November Re-Make Recap

So Cassie over at Cassie Craves is one of my favorite bloggers. In October she posted a "re-make recap" of the month of October- all the meals she had remade from her blog. I LOVED this idea. As a food blogger there is a lot of pressure to constantly have new material to blog- therefore you are constantly making new meals and trying new things in the kitchen. Taking time to highlight some meals we remade will be great for both me and you! For you as a reader you'll get to see what I really like and remake as well as any changes I've made overtime, and for me it'll be a reminder and encouragement to remake some old recipes!

So without further ado, here's what I remade and enjoyed in November.

Skinny Greek Yogurt Chicken is one of my favorite recipes. The topping is great and so flavorful, plus it's easy to make. I have made it ahead of time (like the night before) and just tossed it in the oven when needed. This time I made it with thin chicken because it was all I had and it worked better than I expected. It's definitely better with thicker chicken but the thin was good. John, who is not a yogurt guy, said "What kind of cheese is this? It's so good!" The topping can really trick even the most reluctant eaters.

Chicken pesto pasta bake is a great recipe for using up rotisserie chicken. I buy a rotisserie breast 1-2 times a month so I am always looking for ways to use it. This is such a family pleaser in our house so we were all happy to have it again.

BBQ chicken pizza is probably the pizza I make most frequently. I love it! I love the combo of flavors and I always have the ingredients on hand. Such a family pleasing meal around here!

Tortellini soup is one of Landon's favorite foods. I make it slightly different for him (I use frozen chopped spinach and instead of red peppers I throw in peas/carrots) but it's the same base recipe. He eats so much of this and it's great because I get a ton of veggies in him this way. Luckily he's still at that age where he eats everything- we haven't entered the picky toddler years yet.

Revolutionary macaroni and cheese is another of Landon's favorite meals. A few months ago we were really struggling with Landon's eating. When he started daycare and I returned to work he refused to take a bottle/cup. He was used to nursing and was not willing to take a bottle. Everyone told me to give it time, he would take it. Well, he never did. Three months later he is just starting to drink water from a sippy. He also went on a strike at daycare and refused to eat there too. So he was going all day with no liquids or no food. Now he's a whole new little man and eats a LOT of food. To the point where we sometimes have to say, "That's enough Landon." This macaroni and cheese is one of all his all time favorites and I love it because it cooks in the milk. I don't bake it when I make it for Landon and I add peas and carrots. 

Pizza Italiano is a great recipe. The pesto and oil make the chicken amazing. The cheese is light and spread evenly over the pizza so it's not a heavy meal. We loved this as much the second time around as we liked it the first time.

Thanksgiving gave me the opportunity to remake a ton of our favorite recipes. Some of the meals I remade for Thanksgiving were...

...Corn casserole- this is hands down my family's favorite side. I make it for Thanksgiving and Easter and it is the most popular thing I make.

...stuffing- This is the only stuffing recipe I use. This year I used half regular bread cubes and half cornbread cubes because the store was out of just regular bread cubes and it was still really good. I also never use the fresh parsley anymore. I just throw in some dried and call it a day.

...Spinach dip is another part of the meal that my family expects. I've been making this version since 2008 and rarely make another variety. And when I do I typically regret it and wish I made this one. I have changed it over the years- I use 16 ounces of sour cream and about 1/3 cup of mayo. I don't love mayo so I prefer it this way.

...Brownie bottom delights were excellent for dessert. I could eat these daily.

I can't wait to see what I remake in December! I forse many cookies in my future...

Raspberry Baked Brie

This year was my fourth year hosting Thanksgiving. I think I finally have it down. The first two years I was frantic. I mean, there's a lot of pressure! It's arguably the biggest meal of the year. The whole day focuses on one thing- dinner! So messing up is really not ok. Now, four years in (and a burnt turkey plus a small oven fire... different years, thank you very much!) I am much more relaxed. However, no matter how relaxed I am, I just cannot photograph that day. Hence the blurry, lacking color, picture above of baked brie. It may not be pretty but it's amazing, and much more appealing looking in person.

I became obsessed with baked brie with raspberry this past year. John and I attended 6 weddings between May and October so we had our fair share of wedding appetizers. One thing that appeared at almost all 6 weddings was raspberry and brie in some form or another. I am hooked. I think this appetizer will be a staple in my home because it's so easy and yet so delicious. I really didn't follow a recipe, I just made it based off the simple ingredients I knew it needed, but it's far from an original recipe. Try this- it'll impress your guests and be absolutely delicious.

Ingredients:

1 sheet puff pastry

1 small wheel of brie (5-8oz)

1/4 cup raspberry preserve

Directions:

1- Preheat the oven to 350.

2- Slice the brie wheel in half, lengthwise. Cover with the preserve, then place the brie back together (essentially creating an Oreo with the preserve as your filling).

3- Place the brie in the center of the puff pastry sheet. Fold the pastry over the brie. Place fold side down in a baking dish and bake 30 minutes or until golden brown. 

Cajun Ranch Chicken Sandwiches

First off, I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I know our holiday was great. Lots of good food, good company, etc. This past week I was so busy with parent-teacher conferences, Thanksgiving, a day trip, and just life that blogging escaped me. I do apologize. This coming week is equally insane with more nights of conferences, Landon's first birthday (HOW?!?!?!), and Landon's first birthday party. I am not going to neglect you this week though, I'm planning ahead for once!

So anyway, back to the topic of this post, cajun chicken sandwiches. John is a big cajun chicken guy. Pre-Landon we used to eat out constantly way too often. We still eat out quite frequently but we have really cut it back. One of our current indulgences on nights I don't cook is ordering in from this local bar and grill. They make an awesome cajun chicken melt that John is pretty enamored with. When I saw this recipe for cajun chicken sandwiches pop up I knew I needed to try them. John and I were both huge fans. I mean, c'mon, bacon, cheese, spicy seasonings... winner!

Source: Very slightly adapted from Cassie Craves

Ingredients:
4 strips of bacon, halved
4 boneless skinless chicken breast cutlets, pounded thin
Cajun or creole seasoning
4 slices cheddar cheese
Ranch dressing

Lettuce/tomato
4 sandwich buns, split and toasted

Directions:
1. Add the bacon to a large skillet and cook over medium heat to desired crispness. Remove to paper towels to drain.
2. Season chicken generously with Cajun seasoning. In the same skillet you used for the bacon, cook the chicken until browned and cooked through.
3. To serve, place chicken on the bottom half of a bun and top with a slice of cheddar cheese, two pieces of bacon, and a drizzle of ranch dressing. Top with lettuce and tomato. 

Brownie Bottom Delights

First off, don't make fun of my name for these. I've told you before that coming up with creative names for my recipes is my downfall. I'm descriptive, but I'm not creative. See- these have brownies on the bottom, and they truly are delightful, so... brownie bottom delights it is! Anyway, let's get on track, I know you're more interested in the recipe and less interested in my babble, I understand.

 I made these over a month ago for a family gathering. I had seen recipes like this all over pinterest but I didn't follow any in particular, rather just went for it based off the pictures I had seen. I did two versions- mini muffin tins and a 8x8 pan since this makes a lot. Next time I'd just do a 9x13 pan and call it a day. They all stuck to the mini muffin tins even though I greased the pan excessively and it drove me insane, so in the future these will be made as pictured above. Note I said "in the future"- these will be made often for gatherings. In fact I'm 99% sure these will be gracing my dessert table for Thanksgiving- they are sinfully good!

Ingredients:
1 box brownie mix, prepared as directed
1 batch chocolate chip cookie dough
1 bag mini Reese's peanut butter cups

Directions:
1- Preheat the oven to 350.
2- Pour the brownie batter to the bottom of the 9x13 dish (greased very well).
3- Top with the mini pb cups (you can chop them up or leave them whole).
4- Dalloop the cookie batter over top.
5- Bake 25-30 minutes or until the top is golden, the bottom and sides are firm, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (That might be hard to do since it'll likely go in a pb cup and come out melty, I just kind of judged by color and lack of "wiggle" to the brownies).
6- Allow to cool completely before serving.

Broccoli with Cajun Garlic Butter

Well, hello there friends! It's been quite some time, hasn't it? John and I were without power for 11 (very long) days due to Hurricane Sandy. We were living with John's parents during that time and I just didn't have the time or energy to cook or blog. But I am back! And my triumphant return comes with... broccoli. Lame, I know! But I swear this is GOOD broccoli. You see, I thought about bringing you one of the fun desserts I have on deck to share, or a new chicken sandwich... but it's been so long since I shared a veggie side, so the broccoli wins. It's nicely seasoned, has a lot of flavor, and went great with the meal I served it with (coming soon!) Come back Wednesday and I'll share a decadent dessert to make up for my big return to blogging being broccoli, I promise!

Source: Cassie Craves

Ingredients:
1 bag frozen steam-in-a-bag broccoli (or 2 heads broccoli, chopped into florets and steamed without salt)
2 tablespoons butter
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning

Directions:
1. While the broccoli is steaming, heat the butter in a small skillet over low heat. Add the garlic and continue to cook over low heat until fragrant. Add the Cajun seasoning and stir until it's fully incorporated.
2. Place the broccoli in a large bowl and pour the warm butter mixture over it, tossing gently to combine. Serve immediately.

Hurricane Sandy

As you are aware Hurricane Sandy has ravaged the Northeast. 5 days later I still don't have power (and might not for another 10 days or so). I just waited over an hour to fill my gas tank and I feel LUCKY that I only had to wait one hour. My husband can't get into work because there is a boat (yes, a boat) on the train tracks and NYC is still a mess. I can't go to work because there is no power. Life is at a standstill. But I have a house, my family, friends, and for that I am grateful.

I've mentioned I'm from Jersey about 10,000 times on this blog. But did I mention that I grew up by the shore? Probably not because I don't like to get too specific about where I live, but I grew up in a town about 15-20 minutes from the beach. Growing up we called it "the beach" and I used to cringe when I went to college and heard people refer to it as "the shore". To me that was the surest sign you were not a local- when you went to "the shore" and not "the beac"h. So anyway, this shore, this beach, this state... it's my home. And now... it's gone. So much of what I know and love is gone.

When I was little my dad and I would go to the beach and sit on a bench, eating Ring Dings and watching the seagulls.

When I was a kid I went to Jenkinson's boardwalk every Thursday night to go on rides and see fireworks.

When I was a teenager we used to go to Manasquan Inlet before school, after school, during school,  and hang out.

When I was bored I drove to the beach. I spent more time on the beach than not in my late teen years.

And then this summer, we didn't go. I wanted to take Landon to Seaside boardwalk but didn't...we said we'd just take him next summer when he was older...  and now I regret it. Because it's gone. But we did go to Cape May in September. We introduced Landon to the beach... and I'm glad he got to experience part of it the way it originally was.

But for now I won't be blogging. I don't have power (or food- it's all thrown out) so there will be a small break until I have the ability to blog... but if you have it in you please donate. The Red Cross needs all the help they can get with this tragedy. You never think it'll be you- you never think it'll be your town on TV needing help... but sometimes, it is. And this time, it's us. So if you have it to give, please do.

I'll be back soon!