash the chicken with cool water inside and out and pat dry with several paper towel. Transfer chicken to a rectangular roasting pan breast side down...YES, you have to do it that way so that the breast meat is inevitably moist; you can't go wrong with it upside down. Sprinkle the insides and top with salt and pepper. Sprinkle thyme and parsley on the top. Dot the top of the chicken with the cubed butter. Place in oven and allow to roast for at least an hour and a half up to two hours--the juices in the thigh must run clear. Serve with the mashed potatoes and veggies that follow.

Fluffy Mashed Potatoes
Source: Me
Serves: 6

Ingredients:
6-7 Russet potatoes, washed, peeled, and cut up into 1-in cubes
water for boiling
1/2 stick unsalted butter
2 T bacon bits
5 green onions, chopped
a splash of milk
3 T sour cream
salt and pepper

Directions:
Put the cubed potatoes into a deep stock pot and cover with water. Put a lid on it and bring the water to a boil on high. Reduce heat to medium-high and boil until the potatoes are fork tender. Drain the potatoes and transfer back to the stock pot. Add in the butter, bacon bits, green onions, milk, sour cream, salt and pepper. Using a hand mixer, blend everything together until the potatoes are smooth and creamy. Taste and re-season as needed.

Simple, Cheesy Veggies
Source: Me, well my mom really
Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:
1 bag frozen vegetable blend that contains carrots, cauliflower, and broccoli (any 10-16 oz will feed 4)
3 slices American cheese--just do it! It's good!
a splash of milk

Directions:

Steam the veggies until they are just tender; don't go too long because they'll be mushy! Drain the water and transfer back to the hot pot. Add in the splash of milk and the cheese slices. Stir until the cheese is melted. Yummm!

WINNER!!

2010-08-14T20:33:00.000-07:00

Using Random.org, the number 3 was randomly generated and my dear friend, Ellie, was the 3rd person to comment on the Dutch Oven Chicken Enchiladas! Congratulations to Ellie of ellieabney.blogspot.com!! She has won the $40 gift certificate to www.csnstores.com! I hope you enjoy your little shopping spree, Ellie!

I wanted to thank everyone for commenting on my blog. It was really fun to host this giveaway knowing that someone near and dear to me would win the money! It was also great to get some exposure for my blog; I'm no PioneerWoman, but I would love to have a few more followers and hits each day! I'll be working hard to keep the blog updated so spread the word!

Stay tuned for more giveaways and fun! Congratulations, Ellie!

Love from Me!

Dutch Oven Chicken Enchiladas

2010-08-10T14:44:00.000-07:00

I was approached by a representative from CSNstores.com (Hi, C-!) and she asked me if I would be willing to share with you all the fantastic-ness that is the Dutch oven! I, of course, quickly agreed knowing that you all need to seriously get one of these bad boys! I love my bright orange Rachael Ray Dutch oven, but there are tons of others you can find here. I have extensively searched the cookware.com website (part of the CSNstores group) and absolutely love everything they have to offer! Hey, Dad, can I use your credit card? I...uhh...err...have an emergency...yeah, that's it, an emergency! I'll pay you back--I promise!

Isn't she perrrtty?

So, now here's the even greater news. YOU, yes YOU, could win your very own $40 gift certificate you can use toward your purchase of ANYTHING from the CSNstores.com group--even a nifty, new Dutch oven! Here's how to enter: just leave a comment below. It could be about the Chicken Enchiladas, the Dutch oven, the weather, why everything ought to be sold in twin packs, or really anything else that makes your heart happy. You have the rest of the week to leave comments (only one per day, please!) and at the end of the week (meaning Saturday) I'll choose a winner using Random.org so it won't seem like I'm playing favorites! -- This contest is now closed.

Oh--I almost forgot! Here's how you make these fantastic Dutch Oven Chicken Enchiladas:

Dutch Oven Chicken Enchiladas
Serves: 6 hungry adults
Source: Heavily edited, but inspired by http://papadutch.home.comcast.net/~papadutch/ (Byron's Dutch Oven Recipes--this guy is cool!)

Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded

12 corn tortillas

1 (4 oz) can diced green chiles, undrained

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1 pint sour cream

1 small (4 oz?) cans sliced black olives, drained

2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese

1/2 large onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

6 green onions, chopped

2 T olive oil

dash cumin

dash chili powder

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Boil your chicken in a stock pot on the stove top until it is no longer pink. Shred it up using two forks and set aside.

In a medium bowl, mix together the cans of soup, sour cream, diced green chiles, cumin, chili powder, and salt and pepper. Set aside.

Heat the 2 T olive oil in your Dutch oven on the stove top over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the onions, garlic, and olives. Once the onions are tender, add the shredded chicken to reheat. Transfer the chicken mixture to another bowl.

Put enough of the sour cream mixture (about 1 cup) on the bottom of the Dutch oven to cover the bottom. Warm the tortillas in the microwave for a minute to soften them. Fill a tortilla with a scoop of the chicken mixture, a pinch of the green onions, and a sprinkle of cheese. Roll it up and place it seam side down. Do this for all the tortillas and arrange in the Dutch oven. Cover the tortillas with the rest of the sauce, the shredded cheese, and the rest of the chopped green onions.

Bake uncovered for about 35 minutes, or until the cheese is melted, and sauce is bubbly, and the dish is heated through.

Side note: You can do this same thing in a 9x13 glass dish, but the Dutch oven is fun to use!
Side note #2: Visit Foodista to check out more Dutch oven recipes!

Dutch Oven

Peanut Butter Rice Krispy Treats

2010-08-01T23:05:00.000-07:00

Cue the orchestra and choir! "HALLELUJAH!" So I don't think my mouth has ever, ever tasted something so scrumdidlyumptious for dessert. Ever. Okay, I might be exaggerating because there have been some amazing sweets that have made their way to my mouth, but these are right up there with number one. I know what you're thinking: "Rice krispy treats? Really? How borrrring." Well, quit thinking that! It's rude! What you should be thinking is, "Holy heck these sound amazing!" You'll thank me for influencing your thoughts when you try these bars. They are SO simple to make and will make you happy. They made me happy. Twice. Within one week. Oops. Better get on that treadmill.

As a side note, I only made half a pan because Husband wanted the other half of the pan plain; strange, strange man. These are amazing. I'm obsessed.

Peanut Butter Rice Krispy Treats

Yield: 9x13 pan, about 24 bars

Source: browneyedbaker

Ingredients:

6 cups Rice Krispies

10.5 oz bag of mini marshmallows

1/4 cup unsalted butter

2 cups creamy peanut butter

1 bag (12 oz) mini Reese's peanut butter cups, roughly chopped (it's about 40 mini PB cups)

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (original recipe calls for milk chocolate but I like semi-sweet better for this)

Directions:

-Butter the bottom and sides of a 9x13 baking pan.

-Measure the cereal into a large mixing bowl and set aside.

-Melt the marshmallows and butter together in a medium sauce pan over medium heat.

-Pour the melted butter/marshmallows over the Rice Krispies and stir well so all the cereal gets coated by the creamy deliciousness. Transfer to the buttered 9x13 pan and use a piece of buttered wax paper or a spatula to press into place.

-In the microwave, melt the butter in a heat-proof bowl until thin, about 1 min. Pour over the bars in the pan.

-Sprinkle the chopped peanut butter cups over the peanut butter; they will slowly melt into the peanut butter and continue to do so in the next step when you add the chocolate.

-In the same bowl you used for the peanut butter, melt the chocolate chips in the microwave. This works best in 30 second increments: heat 30 seconds, stir, repeat until the chocolate chips are melted. Be patient; this whole melting of chocolate chips in the microwave is tedious.

-Using the back of a spoon, drizzle the melted chocolate over the peanut butter cups. Lick the spoon (and dish if no one is watching) to make sure you don't waste any chocolate.

-Place the pan in the refrigerator to set before cutting and serving. Trust me, it's worth the wait.

-Store in the refrigerator if your house is always hot like mine; otherwise, an airtight container in a cool place will work.

-Try not to eat these all in one day. I wish you luck, my friend.

Beef and Bean Burritos

2010-07-28T13:38:00.000-07:00

I recently wandered over to the Pioneer Woman and found a couple of great "Sixteen Minute" recipes. During the summer months I don't particularly enjoy cooking indoors, but I hate to ask Mario to grill something every single night! I whipped this up (in a bit more than 16 minutes) and we both really enjoyed it--even though Mario's first choice isn't Mexican food! I cut the recipe in half since I wasn't feeding 2 growing boys and it was perfect for the two of us plus a lunch for me the next day! :)

Beef and Bean Burritos (that should take 16 minutes)

Yields: 4 servings

Source: ThePioneerWoman

Ingredients:

1 pound ground beef

1/2 yellow onion

1 small can Mexican Tomato Sauce (I think it's like 4.5 oz and the can is yellow)

salt and pepper to taste

oregano and garlic powder to taste

1 can (14.5 oz) refried beans

grated Mexican cheese

a package of burrito flour tortillas (whatever size you'd like)

your favorite toppings: cilantro, sour cream, tomatoes, salsa, guacamole, black olives, onions, green chiles, etc.

Directions:

Brown the beef and onion in a skillet; season with salt and pepper. Pour in the sauce, sprinkle in the garlic powder and oregano and simmer over medium-low heat. Heat refried beans in a saucepan and add cheese and still until its melted; keep on low heat. Heat the tortillas in the microwave for 30 seconds to 1 minute (do 2 at a time). Fill each tortilla with some beans and beef; fold the ends then roll it on up. Place the filled burritos on a plate, top with some cheese, and microwave for 1 minute or until the cheese is melted. Top with whatever you'd like! Serve with some Mexican rice!

Blueberry Coconut Crisp (yes, Mom, the coconut is optional)

2010-07-27T19:00:00.000-07:00

My local grocery store had a pint of blueberries on sale for just $1.99! I couldn't believe it! I love fresh fruit because it makes the best addition to something sinful like a Crisp, Crumble, or Streussel recipe. I'm sorry! Did you think I enjoy fresh fruit just for the sake of eating fresh fruit?! Heck no. My husband is the one who thinks a bowl of fruit is dessert. I say that's fine as long as you sprinkle it with sugar and put a dollop of whip cream on top. I distinctly recall my dad eating a lot of frozen fruit for dessert, too. So strange. Anyway, this dessert was a hit--even with my husband. It was actually his idea to add the coconut after he tasted the uncooked crumble mixture! He didn't have very much of it...and he didn't even know I used wheat flour instead of white. At least I attempted to "health-ify" it, right?

Blueberry Coconut Crisp

Yields: 8x8 dish...so two gigantic servings?

Source: Adapted from browneyedbaker

Ingredients:

1 pint fresh blueberries (about 2 cups)

2 Tablespoons white sugar

1 cup flour (all-purpose OR wheat)

1 cup instant oats

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

3/4 cup butter

1/2 to 1 cup sweetened coconut (depending on how much coconut you want--you can totally leave this out)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl toss together blueberries and white sugar; set aside. In a separate large bowl, combine flour, oats, and brown sugar. Cut in butter until crumbly. Press half of this mixture in an 8x8 glass baking dish. Cover with all of the berries and then sprinkle the coconut on top of the berries. Sprinkle remaining crumble mixture on top of the coconut. Bake in the preheated oven for 30-40 minutes, or until the berries are bubbly and the topping is golden brown. Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Monkey Bread

2010-07-08T06:00:00.000-07:00

Hold on...I can't talk...my mouth is full of this monkey bread!!! I don't know what it is about Monkey Bread that makes me go bananas! {Cue cheesy joke drum solo: ba dump sh} I have to admit that I regularly purchase the frozen Monkey Bread and just do that as a quick dessert or in place of cinnamon rolls for breakfast. But, you can bet that after having made this Monkey Bread I solemnly swear to never purchase frozen Monkey Bread again!

Monkey Bread

Source: Adapted from EzraPoundCake.com (a new favorite blog)

Ingredients:

4 tubes regular sized homestyle refrigerated biscuits or 2 tubes jumbo biscuits

2 cups sugar

2 T cinnamon

2 sticks butter, melted

Directions:

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

-Melt the butter in a glass dish in the microwave.

-Open all the tubes of refrigerated biscuits and put the biscuit rounds on a large cutting board.

-Mix together the sugar and cinnamon in a large bowl.

-Cut the biscuit rounds into quarters.

-Generously spray the entire inside of a deep, metal pan/bundt pan/tube pan with cooking spray.

-Dip the quarters of biscuit in the butter and then begin arranging them in the pan, stacking them on top of each other in no particular pattern.

-Bake for 40 minutes or until the top springs back when touched with your finger. Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes (if you can wait that long!!) and then invert onto a plate to serve.

-Eat them for breakfast, mid-morning snack, lunch, mid-afternoon pick-me-up, appetizer, dinner, dessert, and midnight snack.

Yeah. I know. Amazing.

Grilled Chicken and Asparagus Pasta

2010-07-07T06:00:00.000-07:00

I love the simplicity of this dish. It's simple on so many layers, which made it a perfect candidate for a 4th of July meal. It's simple in preparation and in thought, but the flavor combination is stunning. My husband and I decided to stay close to home for this 4th of July; why go anywhere when we could see the fireworks from our front porch?! Before the show started, we whipped up this dish and even had time for dessert! Clean-up was so simple, too! I love it! Hope you enjoyed your 4th of July!

Grilled Chicken and Asparagus Pasta

Source: Me and Mario

Ingredients:

1 bunch asparagus (tough ends trimmed)

1 handful spaghetti

5 chicken tenderloins

olive oil

2 T butter

salt and pepper

mozzarella cheese

parmesan cheese

Directions:

-Heat a grill to medium high. Fill a large stock pot with water and bring to a boil over high.

-Once your grill is hot, season the chicken with salt and pepper on both sides and put on the grill.

-Once the water is boiling, season the water with some salt and stir to dissolve. Put your pasta in the boiling water and stir. Cook the pasta to al dente. Make sure you also flip your chicken during this time. Overall, the pasta and chicken should be done at about the same time. If the pasta finishes first, just leave it in the hot water but turn the flame off. Make sure your chicken is cooked!!

-Once the chicken is cooked, transfer it off the grill to rest. Put your asparagus spears in a large bowl and season with lots of olive oil, salt, and pepper. Toss to coat evenly. Grill to your desired doneness; I prefer mine to have a slight bite but definitely have some charred tips. Remove the asparagus and cut the stalks into 3 sections.

-Drain the pasta, transfer it to a large serving bowl, and add the 2 T butter; toss to melt the butter. Sprinkle the pasta with the parmesan cheese.

-Slice the chicken into bites as big as the asparagus bites. Add the chicken and asparagus to the pasta bowl and toss to mix together. Sprinkle a little mozzarella cheese on top.

-ENJOY!

Mmmmm...grilled asparagus...

Delish!

Mini Meatball Pizza

2010-07-04T22:55:00.000-07:00

Summertiiiiiiimeeee, and the livin' is eaaaaasssyyyyy...Yes! Summer vacation is in full swing and, my friends, have completely neglected to post anything for what seems like an eternity! Perhaps it was the end-of-the-year bustle to get my classroom cleaned out, perhaps it was the countless final papers I had to write, perhaps it was the having to find a house and move within three weeks, perhaps it was laziness. Whatever the cause may have been, I have a few recipes to share with you. I can't promise that I'll be very effective, organized, and efficient in my blogging this summer, though. We'll see! Because summer means hot weather and long, lazy days, I want my meals to be quick and painless. This pizza was cinch and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Mini Meatball Pizza

Source: Me

Ingredients:

1 pizza dough (I used Fresh and Easy Rosemary Focaccia and it was AMAZING--even though I hate rosemary due to a bad breakfast experience with it my freshman year of college in the cafeteria)

1/2--3/4 cup favorite red pizza sauce (I used Fresh and Easy Vodka Cream pasta sauce...weird? NO! AMAZING!)

1 lb ground beef

1 egg

1/2 tsp Italian seasoning

pinch crushed red pepper

salt and pepper to taste

1 1/2--2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:

-Preheat oven to 500 degrees; allow pizza stone to heat with it and let the stone sit in the hot oven for at least 30 minutes.

-Meanwhile, put the ground beef in a bowl, add the Italian seasoning, egg, crushed red pepper, salt, and black pepper. Mix together using your hands but don't over mix. Put half of the meat in a freezer-safe bag and put it in the freezer for the next time you need a few meatballs. Roll bits of the meat into mini meatballs--make them whatever size you'd like. Set aside.

-Lay a piece of wax or parchment paper out on your counter and sprinkle with some flour. Coat the pizza dough in the flour and stretch it out to form a crust that will fit on your pizza stone. Top with the sauce and mozzarella cheese. Feel free to add any other toppings at this point.

-Begin frying the meatballs in a skillet on the stove top on medium-high. Fry evenly on all sides until the meatballs are just cooked; if they're a little pink still that's even better. Drain on a paper towel and transfer to the top of the pizza. Put the "dressed" pizza on your hot pizza stone and cook for just about 8 minutes. ENJOY!

I love these meatballs!

I almost forgot to take a picture of the pizza...this was all that was left after my husband and his friend chowed down. And, unfortunately, this was the ugliest part of the pizza! Oh well! :)

Bacon-Wrapped Pork Chops

2010-05-28T06:00:00.000-07:00

OH MY GOSH! You HAVE to try this recipe!! What could be better than pork wrapped in pork?! I originally bought the bacon to make BLT sandwiches one evening, but Mario wasn't feeling them so I stuffed the bacon in my small freezer and moved on. I knew, though, that I wanted to make pork chops that same week so I pulled them out waiting for inspiration. And then, BAM! It hit me! I pulled the bacon out and waited patiently for the meat to defrost overnight! After a long day of work, I did not feel like handling raw pork x2, but I'm glad I took the time to do it. You will love this dish! I served mine with a baked potato and steamed veggies! Enjoy!

Bacon-Wrapped Pork Chops

Source: Me

Yields: 4 pork chops

Ingredients:

4 bone-in pork chops

1 package sliced bacon

1 cup brown sugar

salt and pepper

Directions:

Pre-heat a grill to medium-low. Season pork chops with salt and pepper on both sides. Wrap the bacon around the pork chops, overlapping the pieces and pressing firmly on to the pork chops (you'll use about 4 pieces per chop). Put the brown sugar on a large plate. Press each bacon-wrapped chop onto the brown sugar plate, making sure you generously coat the top and bottom of the chop with the brown sugar. Grill until chops are done, flipping occasionally so that one side of the bacon doesn't get too much darker than the other. ENJOY!!

Hot Chocolate for One

2010-05-27T06:00:00.000-07:00

It's Southern California! Why was I freezing cold one night yearning for hot cocoa?! Computer Man hadn't come home from work yet and I was busy making dinner, but I was so cold I wanted something hot to warm me up! This hot cocoa was a quick and easy fix for an unexpectedly cold evening!

Hot Chocolate for One

Source: Hershey's Cocoa Powder Container (I cut the recipe in half)

Begin by mixing 1/4 cup sugar, 1/8 cup cocoa powder, small dash salt in a saucepan; stir in 1/6 cup of hot water. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture boils; boil and stir for 2 minutes.

Stir in 2 cups of milk and heat but DO NOT BOIL. Remove from heat and add vanilla.

Pour into a large mug, top with marshmallows, and sprinkle with some more cocoa powder. Enjoy!

Banana Bread

2010-05-26T06:00:00.000-07:00

I love the smell of baking bread...at 11:00 p.m....on a school night...when I have to be up early in the morning! I picked up a bunch of bananas from a box at school--the lunchroom was giving away a ton of extra bananas that were past their serving dates! I knew they were the perfect ripeness for the best bread ever! I love how moist this bread turns out and spreading a little bit of butter on a warm piece makes it even better! Enjoy!

Banana Bread

Source: Mom

Yields: 3 small loaves, 2 medium loaves, or 1 large loaf (I like the 2 medium loaves option)

Ingredients:

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 large or 5 small ripe bananas (they should have a nice speckled brown peel)

2 eggs

1/2 cup sour milk (1 T lemon juice + enough milk to measure 1/2 cup)

1 tsp baking soda

2 cups flour (wheat flour would be good, too!)

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions:

In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, mix in the order given. Pour into greased loaf pans. Bake for at least an hour (or until toothpick inserted comes out clean) at 325 degrees.

Unbaked Cookies

2010-05-25T06:00:00.000-07:00

Wait! Don't go! Don't be afraid by the title! There's nothing in these cookies that makes them unsafe to be called "unbaked." I promise! These are some of my favorite cookies from childhood. The best part about them? Only 2 people in my house could eat them: me and my dad. My mom and sister loathe coconut, so they refused to touch these cookies. My dad and I would get 2 in our lunches each day and I knew I'd only have to fight him off for the last one! I love the texture, taste, smell, and versatility of these cookies! Enjoy!

Unbaked Cookies

Source: My mom

Yields: as many or as few as the batter makes (I'll explain later)

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups quick cooking oats

1 cup sweetened, shredded coconut

6 T cocoa powder

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup unsalted butter

Directions:

Mix the oats, coconut, powder, and vanilla extract in a large bowl; set aside. In a saucepan over medium-high heat, mix together the sugar, milk, and butter and bring to a rolling boil; allow to boil for 2 minutes. Pour the milk mixture over the oats mixture and stir well. Drop by large or small spoonfuls onto wax paper and allow to cool completely before you eat them (obviously, the smaller the spoonfuls the more cookies you'll get). Enjoy!

Graduation Cookies

2010-05-24T06:00:00.000-07:00

I've talked about Summer before, but I'm going to talk about her again. She graduated from Azusa Pacific University with her bachelor's degree and plans to move into the credential program this fall. This is exactly what I did when I graduated, so I'm excited she's following in my footsteps. Hahaha! At any rate, I didn't want to give her the traditional Target gift card--a great gift, don't get me wrong! I just wanted to do something extra this time. So, I told her I'd cater her entire graduation party! It was SO much fun! I've never catered a party before, and I'm sure I could have done a much better job, but it was fun to give it a try.

I decided to take a safer route instead of doing something crazy. Mario and I put hot dogs and hamburgers on the grill, I made my potato salad, and we had a huge selection of other appetizers like a veggie platter, chicken enchilada roll-ups from Annie's Eats (although I used plain tortillas), and a whole slew of chips and dips. I ordered a cake from Costco since I didn't feel like making one, but I did spend a whole bunch of time making these sugar cookies for her. Overall, the party was a huge success and I'm looking forward to my next opportunity to cater for someone!

Directions and recipes for these sugar cookies can be found at Annie's Eats.

Mini Sliders

2010-05-21T17:14:00.001-07:00

As the school year comes to a close, I find myself reflecting on my performance as a teacher during the year; if I had to give myself a report card, what grade would I receive? I guess I'd say a B, which is annoying because I really prefer A's. But, I know I have room to grow and there are always opportunities to become a better teacher. As a student, I'd probably give myself an A which is nice because I worked my butt off to get the grades I did this semester. What grade would I give myself as a blogger? Definitely a D...+...maybe a C-...no, definitely a D+. I haven't been faithful to the cause and I've allowed myself to go weeks on end without updating. It's not like I don't cook! I guess it's the accumulation of everything piled on top of me and the immense pressure I put on myself to be darn near perfect at everything I do. I blame my dad, really. We're perfectionists who stress about stressing too much. It's a vicious cycle and I'm aware of it!

These mini sliders were a bit [cue drum: bah-dump-sh] of celebratory dinner. I finished evening classes this week after what felt like the world's longest semester. I had about zero ounces of energy in me, but I knew I wanted to spend some time in the kitchen after a few consecutive nights of finals. I had picked these up at Fresh & Easy a little while ago and knew that after finals they'd make a fun meal.

I seasoned the patties with onion powder, powdered beef bouillon (that's not brown sugar on the patties; it's the bouillon), and salt and pepper. Then, I melted the butter on my flat frying pan and put the seasoned side down to cook first. While the first side was cooking, I seasoned the side facing up. The burgers cooked for about 8 minutes on the first side and another 6 minutes on the other (but I like mine well done).

When they were done, I put them on a plate and placed 2 quarter pieces of American cheese on each and tented the burgers with foil to melt the cheese. We enjoyed our burgers with the traditional ketchup, mustard, and mayo, but the topping choices are totally endless!

Happy End-of-the-School-Year!

Mini Sliders

Source: Me

mini burger patties (you can also form these yourself from a pound of hamburger; I bought a total of 12 patties which fed us for days)

mini burger buns

American cheese (or Cheddar, Swiss, Monterey Jack, Colby Jack, Jalapeño Jack, Bleu, etc.)

onion powder

powdered beef bouillon

salt

pepper

a couple tablespoons of butter

Season burgers. Melt 1 tablespoon of butter on a hot frying pan. Put seasoned side of burgers down on melted butter; season the top side. Fry on each side until desired doneness. Top with cheese and tent with tin foil to melt the cheese. Put on the buns and dress with whatever toppings you'd like!

Quick Pasta Salad

2010-04-19T06:00:00.000-07:00

We were invited to some friends' house that we hadn't been to in a while and I wanted to make sure we brought something to contribute to the ribs and beans that were being cooked up for us. I bought tri-colored pasta several weeks back knowing that I would make a pasta salad out of it, so this seemed like the perfect opportunity. I just kind of used what I had knowing that the salad had to be quick and easy to refrigerate--and delicious for leftovers! This pasta was a great success, although I would have added more dressing to amp up the Italian flavor; I've added that modification in the recipe below. Make this when you're in a time crunch! Enjoy!

Quick Pasta Salad
Source: Me
Yields: 8-10 servings

1-16 oz. bag tri-colored curly pasta (or your favorite short pasta)
1 cup Zesty Italian dressing
1/4 cup shredded Asiago cheese
1/4 cup shredded Parmagiano-Reggiano cheese
1 small can sliced ripe black olives
1 avocado, cubed
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper

Bring a large stock pot full of water to a boil. Add in a tablespoon of salt and allow to dissolve. Add in the curly pasta and cook according to package directions. Once the pasta is done, drain it and run cold water over it for a few minutes.

Transfer to a large serving bowl. Drain olives and add to pasta. Cut up the avocado and put it in a separate bowl; pour the lemon juice over the top of it and stir to combine. Allow to sit while you finish up--add it at the end. Add in the cheeses, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Pour the salad dressing over the top and add the avocado and any extra lemon juice in the bowl. Toss to combine. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to refrigerate for at least an hour. Before you serve it, taste it to make sure you have enough salt, pepper, etc. Add in extra as you see fit. Enjoy!

Taco Pizza

2010-04-18T06:00:00.000-07:00

Finally! A one-pizza night! Normally, I have to make pizzas with two different toppings because my husband doesn't like the same fancy toppings I do. But, one night I was staring into the freezer at midnight, when I should have been in bed, wondering what to make for dinner the following day. Something in me said, "Taco pizza!" and before thinking about what he might say, I blurted it out. Shockingly, my husband said, "Oooo! That sounds amazing!" Score! This pizza was really delicious and I've added some modifications in the directions to make things a little clearer. Ole!

Taco Pizza
Source: Me

1 lb ground beef
1 packet Lawry's taco seasoning
1 heart of romaine lettuce, chopped
1 Roma tomato, chopped
2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend
1/3 cup sour cream
1 cup of your favorite salsa
1 pizza dough (I used half wheat, half white from Fresh and Easy)
2 T flour
2 T olive oil

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Brown the hamburger in a pan; add seasoning packet and water as directed on the packet. Sprinkle the flour and drizzle the olive oil on a medium cookie sheet. Stretch out the dough and press it into the cookie sheet; work it enough to get it to go out to the edges of the sheet. Bake in the oven only half way, for about 4 minutes. Remove from oven and pour on the salsa. Top the salsa with the ground beef taco meat.

Sprinkle on the cheese. Bake in oven for no more than 10 more minutes--just enough to finish cooking the pizza dough and melt the cheese.

Put the sour cream in a small sandwich baggie and cut off just a bit of one of the corners. Sprinkle the lettuce and tomato on the melted cheese. Pipe the sour cream on the lettuce and tomato. Cut it into squares and enjoy! You could also top it with guacamole, taco sauce, chopped black olives, red onion, cilantro, or anything else that you like on your tacos!

Famous Potato Salad

2010-04-17T06:00:00.000-07:00

I tried over and over to find a recipe that works. This one just does. There isn't much more to say. It's just stinkin' amazing. The flavors blend so perfectly together and it's difficult to refuse a second or third helping of this potato salad. I've made for several casual as well as more formal occasions and people have regularly said that it was the best they'd ever had. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Famous Potato Salad
Source: Me and Julia Child
Yields: 6-8 servings

5 Russet potatoes, peeled and chopped
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup chicken stock
3 Kosher pickles, diced
1 shallot, minced
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
3-4 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled
3 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and chopped
8 green onions, finely chopped
salt and pepper
2/3 - 1 cup mayonnaise

Boil the potatoes until they are just fork tender. Drain and immediately transfer to a large, flat serving bowl. While the potatoes are still piping hot, pour on the cider vinegar and chicken stock. Stir the potatoes with the liquids so that they mix together. Allow to sit off to the side while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. Add the chopped shallot, celery, pickles, bacon, hard-boiled eggs, green onions, salt and pepper. Mix well. Add in the mayonnaise and gently fold everything together until well blended. Taste the salad to decide if you need anymore salt or pepper; if you want it creamier, add more mayo. Cover the salad and let sit in the fridge for at least an hour before serving. To serve, decorate at the last moment with paprika.

Blackberry Crumble

2010-04-16T06:00:00.000-07:00

I love the fact that summer is quickly approaching because it means that fruit is going to be in abundance again. My favorite fruit is any kind of berry, and berries are certainly better when there's a delicious crispy, crumbly, brown-sugary mixture on top. I was inspired to make this recipe when I saw blackberries on sale in my local grocery store. I think I'll end up eating this whole thing by myself. Enjoy!

Blackberry Crumble (an attempt to make it healthier)
Source: Me

2-6 oz. packages blackberries
2 T lemon juice
1 cup sugar or Splenda
1/4 cup wheat flour

Crumble:
1/2 cup wheat flour
3 T sugar
1/8 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1/4 tsp. salt
scant 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 stick unsalted butter, diced

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wash berries and put them in a large bowl. Add lemon juice, sugar, and wheat flour. Toss to coat well. Allow to sit for at least 10 minutes.

In a stand mixer bowl, combine wheat flour, sugar, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and butter using the paddle attachment. Mix until the butter is the size of peas.

Pour the berries into the bottom of a glass baking dish (I used a deep 2-quart, but a square 8x8 would work, too). Press the crumble mixture together with your fingers to form large crumbles. Sprinkle over the berries and bake for 40-45 minutes until the tops are browned and the juices are bubbly. Serve warm or at room temperature. Vanilla ice cream would be good with this, too!

I accidentally put my scoops on the plate in the shape of a heart!

It's not going to last long!

Easy Appetizer: Cheesy Ham Bites

2010-04-15T06:00:00.000-07:00

The same night I made my 5-Minute Fudgy Brownies for some friends in our Sunday School class, I made these super quick and easy appetizers. I don't know why but I just love crescent rolls from the can. When we were growing up, and my mom would make them as a quick side dish with our meal, there'd be 8 of them in the bread basket and 4 of us at the table. My sister would always ask, "Now, how many have you had?" to each of us to make sure that we weren't taking any more than our allotted 2 crescent rolls. If one of us decided we just wanted one, she'd, of course, snatch the extra up as her third. Then, to make matters more annoying, she'd suddenly have to go to the bathroom when the table needed to be cleared and the dishes done. I would be stuck with doing everything and, magically, just as the last dish was getting dried she'd be done in the restroom. How lovely for her, right? I'm not bitter, really. But I digress. Everyone at dinner really enjoyed these little pockets of deliciousness and they were gobbled up almost as soon as they were on the platter...hence the lack of pictures beyond the baking sheet! Enjoy and try to snap a picture or two before your guests arrive and gobble the bad boys up!

Cheesy Ham Bites
Source: Me
Yields: a lot

2 packages crescent rolls
2 packages Carl Buddig cooked ham lunch meat
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
ketchup and mustard for dipping

Preheat oven to whatever it says on the can...probably 375. Cut each triangle of crescent roll dough into two so you end up having 32 small triangles (8 rolls per can, each cut into 2 for 16 triangles).

Chop up the lunch meat into small squares. Using your thumb and first two fingers, grab a small amount of ham and put it in the center of the crescent roll triangle; do the same with the cheese.

Fold the top corner towards you over the cheese, then fold the two side corners up over that.

Pinch the openings together so you have a fat little stuffed triangle. Arrange on your largest cookie sheet in nice, tidy rows (as opposed to chaotic rows like my sister would do). :-) Bake for about 8-10 minutes, or until crescent rolls are golden brown. Serve with a side of ketchup and mustard for dipping.

Cookies with the Cousins

2010-04-14T06:00:00.000-07:00

I have two wonderfully fun and witty cousins: Laura and Lacey. They are exact replicas of my sister and me--except they don't quite fight like the two of us did. My sister and I love each other to pieces, but we regularly say to each other that there is no way we could ever live together again. She's what you would call "carefree" in her cleaning, organization, and house-keeping, whereas I am what they call obsessive, neurotic, and picky. I'm working on those issues. I don't know how she does it, but as soon as my sister, Kim, walks into a room, EVERYTHING is out of place!! I can feel my blood start boiling now as I'm thinking about it. One shoe is on one side of the room, the other is on the couch, her purse and its contents are sprawled out on the table, her jacket is on the back of a chair, her sunglasses on the ground, the lamps broken, the couch cushions turned upside down, the rug rumpled, the pillows strewn hastily across the floor, the bookcase tipped over, and me in the fetal position in a corner somewhere while she noisily slams doors and asks me why my house is so dirty...

...okay, maybe it's not that bad, but she really is like a tornado. Just ask my mom.

Back to my cousins. They came over one day on our Easter Vacation from school and I showed them how to bake and decorate cookies. I relied on some previous knowledge gained when I made these cookies with Cooking in Cucamonga, and we ended up a blast together. We were supposed to scrap book, but we're planning that for another day. We made lunch about an hour into the process: Lil' Smokies wrapped in crescent rolls; they learned how to make this simple and quick lunch that I regularly take as appetizers to parties and plan on showing their mom how to do them too! The day was fun, but our cookie decorating took forever! I didn't realize how much longer things take with an 11- and 12-year old by your side! I have posted here just 3 of the 80 cookies we made and have provided you the link from where the recipes came. Enjoy and have fun with this!

From Annie's Eats:
Cookies
Royal Icing and Royal Icing Tutorial

Kafta and Potatoes

2010-04-13T06:00:00.000-07:00

If the title of this sounds familiar it's because I've posted something under this name once already. This is a completely different way of making Kafta and Potatoes, though, so bear with me! I really like it when Computer Man decides to take over dinner--I know, I've said that before, too. He usually does the grill or anything Lebanese which is fine with me since I don't have a huge desire to learn to cook Lebanese food. I know I probably should, but I just don't have the knack for it. It's something that's got to be "pure bread," if that makes any sense. So, again, I left it to him to put together this hot and savory dish that is definitely on his list of Comfort Food. My list looks much different, of course, but it's nice to get to taste some of the things his mom made so frequently since she's no longer with us to share those recipes. Luckily, she passed all her recipes down to one of her daughters, so Mario calls her up when he wants something. What's interesting, though, is that my mother-in-law NEVER told anyone her recipe for Falafel. She kept all of her recipes in a book--except the Falafel recipe--that one was in her head. When she passed away, someone in the family actually tried to steal that recipe book in hopes of finding that Falafel recipe; it was the big scandal of the week but everyone knew that no matter when no one could ever have that Falafel recipe. Crazy, right?! I hope you enjoy this comforting dish as much as we did, and know that it came from someone whose recipes were the envy of so many!

Kafta and Potatoes
Source: the in-laws
Yields: 6-8 servings

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef
1 punch curly parsley
1 large yellow onion
1 rounded spoonful of cinnamon
salt and pepper
4 small cans tomato sauce + 4 cans of water
5 Russet potatoes

Note: you need a large metal baking pan for this, larger than 9x13 (I think ours is 10x14 or 11x15...it's pretty big). If you don't have that big of a pan, and you don't want to feed the entire Lebanese army like this recipe does, just cut all the measurements in half and use a smaller pan.

Preheat oven to 400. Tear the parsley leaves off and put in a bowl. You'll want to do this ahead of time when you're sitting on the couch watching your favorite show. Cover with water and allow to soak for a couple of hours. When you're ready to prepare the dish, drain the parsley and transfer it to a food processor (if you have a small food processor do it in two batches). Rough chop the onion and add to the parsley. Process until very fine and well combined. Put the hamburger in a large bowl, season with salt, pepper, and the cinnamon. Add the parsley/onion mixture. Using your hands, mix together until just combined; don't over work the meat or it will be tough. Peel the potatoes and slice lengthwise. Put them in a large pot and cover with water. Boil until the potatoes are almost cooked the whole way through--they will finish cooking in the oven. Take half of the potatoes and line a large metal baking pan with them. Make about 10 patties out of the hamburger mixture; you want the patties to be about 3 inches in diameter. Lay the patties over the potatoes and then over the patties with the rest of the potatoes. Pour the tomato sauce and the water over the whole thing and bake uncovered in the oven for about an hour and a half. Remove from the oven, cover with foil, and transfer to the stove top so the pan is on a front and back burner. Turn each burner on to medium-high and allow the dish to come to a boil and cause the sauce to thicken--about another 30 minutes. Serve alongside a salad and pita bread. Enjoy!

I love that my new camera captures the steam rising from the dish! (This is after the sauce has thickened on the stove top.)

Ahh, yes, the ugly Corelle dish with the dusty pink and blue rose pattern. I told you that we always have to use these when we have Lebanese food.

I prefer more potatoes than meat, so I just take one patty.

5-Minute Fudgy Brownies

2010-04-12T06:00:00.000-07:00

My mom is notorious for always having a Tupperware full of some sort of yummy baked good. In fact, one my bestestestestestest friends, Kalene, would spend the night at my house when we were kids so she could sample all the treats. She'd say things like, "I'm going to go rummage for some baked goods" at two or three in the morning when we should have been asleep. This recipe is especially important to me for a couple reasons. One, I had tried a bunch of brownie recipes in college only to find that they were all for those boring cake-like brownies; I was searching for the brownies that crackle on the top and are really dense and gooey. Two, these brownies are just about the ONLY dessert I make that my husband actually enjoys. He was obviously raised on a different planet: he thinks that plain fruit (no sugar, no whip cream, no nothing) is dessert and that cookies, cakes, and ice creams are too sweet. TOO SWEET? IS THAT EVEN A POSSIBILITY? So when he actually takes two of these brownies I am in heaven; I love it. We had some friends from our Sunday School class over one night and I served these up as a nice finisher to our tri-tip and baked potato dinner. I actually whipped them up while everyone was still sitting around the table just talking and taking the last swigs of their drinks. One of the husbands actually asked me if the brownies were homemade--he had no clue that I was making brownies because these are so quick and easy to "throw together." Enjoy!

5-Minute Fudgy Brownies
Source: Me and Mom
Yields: 1 9x13 pan...so 4 brownies? Ha!

3/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
2/3 cup veg. oil
1/2 cup boiling water (exact)
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 350. Stir cocoa and baking soda together in the bottom of a mixing bowl on your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add in 1/3 cup of the oil and the boiling water and stir until the mixture thickens. Add in the sugar, eggs, and remaining 1/3 cup of oil. Stir until smooth. Add flour, vanilla, and salt, and blend completely. Pour into a thoroughly greased 9x13 metal baking pan. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the sides of the brownies pull away from the edge of the pan. Don't over bake. Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla bean, chocolate, mint chip, or neapolitan ice cream.

I didn't cut the brownies to show you the inside, but I did poke a hole so you can see how nicely they crack on the top!

Peach Dump Cake (plus a variation)

2010-04-11T06:00:00.000-07:00

Let me tell you about Summer. No, she does NOT have a sister named Winter, Spring, or Fall, so don't ask...she doesn't think it's funny, and, as her right-hand woman, neither do I. Summer and I met in college--Azusa Pacific University (go, Cougars!). We weren't roommates, but we were brought together by a mutual friend. It was one of those "Oh-my-gosh-I-think-this-is-my-long-lost-sister" moments; we immediately clicked and were, from our freshman year, totally inseparable. She's one of those friends that you can go weeks without talking to and then pick right up where you left off. We used to get together every Wednesday night and cook and bake for her mom and sister. We make a pretty great team: I do the majority of the cooking while she does all the baking. Today, almost 10 years later, we still get together and laugh till the cows come home. One last-minute invitation on a Thursday afternoon convinced Summer and her boyfriend, Zak, to swing by our place the next night. I grabbed a pizza and salad from Costco and she brought over this dessert. We, of course, laughed till we cried while the boys sat on the couch marveling at some new techy gadget...weirdos. We enjoyed this peach cake right out of the oven and found that not one of the flavors was too over-powering than another. I have provided a variation of this recipe below. Enjoy!

Peach Dump Cake
Source: Summer, originally called Peach Crunch Cake at Bakerella

24.5 oz jar of sliced peaches in light syrup
1 package yellow cake mix
1 stick butter (1/2 cup), cut into 16 pieces
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional, we didn't use them)
your favorite vanilla or vanilla bean ice cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Layer ingredients in a 9x13 dish, in the order written above starting with the peaches. Bake for about 40 minutes. Serve warm with vanilla/vanilla bean ice cream.

Variation from my grandma: Cherry Dump Cake
1 large can of Comstock cherry pie filling
1 box yellow cake mix
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, cut into squares

Preheat oven to 350. Layer ingredients in an 8x11 glass baking dish, starting with the cherries, then the cake, then the butter. Bake until the cake is golden, probably 30-40 minutes. Serve with whip cream or vanilla ice cream.

Creamy Chicken Pockets

2010-04-10T12:09:00.001-07:00

I try my best to not stand in front of the cupboard yelling, "We have nothing to eat!" when, in reality, the shelves are teeming with food that could, in the words of my mom, be "thrown together." Once I feel like the canned goods have received enough of my ranting, I move onto the various items in the refrigerator, and--if I'm feeling especially daring--I open the fridge and the freezer at the same time only to yell twice as loud that all those pieces of frozen meat are just too, well, frozen or that all those veggies in the crisper drawer won't cut themselves. Then I slam both doors, return to the couch next to my husband who looks at me and says, "So, what's for dinner?" Of course that completely pushes me over the proverbial ledge and I tell him we're going out to Mexican food--only because that's his least favorite and I don't want to cook. Being the good husband he is, he just says, "No, Dear, we're not." Ugh. I guess now I have to get up and find something to make. And then, upon second, third, or twentieth glance in the cupboard and fridge, angels descend from heaven singing the Hallelujah chorus and it's as if things just make sense; I understand the whole "thrown together" thing that my mom does so effortlessly. That, my friends, is the process behind these Chicken pockets. I have provided you with the ingredients so that you don't have to go through the same ranting process that I did. Enjoy! :)

Creamy Chicken Pockets
Source: Me and the angels from heaven
Yields: 4 pockets

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 packages of crescent rolls (for a total of 16 crescents)
1 cup milk
3/4 cup water you cooked the chicken in
1 cup frozen peas (or frozen vegetable medley)
1/2 onion, chopped OR 1 tsp. onion powder
2 tsp. garlic powder
3 T butter
3 T flour
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to whatever it says on the crescent rolls package; it's usually 375. Put the chicken breasts in a large pot and cover with water; bring to a boil and allow chicken to cook completely. When the chicken is done, leave it in the hot water; do not drain. Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter and add the chopped onions and peas (note: if you're using onion powder, don't add that in yet). Once the onions are translucent (or when the peas are semi-tender), add in the flour, garlic powder (and onion powder if you didn't use the chopped onions). Combine the flour, butter, and onions well; allow to cook for just a couple of minutes so the flour taste goes away. Add in the milk and the chicken water; stir to combine, and allow to thicken on medium-low heat. You can now take the chicken breasts out of the water and shred or chop them up. Add them to the milk mixture and turn the heat up to medium-high to make sure everything is well heated and combined together; stir for about 2 minutes. Turn the heat off. Take the crescent rolls out and put two of the triangles together to form one square on your largest cookie sheet; do this until you have 8 squares. Spoon enough chicken mixture onto 1 of the crescent roll squares, leaving about 1/2 inch border; quickly top with 1 of the crescent squares pressing tightly to seal around the edge. Repeat for the remaining crescent squares. Bake until the crescents are golden brown. Enjoy with a simple green salad!

Chicken and Rice--Lebanese Style

2010-03-29T06:00:00.000-07:00

I have to warn you that the measurements with this recipe are, well, not quite exact. That's because this recipe comes from a Lebanese family. They measure things in coffee cups--Arabic coffee cups. I remember one time my mom wanted a Tabbouleh recipe from Computer Man's mom. Well, after a poor translation, she was adding in AMERICAN coffee cups of things and wondering why there was so much of them! Computer Man laughed his head off and realized he hadn't translated the coffee cup part correctly, and why on earth would she question it? She didn't have any other coffee cups to choose from, so she used the "#1 Dad" mug! Funny stuff. Okay, in hindsight maybe it's not that funny of a story, but it gave us a laugh or two...or three. This made for a wonderful Sunday dinner that will be used many times over I'm sure! Enjoy!

Chicken and Rice--Lebanese Style
Source: The In-Laws :)
2 Cornish game hens
4 cinnamon sticks
2 T lemon juice
sprinkle of garlic salt (enough to cover top and bottom of chickens)
vegetable oil (enough to cover top and bottom of chickens)
Grill Mates Chicken Rub (enough to cover top and bottom of chickens)
a few turns of the pepper mill
2 cups rice
1 T cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350.
Thoroughly wash the chickens and make sure all the blood and yuck is out. Put the two chickens and the 4 cinnamon sticks in a large stock pot and fill with water; bring to a boil on high. As soon as it starts foaming at the top, use a strainer to remove the foam the pot. After the "first foam," continue to remove the foam for 10 minutes. Remove chickens from pot and let all the water drain out of them. DON'T DRAIN THE WATER FROM THE STOCK POT! Transfer them to a large cookie sheet. Season both sides with oil, lemon juice, garlic salt, pepper, and chicken rub. Bake in oven until the side that's facing up is browned; flip them over and do the same thing. It takes about 1 hour and 30 minutes to cook these bad boys. While the chickens are cooking, put 1 T vegetable oil in the bottom of another pot on medium high. Scoop out the 2 cups of rice and put them in the hot oil; stir around to coat evenly. Add in the 1 T of cinnamon and a few sprinkles of salt. Put a strainer over this pot. Using the 1 cup scoop, take out 4 cups of the chicken broth and pour over rice through the strainer. Bring the rice to a boil; cover and simmer until the rice is fully cooked--it takes about 20 minutes, or so. When the rice and chicken are done, pull apart the chickens and place atop a bed of rice on your serving platter. Enjoy and be thankful you get to know a recipe from Computer Man's mother's vault--she rarely shared the secrets behind her cooking!

Cheeseburger Biscuit Bake

2010-03-26T06:00:00.000-07:00

One late weekend night I was really mad at myself for not having planned dinner ahead of time! I was so busy grading papers and doing homework and before I knew it, it was time for dinner. I frantically searched through my fridge and pantry and a recent Valentine's Day gift from my mom (Pillsbury cookbook) and struck gold! I adapted the following recipe according to the availability of a few ingredients. I was really nervous about this dish because of the newness of it. I actually stood waiting for Computer Man's reaction. Success! He actually loved it and, despite being stuffed, went back for seconds. This meal came in at just about $10--maybe $11. I recommended it to a friend who has three children and she was ecstatic at the taste and affordability of this dish! Enjoy! Cheeseburger Biscuit Bake Source: Adapted from Pillsbury AnnualRecipes 2010 Yields: 6 servings

1 lb ground beef
1/4 yellow onion, chopped
2 dill pickles, chopped (next time I might even do 3 because I like pickles a lot)
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup ketchup
1 T yellow mustard (you can just do a big squeeze into the pan, don't measure this out--it takes too long)
a sprinkling of salt and pepper
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 can (8 biscuits) flaky layers biscuits
1 egg, beaten

Preheat oven to 365. Brown the onions and ground beef together in a pan until the beef is fully cooked. Add in the water, ketchup, mustard, pickles, salt and pepper. Stir together and cook for about 5 minutes. Transfer the beef mixture to an ungreased glass baking dish (2 quart, or 11x7). Sprinkle cheese on top evenly. Separate the 8 biscuits from each other and then separate each biscuit in half by tearing apart at the middle layer. Arrange the biscuits on the cheese; use all the biscuits. If you have too many biscuits, just overlap a few, but make sure the cheese is fully covered; you can tear biscuits in half if you need to. Beat the egg and brush on top of the biscuits--this will give it a golden brown topping. Bake for about 30 minutes uncovered until the biscuits are a deep golden brown and fully cooked. You could also add in a can of corn or mixed veggies when you add in the ketchup and other ingredients; just increase the water amount by 1/4 cup then. I served mine with a bag of salad I got from Fresh and Easy for 98 cents!

A Double Pizza...Again

2010-03-25T06:00:00.000-07:00

Have I told you already that Computer Man doesn't like the same kinds of pizza toppings as I do? Well, it happened again. I wanted a cheesy, olive-y pizza, and he just wanted ham and mushrooms. Oy. It is so easy to do so it's not really that big of a deal, it just doesn't make for very pretty pictures...yes, I have spoken to someone about the perfectionist in me... This is definitely the kind of recipe you'll want to save for a night when you have a bit more time to spend in the kitchen! Enjoy!

A Double Pizza
Source: Me

1 pizza dough
1/2 cup pizza sauce
1 3/4 cups mozzarella cheese plus 1/4 cup sprinkling of cheddar cheese
1 small can mushrooms
5 slices honey ham lunch meat, chopped
1 small can black olives
a few pieces pepperoni, ripped in half

Preheat oven to 500; heat pizza stone with it and allow the pizza stone to heat for at least 45 minutes. If you don't have a pizza stone you can just use a sheet pan but you don't have to heat it up for 45 minutes. :) Okay, stretch the pizza dough out on a sheet of parchment paper or wax paper. Spread the sauce on top, sprinkle with the two cheeses. Top one half with the mushrooms and ham. Top the other half with the olives and pepperoni. Pop in the oven and allow to back about 10-12 minutes, or until cheese is melted and heavenly.

Cheesy Ravioli with Veggies

2010-03-24T06:00:00.000-07:00

Having been on a pasta kick, I thought I'd continue the pattern and add another simple, yet delicious pasta recipe to my repertoire. "Repertoire" sounds like too fancy a word, though, to use with this dish. It was so simple and so inexpensive! Being married just four years and living on a teacher's salary means meager meals every once in a while. But, both of our parents taught us that there are times when you have to pinch pennies so that things are a little easier later on. This sort of dish is perfect for those penny-pinching seasons. This meal came in just under $10 and was a hit on a late night after work. Thanks, Parents, for the good lessons!

Cheesy Ravioli with Veggies
Source: Taste of Home Pasta
Yields: 6 servings

6 quarts water
1 package (16 oz, or so) frozen California-blend veggies (carrots, broccoli, cauliflower)
1 package (25 oz, or so) frozen cheese ravioli
1/4 cup butter (the real kind), melted
1/4 tsp seasoning blend like garlic salt, Mrs. Dash, or Italian seasoning
1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese--the real kind

In a stockpot, bring water to a boil. Add the vegetables; cook for 5 minutes. Add the ravioli. Cook 5 minutes longer or until both are tender. Drain and transfer to a large, flat serving bowl.

Gently stir in the butter. Sprinkle with the seasoning blend and cheese. Serve with a crisp salad.

Wheely Good Pepperoni Pasta

2010-03-23T06:00:00.000-07:00

Something about wagon wheel pasta makes me feel like I'm a kid again. Or, maybe it's the fact that the wagon wheels remind me of my 4th grade Oregon Trail project I did with my dad out in the garage. We--well, he--traced and cut little sideboards, a hitch for a yoke, and wagon wheels out of pieces of wood. Then, we fashioned a canvas roof for the wagon, got some plastic oxen, and my mom made little flour and sugar sacks out of scrap fabric. I remember sitting in the garage with my dad trying to put that wagon together, not doing a very good job but knowing that Dad'll fix it. I was either busy daydreaming about creating my next big rollerskating routine I would do in the garage to the Lion King soundtrack, or I was spinning around aimlessly on the bar stool while he put my school project together. And I'll bet I waited until just days--or even the night--before to tell him I needed help on this project. Gotta love childhood...right, Dad?! Anyways, back to the pasta. I threw this dish together quick one weeknight and found it to be satisfying. There are a few changes I will make next time and I've made sure to adjust the recipe below to match those changes. I also halved the recipe when I made it, but I did not note those changes below. Enjoy this hearty, yet simple, pasta dish!

Wheely Good Pepperoni Pasta
Source: Taste of Home Pasta
Yields: 6-8 servings

1 pound ground beef (I was even considering substituting hot dogs instead, maybe 5 hot dogs?)
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 medium green pepper, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced or one tablespoon garlic from the jar
1-28 oz jar. spaghetti sauce
1-4oz can mushroom stems and pieces, drained
1-3 1/2 ounce package sliced pepperoni
8 oz. uncooked wagon wheel pasta
1 cup shredded mozzarella
1 cup shredded provolone cheese (I used shredded asiago instead because I couldn't find shredded provolone)
grated parmesan...the real stuff!

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400. Boil the pasta only part of the way for just a few minutes so that there is still a bite to it; it shouldn't be mushy but it shouldn't be straight out of the box. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, brown the beef, onion, and green pepper over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Add the spaghetti sauce, mushrooms, and pepperoni.

In a greased 9x13 baking dish, layer the ingredients as follows, and then repeat:
-half the meat mixture
-half the pasta
-half of the shredded mozz. and provolone or asiago
Sprinkle with the grated parmesan.

Bake, uncovered, at 400 for 30-35 minutes or until heated through and the cheese is bubbly and golden. Let stand for about 5-10 minutes before serving.

Good Ol' Sloppy Joes

2010-03-12T06:00:00.000-08:00

I've heard them called BBQs, Taverns, and Sloppy Joes; I've even been slightly offended at having them called Manwiches. But, above all, I call them delicious. I love the simplicity of a Sloppy Joe sandwich. I used to love sitting down to a quick dinner with the family before a band or choir concert because my mom would effortlessly "just throw things together" in pan and call it dinner. We'd have fun things like chili cheese hot dogs, macaroni and cheese, or Sloppy Joes. On a semi-unrelated note, my mom has a funny way of cackling-laughing through a lot of things, but then again, I don't sugarcoat too much. I just kinda ask things straight up. So, when I asked her for the secret to making the perfect Sloppy Joe, she cackle-laughed through the following recipe. I realized how ridiculous it was to ask for a secret recipe like this when it was so, so easy! This makes a great weeknight dinner, and I hope you enjoy it!

Good Ol' Sloppy Joes
Source: Me and Mom

1 lb hamburger
1/2 cup ketchup
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 T mustard
2 T vinegar
salt and pepper
2 chopped dill pickles or dill pickle relish
4 burger buns

Brown hamburger in a skillet; season with salt and pepper. Once meat is totally browned, add the ketchup, brown sugar, mustard, and vinegar. Turn the heat up to medium-high and stir together the browned meat and other ingredients. Allow to simmer for 5-7 minutes. After that time, taste to decide if you want it sweeter (more brown sugar), tangier (more vinegar--not mustard), saltier (more, well, salt!), or if it's just perfect. Turn the heat down to low. Meanwhile, chop the pickles and slice the buns. Spoon the Sloppy Joe meat onto the buns and top with the chopped pickle. Serve with tater tots, fries, chips, or your favorite pasta or potato salad! Enjoy!

Prosciutto Tortellini

2010-03-11T06:00:00.001-08:00

I love standing in line at the grocery store thumbing through magazines; sometimes the magazines are about home decorating, sometimes they're trashy, but most of the time they're food-related. I also love the mini food magazines that are chock-full of recipe cards. I scored big time recently when I picked up a copy of Taste of Home's Pasta Recipe Cards magazine. I have already marked about 80% of the recipes to try! The next day we went to get the ingredients for a few of the dishes. It was a great success. Computer Man ran to the store to grab one of those uber-convenient rotisserie chickens while I whipped this dish up. The timing was perfect, the flavors simple yet delicious, and the meal totally satisfying!

Prosciutto Tortellini
Source: TOH Pasta

1-19 oz pkg frozen cheese tortellini
1 T flour
1 cup half-and-half
1/2 shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan (the good stuff; not the shakeable junk)
10 thin slices prosciutto, chopped
1-10 oz pkg frozen peas
salt and pepper

Cook tortellini according to package directions; cook the peas with the tortellini to take some of the bite off. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, combine flour and cream until smooth; stir in the cheeses. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Reduce heat. Drain tortellini and peas. Add to the cheese sauce. Stir in prosciutto and cook for 5 minutes or until heated through. Turn off heat. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with a rotisserie chicken or just by itself!

Berry Delicious Dessert

2010-03-10T06:00:00.000-08:00

I love the flavors of summer. Unfortunately, California has been suffering from torrential downpours lately so things like sunshine have been sparse. The clouds haven't put a damper on my love for summer fruits and desserts that can be made from them. I love the fact that fruits can be found year-round in the freezer. Frozen fruits (and veggies) are usually just as healthy as fresh fruits since they're frozen at the peak of their freshness. We were strolling through Fresh and Easy one afternoon and saw bags of berry medleys and strawberries. We grabbed one of each, a tub of Cool Whip, and an angelfood cake. Voila! This was such an easy dessert that will be so much more delicious in the summer with fresh fruits. I'll definitely do this again come June!

Berry Delicious Dessert
Source: Me

1 angelfood cake
1 tub of Low Fat Cool Whip
1 bag frozen berry medly
1/4 cup sugar or Splenda

Allow fruit to fully defrost in a glass bowl. Pour sugar on top and let sit for at least a half hour, mixing occasionally. After 30 minutes there should be a good amount of berry liquid in the bowl. Slice the cake into whatever size slice you prefer, top with a couple of spoonfuls of berries, and a dollop of Cool Whip on top. Enjoy!

Sugar draws out the natural juices in the berries!

Yum, yum, yum!

Playing with the settings on the new camera!

Shredded Beef Tacos

2010-03-09T06:00:00.000-08:00

I think I was supposed to be born Hispanic. I don't know why but I have a huge affection towards Mexican food. It doesn't matter: tamales, burritos, tacos, tortas, carne asada, guacamole, salsa, chilaquiles, chiles rellenos, pozole...you name it, I love it. My husband, on the other hand, is not so in love with food from South of the Boarder. He was raised in a home where he ate only Lebanese food, so eating Mexican food is not his idea of fun. BUT, since I cook, I usually get to choose the direction of the meal! One afternoon, I put a tri-tip in the Crockpot with some salsa on top and waited with bated breath for it to be done...10 hours later. What a success! This was such a delicious meal. Well, it turned into two separate meals because I chose to put my shredded beef in taco shells while Computer Man made some instant mashed potatoes (yuck!) and corn to go with his! Oh well, I got my tacos in the end!

Shredded Beef Tacos

1 tri-tip (about 2.5 lbs)
1/4 cup water
1 cup chipotle salsa
1 onion, cut in half and sliced thinly
6 soft taco shells (corn tortillas)
shredded cheese
diced tomatoes
shredded lettuce
sour cream
more salsa

In the bottom of a cold Crockpot layer the onions and the water. Lay the tri-tip on top of the onions and pour the salsa on top of the meat. Put the lid on and set to cook for 8-10 hours. When it's done, heat the tortillas one-by-one on the flame on one of your stove-top burners; heat one side for a few seconds until the edges get a bit browned and then flip and repeat. If you have an electric stove top, let me first say I'm sorry, then let me say that you can put a small pan on medium-high and put the tortillas in the pan and heat on each side. Wrap the tortillas in foil to keep warm or put in a tortilla warmer. Shred up the tri-tip. Put 2 or 3 (or all 6) tortillas on your plate and top with pieces of the shredded beef, cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, sour cream, and salsa. Serve with Mexican rice and enjoy!

Avocado Burger

2010-03-08T06:00:00.000-08:00

It's always nice to return to a comforting dish, something that reminds you of the good old days. I got a hankering for a pan-fried hamburger, but didn't feel like dealing with the mess. Luckily, my mom and dad got me a George Foreman grill when I went off to college, and it's been a life-saver many times. In fact, I used to go to my grandma's house every Sunday afternoon for lunch, to do my laundry, and then head off to wait tables in the evening. It was great because we'd get to spend the afternoon together reading Women's Day or watching Lifetime movies. She always made something delicious for lunch; Grandma is known for her amazing cooking. Things like Chicken Pot Pie, Scalloped Potatoes and Ham, Pot Roast, and Fried Chicken made regular appearances on our Sunday lunch table. And sometimes, she would get out a couple of hamburger patties and throw them on the George Foreman. A simple slice of American cheese would melt across the top on its way to being smashed between two warmed burger buns. So, one night I got out my George Foreman and put together a couple of delicious burgers for Computer Man and me. In an effort to make things a bit more interesting, I toasted some extra sourdough bread and sliced up an avocado. This made a quick and easy weeknight meal!

Avocado Burger
Source: Me (and Grandma)

1 lb. ground beef
Lawry's Season Salt
1 ripe avocado
4 leafs romaine lettuce
1 large tomato sliced into rings
4 slices sharp cheddar cheese
mayo
mustard
ketchup
red onion, sliced into rings
4 slices extra sourdough bread
butter

Separate the burger into 4 equal portions. Shape each portion into a round burger patty, about 1/4-inch thick. Season one side with the season salt. Place the seasoned side down on a hot George Foreman grill (or in a frying pan on medium-high heat). Season the other side with the season salt. Meanwhile, cut the sourdough bread in half. Butter one side of each of the halves and put under the broiler for just a few moments--watch it because they'll burn quickly! If you're using a frying pan, flip the burgers. Slice the tomato, wash the lettuce, slice the avocado and set aside. Once your burgers are cooked to the desired doneness, pull off the grill and put a slice of cheese on each burger. Put some mayo on one of the toasted halves of sourdough bread. Put the burger on top, squirt some ketchup and mustard on, and layer with the avocado, red onion, tomato, and lettuce. Top with another half of the sourdough bread. Serve alongside your favorite french fries! Enjoy!

Hawaiian Pizza

2010-02-25T06:00:00.000-08:00

Computer Man is from New Jersey which means pizza can only be eaten if it is greasy, cheesy, and foldable. "It's all about the fold." I don't get it. I prefer a thick, bubbly crust, lots of cheese, a pile of veggies, and the perfect sauce; I say, "It's all about the cheese and sauce." I think it's weird to fold a pizza. You fold things like laundry, paper, eggs into batter, and your arms when you're upset. You don't fold pizza. But, alas, he's an East-coaster and they're not too keen on changing. So, when it comes to making pizza in this house, I worry because I haven't mastered the foldable pizza. I was nervous with this recipe since it was totally made up in my head; I usually rely upon cookbooks and other food blogs as my sources of recipes. This pizza smelled delicious both before and after it was cooked, and it looks pretty, too! I waited eagerly for Computer Man's reaction...wait for it...wait for it...THUMBS UP and an, "Oh my GOSH!" I love it when I have a successful night in the kitchen with a brand new recipe. I actually made half the pizza with wheat dough and the other half with traditional white dough since Computer Man's tastes aren't inclined toward wheat. But, luckily, I was able to convince him to try a bite of the wheat dough and he actually liked it! Overall, the pizza is sweet and savory and the flavors blend together perfectly so that no one flavor overpowers any other. Please enjoy this as much as we did!

Hawaiian Pizza
Source: Me
Yield: 1 pizza

Ingredients:
1 pizza dough
2 cups mozzarella
1/8 cup bacon bits
7 slices honey ham lunch meat, diced
1/2 cup pizza sauce (I used a heaping 1/2 cup)
1/2 - 1 cup diced pineapple (depends on how much pineapple you want; I used chunked pineapple from the can and just cut it into smaller pieces)
a sprinkling of freshly shredded parmesan cheese

Directions:
Put your pizza stone in the oven and preheat to 500 degrees. Allow pizza stone to sit in hot oven for at least 30 minutes. Meanwhile, sprinkle some flour on a piece of parchment paper. Work your pizza dough out on the parchment paper to the size of your pizza stone. Pour the pizza sauce on and spread around, leaving about 1/2 inch border around the edge. Sprinkle the shredded mozzarella on the sauce. Top with the diced ham and pineapple. Sprinkle with the bacon bits and the shredded parmesan. Get the pizza stone out of the oven and put the parchment paper containing the pizza on the stone. Bake for about 10-12 minutes, or until the dough is golden brown and the cheese is bubbly and delicious. Enjoy with a salad and your favorite soda!

Paninis

2010-02-24T06:00:00.000-08:00

A few years ago I requested a panini press for Christmas. I was on a big panini kick and thought the only way to make them successfully would be on a panini press. Surely I couldn't just use a pan and a brick--no way, too indigenous! My parents so graciously listened to my countless hints and blessed me with a Cuisinart grill and panini press. It's the perfect tool because the grill plates are interchangeable; I can put the ridged plates on to create the perfect grill lines on sandwiches, hot dogs, burgers, chicken, steak, etc. Or, I can put the flat plates on, open up the lid to create a long, flat cooking surface that I can cook pancakes, or really anything else for which I need a large surface. I love it! My husband also loves paninis, so he was the one who actually requested them for lunch after church one Sunday. Of course, since his tastes are a bit less adventurous than mine, he wanted a simple ham and provolone on sourdough, while I opted for a provolone and roasted red pepper. Both were the perfect combination of flavors and I was glad for his suggestion! If you've got a panini press, get creative with what you put in between those two pieces of bread! Enjoy!

Roasted Red Pepper and Provolone Panini
Source: Me

2 slices of extra sourdough bread
butter
mayo
2 large roasted red peppers from a jar
2 slices of provolone cheese

Turn the panini press on to medium-high. Butter one side of the bread and lay on the press (it's okay if it's not heated up yet). Spread some mayo onto the bread and layer with the roasted red pepper and provolone cheese. Spread mayo on the other half of bread and lay on top of the cheese. Spread some butter on the top of the bread, close the panini press lid and allow to grill until there are golden brown lines in the bread and the cheese is melted and oozing out the sides a bit. Enjoy with a handful of your favorite chips, veggie sticks, or salad.

Dilly Crackers

2010-02-23T06:00:00.000-08:00

Don't you just love how certain smells or tastes trigger memories? This certainly happens for me quite frequently--especially when it comes to food! ;) I don't normally crave certain foods "out of season," but these little bits o' heaven are a year-round desire. My parents, sister, and nephew came to visit us for Christmas and with family comes comfort food. I saw that my sister had a baggie full of these favorite holiday crackers so I immediately stole the bag so I could enjoy them all to myself. Well, in walked my husband who inquired as to what was in the bag. I reluctantly told him that they were crackers that we had on hand every holiday season since the beginning of time. Since he found out that they were made by my mom, he knew they'd be delicious, so he stole the bag from me and downed a few handfuls. His eyes lit up and he said, or tried to say, "Moh my moff, you maff to make fese!" Unfortunately, I never got around to making them, and I thought all had been forgotten about his obsession with the crackers until a package arrived from South Dakota. Computer Man quickly opened it up; he discovered a hilarious birthday card for him, a fun new cookbook for me (a Valentine's Day gift), two jars of creamed honey (a particular brand only available in South Dakota), AND a bagful of Dilly Crackers! So, my mom deserves the credit for this posting. Thanks, Mom!

Dilly Crackers
Source: Mom

2 (12 oz.) packages/boxes oyster soup crackers
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
1 T dill weed
1 T lemon pepper
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. onion powder
1 package Hidden Valley ranch dressing mix

Put crackers in a large bowl. Combine the rest of the ingredients in another bowl and then transfer to the food processor; blend thoroughly. Pour mixture over crackers and stir well. Bake at 200 degrees for one hour on a large sheet pan. Stir every 15 minutes to ensure even browning.

"Oh, boy!" Waffles

2010-02-22T06:00:00.000-08:00

I love the cookbook my mom made for me before I went off to college; it contains all of my favorite dishes from my childhood as well as few bonus ones. I like thumbing through the pages and reminiscing about the evenings around the dinner table. We'd begin each dinner meal by praying, "Come, Lord Jesus, be our Guest, and let these gifts to us be blessed." It was such a simple prayer that was easy for two small girls to memorize--two girls who were responsible for praying for the food each night. I didn't realize until adulthood the significance of those words and of the awesome responsibility that we were given to say them. I love the cookbook, too, because it contains funny little quips that my mom says, and since I can't see or talk to her every day, I can just read the cookbook and hear her saying them and then cackling afterward. We picked on my mom for cackling--not laughing. I wish we wouldn't have because, well, now I find myself cackling! Ahh!

At any rate, I knew that I wanted to bless my husband with these waffles on a Saturday morning, so I woke up extra early to make sure they were ready when he got up. Such a blissful memory...except that I was out of eggs and didn't have the waffles ready in time before he had to leave for work. Alas, I carted them to the office so he could enjoy them a bit late. He still enjoyed them. I also requested that he say, "Oh, boy!" because every time I eat these waffles, I feel compelled to do the same--not just because that's their name, but because they really are delicious! When it comes to waffles, I love the task of making sure the right amount of butter lands in the little squares, and then shortly thereafter watching the hot maple syrup drip over and fill up those buttery little squares to the brim. It's really the simple things in life that thrill me. I suppose that even the idea of a waffle maker is a bit entertaining, but I digress. Please enjoy these childhood favorites, and don't forget to say, "Oh, boy!" aloud!

"Oh, boy!" Waffles
Source: Mom
Yield: about 16 waffles, depending on your size of waffle iron (I used a Belgian waffle maker).

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups flour
4 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. sugar
2 beaten eggs
2 1/4 cups milk
1/2 cups vegetable oil
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Directions:
Sift together the first four ingredients in a large bowl; set aside. Beat the eggs in another bowl with a fork. Add the milk, oil, and vanilla to the eggs and whisk together well. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and beat together with the whisk until just moistened. Don't overbeat otherwise the waffles will be rubbery and tough. Bake in a preheated waffle iron. Serve immediately with butter and maple syrup, butter and light or dark corn syrup, butter and powdered sugar and strawberry preserves, or any other fun toppings you'd like!

Vote for me!

2010-02-18T15:54:00.000-08:00

February 17th began like any other morning: check updates on Annie's Eats, Cooking in Cucamonga, Pioneer Woman, check my Facebook updates, check my e-mail. But, my Gmail inbox was a bit peculiar that morning. I said to myself, "Self, who is this Melissa and why is she e-mailing me from Foodista, only the best cooking encylopedia?" I opened up dear Melissa's e-mail only to read the following:

Hello,
Looking for Blueberry Streusel Coffee Cake led me to your blog post:
http://justplayingwithfood.blogspot.com/2010/01/blueberry-streusel-coffee-cake.html
I work for Foodista.com, the online cooking encyclopedia everyone can edit. We are looking for recipes to feature in our upcoming Foodista Best of Food Blogs Cookbook.
If you would like the chance to have your recipes published in a cookbook, enter them into the Foodista Best of Food Blogs Cookbook competition. But hurry, the deadline is February 28th, 2010!
http://www.foodista.com/blogbook?src=bo_3
Please let me know if you have any questions, I'm happy to help. I look forward to seeing you soon in the Foodista kitchen!
Cheers,
Melissa
Editor and Community DeveloperFoodista.com -- The Cooking Encyclopedia Everyone Can Edit

I was completely shocked! I know it doesn't mean that I won, but MY blog? MY blog with just 4 of you faithful followers?! I quickly sent off my Blueberry Streusel recipe (that actually belongs to my mom) and now I sit with my fingers crossed! :) Vote for me!

Herbed Chicken and Creamy Orzo

2010-02-17T06:00:00.000-08:00

WOW! WOW! WOW! What an easy, delicious, and satisfying dinner this was! I've been busy helping Computer Man get his new business up and running so making an intricate dinner just wasn't in the cards. I knew I had to get something hot on our plates, and quickly too! Well, this dish certainly took center stage. I hadn't even defrosted the chicken and this dinner still came together in about 30-40 minutes. You won't be disappointed by the subtle, yet distinct, flavors this dish has to offer. The chicken remains moist and succulent while the orzo and vegetables act as the perfect accompaniment. All in all, the flavors blend together perfectly and you feel like you're getting a very healthy and appetizing meal at the same time. I wish we would've had a nice cucumber and lettuce salad to go with this to round out the vegetable servings, but, alas, I just didn't follow through! I hope you enjoy this as much as we did!

Herbed Chicken and Creamy Orzo
Source: Annie's Eats

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in half like you'd cut a bagel so you have a top half and bottom half [basically, the chicken is getting butterflied but then cut in half totally]
8 ounces orzo pasta
salt and pepper
2 tsp. Herbes de Provence (or do a Google search to find a substitute; garlic salt with parsely would be just fine, too)
3 T olive oil
1 T butter
1 whole shallot, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes UNDRAINED
10 oz. bag of frozen broccoli florets
1/2 c heavy whipping cream
1/2 c freshly grated parmesan cheese (don't use that junk that you shake onto pizza; get the real stuff)

Boil the orzo according to package directions; make sure you salt the water. Defrost (if you haven't already) the chicken in the microwave while the orzo cooks. Once the orzo is done, drain it and return it to the hot pan; put 1 T of the olive oil on the pasta, mix together, put the lid on and leave it set--you'll come back for it in a bit.

In a large 12- or 14-inch skillet, heat the remaining 2 T of olive oil over medium or medium-high heat. Season the face up side of the chicken with salt and pepper and some of the Herbes de Provence. Transfer the chicken--seasoned-side down--to the hot oil and then season the other side. Saute each side for about 3 minutes. Then, add in the minced shallot and the 1 T of butter; saute the shallot for about 2 minutes. Add in the minced garlic and saute for another minute. Pour in the diced tomatoes and their juice and the broccoli florets. Turn the heat up to high so as to bring the tomato juices to a boil. Scrape the pan so that you get all the browned bits of shallot and garlic that may have stuck to the bottom. Cover and let cook on medium-low heat for about 10 minutes. Stir in the cooked orzo, the cream, and the parmesan cheese. Mix well so the cheese can melt. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately with a crisp green salad and your favorite white wine!

Buffalo Blue AND Cheese Pizzas

2010-02-16T06:00:00.001-08:00

I don't know why but I love spicy foods. I love spicy salsa and I especially love spicy wings. I love the fact that the hot sauce makes me perspire and I love chasing the hot sauce with bread and other sorts of things to try to calm down my tongue. No one understands why I torture myself because it'd be just as easy to not partake in the brouhaha that is my mouth once I'm finished eating. Nevertheless, I'll just continue doing it to myself! I got this recipe from Cooking in Cucamonga but I knew I'd have to do something different for Computer Man who loathes any and all things spicy. Luckily, everything worked out wonderfully in the end: I was able to painfully enjoy my spicy pizza and he devoured his plain cheese pizza (which he, of course, ate alongside a plate of Hawaiian wings). You can totally nix the plain cheese pizza and double everything (except the crust and shredded cheese) to make one large Buffalo Bleu pizza. Enjoy!

Pizza Night! (Buffalo Bleu and Cheese Pizzas)

1 pizza crust
2 cups shredded cheddar and jack cheese
a few crumbles of bleu cheese (less than 1/4 c)
less than 1/4 c bleu cheese dressing
2 green onions, chopped
1 chicken breast, grilled and shredded or diced (I used a George Foreman grill)
4 T hot wing sauce (or more if you want)
1/4 c pizza sauce [not used on the Buffalo Bleu pizza]

Preheat oven to 500 degrees and put the pizza stone in there while it heats up; allow pizza stone to heat for at least 30 minutes--you can prep the pizza while it warms up.

Divide the dough in half and flatten out each half on a piece of floured parchment paper. On one of half, spread the pizza sauce and sprinkle with cheese. You're done with that pizza.

For the other pizza, things are a bit more involved. Mix 2 T of the wing sauce and the bleu cheese dressing together; spread on pizza dough. Mix the grilled chicken with the rest of the wing sauce in separate bowl (I added more of the spicy goodness in this step because I wanted to!). Put the chicken on the dough. Sprinkle the bleu cheese crumbles and the shredded cheese over the chicken. Top with the chopped green onions.

Take the hot pizza stone out of the oven and transfer the pizzas on the parchment to the stone and bake for about 10 minutes. The buffalo pizza will need a bit more time to fully cook than the cheese one so you can always cut the parchment paper in half and take out the cheese pizza after about 8 minutes and then let the buffalo pizza cook for another 4 minutes, or so. I didn't do this; I just let the cheese pizza get a little browned since Computer Man actually likes that sort of thing. Serve with a crisp salad!

Teriyaki Grilled Pork Chops

2010-02-15T06:00:00.000-08:00

I LOVE when Computer Man agrees to take part in dinner preparation, mostly because it reminds me of my own dad taking part in dinner. I used to think it was so neat that my parents would team up to put together a delicious meal for me and my sister. I love watching Computer Man out on the grill just as much as I love seeing my dad work his magic on the grill. I don't know what it is about men and their grills, but I'm definitely not arguing. For Christmas Eve, Computer Man put two succulent tri-tips on the grill and he was thrilled when my dad complimented him and said it was some of the best he'd ever had! Getting a compliment like that from my dad, the King of the Grill, was a huge deal for Computer Man. So, I put those grilling talents to use again with this particular recipe adapted from Annie's Eats. The pork chop was moist because it still had the bone in it--we don't buy any other kind--and it stood up to the rich teriyaki flavor in which it had been marinating all night long. Next time I'll reserve a cup or so of the marinade and reduce it on the stove to make a sweet teriyaki dipping sauce (I've added that modification in the ingredient list by doubling everything and then explained that step in the instructions). Enjoy!

Teriyaki Grilled Pork Chops

1 1/3 cup soy sauce

2/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1/3 cup water

1/2 cup rice vinegar

6 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2-inch piece fresh gingerroot, peeled and chopped fine (or 1 ½ tsp. dried ginger) -- I omitted this because ginger freaks me out

4 bone-in pork chops

Directions:

For the marinade, combine all ingredients except pork chops in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and stir until sugar is dissolved. Cool the marinade completely. Pour 1 cup of the marinade into a separate bowl, cover and put in the fridge. Put the pork chops in a large resealable plastic bag and pour the marinade over them. Seal the bag, pressing out excess air. Put the bag of chops into a deep bowl that allows the chops to be fully immersed in the marinade. Allow chops to marinate overnight.

When you're ready to grill, dump out the marinade that had the raw meat in it. Grill chops on an oiled rack, approximately 7-8 minutes per side, or until just cooked through. Meanwhile, pour the extra 1 cup of marinade into a saucepan and boil about 5-10 minutes, or until it has reduced. You can also baste the chops with the extra marinade during last 5 minutes of cooking instead of reducing it. Serve with your favorite veggie and starch (we chose corn and curly fries!) and enjoy!

Dad's Famous Bagelwiches

2010-02-13T22:29:00.001-08:00

No, we don't have children yet. No, this isn't a public announcement that we're pregnant. These are just some delicious breakfast sandwiches that my husband proudly developed, and we've always said how much fun it will be when we have children to have "Dad's Famous Bagelwiches" on Saturday mornings with our coffee and cartoons. I loved waking up to breakfast on Saturday mornings--especially when my mom had made some delicious cinnamon roll or other frosted treat. I even enjoyed having bowls of cereal because I liked to line up the boxes in front of me and play all the games on the back. I especially loved a good breakfast burrito with chorizo and eggs or a hearty omelette stuffed with cheese and ham. Man, I miss living at home with Mom to cook for me all the time! At any rate, I do look forward to creating those kinds of delicious memories for our own children...someday, just not today! Please feel free to modify the following recipe in any way you'd like; I've added some of my own suggestions at the bottom!

Dad's Famous Bagelwiches
Source: Mario, my Computer Man

2 Everything bagels
4 slices of ham
2 eggs
2 slices of cheddar or American cheese
1 T butter (the real kind)

Toast the bagels to your desired done-ness. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a skillet. Crack the eggs and add each of them one-by-one to the skillet. Lightly season each with salt and pepper. Fry them according to your desired done-ness (I like over-medium, but Mario likes sunny side up). Put the fried egg on the bottom half of the bagel. Fry the slices of ham (2 in each stack) for a minute, or so, on each side in the same pan that the eggs were in. Once the ham is a bit crispy around the edges, put a slice of cheese on each stack and allow to slightly melt. Transfer the ham and cheese to the bagel, right on top of the egg. Put the top half on, cut in half, pour a glass of coffee or OJ, and enjoy!

Other serving suggestions:
-turkey
-canadian bacon
-regular bacon
-swiss or Gruyere
-white cheddar
-feta
-plain bagels
-onion bagels
-add cream cheese to the bagels (I prefer this, but Computer Man always forgets it)
-top cheese with fresh spinach
-roasted red pepper
-sliced tomato

(He forgot the ham this time around...it's still delicious without!)

Peanut Butter Cookies

2010-01-30T19:09:00.000-08:00

I am not totally in love with baking; I find that cooking allows for more freedom and spontaneity whereas baking requires you follow a set recipe. I love the freedom that comes with throwing everything AND the kitchen sink into the pot and seeing your husband's new favorite dish come alive. I think all wives would agree that satisfying our husband is a number one priority, next to supporting him in His walk with the Lord. I just get so much joy out of seeing my husband's face light up when he takes that first bite: his mouth is full and he's trying to say, "Honey, it's wonderful!" but it turns out more like, "Mnhmy, fis funmferful!" I don't care that he just spit some out on my new placemat, he loves my food. I wish every new experience were that idyllic. Let me give you a taste of our conversation this afternoon:

Me-"Honey, I'm making peanut butter cookies. Do you like those?"
Him-"I don't like ANYTHING peanut butter. Well, except peanut butter and jelly."
Me-"Oh well, more for me."
...fast forward to the first cookie off the pan...
Me-"Oh my goodness, these are delicious. Here, try it and quit talking about your computer."
Him-"It's just peanut butter in cookie form."
Me-"Uhhh, yeah, that's why they're called 'Peanut Butter Cookies'."
Him-"Well, slap some jelly on it and I'm good to go."
Me (in my head)-"Ugh. Why doesn't this man love sweets? Annoying."
Me (aloud)-"Okay, no problem, dear. Whatever you'd like!"

So, alas, I have 40 peanut butter cookies and one mouth...I guess that's a pretty good ratio. We're heading over to Cooking in Cucamonga's house tomorrow, so hopefully she'll help me eat them! I don't think her husband (affectionately referred to as 'the husband' on her blog) likes sweets too much either, so the odds are in our favor! And, as you can see in the pictures, I had to try various backgrounds for their shot, and they look cute in whatever they're wearing whether it's zebra, blue, or orange! Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Cookies that are Delicious Even if Your Husband Doesn't Like Sweets
Source: Annie's Eats
Yield: about 3 dozen cookies

Ingredients:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1½ tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
¼ cup vegetable shortening
4 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup honey
2 large eggs
Sugar, for rolling the cookies

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚ F. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt; whisk together and set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the shortening, butter, peanut butter and honey. Mix in the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients to the peanut butter mixture and beat just until incorporated.

Roll the dough into 1½-inch balls, and roll each dough ball in sugar. Place the dough balls on an ungreased baking sheet, a couple inches apart. You can either leave them in little balls of heaven, or you can press them down about halfway using a fork so you get that cool looking criss-cross; I personally liked leaving them as balls of joy. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until slightly puffed and golden (I had to go almost 14 minutes). Remove from the oven and let cool on the baking sheet for 5-10 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough. Store in an airtight container.

Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas

2010-01-25T19:23:00.000-08:00

Friends come in stages; many of the friends I had as a little girl are not the same friends that I have now as young adult which will likely not be the friends I have when I'm 60. But, there are few friends I KNOW will be around forever. One of these such friends is Kalene; we've been best friends since junior high. Another is Summer. We didn't meet until college, but I know we'll be the best of friends forever. Enter, Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas! I went over to Summer's mom's house one night, and getting together with Summer and her mom means lots of good food, lots of fun, and lots of laughs. Her mom, Judy, is a wonderfully creative stamper/scrapbooker and an amazing chef. Summer also loves to cook. She and I developed our love for cooking from our moms, so we immediately had a connection. When Judy made this for dinner I immediately demanded the recipe. It is so rich and creamy and not one of the flavors overpowers another. When Summer and I get together we usually end up complimenting each other's talents perfectly: she always takes care of the dessert while I prepare the savory dishes. Enjoy this recipe with your favorite Mexican rice (I either use a box or go to my local Mexican restaurant...although I should learn to make it soon!).

Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas
Source: Judy
Serves: 6
2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded (or 1 can of canned chicken)
1 16 oz. container of sour cream
3 c. shredded Mexican style cheese (a combo of Monterey Jack and cheddar works)
1 4 oz. can diced green chiles, like Ortega chiles, do not drain
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
12 corn tortillas
8 green onions, diced
1/2 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 350. Combine the cream of mushroom soup, the sour cream, the chicken, the green chiles, and the salt in a large bowl. Mix well to blend flavors. In a 9x13 baking dish, spoon enough of the sour cream mixture to coat the bottom. Warm the tortillas in the microwave for 30 seconds, or until they're all warm enough to roll without breaking. Fill each tortilla with some cheese and green onions--leave some behind for topping; roll and place seam side down on the bottom of the baking dish. Cover the filled tortillas with the remaining sour cream mixture and top with the rest of the cheese and green onions. Bake for 25-35 minutes until cheese is melted and the dish is bubbling. Enjoy with rice!

Kafta and Potatoes

2010-01-24T22:03:00.000-08:00

Marrying into a Lebanese family was a bit daunting at first. I felt the pressure in recreating Mom's old recipes. Well, I just haven't mustered up the courage to take it on yet, so my husband joyfully accepts the task of making the Lebanese fare in our home. Take it away, honey!

Kafta
1 pound ground beef
1 bunch curly (not Italian) parsley
1 yellow onion
salt and pepper

Allow beef to defrost completely. Tear the parsley leaves off and let them sit in a bowl of water overnight, or at least for a few hours. Dry the parsley and put it into a food processor. Peel and roughly chop the onion; put it in the food processor with the parsley. Pulse until finely minced. Put the onion/parsley and the beef in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper (a few shakes of each). Take your rings off and wash your hands! Gently combine the beef and parsley/onion until just mixed--don't overmix. Shape into little logs (about 9), or patties (about 6), or 4 long logs and put on a metal skewer. Grill until well done.

Garlic and Olive Oil Potatoes
6 medium Russet potatoes, washed and chopped
1/2 c olive oil (basically, enough to drizzle over the potatoes twice)
1/2 stick butter, cubed
garlic salt
pepper

Get that grill fired up on low! Line a 9x13 METAL baking pan with foil; make sure the foil covers the sides, too. Drop the potatoes in the pan. Drizzle the olive oil over the potatoes. Sprinkle with garlic salt and pepper. Using clean hands, toss the potatoes to cover well with the olive oil. Dot the cubes of butter throughout the pan. Cover the pan with more foil. Set on the grill and allow to cook for an hour. Thirty minutes into cooking is when you should put the kafta (above) on the grill.

Tequila Lime Grilled Chicken with Cilantro Rice

2010-01-22T19:33:00.000-08:00

I hate when people say "OMG," but "OMG"! This dinner was amazing! After last night's kitchen debacle, I was ready to go out to dinner tonight. But, since we're planning on purchasing a new couch soon, we decided to just use the marinating chicken and follow through with my intended plan. I am SO glad I followed through instead of giving up! Isn't that what teachers try to instill in their students?! How could I live with myself if I didn't follow my own advice? I got this recipe from Annie's Eats and, of course, adapted it to suit our tastes. My husband doesn't like spicy so I had to make sure it wasn't spicy in the least. I wanted to use more tequila but stuck with the recipe because I was scared to use too much, but now I regret that. I have changed the recipe to fit the way we prepared it, but you can find the original here. I used the original recipe, but will use the one below next time. Enjoy! Here's a printable recipe link.

Tequila Lime Grilled Chicken
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tsp. chili powder or cayenne pepper
1/2 cup tequila
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1/4 cup freshly squeeze orange juice
2 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper

Mix the chili powder, tequila, lime juice, orange juice, garlic, salt, and pepper in a large zip lock baggie. Seal and shake to mix well. Add the chicken breasts and toss to coat. Put the bag in a deep bowl and make sure the liquid covers the chicken when it rests in the bowl. Put it in the refrigerator and allow to marinate overnight. When you're ready to grill it, put it on a grill on medium heat and grill until thoroughly cooked and has beautiful black grill lines on it.

Cilantro Rice
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 shallot, minced
1 handful of chopped cilantro
1/2 small jalapeno, seeded and minced
2 T. salted butter + 1 T. to add in when the rice is cooked
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
the juice of 1-2 limes, depending how juicy your limes are
2 cups uncooked rice
4 cups water

While your chicken is grilling, melt 2 T. of salted butter in the bottom of a pot on medium-low heat. Add in the shallot and minced garlic. Move around the pan quickly and allow the shallot to become soft and translucent, but don't let the garlic burn. Add in the rice and mix well with the garlic, shallots and butter. Add in the water, and turn up the heat to high to get the water boiling. Once the rice has come to a boil, turn the heat to low and put the lid on. Allow to cook and absorb the water, about 20 minutes. Fold in the minced jalapeno, salt and pepper, the other 1 T. of butter, the juice of the limes, and the cilantro. Serve immediately with the chicken which should be done by now. We ended up squirting even more lime juice on it and the chicken while we were eating. Yum!

Chicken with Broccoli in White Cheddar Sauce

2010-01-21T20:22:00.000-08:00

Okay...I think the rain is getting to me...I had a TERRIBLE night in the kitchen! I guess it happens to the best of us--although I don't consider myself "one of the best." I had a gut feeling something was going to go wrong, but I stayed in the kitchen! I didn't have all the ingredients necessary and my butter kept burning the pan! Argh! Okay, I think I'm over it. Anyways, I love the idea of this, especially because it's from Annie's Eats. But, I just wasn't prepared. I think it had to do with a long day of work, tutoring after work, and trying to do two things at once in the kitchen. I'll put the recipe that I used below, but here's the link to Annie's dish. Good luck--I hope you have more success than I did!

Chicken with Broccoli in White Cheddar Sauce
1 chicken breast, grilled (I used the George Foreman)
8 oz. tube pasta
1 c whole milk
2 c. broccoli florets
6 oz. white cheddar cheese, shredded (I used Sharp Cheddar: Vermont White)
2 T. butter
1 1/2 T. flour
1-1 1/2 tsp. minced garlic
1/4 c. of the water the pasta was boiled in

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Boil the pasta according to the package directions. The last couple of minutes of boiling the pasta, add in the broccoli and let the water come back to a boil for a few minutes. Turn the water off, but don't drain it until the end.

For the cheese sauce, begin by melting 2 T. of butter in a skillet. Add in the minced garlic and move around the pan quickly. Add in the 1 1/2 T. of flour and move around the pan quickly. Don't let any of this burn because you have to start over and it stinks! Add in the milk and let it thicken and begin to bubble. Add in the cheese and stir using a figure eight motion. By this time the pasta/broccoli should be done. Go ahead and drain it, reserving just 1/4 c. of the pasta water. Add that into the cheese sauce to thin it out a bit. Season the cheese sauce with salt and pepper to taste. Return the pasta/broccoli to the pot and pour the cheese sauce on top. Toss to coat and serve immediately.

Chicken Pesto Artichoke Calzone

2010-01-20T19:36:00.000-08:00

Wow! What a simple and delicious dinner! I love these rainy nights when I'm forced to stay inside! As a teacher, I find myself exhausted and ready for bed the minute I walk in the door each afternoon. Today, though, I had the opportunity to observe a few of my fellow teachers and came home with lots of energy and a grocery bag full of the ingredients needed for this calzone. I am newly addicted visitor of Annie's Eats, and her recipes are so inspiring! I love that I have a wealth of recipes at my fingertips! Enjoy this recipe and check out her site for even more delicious ones!

Chicken Pesto Artichoke Calzone
1 pizza dough
basil pesto
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
2 chicken breasts, grilled
1/2 can of canned artichokes, drained and rinsed and coarsely chopped
1-2 tsp minced garlic
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 500 degrees; put pizza stone in oven while it heats up and allow pizza stone to heat for at least 30 minutes. Salt and pepper both sides of chicken; grill until well done. Cut into chunks when it's done and set aside. Flour a piece of parchment paper and roll out pizza dough to the size of your pizza stone. Spread some pesto on the dough; for a pizza you'd leave some room around the edges, but for this you can go out as far as you'd like with the pesto. Also, I don't have an exact measurement on the pesto, but it should be a good enough layer to cover the dough. Put on as much or as little as you'd like. Put 1/2 c. mozzarella cheese on just half of the dough. Chop the artichokes and garlic together. Layer on top of cheese. Add the grilled chicken, a bit more pesto and the rest of the cheese. Feel free to add more cheese! Fold the dough over so you create a half moon shape. Fold the edges over on each other to make sure the dough is sealed. Bake about 10 minutes, or until crust is golden brown with a few darker spots on top. Serve with ranch dipping sauce! Yummy!

Holiday (or Everyday!) Cheeseball

2010-01-20T17:05:00.001-08:00

So many people have the preconceived notion that cheeseballs are lumps of over-processed junk--which they usually are--and are always left untouched at parties. This recipe, however, is always the first thing to be devoured at all my family parties. Pictures to come!

Cheeseball

2 (8 oz.) pkgs. cream cheese, at room temp.
8 green onions, sliced into small rings
4 oz. dried beef (Carl Buddig is best), chopped
4 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Chop beef and green onions. Mix the beef, green onions, Worcestershire, cream cheese, and 3/4 cup cheese. Turn out onto a piece of wax paper and form into a ball. Roll it in the remaining 1/4 cup cheese. Transfer to a plate, cover with plastic wrap and let chill in refrigerator for 2 hours. Bring out of fridge at least 20 minutes before serving to allow it to soften a bit. Ritz crackers, wheat thins, club crackers, or Triscuits are the best choice of crackers to serve with it.