Hot Italian Chicken Sandwiches

I discovered a yummy, portable meal last night that I'll likely use again several times this summer.  And keep in mind for ball game evenings next spring!!

The kids were clamoring to get to the pool when we got home from swimming lessons yesterday at 4:30pm, but the baby needed a quick nap, so I told them we could head down there as soon as he woke up. 
It was too early for dinner right then, but waiting until after swimming would leave us famished. I didn't really have any lunch meat or snacky meal stuff to take with us. I did, however, have a big loaf of french bread that I had planned and forgotten to use when we grilled steaks the other night. Inspiration hit and I quickly pan-broiled some chicken with some italian seasoning. I cut the loaf of bread into fourths and then sliced them open, laying them out on a baking sheet.  I sliced the chicken breasts and laid them out on one side of each bread half, topping it with shredded mozzarella and bacon bits. It was already yum!  Next I threw them in the oven under the broiler till the cheese got bubbly and the bread just got toasty.  I took them out, spread a little mayo on the empty side of the now piping hot toasty bread and added a few thinly sliced tomatoes.  Then I just closed up the sandwich, wrapped it in foil, and threw it in the pool bag and we were ready to go just as the baby woke up from his quick early evening catnap. :) We also brought along some chips and apple slices to munch with our sandwiches. 
Ryan met us down at the pool after he got home from work and we had the perfect little poolside picnic, with still hot and melty, really really yummy sandwiches. 

Hot Italian Chicken Sandwiches
Half-Whole loaf of french bread, sub rolls, deli rolls, etc
2 Chicken breasts
Italian seasoning
Shredded Mozzerella
Bacon bits
Sliced tomatoes
Mayonnaise

Pan-broil or grill chicken breasts, seasoned with Italian seasoning.
Put sliced chicken, cheese and bacon bits on one half of each sandwich and put under broiler just until melted and toasty.
Add mayo and tomatoes and enjoy. Or wrap in foil to enjoy later!

(Adults loved it, Savannah loved it, Sawyer took one bite and jumped back in the pool.)

more fish

We had Crunchy Yogurt "Fishsticks" last night and I have to say it's hands down my new favorite. Maybe not the best fish I've ever had, but easily my #1 pick coming out of my own kitchen. Sooo yummy.
So yummy in fact that the kids both ate their whole serving!!
And that is big news people, because aside from processed freezer fishsticks, my kids do not eat fish.
But they gobbled these up.

I had tilapia fillets and wanted to make them fishstickish, but tasty enough for us adults, so I was "fishing" around the internet for ideas and came across this one. Which was a spin off of one of PW's chicken recipes. And since we all know PW recipes are a pretty sure bet, I went for it.

I had four fillets and cut them each into fourths, trying to go for the fishstick feel. They were really more like mini fillets, but oh well.
I mixed up some plain yogurt (I just used all of what was left in my container which was about 2 cups), garlic (two cloves, minced), parsley (dried; just sprinkled til it looked good) and the juice of a lemon (actually a lemon and a half) and some salt and pepper.

I added the fish chunks, made sure they were well covered with the yogurt mixture and let it sit for a good hour. (my fish was still partially frozen so I let it sit out on the counter instead of in the fridge.)

Then I simply dredged the yogurty fish in plain Panko whole wheat breadcrumbs, pressing the crumbs on to coat. I put the breaded fish in a 9x13 cake pan sprayed with cooking spray and then put the teeniest pads of butter on top of each piece of fish and covered the whole thing with foil, putting it into the oven at 400°.
I baked mine for about 20 minutes and then removed the foil, baking for another 10 or so. (my oven is off kilter and I would guess in a correct oven that these would probably be good for 20 minutes total.) At that point they were done, but didn't look golden or all that crispy so I turned on the broiler real quick to just let them brown a tad. Beautiful!

These were absolutely the perfect breaded fish... golden crunchy on the outside and moist and flavorful on the inside. Ryan commented that it didn't even have a fishy aftertaste at all... just delicious. And my kitchen didn't smell like I was baking fish... it just smelled yummy!

I am so glad I tried this way of preparing tilapia; it's a fabulous way to use more of the plain, unflavored yogurt I've been buying and trying to incorporate into our recipes, and the whole family loved it. I think that's a first!!

Tilapia and Veggies

This was a super quick and easy meal that we'll definitely have regularly around here.
I pared down this recipe here for what I had on hand.

Three tilapia fillets for the four of us (the kids split one), a handful of fresh green beans, grape tomatoes, 2 tbsp lemon juice, olive oil, oregano and some salt and pepper. Oh and I chickened out at the last minute, thinking the fish might be just a little on the plain side for me and added just a tiny splash of lite Italian dressing to the veggie mix before I put in on the fish.

I quartered the tomatoes and cut the green beans into about 1 inch lengths and mixed all the ingredients (minus the fish) together. Then I put each fillet on a piece of foil, sprinkled with salt and pepper and topped with a few spoonfuls of the veggie mix. Fold up and seal the foil making little packets around the fish (leaving enough room inside for everything to steam nicely) and bake at 425° degrees for 20-25 min. That's it!

It was really good! Ryan and I really liked it and Savannah ate most of it, though she wouldn't admit that she liked it. Sawyer (after making him try it) said he loved it (with ketchup) but only ate a few more bites. Over all I think it was a hit for us and I love how simple and healthy it is.
I served it with brown rice, and sides of peas and mandarin oranges.

Garlic Ranch Chicken Pizza

We've had a few really good new recipes lately and I'm dying to get caught up over here to share them with you, but we've been in crazy-house-fixing-up mode as we try to get our house on the market.

I couldn't wait to share this one with you though, real quick, because it was really such a hit!
We have dinner weekly with our small group from church -eight adults and nine kids- and this is what I made up for last week... everyone absolutely raved about it and wanted the recipe. All the kids even wolfed it down... all except my kids of course.
Oh well, this will definitely be on a regular rotation at our house from here on out and my kiddos had just better learn to like it. I really don't know why they objected... it's one of the most kid friendly pizza's I've seen!
(recipe lifted almost directly from this blog)


Garlic Ranch Chicken Pizza
(for one pizza)

• 1 pizza crust
• 1 tsp. olive oil for crust
  
• 1/2 cup ranch dressing
  
• 1 tomato,sliced and diced
• 1/4 cup green onion, chopped
  
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/4 Parmesan cheese
  
• 8 ounces boneless skinless chicken breast halves, diced
• 1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
  
• garlic (to taste)
• bacon bits (optional)
  
• 1 teaspoon salt (to taste)
• 1 teaspoon pepper (to taste)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Prepare pizza crust according to directions. (I used pre-made Mama Mary's pizza crust from Walmart)

Saute chicken in skillet with olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper (for reference, I diced six big chicken breasts for 4 pizzas)(also when the chicken was finished I sauted some sliced mushrooms to go on one pizza).

Spread Ranch dressing over crust. (about 1/2 cup per pizza)

Sprinkle with cooked chicken, cheeses, tomatoes, green onions and bacon bits. (I made 4 pizzas; 2 with toppings listed above, one with just chicken, mushrooms and cheese and one with just chicken and cheese for the kids)


sorry, it'll be much more fun to take pictures of dinner again when it's not dark outside!

















more cheese added after this!!









Place in oven for 20 minutes or until cheese is melted. Let rest for several minutes, then cut and serve.

I didn't take any pictures of the pizzas in the end, but they turned out beautiful and delicious!
I was so pleased with this pizza. I'm not a huge ranch fan so I wasn't sure about it but I thought the kids would like it. Turned out I loved it! The flavors just melted together perfectly!
Super easy and so super yummy!!

French Onion Pasta

We had this French Onion Pasta last night with steamed broccoli, applesauce and warm french bread. I'm going to just stick with a link here as I won't be heartbroken if I can't find the recipe someday... I actually really liked this pasta, but it was gonged big time at dinner last night.

Sawyer: barely gagged down one noodle.
Savannah: actually liked it okay... if she could manage to get a piece of pasta on her fork that didn't have "sauce or onions or frenchies on it". She surprisingly ate almost all of what was on her plate though.
Ryan: "I wouldn't order this again...."

I liked it.
But I like all things french onion. It was nice and easy to make and a warm savory dish that would work great as a main or a side. I think it'd be a really good dish with some chicken or beef or even broccoli diced up in there too.
Not sure if my family is game for another try though...

No-Cook Pizza

I found this recipe after looking high and low for another no-cook main dish that wasn't all veggies and wraps hoping maybe my kids would eat it.


Cold Ham Sandwich Pizza

• 1/2 cup cream cheese with chives, softened
  
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 2 Tbsp. horseradish sauce
• 1 prepared Boboli® pizza crust
• 1-1/2 cups chopped cooked ham
• 1-1/2 cups chopped plum tomatoes
• 1/2 cup shredded lettuce
• 1/4 cup creamy Italian salad dressing

In small bowl, combine cream cheese, mayonnaise, and horseradish sauce and blend well. Spread over the pizza crust. Top with ham, plum tomatoes, and lettuce and drizzle with salad dressing. Cut into wedges and serve immediately. (6 servings)

I tweaked it a just a tad to fit what we had in our kitchen:
I used regular cream cheese and mixed it with the mayo and a little shot of dijon mustard since we're not a horseradish family.
I chopped up the deli ham I had, rather than cubed cooked ham, and made up my own pizza crust; I already had the oven on in the early morning making some quick breakfast bars, so I mixed up a Jiffy pizza crust (adding some garlic parmesan seasoning to the dough since I was going to be working with plain cream cheese) and popped it in the oven while it was on. Then I just left it out on the counter to cool and rest until we topped it cold at dinnertime.

Sawyer helped me spread the cheese mixture and sprinkle on the lettuce, tomatoes and ham. We threw some corn on the cob on the stove for a few minutes (so it wasn't a completely no-cook meal) and dinner was served.






























I had hoped Sawyer would be more likely to try it since he helped me make it; but notsomuch. He basically picked off a little ham off of his piece and called it good. Savannah did better, but didn't finish it. Ryan said he liked it but didn't seem blown away by it or anything. He did eat two pieces though...

I, on the other hand, loved this pizza! I was so nice and cool and refreshing. The cream cheese "sauce" was perfect and the fresh toppings were nice and light. I will definitely be coming back to this idea throughout the summer. I may pick up a Boboli or two to have on hand... or it would be really good on some focaccia bread or something similar.
Yum!!

Pepperoni Pasta Salad

I'm not a fan of pasta salads. I love me some pasta, but I like it warm and usually creamy or cheesy or something of that sort. :)
But I tried a recipe I'd been eying on the back of our mini pepperoni* bag and I have to admit I'm a fan. This would be a perfect idea for pasta salad for a potluck or barbeque, as there is no mayo or anything that you have to worry about sitting out.

*we got this huge bag of the cutest tiny bitesized pepperoni at Costco... it's Hormel and they are so yummy -do you think the size makes them more appealing??- and we were all in love with them. They're perfect for making your own mini-pizzas, or for salads, or like here- for pasta salads. Sadly, Costco isn't currently carrying them and I can't find them anywhere in stores or online.

This exact recipe isn't on the Hormel website either, so I thought I'd jot it down in case I ever come across these precious mini's again. Obviously, it would work just as well with regular pepperoni cut into quarters or snipped into smalled bites...

8 ounces rotini (spiral-shaped) pasta (I used half regular and half whole wheat), cooked and drained
1 cup Pepperoni Mini's
4 ounces provolone cheese, cut into 1/4 inch cubes (I just used the shredded mozerella I had in the fridge... about a cup)
1 medium tomato, diced
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 small can sliced ripe olives, drained
3/4 cup prepared Italian salad dressing
1 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

Combine all ingredients except for the dressing and Parmesan cheese in a large bowl. Add Italian dressing and toss to coat. Refrigerate salad for 1-2 hours before serving. Stir well before serving and toss with Parmesan cheese.

I mostly made this to use up the last of our pepperoni, and I thought the kids would like it. They like pasta, cheese, olives, they love those little pepperonis, and (Savannah at least) like tomatoes and peppers. Turns out, I loved it as well! I picked around the bell peppers and olives, Sawyer picked around everything, but it was a hit with Ryan and Savannah. We steamed some brocolli to go with it, as well as some slices of french bread. What a great summer meal to keep in mind!!

one pot meals

I have a few new recipes we've tried lately that we were impressed with and I need to get caught up and get them written down here.
I'm always looking these days for recipes to help me use up random odds and ends from my produce co-op, and have found a few to be especially yummy (and easy!). I linked to them previously, but have learned from past experience that links sometimes go away... I think I can always go back to that recipe, wherever I found it, but one day -poof- I find it's gone! So I'm transposing them here for future reference and safe(r)-keeping.

Here are just a couple:

Garlic Potatoes and Ham

• 8 small red potatoes, cut into wedges
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 (16 ounce) package frozen chopped broccoli, partially thawed
• 1 cup cubed fully cooked ham
• 1 (1 ounce) package herb and garlic soup mix*

In a large skillet, cook potatoes in oil over medium-high heat for 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Stir in broccoli, ham and dry soup mix. Reduce heat; cover and cook for 25 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

*Lipton has a great mix called Recipe Secrets Savory Herb with Garlic soup mix, which is what this recipe was written for. I simply used what I had on hand- regular Onion Soup mix- and it was still yummy. I am going to keep my eye out for the herb and garlic one though...

The kids ate this one, veggies and all!

Teriyaki Pork and Sweet Potatoes

2 md Sweet potatoes, peeled, cut
- in 3/4-inch cubes (3 cups) 1 T Oil
1 lb Boneless pork loin, cut in
- 3/4-inch cubes (3 cups) 2 c Green beans or peas
1/2 c Bottled Teriyaki glaze
1 t Grated orange peel

1. In large skillet, combine sweet potatoes and 1/2 c water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and cook 8 to 10 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Drain and remove
potatoes from skillet; cover to keep warm.
2. Wipe skillet with paper towels. Heat oil in same skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add pork; cook and stir until browned.
3. Add green beans or peas and teriyaki glaze; mix well. Reduce heat to medium; cover and cook 8 to 10 minutes or until pork is no longer pink, stirring occasionally.
4. Stir in potatoes and orange peel; cook an additional 1 to 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated.



Beef Stroganoff

• 6 Tbsp butter
• 1 pound of top sirloin or tenderloin, cut thin into 1-inch wide by 2 1/2-inch long strips
• 1/3 cup chopped shallots (can substitute onions)
• 1/2 pound cremini mushrooms, sliced
• Salt to taste
• Pepper to taste
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon of dry tarragon or 2 teaspoons of chopped fresh tarragon
• 1 cup of sour cream at room temperature

1 Melt 3 Tbsp of butter in a large skillet on medium heat. Increase the heat to high/med-high and add the strips of beef. You want to cook the beef quickly, browning on each side, so the temp needs to be high enough to brown the beef, but not so high as to burn the butter. You may need to work in batches. While cooking the beef, sprinkle with some salt and pepper. When both sides are browned, remove the beef to a bowl and set aside.

2 In the same pan, reduce the heat to medium and add the shallots. Cook the shallots for a minute or two, allowing them to soak up any meat drippings. Remove the shallots to the same bowl as the meat and set aside.

3 In the same pan, melt another 3 Tbsp of butter. Increase heat to medium high and add the mushrooms. Cook, stirring occasionally for about 4 minutes. While cooking, sprinkle the nutmeg and the tarragon on the mushrooms.

4 Reduce the heat to low and add the sour cream to the mushrooms. You may want to add a tablespoon or two of water to thin the sauce (or not). Mix in the sour cream thoroughly. Do not let it come to a simmer or boil or the sour cream will curdle. Stir in the beef and shallots. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve immediately over egg noodles, fettucine, potatoes, or rice. (Potatoes, rice, and wheat-free pasta are wheat-free options.)

Serves 4.

This one was reeeeally good. I love a good stroganoff and this is a great one. The kids didn't go for it, but Ryan and I fought over the leftovers...

Roasted Cauliflower Soup

I don't know what this soup kick is that I'm on... if you were to ask me I don't even really like soup.
I do think I like it more when I make it from scratch though... YUM!

Here's another good one. I originally had low hopes for this one. I am not a fan of cauliflower. I only made it because my neighbor recommended the recipe and we had two heads of cauliflower from our produce co-op. I wasn't planning on eating those two heads of cauliflower myself, so why not give it a whirl.
Well, it shocked me, but it turns out I like cauliflower soup! This version anyway. It's really got great flavor and it was super simple to make:

Roasted Cauliflower Soup
(from Epicurious)

2 heads cauliflower
3 garlic cloves
2 shallots
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups chicken broth
1 cup water
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 bay leaf
2 cups heavy cream

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Cut cauliflower into 1-inch flowerets (about 10 cups). In a large baking pan toss cauliflower, garlic, and shallots with oil to coat and roast in middle of oven about 30 minutes, or until golden.

In a 4-quart kettle simmer broth, water, roasted cauliflower mixture, and herbs 30 minutes, or until cauliflower is very tender. Discard bay leaf and in a blender puree soup in batches until smooth (use caution when blending hot liquids), transferring to a bowl. Return soup to kettle and stir in cream and salt and pepper to taste. Heat soup over moderate heat until just heated through.

*****

I didn't have shallots, so I used some red onion instead. I wasn't entirely sure from the recipe how to roast the veggies, so after cutting the cauliflower, I just chunked up the onion real big and left the garlic cloves whole and tossed it all on the pan. Also, I roasted them longer than 30 minutes, as per reviews on the recipe... I think I did 45min+... they were quite blackened. I also skipped adding the water and used Half&Half instead of the heavy cream, and only just over 1 cup instead of 2. It was plenty creamy even that way.

Ryan and I were both really impressed with this soup. Savannah tried a decent amount too. She actually said it was too sweet. (?!)
We served it with cornbread and veggies and dip. We're thinking next time (and I do foresee making this again... Not sure if I'd buy cauliflower just for it, but next time we get a head or two from our co-op, I'm looking forward to this soup!) we'd try adding some sausage or cubed ham or something meatier to the soup to make it more of a filling main course.

Roasted Tomato Soup

Another yummy homemade soup!!
I made this one ahead of time and then just threw the soup back on the stove to warm up along with grilled cheese for a quick, but homecooked lunch.

Roasted Tomato Soup
6 cups (3 pints) cherry tomatoes
3 tbsps olive oil
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 tbsp butter
2 garlic cloves
1 cup chopped onion
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
4 cups chicken broth
1/2 tsp thyme
1 cup whipping cream (I used half&half)

1- heat the oven to 400*. On a baking sheet combine the cherry tomatoes, 2 tbsps of the olive oil and the salt and pepper. Toss to coat evenly and spread in a single layer.













Roast the tomatoes until they are shriveled with brown spots, about 35 to 45 minutes.









2- In a large pot heat the butter and the remaining tbsp of oil over med. heat. Add the garlic and the onion and saute' until softened, about 6 minutes. Add the canned tomatoes with their juice, the broth, the thyme, and the roasted tomatoes, including any liquid on the baking sheet. Bring the mixture to a boil and reduce heat to simmer, partially covered for about 40 minutes.
3- Using a food processor or blender, puree the soup until it's smooth. Return to the pot and stir in the cream. Without letting the soup boil, warm it over medium heat, stirring often, until steaming. Add salt and pepper (and I added a little Italian seasoning), if necessary.

I really liked this soup, and I'm not a fan of tomato soups. It had a really good rich flavor, and even though I thought it was a tad bland in the seasonings, as soon as we added the italian seasoning, it was great. Once again, my kids wouldn't touch it, but the two other little boys we shared lunch with sucked it down.

Breakfast Casserole

I'm always looking for a good breakfast with a make-ahead recipe. I found this one this month in my Cooking Light magazine, and since we had house guests all weekend, what better time to try it out!

Sausage and Cheese Breakfast Casserole

12 oz turkey breakfast sausage
2 cups low-fat milk
2 cups egg substitute
1 tsp dry mustard
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp ground red pepper
3 large eggs
16 slices white bread
1 cup (4 oz) finely shredded extrasharp cheddar cheese
1/4 tsp paprika

1- Brown sausage in a skillet over med-high heat, breaking up to crumble. Remove from heat and cool.
2- Combine milk and next 6 ingredients (thru eggs) in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk.
3-Trim crusts from bread and cut break into 1" cubes.
4- Add bread cubes, sausage and cheddar cheese to milk misture, stirring to combine. Pour into a 13x9" baking or 3 qt casserole dish coated with cooking spray. Spread evenly in baking dish. Cover and refrigerate 8 hrs or overnight.
5- Remove casserole from refrigerator, let stand 30 minutes. Sprinkle casserole evenly with paprika.
6- Bake at 350* for 45 minutes or until set and lightly browned. Let stand 10 minutes.
(12 servings)
This was one of Cooking Light's feature recipes where they work with a real family, take an old family favorite that really not so healthy or diet friendly and give it a revamp. I've never used egg substitute before, but by combining it with a few whole eggs, actually makes a big difference in the fat and cholesterol in this recipe. And I was game to try the turkey breakfast sausage, but the grocery store I was at didn't carry it, so I got regular pork sausage. This amount of sausage is still half (!!) the amount in this family's original recipe though. Using the finely shredded cheese helps more evenly distribute the flavor without having to use so much. I mean, this is a large casserole, and I used only a cup of cheese... it was plenty flavorful!
We all loved it. I couldn't get my kids to try it (they had had pancakes earlier), but our friends' toddler gobbled down two helpings!
This is definitely a recipe I'll be making again and again; it's a great recipe to have on hand for overnight guests, weekends at the lake, or to take to a brunch!!

Mmmm... fried food

I made an awesome impromptu dinner last night, if I do say so myself. We were off on our "menu plan" and I had nothing prepared or in mind. We did however, have an old(er) single piece of steak in the freezer and a ton of giant onions sitting in the pantry. Onions that are just begging to be made into onion rings. So I searched the internet for some good ideas and a great onion ring recipe. Boy did I luck out and find a great one!

First I thawed the steak, cubed it up and coated them to make steak "bites".
Here's how:
I mixed up 1 egg and a quarter cup of milk in a small bowl and let the steak bites soak for a mintue while I combined 1 cup of flour, 1 tsp of steak seasoning, some extra garlic powder and a little bit of cayenne in a gallon ziplock bag. I took the steak from the egg dip and put the pieces in the bag, sealed it up and shook to coat them all. Ryan fried them in the deep fryer. You can of course, just fry these in oil on the stove. The FryDaddy is sooo easy though! I think they fried for about 5 minutes in two batches.

Meanwhile, I went to work on the onion rings. I used this recipe and here's my low fuss process...
Put the 1 1/4 cup flour, 1 tsp baking powder and 1 tsp salt into a ziplock bag. I made nice big thick slices from our giant onion and threw them in the bag to coat. Then you fished them out and put them aside on a plate while you add 1 egg and 1 cup of milk to the ziplock bag. Seal it up and mash it all around good, mixing the milk/egg and flour mixture till it's a smooth batter. Then put the onions back in and work around with your hands to coat. Remove the onion rings and place on a rack over the sink or a baking pan and let the excess batter drip off of the rings. Put about a cup of breadcrumbs (I only had italian seasoned breadcrumbs handy) in a shallow dish and when the onion rings have stopped dripping, place them one at a time in the bread crumbs to coat. Then fry 'em up, just about a minute and a half on each side.

These are sooo good. Very simple flavor, but they are really so good! I might play around with it a bit next time because I have a Garlic Parmesan seasoning I thought may be really good with these, but honestly they are perfectly good on their own. I'm excited for this summer, because I'm predicting these will be a huge hit at our barbeques this summer.
I'm thinking I can make up a good batch somewhat ahead of time, have them battered and coated and ready to just have Ryan man the fryer when we're ready to eat!

Anyway, we enjoyed these steak bites, fabulous onion rings and a great big salad last night for dinner. Sawyer scarfed down the onion rings; I think he probably had close to a dozen rings! He loved 'em! I did too. I had to make myself stop. Luckily I only made one onion. Mind you, it was a HUGE onion, but at least the pile didn't go on and on like it could have, had I sliced up another. Try them!

Breakfast Cake

(recipe found here)

I don't have enough good things to say about this yummy breakfast treat.
It's the ultimate comfort breakfast food, and thankfully, a healthy filling way to start your day as well. Or for a snack or dessert or whatever!

I'll just get right to the recipe:
(I made this first thing this morning and my house still smells oh so good!)

Breakfast Cake

1 cup butter, melted and cooled
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups whole rolled oats
3/4 cup honey
2 eggs
1 t. sea salt
1 t. baking soda
1 t. vanilla
1 cup raisins, chocolate chips or other dried fruit

Stir together butter, buttermilk, flour and oats in a glass bowl. Cover with a cloth and allow the grains to soak on your counter overnight or for at least 8 hours. (I just did it before bed and let it sit overnight.)

Stir in honey, eggs, salt, baking soda and vanilla. Fold in raisins, chocolate chips or dried fruit. Pour into a buttered 9×9 inch baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

****

Be warned, after you let the grain mixture sit on your counter, it will be STIFF. Um, I actually broke my wooden spoon trying to stir in the honey and eggs. It does soften up quickly once you get it moving, but just an fyi... maybe use a metal spoon!

I'm not a fan of raisins or dried cranberries, but I did want to add something. I ended up dumping in some Cherry Chips I had leftover from holiday baking. They were perfect! Just a little extra sweetness, just a little fruity, just a little holiday color for us leading into this upcoming Christmas week!

This cake is really so good. Don't you wish you had some?...

Cheddar and Mushroom Soup

I whipped up this yummy soup yesterday getting in the wintery food mood with the cold temperatures and icy wind outside. I loved it!

Cream of Mushroom Soup with Cheddar Cheese

• 4 tbsp butter
• 1 lb mixed mushrooms, sliced thick
• 1/2 medium sweet onion, sliced thick
• 5 cloves garlic, minced (I only used 3)
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 3 tbsp flour
• 1 3/4 cup chicken broth
• 1 cup cream, half and half or milk
• 1/8 tsp nutmeg
• black pepper to taste
• 1 cup finely grated cheddar cheese

In heavy saucepan, melt butter and saute mushrooms, onions, garlic and salt until the onions are soft and translucent and the mushrooms have released their juices.
Sprinkle with the flour and stir for 1 minute.
Add chicken broth while stirring.
Bring to a low boil and simmer for 10 minutes.
Slowly stir in cream and bring back to simmer.
Add cheddar cheese and stir until melted and combined.
Season with nutmeg and pepper to taste.
Remove from heat and serve.














Oh, this soup was good! Even while I was cooking the mushrooms, onions, etc, I had my nose over the pan and just couldn't wait until it was all finished. It smelled so good. There's nothing like a good mushroom soup. It was so yummy!
The kids ate Campbells chicken noodle. They didn't even pretend to be interested in real, made from scratch, homemade soup. Ryan really liked the soup... as much as someone who doesn't much care for mushrooms could. He picked around most of the big mushrooms and onions. He said it reminded him of a good stroganoff. It was so yummy. Oh, did I already say that??

Next time I will mince the onion as well; we don't really care for whole onion "rings" in our dishes. And I'll probably add some beef or chicken and maybe some broccoli pieces as well to make it a heartier soup for those of us (Ryan) who want something in it besides just mushrooms.

Sweet Chicken Tacos

Here's a random recipe I came across online that sounded really yummy to me. I decided to try it since I'm not a huge fan of mexican food and this sounded to me like it sweetened the deal a little...

Sweet Chicken Tacos
3 tbsp. Butter
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 tsp. dried mustard
1 c. Ketchup
2 tbsp. White wine Vinegar
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 c. Brown Sugar
about 2 lbs chicken breasts, cooked and shredded

Melt butter on medium low heat. Add onions and saute. Mix all ingredients (except chicken) until sugar is melted. Then add chicken and let simmer until juices are absorbed in chicken.

Serve with:

Flour Tortillas
Shredded Lettuce
Diced Tomatoes
Shredded cheddar cheese
Sour Cream and Guacamole


I really liked the chicken... I liked how it brought in different flavors to the regular soft tacos or fajitas we normally have. Ryan thought it was too sweet for his taste and after my second taco, I could see his point. I'd probably use less brown sugar next time. Two cups did seem like an awful lot!! I'll definitely make this again though. Maybe for guests too, since it makes quite a lot of chicken and the kids wouldn't eat it, leaving lots of leftovers for just Ryan and me!

Cheesy Tilapia

I saw this recipe on a blog documenting A Year of Crockpotting. I've taken quite a few recipes from there actually, because I love using my crockpot. This is my favorite so far.

This was a recipe using the same method of wrapping the fish in foil packets as my favorite salmon recipe. The foil traps all the moisture and juices in, making a beautifully tender fish, never dried out. This recipe simply calls for a crockpot instead of an oven, and I found myself wondering which was more energy efficient; using the crock pot for 3-4 hours or using the oven for 30-40 minutes. Anyone know the answer to that?
I definitely like having it prepared and out of the way before the dinner hour though!

Here's the recipe:

Cheesy Tilapia

• 3 or 4 Tilapia filets (or any other favorite white fish)
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup shredded cheese (cheddar is fine, parmesan is yummy!!)
• juice of 2 lemons
• 4 chopped garlic cloves
• pinch of salt and pepper

1. mix all ingredients except for the fish in a bowl
2. lay out pieces of foil for each piece of fish
3. rub sauce mixture on both sides of each piece of fish
4. fold foil over fish to make seal packets
5. toss the packets into the crockpot and cook on high for 3-4 hours; fish should flake easily with a fork

Ryan and I really liked this fish. One discovery I made was that the sauce was extremely watery when first taken out of the crockpot... I had cut some up for the kids and when I returned to the packet to transfer the rest of the fish to my plate, the sauce had thickened up and turned "cheesier". I used parmesan cheese and the whole thing was really yummy.

Maple Jack Pork Chops

Another new recipe this week. And it earned another permanent place in my cookbook!
How could it not, with an easy 5 ingredients, less than five hour cook time (in the crock pot), and one of those lovely just throw it all together and truly forget about it until dinnertime.

I especially like these 'half-day' crockpot recipes... quite often I forget or get a late start on getting a meal in the crock pot first thing in the morning. But then I'm always around at noon or early afternoon, and thats the kids' downtime in their rooms, which means I should always have time to prep a meal!

Anyway. These pork chops. Melt in your mouth. Mmmm, Mmmm. Really.

Want to try them?
All you need is a crockpot, a few pork chops, an onion, some dijon mustard and this:

Yes, really.

Maple Jack Pork Chops
(from Recipezaar)

4 thick-cut pork loin chops
1 sweet onion peeled and sliced
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
1/4 cup Jack Daniels whiskey
2 tbsp Dijon mustard

Place onion slices in the bottom of your slow cooker. In small bowl, whisk together the syrup, whiskey and mustard. Season pork chops with salt and pepper and then dip each chop into syrup mixture and place in slow cooker on top of the onions. Pour remaining syrup mixture over the pork chops. Cover and cook on LOW for 4-5 hours.

Orange Chicken

I made this "mock" Orange Chicken dish last week and it was delish!! I found the recipe on this recipe blog and it really was soooo yummy. We've had a hard time finding a consistently favorite chinese place around here and this is the perfect substitute. I think I liked this better than any orange chicken I've had from any Chinese place.

It was a tad time consuming, but really quite easy. Definitely not health food, but so yummy!

Orange Chicken
The Chicken:
3 lbs. Chicken, cut into bite size pieces
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1/2 cup of flour
1/2 cup of cornstarch
4 eggs with a little milk
oil

Beat the 4 eggs together with a splash of milk. Mix the flour, cornstarch and garlic powder together. Heat some oil in a skillet. Dip the chicken pieces into the flour mixture, then the egg mixture, and then fry in hot oil until golden brown.
Place chicken in baking dish.

The Sauce:
1 1/4 cups of sugar
1/2 cup of ketchup
1/2 cup of water
2 tablespoons of soy sauce

Combine all ingredients for the sauce in saucepan and bring to boil over medium low heat. Stir until sugar is dissolved and ingredients are combined.
Pour sauce over chicken, and bake for 45 minutes or until chicken is thouroughly cooked through.

We served it over white rice of course, with brocolli.
Ryan and I both loved this recipe. Ryan wants to try it and tweak it to make a General Tsao's dish.
I thought the kids would love it since it since it's so sweet, but no. They still wanted nothing to do with "yucky chicken". That's okay... more for us!

Chili in the Crock

I was brainstorming for menu ideas this cool and dreary past Sunday and my husband chimed in that a big pot of chili for Monday night football would be perfect...
So chili it was!

I've never really made chili before. I know. One of the easiest dishes around and I've never even attempted it. I buy the Banquet Homestyle Bakes chili and cornbread in the box. I know, we're sad. But I just don't like chili. Actually, I've realized over the years, I do like chili, I just hate the beans. And I hate the hassle of picking them out of a good bowl of chili. So I decided to buckle down and find a good no-bean chili recipe to try out this week.

In my searching I made some discoveries...
Did you know that original, classic, true chili doesn't involve beans at all? A popular saying among self-proclaimed chili purists is "If you know beans about Chili, you know Chili ain't got no beans!". The thought that beans do not belong in chili may be further proven in the fact that most official chili cook-offs do not allow beans. In many cases the chili would be disqualified if it contained such ingredients considered "filler".
Chili is a Texas creation, a Texas invention, and a Texas tradition. It was created as a cheap food for cowboys, one that could easily be made while riding the hard trails, and that would also travel well. In other words, it was quick and easy to make, but could be made to serve lots of people over a long period of time. Following the herds across country, a group of cowboys could start a pot of chili, and continually add meat scraps and fat to the pot over the weeks as they traveled--and it only got better as the trail went on. Including beans in chili just wouldn't have happened as dry beans were heavy to travel with and involved a long soaking and cooking time.

So anyway, here was my first attempt at my own homemade "beanless" chili. I picked a simple yet interesting recipe off of Recipezaar and tweaked it just a little according to my pantry and our taste. The original recipe:

1 lb ground beef
1 pkg dry onion soup mix
2 tsp cocoa powder
2-3 tbsp chili powder
1 can tomato paste
1 can diet coke

cook on low at least 6 hours

I chose this recipe because a) it made a decently small amout... enough for 4-6 adults. I knew it would just be me and Ryan eating this and I didn't want to make a huge pot of chili for us to be eating on forever... especially if I didn't know it was a great recipe!
and b) the diet coke and the cocoa really caught my attention and intrigued me.
I love that these are ingredients I would pretty much always have on hand.

Alterations by me:
I didn't realize I didn't have any tomato paste on hand... I used tomato sauce instead
I added a can of diced basil garlic and oregano tomatoes
I added about a clove of chopped garlic and a sprinkle of onion powder

Verdict:
I thought it was really really yummy! Just the right amout of sweet and spicy. I was hesitant on the chili powder and only did about 2 tablespoons and I might go a little more on that next time. Also maybe add some real finely chopped onions. But the consistency was right on and I loved the flavor! Ryan really liked it too. I asked him if I should keep trying other chili recipes to find our favorite and he voted on keeping this one as the norm!
Of course the kids would have nothing to do with it... they pretty much only ate the accompianing corn bread!

Barbecue Chicken Pizza

I've been wanting to make this up for awhile now. My sister-in-law had a great recipe for a barbecue chicken pizza and even though I'm not a fan of barbecue, I don't love chicken, and I usually avoid "gourmet" pizzas and prefer plain old tomato sauce, cheese and pepperoni... she made us this pizza often and we really liked it.
I've searched online for her recipe, knowing basically what was in it, but I never found THE one. I'm hesitant to try any other one for fear that I just won't like it as much. And you know how when you have a craving for just the right thing?
Last time I checked, she couldn't find her recipe, but she did rattle off the ingredients to me. So I decided to finally give it a go. It turned out pretty decent and it's soooo easy, I had to share it here.

Here's what I did:
We grilled chicken breasts the other night, so I had Ryan grill up a couple of extra to save for the pizza. Two big breasts were plenty for us.
I shredded the chicken and stirred it into about 1 cup of barbecue sauce. You can obviously use whatever kind is your favorite; I used Sweet Baby Ray's Honey Barbecue Sauce.
Then I mixed up the pizza crust (I have a really good pizza crust recipe I should post here sometime, but last night I was lazy and just used two boxes of Jiffy), baked just the crust for a few minutes, and then spread a thin layer of more bbq sauce over the crust as you would the tomato sauce.Next over the bbq sauce, I sprinkled just a bit of mozzarella cheese. Then I spread out the bbq chicken, sprinkled with red onions, covered with more cheese and topped with some chopped parsley and basil.That's it.
My SIL's recipe also called for cilantro and peppercinis, but I didn't have those on hand so I winged it. You can really, as with any pizza, put on whatever you think sounds good.
I baked (according to the pizza crust directions) for 18 minutes at 425* and our yummy pizza was ready to slice up and eat.

Ryan and I really liked it (though it's not quite as yummy as I remember yours Holly!), Sawyer had a few bites (and I think actually liked it, if it weren't for wanting to get down and follow his big sister), and as usual Savannah turned up her nose at it.
It's so easy, and yummy, I'm sure I'll be serving this up more often!