Chocolate Pretzels

I made these for my coworkers as Christmas presents.  I made a couple batches and then filled Christmas tins to give out.  I used chocolate kisses and hugs as well as pecans and almonds, just to give them some variety.  The hugs melted a lot faster than the kisses though, so if you are going to make a mixed batch, I recommend putting the topping on the kisses first because they set faster and the hugs are a little too gooey straight out of the oven.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place pretzels on baking sheets. Unwrap candy kisses and place one in the center of each pretzel.

Place in preheated oven 1 to 2 minutes, until kisses melt. Remove from oven and place one nut in the center of each pretzel. Chill in refrigerator until set.

Bolognese Sauce

I’ve been craving a good meat sauce lately and I wanted to try my hand at a Bolognese sauce.  I had the great luck to actually have some in Bologna while I was studying abroad in Italy.  While mine didn’t quite live up to the authentic, it was still pretty good.  There are a ton of recipes online, and most require several hours to simmer.  I don’t have nearly enough patience for that.  This recipe was a lot quicker but it still tested my limits; however my apartment did smell quite amazing all afternoon as it simmered.  I combined a couple different recipes to come up with the one I made.  Most called for combinations of meats, but I just stuck with ground beef for ease.  Next time I think I will experiment with different combinations.  A lot of recipes called for a little milk rather than chicken broth, which is also something I might try.  Basically, there is a lot you can do with this recipe but this is the initial one I tried out.

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion, chopped
• 1 rib of celery, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 pounds ground chuck
• 3/4 cup dry red wine
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 cup crushed tomatoes
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, optional

 

Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Add the onion, celery, carrot and garlic; decrease heat to medium. Cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 5 minutes. Add the ground beef; increase heat to medium-high. Cook, stirring occasionally, until evenly brown, about 15 minutes.

Stir in the wine, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Stir in the broth and tomatoes; cook until flavors come together, about 45 minutes. Add salt if necessary. Skim off fat if desired.

 

Chicken with Cider and Bacon Sauce

I was too lazy to go to the store so I was looking for something I could make with what I already had at home.  I knew I had a couple of frozen chicken breasts to use up as well as some bacon that was nearing its shelf life.  Luckily, an online search of Cooking Light brought up this gem and I just so happened to have some left over apple cider from my Cinnamon Toasts.  This recipe was really easy to make.  In fact, I kind of messed it up a little bit, but it ended up making it even better.

Ingredients

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 2 bacon slices, chopped
• ¼ cup minced fresh onion
• ¾ cup unsweetened apple cider
• ½ cup chicken broth

Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/2-inch thickness using a meat mallet or rolling pin. Sprinkle chicken evenly with salt and pepper.

Cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan. Add chicken to drippings in pan; cook 6 minutes on each side or until done. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm.

Add onion to pan; cook 2 minutes or until tender, stirring constantly. Add cider and broth; bring to a boil, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Cook until broth mixture is reduced to 1/2 cup (about 5 minutes). Stir in cooked bacon; serve sauce over chicken.

I accidentally let the sauce cook a little too long until there was maybe ¼ cup left.  But according to the reviews online, the sauce can be a little bland and thin, so I think reducing it more actually helped.  I am really glad I just happened to have all these ingredients on hand.  Not only did I find a great new dish, but I avoided a trip to the store!

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/chicken-with-cider-bacon-sauce-10000001011270/

Strawberry Yogurt Muffins

I came across this recipe on Marshmallow Mummy’s blog and I was intrigued.  I would have never thought to use yogurt in muffins, but the idea was promising.  I decided to give it a try this morning and I wasn’t disappointed.  One thing I did learn though is that there is a difference between self rising flour and normal flour.  I just used traditional flour and the muffins came out pretty dense and moist, but in my opinion it didn’t detract from the muffins.  Next time I’ll try adding baking powder to make my own self rising flour.*  Despite this, they made an excellent weekend breakfast.

• 2 cups self rising flour
• Pinch salt
• 1 egg
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup flavored yogurt (I used 2 individual servings)
• ½ cup canola oil
• ¼ teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350.  Sift flour and salt into bowl.  Whisk egg, oil, sugar yogurt and vanilla.  Stir into flour, be careful not to over stir.  Spoon into a greased muffin tin.  Bake for 15-20 minutes.

I used Marshmallow Mummy’s suggestion and topped the muffins with powdered sugar.  I will definitely be making these again, and trying out different types of yogurt.

 

* To make your own self rising flour mix 2 and 2/3 teaspoons of baking powder and 2/3 teaspoon of salt into 2 cups of all purpose flour.

Cinnamon Toast

In addition to green beans, I was also in charge of the liquor for Thanksgiving.  I decided to try and class it up a bit and make a fancy cocktail, while still keeping it simple to make.  This might be my favorite winter drink.  You rim a glass with a mixture of cinnamon and sugar, then you pour in however much spiced rum you would like (we used ½-1 shot) and then top with hot apple cider.  I used the Louisburg apple cider that comes in the jugs that I had simmering on the stove.  Just to add to the presentation, I added a stick of cinnamon to garnish.  I definitely recommend trying it out.

Oven Chicken Risotto

I have been looking for good dishes that I can make in advance and then take as leftovers for lunch throughout the week.  This is a recipe I got from my mom that I adapted slightly.  It worked really well.  It didn’t lose any quality when reheated and I didn’t get tired of it.  It was also really easy to make.  It only took a couple minutes of prep work and about 30 minutes to bake.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 ½ cups chicken broth
• 1 cup uncooked Arborio rice (short grained)
• ½ small onion, diced
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 cups chopped deli-roasted chicken
• 1 (8oz) package fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into ½ cubes
• 1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
• 4 oz fresh baby spinach

Preheat oven to 400 degrees,  place butter in a 13×9 inch baking dish; bake 5 minutes or until melted.  Stir in broth and next 3 ingredients.

Bake covered, at 400 degrees for 35 minutes.  Remove from oven.  Fluff rice with a fork.  Stir in chicken, mozzarella, tomatoes and spinach.

This recipe is also great for adapting to your own tastes.  After you cook the rice, you can add whatever you want to cater it to how you want it.  The original recipe used fresh shredded basil as a topping rather than spinach but not only do I prefer spinach, I already had a bag in my fridge that I needed to use.

Fudge Spoon Pie

I used to make this all the time. It is really quick and easy to make and it always satisfies my chocolate craving. It is like a warm gooey brownie that you have to eat with a spoon. It’s best served with ice cream or whipped cream on top.

Ingredients

• ½ cup butter
• 1 oz unsweetened chocolate
• 1 cup sugar
• ½ cup flour
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs

Preheat oven to 325. Melt butter and chocolate in a saucepan; stirring constantly to avoid burning. Remove from heat. Add sugar, then flour, vanilla and eggs. Pour into a greased 8×8 pan. Bake for 20 minutes. Do not over bake, it is meant to be gooey. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream.

Green Beans with Carmelized Shallots

My younger sister was recently diagnosed with Celiac’s disease.  I had never realized how prevalent gluten is.  It really became an issue this Thanksgiving.  Almost all of our traditional dishes had to tweaked or completely redone to accommodate.  One dish that needed to be redone was the green bean casserole.  Apparently cream of mushroom soup is not gluten free.  We tried to make the traditional recipe  with gluten free soup, but it was too salty and had a weird texture.  Instead, I made this green bean dish from Southern Living.

It didn’t have the same nostalgia as green bean casserole, but it was a good stand in.

• 2 pounds haricots verts (tiny green beans), trimmed
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 pound shallots, halved lengthwise and peeled
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1. Cook green beans in boiling salted water to cover 3 to 4 minutes or until crisp-tender; drain. Plunge beans into ice water to stop the cooking process; drain.
2. Melt butter and brown sugar with olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add shallots, and sauté 2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low, add vinegar, and sauté 10 minutes or until shallots are golden brown and tender.
3. Increase heat to medium-high; add green beans, and sauté 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.

Brownies in a Jar

It’s getting to be that time of year again.  Starbucks has already rolled out their red cups; HEB has giant Christmas displays… It’s only a matter of time before my coworker starts playing the Chipmunks Christmas cd on repeat.  Before I am driven to the brink of insanity by high pitched voices, I wanted to share what I did for gifts last year.  I made about a dozen of these and I gave them to coworkers and friends and they were a big hit and they kept me on budget.  The original recipe called for ½ cup of chopped pecans to be added at the top, but I couldn’t get them to fit in the mason jar, and to be honest, I prefer my brownies without nuts.  I spruced the jars up a bit with a little Christmas material and a ribbon and voila- a perfect holiday gift.

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 cups white sugar

 

Directions

1. Mix together flour, baking powder, and salt and put in a quart jar. Layer 1/3 cup of the cocoa powder, 1 cup of sugar and then repeat. Press each layer firmly (this is extremely important, it is going to be a tight fit) in place before adding the next layer. NOTE: Be sure to wipe out the inside of the jar with a dry paper towel after adding the cocoa powder, so the other layers will show through the glass.
2. Attach a tag with the following instructions: Brownie Mix in a Jar 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13inch baking pan. 2. Empty jar of brownie mix into a large mixing bowl, and stir to blend. Mix in 1 cup melted butter and 3 eggs and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Mix thoroughly. Spread batter evenly into prepared baking pan. 3. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes in preheated oven.

Garlic Chicken Puffs

I have started to accumulate a ridiculous recipe list on my computer.  Anytime I am browsing through recipes online and I see one I like, I copy and paste the link to what has become a massive list.  For the moment, it is working, but I think I need to come up with a better system.

This past weekend, a friend hosted a potluck and I volunteered to bring an appetizer.  So, I scrolled through my trusty list and found this recipe that I had saved months ago for garlic chicken puffs.  It looked simple enough and like it could feed a crowd.

The puffs were simple to make and they went over well with everyone there, but I think if I make them again I will try and add more flavor.  They were just a little too bland for me.  Maybe a dipping sauce would help.  I can definitely see making these again for a tailgate or something like that.

Ingredients

• 4 ounces cream cheese
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 cup cooked shredded chicken*
• 2 cans refrigerator crescent rolls

Mix cream cheese, garlic and chicken until well blended. *For the chicken I cooked 3 small chicken breasts on my George Foreman and then broke them up into small pieces with a fork and knife.

Unroll crescent rolls and cut each triangle into 2 smaller triangles

Place 1 tsp of chicken mixture on the center of each triangle and fold the corners in over the creamy mixture.

Place on cookie sheet, lined with aluminum foil and sprayed with no stick spray.  Bake at 375 for 12-14 mins.

http://tidymom.net/2009/garlic-chicken-puffs-christmas-party/

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