Roasted potatoes with buffalo chicken casserole

I was wanting a nice recipe to make a chicken casserole and the first place I thought of was on Pinterest.Who does not like Pinterest? Anyway,I saw this recipe and wanted to try it out and believe or not, everyone loved it!!!
Here is the original recipe page that I adapted mine from: Loaded potato and buffalo chicken casserole .The only thing that I did not do was add bacon (which I did not have in stock) and green onions. I did add some minced onions with the chicken.

Loaded potatoes with buffalo chicken casserole, cheesy broccoli and Hawaiian roll

2 lbs cubed chicken washed and seasoned with salt,black pepper,garlic and parsley

6-8 potatoes-peeled and cubed

Olive oil,salt,black pepper,buffalo wing sauce,paprika,garlic powder

(If you're wondering about that yellow thing in the pot-that was a piece of potato I threw in to tell me if it was hot enough to put the rest in :)

I sauteed my potatoes a few minutes and then removed them and put them in a greased baking dish

Meanwhile,I grated some cheese

I put the potatoes in the oven at 500 degrees(preheated)

I cooked the chicken in the remaining sauce and left to marinate

Every 15 minutes, I stir the potatoes in the oven

After about 35-40 minutes my potatoes were done cooking so I added the chicken and cheese in

Another version of naan

I wanted to try another version of making naan.I still haven't found a recipe that I really, really love.Today, I saw this one on Pinterest and decided to give it a try.Here is the link to the original recipe. I modified it a bit and did not use yogurt nor garlic or garlic butter. I am making some curried garbanzo (chick peas) with it and hopefully everyone will like it. As soon as I found a recipe that I fall in love with,I will be sure to post it because I really do want to make a naan that is both soft and tasty!!!!

Cream Cheese biscuits

So I saw this reciped for Cream Cheese biscuits via Pinterest and had to try it.It did not come out as thick as I thought it would but to me, it tasted pretty good and was very soft.We are having steak,green beans, creamed corn, mashed potatoes and cream cheese biscuits for supper!!! If you want to try your own recipe, you can check it out here: Cream Cheese biscuits

Easy popovers

I was so thrilled that my husband and kids joined and gave me a Kitchen-Aid mixer for Christmas.I have always wished that I could have had one. Thank you honey!Tonight,I just felt that I needed to get to familiarize myself with it since I have never used one before.I chose a very simple recipe from the manual and it came out pretty good.I chose Popovers which is sort of like a home-made version of a canned biscuit. Here is the recipe taken directly from the manual:

POPOVERS

8 POPOVERS

2 eggs

1 cup milk

1 tablespoon butter or margarine, melted

1 cup all-purpose flour

1⁄4 teaspoon salt

Place eggs, milk, butter, flour, and salt in mixer bowl. Attach bowl and wire whip to mixer. Turn to Speed 4 and beat 15 seconds. Stop and scrape bowl. Turn to Speed 4 and beat 15 seconds more.

Fill 8 heavily greased and floured custard cups half full with batter. Place cups on cookie sheet. Place cookie sheet in cold oven and set heat at 450°F. Bake for 5 minutes; reduce heat to 350°F and bake 20 to 25 minutes longer. Remove from oven and cut slit into side of each popover. Serve immediately.
I did not have custard cups so I used a silicone heart shaped muffin baking pan. I ate mine with some scrambled eggs. I think it probably would taste pretty good with some honey butter.

Maple pecan bacon

So I saw this recipe online about making maple pecan bacon here and decided to try it. I was not too sure how it would come out so I only used 5 pieces just to experiment. It was a simple recipe which just called for you to dredge your bacon slices with maple syrup and put it on a wire rack over a foil-lined baking sheet.Then you add your chopped pecans and bake for about 25 minutes at 400 degrees.Since my bacon slices were not too thick,I had to take them out before the 25 minutes because the dripping syrup were really starting to burn then.

Home made vanilla ice cream without an ice cream maker

I made this yesterday and was so tickled at the result. I was reading a past issue of an All You magazine and saw this recipe for an easy peasy vanilla ice cream. All you need is 3 ingredients!

*2 cups heavy whipping cream
*1 can sweetened condensed milk
*1-1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract (shh...I used 2 tablespoon imitation vanilla)

Method:

In an electric mixture, beat the ingredients together for about 5-7 minutes or until stiff peaks are formed. Pour in a loaf pan or any freezer safe container. Since I am a recycle nut, I used a clean plastic Domino sugar container...haha. Freeze for 8 hours and there you have it!!!! You can add your own ingredient like fruits,nuts etc but since I did not have those in hand,I just left mine plain. I am not lying when I say I really love this! (That was the fat side of me talking...lol)

Cheesy chicken biscuit

I made these biscuits for the first time yesterday and they came out great! I even enjoyed it..lol. Here is what I did:

• Ingredients:

1 can Pillsbury Grands refrigerated biscuits
2 tablespoons margarine/ butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup of shredded cheese (I used cheddar)
1-1/2 cups milk
1 beaten egg
Breadcrumbs (I used storebrand Italian)
2 cups diced cooked chicken (I fried these without any batter and seasoned them before frying)

• Method

Put margarine/butter in a small pan to melt. Add flour and stir constantly until butter is absorbed.Add milk and keep on stirring because you do not want it to be lumpy.Add a touch of salt to taste.Then add your shredded cheese. Put cooked chicken pieces in and mix well.Remove from heat after sauce has thickened.This happens pretty quickly so do not leave the pot unattended.

Set oven to 370 degrees F. Open can of biscuits.Flatten each biscuit until they are about 4 inches in diameter. Put a little of the chicken mixture in the middle of each flattened biscuit and pinch together so that they form a ball.Press lightly, ensuring that no filling is oozing out.

Roll each filled biscuit in the beaten egg and then roll in the breadcrumbs.Bake for 10-15 minutes.

This tastes crunch and nice! I ate mine with a fork but hubby just grabbed one and ate on the run :)

What to do with leftover Taco meat

I made tacos yesterday and not everyone ate due to the different schedules we all have. Meat is so expensive and I was not going to let this waste. I had to come up with some sort of recipe for reusing the meat.I saw the advertisement the other day for using Velveeta and Rotel diced tomatoes and thought why not.So I heated over the ground meat in the skillet.Then, in another pot, I melted half of a block of Velveeta cheese while stirring constantly. In the meantime, I put 4 small potatoes in the microwave and cooked it. When the cheese was fully melted I pour the can of Rotel in and voila! I was a bit skeptical but it tastes really great! The melted cheese really made the potatoes creamy.

Chicken Bake

As you probably can tell, I love chicken and cook it a few times a week.I find myself getting bored with the similar dishes week by week so yesterday,I tried a chicken bake.Here is what I did:

*boneless chicken breast-washed and seasoned.I use salt,black pepper,garlic powder and parsley.That is my house seasoning for any meat and poultry.I have done that for years.

*a box of  seasoned stuffing mix.

* a can of Cream of Chicken soup

*fresh or frozen mixed vegetables
 (if you are using frozen,make sure it is thawed out before you use)

* olive oil

I first sauteed the seasoned chicken in a little olive oil until it get a little browned. Then,I placed it in a casserole dish.(1st layer)

Next, I mixed the veggies and cream of chicken together and poured it over the chicken breasts.(2nd layer)

Then I added some hot water over the stuffing mix in a separate bowl until it is just soaked but not soggy.Then I put the stuffing over the cream of chicken/veggies mixture (2nd layer).The stuffing is the 3rd layer.

I baked it for about 25 minutes.

Chicken Bake

Yes,I eat from my daughter's ladybug plate too :)

Finally made the caramels

Well,I finally got down to trying out the caramel from the recipe on Home Made Simple website. Click here to see it.
I never made this before so it did not come out quite a hit.I think I took it out way too early and it ended up a little softer than I wanted it to be.It was more like taffy...lol but it tasted great! It sure does cost a bit to get this made but homemade is always best :)

Hot creamy chicken soup with dumplings and veggies

It is a bit chilly outside and I was just in the mood for some hot soup. I just grabbed some stuff that I have on hand and tried to create a meal with it.

Here is how I made it:

*Boneless,skinless chicken breasts cut up in chunks.I used about a pound

* Seaonings to taste. I used salt, black pepper, garlic powder and parsley to season my chicken after cutting it up and washing it.

*Olive oil

*Any kind of veggies.I used the frozen Kroger brand soup mix that I got on sale for $1.00 a pack.

*1 small can evaporated milk

*1 can chicken broth

*flour to make dumplings (about 1-1/2 cups)

*potatoes- cut into small cubes

*parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top before eating

Method:

1. First I cut the chicken and seasoned it. Then I let it set for about 15 minutes.
2. Next I put some olive oil in a pot and sauteed the chicken chunks until they turned completely white.
3. Then I added the frozen vegetables and cubed potatoes and stirred it up until the excess liquid is burnt off.
4. I added the evaporated milk and the chicken broth.
5. In the meantime,I kneaded the flour with some water to make a soft dough.
6. When the liquid in the pot was boiling,I added small balls of dumplings.
7. You can add extra water to the pot in case there is not enough liquid to boil everything.

The main ingredients that needs time to cook are the chicken,potatoes and dumplings and these should all be done in less than half an hour. You can season to taste.I love to add parmesan cheese on mine.

Chicken pot pie

So,I made chicken pot pie yesterday and we still have some left over so that is what we are going to be eating for lunch today! My picky kids do not like veggies but this is a dish my hubby loves so I have to sometimes make a dish to please him.

Here is my recipe:

Ingredients:
*1 can cream of mushroom
*1 can cream of chicken
*1 can mixed vegetables or you can use frozen or fresh vegetables as you wish
*chicken- cubed and seasoned with salt, pepper,black pepper, garlic or whatever else suits your tastebuds.
*oil
*self-rising flour
*shortening
*baking powder
*margarine

Method:
I use about 3 cups of flour, 2 tsp baking powder,1 tablespoon shortening and a little water to make my dough. Knead well and set in a covered bowl for about 15 minutes.
In the meantime,saute the chicken in about 4 tablespoons of oil. This should not take very long to cook since it is cubed up.
Add cream of chicken,cream of mushroom and veggies to the chicken.Stir together.You may have to add about one cup of water if it is too thick.Let heat up for about a minute.
Next, divide your dough into 2 balls and roll each one out.
Get a pie dish and put one rolled out dough on the bottom, ensuring that the sides are up against the sides of the pie dish.
Pour the chicken mixture into the "shell" of the pie dish and place the other rolled out dough onto the top. Baste the top with melted margarine and bake at 400 degrees in a pre-heated oven for about 20 minutes or until the dough is cooked.It may take a shorter time, depending on your oven.

Caramels

Hmmm,I am thinking of making some caramels soon.Great for dipping.I found this great recipe at homemadesimple.Check it out! Make-Your-Own-Caramel