Cheese & veggie crepes

I have never made anything with crepes. I've also never made crepes. This recipe calls for premade crepes, but I think if I made this again I would try making my own because these kept falling apart. The filling tasted delicious so I would definitely try them again.

Cheese & veggie crepes-adapted from Easy Family Meals by Prevention Guide
Total time: 10 minutes
Serves 4

• 4 premade crepes
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
• 6 ounces baby spinach
• 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put the crepes on two baking sheets. 

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and saute about 5 minutes until most of the liquid has evaporated.

Add the spinach to the pan. Cook just until wilted. 

put one-quarter of the mixture in the center of each crepe. Sprinkle a quarter of the cheese on top. Fold the edges of the crepes around the filling. Bake until cheese melts, about 5 minutes.

Mushroom tart with black truffle oil

This recipe has been sitting at the bottom of my Pinterest board for quite some time. I think I kept passing it up because I've never used black truffle oil before and I had no clue where to get it. Well, to help any of you out there that are in the same boat, you can find it at World Market (a favorite store of mine by the way)!

Anyway, I think something went a little wrong with this recipes because the puff pastry ended up a little doughy, but the flavors were definitely all there. The combination of the gruyere cheese and black truffle oil was awesome. If anyone else tries this, let me know what you did differently!

Mushroom tart with black truffle oil-adapted from Authentic Suburban Gourmet
Total Time: 30 minutes
Serves 6

• 1 sheet puff pastry, thawed
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons salted butter
• 1 pound mushrooms, sliced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 cup ricotta
• 1/4 cup Creme Fraiche
• 2 egg yolks, divided
• 1/4 cup Gruyere, sliced thin
• 1 bunch green onions, sliced
• Black truffle oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Flatten the puff pastry with a rolling pin and score the outisde 1-inch edge with a knife. 

In a large skillet, melt the butter and oil over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and garlic and cook for 4-5 minutes or until mushrooms have released their juices and are tender.

In a medium bowl, combine ricotta, Creme Fraiche and one egg yolk. 

In a small bowl, mix the remaining egg yolk with a little water and brush on the 1-inch edges of the puff pastry. 

Spread the ricotta mixture inside the puff pastry edges. Top with Gruyere, the mushroom mixture and green onions.

Bake in the oven for 25 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Once the tart is out of the oven, drizzle with the black truffle oil. 

Caramel snickerdoodle bars

I was so incredibly excited to make these. The flavors were totally there and I definitely need to try this again. The dulce de leche just didn't set and made a complete mess. This was #2 of my absolute failures for the weekend. Someone else, please try these so I can have the courage to try again!

Caramel snickerdoodle bars-adapted from Taste of Home
Total time: 1 hour, plus chilling
Serves 48

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 3 teaspoons cinnamon
• 2 (13.4 ounce) cans dulce de leche
• 12 ounces white chocolate chips
• 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 teaspoon light corn syrup

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13 inch baking sheet with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, beat butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add in eggs and vanilla. Whisk in flour, baking powder and salt until blended. Pour into the prepared baking dish. 

In a small bowl, mix the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle 2 tablespoons over the batter. Bake for 25 minutes or until edges are light brown. Allow to cool on a wire rack.

Spread dulce de leche over crust. In a small saucepan, heat white chocolate chips, whipping cream and corn syrup over medium low heat, stirring frequently until smooth. Pour over dulce de leche. Refrigerate for at least one hour.

Try Again: Cream Cheese Banana Bread

I have had the worst luck baking lately. I don't know why, but things just haven't been working out. I didn't even take a picture of this failure. The bread overflowed the pan AND then (not surprisingly) it didn't cook all the way through. The top that was cooked did taste really good, so I'll definitely try again-probably in two bread pans.

Cream Cheese Banana Bread-adapted from A Cook's Quest
Total Time: 1 hour
Makes 1 loaf

• 3/4 cup softened butter
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 3 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 ripe bananas, mashed
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix the butter, cream cheese and sugar until well blended. Add the eggs and mix until blended. Add the remainder of the dry ingredients and mix until just blended. Mix in bananas and vanilla.

Pour mixture into a greased bread pan. Bake for about an hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Try Again: Cheesy Bacon Potatoes

So this recipe did not go well. I didn't give myself enough time to do it as the recipe stated. So this is more of a try-again recipe. We ended up throwing the potatoes in the oven to finish cooking. The cheese got a little over cooked, but the flavors were definitely there! If any of you try this, let me know how it goes!

Cheesy Bacon Potatoes-adapated from Stock Piling Moms
Total Time: 4 Hours
Serves 6

• 1/4 pound bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 green onion, diced
• 6-8 red potatoes, quartered
• 8 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 4 tablespoons butter

Cook bacon over medium heat in a skillet until crispy. Meanwhile, line a 5-quart slow cooker with tin foil, having enough to cover the potatoes with once placed inside. Place half of the bacon, onion, potatoes and cheese in the bottom of the slow cooker. Season with half salt and pepper, and dot with 2 tablespoons butter. Repeat with remaining ingredients. Cover potatoes fully with foil to keep in steam. Cook on low for 4-6 hours or until potatoes are tender.

Queso Dip

I was so excited when I found this recipe on Pinterest as queso dip is one of my favorite things when I go out for Mexican food. However, this did not turn out very well. I don't know if I did something wrong, or didn't buy the right cheese or what. It never got to that smooth consistency and just didn't taste good. It pretty much looked like a garlic butter, which was very odd. Maybe one of you can figure it out?

Update 11/16/2013
I tried this again. And pretty much got the same result. See the picture below. It did not get smooth even after many many minutes of stirring. And it just looked like butter. I tasted it and it did taste okay, but it's not that appetizing to look at so I won't be making this again. So disappointed.

Queso Dip-adapted from The Royal Cook
Total Time: 10 Minutes
Serves 10

• 1 1/4 pound block white American cheese, cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1/4 cup diced green chiles
• 2 pickled jalapenos, chopped
• 1 ounce pickled jalapeno juice
• 2/3 cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup cold water
• pinch of cumin 

Put all ingredients in a microwave safe bowl, and cook in microwave on high for 5 minutes, stirring every 1 minute. Serve with chips.

Buffalo Chicken Chili

I can't lie to you guys. I didn't try this recipe. I made it, so I still want to put it up here. Since it's a slow cooker recipe, I got it ready in the morning and went to work. I think this was a day we got a surprise free lunch at work, and I just wasn't hungry all night.

Scott ate it though! The only thing he complained about was that the chicken was a bit dry. I know I put it on the top of the mix, so I'm thinking I need to put it on the bottom next time. I'm not going to give this a rating, but I'll try it again and update you. If you give it a try--let me know!

Buffalo Chicken Chili-adapted from Best One Dish Meals by Pillsbury
Total Time: 8 hours
Serves 6

• 2 1/2 pounds boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 medium stalks celery, sliced
• 2 medium carrots, chopped
• 1-28 ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 -15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup Buffalo wing sauce
• Crumbled blue cheese

Spray 5 quart slow cooker with cooking spray. Place all ingredients except buffalo wing sauce and blue cheese into slow cooker. Cover and cook on low 8-10 hours.

Stir in Buffalo wing sauce. Serve with blue cheese.

Roast Cod with Crisp Potatoes

The problem I always run into when baking a light-tasting fish, like cod, is that Scott says there's always not enough flavor to it. The same definitely happened in this recipe, unfortunately, and I even added a bunch of lemon pepper seasoning! I'd still make this again because it was really easy, and one whole meal in one which is always nice to not dirty 423,234 dishes every time you cook (which I definitely tend to do). I just need to make sure to add additional seasoning. I'm thinking some cayenne, red pepper flakes, and garlic possibly? Feel free to share your thoughts!

Also, I added in some carrots to the recipe below. I had some left over and they definitely baked well!

Roast Cod with Crisp Potatoes-adapted from Meals Made Easy by Real Simple
Total Time: 50 Minutes
Serves 4

• 1 1/2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, quartered (peeled, if desired)
• 4 large carrots, sliced
• 3 tablespoons, plus 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon lemon pepper
• 4 cod fillets

Heat oven to 450 degrees. Place the potatoes and carrots in a baking dish, drizzle with the 3 tablespoons oil and toss to coat. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper, and roast for 20 minutes. Stir and roast for 10 more minutes.

 

Meanwhile, season the cod fillets with the lemon pepper seasoning. After the 30 minutes of roasting, move the potatoes and carrots to the sides of the baking dish and place cod fillets in the center. Drizzle the remaining oil and roast about 10 minutes, until the fillets are cook through and flake easily.

Fried Rice with Sweet Soy Sauce

Finding the ultimate homemade fried rice recipe is one of my goals. Fried rice is one of my favorite things when I order Chinese takeout. We have a rice cooker that we absolutely love as I've found the perfect ratio of rice to water that makes perfect rice every time.

This recipe wasn't quite the perfect one for me. The serrano chile made this a little too spicy for me, and I don't think I'd keep that in the recipe next time. Otherwise the flavors were fine and I'd make it again. I served it with chicken marinated in sweet chile and hoisin sauce.

Fried Rice with Sweet Soy Sauce-adapted from Cooking Light's Dinner Tonight!

Total Time: 35 Minutes

Serves 4

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 large eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 finely chopped shallot
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 chopped serrano chile (which I will be omitting next time-it was too hot for me)
• 4 cups cooked rice
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 1/2 cups thinly sliced radishes
• 1/3 cup fresh basil leaves
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in skillet over medium high heat. Cook eggs until set, turning once. Remove eggs from pan and set aside. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together soy sauce and brown sugar to make sweet soy sauce.

Turn up heat on pan to high, and add in remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Stir fry shallot, garlic and chile for 1 minute. Add rice and stir fry for 3 minutes or until lightly browned. Add cooked eggs, sweet soy cauce, salt and pepper and toss to combine.

Top with radishes and herbs. Serve with protein of your choice.

Chicken and Brown Rice Casserole

I made this recipe while I went to work one day, and then we ended up having other plans that night. So the slow cooker went straight into the fridge. Eating this the next day wasn't very good. However, the blog I found it on (A Year of Slow Cooking), said it was great so I'm going to try it again someday!

Chicken and Brown Rice Casserole-adapted from Make it Fast, Cook it Slow by Stephanie O'Dea
Total Time: 8 hours
Serves 6

• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 3/4 cup flour
• 1 1/2 cups raw brown rice
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1 small onion, diced
• 8 ounces sliced mushrooms
• 5 boneless chicken breasts

Combine all of the chicken broth and 1/2 cup of milk in a sauce pan and heat over medium heat on the stove. In a separate bowl, whisk the remaining 1 cup of milk with 3/4 cup flour.
When the broth and milk have begun to boil, reduce heat, and slowly stir in the milk and flour mixture. When everything is fully incorporated, set the pot aside to cool.

Spray the inside of your crockpot with cooking spray.

Add the rice and seasonings to your crock. Chop up the onion, and add it with the mushrooms. Stir in your broth, flour, and milk mixture. The rice will turn a bit red from the paprika.

Lay the chicken pieces on top. 

Cover and cook on high for 4 hours, or low for about 8. I cooked ours on high for 4, and let it stay warm for another 2.

When you take the lid off of the crockpot, stir the rice. If the rice is fully cooked and you have extra liquid, keep the lid off for about 15 minutes. The liquid will absorb quickly.

Spinach Pesto Lasagna

This recipe really intrigued me because it uses wonton wrappers instead of lasagna noodles. The flavors were excellent. The texture of the wonton wrappers was not. I'm not giving this any type of rating today simply because it didn't turn out for us. I'm going to try it again with lasagna noodles and go from there!

Spinach-Pesto Lasagna-Adapted from Health Magazine, March 2011
Total Time 35 minutes
Serves 6

• 1 cup fat free ricotta cheese
• 4 tablespoons pesto, divided
• 1 large egg white, lightly beaten
• 1 (5-ounce) box baby spinach
• 18 wonton wrappers (1 package)
• 1 jar roasted red peppers, rinsed and drained
• 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, combine ricotta, 2 tablespoons pesto and egg white. Stir well.

Heat 1 tablespoooon water in a medium skillet over medium heat; cook spinach until wilted, stirring well.

Spread remaining 2 tablespoons pesto in a 8-inch baking dish; top with 6 wontons; add half of peppers over ricotta mixture. Top peppers with another 6 wontons, remaining ricotta mixture, half of spinach and remaining peppers. Top peppers with remaining 6 wonts and spinach. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.

Bake lasagna until cheese is melted and bubbly, about 20 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Green Bean Casserole & an Apology...

So I know I've been super terrible at updating the blog. I'm not quite sure what it was, but I just didn't feel like blogging lately. I did keep track of everything I made, so when I felt like writing again I had enough stuff! So, I'm sorry I've been neglectful--but now I'm back! On to some recipes...

Two years ago, for the Harris family holiday get together, I made green bean casserole. Just the standard, Campbell's green bean casserole. It was the first time I was meeting many of Scott's family, and I really wanted to cook. I had never made the casserole before but it seemed easy enough. Everything was going fine, and then Scott and I left early to get to the gathering. I left his dad in charge of taking the casserole. He burned it. And I never lived it down.

So, this year, I decided to try the Pioneer Woman's green bean casserole. I love all of her recipes. I think the next time I would use frozen green beans, just as it was too much of a pain to trim two pounds of green beans. I also put in way too much pepper, so I don't think people liked it a whole lot. It wasn't a bad recipe, but I feel as though I need to try it again sometime.

Green Bean Casserole-Adapted from the Pioneer Woman

Total Time: 50 Minutes

Serves 8

• 2 pounds green beans, ends cut off
• 4 slices of bacon, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 whole onion, diced
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 2-1/2 cups whole milk
• 1/2 cup half-and-half
• 1-1/2 teaspoons salt, more to taste
• Black pepper-to taste
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
• 4 ounce jar of sliced pimentos, drained
• Extra milk for thinning if necessary
• 1 cup Panko bread crumbs

Cut green beans in half if you like pieces to be a little smaller.

Blanch the green beans: drop them into lightly salted boiling water and allow green beans to cook for about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove them from the boiling water with a slotted spoon and immediately plunge them into a bowl of ice cold water to stop the cooking process. Drain beans once they're cool and set aside.

Add bacon pieces to a skillet over medium heat. Cook bacon for two minutes, then add diced onion and garlic and continue cooking for 3 to 5 minutes, or until bacon is done (but not crisp) and onions are golden brown. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a separate skillet or saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Sprinkle flour into the pan and whisk immediately to evenly mix it into the butter. Cook for a minute or two, then pour in milk and half and half. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, while sauce thickens, about 2 minutes. Add salt, pepper, and cayenne then add the grated cheddar. Stir while cheese melts. Turn off heat.

Add pimentos to pan, then add bacon/onion mixture. Stir to combine. Pour over green beans and stir gently to combine. Pour into a baking dish and top with panko crumbs.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until sauce is bubbly and panko crumbs are golden.

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Try Again: Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

So this was my bad baking experience for my cookie extravaganza! But I feel as though it's not my fault completely...The original recipe calls for 2 TABLESPOONS of beaten egg. What recipe doesn't have a whole egg count? I just saw the 2 and assumed it was two eggs. After looking at the comments, I have determined that two tablespoons of beaten egg is about 1 egg. So I changed it in my version, so we can all know from now on. The flavor was good, but the cookie was more like a sponge cake with the extra egg. So I don't want to give this a rating as I know it was wrong--I'll update when I try again!

Oatmeal Rasin Cookies-adapted from Taste of Home

Total Time 30 Minutes

Makes 14 Cookies

• 1/3 cup shortening
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup quick cooking oats
• 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup raisins

In a smal bowl, cream shortening and sugars. Beat in egg and vanilla. In a small bowl combine the oats, flour baking soda and salt. Gradually add to the creamed mixture. Stir in raisins.

Drop by tablespoonfuls onto an ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 9-11 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Let stand for 2 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Try Again: Cranberry-Lemon Tea Bread

I have always had issues with bread. For some reason it always seems to cook too much on the outside and not enough on the inside. This bread did not turn out AT ALL. BUT I think I know why. The recipe says to put it into two pans, and I only put it into one. So the outside cooked pretty good, so we at least got to taste it and it was rather good! But I"ll have to make it again to make the frosting. So if anyone makes this, PLEASE let me know how it goes 'cause I don't know the next time I'll make it!

The ruined bread...you can still see the batter inside!

Cranberry-Lemon Tea Bread - adapted from Betty Crocker
Total Time: 2 hour 45 minutes
Serves 16

• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1 box lemon cake mix
• 1 cup sweetened dried cranberries
• 1 box cheesecake instant pudding and pie filling mix
• 1 cup water
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 4 eggs
• 1 ounce cream cheese, softened
• 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• Poppy seeds for topping, optional

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 2 loaf pans with cooking spray; sprinkle 1 1/2 teaspoons granulated sugar in each pan.

In small bowl, toss 2 tablespoons of the cake mix with cranberries. in large bowl, beat remaining cake mix, dry pudding mix, water, oil and eggs with electric mixer on low speed until moistened; beat 2 minutes on high speed, scraping bowl occasionally. Stir in cranberries. Divide batter evenly between pans.

Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 1 hour 30 minutes.

In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, milk and lemon juice until smooth and thin enough to drizzle. Pour glaze over bread, allowing some to drizzle down sides. Sprinkle with poppy seeds.

Baked Potato Soup

I was super excited to try this recipe. You can imagine my disappointment when this didn't turn out right. The flavors were awesome, but the consistency was not. The cream cheese just did not melt right, and we kept it on a LOT longer that stated in the recipe. I still might try it again, but we'll see. For now, we rated it a 2.5/5.

Baked Potato Soup-adapted from More Make it Fast Cook it Slow by Stephanie O'Dea

• 5 pounds potatoes, peeled and diced in 1-2 inch chunks
• 1 small onion, diced
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon seasoned salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2 quarts chicken broth
• 2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese
• crumbled bacon, green onion or chives as garnish (optional)

Use a 6-quart slow cooker. Put the potatoes into your stoneware, and add the onion and garlic. Sprinkle in the seasonings and pour in the chicken broth. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, or on high for 4. The potatoes should be fork tender. You can use a potato masher or a handheld stick blender to mash the potatoes into the soup. You want to get rid of all large chunks of potato to make a smooth soup.

After smashing the potatoes, squeeze in both packages of cream cheese and replace the lid of the cooker. Cook on high for about 30 minutes or until the cream cheese is completely dissolved. Stir a few times during this 30 minutes. Garnished with crumbled bacon, green onion or chives.

Baked Oatmeal

I can't remember if I've ever truly loved oatmeal. I never hated it, but I don't ever crave it. I think my years working at Perkins and trying to use regular oats to make instant oatmeal at 2 in the morning really turned me off. But, Stephanie O'Dea has always given me something new to try in the slow cooker. I was at least going to try this! My oatmeal turned out extremely dry to the point that it was almost uneatable. I tried to salvage it, but that just didn't happen. I think I might try this again, but I'll just have to watch it a little more. You can really make this your own by adding your favorite fruit or seasoning (some people in the comments of Stephanie's blog said they added cocoa powder). Overall, a 2.5/5, but I want to try this again!

Baked Oatmeal

Baked Oatmeal-adapted from "Make it Fast, Cook it Slow" by Stephanie O'Dea

Total Time: 5 hours

Serves 8

• 3 cups rolled (not instant) oats
• 1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3/4 cup dried fruit
• 1 cup milk
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Use a four quart slow cooker. Put the dry ingredients into the stoneware and add the dried fruit, milk, butter, vanilla and eggs. Stir well to combine. Cover and cook on low for 3-5 hours, checking after 90 minutes. The oatmeal is done when the edges are brown and are beginning to crust, the center is set, and a knife inserted comes out clean. Let it sit in the cooling cooker for at least an hour before attempting to cut it. The longer you let it sit, the more set and brownie-like the pieces will be.

Stacked Enchilada Bake

Like I've said before, we love Mexican food! After making the corn & spinach enchiladas last week, I had leftover corn tortillas. So I decided to make this dish! It is technically vegetarian, but after making it and reading the reviews over at bettycrocker.com  I think I would add some chicken or ground beef next time. This time I bought one can of chili beans and one can of chili just to mix things up. There were way to many beans for my taste. I think I would use pinto beans instead of chili beans, just because I like them better. And I might do one layer over refried beans instead of whole beans, once again just because I like them! I would also add black olives. Cheese is definitely necessary after the first layer as well. You can never have too much cheese!

I also just realized I didn't follow the recipe completely. I never even saw that you're supposed to rip up the tortillas! I put them in whole. It turned out just fine, but I'll keep the recipe the same. Overall, I'd give this a 2.5/5, but I think I can make it work. I'll just have to make it again!

Before it went in the oven!

Just out of the oven!

It didn't end up coming out of the casserole quite as pretty, but it tasted alright!

Stacked Enchilada Bake adapted from BettyCrocker.com

Total Time: 30 Minutes

Serves 6

• 12 corn tortillas (5 to 6 inches in diameter), torn into pieces
• 1 can refried beans
• 1 can pinto beans, undrained
• 1 cup shredded cooked chicken or ground beef
• 1 can enchilada sauce
• 1 1/2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
• 3 medium green onions, slicked
• 1 can sliced black olives (if desired)

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Spray 2 quart casserole with cooking spray.

Place half the tortillas in the casserole; top with refried beans, half the meat and sprinkling of cheese.  Place other half of tortillas on top, followed by meat, beans, and enchilada sauce. Add the remainder of cheese, green onions and black olives on top. 

Bake in oven for 20 minutes uncovered or until  bubbly around the edges.

Salad with French Beans and Spicy Peanut Sauce-Try Again

**Update 12/28/2013**
I posted an update to this recipe here.

An Asian-inspired dish. Adapted from Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade Cooking 2.


Salad with French Beans and Spicy Peanut Dressing
Serves 6
Total Time: 15 Minutes

• 1 bag (16 ounces) frozen french cut green beans
• 1 head lettuce (recipe called for frisee lettuce, I used spinach)
• 1/2 cup roasted peanuts, for garnish
• 1/2 bunch green onions, chopped into 1/4 inch slices
• 3 tablespoons bottled minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon sliced ginger
• 1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 1 can (8.5 ounce) cream of coconut
• 1 jar (18 ounce) smooth peanut butter
• 1-2 cups warm water
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
• 1/2 jar (8.5 ounce) hoisin sauce
• 1/4 cup soy sauce

Thaw green beans in a colander and pat dry to remove excess water. Clean lettuce and cut into bite size pieces if necessary; set aside.

In a food processor, combine the green onions, garlic, ginger, and jalapeno. Process until uniform. Add the oil and process briefly to form a paste.

Transfer paste to a large bowl. Whisk in cream of coconut. Add peanut butter and 1 cup warm water. Add the remaining water, 1 tablespoon or so at a time, if necessary to make dressing a smooth consistency. Whisk in cilantro, hoisin sauce, and soy sauce.

The Verdict
2.5/5. This had WAY too much peanut butter. I would use only half of the jar, if even that. The hoisin sauce has excellent flavor, and I was about the use the whole jar! I omitted the jalapeno-simply because I forgot to buy it. This is definitely a recipe that makes six FULL servings, so don't make more than you need! I'm not 100% set on making this again, but we'll see...

Try Again: Portobello Mushroom Stroganoff

I was super excited to try this recipe. I was severely disappointed in it for many reasons. I wasn't going to post this recipe as I started this blog with the intention of only putting items I enjoyed on it. But Scott suggested putting on failures would make it more interesting, so that's what I'm doing. If I don't like a recipe, I'm going to tag it "Try Again." Once we try it again, I'll tag it "Redone" or something along those lines...if anyone has any  thoughts on these recipes and/or the tagging process let me know!

As for this recipe, I learned a few things. Definitely do NOT overcook egg noodles. They get soggy and clump together. Also, one and a half cups of sour cream is waaayy too much (and I usually LOVE sour cream). If something seems like a lot, it probably is so start with a lower amount. The last thing I learned: read the reviews if at all possible on a recipe, and heed their advice. I did not do that this time, and definitely wish I did. As stated before, the recipe had too much sour cream and not enough seasoning to it.  Well, hopefully I'll try it again someday!

Portobello Mushroom Stroganoff

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3/4 pound portobello mushrooms, sliced
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 1/2 cups sour cream-you really only need 1/2 cup
• 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley 
• 8 ounces dried egg noodles
• I added two cloves of garlic; any other veggies and/or seasonings are recommended. Meat could be added easily as well

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add egg noodles, and cook until al dente, about 7 minutes. Remove from heat, drain and set aside

At the same time, melt butter in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Add onion, and cook, stirring until softened. Turn the heat up to medium-high, and add sliced mushrooms. Cook until the mushrooms are limp and browned. Remove to a bowl and set aside.

In the same skillet, stir in vegetable broth, being sure to stir in any browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Bring to a boil, and cook until the mixture has reduced by 1/3. Reduce heat to low, and return the mushrooms and onion to the skillet.

Remove pan from the heat, stir together the sour cream and flour; then blend into the mushrooms. Return the skillet to the burner, and continue cooking over low heat, just until the sauce thickens. Stir in the parsley and season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve over cooked eggs noodles.

Total Time: 30 minutes

Four Servings