Potato Croquettes

I'm not good at taking food pictures, so forgive this shot. These were very good. Crisp on the outside and super creamy on the inside. I got this recipe from Anthony Bourdain's blog, but I changed it up somewhat based on what I had on hand. This is VERY time consuming to make, but they are worth it in the end!!

Potato Croquettes:
adapted from almostbourdain.blogspot.com

3-4 medium potatoes (I used Yukon gold)

1 tsp. dried parsley

1/3 cup parmesan cheese

2 eggs

1 stick of string cheese mozzarella, cut into bite size pieces

1/2 cup bread crumbs

Canola oil, for deep frying

Peel the potatoes, place in a saucepan of cold salted water and boil until tender. Drain well, put through a potato ricer or masher, then return to pan over medium heat.

Stir potato for 2-3 minutes until all moisture evaporates. Transfer to a bowl and add parsley and parmesan.

Make a well in the middle of the potato mixture and stir in one egg until the mixture is combined. Season to taste.

Shape the mixture into croquettes, about 3/4" x 2".

Place a cube of cheese in the center of each.

Lightly beat the remaining egg in a shallow bowl. Dip the croquettes into the egg, allowing the excess to drain. Then, roll in breadcrumbs, pressing to coat well.

Heat oil in deep saucepan until 320 degrees. Deep-fry croquettes, in batches, for 3-4 minutes or until golden and crisp all over. Remove with a slotted spoon, drain on paper towels and serve immediately.

Sweet & Tangy Chicken

This chicken was very tender and it cooked up in no time. The sauce was slightly sweet, but not overpowering. I served it with potato croquettes and they complimented each other nicely.

Sweet & Tangy Chicken:
courtesty of campbellskitchen.com

1 Tbsp. butter

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

1 can Campbell's condensed tomato soup

1/4 cup water

1 Tbsp. packed brown sugar

1 Tbsp. vinegar

Heat butter in skillet. Add chicken and cook until browned.

Add soup, water, sugar and vinegar. (I mixed it together in a bowl first and then added to skillet.) Heat to a boil. Cover and cook over low heat 5 minutes or until done.

Giant Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Giant Peanut Butter Cup Cookies:

courtesy of Cooking for Kids

1 stick butter

3/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup peanut butter

1 egg

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

16 peanut butter cups, cut into fourths

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Beat butter, sugar and peanut butter in medium bowl until creamy. Add egg and vanilla; beat well. Stir together flour, baking soda and salt. Add to butter mixture; blend well. Drop dough by level 1/4 cup measurements onto ungreased cookie sheets; three cookies per sheet. (Cookies will spread while baking.) Push about seven pieces of peanut butter cup into each cookie, flattening cookies slightly. (I mixed the candy pieces into the dough)

Bake 15 to 17 minutes or until light golden brown around the edges. Centers will be pale and slightly soft. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheet. Remove to wire rack; cool completely.

Bow Tie Lasagna

Bow Tie Lasagna:

courtesy of Pioneer Woman

1 pound ground chuck

5 cups bow tie pasta

3 cups spaghetti sauce (I used 1 jar Prego Tomato, Basil and Garlic)

1 Tbsp. olive oil (I omitted)

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. Italian seasoning

1/2 cup mozzarella cheese

1/2 cup sour cream

Fry ground chuck in small pan. Meanwhile, cook noodles according to package directions.

After noodles are cooked, drain and drizzle with olive oil. Mix in your spaghetti sauce.

Add your fried hamburger, seasonings, cheese and sour cream. Fold together and allow it all to combine and melt together, over low heat, for about 5 minutes, or until cheese has melted.

Brownie Cookie Bites

Brownie Cookie Bites:

courtesy of Cooking for Kids

1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided

1 Tbsp. butter

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1 large egg

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Melt 1/2 cup chocolate chips and butter over hot (not boiling) water, stirring until smooth. (I melted mine in the microwave) Combine flour and baking powder in a small bowl.

Beat egg and sugar in large mixer bowl at high speed about 3 minutes or until mixture has thickened. Stir in vanilla extract and melted chocolate mixture. Gradually blend in flour mixture. Stir in remaining 1 cup chocolate chips. Drop by level tablespoon onto greased baking sheets.

Baked in preheated 350 degree oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until cookies are puffed and tops are cracked and moist (cookies will look slightly underbaked) Cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes. Remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Chicken Cordon Bleu

I am still learning to cook, but I wanted to attempt something completely from scratch and not from a cookbook. I knew the basic principle of chicken cordon bleu and ran with it. This came out amazing!! My husband and my one year son gobbled it down!

Chicken Cordon Bleu:
my recipe

2 chicken breasts - pounded thin
2 slices virginia ham deli meat
2 slices provolone cheese
2 slices mozzarella cheese
3/4 cup Italian bread crumbs
2 eggs, beaten
1/3 cup parmesan cheese

2 cups half and half
6 Tbsp. butter
8 Tbsp. flour
1/2 cup shredded cheddar/monterey jack combination
4 slices provolone cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Lay chicken breasts flat on the counter. Layer one slice of ham, one slice of provolone and one slice of mozzarella on each breast. Roll up carefully tucking in filling when you can. Once rolled, secure with toothpicks. Combine the bread crumbs and parmesan cheese on a plate. Dip chicken breasts into eggs, one at at time, and then dredge in the bread crumb/cheese mixture, covering each breast completely.

Heat a small amount of oil in a large skillet. Brown the chicken on all sides to a golden brown color, then transfer to the oven. Cook for 45 minutes to 1 hour until done.

Meanwhile, for the sauce, melt the butter in a large sauce pot. Once melted, add the flour and stir. Let cook for a minute to cook out flour taste. Add the half and half and whisk until the mixture begins to thicken. Add the slices of provolone and the cheddar/jack mix. Whisk until smooth.

When chicken is done, spoon sauce over the top of each breast.

Apricot Bars

I was in the mood to bake something today, and since I can't have chocolate, I wanted to find something that I could eat for a change too. I had some apricot preserves in my fridge that needed used up, so I went on a search. I found this recipe for Apricot Bars on allrecipes.com and it sounded perfect. Some of us don't like nuts, so I only put them on half the batch. Enjoy!

Apricot Bars:
courtesy of allrecipes.com

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup butter

2 egg yolks

1 tsp. vanilla extract

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 cup apricot preserves

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (I used 1/4 cup)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream flour, butter and brown sugar. Add eggs and vanilla; mix well. Press into a 9x13 inch pan.

Bake for 20 minutes. Take out and spread preserves evenly, then sprinkle with nuts. Score into bars, but leave in pan.

Return to oven at 250 degrees for up to 15 minutes. Cool on rack.

Banana Bread

Bananas are a cheap form of nutrition and my little boy just loves them. I wanted to make him a treat that wasn't totally horrible for him and had some nutritional value. This fit the bill too because it does not have any nuts in the recipe. It was his dessert tonight and he loved it!!

Banana Bread:

Courtesy of Food Network

1 cup granulated sugar

1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature

2 large eggs

3 ripe bananas

1 Tbsp. milk

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Butter a 9x5x3 loaf pan. (I sprayed with cooking spray)

Cream the sugar and butter in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

In a small bowl, mash the bananas with a fork. Mix in the milk and cinnamon. In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Add the banana mixture to the creamed mixture and stir until combined. Add dry ingredients, mixing just until flour disappears.

Pour batter into prepared pan and bake 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Set aside to cool on a rack for 15 minutes. Remove bread from pan, invert onto rack and cool completely before slicing.

Chicken & Dumplings

Slow Cooker Chicken & Dumplings:

adapted from allrecipes.com

4 boneless skinless chicken thighs - fat trimmed away

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 can cream of chicken with herbs soup

1 carton chicken broth

2 8 oz. cans of biscuit dough - regular ones, not grands

garlic powder

onion powder

Place the chicken thighs in a large crockpot. Season to taste with garlic powder and onion powder. Pour the two cans of cream of chicken soup over the chicken pieces. Pour in chicken broth until the level is about 1" over the chicken pieces. Cover and let cook on low for 6-8 hours, or until chicken falls apart.

Break pieces of chicken up into bite size pieces. Add the rest of the carton of chicken broth to the existing juices. Tear the biscuit dough into small bite size pieces and drop into the chicken/broth mixture. The crockpot will be very full after all biscuit pieces are in. Replace lid and cook on high for about 30 minutes. Do not stir the dumplings or remove the lid. After 30 minutes, taste the dumplings for doneness. (I've had it take anywhere from 30 minutes to 1 hour, depending on how big the dumplings are.)