Broccoli Cheese Soup

I dedicate this to my mother in-law Deb. She is an amazing cook and she consistently inspires me. While I was vacationing in Omaha for Christmas I ate some very great food. One of the things that Deb made was Broccoli Cheese Soup. She had been gifted this really neat blender that blended at such a high speed it actually cooked the contents. So she threw this little diddy together. I can't wait to go to the supermarket next week so I can get the ingredients to make this.

1 cup skim milk
1/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup chopped fresh brocolli**
1 tsp diced onion
1 tsp corn starch
1/4 tsp chicken soup base

Place all ingredients into blender and process until smooth. Heat through and add additional steamed florets before serving.

**If you don't have one of these amazing cook as you blend contraptions do as I did and just steam the broccoli first then process it until smooth then add it to a sauce pan. Heat until steaming and cheese is melted and Enjoy!

Fluffy Apple Cake aka Apple Sharlotka

I came across this wonderful looking apple recipe and I just had to try it. Ever since Gary showed me how easy it is to peel, core and slice apples with my Pampered Chef Apple Peeler, Corer Slicer I try and find any excuse to use it. This was wonderfully fluffy. The top layer (ends up being on the bottom) is amazingly crisp and sweet. I can't wait for an excuse to make this again. Also I used a 9in regular non stick cake pan and it came out relatively easily. I was able to pop it out after letting it rest for 5 min after I removed it from the oven.
One problem we ran into is we put the leftover half slice in the cake dome and then forgot about it for about 4 or 5 days. This dome is designed to keep the moisture inside and we ended up getting some mold growth. So TIP don't forget about leftovers because I am sure if we hadn't forgotten it would have gotten eaten a lot sooner this is such a tasty dish.

Christmas Flashback: Almond Crescent Cookies

This cookie came from Cookie Fest 2011 that my friend Belle put on. Along with Belle, Alicia, Samantha and Jenny we made several treats. I am going to release them in a 3 post series. Stay tuned because they are yummy as well as gluten free!!!

1 cup butter
1/3 cup sugar
1 cup ground almonds
1 egg yolk
1/4 tsp salt
2.25 cups gluten free flour

Cream butter and sugar. Add almonds and yolk. Then work in salt and flour. Chill dough over night. Roll dough with hands to form into crescents. Place on parchment lined cookie sheet and bake in pre heated 350F oven until lightly browned. 20 - 25 min. While still warm roll in powered sugar.

Christmas Flashback: Frosted Sugar Cookies

No one can say no to a little sugar cookie with a Nebraska Husker Shirt on. This cookie came from Cookie Fest 2011 that my friend Belle put on. Along with Belle, Alicia, Samantha and Jenny we made several treats. I am going to release them in a 3 post series. Stay tuned because they are yummy as well as gluten free!!!

Healthy Breakfast Fritatta

I was invited to my sisters house in Lancaster to discuss Wedding plans. I arrived at lunch time after almost 2 hours of driving. I was starving. I had a ton of Kale at home so I brought some along to share. I went to the WHFoods website and selected Kale as my target ingredient and out popped this little beauty. It was a perfect thing to make in my sisters limited appliance kitchen. She just moved in with her fiance and they have a seriously lacking kitchen. She has only the absolute essentials, ie. nesting bowls, single 2 cup measuring cup, 2 rubber spatulas, a small knife block, a 10" skillet (I got this for her for xmas) and a plastic cutting sheet. But she does have a great oven and she had gone to the store to get the ingredients I needed. So my mom chopped the onion my sister whipped up the eggs and I chopped the Kale. I have to say this came out great. The only thing I would change in the future editions would be instead of regular ground turkey I would use a turkey sausage. Just remove the casing first and treat that like ground turkey. Enjoy.

Valentine's Day Treats

Valentine's Day would not be complete without some fun treats to share with friends. I made some chewy chocolate chippers using the back of the Trader Joes Chocolate Chips bag. Then I made some buttercream frosting and tinted some purple and piped on lots of hearts. They went over great with my co-workers and Gary's co-workers said he hadn't ever had cookies that good. Yay!! Total V-Day Win!!
Chocolate Chip Cookies
2.25 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
0.5 cup granulated sugar
1 cup softened butter
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 package Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
Directions: Preheat oven to 375F. Cream sugars, butter and vanilla. Add eggs beating until just mixed. Add dry ingredients 0.5 cup at a time. Mix in chips. Drop by tablespoon full onto parchment covered cookie sheet. Bake for 12-15 min. I made about 3 dozen cookies but that will vary depending on how big of a heaping tablespoon you used.

Valentines Day Dinner

This Valentines Day the husband and I did not go out to a restaurant, we did not get dressed up, and we did not order from a menu. We got home from work early and we headed into the kitchen and both created wonderful dishes to share with each other. I made french fries with some Burbank Russet potatoes and roasted asparagus. He made his own fish BBQ sauce and baked amazing salmon steaks. For dessert we had frozen bananas dipped in chocolate peanut butter sauce.

For the French Fries:
I washed, peeled and chopped up 4 small potatoes into fry shape. Then I soaked them in water for 15 min while the oven heated to 425F. Then I tossed them in a bag with a little olive oil and sea salt. Then I spread them out on the pizza stone and baked for 20 min. I took them out and tossed them and put them back in for 10 more min.
For the Asparagus:
Cut them to the length your comfortable with then toss them in a drizzle of olive oil and sea salt. Bake in pre-heated oven 425F for 20 min.
For the Salmon Sauce:
Combine mustard, ketchup, maple syurp, soy sauce, chili powder, cumin until you get something tasty.
For the Salmon:
Spread with sauce and bake in pre-heated oven 425F for 10-12 min depending on the thickness of the salmon.

Enjoy!

Beer Butt Chicken

When I was first being taken in my husbands family her mom made me this for dinner. I thought it was a joke. How can you possibly get a chicken to drink beer. It was just silly. I pictured my dog sneaking a lick off the top of a beer can around the pool during the summer and just chuckled to myself. That doesn't happen on farms. How could it possibly be a good thing for dinner. Well I am so glad I gave it a try. This is the most moist chicken I have ever tasted. It also has so much great flavor. Plus it is super easy to make, it just takes a bit of patience. Pre heat the grill to medium heat. Then buy a can of beer. Open the beer, drink half then put a sprig of rosemary inside the can. Take a whole chicken and put a few cloves of garlic and a sprig or two of rosemary under the skin. Then shove the can of beer inside the bottom cavity of the chicken. Make sure to take care not to spill the beer. Then set the beer can side down propped up on the non fire side of the grill. Then roast for 3 or 4 hours depending on the size of the chicken. The chicken is done when a meat thermometer comes out at 170F when placed into a chicken breast.

** The stand you see pictured above is called a Beer Can Chicken Stand and it can be purchased in store from Cabela's in the camping section. There are other brands out there that are more wire like and we tried one and didn't think it was stable enough. We went to Omaha and bought this one as soon as we could. **

Christmas Flashback: Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups

This cookie came from Cookie Fest 2011 that my friend Belle put on. Along with Belle, Alicia, Samantha and Jenny we made several treats. I am going to release them in a 3 post series. Stay tuned because they are yummy as well as gluten free!!!

1 cup creamy peanut butter
2/3 cup sugar
1 egg
24 mini Reeses Peanut Butter Cups, unwrapped
2/3 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
2 tbs heavy cream
1/4 cup mini M&Ms

Preheat oven to 350F. Beat peanut butter, sugar and egg until combined. Scoop dough evenly into 24 count mini muffin pan. Bake for 13-15 min until almost done. Remove from oven and press Reeses into the center of each cookie until flush with top of pan. Return to oven for 2 min to get the chocolate to meld together. Remove and set aside to cool for 10 min. Place chocolate chips and 2 tbs heavy cream into microwave safe bowl. Microwave in 30 second intervals until melted smooth. Drizzle chocolate over the top of the cookies and sprinkle with mini M&Ms. We used regular sized M&Ms because we couldn't find the minis.

Sautéed Brussels Sprouts

So it turns out I am a closet Brussels Sprouts LOVER. I tried them at my aunts house a few years ago and did not enjoy the flavor. So I didn't eat another sprout until this past Thanksgiving. My sister Nina made them roasted with BACON. I couldn't pass up bacon and I was hooked. I have made these several times since then. I came across a recipe from one of my current favorite bloggers theDailyGarnish. Sweet & Sour Brussels Sprouts. I made her exact recipe when I made them for my in laws at Christmas time but when I make them at home I don't always have access to apple cider vinegar. So I subbed that with soy sauce. They are super easy and I only have to remember to buy the sprouts because soy sauce and honey are regularly stocked in our kitchen. Great way to get some vitamin K and vitamin C in at dinner time.

Step 1: remove a few loose outer leaves and halve the BS.
Step 2: place cut side down on a warmed skillet with a drizzel of olive oil.
Step 3: flip the BS then drizzel with honey and add a few dashes of soy sauce. Let simmer a bit to finish up and then Enjoy. It turns out I like my BS a bit crunchy so if you like them softer cook a min or two longer.

Christmas: Crisp Green Beans

Lemony Green Beans with Almond Breadcrumbs
I love when green beans are still crunchy when I eat them. I get a double crunch with this recipe because of the crisp green beans and the almond breadcrumb topping. My mom made them for our family Thanksgiving and they were so good I knew I had to take the recipe to Omaha and share with my in laws at Christmas. A few tricks I picked up: Grammy had me put a lid on the water pot to get it to boil faster. Deb trained me in the art of the slap chopper to chop the toasted almonds. It was a great team effort and they were 75% eaten after the Christmas meal was over. I call that a success.

Birthday Cookie Cake with Whipped Topping

I made this cake for Gary on his birthday this year. It was a tuesday night and we were planning on eating out on Thursday so we stayed in for the night of. I made some of my healthier enchiladas and this cake. Its really just cookie dough in a small casserole dish. But wow this is a crowd pleaser. Its very hard to eat just one portion though. You have been warned.

Place cookie dough in thin layer, or 4 even medium size chunks into the dish. Bake in preheated 350F oven for 20 min. Remove and cool completely before adding topping.

To make the topping put about 1 cup of whipping cream into a stand mixer with the wire attachment and add 1/4 cup sugar. Beat until stiff peaks form. Enjoy!

Turkey Veggie Chili (Soup)

Gary and I have made this a few times before. It is a great way to get a lot of veggies into meals. Many many meals. So far I have had this for 3 lunches and 1 dinner and Gary has had 2 dinners and 2 lunches and we still have some left. I have been adding a few scoops of cooked quinoa to my lunch portions which adds another layer of nutrients.

Enjoy.

Yummy Healthy (Kale) Chips

We made chili the other night and I bought two 10oz bags of Kale pieces. I thought well I need 4 cups for my chili so I would be needing 32oz of Kale. Boy was I wrong. I made the chili with half of a single 10oz bag. I saw this recipe the other day and I couldn't wait to have an excuse to make it. And... an excuse was born. One thing I would like to change when I do this again would be to add more Kale to the pan. At the time I was loading up our pan I was trying to get the Kale to lay in a flat type of way just like when you make fries so that it is one single layer of cooking. This resulted in a relatively small amount of actual Kale chips and since it shrunk as it was baking there was a lot of empty parchment paper spaces.