Raisin Filled Cookies

This started off as Golden Raisin cookies from King Arthur Flour. Some basic changes had to happen though because I don't like hard chewy raisins.  So I simmered the raisins in cinnamon water until they were soft and then chopped them up a little. The drawback to that was while they were really good, they don't keep over night. The raisins make the cookies soft, which was actually delicious as well.


2 c. flour

1/2 c. powdered sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 stick butter, frozen

1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 c. coconut oil

7-8 Tbsp. ice water

Filling

2 c. raisins

1 Tbsp. cinnamon

water to cover

Cream

Coarse Sugar

Simmer the raisins together with the cinnamon. Once they are plump and soft drain and chop. Put them on a paper towel for a little while preparing the dough to dry out as much as possible.

Another change I made was cream on the top instead of egg with the sugar to top.

The rest of the directions are the same as on the King Arthur web site so you can look there for directions. 

Pumpkin Bombe

Just wanted to post this picture of something fun and tasty. The pumpkin recipe is my own, the cake recipe is not. And cake will work here, but the quinoa cake is perfect. It's rich, moist, and sturdy. 

Start with the bombe pan, I got mine on Amazon. Coat them with a layer of chocolate. Once it is set up, coat them with a second layer. Once they are totally first fill them with

Pumpkin chiffon

I made a little wellin the pumpkin and filled it with caramel. 

I baked a thin layer of the chocolate quinoa cake from Mel's Kitchen Cafe and used a cookie cutter to put it in to the right size to fit in the bottom. 

Then chill again to make sure the shell is firm to remove from the pan. 

I tried to remove them with the flat side up at first and stretch the pan away from it to loosen and I ended up cracking the chocolate. I found it was easier to have the flat side down and peel the pan away from the chocolate. Mine were stick from the caramel so I put them in muffin liners.

Kielbasa Pasta

This is my version on "Creamy Jambalaya Pasta" from Plain Chicken via pinterest.  I changed things a little to make it a one pot dinner. 

This would also be a great place to use up leftover cooked chicken or ham. Just throw it in towards the end of cooking to heat it up. 

1 lb kielbasa, sliced

1 onion, chopped

2 - 3 cloves garlic, minced

9 oz. small pasta

4 c.water

4 beef bouillon cubes

4 oz tomato sauce

1/2 c. heavy cream

1/2 tsp parsely

1 tsp. paprika

1 1/2 tsp Cajun seasoning

1/8 tsp. oregano

1/8 tsp. thyme

3 Tbsp flour

In a large pan saute the kielbasa, when you can start to smell the kielbasa cooking add the onion, usually about 2 - 3 minutes. When the onion is tender add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. 

Add all the remaining ingredients, except for flour and cook, stirring often, until the pasta is tender. 

Combine the flour and just enough water to make a pasta. Stir into hot simmering pasta and cook for another minute or two.

Strawberry Rhubarb Galette

Thank you pinterest and Mennonite Girls Can Cook. It only took me 2 months to find rhubarb, but find it I did and now we have a tasty new recipe. 

1 crust

1 lb rhubarb

3/4 c. sugar

3 Tbsp flour

1/2 pkg. strawberry gelatin powder

2 Tbsp milk

1 - 2 Tbsp pearl sugar

I used a store bought pie crust and just rolled it until it was slightly larger. Any homemade pastry crust will work. Transfer to a baking sheet.

Slice the rhubarb and toss with the sugar, flour and gelatin. 

Place in the center of the pie crust, leaving an inch and a half around the edges. 

Fold the crust up over the fruit and brush the crust with the milk. Sprinkle with the sugar. Cover the crust with tin foil and bake at 375 until the fruit is baked. Remove the foil and and continue baking until browned. I baked mine for 35 minutes, removed the tin foil and baked an additional 7 minutes.

Let cool mostly and serve. 

Chicken Cordon Bleu from "Come What May"

HH6 for the month of April had a really fun theme

Pick a recipe or dish from a HH6 blogger's blog to prepare

Since I love to check out food blogs this was perfect. 

I started with Chicken Cordon Bleu from "Come what May" 

with just a few minor changes. 

The first was instead of ham I used prosciutto because I had some that needed to be used up. 

I also changed the cheese a bit, again to use up what I had. I used a combination of Gouda, Monterrey, and Asiago since that what I had in my fridge and I have to say we LOVED that combination of cheese. 

Then I combined the cheese and bread crumbs since I was in a hurry and just sprayed the chicken with cooking spray and then coated it in the crumb/ cheese mixture and baked.

I will be making this again, though I think next time instead of pounding, I will just cut a pocket in the chicken and stuff it that way to save time.I served this with wild rice and canned green beans.

 

Lemon Sour Cream pie

This is a pinterest find I made and wanted to share, it originally comes from Sacramento Street. Cause it was super simple and very tasty. 

I changed a few things. Instead of Greek yogurt I used sour cream since I already had that on hand and I used my almond crust recipe. I followed their baking directions though. I baked it for 15 minutes, let it cool for 5, then added the filling and baked until it was done. Mine only needed to bake for 18 minutes. Also I think fresh lemons and lemon zest would be best in this but I was feeling lazy so I used bottled juice and Penzys dehydrated lemon peel. 

This is great with just some fresh whipped cream or with a fruit topping, any berry pairs very well with this. 


This is where I would have put a picture if we hadn't eaten it before I got around to taking one

1 c. sour cream

1/2 c. sugar

2 eggs

1/2 c. lemon juice

1/4 tsp Penzys lemon peel

Crust

Whisk together the sour cream, sugar, and lemon peel. Whisk in the lemon juice until smooth. Pour into crust and bake at 350 for 18 - 25 minutes until set. Cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes and then refrigerate for at least 1 hour.  

1 ¼ c. all-purpose flour

3 Tbsp. sugar

½ tsp. Salt

½ c. slivered almonds, coarsely chopped

1/3 c. vegetable oil

3 to 4 Tbsp. Water

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl, stirring until dry ingredients are moistened. Press into a shallow 9-inch pie plate.

Bake at 350° for 15 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before adding the lemon filling and baking.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

These cookies are perfectly soft and chewy, and the first cookie I have ever had that is fantastic right out of the oven but ever better the next day.

Adapted from Apple a Day

3 sticks unsalted butter, softened

1 1/2 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 Tbsp vanilla extract

4 c. flour

4 tsp. cornstarch

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1 (10 oz) bag peanut butter chips

1 (12 oz) bag chocolate chips

Beat the butter until smooth. Beat in the brown and granulated sugar and continue beating until light. Beat in the eggs and vanilla extract.

In a separate bowl combine the flour, cornstarch baking soda, and salt. Beat into the butter and mix until thoroughly incorporated.

Beat in both bags of chips. 

Shape dough into 1 inch balls, flatten slightly, place on a baking tray and bake at 350 for 8 - 10 minutes. (They wont be browned on the top) Let sit on the pan for 5 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack. They are very soft when they first come out of the oven but they are cooked. 

Makes 8 dozen cookies

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Form the dough into balls, flatten slightly, and freeze until solid in a single layer on a baking sheet. When the dough balls are solid store in a plastic freezer bag. To use, let the dough thaw for 15 minutes then bake at 350 for 15 - 18 minutes

White Enchiladas

Household6 cooking clubs January theme is 

"Prepare a dish that you have never made before but always wanted to try.  

Tell us why you have taken quite some time to make this dish"

So this brings me to white chicken enchiladas. Which I have been meaning to make forever! I've even bought the Monterrey cheese a time or two and then ended up using it in something else and never made my enchiladas. This was due in large part to the fact that I hadn't found a recipe that I like. They always call for canned cream soup, and while I'm ok with making things with that stuff in the crock pot where it really cooks down and makes a gravy, I don't care for the taste in something where you can, well, taste it. But then I saw the Pioneer Womens recipe. And I put it on my menu. And then passed it up (that was in early summer) But then I got the HH6 theme and decided it was finally time. I'm really sorry I waited. 

I personally would have liked them with more heat and missed the jalapeno, my kids sadly, don't do hot. I was a little worried they wouldn't like the chilies but when my 3 year old, who eats like a bird, asked for seconds I knew this was a keeper. 

You can check out the original recipe or check below for my changes. This was a great use of the leftover turkey I had in the fridge but chicken works too. Instead of shredding a whole chicken for stuff like this I usually throw a couple boneless, skinless, chicken breasts in the crock pot the day before, shred and refrigerate until I'm ready to use.

3 c. leftover cooked shredded chicken or turkey

2 Tbsp butter

1 onion, chopped

2 can diced green chilis

1/2 c. chicken broth

1/2 c. heavy cream

1/2 tsp. paprika

16 oz Monterrey cheese, grated

12 flour tortillas

2 Tbsp butter

2 Tbsp flour

1 1/2 c. chicken broth

1 c. sour cream

1/2 tsp. paprika

1 can green chilies

Saute the the onion is the butter until tender. Add the chilies, turkey, broth, and paprika. Stir all together and let simmer. Add the cream and keep over low heat while making the sauce.

For the sauce: melt the butter and flour together. Add the broth, paprika, chilies, and sour cream, with an immersion blender process until smooth. Keep heating until thick. Add about 1/3 of the cheese and stir until melted. 

In the tortillas add some of the turkey mixture, top with the remaining shredded cheese, and place in the a 9x13 baking dish seam side down. When all the tortillas are filled top with the sauce and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Chocolate Mint Cookies

A special thanks to "Two peas and Their Pod" for this tasty recipe. The only thing I changed was instead of the mint chips I used Andes red and white Peppermint crunch baking chips to make them more festive looking. The mint chips would also be good, as would regular chocolate, walnuts, or peanut butter chips. 

I was worried about several things with this recipe and they turned out just fine. 

First was no eggs. Don't worry about it, they turn out fine.  

Second I was worried about pulling them out of the oven before they looked done, but again don't worry, they set up just fine.

2 1/2 c. flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 1/3 c. cocoa powder 

1 c. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temp
1 c. white sugar
1 c. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
2/3 c milk

2 bags Andes Peppermint Crunch baking chips

Beat the butter until light. Beat in both sugar until well mixed and add the vanilla. Beat in the baking powder, salt, and cocoa powder. Mix well and beat in the milk. Then mix in the flour, when well mixed add the baking chips.

Let the dough chill for 15 minutes before baking. Cover your baking sheet with parchment paper and shape into a 1 inch balls. Press flat a little bit so they aren't round, they don't spread.

Bake for 13 - 15 minutes at 325. Remove from oven and let cool on baking sheet. Remove to a cooling rack and enjoy. I baked my first batch for only 12 minutes and they didn't look done when they came out but once they cooled they where like brownies. 

Makes about 5 - 6 dozen fairly large cookies

SRC Gingerbread Cake

It's Secret Recipe Club Time again! This month I was awarded "The Novice Housewife" to peruse and test. The only problem I had with her blog was narrowing it down to ONE recipe. So while I may have only posted one, you can be sure there are several others bookmarked to be made later. 

Gingerbread cake seemed perfect for this time of year, though I did have to make a few changes to make it more kid friendly. And I used my vitamix on the wet ingredients so I wouldn't have to chop the ginger myself, being very fibrous I find it a time consuming step. If making without one, chop the ginger finely and mix the wet ingredients in a mixer or large bowl.

Next time I am adding chopped apple to the batter

Wet ingredients

2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

3 Tbsp olive oil

1 c. sour cream (she calls for plain yogurt)

3/4 c. dark brown sugar

1 c. unsweetened applesauce (should have been 1/2 c. and I read it wrong)

1/4 c. molasses

1 egg

1 inch chunk of ginger, cut up a bit

1 tsp vanilla extract

Blend all on high until the ginger is chopped but not enough to cook the egg

Dry ingredients

2 1/4 c. flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp. allspice

dash black pepper

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp freshly ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp. coriander

1 tsp. ground ginger

Stir together the dry ingredients in a bowl to mix. Mix in the wet ingredients and pour into a greased bundt pan. Bake at 350 for 70 minutes, I had to bake it longer due to the extra applesauce, her directions say 35 - 40 minutes, but the texture was perfect, it was super moist. 

Chocolate-Caramel-Bacon Bark SRC

It's the Secret Recipe Club reveal today! And as I perusing my assigned blog, Cheap Ethnic Eatz, I ran across a post entitled "Bacon Chocolate Bar". 

I knew I was done looking. 

Well not done looking, I don't think I will ever been done looking, she has tons of great looking recipes and is adding more, maybe even working on a cookbook, but I knew I had found my test recipe. I had to make two changes though. I wanted to add caramel, and I wanted the bacon to show, so that people who might not be appreciative of the flavor combination would not touch my candy.

I used dark chocolate in this recipe but I think milk would be really good too, and since the chocolate flavor isnt as strong as with dark the bacon would stand out more. With the caramel sauce you want one that is thick at room temperature so it doesn't run out of the candy when you cut it.

This was my first time baking bacon, and it turned out perfect. I just put it on a metal tray and baked at 400 for 10 - 15 minutes until crispy and then drain on a paper towel.

1 bag chocolate chips

2 - 3 Tbsp. caramel sauce

6 strips bacon, cooked until crispy and then crumbled

Melt the chocolate in the microwave or a double boiler. If using the microwave, only melt until most of the chips are soft and stir to melt the rest of the chocolate.

Spread half of the chocolate on wax paper into a 6 to 8 inch circle. Drizzle with the caramel sauce and stick in the freezer until the chocolate is set and the caramel is thick, about 15 minutes. I actually did that while cooking the bacon. 

When the chocolate and caramel are firm, spread the remaining chocolate on top and sprinkle with the crumbled bacon. Return to the freezer for about 15 minutes.

Remove and chop off pieces as you want to eat them, the caramel gets soft and runs out if you cut it all at once. This is good for about 2 days afterwards due to the bacon getting soggy if you leave it. 

But why would it last that long?

Chicken with Orange Glaze SRC

This month for the Secret Recipe Club I got the very lovely Vanderbilt Wife. And I picked out a tasty looking recipe called Tilapia with Honey-Tangerine Sauce. The combination of tangerine with soy and honey looked droolingly delicious.

Right off I knew I had to make one change, since I cant eat fish, but I knew it would be great over chicken too, so I tried that. I made a few other changes to suit what I had on hand but you can be sure as soon as I can find tangerines I am going to make the sauce exactly the way she did.

I served it with rice, stir fried peas, and apple-pears. 

1 Tbsp butter

1 shallot

1/4 c. orange marmalade

1/4 c. water

1/4 c. low sodium soy sauce

1 Tbsp honey

1/2 tsp. sesame oil

dash ground ginger
1 large Tbsp cornstarch

3 large chicken breasts

Saute the butter and shallot until tender. Add the marmalade, water, soy sauce, honey, sesame oil, and ginger. Whisk the cornstarch with water and stir in.

Trim the chicken and cut in half lengthwise. Lightly season with salt and cook in oil on both sides until cooked.

Spoon the sauce over the chicken and broil for 3 - 6 minutes until the sauce is sticky looking.

Spiced Apple Rice Krispies

These where supposed to look like apples. I didn't really get that far cause I didn't have the right decorations and I was feeling a little lazy about it all.  

You can see what they are supposed to look like at "Everday Mom", since thats where I got the idea in the first place

4 Tbsp. Butter

10 oz marshmallows

8 oz. rice krispy cereal

3 packets Alpine Spiced Cider Mix (Or other powdered apple cider mix)

Red food coloring

Melt the butter over medium heat. Add the marshmallows and stir until melted and smooth. Stir in the apple packets and food coloring. Stir in the cereal and mix well.

Butter your hands and shape into balls. Decorate as desired and enjoy!

Pecan Crusted Chicken - SRC

So this in only my second month in the Secret Recipe Club. For those of you who missed it last month, I am assigned a blog, and I get to pick any recipe from said blog. I then make the recipe and blog about it myself. Someone returns the favor and I get to see which of my recipes was enjoyed by someone else.

So I was given the blog "Everyday Mom".  One recipe really stood out to me a lot, the Pecan Crusted Chicken. Usually when I try out new recipes I don't stick exactly to the recipe, I tweak it a bit. But this was something I hadn't ever tried before, and I wanted to try it exactly as she meant it to be.

Next time I make it though I am going to make a few small changes. I am going to add a lot more mustard to the egg mix and use 4 shallots instead of the just the one. I still can't decide my stance on the lemon zest, I loved it! But it also felt a little out of place at the same time. It was juicy and tender and I liked it. I also only used 2 chicken breasts here, because I always cut mine in half lengthwise first, that change made it so I only needed 2 eggs. I'm also toying with the idea of making something with a bacon crust...

I served it with Packard Potatoes, and buttered peas. 

Pecan Crusted Chicken

4 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 c. Roughly chopped pecans
4 Tbs. Butter
1 Shallot, minced
1 c. Panko
2 tsp. finely grated lemon zest
1 tsp. minced fresh thyme leaves
1/8 tsp. Cayenne pepper
3 Eggs
3 tsp. Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp. Ground black pepper
1 tsp. Seasoned Salt
1 c. All-purpose flour

"Using a fork to prick chicken several times then sprinkle with salt.  Place on wire rack set over baking sheet, refrigerate while preparing coating.

In a food processor, chop nuts until they resemble a coarse meal.  Over medium heat, melt butter, swirling pan constantly until butter is golden brown.  Add shallot and a pinch of kosher salt.  Cook shallots until light brown, stirring constantly.  Reduce heat, add Panko and nuts.  Stirring frequently cook until golden brown about 10-12 minutes.  Transfer mixture to shallow dish or coating plate.  Add lemon zest, thyme and cayenne, stir to combine.   

In second shallow dish beat eggs, mustard and black pepper. 

 In third shallow dish mix together flour and seasoned salt.

Remove chicken from refrigerator, pat dry with a paper towel.  Working with 1 piece at a time, dredge chicken in flour, then egg mixture,  allow extra to drip off.  Coat each side of chicken in panko nut mixture, pressing gently so crumbs adhere.  Transfer coated chicken to wire rack, set in baking sheet.  Repeat until all chicken is coated.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until thickest part of the chicken reads 160 degrees on an instant read thermometer. "

Her recipe for Apple Rice Krispies also stood out to me, I will be trying it out this week and then let you know how it turns out later. And for Halloween I want to make some orange pumpkin ones as well.

And this recipe for hash was a close second for being my test recipe. 

Bacon and Cheese Stuffed Chicken

So I got a fun opportunity yesterday to do an impromptu test for the Secret Recipe Club. And as I was looking through the blog, Connors Cooking, I ran across a recipe that was chicken, stuffed with cheese and bacon. Which to me is nothing short of genius. Because I think anything with bacon is genius.

Except these, those are an abomination.

So here is the original Bacon and Cheese stuffed goodness

And then my variation

2 oz. cream cheese
5 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
16 oz. bacon (yes, use the whole package!!)
1 Tbsp butter
1/4 tsp Dried Paprika
1 tsp. parsley

(I didn't do, yet, this but I think some crumbled blue cheese might be great in the filling too)

Cook the bacon and crumble, make sure it's really crisp, even if you like your bacon softer, cause when you mix it with the cheeses and bake you don't want it to get soggy. Combine bacon and remaining ingredients.

3 large or 6 small chicken breasts

Seasoned Bread Crumbs

My chicken breast were large enough to cut in half and then half again, but most aren't.

"With a sharp knife, cut a pocket into the thickest side of each chicken breast. Stuff each with 1/4 of the bacon and cheese mixture. Seal with a toothpick (or as many as you need to hold it all together. Coat in bread crumbs (I also brushed the outside with bacon grease to make the breadcrumbs stick). Bake, covered in a 350 degree oven for 30-40 minutes or until done."


This recipe was so easy to make, used ingredients I usually always have around, and was fast to assemble. From there I just let it bake. I will defiantly be making this quite a bit in the future.


UPDATE: 8/18/11 - I think this would be really cool if you made them mini using small pieces of chicken and served them as appetizers.



I also got invited to send this to Cast Party Wednesday

Seven Links

I love blogging games! This one looks like fun so I thought I would play. Essentially there are seven questions and you answer them by linking previous posts.



1. Most Beautiful Post
The Strawboreo, hands down.

2. Most Popular Post
This was by far my French Onion Pasta, I was looking at my stats and it gets the most views.

3. Most Controversial Post
Chickenless Chicken Stew. Chicken stew without the chicken?!?!?!?




4. The Most Helpful Post
Tostadas. A tasty interesting dinner that takes 5 minutes to prepare and is full of vegetables and is a possible way to use up leftovers.

5. Post that was surprisingly successful

Rosie Chicken, I wasn't sure that topping chicken with spinach and cheese and then expecting a thin slice of prosciutto to hold it together would work. Or that the chicken would cook all the way through before the breading burned.





6. Post that did not get the attention it deserved
My Gumbo, I love gumbo a ton, it was one of the first posts I wrote that I really plated the food and made it look nice, and it tasted great.





7. Post you are most proud of
Pumpkin Cream Pasta, One of my favorite dishes ever and the first thing I submitted to Presto Pasta Nights. I'm actually really proud of quite a few of mine, I just wanted to highlight this one :)

Chicken Cordon Bleu Pasta

I wish I could say I thought of this on my own, but sadly, that is not the case. I first saw the idea at Yeastfree-Painfree, and then after googling it, I decided to stick with her recipe, making a few small changes based on what I had around. The number one reason for this was I couldn't find a single other recipe that still used swiss cheese in the sauce and well, it didn't look like it actually needed to be changed.

I can cook, photography is obviously not my strong-suit. Click on the Yeastfree-painfree link for a better picture


8 oz. shell pasta
1/2 c. heavy cream
1/4 c. milk
6 (1 oz) wedges laughing cow swiss cheese triangles
1 chicken bouillon cube
4 oz. good quality emmental cheese, grated or shredded
1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 - 2 c. leftover ham, cut into strips
(a can might work or deli ham)
1/2 c. flour
2 tsp. fried chicken seasoning
(I use McCormick)
oil

Cook the pasta in lightly salted water until tender.

Meanwhile, mix the flour and chicken seasoning. Cut the chicken into thin strips and toss with the flour. Cook in hot oil on both sides until browned and cooked though. Drain on a paper towel and slice into bit size chunks.

Combine the cream, cheese triangles, emmental, and chicken bouillon cube. Cook over medium heat until the cheese is melted and sauce is smooth. Stir in the milk.

Toss the drained pasta, ham, chicken, and cheese sauce.


This is being sent over to Presto Pasta Night 227, being hosted this week at "For such a time as this"

Summer Corn Pasta

This recipe is a combination of two other recipes. The first one being the test recipe for one of my online cooking groups that reminded me a bit of the second recipe, a soup my mom makes when fresh corn is in season. I like to add the cobs to the cooking liquid a little to give the sauce a really fresh corn flavor.

I also plan on sending this to Presto Pasta Nights host this week by Helen at Fuss Free Flavors.

This can very easily be made without the chicken by skipping the chicken, just cook the onion in the bacon drippings right after removing the bacon and add a can of white beans.

Summer Corn Pasta

6 oz. bacon

3 chicken breasts

Lawreys Season Salt

8 oz. rigatoni or penne

1/2 onion, chopped

2 large carrots, grated

1 c. water

2 chicken bouillon cubes

2 tsp. lemon juice

1 medium zucchini

4 ears corn

2 1/2 c. half-an-half

2 tsp. flour

1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Cook pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain and butter to prevent sticking.

Saute bacon until crisp. Remove from pan.

Remove fat from the chicken and fillet. Sprinkle with the lawrys seasoning and cook in the bacon drippings until browned on both sides. Remove from pan

Without cleaning out the pan cook the onion and carrot in the bacon drippings.

Add 1 cup of water to the pan along with one of the chicken cubes and the lemon juice.

Cut the zucchini into quarters lenghtwise and the then slice 1/4 inch thick. Add to the pan with the carrots and onion. Cut the corn from the cob. Add the cobs to the simmering zucchini. When the zucchini is tender remove the cobs from the pan and add the corn, half-an-half, pepper, and remaining chicken cube.

Combine the flour and enough water to form a thin pasta. Stir into the half-an-half and vegetables in the pan. Heat, stirring, until thick.

Slice the chicken, and add the chicken, pasta, and bacon to the pan. Add more half-an-half as needed to thin out the sauce.

After I took one shot of it on the plate I tossed it all together to serve for dinner.

Cupcakes and Frosting

I love to bake.

So I made cupcakes, 8 dozen of them.

But uh, I only have 6 dozen left.

The frosting is Smitten Kitchens Swiss Butter cream, when it was done I beat in cream cheese, and then powdered sugar until it was stiff again.

For the chocolate I added some cocoa and melted chocolate chips.

I love Swiss Buttercream, you should try it. Silky smooth and not overwhelmingly sweet.

MRE'S and HouseHold6 Cooking Club

I joined a cooking club and it's been pretty fun. HouseHold6 issues a challenge at the beginning of the month and we all cook something up, and then blog about it.

So this months challenge was make something that you think would be good in an MRE (Meal ready to Eat) since those things are rarely know for being tasty

So I have been trying to some up with something new for this challenge, some hearty and nutritious new dish. But I just kept going back to Harira.

Not only is it my husbands favorite dish, its full of good stuff.

For protein we have chick peas, lentils, and in the MRE's I would add some cooked chicken. Right after cooking the onions, and before adding everything else, I would saute some diced chicken in with the onions. Then simmer it all together until the lentils and rice are cooked.

It's also made with brown rice, lots of veggies, and of course some great spices.