Garlic Cheddar Biscuits

It's been years and years since I've been to Red Lobster because I don't eat seafood, so, in my opinion, the biscuits are the best thing on the menu.  These biscuits are pretty close to the ones you get at Red Lobster.  It is hard to eat just one!

Garlic Cheddar Biscuits
From Gimme Some Oven

2 cups buttermilk biscuit mix (such as Bisquick or Jiffy)
1 cup cheddar cheese, grated
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
2/3 cup milk
2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Prepare a baking sheet with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, mix together biscuit mix, cheese and garlic powder.  Add in milk, and stir until well mixed.  (Heads up – the dough will get very sticky!)

With a spoon or with your fingers, shape the dough into biscuit-sized clumps, and drop onto the baking sheet.  (Note that the dough will pretty much hold its shape when baked, so feel free to pat down random peaks in the dough if you’d like them to look more uniform!)

Bake for 10-13 minutes, or until biscuits begin to brown slightly around the edges.

While the biscuits bake, prepare the warm butter mixture by mixing together the melted butter, oregano and garlic salt in a small bowl.  As soon as the biscuits are removed from the oven, brush the biscuits (while they are still on the baking sheet) with the mixture until they are well-coated.

Serve warm.

Note: I don't have garlic salt, so I substitute with 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder and 1/8 teaspoon salt.
  

Cheesy Vegetable Chowder

We rarely eat vegetarian meals at our house, but this soup is really good!  It has a nice cheesy flavor, but isn't too rich, and it's full of veggies.  Pair it with some bread and it's great for a cold night!

Cheesy Vegetable Chowder
From Southern Living Christmas Cookbook

3 1/2 cups chicken broth
8 celery ribs, sliced
4 carrots, sliced
2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 cups frozen whole kernel corn, thawed
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
2 cups (8 oz.) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

Bring first 6 ingredients to a boil in a Dutch oven.  Cover, reduce heat to medium, and simmer 15 to 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender.  Remove from heat, and stir in corn.

Melt butter in a heavy saucepan over low heat; add flour, whisking until smooth.  Cook 1 minute, whisking constantly.  Gradually whisk in milk; cook over medium heat, whisking constantly until mixture is thickened and bubbly.  Add cheese, stirring until blended.

Stir cheese mixture gradually into vegetable mixture.  Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thoroughly heated.  

Simple Mac and Cheese

This is mac and cheese in it's simplest form - only 4 ingredients!  Some might not like this because it doesn't have a creamy sauce, but we love it for it's simple, cheesy tang.  When I was pregnant with Ezra this was one of my few cravings.  And in full disclosure, this recipe came from Aaron.  He doesn't cook often, but when he does it's always good!  Unless he's making jambalaya, but that's a story for another time...

Simple Mac and Cheese
An Aaron Kahler original

1 16-ounce box macaroni
4 tablespoons butter, softened
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, grated
2 tablespoons mustard

Cook macaroni according to directions on the package.  Drain water and return to pot but remove from the heat.  Quickly add remaining ingredients and stir until cheese and butter are melted and all is well combined.  Feel free to add more butter and/or cheese if you desire an even richer taste! 

Barbecue-Style Pork Chops

This is the second Paula Deen recipe I've posted and there isn't a single tablespoon of butter in either one!  Poor Paula...she gets a bad rap and these pork chops really aren't bad for you.  They are great with some mac and cheese (which does have butter and I'll share tomorrow) and green beans!

Barbecue-Style Pork Chops
From The Lady & Sons by Paula Deen

6 center-cut pork chops, trimmed of fat
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 14 1/2-ounce can whole tomatoes, crushed
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons prepared mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Brown pork chops in oil.  Drain, then place in a 13x9-inch baking dish.  Combine remaining ingredients and spoon over chops.  Bake for 45 minutes.  

Fried Rice

This is a great recipe to make my husband happy!  He would fit in well in Asian countries because he could probably live on rice alone.  I like it because it's pretty easy and makes a ton!  It doesn't taste exactly like what you would find at a Chinese restaurant, but it's definitely tasty!

Fried Rice
Adapted from Cooking Light

4 cups cold cooked rice
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 cups chicken or ham, cooked and chopped
1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
2 1/2 teaspoons dark sesame oil
2-3 large eggs, scrambled
1 small can peas and carrots

Cook the rice the day before you plan to make this.  Refrigerate overnight.  Before cooking, break up rice with hands or forks to remove clumps.

Heat a wok or skillet over medium-high heat.  Add oil to pan.  Add onion and garlic and cook until onion begins to brown.  Add meat and cook a few more minutes.  Add cold rice, stir and cook 2 minutes.  Stir in soy sauce and sesame oil.  Add scrambled eggs and peas and carrots.  Stir and cook a few minutes more until mixture is warmed completely through. 

Honey Lime Taquitos with Chipotle Lime Ranch Sauce

These tasted a lot better than they look.  But when you have a crying, hungry baby, very little daylight and just a point-and-shoot camera this is what you get.

Aaron and I both agreed that these were a little too sweet, so I've adjusted the recipe below to the way I would make it next time.  I did like the combo of spicy, tangy and sweet from the chipotle, lime and honey.  These would be great for the Super Bowl!

Honey Lime Taquitos
Adapted from Plain Chicken

1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup lime juice
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 pound chicken breasts
mesquite marinade (I used Lawry's)
corn tortillas
pepper jack cheese, grated
cooking spray
Kosher salt

Cook the chicken in a crockpot in mesquite marinade.  You can use just marinade or you can also add water.  Once cooked, drain the juices and shred the chicken.

Mix together honey, lime juice, chili powder and garlic powder.  Mix in the chicken.  Let chicken marinate in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.

Soften tortillas in the microwave, covered by a damp paper towel, until they are pliable and won't crack when you roll them up.  Work with just a few tortillas at a time so they will stay hot.

Place some cheese and chicken in the tortilla and roll it up.  Place seam-side down on a lightly greased cookie sheet.  Once all tortillas have been rolled, lightly spray the taquitos with cooking spray and sprinkle with Kosher salt.  Bake at 425 for about 15-20 minutes.


Chipotle Lime Ranch Sauce
Adapted from Plain Chicken

 1/2 cup ranch dressing
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 tablespoon lime juice
2 chipotle peppers in adobo

Puree all ingredients in food processor.  Serve chilled. 

Pot Roast

Who doesn't love a good crockpot meal?  Next time I make this I'll have to figure out how to make brown gravy.

Pot Roast
Adapted from Paula Deen's recipe

1 3-pound boneless chuck roast
1/4 cup olive oil
salt
pepper
garlic powder
onion powder
1 onion, thinly sliced
3 bay leaves
3-4 beef bouillon cubes, crumbled
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 can cream of mushroom soup
4 cups beef broth
water

Sprinkle roast on all sides with salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder.  Heat oil in skillet over medium heat.  Add roast and brown on all sides.

Place roast in crockpot.  Add all ingredients and add enough water to cover the roast.  Cook on low setting for 8 hours. 

Mexican Rice

This recipe comes from my favorite food blog, Plain Chicken.  It's quick and easy and has just the right amount of kick!

Mexican Rice
Adapted from Plain Chicken

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup uncooked white rice
2 cups chicken broth
1 can diced tomatoes and green chilies, drained and pulsed in food processor
1 teaspoon onion powder
2 teaspoons chili powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Heat oil over medium heat in a medium skillet.  Add rice, stir to coat rice in oil and cook until the rice starts to toast and turn brown.  Add remaining ingredients and stir.  Cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until the rice is cooked and the liquid is absorbed.

Banana Cake with Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting

My baby boy will be 1 year old this coming Wednesday!  So hard to believe.  He loves bananas, so what better way to celebrate than with banana cupcakes?!

I think he enjoyed his first sugary treat!  Once he figured out what to do with it, he shoved the cupcake in his mouth and slowly devoured it without really chewing at all.  We had some good laughs watching it go down!

The first picture (with the candle) show's Ezra's cupcake, which had plain cream cheese frosting (no peanut butter).  These cupcakes have the peanut butter frosting...delicious!

Banana Cake with Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
From New Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book

Cake:
2 eggs
2 1/4 cups flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 3)
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup shortening
1 teaspoon vanilla

Allow eggs to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.  Meanwhile, grease and lightly flour two 8 or 9-inch round cake pans or 1 9x13-inch pan or place cupcake liners in muffin pan.  Set pans aside.

Mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  In a mixing bowl mix bananas, buttermilk, shortening and vanilla.  Gradually add flour mixture to banana mixture until combined.  Add eggs; beat on medium speed for 2 minutes.  Pour batter into prepared pan(s).

Bake at 350 until slightly brown and a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean.  Cool completely, then frost.

Frosting:
6 ounces cream cheese, softened
4 tablespoons (1/2 a stick) butter, softened
2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
2 teaspoons vanilla
6 cups sifted powdered sugar
splash of milk

Beat all ingredients except sugar and milk until light and fluffy.  Gradually add sugar (add more or less to taste).  Add milk, if needed, to reach a spreadable consistency.

Note:  The peanut butter cream cheese frosting is my adaptation on the cook book's plain cream cheese frosting.  Feel free to adapt to your taste (more or less cream cheese, peanut butter and/or butter).  To make plain cream cheese frosting, omit peanut butter, increase cream cheese to 8 ounces and increase butter to 8 tablespoons (1 stick). 

Spiced Tea

Do you have little indulgences that make you feel rich?  For my husband it's buying popcorn at the movie.  They charge you out the wazoo for it, so we hardly ever buy it, but every once in a while he'll splurge and enjoy feeling rich on a $5.00 bag of popcorn.
I recently discovered this little indulgence, and it's way cheaper than popcorn at the movie!  My mom has been making this tea for a long time, but I never gave it a good try until I was at my parents' house for New Year's.  I sat down to drink a glass of this tea while Ezra was taking his afternoon nap, and I felt like I was drinking a fancy Starbucks drink that I didn't have to pay an arm and a leg for!  Nice!  If a glass of tea can make my day feel indulgent I'm all for it.
I'll warn you though - whole cloves (see below) can be expensive.  I found this out when WalMart only carried 1 brand and a jar cost over $10.00.  So I made a trip to HEB and found a smaller jar for about $3.75.  Doesn't hurt to shop around sometimes!

Spiced Tea
From Joanna Knox

Water
2 large tea bags
2 teaspoons whole cloves
1 1/4 cup sugar
1 1/3 cup orange juice
juice of 1-2 lemons

Fill 2 quart pot with water and bring to a boil.  Once boiling, remove from heat and add tea bags and cloves.  Let the tea steep.  How long you let it steep depends on how strong you like your tea.  I like mine fairly strong, so I let it go for about 10-12 minutes.  Throw away the tea bags and strain out the cloves.  Add sugar and juices and stir well.

Note: This tea can be served hot or cold.  I prefer mine cold - not iced, chilled in the refrigerator.  

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bars

These are great if you love any combo of peanut butter and chocolate like I do!  They're chewy, slightly gooey and have the perfect balance of salty peanut butter and rich chocolate.  I found them on one of my favorite blogs, Sing For Your Supper.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bars
Originally from Bake at 350

6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup peanut butter (I used creamy)
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon course salt (I used Kosher)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.  Lightly grease an 8x8" pan.
Mix together flour, salt and baking powder.  Set aside.
Cream the butter and peanut butter together until smooth.  Beat in the sugars until combined.  Add the vanilla and then the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition.  Mix in the flour mixture.  Stir in the chips.
Spread the batter into the pan.  Bake for 30-32 minutes.  Cool completely before cutting.

Note: This recipe can be doubled and baked in a 9x13" pan. 

Pie Crust

My mama would tell you you're a wimp if you don't make your own pie crust.  I'll hang my head low as I shamefully admit that sometimes I don't, but it really does taste better when it's homemade, and it's easy!

Pie Crust
From my mama, Joanna Knox, who got this recipe from some chick named Betty

1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon shortening
2-3 tablespoons cold water
extra flour for dusting

Mix flour and salt.  Cut the shortening into the mix with a pastry cutter.  Add water 1 tablespoon at a time and mix in until dough seems to be the right consistency that you can roll it out.  Shape dough into a ball.  Flour the dough ball, working surface and rolling pin.  Smash the dough ball some so that it's like a thick, round pancake and begin to roll.  Roll it out until it's slightly bigger than the top of your pie plate.  Place in your pie plate or on top of your pie, crimp and/or trim the edges and bake according to pie recipe.  Makes 1 crust.

Notes:
1. You may want to roll this out on some wax paper if you're afraid you won't be able to pick it up in one piece off your working surface.
2. The crust will be more flaky if you either use cold shortening to begin with or wrap the dough up and let it chill for about 45 minutes after mixing. 

Chicken Pot Pie

This recipe comes from my mother-in-law, Linda.  I love it, although somehow it always tastes better when she makes it.  I think food in general tastes better when someone else has made it for you.  I've modified her recipe slightly to be sure it won't bubble over too much.  You can also use turkey for this recipe.  That's what I did this time because we had tons left over after Christmas.  Enjoy this great comfort food!

Chicken Pot Pie
From Linda Kahler

2-3 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped
1 can Veg-all or mixed veggies
1 can cream of chicken soup (I use the low sodium kind)
2/3 cup chicken broth
4 tablespoons butter, melted
seasonings to your liking
1 unbaked pie crust

Combine all ingredients except pie crust in a bowl and mix together.  Pour into a pie plate.  Top with pie crust and make it look pretty!  Cut a few slits in the crust to allow steam and juices to escape.  Bake at 350 until bubbly and crust starts to brown, or follow the directions on the box if you use a store-bought crust.

Notes:
1.  You can use 2 crusts - one on top and one on bottom.  This would taste even better, but I just use one on top to make it a little healthier.
2.  IMPORTANT - I highly recommend placing a rimmed cookie sheet under the pie plate when you bake this so that it doesn't bubble over to the bottom of your oven and make a giant mess.

Pizza Chicken

Hi!  Welcome to my blog!  I've toyed with the idea of starting a blog for a long time, but I'm such a perfectionist that I've always talked myself out of it because I know it won't look very nice.  I'm learning to get over my perfectionist ways, so I decided to go for it.  I want a place to keep all my recipes, and I hope keeping a record of them will challenge me to try more new ones.  I hope you will enjoy them as well!

I found this recipe in Cooking Light.  I made a few changes because I rarely stick to a recipe unless I'm baking.  I only used dried herbs, and I used spaghetti sauce instead of marinara, as the original recipe calls for.  I almost always buy the onions and garlic flavored WalMart brand of spaghetti sauce because I'm cheap like that!  But you could even spring for the $6+ Emeril brand if your little heart so desires!  All 3 of us really enjoyed this (relatively) healthy meal.  My adapted version is below.

Pizza Chicken
Adapted from Cooking Light

cooking spray
16 slices pepperoni, chopped (I used turkey pepperoni)
1 1/2 cups spaghetti sauce
garlic powder, to taste
dried oregano, to taste
dried basil, to taste
olive oil
1 1/2 lbs. chicken tenders
1 cup shredded mozzarella

Preheat broiler to high.
Spray a small saucepan with cooking spray.  Add pepperoni and cook over medium-high heat for 2 minutes, stirring often.  Add spaghetti sauce and herbs and heat over medium-low heat while chicken cooks.
Heat a large oven-proof skillet over medium-high heat.  Add oil to pan and swirl to coat.  Salt and pepper chicken tenders to taste and add to skillet.  Cook chicken until cooked all the way through, turning at least once.
Spoon sauce over chicken and sprinkle with cheese.  Place skillet under broiler and cook until cheese melts and begins to brown.