Hawaiian Haystacks

This recipe is perfect for both a light summer meal and a heavy winter meal.

Perfect for the summer:

It cooks on the stove top so doesn't heat up your entire house, and it only cooks for about 15-20 minutes. Boil out or add less of the chicken broth so it is more just the chicken and less soupy


Perfect for the winter:

It is a warm meal that can be turned more into a yummy winter soup. Add a little extra broth and make your dinner more broth-like and soupy to fill your tummy!




Cook 3 large chicken breasts (cut into 1 inch cubes) in 2 cans of cream of chicken soup and 1 can (or about 2 cups) chicken broth.



Once the chicken is done through, serve on rice and top with any (or all) of the following toppings:

-Pineapple Tidbits
-Sliced Olives
-Diced Tomatoes
-Chow Mein Noodles
-Coconut
-Shredded Cheese (I used marbled cheddar)
-Diced Green Onions









This serving is a little more "soupy" served on rice with a few of my favorite toppings.


ENJOY!

Cream Puffs

Are you drooling yet?  I sure am!

Also, there is two recipes today, that's right  -  TWO FOR THE PRICE OF ONE! 

Cream Puffs
Ingredients:

-1 c water

-1/2 c butter

-1 c flour

-4 eggs

Heat butter and water to a rolling boil. Stir in flour. Stir vigorously over low heat about 1 minute or until mixture forms a ball.

Remove from heat and stir in 4 eggs, one at a time. Continue mixing until smooth. Don't worry this stirring should take a while. I usually switch off with the hubby - I mix in one egg, then he mixes in the next, that way we both are dead after mixing!

Drop dough by slightly rounded spoonful onto ungreased baking sheets. I used parchment paper and it worked perfectly.

They do not puff a lot or change shapes while baking so you will want to make them more into tall mountains instead of flat circles.

Bake 400°F 25-30 minutes until puffed and golden brown.

Cool away from drafts.

Pudding Filling:

Blend together 1 small package (3.5 oz) instant pudding (both chocolate and vanilla are excellent) 1 cup milk on low. Add in 2 c chilled whipped cream and beat for 2 minutes on medium speed.

Cut off the top and fill with pudding mixture. Drizzle with chocolate or raspberry sauce.

Red Potatoes

I just love red potatoes! This side dish has quickly become a staple in our home.  They are so easy and can go with almost any meal.

All you need is some red potatoes, a couple tablespoons of

butter and a ranch dressing powder packet. 

I actually bought a bottle of the ranch powder at Sam's and love it!

I usually make about 3 small red potatoes or 2 large ones per person.

Start by washing and cutting up your potatoes into bite size pieces.

About 8-12 cuts per potato. 

Then place them in a glass casserole baking dish.

I try to keep the skin sides down and the cut sides up

so the dressing will season the meat of the potatoes.

Next, put little chunks of butter randomly over the potatoes.

It doesn't have to be perfect or look good.

Just put some chunks all over!

Then I sprinkle with a little water so the powder

will stick and dust the powder all over.

Here they are ready to go in the oven...

Cover them with foil and bake at 375° for

about 1 hour and 15 min or until tender.

Enjoy!

Taco Salad

Every Tuesday in our house we have "Taco Tuesday"...  we like to have tacos, chicken tacos, taco salad, fajitas, and sometime even enchiladas. (I know they aren't tacos, but we have to mix it up a little).  My favorite is taco salad.  I love adding all kinds of veggies to it to make it nice and healthy!  I know every one can easily make taco salad, and you don't really need a recipe, but I wanted to share some of the fun things I like to add on top!

I start with fritos because they are much easier to eat with a fork than regular tortilla chips.  Then add my hot stuff..... meat (ground beef seasoned with taco seasoning), black or pinto beans, and corn.  Then I add cheese so it can get all melty...

Next, I add all the cold stuff.... lettuce and veggies.  Here's what I like on mine:

lettuce, tomatoes, avocados, green peppers, carrots, cucumbers, and cilantro.

You can also add a dallop of sour cream...

Top it off with some dressing, salt and pepper and you are done!

Enjoy!!!  And get creative with your salads.  No more boring taco salad!

Have fun and be healthy while you are at it!

Lemon (or Chocolate) Lush

My mom used to make this for us when we were younger and it was always one of my favorite desserts! The original recipe calls for lemon pudding, but since none of us kids liked lemon, Mom always replaced it with chocolate pudding. The original recipe will make a 9x13 inch pan, but if there is only 2-3 of you eating it I would half the recipe to make an 8x8 inch pan.

First, you are going to make your crust

Ingredients:
-3/4 cup butter

-2 TBSP Sugar

-1 1/2 cup flour

Mix together and press in bottom of pan and bake 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Cool completely.

Second you are going to mix together:

-1 cup powdered sugar
-1 pint whipping cream (or 2 c cool whip)

-8 oz cream cheese softened

Whip the cream and mix together with cream cheese and powdered sugar. Pour over cooled crust and refrigerate.

Then top that off with:

-2 small packages Instant Pudding (I used chocolate but Lemon is in the original recipe)

-3 cups milk

Mix together and pour on top of cream layer. Top with whipping cream, chocolate shavings or sliced almonds. Refrigerate and serve.



ENJOY!

Bajio Sweet Rice

At our house we love making tacos, enchiladas, burritos, and other yummy Mexican food. When we make these we usually just make plain rice or beans to go along with, until I found this AMAZING recipe. It is great when your food is a little on the spicy side because this helps to relax the spice and give you a little variety for dinner.



If you are having something really spicy and want to tone it down, just add a little more sugar. If you don't want to tone it down as much, add less sugar. It is a very versatile recipe that will work either way!

(Recipe for Enchiladas coming soon)






Ingredients:

1 1/3 cups White Rice
3 cups Chicken Broth
1 TBSP Vegetable Oil
1/2 White Onion
1/4 cup Sugar (more or less depending on taste)
1/4 - 1/2 bunch Fresh Cilantro chopped (remove stems)





Directions:

Heat up the oil in a medium sized pot. Saute onions until almost see-through. Add in the cilantro and cook for 1 minute.


Add in rice, sugar and chicken broth. Bring to a boil.


When the pot is boiling, turn down to low or medium low and cover. Cook 20-25 minutes until the rice is fluffy and has absorbed all the liquid.


Enjoy!

Garlic Lemon Chicken

I love this recipe I got from a friend years ago!  It has lots of flavor and if cooked just right, it is very moist!

What you'll need:
4 chicken breasts
1 stick of butter
1 1/2 TBSP minced garlic
1 1/2 cups bread crumbs
1 1/2 cups parmesan cheese
2 TBSP lemon juice

Start by melting a tablespoon of butter with a couple tablespoons of minced garlic. If I use fresh garlic I'll use about 4-5 cloves or you can use about a tablespoon and a half of the already minced kind. Once the garlic "wakes up" and smells very fragrant, add the rest of the butter to melt it all together. (one stick total)

Here's what it should look like once it's all melted. Take it off the stove and let it cool.  (You will be dipping the chicken in, so make sure it is cool enough to touch!)

While that cools, it's time to get your chicken ready to dip.  After trimming off the fat, put a couple pieces in a gallon size bag or between two layers of plastic wrap.  Then pound the chicken until it's about 1/4 inch thick....

Then cut it in half... this is what it should look like when it is ready to dip!

Then make a mixture of half bread crumbs and half parmesan cheese...

Then mix them together for your crumb coating.

Now, it's time to dip the chicken in the butter and then in the crumbs.  Make sure they are completely coated with crumbs to help keep them moist.  As you put them in the glass pan, roll them up and smoosh (is that a word?) them all in together. The tighter they are the better they will hold their juices!

Last, just drizzle the lemon juice over the top!

Here's what mine look like all cozy in the pan ready to bake!

Bake them @ 350° for about 45 minutes uncovered. 

I usually cut into one of the middle ones to make sure there is no pink.  

Enjoy!

Happy 4th of July!!!!

Here's a yummy treat idea you can make for your busy weekend!  It would be such a fun festive dessert to take to a bar-b-que or just make for your family!

All you need are some good strawberries, white chocolate, and blue sprinkles.  I bought the candy white chocolate from the grocery store. (not real chocolate, but dips well).  I melted it in the microwave and dipped away.  Make sure you leave some of the strawberry showing at the top to create your red layer!  These four strawberries took me less than 5 minutes!

Tip:  When melting chocolate, it will hold its shape even when melty.  Be sure to pull it out and stir even if it doesn't look like it's melted yet, because it probably is!

Enjoy your holiday weekend!