Tetrazzini

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, this is a good recipe for leftover turkey.  I made this version with boneless skinless chicken breasts.  Most recipes have mushrooms as part of the ingredients, but  my daughter is not a big fan of them so I omitted them and added carrots and peas instead.


Ingredients
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 3/4 inch pieces
2 tbs soy sauce (low sodium or regular)
5 ounces of spaghetti, broken in half
1 tbs unsalted butter
1 onion chopped fine
1 tbs all purpose flour
2 tbs dry sherry
1 cup unsalted chicken stock or broth
3 ounces cream cheese (regular or 1/3 less fat) softened
1 cup Parmesan cheese
1 cup frozen peas and carrots
1 cup panko bread crumbs (toasted)
salt and pepper


Combine chicken and soy sauce in a Ziploc bag or covered bowl to marinate for 30 min to an 1 hour in the fridge.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Bring 2 quarts water to a boil in a large pot.  Add pasta and 1.5 tsp of salt.  Cook, stirring often until pasta is al dente (for Barilla it's 11 min).  Reserve 1 cup of the cooking water and drain the remaining pasta.

In a 12 inch skillet, melt butter over medium heat and add onions and 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper and cook until browned.  Stir in flour and cook until golden.
Whisk in broth, sherry, and reserved pasta water.  Gently scrape the bottom of the pan to get all the browned bits.  Whisk in cream cheese and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.  Simmer until lightly thickened.

Stir in marinated chicken, peas and carrots.  Simmer for 1 to 2 minutes( chicken will not be fully cooked).

In a casserole dish or 8 x 8 baking dish, combine mixture and pasta.  Toss toasted panko and remaining Parmesan and sprinkle over top.  Bake until hot about 12-14 minutes.  Let cool slightly before serving.

Shipwreck Stew

This is a meal my husband requested. His mother gave him the recipe when he went away to college so that he would eat.  When I first looked at this recipe I was not too sure about it.  The ingredients list did not look like the most appetizing combination.  With that being said, it tasted pretty good (I should know not to doubt my mother in law).  There are not many spices in this recipe so if you want to add some chili flakes to kick it up feel free.

Ingredients:
2 lb Bison or Beef (ground)
1 lb red potatoes washed and sliced
2 onions sliced
1 can mushroom soup
1 can tomato soup
black pepper to taste


Preheat oven to 350
In a 12 in skillet brown meat.  Combine all ingredients and place in a 9 X 9 casserole dish.

Bake 45 min to an hour until potatoes are tender.

Serve with Sour cream and medium cheddar.

Chicken burgers with Goat Cheese and Sun dried Tomato

I am trying to find alternatives to using beef all the time.  This recipe can either use chicken or turkey but I used ground chicken.  I bought the store brand goat cheese and it was not as strong as other goat cheeses.  When I make it again I will probably add more goat cheese unless I buy a different brand.

Ingredients
4 Hamburger buns
1/3 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes (drained and julienned)
1 tbs oil from sun-dried tomatoes
2 tbs fresh basil chopped
1 shallot finely chopped
1 lb ground chicken
2 oz crumbled goat cheese
1/2 cup panko
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp of pepper

In a large bowl mix panko, salt, pepper, sun-dried tomatoes, basil, and shallot.  Incorporate ground chicken and goat cheese into the bowl.  Knead mixture until it becomes uniform.  Divide to make 4 patties, about 1 inch thick.

Heat the oil reserved from the tomatoes in a 12 inch skillet over medium heat.  Place patties into skillet and cover.  Cook for about 3-4 minutes until slightly brown.  Flip patties and continue to cook until second side is browned.  Reduce heat and cook until burgers register 160 degrees, about 8-10 minutes (flip them half way).

Serve on your favorite bun.  

Fudge Puddles round 2

When I make fudge puddles I  normally use a peanut butter cookie base.  However, my daughter now goes to a nut free school so I had to come up with another base so that I can take them as a treat for the teachers and kids.  I decided to use the base of a chocolate chip cookie.  I know it would just be easier to make chocolate chip cookies but they just do not look as festive.

Ingredients for the cookies:
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 egg
1 cup butter softened
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/4 all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt 

Ingredients for the Fudge:
1 cup milk chocolate chips
1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla extract


Heat oven to 375 degrees.
Mix sugars, butter, vanilla and egg in a large mixing bowl.  Once combined mix in flour baking soda and salt.  Drop about 1 rounded tablespoon in greased mini muffin tin.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light brown.
Remove from oven and immediately make wells.  I use a hot sauce bottle and wrap with foil or cling wrap.  Take the bottle and press the center down lightly.  Cool 5 minutes, remove carefully to a cooling rack.

To make the fudge combine all the ingredients in a microwave safe bowl.  Heat for 20 seconds and then stir.  Then heat for 10 seconds and stir.  Continue this process until the filling is smooth.  
Then pipe the fudge into the wells.  Let set for about 2 minutes.  

Rhubarb Crisp

I found Rhubarb in the freezer section of our grocery store the other day and that made my husband all excited.  Growing up he used to have Rhubarb growing in his back yard and he remembers eating it.  For those of you who have not had Rhubarb it has a nice tart flavor.

Ingredients

Filling:
2 lbs Rhubarb (chopped, I used frozen that was pre cut)
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup all purpose flour


Topping:
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup cold unsalted butter (cut into pieces)
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 tsp cinnamon (optional)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

For filling:
In a 9 by 13 baking dish combine Rhubarb, sugar and flour.  Stir and set aside.

For topping:
In a food processor with a dough attachment, combine flour and butter.  Pulse until the butter pieces are pea-size.  Add brown sugar, oats and cinnamon.  Pulse to combine.  Sprinkle over Rhubarb.

Bake 35-40 minutes until rhubarb is tender and topping is golden.

Pear and Gorgonzola Salad

The other day I bought a salad kit.  I decided I did not like the dried candied pears or the vinaigrette that supposedly had Gorgonzola in it.  So here is my fresh version of the salad.


Ingredients
1 pear diced
4oz crumbled Gorgonzola
5 oz spring mix salad
3 tbs Champagne vinaigrette
Sprinkling of Candied Pecans (optional).

Combine diced pear, gorgonzola and 1 tbs of champagne vinaigrette.  Set aside.
Toss salad with remaining 2 tbs dressing.

Combine salad and pear/gorgonzola mixture and serve.

Tarragon and Dijon Chicken Breasts

Decided to try the mustard and tarragon marinade using chicken instead of flank steak.  I think it turned out really well.  


Ingredients
Chicken Breasts 1 to 2 lbs
1/3 cup Chardonnay (or another dry white wine)
1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup country dijon mustard
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp dried tarragon leaves
Salt and pepper to taste


In a gallon size ziplock bag combine all ingredients and seal.  Keep in refrigerator for at least 2 hours.
Remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before grilling.

Grill 6 to 8 minutes on each side or until breasts reach 165 degrees.
Remove from grill and tent with foil and let rest at least 5 minutes.