See Meg Cook

Creamy Stuffed Chicken Breast

2012-04-29T16:52:00.000-07:00

Here, is my latest inspiration. We're finally a little settled into our new place so I got myself back into the kitchen. This one was delicious and so easy. I was saving this one for after we went to the grocery store but to my pleasant surprise we had everything we needed (which doesn't happen often). Of course, I made some minor alterations to the recipe linked above. This is what we ended up with. Creamy deliciousness. Get ready.

Ingredients:

3 chicken breasts

1 clove of garlic (minced)

1/4 cup of cream cheese

1/3 cup of shredded Parmesan cheese

1/8 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

1/8 tsp Italian seasoning (just a random one we have in the cupboard)

1/2 tbs olive oil

Step One: Mix together garlic, cream cheese, Parmesan, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.

Step Two: Make a slit directly into the middle of the chicken breast. This is where you are going to stuff the cream cheese-y goodness. Make sure you leave about an inch or so in either side of your slit so you have a solid "pouch". Also, make sure that you slice as far into the chicken as you can (making sure not to break through).

Step Three: Now, you're going to stuff that chicken. I was totally grossed out by this part, but don't worry. Just get in there real nice and deep like... Also, remember how delicious this is going to be. So shove all that cream cheese filling as far down as you can into the chicken. Once you've gotten all your breasts stuffed... Sorry, but that is the most awkward phrase ever, but you know what I mean. It's time to move onto the next step. Seal those things up with a few toothpicks. Poke them in real nicely, closing the chicken as much as possible.

Step Four: Now you're going to fry these into a golden brown, crispy deliciousness. Put a pan on the stove top with a little olive oil and throw 'em in. Well, set them in gently with love and care. You don't want them exploding just yet. Try to keep all the creamy goodness inside the chicken. You'll see why later. Make sure that you get the chicken cooked all the way through. About five minutes or so on each side. You want them to be brown and crispy and oh, soooooo yummy. This is where you start to drool.

Step Five: Plate up and enjoy.

This was seriously so good and so easy I can't even believe it. It's definitely something that I will continue to make. The cream cheese melted into the chicken perfectly and the Parmesan was so gooey and delicious. The rice was also perfect as a side dish for this meal. It honestly doesn't get much better than this. I finished off the night with some tea and passed out into a food coma.

Hasselback Potatoes; Mac 'n' Cheese; Pop Tarts; Chocolate Ice Cream; Mozzarella Sticks; AND Green Eggs and Ham!

2012-03-24T15:50:00.000-07:00

Well I've done it again. We have an overload of goodness. I just can't keep up with all this cooking. And it's starting to get nice out. It's tough to be productive behind the computer. But I'm getting started. That's what counts.

So here we go. Get ready for a plethora of magnificent foods. All fast, easy, and yuuuuuummmmyyyyy!

Hasselback Potatoes: Or as I'd like to think of them... Hasselhoff potatoes. Don't ask... But don't deny that you want to call them that too.

Ingredients:

potato (the bigger the better)

minced garlic

~ 1 tsp. olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

other toppings optional

Step One: Carefully slice your potato like you're making chips BUT only cute through about 2/3 of the way.

Step Two: Lather that baby up with some olive oil. Making sure to get in between all of the different potato leaves.

Step Three: Shove some garlic in. The more the merrier.

Step Four: Toss on some salt and pepper and throw into the oven at about 425 for roughly 45 minutes.

Step Five: Take out and top with anything you'd like. I went with some cheese.

Mac 'n' Cheese:

Ingredients:

package of elbow noodles

~ 1tbs. oil

~ 3-4 c. grated cheese

~ 1/2 c. milk

~ 1 tbs. flour

~ 1/4 c. butter

salt and pepper to taste

Step One: Cook noodle until they are basically done. Just a tiny bit under cooked.

Step Two: Toss drained, cooked noodles into a greased cake pan (or whatever).

Step Three: Add cheese or your liking, oil, butter, milk, flour, salt and pepper and mix well.

Step Four: Toss in the oven to let the cheese melt. I'd say just about 15 minutes at 350.

Step Five: Give a solid taste testing and see what needs to be done. Salt and pepper can do wonders. I also recommend throwing on some Sriracha, which is delicious on anything and everything. If you don't have some already you're missing out, big time.

Pop Tarts: So I saw these just about everywhere after finding them on smittenkitten, and I absolutely had to try them. As do you. Get ready for some awesomeness; you're going to love these. The best part is you can stuff them with anything; jellies, chocolate, cinnamon and sugar, eggs, veggies, the list goes on. I've been testing out different things in here for awhile. I really like the savory pop tarts; with mushroom, garlic, and cheese, yuuuum. Really you can throw just about anything you have in this little pastry crust and make the most delicious thing you've ever tasted. I'll say it again, you're going to love these. Also, you're going to wonder how in the world you've been eating store bought pop tarts all your life. Enjoy. P.S. I cut out a stick of butter; I'm sure they are d.e.l.i.c.i.o.u.s. and oh, so flaky with two sticks of butter, but I just can't bring myself to put two sticks of butter into such a little pastry crust. Do as you wish, but your heart will thank me, and you, later.

Ingredients:

2 c. flour
1 tbs. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1/2 c. (1 stick) of butter
1 egg
2 tbs. milk

Step One: Mix together flour, sugar, and salt.

Step Two: Mix in butter. I recommend using two butter knives and kind of slicing the butter up real small. You want to end up with pea sized chunks. You could also use a fork, your hands, a food processor, other handy gadgets, whatever you want really; just get it evenly distributed.

Step Three: Mix in egg and milk; stir well. Get your hands in there and knead it up a little bit to ensure even distribution of this magic.

Step Four: Ok, now here is the fun part. Putting these puppies together. You can also refrigerate your dough for a day or two if you have the will power to sit around and wait for these. You're crazy if can actually do this though. Anyway, for us normal impatient beings, decide what you want to fill your pastry. Refer to this list below for some ideas (these are just a few I've tried) or be creative and use what you have.

Jelly Filling:

~ 3/4 c. of your favorite jelly/jam

1 tbs. corn starch mixed with 1 tbs. water (I've always skipped this step, but be warned, if you do they will be really runny) **We did try some tapioca flour and it worked perfectly; I just sprinkled a little in**

Bring this to a boil for a couple minutes. Let cool before filling pop tarts.

Savory Filling:

~ 1/4 c. mushrooms

~ 1/4 c. shredded cheese

~ 1/2 tsp. garlic

salt and pepper to taste

Cook up mushrooms and garlic a little bit. Place in pastry crust and add cheese. Salt and pepper to taste. **You could also try adding in some eggs. We are doing this as I type. Just scramble them up first and throw them in**

Step Five: Once you've decided what you want to stuff in here; gauge how many pop tarts you want/can make with the amount of dough you have. This depends on how big (or little) you want these to be. I made 8 decent sized pop tarts with this, but you could make them bigger if you'd like more filling or smaller if you'd like them for something like an appetizer. Either way decide, divide your dough, and get some rectangles, squares, circles, whatever shape you want, rolled out about 1/8 in. thick. Place your filling to one half and fold. Make sure to seal the edges. Use a fork or just press together well with your fingers.

Step Six: Place into your heated oven, which should be at 350 degrees, for roughly 30 minutes. Here's the hard part. Waiting. Our monster oven usually keeps the wait at about 10 minutes. We also turn it down a hefty amount. It's set at about 300 today, we'll see how it goes.

Chocolate Ice Cream: I must say, out of all the ice creams, this just may be my favorite. It's soooooo yummy. And so chocolaty. I love it. I also want to make a note that all these ice cream recipes (vanilla and dulce de leche) I use are the ones you can throw into a bag and shake for like 15 minutes and BOOM! ice cream. I just haven't tried it yet.

Ingredients:

1 pint half and half
1/2 c. whipping cream (honestly this time I just did 1 cup I was sick of having half a cup sitting around. It still tastes the same. Who knows maybes that's why it was so delicious)
~2 tsp. vanilla (you can do more or less or none, whatever)
3/4 c. sugar
pinch of salt
1 bag of chocolate chips (I used semi sweet)

Step One: Whisk all ingredients together (except chocolate). Make sure that all the sugar dissolves.

Step Two: Melt chocolate chips. Stir into liquid mixture. Make sure to distribute evenly.

Step Three: Cover and freeze. Come back and whisk well about every 45 minutes roughly 3 or 4 times; until it looks like ice cream. Eat and love.

Mozzarella Sticks: I came across these little guys on penelope's oasis. I love mozzarella sticks in a bad way so I had to try these. They are super easy, way healthier than anything you're going to buy, and they are soooooo yummy.

Ingredients:

~ 10 cheese sticks (you know, those delicious little string cheeses, they're about to get even better)

1/2 c. flour

2 eggs (the other recipes calls for whites, but I was too lazy to separate them out)

1 c. panko, bread crumbs, whatevers clever.

seasoning (like garlic salt, salt, pepper, you know)

dipping sauce

Step One: Chop cheese sticks in half and toss them in the freezer for about 15 minutes.

Step Two: Mix panko and seasonings. Or whatever kind of crumb you choose.

Step Three: Get your bowls of flour, panko, and egg (mixed all up) lined up and ready for dipping.

Step Four: Dip cheese into flour, egg, and panko. I did some double dipping for extra coverage. Lay out on a greased cookie sheet.

Step Five: Put in oven for about 10-15 minutes at 300 degrees. Sit and wait impatiently. It's so worth it. They are golden, crispy and delicious.

Green Eggs and Ham: Last, but certainly not least, I made green eggs and ham for Dr. Seuss Day. It took me straight back to second grade. Everyone should enjoy these on Dr. Seuss Day. I took some time to read some Dr. Seuss quotes as I ate. I absolutely love Dr. Seuss; you're never too old to enjoy his rhymes. What's your favorite Dr. Seuss quote or book?

Ingredients:

2 eggs

ham (I just tore up a slice of sandwich meat ham)

~4 tbs. milk

cheese

a drop of green food coloring

salt and pepper to taste

Step One: Mix together eggs, milk, salt and pepper, ham, and food coloring (I did mine after cooking, but I think you should do it before).

Step Two: Cook over medium heat and stir frequently until eggs are cooked. Throw some cheese on top and let melt. Smile and enjoy.

Once again I'm super sorry for the terribly long wait. And I hope that it doesn't take too long to get some more things going. Once things are settled expect a heavy flow of recipes coming your way. I hope you enjoy.

Bagels, Ice Cream, Omelettes & Dumpling Soup!

2012-02-25T14:12:00.001-08:00

So. I've been holding out on you. I've been losing sleep over blogging this for weeks now. Sorry.. But here it is anyway. Finally.

I've at least been doing some cooking in this time off... Well a little bit.

We've got bagels (Serrano, garlic & herb, and onion); vanilla ice cream; broccoli mushroom omlette; and vegetable dumpling soup.

Are you ready for an overload of goodness?

Wheat Bagels:

I looked around everywhere for some more bagel recipes. I've made them about three times now and I'm trying to get perfect bagels. They've all been delicious don't get me wrong, but I like to explore. We also have been topping our bagels in the past. This time we went a different route; stuffed. We gathered our usual go-to bagel toppers; a Serrano pepper; garlic; and onion. I must say I was once again pleasantly surprised with these. They were super dense though, thanks to the wheat flour. I think that going half and half with the wheat and the white flour is going to be our next adventure. Anyway. Here it is.

Ingredients:

~ 4 c. flour (Wheat, white, whatever. We used wheat)

2 1/4 tsp. yeast

1/2 c. warm water (I loved the tip that was given on Heavenly Homemakers blog. If it hurts your finger it's too hot for the yeast.)

~3 tbs. honey

1 tsp. salt

1 diced Serrano pepper

~ 1 tbs. minced garlic

~ 1/4 c. diced onion

~ 1 tsp. dried basil

Step One: Stir together 2 c. flour, yeast, and salt. Then add in water and honey.

Step Two: Add in remaining flour, kneading and adding more flour as needed to create a smooth dough ball.

Step Three: Let your dough rest and rise for about 10-15 minutes.

Step Four: Divide dough into twelve equal parts.

Step Five: Fold in each different ingredient to bagels (we did four of each kind). You want to make sure that it gets mixed in evenly.

Step Six: Roll into balls and stick your finger through the middle. Stretch about two inches wide. *Start boiling a pot of water*

Step Seven: Let them rise a little more. I put mine into the warm oven (I preheated to the lowest temp. and put the bagels in after I turned it off and let it cool a bit). Just about 15 minutes was perfect. I recommend flipping them while they are in there so they are fluffy on both sides (I didn't do this so one side had my finger prints).

Step Eight: Set water to a simmer. Sprinkle some salt into the boiling water and add in bagels (I did three at a time). Let them boil on each side for the better half of five minutes. *Start preheating oven to 350*

Step Nine: Put boiled bagels onto a greased cookie sheet and bake for about 25 minutes (I'd give them a flip about halfway through).

Take out and enjoy in every way possible. I saw these bagels paired with multiple different things over the last few days. Including; Serrano, cream cheese, and strawberry jelly; Serrano, cream cheese, and summer sausage; and multiple egg, cheese, cream cheese bagels. I love bagel sandwiches. In kind of a bad way. They are incredibly tasty though and I just can't resist. Start making some. Now.

When you're done with those wonderful bagels get started on some ice cream. Because everyone loves ice cream.

This time I went with vanilla. Of course it was magnificent because you can't go wrong with vanilla.

Vanilla Ice Cream:

Ingredients:

1 pint half and half
1/2 c. heavy whipping cream
~4 tsp. vanilla (you can add some more if you want)
3/4 c. sugar
pinch of salt

Step One: Mix all of the ingredients; making sure that the sugar dissolves completely.

Step Two: Cover and place in the freezer.

Step Three: Come back about every 30 minutes and mix the ice cream really well. I used a whisk. Do this about three or four times (You'll know when it's ready, it's ice cream not rocket science).

All you have to do is cover this back up and throw in the freezer until it's all gone. It saves pretty well (especially if you stirred it a lot). You could always out it into another container too. We just kept it in the bowl. Whatever floats your boat.

Next, here is a little omelette I whipped up for dinner. Nothing special, but it was quick, easy and delicious.

Broccoli Mushroom & Cheese Omelette:

Ingredients:

~ 2 tsp. oil
~ 3 mushrooms (sliced)
~ 1/4 c. broccoli
~ 1 tsp. minced garlic
2 eggs (you can use more or less)
~ 3 tbs. milk
A few slices of cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Step One: Put mushrooms into a pan with oil and heat on about medium. Cook the mushrooms on each side for a minute or two.

Step Two: Mix in broccoli, eggs, milk, garlic, salt and pepper.

Step Three: Let cook for a few minutes. I slide my spatula along the sides to let the juices from the top fill the gap and cook. I do this until there isn't really any juice left on top.

Step Four: Now here is where things get serious. Flipping time. I always get a little nervous, but to my surprise I've had good luck the last few tries. I recommend sliding the spatula around the sides and then trying the flip it. If you have a well greased pan it usually works perfectly (I even managed a throwing flip one time!).

Step Four: Add some cheese slices and fold in half.

Now you can add whatever else you want too (or you could throw it in the middle before you fold). Maybe some hot sauce, ketchup, whatever. It's delicious any way you eat it.

Ok. Now, last but certainly not least.

Vegetable Dumpling Soup:

Ingredients:

1 bag of frozen vegetables (whatever sounds good; we used the Fiesta bag this time)
1 onion, chopped
2 cans vegetable broth (or chicken) [we actually used veggie bouillon cubes this time]
Bisquick- for dumplings (I think you need milk and maybe an egg for this too I don't remember; it says it on the box)
salt and pepper to taste.

Step One: Place chopped onion in a pan with oil and cook. Let them get translucent, at least mostly.

Step Two: Put your broth (or bouillon cubes and water) into the crock pot. Set to LOW.

Step Three: Mix in veggies and cooked onion.

Step Four: After a few hours of cooking (about four) it's time to get the dumplings going. So mix together some Bisquick or whatever it is you use for dumplings. I like Bisquick, it's quick, easy and yummy. We also use the heart smart Bisquick. You should too. P.S. the box has a dumpling recipe don't worry.

Step Five: Drop dumpling mix into the crock pot (like tablespoons full). Turn to HIGH for an hour.

Step Six: Serve; salt and pepper to taste. You could also add cheese... whatever you want. It's all scrumptious.

MMMMMMMMMMMMM. Yuuuuuuummmmmmm. I loooooooove this soup. I love soup. I love dumplings. I love dumpling soup. I really like how much you can switch this up. Like I said we used a Fiesta bag of mixed frozen veggies. It had liiiiike beans, broccoli, grean beans, who knows whatelse it was delicious. I kind of think that we added that can of corn now that I think about it... You can do that too. We've made this a few times and the other time we used a different veggie mix. It was a little more practical and didn't sound as crazy as this. They were both epically delcious though. You know you want some. You can add in meat. Like chicken... That's what the little recipe in my crock pot cookbook called for. But we went the vegetarian route. Because I like to cook with my roommate and eat meals together. And I don't mind skipping out on my meats every once and awhile. I think that if you add meat you should cook it first that way you don't have to cook this all day long. Because the faster the better.

On another note. I'm beyond pumped that I finally finished this post. I'm sorry I've been such a d-bag and haven't been posting. Like I said, I procrastinated. But whatever. Here it is. I hope you enjoy. I have another post ready to be made as well. Another pizza :) get excited. It's another crazy one too. I'll get to typing soon. But my fingers are burning and I need to spend my Saturday away from the computer ;)
Also, sorry that I keep changing the formatting of the posts. I can't decide how I like it (looks and ease of making). Anywho. Get to cooking and eating these wonderful creations.

Vegetarian Lasagna

2012-02-07T20:21:00.000-08:00

My roommate and I had been talking about making lasagna forever. I mean, why not? It's delicious (I feel like I'm always calling things delicious... I need to come up with some new adjectives). So. We made some lasagna. A vegetarian lasagna. And for my first ever attempt at making a lasagna, I've got to say, it went pretty well. As always you can make any tweaks. One I'll recommend right off the bat is, if you like saucy lasagnas, add more sauce. This was in no way, shape or form super saucy. I personally don't really love sauce and I maybe would even add a little more next time. Other than that you could do anything like add meat (ground beef or whatever you like). There are always a wide variety of ways you can go with your vegetables too (as always, we used what we had on hand).

Vegetable Lasagna

Ingredients:
1 box of lasagna noodles... minus two noodles. (don't ask)... Ok if you must know, we broke up two of the noodles for the avocado pasta just to make sure we had enough.
~ 1 tsp. minced garlic
~ 1/2 tsp. dried basil
~ 3 c. cheese of your choice (we just used shredded pizza cheese)
~ 1/4 c. mushrooms
~ 1/2 c. fresh basil
1 can tomato sauce (I don't know how many ounces, it was the bigger one though... maybe 16 oz? You can use whatever your favorite sauce is.)

**These are all approximate, I didn't actually measure anything. And like I said before, I recommend more sauce. Add some meat or other veggies too, if you want!**

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Step One: Pour your sauce in a pan and heat at about medium. Add in garlic and basil (and anything else you want, or don't do this at all if you already have another sauce). You want to get this bubbling, then just turn it to low.

Step Two: Cook the lasagana noodles (we cooked ours all the way so we only had to get the cheese melted in the oven).

Step Three: Put a layer of noodles in your greased pan.

Step Four: Cover noodles with a layer of sauce and cheese (you can add meat, veggies or whatever else you might have here).

Step Five: Layer with noodles again. Add another layer of sauce and cheese (and any other desired ingredients). This is where we added mushrooms and started with the basil (because we didn't have much).

Step Six: Add the last layer of noodles, sauce and cheese (and whatever else you may have or want).

Step Seven: Pop this bad boy in the oven and wait for that cheese to melt! (About 15 minutes or so).

Take out and enjoy.

Yum yum yummmmmm! I think that our first lasagna turned out pretty dang good! It tasted delicious, and it was pretty easy to make too. I always thought that making lasagna took foreeeeeever. Maybe it was frozen? Or maybe you really aren't supposed to cook the noodles so much... then cook it longer with meat and stuff... I have no idea I'm no lasagna expert. But I liked doing it this way because it was fast. And I was really hungry... And even if I were to be adding meat I think that I would cook it first too, and then cook the same way. I'm just rambling now. Go make yourself some lasagna so you can contemplate the best ways to prepare it too :) P.S. Another ramble... I think what I like most about this (and about almost everything I cook) is that you can go any direction; meat, no meat; veggies, no veggies; red sauce, white sauce, pesto sauce! Endless possibilities! Anyway. Get to cookin' and figure out what you like best! Leave a comment and let me know how it goes :)

Avocado Pasta & Peanut Butter Nutella Bars

2012-01-29T23:43:00.000-08:00

So I've been holding out on you with this pasta recipe. I made it the other night and the pictures just don't to it justice. I really wanted to make it again and get some better pictures before unleashing it on you, but I just couldn't wait. So bare with me on my pictures taken with my phone in my horribly lit kitchen.
Alright. So I stumbled upon the pasta recipe awhile back and thought it sounded deeeeelish. Here's the link I found, Creamy Avocado Shells, looks/sounds delicious right? We made this the other night but used whole wheat spaghetti noodles instead (and I'm not going to lie; we did break up two lasagna noodles just to make sure we had enough). I also didn't take the time to do any lemon zesting. It was already reeeeaaaally lemon-y.

And as for the Peanut Butter Nutella Bars, I'm really craving sweets right now and we had some cornflakes to get rid of.

So here we go....

Avocado Pasta

Ingredients:

2 avocados

1 lemon

3 cloves garlic

1/2 c. fresh basil

4 tbs. extra virgin olive oil

noodles (we just used the rest of the spaghetti noodles we had, it was enough for 3 plus...) **the recipe I looked at wanted 4 servings of shell pasta

salt & pepper to taste

Step One: Add your pasta of choice to a boiling pot of water. Drain when cooked.

Step Two: Start blending your garlic cloves, olive oil, and lemon juice (I don't have a food processor so I used my blender).

Step Three: Add the avocados and basil and blend until smooth.

Step Four: Mix the sauce and cooked pasta together.

Step Five: Salt and pepper to taste.
Enjoy.

Like I said, these pictures don't do it justice it's sooooo green (you'll see). This is soooooo delicious. I didn't really think that it would be so good. I love avocados, but I thought that this seemed too simple. I think that we used just a little too much lemon juice (it was still really good though). The recipe said to add more lemon juice if you had leftovers so they wouldn't brown. We had leftovers but no more lemon juice, but it wasn't needed. It's still looking green and delicious in the fridge as we speak... or type. Either way I recommend you try this. It's another healthy, yummy dinner. Who would have thought all these things would be so good for you? Well, let's not speak too soon...

Peanut Butter Nutella Bars

Ingredients:
1/4 c. butter (margarine, whatever it is you use. I don't even know what we have honestly)
1/2 c. milk
2 c. sugar
1 c. peanut butter
1 tbs. Nutella (you can use more or none, I just threw a dab in for good measure)
1 tsp. vanilla
~3 c. cornflakes (we needed to get rid of them... you could use anything really oatmeal, rice crispies, etc.)

Step One: Mix butter, milk, and sugar in a pan; bring to a boil on medium heat.

Step Two: Let boil for about a minute or so.

Step Three: Remove from heat, and mix in peanut butter and Nutella until melted.

Step Four: Mix in cornflakes or whatever variation you would like.

Step Five: Pour into a greased dish or drop on a greased pan for cookies (that's what I planned to do first, but I went with the bars).

Step Six: Let set (don't worry it doesn't take long).

Enjoy!

So the Peanut Butter Bars taste sooooooooo good. I'm not sure if it was because our cornflakes were really old or what, but these were really chewy. Still delicious. But chewy. The cornflakes didn't have the crunch I would have expected. I also never tested them beforehand, so who knows. Anyway, like I said you can try cornflakes, oatmeal or any other type or cereal you'd like. Also, I'd add some more Nutella. We didn't really have much I just wanted to throw a little in. Needless to say these satisfied my cravings and more. You'd better test these both out.

Baked Egg Boats & Peanut Butter Pretzel Bites

2012-01-26T22:42:00.000-08:00

Yum. Yum. Yum. Yum. Yum. Yum.
Where do I even start? These are both sooooooooooo yummy! I stumbled upon both of these recipes awhile ago and had to try them. The Baked Egg Boats are from Spoon Fork Bacon, and the Peanut Butter Pretzel Bites I saw were on Foodaphilia. I did some modification on the Baked Egg Boats, but the Peanut Butter Pretzel Bites are the same (except the pretzel shape).
First, I made my baguettes because we didn't have any. Also, because we were cooking vegetarian I had to make some obvious alterations to the Egg Boat recipe. Other than that they're pretty much the same.
We made these last night for dinner... I love breakfast for dinner. And let me tell you, I was beyond impressed, besides the fact that my Egg Boats weren't quite as sturdy as planned (easy fix though, I just squished them together in some pans so they wouldn't leak out everywhere).
Alrighty get ready cause here it comes.

Baguettes:
I just googled a recipe for some baguettes and used this one, French Baguettes from Allrecipes.com. We, of course, always use wheat flour. I'd say I ended up using about 3 cups of flour in the end. I also don't have a bread maker... Aaaand I used the oven the help the dough rise because our house is cooooold. Lastly, instead of making two baguettes I made four (which still ended up in half in the end). You don't really have to make your own like I said we didn't have any, but maybe you don't either (if you have baguettes this obviously doesn't apply to you anyway). I think these were pretty dang quick and easy for making myself and they were very tasty as well. Plus, it was perfect to start the pretzels during the rising time (strategy!).
So after you've gotten your baguette situation figured out you're going to A. Want to start dealing with this Egg Boat business and B. You'd better be dreaming about the deliciousness like I was.

So if you did make your own baguettes like I did*you're going to want to hollow them out so you can fill them up with your egg mixture. You've got to make sure that they don't get too shallow or you end up with a mess (like me) but don't worry you can handle it. *You might not have a bread maker either so just combine the water, yeast and flour until foamy, then mix everything else together kneading and flouring until smooth.

Baked Egg Boats:
So this is what we used (vegetarian), but you can always add meat or whatever else you want or follow this recipe.

Ingredients:
5 eggs
~ 1/3 c. milk
~1/4 c. mushrooms
~1/4 c. onion
~1/4 c. red pepper
~1/4 c. broccoli
**(we didn't actually measure any of the vegetables we just chopped some up and threw them in)
handful of shredded cheese (the pizza kind, because that's what we had)
salt & pepper to taste
a dash of basil

Oven should be at 350 degrees.
Step One: Mix together your eggs and milk.

Step Two: Add the cheese, spices, and vegetables and mix.

Step Three: Pour this into your hollow baguettes. This is where things got messy for me and the cookie sheet wasn't cutting it anymore. I crammed them into dishes with sides and poured the remaining liquid in.

Step Four: Put in the oven for about 20 minutes and waaaaaait. (You should be sneaking a pretzel bite about now if you're timing like I did)
Step Five: Take out and eat those dang things!

**Thanks to the wonderful wonderful Molly for taking this picture!

Peanut Butter Pretzel Bites!
(YES, that deserves an apostrophe!)

Ingredients:
pretzels (surprisingly doesn't take too many, but you're still going to end up with a lot of these suckers)
1 c. creamy peanut butter (we use Adam's, because it's delicious)
~ 2 tbs. butter
1/2 c. powdered sugar
3/4 c. brown sugar
1 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips

Step One: Mix peanut butter and butter together.

Step Two: Mix in sugars.

Step Three: Take teaspoons of the "dough" and roll them into balls (add more sugar if it's too sticky) and squish between two pretzels. Place on cookie sheet. Repeat until gone.

Step Four: Place in freezer for about 30 minutes.

Step Five: Pour chocolate chips into a bowl and microwave in 30 second intervals until melted.
Step Six: Dip pretzels into chocolate and place back onto cookie sheet. Put back into freezer to set when you are done.

**Thanks again to the wonderful Molly for the photographs!

Eat & eat & EAT because these are AMAZING. Like the best thing EVER. I've said it before, but I mean it every time.

Like I said, I'm amazed. These are delicious. The Pretzel Bites are p.e.r.f.e.c.t. just the way they are, and the Egg Boats can be tweaked in any way you want for a custom meal anytime of the day. I approve of these foods. I love these foods. I'm going to go get another one of those pretzels because all of this has gotten me drooling.
You should start making these. Now. Sorry it took so long to get this awesomeness to you.
And again thank you thank you thank you Molly for taking these amazing after shots for me!

Vegetable Stuffed Crust Pizza

2012-01-23T16:57:00.000-08:00

Sorry it took so long, but here you go! For starters, I recommend adding some herbs and spices to the dough so it has some more pizazz (we didn't, but it would have been way better). Here's a healthy dinner perfect for two with maybe a little left over (for breakfast in our case). I'm not going to lie I wouldn't think that all of this sounds that great right off the bat, but thinking out of the box is never a bad idea. Plus having a vegetarian roommate you have to have a broad palate, and be ready to try something new. So, here you go. A delicious, easy, pretty quick, healthy pizza.

Vegetable Stuffed Crust Pizza

Ingredients:
Dough **I like Jay's Signature Pizza Crust Recipe from Allrecipes.com, but you can use whatever you'd like.
~1/2 c. Carrots, sliced thinly
~ 1/2 c. Broccoli, broken into small pieces
~ 1/2 c. Onion, thinly sliced
~ 1 c. Cheese, shredded (we used Cheddar)
~ 1/2 c. Mozzarella -for stuffing crust- (we had the big chunk of it, but you could use shredded or none or whatever)
Alfredo Sauce **Of course you can use whatever sauce you want this is just what we chose (because there was still heavy whipping cream from the ice cream!).

(Ingredients for Alfredo)
1/2 c. Heavy Whipping Cream
~ 1/2 tbs. Minced Garlic
~ 1 tbs. Cooking Oil
Salt & Pepper to taste
dash of Basil
dash of Parsley
a little chunk of Mozzarella (that's all the we had... just to thicken up a bit)
Step One: Get your dough mixed together (set aside to double) and your oven preheated (if you're using Jay's Signature Recipe it's 425 degrees).

Step Two: Heat garlic and oil in a skillet, on low.

Step Three: Add whipping cream, cheese and spices.
Step Four: Increase heat to about medium and let your mixture come to a boil. Stir and wait for sauce to thicken.

Step Five: After a few minutes you should have a pretty thick sauce, set it aside until ready to put on pizza. **It will thicken more after cooling so if it's a little runny don't worry.

Step Six: Spread dough flat on your pan, make sure to leave a good lip for the crust if you plan on stuffing it.

Step Seven: Place cheese along edges for stuffing and fold dough over it tucking it in nicely.

Step Eight: Spread your sauce on.
Step Nine: Top it! ** We did vegetables first and cheese last.

Step Ten: Pop it in the oven for whatever time your dough requires (about 20 minutes for Jay's Signature).

Take out and enjoy!

Personally, I went with some ranch dressing to top this pizza, but you could go the plain route too. It's good either way. Also, if you'd like, add some Sriracha or something else to spice things up a bit.
Like I said before, this is a pretty quick and easy meal is far as cooking from scratch goes. You can get everything cut up while your dough is doubling and get started on your sauce. It all works perfectly. All you have to do it sit back and wait for everything to cook. Or be super productive and take care of cleaning while everything is cooking. But lets not push it! So if you're looking to be a little healthier or maybe you're an actual vegetarian, either way, this is the recipe for you! Add or subtract whatever veggies or toppings you desire. As always, this was just what was in our kitchen. Hope you enjoy! And if there's anything you're dying to see here just give us a shout out we're always open to suggestions and new ideas. Plus we're going shopping soon!

Carrot Cake, Ice Cream & Dulce de Leche

2012-01-21T11:49:00.000-08:00

The day you've all been waiting for is finally here! And let me just tell you, I am so stinking excited for this it's unbearable! Are you ready to learn how to make a little of your own magic happen? Buckle up, here are three of the most amazing things to ever walk the Earth (ok so food doesn't walk, but you get the point, right?). These are probably just about the most amazing thing to ever be produced in this tiny little kitchen of ours.

So we'll start with the Dulce de Leche.
A) Because that's what I started with. B) You're going to want to have this going for at least 8 hours.

Ingredients:
1 can of sweetened condensed milk
crock pot (or, if you wish, you can do this in the oven... but why not take the easy route?)

Step One: Take the label off of your can, DO NOT OPEN!!
Step Two: Place your unopened can into the crock pot, and fill it up with water so it's covering the entire can. **if you're worried about this leaving a ring of rust (which it does, but it's minor and basically washes away) you can put a plate under the can.

Step Three: Turn crock pot to LOW and leave over night or for at least 8 hours. The longer you leave it, the thicker and darker the caramel is in the end.

Step Four: Turn crock pot off. You can take out your can now or wait if you want (I waited and let it cool first). Either way DO NOT open the can until it is cooled or else you'll have a huge mess to clean up.

Step Five: Once your can is cool, open it up and be amazed! Delicious caramel effortlessly made in your own home! I don't know how I didn't hear about this sooner.

So, now that you've got that deliciousness made let's move onto number two. Ice Cream!

Ingredients:
1 pint half & half
1/2 c. heavy whipping cream
4 tsp. vanilla
3/4 c. sugar
pinch of salt

Step One: Mix all your ingredients together. Make sure that all the sugar dissolves.

Step Two (this is probably optional): Refrigerate (I left it over night).
Step Three: Mix again, and put into the freezer.

Step Four: Now, you're going to want to go back and stir the mixture about every 45 minutes so that you have smooth ice cream. **I just used a wire whisk on it for a few minutes each time.

Step Five (also optional, but highly recommended): Mix in your Dulce de Leche! Put back in the freezer until ready to eat.

And now, drum roll please.... The grand finale!
Carrot Cake!

Ingredients:
6 c. shredded carrot (I'll be honest I got tired of measuring and just used 10 giant carrots, but to be fair i did shred 2 and they were about a cup... but 6 cups is a lot of shredding)
1 c. brown sugar
4 eggs
1 1/2 c. sugar
1 c. oil
2 tsp. vanilla
1 can crushed pineapple, drained
3 c. flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
4 tsp. cinnamon
1 c. raisins
1 c. nuts (I used walnuts)

Step One: Mix sugars and oil well.

Step Two: Mix in eggs (one at a time).

Step Three: Add carrots and pineapple.

Step Four: Add remaining ingredients. Stir together well.

Step Five: Put into greased pans (or pan, your choice).

Step Six: Bake for 35 minutes at 350 degrees.
Step Seven: Take out. Cool for frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting **Oh yeah... That's a free-be!
Ingredients:
8 oz cream cheese (I used the 1/3-less-fat again)
1/2 stick of butter
2 c. powdered sugar
2 tsp. vanilla

Step One: Mix together cream cheese and butter.
Step Two: Add in vanilla and powdered sugar.
Step Three: Mix well (You might be thinking that milk would be good to add, don't be fooled. This starts out thick but in the end it's semi-runny). **Mine is obviously still a little chunky. Whatever. It was still amazing.

Step Four: Frost your cake!

(I frosted one layer, put some of the walnuts on, and then spread some more frosting over them so the other layer of cake would stick)

The Review:

Everything is so delicious! The ice cream and Dulce de Leche is soooooooo good! I loooooove the caramel in the vanilla ice cream. I must say that I was pleasantly surprised with how amazing this turned out. I had my doubts. The last time I made Dulce de Leche I was a little scared so I just kept the crock pot on warm and ended up with a runny, light brown caramel. It was delicious either way. But this time I went for it and set the crock pot to low and even let it cook a little longer. This left me with a thick, dark brown caramel. I was a tad skeptical at first, but it's absolutely wonderful. The cake, ooooh the cake. Everyone loved the cake. Even a dog or two (someone helped themselves to a corner of the cake while we were out). Besides that, it was moist and delightful. I'm pretty satisfied with this cooking endeavour. I recommend testing it out yourself! And I'm not even going to lie I definitely had some ice cream this morning. After my Panda Puffs of course.

Cookie Bars

2012-01-18T23:11:00.000-08:00

SNOW DAY!
Ok. So tomorrow is a snow day. Either way, I'm cooking.
Basically, I was really hungry and what was in the kitchen just wasn't cutting it. BUT I could manage to throw together some random things that were -hold your breath, please- already in my kitchen. Love it. Speaking of things in my kitchen... these are currently in the oven! So excited. I just took a peek, and they look d.e.l.i.c.i.o.u.s.
So, you want to know how to do it?
Easy.
I do want to say that I just threw this all together with what was in my kitchen. Feel free to improvise as needed.

Cookie Bars
Ingredients:

1 c. butter
1 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/2 c. oatmeal
3/4 c. raisins
1 c. coconut
1/4 c. chocolate chips
10 Hershey's Kiss (from my Christmas stocking... improvise, remember?)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit***

Step One: Mix your butter and sugars together. Well.

Step Two: Beat in eggs.

Step Three: Stir in vanilla.

Step Four: Stir in flour, baking soda, and salt.

Step Five: Mix in oats, raisins, coconut, and chocolate chips.

Step Six: Spread in a greased pan (like a small square-ish one... I want to say 8x9 but I'm not pan expert).
Step Seven: Unwrap the candies and push those babies* into your mixture. *that was for you grandma

Step Eight: Place in the oven with care, and wait. I kept mine in for 32 minutes they were golden, delicious, brown, and still and little gooey in the middle (I stuck a toothpick in and is was so close to being clean. But not all the way clean. Cookies are best when they're gooey... or tomorrow.... drooooooool).

Enjoy. When cooled, of course... Well... Mostly cooled.

*** Ok so maybe 325 is a better route to go. Start checking them soon though if you do that. I should have done this, but we have a monster oven and I couldn't risk burning such wonderful things.

The Review:
YUUUUMMMMMM! These were just what I needed to satisfy my cravings. And they can't be half bad for you either. They have the perfect crunch. Coming from everywhere. I really love the coconut in this. It goes perfectly with the crispy cookie "crust" if you will. I must say I could live without the Hershey's Kiss in them I just thought I'd add some extra chocolate for the lack of chocolate chips. Remember, throw in what you have, improvise. It works... Or doesn't. And I'll also add that this got another roommate stamp of approval. Another note, I recommend milk.
Get to cookin'!

A Little Teaser...

2012-01-18T11:30:00.000-08:00

Alright party people. I'm only here to tease you and get you as stoked as I am for this next post. It's going to be a trifecta of deliciousness. That's right. Three awesome recipes coming your way.
Why you might ask?
Well. Friday is my boyfriend's birthday. You know what the means? Time to get cookin'! I may be the most excited about this project and I'm A.O.K. with that. So is it killing you yet? Do you neeeeeed to know what is coming next?
I could be an ultimate tease and not tell you after all this hype. But I know there are SOOOO many of you out there wondering, "What in the world could she be cooking up?"
Let your wondering cease.
First. I'm making a cake. Duh, a birthday cake. But come on, it isn't just ANY birthday cake. This is going to be the BEST birthday cake EVER. Homemade Carrot Cake. Oh, yes. I'll say it again. Homemade Carrot Cake. SO excited! Mostly because I've never actually made a carrot cake before. I've eaten plenty though. Luckily, a giant bundle of fresh organic carrots have been tossed our way and they need to be put to good use. Yay for hippy friends!
Ok so number one sounds amaaazing. How could I possibly top myself on this cake? Wait, and be amazed. I'm whipping up some homemade ice cream to go with it. Ohhhhh, snap! I did it. I topped myself. And before I start patting myself on the back, I'd like to wow you one last time. For today.
Dulce De Leche. "What's that?" you might say... Sorry for getting so fancy on you. But this calls for fancy. Basically, it's just the best caramel you'll ever eat in your life. Let alone make right in your own kitchen, effortlessly.
So, there it is. I've done all the hyping I can possibly do. Are you drooling yet? I am. And I can't wait!
Hope everyone is as excited as I am! .... Whoever you are...

Spinach Artichoke Dip

2012-01-16T16:12:00.000-08:00

So it's finally time for a first post. Here it is... Spinach Artichoke Dip!
For starters, this is a dish with major improvisation. I really wanted this first post out of the way and we had a few things up our sleeves (we being my roommate and I). After checking out a few other recipes to see what was generally needed and what I actually had a "recipe" if you will has been formed.

This is enough for a glass pie plate we have to be filled (not full, but filled). Plus, we only had so much cream cheese... Improvise, remember?

Also, I'd like to add that I didn't actually use a measuring cup... sue me. But I put in what looked like these amounts... you can measure if you want.

*no there isn't a crockpot involved my roommate was just making chili and it looked like a good background.

Ingredients:

4 oz cream cheese *(we used the 1/3-less-fat Neufchâtel cream cheese)

1 can artichoke hearts -drained
1 can spinach -drained

1/2 clove minced garlic

2 tbs mayonnaise

1/4 tbs dried basil

1/8 tsp garlic salt

1/2 cup grated Cheddar cheese... because that's what we had

salt & pepper to taste

FIRST: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

SECOND: Mix cream cheese, mayonnaise, dried basil, garlic salt, and salt & pepper in a bowl.

THIRD: Mix in your cheese.

FOURTH: Mix in your chopped artichoke hearts and spinach.

FIFTH: Put this concoction into a pan and throw some more cheese on top of that bitch! *sorry if that offended any of my... viewers... *cough*... crickets chirping....

SIXTH: Pop it in the oven for 25 minutes.

Take out and enjoy.

Pretty simple right? RIGHT! And pretty dang delicious if I do say so myself. And I also have the roommate stamp of approval which always counts. I am currently chewing the last bite of the spinach artichoke dip on a bagel that I made (because we used the last of the cream cheese for this and I haven't had breakfast yet). I wish there was a button for a down arrow... cause that's it... down there... vvvv (not V's)

Yuuuummmm. I'm pretty sure you can't go wrong with this. And it's pretty good for you too... I think.

So there it is. My first post. And some pretty bomb spinach artichoke dip too. Definitely worth the 25 minutes cooking time and the 10 minutes MAX preparation time.

Alright. The End.

Get to cookin!

*** I'd also like to add that you could be eating this with anything. Such as... Oh crackers.. Chips.. Bagels, like us. Anything! Another thing. Refridgerate.