Bacon-Wrapped BBQ Apple Chicken

Oh. My. Yummy!  This is definitely one of those meals that ranks super high on the tastiness and crowd-pleasing scales, and super low on the amount of time and effort required.  Gotta love that!

Ingredients:

• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts 
• 1 cup BBQ sauce, I LOVE Sweet Baby Rays 
• ¼ cup brown sugar
• ⅛ cup lemon juice, fresh or from a bottle 
• 5 small apples, peeled and chopped
• 8 slices bacon 

Instructions:

1. In a small bowl, combine BBQ sauce, brown sugar, lemon juice and peeled/chopped apples.

2. Wrap each chicken breast with two slices of bacon and place in a greased slow cooker.

3. Pour BBQ-apple mixture over chicken and cook in a crock pot on low for 6-8 hours or until chicken is done. (I cooked mine on high for 4 hours and it turned out excellent as well!)

Easy and Creamy Corn Chowder

Creamy Corn Chowder Recipe by Our Best Bites 

• 2 Tbsp. butter 
• 1/4 c. all-purpose flour 
• 1 c. water 
• 2 1/2 c. milk (skim or 1% work just fine and lighten it up considerably) 
• 2 regular-sized chicken bouillon cubes, 1 Knorr chicken bouillon cube, or 2 tsp. chicken base 
• 1/2 lb. bacon (optional) 
• 1 small onion, minced 
• 2 red potatoes, diced into small cubes 
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced 
• 1 can corn, drained or about 1 1/2 C frozen fresh corn
• Salt and pepper to taste 
• A few dashes of hot sauce (like Tabasco or Cholula) 

Fry bacon until crisp. In the meantime, melt butter over low heat in a soup pot. When melted, add flour to make a roux and whisk until it comes together in a little ball. Add water and whisk until completely combined and there are no lumps. Add milk and chicken base or bouillon and bring to a simmer. Add potatoes, onions, and garlic, and simmer (but don’t boil!), stirring very frequently, for about 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Add crumbled bacon and corn and heat through. Add a few drops of hot sauce and then salt to taste. The reason why I don’t have an exact measurement is that while the soup REALLY needs salt, bacon also really differs in its saltiness, so it can be super easy to make this soup waaaaay too salty. Start with about 1/4 tsp., give it a few minutes, and then add more if you need it. Ladle into bowls and sprinkle with extra bacon and/or cheese if you want. Because, you know, if there’s anything a perfectly healthy bowl of soup (it’s only 3 Weight Watchers points!) needs, it’s some extra bacon and cheese! Serves 6-8.

Chocolate Waffles with Berry Sauce

We like to make special breakfasts on General Conference weekends, and we tried this new and delicious recipe today!  It was a hit as breakfast, but you could easily turn these waffles into a dessert by topping with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce. 

This recipe comes from Our Best Bites.  Click here for full instructions, photos, tips, etc. 
 
Double Chocolate Waffles

• 2/3 C flour 
• 1/3 C corn starch 
• 1/4 C unsweetened cocoa powder 
• 1/2 t baking powder 
• 1/2 t baking soda 
• 1/4 t salt 
• 1/8 t cinnamon 
• 6 T granulated sugar 
• 1 C milk 
• 1/3 C vegetable oil 
• 1 egg 
• 1 1/2 t vanilla 
• 1/2 C mini chocolate chips 

Berry Sauce & Topping

• 3 C berries, fresh or frozen, diced if large 
• 1/4 C raspberry or strawberry jam
• 2 T hot tap water 
• optional: powdered sugar to taste, sweetened whipped cream, or cocoa powder for dusting

Start by making the berry sauce since it can sit while you make the waffle batter. Combine jam and warm water and whisk until combined. Add in the berries and gently stir until combined. Gently smash with a fork to break up larger berries an leave as chunky as you like. Depending on the sweetness of the berries, you can add a little powdered sugar if you’d like. I don’t add any; I think the jam adds plenty and I prefer it on the tart side to balance the sweetness of the waffles. However my husband likes it sweeter, so go with what you like! You might want to try the sauce on the waffles first and then just sprinkle powdered sugar on top if you’d like it sweeter. Set berry sauce aside and make waffle batter.

Waffles: Preheat a waffle iron. Combine flour, cornstarch, cocoa powder, baking powder and soda, salt, and cinnamon. Use a whisk to combine. In a separate bowl whisk together sugar, milk, oil, egg, and vanilla. Whisk for a minute so it gets a little frothy. Slowly add the wet ingredients into the dry a little at a time, whisking to combine. Just stir until they’re combined and don’t overmix. Stir in the chocolate chips. This is a pretty thin batter, so don’t be expecting something that looks like a pancake batter. It’s supposed to be thin. Lightly butter waffle iron. I have one with non-stick finish and I actually don’t grease mine at all. You may not need to. Place batter in and cook according to your iron. A tip: Instead of pouring batter, use a ladle and spoon it in, making sure to stir the batter each time. Otherwise the chocolate chips won’t be distributed. It’s a little harder to tell when chocolate waffles are done because you can’t go so much on color. Go by smell and touch and realize that they will crisp up after they come off the iron.

Bran Muffins

I have been looking for a good bran muffin recipe, and found this one in Josi Kilpack's culinary mystery novel, "Rocky Road."  She called this recipe Mormon Muffins and said it came from The Greenery Restaurant in Ogden, UT.  We LOVE these!

• 2 cups boiling water 
• 5 teaspoons baking soda 
• 1 cup shortening 
• 2 cups sugar 
• 4 eggs 
•  1 quart buttermilk 
• 5 cups flour 
• 1 teaspoon salt 
• 4 cups All-Bran cereal 
•  2 cups bran flakes 
• 1 cup walnuts, chopped 

Add soda to boiling water and set aside. Whip shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs slowly; mix well. Add buttermilk, flour, and salt; mix again. Very slowly add soda water. Gently fold cereals and walnuts into the mix. Cover the bowl and refrigerate overnight or longer - this is a MUST.

In the morning, spoon 1⁄8 cup batter into greased muffin tins. Bake 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool 5 minutes.

The batter will last one week, covered and refrigerated, so you can bake fresh muffins every morning if you wish.  Or, we have found that these muffins freeze really well, so you can bake all the batter at once and then freeze the leftovers.  Pull out 1 or 2 for breakfast each morning. Coupled with a fruit smoothie this makes a delicious breakfast!

The recipe says it yields 3 dozen muffins, but it was more than twice that for me.

Beef and Broccoli

How is it possible that we haven't added a recipe for Beef and Broccoli on here yet?  We love beef and broccoli, and the recipe I use is from the "Essential Mormon Celebrations" cookbook by Julie Badger Jensen.  A basic, easy, delicious version of restaurant Beef and Broccoli.  We love this meal!

 
Ingredients:

• 1 pound top round beef steak
• 1/4 c. soy sauce
• 2 T. sugar
• 1/4 c. white grape juice or apple juice
• 2 T. cornstarch
• 1 c. water
• 2 C. fresh broccoli florets, stems removed
• 4 T. vegetable oil or olive oil, divided
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tsp. sesame oil

Directions:

Cut beef into 2-inch strips; set aside.

Combine soy sauce, sugar, juice cornstarch and water in a small bowl.  Set aside. 

In a large skillet, stir-fry broccoli in 2 T. oil for about 5 minutes over medium heat.  Do not overcook.  Place  broccoli in another dish. 

Pour remaining oil in the same skillet and heat on medium-high heat.  Add beef steak and cook until well browned on all sides, about 10 minutes. 

Add garlic and cook until fragrant, not more than 1 minute. 

Pour soy sauce mixture over meat and cook until slightly thickened.

Stir in sesame oil. Remove from heat. 

Stir in broccoli. 

Serve over hot steamed rice.  Makes 8 servings.

At-home Rotisserie Chicken

We enjoy this super easy and inexpensive way to make a yummy dinner on a busy day - make your own rotisserie chicken in the crock pot!  It's tasty, everyone loves it, and takes me less than 10 minutes.  The best part?  You will probably have lots of leftover meat to use in another meal.  We're making chicken enchiladas tomorrow with the leftovers.  

• 1 broiler/fryer chicken (3-4 lbs.) 
• 2 Tbsp. paprika 
• 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper 
• 1 1/2 tsp. onion powder 
• 3 cloves of diced garlic (or 2 Tbsp. garlic powder) 
• 1 tsp. Kosher salt 
• 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper 

Combine all ingredients together in a small bowl and add water by the teaspoon until a paste forms. Stir until well combined. Place 4 tinfoil balls in bottom of crock pot for the chicken to rest on, so it won't stick to the bottom, and lightly spray inside of crock pot with cooking spray. Rub entire chicken with spice rub and place in the crock pot, on top of the foil balls. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours or on high for 3 1/2 – 4 1/2 hours.

Creamy Chicken Lasagna

Make this.  You will thank me later.  And so will everyone you serve it to.

 

Ingredients

• 2 cups shredded cooked chicken breasts 
• 1 can (14 oz.) artichoke hearts, drained, chopped 
• 1 pkg. (8 oz.) KRAFT Shredded Mozzarella Cheese with a TOUCH OF PHILADELPHIA, divided (Plain mozzarella can work, too.)
• 1/2 cup KRAFT Grated Parmesan Cheese 
• 1/2 cup chopped drained oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes 
• 2 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened 
• 1 cup milk 
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder 
• 1/4 cup tightly packed fresh basil, chopped, divided 
• 12 lasagna noodles, cooked 

Directions
HEAT oven to 350°F.
COMBINE chicken, artichokes, 1 cup mozzarella, Parmesan and tomatoes. Beat cream cheese, milk and garlic powder with mixer until well blended; stir in 2 Tbsp. basil. Mix half with the chicken mixture.
SPREAD half the remaining cream cheese mixture onto bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish; cover with 3 noodles and 1/3 of the chicken mixture. Repeat layers of noodles and chicken mixture twice. Top with remaining noodles, cream cheese mixture and mozzarella; cover.
BAKE 25 min. or until heated through. Sprinkle with remaining basil. Let stand 5 min. before cutting to serve.

Chicken Pineapple Salad

I have been craving yummy salads lately, and my friend Kara told me about this salad that her family enjoys.  We made this last night for dinner, and it was delicious! And SO easy!  It was a hit with the whole family, though my silly kids had to eat theirs with the elements in separate piles on their plates rather than as a salad.  No doubt this will become a classic summer night meal at my home.

Truly, it doesn't get much easier or yummier than this!

Ingredients:

• lettuce, chopped or shredded
• cilantro, chopped
• grilled chicken, cut into bite sized pieces (I actually just sauteed the chicken on the stove top with a little olive oil and lemon pepper)
• avocado, diced or sliced
• fresh pineapple, cut into bite-sized pieces (I'm thinking this would be divine if it were grilled as well....I may have to try that next time!)
• tortilla chips, crushed
• Honey-Mustard Dressing (we think the Brianne's brand Honey-Mustard Dressing is perfect for this!)
• Anything else you want to add!  I was thinking that mushrooms, peppers, or onions might all be a nice addition to this salad.  The beauty of it is that you can add whatever your family likes and adjust to your tastes.

Toss all the ingredients together and serve in bowls.  Such a simple, gorgeous, flavorful meal.

The Perfect Taco Salad

With spring weather coming in, I've been craving good salads.  We made this bowl of deliciousness last night for company, and we all absolutely loved it.  In fact, Gerald has admitted this is his new favorite meal!

I found this recipe on the Pioneer Woman's website.  The woman is a food genius.  The only change I made was I added the black beans.  I recommend you click here for full instructions and photos.

 

Ingredients

DRESSING 

• ¾ cups Ranch Dressing (bottled Is Fine) 
• ¼ cups Salsa (as Spicy As You'd Like) 
• 3 Tablespoons Finely Minced Cilantro 

CHICKEN

• 2 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts 
• 2 Tablespoons Seasoning (Taco Seasoning, Or Your Own Mix) 
• ¼ cups Vegetable Oil 
• 2 Tablespoons Butter (I omitted the butter, and just used oil.)

SALAD

• 1 head Green Leaf Lettuce (1 Large Head Or Two Regular Heads), Shredded Thin 
• 3 whole Roma Tomatoes, Diced 
• ½ cups Grated Pepper Jack Cheese 
• 2 ears Corn, Shucked (I used frozen instead.)
• 2 whole Avocados, Diced 
• 3 whole Green Onions, Sliced 
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed 
• ½ cups Cilantro Leaves 
• Tortilla Chips Of Your Choice (flavored Or Not), Crushed Slightly 

Directions:

First, make the dressing by combining all three ingredients in a bowl and stirring together. Cover and refrigerate. This takes like 1 minute.  :) 

Next, make the chicken: Generously season both sides of the breasts. Heat the oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken on both sides until deep golden brown on the outside and done in the middle, about 4 minutes per side. Remove and set aside to cool for 10 minutes, then cut it into cubes.

Place the ears of corn in the skillet you used to cook the chicken and roll it around so that the flavorful oil/butter mixture coats the corn.  If frozen, saute in the skillet until warm.  If using ears of corn, grill it on a grill pan or cook it in a separate skillet until the corn is still crisp but has color on the outside. Slice off the kernels with a sharp knife and set aside.

To assemble the salad, pile shredded lettuce, chicken, tomatoes, cheese, corn, avocado, green onion, black beans, cilantro, crushed chips, and chicken on a big platter. Drizzle the dressing all over the top, serving part on the side if you’d like. Serve it in individual bowls.

Homemade Hot Fudge

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter
• 2 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1 (15 oz.) can evaporated milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/4 cup flour

Combine butter, sugar and cocoa powder in a saucepan on medium heat, stirring consistently until butter is melted.  It will be very thick and chunky. Add milk gradually, stirring constantly until smooth.  Add vanilla and flour.  Bring to a boil, then remove from heat.  Mixture will thicken as it cools.  Serve while sauce is still warm.  You can keep the hot fudge warm in a slow cooker set on the lowest heat setting.  Store leftovers in the fridge.  

Caramel Sauce

I make this homemade caramel sauce as an ice cream or crepe topping, or to dip apples in - delicious!!

Ingredients:

• 1 c. brown sugar
• 1 c. corn syrup
• 1/2 c. butter
• 1/4 tsp. salt

Mix all ingredients in a small saucepan.  Bring to a boil over high heat and boil for exactly one minute.  The longer it boils, the thicker the sauce will become.)  Serve warm.  Store in the fridge.

Yummy Bread Bowls

We had a little snow today.  I took advantage of the fact that this is probably one of our last cold weather days of this spring to make mom's Clam Chowder recipe.  I wanted to make some homemade bread bowls to go along with it.  So, after reading a dozen or so different recipes, I decided on this one from Six Sisters' Stuff.  They were easy to make and turned out perfectly - so delicious!  Click here to read full instructions.

 Homemade Bread Bowls Recipe:
(Makes 6 bread bowls)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups + 4 Tablespoons warm water 
• 2 packages of active dry yeast (5 1/2 teaspoons) 
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted 
• 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar 
• 3 teaspoons salt 
• 6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 

Directions: Using a stand mixer or large mixing bowl, add warm water and sprinkle in yeast. Let dissolve for a few minutes until yeast becomes foamy. Add melted butter, sugar and salt and mix until combined. Gradually add flour. Once combined, allow your mixer to knead the dough for about 5 minutes (you could do this by hand if you weren't using a mixer, but it may get a little tiring!). Punch dough down and form into 6 equal sized balls. Place on a greased cookie sheet and let rise until doubled. Preheat oven to 425 degrees and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown. (Mine took exactly 20 minutes.) Let cool and cut off the top, remove some of the bread from the inside and fill with soup or dip.

Yum-O Casser-O

According to Our Best Bites, where I discovered this delicious recipe, this dish is actually called Creamy Chicken Noodle Casserole.  But here at our house we have renamed it Yum-O Casser-O.

Because it is Yum-O. And creamy, warm, delicious, savory comfort food at it's best.

Really, every now and then I just crave a good steamy casserole, and this is undoubtedly one of the best I've made in a very long time.  Maybe ever.

Go here for complete recipe, photos, instructions, etc.



Ingredients:

• 12 oz wide egg noodles (7 3/4 cups) 
• salt and pepper 
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter 
• 1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and chopped fine 
• 1 small onion, chopped fine 
• 3 tablespoons all purpose flour 
• 2 cups half-and-half 
• 2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth 
• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, halved lengthwise and trimmed 
• 4 ounces deli American cheese, chopped coarse 
• 4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded 
• 1 1/2 cups frozen peas, thawed and patted dry 
• 25 Ritz Crackers, crushed coarse 

Directions:
1. Bring 4 quarts water to boil in a large pot or dutch oven. Add noodles and 1 tablespoon salt and cook, stirring often, until just al dente, about 3 minutes. Drain noodles and rinse with cold water until cool. Drain again and set aside.

2. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in now-empty pot over medium-high heat. Add bell pepper and onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Transfer to bowl; set aside. In now-empty pot, melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add flour and cook, whisking constantly for 1 minute. Slowly whisk in half and half, a little at at time as you whisk to incorporate flour mixture and smooth out lumps. Add broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Add chicken and cook until no longer pink, 8-10 minutes. (Chicken won’t be cooked all the way through, that’s okay)

3. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Remove pot from heat, transfer chicken to plate, and shred into bite-size pieces once cool enough to handle. Whisk American and cheddar cheeses into sauce until smooth. Stir shredded chicken, noodles, bell pepper mixture, peas, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1 1/4 teaspoons pepper into cheese sauce.

4. Transfer mixture to 13×9 inch baking dish and top with crackers. Bake until golden brown and bubbling, about 15 minutes. Let casserole cool on wire rack for about 15 minutes. Serve.

P.F. Chang's Mongolian Beef Copycat Recipe

Mmmmmm....this was truly heavenly.



After two friends tried this recipe and raved about it's deliciousness, we decided to give it a try tonight.  Now it's your turn to try it! You will thank me later.  

Recipe can be found here.  We doubled the amounts, and had leftovers for another meal.

Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil 
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger, minced 
• 1 tablespoon garlic, chopped 
• 1/2 cup soy sauce 
• 1/2 cup water 
• 3/4 cup dark brown sugar 
• vegetable oil, for frying (about 1 cup) 
• 1 lb flank steak (I used beef stir-fry meat, because it was enormously cheaper, and we still liked it a lot!)
• 1/4 cup cornstarch 
• 2 large green onions, sliced on the diagonal into one-inch lengths 

Directions:

1. Make the sauce by heating 2 tsp of vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over med/low heat. Don't get the oil too hot. 
2. Add ginger and garlic to the pan and quickly add the soy sauce and water before the garlic scorches. 
3. Dissolve the brown sugar in the sauce, then raise the heat to about medium and boil the sauce for 2-3 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Remove it from the heat. 
4. Slice the flank steak against the grain into 1/4" thick bite-size slices (Tilt the blade of your knife at about a forty five degree angle to the top of the steak so that you get wider cuts). (Obviously you can skip this step if you buy stir-fry meat that is already cut up.)
5. Dip the steak pieces into the cornstarch to apply a very thin dusting to both sides of each piece of beef. Let the beef sit for about 10 minutes so that the cornstarch sticks. 
6. As the beef sits, heat up one cup of oil in a wok (you may also use a skillet for this step as long as the beef will be mostly covered with oil). Heat the oil over medium heat until it's nice and hot, but not smoking. 
7. Add the beef to the oil and sauté for just two minutes, or until the beef just begins to darken on the edges.  You don't need a thorough cooking here since the beef is going to go back on the heat later. Stir the meat around a little so that it cooks evenly. 
8. After a couple minutes, use a large slotted spoon to take the meat out and onto paper towels, then pour the oil out of the wok or skillet. 
9. Put the pan back over the heat, dump the meat back into it and simmer for one minute. 
10. Add the sauce, cook for one minute while stirring, then add all the green onions. 
11. Cook for one more minute, then remove the beef and onions with tongs or a slotted spoon to a serving plate. Leave the excess sauce behind in the pan. 

 We served this over rice, and next time I think I will try throwing in some steamed broccoli at the same time as the green onions.  This meal really has a delicious flavor that we all loved.

Hamburger Divan Skillet

My friend made this for me and shared the recipe when I asked.  We made it recently for dinner as well.  This is a delicious, family-pleasing, thirty-minute meal, and a little different from anything we usually eat.  I'll be making this again, yum! 



Serves 6.

Ingredients

•  6 oz uncooked spaghetti, broken into 2-inch pieces (1 1/2 cups) 
• 3 cups frozen broccoli cuts (you can substitute whatever vegetable you want, really.)
• 1 container (10 oz) refrigerated Alfredo sauce 
• 1/3 cup half-and-half 
• 1 1/2 lb lean ground beef 
• 1 pkg (3 oz) cream cheese, cut into cubes 
• 1 jar (6 oz) sliced mushrooms, drained (optional, we did not include mushrooms this time, but I plan to next time!)
• 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese (4 oz) 

Directions:
Cook spaghetti as directed on package, adding broccoli during last minute of cooking time. Drain; return to saucepan. Cover to keep warm. Meanwhile, in medium bowl, combine Alfredo sauce and half-and-half; blend well. Brown ground beef in large skillet over medium-high heat for 5 to 7 minutes or until thoroughly cooked, stirring frequently. Drain. Reduce heat to medium. Stir sauce mixture, cream cheese and mushrooms into ground beef. Cook an additional 2 to 3 minutes or until cream cheese is melted and mixture is thoroughly heated, stirring frequently. Stir in cooked spaghetti and broccoli. Cook an additional minute. Sprinkle with Cheddar cheese. Makes 6 (1 1/2-cup) servings

Perfect Steaks

We never eat out for Valentine's Day.  Instead, we prefer to cook a delicious meal at home, something special, and eat together as a family by candlelight.  The kids love it, and it's way better than waiting in long lines in our opinion.  :)  This year, we decided steak sounded perfect.  We don't cook steak very much, and in the past we've only grilled it, which in our experience hasn't turned out awesome. 

I wanted to learn how to cook the perfect, restaurant-quality steak.  So, obviously I went to The Pioneer Woman's website.  She never fails me.  Never.  I love her.

She has a complete tutorial on how to cook steak, including choosing the meat, etc.  And she cooks it on her stovetop.  We tried her method, and it was hands down the best home cooked steaks we have ever tried.  Tender and juicy and utterly delicious.  The only ingredients are: steak, Lawry's Season Salt, McCormick's Lemon Pepper, and some butter.  For her complete tutorial, click here.

Sea Salt Truffles

I wanted to make an extra nice treat for Valentine's Day this year for my sweetheart, people I visit teach, Katelee's teacher, and a few special friends.  So, I tried these amazing truffles by The Pioneer Woman.  They are to die for, and much easier than they look, though they do take some time.  But they are so worth it.  Truly. Amazing.

You can find the complete recipe and instructions, complete with beautiful pics here.

Here is her printable recipe:

Description

These are delicious and very easy-to-make chocolate truffles with an unlikely surprise: a sprinkling of light, fluffly sea salt. It’s a seemingly unlikely, but absolutely scrumptious and special, flavor combination that has to be experienced to be believed.

Ingredients

• 8 ounces, weight (up To 9 Oz.) Good Semisweet Chocolate
• 8 ounces, weight (up To 9 Oz.) Good Bittersweet Chocolate
• 1 can (14 Oz) Sweetened Condensed Milk
• 1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract
• 8 ounces, weight Meltable Milk Chocolate
• Sea Salt

Preparation

Heat dark chocolates and condensed milk in a double boiler over medium low heat until chocolate is melted. Stir—mixture will have a slight marshmallow texture. Stir in vanilla.
Remove from heat, cover and refrigerate for two hours.
Once chilled, roll in balls, then roll in melted milk chocolate coating. Sprinkle with sea salt or other fine, coarse sprinkles.

Italian Beef Stew

Yum, this beef stew recipe is pure perfection.

Recipe adapted by Our Best Bites from Cooking Light

Ingredients:

• About 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided 
• 1 1/2 cups chopped onion (about 1 medium onion) 
• 1/2 cup chopped carrot 
• About 1 tablespoon minced garlic 
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (plus more for seasoning the stew at the end if necessary) 
• 1 1/2-2 lb. cubed beef or beef stew meat 
• 1 cup grape juice with 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar 
• 2 15-oz. cans diced Italian tomatoes, undrained (unsalted if desired–it’s not the worst idea because a lot of salt is going into this recipe, so lower sodium products can help you control the sodium content) 
• 1 1/2 cups beef broth or stock or 1 1/2 cups water + 1 1/2 teaspoons beef base 
• 1/2 cup water 
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano (substitute: I used 3/4 tsp. dried oregano)
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme (substitute: I used 3/4 tsp. dried thyme)
• 1 bay leaf 
• 8-10 ounces sliced baby portabella or cremini mushroooms 
• 3/4 cup sliced carrots 
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil 
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley 

Instructions: Chop the onions, first batch of carrots, and the garlic and set it aside. Heat about a tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil in a stock pot or a Dutch oven over medium heat. When it’s hot, add the onions and carrots and saute for about 5 minutes or until the onions are tender and translucent.

Add the garlic and saute it for about 1 more minute, stirring constantly. Remove it from the pan and set it aside.

Add another tablespoon of olive oil to the pot. In a shallow dish, whisk together 1/4 cup flour, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper. Toss the beef in the flour and then transfer the beef to the pot. Cook the beef on medium-high heat for 5-6 minutes, browning it on all sides. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Combine the juice and vinegar and pour the juice/vinegar mixture into the pan and allow it to deglaze the pan (loosen up the cooked bits on the bottom of the pan). Scrape it regularly for about 5 minutes or until the liquid is reduced by about 2/3.

Return the meat and onion mixture to the pan. Add the undrained canned tomatoes, broth, and water. Strip the thyme and oregano leaves from their stems and then chop up about 2 teaspoons of each. Add those to the stew mixture along with 1 bay leaf. Add your mushrooms and some more chopped carrot to the stew. Bring it to a boil and then cover the stew and reduce the heat to a steady simmer for about 1 1/2-2 hours or until the beef is tender.

Discard the bay leaf and then add some chopped parsley and basil and season with salt to taste. Serve it with crusty bread. Makes about 8 servings.

Freezer Instructions: Prepare through deglazing the pan. Place all of the ingredients except for the water, fresh basil, and fresh parsley into a freezer bag or freezer safe container and freeze. Freeze the herbs separately in a small freezer safe bag. When ready to serve, place the contents of the large freezer bag and 1/2 cup of water into a slow cooker and cook on high for 6- 8 hours or on low for 8-10 hours. 1 hour before serving, add fresh herbs.

Ranch Crock Pot Pork Chops with Parmesan Mashed Potatoes

Tried this recipe for dinner last night, after tweaking it a bit to fit our preferences, and we all really enjoyed it.  I've never tried cooking pork chops in a crock pot before, and they came out so tender and flavorful! And let's face it, this is about as easy as it gets, but you could still serve this to company. 

 

Ingredients

• 6 pork chops, ½ inch thick 
• 2 pkg dry Ranch Dressing Seasoning 
• 2 (10¾ oz) cans Cream of Chicken Soup 
• 4 lbs peeled, cubed potatoes 
• butter 
• fresh grated Parmesan cheese 
• garlic salt 
• milk
• salt
• pepper

Instructions

Place pork chops, ranch seasoning and soup into a crock pot on low heat for 6 hours. About 45 minutes before pork chops are done, place potatoes into a large pot of cold water. Place onto stove top over high heat and bring to a boil. Once water is boiling, cook for 10-12 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender. Drain and transfer to the work bowl of a stand or electric mixer. Mix on low until potatoes are mashed then add butter, Parmesan, garlic, milk, salt and pepper to taste.  Scoop mashed potatoes onto serving plates and top with pork chops and soup gravy from crock pot. I put a little parsley on top to serve. Serves 6. Really yummy!