Creamy Ranch Chicken


Simple.  Delicious.  Satisfying.  Need I say more? I saw this recipe in one of my food magazines and I just knew I had to try it.  Crispy bacon in a creamy ranch sauce with chicken and noodles. How can you honestly go wrong? It was done in a matter 20 minutes.  My husband compared it to a Carbonara, and I guess it was similar, but the ranch seasoning gave it a tangy taste that I just loved.  If your family loves saucy meals, you might want to double the sauce, it really didn’t make a huge amount.  

Creamy Ranch Chicken
adapted from Better Homes and Garden’s Quick and Easy Recipes
start to finish: 20 minutes
serves about 4
6 slices bacon
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into bite size pieces
2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons ranch dry salad dressing mix
1 1/4 cups milk
3 cups dried medium noodles(I used egg noodles)
1 tablespoon finely shredded Parmesan cheese
1. Start your water for your pasta. Cook noodles according to package directions.
2. Cut bacon into narrow strips. In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Drain bacon on paper towels; discard all but 2 tablespoons drippings.
3. In the same skillet, cook chicken in reserved drippings until no longer pink, turning to brown evenly.  Sprinkle flour and salad dressing mix over chicken; stir well to coat the chicken.  Stir in milk.  Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly.  Cook and stir 1 minute more.  Stir in bacon.
4. Serve the chicken over the noodles.  Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Enjoy!

Baked on June 25, 2008 | Recipe Card: chicken, main dishes, pasta | 13 Bites 

Doughnut Muffins


I like to try recipes from other food blogs once in a while, and while I was glancing at Genesis of a Cook a couple of weeks ago, she had posted about Doughnut Muffins.  If you use the words “doughnut” and “muffin” in a sentence and make a recipe out of it, I’m all in!  I knew I had to try them out. These muffins were really delicious.  They could have been a little bit moister, but the flavor was phenomenal! My husband loved them, and he is pretty picky!  My daughter loved them, mostly because the tops are dipped in cinnamon and sugar, one of her favorite combinations!  Every drop was eaten, and that is pretty rare in my house.  So, if they sound irresistible to you too, give them a try!

Doughnut Muffins
 
For Muffins:
3 cups flour
3/4 cups sugar, plus 1/8 cup of sugar
1/2 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 large eggs
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup heavy cream
For Topping
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 cups sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a standard muffin pan with muffin cups.
2. In a large bowl, cream the butter and the sugar.  Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until just mixed in.  In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.  Combine the vanilla, milk and heavy cream.
3. With a spoon, mix a quarter of the dry ingredients into the butter mixture.  Then mix in a third of the milk mixture.  Continue mixing in the remaining dry and wet ingredients alternately, ending with the dry.  Mix until well combined and smooth, but don’t over mix.
4. Scoop enough batter into each tin so that the top of the batter is even with the rim of the cup, about 1/2 cup.  Bake the muffins until firm to the touch, about 25-30 minutes.
5. To finish, melt the butter for the dipping mixture in a small bowl.  Combine the cinnamon and sugar in another bowl.  When the muffins are just cool enough to handle, remove them from the tin, dip them into or brush them all over with the melted butter, and then roll them in the cinnamon sugar.
Starting next Monday the 30th of June, it will be Cookie Week in Stephanie’s Kitchen!  There will be an awesome giveaway that you don’t want to miss, so stay tuned!

Baked on June 23, 2008 | Recipe Card: Muffins, breakfast | 7 Bites 

Gooey Chocolate Caramel Cake


Oh. My.  If you have never tasted this cake before, not only are you seriously missing out on a truly sweet experience, but it is probably one of my favorite cakes in the world.  Yes, that is a powerful statement.  And I have a little secret…I use a boxed cake mix.  Of course, you can make your cake from scratch if you like.  But for some reason, it’s just the perfect recipe using a box. And why not? Taking a shortcut now and then isn’t gonna kill you.  I promise.  This is one of the most simple cakes I make, but it is truly the sweetest and most perfect balance of taste and texture.  After the cake cools, you get to poke holes in it.  It’s my favorite part.  It feels so wrong but so right at the same time.  It is than smothered in both hot fudge and caramel sauce. It seeps into the holes so with every bite you get fudge, caramel and cake.  Yum.  Top it with Cool Whip, chocolate chips and toffee bits, and you’ve got yourself one amazing cake.  Try it. You will fall in love.  You’ll thank me later.

Oh, and stay tuned for a giveaway coming soon.  It’s gonna be great!

Gooey Chocolate Caramel Cake
1 box devil’s food cake mix
1 jar hot fudge sauce
1 jar caramel sauce
1 8 oz. tub Cool Whip
mini chocolate chips
toffee bits
1. Grease a 9 x 13 cake pan.  Bake the cake according to package directions.  Let cool completely.
2. After cake has cooled, poke holes in cake.  Warm both the hot fudge and caramel slightly in the microwave, just enough so that the sauces are pourable.  Pour both sauces over the top of the cake.  Let the cake sit for about 15 minutes to let the sauces seep into all the holes.
3. Top the cake with the Cool Whip.  Top the Cool Whip with chocolate chips and toffee bits. Enjoy!

Baked on June 18, 2008 | Recipe Card: Cakes, desserts | 42 Bites 

Buttermilk Baked Chicken


I love Fried Chicken.  Actually, I love anything fried.  I wish I hated the smell of fresh hot chicken jumping out of hot oil and fresh hot donuts too.  But I don’t hate it.  It is definitely comfort food to me.  But I try not to eat fried food very often.  I found this recipe for Buttermilk Baked Chicken and since I was craving fried chicken, I decided to try this variation.  It actually tasted like it just jumped out of the fryer.  But our little secret…it didn’t.  Baked in the oven, this chicken came out crispy and juicy in all the right places.  In this recipe you use homemade bread crumbs, made with white bread.  The bread crumb mixture is soft and fluffy, and I really liked it.  It was so different from those mealy store bought crumbs, which by the way, I use all the time.  But I might use this recipe more often, because it tasted fresher and so much better!  Yum!

Buttermilk Baked Chicken
adapted from Great Food Fast, Martha Stewart
serves 4
Vegetable oil, for baking sheet
8 slices white bread
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon hot-pepper sauce
course salt and pepper
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (2 1/2 ounces)
1 teaspoon dried thyme (I used parsley, onion powder and garlic powder)
4 pounds chicken parts (preferably legs, thighs, and wings) rinsed and patted dry
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Generously rub a baking sheet with oil.  In a food processor, pulse the bread until it turns into coarse crumbs.
2. In a large bowl, stir together the buttermilk, hot-pepper sauce, 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.  In a separate bowl, mix the breadcrumbs, Parmesan, thyme, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper.  (or spices of your choice)
3. Place the chicken in the buttermilk mixture, turning to coat evenly.  Working with one piece at a time, remove the chicken from the liquid, letting the excess drip back in to the bowl; dredge in the breadcrumb mixture, turning to coat evenly.  Place the coated chicken pieces on the prepared baking sheet.  Leave enough space between the chicken pieces so that they crisp evenly all the way around.
4. Bake until the chicken is golden brow, about 35 minutes.
Note: I let the chicken sit in the buttermilk for a couple of hours to make it even more tender and juicy.  

Baked on June 16, 2008 | Recipe Card: chicken, main dishes | 12 Bites 

Cinnamon Chocolate Apples and a Meme!


I have been using these bags for quite a while now, and I must say that I buy a lot more fresh vegetable since using them. They take no time at all in the microwave and add some butter and salt before cooking and they turn out perfect and flavorful! And the very best part is NO CLEAN UP! Yes, that is pure heaven to me. After I bought them last, I turned through the recipes that were inside the package and found a recipe for these Cinnamon Chocolate Apples and I had to have them right then and there. These are soooooo good! I can’t even explain. Cut up some apples, add some chocolate and spices and in 3 minutes you have soft, tasty apples. How can that not be the best thing ever? You must try them! Make sure you drizzle some melted milk chocolate after they have cooked, and it just puts the cherry on top! This recipe easily serves 4 people, so make sure you half the recipe if you are not wanting to eat 4 whole apples!  Kids will eat this up like it’s candy!  My daughter fell in love and asks for these apples all of the time now!


Chocolate Cinnamon Apples

Combine in Medium or Large bag:
3 ounces milk chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup raisins
4 teaspoons slivered almonds
1 tablespoons sugar
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons heavy cream
4 medium Granny Smith Apples (I used Gala and Granny Smith) cored and sliced into 1/2 inch wedges (peel if you prefer)

1. Seal Ziploc Zip ‘n Steam bag and shake to mix ingredients Place bag in microwave.
2. Cook on full power 2-3 minutes or until apples have softened. (I did 3 1/2 minutes, I like them really soft)
3. Allow bag to stand 1 minute before handling. Gently shake and squeeze bag to combine the melted chocolate and warm cream to smooth sauce.
4. Open bag and allow to cool slightly before serving.
5. Drizzle with additionally melted chocolate, if desired.

And now for a Meme!

I have been tagged twice now for a meme, once from Megan from Megan’s Cookin and Bunny from Bunny’s Warm Oven. And though I don’t usually do these, I think it’s quite fun to learn more about the person behind the blog, so I decided to go for it!
The Rules:
Each participant answers questions about her/himself.  At the end of the post the participant tags 5 people.  Their names are posted letting them know they’ve been tagged.  They then have to read the participant’s blog.  The tagged let’s the tagger know when he/she’s posted his answers.  Here we go!
What was I doing 10 years ago?
Wow, I was a year out of high school and just finishing my first year of college.  I had just met my future husband.  I was pretty much just working, playing, and trying to figure out what I wanted to be when I grew up….
What are five (non-work) things on my to-do list for today?
1. Mail my many Father’s Day cards. (I’m a procrastinator)
2. Play with my kids.
3. Work on my blog.
4. Figure out what in the world to make for dinner?
5. Sweep my floor for the 10th time today.  (My daughter decided to empty out my spice cupboard this morning on to my kitchen floor!)  
Five Snacks I Enjoy:
Chocolate
Chocolate
Chocolate
Oranges
Strawberries
Things I would do if I were a billionaire:
Pay off my house and travel the world with my family!
Places I have lived:
Illinois
California
Oregon
Utah
Jobs I have had:
Arby’s (my first job)
ZCMI (a department store)
America First Credit Union
Goldenwest Credit Union
Mom/Waitress/Cook/Maid/Wife
I tag:
All of Y’all!  Do it, it’s fun!

Baked on June 12, 2008 | Recipe Card: Dessert, Fruit, Misc. | 11 Bites 

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