Come In From The Cold

Stew is one of those comfort meals and so great when it's cold out. 

I've done this recipe in the crock pot as well, once I've done 

the browning.

Hope you Enjoy!

Beef Stew

1 -1 1/2 lb cubed beef stew meat...
1/2 cup flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped fine
1 carrot, chopped fine
1/4 cup finely chopped celery, with a few minced leaves
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 pinch thyme
3 1/2 cups beef broth
2 medium potatoes, diced
2 carrots, diced
2 onions, diced
Directions:
Put flour, salt and pepper in a large ziploc bag.
Heat oil over medium heat in a large dutch oven.
Place meat in bag with the flour and shake until well coated.
Shake off meat pieces and add them to the oil and stir until slightly browned, Add remaining flour from the bag and the finely chopped onion.
Stir until well browned.
Add finely chopped carrot and next 4 ingredients.
Cover and cook over low heat for 1 1/2 hours (stirring every 15 minutes).
Add diced potatoes, carrots, and onions, cook for another 45 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

Black Bean and Quinoa Enchilada Bake

Great dish for Mexican night with lots of different possibilities. The best thing about this recipe is it can be served by itself for a main dish on Mexican night, or be eaten with tortilla chips as a dip or even rolled up in a tortilla as a taco, burrito, or enchilada. Garnish with green onions, avocado, tomatoes, or/and sour cream. Very versatile recipe. So enjoy and learn the many uses of oh so healthy quinoa. 

Ingredients:

1 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed
2 cups of water
1 tbsp of olive oil
1 small onion diced
3 garlic cloves minced
1 Jalapeño seeded and minced
1 red pepper seeded and diced
1 cup frozen corn
Juice of 1 small lime
1 tsp of ground cumin
1 tsp of chili powder
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
Salt and pepper to taste
2 15 oz cans of black beans drained and rinsed
2 cups of red enchilada sauce
2 cups of shredded mexican cheese
Toppings (optional):  Greek Yogurt, Avocado, Olives, Green onions

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9x13 in pan with cooking spray. Add quinoa and water to medium saucepan and bring to a boil.  Boil for 5 minutes then turn the heat down and simmer for 15 minutes or until the water is absorbed. Fluff with a fork and set aside.

In a large skillet over medium high heat up the olive oil, add onion, garlic and Jalapeño.  Saute until soft, about 5 minutes. Add peppers and corn and saute for 5 more minutes.
Add lime juice, cumin, chili powder and cilantro.  Stir and combine and season with salt and pepper.

In a large mixing bowl stir quinoa and black beans.  Add the veggie mixture and combine, stir in 1/2 of the cheese and all of the Enchilada sauce. 

Pour the mixture into the 9x13 pan, sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Then cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes, remove foil and bake for 10 minutes longer until cheese is melted and bubbly.  Remove and cool!Serve and enjoy!!!

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Muffin Tin Spinach Quiche Cups

Get the recipe for these delicious Spinach Quiche Cups – click HERE

Last Minute Dinner Recipe: Three-Cheese & Chicken Baked Pasta

I was searching this weekend for a last minute dinner idea. You know how it is...it's Saturday and you've been busy all day, look at the clock and it's already 4:30. I searched around the net and came across this Southern Living recipe for  Three Cheese Baked Pasta and decided this was what was going to be for dinner. I thought the recipe sounded easy and fantastic!

I did, however make two adjustments. There is no way my meat eater hubby was going to have a non-meat meal. I  added chicken to appease my meat eater.  I also did not have ricotta on hand but did have cottage cheese and substituted with that. This turned out so good, easy and the family raved on its deliciousness!  Now, I never eat leftover pasta but my husband does. He said it was as delicious reheated as it was the first time!   

Three-Cheese & Chicken Baked Pasta

Ingredients

1 (16-oz.) package ziti pasta

2 (10-oz.) containers Alfredo sauce 

1 (8-oz.) container sour cream 

1 (15-oz.) container ricotta cheese

2 large eggs, lightly beaten 

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese 

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese

 3 cups cooked chicken, chopped

Preparation

Cook pasta according to package directions; drain and return to pot. Stir together Alfredo sauce and sour cream; toss with ziti until evenly coated. Spoon half of ziti mixture into a lightly greased 13- x 9-inch baking dish. Stir together ricotta cheese and next 3 ingredients; spread evenly over pasta mixture. Spoon remaining pasta mixture evenly over ricotta cheese layer; sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until bubbly.

I hope your family enjoys this as much as ours!

Cold Weather Meal: Slow Cooker Ham & White Beans

While I may live in South Florida, it has had a chill in the air for a week or so now. For us, it comes and goes. Some days it may be 40's in the morning but get to 60's and 70's by day. Then there are some days it just stays cool. It is days like that when I yearn for those meals that we ate in the Midwest. Now, I do know it doesn't have to be cold. But, there is nothing like a cool or winters day and a cold weather meal. 


Since I also work outside the home, some of those meals are difficult to attain unless it is on the weekend. What I rely on heavily is the use of my slow cooker. I can capture the slow cooked taste and not come home from a long hard day at work and cook for hours. Last nights dinner was both... a cold weather meal utilizing my slow cooker. 

Slow Cooker Ham & White Beans

1 lb package dried northern beans
ham bone, hocks, shanks or diced ham (about 1 pound)
2 tsp onion powder
6 cups water
salt & pepper to taste


Rinse and sort the beans. Add the the rinsed beans, onion powder, salt, pepper, and ham to slow cooker. Add water. Cover and cook on low about 8 hours, until beans are tender. Serve with cornbread. I swear by Jiffy :)

Cookies and Cream Oreo Bark

 

Cookies and Cream Oreo Bark

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Melted Snowman Cookies

 

Melted Snowman Cookies

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A Family Favorite...

 Believe me when I tell you that I am NOT the cook of the house. While I think that I can cook, and it is definitely edible, I do not LIKE to cook. I do, however, love to bake. I am blessed with a husband that missed his calling (being a chef). He makes fantastic meals that I wouldn’t even attempt. I do, however, like to give him a break so that he does not get burnt out from always being the one to cook and try to think of something.

I have a few go-to staples that I enjoy making because they are easy and my family likes them. One of them is a recipe that has been passed through my family for many, many years. It is called Chicken Londoff. I made this over the weekend so my hubby could have a day off from the kitchen. While you will see it is easy as you read it, believe me when I tell you it tastes great and this is a requested meal (that I am willing to cook…lol).

Chicken Londoff

Ingredients

6 Chicken breast halves
6 slices Swiss cheese or 1 c grated swiss cheese
1 can Cream of chicken soup
1/2 c Cooking sherry
2 cups Peppridge Farm herb stuffing
1 stick Butter or margarine

Preparation

Place the six chicken breast halves on bottom of 9x13" pan sprayed with Pam.

Top chicken with swiss cheese.

Mix cream of chicken soup and cooking sherry and pour over the chicken.

Spread herb stuffing evenly over soup mixture and drizzle melted margerine (or squeeze margerine) over stuffing.

Bake at 350F for one hour.

Cook's Notes:

This recipe can be very budget friendly, in fact I adjusted it just this weekend. The chicken breasts were purchased on a deal, for the cooking sherry we use the cheapest jug of white wine and I picked up the rest of the ingredients at our Dollar Tree! They have swiss slices in the refrigerator and for the stuffing I used the turkey flavored boxed stuffing they carried!

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A Taste of Fall...

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Created by: No Biggie

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Italian Chicken Soup

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Created by: Pioneer Woman

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Gorgonzola Garlic Bread

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Created by: Plain Chicken

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Gerber Sandwiches

I have mentioned many times that we previously lived in St. Louis and I often rave about the food. In my opinion, the food in my part of Florida is uninspired and bland. Although I love living in Florida (because of the beautiful weather), I absolutely miss the food in St. Louis. One of those foods I miss is a simple sandwich that I can, and often do, replicate. This is the Gerber Sandwhich. The Gerber sandwich started at a restaurant in St. Louis called Ruma’s Deli. As a teenager I worked there and ate these daily. Yummm. This sandwich is often requested in my home. I hope you will give it a try and come to love it as we do!

Gerber Sandwiches

Ingredients:

·         1 loaf French bread

·         1/4 cup garlic butter, spread

·         3/4 lb deli ham

·         1/2 lb provolone cheese, sliced thin

·         paprika

·          

Directions:

Slice the loaf of French bread lengthwise. Place on a cookie sheet. Generously spread butter on both pieces of bread. Here is where my version differs… At this point we put our sandwich in under the broiler (keeping an eye on and never leaving. It will burn before you know it!) until slightly browned. Remove and put a layer of ham on both pieces of bread. Top the ham with a layer of cheese. Sprinkle with paprika if desired. We usually skip the paprika.

Place this back in the oven on 350°F for about 15 minutes or until cheese is melted. This is an open-face sandwich. 

In The Kitchen: Gianduja Bars

We were invited to dinner over at a friend’s house and I had offered to bring the dessert. I wanted something that would be a show-stopper and easy, but our rule is no extra shopping trips for specific items. We do our planned grocery runs that involve coupons and try to plan menu’s around the stockpile.

I had this recipe in my stash and have been wanting to try it. I had gotten this recipe from Food Network. It is a Giada de Laurentiis’ Everyday Italian.  Although these are called Gianduja, which is an Italian chocolate with hazelnut paste in it, Giada uses the Nutella and hazlenuts.

What I really love about this recipe is it’s ease. Short on time? You can purchase store-bought brownies and do the topping or you can make brownies, which as you know are easy to prepare. While I did not have brownie mix (I really was being lazy and wanted to cheat), I did have the ingredients for decadent, melt in your mouth, to-die-for brownies.  

For the brownie, I used a recipe, also from my stash I’d been wanting to try. These brownies took the final product over the top. I am sure they would not have been as fabulous with store-bought or mix brownies.  You really, really need to make them.

Anyway, back to our main recipe. This really is super quick and easy and tastes delish. I have a lot of friends who just do not bake and this would be a great recipe for them as they can just dress up store bought brownies. Oh, and really, you can use any nuts and any combination of chips to make it yours. It’s a great one for what’s on hand.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 4 brownies (about 2 by 3-inches)
• 1/4 cup nutella
• 1/4 cup chopped toasted hazelnuts
• 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips (try a mix of white, semisweet, and milk chocolate)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Spread each of the brownies with 1 tablespoon of nutella. Sprinkle each of the brownies with 1 tablespoon chopped hazelnuts. Top the nuts with 1 tablespoon mini chocolate chips. Place the brownies on a baking sheet and bake for 5 to 7 minutes until the chocolate is starting to melt. Transfer the brownies to the refrigerator and let cool until the chocolate hardens, about one hour.

The Best Brownies You Will Ever Eat...

Typically I like my brownies from a box mix. I know that sounds awful but I had never had a homemade brownie turn out as fabulous as a box. Like I said, until now. These are melt-in-your mouth greatness. These are a must try!

 Fudge Brownies

1 cup (2 sticks) butter
2 1/4 cups sugar
4 large eggs
1 1/4 cups cocoa powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon espresso powder, optional
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1.Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9×13 baking dish.

2. In small saucepan over low heat, melt butter completely. Stir in sugar and continue cooking for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly. Do not allow sugar mixture to boil.

3.  Pour butter mixture into a large bowl or stand mixer, beat in cocoa powder, eggs, salt, baking powder, espresso powder, and vanilla extract. Mix until well combined.

4. Stir in the flour and chocolate chips until well combined.

5. Pour into prepared pan and bake for about 30 minutes, until a tester comes out mostly clean. The edges should be set and the center should still look slightly moist, but not uncooked.  Cool on a wire rack.

Enjoy!

In The Kitchen: {citrus white chocolate cookies}

  I am intrigued by these cookies enough to get off my rear and make them!

A friend brought these 

{citrus white chocolate cookies} to Brown Paper Packages!

That's what I call a friend!

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{citrus white chocolate cookies}

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