Chicken with Lemon Sauce

This was another meal that me and my mom put together for a get together at my parent's house. My mom did most of the work, but I provided the recipe from Delectable Dining.
This dish turned out amazing and was so creamy. My only advice would be... make sure that you cool the sauce a bit before you taste it. I tasted the sauce and couldn't taste the lemon so I added more and it was a bit overpowering. I will definitely make this again!

CHICKEN WITH LEMON SAUCE
4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup all purpose flour, divided
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 teaspoons salt, divided
1 1/2 teaspoons pepper, divided
2 eggs
5 tablespoons butter, divided
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 cups apple juice
3 tablespoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

Flatten chicken to 1/4-inch thickness. In a shallow bowl, combine 3/4 cup flour, Parmesan cheese, 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. In another bowl, beat the eggs. Dip chicken into eggs and coat with flour mixture. In a large skillet, cook chicken in 2 tablespoons butter and oil over medium heat for 3-5 minutes on each side or until juices run clear. Remove and keep warm. In a small bowl, combine the remaining flour, salt and pepper; stir in broth until smooth. Add apple juice to the skillet, stirring to loosen any browned bits. Stir broth mixture and add to the pan. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 1-2 minutes or until thickened and bubbly. Stir in lemon juice; cook for 1 minute. Add parsley and remaining butter; cook and stir until butter is melted. Serve over chicken.

Source: Delectable Dining

Jessica's Italian Pasta Salad

Hello everyone! I made these awesome 7 Up Chicken Fajitas a couple of nights ago changing them up just a bit with tomatoes and lettuce instead of sauteed green peppers and onions. While thinking of the recipe I suddenly had an epiphany of what I wanted to go with them. Our friend Jessica makes some awesome pasta salad. I immediately texted her to ask her what was in her pasta salad and I anxiously waited for dinnertime to come around. This is a REALLY simple side dish and its SURE not to dissappoint. Perfect for a wonderful Memorial Day BBQ. I'm thinking on Memorial Day I will switch it up a bit and use Cheese-filled Tortellini pasta. Yum!

Emi was so funny as I was making this. I was cutting up the green bell pepper and he wanted me to give him half of it to eat before I ruined it by cooking it. :-P Once I told him I didn't plan on cooking the green bell pepper, he shut right up and just waited for dinner. :-D

JESSICA'S ITALIAN PASTA SALAD

1 lb Rotini Pasta (I used Garden Rotini which had tomato and spinach pasta as well as the regular, it made for a pretty dish.)

1 green bell pepper

4 roma tomatoes

3 stalks green onions

sliced black olives (I use the smallest can possible because I'm not a fan, but it is GOOD in the salad)

Salt to taste

Kraft Zesty Italian Dressing to taste (I probably used about 3/4 to 1 cup)

1. Cook pasta according to package directions.

2. Drain pasta and rinse under cold water.

3. Cut green bell pepper, roma tomatoes, and green onions into small bits. Add these and sliced olives in with pasta. Add salt to taste and coat with Italian dressing.

4. Allow to chill to desired temperature.

Source: Our good friend Jessica.

Beef Parmesan with Garlic Pasta and Peasant Bread

I have posted about this recipe before, but I wanted to post about it again since its way back in the archives and I didn't take a picture last time. This dish is DEFINATELY worth making. I have now made this dish 3 times and each time its just been absolutely amazing. I made this for my sister-in-law Maria for her birthday. I gave her a choice of three separate meals and she ended up picking this one. It was a big hit and my husband is especially fond of the garlic pasta.
You can see the original post here.

BEEF PARMESAN WITH GARLIC PASTA
1 1/2 pounds beef cube steak
1 onion, sliced into thin rings
1 green bell pepper, sliced in rings
1 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 (16 ounce) jar spaghetti sauce
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
12 ounces angel hair pasta
8 garlic cloves
1/4 cup parsley

1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2.Cut cube steak into serving size pieces. Coat meat with the bread crumbs and parmesan cheese. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large frying pan, and saute 4 minced garlic cloves for 3 minutes. Quick fry (brown quickly on both sides) meat. Place meat in a casserole baking dish, slightly overlapping edges. Place onion rings and peppers on top of meat, and pour marinara sauce over all.
3.Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 to 45 minutes, depending on the thickness of the meat. Sprinkle mozzarella over meat and leave in the oven till bubbly.
4. While pasta is boiling, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a frying pan and saute 4 minced garlic cloves until golden brown. Take off the heat and add parsley to the pan. Set aside until pasta is done.
4.Boil pasta al dente. Drain, and toss in olive oil, parsley, and garlic. Top with grated parmesan. Serve meat and sauce atop a mound of pasta!

HINT: make the meat ahead of time, and refrigerate over night, the acid in the tomato sauce will tenderize the meat even more. If you do this, save the mozzarella till the last minute.

With this I made a recipe that I've had sitting in my favorites probably for the last six months or so. I had never made it before because I was afraid if my husband saw this lump of dough that he would stick up his nose and not want to try it. He LOVED this bread and told me to make it ANYTIME and since it is REALLY easy... maybe I will!

PEASANT BREAD
1 pkg dry yeast
2 cups warm water
1 Tbsp sugar
2 tsp salt
4 cups flour
Cornmeal
Melted butter

Place yeast, water, sugar, and salt in bowl and stir until dissolved. Add flour and stir until well blended. Do not knead. Cover and let rise until double in size (about 1 hour). Remove dough from bowl and place in 2 rounds on a greased cookie sheet sprinkled with cornmeal. Let rise an additional hour. Brush top on dough with melted butter and bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees and cook for an additional 15 minutes. Serve warm.

Bacon Wrapped Chicken

This dish turned out amazing! I was a little worried about it since I am not a huge fan of cream of chicken. In fact, I almost used cream of mushroom instead, but I am very glad that I didn't! My husband and his friend Cody said that this dish was better than anything you could ever get at Olive Garden and said that I need to make this again. To me, the chicken actually took a back seat to the sauce this time which is weird in this family of meat lovers. I made a couple of changes to the recipe, which I'll include below. I want to make this again and next time I think I will skip the bacon wrapped chicken all together and do something a little more like this, but definitely keep the same sauce recipe.
One little piece of advice to those who want to try this recipe with the bacon wrapped chicken, you might want to slightly cook the bacon in the microwave or very briefly over the stove. Since the bacon in covered by the sauce, it cooks but it is still really soft when it comes out of the oven.

BACON WRAPPED CHICKEN
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, sliced
1 pkg bacon
3 stalks green onions
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 pound wide egg noodles

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
2. Pound the chicken breasts until flat. Put a slice of cream cheese, 1 teaspoon chopped green onions, and 1 teaspoon minced garlic in the middle of each breast and roll up. Wrap each rolled breast with 2 slices of bacon and secure with toothpicks. Place in a 9x13 inch baking dish.
3. In a medium bowl, combine cream of chicken, mayonnaise, heavy cream, lemon juice, leftover green onions, 2 Tablespoons of garlic, pepper and salt. Mix until smooth, then pour over chicken (I also added the cream cheese I had leftover from the slices for the chicken).
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour, or until no longer pink and juices run clear. Turn on broiler for 4 minutes to get a nice crispy top.
5. Serve chicken and sauce over egg noodles.

Lemon Cream Pasta & Roasted Parmesan Asparagus

I think this is my favorite dish that I have ever made. I am not a huge fan of pasta, but rather a huge fan of pasta with sauce. This just turned out so amazing. It had the exact right consistency and flavor. It turned out to be a very creamy pasta with just a little hint of lemon.
I did things a bit differently than the original recipe and I'll include my changes here. As always these measurements serve as a guide rather than what I actually put in.

LEMON CREAM PASTA WITH CHICKEN
3 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 lemon, quartered
2 teaspoons garlic powder, divided
1 teaspoon ground black pepper, divided
4 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth (or 4 chicken cubes with boiling water)
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 (16 ounce) package rotelle pasta
1 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

1. Heat a small amount of oil in a pan. Cut chicken into cubes and sautee over medium-high heat. Squeeze lemon over chicken and season with 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder and 3/4 teaspoon pepper.
2. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, season the chicken broth with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Bring to a boil and add lemon juice and pasta. Cook over medium heat until done. Drain, reserving a small amount of liquid.
3. Add cream, lemon zest, and parmesan cheese and cook until cheese has melted and cream has thickened.

I served this with asparagus. This was mine and Emi's first encounter with asparagus other than at a restaurant. Afterwards, Emi told me that if I had told him we were going to have asparagus that he probably wouldn't have eaten it. However, he really liked it and requested that I make more as long as I don't make it any other way. I told him that if he liked it one way that I would definitely try other ways.

ROASTED PARMESAN ASPARAGUS
1/2 - 1 lb asparagus spears
1 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
1-2 tbsp shredded Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray cooking spray on a tinfoil lined baking sheet. Trim bottoms from asparagus spears & rinse. Place asparagus on baking sheet, salt and pepper to taste and drizzle with olive oil. Top with shredded Parmesan cheese and roast for about 5 minutes until fork tender. Serve & enjoy.

Lasagna with Creamed Spinach

I got this recipe a couple of weeks ago from my Aunt. My Aunt is a great cook and I remember her cooking all the time growing up. She has a blog that she updates every once in a while that talks about the history behind holidays, usually has some funny stories, and she shares a recipe relating to that holiday. You can check it out here. This turned out great and I will definitely be making it again. For the most part, Emi likes vegetables and doesn't mind when I include them in our dinner, but every once in a while he throws a fuss. He did ask me "what is that green stuff?" when I served him this dish, but he ended up asking when I would make it again by the time he got a mouthful. We had Emi's sister and her husband over for dinner and they really enjoyed it as well. Yum!

CREAMED SPINACH
2 (10 ounce) packages frozen chopped spinach , thawed, drained and squeezed dry
1 cup cottage cheese
1 8-oz package cream cheese
1/2 cup butter, cubed 3 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups cubed process American cheese
1/4 cup all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon salt

Lightly grease your crockpot. In a large bowl, mix together the spinach, cottage cheese, cream cheese and butter, American cheese, eggs, flour and salt until everything is evenly distributed. Transfer to the greased slow cooker. Cook on high for one hour, then reduce heat to low and continue cooking for 4 - 5 hours. Use for filling in lasagna, or manicotti shells. Can even be eaten by itself.

You'll find my recipe for lasagna here. Just substitute the cottage cheese, cheddar, and eggs for the creamed spinach.

Gnocchi Marinara

My brother works at a really upscale restaurant in Salt Lake City as their accountant. He used to be one of the pickiest eaters, but since starting his job there he seems to like to try almost anything. I've been to the restaurant twice since my brother is so generous (and I mean REALLY generous) and one of the things I tried was Gnocchi. I absolutely loved it. So when I saw a recipe for it on A Catholic Cooks, I knew that I had to give it a try. This didn't turn out quite like a wanted it to but after I got used to the texture, it was at least edible. My brother came down for this momentous occaision and I was really glad because if he hadn't been here, it probably would have turned out worse. He has seen the chefs at the restaurant make this before and has also tried once to make it on his own. So while this wasn't a huge success, I am comforted by the fact that it was better than my brother's attempt so maybe I know a LITTLE more about cooking than he does. :-P

I don't know whether or not I'll try to make this particular recipe again, but I do have a few suggestions for those of you who want to give it a try. First of all, make the gnocchi pretty small. I think part of the reason mine had a gluey texture is because they were so big. Secondly, use a strong sauce. Me, being a little naive, just picked up some Ragu sauce from the store and Gnocchi are pretty bland themselves so you might want to roll out "Your Great Great Great Grandmother's Secret Sauce" for these. ;-) (I'm still in need of some fantastic recipe for marinara sauce, although I admit I've never really tried to make one of the ones I've found.)

GNOCCHI FROM MASHED POTATOES

Leftover Mashed Potatoes

Nutmeg

Sauce of your choice (marinara, alfredo, etc.)

1. To about 4-6 cups of mashed potatoes, add 1 egg, nutmeg as preferred, and 1/2 cup of flour at a time, mix until it has a semi-firm consistency that hold its shape. (About like play dough)
2. Roll out into snakes about 1 inch wide and cut into pieces about 1 inch long.
3. Turn each cut piece onto its side, pressing finger in center to make a well.
4. In a pot of boiling water, with salt and oil added, drop 8-10 gnocchis in. When they float, they are done, drain and serve with your favorite sauce.

I served this with chicken thighs coated in bread crumbs cooked at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

If you're not going to use leftover mashed potatoes, once you have boiled the potatoes let them sit for a little while in a strainer over the sink to get most of the moisture out. Once you make the mashed potatoes (with milk and butter) let it sit again for a while to dry out. One of the problems my brother had when he made Gnocchi is there was too much moisture so he had to add a lot of flour in order to make it the right consistency. If any of you more seasoned cooks out there have some tips to add they would be greatly appreciated because I was pretty bummed that this was the first thing is months that I failed to WOW on.

My next daring attempt will be at Ricotta Gnocchi.

Creamy Ranch Chicken Pasta

From În Restaurantul Gianinei

I pulled this out of my archives to add a picture to it. But I thought I'd leave my brother's orginal comment on here to convince you all that you should try it. :-D

"Mad props to your ill cookin' skills." -Eric (My Brother)

This was a relatively quick recipe. It had a lot of flavor and had a taste that I can't quite explain. This time around I did things a little differently since I didn't have very much sauce last time. I grabbed two packets of the dry salad mix and used about a pack and a half. I also used 1/2 cup half and half because I wanted the sauce a bit creamier. The result was fantastic and I was rewarded with another. "Woman, this is the best food you've ever made." :-D

CREAMY RANCH CHICKEN PASTA
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 cup milk
1/2 cup half and half
3 cups egg noodles or fettucini
3 tablespoon finely shredded Parmesan cheese

1. Start your water for your pasta. Cook noodles according to package directions.
2. Cut bacon into narrow strips, then again into tiny pieces. In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Drain bacon on paper towels.
3. In the same skillet, cook chicken until no longer pink, turning to brown evenly. 4. Mix flour, salad dressing mix, and milk in a small bowl. Move chicken into saucepan. Pour flour mixture over chicken. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir 1 minute more. Stir in bacon. Serve over noodles.

Pasta With Roasted Garlic Cream Sauce

Sorry it has been so long since I posted last. I really haven't been doing a ton of cooking lately (besides good ol' Mac & Cheese), but I'll make up for it this week. We had this meal tonight and it was delicious. I kept the chicken separate rather than mixing it in with the pasta because I was too lazy to de-bone it before I stuck it in the oven. I seasoned the chicken with salt and pepper and drizzled it with Olive oil and some balsamic vinegar. Yum! I didn't really make too many changes because it was really good the way it was. I do, however, think that next time I will add some green onions to the sauce for that little extra punch of flavor. (Can you tell I LOVE green onions?) I had a little bit of trouble with the sauce being a bit too thick but I think that's because I was trying to do too many things at once and let it boil a bit too long. I just added a bit more milk and we were good to go. I also roasted my garlic different than the original recipe. I'll include the instructions, but I got them here.

Here is my altered recipe:

PASTA WITH ROASTED GARLIC CREAM SAUCE
1 head garlic, roasted
Olive oil
1 cup cream or half & half
1 cup milk
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 stalks green onion, chopped
salt and pepper
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus more at the table
Red pepper flakes, optional
2 broccoli crowns cut into bite-sized pieces (I used frozen broccoli)
2 chicken thighs
1 lb pasta

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Slice the top of the head off so every clove of garlic is exposed. Place on a small square of tinfoil (easy clean up). Drizzle with olive oil and salt to taste. Fold edges of tinfoil together and twist to make a sealed bundle (See a picture here). Place in oven and bake for 30-40 minutes depending on the size of the garlic. Remove from oven, let sit about 5 minutes, and then open the tin foil to let the garlic cool. Squeeze to remove the roasted cloves.

In a medium pot over medium-high heat, add butter and once melted, add flour and cook 1 minute. Add cream and milk, whisking to break up any lumps. Add minced garlic, salt and pepper. Bring to just boiling, then reduce heat to low. Add cheese and whisk until smooth.

Once the roasted garlic is cool, squeeze the garlic out of the papery skin. Mash with a fork and add to the cream sauce and whisk together. Add chopped green onions. Cook for about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with red pepper flakes.

While the sauce is cooking, cook the pasta according to package directions. About 4 minutes before the pasta is done, add the broccoli. Once cooked, drain and set aside.

Remove skin from chicken thighs. Put in a 9X13 baking dish and drizzle some olive oil and some balsamic vinegar over the top. Season with salt and pepper. Cook at 350 degrees for 45 min -1 hour.

Toss the pasta and broccoli with the sauce. Add more cheese just before serving.

Chicken, Tortellini, & Spinach in a Balsamic Cream Sauce

When I made my shopping list for this months' dinners, my plan was to make this recipe from Kraft Foods. Unfortunately I couldn't find all of the ingredients that I needed so I just decided to wing it. I really didn't worry about it until this morning when I realized what was on the menu for tonight. My inspiration was the dressing so I started thinking about the dressings I have in the fridge and landed on my favorite balsamic vinegarette. I did a quick search and instead decided on just balsamic vinegar, which led me to this recipe. I kind of threw the first recipe out the window and did a little bit of my own take on the second. What resulted was amazing! I received another "this is the best food you've ever made" from Emi. I think this would go even better tied with steak for the meat, but it worked well with the chicken.

Chicken, Tortellini, & Spinach in a Balsamic Cream Sauce

3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts cut into cubes
1 pkg mixed cheese tortellini
2 T. olive oil
2 T. butter
1/4 onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 T. balsamic vinegar
1 c. heavy cream
2 T. dried rosemary leaves
1/2 c. grated parmesan cheese
1/2 bag baby spinach leaves

1. Cook pasta per package instructions.
2. Cook chicken over skillet in a little bit of oil. Season with salt and pepper. (I'm going to cook my chicken in the oven for 20-25 minutes.)
3. Heat olive oil and butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in onion and garlic and cook until the onion has carmelized to a dark golden brown (approximately 15 minutes).
4. Stir in the balsamic vinegar and cook for 1 minute before adding the cream, dried rosemary, and parmesan cheese.
5. Once the cheese has melted, stir in the baby spinach leaves and cook until wilted, about 1-2 minutes.
6. Stir in chicken and tortellini.

Chicken & Spinach Stuffed Shells

I don't know how many times my husband is going to tell me "This is the best food you've ever made." but I have to admit, I really LOVE how much he loves my cooking. He is constantly bragging about it to all of his friends and even new people that he just randomly meets. He is so funny. He also wants me to send pictures of my food to his mom and dad in Romania.
These were amazing, and apparently the best food I've ever made... so I definitely reccomend them. My one complaint is that they are a little time consuming but definitely worth it in the end. I ended up making two 9X13 pans and one 8X8 pan. So that is a lot for just Emi and me, but it would be great for guests or for a party.
I'm sorry I haven't been doing so well with pictures lately. My camera's batteries are dead and my old camera is on the fritz, but I promise to take pictures and repost next time I make this. For a picture just check out the link!

Chicken & Spinach Stuffed Shells

44 uncooked jumbo pasta shells (That’s about one and one-half 12-oz boxes)
2 c chopped cooked chicken
2 c fresh chopped spinach
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (15oz) container ricotta cheese
2 (8oz) packages cream cheese, softened
1 (5oz) package shredded Parmesan cheese (about 1 2/3 c.)
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 Tb dried parsley flakes
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 c shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
1 (26oz) jar prepared spaghetti sauce

Cook shells according to package directions (be sure to stir every once in awhile so they don't stick to the bottom of the pan and tear apart); drain and set aside.
Preheat oven to 350°. Lightly grease 2 13x9x2inch baking dishes.
In a large bowl, combine chicken and all the rest of the ingredients except mozzarella and spaghetti sauce. Stir in 1 cup mozzarella. Spoon into shells.
Spread half of spaghetti sauce into prepared baking dishes. Arrange shells over sauce; top with remaining sauce. Cover tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil.
Bake, covered, for 40 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle with remaining 1 cup mozzarella. Bake for 5 to 10 more minutes.
Makes 8-10 servings.

Chicken Carbonara

As a sneak peak to this recipe let me tell you what my husband's first reaction was. He takes a bite, turns to me with his eyes wide open and says, "Woman, this is the best-tasting food you have ever made."
This was an easy recipe and I went and made it a little bit more complicated, but still not too bad. The original recipe didn't call for any chicken, and well, we just can't do that here in our household. I also added green onions and garlic cloves to give the sauce more flavor and it certainly payed off.

Chicken Carbonara
Here is my edited recipe.

INSTRUCTIONS
1 pound dry fettuccine noodles
8 slices bacon
4 eggs
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
3 stalks chopped green onion
2 (big) chopped garlic cloves
ground black pepper to taste
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup seasoned bread crumbs
3 T olive oil.

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350°. Cut chicken into strips and coat with bread crumbs. Pour 1 T Olive oil over chicken. Let cook for 10 minutes. Flip chicken over and pour another 1 T Olive oil and continue the rest of the cooking time. Cook for a total of 20-25 minutes. (This will give the baked chicken that pan-seared texture. (Or you could just cook it over the stove, but where is the fun in that?)
2. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add fettuccine and cook for 11 to 12 minutes or until al dente; drain.
3. Fry bacon in skillet over medium heat until crispy, remove and drain on paper towel. Chop with knife into bits.
4. Chop up garlic and green onions and saute them in 1 T olive oil until soft.
5. Beat the eggs, cheese and cream in a bowl, then add the bacon, garlic, and green onions. Pour over the pasta in the pan and toss gently using tongs.
6. Return the pan to a very low heat and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, or until slightly thickened. Don't overheat or the eggs will scramble. Season well with black pepper and serve.

Swedish Meatballs

I got this while watching the Food Network late one night waiting for Emi to come home. Have you ever watched Good Eats? Man, that guy is annoying!, but the recipe sounded awesome.

It turns out that this recipe WAS awesome. Emi loved it! I wasn't exactly sure what I was supposed to serve it with because on the show, he did it as a type of appetizer. I remembered my other meatball recipe, and decided to serve it over noodles.

With the directions, it may seem really intense, but it was relatively quick and easy to put together and cooked pretty fast. I would just personally like to thank whoever gave me that electric skillet for my wedding. I can't imagine trying to make 2 pounds of pork/beef mixture in one of my tiny sauce pans!

Swedish Meatballs

INGREDIENTS
2 slices fresh white bread
1/4 cup milk
3 tablespoons butter, divided
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
A pinch plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt (I used regular salt)
1 pound ground chuck
1 pound ground pork
2 large egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups beef broth*
1/4 cup heavy cream (I used closer to 1/2 c.)

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees F.
2. Tear the bread into pieces and place in a small mixing bowl along with the milk. Set aside.
3. In a 12-inch straight sided saute pan over medium heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and sweat until the onions are soft. Remove from the heat and set aside.
4. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the bread and milk mixture, ground chuck, pork, egg yolks, 1 teaspoon of kosher salt, black pepper, allspice, nutmeg, and onions. Beat on medium speed for 1 to 2 minutes.
5. Using a scale, weigh meatballs into 1-ounce portions and place on a sheet pan. Using your hands, shape the meatballs into rounds. (I don't have a scale. I just made little meatballs.)
6. Heat the remaining butter in the saute pan over medium-low heat, or in an electric skillet set to 250 degrees F. Add the meatballs and saute until golden brown on all sides, about 7 to 10 minutes. Remove the meatballs to an ovenproof dish using a slotted spoon and place in the warmed oven.
7. Once all of the meatballs are cooked, decrease the heat to low and add the flour to the pan or skillet. Whisk until lightly browned, approximately 1 to 2 minutes. Gradually add the beef stock and whisk until sauce begins to thicken. Add the cream and continue to cook until the gravy reaches the desired consistency. Remove the meatballs from the oven, cover with the gravy and serve.

*I must have accidently used the other can of beef broth I had for this recipe. Instead, I used 2 c. beef broth and 1 c. chicken broth. Eh, you do what you can.

Creamy Pesto

Where I live there is a restaurant that Emi and I used to frequent that has a really awesome Creamy Pesto Pasta dish. We have been trying really hard not to eat out too much so I decided I'd try to recreate the dish at home. I think I did pretty good! It wasn't exactly right, but I think next time I'll know what to do to make it better. We had the pesto in a pasta dish with chicken seasoned with garlic, salt, and pepper and pan-fried in a little bit of Sunflower oil. I think next time I make pesto, I will try it on a Homemade Pizza with chicken. Another thing, I'm not a big fan of measuring, so I didn't follow the recipe exactly, but just kind of tasted it as I went and followed the recipe as a guideline. I would definitely use more garlic though.

Creamy Pesto

Ingredients:
2 T olive oil (I used E.V.O.O.)
2 c. fresh basil leaves (pressed) *
1/2 c. fresh parsley
1/4 c. grated parmesan cheese. (I probably used closed to 1/2 c.)
2 garlic cloves
1/4 c. walnuts**

4 oz softened cream cheese (I used Fat Free. SHHH! Don't tell Emi!)

1/4 c. heavy cream or half & half
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. About a half hour to an hour before you're going to make the sauce, take the cream cheese out of the refrigerator to soften.

2. In food processor, puree basil, parsley, & garlic with oil until pasty.

3. Add grated cheese & nuts and blend more.

4. Add cream cheese until well blended.

5. Add cream or half/half a little at a time till desired consistency.

6. Pour into a sauce pan to heat, unless you are serving it cold.

* I think basil is hard to find and expensive when you find it. I was only able to find a small package of basil at Walmart and it was pretty pricy, so I asked my friend what I could do instead, but fortunately I was able to find a bigger package of basil at Smiths. Next time though, to save some money and some searching, I will substitute half of the basil with spinach and it will still have a very nice pesto taste.

** In this recipe walnuts and pine nuts are pretty much interchangeable. Infact, I used both walnuts and pinenuts because I didn't have enough of either.

Cheesy Lasagna Rolls

Grading scale: A

I actually made these about a week ago. I didn't post it because Shayla had just barely posted it on her blog (that's actually where I got the idea!), but these little lasagna rolls have had such an effect on me that I haven't stopped thinking about them since. I made 13 lasagna rolls and I, like Shayla, added 1 lb of meat into the mixture. As I was sitting watching the food network last night, I was thinking about these lasagna rolls and I think I found the perfect way to make them just PERFECT. While I really loved these, I also thought the filling was a bit dry, kind of pasty texture. I also thought that the meat didn't have a lot of flavor. I've added a small jar of tomato sauce to the filling and suggest while browning the meat to add some Italian Seasoning. I also think it might be good to do a mixture of cottage cheese and ricotta cheese. These made excellent leftovers!

Here is my edited recipe:

Cheesy Lasagna Rolls

12 Lasagna noodles, cooked and cooled (I used 13 because I boiled 14 and only one of them came out cracked)
1 jar spaghetti sauce, divided

Filling:
1 lb ground beef (cooked with a bit of Italian Seasoning to taste)
1 small can tomato sauce (the smallest can you can find because you might not use it all)
1 container (15 oz) ricotta cheese
1 egg
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1 Tbsp parsley flakes
1/8 tsp pepper
1 tsp garlic salt
2 cups mozzarella cheese, divided (1 1/2 cup for filling, 1/2 cup on top)

Pour 1/2 of spaghetti sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13 pan, just enough to cover the bottom to prevent sticking. Brown meat. Mix together all ingredients for the filling, using just enough tomato sauce to make it moist, but not runny. Lay noodles flat and spread filling mixture on noodles. Roll up like a sleeping bag and lay in pan. Top with remaining sauce and mozzarella cheese. Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes.

*Note: Do not over cook noodles. Follow directions on box of noodles.

Slow Cooker Chicken Stroganoff

We just had some friends pop in from Las Vegas unexpectedly last night so I moved one of our dinners to tonight. This was pretty good, but also pretty salty. I also think I am not a fan of shredded chicken in this type of dish with noodles. It just reminds me too much of a tuna casserole and Emi even asked me if there was tuna in it. Weird. I think if I were to make it again, I would possibly cube the chicken, but I don't know if that would work out because it is SO tender coming out of the crock pot. I have never shredded chicken so easily!

Also, I was a little weirded out by the small amount of liquid in the crockpot (even with my addition of the cooking wine), so I added a little bit of water about 3 hours into cooking because I was afraid the chicken would burn.

Another thing that I had also never done before is start with frozen chicken and I was VERY worried about this, but it turned out great! and that is probably why the chicken was so very tender.

I would probably make this again since Emi and our guests really liked it, but... I don't know. :-D Maybe as a last resort type thing. At least I learned about the frozen chicken trick and I really do hate defrosting chicken.

Slow Cooker Chicken Stroganoff
Here is my edited version.

INGREDIENTS
4 frozen skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/8 cup margarine
1/2 cup white cooking wine
1 (.7 ounce) package dry Italian-style salad dressing mix
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
4 ounces sliced mushrooms

DIRECTIONS
Put frozen chicken, margarine, white wine, and dressing mix in slow cooker. Mix together and cook on low for 6 hours.
Add cream cheese and soup, mix together and shred chicken. Add mushrooms. Cook on high for another 1/2 hour or until heated through and warm.

Pasta Tossed With Parsley, Garlic, and Olive Oil.

I decided that it was time to do another post and since I won't be making any fancy dinners until Wednesday, I thought I would impart some new-found wisdom.

Lately me and Emi have been very much into garlic. Ever since I made the Sun-dried Tomato Chicken Rollups we just can't get enough of pasta tossed with parsley, garlic, and olive oil. It may not sound very tasty, but believe me it is! and I am one of those girls that usually likes very saucy pastas. Since I had to look up a recipe on how to make this pasta, I figure there might be other girls out there, like me that really don't know how to make it.

1 lb box of pasta (lately Emi and I have been favoring short pasta, like penne)
2-4 garlic cloves, minced (depending on your taste for garlic)
4 T. Olive oil
Fresh Parsley, chopped

1. Boil pasta according to directions on the box.
2. In a skillet, heat olive oil and garlic until garlic turns a golden brown color.
3. Remove from heat and add parsley.
4. Combine together with noodles.

It's as easy as that! Yum! I have served this to my family and some of our friends with various dishes and nobody can stop eating it!

The Ultimate Beef Stroganoff

I got this from here. I think this is my favorite recipe that I have tried so far from My Kitchen Cafe. I just barely ate it and my stomach is SO full and I only ate a small serving. I probably have enough meat and sauce left for two more meals and if you know my husband, you know that is a miracle! Yum! I had one reservation about making this and that was the apple juice, when I read that I thought to myself how gross that must be, but it turned out great and there didn't even seem to be a hint of apple in it. I don't think I would change anything about this recipe. I served my beef stroganoff over fettuccine noodles.

The Ultimate Beef Stroganoff

Put in crock pot:
2-3 pounds stew meat
1 tsp. salt
dash of pepper
1 onion, sliced

Mix in a bowl and pour over meat:
¼ tsp. garlic salt
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 ½ cups beef broth or stock (made up from cubes or granules)
1 tablespoon ketchup

Cook in crockpot on low for 7-8 hours or high for 4-5 hours. When cooked make a simple roux by whisking 1/3 cup flour with enough apple juice (about 5-6 tablespoons) to make a thick but still pourable flour mixture. Whisk the roux into the crockpot and add 4 ounces sliced mushrooms.

Cook on high for 15-30 minutes. Then stir in ½ cup sour cream. Serve over pasta, rice or baked potatoes.

Penne Rosa

This is on the menu to try sometime soon. I got this recipe from my brother who got it from here.

My brother is a big fan of the Noodles and Co. Penne Rosa, which I tried last night and as far as we can tell this is either a copycat recipe or very close. It is a very yummy dish and on first bite you think to yourself, "I can totally handle the red pepper." but as you keep eating your mouth slowly becomes inflamed! I would recommend less red pepper, but I'm going to give this a try to see if it tastes the same and then make a whole bunch of the sauce for my brother to keep frozen for an easy dinner for him that he will love.

I will be making it with chicken coated with Italian bread crumbs.

PENNE ROSA

1 1 lb box Penne pasta
1 tbsp cooking white wine
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp ground or crushed red pepper* (optional)
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup marinara/spaghetti sauce
1/4 cup sliced mushrooms (canned or fresh, drained)
1/4 cup baby spinach (packed)
1 14 oz. can italian-style diced tomatoes
Freshly grated parmesan (for garnish)
grilled chicken, sauteed shrimp, or asparagus** (for serving)

Boil pasta according to package directions; set aside.

In a large skillet, heat wine, oil, marinara, mushrooms, tomatoes and pepper over medium heat; stir liberally for 4-5 minutes.

Add pasta, mixing well. Add cream, continue stirring. Add spinach last, stirring until wilted.

Serve with fresh parmesan or feta cheese on top.

*For more spice, use white pepper.

**Best served with grilled chicken or sauteed shrimp. (Shrimp or chicken should be fully cooked before blending into pasta.) Also good with asparagus.

Crispy Chicken Parmesan

Crispy Chicken Parmesan
Grading scale: A
This is adapted from Campbell's Kitchen. I did a couple of things to make it easier and more tasteful to me. This is a good, easy meal and whenever people (including my husband) have tried it, I have gotten rave reviews.

2 cups Italian Bread Crumbs
4 boneless chicken breast halves
1 egg, beaten
1 jar Classico Traditional Sweet Basil (or your preferred spaghetti sauce)
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Sugar, Italian Seasoning, and Garlic powder to taste.

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Spray baking sheet with cooking spray (or cover baking sheet with aluminum foil -makes for easy clean up!)
2. Dip chicken into egg. Coat with crumbs. Place chicken on prepared baking sheet.
3. Bake 20- 25 minutes or until chicken is done.
4. Meanwhile, pour spaghetti sauce into a small sauce pan. I usually add a pinch of sugar and then sprinkle in Italian Seasoning and garlic powder. It tastes much more flavorful this way to me... Heat through.
5. Spoon pasta suace over chicken and sprinkle with cheese.

Serve with spaghetti or your preferred type of noodle.