What's cookin?

Parmesan Chicken rolled with Mozzarella & Prosciutto

2010-12-20T10:43:00.000-08:00

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
4 teaspoons butter
4 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto
10 ounces sliced whole milk mozzarella cheese
1/3 cup white wine
1/4 cup olive oil
1 pinch black pepper

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
Pound chicken breasts flat, and lay them on work surface. Sprinkle liberally with Parmesan cheese on both sides. Place a pinch of minced garlic and 1 teaspoon butter in the center of each breast. Cover each breast with a layer of prosciutto and mozzarella cheese. Reserve some of the prosciutto to place on top of the chicken. Roll up each chicken breast, and secure with toothpicks.
In a 9x13 inch baking dish, combine white wine and olive oil. Arrange chicken rolls in dish. Place a small piece of prosciutto on top of each roll, and sprinkle with pepper.
Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink, an juices run clear.

Bacon and Cheese Cornbread Waffles.

2010-12-20T08:59:00.000-08:00

2 eggs
1 3/4 cups milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup all-purpose flour 1 cup cornmeal 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 pound thinly sliced bacon
1 (1 pound) loaf processed cheese,(Black folks call this Velveeta ;)
cubed 1/4 cup milk, or as needed

Directions:
Preheat your waffle iron.
In a small bowl, mix together the eggs, milk and oil. In a larger bowl, stir together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, sugar and salt. Make a well in the center, and pour in the milk mixture. Stir until well blended.
Pour 1/4 cup batter onto the heated waffle iron. Amount may be different for different irons. Place a strip of raw bacon over the batter across each section of the waffle iron. Close the lid, and cook until steam is no longer coming out, and the waffle is golden brown.
For the cheese sauce, melt processed cheese in a bowl in the microwave. Gradually stir in milk until you reach your desired thickness. Drizzle cheese sauce over waffles before serving.

*Fry you up some chicken and there you have some chicken and waffles...*

Git' cher Cheezy Gritz On!

2010-12-20T08:57:00.000-08:00

1 quart milk
1/2 cup butter
1 cup uncooked grits
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
1/3 cup butter
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a medium baking dish.
Bring the milk to a boil in a pot over medium heat. Melt 1/2 cup butter in the boiling milk. Gradually mix in the grits, and cook 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, and season with salt and pepper. Beat with a whisk or electric mixer until smooth. Mix in the Cheddar cheese and 1/3 cup butter. Transfer to the prepared baking dish, and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
Bake 1 hour in the preheated oven, until firm.

Mah-velous Meat Bawlz

2010-12-20T08:54:00.000-08:00

Ingredients
1 pound ground beef
1/2 pound ground veal
1/2 pound ground pork
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 eggs
1 cup freshly grated Romano cheese
1 1/2 tablespoons chopped Italian flat leaf parsley
salt and ground black pepper to taste
2 cups stale Italian bread, crumbled
1 1/2 cups lukewarm water
1 cup olive oil

DIRECTIONS:
Combine beef, veal, and pork in a large bowl. Add garlic, eggs, cheese, parsley, salt and pepper.
Blend bread crumbs into meat mixture. Slowly add the water 1/2 cup at a time. The mixture should be very moist but still hold its shape if rolled into meatballs. (I usually use about 1 1/4 cups of water). Shape into meatballs.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Fry meatballs in batches. When the meatball is very brown and slightly crisp remove from the heat and drain on a paper towel.

Broccoli and Tortellini Salad

2010-12-20T08:50:00.000-08:00

6 slices bacon
20 ounces fresh cheese-filled tortellini
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons cider vinegar
3 heads fresh broccoli, cut into florets
1 cup raisins
1 cup sunflower seeds
1 red onion, finely chopped

Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, crumble and set aside.
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook tortellini in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente. Drain, and rinse under cold water.
In a small bowl, mix together mayonnaise, sugar and vinegar to make the dressing.
In a large bowl, combine broccoli, tortellini, bacon, raisins, sunflower seeds and red onion. Pour dressing over salad, and toss

CHICKEN FAJITA SOUP!

2010-05-30T12:43:00.000-07:00

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into strips
1 (1.27 ounce) packet fajita seasoning
1 red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
1 green bell pepper, cut into thin strips
1 poblano pepper, cut into thin strips
1 large onion, cut into thin strips
1 (14.5 ounce) can fire roasted diced tomatoes
1 (15 ounce) can seasoned black beans
1 (14 ounce) can chicken broth
1 dash hot sauce
salt and pepper to taste
Directions

Heat oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Place chicken in the hot oil; cook, stirring only occasionally, until brown, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle fajita seasoning over the browned chicken and stir well to coat. Add the red and green bell pepper, poblano pepper, and onion to the seasoned chicken. Stir and cook over medium heat until the vegetables are soft, about 10 minutes.
Pour the fire roasted tomatoes, black beans, and chicken broth into the pot with the chicken and vegetables. Bring the soup to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Season the soup with hot sauce, salt, and pepper to taste before serving.

Lemon Mist Drink!

2008-11-07T02:35:00.001-08:00

Here's a fun and light drink for the holidays

5 quarts of water (that's like 1 gallon and 4 cups)
2 1/2 cups of sugar
1TBS of Citric acid (can be found in the pharmacy section of the store usually)
1 TBS of Lemon Extract ( nope, not juice... EXTRACT)
Lemon Slices
Ice

Directions:
Mix all together and Enjoy :)

*seriously it's THAT easy!*

Baked Potato Soup!

2008-11-07T02:19:00.000-08:00

I have SEVERAL baked potatoe soup recipes. This Comes from the kitchen of my friends Kathleen A.K.A "Sprite" and is one of my favorites I hope you enjoy.

Bake 4 large potato on 350 for about 60-70 minutes. Cool completely and diced.
1/2 c green onions slices
2/3 c flour
1 ts season salt
1/2 ts ground pepper
1 cup sour cream
12 strips of bacon cooked crisp & crumbled
2/3 C butter (please people, REAL butter, it's better for you anyway)
1/2 ts onion powder OR 1 small chopped onion
1/2 TBS of minced garlic
6 Cups of Half and Half
1 Cup Shredded cheese

Cook bacon til crisp
add butter to the 2 TBS of bacon drippings and melt. Stir in flour and seasonings with a whisk. Slowly stir in half and half until smooth and thick. Whisks in sour cream and cheese. Add potatoes, green onions and bacon.
ENJOY!

Amazing Tortilla Soup

2008-11-07T01:57:00.000-08:00

I used to hate soup. But now, I'm a "Souper." I usually recommend breadbowls for soup, but they don't work so well with broth base soups.
Anyway, this soup is fabulous and I promise you will absolutely love it!

2 TBS of olive oil.
1/2 c chopped onion
1/2 T minced garlic
1/2 c red bell peppers
1/4 c chopped green chiles. (or a small can of green chiles)
3/4 T dried basil
1/2 ts salt 1/4ts ground pepper
15oz Can of diced or stewed tomato (if you can find tomato and cilantro together it's even better)
10 six inch corn tortillas
2 cups of shredded chicken breast
4 cups of chicken broth
**Garnish**
Sliced avocado
1 cup shredded cheese

cook onion and garlic in 2TBS of olive oil until soft. Stir in chicken broth, red bell peppers and green chiles, basil, salt and pepper, and can of tomatos. Heat to boiling. simmer uncovered for 30 min. Cut corn tortilla's into strips in hot oil and fry until crispy and golden brown..
To serve:

put 1/4 cup some of the tortilla strips in bottom of a bowl, add some shredded chicken on top. pour chicken broth/soup over the top. Garnish with avocado slices and shredded cheese.

It makes about 4 servings. I recommend you double it because you WILL want 2nds!

EZ GUACAMOLE

2007-04-24T07:48:00.000-07:00

5 Avocados diced
medium chopped onion
couple tablespoons of lime juice
kosher course salt
minced garlic
2 chopped tomatoes
cilantro
hot pepper flakes (obviously optional)
Put lime Juice, salt, garlic, pepper flakes, cilantro in a bowl
Chop/dice all the vegetables add to bowl
mix it all together and refrigerate.

I usually make it 24 hours before I want to use it, because everything has a chance to marinated, mingle, and socialize.

It's more like a Guacamole Salsa. I Don't get the Avocados too ripe, i get them so they're soft and keep their form when I dice them.

Try it! Lemme know

The Beast Inside my Kitchen!!!

2007-01-27T09:19:00.000-08:00

Most anyone who knows me knows that I cook to relax. For the last couple of weeks I've been a bundle of nerves especially the weekends. Yesterday, I was so antsy and so restless. I got off work and went to the store and purchased a crazy amount of groceries... where was I going to pull all these things? It didn't matter because I know I would be cookin up some stuff later. So true, so true.
Because it's been a hectic week, I needed to do some house cleaning. I only worked 1/2 day yesterday so I figured it would be the perfect time to get some house work done and then do my cooking therapy.
Now why is it that when you take time off work to get things done you're so busy preparing to get things done that you don't actually get things done?
Yeah, you know exactly what I mean.

It was actually about 4 or 5 pm before I cleaned the house and was ready to cook... cook I did.

I don't know who that mad woman was last night.... AND thing morning but she did a cooking marathon that would make a small King and his court bow down before her excellency in worship.

Never had I cleaned the kitchen, done some many dishes, dirty so many dishes, re cleaned them and cooked so much all at one time nonstop. I felt like a well oiled machine.

First up... Stuffed Shells! I was torn between these and lasagna. Effort and ingredients would be the same, the actual pasta and layout would be different. Here this is a real dilemma. I tried to do a poll with my friends on which one to make. They didn't care really, they just wanted to know when it come and eat! It had been years since i made stuffed shells. Of course I used my secret recipe to enhance the sauce and filling. The meat sauces was the basic spaghetti sauce creation with 2 special ingredients that make all the difference. The meat was a blended ground beef and Italian sausage medley with onion and minced garlic. I omitted the pepperoni slices but it is great just the same. With the Jumbo pasta shell simmering I mixed the ricotta with egg, Parmesan, Italian seasonings, shredded Monterey, Colby and Jack cheeses. After the shells were cooked and drained I put some of the sauce on the bottom of the pan, then picked up the shells and stuffed the cheese mixture inside. With a final layer of sauce and grated cheese on top.. they were in the oven and I was on to the next task. I made 2 pans of Stuffed shells.

Next was a comfort of all comfort foods... Macaroni and Cheese. I don't know what it is about me and mac n Cheese. I love making it. Even though I don't eat that much of it, I love making it. And I weigh them. I have NO IDEA WHY, but some where in my mind the heavier it is.... the better. Seriously who doesn't like that cheesy heavy goodness sticking to your ribs and making you drag yourself to the nearest couch to unbutton that top button on your pants.. so your tummy can spread across your lap all happy and full? Mmmmm Mmmmm MMMMM!
I made one really heavy... (this has got to be at least 5-7lbs.)

After pulling out the Shells, putting in the Mac and washing up those pots and pans, I grabbed a 3 lb bag of chicken breast and began to simmer that. I had a couple of ideas for the chicken. I could do chicken cutlet Parmesan but I already had a pasta dish. Two of them to be exact. I could to tortilla soup, which is always a tasty winter time meal. But then again.... I wasn't plan on eating all of this stuff. I would need to be able to put it into something easily transportable. Oh yeah... .I know.... something I probably haven't made for more than 10 years! Chicken Enchiladas! WOW, Ali was like in 3rd grade last time I made these. I simmered my chicken and sliced my onions and green chilies. I wanted to throw in Jalopenos but I'm finding not too many of my friends go for the really spicy things. I had just bought a stack of corn tortilla's, I like them better than the flour. The flour are easier to work with but the corn has a better taste in my opinion. Since it would take while for the chicken to simmer and you can't do much until it's finished.. I decided to make my favorite cake. I had just made it and decided... what the heck, My daughter's Birthday is Tomorrow why not.
Now if you were saying you expected me to go to the cupboard and pull out a box of Duncan Hines.....WRONG ANSWER! This is the Cake of all cakes. The KING of all cakes. The Duchess of all chocolate Delights. People offer me money for a tiny taste of this rich creamy goodness. Ladies and gentleman..... I present: Triple Layer Peppermint Torte. A moment of silence, please, in honor! I measured out the flour, sugar, baking powder and baking soda and salt. next... behold... the cocoa! MMMMM you can taste it already too. I mixed the dry ingredients together so they would be well blended. Next the egg, oil, milk and vanilla. I did this old skool and mixed it by hand and wooden spoon. (beating up food helps me to de-stress and work out frustrations) 200 strokes by hand! The burn in my arm felt good. With 3 cake pans prepped, I put the cake in the oven for 20 minutes.
Since the chicken would take a while longer I wrapped up the other food I had prepared and put it in the fridge. Cleaned more dishes and wiped the counter. By this time, it was getting pretty late and I was actually tired before midnight. I would have to finish in the morning. When the cakes were done I left them on the counter to cool. I turned off the chicken. Wrapped it up and sat on the couch to read. Next thing I knew it was 4:30 this morning. I sat up and realized..... uh oh...... I'm still antsy. That feeling in the pit of my stomach that would make me go crazy if I didn't channel in and focus on something else. I woke up went to the living room and sat in silence waiting for the day to speak to me and let me know how we would accommodate each other. I knew I would be cooking again.... my frustrations and anxiousness wasn't gone. Therefore there was still more cooking to be done! I jumped up and pulled out the chicken from the night before. Placed the breasts on the counter in a bowl and began shredding away. I prepared the sauce on the stove and let that slowly warm. Added the green chilies, onion, sour cream and so one. When the chicken was shredded I added that too. Let it simmer. I figure my neighbors are hating me about now. They're always commenting me on the smells that drift around my little patio. I pulled out a pan and began my assembly work: tortilla, filling, roll. Sauce cheese back. The buzzer just went off! I have 3 pans of Chicken Enchiladas! I had some homemade French bread and sugar cookies next on the list. But I have a lunch date at 3:30 uptown in the next county. And I have niece who promised me a form to help her sell girls scout cookies. So for now, my cooking frenzy is over. But only for now. When I come back later tonights I'm anxious to Finish the King of all cakes and Duchess of all delights.... and whatever else I can.
I feel SOOOOOOO much better. Sure I'm still a little antsy but now I feel like I can cope through the day a little more.

Gotta love the therapy of cooking!

Holiday Candied Pretzel Rods

2007-01-01T19:01:00.000-08:00

This ideah is soo easy and soo fun! I did 2 bags of these for christmas and will prolly do it again for valentines day. Kids LOVE it!

get a couple bags of carmels for melting
Holiday colored m & m's
Holiday colored sprinkles
holiday colored sugars.
honey roasted peanuts
dry roasted peanuts
toffee covered peanuts
White chocolate for melting
Milk or dark chocolate for melting.

A couple of loaf pans filled to the top with sugar or salt. U will use this to hold your pretzel rods up while they dry. I haven't found a better way to do this.

8 x8 foil trays for each of your candies, sugars, and nuts.

As the melted caramels dry pretty quickly you will need to act quickly from step 2 through step 3.

Step 1: in a double boiler melt your caramels on low to medium heat.

step 2: tip double boiler and roll at least 1/2 of the pretzel rod in caramel

step 3: quickly roll caramel dipped pretzel in candy, sugar or peanuts of your choice. (The caramel is the "glue" that sticks the candy to the rods. You may need to lightly press or tap the candy/peanut coated pretzel in the palm of your hand so secure them.)

step 4: Stand the pretzel rod in the sugar until cooled

Repeat steps 2-4 until all the pretzels have been dipped and rolled.

Melt the white chocolate and the milk chocolate seperately.
drizzle over or dip pretzels. Again stand upright in sugar to cool.

Have fun! use the green and red m and m's for christmas, the pink, red and white for valenties, the brown and orange for halloween... you get the pictures. Also very good with crushed up candy canes of all flavors. Be creative!

Home Made Mac n Cheeze

2006-12-07T23:15:00.000-08:00

This taste soo good it'll make you slap somebody!

Ingredients:

4 slices of bacon 6 cups cheddar cheese (or your favorite cheese, I use colby/jack)
1 pound of Macaroni 1/4 C of butter and 1/2 teaspoon of bacon drippings
(elbow, twist, penne)
1 onion, chopped 1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons of flour
2 cloves garlic, minced 4 cups of Half and half (or milk)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until brown. Drain, crumble and set aside.

In a large pot with boiling water and salt cook pasta. ( do not over cook should be firm, not mushy)

In a medium skillet saute onion, garlic. Remove from heat and add bacon.

In a medium sauce pan melt butter in bacon drippings over low heat. Add flour and stir constantly for 2 minutes. gradually add half and half and continue stirring until thickened.
Stir in 2 cups of grated cheese gradually until partially melted, then stir in 2 more cups until melted.
Combine cooked pasta, sauteed garlic, onions and bacon and cheese sauce. Pour into a 2 quart casserole dish.
Add last 2 cups of grated cheese on top.

Bake uncovered until cheese on top is melted and bubbly. (15-20 minutes) when finished let set for about 10 minutes. Serve.

Let me know how ya like it!

Holiday Festive Carmel Apples

2006-10-09T15:44:00.000-07:00

HOLIDAY FESTIVE CARMEL APPLES!

The holiday are coming up quickly. I thought I'd share a recipe for one of the items I'll be adding to christmas baskets for some of my friends and family:

INGREDIENTS
6 apples
1 (14 ounce) package individually wrapped caramels, unwrapped
2 tablespoons milk
White chocolate
Dark chocolate
any kind of candy garnish like:
Sprinkles
Chopped nuts
Toffee bits
chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS
Remove the stem from each apple and press a craft stick into the top. Butter a baking sheet.
Place caramels and milk in a microwave safe bowl, and microwave 2 minutes, stirring once.
Also melt Dark chocolate and white chocolate in seperate containers or in a double boiler on the stove

Allow to cool briefly.
Roll each apple quickly in caramel sauce until well coated.
Roll in chopped nuts, toffee bits, or other candies.
Allow to cool.
Drizzle white chocolate or dark chocolate
Place on prepared sheet to set.

You can also roll quickly in carmel. allow carmel to cool and sort of harden.
And then roll in white or dark chocolate. And then drizzle or "splat" another layer of chocolate and sprinkles for decorations

Great gift to make with the kids so they can give them to their friends and teachers as gifts ;)

This meal is SOUPER.

2006-10-02T22:17:00.000-07:00

It's awesome. It's restaurant quality. It's SOUP! I used to have to be one sick chick to eat some soup. Didn't want any part of it. Then there's was this place in South Provo that no longer exists. Its was called Bayside Bagels. They had a Creamy chicken wild rice soup that taste so good it would make you wanna slap somebody! I mean that soup with an Asiago bagel was all a woman needed on a cold winter day.

Well Bayside was sold and then disappeared and now some mexican restaurant is where my beloved Soup haven used to be. *sigh*
Ok so anyway. I can't have that soup anymore but i found THIS soup and its equally good. If I ever open up that lunch counter or start catering like I've been thinking about.. .THIS will be my specialty item along with my olive oil rosemary french bread that I MIGHT post the recipe to one day.

If you don't like this soup, I'll send you a can of your favorite campbell's!

Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Prep Time:5
MinutesCook Time:20 Minutes
Ready In:25 Minutes
Servings:8

INGREDIENTS:
4 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
2-4 cooked, boneless chicken breast halves, shredded
1 (4.5 ounce) package quick cooking long grain and wild rice with seasoning packet
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup butter
2 cups heavy cream ( half and half is PLENTY heavy enough)

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a large pot over medium heat, combine broth, water and chicken. Bring just to boiling, then stir in rice, reserving seasoning packet. Cover and remove from heat.
2. In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper and flour. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in contents of seasoning packet until mixture is bubbly. Reduce heat to low, then stir in flour mixture by tablespoons, to form a roux. Whisk in cream, a little at a time, until fully incorporated and smooth. Cook until thickened, 5 minutes.

3. Stir cream mixture into broth and rice. Cook over medium heat until heated through, 10 to 15 minutes.

PUT IT IN A BREAD BOWL.... I DARE YA!

After you try it, holla back and let me know how fabulous I am for sharing!

The Secret to GOOD Fried Chicken....

2006-09-29T23:07:00.000-07:00

Here's a couple of secrets for good fried chicken:

Season the actual chicken, not the flour/batter.
You can even marinate the chicken over night before you batter it.
Some of the best batter I've used is:
Bisquick or
Regular flour or
1/2 cornmeal 1/2 flour mixture
you can dip it in milk or egg if you feel the need, but it truly not needed. Just wash the chicken and the moisture from the water will hold the dry batter on after its been properly seasoned.
Oh, and PLEASE season your meats. If you don't have nothing else in your kitchen to season your meat, find some Adobo or Lawry's Season Salt and some regular black pepper. That will be good enough.

Lazy cookers.... don't use cornflakes! Somethings really ARE just a breakfast food.

And most important... don't... I REPEAT DO NOT fry the chicken with the lid on the pan. WHY? because you create steam. It collects into water on the lid and then drops down on the batter. This produces some kind of soggy/soft batter instead of the crispy crunchy goodness that fried chicken is supposed to be. Yeah, so what you gotta clean the grease off the stove later. But you gotta clean the stove when you're done cooking anyway, right?
If you're one of those lazy cooks, SEE YA! To get the best food results. Take the extra steps to make your food taste right.

Oh yeah.... AMERICA... BRING BACK THE WINGS WITH THE BONES! If we wanted Boneless "wings" we would ask for damn chicken strips or chicken tenders. We ethnic people LIKE OUR BONES!

**any questions??**