PW's Meatloaf

We are super lucky and have an awesome Meat Market in town (Owen's Meat). They have THE BEST ground beef ever!!! It's made completely from ground Roast, and has the best flavor and is so juicy delicious. We've made hamburgers with it several times and they are a perfect ten. So... I figured if meatloaf was ever going to taste good it was with this awesome Owen's ground beef. Plus, I think the Pioneer Woman's recipe is great to begin with it. I made it exactly like her recipe found here, BUT did NOT use BACON. I figured it wasn't necessary-b/c I wanted to taste the beef flavor more than bacon. Jeremy loved this, too, and we made sandwiches the next day with leftovers. seriously, good stuff. Will definitely make this again!

Meatloaf:
1 cup Milk
6 slices White Bread
2 pounds Ground Beef ( I recommend getting the BEST ground beef possible)
1 cup (heaping) Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
¼ teaspoons Seasoned Salt
¾ teaspoons Salt
Freshly Ground Black Pepper
⅓ cups Minced Flat-leaf Parsley
4 whole Eggs Beaten

Ketchup Sauce:
1½ cup Ketchup
⅓ cups Brown Sugar
1 teaspoon Dry Mustard
Crystal Hot Sauce To Taste

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour milk over the bread slices. Allow it to soak in for several minutes.
2. Place the ground beef, milk-soaked bread, Parmesan, seasoned salt, salt, black pepper, and parsley in a large mixing bowl. Pour in beaten eggs.
3. With clean hands, mix the ingredients until well combined. Form the mixture into a loaf shape on a broiler pan, which will allow the fat to drain. (Line the bottom of the pan with foil to avoid a big mess!)
4. Make the sauce: add ketchup, brown sugar, mustard, and hot sauce in a mixing bowl. Stir together.
5. Pour 1/3 of the mixture over the top of the bacon. Spread with a spoon.
6. Bake for 45 minutes, then pour another 1/3 of the sauce over the top. Bake for another 15 -30 minutes.
7. Slice and serve with remaining sauce.

Serve with mashed potatoes. Yummy!

Chocolate Crackle Cookies (Lion House)

Whenever we have houseguest staying the night, it gives me a great excuse to bake! Jenny, Jeremy's sister, is a big chocolate fan, so I wanted to make these Chocolate Crinkle cookies I had flagged in my Lion House dessert cookbook a while ago. Come to find out, these are her favorite cookies! Score! I loved these. However, in the recipe it said to line cookie sheets with wax paper--this was a BIG no-no! The oven started to smoke with the first batch, and the cookies kinda became "glued" to the paper, if you will, and we had to scrape off. So the first batch was not the best, but we used parchment paper for the remaining two batches, and they turned out wonderful!! These are a great cookie to make, giving the classic (and loved) chocolate chip cookie a break.

(from the Lion House Desserts cookbook)

1/4 cup shortening (melted)
1/4 cup cocoa
1/2 cup oil
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 to 1 cup powdered sugar
(I thought I'd also mention that in the Lion House recipe it mentions 1/2 cup chopped walnuts and/or 1/2 cup chocolate chips as optional- but I left it out.)

In a large mixing bowl, cream together shortening, cocoa, oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla until well mixed. Add flour, salt, and baking powder. Mix well. Dough will be very sticky and almost runny. Refrigerate dough for at least 3 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Drop and gently roll dough by tablespoonfuls in powdered sugar, being careful not to overhandle dough. Place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and bake for 9-10 minutes. Do not overbake.  : -)

Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

Louisiana Chicken Pasta with creamy cajun sauce

Chicken:
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
6 skinless boneless chicken breast halves
3/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons flour

Cajun Sauce:
1 tablespoon butter
1 small yellow bell pepper, chopped
1 small red bell pepper, chopped
3/4 small red onion, chopped
3 whole garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 1/4 pints whipping cream
1 cup low-salt chicken broth
4 tablespoons fresh basil, thinly sliced
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 package bow-tie pasta
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
salt and peper

Melt butter in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add yellow and red bell peppers, mushrooms, and onion to same skillet and saute until crisp-tender, about 4 minutes.

Add minced garlic and crushed red pepper to skillet and saute 2 or 3 minutes.

Add whipping cream and chicken stock. Simmer until sauce re-heats and thickens slightly, about 5 minutes.

Add basil and 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese to sauce, stirring to incorporate. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low, simmer. Sauce will reduce and thicken.

Cook chicken:
Wash and drain chicken breasts. Pound until very thin, as thin or thinner then 1/4-inch thick (the thinner the chicken breasts the better).

Mix breadcrumbs, flour, and Parmesan cheese together. Place milk in dish for dipping.

Dip chicken in breadcrumb mixture and then in milk and then back in breadcrumbs.

Place in fry pan that the oil has been heated and fry at medium high temperature until golden, crisp, and cooked through. Add more oil as needed. Remove and drain chicken. Keep warm.

Meanwhile, cook bow-tie pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to bite. Drain and return to pot. Add sauce and toss to coat.

Place pasta with sauce on plate, and top with chicken breast. Serve, passing additional Parmesan separately.

(recipe found here. Servings: 6)

chicken tortilla soup with lots of veggies

Chicken Tortilla Soup (Similar to Cafe Rio)
This recipe is a cross between one in my Huntington Beach ward cookbook and "Our Best Bites"

2 cooked and cubed chicken breasts
3 T. olive oil
1 large sweet onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, diced
3 stalks celery diced
2 or 3 handfuls of diced carrots
4-6 garlic cloves minced or pressed
48 ounce giant box of chicken broth
1 15-oz. can chopped or diced tomatoes
2 jalapeno peppers, finely chopped (and seeded)
2-3 limes freshly juiced
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
dash of cumin
dash of red chili powder
dash of cayenne
2 flour tortillas, cut in small strips

TOPPINGS:
2-3 flour tortillas, plus oil for pan frying
Avocado
Grated Monterrey cheese
chopped cilantro
a few more slices of lime for individual squeezing :-)

While the chicken breast were boiling, that's when I chopped all the veggies.

In a large stockpot, heat some olive oil over medium-high heat. Add chopped onion, bell pepper, celery, and carrot and saute 4 minutes. Add garlic and jalapeno and cook a few minutes more until pepper is softened and garlic is fragrant. Add chicken broth,  tomatoes, and seasonings and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and allow to simmer for one hour.

While soup is simmering, juice the limes and set aside. Start preparing the toppings: grate the cheese, chop the cilantro, cut up avocado and fry tortillas.  Right before serving, add lime juice. Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Ladle soup into the bowls and add desired toppings.

white chocolate peppermint fudge

My sister Jessica is pretty brilliant. For many reasons, but for the purpose of this post, because she created a spin-off of my late Great Aunt Lil's fudge that has been passed throughout my {Cajun} family for many, many years. Tradition in our family was to have this fudge every Christmas time {and also while watching/judging every Miss America/USA/Universe/etc pageant with my mom and sisters all growing up}. It's delicious, and it is my favorite. It has marshmallow cream, cream cheese, choc chips, peanut butter - and sugar & butter, too, of course! You can find the original recipe on my sister's blog in the middle of this post.

We were all together for Thanksgiving a few years ago and Jessica decided to experiment with the "base" of this fudge, and substitute the semi-sweet chocolate chips for white chocolate chips... and eliminate the peanut butter and instead add crushed candy canes and peppermint extract!! And this is what I'm talkin' 'bout!!! soooooo creamy good... and FESTIVE, too!!

Jessica's White Chocolate Peppermint Fudge

2 sticks of butter
12 oz. PET brand evaporated milk
4 cups sugar
7 oz. jar of marshmallow crème
8 oz. white chocolate chips (I used Ghiradelli)
2 oz. Philadelphia cream cheese
1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla
1 1/2 teaspoons peppermint extract
6 or so crushed/chunky candy canes

1. Cut and place parchment paper in pan and then butter.

2. Combine butter, evaporated milk, and sugar over high heat in a heavy-bottomed pot, stirring constantly, until it begins to boil. Lower the heat to medium and cook until the soft ball stage (its easiest to use a candy thermometer. Also I like to continue to stir during this part so that the bottom doesn't burn). In a large bowl, combine the marshmallow cream, chocolate chips and cream cheese and microwave for about a minute. Stir a few strokes by hand until slightly mixed together.

3. When the candy mixture reaches the soft ball stage, remove from heat and add the vanilla and also add the bowl’s contents to the pot and begin to beat with a mixer on high. Pour in the peppermint extract after a few seconds of mixing all the ingredients and then continue to beat until thick and creamy and it begins to lose its gloss. You can add some of the crushed candy canes into the mix or just save it for on top only. Pour into a buttered pan and then sprinkle the crushed candy cane on top immediately and let cool. After its completely cool you can cut into squares and get ready to serve. A pizza cutter actually works really well to cut the fudge. Enjoy!

Luscious Lemon Bars

have you ever wondered what the best thing on the planet taste like? well, here it is. these suckers almost didn't get a picture because we ate them so fast. My mother-in-law made these while I was up in Seattle and it was love at first bite. they have a lovely thick crust (like a buttery pie) and a juicy and "luscious" lemon top. I couldn't wait to come home and make them myself. this recipe was handed down to her from her mother.



Dorothy Throssell's Luscious Lemon Bar Cookies
Crust:
1 cup soft butter          1/2 cup powdered sugar
dash salt                      2 cups flour
-Combine all ingredients and mix well. Press mixture into 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until nicely browned.

Filling:
4 eggs, beaten                    1/4 cup flour
2 cups granulated sugar     6 Tbsp. fresh squeezed lemon juice
-Combine flour and sugar, mix in beaten eggs and lemon juice. Pour into the slightly cooled crust. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes, or until set.
-Cool and sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Chicken Enchiladas with Roasted Tomatillo Chile Salsa

Image Courtesy of FoodNetwork.com

I've held onto this recipe for a couple years now, waiting until the day I would have enough time to make something so labor intensive. When I first saw Tyler Florence on TV making this, I could smell the roasted tomatillo sauce and enchiladas through the TV. I'm a sucker for enchiladas, and a bigger sucker for "green sauce". This was just as good as I imagined and smelled it to be a couple years back. Well worth all the effort!! And it knocked Jeremy's socks off, too!! =)

So here is the modified recipe that I did:

Roasted Tomatillo Chile Salsa:
1 pound tomatillos, husked
1 white onion, peeled and quartered
4 to 5 garlic cloves
2 jalapenos
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped cilantro leaves
1/2 lime, juiced

Enchiladas:
Extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 medium sweet onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups chicken stock, store bought
Chopped cilantro leaves
3 Chicken breast, cooked and shredded (or you could use 1 deli roasted chicken, meat shredded)
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
14-16  medium flour tortillas
1/2 - 1 pound Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
2 cups sour cream
Chopped tomatoes and cilantro leaves, for garnish

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

For the salsa:
On a baking tray, roast tomatillos, onion, garlic and jalapenos for 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer the roasted vegetables and any juices on the bottom of the tray to a food processor. Add the cumin, salt, cilantro, and lime juice and pulse mixture until well combined but still chunky.

Enchiladas:
Meanwhile heat a 2 count of olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft and caramelized - this should take 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and cumin then cook for a further minute. Sprinkle on the flour and stir to ensure the flour doesn't burn then gradually add the chicken stock to make a veloute. Continue stirring over a low simmer until the flour cooks and the liquid thickens. Turn off the heat, add half of the roasted tomatillo chile salsa, some additional fresh chopped cilantro and fold in the shredded chicken meat. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Change the temperature of the oven to 350 degrees F and begin assembling the dish. Take a large baking dish and smear the bottom with some of the reserved tomatillo salsa. Now take the flour tortillas and briefly flash them over the stove-top flame (or put them briefly under the broiler if using an electric stove). Using a shallow bowl, coat each tortilla lightly with the reserved salsa mix. Put a scoop of the shredded chicken-enchilada mix on top of the tortilla followed by a sprinkle of the shredded cheese. Fold the tortilla over the filling and roll like a cigar to enclose it. Using a spatula place the tortillas in the baking dish and continue to do the same with all the tortillas. Finally pour over some more of the salsa and top with the remaining shredded cheese. Bake uncovered for about 30 minutes until bubbly and cracked on top. Garnish, cilantro and tomato.

Serve hot with the remaining tomatillo salsa and sour cream.