Butttermilk Baked Chicken

Hello, I just wanted to say I am doing just fine. I find myself a bit too busy to food blog these days so I plan to share a recipe every so often as I still have over 20 which need to be published!

I have to say I adore my subscription to Cooks Country Magazine and when I saw this recipe, I knew I had to try it. I made a few tweaks of course, such as using chicken breasts instead of a cut up fryer and using a mixture of Panko and Bread Crumbs. This is my version of the recipe.

It was quite delicious and very moist! The best part no frying! Whooo Hoooo!

2 cups buttermilk

1/4 cup sour cream

1 package Ranch Seasoning

1 tbl salt

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut in half

1 package Panko crumbs

Regular Bread Crumbs

Pan spray

Brine your chicken in the following mixture:

Buttermilk

Sour Cream

2 tbl of the Ranch dressing mix

Salt

Let sit for an hour up to 12 hours (the longer the better in my opinion)

Mix the Panko and about 1/2 cup bread crumbs, and add the remaining Ranch Dressing Mix

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees

Remove chicken from the brine, let most of the buttermilk mixture drip off, dredge in the Panko mixture patting on as much as you can. Place on a jelly roll style pan which has been sprayed liberally with pan spray.

Spray the chicken with additional pan spray

Bake until chicken is golden brown and the meat registers 160 degrees, this may take 20 to 30 minutes.

Serve alone or with Ranch Dip

Noodle Lasagna

I cannot remember where I found this recipe but with my additions it has replaced my Lasagna recipe which I worked on and tweaked for years! My husband loves it which is a plus!

I have always put cottage and cream cheese in my Lasagna, not traditional by any means but we loved it. This recipe adds sour cream which gives it a unique tang! I am going to give you the recipe with my tweaks and additions.

1 bag of No Yolk Noodles or some brand of broad noodles

2 tbl butter

1 lb ground beef

1/2 lb hot Italian sausage (I used hot Italian chicken sausage)

3 small cans (8 oz) of tomato sauce or a jar of your favorite tomato sauce

1/2 cup sliced mushrooms, I used Crimini

8 oz cream cheese

8 oz cottage cheese

1/2 cup sour cream

1 tsp thyme

1 tbl dried oregano

1 tbl dried basil

1/2 tsp garlic salt

1/2 tsp garlic powder and onion powder

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

1/3 cup green onions chopped

1/2 yellow onion chopped

1 cup cheddar shredded

1 cup mozzarella or Jack cheese shredded

Cook noodles al dente, they should still be firm, I cooked for about 2/3 the recommended time, drain and rinse with cold water, set aside

Cook your pork and hamburger with the diced onions and the mushrooms until the meat is no longer pink, drain fat and return to the heat, add the sauce and the spices and simmer on low for 30 minutes or so

In the meantime combine the cream cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream and green onions

Butter a casserole dish and place a layer of the noodles across the bottom, I used half my noodles

Place half the cream cheese mixture on top then half the grated cheeses, then a layer of meat (save a bit of the grated cheeses for later)

Repeat ending up with the meat mixture on top

Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or so, placing the remaining cheese on about 10 minutes before it is done.

Let rest for a couple minutes and serve!

Dan Dan Noodles Dunkin Style

I had heard about Dan Dan Noodles on Yelp and really wanted to try them. We were at a local Chinese Restaurant and they had it on the Menu. The waiter kept telling us that if we were not Asians we would not like it, which frankly peeved me! My husband has been all over the world and eaten the most bizarre things!

We ordered it and it came with noodles and pork, that was it! We were both pretty sure it was supposed to have a bunch more stuff in it, I think our Waiter had the kitchen dumb it down and Americanize it! We then became obsessed with it and finding out how it is supposed to be made. We found many recipes and as usual my Husband took information from all of them and did his own thing! It was quite delicious and will be on our menu from now on!

Ingredients:

1/2 lb ground pork

1/2 lb ground chicken
2 tbsp honey

1 package (enough for 2 servings) Fresh Chinese Noodles (you can use just about any wheat noodle though, including Udon)

1 Bok Choy end removed and sliced

1 chicken bouillon cube in the water the noodles are cooking in
1/2 English cucumber diced
1 jalapeno end and seeds removed, sliced
2 scallions diced
4-5 mushrooms cleaned and sliced
Red bell pepper diced (optional)
1tsp Shaoxing rice wine (or sherry)
1/4 - 1/2 c dry roasted peanuts

Sauce: (make this in advance - up to 24 hours in advance if refrigerated)

3/4 c Chicken Broth

2 tsp chopped Pickled Vegetables (you can find this in most Asian Markets, we could not find a mix so we got the small jar of pickled cucumber and bamboo shoots)

2 tsp Chili Oil with chili's (if you don't have chili oil with the ground chili's in it, use the regular chili oil and add 3/4 tsp of ground chili flakes)

4 cloves of garlic minced

2 inch knob of Ginger peeled and diced small

2 tbsp light soy

2 tbsp black rice vinegar (no substitution is recommended)

2 1/2 tsp dark soy

1 1/2 tsp dark sesame oil

1/2 tsp ground Szechuan peppercorn (which is not a pepper but dried prickly ash)

Mix all ingredients. When you are ready for assembly microwave until very warm.

Place the meats in a large non stick skillet or Wok, cook while breaking into small pieces with a spoon. Defat the meat while frying. (husband does this by tilting the skillet, push the meat to the high side and mop up grease with unscented paper towels).

Once the meat is beginning to brown up, drizzle in 2tbsp of honey and cook for about another minute getting a little more color. Remove from heat, add about 3tbsp low sodium soy and the 1tsp of Shaoxing mixing into the meat for added flavor. Keep warm

Get your water and bouillon cube boiling for your noodles, cook according to package directions. Toss in the bok choy when you have about one minute cook time remaining to give them a quick blanch. Drain noodles/veggies.

Assembly is very quick. While noodles are still piping hot, portion into bowls as the base. Add veggies, cucumber, scallions, red peppers and whatever else you're going to throw in. Pile on about 3/4 C of the meat mixture and start with ~1/2 C of the warmed sauce.

Garnish with peanuts and chili's as desired.

Symphony Brownies

I was busy cruising around my favorite food blogs and came across this recipe for Symphony Brownies, which originated from Paula Deen. It is so simple, two ingredients, and they are delicious. I have not actually heard of the Symphony Candy Bar, but I have been missing out, they are so delicious.

Brownie Mix of your Choice (I swear by Ghiradelli Brand and used one with nuts for this)
2-3 Symphony Candy Bars

Make your brownie mix according to package directions, (the Ghiradelli Brand only makes enough batter to use a 9X9 or 8x8 Pan)

Place aluminum foil in your pan and up the sides, get it in there nice and tight. Spray with non stick pan spray

Pour half your brownie mix into the bottom of the pan, then layer in your Symphony Bars

Pour the remaining half of the batter in top and bake according to the package directions.

Mine took longer that the package suggested, let cool, remove by using the foil, and cut when entirely cool.

They are very rich!

Swirl Cake with Easy Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

My husband and his Father were working on a new upper deck on Sunday and I was bored and decided to make a cake! I love making cakes and had to try out my new Fat Daddios Cake Pans (which are the best by the way)

I wanted to do a swirl cake and try to make my very first batch of Buttercream Frosting, in between feeding and watering the boys!

This is hands down the best cake I have ever made, that buttercream frosting is amazing, seriously. I will use this from now on!!!!

One note; this buttercream frosting is exactly enough to frost a 9 inch cake with a bit left over for decorating. There is not enough do use for filling.

1 box of chocolate cake mix
1 box of vanilla cake mix

Cake

Prepare the cakes mixes according to package directions, Spray your two 9 inch cake pans with my favorite option Bake Easy, add half of your chocolate mix to each pan and then add your vanilla batter or top.

Using a chop stick, make swirls in the mixture of the white and chocolate mixes (I use a figure 8 pattern)

Bake according to package directions or do what I do and bake at about 300 for as long as it takes (I learned that slow and low helps keep doming to a minimum)

Frosting

3 cups confectioners' sugar
1 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 to 2 tablespoons whipping cream

Directions In a standing mixer fitted with a whisk, mix together sugar and butter. Mix on low speed until well blended and then increase speed to medium and beat for another 3 minutes.

Add vanilla and cream and continue to beat on medium speed for 1 minute more, adding more cream if needed for spreading consistency.

Filling

I used an entire jar of my home made Strawberry Jam

Both of my cakes domed quite a lot so I used a long bread knife to cut off the domed part (save it for another use)

Place your 1st round down on your cake pedestal, using an offset spatula spread your jam all over the cake

Place your 2nd round upside down on top (the perfect side up)

Place a large amount of the buttercream frosting on the top of your cake, using an offset spatula spread around and down the side of the cake. I did not do a crumb layer as the amount of frosting does not allow it.

One thing I learned is to finish the frosting and make it smooth is to run your offset spatula under hot water and then wipe off and smooth things out.

I obviously used a pastry bag for the decorations and some sprinkles I found in the pantry!

Fresh Peach Cake

I had three Peaches and no idea what to do with them, I had been thinking about making a Fresh Peach Cake for awhile now and decided today was the day. After the Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp I made last week I was looking for something a little healthier and with less fat and sugar.

My husband suggested using Peach Yogurt instead of oil or butter in the recipe and I thought of using Egg Beaters to make it even less offensive to my diet. I went on a little buying spree at King Arthur Flour a few weeks back and bought some Orange Juice Powder, hubby suggested I put some of that in as well for a little flavor umphhhh!

The cake was moist and very delicious and I didn't feel too guilty about eating it.

1 yellow cake mix
3 peaches, peeled and pitted
3 eggs worth of egg beaters (or whatever number your cake mix calls for)
1 container low fat or fat free Yogurt
1/2 tsp Orange Juice Powder (absolutely optional)
2 tsp sugar (optional)

Cut your peaches up into 2 inch slices and toss with sugar (if you have really peak of the season peach's you probably don't need to do this, but mine were not that sweet), set aside

Make your cake mix according to directions using the Egg Beaters instead of eggs and adding the yogurt in place of fat.

MY cake mix called for 1 1/4 cup of water which I cut down to 1 cup

Mix the cake mix according to package directions and add in peaches, mix well and place into a greased vessel of your choosing I used a 9X9 baking pan

Cook according to package directions, cool and serve

p.s. I was an idiot and did not cut my peaches small enough, next time I will cut them really small or puree them !

Small update: I am doing fine, better than ever actually, just a bit too busy to blog much lately. I appreciate all your emails and comments asking how I am. You guys rock!

Turtle Brownies Plus!

It is no secret I like making brownies and some cakes from a boxed mix. When it comes to brownies I only use the Ghiradelli mixes, they are hands down the best in the land!

I was going to a barbequeue at the beach with my brother and wanted to bring some yummy brownies. I decided to use the Turtle Mix and add a special ingredient!

Yep I used chopped up Malted Milk Balls. Yes it was the best brownie I think I have ever eaten.

Two ingredients

Ghiradel Turtle Mix
Package of Whoppers, chopped

Make the brownies as suggested on the box and add the Whoppers

Try not to eat them all at once, they are extra special with a scoop of ice cream

Creme Brulee

I have been wanting to make Creme Brulee ever since my husband bought me a mini torch. Previously, I had been using the one he has for his barbecuing which is huge and scary!

It seems like there are many recipes with varying amount of difficulty for making the Brulee. I found one I liked here, and tweaked it for my tastes! I think using real vanilla bean makes the difference! It is super creamy and yummy, and sooo easy. It is also Gluten Free so I shared with my Mother In Law and she loved it!

Depending on the size of your ramekins this makes from 4-6 servings

2 cups heavy cream

5 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tbl vanilla extract
1/2 vanilla bean, sliced open and the seeds scraped out
extra sugar for caramelizing on the top (I used Vanilla Sugar)

Mix the cream, yolks, sugar, vanilla extract and vanilla seeds in a large bowl. Really mix it until well incorporated. I would let it settle a bit so the bubbles calm down

Pre-heat your oven to 300 degrees

Place ramekins in a large baking dish (you want to be able to pour water in half way up the side of the ramekins)

Fill each ramekin with the mixture, topping off as needed

Pour HOT water into the baking dish (half way up the side of the ramekins)

Bake for approximately one hour. Check for doneness and continue to cook if needed (knife should come out cleanly)

Chill overnight and place a layer of sugar on top of each ramekin and torch it till it turns light brown. You can also do this in the broiler, just keep an eye on it

Marinated and Grilled Asparagus

I came up with his recipe by accident actually, I had some leftover citrus dressing and decided to marinate and then grill my Asparagus, wow did it turn out well! Letting the Asparagus marinate overnight really gave it a depth of flavor I had not experienced before.

I highly recommend trying this! Mix the below ingredients and use a blender or immersion blender to emulsify.

1/2 cup Orange Juice
Oil of your choice I used light olive oil
Champaign Vinegar to taste
Rice wine Vinegar
Sugar
Dash white pepper
Mandarin orange juice (leftover from a can, optional)

Let the Asparagus marinate for several hours up to overnight and cook on your grill. YUM!

Orange Rhubarb Bread

I was surfing my favorite food blogs the other day, and I came across this wonderful recipe from Mary at One Perfect Bite, she always makes amazing food and I am new to Rhubarb so this fit my criteria perfectly!

It is wonderfully moist, flavorful and a great way to use Rhubarb, I may just have to grow some myself next year! I highly recommend giving this a try!

Of course since I am a diddler, fiddler and can't leave well enough alone, I had to change it by increasing the amount of ginger and nutmeg and I added some Orange Juice Powder I got from King Arthur Flour to increase the Orange quotient. Finally I made a quick little orange glaze for the top!

Ingredients:

1/3 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons grated orange peel
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup orange juice
1-1/2 cups chopped fresh or frozen rhubarb
1/2 cup coarsely chopped toasted walnuts (I omitted the Walnuts)

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan.
2) In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in orange peel and vanilla.
3) Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger and nutmeg; add to creamed mixture alternately with orange juice. Fold in rhubarb and nuts.
4) Transfer batter to prepared loaf pan. Bake for 55-65 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack. Yield: 1 loaf (16 slices).

Orange Glaze

Equal parts orange juice and powdered sugar, mix till smooth and well incorporated, drizzle over the bread! YUM

Carmelized Bananna Crepes

I have had this thought in my head for quite some time and today I realized I had a bunch of bananas that needed to be eaten and some leftover frozen crepes in the freezer, shazam!

My husband and I are mostly savory breakfast folks, but this was really good for a change and super easy!

3 bananas sliced
2 tbl butter
1/4 brown sugar
Crepes buy them or make them
Sliced almonds (optional I wish I had some to use when I made mine)

Slice your bananas into a bowl and set aside

Place the butter and brown sugar into a non stick fry pan on medium heat, and let them caramelize, keep stirring until the color is a nice dark brown and the mixture thickens (I did not let mine go long enough the mixture is too light in color). Add your bananas and cook for about a minute

In the meantime prepare your crepes, cook fresh ones or re-heat some you have

Place some of the mixture down the middle of your crepes, roll them up and top with additional banana mixture and nuts. Whipped cream is also yummy!

Avocado, Graperfruit and Feta Salad

Recently the California Avocado Association via Foodbuzz offered to send me some of their awesome Avocado's to try. They arrived carefully packed and are absolutely gorgeous! They included an awesome little tool which makes cutting and removing the meat of the Avocado a breeze, Thank you!

I had seen the Avocado, Grapefruit and Feta salad all over the food blogs for months and finally decided to make it myself. The creamy Avocado with the tart Grapefruit and one of my favorite cheeses all worked well together. I will be making this again and again.

I do think this would be good with grapes, purple onion or perhaps some nuts, maybe next time!

1 Avocado, seeded, skin removed and cut into squares
1 Del Monte Grapefruit Cup (drain and reserve juice)
2 to 3 ounces Feta Cheese

Dressing:

½ cup champagne vinegar
3 tablespoons of the reserved Grapefruit Juice
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons honey
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup olive oil

Strawberry Lemonade

In the summertime I always feel left out when everyone else is enjoying Strawberry Lemonade when we go out to eat. Being a diabetic I am stuck with Diet Soda or Water.

The other day I had an idea, what if I took fresh strawberries and pureed them with my stick blender and added them to a pitcher of Crystal Lite Lemonade. I was instantly in love, I could be just like everyone else! Whooo Hoooooooooo. It is super easy to make and so refreshing!

I realize this is not rocket science, but if I took me this long to give it a try, maybe someone else who has to go the low sugar route for health reasons or just simply does not care for sugary drinks can use the idea!

My husband thinks a dash of Orange Juice would be good, but I omitted that ingredient!

1/3 to 1/2 cup fresh strawberries (frozen would work I am sure)
1 package Crystal Light Lemonade (or your choice of lemonade)

Puree the strawberries in a blender or use your stick blender, add in a a bit of water to help it along

Add the strawberries into a pitcher along with your Lemonade Mix, add water

Mix well and serve over ice, garnish with a strawberry if desired

Brazilian Cheese Bread - Pão de Queijo

As I have mentioned in previous blog posts, my mother In Law has developed an allergy to Gluten, Celiacs to be specific, so I have been working on developing and finding recipes she can eat, it has become a hobby of mine.

My Mother In Law holds a special place in my heart, my Mom passed away when I was 16 and my boyfriends Mom (later my Mother In Law) treated me just like one of her own kids. I don't think I would be the person I am today without her guidance and love, so if there is one little thing I can to do make her life easier I like to do it!

I had no idea how hard it is to live the gluten free life, a piece of bread on your plate even when removed can affect you. You need a separate toaster for regular bread versus gluten free bread and on and on. Items you would think have no Gluten often times do, especially bottled salad dressings! How crazy is that!

The rolls are nicely crispy on the outside and the inside almost feels like it is still raw, but that is exactly what it is supposed to be like! These are delicious whether you are allergic to gluten or not!

1/2 cup butter
1 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups tapioca flour
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp cayanne pepper
1/2 tsp black pepper
2/3 cup freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan Cheese
2 beaten eggs

4 tbl butter mixed with 1 minced garlic clove, microwaved till melted (brush this mixture on the top of the rolls when they come out of the onion for even more flavor)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

Pour milk, butter and salt into a large saucepan, and place over high heat. When the mixture comes to a boil, remove from heat immediately, and stir in tapioca flour and spices until smooth.

Set aside to rest for 10 to 15 minutes.

Stir the cheese and egg into the tapioca mixture until well combined, the mixture will be chunky like cottage cheese.

Drop rounded balls of the mixture onto an ungreased baking sheet. I used my 1 inch scooper, so the balls were small.

Bake in preheated oven until the tops are lightly browned, 15 to 20 minutes. (I learned the hard way, they will need closer to 25 minutes till browned and crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside)

Remove and brush with melted butter and garlic mixture.

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

I guess it must be Rhubarb Season because I am seeing it all over the Food Blogs and some very beautiful stalks at the grocery store which I picked up while I was there. I have never made anything with Rhubarb before but I do fondly remember my mom making a Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp when I was a kid which I loved very much!

I took a trip to my local berry farm and got some fresh Oregon berries and proceeded to make quite an amazing dessert with some of our locally sweet berries and tart Rhubarb. A scoop of ice cream or whipped cream and this is even yummier!

I probably won't make this particular recipe again as it is a bit heavy on both the butter and sugar for my tastes, but I definitely will experiment and see if I can make a healthier version for next time!

1 cup white sugar
3 tbsp AP Flour
3 cups strawberries (I left the small ones whole and cut the big ones in half, 3 cups was about 2 pints)
3 cups diced rhubarb (I peeled off as much of the outer skin as I could easily do)
1.5 cups AP Flour
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup butter
1 cup rolled oats
1 tbsp ginger finely chopped
1/2 to 1 tsp almond extract

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Mix the white sugar, 3 tbsp flour, strawberries and rhubarb well in a large bowl

Pour into a 9X13 greased baking dish (or whatever you have that will fit the berries)

Mix 1.5 cups flour, brown sugar, butter and oats till crumbly (you can use a pastry cutter but I used my fingers)

Crumble on top of the rhubarb and strawberry mixture

Bake 45 minutes in a pre-heated oven or until crisp and lightly browned

Serve alone or with ice cream or whipped cream!