Week 17 - Marinated Ranch Chicken plus a bonus appetizer!

This week we are vacationing in New Jersey and I've been able to make a few fun dishes. The first dish is for Marinated Ranch Chicken - http://allrecipes.com/recipe/marinated-ranch-broiled-chicken/

Ingredients: (I doubled the recipe)

• 4 chicken breasts
• 2 packets of dry ranch style dressing mix
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

I did this a little different than the recipe stated:

Combine the dressing mix, oil and vinegar in a bowl and mix together. 

Place the chicken on a baking sheet and coat evenly with the mixture.

Refrigerate to marinate for at least 1 hour (overnight if possible). Preheat oven to Broil/Grill.  Broil for 10 to 15 minutes or until cooked through and no longer pink inside.

This chicken had a really nice taste. Next time I will try to marinate it longer so the marinade can really soak into the chicken.

The second dish was a ringer for Ben! It is for Bacon Cheese Puffs - http://allrecipes.com/recipe/bacon-cheese-puffs/

Ingredients:

• 1 pound bacon (I used the already cooked bacon)
• 2.5 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 cup mayo
• 2 tablespoons prepared mustard
• 1 pound party rye bread

Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until evenly brown. Drain, crumble and set aside.

Preheat oven to broil.

In a medium bowl combine the bacon, cheese, mustard and mayonnaise. Stir well.

 Arrange party bread on a cookie sheet. Spoon mixture onto each slice of bread.

Broil for 5 minutes, or until bubbly. ***When I broiled this it actually burned because the oven was too hot. It was better just toasting it in the toaster oven and keeping a close eye on it. This was definitely a tasty hit!

Christmas Addition!!!

Merry Christmas!!! What an exciting Holiday for the Faircloughs - Ellie's 1st!!!  We had a lot of company this weekend and I was very busy cooking. I'm excited to share all of the special dishes I made this holiday.

The first recipe was from Pinterest for a shrimp dish - I used this for an appetizer.

Ingredients:

• bag of shrimp
• 1 lemon
• 1 packet of Italian seasoning
• 1 stick of butter

I'm not sure how to share the link but here is the recipe:

Melt a stick of butter in the pan. Slice one lemon and layer it on top of the butter. Put down fresh shrimp, then sprinkle one pack of dried Italian seasoning. 

Put in the oven and bake at 350 for 15 min. Best Shrimp you will EVER taste:) and it really was!!!

The second dish was for Crack Potatoes - another Pinterest recipe - http://www.plainchicken.com/2011/01/crack-potatoes.html

Ingredients:

• 2 (16oz) containers sour cream
• 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
• 2 (3oz) bags real bacon bits
• 2 packages Ranch Dip mix
• 1 large (28 - 30oz) bag frozen hash brown potatoes - shredded kind (it is easier to do this if the potatoes are thawed out a bit otherwise you can't mix all ingredients together)

Combine first 4 ingredients, mix in hash browns.  Spread into a 9x13 pan.  Bake at 400 for 45-60 minutes.

These were also a very big hit!! And very easy to make as you can see!

The last recipe was our breakfast on Christmas Eve morning. I needed to find something easy to make for 6 people and found a recipe for Crustless Bacon and Cheese Quiche - http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Crustless-Bacon-and-Cheese-Quiche/Detail.aspx?prop24=RD_RelatedRecipes

Ingredients: (what I actually used)

• 3 green peppers chopped
• 2 tomatoes chopped
• 12 slices of bacon
• 12 eggs
• 1/3 cup of sour cream
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Heat oven to 325 degrees F.

Reserve 2 tablespoons each peppers and tomatoes. Cook bacon (mine was already chopped up) in large skillet until crisp. 

Add peppers and tomatoes; mix well.

Beat eggs and sour cream with whisk until well blended. 

Pour into greased 13x9-inch baking dish; top with bacon mixture and cheeses.

Bake 30 minutes or until center is set. Sprinkle with reserved onions and tomatoes. Let stand 5 minutes before cutting to serve.

All of my holiday recipes were a bit hit this year!! I will definitely use these recipes again since they were all so easy to make!

I have one more entry before the end of the year! I will be making spaghetti burgers, so stay tuned until then!

Week 15 - Kelsey's Cheesy Bacon Breasts

Week 15 and almost Christmas!!! I found this recipe awhile ago and knew it was right up Ben's alley! He LOVES bacon and I LOVE easy meals - http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Kelseys-Cheesy-Bacon-Breasts/Detail.aspx?ms=1&prop25=92929836&prop26=DailyDish&prop27=2012-09-09&prop28=DailyRecipe&prop29=FullRecipe&me=1 

Ingredients:
**I changed the ingredients a bit, so below is what I used

• 3-4 skinless boneless chicken breasts
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup barbecue sauce
• bacon bits
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Melt butter or margarine in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken breasts and saute until just cooked; don't brown.

 Place chicken on a lined cookie sheet. Spread a little barbecue sauce evenly on top of each breast. Sprinkle bacon bits on each breast, then cover all with cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and juices run clear.

Serve with your favorite side dish and enjoy!

Week 14 - Stuffed Turkey Burgers!

Sorry for the late post, but I was so busy over the weekend I ended up cooking for Monday Night Football instead of Sunday Funday!

I had thawed out turkey meat and wanted to find something different to make. I found this recipe for Stuffed Turkey Burgers that sounded good, so I used this for the idea of our dinner - http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ellie-krieger/stuffed-turkey-burgers-recipe2/index.html

Ingredients:

•  1 1/4 pounds lean ground turkey breast
• 1/2 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided
• BBQ sauce or ketchup  
• hamburger buns       

 Divide the turkey meat into 6-8 patties depending on how much meat you have.

                                                                                                                             

Sprinkle half of the patties with mozzarella cheese (enough cheese to cover the patty).

Then top with the remaining patties working the turkey around the edges to seal the burgers closed.

Grill or broil until cooked through. We used our griddle since it is to cold to grill outside. Serve on a grilled hamburger bun and top with BBQ sauce or ketchup.

These came out really good. The cheese gave the burgers a really nice flavor. I topped my burger with BBQ sauce and it was delicious!

ENJOY!

 

Week 13 - Honey BBQ Wings!

I wanted to try a new wing recipe this weekend, so I went searching online for something simple. I found this recipe http://www.food.com/recipe/chicken-wings-in-honey-bbq-sauce-64639 for Chicken Wings in Honey BBQ Sauce and it looked like it would fit the bill!!!

Ingredients:
***I did not have enough soy sauce so I changed the amount of each item added, but the recipe came out awesome! The sauce was just delicious!

• 3 lbs chicken wings (approx. 16-18 wings)
• salt and black pepper
• 2 cups honey
• 1 cup soy sauce (I use reduced sodium)
• 1/2 cup your favorite bottled barbecue sauce
• 1/4 cup oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced (I just used garlic salt)

I left out the first few steps and started here:
Place wings on broiler pan and broil about 6 inches from heat for 10 minutes on each side OR until brown.

While the wings were in the broiler, I combined the ingredients for the sauce.

Once the wings were done, I transferred them to the Slow Cooker.  I then poured the sauce over the wings. I mixed them around so that all the wings were evenly coated.

Place the Slow Cooker on High for 2 hour or Low for 4 hours.
I cooked the wings on high for 2 hours and they were bubbling once I hit the 1:30 mark, so I decided to lower it for the last half hour. They came out delicious and I used the rest of the sauce for the rice.

I will definitely make these again! and MORE of them next time! We voted that these wings were BETTER than the ones from last season! These would be PERFECT for Super Bowl Sunday!

Week 12 - Giants vs Packers TACO PIZZA

Week 12 of football and I had to wait all day for the Giants game! I found this VERY easy recipe for Taco Pizza and it was perfect for Sunday Funday - http://allrecipes.com/recipe/taco-pizza-from-pillsbury-pizza-crust/detail.aspx

Ingredients:

• 1 can Pillsbury refrigerated pizza crust
• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1 (1 ounce) package Old El Paso® Taco Seasoning Mix
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend
• 1 1/2 cups shredded lettuce
• 1 cup seeded, chopped tomato

Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Spray or grease 15x10-inch or larger dark or nonstick cookie sheet. Unroll dough on cookie sheet; starting at center, press dough into 15x10-inch rectangle.

 In 10-inch skillet, cook beef, taco seasoning mix and water as directed on package. Spoon evenly on dough. Top with cheese.

Bake 13 to 16 minutes or until crust is golden brown and cheese is melted. Top with remaining ingredients.

Ben said this was one of his favorite meals for Sunday Funday! This was super easy to make and can be made with many different ingredients depending on what you like! I may try it with chicken another time, so stay tuned!

Special Thanksgiving Addition - Ellie's first!!

This was a very special Thanksgiving for our family - it was Ellie's first Thanksgiving! We had a special Thanksgiving breakfast to start the day off right. I had a recipe for Chocolate French Toast that I've been saving for an occasion like this. I used this recipe - http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Chocolate-French-Toast-2/Detail.aspx?ms=1&prop25=94358539&prop26=DailyDish&prop27=2012-09-29&prop28=DailyRecipe&prop29=FullRecipe&me=1

Ingredients:

• 1 cup milk
• 2 packets of hot cocoa mix
• 8 slices of bread
• 2/3 c white sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• pam cooking spray

Beat together milk, eggs, sugar, cocoa powder, and salt.

Heat skillet over medium heat.

Dip each slice of bread into egg mixture until well soaked, about 20 seconds per side. Place in pan, and cook on both sides until they are no longer gooey or shiny in the middle when cut in half, about 3 to 4 minutes per side.

Serve with syrup and enjoy! This was delicious! You could really taste the chocolate flavor which we loved!!

Hope everyone had a great Turkey Day!

Week 11 - BBQ Chicken Burgers plus Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins!

One week until Thanksgiving!! Just unreal how fast time has passed!

I had purchased more ground chicken since the Chicken Parm Meatballs were such a hit. I found a recipe for BBQ Chicken Burgers that sounded yummy, so we decided to try them! I found the recipe here - http://www.howsweeteats.com/2011/04/bbq-chicken-burgers/ (the recipe is in the center of the page). I changed it a bit, so I will be blogging how I made the burgers.
Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground chicken breast
• 1/4 cup cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup bacon bits
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup BBQ sauce – use homemade or your favorite!
• BBQ sauce for topping

In a large bowl, combine chicken, BBQ sauce, bacon bits, garlic powder, salt, pepper and cheddar cheese.

Mix until just combined, then form patties. 

Preheat the grill or a skillet and cook the burgers until fully cooked through. I used a griddle to cook the burgers since it was to cold to grill outside. 

We did not have burger buns so we just ate the burgers alone, but topped with more BBQ sauce they had a yummy taste. Feel free to top with your favorite cheese too!

I wanted to try a new recipe I found for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins especially with Thanksgiving right around the corner. I found the recipe here - http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Pumpkin-Chocolate-Chip-Muffins/Detail.aspx?ms=1&prop25=97747293&prop26=DailyDish&prop27=2012-11-10&prop28=DailyRecipe&prop29=FullRecipe&me=1

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup canned pumpkin
• 1/4 cup water
• 1.5 cups all purpose-flour
• 3/4  teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease and flour muffin pan or use paper liners.
2. Mix sugar, oil, eggs. Add pumpkin and water.

3.  In separate bowl mix together the baking flour, baking soda, baking powder, spices and salt.. Add wet mixture and stir in chocolate chips.

4.  Fill muffin cups 2/3 full with batter. Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes.

I was able to make 2 batches from the 1 can of pumpkin, so I made some mini muffins and regular size muffins. These were really good and a great treat for breakfast or a snack!

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving!!! We have a lot to give thanks for this year!!

Week 10 - Baked MAC and Cheese plus another bonus recipe!

Week 10 of football and Thanksgiving is a little over a week away! Ellie will be 16 weeks tomorrow! Where does the time go?! I've been wanting to make this recipe for awhile now and finally have all the ingredients to do it. Thanks to my friend Emily, I will be using her recipe today for delicious Baked MAC and Cheese (I think the recipe actually came from her Mother in Law).

Ingredients:

• 2 T margarine
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/2 t dry mustard or I used the same amount of regular mustard
• 1/4 t pepper
• 2.5 cup milk
• 2 c grated cheddar cheese (or already shredded cheese)
• 1 box elbow macaroni (cooked 6 minutes, drained)
• 1/4 cup fresh bread crumbs or crumbled ritz crackers

Preheat oven to 375. In 2-quart saucepan, melt margarine over low heat. Stir in the flour, salt, mustard and pepper until smooth.

Remove from heat and gradually stir in the milk until smooth. Stirring constantly, cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat.

Stir in 2 cups of the cheese until melted.

Put cooked macaroni into greased 2-quart casserole.  Pour the cheese mixture over the macaroni, mix well. Mix remaining cheese and breadcrumbs and sprinkle over the top of the casserole.

Bake for 25 minutes and ENJOY!!! This was YUMMY!!! Thank you Emily :)

For the bonus recipe this week, I used the cheddar ranch dip for a chicken dish because I had so much left over.

Ingredients

• 4 pieces of chicken
• left over cheddar ranch dip
• breadcrumbs

Evenly top the chicken with the dip. Then coat with breadcrumbs.

Cook at 350 until chicken is cooked through. This was delicious! I will definitely be making this again!

Next week Sunday Funday will be in preparation for Thanksgiving. I have a pumpkin chocolate chip muffin recipe I'm going to try...and we will see what else I can find!