Cheesy Chicken Cordon Bleu Rice Casserole

Here is another family favorite we've discovered thanks to pickypalate. I'm not a huge casserole person but I think the addition of bell peppers to this recipe makes it look prettier and adds more flavor compared to the average rice casserole dish. Check out the other recipes on her site...I do!! She has some terrific recipes that are easy and ingredient friendly. (Her photos are also top notch!) Thanks Jenny at Picky Palate!!

Cheesy Chicken Cordon Bleu Rice Casserole

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 clove fresh garlic, minced
½ lb diced ham
2 Cups cooked shredded chicken breast
4 Tablespoons butter
¼ Cup flour
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
14 oz can chicken broth
3 Cups cooked rice of choice (I used white long grain)
1 Cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 Cup shredded mozzarella or swiss cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Heat oil into a large 5 qt rimmed skillet over medium heat. Sauté onion and bell pepper until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic, ham and chicken. Cook for an additional 5 minutes. Melt butter then stir in flour, salt and pepper until combined. Slowly stir in chicken broth until well combined. Stir in cooked rice then transfer to a 9x13 inch baking dish. Top with cheddar and mozzarella cheeses. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Cover the dish with foil the last 10 minutes for oozing cheese.

6-8 servings

Pumpkin Pie Milk Shakes

Here is a fun recipe for all of your Thanksgiving pumpkin pie leftovers!

Pumpkin Pie Milkshakes
an original recipe by rachelle, pictures are courtesy of yourhomebasedmom who also loved this yummy treat

2 cups vanilla ice cream
1 cup milk
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 large slice pumpkin pie, chopped and frozen (freezing is optional for bigger chunks. also yum just mixed room temp.)

whipped cream and nutmeg, for serving

combine ice cream, milk and sugar in blender. mix. add in pumpkin pie, pulse to blend. put blender in the freezer for a half hour. when ready to serve, stir and scoop with a big spoon into mugs. serve with a dollop of whipped cream and a sprinkle of nutmeg.

Chicken Curry

Let me first say that we have been searching for a GOOD curry recipe for a long while. We have tried many recipes and not been satisfied...until today!! Finally a chicken curry you can trust. My kids had seconds of this dish! I think the secret to the sauce was making it from scratch without store bought curry concoctions.

Unfortunately I don't remember the site I got this recipe from. I copied the recipe over a month ago but put off making it figuring I would be disappointed once again. Now that it's been so long I don't remember who to praise for this delicious dish.

Chicken Curry with Tomatoes

1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons finely chopped garlic
2 teaspoons finely chopped ginger
4 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon cumin
1/8 teaspoon turmeric
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 medium tomato, chopped
1/2 cup water
2 pounds boneless chicken, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut milk
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
Chopped cilantro, for garnish (optional)
Steamed basmati rice, for serving

1. In a Dutch oven or enameled cast-iron casserole, heat the oil, then add the onion and cook until nicely browned around the edges, about 7 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for 1 minute. Add the coriander, cumin, turmeric, cayenne and black pepper and stir for 1 minute. Add the salt, tomato and water and cook over medium- low heat, stirring constantly, until the tomato is softened. Add the chicken and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes.
2. Add the coconut milk and simmer, partially covered, for another 15 minutes, or until the gravy thickens and the chicken is cooked. Add the cinnamon and cloves and simmer another minute.
3. Remove the chicken from the heat and garnish with the cilantro. Serve with steamed basmati rice.

*Jayne's notes: I liked the addition of tomatoes in this recipe. It gave a slightly sweet flavor. I had to add a bit of salt to my dish once on my plate because I thought it a little bland. Next time I think I'll add more salt and cayenne (just a touch...not too much to prevent the kiddos from liking the dish). Lastly, I personally LOVE cilantro so I really enjoyed (lots of) this garnish.

Goulash

We really enjoyed this recipe. My kids even asked for seconds! We served this over egg noodles but now that I know how much we like the sauce next time we'll be serving it like the Austrians over spaetzle. (Spaetzle is a pasta made with a cool 'spaetzle maker' which we just happen to own!)

Goulash
(Featured on Perry's Plate from Smitten Kitchen (adapted from Gourmet, 1994). Photo courtesy of Perry's Plate...she's a better food photographer than me.)

5 slices bacon, chopped
3 pounds boneless chuck, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 T vegetable oil
4 medium onions (about 1 1/2 pounds), chopped fine
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons paprika (preferably Hungarian sweet)
1 1/2 tsp. caraway seeds
1/3 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 c. red-wine vinegar
1/4 c. tomato paste
5 c. beef broth
1 to 5 cups water (use the former to make a stew, the latter to make a soup)
1 teaspoon salt
2 red bell peppers, chopped fine

In a 6-8 qt dutch oven or saucepan, cook bacon over moderate heat, stirring, until crisp and transfer with a slotted spoon to a large bowl. Leave the bacon fat in the saucepan and add beef, browning in small batches over high heat and transferring it as browned with slotted spoon to bowl. (Doesn't have to be cooked all the way through.)

Reduce heat to moderate and add oil. Add onions and garlic and cook, stirring, until golden. Stir in paprika, caraway seeds, and flour and cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Whisk in vinegar and tomato paste and cook, whisking, 1 minute. (Mixture will be very thick.) Stir in broth, water, salt, bell peppers, bacon, and browned beef and bring to a boil, stirring. Simmer soup, covered, stirring occasionally, 60 to 75 minutes.

Season soup with salt and pepper. Soup may be made 3 days ahead and cooled, uncovered, before chilling, covered. Reheat soup, thinning with water if desired. Serve over egg noodles, potatoes or gnocci. (Or go all-out Austrian and make some spaetzle!) Serves 12.

**Jayne's Notes: I halved this recipe. I didn't have Hungarian sweet paprika so my dish included just plain generic brand paprika and I went light on the onions and slightly heavier on the bacon (Dan likes bacon and 3 strips in a 'halved' recipe just didn't cut it for him). Also, don't be afraid to use caraway seeds. I'm not a fan of rye bread but a little shake of these seeds seemed to make a positive difference. Lastly, we started making this after a late church meeting on Sunday so we definitely did not have the patience to simmer for an hour. I think in the end it simmered for 30 minutes.

OREO Chocolate Chip Cookie

Chocolate Chip Oreo Cookies

(courtesy of picky palate)

1 stick softened butter

6 T sugar

6 T brown sugar

1 egg

1/2 t vanilla

1 1/4 c flour

1/2 t baking soda

1/2 t salt

8 broken Oreo cookies

1 c chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter and sugars until well combined. Add egg and vanilla and mix well.

2. Place dry ingredients in bowl and stir to combine. Slowly add dry to wet ingredients, then stir in oreos and chocolate chips until just combined. Scoop onto cookie sheet and bake 7-9 minutes or until cooked but still soft. Let cool 3 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

*Jayne's notes: This recipe only makes 1 dozen cookies. Also, this cookie needs to be altered for high altitude as our cookies turned out a little flat but still REALLY tasty.

Moroccan Chicken

Courtesy of Martha Stewart (I don't have a picture of this favorite but Martha has a lovely video on her site.)

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 2 carrots, peeled, halved lengthwise, and cut into 1/2-inch slices
• 1 cup canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1 small onion, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped peeled ginger
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 6 sprigs fresh thyme
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 teaspoons coarse salt, plus more as needed
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more as needed
• 1/8 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 pinch of ground cinnamon
• 8 chicken legs, skin removed
• 1/2 cup homemade or canned low-sodium chicken stock
• Cooked couscous, for serving

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, combine carrots, chickpeas, onion, raisins, ginger, garlic, thyme, lemon zest, and olive oil; toss to coat.
2. In a separate large bowl, stir together 2 teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon pepper, coriander, cumin, and cinnamon. Add chicken legs, and toss to coat.
3. Have ready four 12-by-17-inch sheets of parchment. Lay a sheet of the parchment paper on a work surface. Place 1/4 vegetable mixture in center of sheet; season with salt and pepper. Drizzle 2 tablespoons chicken stock over vegetables. Center 2 chicken legs over vegetables.
4. To seal packet, bring edges of parchment together, and make a 1-inch fold, and crease. Make another 1/2-inch fold in the same direction, and crease to form a seam. Working with the edges of a short end, fold in towards center to meet, creating a triangle (as if wrapping a gift). Fold point under a few times, and press to seal; repeat with other side. Repeat with remaining ingredients and remaining 3 sheets of parchment.
5. Transfer packets to a baking sheet. Bake until chicken is cooked through and vegetables are tender, about 1 hour 15 minutes. To serve, carefully cut open each packet with kitchen shears. Remove chicken and vegetables, and serve over couscous.

*Jayne's Notes: This recipe calls for parchment paper cooking. As a busy mother of three I found it's easiest to put the entire recipe mixture in a covered oven-proof casserole dish. The end result is a little soupy but we've found the broth soaks nicely into the couscous. Yummy! I must say thank you to my sophisticated New Yorker friend for life (since we've known each other since Girl Scouts) Jessica for introducing this delicious recipe to me! She has more spare time on her hands to watch Food Network or Martha so I'm glad she shares her yummy finds with me!

Halloween Mummy Munchies

I know it's a little late to post a Halloween treat but these were so much fun to make and eat so I thought I would share anyway.

Breadstick Mummy Dogs

1 roll/pkg Pillsbury Breadstick dough (12 count)

12 hot dogs

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Unroll all 12 breadsticks from package. Cut each into 3 equal strips. Take 3 strips, one at a time and wrap around 1 hot dog starting from the top of the hot dog. (Each hot dog has 3 thin breadstick strips around it). Leave a small space towards the top of the hotdog to make mustard eyes. Continue wrapping all dogs then place on a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until lightly golden brown.

2. Remove and let cool for 5 minutes. Use mustard or ketchup for the eyes.

Menu planner with grocery list

I found this website that I'm so excited to try! It's called Simplify Supper and you can either use their monthly menu plan or create your own. Either way, it automatically creates a grocery list. How cool is that? The other reason I'm excited about this site is that it has FAMILY friendly meal ideas. Yay! Maybe this might help my frazzled grocery shopping trips!