Baked Foil Wrapped Chicken Cheesesteaks

We recently got back from a beach vacation and since our return I've been dreaming of chicken cheesesteaks. When we were at the beach there was a little luncheonette connected to our hotel so John would pick us up sandwiches daily while Landon napped and I think I ate a cheesesteak... daily. What can I see.. a pregnant woman knows what they want. I decided I wanted to make my own when we got home so I threw it together, wrapped it in foil, and baked it. I've learned that I really like baking my sandwiches once they are done if they are meant to be served hot and melty with cheese because it helps melt the cheese, toast the bread, etc. John and I both loved these! A real "must make" again.

Source: Stephanie Cooks Original

Ingredients:
1 tsp olive oil
1 bell pepper, sliced thin (I used half a red and half a green)
4 thin chicken breasts
Garlic powder and pepper
Lawry's  seasoning salt
2 sub rolls
6 slices white american cheese
Tin foil

Directions:
1- Heat oven to 400. Heat a non-stick pan with the oil. Add the bell peppers and allow to heat.
2- Meanwhile, slice the chicken into thin pieces. Add the garlic powder, black pepper, and Lawry's seasoning salt. Coat the chicken well, stirring to evenly coat.
3- Turn up the heat in the pan. Add the chicken. Allow to slightly brown, then stir.
4- Cook until chicken is cooked through. Remove the skillet from the heat and set aside.
5- Slice your sub rolls. Place two slices on the bottom of each sub. Top evenly with the chicken and pepper mixture.  Take the two remaining cheese slices, breaking each in half, and lightly top the chicken mixture with cheese. Cover with the top sub roll.
6- Place each sub in the middle of a square of foil. Fold tightly. Bake 10 minutes, until the cheese is melty and the roll is warm. Serve hot.

Grilled Chicken Spiedies Sandwich

Freshman year of college I had a roommate from upstate NY- particularly the Binghamton area. I went home with her a few times over the year and quickly learned about chicken spiedies. If you're not from NY (like me) and have never heard of it, it's awesome. In her town they had it everywhere- on pizza, sandwiches, platters, pre-made at the grocery store, at restaurants, etc. I think I ate it in every form I could find!

Since I live a solid 4ish+ hours from there, going for a ride for some chicken is out of the question. I did some searching and came upon this recipe. It needs 24 hours-4 days to marinade (I did 2 days) so you do have to plan ahead. The end results? Delicious. I made half the recipe but next time I'd make the whole thing and use it all week in various dishes. A true throwback to freshman year!

(True confession: I made this last fall and saved it to share this spring! I didn't want to share it in the winter... and since NJ seems to be going on an endless winter, better now that never!)

Source: Grocery Budget 101

Ingredients:

Chicken spiedies:
2-1/2 pounds chicken, cubed
1 cup olive oil
1/2 cup white vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
2-1/2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1-1/2 teaspoons garlic salt
1 tablespoon and 1-1/2 teaspoons crushed dried mint
1 tablespoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper

Directions:
1- In a medium bowl combine the olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, salt, garlic, garlic salt, oregano, garlic salt, mint, basil, and black pepper, whisking together. Place the chicken in a gallon size zip-seal bag. Pour sauce over top.

2- Seal the container and shake until combined. Refrigerate for at least 24 Full hours- up to 4 days, shaking the container to turn the meat every 8 hours or so.

3- Skewer the meat with the soaked skewers and place on grill to cook, turning every three minutes until cooked through and the internal temperature of the meat reaches 170 degrees F.

4- Place chicken on sandwich rolls. Top with cheese, lettuce, and any desired toppings.

Foil Baked Chicken Parmesan Sandwiches

Landon has entered a new stage of toddlerhood: The "I don't want to sleep and I'll come up with 2,500 ways to avoid it" phase. Ugh. It's like, the least fun thing... EVER. So with that said we have pushed bedtime back to 7:15. However, John gets home at 7:30 or so and that's when we eat dinner, so I have about 15 minutes to cook. I've had to get creative and find meals that I can basically make and throw in the oven while I'm up trying to get Landon to bed. These sandwiches were perfect for that! I assembled them, put them in the oven, and then dealt with the battle routine of bedtime.

Let me tell you, these were GOOD. I made them even easier and used Perdue Simply Smart chicken breasts as the chicken. If you haven't tried that chicken yet you must. It's all normal ingredients and it's yummy. It's way juicier and more flavorful then my regular breaded chicken so it's become a staple in my house for nights I don't want to take the extra step. These sandwiches were amazingly easy to make and delicious. John and I both really enjoyed how the bread got warm and slightly crisp. A perfect sandwich!

Source: Adapted from Cassie Craves

Ingredients:
2 sub rolls
2 breaded chicken breasts, cooked and warm
Sliced mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup marinara sauce
1/4 cup sliced basil leaves
2 sheets of heavy aluminum foil

Directions:
1- Preheat the oven to 350.
2- Slice the rolls in half. Spread a thin layer of sauce on both sides of the bread. Place a few slices of cheese on the bottom part of the roll. Top with chicken. Spread more sauce over the chicken, topping with more sliced cheese and sliced basil. Close the bread, gently pushing down.
3- Roll the subs inside the foil, ensuring there is no roll showing through. Bake for 20-30 minutes.
4- Serve hot.

Pesto Chicken & Red Pepper Panini

When it comes to food I tend to have very defined opinions. There are foods or brands that I find superior and foods that just don't do it for me. I'm not usually very "go with the flow" about food (ask John... he often says "It's JUST food!" to me). So color me surprised that I'm still not forming a final opinion on my favorite bread to use in my panini grill. After making garlic chicken paninis I was pretty confident it was Italian bread, but now that I've used flatbread... I just can't decide! Ultimately what it comes down to is anything grilled in bread is likely to come out amazing.

I recently made a dinner using pesto and had a small amount left. I decided to use that pesto to make a panini and here we are. Totally delicious. John and I were fans, both of us happily eating and enjoying life. We will definitely have these again, especially considering how easy they are!

Source: Stephanie Cooks Original
Yields 2 paninis

Ingredients:
2 flatbreads (or pocketless pita bread)
3 tsp olive oil, divided
6 ounces chicken, sliced thin (about 1 large thick breast)
Salt/pepper/garlic powder
2 roasted red pepper pieces (from a jar), sliced thin
1/4 cup pesto
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
1/2 tsp Italian seasonings

Directions:
1- Pour 1 tsp of olive oil into a skillet and heat. Meanwhile, sprinkle salt, pepper, and garlic powder over the chicken.
2- Once the oil is hot add the chicken to the skillet. Cook until browned and almost cooked through.
3- Pour the pesto and red peppers into the skillet.
4- Cook an additional 2 minutes, until the mix is hot and coated with pesto.
5- Slice each flatbread in half. Divide the chicken and pepper mixture over one side. Top with 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella on each sandwich. Top with the remaining piece of flatbread.
6- In a small bowl combine the 2 tsp of olive oil with the Italian seasonings. Brush the mixture over the top piece of flatbread.
7- Transfer to a hot panini press and cook until the cheese melts and the bread is browned.

BBQ Chicken Panini

We have an amazing Italian deli that we love and visit regularly. Recently while there I grabbed a pound of their breaded chicken tenders from the deli counter. I wanted to use it in a recipe and figured a pound would be about 6 tenders. Well... it ended up being closer to 15 tenders and I was stuck scrambling for ways to use up the chicken before it went bad. Enter these paninis! I really can't say enough about them. They were easy, delicious, and full of flavor. We made these for lunch over the weekend a few weeks back and were both silent as we devoured them. I added the basil as a last second decision, mostly because I had it on hand and figured why not, but I liked the flavor it added to the sandwich. Best of all we typically have all these ingredients on hand making this a perfect weeknight meal.

Source: Stephanie Cooks Original

Ingredients per panini:
4-5" piece of Italian bread
3 chicken tenders, cooked and heated
3 tbsp BBQ sauce
1-2 slices bacon, sliced
1 slice sharp cheddar
2 slices tomato
3-4 basil leaves

Directions:
1- Heat your panini press.
2- Meanwhile, slice the Italian bread in half and scoop our the majority of the innards. Leave a thin layer of bread on each half.
3- In a small bowl toss the chicken tenders with BBQ sauce. Place the tenders on the bottom slice of bread.
4- Top with bacon, cheddar, tomatoes, and basil. Replace top of the bread.
5- Cook on the panini grill until the cheese is melted and the bread is crisp.

Ham and Cheese Sliders

John has some friends over about once a month for a game day. They play some ridiculously dorky board game that I don't understand and typically we just order pizzas. The last time they were coming we decided to switch it up and I made these sandwiches. If you read food blogs this isn't new to you- everyone has made these little sliders in the past few years. I finally got around to trying them and they were a huge hit. All of the guys enjoyed them, even John's one friend who was skeptical at first. According to John they even reheated really well for lunch the next day.

Also, I should mention I couldn't find slider rolls so I used the potato hamburger rolls and I think that was a good alternative. They weren't too large and the potato roll had a nice soft texture. I also did half ham and half ham/turkey. You could sub any deli meat, but the sauce you pour over the top is what seals the deal. It adds a lot of flavor to the sandwiches! Overall a big hit!

Source: Adapted from Annie's Eats

Ingredients:
12 slider rolls (or 8 potato hamburger rolls)
12 slices honey ham
12 small slices Swiss cheese
Mayonnaise

For the sauce:
½ tbsp. yellow mustard
4 tbsp. butter, melted
1/2 tbsp. finely minced onion (or 2 tsp. dried minced onion)
1/4 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
Poppy seeds, for sprinkling

Directions:
1- Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Split the slider rolls and spread the insides lightly with mayonnaise. 

2- Fold a slice of ham to fit on each slider bun, and top with a slice of Swiss cheese. If using larger rolls, use a slice and a half to two slices of ham per roll.

3-  Replace the top bun to assemble the sandwiches. Place the sandwiches on a baking sheet.
4- To make the sauce, combine all ingredients except the poppy seeds in a small bowl and whisk to combine. Drizzle the sauce over the tops of the slider buns. Sprinkle with poppy seeds. Cover with foil and bake 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted. 

5- Remove the foil and bake 2 minutes longer. Serve warm.

Garlic Bread Stromboli

Ok, get ready for something amazing. Let me just get right down to business with this... the garlic butter dripped all down the top and formed a crust of buttery/garlicy amazingness on the bottom. A crust. Of BUTTER. And garlic. Oh dear... there are no words. John actually cursed when he tried it. It was THAT good. The flavor is unreal- it's like garlic bread meets pizza and your taste buds just don't know what to do with such deliciousness. This recipe came about after I saw this recipe for garlic bread pizza crust and I couldn't get the idea out of my mind. However I didn't have the time to make the crust so I ran to my local Italian deli and got some dough from them. I ended up throwing together this stromboli and it was pretty much my best decision ever (well, besides marrying John and having Landon... but this comes third.)

So yes. Make this. Now. You can put any toppings in it that you want. I used grilled chicken because I had it, but next time I'd do just the cheese or cheese and bell peppers. So while I used chicken, feel free to sub pepperoni or any toppings you desire. But do not try to make this healthy and use less butter. Please don't. You'll ruin the joy of the garlic butter crust. Eat a salad if you have to, but don't cut down the butter. You'll thank me!

Source: Stephanie Cooks Original

Ingredients:
5 tbsp melted butter
1 tsp crushed garlic (I used the jarred crushed garlic)
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp Italian seasonings
Dash of salt
1 batch pizza dough
1/3 cup marinara sauce
3/4 cup mozzarella cheese
3/4 cup grilled chicken (or pepperoni/veggies/etc. Any toppings you want)

Directions:
1- Preheat the oven to 425 with the pizza stone in the oven.
2- In a small bowl combine the first five ingredients. Stir well, set aside.
3- Roll out the dough. Drizzle about 1 tbsp of the butter topping inside the dough and brush it on with a pastry brush (or a spoon). Top with the marinara, spreading a thin layer over the dough.
4- Top the sauce with cheese and toppings.
5- Starting on one end, roll the dough over itself pinching in the ends at the bottom so the fillings don't spill out.
6- Slice 5-6 thin slits on the top of the roll. Using a pastry brush, cover the roll with the remaining butter mixture. It'll be very drippy (that's a good thing!)
7- Transfer to the pizza stone. Bake 20-25 minutes, until golden. If you notice your garlic is burning cover with foil. Mine didn't, but it could happen.
8- Top with fresh parsley (optional- just makes it look pretty). Serve with marinara sauce.

Toddler Tuesdays: Banana Sushi

For toddlers... and those of us who just like to eat like one.

So Landon has a thing for bananas. In fact, it's a bit of a BIG thing. In our house we call bananas "the yellow fruit" because if we utter the word banana and Landon is anywhere in ear shot he screams "NANA!!!!" and goes insane wild until he has some. Truth be told we even hide bananas. Yes. Hide. Because if he sees them he doesn't want anything else. Safe to say it's his favorite food.

So anyway, when I began looking for fun toddler-inspired snacks to liven up the routine I was fascinated with this idea of wrapping a banana with peanut butter in a tortilla or flattened wheat bread. Then I discovered Landon's peanut allergy and assumed this snack was out of bounds, but thanks to the joys of Sunbutter it's back on the menu. When I made this Landon was a little skeptical... 

"I mean, it looks like a banana... but there's... stuff... on it..."

After a couple bites he was sold. He ate about half a banana, maybe a little less, but for Landon that's a big deal with a new food. Usually he takes a few tries before he gobbles too much up. We also discovered that Landon has poor sushi etiquette since he requested a fork (or two... don't judge us) to eat this with.

(Still working on figuring this whole fork thing out)

This is a great and EASY lunch or heavy snack option. Plus it's just a bit more exciting than a traditional sandwich. Can't be beat!

Source: Pinterest (can't find a link to the original, mine takes me nowhere, just to the image)

Ingredients: 

1 slice of wheat bread

Peanut butter (or Sunbutter)

1/2 banana

Directions:

1- With a rolling pin roll the bread paper thin. Cut off the crust.

2- Spread the bread with a layer of peanut butter.

3- Place the banana in the center and roll the bread around the banana.

4- Use a sharp knife (cerated works best) to cut the banana into thin slices.

Garlic Chicken Panini

When I first discovered the recipe for crockpot 40 cloves of garlic chicken it was through this recipe for a garlic chicken panini. It's no secret that I love my panini press and am willing to try sticking anything between two slices of bread and grilling it up, so this definitely peaked my interest. If I'm being 100% honest I really only made the chicken so I could make these paninis! And boy am I glad I did, these were divine. I had never used Laughing Cow cheese on a panini before but I really think that'll be my new go-to cheese. I love those little Laughing Cow cheese wedges and have used them for several things, but they are excellent on paninis because they add a ton of flavor with minimal calories.

If you wanted to try this without making the crockpot 40 cloves recipe linked above I'm sure you could use any garlicky chicken you'd like. However what really sold this recipe for me was mixing it all up with the garlicky broth, so I think you should just make both recipes. You won't be disappointed!

Source: Adapted from Slender Kitchen

Ingredients per panini:
1/4 french baguette, slightly hollowed out
1/2 cup 40 garlic chicken + 2 tbsp garlic broth left from the crockpot
1 wedge Laughing Cow Garlic & Herb cheese
1 oz frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry (or use fresh spinach)

Instructions
1-Cut your french baguette in half and hollow out your french baguette by tearing out the extra bread.

2- Spread the Laughing Cow cheese on both sides of the bread.

3- In a small bowl combine the chicken, spinach, and broth. Stir well. Heat in the microwave for about 30 seconds (the filling likely won't be hot enough just from the panini grill since it's not on long enough). 

4- Fill the bottom side of the baguette the the chicken mixture. Do not pour excess broth onto the sandwich (mine all absorbed into the mixture but if yours doesn't drain it or you'll get a soggy sandwich).

5- Cook on panini press until bread is crisp and filling is warm.

Lemon Chicken and Spinach Paninis

My panini press is still my newest love in my kitchen arsenal. I just love how quickly and easily I can throw together dinner with this new toy of mine. I like to make a panini or some form of a sandwich every 1-2 weeks for dinner to mix up the rotation so I was excited to try this. My picture looks like a sloppy mess but basically you're looking at some grilled lemon chicken with spinach, tomatoes, pesto, and cheese. I found this to be excellent but the lemon taste did not come through for me. If I were to make this again I would zest the lemon and mix the zest in with the pesto, then spread that on the bread to give it a bit more of a lemon punch. I am a lemon fan though so to me there can't be too much lemon flavor. If you aren't you should probably make it exactly as written. Either way you're in for an easy and delicious meal.

Source: Heavily adapted from Panini Happy

Ingredients:
6-7 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup baby spinach leaves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 lemon
2 rolls or 4 slices bread
Pesto spread
1 plum tomato, sliced thin
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

DIRECTIONS:
1- Preheat panini grill.
2- In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper, thyme, parsley and rosemary. Press herb rub into both sides of chicken breasts. Squeeze juice from lemon over the chicken breasts. Grill chicken on the panini grill for 6-7 minutes until cooked through. Remove chicken from grill (slice chicken into thin slices), unplug grill and clean grill thoroughly. 

3- Reheat grill.
4- For each sandwich spread pesto on both sides of the bread. Top the bottom slice with a sprinkle of cheese, 1/4 cup spinach, chicken, tomato slices, 1/4 cup spinach, and more cheese. Place top slice of bread on, gently pressing down with your hands, then grill until heated through and bread is golden.

BBQ Chicken Rolls

I am pretty sure I've posted about my husband's love for things wrapped in "flaky pastry" as he puts it. Basically if I wrap anything in dough John thinks it's amazing. I had bought a can of crescent rolls with the vision of making spinach rolls but at the last minute changed it to these BBQ chicken rolls. I love BBQ chicken in any form so I knew I'd love these, and sure enough I did. These were incredibly easy and the method is so versatile that you could really wrap anything in the rolls that you want. I plan on trying a few different varieties in the near future... the options are limitless!

Source: Stephanie Cooks Original

Ingredients:
1 tsp olive oil
6 ounces chicken
Salt/pepper
BBQ sauce
1 can crescent rolls
Cheddar cheese
Mozzarella cheese
Cilantro, optional

Directions:
1- Preheat the oven to 400. Heat the oil in a nonstick skillet. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Cook until the chicken is browned and cooked through.
2- Dice the chicken and return to the skillet with 2 tbsp BBQ sauce. Heat over a high heat until the chicken is well coated. Remove to a plate and cover.
3- Roll the crescent dough out into four rectangles (2 triangle pieces left together for each). Use your fingers to push the seals shut.
4- Coat each crescent rectangle with BBQ sauce, about 2 tsp per rectangle (or more to taste).
5- Evenly divide the chicken between the four rectangles. Then top with a sprinkling of cheddar and mozzarella cheese.
6- Roll the rectangles up, being careful to prevent the filling from spilling out. Transfer to a  baking sheet and bake for about 12 minutes, or until golden brown. Top with chopped cilantro if desired.

Chicken Parm Panini

Remember a few weeks ago when I said how madly in love I was with my panini press? Yes... still in love. Madly, deeply, head-over-heals in love. So with that said, if it's not nailed down it's probably being shoved between two pieces of bread and grilled up in my house. This panini is just so simple and so good that I almost feel silly sharing it. I mean it's not ground breaking but it is amazingly delicious. So with that said, I bet you have most of the ingredients already on hand and could make this immediately. I suggest you do! I am actually planning to make it again this week, it's just that good.

Source: Stephanie Cooks Original

Ingredients:
2 rolls
2 chicken breasts
1/3 cup breadcrumbs
1/3 cup parmesan cheese
1 egg
2 tbsp pesto
1/2 cup marinara sauce
4 slices fresh mozzarella cheese

Directions:
1- Slice rolls and set aside. Preheat over to 375.
2- In a small bowl combine the breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese. In a separate bowl beat the egg.
3- Dip the chicken in egg then breadcrumb mix.
4- Bake for 20 minutes or until cooked through (depending on thickness of breasts).
5- Slice chicken so it'll fit on the roll. Top one side of each roll with 1 tbsp of pesto. Spoon marinara over the other side of the roll. Spread remaining marinara evenly over the chicken.
6- Place one slice on each piece of the roll, placing the chicken in the center of the two pieces of cheese/bread.
7- Grill on panini press until golden.

Chipotle Ranch Turkey Panini

The running joke in my family is that I am impossible to shop for because I never want/need/use anything new. It's partially true. I really don't want for much in life... and often, since I'm a creature of habit, I don't use my new stuff. I got a panini press for my birthday... in September... and just used it for the first time this past week. OOOPS! What can I say... I just am a creature of habit! Once I opened it though I made three types of paninis within the first week, so I might be slow starting, but I do eventually use and love my gifts. The panini press is probably one of my favorite kitchen tools. I make quesadillas for Landon multiple times a week. I throw all types of veggies and meat in them and grill them up. However using my panini press is much easier- makes the process so quick! I'm such a fan.

But anyway, this sandwich  is awesome. It's not fancy. I wasn't even sure if I wanted to blog it, but the combo of flavors was really special. I was short on groceries when I made this but it'd be even better with some tomato and spinach thrown in there- yum!

Source: Stephanie Cooks Original

Ingredients:
1 chipotle pepper, finely diced
3 tbsp ranch dressing
4 slices bread
4 slices provolone cheese
1/4 pound deli turkey
2 slices cooked bacon
Baby spinach and tomato slices (optional)

Directions:
1- Mix the finely diced chipotle pepper into the ranch dressing. Evenly spread the mixture over all 4 slices of bread.
2- Top each slice of bread with a piece of cheese. Top two slices of bread with turkey, bacon, and spinach and tomato if desired.
3- Assemble sandwiches. Cook in panini press until crisp.

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. 

Chicken Cacciatore Stromboli

I'd say chicken cacciatore is one of my top 5 meals. My mom made it all the time growing up so now when I want a meal from childhood this usually is a good bet for me. The other day I knew I was going to be using pizza dough to make a pizza/calzone/or stromboli, but I wasn't sold on anything. Inspiration hit when my dear friend Natalie said she was making chicken cacciatore for dinner and this stromboli was born! It's everything it should be- full of flavor, wrapped in a crisp dough, oozing with cheese... I mean c'mon- could it get any better??

Source: Stephanie Cooks Original

Ingredients:
1 tsp olive oil
1 clove garlic
1 bell pepper, cut into thin slices
1/2 small onion, sliced
3 tbsp tomato sauce
4 ounces chicken, diced
Salt and pepper
10 basil leaves, torn
Mozzarella cheese
1 batch pizza dough
1 tbsp oil or melted butter
Garlic powder

Directions:
1- Preheat your pizza stone to 425.
2- In a large skillet heat the 1 tsp oil. Add the garlic, peppers, and onions, cooking until tender. Stir in the sauce and allow to all heat together 5-7 minutes.
3- Season the chicken with salt and pepper, add to the skillet. Cook until cooked through. Add basil.
4- Roll out your dough. Lay the filling from the skillet in the center along with mozzarella cheese (I use about 1/2-3/4 cup of cheese, but this is to taste).
5- Wrap the dough around the filling, sealing the ends.
6- Brush the oil or melted butter over top, sprinkle with garlic powder. Cut thin slits into the top if desired.
7- Bake 15 minutes or until the crust is golden and cooked though.

Crockpot Chicken Caesar Sandwiches

I returned to the working world from my maternity leave almost a month ago and I am just getting around to sharing the recipe I made on my first day of school- these delicious chicken sandwiches. My crockpot has become a favorite tool of mine now that my time is so constricted. I love coming home from work and being able to take Landon out for a wagon ride, or play blocks with him in his room, and not have to worry about cooking! These sandwiches were so delicious that I know we'll have them over and over again. I even used the leftovers in a panini for John with provolone cheese and he said the chicken was just as good that way. Very versatile- I could see mixing it into a pasta salad, or even topping a green salad with it. We're fans!

Source: Slightly adapted from The Girl Who Ate Everything

Ingredients:
1 pound chicken breasts
Salt and pepper
1/3 cup Caesar dressing (I used the Boathouse Creamy Yogurt Caesar- lighter and just as flavorful!)
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
Romaine lettuce
Rolls

Directions:
1- Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Place in the crockpot along with 1/3 cup water or chicken broth. Cook on low for 6 hours.
2- Drain the water/broth. Shred the chicken. Stir in the dressing and cheese.
3- Cook an additional 30 minutes on low.
4- Serve on a roll, topped with romaine lettuce.

Caramelized Onion, Mushroom, and Grueye Puffs

John and I celebrated our fourth wedding anniversary on the first of this month. It fell on a weekday so going out to celebrate was impossible now that we have a baby who falls asleep before his daddy is home from work. I wanted to make John a special dinner so I asked him what he wanted. His request? Something wrapped in dough. That's my husband. "Something wrapped in dough" left the choices pretty wide open for me. Based off the suggestions of some friends I ended up throwing together these delicious puffs. I used the folding technique from my spanakopita recipe and was really thrilled with the end results. These had so much flavor, and best of all they were exactly what John asked for- food wrapped in dough!

(Disclaimer: Here's the truth- the side I shouldn't share. I totally forgot to defrost my phyllo dough in advance. I went to assemble them and almost died! My husband, who never requests ANYTHING in the kitchen, made one request and there was no way to meet it. After a few botched attempts to rapidly defrost it we ate an extremely lack luster dinner on the night of our anniversary, I apologized about 10,000 times, and then we had these the following night. Ugh. So moral of the story... defrost your dough. Please.)

Source: Stephanie Cooks Original

Ingredients:

1 tsp olive oil

5 ounces mushrooms, diced

1/4 cup marsala wine

1 bag baby spinach

1/2 cup caramelized onions

3/4 cup shredded gruyere cheese

16 sheets phyllo dough

3 tbsp butter, melted

Kosher salt

Directions:

1- In a large skillet heat the oil. Add the mushrooms and saute until soft. Add the wine and allow to cook about 3-4 minutes. Stir in the bag of baby spinach until spinach is wilted. Drain the skillet, pour contents in a mixing bowl.

2- Mix in the onions and gruyere cheese. Season with salt and pepper. (At this point you can refrigerate the mixture overnight or continue on to step 3).

3- Unwrap your phyllo dough. Take two sheets, lay them on top of one another. Spread melted butter around the edges of the dough and create an X in the center. Lay another two sheets on top of the first two, repeating the butter. Use a pizza cutter to slice the large rectangle in half vertically. Place about 1/6 of the mixture on each half and fold as you would fold spanakopita (see directions on youtube if you've never done it.). Top each triangle generously with melted butter and a pinch of salt. Place on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper.

4- Repeat step 3 until all dough and filling is used.

5- Bake on 375 for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown. 

 

Chicken Caesar "Burger"

Hi there! Sorry for no post on Friday, but I have some craziness going on in the Stephanie Cook's kitchen. It seems that my son has a dairy allergy and I am currently working on figuring out how to cook and eat dairy free. It's been an experience- that's for sure. We are still in the testing phases of this but for now I have to eat completely dairy free so I don't pass any dairy onto him. With that said, I will continue to cook and try new recipes, but it should be interesting since dairy is such a huge part of our diet. What I plan to do is write the recipe the way a "normal" person would make it and include my dairy-free notes either on the bottom or on the side. Before I get to that though I still have a few recipes to share that are full of dairy, so let's get to it, shall we?

This "burger" was right up my alley. Breaded chicken, cheese (WAHHH I miss you cheese!), and caesar salad... what's not to love. Oh, and did I mention BACON? Yes... there was bacon in this too. John and I both loved it and it was a nice varient from our typical dinner routine.

Source: Slightly adapted from  Rock Recipes

Ingredients:
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 egg
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese
romaine lettuce
caesar dressing
2 slices cooked bacon
2 rolls

Directions:
1- Preheat the oven to 350.
2- In a small bowl beat the egg. Dip the chicken in the egg and then in the breadcrumbs. Place on an oven safe sheet and bake for about 20 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.
3- Remove chicken from the oven, top with the mozzarella cheese, and place it under the broiler until the cheese melts.
4- Meanwhile, toss the romaine lettuce with the parmesan cheese and dressing to taste.
5- Top each roll with a chicken breast, caesar salad, and 1 strip of bacon sliced in half.

Peanut Butter & Jelly Stuffed French Toast

John and I are big fans of breakfast for dinner. I don't do it often but every time I do I wonder why I don't do it more often. When I saw this recipe I immediately added it to our weekly menu. John is a huge fan of PB&J as well as french toast so I was sure it'd be a winner. When we were eating John took his first bite and goes, "This is different... Strange... Very good!!!" He clearly went through the gamete of emotions before deciding he liked it. By the end of the meal he was praising it and saying he was anxious to have it again. I must mention this is very filling. I only ate half of my plate, which worked out to be half a sandwich. I imagine this would be a huge hit with kids, how could it not be? Give this a shot- it's great for any meal of the day!

Source: Heavily adapted from Heat Oven to 350

Yields 2-3 servings

Ingredients:
6 slices cinnamon swirl bread
Peanut butter
Jelly
1 tbsp butter
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk or cream
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Directions:
1- Using the bread, peanut butter, and jelly, make 3 pb&j sandwiches. Slice the sandwiches in half, set aside.
2- Meanwhile beat the eggs, milk/cream, and cinnamon together in a shallow dish.
3- Melt the butter in a nonstick skillet. Once it melts dip the sandwiches in the egg mix, flipping to coat both sides, and cook until the bread is nicely golden. Serve with syrup.

Chicken Florentine Puffs

If someone were to steal my laptop they'd probably think I was a total freak. My whole desktop is covered in pictures of food- pictures ready to be blogged, pictures ready to be edited, and pictures that are already blogged but haven't gone "live" yet. It looks like chaos but I understand what it is. With that said, I rarely switch up my order of recipes to blog because I try to keep some order to the desktop mayhem. I wasn't intending to post this recipe yet, but when I posted a teaser picture on my blog's facebook page I knew from the responses I had to bump this recipe up. I could have been mean and made you all wait, but I couldn't wait either- I made this recipe two days after I found it!

This was really delicious; I described it as a healthier Hot Pocket. It was so easy to make and best of all used mostly ingredients I already had with the exception of the gruyere cheese. Best of all it was a nice change of pace from our typical dinners. We both loved it and purposefully paced ourselves so we could freeze half of this for another night.

Source: One Lovely Life (I just discovered this blog and I'm obsessed- check it out!)

Yields 8 puffs

Ingredients:
1 box puff pastry (2 sheets)
10 ounces frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
1 roasted red pepper
4 ounces cream cheese
1 cup shredded gruyere cheese
2 cups cooked chicken, diced
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1 egg
1 tbsp water

Directions:
1- In a bowl combine the spinach, red pepper, cream cheese, gruyere, cooked chicken, garlic powder and salt. Stir well until everything is well incorporated.
2- In a separate bowl beat the egg and water together.
3- Roll out the puff pastry. Cut each sheet into 4 squares. Spoon 1/8 of the filling into the center of each square. Brush two sides of the square with the egg wash, then fold the puff pastry over the filling to create a triangle. Use a fork to press down and seal the triangle. Brush the top of the triangle with egg wash and sprinkle with salt.
4- Transfer the triangles to cookie sheets covered in parchment paper or silpats. Bake at 300 for 18-20 minutes, until lightly golden.

**If freezing, allow them to cool completely, then wrap tightly and store in a freezer safe container. Reheat at 400 for 15-18 minutes.