Chicken Chili

There was a time, making dinner meant heating up a frozen pizza.  The days of being young and single.
But then...

I met this guy.  This guy who would eventually become my husband.  If they way to a man's heart is through his stomach, frozen pizzas were definitely not going to win him over.

What did end up winning him over?  Chicken chili so thick, so delicious and so belly warming, he obviously could no longer resist my charms.

The ingredients in this hearty chili are:

(2) Tbsp of olive oil
(3) Tbsp of cumin
(1) large onion, chopped
(5) cloves of garlic
(1) green bell pepper, chopped
2 lbs of chicken, cubed
(2) tsp of chili powder
(1) tsp of oregano
(1) bay leaf
(2) cans of diced tomatoes
(2) 4 oz cans of green chilies, chopped
2 1/2 cups of chicken broth
(2) cans of kidney beans, drained and rinsed.

Directions to make this delicious chili:

Heat olive oil and cumin in a big chili pot for about 1-2 minutes, over medium heat.  Add onions, garlic, and green pepper.  Stir and cook for another 10 minutes, giving your vegetables time to saute. 

Season your cubed chicken with chili powder.  Add your seasoned chicken, along with oregano and 1 bay leaf to the pot.  Cook for about another 10 minutes.  Add diced tomatoes, green chilies and stir to combine.  Cook another 5-10 minutes.  Add chicken stock, kidney beans and season with salt.

Simmer your delicious chili concoction for at least 2 hours.  I like to make this a day in advance, letting it sit overnight so the flavors have time to really come together.  If you decide to do the same, let it simmer on the stove for another hour or two the next day.

Top it with some cilantro, sour cream and cheese...

And, enjoy it with some chips.

Bon appetite. 

Belly Warming Beef Soup Recipe

Fall is in the air.  The days are getting colder.  Comfort food that warms the belly is the perfect ending to any brisk fall day.

Soup is one of my mom's specialties.  My mom, the queen of quilts, is an avid crafter.  Growing up, dinner would be ready when whatever craft she was working on was done.  Sometimes that meant we ate a burnt lasagna.  Soup, though, was something that could be left unattended, and regardless of when she completed her project of the day, was still delicious.

This belly warming beef soup is one of my mom's specialties, always cooked with love and never burnt.

Ingredients:
1 box of beef stock and 2 cubes of beef bouillon
2 large onions - diced
1 bag of shredded carrots
1 stalk of celery - diced
3 red potatoes - diced
1/2 a bag of shredded cole slaw
1 stick of butter
1 cup of flour
salt and pepper, garlic powder and thyme to taste
1 1/2 lbs of beef - chopped or diced (stew beef, chuck, round or sirloin)
1 cup of crushed tomatoes

Yields approximately 2 quarts.

Directions:

Melt butter into a soup pot.  Add beef and onions to the pot.  Cook until the beef is cooked through and the onions get tender.  Add in the bag of shredded carrots, 1/2 a bag of shredded cole slaw, the diced potatoes and diced celery.  Stir well and cook for an additional 10 minutes.  Add a cup of flour, stir well.  Add 2 beef bouillon cubes, stir well.  Add a box of beef broth, stir well.  Add a cup of crushed tomatoes, stir really well.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add a dash of thyme and garlic powder.  Simmer for at least an hour.

I like to make this soup a day in advance.  The flavors of this belly warming soup grow more pronounced the longer it sits.  I will simmer for at least an hour and then refrigerate over night.  The next day, I will let it simmer for at least an hour or two before serving it for a delicious dinner.

Serve with warm rolls and enjoy.

Bon appetit. 

Chocolate Covered Pretzels

Chocolate covered pretzels are the perfect no hassle, easy and quick kind of baking that I enjoy.  Depending on the sprinkles, they can be adapted to fit any holiday you feel like celebrating. 

To make these very delicious chocolate covered pretzels, you'll need pretzels(!), either rods or a traditional pretzel shape, almond bark and... 

Decorative sprinkles.  I used Halloween sprinkles, black bats and orange sprinkles.  Of course, these chocolate covered pretzels can fit any occasion simply by changing up the sprinkles...planning a baby shower use pink and blue sprinkles, Christmas use red and green sprinkles.

Break the almond bark up into sections and place in a microwave save bowl.  Microwave the chocolate for 1 minute, on high.  Remove chocolate and stir.  Continuing microwaving the chocolate cooking for 15 second intervals, stirring between each interval, until the chocolate is fully melted.

 

Dunk the pretzels into the melted chocolate. 
*Avoid using the broken pretzels.  The broken bits will leave pretzel crumbs in the melted chocolate.

Remove the pretzels from the chocolate with a spoon or your finger.  Set the pretzels onto parchment paper and quickly cover with sprinkles.  It's best to have an assistant to help with this part so you can continue covering the pretzels with chocolate.  You need to work quickly before the chocolate starts to harden.

My assistant was quite liberal with her sprinkling.  

One package of almond bark will be more than enough to cover an entire bag of pretzels.

Once your pretzels are chocolate and sprinkle coated, you can enjoy them yourself or you can wrap them up and share them.

After we (Grace and I) ate more than we should, we decided to wrap some up to share with Grace's teacher. 

Into a Goodwill basket, we arranged a fall colored tea towel, chocolate covered pretzels and a few gourds.

Of course, my favorite part...the black bat gift tag, signed by the sous chef herself Grace.

Chocolate covered pretzels, sprinkled with bats and love.

Chicken Alfredo Pizza Recipe

Believe it or not, not everything I make is made out of felt...though, rarely do I share recipes here, I do cook and cook often at that.  I love good food, mostly made from recipes of other talented bloggers BUT today, I'll share with you my latest favorite dish.

Chicken Alfredo Pizza.  Yum.

To make this delicious meal, you'll need the following:  *pizza dough (recipe to follow) or pre-made pizza crust, alfredo sauce, spinach, grilled chicken, red and yellow cherry tomatoes and mozzarella cheese (not pictured).

To make your own pizza dough: 

Combine 4 cups of flour, 1/3 a cup of olive oil, a teaspoon of salt and 1 and 1/2 cups of warm water mixed with a tablespoon of yeast.  Mix ingredients well.  Cover your bowl with saran wrap and allow the dough time to rise.  I let mine sit for about 6-8 hours.  *You could make it a day in advance and store in the refrigerator.

To make Chicken Alfredo Pizza:

Roll out your pizza dough (should be enough to fit 2 large cookie sheets) or get your pre-made pizza crusts out.

Cover the dough evenly with Alfredo sauce.  Top with fresh spinach, diced grilled chicken, and both the red and yellow tomatoes.  I cut my tomatoes in half but you can opt to leave them whole.  Finally, sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.

Bake in a preheat oven at 375 degrees F for approximately 30 minutes.   

The best part of this meal, it tastes just as good the next day reheated!

Bon appetite. 

Coconut-Crusted Shrimp

Believe it or not, even though I rarely share recipes, I do cook.  I love foods full of flavor and enjoy trying out new recipes.

Today, I'll share with you a recipe for coconut-crusted shrimp.

You'll need:
3 tablespoons of vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups of panko
1/2 cup of sweetened shredded coconut
1/2 cup of Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoons of curry power
2 large egg whites
1 pound of large shrimp (I used precooked frozen shrimp)

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Set wire rack in a rimmed baking sheet.

2. in a medium skillet, heat oil over medium.  Add panko and toast, stirring until golden, about 5 minutes.
Transfer panko to a medium bowl, stir in coconut. 

In another medium bowl, whisk together Dijon, curry powder and egg whites.

3. Dip shrimp in Dijon mixture, then coat with panko mixture, gently pressing to adhere.  Place shrimp on rack and bake until opaque throughout, 10-12 minutes.

Serve with lime wedges and Mango Salsa.

Enjoy!

Edible Birds Nests

Since spring is still toying with us in the Midwest, I decided to take matters into my own hands and bring a little bit of Spring into my day by making my own bird's nests.

 In chocolate covered delicious form.

I am self admittedly not a baker, so I appreciate any recipe that calls for only 3 ingredients {chow mein noodles, Cadbury Mini Eggs and chocolate flavored almond bark}

and requires no baking {other than melting some chocolate}.

The rest of the recipe is equally as easy.  Stir in the chow mein noodles until they are coated with the chocolate.

Scoop out a spoonful of chocolate covered chow mein noodles onto wax paper and have your helper nestle a few eggs into place.

And, then, sample a few of the eggs, to give you enough energy to finish making all your nests.

Not only are these little bird's nests adorable BUT they are also delicious.

I guess while I wait for some real birds to make a nest, I'll happily pass the time enjoying these.

Sundried Tomato Crescent Rolls

This is really 'Sundried Tomato Croissant Rolls by While Wearing Heels' Husband'. It's something my husband will prepare for me for my birthday and our anniversary.

This recipe is so easy, even your husband can make it :)

Ingredients:
Sun Dried Tomatoes
Crescent Rolls
Parmesan Cheese

Unroll the crescent rolls.  Places about 3-4 sundried tomatoes lengthwise on the croissant roll.  Sprinkle with some Parmesan cheese and roll them up.  Drizzle some olive oil or the oil from the sun dried tomatoes and sprinkle with a little extra cheese.  Set on a cookie sheet.

Heat oven to 375 degrees and bake for about 12 minutes.

Serve with some fresh fruit...

And enjoy every last bite.

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{M} * Sharing Sweet Mondays * Busy Mondays at a Pinch of Joy  *Made Monday at Toastie Studio * *The Cure for the Common Monday * *Polly Want a Crafter * Craftastic Link Party * Brassy Apple, Make it Monday * Made By You Mondays * Between Naps On The Porch * Thrifty Decor Chick *  Skip To My Lou *

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{F}*  Fantabulous Friday with Little Becky Homemaker *  Financial Friday Link Up with The Grant Life *  Sharing Saturday  *  The Chic and Crafty Party *  Fab Not Drab Fridays *  Shine on Fridays with One Artsy Mama *  Share What YOU Did with Two Sasters *  Bubbly Nature Creations *  Friday Favs Party at Nap Time Crafters *  Centsational Girl *  Dwell on Friday *  French Country Cottage *  At the Picket Fence * Serenity Now  * Tatertots and Jello * Chic On A Shoestring *  Decorating

Nutmeg Place

{Sat} *Saturday Show and Tell *Saturday Showcase *Overflowing With Creativity *YOU Inspire Link Party *Be Different Act Normal * Nifty Thrifty Things * I heart naptime * The Sweet Talk Shop * Funky Junk Interiors *  Twigg Studios * 

{Sun}* DIY Showoff * The girl creative * By Stephanie Lynn * My 1929 Charmer Blog * Embellishing Life Everyday * Alderberry Hill * Homemaker On A Dime * Delectable Home * Everything Under The Moon * 

Banana Bread

My bananas are fully ripe, which sounds so much nicer than they actually appear, so it's time to make some banana bread!

The tried and true banana bread recipe I use originated from Better Homes and Gardens New Dieter Cookbook.

I recently started to modify this banana bread recipe. I like to add 3/4 a cup of blueberries {I've used 3/4 a cup of dried cranberries instead of blueberries and that is equally as yummy}. I also like to add the juice of half a lemon to provide a brighter flavor.

In the past I had prepared my loaf pan with Pam non stick spray, but now I butter my pan and...

coat it with powdered sugar {I see the irony, since I am using a dieter's recipe and adding things that are obviously not low cal}. When I make brownies or chocolate cake, I butter my pan and coat it with cocoa powder.

Then, in goes my banana bread batter and the waiting begins.

45 minutes later, golden and delicious, my banana bread is ready. For a family of only 3, you'd be surprised how quickly this disappears!

I love when the house smells like banana bread. It's one of the rare June Clever moments I have in life.

Decorate with what makes you happy.

Throughout my life, there have been things I have kept, significant things and, to others what might seem, insignificant things. Some of these things I have on display and others tucked away in a box. Looking at these things, I realize, they were kept throughout the years to evoke a memory, make me smile or because they simply had meaning to me, so why are some of these things stored in a box or haphazardly set some place and not proudly displayed?

Two days ago, had you looked at my cookbook stand, you may or may not have noticed what would have seemed like a normal recipe.

Maybe you would have thought it was a recipe I had recently made. Perhaps you would have overlooked it altogether. To you, it may have seemed an insignificant thing. To me, it brings back memories of this feisty lady...

My grandma.

Just before my grandma had passed away, I asked her to teach me to bake '2 Quick Cheesecake', a staple dessert she made for every family gathering. While perched on a kitchen stool, she happily ordered me around her kitchen, directing me through every step of the recipe. The confidence she had in her kitchen, confidence that comes from raising a family of 7, is the confidence I try to muster every day when cooking for my family of 3.

As we baked together, she wrote that recipe down and a few others she loved to make. That night, I took home the '2 Quick Cheesecake' we made together, 3 handwritten recipes she had written out and, of course, a priceless memory.

Throughout the years, I moved and stuck those recipes in a cookbook. I thought about them occasionally and when I would stumble upon them, I would smile. I finally put them on my recipe stand but really wanted to pay tribute to these recipes and the memories they held for me by displaying them in a way that even a casual observer could tell that it was a significant item I had saved.

I found a $1.99 frame from Goodwill that had an ornate design, giving it a vintage feel.

With a can of black gloss spray paint {I wish I had used semi gloss or matte}, I gave my Goodwill frame 2 coats of paint.

I found some black checkered fabric that I wrapped and then taped to the cardboard insert. The fabric covered cardboard then acted as a mat to place my recipe on.

Then, I centered my grandma's recipe on the fabric mat and inserted it into the frame.

Now, it has a place of honor, proudly displayed in my kitchen cabinet. For me, it allowed me to not only frame and display my grandma's recipe but also to frame a special memory as well.

If you have a collection of things you have saved, things that have special meaning to you, take a new look at them and see if you can give life to the memories they contain by displaying them in a significant way.