Whoops

Okay, so I havent' been writing about my cooking. I'm not sure why. I'll cook a new recipe and think "ooh, I'll have to write about this later" but then I won't. So, here's a mini update on some recipes.

Last night I made Chicken, Cheese, 'n Biscuits.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Chicken-Cheese-and-Biscuits/Detail.aspx

I made mine with frozen peas in place of the mushrooms and green beans. I used Pillsbury Grands Flaky Buttermilk Biscuits for the top, and Stop & Shop brand cheddar cheese. This is one of my favorite recipes, but this time there was a problem with the biscuits not cooking all the way through.

Tonight I'm making Alehouse Burgers with Red Onion Compote: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sandra-lee/ale-house-burgers-with-red-onion-compote-recipe/index.html

Instead of beer I'm using beef broth, and I plan to put the cheddar on top instead of inside the burgers, last time they didn't hold up too well.

Long time...

Sorry! Haven't been posting, but its not because I haven't been cooking. Well, actually, I haven't been cooking as much as usual because I've been sick. For like a month. Its ridiculous.

Anyway, happy Thanksgiving! I hosted Thanksgiving this year with a massive amount of food. I made: a turkey (of course), stovetop stuffing, mashed potato casserole (mashed potatoes with cheddar, sour cream and green onions), sweet potato casserole (mashed sweet potatoes with a topping of coconut, brown sugar, and walnuts), scalloped onions, and green beans with caramelized onions. I also made a dreamsicle cake for dessert (by request).

Yesterday, I made the hot dogs with the chili meat sauce again (the hubby had forgotten all about it) and it was a hit again!

Today I'm making a new recipe called Sunday Baked Chicken which is chicken with a kind of homemade barbecue sauce and onions.

Both the Hot Dog Chili Sauce and the Sunday Baked Chicken recipes come from a book called "Comfort Foods" and its available here:
http://www1.gooseberrypatch.com/gooseberry/products.nsf/v.weball/m819?editdocument&lid=is_m819&cartprocess=textsr

I love this book! The only thing I've made that wasn't a hit was a Chocolate Gooey Cake, which could have been because Jim and I aren't big dessert people.

I'm looking forward to next weekend when I have my mom's annual cookie swap! I'm going to be making Salty Sweet Peanutty Treat and Bedtime Snack n' Jammies plus one other cookie that hasn't been decided yet.

Cheesy Hashbrown Soup

Last night I made a new recipe. My husband has been sick with the swine flu, so I've been sticking with soup that last couple of nights. Last night's soup was cheesy hashbrown soup. It sounds weird, but it was soooo good! It was creamy and cheesy and just perfect.

Here is where I got the recipe: http://www.bigoven.com/163869-Hash-Brown-Soup-recipe.html

Another couple recipes

So, I haven't blogged in a while, but that's because I've been sick with mono and have been too tired to do ANYTHING! However, I did get to try two new recipes this week.

On Sunday I made spaghetti with smothered onions. Another one that is copyrighted, but I can tell you for the most part what I did 'cause I changed it so much. I caramelized two large sweet onions with olive oil and margarine. When they were almost done, I added a splash of cooking sherry. While the onions were cooking, I cooked my pasta. Once they were caramelized I added about a cup of frozen peas to thaw and cook with the onions. Once they were done, I tossed the pasta and the vegetables together. I finished it with a little shredded gruyere. It was a really good recipe, however a little less filling because there was no meat.

I also made a new casserole this week. It was called Macaroni and Cheese with Hot Dogs. And that is basically what it was: homemade macaroni and cheese with cut up peeled hot dogs mixed in. It wasn't horrible, but it wasn't great either and I'll probably never make it again, so I won't bother posting it (its copyrighted anyway).

Sorry, I forgot to take pictures of either!

Cheesy Chicken Italiano

Not the first time I've made this recipe, but the first time I've made it since starting this blog. This is a quick and easy recipe I got for free from kraft. I subscribe to their seasonal recipe book, here is the link if you would like to subscribe: http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/foodfamilyarchive/foodandfamilyarchivelanding.aspx

I made this recipe with chicken breast tenderloins, contadina onion and garlic canned tomato sauce, and ziti in place of the rotini. Here is the recipe: http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/recipes/cheesy-chicken-italiano-57271.aspx

Last night I made rib-eye steaks with onion roasted potatoes and peas. I rubbed the steaks with vegetable oil then rubbed them with ranchero steak seasoning, before cooking them on my george foreman grill. The hubby and I like our steaks well done, so I cooked them ten minutes on each side. The onion roasted potatoes ended up tasting kinda bad so I won't post that recipe here, and the peas came from a can.

2 Dinners, 1 New Recipe

I've tried two new recipes since the last time I posted, but unfortunately I can only repost one of them, as the other is from a book (copyright laws).

The one I can't repost was a chili sauce for hot dogs. The chili sauce was made from ground beef and spices and it was absolutely delicious! My husband gave it 5 out of 5 stars.

The one I can give you the recipe for was from Sandra Lee and its called Alehouse burgers. Its a cheddar-stuffed burger with red onion compote. I actually used beer even though I have the malt allergy, I figured there probably wasn't enough per burger to hurt me. If you are against using beer, you could probably replace it with an equal amount of beef broth. The onion compote is a tad sweet, but I thought it was a really nice balance with the burger. Unfortunately, the camera is out of batteries so I don't have a picture either, but here is the recipe:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sandra-lee/ale-house-burgers-with-red-onion-compote-recipe/index.html

I used 93% lean ground beef, bud light beer, and Montreal Steak flavored grill seasoning.

Two recipes...

Okay, need to post more often.

On Monday night, I made Savory Onion Chicken. This is chicken which is dredged in flour and browned, then finishes cooking in an onion gravy. It was the second time I've made this recipe and its one of my new favorites (and my husband likes it, too). I served it over mashed potatoes (from a box, my love of cooking doesn't extend to sides) with canned peas.
I did have to alter this recipe a bit, because of my allergy to malt. Where the original recipe called for a can of beer, I replaced it with a can of chicken broth. Here's the original: http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Savory-Onion-Chicken


On Tuesday night, I tried a delicious-sounding new recipe, Chili-Cheese Hoagies (my husband said he felt like he was back in Jersey when I said I was making Hoagies). They sounded like they should be good, but they were supposed to be an extraodinary amount of work (make chili, put in sandwiches, wrap in parchment, chill 2 hrs, bake in oven...) so I decided to do the short version and just put chili in a roll with cheese. The magazine's recipe for chili, however, didn't have chili powder in it. Chili with no chili powder...I don't think so. So I made their recipe but added chili powder. It just tasted weird to me, so I didn't like it, although my husband did.
(Sorry, no pic for this one)

Been a while...

Last night I made stuffed shells for my husband. I'm not a fan of tomato sauce, so it was only okay for me, but he seemed to like them. However, if I make them again, they will be a Sunday night dinner recipe, not a weekday recipe; a little bit too much work for a weekday.

I used part skim ricotta, reduced fat parmesan, reduced fat italian blend cheese in place of the mozzarella and provolone, diced tomatoes in place of stewed tomatoes, and turkey meatballs.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sandra-lee/no-mess-or-stress-stuffed-shells--semi-homemaker-recipe-recipe/index.html

It must be Thursday...

I've been cooking a bit more than I let on this week. I made a new recipe on Tuesday night, but I did not like it! It was chicken brushed with honey mustard and coated in barbecue chips. Sounds good, doesn't it? Nope. The honey mustard does not adhere the chips to the chicken, and the chips got all soggy. It was just an all around mess.

Tonight, however, I made a new recipe that was better. Perfect, no, but better. It's called Penne and Smoked Sausage. Here's a link to the recipe: http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Penne-and-Smoked-Sausage

I made it with turkey kielbasa, healthy request cream of celery soup, and reduced fat cheddar cheese. The only think I would change next time is the turkey kielbasa, I would use the regular one, the turkey sausage just tasted nasty (although the hubby says he can't taste a difference).

Not your grandma's meat sauce...

Last week I met a woman who had told me about a recipe she made for her family. I tried that recipe tonight. It is similar to a meat sauce, but spicier.

Ingredients:
1 onion, sliced
2 T margarine or butter
2 T olive oil
1 lb ground turkey (beef would work too)
a handful of peperoncini pepper slices
2 cans condensed tomato soup

In a large skillet, melt the margarine over medium heat. Add olive oil and onions. Simmer at medium heat until onions carmelize. Add ground turkey and cook until it is no longer pink. Add peperoncini and soup. Simmer five to ten minutes (to combine flavors). Serve over pasta.

My husband said that this recipe is a "keeper."

When I don't have plans on a Saturday night...

Well, today my husband and I took his parents out to a late lunch/early dinner, so I didn't end up cooking dinner tonight. However, I did make a few desserts, something I don't make very often. I made apple pie squares. Basically, its apple pie filling with pie crust on the top and on the bottom, but not on the side. I also made cepets (not sure of the spelling, pronounced see-pets) with the extra pie dough. This is a tradition in my family. You take the extra pie dough and sprinkle it with cinnamon and sugar. Then you cut it into strips and roll it up like a cinnamon bun. Bake in the oven with your pie (or in this case with the bars).

The apple pie recipe I had used crisped rice cereal in it, and I didn't want the rest to go to waste. So...I made rice krispie treats. Can I just say, my apartment smells so good right now!
These are the apple pie bars fresh from the oven, before they are cut into bars. Once they have cooled, they will receive a drizzle of icing also.
And these are the cepets. I turned a couple around so you can see the rings of cinnamon. These are awesome! However, if you are not a cinnamon roll fan (can't think of why anyone wouldn't be, but just in case) You could also use cookie cutters to cut shapes out of extra dough and use the shapes as accents on the bars.

Okay, so its been a few days since I posted last. On Tuesday, I had my first choir practice, which I had forgotten about. Because of my poor time management, we had leftovers for dinner. On Wednesdays I give my mom a piano lesson, and in return she cooks dinner for my husband and I. Finally, on Thursdays I have a looong day at work, so I usually make a pre-packaged easy meal (this week it was DiGiorno pizza). So, tonight was the first time I made a meal since Monday.

Tonight I made french onion crusted chicken with peas and sliced potatoes. The chicken was made using the French Onion, Pepper, and Herb flavor McCormick Crusting Blend. (http://www.mccormick.com/Products/Herbs-and-Spices/Blends/Crusting-Blends.aspx) There are no real directions on the container (at least, I didn't see any) so this is what I did: I dredged the chicken (thin-sliced boneless, skinless chicken breast) in egg then in the crusting blend. I then cooked them in a skillet with a little olive oil over medium heat for about 4 minutes per side. This chicken was a hit with my husband and sister-in-law. I served it with canned peas (which my husband prefers to frozen) and a Swiss sliced potato dish that came in a box which I absolutely hated and will probably never make again.

So, I forgot to take a picture right away, and this is the last lonely piece of french onion chicken. Oddly enough, this is also the chicken that was shaped like the continental USA.

Tuesday's Meatloaf

Okay, so tonight we had the previously mentioned Barbecue meatloaf. It was delicious as always, however it was so moist from the onions that it fell apart when I tried to take it out of the pan. I served it with au gratin potatoes (from a box) and steamed corn (from the freezer).

This is the meatloaf just out of the oven (the stuff on the top is barbecue sauce).

And the finished plate. Like I said, the meatloaf fell apart coming out of the pan, so it looks more like hash than a slice of meatloaf in this picture. But, it was delicious and that's what really counts.

Tomorrow night's plan: light homemade jalapeno poppers and buffalo chicken casserole!

First dinner

So, I've decided to do a blog about what I make for dinner. Cooking is one of my passions, and I usually end up telling everyone what I've made anyway, so this way I can possibly reach an even bigger audience.

Tonight for dinner I made cheese-stuffed chicken, which is much more sophisticated than it sounds, and almost nothing like chicken cordon bleu. I adapted it from a recipe that I found in a magazine, and I think I've changed it enough to be able to post it here.

Ingredients:
- 1 lb chicken breasts (I buy the thin-sliced, which cost more. If you're more concerned with cost, you can buy the regular breasts and just pound them until they are about a quarter inch thick.)
- 1/2 c. shredded mozzarella
- 1/2 c. crumbled feta
- 2 slices of bacon (It costs more, but its easier in this recipe to buy the ready-cooked bacon that only needs to be heated in the microwave.)
- 1/4 c. peanuts, chopped (I used dry-roasted, salted peanuts.)
- seasonings

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Cook bacon
- If using ready-cooked bacon: heat per package directions in the microwave, then crumble into pieces.
- If using regular bacon: Cut bacon into small pieces before cooking in small skillet over medium-low heat.
3. Combine bacon, mozzarella, feta, and peanuts
4. Place about 1/4 c. of cheese mixture in the middle of each chicken breast, then roll the chicken. Place in glass casserole dish, seam side down to keep from unrolling. Sprinkle remaining cheese mixture on top of chicken.
5. Sprinkle tops of chicken with seasoning of choice (I use white pepper which adds a subtle heat. I would not recommend using salt, as there is plenty in the bacon and peanuts. If you don't like heat, rotisserie chicken seasoning would complement the recipe nicely.)
6. Bake in oven about 45 minutes.

I love this recipe. The peanuts add a little crunchy texture, the bacon flavor is subtle, and I absolutely love how salty and tangy the feta tastes.

After dinner, I decided to get a jumpstart on tomorrow's night dinner. Tomorrow, we are having barbecue meatloaf. I put it together tonight, so tomorrow I can come home from work and just pop it in the oven. This meatloaf is a little different, as it has barbecue sauce, chili powder, and mustard in it. I'm not going to just copy the recipe here (you know, copyright infringement and all that) but here is a link to the recipe:

http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1160599

I make mine with ground turkey (you can't tell the difference in this flavorful recipe) and Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce.