Broccoli, cheese, and rice casserole

Since I have begun cooking mostly from scratch and using less and less already made, processed foods, one of the hardest transitions I have had is finding interesting and new side dishes. I am constantly looking for things to make that are not baked potatoes, orzo, etc. I stumbled across this Cooking Light recipe on this blog and though it sounds interesting. We loved it!! It kind of reminded me of broccoli and cheese soup. I only used 1 box of broccoli, the original recipe calls for 2, and it was still a lot of food. Overall, a real winner and I will definitely make this again.

Ingredients:
1 cup uncooked instant white rice
1/2 cup chopped onion (I used onion powder- about 1 tablespoon)
1/4 cup fat-free milk (I used 1/3 cup of milk based on reviews)
4 ounces light processed cheese, cubed
2 (10 oz.) packages of chopped broccoli (I only used 1 box and it was still a lot of broccoli)
1 (10 3/4 oz.) can of reduced sodium condensed cream of mushroom soup

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Spray a 2 quart casserole dish with cooking spray.
3. Mix all ingredients and spoon into casserole dish.
4. Bake for 45 minutes.

Garlic Balsamic Steak

I don't cook beef often but every once in a while I decide to try something new for the sake of John. I picked up some steaks at the food store and found this recipe online for a steak marinade that had some of our favorite ingredients- balsamic vinegar and garlic! It was great! I didn't get a good picture of the steak, but this marinade was great!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup soy sauce

3 tablespoons garlic, minced

2 tablespoons honey

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons ground black pepper

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke flavoring (omitted)

1 pinch cayenne pepper (I used cajun seasoning because it was what I had on hand)

Directions:
1- Stir the ingredients together. In a shallow dish, pour the marinade over the steak.
2- Allow it to sit in the marinade for several hours. I let it sit 8 hours, the original recipe said 24-48 hours... but honestly after 8 hours it was perfectly permeated with the taste!
3- Cook according to your prefered method (I grilled mine on my grill pan).

Oatmeal Jumbos

John and I are moving into our new house in 2 weeks (!!) and therefore we really need to use up some of the stuff we have. While we are only moving a few blocks away, the less food we have to move the better. I currently have a lot of baking supplies that have little to nothing left in the package. When I found this recipe for oatmeal cookies loaded with candies I knew it was the perfect recipe to use up all of the half empty bags of chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, etc. Not to mention a great way to use up the last of that giant container of oatmeal I have had lying around! I have had this recipe starred in my google reader for awhile now and figured our Thanksgiving celebration tonight would be a good excuse to make them and use up some of these ingredients. I followed the recipe but decreased the amount of candies in order to make the cookies sturdier. Below is what I actually used. I decided to make the recipe following the directions to make them "jumbo" and that is not an exaggeration! These cookies are BIG! AND tasty! I really enjoyed these cookies and will make them again with different mix ins!

Ingredients:
1 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups old fashioned oatmeal
3/4 cup chocolate chips
3/4 cup M&M’s
3/4 cup Reese’s Peanut Butter Chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350.
In mixing bowl, combine peanut butter and butter until blended. Add the brown sugar, sugar, baking powder and baking soda. Beat until well mixed. Add eggs and vanilla. Beat until combined.
Gently fold in the oatmeal, chocolate chips and candy.

For Jumbo Cookies: Drop dough by 1/4 cup balls onto parchemnt lined baking sheet about 5 inches apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until light brown. Allow to cool on sheet for 10 minutes before tranfering to rack to cool completely.
For average cookies: Drop dough by medium scooper on parchment lined baking sheets and bake for 8-10 minutes until light brown and just set around edges. Cool on sheet for 10 minutes before transfering to rack to cool completely.

Chocolate Pudding Pie

Tonight we are celebrating Thanksgiving with some friends and I volunteered to bring some desserts. One of the desserts I am bringing is this pie. Something about it is just so good! Now I am not saying this recipe is fancy, but the results will not disappoint! I found this recipe on Kraft's website and decided to give it a try. It reminds me of Hershey's chocolate pie. Very yummy and very simple!

Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups cold milk
1 pkg. (4-serving size) JELL-O Chocolate Instant Pudding
1 OREO Pie Crust (6 oz.)
2 cups thawed COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, divided

Directions:
Pour milk into large bowl. Add dry pudding mix. Beat with wire whisk 2 min. or until well blended. Spoon half of the pudding into crust.

Gently stir 1 cup of the whipped topping into remaining pudding; spoon over pudding layer in crust.

Top with the remaining 1 cup whipped topping. Refrigerate at least 3 hours. Store any leftover pie in refrigerator.

Lasagna

** Let me first say lasagna is so hard to get a good picture of, so please excuse the picture- it tastes a lot better then it looks!

Tonight John and I brought dinner to my parents. I made lasagna because it is one of my favorite foods and also one of the least practical foods for me to make for just us since we don't typically like left overs. This is my classic way to make lasagna... No real recipe, just noodles and cheese!

Ingredients:
1 box of lasagna
15 oz. ricotta cheese
2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese
1 egg
1 jar (or equivalent amount) of sauce

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350
Cook noodles according to package, drain
In a small bowl, beat the egg and the ricotta cheese together until smooth.
Spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray. Pour some sauce on the bottom of the pan until the bottom is lightly coated.
Lay 3 noodles across the bottom of the pan- top with 1/2 cup ricotta cheese- spread evenly
Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.
Top with a layer of sauce.
Repeat layering until the ingredients are complete.
Bake for 40 minutes or until hot in the center.

*I like to alternate the directions of the noodles in the pan so it holds better when I slice it!

Peanut Butter Pretzel Snaps

Anyone else LOVE the combination of sweet and salty? If so, this is the dessert/snack for you! I had these for the first time when our friend James' mother made them. They are so delightfully simple. The only thing is that they can be time consuming because you have to put one of each ingredient carefully stacked on top of the other. These little pretzel snaps are ALWAYS a hit. Enjoy!

P.S.- I have to thank John for dealing with me and sorting my M&Ms by color so I could use only Fall colors for these! Thanks babe!!

Ingredients:
1 bag of Snyder pretzel Snaps
1 bag of peanut butter wafers (I buy them at Michaels or A.C. Moore in the baking/Wilton aisle)
M&Ms

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 200.
Lay the desired number of pretzels flat on a cookie sheet.
Place one peanut butter wafer on top of each pretzel.
Place the cookie sheet in the oven. Allow the peanut butter to get warm (this takes about 3 minutes).
Remove from the oven, place one M&M on each peanut butter pretzel.
Allow to cool completely before serving.

Oreo Truffles

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I will be making 3 different dessert recipes for Thanksgiving, one for the actual day (tomorrow) and two for a celebration on Saturday. The first one that I made was oreo truffles. This recipe is so easy and simple. However, people will think it is fancy and that you spent a lot of time making it (win win in my book!) I had heard rave reviews about these Oreo Truffles for awhile now. I believe the recipe originates from Kraft. However, I used the recipe from this blog as a guide as I made them. As I googled this recipe, I found tons of different advice on the best way to make them. The following is what I did. The end results are a very chocolatey, fudgy, delicious truffle. ENJOY!



Ingredients:
1 package of Oreo cookies
1 8oz package of cream cheese, at room temperature
2 8 oz boxes of Semi-Sweet Bakers Chocolate

Directions:

1- Take 5 Oreos and set them aside. Using the remainder, crush them in either a food processor or a ziplock bag (with a rolling pin or by hand) until the cookies are broken into small pieces.
2- In a mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese and Oreo crumbs until there is no more white clumps.
3- Roll the mix into balls (I got about 40 out of this mix... some people get less, some get more... I guess it depends on the size you want).
4- Place the balls on 2 cookie sheets covered in wax paper- refrigerate for one hour.
5- Melt the chocolate, dip each ball into the chocolate. Use two forks to lift the balls out of the chocolate and remove excess chocolate. Return to cookie sheets.
6- Using the 5 reserved cookies, smash them until they form a fine powder of cookie crumbs. Sprinkle the truffles with cookie crumbs before the chocolate sets.
7- Refrigerate until serving.

Grilled Buffalo Chicken Sandwich

John loves buffalo chicken sandwiches. I decided to make them tonight but I made them a little bit lighter by grilling the chicken instead of breading it. Honestly, I didn't miss the breading! It was just as good. They were great! Enjoy =)

Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts
1/2 cup Frank's Buffalo Wing sauce
2 slices of provolone cheese
2 hard rolls
2 tablespoons of light ranch
lettuce

Directions:

1- Grill the chicken. When it is 3/4 of the way cooked, use a pastry/basting brush and brush on the buffalo wing sauce. Flip the chicken and baste the other side with wing sauce. Flip and repeat several times until cooked through.

2- Top grilled chicken with a slice of provolone. Allow the chicken to sit on the grill about 1 minute until the cheese melts. Transfer chicken to roll, top with ranch and lettuce.

Rachel Ray's Lemon Spaghetti

While most people can't stand Rachel Ray, I like her a lot! I love her magazine, her talk show, and even her recipes. Tonight I made her recipe for lemon spaghetti. I had originally seen this recipe on this blog and had wanted to try it for awhile. John and I had tried Giada's recipe for lemon spaghetti several months ago and were not impressed so we had high hopes for this version. Overall it was ok. I am thinking maybe we just aren't fans of lemon spaghetti haha. The recipe was tasty, I just don't like how strong the lemon was. If you like lemon this is definitely for you! Also, if you don't like food spicy either reduce the red pepper flakes or omit them because we felt it was a little spicy.

I cut the recipe in half and it made 3 big servings for us.

Ingredients:
Salt
1 pound spaghetti (I used linguini)
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 lemons, zested and juiced
1/2 to 3/4 cup heavy cream (I use light cream)
1 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano
Handful flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped (I used dry- about 1/2 tablespoon)
1/2 cup (10 or 12 leaves) fresh basil, very thinly sliced (I used dry- about 1/2 tablespoon)

Directions:
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Salt the water and drop the spaghetti into the pot.

2. Heat a large deep skillet over low heat. Add extra-virgin olive oil and garlic and crushed red pepper flakes.

3. When the pasta has been cooking about 5 minutes, add lemon juice, a ladle of the cooking water from the pasta and the cream to the garlic and oil. Raise heat a bit to bring sauce to a bubble.

4. Drain pasta when it still has a good bite to it, al dente. Add lemon zest and half of the cheese to the cream sauce. Season the sauce with salt, to taste. Add pasta to pan and turn off heat. Toss the pasta with sauce a minute or 2, allowing it time to soak up the sauce.

5. Top the plates of pasta or platter with remaining cheese, parsley and basil.

Turkey Pin Wheels

Is anyone else obsessed with the Food Network? It's pretty much my favorite channel to watch. I am not picky with the Food Network either, I watch it all. One day I was watching Sandra Lee and she made these cute turkey pin wheels. I made them today for John and I for lunch. When Sandra Lee made them she cut them into 1 inch pieces to serve as an appetizer. I just cut the wrap into two pieces and served it as a wrap/sandwich, but I would definitely make this again for an appetizer for company. They were great! I did add provolone cheese to the recipe and when I make them again I would add crumbled bacon. Below is how I made it. It is almost the same as the original, but there are a few changes.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons garden vegetable cream cheese
2 wrap-size flour tortillas
1/2 cup shredded lettuce
4 turkey breast slices
4 slices of provolone cheese

Directions for each wrap:
Spread 1 tablespoon veggie cream cheese over entire surface of each tortilla. Top cream cheese with 1/4 cup lettuce. Place 2 slices of turkey on each tortilla. Top turkey with 2 slices of provolone cheese.

Roll the tortillas starting at the edge. Slice the wrap in half.

** If you wanted to serve these as an appetizer, just slice them into 1 inch slices rather then slicing the tortilla in half.

Chocolate Haystacks

This recipe is so easy it doesn't even really qualify as a recipe. However, it is so delicious and LIGHT that I think everyone should know about it! I first discovered this recipe from Weight Watchers and therefore it is not a fattening snack. I don't know if I would qualify this as a cookie, but I don't know what else to classify it as!

Overall, these are really good. There are many versions of these floating around on the internet. The original and more fattening version involves crispy Chinese noodles while this recipe used Fiber One cereal. I had Fiber One cereal left over from the granola bars I made yesterday and didn't want it to go to waste since it isn't a cereal John would sit down and eat a bowl of... so low and behold, chocolate haystack cookies! Don't say I didn't warn you... these are so easy to make and so good.

** The chocolate melts quickly... so keep them in the fridge after you make them. Also, I would suggest keeping them refrigerated until you eat them.


Ingredients:
2 cup(s) General Mills Fiber One
2/3 cup(s) milk chocolate chips

Directions:
Melt chocolate chips.

Add Fiber One.

Press into muffin tin and freeze. (I used regular muffin tins. Next time I would use mini muffin tins- they would be much better!)

Makes 9 treats!

Easy enough? I thought so!!

Peanut butter granola bars

One of my favorite types of granola bars are the Fiber One bars. I think they are the best tasting bars out there. When I saw this recipe on Brooke's blog I knew I had to try them. I clicked back on the original source of the recipe and saw that the original poster had updated her ingredient list to make the bars hold better. I followed the updated recipe and found that it was perfect! Not one bar crumbled! Following the advice of someone on the cooking forum I frequent, I refrigerated the bars one hour before cutting them. Overall, they were perfect.

Taste wise these are a must try. If you like granola bars these are wonderful. They have a nice consistency, similar to the packaged ones. I thought the taste was different and better then the ones I buy at the store. Plus, you can really control the ingredients. This bar is full of natural and delicious ingredients. Try them tonight!

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups Fiber One cereal
2 cups quick-cooking oats
1/4 cup chopped almonds or peanuts (I used peanuts)
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2/3 cup honey
2/3 cup peanut butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup chocolate chips (optional)

Directions:

In a large bowl, stir together the cereal, oats and nuts (I also threw in some freshly ground flaxseed for added nutrition). Set aside. Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.

Combine the brown sugar and honey in a small saucepan over medium heat. Heat just until boiling, then remove from heat and stir in peanut butter, salt, vanilla and cinnamon until smooth. Pour over the cereal and oat mixture, stirring quickly (as sugar mixture cools it hardens quickly). Immediately press mixture into the prepared pan using the back of a large spatula. Lightly press chocolate chips into top of bars (if using). Refrigerate for about 1 hour, then cut into squares. Store in an airtight container.

Stuffed Chicken in a Tomato Pesto Sauce

Tonight I cooked dinner for my parents at their house. John is away for the week for business and I will not be cooking much at all! I plan on catching up with friends this week so I will not really be making dinner, but in a week I will be back to regular posting! Anyway, on to the food...

On the cooking board that I frequent I have seen a lot of posts for Laughing Cow chicken lately. Laughing Cow is a brand of soft, spreadable cheese. I have used it to make a cream sauce and to eat on crackers. This was my first time cooking it with chicken though and I really enjoyed it. After reviewing the various recipes I decided to make a new spin to this favorite recipe based on my parents tastes. It came out great. My parents loved it which I was glad to hear!

Ingredients:
6 very thin chicken breasts (about 1/4 inch thick)
5 wedges of garlic and herb Laughing Cow cheese
1 8 ounce can of tomato sauce
1 packet of Knorr's pesto sauce mix
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1- Preheat the oven to 375*.
2- In a small bowl, place the 5 wedges of cheese. Using a spatula, smush and stir the cheese until it is smooth.
3- Lay the chicken out flat. Spread an even layer of the cheese over each chicken breast.
4- In a small saucepan combine the can of tomato sauce and the packet of Knorr's pesto mix. I did not add oil to the sauce, just the seasoning and it turned out great. Stir the mix into the sauce and heat it up a little.
5- While the sauce is heating, roll up each chicken breast. Secure with tooth picks. Pour a spoonful of the sauce mixture over the chicken.
6- Bake at 375 for 20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

Soft & Moist Brownies

This afternoon we are meeting up with John's family to celebrate my sister in law's birthday. I decided to bake brownies to bring along with us. I just recently starting baking from scratch and I love the results. Now I look for any excuse to try a new recipe since I don't like to bake for just John and I. I decided to try to find a recipe online that used only ingredients I have in the house. I came across this recipe for brownies and thought I'd give it a shot.

Well... they taste great but I really couldn't get the cook time down. After 30 minutes they were not even close to being done, so I kept them in longer. I took them out after 40 minutes and the middle was still pure batter. UGH! SO I put them back in.... the edges came out great but the middle never cooked. Any suggestions on what I did wrong? Since I only have the edges to work with I think I don't think I'll take them to my in-laws... but who knows! We will see once they completely cool what I have to work with.

Overall these taste awesome, but I need to figure out the cook time issue! It could just me my oven... I can't wait to move into our new house in a month!! An oven that works well- should be great!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 c. flour
1/2 c. powdered baking cocoa
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2/3 c. butter
2 c. sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 c. chopped nuts (omitted- I substituted 1 cup of chocolate chunks since I had them left over from cookies last week)
Sifted confectioners' sugar

Directions:
Sift together flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; set aside.
Cream together butter and sugar in bowl until light and fluffy at medium speed.

Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Blend in vanilla. Stir in dry ingredients, stirring well after each addition. Stir in walnuts.

Spread in greased 13"x9" pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Cool pan on wire racks. Dust with confectioners' sugar. Cut into 2" squares. Makes 24 bars.

Baked Mac and Cheese

Who doesn't like mac and cheese?! Honestly... it is such a great comfort food and it brings me back to being a kid when it was one of two food I would eat (the other food being chicken nuggets!) When John and I first moved in together I made "mac and cheese" by throwing pasta and cheese together in the oven.... needless to say that was one of the meals we did NOT eat. After my disaster I decided to check out a cook book and see how you were really supposed to make this stuff. Now I don't know the origins of this recipe because I have been making it for about 2 years, so I am sorry I can't reference you back to the original source! Irregardless, this is so yummy and John and I have been enjoying this recipe for a long time.

Ingredients:
2 cups of dry elbows or small shells
2 tablespoons of butter
2 tablespoons of flour
1 cup of milk
2 cups of cheese (I used sharp white cheddar, but in the past I have used 4 cheese blend and I really like that too)
bread crumbs

Directions:
1- Turn oven on to 350.
2- Bring the water to a boil, cook pasta, drain and set aside.
3- In a large saucepan, melt the butter. Once melted, stir in the flour and stir until it forms a thick paste.
4- Slowly pour in the milk, stirring constantly, until the flour is smooth in the milk.
5- Add the cheese, stir until smooth.
6- Add pasta, mix until pasta and cheese are well combined.
7- Pour into a greased baking dish. Top with a sprinkle of bread crumbs. Bake for 20 minutes uncovered.

Mexican Veggie Pasta

John and I are in the FINAL steps of buying our house and that means I need to use up some of the food I have in this house so I don't have to pack it and carry it across town. Tonight's dinner was made with that philosophy. Tonight I made a veggie and pasta dish with salsa and cheddar cheese. Sounds strange to some (namely my mother who said "gross" when I told her what I was making... thanks mom haha!) but it was GREAT! This dinner was very healthy and light. I loved the flavor of the salsa, which I was very skeptical about on pasta. This recipe can be adapted for what you have in your house as far as veggies and pasta go. John and I both really enjoyed it and there was nothing left over... which tells you something!



Ingredients:
1/2 box pasta (I used shells)
1/2 jar of salsa or more (to taste)
3/4 cup broccoli
1/2 cup corn
1/2 cup red pepper
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:
1- Cook and drain the pasta. Set aside.
2- Steam the veggies until they are almost done.
3- In a large skillet, combine pasta, veggies, and salsa.
4- Sprinkle cheese on top and allow to sit until the cheese melts.

Garlic Oven Fries

I have been making oven fries for a long time now. Oven fries are huge with people who do Weight Watchers because you can have french fries for a much lower points value. That's where I first discovered these things and I have been making them ever since. I have made them with hot sauce, plain, with parmesan cheese, and basically any way I could think of. When this recipe popped up in my google reader I got excited. I LOVE GARLIC! I can't say it loud enough, and if you read my blog, I am sure you are well aware of this love affair I have with garlic. So tonight I paired my crispy chicken strips with these oven fries and yum yum! John and I were quite happy!

Ingredients:
2-3 potatoes for two people (I used two)
Garlic Powder
salt and pepper
evoo or evoo spray

Directions:
Cut potatoes in french fry strips. Toss with evoo, salt, pepper, and garlic all to taste preference! Bake in over at 350 for 30-45 mins or until crispy.

Crispy Chicken Strips

Tonight I decided to make a really simple dinner. I made garlic oven fries and crispy chicken strips, essentially chicken fingers and french fries. Anyone who knows me knows of my unfortunate love for all fried foods. Luckily these recipes are all baked and therefore are much healthier alternatives to the real deal.

I discovered this recipe for crispy chicken strips a couple of weeks ago. Since then I knew it was just a matter of time until I made them. I followed this recipe to a T. I didn't substitute, omit, of scale down the original recipe! THAT is amazing to me because I always am changing things for John and I. This recipe was a huge hit in our house. I liked it very much but John loved it. It was a nice alternative to the typical breaded chicken. The panko made it very crispy and crunchy. If I were going to make one change I would use less italian seasoning in my panko next time. I felt 2 tablespoons made the taste very strong. Otherwise, this is a winner!

Crispy Panko Breaded Chicken Strips

Ingredients
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons onion powder
2 teaspoons paprika
2 eggs
2 tablespoons honey
8 ounces Panko bread crumbs (Italian seasoned if you can find it, if not add about 2 tablespoons Italian seasoning)

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cover a baking pan with aluminum foil to make clean-up quick and easy.

Combine flour, onion powder and paprika in a shallow dish. In a second shallow dish, beat 2 eggs, then add honey and stir to combine. In a third shallow dish, add the panko bread crumbs and Italian seasoning, if using it). Dip the chicken strips first, in the flour mixture, then the eggs and finally in the panko bread crumbs. Make sure to press the crumbs into the chicken in order to ensure they adhere to the chicken.

Please all chicken strips on prepared baking pan, then spray each strip with cooking spray. Bake for about 20 minutes or until done.

Double Chocolate Chunk Peanut Butter Chip Cookies

Wow... that title is a mouth full! So this week was my wonderful sister-in-laws birthday and I wanted to make something yummy for when we go to see her. I was searching through recipes for the past few days when someone pointed me in the direction of these cookies. They looked delicious and brownie-like. I decided to change the recipe a little and add peanut butter chips to the mix. Who doesn't like chocolate and peanut butter?!?!?!? The recipe below is what I actually made.... to see the original click on the link above!



Now onto my review... These are deeeeeeelicious! They were so moist and chewy and I love the combination of peanut butter and chocolate. Yum! Also, I really prefer chocolate chunks over chocolate chips. Since I am a chocolate lover they create a much greater chocolate to cookie ratio (Ok... maybe I am thinking too much about this haha). I would say these cookies almost taste like brownies... which is perfect because the birthday girl is a big fan of brownies! Overall... big thumbs up!

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup Baking Cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chunks
1 cup peanut butter chips

Directions:

PREHEAT oven to 350º F.

COMBINE flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in medium bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in chunks. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.

BAKE for 9 to 11 minutes or until cookies are puffed and centers are set but still soft. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Sweet and Sour Chicken

I have rarely felt that anything I made was restaurant quality. This meal is even BETTER then the sweet and sour chicken you get from local Chinese restaurants. I kid you not... it is BETTER. The sauce is amazing and the chicken is all white meat (which can not be said for my local Chinese food). I can't say enough about this amazing meal. Just make it and enjoy it. I served it with rice and baked veggie egg rolls. The one thing I will say is that this is not a weeknight meal (at least in my house!) I like my weeknight meals to be 30-40 minutes from start to finish... this took over an hour to cook but was so worth it!!



The original recipe was found on this blog.

Sweet and Sour Chicken
Chicken:
3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt and pepper
1 cup cornstarch
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup canola oil

Cut boneless chicken breasts into chunks. Season with salt and pepper. Dip chicken in cornstarch and then in egg. Fry in a little oil until brown but not cooked through. Place in a single layer in a baking dish. Mix sauce ingredients (below) together and pour over chicken.

Sauce:
¾ cup sugar
4 tablespoons ketchup
½ cup vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon garlic salt

Bake for one hour at 325 degrees, uncovered. Turn chicken every 15 minutes. If you like extra sauce, make another batch of sauce and bring it to a boil on the stovetop. Stir constantly and let cook over medium heat until thickened and reduced - about 6-8 minutes. (I don't think you will need extra sauce...this made enough to coat the chicken, use some for dipping sauce for the egg rolls, and still have left over)

Tomato Cream Sauce

Let me preface this by saying this recipe is so easy that I am not sure if it even needs to be blogged! It is a very basic tomato cream sauce but the results are amazing. It essentially tastes like a vodka sauce. This is a meal that I have made before. As I mentioned in a previous post I rarely cook things more then once unless we LOVE them. So it goes without say that we love this sauce. It is a quick and easy weeknight meal that can be as high or low maintenance as you want (depending on if you want to use homemade sauce of jarred as your base). I used a batch of my frozen homemade marinara sauce but jarred would work too. This isn't fancy people but it's delicious!



Ingredients:
Tomato sauce (about 1.5 cups but I didn't measure... so this is an educated guess)
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/2 tablespoon EVOO
1/4-1/2 cup light cream (you can use heavy cream, half and half... whatever you like)
a pinch of parsley
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1- Heat EVOO over medium heat. Add garlic.
2- Add tomato sauce and other seasonings. Heat over low heat until it is heated throughout.
3- Add in the cream and stir until well combined. Continue to heat over low until warmed.
4- Serve over pasta.

Creamy Garlic Shrimp Open Faced Sandwich

Did you ever have a night were nothing sounds good? Yup- that was tonight for me. I have the ingredients at home to make about 8 meals and not one of them sounded appealing. I decided to just pick something and I went with this recipe for creamy garlic shrimp. I loved the idea of serving it on garlic toasts and decided to make it as open faced sandwiches. I kept the recipe exactly the same except I thickened the sauce to make it more sandwichy (I know that's not a word.... hush!) Unfortunately I made it TOO thick and it was the consistency of ranch salad dressing (oops!) but it still tasted good. John really liked it which is a plus in my book!

Ingredients:
1 tbsp butter
1 large clove garlic, minced
1pounds raw jumbo shrimps, shelled and deveined-about 7 for each of us
1 tablespoon dry sherry or white wine
1/2 cup light cream
salt and pepper to taste-I left out the salt as the butter and shrimp are already salty
chopped parsley
Texas toast (I used the light kind)

Preparation:
In skillet, heat butter; cook garlic over medium-low heat until soft. Add shrimp and cook until they turn pink. Add sherry and simmer for another minute. Add cream and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer until a thick glaze forms. Garnish with chopped parsley, if desired. Serve over rice, noodles, or Texas toast (I chose light Texas toast).

Applebees Cheese Quesadillas

In high school you could find my friends and I at Applebees just about every Friday night after 10. They had 1/2 priced appetizers after 10 and honestly, to a high school kid that is quite the deal! One thing I always got was the cheese quesadillas. While I am not a huge fan of Applebees now, I still have a spot in my heart for those quesadillas. So when I stumbled across this copy cat recipe I knew I wanted to try them. Quesadillas are so easy to make. They literally come together in 10 to 15 minutes and they are so good. This recipe was awesome and tasted similar to the Applebees ones! I didn't make them with chicken because I prefer my quesadillas without chicken, but the original recipe does call for chicken so decide which way you want it! The ingredients below are for each individual quesadilla.


Ingredients:

2 slices lean bacon (sliced into 1/2" pieces)
2 flour tortillas (8" diameter)
softened butter (softened for lightly spreading on tortilla shells)
1 tablespoon pico de gallo
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese (I didn't measure... I just covered the pico and bacon)
picante sauce or salsa


Directions
1- Bake bacon ( in a single layer on a rimmed cookie sheet) in the oven at 375 for 20 minutes.
2- Once done, pat dry and chop into small pieces.
3- Spread butter lightly on one side of the flour tortilla shell.
4- Place buttered side of shell down, into a non-stick fry pan (I used my grill pan) that has been preheated on medium heat.
5- Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of bacon over entire shell, then add 1 tablespoon Pico de gallo, and 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese over the bacon.
6- Place the second flour shell on top of fixings, buttered side up.
7- Cook for about one- two minutes just long enough to heat the inside ingredients and then carefully flip the quesadilla on the other side and finish cooking.
8- Cook until the tortilla is lightly toasted and gets golden in spots.

Pierogi Lasagna

This is the best recipe I have tried in a LONG time. When John and I first moved in together three summers ago I had very limited cooking abilities. I could make pasta, rice-a-roni, and chicken. Oh and I could defrost frozen things. One of those frozen creations that I made frequently was pierogies. I would buy the box, toss them in a pan with butter, and call it dinner. Luckily for John and I my cooking has improved a little since those days (although there is something to be said for low maintenance meals!) When I saw this recipe for pierogi lasagna I knew I needed to make it immediately. All I can say is this was incredible. John and I both loved it and I will definitely be making it again.

The recipe below is for the quantities of the original recipe, which makes 12 servings. I made 1/3 of the recipe and it still made a lot of food! My friend Maria was here during the cooking process and I had so much extra potato mixture that I fed her a heaping bowl of the mashed potatoes. All in all, a huge success. So my advice is to make this now! And I should also add, my pictures don't do this justice... check out the original recipe to get a better idea of the look of this amazing lasagna!

Ingredients:

1 lb lasagna noodles
4 lbs red or white potatoes
1/4 c sour cream (optional) (I didn't use it)
1/2 c milk
2 c shredded cheddar cheese
3/4 c butter (1.5 sticks)
1 onion, sliced in rings (omitted)

Directions:
Cook the noodles. Chop potatoes into 1" cubes, place in pot of cold water (enough to cover), and allow to come to a boil. Continue boil until potatoes are soft enough to yield to a fork stab. Drain, mash, blend with a mixer. Toss in the optional sour cream and milk, mix some more. Add salt to taste. Stir in cheddar.

Melt all the butter over medium-high heat, then sautee onion until the rings no longer hold their shape.

Preheat oven to 375. Grease the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish with some of the onion-butter. Lay noodles on the bottom of the dish, then spread the potatoes, a dollop at a time, along the length of each noodle. Once done, smooth the potatoes, then spread about a quarter of the onion on top, and drizzle a small amount of butter as well. Repeat this twice (or more if your dish can accommodate), then top with noodles and the remainder of the onions and butter.

Pop in the oven for 20 minutes. Allow to cool 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

Ghirardelli Chocolate Chip Cookies

So my wonderful first graders earned 100 marbles this week which in turn earns them a "party" of their choice. After careful deliberation and voting they decided they wanted a cookie party. I decided to go with chocolate chip cookies since six year olds aren't typically know for their eclectic and diverse food choices.

If you have ever searched the internet for a chocolate chip cookie recipe you know there are seriously more choices of chocolate chip cookies then really anything else! Also, every recipe claims to be "the best." So where does one turn? Well.... I turned to the back of the bag of chocolate chips! Ghirardelli chocolate chips are, in my opinion, the best chocolate chips out there. So I figured the cookie recipe should be equally delicious. I was not disappointed. They are crisp on the edge, soft and moist on the inside, and full of chocolate chips. Yum yum yum! I am sure my 19 little judges will enjoy them tomorrow!

The following picture was appropriately named "cookie porn" by my wonderful husband.

Ingredients:

2 1 4 cups unsifted flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 eggs
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional- I didn't use this due to nut allergies)
12 ounce bag semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Stir flour, baking soda, and salt together. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together butter, sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and cream again until fluffy. Gradually blend dry mixture into creamed mixture. Gently stir in nuts and chocolate chips.

Drop tablespoons of dough onto ungreased cookie sheets, keeping cookies about 2 inches apart. Bake at 375 degrees for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown.