Delicious Dessert: Apple Crisp

Hey Y'all!!! I hope you had a wonderful long weekend!! I know we did - filled with the three 'F's: friends, family, and fun!  More on that tomorrow =)

Yesterday I was charged with the task of making a dessert.  I was going to use my default: chocolate chip cookies or cupcakes.  When I got to the store, I found I wanted something more refreshing - something more in line with summer [read: side of ice cream].  I took to Pinterest - thank goodness for this site, am I right?! Google is great and all, but Pinterest knows exactly what I need.

I came across this recipe by Love, Pomegranate House.
It seemed relatively easy and the ingredients consisted mostly of items I would normally have at home.  The apples were the only item listed that I needed to buy.

Apple Crisp

{Ingredients}

10 cups apples cored and sliced (I read 10 apples yesterday when I made this!)
1 cup white sugar
1 tbsp flour
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup water (this is not always necessary as sugar makes the apples release juices)
2 cups quick cooking oats
2 cups flour
2 cups brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 cup butter softened

{How To}

1. Preheat the oven to 350*
2. Toss sliced apples (I diced mine into squares) with white sugar, flour, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Place coated apples in a 9x13 pan. Pour water evenly over mixture (you don't NEED the water....I did this but found that I would have been fine without.  It made for a runny mixture after it baked)
3. Combine oats, flour, brown sugar, baking powder, and baking soda in a large bowl.  Cut the butter into the mixture - **I actually mostly melted the butter for this step so that I could get the dry mixture wet to create a dough-like mixture.
4.  Crumble evenly over the apple mixture
5. Bake for 45 minutes.  Allow to cool for 10 minutes.
6. Serve with vanilla ice cream*

Number six was MY addition =) It was delicious with a little ice cream! This was such a quick and easy recipe.  What took longest was the baking.   The Husband loved the crumble so much, he suggested we make that piece alone without the apples.

Did you try any new recipes this weekend?

Another New Recipe

sooo with The Husband working as much as he has been, I have been morphing into a real Suzie-Homemaker! I'm working very hard to come up with new recipes. I am SO tired of eating the same stuff all. the. TIME! I am constantly looking for different things to cook - allrecipes.com is my new best friend. of course you can always find some pretty yummy ideas on Pinterest - but I reserve my pinterest recipe finding for drinks and desserts =)

Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Ingredients

·   2 cups chicken broth

·  1 cup water

·  1 cooked, boneless chicken breast halves, shredded

   1/2 (4.5 ounce) package quick cooking long grain and wild rice with seasoning packet

·  1/4 teaspoon salt

   1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

·  1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

   1/4 cup butter

·  1 cup heavy cream 

via allrecipes.com

Directions

1. In a large pot over medium heat, combine broth, water and chicken. Bring just to boiling, then stir in rice, reserving seasoning packet. Cover and remove from heat.
2. In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper and flour. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in contents of seasoning packet until mixture is bubbly. Reduce heat to low, then stir in flour mixture by tablespoons, to form a roux. Whisk in cream, a little at a time, until fully incorporated and smooth. Cook until thickened, 5 minutes.
3. Stir cream mixture into broth and rice. Cook over medium heat until heated through, 10 to 15 minutes.

 Where do you get your new recipe ideas??

Kiwi Strawberry Tartlets

aaaaaaaaaaannnndddd welcome back!!!! 

I hope you had an amazing weekend =) 

The Husband and I had a couple over for dinner on Friday night.  This couple lived across from us at the old house and we haven't really been able to get with them since we moved.  SO we planned dinner well in advance so we knew we could get together.  

I decided to try a yummy new recipe:

Kiwi Strawberry Tartlets

1 premade roll of Sugar Cookie Dough (Pillsbury)

2 squares (1 oz each) white chocolate for baking

2 tablespoons milk

1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup powdered sugar

Kiwi and Strawberries for Garnish 

1. Preheat oven to 350. Spray cups of Brownie Pan with non-stick cooking spray. Slice ¾ of the roll of Sugar Cookie Dough into equal slices and put one in each well of the Brownie Pan. Bake 12-14 minutes or until edges are set. 

2. Remove pan from oven but leave cookies to cool for approximately 10 minutes; they will make their own indentations as they cool. Loosen edges and gently remove the brownies from pan. Cool completely. 

3. Microwave white chocolate and milk, uncovered, on high for 1 minute; stir until smooth. Cool slightly. Combine cream cheese and powdered sugar; mix well. Gradually stir in white chocolate mixture until smooth. 

4. Spoon mixture into cooled cookie cups. Arrange strawberry and kiwi slices on top.

The recipe uses an individual brownie pan:

I know you can get one a Macy's, amazon, and Pampered Chef.  You could probably get similar baking results using a cupcake pan =) 

These were so delicious and REALLY simple =) You should definitely try them! 

{Recipe} Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese

I LOVE making new recipes.  I hate when they don't work out.  This one did work out and I'm SO glad that I decided to try it! I call it the Adult Grilled Cheese. It was so easy to make - literally I think it took a total of 20 minutes...which is perfect because that was the estimated time on the original recipe. 

• Ingredients
• 2 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1 tablespoon sour cream
• 10 pickled jalapeno pepper slices, or to taste - chopped
• 2 ciabatta sandwich rolls
• 4 tsps butter (I didn't measure this out lol)
• 1/2 cup shredded Colby-Monterey Jack cheese
• 1 chicken Breast

Via

Directions

1. Cut chicken into small pieces.  cook through on medium heat in pan on the stove. 
2. Combine the cream cheese, sour cream, and pickled jalapeno in a small bowl. Set aside.
3. Slice each roll in half horizontally, then slice the rounded tops off the ciabatta rolls to make a flat top half. 
4. Spread 1 teaspoon butter on the bottom bun and 1 teaspoon butter on the now flattened top bun.
5.  Place half of the cream cheese mixture on the non-buttered side of the bottom bun. Put the cut up chicken pieces on the top of the cream cheese mixture.  Add half the shredded cheese on top of the chicken.  Place the top half of the bun on the sandwich and place the sandwich on the hot skillet. Repeat with the second sandwich.
6. Grill until lightly browned and flip over, about 3 to 5 minutes; continue grilling until cheese is melted and the second side is golden brown.

This was so delicious! I can't wait to eat it again! Seriously - there isn't anything we would change. Actually I did deviate from the original recipe - I added the chicken.  The original recipe can be found here.

While cooking, I explained to The Husband how much I enjoy new recipes. He agreed and we decided on Monday night when we tried this recipe, that we are going to attempt new recipes more often.  AND it is even better when we cook together!

OH AND P.S. - I am really bad about taking pictures of my food because I am so excited to try it - I have a very hard time remembering to actually take a picture of the food we make!! 

have you tried any new recipes lately??

{Recipe} Champagne Cupcakes

I saw these on Pinterest - shocking I know! 

BUT the for real shocker is that they are from Betty Crocker! 

I can honestly say I had no idea all the wonderful recipes and concoctions I found existed on BETTY CROCKER! Some of them are SO innovative!! 

Last night I had a hankering for some cupcakes! 

We didn't have many eggs and ZERO oil AND I wanted something fun and NOT boring. 

ENTER: CHAMPAGNE CUPCAKES

(should be PINK but this girl doesn't have food coloring)

Champagne Cupcakes

1

box Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® white cake mix (I used Vanilla cake)

1 1/4

cups champagne

1/3

cup vegetable oil

3

egg whites

Buttercream Frosting

1/2

cup butter or margarine, softened

4

cups powdered sugar

1/4

cup milk

1

teaspoon vanilla

• 1
  Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pan). Place paper baking cup in each of 24 regular-size muffin cups.
• 2
  In large bowl, mix dry cake mix and champagne. Add oil and egg whites. Beat with electric mixer on medium speed 2 minutes. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups.
• 3
  Bake 17 to 22 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pan to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.
• 4
  In medium bowl, beat frosting ingredients with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Frost cupcakes. Sprinkle with garnishes. Store loosely covered.

OK NOW I followed the frosting directions. It was THICK! 

so I decided I needed to add some milk...this was my frosting outcome:

When you are finished laughing, NOTE that this frosting was administered VIA A PIPING BAG! 

No, no, I'm not joking.
Seriously - SADDEST attempt EVER. 

I went back and added some more powdered sugar to thicken up the frosting.

VIOLA! Sheer perfection y'all!!! 

AHHHH! Much better! 

I LOVED these! The champagne gave the cake a fresh/crisp flavor.
These would seriously be perfect to take to the beach.

Because I had so many, I took pretty much ALL of them to work today.  

I plan on making a pretty good amount for Saturday night, with some variety so we'll have leftovers this weekend. 

SO what did I learn from this?? Use frosting from the tub - it is PERFECT for decorating...

Seriously people, they perfected cake in a box and frosting in a jar. Take ADVANTAGE.

Just sayin!

Happy almost Friday!!

{Recipe} Strawberry Cupcake-Brownies

Many of you have probably seen this amazing looking treat floating around on Pinterest. I saw them and wanted to make these for Valentine's Day. Well we ended up being super busy last weekend and then all week last week that these yummies had to be put on hold. I found time last night while The Husband made dinner! YAY!

The ORIGINAL recipe can be found at Allrecipes.com. Jen at I heart 2 stamp made the strawberry cake modification.

{Ingredients}

1 box brownies

1/2 cup canola oil

2 eggs

1/4 cup water

1 box Strawberry cake mix

3 egg whites

2 tablespoons canola oil

1 1/3 cup water

frosting!!

{Directions}

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin cups with paper liners - or in my case, wipe butter on the inside of all the cups...seriously though - if you remember cup liners, those would be the better option =)

Whisk together the brownie mix, 2 eggs, 1/2 cup canola oil, and 1/4 cup water in a bowl. stir just until fully incorporated; set aside.

Mix the cake mix, 2 tablespoons canola oil, 1 1/3 cup water, and 3 egg whites in a large bowl with an electric mixer on low speed until combined. Mix on medium speed for 2 minutes.

Spoon the brownie batter into prepared muffin cups, filling each cup 1/3 full (or in my case - it is a half and half mix! oops haha!)

Spoon the cake batter over the brownie batter, until muffin cups are 2/3 full each (or completely full if you are me haha)

Bake in preheated over until 'golden' -- about 20 minutes.

We opted for cream cheese frosting - which was definitely the optimal choice =)

they were so so delicious. I am so happy that I decided to make these cupcake-brownie things. Seriously - they are so good. The house smelled wonderful; we couldn't decide if we smelled the strawberry cake or the brownies! For real - go make these, like NOW! =)

Do you like cake or cupcakes better?
Do you like trying new cupcakes?

Yummy Food and IKEA Hackers

OK FIRST - IKEA HACKERS ... have you SEEN this site?! I am so intrigued! Some of the ideas are really really neat! Like this one:

Modern Hideaway Dressing Table

 

This is such a neat idea!! I immediately started thinking if I could put it in our bedroom - I am SURE that we would have room to the right of the dresser...but that is where the pup sleeps...but we could move his bed more towards ours....THEN I thought about my morning routine. I do my makeup standing - I get ready 100% STANDING. Maybe this won't work out for me...I love the idea and the look. I don't even know if it would be possible for me to actually do my makeup sitting. I don't know that I ever tried! hmmm...I really do love it....maybe I just love the lights around the mirror lol - very Hollywood Glam!   Regardless - I am still REALLY intrigued by the website.

Now on to some YUMMIES!!! My parents are eating healthier and working out and I have to say, I have really been inspired by them. My sis and her husband have been as well and they have started the meal planning like they have. A couple nights ago, The Husband and I went to dinner at my parent's house. They had already been cooking up a chili for later in the week. It smelled really good. They let me try a little sample. YUM!!! So they gave me some to take to home to reheat for dinner or take to work for lunch.  I FINALLY heated some up last night since I was on my own for dinner while The Husband had a boys night:

 

Sorry about the grainy pictures - J used his phone...he went to the Magic game last night! 4 rows from the floor!!! This girl may or may not have been a little jealous =)I, on the other hand, worked out. Afterwards, I snuggled up on the couch with my cup o' chili and my Nook. =) Here is the AMAZING recipe!!

White Chicken Chili

{INGREDIENTS}

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken or turkey breast or 1 lb lean pork tenderloin

4.5 c. cooked great northern beans

2 c. fat-free, low-sodium chicken broth

2 c. thick and chunky salsa

1 c. reduced-fat mozzarella cheese

{DIRECTIONS}

Cook and shred the chicken (or meat of choice); set aside. In a large saucepan, mix together the beans, broth, and salsa.  Heat through and add extra broth, if desired. Stir in the meat and cheese. Serve hot.

I'm going to be honest - I tried this fresh at my parents house and it was pretty good. Truth be told - it was BETTER after sitting in the fridge for a couple days. SO AMAZING! mmmm!! I'll definitely be making this! =) AND it is healthy =) whoo!!!

Have you tried any good recipes lately??

{Recipe} Spiced Pumpkin Cupcakes

Alright y'all - so my girl at work made these UH-MAZING cupcakes and brought them in to share. They were so delicious that I am pretty sure I ate most of them. She didn't have frosting for them, so I ate them with my coffee. DELISH!  I bothered her for the entire day asked her for the recipe and she got it from her mother. 

Spiced Pumpkin Cupcakes

 

{Ingredients}

1 pkg yellow cake mix

1 pkg vanilla instant pudding mix

1 cup canned pumpkin

1/2 cup oil

1/2 cup water

3 eggs

1.5 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground cloves

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

{Directions}

Preheat oven to 350*.

Beat all ingredients with electric mixer on low speed, just until moistened.  Beat on medium speed 2 minutes.  Spoon batter into 24 paper-lined muffin cups, filling each cup 2/3 full. 

**Note** I did not have ground cloves, so I went without....the recipe is STILL PHENOMENAL!!

Bake for 20 minutes.

To frost, I used store bought cream cheese frosting - DIVINE! Oh my goodness, so yummy! I may have to make more!! I'm craving them now!!

PLEASE let me know what you think should you try the recipe!  I hope you have a wonderful weekend!!

{Recipe} Macadamia-Crusted Fish

Today I have another recipe to share with you. I know I know -- I keep promising pictures of the house but to be honest, pictures are going to have to wait just a few more days. We are having our housewarming party this weekend, SO everything (sans craftroom) will be mostly completed and ready to be shown =)

My grandparents gave us a cookbook as part of our wedding gift and we just now pulled it out this weekend to try a new recipe. I'm so happy we did this! The recipe we decided to try was

Macadamia-Crusted Mahi Mahi

::INGREDIENTS::
1 cup panko (Japanese) bread crumbs
3/4 cup chopped macadamia nuts
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp white pepper
1 egg
2 tsp water
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2-4 fillets mahi mahi (<-- we used trigger fish)
1/4 cup canola oil
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
2 tsp ginger

::DIRECTIONS::
-In a bowl, mix bread crumbs, macadamia nuts, salt, and pepper.
-In a shallow bowl, whisk egg and water.
-Coat fillets with flour, the dip in egg mixture; roll fillet in nut mixture.
-In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat; cook fillets for 3-4 minutes each side or until golden brown.
-In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, soy sauce, and ginger. Optional: microwave sauce, uncovered, on high for 30-60 seconds.
-Drizzle sauce over fish.

This was a fairly simple recipe from our Taste of Home cookbook. We paired it with mac 'n' cheese, although I think next time we will try some garlic mashed potatoes. No judging the sides either -- I know the meal isn't balanced...that's how I roll haha =)  Oh and J didn't like the ginger, so he made his own sauce with the soy sauce and brown sugar.

I loved the texture and flavor of the crust mixed with the sauce. As previously mentioned, we used trigger fish as we didn't have an mahi.

Where do you normally find your new recipes?

The Best Dessert. EVER.

This year, we hosted Thanksgiving. I was so excited to do so but so nervous! There was so much food to be prepped and cooked and I had the scary task of undertaking the pecan pie. This may seem silly to you, but for the entirety of my life, my mother has made THE best pecan pie ever. I had to live up to that standard. I was so scared. I wanted to bake it and then try it and if it was good, I would make another. Well with us trying to get completely settled before Thanksgiving, I didn't have the opportunity to make a pie and try it. Thanksgiving morning was the only time I had to make the attempt. Needless to say it was amazing. My mom LOVED it - she liked it better than what she had made. Well low and behold, the recipe I used was one that she lost in a move ten years ago. So this was her original recipe from her grandmother =)

:Ingredients:

Pillsbury pie crust (in the refrigerated section)

1 cup Karo Syrup

1 cup sugar

1 cup chopped pecans

3 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

:Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350

Over low heat, combine Karo and sugar in a small pot. Stir the mixture periodically until sugar has melted (I complete the next steps and by then the sugar has melted)

Roll out pie crust into a pie pan -- be sure to sprinkle a little flour into the bottom of the pie pan before you insert the pie crust. Also sprinkle a little flour onto the dough before adding the pie part.

Chop up pecans, until you have 1 cup; set aside. In a mixing bowl, beat 3 eggs. Add sugar/syrup to eggs and mix together. Gradually mix in chopped pecans. Add 1 tsp vanilla and mix together. Pour pie mixture into pie crust. Bake 45-60 minutes; or when top is golden brown and the pie doesn't jiggle =)

This was SO YUMMY-LICIOUS that I made a SECOND pie Saturday afternoon and one at my parent's house for them Saturday night =)

{Recipe} Jalepeno Cream Cheese Chicken

So I really enjoy new recipes -- a lot. Ok not a lot because sometimes I make it and think it tastes terrible. I have recently gotten pretty good at looking at the ingredients and figuring out if I would like the dish or not. I found this recipe through allrecipes.com -- I was just perusing, trying to find something new and interesting...I just get tired of eating the same things lol. Enter:

Jalapeno Cream Cheese Chicken (Enchiladas)

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp garlic powder

salt and pepper to taste

1 jalapeno, seeded and minced

1-8oz package cream cheese

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tblsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp ground cumin

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees
-Season chicken breasts with 1 tsp cayenne pepper, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, salt and pepper. Place into baking dish
-Bake until chicken is no longer pink and the juices run clear -- approximately 45 minutes. allow chicken to cool; shred with forks and set aside
-In a skillet, heat and melt cream cheese. Mix in jalapenos, 1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper, 1 tblsp of garlic powder, paprika, chili powder and cumin.
-Mix in cooked chicken and remove from heat.
-Serve in warm tortillas with Monterrey Jack shredded cheese.

I definitely altered the recipe. After mixing all the ingredients you are supposed to bake it in the tortillas for another 30 minutes! RIDICULOUS haha!  I know now that I will never be an over the top gourmet cook -- that crap takes too long haha! You can find the original recipe here. We really enjoyed this recipe -- it is pretty spicy, so try it before you add hot sauce, salsa, etc.
Enjoy! Let me know if you try it and what you think!!

Do you enjoy new recipes??
Where do you find them?

{Recipe} Rotel Chicken Spaghetti

Do any of you Pinterest??? I got hooked...it was totally an accident but I am SO glad it happened. You should definitely check it out.  I use to save everything as a favorite or email myself links if I liked something. This Pinterest keeps it all right there under one medium in your profile.

So anyway I have found a few recipes on there that look SO yummy! I was able to try on this weekend and it was SO delicious!

Rotel Chicken Spaghetti

Picture from Plain Chicken's website

 *I adjusted the recipe to feed two -- we still had a ton leftover!

{Ingredients}

2 boneless chicken breasts

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 can rotel

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

1 tblsp butter

8 oz velveeta cheese, cubed

noodles -- cooked and drained

{Directions}

-Cut chicken into bite sized pieces. In large skillet, melt butter or margarine.

-Add cubed chicken, garlic and onion

-Cook over medium-high heat until chicken is no longer pink and no liquid is left in the skillet

-Stir in soup, cheese and Rotel. Reduce to low heat and cook until the cheese melts, stirring often.

-Serve over noodles

***The original recipes calls for you to bake the dish. we were too hungry to wait another 30 minutes haha! It was SO delicious!!!

Happy Monday!!



We Interrupt This Program

Hi Everyone! I have been absent and I am sorry. I was so busy this weekend!!

So I am skipping the wedding post this week for two reasons: I need more wedding/engagement stories/pictures and volunteers. So email me at lifeaftertheaisle at gmail dot com. I would love to feature you!!! The other reason is that I am wanting to share other things. 

THEREFORE -- I am linking up for What I'm Lovin' Wednesdays! YAY!!!!

--I am loving that our offer was accepted on a beautiful house. 

Still no word from the bank. booo!! I am going to wait until lunch on Friday to call our realtor for an update. hopefully I won't have to because I'll hear something! That would be nice. Nonetheless, we are still over the moon excited!

--I'm Loving this new dip recipe I have to share -- unfortunately I don't have pictures of it =/ So far it has been a huge hit.  We tried it at a friend's party and his girlfriend gave us the recipe because we enjoyed it so much.  This recipe makes enough to fill a 3 qt sauce pan.

{Ingredients}

2 pkg cream cheese (8 oz ea)

1 pkg hot sausage

1 can rotel

2 jalapenos - diced

shredded cheddar cheese

{Directions}

In pan, brown sausage. Melt cream cheese in sauce pan while sausage is browning. Once the cream cheese has melted, add the sausage, rotel and jalapenos.  Mix together over heat. Add cheddar cheese to taste/texture. Serve with tortilla chips.

We made this in a crockpot (so doubled the recipe) for the surprise reception we helped with a couple weekends ago and pretty much all of it was eaten by the end of the night! It is so delicious!

--I'm Loving that on Sunday, I bought the material for the bedspread I am going to make for our new home/bedroom.  I am very excited about it!! I had hoped to have started it by today but that hasn't happened.  I have been fairly busy with other things. Hopefully I can get it going one night this week and get it done by the end of next so I can share it with you.

--I'm Loving this adorable little hair clip I made last night.  I found the tutorial/inspiration here.

  

This is just a 'rough draft' -- obviously.  You can see the edges are fraying and there are pen marks all over it lol. But I wanted to make it to share. I am going to  mass produce them...well semi-mass produce them. You'll be seeing them soon =)

--I'm Loving that I have a blate with Chrisitna and Michelle tonight! I'm looking forward to some fun and laughter and of course good Mexican food! YUM!

--I'm Loving that it is Wednesday already!! WOO!

--I'm Loving my amazing husband who works hard to take care of us. Who is incredibly sweet and tremendously loving and he likes to cuddle =)

What are you Loving?

{Recipe} Inside-Out Chicken Pot Pie

So still no word on the house.  =/  No news is good news right?! =) That's what I am going with...it is really hard NOT to pester our realtor. I KNOW she will tell us when she hears anything but that doesn't help me sit idley by haha.

I tried a new recipe the other week and made it again last night.  It is yummy and really simple so I thought I would take this opportunity to share it with y'all!

Inside-Out Chicken Pot Pie

Please excuse my camera picture -- I was too hungry to dig out the camera haha

{Ingredients}

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast; cut up

1 can Campbell's Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup

1 pkg (16 oz) frozen vegetable combination

1 Can of biscuits

{Directions}

Bake biscuits according to directions on can

Cook chicken in nonstick skillet until browned, stirring often

Add soup and vegetables. Cover and simmer until done.

Serve on biscuits.

This recipe takes about 20 minutes, so easy and delicious.  And believe it or not, I actually eat my vegetables! =)

Alright -- that's all I have today.  I didn't wake up until 8:15 this morning and I am usually AT WORK by 8...yeah. SO I'm off to get some work done! I hope you have a wonderful Tuesday.

I will let y'all know as SOON as I hear back about the house. Thanks again to everyone for your wonderful thoughts, positive vibes and prayers. Y'all rock!

Jambalaya Casserole and Drunken Cupcakes

On Sunday I was feeling very ambitious...I think that is due, in part, to the fact that I have kind of been a lazy wife. =/ Not a lazy person mind you.  I have a lot going on -- I'm involved in a lot of planning, most of which I can't discuss...yet.

Anyway -- I have fallen a little behind on my wife-y 'chores'. J had to work ALL weekend this past weekend so I really felt motivated.  I hopped online and searched for new recipes to try.  I had to find the recipes before I could make my trip to the grocery store -- duh I needed to know what to buy!

The first recipe I decided to try was:

Jambalaya Casserole

 

I found the recipe at allrecipes.com

J LOVES Jambalaya...I have only had it ONCE and I loved it. but it was a super secret squirrel family recipe that belongs to my dad's friend.  I am trying to get my hands on it to try on my own.  In the meantime, here is this casserole recipe that was uber yummy!

{Ingredients}

1 large onions, chopped

1 large green peppers, chopped

1 celery ribs, chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup butter

1 pound fully cooked smoked sausage, cut into 1/2-inch slices

3 cups chicken broth

2 cups uncooked long grain rice

1 cup chopped fresh tomatoes

1/2 cup chopped green onions

2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons minced fresh parsley

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce

1 tablespoon browning sauce

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

*the original recipe is for 24 servings -- I adjusted mine to 8 servings

{Directions}

1.In a large skillet, saute the onions, green peppers, celery and garlic in butter until crisp-tender. Place in a very large bowl; stir in the remaining ingredients.

2.Transfer to three greased shallow 3-qt. baking dishes. Cover and bake at 375 degrees F for 45-50 minutes or until rice is tender, stirring twice.

For dessert, I wanted to try some new cupcakes. They are DELICIOUS!!! I made them Sunday and they were better after sitting YESTERDAY! YUM!!

I found the recipe at Smitten Kitchen.

Drunken Cupcakes

{Ingredients}

Makes 20 to 24 cupcakes

For the 'Alcoholic' Chocolate Cupcakes

1 cup stout (such as Guinness)  <-- I used Cruzan Aged Rum

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-process)

2 cups all purpose flour

2 cups sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs
2/3 cup sour cream

Baileys Frosting

3 to 4 cups confections sugar

1 stick (1/2 cup or 4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 to 4 tablespoons Baileys (or milk, or heavy cream, or a combination thereof) <-- I did 2 Tblsp Baileys and 1 Tblsp of cream

{Directions}

Special equipment: A piping bag (though a plastic bag with the corner snipped off will also work)

Make the cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 24 cupcake cups with liners. Bring 1 cup stout and 1 cup butter to simmer in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add cocoa powder and whisk until mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.

Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, and 3/4 teaspoon salt in large bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat eggs and sour cream in another large bowl to blend. Add stout-chocolate mixture to egg mixture and beat just to combine. Add flour mixture and beat briefly on slow speed. Using rubber spatula, fold batter until completely combined. Divide batter among cupcake liners, filling them 2/3 to 3/4 of the way. Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, rotating them once front to back if your oven bakes unevenly, about 17 minutes. Cool cupcakes on a rack completely.

Make the frosting: Whip the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, for several minutes. You want to get it very light and fluffy. Slowly add the powdered sugar, a few tablespoons at a time.

[This is a fantastic trick I picked up while working on the cupcakes article for Martha Stewart Living; the test kitchen chefs had found that when they added the sugar slowly, quick buttercream frostings got less grainy, and tended to require less sugar to thicken them up.]

When the frosting looks thick enough to spread, drizzle in the Baileys (or milk) and whip it until combined. If this has made the frosting too thin (it shouldn’t, but just in case) beat in another spoonful or two of powdered sugar. Ice and decorate the cupcakes.

The original recipe calls for a ganache filling.  I attempted it but I thought it was awful.  I MUST have done something wrong.  So I didn't go through with the ganache and I thought they were amazing.  J can't stop eating them -- reminding me why I don't bake...although I think the novelty of these keep us eating them.  You know, since they aren't the same ol' cupcakes =)

You should try them! They are so good! I would love hear about your baking/cooking adventures! 

PS: Thanks Honey for taking a bite out of one and leaving it on the plate! It made for a perfect picture =)

{Recipe} Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta

I tried a new recipe that I found via Google on www.food.com: Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta!! It tastes like a spicy less rich variation of your typical Fettuccine Alfredo...which I do NOT like. So I was pleasantly surprised to enjoy this meal.

::INGREDIENTS::

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into small pieces

4 ounces linguine, cooked al dente

2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning

2 tablespoons butter

1 thinly sliced green onion

1 -2 cup heavy whipping cream*

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon dried basil

1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

*the amount of whipping cream is determined by number of servings: I used 1 c. for the 2 of us and it was the perfect amount for J to have a small second helping

::DIRECTIONS::

--Boil noodles

--In a large skillet over medium heat, sauté chicken in butter or margarine until chicken is tender, about 5 to 7 minutes, sprinkling with Cajun seasoning.

--Reduce heat add green onion, heavy cream, tomatoes, basil, salt, garlic powder, black pepper and heat through. *I added additional Cajun seasoning for extra spice and flavor

--Pour over hot linguine and toss with Parmesan cheese.

*We were so hungry I forgot to take picture -- this image via

 

This is definitely going to make more appearances at our house =)

Hope you Enjoy!