Jalapeno and Cheese Stuffed Chicken

I have been wanting to experiment with stuffed chicken breasts for a while. I had some leftover cheddar cheese in the refrigerator, and was trying to figure out what else to put in them. Since I wouldn't be eating, it only had to be something my husband likes, so I decided on jalapenos. Brian loves jalapenos and all things spicy. These came out great! The chicken was moist and the filling was perfectly spicy for him. Definitely a keeper!


Jalepeno and Cheddar Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Ingredients:

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• diced jalapenos, to taste (I used about 1/3 cup)
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs

Directions:

• Cut a slit in each of the chicken breasts. Stuff with cheese and jalapenos. Secure with a toothpick if needed.
• Dip the chicken breasts into beaten egg, then into breadcrumbs to coat
• Place the chicken in a baking dish and bake at 400 degrees for 20 - 25 minutes until done

Not really blogworthy...or healthy...but delicious!

Ok, so these potatoes are not really blogworthy since it's barely a "recipe" (and one found on the back of a box at that!). And, they are very greasy. However, if you've never had them, I would suggest giving them a try once. We love cooking these in foil packets on the campfire!

Lipton Recipe Secrets Onion Roasted Potatoes
Source: Lipton

Ingredients:

• 1 envelope Lipton® Recipe Secrets® Onion Soup Mix
• 4 all-purpose potatoes, cut into large chunks
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil

Directions:

• In a large casserole dish, mix all ingredients until potatoes are evenly coated
• Bake at 425 degrees, uncovered, stirring occassionally, 35 minutes or until potatoes are tender and golden brown
  

"Out of This World" Chicken Noodle Soup

I was inspired by a picture of chicken soup ingredients in a pot at The Foodie Fashionista. Everything looked so healthy and delicious, I knew I had to try the recipe. My husband's review of this soup? "This, my love, is out of this world." And he was right. It's the best chicken soup I have ever had. Here is my version of ingredients in a pot:

Chicken Noodle Soup
Source: The Foodie Fashionista

Ingredients:

• 1 (3 pound) roasting chicken
• 2 large carrots, chopped (I used more, probably 4-5)
• 2 large celery stalks with leaves, chopped (I used 3-4)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 parsnip, sliced in half vertically
• 1 turnip, sliced in half
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled
• several sprigs of parsley and dill
• 10-12 cups cold water
• salt and pepper to taste
• 4 ounces pasta (optional)
• cheesecloth

Directions:

• Place chicken, vegetables, and herbs in a large stockpot. Add enough cold water to cover all the contents of the pot. Bring to a boil and turn down to simmer; cover pot, but vent to allow steam to escape. Simmer for about 90 minutes.
• After 90 minutes, remove chicken from the soup. Remove as much meat as possible and discard skin and bones. Remove turnip and parsnip and discard. Find garlic cloves (they should be floating near the top) and smash them against the side of the pot and mix the smashed garlic into the soup. Add chicken meat back to soup; season with salt and pepper. Add pasta and bring back to a boil; boil until pasta is cooked through. (I would recommend cooking the pasta separately before adding it to the pot. I found that almost all of the broth was absorbed while the soup cooled overnight, and I had to add store bought stock to thin it out when reheating).
• Remove pot from heat and cover top surface of soup with cheesecloth. Push cloth down into soup until it sits just below the surface. Allow to cool completely, preferably overnight. Slowly lift cheesecloth up, separating the fat from the top surface of the soup. Reheat to serve.

Chicken and Biscuits

I think the greatest compliment a cook can get is from her mother. I sent some of these chicken and biscuits home with my mother, and she called to tell me how wonderful it was. I was so proud! I added some red pepper flakes for a little kick. The other changes I made to the original recipe are in red.

Chicken and Biscuits
Adapted from Sugar & Spice

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds boneless, skinless, chicken breast
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 carrots, sliced (I used 4)
• 2 celery stalks, sliced (I used 4)
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 clove garlic, minced (I used 3 cloves)
• 6 cups chicken broth
• 2 chicken bouillion cubes
• 1 cup frozen peas (I obmitted since they cause my husband psychological trauma)
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1 to 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes

Directions:

• Place chicken breasts in a pot, cover with water, and boil until fully coooked.
• While chicken is boiling, melt butter in a large, heavy-bottomed pot. Add the carrots, celery, onions and garlic to the pan and sautee over medium heat, stirring occassionally, until onions are translucent and vegetables are soft. If you see that they are getting too hot, reduce heat to medium low.
• Add chicken broth, boullion cubes and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer about 30 minutes.
• At this point you can add a slurry of flour and broth if the mixture is too thin for your likeness. I find the best method for doing this is to ladle a scoop of broth out of the pot and into a separate cup. In that cup, whisk in the flour until smooth, and then whisk that mixture back into the pot. This keeps large clumps of flour from forming in your pot!
• When chicken has finished cooking, let it cool long enough to handle. Shred the chicken and add it to the broth and vegetables, along with the peas. Cover and let simmer for an additional 30 minutes.

Fluffy Biscuits

So after the strawberry cupcakes and cornbread, I STILL had a ton of buttermilk left. So what better to use it for than fluffy buttermilk biscuits? I used these as a base for my chicken & biscuits, (which will be my next post), but I'm sure they would taste great warm with a little butter too! Enjoy.





Fluffy Buttermilk Biscuits
From elly says opa! and Cook's Illustrated
Makes 1 dozen

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
• 1 cup cake flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 pound unsalted, chilled butter cut into 1/4" cubes
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 3/4 cup buttermilk

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees
• Mix the first 6 ingredients together in a mixing bowl or the bowl of your food processor. With pastry blender or the steel blade of your food processor, cut the butter into the mixture until it resembles coarse meal.
• If mixing by hand, stir in the buttermilk with a spatula or fork until the mixture is a soft, slightly sticky ball. Add more buttermilk if necessary. If using a food processor, add the buttermilk and pulse process until dough gathers into moist clumps. Remove and form into a ball.
• Lightly flour your hands and divide the dough into 12 equal portions. Lightly pat a portion of the dough back and forth until a ball forms, and then pat lightly with cupped hands to form a rough ball. Place formed dough rounds 1" apart on an ungreased baking sheet. Brush dough tops with melted butter. Bake until biscuit tops are lightly brown, about 10-12 minutes.
  
  

Buttermilk Cornbread

I'm not a big fan of cornbread, but my husband likes it. I ran across this recipe while trying to figure out what to do with all the buttermilk I had left over from the strawberry cupcakes. I can't really give a review of this recipe since I don't like cornbread, but it smelled great, and my husband seemed to like it.




Buttermilk Cornbread
From Allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

• 1/4 pound butter
• 2/3 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup cornmeal
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease an 8 inch square pan.
• Melt butter in large saucepan. Remove from heat and stir in sugar. Quickly add eggs and beat until well blended. Combine buttermilk with baking soda and stir into mixture in pan. Stir in cornmeal, flour, and salt until well blended and few lumps remain. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
  
  

Oreo Truffles - all dressed up for Valentine's Day

One of my favorite things about baking is sharing treats with my friends and family. Since I've had a lot of time on my hands recently, I decided to make some little Valentine's Day gifts. I had made these truffles for Christmas, and they were a huge hit, so I figured that I would dress them up for Valentine's Day and gift them as gifts. They turned out super cute, and were delicious as always!





Oreo Truffles
Adapted from Recipezaar

Ingredients:

• 1 pound oreo cookies
• 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 pound milk chocolate
• ½ pound white chocolate (I used red candy melts for V-day)

Directions:

• Using food processor, grind cookies to fine powder
• With a mixer, blend cookie powder, cream cheese and vanilla extract until thoroughly mixed (there should be no white traces of cream cheese)
• Roll into small balls and place on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper
• Insert toothpick into middle of each ball
• Freeze until firm
• Dip balls into melted chocolate
• Remove toothpicks
• Drizzle with melted white chocolate