Salted Nut Roll Bites

I love that these have honey and not a bunch of sugar.

 

makes about 30 "bites"

Ingredients

• ½ cup peanut butter
• ½ cup honey
• ½ tsp vanilla
• 1 cup nonfat dry milk
• 2 cups Honey Roasted Peanuts, finely chopped and divided
• about 30 mini marshmallows

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl combine peanut butter, honey, vanilla, dry milk and 1 cup of chopped peanuts. Stir until combined.
2. Portion out about one tablespoon of mixture, flatten and wrap it around a mini marshmallow.
3. Roll in remaining chopped nuts.
4. Repeat until all the mixture is used.

Salisbury Steak with Gravy

This is a perfect comfort meal for a cold winter night!

2 - pounds ground beef

1 - package Lipton’s Onion Soup Mix or Store Brand

1/2 - cup cracker crumbs

1 - egg

2 - packets (0.75 oz) brown gravy mix

+ the required amount of water stated on the gravy packet.

1 - cup sour cream

1 - small can mushroom stems, optional

egg noodles, rice or mashed potatoes

Make hamburger patties using ground beef, bread or cracker crumbs, egg and soup mix. Fry or grill until patties are browned on both sides. 

While the hamburgers are cooking in a bowl mix together the dry gravy mix, water and sour cream. Mix to combine. Spray. a 9 x 13 pan with nonstick and lay cooked patties in the pan.

Cover the patties with the sour cream and gravy mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees covered for 30 - 40 minutes, turning patties halfway through. Serve with egg noodles, rice or mashed potatoes.

Kung pao chicken (with noodles)

• 2 medium zucchini
• 1 teaspoon canola oil
• 6 oz skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1/2 red bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp fresh ground ginger
• 2 tbsp crushed dry roasted peanut

For the sauce:

• 1 1/2 tbsp reduced soy sauce (tamari for gluten free)
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp hoisin sauce
• 2 1/2 tbsp water
• 1/2 tbsp Sambal Oelek Red Chili Paste (or more to taste) I substituted with Sriracha hot chili sauce 
• 2 tsp sugar
• 2 tsp cornstarch

In a small bowl, whisk together soy sauce, balsamic, hoisin, water, red chili paste, sugar and cornstarch; set aside.

Season chicken with salt and pepper, to taste. Heat oil in a large, deep nonstick pan or wok over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until browned and cooked through, about 4 to 5 minutes. Set aside.

Reduce heat to medium, add sesame oil, garlic and ginger to the skillet and cook until fragrant, about  30 seconds. Add the bell pepper, stir in soy sauce mixture and bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until thickened and bubbling, about 1-2 minutes. Stir in zucchini noodles and cook, mixing for about two minutes until just tender and mixed with the sauce. If it seems dry, don't worry the zucchini will release moisture which helps create a sauce. Once cooked, mix in chicken and top with peanuts. 

I added a little chicken broth to mix and put it over angel hair pasta. 

Chicken Broccoli Alfredo Stuffed Shells

Made this for Aaron and Chad tonight and they devoured it:)

Ingredients: 

i jar (16 oz) alfredo sauce

2 cups cooked chicken, shredded

2 cups cooked brocolli, chopped

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/4 cup shredded parmesan

21 jumbo pasta shells, cooked

1 1/2 – 2 cups spaghetti sauce (optional, but I love the combination of alfredo with tomato sauce!)

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, mix alfredo, chicken, broccoli, and cheeses.  Spoon mixture into pasta shells.

Grease 13 x 9 baking dish with butter or cooking spray.  Evenly spread spaghetti sauce on bottom of baking dish.  Arrange shells in baking pan.  Cover with foil and bake 35 minutes until heated thru.

The Best Pie Crust

YIELD: MAKES 1 SINGLE 9-INCH PIE CRUST 

This recipe can be easily doubled for a double crust pie.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
• 10 tablespoons butter, frozen
• 1/2 cup sour cream (not lowfat or light), plus an additional tablespoon or three if needed

DIRECTIONS

1. In a medium bowl, lightly whisk together the flour, salt and sugar. 
2. Using the large holes of a box grater, grate the butter into the dry ingredients.
3. With a fork, toss the butter and flour mixture until the butter pieces are all evenly coated with flour. Don't break down the butter pieces in this step, just lightly toss until they are coated with flour.
4. Spoon the sour cream into the bowl. Using the same fork, mix the sour cream into the butter/flour mixture by pressing the fork down into the sour cream in order to mash the large clumps of sour cream into the flour and butter. A commenter suggested using a pastry blender which will help incorporate the sour cream a bit better. The sour cream won't mix in like a traditional pie crust with ice water. But take care not to overwork the dough trying to get the sour cream mixed in - if the butter pieces get too small and overprocessed, the crust will be tough. 
5. After a few turns with the fork, it is easiest to use your hands to pull the dough together. It will look a bit shaggy but as you press it together (quickly and firmly so the the butter pieces don't melt), it should start to form a cohesive ball. 
6. If it still seems overly dry, add a teaspoon or so of sour cream at a time until it comes together. 
7. It's ok if there are still a few dry spots or cracks in the dough. The mixture should not be overly wet or sticky. At the same time, it shouldn't be falling apart either. It should hold together when pressed (see the pictures below). Many of you have had to add quite a bit more sour cream. That's ok as long as the crust isn't overly saturated (then it will be dense and gummy). Much of that depends on how you measure flour - if you pack the flour into your measuring cup, you'll obviously need more sour cream (try to measure the flour with a light hand). 
8. At this point the dough can be rolled out on a lightly floured counter or it can also be pressed into a flat disc and wrapped in plastic to be refrigerated for 1-2 days or frozen for up to a month. 
9. To roll out, lightly flour your countertop and using firm, even strokes, roll from the center outward, turning the dough a quarter turn every few strokes. The less you mess with the dough the better - even rolling - so try not to overwork it. Roll it out to a thin crust as quickly as possible. 
10. Roll the dough over the rolling pin and unroll it onto the pie plate. Gently lift up the edges of the pie crust and settle it into the bottom of the pie plate without pressing or smushing. 
11. Trim the edges to within 1/4-inch. Fold the short overhang underneath the top edge of the pie plate and crimp all the way around. 
12. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes before using. To blind bake (prebake the pie crust), line the refrigerated crust with foil and fill with dry beans or pie weights. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Gently remove the foil and beans/weights and return to the oven to bake for another 10-12 minutes until nicely golden.

Recipe Source: Adapted and perfected from The Kitchen by Mel's Kitchen

My Favorite Pumpkin Pie

YIELD: MAKES 9-INCH PIE

I like to prebake the pie crust; it helps eliminate some of the gummy bottom crust common in pumpkin pie but if that doesn't bother you, you can forego that step and pour the filling into the unbaked pie shell. If you do that, still refrigerate the pie crust for an hour or so after placing it in the pan so it doesn't shrink while baking.

Also, if you are using homemade pumpkin puree, make sure it is as smooth as possible (run it through a blender or food processor again). 

INGREDIENTS

Crust:
• 1 single crust pie shell for a 9-inch pie plate (this is my favorite pie crust recipe)
Filling:
• 2 cups (or 15-ounce can) pumpkin puree (see note)
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup lightly packed brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• Pinch of cloves
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 2 large egg yolks
• 2/3 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup milk or half-and-half

DIRECTIONS

1. Roll out the pie crust (see this post for a step-by-step) and gently place it into a 9-inch pie plate, trimming and fluting the edges. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour (or up to a day or so). 
2. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line the crust with foil and pour in dried beans or pie weights (I've even used wheat berries) until completely full. Bake the pie crust for 15 minutes. Gently remove the foil and weights (or beans) and bake another 10 minutes until the dough no longer looks raw on the bottom. Remove from the oven while preparing the filling.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin, sugars, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves and vanilla until well-combined. Add the eggs, cream and milk and whisk until smooth (don't overmix or the pie will have a tendency to crack). 
4. Place the pie shell on a baking sheet and pour the filling into the warm pie shell.
5. Bake for 10 minutes, without removing the pie, reduce the temperature to 350 degrees F and bake for 45-55 minutes longer until the pie is set and golden on top. If the crust starts to overbrown, cover it with foil strips or a pie shield partway through baking. 
6. Serve with a dollop of sweetened whipped cream, if desired.

Recipe source: Mel's Kitchen

Spicy Tuscan Soup

Wow just realized I have posted one recipe in a year. I'm slackin' :) I love this soup from Olive Garden. Made it for dinner last night. Mmm! Ingredients • 1 pound Spicy Breakfast Sausage • 1 whole Medium Red Onion, Diced • 2 slices Bacon, Diced • 3 cloves Garlic, Minced • 3 whole Medium Potatoes • 1 quart Warm Water • 3 cubes Chicken Bouillon • ¼ bunches Kale, Roughly Chopped • ½ cups Heavy Cream • Salt And Pepper, to taste Preparation Crumble sausage into a Dutch oven and heat over medium-high heat until cooked through. Drain off the grease and set the sausage aside. Add onions and bacon into the Dutch oven. Reduce heat to medium and cook until onions are clear. Add minced garlic and cook for 1 minute. Slice potatoes in half lengthwise and cut into 1/4″ slices. Add warm water, bouillon cubes and potatoes to the Dutch oven and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes until potatoes are almost done. Add remaining ingredients as well as the sausage and simmer for 5 more minutes. Let cool and serve with warm garlic breadsticks. Enjoy! Recipe from Delicious Recipe Pins