Tomato Basil Pizza

I've seen and heard about the Pioneer Woman for quite some time, so I figured it was about time for me to make something from her website. I love all of her pictures and the step-by-step commentary and visuals.

I followed her directions for TOMATO BASIL PIZZA (with a Pesto Sauce).



It was a yummy and fresh meal last night. Head over to her blog for the recipe.


I'm still on the lookout for a good pizza crust recipe. I wasn't a big fan of hers. I thought it was a bit dense and heavy on the olive oil flavor.

Thai chicken peanut noodles

I saved this recipe from the Sister's Cafe a long time ago. I've been on a cooking roll lately! And I love it! This is one of Jeremy's and my new favorites... seriously DELICIOUS!!! especially if you like Thai or peanut sauces. I changed just a few tiny little things in the recipe, so I wrote what I did below.



1 lb regular thin spaghetti noodles ( I only used 3/4 of noodles, because I didn't want to dilute the sauce too much.)
2 garlic clove, peeled
1 (1 inch) piece of fresh ginger, peeled
½ Cup smooth peanut butter
2 Tablespoons sesame oil
¼ Cup soy sauce
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
1 Tablespoon rice vinegar
1 scant teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
½ Cup hot water
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3/4 Cup finely chopped white onion
½ Cup finely chopped red or orange bell pepper
2½ - 3 Cups cooked, shredded chicken breast
¼ Cup finely chopped cilantro leaves
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
¼- ½ Cup dry roasted peanuts, chopped

First I boiled 2-3 chicken breast for 10 minutes. And then boiled the noodles according to package. And while the chicken was boiling and noodles a-brewin', I made the sauce.

The sauce was incredibly EASY to make in the food processor.
Place garlic and ginger in food processor until well chopped. Then add peanut butter, sesame oil, soy sauce, brown sugar, vinegar and red pepper flakes. Pulse until well combined and slowly add hot water. Set aside.


{picture of sauce before pouring in hot water.}

Place olive oil in hot skillet over medium heat. Saute onion and bell pepper for 5 minutes or until softened. Stir in chicken breast, cilantro and salt. Stir until heated through.


Add sauce.


Then Add the chicken and sauce mixture to pot of drained noodles. Toss to coat and garnish with peanuts and more cilantro if desired.

foiled wrapped dinner

The last time we were at Jeremy's parents home, I raided Leslie's (my mother-in-law) cookbooks and recipe box for recipes. She is an amazing cook, and Jeremy raves about her meals growing up all the time. I tried to type as many recipes as possible until my fingers got tired.

I found this particular recipe in her recipe box, so this one Jeremy said his mom made more than once. It was fun doing something different with chicken. It kinda reminded me as a kid when my mom made us foil dinners for a camp-out that were super yummy. Don't remember what was in them exactly.

Anyways... here is a quick picture of the chicken foil packages before I wrapped them and put them on cookie sheet in oven.

• 4 bone, skinned chicken breast
• Dijon mustard
• Flour
• 4 green onions, sliced
• 4 T. butter
• 4 mushrooms
• 4 T. soy sauce

Brush chicken on both sides with mustard. Roll in flour. Place on square of foil. Divide onions and mushrooms between breasts. Add 1 T. butter, 1 T. soy sauce to each package. Wrap and seal in foil. Bake 25 minutes at 350 degrees. Serve over rice.

Chicken Dorito Casserole

This was one of me and my siblings favorite meals as kids that our mom would make. What kid wouldn't love Doritos in their dinner? I was chatting with my college brother earlier this week and he said he was making this, so I've been craving it ever since. A major bonus, a large bag of Doritos were on sale at Target for $2.50.  This is a yummy home-style meal especially great for kiddos.

Here is a picture before I put in oven. I serve individually with sour cream on top. And also sprinkle some leftover chips on top for some crunch.



2 cans cream of chicken
1 can cream of mushroom
1 can Ro-Tel
1/2 cup - 3/4 cup water
1 big bag Nacho Cheese Doritos
2 chicken breast, cooked and shredded or cubed
Sour cream (for topping)

combine all can ingredients, and add some water to make it a little soupy (no too soupy). Layer half of chips, then half of chicken, then half of soup mix. Repeat layers, then top with shredded cheese. Serve with sour cream.

Costa Rican Rum Cake

Or as Jeremy calls it "C double R cake". It's his absolute favorite, so birthday cake it was! It's super easy to make. It's just a yellow cake mix. But the yummy part comes when you poke holes throughout while its still warm out of the oven with a creamy rum sauce.



And my favorite part...topped with home-made whipped cream and chunks of macadamia nuts!



INGREDIENTS:
Cake: 1 package yellow cake mix
1 cup water
1/3 cup oil
3 eggs

Sauce:
1 cup whipping cream
1/3 cup rum (or 1 teaspoon rum extract)
14 ounce sweetened condensed milk
12 ounce can evaporated milk

Topping:
1 cup whipping cream
1/3 cup chopped macadamia nuts
1/3 cup coconut toasted (optional - we did not use this)

METHOD:
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 13x9" baking dish. In large bowl, combine all cake ingredients at low speed until moistened; beat 2 minutes at high speed. Pour into greased baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees or 30-35 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Poke holes in cake. Mix together sauce and pour over while cake is still warm. Cool and keep in refrigerator. Cut into squares and top with whipped cream, toasted coconut (optional)  and chopped macadamia nuts.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEETHEART!! I love you!!

Apricot chicken hash

This morning I was watching the "Today" show while rocking/feeding baby. They happened to be cooking a "low calorie and less than 30 minute meal". their words not mine. because after I was done, it definitely took more than 30 minutes (but still less than an hour, so that's good)... anyways I thought it looked interesting and different than anything i've ever made. i've never even thought of cooking with chicken thighs. and it turned out pretty good. i give it a 7.5 out of 10.  It's called Apricot Chicken and Hash. And here is the link to the Today show recipe.


it's too bad whenever i'm taking pictures of meals/food i make its usually at dinner time when there is now natural light left. bummer. so my food pictures always turn out kinda dark and yellowy... but i still wanted to include a picture anyways, because i don't like making anything that doesn't have a picture.

INGREDIENTS
• 8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs (1 3/4 pounds)
• 1 tablespoon lower-sodium soy sauce ( i used enough soy sauce to coat all the chicken-i didnt measure)
• 1 pound red potatoes, unpeeled
• 1 large red pepper
• 3 tablespoons apricot jam
• 1 tablespoom fresh lemon juice
• 11/2 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 4 green onions, thinly sliced, plus additional for garnish

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 425°F. In large bowl, combine chicken and soy sauce; let stand. Cut potatoes and red pepper into 1/2-inch pieces. In small bowl, mix jam and lemon juice until blended.
2. In large microwave-safe bowl, combine potatoes and ¼ cup water. Cover with vented plastic wrap and microwave on high 5 minutes or until potatoes are just tender. Drain.
3. Meanwhile, spread chicken on foil-lined 18-inch by 12-inch jelly-roll pan; brush with jam mixture. Roast 15 to 17 minutes or until meat is no longer pink inside.
4. While chicken roasts, in 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat oil on medium 1 minute.
5. Add pepper and cook 3 minutes, stirring. Stir in potatoes, green onions, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cook 5 to 7 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring.
Skim and discard fat from pan juices; serve chicken and hash with juices. Garnish with green onions.

Each serving: About 435 calories, 43 g protein, 44 g carbohydrate, 9 g total fat (2 g saturated), 5 g fiber, 164 mg cholesterol, 435 mg sodium.

fruit dip

we've been eating alot of this lately.


i was chatting on the phone with my lil sis Sarah last week, and she was eating while i was talking to her. is it funny that i could tell through a cell phone from across the country that whatever she was eating sounded like it was very tastey and extremely enjoyable? I asked her what she was eating and she raved about how she had been making this fruit dip alot lately and dipping strawberries and grapes in it. as soon as she mentioned it and told me what was in it, i immediately started craving it, and me and pearce were off to the grocery within minutes of "end call".

this is my second week in a row making it. it is simple and delicious. it's a great snack during the day and an equally great dessert post dinner.

oh and if you are curious what is in this magic dip... one jar of marshmallow cream, one package of "light" cream cheese (to somehow justify that it is healthy that i'm eating this dip with fruit) and half a container of cool whip. all you do is get out the hand mixer and blend until its all smooth and pretty.