White Chicken Chili (not because I'm racist)

White Chicken Chili

1 medium onion, chopped
1 Tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, chopped
2 cans (14 oz. each) chicken broth
1 can (4 oz.) chopped green chilis
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp. dried oregano
1 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
3 cans(14 oz.each) great northern beans, drained, divided
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
Chopped Jalapeno pepper, optional

1.  In a large saucepan over medium heat, cook onion in oil for 10 minutes
or until tender.  Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Add the chicken;  cook
until no longer pink.  Add chicken broth,green chilis, cumin, oregano and
cayenne.  Bring to a boil.
2.  Reduce heat to low.  With a potato masher, mash one can of beans until
smooth.  Add to saucepan.  Add remaining beans to saucepan.  Simmer for
20-30 minutes or until heated thoroughly.
3.  Top each serving with cheese and jalapeno pepper if desired.


I used half cayenne pepper and half chili powder
Instead of green chilis, I added a bottle of green chili salsa
I used more broth, too.
Also I use canned chicken a lot of the time because cooking chicken is boring and messy.

Chicken Cordon Bleu/Grape Salad Goodness

This is Tyson's all-time favorite meal. We're talking birthday dinner status here. So I thought I'd make it today for Sunday dinner and share it with you guys.  It was so delicious!

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Chicken breasts

Ham

Slices of Swiss cheese (or provolone)

1 cup flour
Salt, pepper, garlic powder

1 egg

1/4 cup milk

Olive Oil

More milk
(You may also need chicken bouillon granules.)

1. Preheat oven to 350. 

2. Pound the chicken breasts until they are about 1/2 inch wide all around.  Lay them out on a plate and season with salt and pepper. 

3. Take the sandwich ham and lay a few pieces on each  chicken breast followed by a slice of cheese.  I then usually sprinkle some basil over everything.

4.  Roll up the chicken, ham, and cheese and place toothpicks into the combination to keep everything together. 

5. Crack an egg into a bowl and add 1/4 cup milk and stir it all together.

6.  In another bowl, put the flour in and add generous amounts of salt, pepper, garlic powder, and any other seasoning that smells like it would fit in. When I say generous, I mean like you should feel uncomfortable about how much seasoning you are adding to the flour, but trust me it needs it! Sometimes I get crazy and put some thyme in, but honestly good old salt and pepper and of course garlic powder are sufficient.  Also, BEFORE you put any raw chicken into this flour, reserve around 1/4 cup for later.

7. Next take your rolled up chicken breasts and roll them around in the egg wash.  Then dredge them in your nicely seasoned flour.  Repeat with all of your chicken breasts.

(7 1/2. I send all of them through the eggs and flour again, just for good measure.)

8. When you are done giving your chicken breasts a nice flour bath, set them aside and let them rest for 10 minutes or so, just to let everything soak in.  While you are waiting you can heat up a nice frying pan with a generous amount (maybe 1/4 cup?) of olive oil in the bottom so when you add your chicken it sizzles.  

9.  Fry your chicken breasts in the olive oil turning so all sides get browned.  You're not trying to cook it all the way through, you just want to get some color on them.  It usually amounts to about 3-4 minutes per side.  

10.  Place your nicely browned chicken breasts in an oven safe dish and get ready to throw them into the oven.  

11. Take the 1/4 cup seasoned flour and add it to the pan you just fried your chicken in. (***If you don't have much oil left over from frying your chicken, add some more into the pan and let it get hot.) When your roux is made, add milk into the pan and stir everything together until it starts to thicken.  You'll want to make at least 3/4 of a cup gravy for each chicken breast so plan accordingly.  

12.  Once your gravy is nice and yummy (make sure to taste it and see, if its lacking in flavor, sprinkle some chicken bouillon granules in there to spice things up), throw it on top of your chicken breasts.  Place everything into the hot oven for about 45 minutes to an hour.

13. Make sure the chicken is cooked through, and then enjoy the deliciousness!! 

Grape Salad
Ohhhh.. this salad. SO GOOD!
A lot of grapes
8 oz cream cheese
1/3 cup sour cream (or plain yogurt)
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
Brown sugar for sprinkling

1. Remove the grapes from the stems and wash thoroughly. 

2. In a bowl combine the cream cheese (it helps if its at room temperature), sour cream sugar and vanilla until smooth and creamy.

3. Add grapes to the cream cheese mixture and stir around until all grapes are evenly coated.

4. Layer some grapes in the bottom of the bowl and sprinkle some brown sugar on top.  Repeat with as many layers as your heart desires with as much brown sugar as your heart desires.  

5. Stuff your face

*Oh, you may want to refrigerate it first; it usually never makes it that far in our house.

Here are some pictures of the dinner we ate! So good!!

This one's for Ashlee Bug

Since Ashlee was so concerned about vodka being a main ingredient in our recipes, I searched the world over and found this bad boy. Bon appetite! 

Red Velvet Cheescake Swirl Brownies

Wouldn't it be awesome if I was actually a food photographer? Sorry about these photos. Remember how these brownies were the most delightful thing ever? They also made feel like I was gonna be in a coma immediately.

Red Velvet Cheesecake Swirl Brownies

2 large egg

1/2 cup (1 stick ) unsalted butter

1 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon red food coloring
3/4 teaspoon white vinegar
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
8 ounces cream cheese, softened (I used the reduced fat kind)
1/4 cup  sugar
1 egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

 

 Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Spray 8x8 baking pan with nonstick spray. Set aside.

1. Make the brownie layer first. In a small bowl, beat the 2 eggs together. Set aside. Melt the butter in a large microwave safe bowl in 30 second increments until melted. Stir in 1 cup sugar, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, cocoa powder, salt, food coloring, and vinegar. Mix each of those ingredients into the batter in that order. Whisk in the eggs, then fold in the flour until completely incorporated. Do not overmix. Pour the brownie batter into prepared baking pan, leaving about 3-4 Tablespoons for the top.
2. Make the cheesecake swirl. With a hand-held mixer on medium speed, beat the softened cream cheese, 1/4 cup sugar, egg yolk, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla in a medium bowl until completely smooth - about 1 minute. Dollop spoonfuls of the cream cheese mixture on top of the prepared brownie batter. Cover with the last few Tablespoons of brownie batter. Glide a knife through the layers, creating a swirl pattern.
3. Bake the brownies for 28-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Allow the brownies to cool completely before cutting into squares. Store brownies at room temperature or in the refrigerator.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

I think we should all be impressed and extremely surprised I have cooked at all let alone twice in three days. So this first recipe is the harder then the second but if I did it then we all know its on the easy scale of cooking.

Prep time 15 minutes  Cook time 30 min 

Ingredients first: 2 C cooked rice, 6-8 slices of ham chopped, 3 C cooked chicken, 2 cans cream of chicken soup, 6 slices Swiss cheese, 10 saltines (or ritz), 1/4 tsp garlic salt, 1/2 C milk, 1/2 C sour cream, 1/2 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp parsley.

 Now for some directions:  spray 9x13 pan with cooking spray. Put rice in the bottom of the pan. Then layer chicken, ham, and cheese. Crush the saltines and add spices together in a separate bowl. In another bowl combine soup, milk, and sour cream. Spread cream mix on the cheese then top with cracker/herb mix. Bake for 30 minutes 

I hope I did this blog thing right on my first try and I hope you all enjoy 

Chocolate Chip Cookies (The Good Kind!)

So Kaitlin inspired me to post the recipe for possibly THE best batch of chocolate chip cookies you will ever partake of. 

3 Cups flour

1 tsp. Baking Soda

1/2 tsp. Salt

1 Cup Butter

3/4 Cup Sugar

3/4 Cup Brown Sugar

2 Eggs

2 tsp. Vanilla

2 Cups Chocolate Chips (I prefer the Guittard brand, they are in a silver package next to the Ghiradelli)

Cream: butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. In a separate bowl blend: four, soda, and salt. Mix with creamed mixture. Stir in choc. chips then form cookies on baking sheet. Bake at 375 for 8 minutes. 

Holy Deliciousness. 

The Best Chocolate Sheet Cake Ever... From the Pioneer Woman

So there I was, helping make lunch for the lovely senior citizens of Escalante, Utah when BAM! I made this chocolate cake from the Pioneer Woman.  I would need about 29 more fingers to show you how many compliments I got about this lovely, decadent, delicious, chocolaty cake. Please try it; it is so good!

P.S. I should probably put a disclaimer on here that the majority of my posts will probably be Pioneer Woman recipes, just for future reference... I love her, what can I say?

Here is the recipe, you can watch her step by step at this page here. She is a lot more witty than me too, so you might enjoy scrolling through her post more than mine. Anyways.. this cake is good, no lie.

The Best Chocolate Sheet Cake. Ever.

Prep Time:  20 Minutes

Cook Time:  20 Minutes

Difficulty:  Easy

Servings:  24

 

Ingredients

• FOR THE CAKE:
• 2 cups Flour
• 2 cups Sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon Salt
• 4 Tablespoons (heaping) Cocoa
• 2 sticks Butter
• 1 cup Boiling Water
• 1/2 cup Buttermilk
• 2 whole Beaten Eggs
• 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla
• FOR FROSTING:
• 1/2 cup Finely Chopped Pecans *
• 1-3/4 stick Butter
• 4 Tablespoons (heaping) Cocoa
• 6 Tablespoons Milk
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla
• 1 pound (minus 1/2 Cup) Powdered Sugar

Preparation Instructions

Note: I use an 18x13 sheet cake pan.
In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt.
In a saucepan, melt butter. Add cocoa. Stir together.
Add boiling water, allow mixture to boil for 30 seconds, then turn off heat. Pour over flour mixture, and stir lightly to cool.
In a measuring cup, pour the buttermilk and add beaten eggs, baking soda, and vanilla. Stir buttermilk mixture into butter/chocolate mixture. Pour into sheet cake pan and bake at 350-degrees for 20 minutes.
While cake is baking, make the icing. Chop pecans finely. Melt butter in a saucepan. Add cocoa, stir to combine, then turn off heat. Add the milk, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Stir together. Add the pecans, stir together, and pour over warm cake.
Cut into squares, eat, and totally wig out over the fact that you’ve just made the best chocolate sheet cake. Ever.

*Katy note: I toast my pecans, it makes them taste soooooooooo much better

Caramel Sauce (otherwise known as happiness)

WHAAA? Two Posts in one day? WHY (you may ask)? Perhaps it is because I am a crazed recipe/blog writer. But mostly because Devin is on a fire. Anyways, I made this the other day to go over some vanilla bean ice cream. I love this sauce because it's delicious fresh and even better after it sits in a jar in the fridge. Just ask Devins Dad, he ate it all.

Caramel Sauce

1 Sq. butter melted

1 C. white sugar

¼ C. brown sugar

2 T. Karo Syrup

½ C. evaporated milk or whipping cream

Stir constantly over low until it comes to boil

Sjoblom's French Dips

First off, how the freak do you pronounce Sjoblom? Secondly I love this recipe. It's yummy, great leftovers (you can freeze the meat & au just mixture), and it's easy peasy lemon squeezy. 

 Sjobloms French Dips

1 (3 pound) cross rib, rump or eye of round beef roast

1 (10 ¾- ounce) can beef consommé

1 ½ cups water

1 Good Seasons Italian dressing packet

1 au jus gravy packet

Sliced Swiss cheese

Hoagie buns

Place roast in crock-pot. Whisk ingredients together and pour over roast. Cook on high in the crock-pot for 6 to 8 hours, or until you can shred it easily with a fork.

Place shredded meat on hoagie rolls and top with Swiss cheese. Broil sandwiches open face until cheese is melted and rolls are browned. Serve with strained au jus mixture. 

Crockpot Corn Chowder

Turns out Katy actually pinned this recipe on pinterest but I liked it and decided to make it. Do we wish that maybe I would come up with my own ideas? Sorry about that.

Crockpot Corn Chowder

6-8 potatoes peeled & diced (I only had 4 potatoes with no time to peel them. don't judge)

1 can cream corn 

1 can whole kernel corn (or normal corn as I like to call it)

2 cups chicken broth (Did I have this lying around my house? Sure didn't so I used water)

8 ounces diced ham 

1 cup diced onions

1/4 cup butter

2 cups half & half 

1. Put potatoes, both cans of corn, onion, chicken broth and ham in the crockpot on low for 7-8 hours. Yeah I definitely put it on high for 3-4 hours. 

2. Mash the mixture to your desired consistency. Add half and half and butter. 

3. Cook on high for additional 30 minutes.

I'm no professional photographer and even if I was the light in this apartment sucks and by light I mean lack of light. It's dark in here. Also don't even worry about how I took the lid of the crockpot at least 83 times while it was cooking. I know you aren't supposed to do that but it's a free country and I do what I want. :)

Another note is that I don't really like ham. However  I liked it in this soup probably because it was cut into tiny pieces. I also will not eat tomatoes unless they are thinly sliced or cut up into tiny pieces.  I'm totally normal. I'm just wondering what other things I might eat if they are cut up into tiny pieces. Should I maybe shut up now? Moral of the story is this was good stuff.

Manti Turkey

So first off I am loving this blog business! I'm thinking at the end of the year we print it off and each have a copy as a sort of cook book? Just a possibility. Anyways...with the end of summer near I thought I would put up on of my favorite grilled chicken/turkey recipes.


MANTI TURKEY
2 parts soy sauce
1 part 7up or Sprite
1/2 part cooking oil
And a little horseradish (a teaspoon to a tablespoon...depends on your taste)

Mix it all up and pour over turkey or chicken.
Marinate all day.
BBQ for 30-40 minutes

I usually make up a potato or pasta salad to go with it as a side, super tasty!

And because I don't have any beautiful food pictures, here is one of Alice right before she ran me over with her bike. We are still working on the whole "posing" concept. I guess she is an action shot kind of girl.

Cabbage salad

Melani made one of my favorite salads last night (which I am currently eating for breakfast) so I thought I'd share the recipe. Before you turn up your nose at the cabbage part, you really should try it. If I see this salad at a potluck, I load up with it! It really is deeeee-wishous!

(Sorry about the poor quality of the picture) 

Ramen Noodle and Cabbage Salad

1/2 head cabbage, cut up 

2-3 green onions, sliced

1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted

Chicken (optional) *

1 package chicken ramen noodles, crushed

Dressing:

3 tablespoons vinegar

1/2 cup oil

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 tsp salt 

1 tablespoon sugar

The chicken flavor packet

Chop cabbage and add the rest of the salad ingredients. In a bowl combine all dressing ingredients and mix for a couple of minutes to spread all the flavors around evenly. Pour over the top of the salad and fold together. Enjoy! (It's better when it's been refrigerated a while) 

* I've never had it with chicken, but I bet it's good!

Moist (Danielle hates this word) Chocolate Muffins

This is the easiest thing in America and they taste delightful. All I want in life is for you all to make them and tell me what you think. 

Moist Chocolate Muffins-No Eggs or Oil

1 box cake mix (Devil's food or chocolate fudge)

1 small can pumpkin 

Chocolate Chips 

Line your cupcake tins with liners, spray with a little pan spray and fill the tins to the top of the tin liners...then sprinkle with chocolate chips. Bake as directed by your cake mixture, but found they needed an extra 5-10 minutes. Best served cold.

I got this recipe from one of my mission companion's sisters. There's pictures of these babies found here. 

Scrambled eggs the easy peasy way

So there I was, hungry. So I decided to make myself scrambled eggs for breakfast. But then all I could think about was the mess I was going to make and how many dishes I would have to clean. I then remembered the way my mother fixed me a scrambled egg sandwich as a just-before-bedtime snack all throughout high school. Bless her soul. She made it all in one dish in the microwave in less than three minutes. Just crack and egg or two, add a little milk and salt and pepper, pop it in the microwave for a minute or two and voila! You have delicious eggs with one dish to clean. It really is one if my favorite snacks. I took pictures of the process, mostly because I was bored. Enjoy! 

By the way, homemade grape jelly is soo good.... Don't worry, it was not homemade by me. Love you guys!!!!!!

Cauliflower Alfredo Sauce

Have you guys tried this alfredo sauce made out of cauliflower? If you haven't you should because it's realllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllly good.

http://pinchofyum.com/creamy-cauliflower-sauce

Just Sayin...

Any of you are free to cute-ify our blog...it's not really my area of expertise. I also won't be offended if the title is refined, ha ha. Lastly, I didn't even think about Peaches! What the freak! I better invite her. That is all.

MoonDoggie Salad

So I decided to contribute one of my favorite go to recipe AND it's based off that cheesy movie series from the 50's, Gidget. It's the girl midget (hence Gidget) she surfs, and she likes this guy surfer named MoonDoggie. Basically thats all 5 movies right there. Anyways, apparently his mom made this pasta salad, and since he was Italian I figure it's pretty legit. 

MoonDoggie Salad

12 oz Italian Sausage
26 oz jar spaghetti sauce
1/4 cup Cream (evaporated or regular milk will work in a pinch)
1 lb rigatoni pasta (or any kind of pasta)
mozzarella cheese
 
Fry sausage, add to warmed sauce.  Cook 5 more minutes and add cream.  Cook five minutes until warmed through, stir in cooked pasta and sprinkle with grated cheese.  (You can use parmesan if you are missing mozzarella)

So simple yet so delicious! And the leftovers are the shiz! I have even just made the sauce with the cream, left out the meat, tossed it with fettuccine noodles and served as a side.  

ps. Sorry about the sausage Deysh :)

Key Lime Pie

For the record, I just want to say that I miss all of you guys! I'm so glad we got to see each other and catch up and talk.  I've realized that sometimes a girl just needs her girl friends.  Anyways, I made my key lime pie this weekend so I thought since we talked about sharing recipes and such on here I would share mine.  I adapted this recipe from the Pioneer Woman, who is amazing.  Ask Leesil, I'm obsessed.  Some day I will own all of her cookbooks.  Her original recipe can be found here and it's really good! I just add about 2/3 cup of sour cream to the filling part; it just makes it a little more creamy and nice.  Oh, and instead of using white sugar in the graham cracker crust, I use brown sugar-- I guess I'm racist like that.  Don't even worry if your name isn't Betty Crocker, this dessert is so easy to make.  And sooo sooo good. :) Happy Sunday everyone!

Key Lime Pie
(adapted from the Pioneer Woman)


Crust 
1 package Graham Crackers
1/3 cup Brown Sugar
1/3 cup Butter, Melted
_____
Filling
1 Tablespoon  Lime Zest
1/2 cup Lime Juice
2 Egg Yolks
1 can (14 Oz) Sweetened Condensed Milk
2/3 cup Sour Cream

Preparation Instructions (All from the Pioneer Woman)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
For the crust:
Crush crackers in a food processor or Ziploc bag. Pour them into a bowl and stir in sugar and melted butter. Press into a pie pan and bake for 5 minutes or until golden and set. Remove from oven and set aside to cool slightly.
For the filling:
Mix lime zest, lime juice, and egg yolks in a mixing bowl. Add in condensed milk and mix on high until smooth and thick. *(And then add the sour cream!) Pour mixture into crust and bake for 15 minutes.
Remove from oven, allow to cool, then refrigerate for at least 1 hour—more if possible.
Serve with sweetened whipped cream and more grated lime zest.

Puzzle Pieces

The other night as we were sitting on the picnic tables at the park and I was listening  to each of you speak, I just recognized the feeling inside of me of being safe. Emotionally safe and secure. I felt like I belonged with you and even rare feeling of being wanted and cared for. I feel so lucky to have that kind of friendship in my life. I just know that no matter where we each go or what happens in life, I will always be thankful that I have you.

Am I real good at being sentimental or what? Always have been always will be. :)

Ashlee Bug

My inaugural address

I just wanted to be the first to post on this awesome blog. I think this is one of our better ideas we've ever had. I will try and think of something more creative and magnificent to say tomorrow but for now, sweet dreams! Love you guys!

Oh ps this is Katy. Peace.