Chicken and Asparagus Crepes

It was a little chilly and gloomy today (ok, I'm lying, it was 70 degrees but it was dreary and rainy!) so I wanted something warm and cozy for dinner. I stumbled upon a recipe for Chicken and Asparagus Crepes that looked promising. I've never worked with crepes (pre-made, I wasn't about to go try to make those myself tonight!) but they where the perfect addition to this dish which didn't take much time. Especially if you have some leftover chicken you can use!


Chicken and Asparagus Crepes

1 tablespoon butter
2 1/2 cups shredded chicken
1 cup ricotta cheese (part skim)
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons parsley
8 pre-made crepes (9 inch)
salt and pepper
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 diced onion
1 cup diced mushrooms
1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
cooking spray

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Over medium heat sauté mushrooms and 3/4 of the onions until onion are translucent. Combine mushroom/onion mixture with chicken, ricotta, 1/4 cup parmesan, parsley, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon pepper, garlic salt. Spoon about 1/4 cup of the filling across the lower third of the crepe and roll up to enclose the filling. Place crepes in greased baking dish. Cover with foil and bake about 15 mins.

2. Melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat. Add remaining onions and cook for about 2 minutes. Add asparagus and cook until tender. Add chicken broth and lemon zest and simmer until the sauce thickens. Stir in remaining 1/4 cup parmesan cheese.

3. Divide sauce over crepes. Serve.

Original Recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/chicken-and-asparagus-crepes-recipe/index.html



AEM

Granola "Bars"

For some reason I thought it might be a good idea to try to make my own granola bars. Why? I don't know because I really enjoy the bars we buy at the store and making my own really made me feel like one of those people who MUST make everything on their own when really, I don't have the time or patience for that nonsense. I don't know what I was thinking with this one but I was curious. The result was tasty and maybe even delicious albeit a little messier than I would have liked and not quite as firm as my store-bought bars.


Chocolate Granola Bars

1/2 cup peanut butter
3 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons agave nectar (or just use more honey!)
1/4 cup butter
1 cup oatmeal (not quick or instant)
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

1. Mix peanut butter, honey, agave, and butter in a pot over medium-low heat until it melts, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.

2. Add oats to peanut butter/honey mixture. Mix until coated. Add in coconut and chocolate chips.

3. Pour into wax or foil-lined 8x8 pan and refrigerate until cool.

4. The bars should pull right off the wax/foil when cool. If they don't come off easily, refrigerate longer. Put on a cutting board and cut into the size and share you want.

I store these in a container in the refrigerator. They are really good but a little messy/soft.

AEM

Penne with Roasted Asparagus and Balsamic Butter

This ended up being a delicious recipe. I found it on Pinterest one night and finally decided to make it with a few minor changes (like less butter because a stick of butter is a bit much for me!). Here's my version which I highly recommend. It was good and reheated well for lunch the next day (and the day after that and the day after that!). Word to the wise: Don't stick your face in the simmer balsamic steam, your nose and lungs will not appreciate it. They will appreciate it even less if you do it multiple times :(

Penne with Roasted Asparagus and Balsamic Butter

1lb asparagus
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon brown sugar
1 box penne (I used Barilla Plus)
4 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup parmesan cheese

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cut the ends off the asparagus and cut remainder into 1-inch pieces. Toss with olive oil 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Roast in oven about 10 minutes.

2. Put all of the vinegar in a small saucepan. Simmer until about 3 tablespoons remain. Stir in brown sugar and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.

3. Cook penne as directed on box. Drain and add butter, vinegar mixture, asparagus, cheese and remaining 1 3/4 teaspoons salt. Serve.

Original Recipe: http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/penne-with-roasted-asparagus-and-balsamic-butter


AEM

The Scoop: Banana Ice Cream for All

Ok, now when I first heard I could make ice cream with one ingredient and without my trusty ice cream maker, I had to admit, I was a bit apprehensive. I thought it was some sort of cheap trick to make me think I was eating ice cream but alas, I was wrong. There must be some magic in bananas that allow it to happen but with this recipe, bananas can easily turn into a delicious ice cream.

Banana Ice Cream

Bananas (about 1 banana per serving)

1. Peel the banana and slice it into about 1-inch thick slices. The size isn't really important, just slice it.
2. Place the slices on a plate and put them in the freezer for 1-2 hours.
3. Put the frozen banana slices and any mix-ins into a food processor or blender (I've tried both, both work equally well so pick whichever is easier to clean!).
4. Pulse until smooth.
5. Scoop out and serve!

For our first try, we made it with 3 bananas, 1 graham cracker and about 2 tablespoons of peanut butter chips and 1 tablespoon of mini chocolate chips. It was delicious and filling. I made it a second time with 1 banana and nothing more and it was a fantastic guilt-free snack and it actually tastes and looks like ice cream! Definitely in the regular rotation.



AEM

Pretzel Balls

Mike loves big soft pretzels. It's his gameday routine at any baseball, basketball, football, or hockey game. His night is just not complete unless he gets his pretzel. I decided to try and give it a shot and make a nice snack for sitting on the couch and watching a game or a mid-day treat on the weekend. I never really considered making pretzels before because I figured it would be too hard and virtually impossible for my uncoordinated self to whip up something that even remotely resembled  pretzel. When I stumbled upon the idea of pretzel bites, I was sold. While I was wrong in assuming it is difficult to make pretzels, I failed to consider the fact that it is just one big giant pain in the ass. Luckily, the final product was well worth it but this won't be something I'll be making once a week...I say that now but man, these little buggers were good so I'm sure I could be easily convinced to give it another go!


Pretzel Balls

1 1/2 cups warm water
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1 package active dry yeast
4 1/2 cups flour
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2/3 cups baking soda
10 cups water
1 large egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water
pretzel salt or coarse sea salt
cooking spray

1. Combine warm water, sugar, and salt into the bowl a stand mixer and sprinkle yeast on top. Let sit for about 5 minutes or until the mixture begins to foam.

2. Add flour and butter. With dough hook, mix on a low speed until well combined. Switch to medium speed and knead until dough is smooth and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 4-5 minutes.

3. Remove the dough from the bowl, clean the bowl and spray with cooking spray. Put dough back into sprayed bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let sit in a warm place for about 50-55 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.

4. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and spray with cooking spray.

5. Bring the 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in a large pot.

6. Pretzel balls/bites: divide dough into 4 pieces. Roll out each piece into a rope that is about 24 inches long. Cut the rope into 1-inch slices and set slices aside.
    Twisted Pretzels: divide dough into 8 pieces. Roll out each piece into a rope that is about 24 inches long. Create a U-shape with the dough, twist like a pretzel and press the loose ends down into the bottom of the U.

7. Put dough slices into the boiling water, a few at a time for 30 seconds. Remove them from water with a large flat spatula or slotted spoon. Put on to cookie sheet, brush the tops of each with the beaten egg yolk and water mixture. Sprinkle with pretzel/sea salt.

8. Bake until golden brown, about 12-14 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack for about 5 minutes because they will be hot! We enjoyed them with some honey mustard. They store well in a plastic bag in the fridge and heat up really nicely at 400 for just a couple of minutes.

Original recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/homemade-soft-pretzels-recipe/index.html


AEM

Banana Bread Pancakes

Eggs and toast every Saturday morning can start to wear on a girl so every now and then I shake this up. Last weekend our pancakes got a makeover, similar to the fall makeover they got when pumpkin came into the picture. This time, the game changer is bananas mixed with my favorite pancake mix. My mix calls for 1 cup of mix and 3/4 cup water. 

Banana Bread Pancakes

1 cup pancake mix

1 smashed up banana

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

about 1/4 or so water...just so the pancakes are more pourable and less banana-y

1. Preheat griddle to 375 degrees (or as directed by pancake mix). 

2. Mix all of the ingredients together and pour your favorite sized pancakes onto the griddle. 

These cakes end up slightly fluffier than normal pancakes but the hint of banana is just the right amount to brighten any morning. 

AEM

Egg Rolls and Fried Rice

You didn't know McCann is an Asian surname? Ok but seriously, I wanted to continue down the path of new recipes and stumbled upon the idea of baked egg rolls. Of course we had to compliment them with fried rice and edamame! It ended up being much easier than I expected and might even be a good use for leftovers. I even added a touch of guacamole to our rolls for a little added flavor.


Chicken Egg/Spring Rolls

1 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups shredded cabbage
1 cup shredded carrot
1 cup mushrooms
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 lb shredded chicken
1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
1 package egg/spring roll wrappers
1 egg white

1. Lightly chip carrots and mushrooms in food processor.
2. Heat olive oil over high heat and add cabbage, carrot, mushrooms, garlic, and ginger. Cook for about 2-3 minutes.
3. Add the chicken and cook until warm. Stir in hoisin and soy sauces. Remove from heat and let cool.
4. Lay out one egg/spring roll wrapper. Put about 2 tablespoons of filling diagonally, near the middle. Fold up the bottom and fold the sides in towards the middle. Brush the top flap with egg whites to help seal the roll and continue to tightly roll.
5. Place rolls on lightly greased baking sheet and brush tops with a little olive oil. Bake according to wrapper directions or at 425 for about 10 minutes.

Fried Brown Rice

4 cups of cooked, cooled brown rice
2 eggs
1 cup of shredded carrot
1 cup of sliced mushrooms
1 tablespoon minced garlic
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup of frozen peas, thawed

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large pan on high heat.
2. Beat eggs and pour into pan. Do not stir as they cook, let them sit until the top is almost dry. Remove from pan and set aside.
3. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil on medium-high heat. Add carrots and mushrooms and cook for about 2-3 minutes. Add garlic and coot another 2-3 minutes.
4. Add soy sauce, butter, and cooked rice. Cook another 3-5 minutes.
5. Add peas. Slice egg into strips and add to mixture. Mix so everything is evenly incorporated. Serve.

AEM

Leftover Fajita Pizza

I made fajitas and there always ends up being too much and I end up having it for lunch the next day but then it just sits in the fridge and rots because we don't usually get around to finishing. This time would be different! This time we would eat those leftovers and like it! This time we'd throw them on pizza and call it a day :)


Leftover Fajita Pizza

pre-made pizza crust (we like the whole wheat Boboli thin crust)
refried beans
peppers and onions
shredded chicken
diced tomatoes
jalapenos
shredded cheese
guacamole
shredded lettuce
Clean out the fridge! Whatever is in there works!


1. Spread refried beans onto crust. This is your "sauce".
2. Add sauteed peppers and onions.
3. Sprinkle on shredded chicken.
4. Add other toppings. Tomatoes for Mike. Jalapenos for me!
5. Sprinkle on shredded cheese. I went with the Mexican blend and added a touch of mozzarella.
6. Bake at 450 degrees for about 8 minutes. Until the cheese melts.
7. Carefully spread a thin layer of guacamole.
 8. Add shredded lettuce, slice, and serve!

AEM

Tortellini Chicken Soup

It was a cold cold night in Florida...no really, it was! I was looking for a quick and easy and warm idea for dinner so I settled on Tortellini Chicken Soup. It took only a few minutes and warmed our souls. It tasted just like chicken noodle soup which is great, if you like that type of thing...which I don't. Probably should have considered that little fact before I made this! Still good either way!

Tortellini Chicken Soup

8 cups (2-32oz boxes) of Low Sodium Chicken Broth
2 packages (9oz) refrigerated cheese tortellini
shredded chicken (I used the leftover lemon honey chicken from the night before)
1 tablespoon parsley flakes

1. Pour broth into a large pot and add chicken. Bring to a boil.
2. Add in tortellini and cook as directed but to not drain the broth when finished.
3. Sprinkle in parsley flakes and serve

Great for lunch the next day too!

AEM

New Year, New Recipes - Lemon Honey Chicken

Unbeknownst to me, apparently I decided I would kick off the new year with all kinds of new and tasty recipes. It took me about a week into 2012 before I realized this was my plan but so far, I've kept up with it. Because of the lemon tree that just keeps kicking out lemons, we started the year with a lemon chicken recipe courtesy of my wonderful neighbor!


Lemon Honey Chicken

1 lemon
1 whole roasting chicken
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup honey

1. Rinse/clean chicken. Pierce lemon with fork and shove up the chicken's butt (ok, place in chicken cavity but whatever). Put chicken/lemon, laying down, into slow cooker.
2. Combine orange juice and honey. Pour over chicken.
3. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours. Just before serving, remove lemon and squeeze over chicken but be careful, it'll be hot!
4. Carve chicken and serve. We loved it with wild rice and green beans.

AEM

Christmas Dinner - Garlic Knots and Apple Pie

Christmas Dinner was pretty much full of what I consider the Christmas basics: ham, lasagna, salad, and smashed red skin potatoes. We also added in brussel sprouts and garlic knots to the mix. For dessert we had an apple pie with a cinnamon roll crust and crumble topping and homemade peppermint/candy cane ice cream. The garlic knots were the star of the show in my mind although the pie was delicious too. Those recipes are below although be warned, it wasn't until the apples were peeled and sliced and I was about to start making magic happen when I realized I didn't even consider looking up a recipe for the pie! I winged the apple pie when making it so I've put my best guesses for measurements in the recipe. You can't really screw it up so go with your gut!

Garlic Knots

2 tubes (12 oz each) Pillsbury Golden Layers Refrigerated Buttermilk Biscuits
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons parsley flakes

1. Preheat over to 400 degrees.
2. Combine olive oil, garlic powder, parsley in small bowl (I also added a touch of melted butter)
3. Roll each biscuit into a 12 inch rope, brush with olive oil mixture, tie into a knot and tuck ends under. Place onto a greased baking sheet.
4. Bake 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Makes 20 garlic knots.

**This recipe is doubled to accomodate our crew but can easily be halved.

Original garlic knot recipe: http://realmomkitchen.com/609/easy-parmesan-knots/

Apple Pie with Cinnamon Roll Crust and crumble topping

Crust:

1 Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust (not the frozen kind)

1 tablespoon melted butter

2 tablespoons cinnamon

1 tablespoon brown sugar

Pie:

6 apples

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon flour

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Topping:

1 package of instant oats (I like to use brown sugar and cinnamon)

1 tablespoon flour

3 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons softened butter

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Unroll the pie crust on lightly floured surface. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle on cinnamon and brown sugar (as much or as little as you'd like). Roll the pie crust back up and cut into 1/2 inch rolls. 

3. Lightly grease a 9-inch pie plate. Place about 4 cinnamon rolls near each other and press into plate. Do not leave any gaps between the cinnamon rolls. Continue until the bottom and sides of the plate are filling with smashed cinnamon rolls and your crust is ready.

4. Peel and slice apples and coat with lemon juice. Toss apples with sugars, flour, and cinnamon and pour into prepared cinnamon roll crust.

5. In a small bowl, combine all ingredients for the crumble. Sprinkle on top of apples.

6. Bake at 400 degrees for about 40-45 minutes or until filling is bubbly and apples are tender.

AEM

Christmas Brunch

The whole gang was over for brunch on Christmas morning and I decided it was a perfect time to test out some newly found recipes. On the menu was fresh melon, egg casserole "muffins" (sausage and cheese, bacon and cheese, bacon) and mini cini rolls. I didn't regret any of these decisions!


Egg Muffins

1 pound breakfast sausage
1 pound bacon
16 large eggs
1/2 cup skim milk
1 tsp baking powder
salt & pepper to taste
Shredded Cheese

1. Preheat oven to 375 F.
2. In a large saute pan, over medium high heat, brown Italian Sausage for about 5 minutes, or until the sausage is no longer pink. Cook the bacon in the oven on a foil-lined tray for about 10 minutes at 400 F.
3. Whisk together eggs, milk, oil and baking powder.  Season with salt and pepper.
4. Lightly spray a 12-cupcake pan with cooking spray. Spoon out the sausage and/or bacon into each cup
5. Add the egg mixture over sausage/bacon
6. Sprinkle with shredded cheese.
7. Bake for 15-20 minutes.  

*This is a doubled version of the recipe which I needed for our crowd, it can easily be cut in half to only make a dozen
**I made the meat about 2 days in advance and put it in the fridge to help save me some time on Christmas morning. Worked brilliantly! 

Mini Cinnamon Rolls

1 8oz tube reduced fat crescent roll dough
1 tablespoon butter
cinnamon
brown sugar
1 teaspoon maple syrup
1 tablespoon skim milk
3/4 cup powdered sugar

1. Preheat the oven according to the crescent roll directions. Unroll the dough to get the first 4 triangles and lay them flat. Pinch the seams together, flip the dough, pinch those seams together.
2. Roll out the dough to smooth the seams until it is about 1/4" thick. Brush with butter and sprinkle with cinnamon and brown sugar. The amount of brown sugar/cinnamon you use is up to you! Roll it up with the cinnamon/brown sugar on the inside and cut into 8 pieces.
3. Spray a mini-muffin tin with cooking spray and place mini cini rolls into the tin.
4. Repeat steps 1 and 2.
5. Bake according to the suggestion on the crescent roll package or until the tops are slightly brown.
6. As they bake, whisk together the syrup and milk, add powdered sugar. Drizzle the icing over the baked cinnamon rolls.

AEM

Original Egg Muffin Recipe: http://www.snackinginthekitchen.com/2010/05/mothers-day-2010-brunch.html

Original Cini Roll Recipe: http://iowagirleats.com/2011/11/23/8-minute-mini-cinnamon-rolls/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%253A+IowaGirlEats+%2528Iowa+Girl+Eats%2529

Christmas Table

Our tree this year was red and silver with kiwi/lime accents so I wanted the table to go along with the same theme since they are basically in the same room. I found a pretty tablecloth that fit perfect, I used the china for the first time, and even the poppers matched! The flowers are courtesy of my mom and I love the way cranberries and candles float in a shallow bowl. 

AEM

Mike's Birthday

Mike hit the big 3-0 this year! To celebrate I fell back on an old favorite and by "old" I mean about 6 months ago! At our wedding, the groom's cake was a chocolate cake with peanut butter filling (because Mike loves Reese's) in the shape of a piece of Bazooka gum (because Mike loves gum). We didn't get to enjoy more than a bite of it at the time and I couldn't get my mind off it so I found a local bakery to make a followup so we could all relive the experience. This time, it was int he shape of a Reese's package with mini Reese's cups surrounding it. Soooooo good!

AEM

Festive (Ugly) Light

We have the UGLIEST light over our dining room table. It was there when we moved in and we just haven't gotten rid of it yet. Partially because it seems like a pain to replace it and partially because we don't often use the dining room so it's offensive nature is typically hidden. I decided to decorate in an attempt to shield some of the heinousness and hoped the decor would not just draw attention to the awful thing. It could still use some perfecting and the light didn't want to cooperate but here's what went down.

I used ribbon and silver balls. I cut a long piece of ribbon, maybe about 2 feet long. I put one end of the ribbon through the hole in the top of the ball and put the ball in the center of the ribbon. I folded the ribbon in half and added in about 5-6 other balls with about 3-4 inches between each ball. Every ball except the first has both ends of the ribbon strung through it. I made three of these ball ribbons and tied one to each support on the light. Then I used little pieces of ribbon to tie it together and make it look like one mess instead of 3.

When it was done it looks a little unfinished to me so I found some extra red ribbon laying around and added bows. I'm not 100% pleased with the way it turned out but in my mind, it was much better than that horrid light!

AEM

Life gave me lemons, so I made Limoncello

We have a lemon tree in our backyard and apparently it starts producing a ridiculous amount of lemons just before Christmas. After giving a ton of them to my neighbors (by "giving" I mean almost forcing/begging them to take them) one of them suggested making limoncello. I laughed and thought it was a funny and interesting idea and left it at that. Later that night I looked up recipes and realized it is super easy to make so I got to work!

 

Limoncello

12 lemons
1 750-ml bottle of vodka or grain alcohol (I used Everclear)
3 1/2 cups water
2 1/2 cups sugar

1. Use a vegetable peeler to remove the peel from the lemons. Mine peeled well with no pith (the gross white stuff) but if yours down, trim that pith off. Place the peels in a 2-quart pitcher. Pour the alcohol over the lemon peels, cover, and let sit at room temperature for at least 4 days.

2. Stir the water and sugar in a large saucepan over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. It should take about 5 minutes. Cool. Pour the sugar syrup over the alcohol/peel mixture. Recover and let stand overnight.
3. Strain through a mesh strainer and discard the peels. Transfer into bottles and refrigeration until cold. I put ours in the freezer.

Original Recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/limoncello-recipe/index.html


AEM

Christmas Puppy Chow

Well it seems as though I've been gone a while but have no fear, I'm back! And ready to give tons of updates about the trouble I've been causing. In addition to going crazy with the amount of cookies I made for Christmas (4 dozen sugar, 7 dozen chocolate chip, a mountain of tiny ginger snaps) I also whipped up some Christmas Puppy Chow. Delicious and easy!

Puppy Chow 

9 cups Chex Mix (I use Rice)
1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1. Pour chocolate chips, peanut butter, and butter into a bowl and microwaved uncovered for 1 minute. Stir. Microwave another 30 seconds or until mixture is stirred smooth. Stir in vanilla.
2. Pour mixture over cereal and stir until evenly coated.
3. Add powdered sugar and stir until coated (or put mixture into a 2 gallon plastic bag, add powdered sugar and shake)
4. Spread on wax paper to cool. Store in airtight container.

**I also added about a 1/2 cup or so of red and green Christmas M&Ms to make it a little more festive.


Original recipe: http://www.chex.com/recipes/RecipeView.aspx?RecipeId=45860&CategoryId=340

AEM