Chow Mein

1 pkg stir fry noodles, cook as package directs
1 1/2 pounds diced chicken breast
1 small shallot, thinly sliced
3 cloves
garlic, minced
1 tsp ginger paste
2 tbsp peanut oil
1 carrot, julienned
2 cups beansprouts
1 tsp cornstarch
1 tbsp hoisin sauce
4 tbsp soy sauce
1 cup chicken stock


In a very hot wok add oil and stir fry chicken until cooked, remove from
wok then set aside. Lower the heat to medium high, then add garlic, ginger
and shallots. Toss carrots and stir fry for 30 seconds, remove from wok then set
aside. Mix corn starch with chicken stock, hoisin sauce, soy sauce and
pour into wok and bring to a boil. Add noodles and give it a
good mix making sure that all noodles are coated with the gravy.
Put back the cooked meat, vegetables and bean sprouts, stir for 1 minute then
serve.

Spring Rolls

2 ounces rice vermicelli
8 rice wrappers (8.5 inch
diameter)
1 1/3 tablespoons chopped
fresh basil
3 tablespoons chopped fresh
mint leaves
3 tablespoons chopped fresh
cilantro
2 leaves lettuce, chopped
4 teaspoons fish sauce
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tablespoons white sugar
1/2 teaspoon garlic chili sauce
Directions:
1. Bring a medium saucepan of water to boil. Boil rice vermicelli 3 to 5 minutes, or until al dente, and drain. 2. Fill a large bowl with warm water. Dip one wrapper into the hot water for 1 second to soften. Lay wrapper flat. In a row across the center, place 2 shrimp halves, a handful of vermicelli, basil, mint, cilantro and lettuce, leaving about 2 inches uncovered on each side. Fold uncovered sides inward, then tightly roll the wrapper, beginning at the end with the lettuce. Repeat with remaining ingredients. 3. In a small bowl, mix the fish sauce, water, lime juice, garlic, sugar and chili sauce. 4. In another small bowl, mix the hoisin sauce and peanuts. 5. Serve rolled spring rolls with the fish sauce

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I have a four week study going on with my sunday school class and the subject is watchdogs so I figured why not make treat bags for them. I can't wait to see the look on their face when they open their bags of dog bone. LOL Well shortbread dog bones that is. :o)

1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually stir in flour and mix well. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, about 3 minutes. Pat into a 1/3-in.-thick rectangle measuring 11 in. x 8 in.
Cut into 2-in. x 1-in. strips. Place 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Prick with a fork.
Bake at 300° for 25 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack. Yield: 3-1/2 dozen.

Bread Pudding

I was telling my daughter Kristine that I think something is wrong with me, (yes, those of you who know me already know this) anyhow, normal people talk about how much weight they have gained for the summer and decided to workout or diet. Well, then there is me.....I go make a bread pudding because I have left over hamburger and hot dog buns and some chocolate chunks and walnuts. How do I explain this and tell myself it is alright you wonder...well I remind myself that I am joining the gym tomorrow and will be good then. :o)


6 slices day-old bread (I used leftover hot dog and hamburger buns)
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup chocolate chunks
1 cup nuts
4 eggs, beaten
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup milk
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).


Break bread into small pieces into an 8 inch square baking pan. Drizzle melted butter or margarine over bread. Sprinkle with chocolate and nuts. In a medium mixing bowl, combine eggs, cream, milk, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla. Beat until well mixed. Pour over bread, and lightly push down with a fork until bread is covered and soaking up the egg mixture.
Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until the top springs back when lightly tapped.

This is so much better the next day cold, it reminds me of the bread pudding my grandmother use to make and a bakery we use to get bread pudding at when I was young. I am so glad I had left over buns and heavy cream I need to use up. This has got to be one of the best I have yet to make and just throwing it together was so worth it and I am glad I paid attention to what I did so I can make it again and have the recipe.

 * This would be good with dried fruit in place of the chocolate also.

• 
  

Quinoa Salad

1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa
1 can chick peas
1 bunch chopped up fresh parsley
1 finely chopped red onion
3 cups sliced cherry or grape tomatoes
1 yellow tomato chopped
1 large peeled and chopped hot house cucumber
1 lemon juice and peel grated
1/3 cup olive oil
sea salt to taste
Toss all ingredients together, chill and serve.

Turkey Chili

3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
1 1/2 pounds ground turkey
1 (1 ounce) package taco seasoning mix
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon chili pepper flakes
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 (14.5 ounce) can beef broth
1 (7 ounce) can salsa
1 (14.5 ounce) can crushed tomatoes, or coarsely chopped tomatoes packed in puree
1 (7 ounce) can chopped green chile peppers
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 cup plain yogurt
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
1 large can pinto beans
Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large stock pot over medium-high heat. Crumble turkey into the pot, stirring with a wooden spoon to break apart as much as possible. Season with taco seasoning mix, coriander, oregano, chili flakes, and tomato paste, and mix until meat is evenly coated with seasonings. Continue cooking, reducing heat if necessary, until turkey is well browned.
Pour in beef broth, and simmer to reduce liquid slightly, about 5 minutes. Add salsa, tomatoes, and green chilies,pinto beans and continue cooking at a moderate simmer for ten minutes. Adjust the thickness at any time you feel necessary by adding water.
While chili is still cooking, heat one tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook onion and green bell pepper, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes, or until onion is translucent and bell pepper is lightly browned. Add onion and bell pepper to the chili, and continue cooking at a very low simmer.
Adjust the consistency with water as needed.
Ladle chili into serving bowls. Top with yogurt, green onion, and cheddar cheese, and serve.

Chocolate Cake

My grandson turned 3 yesterday and his Daddy and Mommy had a pirate party for him today. I had some problems with the cake but he seemed to really like it. I sure am glad he is only three. The cookie recipe you will find on this page under cutout cookies and they are listed under memories, I was thinking yesterday about when I made that same recipe for his Mommy when she turned five.

2 cups hot coffee
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
2 1/4 cups white sugar
4 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease 3 - 9 inch round cake pans. In medium bowl, pour coffee over cocoa, and whisk until smooth. Let mixture cool. Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt; set aside.
In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at time, then stir in vanilla. Add the flour mixture alternately with the cocoa mixture. Spread batter evenly between the 3 prepared pans.
Bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Allow to cool.

Frozen Yogurt

I have been camping for the past ten days. We had two of our boys and three of their friends for seven of the ten days, then off and one two of my daughter, son, son-in-law and grandson came up to swim and join us for dinner, we had a blast. I am one who can't wait for camping trips to be over but I really want to go back. Anyhow back to the recipe and why we bought a ice cream make....Well we are going back camping the 4th of July and then we thought why not make our own ice cream while we are camping....then I thought okay lets make frozen yogurt so it will be a little healthy, if you notice my recipes I don't do a lot of healthy, I really did want to make this healthy but they I changed the recipe and did my own thing and I have to admit it is really good. :o)


2 cups  plain yogurt
2 cups pureed fresh strawberries
1 3/4 c whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
3 teaspoons vanilla extract

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients. Fill cylinder of ice cream freezer two-thirds full; freeze according to manufacturer's directions. Refrigerate remaining mixture until ready to freeze. Allow to ripen in ice cream freezer or firm up in refrigerator freezer 2-4 hours before serving. Remove from the freezer 30-45 minutes before serving

Coffee Cake

This is the coffee cake my family demans I bring camping with us.

1-½ stick butter, softened
2 cups sugar
3 cups flour, sifted
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1-¼ cup milk
3 whole egg whites, beaten til stiff


Topping:

1-½ stick butter, softened
¾ cups flour
1-½ cup brown sugar
2 Tablespoons cinnamon
1-½ cup pecans, chopped
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt
Beat egg whites and set aside

In same mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar
Add flour mixture and milk alternately until combined; don’t overbeat
Fold in beaten egg whites with a rubber spatula until just incorporated
Spread in a well-greased 9 x 13  baking pan
In a separate bowl, combine topping ingredients with a pastry cutter until crumbly. Sprinkle all over the top
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes til a toothpick inserted comes out clean and nicely brown on top. Mine seemed done but not brown, so I turned on convection heat for a few minutes

Club Sandwiches

My son has been talking about Club Sandwiches for awhile now so I figure I would make them for dinner. I did them just a little different this time. I know you all know how to make club sandwiches but I wanted to add it here for my son while he is away from home (he joined the Air Force)  he can come on here and look for recipes. :o)

This is why this  blog got started, my kids were getting older and moving out and they would call home for recipes, so I started a blog, it was not this one (I have no idea where the first one went) but I started adding recipes they ate while growing up and then it took off it to this somehow. I would love to find the first blog I started and add all those recipes here.

Wheat Bread
Bacon
Ham
Turkey
Avocado
Lettuce
Tomato
Mayo
Toast bread. One on slice add mayo, turkey, Bacon, tomatoes, add another slice of bread (My husband loves mayo so I put some on all of his slices ours only has it on the top and bottom) then add ham, avocado and lettuce and then add the last slice of toasted bread and cut into 1/4 and stick a tooth pick in each 1/4 to keep together.

Hot Wings

This is my favorite recipe for hot wings...

½ cup butter or margarine, melted
¼ cup hot pepper sauce
3 tablespoons vinegar
24 chicken wing drumettes
1 packet (1 ounce) Hidden Valley® Original Ranch® Salad Dressing & Seasoning Mix
½ teaspoon paprika
1 cup prepared, Hidden Valley® Original Ranch® Salad Dressing & Seasoning Mix
celery sticks

Preheat oven to 350ºF.

In small bowl, whisk together butter, pepper sauce and vinegar. Dip drumettes in butter mixture; arrange in single layer in large baking pan. Sprinkle with salad dressing mix. Bake until chicken is browned, 30 to 40 minutes. Sprinkle with paprika.

Serve with salad dressing and celery sticks.

Chicken Fried Chicken

30 saltine crackers
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons dry potato flakes
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 egg
1/4 cup vegetable oil
6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

Place crackers in a large resealable plastic bag; seal bag and crush crackers until they are coarse crumbs. Add flour, potato flakes, seasoned salt, and pepper to bag and mix well. Beat egg in a shallow dish or bowl; heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. One by one, dredge chicken pieces in egg beat, then place in bag with crumb mixture, seal bag and shake to coat. Reduce heat to medium and cook coated chicken in skillet for 15 to 20 minutes, turning frequently, until golden brown and juices run clear.

Lentil Soup

1 pound French green lentils

4 cups chopped yellow onions (3 large onions)
4 cups chopped leeks, white part only (2 leeks)
1 tablespoon minced garlic (3 cloves)
1/4 cup good olive oil, plus additional for drizzling on top
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 cups medium-diced celery (8 stalks)
3 cups medium-diced carrots (4 to 6 carrots)
3 quarts chicken stock
1/4 cup tomato paste
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese


In a large bowl, cover the lentils with boiling water and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Drain.



In a large stockpot on medium heat, saute the onions, leeks, and garlic with the olive oil, salt, pepper, thyme, and cumin for 20 minutes, until the vegetables are translucent and very tender. Add the celery and carrots and saute for 10 more minutes. Add the chicken stock, tomato paste, and lentils. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 1 hour, until the lentils are cooked through. Check the seasonings. Serve hot, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with grated Parmesan

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Turkey Pot Pie

I always buy an extra turkey at Thanksgiving so I decided to bake it and figure out what I was going to do with it later.
After making turkey avocado sandwiches I decided to make pot-pies with the rest.


Chopped up turkey
2 cup frozen peas and carrot mixture
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon celery seed
1 3/4 cups broth from the juices you baked the turkey in, you can add more broth if there was not enough.
2/3 cup milk

2 (9 inch) unbaked pie crusts

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C.)
In the saucepan over medium heat, cook onions in butter until soft and translucent. Stir in flour, salt, pepper, and celery seed. Slowly stir in broth and milk. Simmer over medium-low heat until thick. Remove from heat and set aside.
Place the turkey/veggie mixture in bottom pie crust. Pour hot liquid mixture over. Cover with top crust, seal edges, and cut away excess dough. Make several small slits in the top to allow steam to escape.
Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

 
 

Apple Bars

1/2 cup Dried apples
1/2 cup Organic Medjool Date
1/2 cup Almonds (unsalted)
1/2 cups walnuts (unsalted)
3 tsp Cinnamon.

Place dates and apples in a food processor and pulse to make into paste. Addnuts and cinnamon and pulse mixture to grind up. Press into a loaf pan linedwith plastic wrap. Or you can roll into balls and roll in unsweetenedcoconut.

Chicago School Peanut Butter Cookies

These are my favorite peanut butter recipe, I have been making them for years.

1 1/4 pound (5 sticks) butter, softened

2 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1 3/4 cups brown sugar, packed

1 pound peanut butter

3 eggs

5 1/2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

Heat oven to 375 degrees F. In a large bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add both sugars and mix until no granules remain, about 5 minutes. Add peanut butter and mix until combined. Add eggs; continue to beat on high speed for 1 minute. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. Slowly add flour mixture to butter mixture; stir until well-blended. Drop dough by heaping tablespoonsful onto greased baking sheets. Flatten dough with palm of hand to form 3-inch circles that are 1/4 inch thick. Bake cookies for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned on the bottom

Apple Spice Friendship Bread

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup Amish Friendship Bread Starter (Recipe below this one, needs 11 days to make starter)
• 3 eggs
• 2/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 2 apples - peeled, cored and finely chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Lightly grease two 9x5 inch loaf pans. Sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon nutmeg, cloves, baking soda and salt, set aside
In a large mixing bowl, stir together the Amish Friendship Starter, eggs, oil and vanilla. Gradually stir in the sifted ingredients until just blended. Finally stir in the chopped nuts and apples. Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared pans.
Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a loaf comes out clean.

Friendship Bread Starter

So I started the recipe for the starter seven days ago and I have to say it is one of the best Starters I have ever made, in a few days I will be making the bread to go with this. I seen the book forsale at Costco but was in a hurry so I was not able to get it. I think it would make a wonderful Mother's Day gift, or a gift for any reason with a bag of the starter and a loaf of bread. I will post the link to her page, she has a lot of recipes on there I have only made a pumpkin Friendship bread so I am pretty excited to try out a lot of the recipes, there is even a weight watchers recipe.
http://www.friendshipbreadkitchen.com/
Amish Friendship Bread starter is passed from one friend or neighbor to another, usually in a Ziploc bag or ceramic container.
Starter Ingredients
1 (0.25 oz) package dry active yeast
¼ cup warm water (110 degrees F)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup white sugar
1 cup milk
1. In a small bowl, dissolve the yeast in water. Let stand for 10 minutes.
2. In a glass, plastic or ceramic container, combine flour and sugar. Mix thoroughly.
3. Slowly add in milk and dissolved yeast mixture. Cover loosely and let stand at room temperature until bubbly, and then transfer to a plastic bag. This is Day One of the ten-day cycle.
4. For the next 10 days, care for your starter according to the below instructions. Do not refrigerate the starter. It is normal for the batter to rise and ferment. If air gets in the bag, let it out. Do not use a metal bowl or spoon.

Day 1: Do nothing
Days 2 – 5: Mash the bag.
Day 6: Add to the bag 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, 1 cup milk. Mash the bag.
Days 7 – 9: Mash the bag.
Day 10: Pour entire bag into a nonmetal bowl. Add 1-½ cup flour, 1-½ cup sugar, 1-1/2 cup milk. Measure out 4 separate batters of 1 cup each into four one-gallon plastic bags. Keep one the bags for yourself and give the other bags to three friends along with this recipe.

Baking Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

2. Put the remaining batter in a bowl and add the following:

3 eggs
1 cup oil
1/2 cup milk
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1-½ teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups flour
1-2 boxes instant pudding (any flavor)
1 cup nuts, chopped (optional)
1 cup raisins (optional)

3. Grease two large loaf pans.
4. In a bowl, mix an additional ½ cup sugar and 1-½ tsp cinnamon.
5. Dust the greased pans with sugar/cinnamon mixture.
6. Pour the batter evenly inot the pans and sprinkle the remaining mixture on the top.
7. Bake for one hour or until the bead loosens evenly from the sides and a toothpick inserted in the center of the bread comes out clean.

Pretzels

4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 teaspoon white sugar
1 1/4 cups warm water (110
degrees F/45 degrees C)
5 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1/3 cup baking soda
4 cups hot water
1/4 cup kosher salt, for topping
In a small bowl, dissolve yeast and 1 teaspoon sugar in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
In a large bowl, mix together flour, 1/2 cup sugar, and salt. Make a well in the center; add the oil and yeast mixture. Mix and form into a dough. If the mixture is dry, add one or two tablespoons of water. Knead the dough until smooth, about 7 to 8 minutes. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). In a large bowl, dissolve baking soda in hot water.
When risen, turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 12 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a rope and twist into a pretzel shape.
Once all of the dough is all shaped, dip each pretzel into the baking soda solution and place on a greased baking sheet. Sprinkle with kosher salt. Bake in preheated oven for 8 minutes, until browned.

OK, I have to say before you go looking at the photo below, my 15 year old son and myself should never be allowed in the kitchen together. He wanted to make pretzels and we were the only ones home so I figured we would, it turned into a snake eating a mouse. Then I had the crazy idea of adding red food coloring for special effects. But he had fun and that is all that matters in the end....well.....

Cake Pops

I will have a few recipes to post today and tomorrow for you all. I just hope I remember to take photos, I get so busy anymore I forget about the picture until it has all been eaten.
So last night my daughter and I were making cake pops and then I got a sweet little surprise helper who came over, my grandson Noah. He did such a great job making cake pops and then he took a bag home for his friends.
Here is the photo of the cake pops we made.
http://www.bakerella.com/category/pops-bites/cake-pops/
I need a lot of work on mine, I have no idea how she gets hers to look so good, we have figured it is wood she is working with as the pop. LOL

 

Cinnamon Rolls

1 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
2 1/2 teaspoons yeast
2 eggs, room temperature
1/3 cup margarine, melted
4 1/2 cups bread flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup white sugar
Filling
1 cup brown sugar, packed
2 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
Frosting
1/3 cup butter, soften
1 (3 ounce) package cream cheese, soften
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt

We are having a breakfast at church tomorrow morning, what better way to start it off then getting the kids all full of sugar. :o)
• Place yeast and water in a bowl until creamy, mix with next five ingredients. Mix well, knead on a flour surface for about five minutes. Put into a large oil bowl and cover with a cloth until double in size.
After the dough has doubled in size turn it out onto a lightly floured surface, cover and let rest for 10 minutes. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar and cinnamon. Roll dough into a 16x21 inch rectangle. Spread dough with 1/3 cup butter and sprinkle evenly with sugar/cinnamon mixture. Roll up dough and cut into 12 rolls. Place rolls in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking pan. Cover and let rise until nearly doubled, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Bake rolls in preheated oven until golden brown, about 15 minutes. While rolls are baking, beat together cream cheese, 1/4 cup butter, confectioners' sugar, vanilla extract and salt. Spread frosting on warm rolls before serving.

•  

Carrot Cake

                                                                           Happy Easter

4 eggs
1 1/4 cups vegetable oil
2 cups white sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 cups grated carrots
1 cup chopped pecans

1/2 cup butter, softened
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
4 cups confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan.
2. In a large bowl, beat together eggs, oil, white sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla. Mix in flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Stir in carrots. Fold in pecans. Pour into prepared pan.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.
4. To Make Frosting: In a medium bowl, combine butter, cream cheese, confectioners' sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Stir in chopped pecans. Frost the cooled cake.

PHILLY Dinnertime Dilemma House Party

I signed up to host a PHILLY Dinnertime Dilemma House Party and was picked as one of the winners. It does not take much for me to host a dinner party anyhow any excuse for a get together. It was a strange week to host the Party but I thought we needed a break from all the stress from the week, my husband had surgery at 1:00am Thursday morning and then some other medical problems going on in our family so this was nice.
All it takes is spending time with family to make you forget all your troubles.

Well anyhow back to the dinner....
I was to use the new Philadelphia cooking creme on a  recipe and invite a few people over, I decided to try two of their recipes and change them up a little. I got some coupons for buy one get one free, a nice frying pan, 14 page pamphlet with recipes, magnets, wooden spoons, coupons for $1.00 off, note pad and a cooking mitt.

Here are a few recipes I tried

Lemon-Broccoli with Rice and Chicken

1 T olive oil
1 lb boneless chicken breast, cut into strips.
1 clove garlic
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tub (10oz) Philadelphia garlic cooking creme
2 cups broccoli, blanched, then cut into florets.
2 tsp lemon zest
2 cups hot rice

Heat oil in a large skillet on medium-high heat. Add chicken, garlic and pepper; cook 5-6 minutes or until chicken is done, stirring frequently.
Add cooking creme and broccoli; cook and stir 2 minutes. Stir in lemon zest.
Serve over rice.

The other recipe I made was...

1/2 lb bacon cut into 1/2 inch pieces.
1/2 cup chopped red onions
1 lb asparagus, cut into 1" pieces
1 tub (10 oz) Philadelphia Italian Cheese and Herb cooking Creme
1/2 cup milk
1 cup frozen peas
1/2 lb fettuccine, cooked

Cook bacon in a large skillet until crisp. Remove bacon from skillet with splotted spoon, reserving 2 T drippings in skillet. Drain bacon on paper towel.
Stir onions and asparagus into drippings; cook and stir 3 minutes or until crisp tender. Add Creme, milk and peas;cook three minutes. Add bacon and pasta; stir to coat.

I served this with Jalapeno cheddar bread and olive bread along with a salad and strawberries. For dessert I threw, and trust me when I said threw together some brownies and my daughter brought over some yummy Blondie's.

 Go to http://www.kraftbrands.com/philly/Pages/default.aspx and check out some recipes and give it a try.
I think they would be great on a bagel, or as a dip on crackers or veggie as a quick snack. I would love to make a chicken, bacon pizza with the garlic creme. I will be posting a few more recipes once I try them. Since I has nine people eating at my house I doubled the recipes I posted above and have left overs for tomorrows lunch.
I bet a potato soup would be great with the garlic creme....there is also a South Western one I want to try next.
Here are the recipes for the brownies. I kind of measured the ingredients but not to the exact amount but this will give you an idea.

Brownies
3/4 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup instant coffee (do not add water, add dry)

1 1/2 cups white sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 eggs

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease an 8 inch square pan.               

In a large bowl, blend melted butter, sugar and vanilla. Beat in eggs one at a time. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt. Gradually blend into the egg mixture. Spread the batter into the prepared pan.               

Bake in preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes, or until brownies begin to pull away from the sides of the pan. Let brownies cool then move on to the next step.

1 8oz Philadelphia cream cheese

1/4 cup sugar

1 cup vanilla yogurt

Beat cream cheese with sugar until whipped, fold in yogurt. Spread on top of cooled brownie, chill in the fridge and then top with frosting recipe below.

1 1/2 cup soften butter

powder sugar....Make as sweet as you want I just poured it from a bag, maybe 4 cups  

vanilla

milk I added between 1/4-1/2 cup

Whip ingredients together until smooth and add on top of the cream cheese mixture on top of brownies.             

Lentil Soup

1 pound French green lentils
4 cups chopped yellow onions (3 large onions)
4 cups chopped leeks, white part only (2 leeks)
1 tablespoon minced garlic (3 cloves)
1/4 cup good olive oil, plus additional for drizzling on top
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 cups medium-diced celery (8 stalks)
3 cups medium-diced carrots (4 to 6 carrots)
3 quarts chicken stock
1/4 cup tomato paste
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese


In a large bowl, cover the lentils with boiling water and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Drain.



In a large stockpot on medium heat, saute the onions, leeks, and garlic with the olive oil, salt, pepper, thyme, and cumin for 20 minutes, until the vegetables are translucent and very tender. Add the celery and carrots and saute for 10 more minutes. Add the chicken stock, tomato paste, and lentils. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 1 hour, until the lentils are cooked through. Check the seasonings. Serve hot, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with grated Parmesan

Apple Bars

These are a little like the Larabars.

1/2 cup Dried apples
1/2 cup Organic Medjool Date
1/2 cup Almonds (unsalted)
1/2 cups walnuts (unsalted)
3 tsp Cinnamon.

 Place dates and apples in a food processor and pulse to make into paste. Addnuts and cinnamon and pulse mixture to grind up. Press into a loaf pan linedwith plastic wrap. Or you can roll into balls and roll in unsweetenedcoconut.