Chicken Breasts a la Normande

I have spent most of the day fighting to keep food down to no avail. With this struggle the hubby has been eating things that are quick to fix and eat like corn dogs, pizza pockets, and easy skillet combinations that I have whipped up. So tonight since he was hungry, and I have settled on protein shakes until I can get my eating and body back to functioning order, I decided to make something that he would really enjoy.

Thanks to a very well stocked pantry and refrigerator I had everything on hand and was able to whip this up in about half an hour. Ohhh and the house smelled wonderful!! So let's gather up the ingredients and get cooking...my mouth is watering...how about yours?

INGREDIENTS

1 package Foster Farms Boneless Skinless Breast Fillets (I used 4 6ounce chicken breasts)
flour with salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup oil
3/4 cup brandy (preferably apple brandy)
1/2 cup whipping cream
2 teaspoons butter or margarine
2 small green apples
2 to 4 tablespoons sugar

DIRECTIONS

1. Place four, salt, and pepper in a ziploc or plastic bag and shake breasts in flour. Heat oil in skillet to medium-high. Add breasts and saute 1 to 2 minutes per side, or until golden. Remove breasts and discard oil.

2. Add 1/2 cup brandy to skillet and return breasts. Place over high heat, ignite carefully, then immediately cover to put out flame.

3. Again, remove breasts. Add cream to skillet and reduce liquid, by boiling, to half its original volume. Add butter and shake pan until butter melts.

4. Peel, core and slice apples thinly. Stir sugar and remaining brandy into skillet. Add apple slices. Bring to a boil and cook one minute. Place breasts on warm serving platter, surround with apples and top with sauce.

 

Viola!!! Dinner is ready!! Now wasn't that easy! Quick simple and oh so tasty...well so I've heard...lol It got a seal of approval from the hubby and the kids. 

 



I hope you give this a try and please let me now how you liked it and if you made any changes. Enjoy everyone...and have fun cooking!

Pepperoni pizza cresents

Since my lap band fill, I am tied to protein shakes and cottage cheese but the hubby still has to eat. Last night we had a late lunch and I didn't think he would want any dinner. Well I had thought wrong lol. Hubby got hungrier than the munchies so I whipped up this quick snack/meal for him. Terribly easy and quick and if your house is anything like mine, you have these ingredients in your pantry all the time. So let's grab those ingredients and get cooking...it's time to eat!

Ingredients:
1 tube Pilsbury Crescent Rolls
Pizza sauce or spaghetti sauce
Pepperoni
Velveeta cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees as instructed on crescent roll package.

Unroll out the triangles and spread about 2 teaspoons of sauce on the crescent triangle.

 

Next place desired amount of pepperoni on the crescent.

 

Then place desired amount of cheese on top of the pepperoni. My pieces are about a quarter inch square by the length of the short side of the brick of Velveeta.

 

Roll them up and do your best to close the ends by a simple twist, doesn't have to be perfect they will seal up pretty good as they cook and rise.

 

Cook for about 14 minutes. They will be a bit doughy if you don't, The added moisture of the sauce slows them in the cooking.

 

And here you go! Quick, easy, and very filling! Great for football parties, quick dinners, or just all around snacking! Hubby believe it or not ate them ALL!!! lol. Enjoy and remember, cooking doesn't always have to be labor intensive and hard...sometimes the quick and easy ones bring just as big of a smile. It's the love that goes into it that makes all the difference!

Copycat Chili's Spicy Garlic & Lime Shrimp

I came across a great deal on some shrimp at Bel Air! They had two pounds of shrimp for $10! I had to jump on it! I could eat my weight in shrimp...hmmm probably not something I should admit...lol

Anyway I love love love the shrimp at Chili's so I went searching for a copycat recipe. I have searched high and low and I think this is the closest I can find. I am going to make it tonight by the recipe, which is how I do most new recipes - try them how they are written and then change them to my taste if need be.

I found the recipe here at Food.com

Ingredients:

• 2 Tablespoons butter
• 1 clove of garlic pressed
• 24 fresh large shrimp peeled and deveined
• 1 lime

Seasoning:

• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/8 teaspoon onion powder

Directions:

Make the seasoning blend by combining all the spices in a small bowl.

 

My $5 Monday deal from Bel Air. Two pounds for $10!!

 

*A quick tutorial on an easy and quick way to peel shrimp.

• First peel back the sides of the skin that has been split by deveining and place your index and thumb under it grabbing the sides of the shrimp.
• Second slide your fingers down from the sides of the shrimp just above the legs and start to squeeze the shrimp from the skin.
• Third, as you are squeezing the legs and shell from the skin grab hold of the base of the tail and squeeze and pull gently. Viola! The skin should come off!

 

Preheat a large skillet over medium heat.

Add butter to the pan.

When the butter is melted, stir in the pressed garlic.

 

Immediately, add the shrimp to the pan.

 

Cut the lime in half and squeeze each half into the pan over the shrimp.

Sprinkle the entire seasoning blend over the shrimp, and give it all a good stir.

 

Saute the shrimp for 5 to 8 minutes or until they begin to brown.

Be sure to cook both sides of all the shrimp.

When I fixed this there was too much butter and liquid to get that nice crunchy crust to it. So next time I will either cut down on the butter or I will instead of cooking them in a pan, do them on the grill. But either way they were soooo tasty!!! Loved them in the shrimp tacos we made. Definitely worth another go around to tweak the recipe here and there. I will let you know when I revamp it. But I hope you try this and enjoy it as much as we did!
 

Blueberry pie filling

I was cleaning out the freezer yesterday and came across a half a bag of blueberries. I had originally thought about making smoothies for hubby with it but they were frozen so tightly together I was afraid to crush them trying to break them apart. So I set them in the fridge to defrost to make something out of them later, maybe muffins.

When I woke up this morning hubby asked what's for breakfast. Ugh, I wasn't feeling like eating anything but as a dutiful wife....lol. I went into the kitchen thinking about just throwing together some sausage and eggs and some frozen pancakes reheated. Then I saw the blueberries and thought...french toast is easy and I can make blueberry pie filling to top them and use the remaining filling to make individual pies for hubby later. I don't particularly like blueberries so anything I make with them is sort of hit and miss and the hubby has to do the taste testing for me (which I know he absolutely can't stand!!! lol).

So here are the ingredients I used and the approximate measurements of them.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup of sugar
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 cups blueberries
• 1 Tablespoon lemon juice

Directions:
Mix all of the dry ingredients together in a saucepan. I like to use a whisk to mix them up breaking up any lumps especially of the cornstarch. Add the water. Cook over medium-high heat till it boils stirring constantly.

Add the blueberries and return to boiling stirring constantly being careful not to crush the berries. The mixture will become thicker and the juice will get more clear.

It took about 4-6 minutes for it to become the thickness I wanted. If after this time it's not as thick as you want you can add more cornstarch to the mix. I recommend starting with 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch mixed with just enough water to make it liquid. Pour it into the mixture and continue to stir till it's boiling again to see how it thickens.

Remove the filling from the heat and stir in the lemon juice. Viola! Blueberry pie filling!

I made the french toast for the hubby and took it to him and it was if it was Christmas day! His eye lit up and a smile from ear to ear. That my friends is the best part of cooking!! I hope this inspires you to give it a try and see just how easy it is to have homemade goodness in just a few minutes.

Double lemon sour cream pie

I had some lemons leftover from around Christmas time and needed to do something with them before I lost them to mold. So of course my first thought was lemon pie! LOL wouldn't that be YOUR first choice :-) Ever since I tasted Marie Calendars sour cream lemon pie I knew that I had to create something similar but with more lemon flavor! I love that slight pucker but sweet flavor of a lemon! So I thought now is the time! This recipe is a combination of my grandma's Lemon Meringue pie and an adaptation for the sour cream lemon layer. Grab your aprons and get ready to pucker up! This recipe makes two 9" pies so there is plenty to keep you smiling and enough to share if you dare...lol

Double lemon sour cream pie

Bottom layer
Ingredients:
1 1/3 cup sugar
6 Tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 tsp salt
3 egg yolks slightly beaten
2 Tablespoons lemon rind
1/3 cup lemon juice
2 cups boiling water

Directions:
In a small bowl mix 1/2 cup water into dry ingredients.

 

Put 1 1/2 cups water in a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Slowly add the moistened dry ingredients. Boil until thick and clear. Stirring constantly.

Remove from heat. Temper egg yolks, then add to the thickened base. Cook another minute.

Remove from heat. Add lemon rind and lemon juice. Divide mixture into two baked pie shells.

 
Top layer:
Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk
3 egg yolks slightly beaten
1/4 cup butter
2 Tablespoons lemon zest
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup sour cream

Directions:
In a sauce pan mix together sugar, flour, and salt. Gradually add the milk to the pan stirring constantly until to just bubbling but not boiling. The mixture will be thick just like the bottom layer. Reduce heat and cook 2 minutes more stirring constantly.

Remove from heat. Temper the eggs then add to the saucepan and cook for 2 more minutes stirring constantly. Remove from heat add butter, lemon zest, and lemon juice.

Then fold in the sour cream.

Divide the mixture into the two pie shells.

Mmmm the finished product! *If you don't plan on eating it right away, which if you can resist you are a stronger person than I...lol, take some Saran Wrap and over the tops so a thick skin like a pudding pie doesn't form. You could also top this with meringue if you like meringue, I just don't happen to like it* I had to wait an entire day to find out if it was good or not as I sent one of the pies to work with the hubby for him and the guys at work. I kept the other pie here at home and had to nearly chain myself to the radiator to keep out of it...lol Not to mention I had two of my favorite kitchen helpers with me dying to try it as well....

Meet Sasha the baby...she's 6 months old and those eyes!!! How can you not spoil a kid with such a cute face...lol

And meet Rocky, my big boy! He's 11 months old and always has that wrinkly brow...I can't resist either one!

 

Mmmm makes my mouth water to post this too....to bad there is no more pie and I'm not about to make some more...not yet...lol!!

 

I hope you try this recipe! It's a nice balance of sweet and light pucker of the lemon. Enjoy! As always I would love to hear your thoughts and if you liked it! Happy baking everyone....now let's eat some pie!!!!!

Peanut butter cream cheese & banana stuffed french toast

Uhmm mmm hmmm mee mee mee....ok so I will spare you from me singing one of Elvis' songs today lol. But like Elvis the hubby loves the combination of peanut butter and bananas. I however think it's atrocious...blech...but this breakfast was for him.

I have been making stuffed french toast forever with all kinds of combinations. My personal favorites are just sweetened cream cheese topped with fresh fruit. The hubby however enjoys some of my from the hit creations like peanut butter and jelly filled and now this one...peanut butter cream cheese and banana.

First off we have to whip up the peanut butter cream cheese. This is a recipe I have made before but I usually use it as a fruit dip to give me added protein and something sweet, but it worked really well here too.

Peanut butter cream cheese dip

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces cream cheese softened (you can also use whipped or 1/3 less fat cream cheese)
• 1 cup peanut butter - doesn't matter chunky or creamy, I prefer creamy for this
• 1 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1/4 cup milk

Directions:
Mix all of the ingredients together until smooth. Chill to set. Refrigerate leftovers.

Easy right?! Now for the creating of the french toast....

Ingredients:

• 2 Eggs depending on how many french toast you are making
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• Bread
• Bananas
• Peanut butter cream cheese dip
• 1 Tablespoon butter or margarine

Mix the eggs, vanilla, and cinnamon together in a shallow bowl. Set aside.

 

 

Spread as much peanut butter cream cheese on one piece of bread as you like. Make sure that you make it thicker in the center than you do on the edges. As the french toast cooks it will melt the spread and it will move to the edges naturally.

 

 



Then of course the easy part slicing the bananas on top of the peanut butter cream cheese. You can add as much or as little as you like. I sliced my bananas about 1/4 inch thick.

Make the sandwich and dip it in the egg mixture. Make sure both sides are nicely saturated with egg.

Melt the butter in the frying pan till it's nice and hot. Then finally cook until golden brown on both sides.

The finished product! Gooey goodness...or so I was told...lol I hope you enjoy this one. Just something simple...but now you have leftover peanut butter cream cheese to eat with slices of apple or bananas or whatever you like.

Swedish meatballs



The temperatures are cooling down and I was craving something warm and soothing that wasn't soup. I had some hamburger in the refrigerator but I didn't want meatloaf or regular meatballs. I wanted something more put together than Hamburger Helper and I thought...I haven't made Swedish meatballs in forever! I had all the ingredients on hand so off I went a cooking!

 

Ingredients:

• 1 cup fresh breadcrumbs
• 2 1/3 cups low-salt beef stock, divided
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
• 1 cup minced onion
• 2 thick slices bacon, minced
• 1 pound ground beef
• 3/4 pound ground pork
• 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons sour cream, whisked

Directions:
Mix breadcrumbs and 1/3 cup stock in a small bowl.  Make sure you mix it together well so that all of the crumbs are moistened. Set aside.

 

 

Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until browned, about 10 minutes. Transfer onion to a large bowl.

          

Wipe out pan and return to medium heat. Add bacon and cook until crisp. Using a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to bowl with onion. (Reserve bacon fat.) Add next 8 ingredients to bowl with onion mixture, mixing with your hands to blend. *Now I know it feels gross to mix it with your hands but it really is the only way to do it! By mixing with your hands you can feel all the lumps and unmixed ingredients. You really want this to be a nice smooth mixture no big lumps.* Fold in breadcrumb mixture. *Now here is where you may want to adjust the mixture. Mine was a bit to wet. Keep in mind that Swedish Meatballs are softer than say Italian meatballs. So you don't want the mixture to be hard but you don't want it to be runny either. The best way I can explain it is the consistency of oatmeal that has absorbed all the liquid or like soft chocolate chip cookie dough (I knew I would hit a light bulb with the cookie one...lol).* I didn't have any more fresh bread crumbs so I had to add dried unseasoned bread crumbs. I would add some, mix it then let it sit for a couple of minutes to let the moisture be soaked up by the bread crumbs. I did this till I liked the texture.

 

 

 

Using a 1 tablespoon measure, roll meat mixture into balls; transfer to a rimmed baking sheet. *I didn't transfer mine to a baking sheet at this time because I didn't want them to get a crust on them from the heat of my kitchen (it's a really tiny kitchen!). I used a cookie scoop (bought at a restaurant supply but you can get them everywhere, Target, WalMart etc.) Using the cookie scoop it was easier to drop the meatballs into the pan and I didn't have to get my hands sticky all the time. I also kept the mixture in the refrigerator when I wasn't using it again so there was no crust that formed but so that it didn't get overly sticky.*

          

The top scoop is a cookie scoop. I think it's rated as medium or I think a #6 but please don't quote me on that..lol. It is two sizes down from an ice cream scoop. The bottom scoop is a Tablespoon so you can see the size for reference. Sorry such a bad photo too...looked better on the camera...lol

Melt 1 tablespoon butter with reserved bacon fat in a large heavy pot over medium-low heat. Working in 3 batches (mine ended up being many more than 3 batches! Be sure not to over crowd the pan it cools down the pan too much and makes it a pain to turn the meatballs) and adding 1 tablespoon butter between batches, (now don't get excited but yes you are going to use a lot of butter...but ohhh does it taste so good and well comfort food is supposed  to be comforting, and you can hit the gym tomorrow...lol) brown meatballs on all sides, about 6–8 minutes per batch.

 

This is the meatballs right after they have been dropped into the pan.

 

Make sure they are browned on all sides. Don't they look so yummy already?

 

Transfer meatballs to a plate. *Here is where I put mine on a edged cookie sheet and in the oven at 200 degrees to keep warm and to slowly finish cooking.* Drain all but 2 tablespoons drippings from pot. Whisk in flour until smooth paste forms. Stir in 2 cups stock; bring to a simmer, whisking often. Return meatballs to pot. Cover; simmer until meatballs are cooked, 5-6 minutes. *I didn't return mine to the pan because my pan was too small. I made the sauce then poured it over the meatballs. * Remove from heat, whisk in sour cream, and stir to coat meatballs.

 

 

Mmmm plate and enjoy!!! Ohhh they were so good and tender too! Jim ate these for his lunch for two more days and never complained one bit! I hope you try this recipe and let me know what you think. It's not heavy like beef stroganoff and the pork and spices give it a nice spice flavor. If you have never tried Swedish meatballs, I highly recommend you do :-)