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Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Fried ravioli

I have a simple recipe today! These little babies are goooooooood! I mean I like ravioli but now I LOVE ravioli. They are so good. Really..

Ok. Now for the recipe. ..

Package ravioli of choice (I used chicken and mozzarella from costco)
1 egg beaten
1 cup italian bread crumbs
2 tbs olive oil

Put the egg and the crumbs in separate bowls. Heat your oil on med-high heat. Dip each ravioli in the egg then in the bread crumbs and place in the hot oil. Cook til golden brown and serve! These are great sprinkled with parmasean and dipped into marinara!

Enjoy guys!

Sunday, April 14, 2013

Brioche Cinnamon Rolls with Apples


Now isn't that a gorgeous little thing!? Yes it is.. I made these last night for my fam so we can actually get something in our bellies before church. So naturally when I was looking for a cinnamon roll recipe I wandered over to pinterest and typed in brioche cinnamon rolls and this recipe was pinned on there probably 100 times! So I gave it a try. I did however put my own spin on it.. Which I do with everything!
 
Sorry I didn't take any pictures of the process but it was pretty darn easy to follow.

You will need:
 
Dough
3/4 cup of shortening or butter melted ( I was out of shortening so I used butter)
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsps. salt
2 eggs
2 pkgs. yeast ( a pkg. of yeast is equivalent to 2 1/4 tsps. I used red star dry active)
2 cups warm water
6 cups of flour ( all purpose is fine)
 
Spread
2/3 cup sugar
1/4  cup Saigon cinnamon
2 pink lady apples 
Mix and set aside

Butter Icing
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tsp. milk
whisk together



Directions for the dough:

1 In a medium sized bowl proof your yeast by dissolving the 2 pkgs. of yeast in the 2 cups of warm water ( 90 to 110 degrees Farenheit)  and adding a tbsp. of sugar. Let it sit for 10-15 mins. until is frothy on top. (it almost looks like a latte)
2 While the yeast is proofing, in a large bowl, combine the melted butter, sugar and salt. Mix well and then add the 2 eggs. If your shortening is hot make sure to whisk in the eggs quickly and continuously to avoid scrambling your eggs.
3 Add the proofed yeast mixture to the egg mixture and mix well.
4 Add the 6 cups of flour all at once and combine the wet and dry ingredients well, until a nice sticky dough forms. You'll need to turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead it just a bit till it's no longer sticky and gets just a bit elastic
5 The original recipe calls to cover the bowl with plastic wrap and to put in the fridge to rise and double in size for 4 hours or overnight, this is recommended and does make a difference, however, I needed the recipe for a dinner party and didn't have 4 hours, so I covered the bowl with a clean dish towel and left it on the stove top for 2 hours. It doubled in size just fine.
6 Once the dough has doubled in size, punch down and divide the dough in half.
7 On a floured work surface, knead the dough for a minute or two and then form into a ball. Roll out the ball of dough into a large rectangle that is about 1/4 an inch thick. Make sure that the rectangle of dough is lightly floured underneath so that when you roll it later it won't stick to the work surface. Preheat the oven to 350.
8 Using a pastry brush, brush a light layer of melted butter all over the surface of the rectangle. Sprinkle the sugar and cinnamon and apple mixture over the entire surface of the rectangle. I like to rub it in.
9 Roll up the rectangle starting from the short end and pinch the seam shut all along the length of the roll. Turn the roll seam side down and using a knife or pastry chopper cut the roll into 1-1 1/2 inch rounds. Or if you want them bigger make em bigger! Merica'.
10 Repeat steps 7-9 with other half of dough and proceed to step 11.
11 Transfer the rounds, swirl side up into a greased cake pan or casserole dish. Leave 1/2 an inch between rounds. When they rise they should all be touching. Cover both pans with a dish towel and let rise till doubled ( about 2 hours ). If your yeast is really fresh your dough will rise much faster Just eyeball it.
12 Bake at 350 for 13-20 mins. Mine were ready after 13-14 mins. They should be slightly golden and spring back when touched. Cool off for 20 mins and then ice while still warm.

Directions for icing:

Combine powdered sugar and 1 tsp. of milk at a time until you have a medium thick consistency. Taste the icing and add more powdered sugar and milk alternatively until you have a balanced taste. Use all of it on the rolls...it will seep down into all of the crevices of the swirls and enhance every inch of them!

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Creamy Chicken Broccoli Caserole

 
There are some days where I resolve to be fat forever because I'm just not losing weight. I am pretty sure that I am being punished for being skinny and pretty in the first half of my life so far. I am doomed to live in this foreign body... Ugh...
Oh well.. Maybe when I'm an old lady I'll get some crazy disease that makes me not eat! Yay!
 
Anyway enough of my pitty party. I have a tasty.. fattening recipe for you today. So if you're more fortunate than me and you don't have to watch what you eat. Enjoy.
 
Creamy Broccoli Chicken Casserole





 Recipe:

2.5 pounds chopped broccoli florets
6 b-less, s-less chicken thighs
2 cups milk
2 cans cream of broccoli
2 cloves garlic mashed
2 cups cheese of choice ( I did a mixture of swiss and sharp cheddar)

Poach your chicken in some water until just cooked. Pull out and shred. Throw it in the pan along with your broccoli. In a separate bowl mix together half your cheese, the milk, the soup and the garlic. Add the wet mixture to the pan and stir around to coat all of the chicken and broccoli. Sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top and pop it in a 400*F oven for 25 mins. Serve over brown rice or pasta.

 Yum.. Bubbly goodness..

Hope you enjoy!

Monday, April 8, 2013

Best Ever Brown Rice


Any brown rice fans out there? I'm not... I kind of have a special kind of hate for the stuff.. It's hard to  cook and chewy and bland.. But it's good for you so I grin and bear it. However, I have found a way to make it 1. Easier and 2. Tasty! I use instant! That's right the good ole instant rice! They par-boil it for you so it cooks up super easy. I add in a few things to make it taste better too..


Recipe:

4 1/2 cups instant brown rice (I get the 1.89 boxes of hy-top brand at winco)
4 cups chicken STOCK
2 tbs McCormick perfect pinch Roasted Garlic and Red Pepper
1/4 cups dehydrated Onion (Costco)
1 tbs salt

Bring the stock, salt, onion flakes and perfect pinch to a boil. Add in your rice and turn heat to low. In about 10 minutes your rice will be fluffy and perfectly cooked!

 
I like to portion mine out so I don't over eat. I put a cup in the small ones and a cup and a half in the big ones.
 

All ready for a quick bite when I need one!

Baked Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal

 
Here we have a real gem! I LOVE this concoction. I kinda just came up with it while trying to get my husband to eat something other than cheerio's in the morning. (Yes apparently he thinks he's still 5) lol. it's super simple cuz you pretty much throw it in the pan and bake and BOOM breakfast... Like a boss..

 
Recipe:

3 cups ROLLED oats (Not instant. That stuff it JUNK)
1 cup brown sugar
3 tbs Saigon cinnamon (you get it at Costco pretty cheap, It's sweeter than regular cinnamon)
1 large apple
3 cups 1% milk
1 cup Apple Juice or Cider


First chop the apple into small chunks and throw in with the rest of the ingredients. Stir and bake at 350*F for about 40 mins to an hour. Just depends on how runny you want it.

 I make ours pretty gooey cuz I refrigerate it and have Jordan pour some milk on top before he microwaves it.



 
All in the fridge ready for the week!

Home Style Chicken and Dumplings


Here it is~ Aint' she purty!?!? Home style chicken and dumplings (with veggies)
So I know I totally suck because I didn't take pictures of the process but I promise it's not too hard to accomplish! I'll just post some pretty pictures along the way of how friggin delish it is!

 Recipe:

2 Chicken breasts (or 6 thighs if you like the dark meat)
2 BOXES chicken STOCK! I like Kitchen Basics brand.
4 stalks celery
2 whole carrots
1 red bell pepper
1 large sweet onion
3 tbs olive oil ( I infuse mine with garlic, If you don't then I'd add some in for good measure!)
1 packet Sazon Jamon flavored (if you cant find it just skip it. I like the bacon-y flavor it gives)
1 tube of reduced fat crescent rolls
1 cup of flour
3 tbs garlic powder
3 tbs onion powder
3 tbs paprika
1 tbs salt
1/2 tbs pepper
Patience...


First you want to prepare the chicken by lightly poaching it in the chicken stock (bonus... you get extra chicken-y flavor in that stock! Whoop whoop!) Once it's just about cooked take it out and shred it with 2 forks. Set that aside and add the oil to the pot. When that's heated up add in all your veggies (Make sure you chop them up to your desired size first LOL). Cook the veggies till they are just starting to get some color on them and throw in the stock. Bring to a boil. While that's coming to a boil unroll the crescents and cut into thin strips. Mix the flour, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, S & P in a bow and throw in all of your strips. Once the stock is boiling throw in your chicken and let it come back to a boil. Then throw in your strips. One at a time shaking off the excess flour. Turn the heat down to low and let simmer for about 10 minutes. Serve it up and ENJOY! It's super easy. I garnished it with a few chives.




 
I hope ya'll enjoy these!


Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Tutorial Tuesday - Painted Mason Jar Soap Dispenser

 
Soooo.. I lied... I didn't get the apothocary jars done because my spray paint didn't dry then the knob on the top didn't glue on straight so I ended up getting this one done first so here you go! Painted mason jar soap dispenser. Cool right?!
So to buy one of these you're looking at 20 - 40 dollars depending on the look you're going for. This baby was CHEAP! About 5 dollars.. Maybe even less..  
 
 
 So first off you need to spray paint your tops and jar in the colors you want them. I painted my tops oil rubbed bronze (spray paint is the most effective way of going about it!) and my jar in a smoke grey (satin).
 
 
 
 
 Once it's all dry (may take a day or so to fully dry and cure). you need to poke a hole in the top to insert the pump.
 
 
 I just took a small flathead screwdriver out of my hubby's tool box (shhhhhh... lol) and hammered it down on the middle of the lid. It makes a hole and you pretty much just take pliers and start peeling the metal back ( on the under side) until you have a big enough hole to fit your pump in SNUGLY.
 
 
 
 
 Gather up all your embelishments and get ready cuz it's about to get awesome! Start tying on the ribbon! yay!

 
I just tied it in a neat little bow..
 
 
 
 I then tied on some twine and added some bells. No it's not Christmas all year round here.. No I am not attracted to weird jingly things I just like bells..
 
 
 
 I didn't really know how to photograph this part cuz I just kinda put the bells up on the twine as high as I wanted them to be then wrapped the remaining twine back around the jar and tied it off. I also cut my ribbon and stuck that baby above my sink! DONE! BOOM!

 
It would probably look cool shabby chic'd but that'll happen soon enough on it's own here..