Shrimp Platter Appetizer

Ok so when you see this recipe you'll probably think, "Eh, that looks all right." But seriously it is better than all right. A co-worker brought a tray of this to work and I couldn't stop eating it all day. Way goo-ood.

Shrimp Platter Appetizer
(from Lion House cookbook)

1 8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 C sour cream
1/4 C mayonnaise
2 cans (4 1/4 oz each) broken shrimp, rinsed and drained
1 C seafood cocktail sauce
2 C shredded mozzarella cheese
1 green pepper, chopped
3 green onions, chopped
1 large tomato, diced

Combine cream cheese, sour cream, and mayo. Spread on a 12-inch glass plate (or whatever serving tray you have available). Scatter shrimp over the cheese layer. Cover with cocktail sauce. Then add a layer of shredded mozzarella cheese, a layer of green peppers, and a layer of green onions. Sprinkle diced tomato over the whole thing. Cover with plastic wrap and chill. Serve with assorted crackers.

I made this for a family party last week and it was a big hit. I didn't use peppers...it just didn't seem quite right. I didn't measure the cocktail sauce or cheese. I just spread as much of it as I thought looked good, so I might have used a little more or less than called for. Delicious!
Enjoy!

Banoffee pie

This is Banana Cream Pie kicked up about 10 notches!!! YUMM - Plus there's no fat - beleive me its true!

Recipe: Banoffee Pie
Curtis Stone from the Today Show

Ingredients
Crust
9 ounces graham crackers
1 stick butter, melted

Toffee sauce
1/2 cup (packed) dark brown sugar
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter

Filling
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
5 small bananas (about 1 1/2 pounds total)

Preparation
To make the crust: Line the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan with parchment paper.
Blend the graham crackers in a food processor until they are finely ground.
Pour the melted butter over the crumbs and process to blend well. The crumbs should stick together when pressed. Press the crumb mixture over the bottom and 1½ inches up the sides of the springform pan. Refrigerate.

To make the toffee sauce: Place a medium-heavy saucepan over medium heat.
Combine the sugar and 3 tablespoons of water in a medium-heavy saucepan.
Stir over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat and boil without stirring until the color is deep amber, occasionally swirling the pan and brushing down the sides with a pastry brush dipped into water, about 5 minutes. Stir in the condensed milk and butter. Continue stirring for 5 minutes or until the sauce thickens slightly. Remove the toffee sauce from the heat and spread 1 cup of the sauce over the prepared crust and refrigerate for about 1 hour or until the caramel is semi-firm. Keep the remaining caramel sauce at room temperature.

To fill the pie: Using an electric mixer, beat the cream in a large bowl until thick and very soft billowy peaks form. Very thinly slice 3 of the bananas into discs. Fold the sliced bananas into the softly whipped cream and spoon into the prepared pie crust. Slice the remaining bananas and arrange them decoratively over the pie. Rewarm the remaining toffee sauce gently over low heat. Drizzle some of the sauce decoratively over the pie. If the sauce has thickened too much to drizzle, stir a few tablespoons of milk into the sauce to create a thinner consistency. Drizzle each pie wedge with more sauce and serve.

Pumpkin Cake

1 (29 oz) can pumpkin puree
1 (12 oz) can evaporated milk
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground cloves
1 package yellow cake mix
1 cup butter1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1 small tub whipped topping

DirectionsPreheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a 9 x 13 inch pan with parchment paper. In a large bowl, combine pumpkin, evaporated milk, eggs, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves. (These could be substituted with 3t Pumpkin Pie Spice.)

Mix until smooth and pour into a 9×13 inch pan. Sprinkle dry cake mix over pumpkin mixture, then sprinkle chopped nuts and pat down gently. Melt butter or margarine and drizzle over cake.

Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for approximately 45 to 60 minutes. (Be sure to check the cake after 45 minutes because oven temperatures vary.) After cake cools, turn it upside down so the top of the cake will be the crust. Remove the parchment paper. Top with dessert topping (optional) before serving.

Chicken and Artichoke Casserole

1/2 lb. fresh mushrooms, sliced

2 T butter

2 14 oz cans chicken broth

4 -5 chicken breasts

1 14 oz can artichoke hearts, drained and roughly chopped

3/4 stick butter

1/3 c flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1 1/8 cup half and half

3/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Saute mushrooms in 2 T butter and set aside. Pour 2 cans chicken broth in large pot and add water to cover chicken breasts. Bring to a boil. When chicken is cooked through, shred with two forks. Remove from broth and save 1 1/8 cups. Cool. Arrange chicken in casserole dish. Top with artichoke hearts. Set aside. Melt 3/4 stick butter, stir in flour, salt and pepper and cook until smooth, about 1 minute. Gradually stir in 1 1/8 cup reserved chicken broth and light cream. Cook and stir as mixture boils and thickens. Blend in Parmesan cheese. Pour over artichokes. Sprinkle mushrooms over the top. Bake at 325 for 30 minutes and serve over rice. If you have more Parmesan, sprinkle it on top just before baking.

Pumpkin pancakes with nutmeg whipped cream

I've been wanting to make some pumpkin pancakes (if you can't tell, I have a slight obsession with pumpkin!) and Trent's mom was out to visit last week so I decided to make them one morning. Let me just say I've been dreaming about them since. Yep, they were that good!



Pumpkin pancakes with nutmeg whipped cream
(makes about 12 pancakes)

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 egg
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons vinegar

Directions
1.In a separate bowl, mix together the milk, pumpkin, egg, oil and vinegar. Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, allspice, cinnamon, ginger and salt, stir into the pumpkin mixture just enough to combine.
2.Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.

For nutmeg whipped cream:
1 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons white sugar
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Place whipping cream in a small, deep, chilled bowl. Add the 2 tablespoons sugar, vanilla, and nutmeg; beat using a mixer with chilled beaters on medium-high speed until soft peaks form.

Kettle Corn

Kettle Corn
(you are going to want to have all ingredients prepped because things move quickly)
1/4 Cup Canola Oil
1/4 Cup Sugar
1/2 Cup Popcorn Kernals
Salt to taste

In a large soup pot, heat the oil on medium high heat until shimmering.
Sprinkle the sugar evenly over the oil and give it a quick stir. Add the popcorn and cover with a lid. Slide the pot back and forth over the burner while you hear the kernals popping. This will take a few minutes and you are going to want to use hot pads so you don't burn your hands. Once you hear the kernals slowing down remove the pot from the heat and sprinkle in a little salt. Toss well, taste and add more salt if needed.

Jeanine

Chocolate Mousse Trifle

Ok, so I really can't take any credit for how delicious this dessert turned out. Once you see what it consists of you'll see it just had to be pretty amazing. I wanted to make a trifle for home evening treat last night; a good amount of the fam involved doesn't love fruit so I knew I needed a non-fruity trifle. I LOVE chocolate mousse so I decided to kind of combine a few recipes to come up with this chocolate mousse brownie concoction. This simple mousse recipe could be eaten plain or with anything else that mousse generally goes with. Also I made the whole thing and let it chill for about two hours before serving, but it was even better today because the mousse had really set up, so if at all possible I would recommend preparing it the day before serving. I'm sure this trifle would also be good if you substituted chocolate pudding for the mousse (but not as good). Also I'm sure you could use chocolate pound cake (or yellow pound cake for that matter) instead of brownies.



Chocolate mousse (8 servings)
1 C semisweet chocolate
4 egg yolks, lightly beaten
2 tsp vanilla
2 C heavy whipping cream
2 Tbs sugar

Melt chocolate (I prefer double boiler method for melting chocolate, but how ever you do it just make sure not to scorch chocolate); stir until smooth. Stir a couple large spoonfuls of melted chocolate into beaten egg yolk - mix well (this is to ensure that the yolk doesn't turn into scrambled eggs when you add it to the hot melted chocolate); add chocolatey yolk to melted chocolate. Cook on low-medium heat (again, double boiler method) and stir for 2-3 minutes or until slightly thickened. Remove from the heat; stir in vanilla. Cool, stirring several times.
In a mixing bowl, beat whipping cream until it begins to thicken. Add sugar; beat until soft peaks form. Fold cooled chocolate mixture into the whipped cream. Cover and refrigerate. The longer the mousse is refrigerated the better it sets up.

Trifle:
Bake a 9x13 pan of brownies. Let brownies cool. Cut into 1 inch squares.
Place half of the brownie squares in trifle dish (or other tall bowl if you don't have a trifle bowl).
Spread half of the mousse mixture over the brownies.
Chop up some chocolate (I used Symphony chocolate, but anything would work...even chocolate chips) and sprinkle over mousse mixture.
Spread whipped cream over mousse. I had some Cool Whip left over from something I made a while back so I used that, but I think it would be OH SO GOOD with fresh whipped cream. I don't know exact measurements on the cream and the chocolate chunks because I just winged it, but just use how ever much you want and it will turn out just fine.
Repeat the layers with the other half of the ingredients...brownies - mousse - chocolate chunks - whipped cream; and then top off with some shaved chocolate to make it look pretty. Cover and refrigerate. (You want the mousse to set up for 2-24 hours; it doesn't matter if it sets up before putting the whole thing together or after, but just make sure you give it some time in the fridge one way or the other).

I'm telling you, this is rich and it is good. It sounds like a lot of work, but the most time-consuming part was letting the chocolate and the brownies cool. The actual hands-on work wasn't bad at all. Prepare for some clogged arteries and enjoy :)

Chicken Salad (For you Stace)

Combine and refidgerat:
3 cups cooked shell macaroni (I don't usually put this in when I'm doing chicken salad sandwiches, but you can add pasta and then just serve it as a salad to eat alone)
3-4 cups cooked and diced chicken
1 big can pineapple tidbits (very well drained)
2 cans drained water chestnuts (optional, good if you like them)
2 cups red seedless grapes
2 cups diced celery

Then mix these for the dressing and refidgerate:
12 oz Kraft coleslaw dressing (I've used hidden valley brand, worked fine)
1 cup mayonaise
1 Tbsp lemon juice
Salt and Pepper to taste

Then add to the dressing:
2 cups diced apples (any kind)
2 cups cashews (whole can)

Mix it all together the night before or a few hours before if you don't want the cashews too crunchy. Be sure and get the apples in the dressing right after cutting them and the lemon juice will keep them from turning brown. Enjoy! Yummy

Aisan Beef Kabobs

I've made these many times and they're always a crowd pleaser! I've used a different cut of meat, but flank steak is definitely the best to use.

Asian Beef Kabobs

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
3 tablespoons sherry
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon barbeque sauce
2 green onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger root
1 1/2 pounds flank steak
skewers

Directions:
In a small bowl, mix together hoisin sauce, sherry, soy sauce, barbeque sauce, green onions, garlic, and ginger.
Cut flank steak across grain on a diagonal into 1/4 inch slices. Place slices in a 1 gallon resealable plastic bag. Pour hoisin sauce mixture over slices, and mix well. Refrigerate 2 hours, or overnight.
Preheat an outdoor grill for high heat. Discard marinade, and thread steak on skewers.
Oil the grill grate. Grill skewers 3 minutes per side, or to desired doneness.

Lemon Herb Chicken & Zucchini Fettuccine

Ok so it seems that we're definitely in a chicken rut and I really wanted to post a non-chicken recipe next, but I made this recipe for the first time a couple of nights ago and I thought it was so good, I just had to put it on here. I just cut up my chicken and zucchini and cooked it in a skillet on the stove because it was too hot for me to venture outside and fire up the grill, but I bet it would be super tasty if they were cooked on the grill. I pretty much followed the recipe just as it is written. It turns out pretty lemony so be prepared for that, but it was goo-ood.

Lemon Herb Chicken & Zucchini Fettuccine
recipe by Our Best Bites

2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 lemons
2 T Red Wine Vinegar
Olive Oil
1/2 lb Fettuccine
2 medium zucchini
1 C shredded parmesan cheese
5-6 cloves garlic
Fresh Basil (about 1/2 C)
Fresh Oregano (about 1/4 C) If you don't have fresh oregano, just add a little dried.
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper

Prepare grill. You could also do this on the stove top in a skillet, or a grill pan.

Place chicken in a zip-lock bag with the juice of one lemon, a couple tablespoons of olive oil, and a couple tablespoons of red wine vinegar. Smoosh around and set bag aside while you get your other things ready. (If you've got time to spare, let the chicken marinade for 30 minutes, if you don't, just take what you can get. I did mine for 15 min and it was great.)

Put the pot on the stove to boil water for the pasta. While you're waiting for the water to boil, slice the zucchini in half length-wise. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Press, or finely mince garlic cloves. In a small sauce pan on the stove, place 1/4 C olive oil and add garlic. Turn burner onto low-med heat. It shouldn't be popping and frying, it should just slowly warm, infusing the oil with the garlic and removing that zing fresh garlic has.

When water boils, add pasta and a spoonful of salt.

Remove chicken from bag and salt and pepper both sides. Place chicken, and zucchini on grill.

While chicky and zuchs are grilling and pasta is boiling, chop herbs and get out cheese. Zest both lemons and juice the one that hasn't been juiced.

See, now you're all ready. When everything is done cookin' you can throw it together! Keep an eye on that garlic. You DON'T want it to get brown and crispy. It should still look nice and white. Give it a stir. If it starts really cooking, just take it off the heat and set aside.

When zuch and chicken are done take them off the grill and chop 'em up.

Reserve about 1/2 C pasta water. Drain pasta and immediately place in a big bowl. Place chopped zuch and chicken on top. Add lemon zest, lemon juice, cheese, herbs, and garlic-olive oil mixture. Just pile it all in there. Then stick your face up real close and inhale. Ahhhh, heaven.

Now take some tongs and give everything a big toss. If you feel it needs more moisture, add a little of the pasta water, or a little more olive oil. This will make 4+ generous servings.

Garnish with a little more Parmesan on top and another squeeze of lemon if you have any left.

Coffee Cake

This one is always a crowd pleaser and it's super simple; all of the ingredients are normal things that you'd usually have on hand. It's delicious for breakfast, dessert, snack or whenever.

Cake:
3 C flour
4 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 C sugar
1 C shortening or butter, melted
1 1/2 C milk
2 eggs

Topping:
1 C brown sugar
1 Tbs butter, melted
1 tsp cinnamon
2 Tbs flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix the dry cake ingredients together. Then add the wet cake ingredients and mix well (by hand or with a mixer) until there are no chunks. Pour mixture into a greased pan (either cookie sheet or 9x13 cake pan). Set aside.
Mix the topping ingredients together well and then sprinkle evenly over the entire cake batter. Bake the cake until the center doesn't jiggle/toothpick comes out clean (about 20 minutes for a sheet cake or 30 for a 9x13 pan). Eat it warm or cooled off with a nice glass of milk :)

Sherry Brown's Marinated Chicken and Green Salad

For Chicken:
1 lb of Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts or tenders cut into bite size strips

Marinate over night in Soy Sauce, Brown Sugar & Lemon:
3 Tbs Soy sauce
3 Tbs Brown Sugar
Juice of 1/4-1/2 of lemon

Bake chicken at 350 in covered casserole dish for 30-40 minutes until well done (can also fry in a little oil until done) and add to remaining salad ingredients

For Salad:
2 oranges- peeled & cut into bite size pieces
1 head Romaine Lettuce or sub.
2 or 3 Tbs Almonds- toasted or reg- sliced or slivered

For Dressing:
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup vinegar
2 rounded Tbs mustard- any kind
1 Tbs veg. or olive oil
Combine in jar and shake dressing until blended

SUPER Easy Grilled Catalina Chicken

So I've been putting off posting because I wanted pictures, but I am a slacker and either don't cook or forget to take pictures when I do, so here you go and I'll add pictures later :)

What you need:
Chicken Breasts
1 bottle Kraft Catalina Dressing

Marinade your chicken in about half the bottle (til covered) for 4-6 hours. Throw chicken on the grill and baste with additional dressing while cooking, take of grill when cooked and baste one more time with remaining dressing and your done!

Tortellini Bacon Broccoli Salad

Trent isn't a big fan of pasta salad, but I managed to find one that he really liked. I made it a few days ago and have been snacking on it every day. It's just as good or better days after it was made!


Tortellini Bacon Broccoli Salad

recipe from allrecipes.com

Ingredients
2 (9 ounce) packages refrigerated three-cheese tortellini
1 pound bacon
4 cups chopped broccoli
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
2 green onions, finely chopped
1 cup bottled coleslaw dressing

Directions
1.Cook the tortellini according to the package directions, drain, rinse with cold water, and refrigerate until cool, about 30 minutes.
2.Place the bacon in a large, deep skillet, and cook over medium-high heat, turning occasionally, until evenly browned, about 10 minutes. Drain the bacon slices on a paper towel-lined plate. Chop the bacon into 1/2-inch pieces while still a little warm.
3.Place the tortellini, bacon, broccoli, grape tomatoes, and green onions into a salad bowl. Pour the dressing over the ingredients, and toss lightly to coat. Chill in refrigerator before serving

Key Lime Pie

This recipe is like the easiest version ever for a key lime pie, but it is oh so good. It really makes a difference if you squeeze your own limes vs. using the store-bought bottled juice, so it's definitely worth the trouble of squeezing your own.

Key Lime Pie
9 inch graham cracker crust (homemade or store-bought - both work great)
2 1/2 Cups sweetened condensed milk
1/2 Cup sour cream
3/4 Cup key lime juice
1 Tbs grated lime zest (I've never actually added the lime zest but it may make the pie way more delicious...who knows?)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
2. In a medium bowl, combine condensed milk, sour cream, lime juice and lime zest. Mix well and pour into graham cracker crust.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 7 to 10 minutes, until tiny bubbles burst on the surface of the pie. DO NOT BROWN. Chill pie thoroughly before serving. Garnish with lime slices and whipped cream if desired.

Blue Cheese Butter (EASY)

This is so super easy...it's not really even a recipe, but it's yummy and good when you don't know what to cook. Just grill up some yummy steaks (rub the steaks with salt, pepper, garlic salt and onion powder before hand) then, right before removing the steaks from the grill, put a big scoop of the blue cheese butter on top and let it melt a little. I didn't think I liked blue cheese, but hello...this is yummy!

Blue Cheese Butter: Mix together:
1 stick of butter
1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese
green onions or chives

Grilled Pesto Pizza

Dough:
2 T Yeast
1 1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Sugar
1 T Olive Oil
1 C Warm Water

Toppings:
Pesto (I buy the basil pesto and sun dried tomato from walmart)
Tomato Slices
Mozzarella Cheese
Parmesan Cheese
Basil
Salt
Pepper

Mix together the yeast, water and sugar and let yeast dissolve. Add Oil, Salt, and 3 cups of Flour. Knead the dough for 1 minute and then divide into 8 balls. Roll the dough out and let it rise on the counter for 20 mins. Heat the grill to medium high. Place the dough on the grill and let cook a few minutes until the first side is done. Take the dough off and top cooked side with pesto, mozzarella and Parmesan cheese, tomato slices, dried basil, salt and pepper. Return to the grill to cook remaining side. The dough cooks fast so watch it on the grill.


This is seriously one of my favorite grill recipes. It is really quick and tasty plus it is made with stuff I almost always have on hand. You can change up the toppings to whatever you like. If you don't have time to let your dough rise, or don't want to, they work just fine without. I have mixed up the dough, kneaded it for 1 minute, then rolled them out, and threw them on the grill and they still come out good. ENJOY!

Spice Rubbed Chicken Breast Tacos with Grilled Poblanos, BBQ Onions and Coleslaw

We had people over to watch the Jazz/Nuggets (GO JAZZ) game last week and I made these to feed the crowd. They were pretty delicious, and I think were worth the wait (dinner was served a little later than planned, oops, sorry again).

Spice Rubbed Chicken Breast Tacos with Grilled Poblanos, BBQ Onions and Coleslaw
recipe from Foodnetwork.com (Bobby Flay)

Ingredients

Grilled Poblanos:
3 large poblanos
Canola oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

BBQ Onions:
2 sweet onions, skin-on, and cut into 1/4-inch thick slices
Canola oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill BBQ Sauce (or your favorite jarred variety)

Coleslaw:
3/4 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon celery seed
3 tablespoons apple-cider vinegar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 small head cabbage, cored, finely shredded
2 carrots, finely shredded
1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
3 scallions, thinly sliced on the diagonal

Chicken:
2 tablespoons ancho chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons light brown sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (8 ounces each)
Canola oil
8 flour tortillas
2 grilled sliced poblanos
Barbecued onions
Coleslaw
Guacamole

Directions
For the poblanos:
Heat the grill to high.

Brush the poblanos with oil and season with salt and pepper. Place the chiles on the grill and cook until charred on all sides, about 10 minutes. Remove from the grill, place in a bowl and cover with plastic for 10 minutes. Remove the skin, seeds and stem and cut into thin slices.


For the onions:
Brush the onions with oil and season with salt and pepper. Place on the grill and cook until lightly golden brown and just cooked through, about 4 minutes per side. Brush with some of the bbq sauce during the last few minutes. Most of the skin should come off on the grill, but if not, take it off when the onions come off the grill.


For the coleslaw:
Whisk together the mayonnaise, sugar, celery salt, celery seed, vinegar and salt and pepper in a large bowl. Add the cabbage, carrot, onion and scallion and stir to combine, season with more salt and pepper, if needed. Let slaw sit at least 15 minutes before serving.


For the chicken:
Heat the grill to high.

Whisk together the ancho, cinnamon, cumin, brown sugar, 1 teaspoon salt and black pepper in a small bowl.

Season top side of the breasts with the rub mixture, turn over and season the back with the remaining salt. Drizzle with some of the oil and place on the grill, rub side down and grill until lightly golden brown and a crust has formed, about 3 minutes. Turn the chicken over, close the lid and continue cooking until just cooked through, about 6 minutes longer. Remove from the grill and let rest 5 minutes before slicing.

Grill the flour tortillas briefly, just to mark and heat. To build the tacos, fold each tortilla around some of the chicken, poblanos, onions, coleslaw and guacamole.

Thank you Bobby Flay!

Greek Chicken Pasta

Just tried this recipe last night and it was YUMMY!

PREP/TOTAL TIME: 25 MIN
YIELD: 5 SERVINGS

2 cups uncooked penne pasta 1 jar (7-1/2 oz) marinated quartered arthichoke
1/4 cup butter, cubed hearts, drained
1 large onion, chopped 1 cup (4 oz) crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 cup chopped oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
1 can (14-1/2 oz) chicken broth 1/3 cup sliced pitted Greek olives
3 cups cubed rotisserie chicken 2 Tbsp. minced fresh parsley

Cook pasta according to package directions.

Meanwhile, in a large ovenproof skillet, melt butter. Add onion; saute until tender. Stir in flour until blended; gradually add broth. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in the chicken, artichoke hearts, cheese, tomatoes and olives.

Drain pasta; stir into the pan. Broil 3-4 in. from the heat for 5-7 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown. Sprinkle with parsley.

Zuppa Toscana - Olive Garden Style

If you have ever ate Olive Gardens Zuppa Toscona and loved it, you will love this recipe. I know, I know, who goes to Olive Garden for the soup - right? I Do!

1 lb. Italian Sausage
1/4 tsp crushed red peppers
1 Large onion - diced
4 T. Chopped Bacon
2 tsp garlic puree
10 C. Water
5 cubes Chicken Bouillon
1 C. Heavy Cream
3 - 4 cut up large potatoes
1/4 bunch fresh Kale (or Spinach)

Cook sausage with red pepper flakes, drain and remove from pan.
In pan cook onion, 2 slices bacon & 2 tsp. garlic puree
Return sausage to pan
Add 10 C. water & 5 chicken bouillon cubes and 3-4 cut up large potatoes
When potatoes are cooked (the potatoes are done when they break apart by being stabbed with a fork) add 1 C. cream and simmer until ready.
Just before serving add 1/4 bunch of torn Kale.

Chicken Curry

So, I got this recipe from Storm who I think got it on allrecipes.com. Anyways, I was real skeptical about trying it at first because I didn't think I liked curry. Well, I finally tried it and it is delicious! Seriously, I crave it a few times a month and the leftovers are almost better than the first night. Enjoy!

1 lb. chicken breasts (2-3 pieces) 2 zucchini, thinly sliced
2 Tbsp curry powder 1 1/2 cup chicken broth (14 oz can)
1/4 tsp cinnamon 1 1/2 cup heavy cream
2 Tbsp olive oil 1/4 tsp pepper
1 onion, thinly sliced 1/2 tsp salt

Cut chicken into pieces and cover with the curry and cinnamon. Heat oil and add onion and zucchini until soft, transfer veggies to a plate. Heat more oil, cook chicke, add broth, cream, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer. Add onion/zucchini and cook 5-7 minutes. Serve over rice and top with almonds and cilantro if you like. YUMMY

Chicken Primavera

So I have to give all the credit to Dev for this recipe. The first time I ate it was at her house a couple of years ago and it was so good I had to get the recipe from her. You could personalize the recipe however you'd like to make it your style, but I like it just the way it's written.

Chicken Primavera
4 chicken breasts cubed
1/4 C butter
2 zucchini sliced
2 yellow squash sliced
1 1/4 C whipping cream
1/2 C milk
2 cloves of garlic crushed
2-3 C pasta cooked (any kind really)
4 roma tomatoes diced
3/4 C fresh basil chopped
1 1/2 C fresh parmesan grated

Saute chicken and garlic in butter. Remove chicken, add squash and zucchinni and saute until slightly tender. Stir in whipping cream and milk and simmer for one minute. Add tomatoes, cooked pasta, basil, cheese and chicken - stir it all together.
Enjoy!

Lemon Bars

So I don't love lemon bars, but Kacey does love them so for her bridal shower last year I decided to make her some from scratch. I found this recipe on allrecipes.com (where I find most new recipes). I thought that they turned out good enough that I even ate some! I squeezed my own lemon juice, but I'm sure you could use the bottled kind and it would still be ok. I also used more lemon juice than what the recipe called for (probably between 1/3 - 1/2 cup).

1 1/2 C flour
2/3 C powdered sugar
3/4 C butter or margarine, softened
3 eggs
1 1/2 C white sugar
3 Tbs flour
1/4 C lemon juice
1/3 C powdered sugar for decoration

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 inch baking pan.
2. Combine the flour, 2/3 C powdered sugar and butter. Pat dough into prepared pan.
3. Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven, until slightly golden. While the crust is baking, whisk together eggs, white sugar, flour and lemon juice until frothy. Pour this lemon mixture over the hot crust.
4. Return to the preheated oven for an additional 20-25 minutes, or until light golden brown. Cool on wire rack. Dust the top with powdered sugar. Cut into squares and enjoy!