Candied Chicken

This chicken is on of Grandma's classics. We had this at her house on lots ofs different occsions. I love it!
I served this chicken with steamed green beans. They are so tasty! I like the way they squeak when you eat them.

4 chicken breasts
1 1/2 c. water
1 1/2 c. brown sugar
1 Tbs. Worchestershire sauce
1 Tbs. soy saouce
1/2 c. green onions- chopped
1/4 c. prepared mustard
1/2 c. ketchup

Flour chicken breasts them brown over medium heat. Remove chicken from pan and place in a glass pyrex casserole dish. Set aside. Combine all other ingredients. Pour into and simmer in same pan that you browned the chicken in. Let simmer for 3 minutes. Pour of chicken in casserole. Place in a 250 degree oven and bake, uncovered, for 2 2/1 hours.
Modified (this is how I usually cook it): Brown chicken then pour combined sauce over chicken. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Remove cover and simmer for 10 more minutes.

Cayenne-Rubbed Chicken with Avocado Salsa

Since some of you think I should get off the treats *cough* Becca *cough*, here a a great recipe that is super easy, healthy, and very yummy. I got this recipe from my Everyday Food magazine. It is my happy mail for the day.
We love avocados at our house. Even Syd and Brynn have acquired a taste for them. It really kind of disappoints me because that means that I have to share with them now. They thought this chicken was "kinda spicy, mom" but still ate it up with lots of water. They loved the avocado salsa. I didn't tell them about the onions. So tricky.
By the way, I love you Bec, and I was seriously going to post this today anyway. :)


Cayenne-Rubbed Chicken with Avocado Salsa

Coarse salt and ground pepper
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (6-8 oz. each)
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 medium red onion, finely chopped
2 Tbs. fresh lime juice
1 Hass avocado, pitted and cut into chunks

1- In a small bowl, combine 1 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and cayenne; rub all over chicken.
2- In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add chicken, and cook until browned on the outside and opaque throughout, 8-10 minutes per side.
3- Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine onion and lime juice; set aside. Just before serving, fold avocado chunks into onion mixture; season with salt and pepper. Serve chicken topped with salsa.

If anyone can tell me how the picture has been photo-shopped, you will get bonus points that are good for. . . a surprise!

Southwestern Meatloaf Burger

I got this recipe out of Martha Stewart Everyday Food. I love that magazine! But I stole the picture off the website (sorry Martha). We ate this all up before I could take a picture. I have made these burgers several times before and they are a hit. The girls even like them. A spicy burger without a bun, but kind of like a thick slice of yummy meatloaf. And we all know how I feel about meatloaf! We had these with corn and a side salad. I'm sure the tortilla that Martha suggests would be good. We were out of tortillas. I really need to go grocery shopping.

Martha says "Glazing the burgers with chili sauce keeps them moist and adds extra flavor. Look for chili sauce (actually a spicy ketchup) in the condiments aisle of your grocery store. If you are making them ahead, store the burgers in the refrigerator until ready to use, up to overnight; otherwise, bake burgers as soon as they are formed. Serves 4."

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 pounds ground beef chuck
• 1/4 cup plain dried breadcrumbs
• 1 cup (about 1 bunch) scallions, minced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons tomato-based chili sauce
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• Warmed tortillas, for serving (optional)
• Pickled jalapeno slices, for garnish (optional)

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine beef, breadcrumbs, scallions, garlic, 1/2 cup chili sauce, egg, chili powder, cumin, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Using your hands, mix just until combined; do not overmix.
2. Divide beef into 4 equal portions. Form each portion into a 4-inch-diameter patty, about 1 1/2 inches thick. Place on a plate; cover tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate until ready to use, up to overnight.
3. Preheat oven to 425 degrees with rack in center. Transfer patties to a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until browned, about 15 minutes.
4. Lightly brush tops and sides of patties with remaining 3 tablespoons chili sauce. Return to oven; cook until an instant-read thermometer inserted into center registers 160 degrees. 5 to 10 minutes more. Serve immediately, with tortillas, jalapenos, and radishes, if desired.

Meatloaf (Sandwich)

I love meatloaf sandwiches. Think what you will but it is true. The meatloaf, chilled and sliced, the pickles, the mustard, the soft white bread (this is a must). I love it all. I adore it. When there is leftover meatloaf in the fridge nobody dares go near it afraid of incurring my wrath if they eat it. I will make meatloaf just for the sandwiches. But I didn't make this meatloaf. . .

I have been sick. Coughing, headache, body aches, chills, fever, etc. My dad came over yesterday and took one look at me and said "You go back to bed. I will help the kids to their homework and make you a meatloaf." So I shuffled back down the hall in tears. (A good way to get me to cry is be nice to me). I'm not sure what brought the tears, the fact that I wouldn't have to do homework that night or that dad was making me MEATLOAF. It is just what a sick girl wants.

So thank you for the meatloaf dinner, dad. It was fabulous. So was the sandwich that I made for my lunch today. There is still enough left for one more tomorrow. So if you come over to my house, eat the cake, have some cookies, but stay away from the meatloaf!

Meatloaf

1 1/2- 2 lbs. hamburger
1/4 c. onion- diced
4 slices bread
1/2 c. milk
2 eggs
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. poultry seasoning or sage
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. dry mustard , or a squirt of regular mustard
1 Tbs. Worcestershire sauce

In a Kitchen Aid mixer, or by hand combine bread, milk, and eggs. Mix well. Add remaining ingredients and combine well. Form into loaves. I like to make 2. Dad made 1 giant one.
Place in a Pyrex baking dish and add about 1/2 cup water to bottom of pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour. Slice and serve with ketchup, BBQ sauce, or relish.

For a Meatloaf Sandwich (Which I highly recommend)

Wrap any leftover meatloaf in plastic wrap and store in the fridge. Wait in great anticipation for lunch time the next day. When you can't stand it any more, gather up the meatloaf, white bread, dill pickles, mustard, mayo, and salt and pepper. Prep your bread with the mustard and mayo. Slice your meatloaf and stack it as thick or as thin as you like on the bread and top it with sliced dill pickles and salt and pepper to taste. Top with bread and slice the sandwich. Now you better find a chair because you are going to want to be sitting down when you eat this sandwich. I would suggest enjoying it with a Diet Pepsi. See, I told you it was good. Your house now has a new meatloaf hoarder too!

Chicken Saltimbocca

I love to try new Crock-Pot recipes and this one is a keeper!

This is the picture from the actual cookbook (Taste of Homes), I could only wish that mine turned out this pretty. But it tastes wonderful and my kids loved it!

Chicken Saltimbocca

6 boneless chicken breasts

6 slices of deli ham

6 slices of Swiss cheese

1/4 c. flour

1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 t. salt

1/4 t. pepper

2 T. oil

1 can cream of chicken soup, undiluted

1/2 c. chicken broth

Hot cooked rice

Flatten chicken to 1/4 in. thickness. Top each piece with a slice of ham and cheese. Roll up tightly, securing them with toothpicks. Combine flour, cheese, salt & pepper in a bowl. Roll chicken in it and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Heat oil in a pan and brown the chicken on each side. Put into a crock-pot. Combine the soup and the chicken broth. Pour over the chicken and cook for 4-5 hours on low heat. Serve with rice.

Two Easy Pasta Dishes

Lately I have had a hard time coming up with things to make for dinner. This is mainly due to lack of planning on my part. . Do you know how I feel? You are staring at the fridge thinking, "What can I make that the kids will eat, that the husband will like, and that will take 4 minutes from fridge to table?" The answer for us is pasta. The girls will eat anything that has "noodles" in it. Shawn is game as long as the sauce isn't red (yes I know, what the heck?), and pasta is fast! So here are a few recipes I have made lately. So yummy and very easy!

Pasta with Mushrooms



12 ounces of any short twisted pasta (I used rotini)
1 lb. white button mushrooms- trimmed and quartered
2 Tbs. butter
2 green onions, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
salt and pepper
2 c. chicken stock
1/4 c. fresh grated Parmesan, plus more for serving

In a large pot of salted water, cook the pasta until al dente; drain and return to pot. Set aside.
While pasta is cooking, melt 1 Tbs. butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add green onion and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally for 2-3 minutes- until onion softens and garlic becomes aromatic.
Add mushrooms. Cook, stirring occassionally, until mushrooms are tender and begin to brown, 6-8 minutes.
Add chicken stock to skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally until liquid is reduced by half, 2-4 minutes. Transfer mushroom mixture to pot with pasta. Add Parmesan and remaining Tbs. butter and toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper, and serve with more Parmesan grated on top.


Spaghetti with Lemon Zest and Chives



1 lb. spaghetti (I used angle hair pasta this time and it also worked well)
zest of 1 lemon
Juice from 1 lemon
1/4 c. butter
2 Tbs. fresh chives
1 c. coarsely grated Ricotta or Parmesan
Salt and pepper to taste

Cook spaghetti until al dente. Grate zest into a large bowl. Add juice. Stir in butter, cut into small pieces, and cheese. Add drained pasta to lemon sauce and sprinkle with chives. Season with salt and pepper. Toss well, and serve.

Hawaiian Haystacks

First of all, let's just get this out there: I LOVE my book club! Not only is it made up of a group of fantastic women whom I love, but it is also great to get me thinking. As a stay-at-home-mom I sometimes feel that my brain ranges between a 20-watt bulb and a night-light. So to have actual discussions about moral, political, and social issues is so great.
We had a book club overnight retreat several weeks ago. We had a book exchange, did a little craftie(which by the way was super easy, cute, and fun, and would pretty up your kitchen! Go here to see what we did), ate way too much, and stayed up way too late. We ate Hawaiian haystacks. They were perfect. The meal was super-easy to prepare, it was easy to transport (we went to a cabin at Bear Lake), and everyone could tailor the meal to the tastes that best suited them.
Hawaiian Haystacks- serves 5-6 adults

Cooked rice– about 1 1/2 c. per person
2-3 c. cooked, shredded chicken
2 can cream of chicken soup
1 can of chicken broth
1 c. milk
1/2 tsp. Paprika
1/2 tsp. Garlic powder
1/4 tsp. Onion powder
1 tsp. or 1 cube chicken bouillon flavoring
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients, except rice, in a large pot. Stir well to combine. Heat over medium heat until hot, stirring often. This can also be done in a crock pot and left to warm all day. Serve sauce over hot rice with the following toppings:




Cheese
Tomatoes
Chinese noodles
Mandarin oranges
Pineapple tidbits
Edamame (green soy beans)
Water chestnuts
Slivered Almonds
Sunflower seeds
Celery
Green onions
Bell peppers
Coconut
Soy sauce
Whatever else sounds good to you!

So yummy and so easy! Hope you enjoy!