The Best Banana Pudding

Hands Down!

We had a engagement party last night and they had this in cute little individual cups. AMAZING!! I had to get the recipe and what do you know the one and only Paula Deen is behind this.

Here it goes:

2 bags Pepperidge Farm Chessmen cookies

6 to 8 bananas, sliced

2 cups milk

1 (5-ounce) box instant French vanilla pudding

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

1 (12-ounce) container frozen whipped topping thawed

Line the bottom of a 13 by 9 by 2-inch dish with 1 bag of cookies and layer bananas on top.In a bowl, combine the milk and pudding mix and blend well using a handheld electric mixer. Using another bowl, combine the cream cheese and condensed milk together and mix until smooth. Fold the whipped topping into the cream cheese mixture. Add the cream cheese mixture to the pudding mixture and stir until well blended. Pour the mixture over the cookies and bananas and cover with the remaining cookies. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Perfect Summer Cole Slaw

I can't believe it's August 1st! I must say since we have moved home life has been busy and crazy, but it is so nice to be home. Needless to say I have neglected my blog.

I have been wanting to share this recipe for some time now. My aunt made it for us when she was in town and I find myself craving it all the time! It's so tasty and very refreshing. It's the perfect side dish for a summer cookout.



Ingredients:
1 head cabbage (green) small to medium, diced
1 cucumber, diced
1 red, yellow, and orange bell peppers
5 green onions
3 grated carrots
3/4 finely chopped dry roasted peanuts

Dressing:
1/3 cup white vinegar
1/3 cup canola oil
3 cloves garlic
1 cup freshly grated cilantro
2 T sugar
3 T soy sauce

Mix all salad ingredients together. Mix dressing separately and put on right before serving. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Brie & Bacon Quiche

I haven't had the chance to make this yet, (pans are all packed up!) but found the recipe last Friday and my mouth has been watering for it ever since. If I was a mom, I would have definitely wanted this served to me yesterday! Hope all of you mom's had a great day!!

• 1 package Deep Dish Pie Crust, Pre-baked If Instructed
• 4 ounces, weight Brie Cheese (rind Removed If Preferred)
• 4 ounces, weight Swiss Cheese, Diced
• 10 slices Bacon, Cooked Crisp, Drained, Crumbled
• 6 whole Large Eggs
• ½ cups Whipping Cream
• ½ cups Sour Cream
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 dash Each Nutmeg, Salt, Pepper

Crumble cheeses in the bottom of the pie. Spread crumbled bacon on top. Mix all remaining ingredients thoroughly and pour into pie pan. Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 45 minutes, until a pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool slightly before serving.

Chicken and Mushroom Marsala

I find myself cooking the same things over and over. So Sunday, I looked through my cookbooks to come up with some new options for the week. Dinner tonight was a success! I made chicken marsala and it was really good and best part...easy!

photo from here

Ingredients:
2 skinless chicken breast
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt (i only used a couple shakes, the marsala has a lot of sodium in it and trying to cut that out as much as possible)
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 8oz package sliced mushrooms
2 cups marsala Angel hair wheat pasta (you can use regular, but we like wheat)

Directions

1. Place chicken between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap, and flatten to 1/4 inch thickness, using a meat mallet or rolling pin

2. Combine flour, salt, and pepper. Dredge chicken in mixture

3. Cook chicken and garlic in 2 tbsp olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat 3 to 4 minutes on each side until done. Remove chicken, keep warm. 4. Add sliced mushrooms to skillet, and saute 4 minutes. Stir in marsala, cook, stirring occasionally, 8 minutes or until liquid is reduced by 1/2.

5. Return chicken to skillet and cook until thoroughly heated. Serve over pasta.

Mmmm...good.

Perfect Potato

I heart baked potatoes. (although lately I have been on sweet potato kick.)BUT, they have to be cooked just right. You may be thinking I know how to cook a baked potato but to have one that makes you go mmmm.... is the best! It's pretty simple to get a perfect potato but takes some time, so here it goes:

Wash potato. Poke holes in potato with fork. Mic potato for 5 minutes. Put in aluminium foil with butter and crazy jane salt (or you can use salt and pepper) Bake for 1 hour at 350 and I promise you it will be the best potato EVER.

Mouth watering now.
(i know over a potato!)

Black Eyed Pea Dip

Hands down my favorite dip...for the moment!
It's my friend Meredith's recipe and it's soo tasty! Perfect for the upcoming Superbowl on Sunday. I couldn't find a picture, but the next time I make it I will be sure to post one.

Here it goes...

Ingredients:
3 cans black eyed peas
1 Red Onion chopped
2 cups shredded cheese
1 can green chilies
3 fresh jalapenos chopped without the seeds (or if you like it hot, you can leave the seeds)
1/2 stick of salted butter
garlic powder to taste

Mix everything except butter. Pour in casserole dish. Melt butter and pour over mixture. Cook on 350 until cheese is melted and dip is bubbly, check at 25 minutes
Serve with fritos or tortilla chips

My mouth is watering...

Best part, It's low fat and has no calories! I wish!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

The pioneer woman has done it again! This is my second go at tortilla soup, I made one a couple weeks ago but it was too creamy, this is much better!

Ingredients:

• 2 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
• 1-½ teaspoon Cumin
• 1 teaspoon Chili Powder
• ½ teaspoons Garlic Powder
• ½ teaspoons Salt
• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
• 1 cup Diced Onion
• ¼ cups Diced Green Bell Pepper
• ¼ cups Red Bell Pepper
• 3 cloves Garlic, Minced
• 1 can Rotel Tomatoes And Green Chilies
• 32 ounces, fluid Low Sodium Chicken Stock
• 3 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
• 2 cans Black Beans, Drained
• 3 Tablespoons Cornmeal Or Masa - I didn't add this ingredient and the soup was still fab!
  
• 5 whole Corn Tortillas, Cut Into Uniform Strips Around 2 To 3 Inches - I just used tortilla chips
  

• Garnishes:
• Sour Cream
• Diced Avocado
• Diced Red Onion
• Salsa Or Pico De Gallo
• Grated Monterey Jack Cheese
• Cilantro

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix cumin, chili pepper, garlic powder, and salt. Drizzle 1 tablespoon olive oil on chicken breasts, then sprinkle a small amount of spice mix on both sides. Set aside the rest of the spice mix.

Place chicken breasts on a baking sheet. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until chicken is done. Use two forks to shred chicken. Set aside.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a pot over medium high heat. Add onions, red pepper, green pepper, and minced garlic. Stir and begin cooking, then add the rest of the spice mix. Stir to combine, then add shredded chicken and stir.

Pour in Rotel, chicken stock, tomato paste, water, and black beans. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer for 45 minutes, uncovered.

Mix cornmeal with a small amount of water. Pour into the soup, then simmer for an additional 30 minutes. Check seasonings, adding more if needed—add more chili powder if it needs more spice, and be sure not to undersalt. Turn off heat and allow to sit for 15 to 20 minutes before serving. Five minutes before serving, gently stir in tortilla strips.

Ladle into bowls, then top with sour cream, diced red onion, diced avocado, pico de gallo, and grated cheese, if you have it! (The garnishes really make the soup delicious.)

Enjoy!

Chirstmas Truffles

I feel like I have been blogging lately about holiday things after they happen! I have not been prepared this year for Christmas or Thanksgiving, they came and went too fast!

Before we left for Nashville I was able to make some treats for the fam. My good friend, Ash told me about these awesome red velvet truffles she was making. I had to try them!



So here it goes...

Ingredients:

1 box red velvet cake mix
1 can cream cheese icing
sprinkles
4 packs Bakers White Chocolate


Bake cake according to regular directions on the box.

As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, crumble the whole thing into a bowl. Don't leave any big pieces, smash the whole thing up. Then dump the whole can of cream cheese icing into the crumbled cake and mix together extremely well. Put the mix into the fridge for an hour or so, until it is cool throughout.

After it is cool, roll the cake mix into balls. It should make about 40 balls. After you have rolled them all, put them in the freezer for at least an hour. (it is ok to even wait until the next day if you need to wait, an hour is just the minimum time)

Melt 4 squares at a time of the white chocolate in a plastic bowl and roll the cake balls in the chocolate, using a spoon to roll them around. Sprinkle immediately and place on wax paper. (the chocolate hardens fast)After they are all rolled in chocolate and sprinkled, they are done and ready to be stored in the refrigerator.

So tasty!

Award Winning Chili

My dad used to make the best chili and Ak absolutely loved it. I never had a chance to get the recipe so I have been trying to make my own, but have never been that pleased.

My mom and her friends entered a chili cook off contest in the neighborhood and out of 25 entries they won!! I test-tasted it the night they were making it and was very impressed.

So here it goes....

2 pounds ground chuck
1 pound ground turkey
1 pound ground sweet Italian sausage
1-2 onions
2-3 green bell peppers
Saute all together

Add:
4 cans red/black beans
4 cans fire roasted tomatoes
2 cans tomato paste
1 can diced green chilies
2 bottles brown ale
2 tb chili powder
4 cloves garlic
4 bay leaves
2 tb cumin
2 tb Wooster
1 tb brown sugar
salt and pepper to taste

Now as you can tell this makes a ton of chili, so split in half for a smaller group or cook it at your next shindig!

Taco Soup

It's fall y'all, which means soup season is right around the corner!! On Thursday night some girlfriends and I got together and my friend Kristi made this soup! So good and is also served well with margaritas!!

Ingredients:

1 lb of lean hamburger meat
half white onion chopped - brown together
2 cans of black beans
1 can of kidney beans
1 can of spicy chili beans
1 can of petite diced tomatoes
1 can of original rotel
1 can of white shoepeg corn
1 pkg of dry ranch seasoning & 1 pkg of taco seasoning
1-2 teaspoons of garlic powder to taste
Salt n pepper to taste
2 cups of water

Stir all together in crockpot and cook on low for 6-8 hrs. Serve with chz n sour cream. (Serves approx 8, so for only 4 servings you can always cut back on beans and leave out the diced tomatoes can). Enjoy!

Heaven on a Plate

This is one of those recipes where I was literally licking the bowl when I finished making it!! So good!! My friend Lauren, posted it on her blog on Friday and I made it yesterday! It is absolutely AMAZING and super easy to make! It's great for breakfast or a nice dessert.

Here it is...

Soapapilla Cheesecake

2 cans Pillsbury Crescent rolls
2-8oz Cream Cheese (room temperature)
1 1/2 cups Sugar
1 tsp. Vanilla extract
1 tsp Cinnamon
1 stick butter


Spray a 9 x 13 pan with cooking spray. Unroll and press 1 can crescent rolls into the bottom of your baking dish press the seams together. In a separate bowl blend the cream cheese, 1 cup sugar and 1 tsp vanilla then spread over top of dough. Unroll the second can of crescent rolls and place on top of the cream cheese mixture pressing seams together again. Melt butter and pour over top layer of crescents. Mix the reaming 1/2 cup of sugar & cinnamon together. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar mixture generously over the top. If you don't think that's enough cinnamon sugar on top add more its really up to you there's no rules on this part of the recipe.Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes until bubbly and bottom crust is slightly brown. Cool, slice and enjoy!

Grilled Salmon Tacos

Yummy!! AK and I went to the cooking class on Saturday and had a blast! The food was amazing and we learned so many neat tips. I highly recommend looking into cooking classes in your area.

We made several things, but my favorite was the Grilled Salmon Tacos - AMAZING!!

Here is the recipe:

Ingredients: (this is based on a recipe for 6 people, 2 tacos per person)

1 salmon fillet, (1 1/2 pounds) skin on, pin bones removed

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 Blackening Spice - (recipe follows)

Vegetable oil for the grill

12 corn tortillas

1/2 head cabbage (8 ounces) finely shredded

3 green onions, thinly slices on the bias (only use the green part)

3 tablespoons fresh lime juice (about 1 1/2 limes)

2 ripe tomatoes - cut into 1/4 inch dice

Chipotle Sauce - (recipe follows)

Prepare a medium fire in a charcoal grill or preheat a gas grill to meadium. Arrange the salmon, skin side up. Oil the skin generously with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Turn the salmon over and rub the flesh side all over with the blackening spice. Using your fingertips lightly dab the remaining olive oil over the blackening spice.

When ready to grill, brush the grill grate generously with vegetable oil. Grill the salmon, skin side up, directly over fire. Cover the grill and cook on one side for 4 minutes. Turn and cover again. Cook until almost opaque throughout - thermometer will read 125 - 130, cook for 5 mintues more. Transfer to cutting board, let cool slightly.

Meanwhile, warm the tortillas on the grill or in the oven on 250.

In a medium serving bowl, toss together the cabbage, green onions and lime juice. Place the tomatoes in a small serving bowl. Serve with cabbage mixture, tomatoes, and chiptole sauce.

Chiptole Sauce:

1 cup mayo

3 tablespoons buttermilk or sour cream

2 minced canned chipotle chilies in adobo sauce

2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro

1/4 teaspoon kosher or sea salt

Mix ingedients together.

Blakening Spice: (this is great, would be good on chicken too)

2 tablespoons kosher salt

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 tablespoons paprika

1 tablespoon dried thyme

1 tablespoon dried oregano

Combine all ingrediens ina small bowl. Stire well to blend. Store in an airtight jar in a coll, dark place for up to 6 months.

Enjoy!

Orange Dream

I have found my new favorite summer drink! On July 4th weekend AK’s mom and her friends made Orange Dreamsicles and I couldn’t get enough of them! They are super easy and already come pre-made with vodka already in it! Friday’s makes them and you can find them at your local liquor store. All you need is a blender and some ice and you have a refreshing summer drink!!

Cheeseburger in Paradise...Really

Yum Yum!! AK and I made these burgers last weekend and they were so tasty. We used the Pioneer woman’s recipe and she has not let me down yet!

Are you ready to drool?

Ingredients:
2 pounds 80/20 Ground Beef
1 teaspoon Salt
½ teaspoons Black Pepper
Tabasco Sauce, To Taste
2 Tablespoons Butter
1 whole Red Onion, Sliced
2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
Kaiser Rolls
Blue Cheese, I used Colby Jack because I'm not big on Blue Cheese
Your Favorite Lettuce

Instructions:

Place the ground beef into a medium mixing bowl. Add 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon of ground black pepper. Add a few dashes of Tabasco sauce. With your hands, mix the meat and seasoning well. Set aside.

If you like onions, these are the BEST!!! Heat a medium skillet over low heat. Add in 2 tablespoons butter. Dump in the sliced red onions. Now add 2 generous tablespoons brown sugar. Give it a toss to combine the ingredients, and then allow the onions to caramelize over low heat for about twenty minutes, tossing occasionally.

Form the meat into two patties and place on a grill pan or skillet over medium to medium-low heat. Allow each to cook about 3 minutes, then using a spatula, rotate 45 degrees, leaving it on the same side.

Flip the burger and cook it for a couple of minutes, rotating it 45 degrees again to get the nice grill marks.

Now add a large helping of caramelized onions over top of that glorious patty

Found It!

I am so excited, I have purchased AK's anniversary gift! Yes, I'm about a month ahead of schedule, but hey that's the planner in me!

I don't know about you but in the summer, I love to grill out... well really have someone grill out (AK) and I prepare the sides . I love grilled cheeseburgers, steaks, veggies, and grilled bbq chicken (although growing up my father used to grill barbecue chicken until it was BLACK and crunchy, I'm talking burnt to a crisp!)

this actually is not as burnt as my dad's famous chicken...


So since the summer has begun we have have grilled out a few times, and two out of three times, let's just say it hasn't gone so well.

So on Sunday, AK mentioned that he would love to take grilling lessons or a class on the techniques of grilling. I thought perfect, I could get him a gift certificate to a grilling class, (and this could be my paper thing) I found the perfect place, Sur La Table. They are in 13 states and provide all sorts cooking classes and also have stores filled with kitchen stuff! I have signed him up for the 5 grill recipes every cook should know. In this class he will learn how to cook, Grilled Chicken with Citrus and Cilantro - Perfect Grilled New York Steak - Grilled Swordfish Kebabs with Mixed Herb Pesto - Salmon Tacos with Chipotle Sauce - Grilled Peaches with Balsamic Glaze and Vanilla Ice Cream. Sounds Fabulous!!

Chocolate Covered Strawberries

In my last post, I left off the desserts we had for the shower. We did several lemon bars, miniature cheesecakes, brownie bites and my favorite - chocolate covered strawberries! I had never made them before, but was pleasantly surprised how easy they were!!

All you need is chocolate bark, strawberries and wax paper.

Wash the strawberries and pat dry before you dip

Dip/roll the strawberry around in chocolate (make sure it's the bark)

Set to Dry

Now if I only I had one waiting for me in the kitchen right now...

Roasted Asparagus

YUM YUM, is all I have to say about this recipe! Last night for Easter Dinner AK and I made a feast. My favorite dish that we had was the pioneer woman’s Roasted Asparagus! (If you haven't heard of the pioneer woman, her food is amazing!!) I’m talking so good and so easy!! I picked up some fresh asparagus from Whole Foods and followed these directions:

Ingredients:
1 bunch Asparagus
4 Tablespoons (up To 5 Tablespoons) Olive Oil
Kosher Salt To Taste - I have been watching my sodium intake lately so I left the salt out and added a little Miss Dash instead.
Freshly Ground Black Pepper, To Taste

Preparation Instructions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
After you wash the asparagus thoroughly, stack a bunch together and lop off the tough/thick bottom an inch or so.
Spread out the asparagus in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Pat it as dry as you can, as you don’t want any water to “steam” the asparagus in the oven.
Begin by generously drizzling olive oil all over the asparagus and then sprinkle the asparagus generously with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Roast the asparagus for about ten minutes. The secret here is for the oven to be very hot so the asparagus can begin to brown on the outside without overcooking and getting too flimsy. You want the finished asparagus to still have a bite to it.

Enjoy!

Easy Chicken and Dumplings

Have I ever mentioned how much I love Southern Living magazine?? I love their recipes, house plans, travel recommendations and the list goes on! They now have a feature called "Mama's Way or Your Way" in the recipe section. "Mama's way" usually has more ingredients and may take a bit longer than "your way"

The January 2010 issue featured Chicken and Dumplings - of course I chose "your way" because it is a tad easier!

I don't know about you but when I think of Chicken and Dumplings I think of it as a fall/winter recipe, but this is so good I could it eat it all the time - I'm talking Cracker Barrel good!!


Here it goes:

Ingredients:
1 (32-oz.) container low-sodium chicken broth
3 cups shredded cooked chicken (about 1 1/2 lb.) - to save time, I picked up a Rotisserie chicken from the grocery store.
1 (10 3/4-oz.) can reduced-fat cream of chicken soup
1/4 teaspoon poultry seasoning - I used McCormick's Chicken Seasoning
1 (10.2-oz.) can refrigerated jumbo buttermilk biscuits
2 carrots, diced
3 celery ribs, diced

Directions:
1. Bring first 4 ingredients to a boil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high; return to a low boil.

2. Place biscuits on a lightly floured surface. Roll or pat each biscuit to 1/8-inch thickness; cut into 1/2-inch-wide strips.

3. Drop strips, 1 at a time, into boiling broth mixture. Add carrots and celery. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent dumplings from sticking.

ENJOY!

Jambalaya

(Picture of Paula Deen's Jambalaya)

In honor of Fat Tuesday, I thought I would share a good and easy Cajun recipe! I made this last fall and AK went nuts over it!

Ingredients:
Jambalaya Mix (recipe follows below)
1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
2 1/2 cups water
1/2 pound fully cooked smoked sausage, cut into 1/4-inch slices
1/2 to 3/4 pound medium, fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined

Directions
In a Dutch oven, combine mix, water, tomatoes, tomato sauce and smoked sausage. Bring mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover, reduce heat and let simmer for 20 minutes. Add shrimp and cook for an additional 5 to 7 minutes, or until shrimp are pink.

Jambalaya Mix:
1 cup long-grain rice
3 tablespoons dried minced onion
1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
1 tablespoon beef bouillon granules
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 bay leaf

(don't get discouraged by this long list of spices - I found I had most in my spice rack!)

Enjoy!

Super Easy, Super Bowl Appetizers

Can you believe the Super Bowl is next Sunday?! Where has January gone?

Here are two super easy and very tasty appetizers for a super bowl party!

My friend Vannie told me about this recipe, it literally takes 5 minutes to put together and is so tasty!

Pizza Dip:
1 block cream cheese
1 small can pizza sauce
1 pkg shredded mozzarella cheese
(any toppings, pepperonis, sausage, veggies, or you can just do cheese)

Layer as follows in a casserole dish:
Spread cream cheese, top with pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese and toppings (you can also put a little shredded Parmesan cheese on top) Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes until cheese is bubbly, Serve with Frito's.



The second recipe, my friend Michelle introduced me to, let me tell you it's one of those you can't stop eating!

Buffalo Chicken Dip:
1 can of chicken chopped
1 8oz block of cream cheese softened
3/4 cup franks buffalo sauce (use less if you want it less spicy)
1 cup ranch dressing
1 package of sharp cheddar cheese

Heat chicken and franks buffalo sauce until warm in a large skillet then add ranch and cream cheese continue stirring until cream cheese is melted completely and last add sharp cheddar cheese when all melted together its ready. Pour in casserole dish. Serve with Frito's.



GO COLTS!