Sunday, January 31, 2010

Homemade Oreos

This is such an easy and fast cookie to make!
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For the cookie, you will need...
1 package of devil's food cake mix
2 eggs
1/2 c. oil
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For the frosting, you will need...
1 brick of cream cheese
1 cube of butter, at room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla
3-4 c. powdered sugar
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Mix all the ingredients for the cookies and roll the dough into small balls. Bake at 350 degrees for about 8 minutes. Let cookies cool on a cooling rack.
Mix all the ingredients until frosting is smooth. Take a cookie and spread some frosting on it. Top it with another cookie to make the oreo.
*I usually double the cookie recipe to go with one batch of the cream cheese frosting.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

This is absolutely my favorite recipe for chocolate chip cookies.
They turn out great. Every single time.
You will need....
2/3 c. shortening
2/3 c. butter or margarine, softened
1 c. sugar
1 c. packed brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
3 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
12 oz. chocolate chips
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Mix shortening, butter, sugars, eggs, and vanilla. Once well blended, stir in all the remaining ingredients except the chocolate chips. Once dough is completely mixed, stir in the chocolate chips. Drop spoonfuls onto a baking sheet. Cook for 8-10 minutes....until the cookies are just barely starting to brown.

Monday, January 25, 2010

Chicken Squares

3-4 chicken breasts
1 brick cream cheese
3 TBSP melted butter
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 1/2 TBSP chopped chives
2 pkg. of 8 crescent rolls
Bread crumbs
3 TBSP. milk Extra melted butter
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Cook chicken and cut into small pieces. Set the chicken aside. Mix together cream cheese, melted butter, chives, milk, salt, and pepper. Add chicken pieces. Unroll crescent rolls into rectangles (2 triangles together). Put a spoonful of chicken mixture on crescent roll rectangles. Fold sides together and pinch ends to seal. Dip into the extra melted butter and then the bread crumbs. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes.

Poppyseed Chicken

To make this you will need...
4 to 6 baked chicken breasts
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1/2 pt.(1 c.) sour cream
1 column Ritz crackers
2 TBSP poppy seeds
Noodles or rice
4 TBSP butter

Dice chicken; spread in a 9 x 12 dish. In a separate bowl, mix soup and sour cream. Spread over chicken. Crumble Ritz crackers and mix in a gallon size zip lock bag with melted butter and poppy seeds. Spread over mixture in the pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Serve over rice or pasta.

Chicken and Rice Soup

You will need...
2 c. cooked chicken cut into pieces
3 c. chopped carrots
1 c. chopped celery
6 chicken bouillon cubes
3/4 c. uncooked rice
4 c. water
2 cans cream of chicken soup.
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Bring water to a boil. Add all of the ingredients except the chicken. Simmer until veggies and rice are tender, usually about 25-30 minutes. Add chicken and cook 5 to 10 more minutes. Serve with rolls.

Ham and Cheese Sliders

To make some yummy ham and cheese sliders, you will need...
24 good white rolls
24 pieces of honey ham
24 pieces of provolone cheese
1/3 c. mayo
1/3 c. miracle whip
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Poppy Seed Sauce:
1 1/2 TBSP poppy seeds
1 1/2 TBSP yellow mustard
1 stick of butter, melted
1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
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In a small bowl, mix together mayo and miracle whip. Spread onto the center of both sides of each roll. Place a slice of ham and a slice of cheese inside each roll. Close rolls and place in a large baking dish or a heavy cookie sheet. Place them very close together.
In a medium bowl, whisk together all the ingredients for the poppy seed sauce. Pour the sauce evenly over all the sliders. Let sit for about 10 minutes or until butter sets slightly. Cover with foil and bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes or until cheese it totally melted. Uncover and cook for 2 additional minutes. Serve warm.
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*recipe found here

Chicken and Dumplings

You will need...
3 c. cooked chicken cut into pieces
1/2 c. butter
1/3 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
3 c. chicken broth
1 can cream of chicken soup

Dumplings:
2 c. flour
3 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. poultry seasoning
1/4 c. oil
1 c. milk

*Blend flour, salt, and pepper in a saucepan. Add chicken broth and cook until thickens. Stir in cream of chicken soup and cooked chicken. Put in a 9 x 13 inch pan. To prepare dumplings, mix all ingredients together and stir until moistened. Drop spoonfuls onto chicken and gravy. Bake for 20-25 minutes at 425 degrees.

*
recipe found here

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Bacon Wrapped Cocktail Sausages

You will need...
1 14oz package of little smokies
1 12oz package of bacon
3/4 c. brown sugar

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Cut the strips of bacon into thirds. Take a cocktail sausage and wrap a piece of bacon around it. Secure the bacon with a toothpick. Repeat this step with all the sausage and bacon. Place sausages on aluminum foil. Sprinkle the brown sugar over all the sausages. Bake at 325 for 40-45 minutes, or until bacon has cooked and has started to brown.
*
*Recipe from Our Best Bites.

Creamy Hamburger Soup

You will need...
1/2 lb. hamburger
1 c. canned tomatoes with juice
1/2 c. water
1 carrot peeled and grated
1/2 to 1 can cream of chicken soup
1 bay leaf
1/4 tsp. marjoram
salt and pepper

Brown hamburger. Pour tomatoes and water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat. Add seasonings, carrots, and simmer until veggies are tender. Remove bay leaf, add soup, hamburger, and stir well. Serve with french bread or rolls.

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Easy Chicken Cordon Bleu

You will need...
8 boneless chicken breasts
8 thin slices of ham
8 thin slices of Swiss cheese
1 1/2 cans cream of chicken soup
1/2 c. water
1 cube of butter
1 box stove top stuffing

In a sprayed baking dish, layer chicken, cheese, and ham. In a bowl, mix cream of chicken soup and water. Pour soup over chicken. In a saucepan melt butter. Mix stove top in with the butter and blend well. Sprinkle stove top over chicken. Bake covered at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake for 15 minutes longer. *This recipe is way to much for just Mark and I, so we cut all the measurements in half and it turned out great. We also aren't huge fans of swiss cheese, so we used provolone.
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*found the recipe here

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Ultimate Chicken Fingers

INGREDIENTS:
3 chicken breasts cut into 1/2 inch strips
2/3 c. Bisquick
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. paprika
1 egg, slightly beaten
3 TBL butter, melted

Heat oven to 450 degrees. Line cookie sheet with foil and spray foil with cooking spray. In a 1 gallon Ziploc bag, mix Bisquick, cheese, salt, and paprika. Dip half the chicken strips into the egg; place in the bag of Bisquick mixture. Seal bag and shake. Place chicken on cookie sheet. Repeat with the remaining chicken. Drizzle butter over chicken. Bake 12-14 minutes, turning the chicken over halfway through the bake time.

Cinnamon Rolls

CINNAMON ROLLS:
1 box yellow cake mix
2 pkg (4 1/2 tsp) yeast
5 c. flour
2 1/2 c. warm water

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:
1 box powdered sugar
1 cube of butter
1 package cream cheese
1 tsp. vanilla

Mix dry ingredients together. Add water and mix well. Knead dough until smooth. Raise until double (about 1 hour). Punch down, and let raise another 45 minutes. Divide dough into thirds. Roll one third at a time into a 10x15 rectangle. Spread butter over dough, and then sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. Roll dough up on the 15 inch side. Pinch edges closed and then cut in 2 inch lengths. Place in a greased pan. Let raise for 15 minutes. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes. Mix all the ingredients together for cream cheese frosting. Spread frosting over the cinnamon rolls.

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Johnny Carino's Bowtie Festival

You will need....
1 oz. melted butter
1 tsp. chopped fresh garlic
1/8 c. cooked bacon
1 c. sliced cooked chicken
1 oz. heavy whipping cream
8 oz. Alfredo sauce(recipe follows)
1/8 c. Asiago cheese
1/2 tsp. salt, pepper, and garlic salt
10 oz. precooked bowtie pasta

ALFREDO SAUCE:
1 quart heavy whipping cream
1 c. Parmesan cheese
1 TBL black pepper
1/4 c. whole milk

*Make the Alfredo sauce....Saute heavy cream, milk, and black pepper to a constant boil. Remove cream mixture from heat and fold in Parmesan cheese. Store completed sauce in the fridge until use.
*In a heated sauce pan combine butter, garlic, bacon, chicken, and spice mixture. Once it is mixed well and heated all the way through, add heavy cream and Asiago cheese. Once cream and cheese have reduced by half, add Alfredo sauce and bowtie pasta. Toss until well combined and remove from heat. Allow to sit for just a few minutes so the cheese and sauce will thicken.

Meatloaf With Bacon Strips

MEATLOAF:
1 lb. ground beef
1/2 lb. ground pork
1/2 c. crushed saltines-about 10
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/2 c. milk
1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
bacon strips

GLAZE:
1 TBL brown sugar
1/2 c. red chili sauce
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl combine all the ingredients for the meatloaf except the bacon and mix well. Put into a lightly sprayed 9x5 inch loaf pan and gently pat down. Mix all the ingredients together for the glaze in a small bowl. Spread glaze on the meatloaf and then cover with the bacon strips. Bake about 1 hour, until loaf is firm. Broil for an extra minute or two to crisp bacon if desired.
*Instead to making meatloaf, I turn mine into meatballs. Spray two cupcake pans, roll the meat into meatballs, and then place in the pan. Cover the meatballs with the glaze and then a small strip of bacon. Cook for about 20-25 minutes. Then broil for a minute or two to crisp the bacon.