You Can Thank Me Later...

So I got this trick from my brother-in-law, and although not a recipe, I think you will all worship me after learning this...

Place 2 matches in your mouth, match side out, as you cut onions. The sulfer in the matches sucks up any onion smells. I cut two whole onions and even took my time doing it and I my eyes didn't sting once. It was awesome. I just keep two matches on the windowsill above my sink. Good luck!

Chicken Bundles

So, Brent's mom has been making these for years and I make them every now and then. I found a variation to the recipe I like best--which simplifies it and uses more cream cheese (there you go). It's super easy and very yummy.

Turkey Bundles
8 oz cream cheese, softened
2 cups cooked turkey or chicken
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1 Tbsp onion
2 (8oz) crescent dinner rolls

Blend chicken, cream cheese and onion together. Salt & pepper to taste. Place 1 Tbsp chicken mix in middle of crescent roll. Roll up. Bake at 375 for 11-13 minutes or until golden brown. Pour chicken gravy on the top. Yield 4 servings.

And, my aunt has a great gravy recipe.

4 oz butter or margarine
1/4 cup flour
1 1/2 cups water, broth, or milk
salt & pepper to taste

Melt butter in a saucepan over medium to medium-high heat. Add flour and whisk until smooth. Add fluid and whisk until smooth and slightly thickened.

Enjoy!

Whole Wheat...

Speaking of food storage, I've been really into using my wheat lately and I remembered that my mom use to make puffed wheat in the crock pot over night and I loved it. I called her for the recipe and it was even easier than I thought! You can eat it plain for breakfast or use it in tons of recipes to make them even more healthy. For example, you can put a cup of it in your whole wheat bread, oatmeal cookies, muffins, pancakes, etc.
I am totally addicted to this stuff. I eat a bowlful every morning with milk and a little sugar. Then I usually add craisens, chopped bananas, peaches, strawberries of any other fruit I have on hand. But I even love it just plain! It may not sound very appetizing but you'll have to trust me on this one. Plus, it is very heart healthy and does wonders for your digestive system!!

Puffed Wheat

1 C. whole wheat (White or red)
2 c. water
1/2 tsp. salt

Put in crockpot on low for about 7 hours.
*Do not cook for much longer than this or it will dry out and burn!
The wheat will triple so you will end up with about 3 cups of puffed wheat

Beans

So, I am set with my food storage, but when I bought the beans I wondered when I would ever use them. And so, over the past 7 years I've been on the lookout for recipes. I haven't been excited about any...until now.

My sister-in-law, Janalyn, is a homemaker extraordinaire. She knows how to bottle, can, and raise cattle (who doesn't?). She has a friend in the ward who is Hispanic and makes beans from scratch...supposedly everyday. She uses them as a side dish or just leaves them out in a bowl for the kids to eat with tortilla chips.

So, we got the exact recipe and it's very very easy and so yummy. I've never had beans like this and I don't think I can ever go back. They're so flavorful and very yummy. We just ate them as a side dish with hamburgers last night and I had some more today with lunch.

Beans

2 cups dried beans (she used pinto, but any kind will work--I used black)
7 cups water
2 heaping Tbsp minced garlic (I used 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped)
3/4 cup onion
oil
6 chicken bouillon cubes

Put beans & water in crock pot and cook on low for 7-8 hours until beans are soft and starting to crack. (I currently don't own a working crock pot. So, instead I put them in a big pot. I brought them to a boil, then put the temperature on low (2 on my stove) and let them cook overnight.) Test to make sure they're done because if they're not, they will stay hard.

In a pan, brown the garlic & onion in oil. Add the beans and all the remaining water. Add the chicken bouillon. Thicken for 45 minutes simmering on medium to medium-low.

When you're finished, you can put them in bags and freeze.

Hope this helps someone besides me!

Raspberry Rose Pots de Creme (fancy for Raspberry Pudding)

So Giada made this last Saturday on her show and I had to try it. It is really simple to make and it was so freakin' good! I could eat this all day. And you could use blackberries, strawberries...the possibilities are endless! Please try this, you'll be so happy you did...

So the recipe calls for rose water, it's supposed to give it a perfumey floral taste which totally didn't sound good to me, so I omitted the rose water (where do you even get that?!) and just put in vanilla extract instead. The recipe also suggests you eat your dessert with Pop Rocks (especially Kade, he HAS to eat it that way!). I didn't do that either, but it looked fun on her show. The recipe says to use four 4-oz ramekins, mine are a bit larger but it worked just fine. The ramekins were only filled about 1/2 way but it cooked just fine.

3/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 teaspoon rose water (or vanilla extract)
4 egg yolks
1/4 cup sugar
Pinch fine sea salt (I just used table salt)
3/4 cup fresh or frozen and thawed raspberries, mashed
4 packets carbonated candy (recommended: Pop Rocks)

Place an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a medium saucepan, heat the cream, milk, and rose water (or vanilla) over medium-low heat until warm, about 4 minutes. (You'll know it's warm when bubbles form around the edge, don't let it boil).

In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, and salt until smooth. Slowly whisk in the milk mixture. Stir in the mashed raspberries. Using a ladle, divide the mixture between 4 ramekins. Place the ramekins in an 8 by 8-inch baking pan. Pour enough hot water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake for 30 minutes until the custard is almost set. Remove the pan from the oven and allow the ramekins to cool while still in the water, about 1 hour. Remove the ramekins from the water and refrigerate for at least 2 hours until set.
Serve with a packet of carbonated candy.

Baked Potato Skins

Brent apparently has this love for potato skins that I never realized before. So, I hopped onto allrecipes.com and found one with a 5-star ranking by lots & lots of people. I really like it because you coat the skins with a garlic/Parmesan cheese marinade-thing. Very very yummy. And, with the leftover potato-insides, you can make funeral potatoes or hash browns. There ya go!

INGREDIENTS

* 4 large baking potatoes, baked
* 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
* 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
* 1/4 teaspoon paprika
* 1/8 teaspoon pepper
* 8 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled
* 1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
* 1/2 cup sour cream
* 4 green onions, sliced

DIRECTIONS

1. Cut potatoes in half lengthwise; scoop out pulp, leaving a 1/4-in. shell (save pulp for another use). Place potatoes skins on a greased baking sheet. Combine oil, Parmesan cheese, salt, garlic powder, paprika and pepper; brush over both sides of skins. Bake at 475 degrees F for 7 minutes; turn. Bake until crisp, about 7 minutes more. Sprinkle bacon and cheddar cheese inside skins. Bake 2 minutes longer or until the cheese is melted. Top with sour cream and onions. Serve immediately.

Denise's Blog

For those of you who don't keep up with Denise's blog the way I do...you need to check out her big news! And, FYI--her birthday is Tuesday, the 17th. Happy Day!!

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Don't be afraid of this recipe! It sounds and looks fancy, but it's so easy and delicious, and it's a great way to impress your hubby, even though it was way easy (he doesn't have to know that!). For the recipe, I didn't have shredded swiss, but I had a few slices of swiss, so I just folded those up in the ham. Bryan and I also talked about switching up the dijon mustard to honey mustard or ranch or whatever sauce you like, and switching the ham to canadian bacon or something, and using cheddar or provolone or whatever cheese you like instead of swiss. It's really a method that you can switch up and try different varieties! But this dish is a definite keeper in our house. My kids gobbled it up (which never happens) and once you've made it once, it is so much easier the next time. This could be your signature dish!

4 boneless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds)
4 slices thinly sliced Black Forest Ham (I recommend using two thin slices per chicken, so you would need 8 total)
1 cup shredded swiss
8 tsp dijon mustard
1/4 cup flour
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1/4 cup vegetable oil

Heat oven to 350. Place one chicken in between two pieces of wax paper or saran wrap on a cutting board. Pound to an even thickness of about 1/4-inch with the flat side of a meat mallet (I think this is the easiest method), a rolling pin, or with a heavy pan. Repeat with remaining chicken breasts.

Spread out one (or two) piece of ham; pile 1/4 cup shredded cheese in the middle, then roll up the piece of ham like a burrito to enclose the cheese. Spread out one chicken breast and spread with 2 tsp of dijon mustard. Place ham bundle on chicken at one end and roll up chicken, enclosing ham bundle. (This does not need to be perfect, I just tucked the edges in as I went - any imperfections will be covered by the bread crumbs.) Secure with toothpicks. Repeat with remaining chicken breasts.

Spread flour on a dinner plate and pour eggs into a shallow bowl and bread crumbs on another dinner plate. Coat one stuffed chicken breast with flour, dip in egg completely, and coat with bread crumbs, adhering with fingers if needed. Repeat with remaining chicken. (Your fingers will get nasty!).

Heat oil in a 12-inch skillet with a tight-fitting lid over medium-high heat. Add chicken pieces and brown, covered, for three minutes. Flip chicken over and continue to cook, covered, for another 2-3 minutes. (Some of my chicken bundles were more three sided so I flipped those ones and cooked the third side for a minute or so. It just allows the bread crumbs to get crispy). Transfer to a shallow baking dish and bake for 12 to 15 minutes at 350.

Rachel's Banana Cake

My neighbor, Rachel, is an awesome cook and baker and she made this cake last week and let Adam and I have a slice. It is delicious! It is like a 2 layer cake mixed with banana bread with a yummy cream cheese frosting. Seriously, you are eating a cake, but you feel okay eating a huge slice (or slices) because it feels healthy! Anyway, I really hope you make this!

Banana Cake

1 7/8 Cup Flour
1 1/2 Cup Sugar
3/4 tsp Salt
1 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
3/4 Cup Margarine
1 1/2 Cup Smashed Bananas
3 Eggs

Mix flour, sugar, salt & baking soda. Add margarine. Cut into flour. Mash bananas w/fork and add to flour along with beaten eggs. Fold in quickly. Place in two greased/floured rounds. Drop on counter. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or less depending on your pans. Watch it closely to make sure it doesn't burn.

Frosting:
1 Cup Powdered Sugar
4 oz. Cream Cheese
1/2 Stick Softened Butter
1 tsp Vanilla

Frost both cake rounds and layer for a 2-layer cake. So yummy!

Awesome Recipes!!

So, a couple nights ago I made Celeste's Chicken Alfredo and Christina's breadsticks and, I must say, it was probably one of my all time favorite meals. The alfredo sauce was the perfect consistancy, not too thick or heavy, and the breadsticks were to die for! I would take this meal over Olive Garden ANY day! If only someone else would make it for me! Thanks for the recipes!!!!!

Peanutbutter Popcorn

Brent's mom made this for the Superbowl. I asked for an air popper just because of this recipe. They've been making it for a Sunday afternoon snack. Yum! Yum!

1 cup Karo
1 cup sugar
boil 1 minute
add 1 cup peanut butter
stir until creamy
stir onto popcorn (I'm not sure how much. Cindy did it on 2 air popped poppers full. Somewhere in there...)

Honey roasted nuts are really good in it too

Banana Banana Bread

I've made this recipe for years. I absolutely love it and have no desire to use a different banana bread recipe. I got it from allrecipes.com with just a few changes. My secret? I use my Kitchenaid mixer to mix everything together - and instead of mashing the bananas like the recipes suggests, I throw them in whole. The beaters mix them up well, leaving some small banana pieces in the bread. It makes it super moist. I also add a little cinnamon. I'm going to make it this weekend with walnuts so we'll see how that turns out, I'll let you know! It's really easy to grab some extra bananas at the store and wait a week for them to get overripe and whip this up.

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, beaten
2 1/3 cups mashed overripe bananas (I use 5, I don't measure)
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture; stir just to moisten. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.

Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.

Moo Shu Noodles

I know you guys are Rachel Ray fans so you probably saw this recipe on her show yesterday but I made it last night and it was delish! The best part was I already had everything but the hoisen sauce and it was only a couple bucks at Wal-Mart! It really does taste like Chinese take-out and would go great with the egg rolls!



Salt
1 12-ounce box egg fettuccine
4 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil, divided
2 eggs, beaten
3/4 pound boneless pork chops, thinly sliced
Ground black pepper
1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced on the bias
2 tablespoons ginger (about a 2-inch piece), peeled and grated
3 to 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
1/2 pound shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and caps thinly sliced
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1/2 small head Napa or Savoy cabbage, thinly sliced
1/2 cup chicken stock

Place a large pot of water over high heat to boil. When the water comes up to a bubble, add some salt and drop in the fettuccine. Cook the pasta to al dente according to package directions. Drain the cooked pasta and reserve.
Place a small skillet over medium heat with 1 turn of the pan of oil, about 1 tablespoon. Add the beaten eggs to the pan and scramble. When the eggs are done, reserve them in a bowl.

Place a large skillet over medium-high heat with 3 turns of the pan of oil, about 3 tablespoons. Season the pork with salt and pepper, add to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Remove the meat from the pan and reserve warm.
Add the scallions, ginger and garlic to the pan, and cook until aromatic and the scallions are tender, about 1 minute. Add the shiitakes to the pan and stir-fry until golden brown, 4-5 minutes.

Combine the hoisin and soy sauce together in a small bowl.
Add the cabbage to the pan and stir-fry until tender, about 5 minutes. When the cabbage is tender, add the reserved pork and scrambled eggs back to the pan along with the hoisin-soy mixture and the chicken stock. Stir-fry to fully heat through, about 1 minute, and then toss with the reserved cooked pasta. Cook to heat through and serve. Yield 4 servings