I thought I would slide these two in between some picture posts.
I needed to make something spicy-you know-kick labor into gear & all. It was snowing on Sunday-again. So a soup sounded good. I was going to go a tortilla soup, but then I came across this chiptole pepper soup on Cara's blog. This was really good. I added more chicken broth b/c it didn't seem to make as much as I wanted.
Secondly, in my bored state, I made some sugar cookies. I used this recipe from Ms Nemmie over at Cast Sugar. I omitted the zest & just used vanilla. They were pretty crispy, but they kept their shape and I never have a sugar cookie keep its shape, so this will go into the Christmas cookie rotation.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Beef & Noodle Bake
I am still cooking and baking away. I need to occupy my time until Baby R decides to grace us with his presence. The good thing is that at least I am able to put some of this stuff in the freezer.
Beef, Cheese, and Noodle Bake
Cooking Light
Ingredients
1 (8-ounce) package small elbow macaroni
Cooking spray
1 cup prechopped onion
1 cup preshredded carrot
2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic
1 pound lean ground sirloin
1 cup tomato sauce
1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup fat-free milk
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) 2% reduced-fat shredded sharp cheddar cheese (such as Cracker Barrel), divided
Preparation
Preheat oven to 350°.
Cook pasta according to the package directions, omitting salt and fat; drain. Lightly coat pasta with cooking spray.
Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion and carrot, and sauté 4 minutes. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add ground beef; cook 5 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble. Add tomato sauce, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper. Cook for 2 minutes or until most of liquid evaporates.
Add pasta to beef mixture in pan, stirring to combine. Spoon pasta mixture into an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.
Place milk, flour, nutmeg, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt in a medium saucepan; stir with a whisk until blended. Cook over medium heat 2 minutes or until thickened, stirring constantly with a whisk. Add 1 cup cheese, stirring until smooth. Pour cheese mixture over pasta mixture; stir. Top evenly with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
This was ok. It lacked some flavor-I don't know exactly what though. I think maybe I wanted some tomato chunks, but then it would have been more like an Italian bake.
Beef, Cheese, and Noodle Bake
Cooking Light
Ingredients
1 (8-ounce) package small elbow macaroni
Cooking spray
1 cup prechopped onion
1 cup preshredded carrot
2 teaspoons bottled minced garlic
1 pound lean ground sirloin
1 cup tomato sauce
1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup fat-free milk
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) 2% reduced-fat shredded sharp cheddar cheese (such as Cracker Barrel), divided
Preparation
Preheat oven to 350°.
Cook pasta according to the package directions, omitting salt and fat; drain. Lightly coat pasta with cooking spray.
Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion and carrot, and sauté 4 minutes. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add ground beef; cook 5 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble. Add tomato sauce, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper. Cook for 2 minutes or until most of liquid evaporates.
Add pasta to beef mixture in pan, stirring to combine. Spoon pasta mixture into an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.
Place milk, flour, nutmeg, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt in a medium saucepan; stir with a whisk until blended. Cook over medium heat 2 minutes or until thickened, stirring constantly with a whisk. Add 1 cup cheese, stirring until smooth. Pour cheese mixture over pasta mixture; stir. Top evenly with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
This was ok. It lacked some flavor-I don't know exactly what though. I think maybe I wanted some tomato chunks, but then it would have been more like an Italian bake.
Friday, April 3, 2009
Homestyle Chicken & Biscuits
I was looking for a nice casserole recipe for the hubs & I one night. I had all the meals planned for the week & wanted something easy. This was very easy. I have no clue where I got the recipe from, it was sitting in my recipe binder from 2004.
Homestyle chicken & biscuits
1 can cream of mushroom soup (i used healthy request)
1 can cream of broccoli soup
1 cup of milk
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp thyme
1 cups cooked cubed chicken
3 cups frozen cooked veggies (i used California mix)
1 cup cooked diced red potatoes
1 pkg biscuits (I used Grands 10 oz, quartered)
Mix soups, milk, thyme & pepper in a baking dish. Stir in veggies, chicken & potatoes.
Bake at 400F for about 15 minutes.
Stir the casserole, then top with biscuits. Bake for an additional 15 minutes or until the biscuits are brown.
Homestyle chicken & biscuits
1 can cream of mushroom soup (i used healthy request)
1 can cream of broccoli soup
1 cup of milk
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp thyme
1 cups cooked cubed chicken
3 cups frozen cooked veggies (i used California mix)
1 cup cooked diced red potatoes
1 pkg biscuits (I used Grands 10 oz, quartered)
Mix soups, milk, thyme & pepper in a baking dish. Stir in veggies, chicken & potatoes.
Bake at 400F for about 15 minutes.
Stir the casserole, then top with biscuits. Bake for an additional 15 minutes or until the biscuits are brown.
Still here, counting down the days
Baby R isn't due until April 11, but I keep hoping he will make an early appearance. In the meantime, I am still cooking away. I did make a ton of freezer meals over the weekend, when we were snowed in. (Its SPRING mother nature!) All were recipes I have made before (mexican lasagna, chicken stroganoff & jambayla) I also stored some extra spaghetti sauce & chicken cacciatore in the freezer too. But hey, we also have to eat now right?
So while I am bored, I usually bake or cook. I made a loaf of the pumpkin cream cheese bread, and since I had about 1 cup of pumpkin left, I needed to find something else to use it in. I came across these pumpkin muffins on Smitten Kitchen.
Pumpkin Muffins
Smitten Kitchen (from Gourmet)
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 1/4 cups sugar, plus 1 tbsp
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350F.
Whisk together pumpkin, oil, eggs, pumpkin pie spice, 1 1/4 cup of sugar, baking soda & salt in a large bowl. Then whisk in flour & baking powder until just combined.
In a small separate bowl, stir together the cinnamon & sugar.
Divide batter in the muffin pans, then sprinkle the tops with the cinnamon sugar mixture. Bake until puffed & golden brown-about 25-30 minutes.
So while I am bored, I usually bake or cook. I made a loaf of the pumpkin cream cheese bread, and since I had about 1 cup of pumpkin left, I needed to find something else to use it in. I came across these pumpkin muffins on Smitten Kitchen.
Pumpkin Muffins
Smitten Kitchen (from Gourmet)
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 1/4 cups sugar, plus 1 tbsp
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350F.
Whisk together pumpkin, oil, eggs, pumpkin pie spice, 1 1/4 cup of sugar, baking soda & salt in a large bowl. Then whisk in flour & baking powder until just combined.
In a small separate bowl, stir together the cinnamon & sugar.
Divide batter in the muffin pans, then sprinkle the tops with the cinnamon sugar mixture. Bake until puffed & golden brown-about 25-30 minutes.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Spiced Chicken with Oranges
I found this recipe in a recipe binder I created years ago. In fact, I just checked the date on the print out and it says "07/23/2003". I have had some Chinese Five Spice powder in the cupboard, unopened, for probably 6 months. I couldn't tell you why I bought it, for whatever reason I never made whatever I intended to make.
I really like the PF Changs Orange Peel chicken, and this is what I had envisioned this recipe to be, so when I started cooking and smelled the licorice, I was a bit concerned. Chinese Five Spice has cinnamon, star anise, ground cloves, licorice & fennel. I did not know this until the hubs said "Smells like licorice". My expectations went way down. I am not really a fan of licorice unless it comes in the form of a Twizzler. But I kept on.
Spice Chicken With Oranges
Bone Appetit (Feb 2003)
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (I used tenderloins)
2 tsp chinese five spice
2 tsp sesame seeds
1 Tbsp butter
1 medium red onion (I used yellow)
1/2 cup orange juice
3 Tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp hot pepper oil (I used canola oil & cayenne pepper)
2 seedless oranges, peeled & sliced crosswise into 1/2 inch thick sections
**I also used some flour
Mix salt, pepper, five spice, sesame seeds & flour in a bowl. Toss chicken in the mixture.
Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute chicken until golden brown & cooked through. Using tongs, transfer to a plate.
Add onion to drippings in the skillet (if you dont have enough add some more butter). Saute until tender. Add OJ, soy, and pepper oil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 2 minutes. Add oranges and stir until just heated through. Return chicken to skillet to reheat.
I served this with some asian rice & steam broccoli. It was better than I had anticipated, but not as good as I was hoping.
I really like the PF Changs Orange Peel chicken, and this is what I had envisioned this recipe to be, so when I started cooking and smelled the licorice, I was a bit concerned. Chinese Five Spice has cinnamon, star anise, ground cloves, licorice & fennel. I did not know this until the hubs said "Smells like licorice". My expectations went way down. I am not really a fan of licorice unless it comes in the form of a Twizzler. But I kept on.
Spice Chicken With Oranges
Bone Appetit (Feb 2003)
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (I used tenderloins)
2 tsp chinese five spice
2 tsp sesame seeds
1 Tbsp butter
1 medium red onion (I used yellow)
1/2 cup orange juice
3 Tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp hot pepper oil (I used canola oil & cayenne pepper)
2 seedless oranges, peeled & sliced crosswise into 1/2 inch thick sections
**I also used some flour
Mix salt, pepper, five spice, sesame seeds & flour in a bowl. Toss chicken in the mixture.
Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute chicken until golden brown & cooked through. Using tongs, transfer to a plate.
Add onion to drippings in the skillet (if you dont have enough add some more butter). Saute until tender. Add OJ, soy, and pepper oil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 2 minutes. Add oranges and stir until just heated through. Return chicken to skillet to reheat.
I served this with some asian rice & steam broccoli. It was better than I had anticipated, but not as good as I was hoping.
Friday, March 20, 2009
Shrimp & Sausage Hash
I won't lie, I was little skeptical about this recipe. I read the ingredients to the hubs and he said "well that sounds freaking awesome!" so I put it on the menu. I mean, it didn't even call for ranch and he thought it sounded good. I think maybe my issue with the recipe is b/c I don't really like all my food to touch. I don't know why, but I just don't.
So hash is a mixture of meat, potatoes, onions & spices. I had some smoked sausage in the freezer and needed to figure out something to make with it. I went to the Armour-Eckrich website and found this recipe.
Smoked Sausage & Shrimp Hash
Ingredients
1 cup chopped red potatoes (1/2-inch pieces)
3 tablespoons olive oil
8 large shrimp, peeled, deveined and chopped
1 package (16 ounces) Eckrich® Smoked Sausage, halved lengthwise, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
1 large yellow onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
1 cup chopped peeled sweet potato (1/2-inch pieces)
1 large red bell pepper, chopped (about 1 cup)
1 large yellow bell pepper, chopped (about 1 cup)
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 green onions, sliced
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
Directions
1. Place red potatoes in small saucepan. Add enough cold water to cover potatoes. Bring to a boil over medium heat; boil 2 minutes. Drain. Remove potatoes from saucepan; drain on paper towels.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add shrimp; cook and stir 30 seconds, or until shrimp just start to turn pink. (Shrimp will not be fully cooked.) Remove shrimp from skillet; set aside.
3. Add sausage and yellow onions to same skillet; stir. Reduce heat to medium-high. Cook and stir 6 minutes, or until sausage and onions are lightly browned. Add red potatoes, sweet potatoes, bell peppers and garlic; cook 6 minutes, or until vegetables are crisp-tender, stirring frequently. Add shrimp and green onions; cook and stir 1 minute, or until shrimp turn pink. Stir in salt and black pepper.
**Some of my changes--> I didn't have yellow or red peppers, but I still had a ton leftover from our garden in the freezer. So I just used those. I wish my potatoes had been more browned than mushy. I am not sure why they got mushy-maybe my pan wasn't big enough. I used normal sized shrimp, so I had about 10-12 of those.
I was surprised at how much I liked this. The hubs loved it (meat & potatoes kind of guy he is) and I think if you used turkey sausage it would be pretty healthy.
So hash is a mixture of meat, potatoes, onions & spices. I had some smoked sausage in the freezer and needed to figure out something to make with it. I went to the Armour-Eckrich website and found this recipe.
Smoked Sausage & Shrimp Hash
Ingredients
1 cup chopped red potatoes (1/2-inch pieces)
3 tablespoons olive oil
8 large shrimp, peeled, deveined and chopped
1 package (16 ounces) Eckrich® Smoked Sausage, halved lengthwise, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
1 large yellow onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
1 cup chopped peeled sweet potato (1/2-inch pieces)
1 large red bell pepper, chopped (about 1 cup)
1 large yellow bell pepper, chopped (about 1 cup)
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 green onions, sliced
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
Directions
1. Place red potatoes in small saucepan. Add enough cold water to cover potatoes. Bring to a boil over medium heat; boil 2 minutes. Drain. Remove potatoes from saucepan; drain on paper towels.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add shrimp; cook and stir 30 seconds, or until shrimp just start to turn pink. (Shrimp will not be fully cooked.) Remove shrimp from skillet; set aside.
3. Add sausage and yellow onions to same skillet; stir. Reduce heat to medium-high. Cook and stir 6 minutes, or until sausage and onions are lightly browned. Add red potatoes, sweet potatoes, bell peppers and garlic; cook 6 minutes, or until vegetables are crisp-tender, stirring frequently. Add shrimp and green onions; cook and stir 1 minute, or until shrimp turn pink. Stir in salt and black pepper.
**Some of my changes--> I didn't have yellow or red peppers, but I still had a ton leftover from our garden in the freezer. So I just used those. I wish my potatoes had been more browned than mushy. I am not sure why they got mushy-maybe my pan wasn't big enough. I used normal sized shrimp, so I had about 10-12 of those.
I was surprised at how much I liked this. The hubs loved it (meat & potatoes kind of guy he is) and I think if you used turkey sausage it would be pretty healthy.
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies
There has got to be shorter name for these bad boys! They are absolutely wonderful though. I found them over on Stacey's blog. As soon as I saw her post on them I knew I needed to make them ASAP! I have been wanting to make something with the oats I have in the pantry, but I didn't want oatmeal raisin or butterscotch oatmeal.
PB, CC, Oat cookies
1 1/2 c all-purpose flour
2c rolled oats
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
12 Tbsp (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted & slightly cooled
1 c peanut butter
1 c brown sugar, packed
1/2 c granulated sugar
1 large egg plus
1 yolk
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
Directions:
1. Heat oven to 325 degrees. Adjust oven racks to upper- and lower-middle positions. Mix flour, oats, salt, and baking soda together in medium bowl; set aside.
2. Either by hand or with electric mixer, mix butter and sugars until thoroughly blended. Mix in egg, yolk, vanilla, and peanut butter. Add dry ingredients; mix until just combined. Stir in chips. I didn't follow this next step. I just used my good old PC cookie scoop. Although I did use parchment paper and refrigerate my dough for a bit. For an illustration of step 3 click here
3. Form scant 1/4 cup dough into ball. Holding dough ball using fingertips of both hands, pull into two equal halves. Rotate halves ninety degrees and, with jagged surfaces exposed, join halves together at their base, again forming a single cookie, being careful not to smooth dough’s uneven surface. Place formed dough onto one of two parchment paper-lined cookie sheets. (Dough can be refrigerated up to 2 days or frozen up to 1 month—shaped or not.)
4. Bake, reversing cookie sheets’ positions halfway through baking, until cookies are light golden brown and outer edges start to harden yet centers are still soft and puffy, 15 to 18 minutes (start checking at 13 minutes). (Frozen dough requires an extra 1 to 2 minutes baking time.) Cool cookies on cookie sheets. Serve or store in airtight container.I found the trick to these cookies was taking them out of the oven before they looked like they were done. They stayed moist on the inside but slightly crunchy on the outside.
PB, CC, Oat cookies
1 1/2 c all-purpose flour
2c rolled oats
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
12 Tbsp (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted & slightly cooled
1 c peanut butter
1 c brown sugar, packed
1/2 c granulated sugar
1 large egg plus
1 yolk
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
Directions:
1. Heat oven to 325 degrees. Adjust oven racks to upper- and lower-middle positions. Mix flour, oats, salt, and baking soda together in medium bowl; set aside.
2. Either by hand or with electric mixer, mix butter and sugars until thoroughly blended. Mix in egg, yolk, vanilla, and peanut butter. Add dry ingredients; mix until just combined. Stir in chips. I didn't follow this next step. I just used my good old PC cookie scoop. Although I did use parchment paper and refrigerate my dough for a bit. For an illustration of step 3 click here
3. Form scant 1/4 cup dough into ball. Holding dough ball using fingertips of both hands, pull into two equal halves. Rotate halves ninety degrees and, with jagged surfaces exposed, join halves together at their base, again forming a single cookie, being careful not to smooth dough’s uneven surface. Place formed dough onto one of two parchment paper-lined cookie sheets. (Dough can be refrigerated up to 2 days or frozen up to 1 month—shaped or not.)
4. Bake, reversing cookie sheets’ positions halfway through baking, until cookies are light golden brown and outer edges start to harden yet centers are still soft and puffy, 15 to 18 minutes (start checking at 13 minutes). (Frozen dough requires an extra 1 to 2 minutes baking time.) Cool cookies on cookie sheets. Serve or store in airtight container.I found the trick to these cookies was taking them out of the oven before they looked like they were done. They stayed moist on the inside but slightly crunchy on the outside.
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