Copyright

©Life of a Foodie and Her Family 2008-2013, Lynn Tabor

Pinterest

12/31/2014

Chicken Enchiladas

While menu planning this week I thought of my nephew Mikey joking about my Chicken Enchiladas.  I haven't made them in years, I think maybe 4 or 5 years.  He would always request them when he was hanging out at house during Christmas break or summer time.  So I came here to get the recipe and I couldn't believe it!  I never blogged it!!!  Well that has to change, because it is yummy and one of my favorite comfort food things.

1 3/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cup chopped green onion, white and green parts
1/3 cup minced cilantro, if you don't like it use parsley
1 tbs minced fresh jalapeno
1 large clove of garlic, minced
1 tsp ground cumin

1 pound boneless chicken breasts, cut into strips
Vegetable Oil

8 (8 inch) flour tortillas

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (mild or sharp)
1 cup bottled salsa (totally forgot this last night)
1 chopped tomato

Preheat oven to 350.

Spray a 13x9 pan with cooking spray.

In a small bowl mix together sour cream, green onion, cilantro, jalapeno, garlic and cumin.  Set aside.

In a large skillet add the vegetable oil and cook the chicken breast strips over medium high heat until browned on both sides and no longer pink.

Lay out the 8 tortillas and divide the chicken evenly.

Spread the sour cream mix on top of the chicken breast strips.

Roll the tortillas and place seam side down in the baking dish.

Sprinkle with the cheese.

Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

Uncover and broil for a few minutes until the cheese starts to bubble and the edges of the tortillas start to brown.

Remove from oven and spoon the salsa  in a strip down the center and sprinkle on the chopped tomato.

You can serve this with salad or rice.








These always come out great!  I need to put them back on the menu more often.

Gingerbread Cookie Cake

Here is another thing that I had planned on making this Christmas season.  The original recipe comes from Crazy for Crust.

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup molasses
2 eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 1/2 cups flour

Sprinkles, for decorating

Preheat oven to 350F.

Grease and flour a 9 inch round cake pan and set aside.

Sift the dry ingredients in a medium bowl

Cream butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until light and fluffy.

Add molasses and mix until mixture is smooth.

Add eggs one at a time until combined.  Add vanilla and beat until combined.

Mix in the dry ingredients.

Press mixture into prepared pan and decorate with sprinkles.

Bake for approximately 24 minutes until the top just begins to get golden and is no longer shiny.

Let the cookie cool completely, then remove from pan.

Place on serving plate.  You may also make a quick glaze with powdered sugar and milk, but I didn't want this to sweet.




I really liked how this came out.  It was not hard like a regular gingerbread cookie and not soft like gingerbread.  I did top my with a bit of whipped cream, but I think this would be fabulous warmed a bit with ice cream.

Chocolate Peppermint Easy Fudge

Miss V loves anything that is chocolate and mint flavored.  I saw this on Pinterest a while back and wanted to make it before Christmas.  I don't know about you, but I found the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas went so FAST this year.   I felt bad that we didn't get to make cut out cookies with cousins, spritz cookies, and so many other things.

I figured since we are still on Christmas break that we could still make some new Christmas recipes.  The original recipe for this came from A Spicy Perspective.



1 - 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 tablespoon butter
1 pound dark chocolate chips/chunks (I used dark chocolate chips)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup Andes Peppermint Chunks
Cooking Spray (I used Coconut Oil spray)

Spray a 8 X 8 baking dish with cooking spray. Sprinkle half the peppermint chunks in the bottom of the dish and set aside.

Place a medium sauce pot over medium heat with 2 inches of water. Place a glass bowl over the top--making sure the glass doesn't touch the water and add the butter and condensed milk. Allow the butter to melt and the milk is very warm.  Add the chocolate chips and salt in the bowl. Stir the chocolate and allow to melt slowly.  Stir with a silicone spatula.

The mixture is very thick.  Remove the bowl from the heat and add both extracts and mix well.

Pour the mixture into the dish. Tap the dish on the counter a few times so any air bubbles to rise to the surface and to smooth the surface.

Sprinkle the remaining peppermint chips over the top and press them in gently.  Refrigerate for a few hours.

To cut, take the dish out of the refrigerator for a few minutes.  Then dip a sharp knife in hot water, wipe it off on a dry towel and cut quickly into small squares.  Repeat the process until the fudge is cut into squares.  Store in gladware containers or ziplock baggies.





This is very rich and tasty.  Definitely will make this again next year.

12/29/2014

Cinnamon Roll Tree

Yes I am "that" Mum who finds way to many ideas on Pinterest.  This one is simple enough...

2 cans of Cinnamon Rolls in a tube
Sprinkles of your choice

Place rolls in a tree shape, add sprinkles and bake according to package directions.  Drizzle on the icing and more sprinkles if desired.  Enjoy!





Cheesy Sausage & Potato Breakfast Casserole

I made this on Christmas morning and it is super good!

Cheesy Potato Breakfast Casserole

1 pound breakfast sausage in a roll, cooked (I used Jimmy Dean Sage)
1 yellow onion, chopped, sauteed in the sausage when the sausage is about done
7 eggs
1/2 cup milk
20 ounce bag frozen Ore-Ida Diced Hash Browns, defrosted in the microwave.  Mine took about 8 minutes and were nice and warm.  I like to pre-cook them if not they still have a raw bite to them.
2 cups of shredded cheddar, mild or sharp
Salt & Pepper, to taste

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350.  Spray a 9 x 13 with non-stick spray.  Set aside.

Prepare sausage and onions.

In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients, including sausage and onions.  Pour into prepared casserole dish.  Reserve roughly one cup of the cheese for topping.

Bake for 35 minutes.  Remove from oven and top with reserved cheese.  Return to oven for 10 minutes.

Allow casserole to cool for 15-20 minutes.  Serve and enjoy!

I didn't take any other pictures of the inside of the casserole, just totally forgot.  The breakfast in the pie dish is my favorite Ham & Swiss pie.

Copy Cat Biquick mix

I ran out of Bisquick and didn't replenish last time I went shopping.  So I found a few copy cat recipes and this worked perfectly!!!

Bisquick mix (I only made a 1/4 of a batch)

8 cups flour
4 tablespoons sugar
4 tablespoons baking powder
4 teaspoons salt
1 cup shortening

Instructions

In a food processor, place all the ingredients and process until it looks like cornmeal

Store in an air tight container up to one month or in the freezer up to 2 months. Use as an exact substitute for Bisquick in recipes.

12/15/2014

Archers Farms Sea Salt Caramel Hot Cocoa Mix

This past Saturday, I hosted a small event called Cookies & Cocoa.  It was a very small and nice cookie swap.  Friday I was running around trying to find my favorite Land O Lakes hot chocolate mix packets and boy the stores were so picked over.

I ran into Target and found some other brands and the Archers Farms Sea Salt Caramel looked very interesting.

OH MY WORD!!!!  This stuff is wonderful!!!!  It was rich and you could really pick up the Sea Salt and Caramel taste.  I am definitely going back and finding more boxes to stock my pantry!!!

Christmas Cupcakes

I had fun making cupcakes this weekend for a friend.  I found two very different cupcake toppers/wrappers at Baker's Nook.  I love when I am looking for something specific, I can always find it at Baker's Nook, their prices are fantastic and shipping is always so fast.

This set can be found here at Baker's Nook.

The wrappers can be found here at Baker's Nook.

The toppers can be found here at Baker's Nook.


For these, I found pretty gold sanding sugar at Hobby Lobby.  These came out so pretty!


For these I used Red & White sanding sugar on half and Green & White sanding sugar on the other half.  These came out really cute and fun.



12/10/2014

Quinoa Edamame Salad

I have made this a few times, just haven't had time to post the recipe.  The original recipe can be found at The Girl Who Ate Everything.  I did tweak it and below is what I do.

2 cups uncooked quinoa
4 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup celery, sliced
1 small bag of frozen corn, thawed under warm water
1 (15-oz) can chick peasbeans, rinsed and drained
1 heaping cup dried cranberries
1 (12-oz) package edamame, cooked and shelled
2 red bell peppers, diced (or you can use any color)
1 cup sliced almonds (or any nut you like)
3 Tablespoons olive oil (more or less to taste)
5 Tablespoons lime juice (more or less to taste)
salt and pepper to taste


Add the quinoa, water, and salt to a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Once at a boil, turn the heat down to low and cover. Cook for 15-20 or until done. Transfer to a cookie sheet that has been lightly oiled with olive oil and fluff with a fork.  Spread it out to let it cool faster.

I do like to roast my chick peas and edamame for better flavor.

Add remaining ingredients and toss to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste.

I like to portion this out into small plastic containers.  This makes 12 cups.


11/24/2014

Mini Glazed Pumpkin Muffins

3/4 cups pumpkin puree
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
1/3 cup pumpkin spice creamer
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder

Glaze
3/4 cups powdered sugar
1 to 2 tablespoon pumpkin spice creamer (add a little more if necessary)

Preheat oven to 375
In a large mixing bowl, beat all muffin ingredients except flour and baking powder until smooth.

Add the flour and baking powder and mix gently just until combined.

Spoon into greased mini muffin tins 3/4 full and bake 9 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Do not over bake them or they will get tough.

Remove from pan and place on wire rack and allow to cool for about 10 minutes.

Then dip the tops of the mini muffins into the glaze and let harden for a few minutes.

This made about 36 mini muffins.


These almost taste like Dunkin Donuts Pumpkin Munchkins.   They are really good, but on the sweet side.

11/09/2014

Pumpkin Caramel Poke Cake

I made this for dessert last week for Alpha.  It was SUPER YUMMY!

16 oz can pumpkin
2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs, beaten
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. salt
1 jar caramel ice cream topping

1 cup Heavy Whipping Cream and a bit of sugar

Preheat oven to 350.

In a mixing bowl, beat the pumpkin, sugar and oil. Add eggs and mix well.

Combine the dry ingredients and add to the pumpkin mixture, beating until combined, do not over mix.

Pour into a greased 9 x 13 inch baking pan. Bake for 30-40 minutes or, until a toothpick comes out clean.

Poke holes in the hot cake. A skewer or wooden spoon works perfectly.

Warm caramel sauce in the microwave for 30 seconds or until it flows freely. Pour over the top of the cake and spread evenly.  Let cool for 40-50 minutes and then place in the refrigerator and allow to cool completely.

Make fresh whipped cream and spread over the top of the cake.


11/04/2014

Pumpkin Spice Cookie Cups

I made these cute little cookie cups last week for Alpha.  I did double the recipe.  The single batch makes 24 and that is listed below.

1 package pumpkin spice cookie mix + ingredients listed on package to prepare
¼ cup flour
1 package vanilla instant pudding mix
1 cup heavy cream
1 tsp of Pumpkin Pie Spice


Mix vanilla pudding mix and pumpkin pie spice with 1 cup heavy cream and whisk it until it's smooth, place in refrigerator so it will be thick and cold when you are finished baking the cookie cups.

Mix pumpkin spice cookie mix according to package directions and add in ¼ cup flour to the mixture. This will make the dough a bit stiffer.

Make 24 balls of cookie dough and place them into mini muffin pans sprayed with a baking spray so they won't stick.  Then press up the sides of the muffin pan.

Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes. Check with toothpick. Bake at 350, reduce the temp to 325 if using dark coated pans.

When removed from the oven, I like to use the end of a wooden spoon or part of my apple corer to make the well a bit deeper and cleaner looking.

Let cool 5 minutes in pan, then remove the cookie bites from baking pan and cool completely.

Place filling into a piping bag fitted with a large open star tip and pipe filling onto cookie cups.

Refrigerate them until ready to eat, remove 30 minutes before serving so they will come to room temperature.


I can't even begin to tell you how yummy these were!!!!

Easy Beer Bread

Last week was Chili night at Alpha.  Miss V made her chili on Tuesday night and I whipped up two batches of Beer Bread.

3 1/2 cups self-rising flour
(if using regular flour add 1 tablespoon baking powder and 1 teaspoon salt)
3 tablespoons sugar
12 oz. can beer (I used Octoberfest)
1 egg, beaten
1/2 stick butter softened


Mix flour and sugar together in large bowl.

Add beer, egg and butter to flour mixture and mix well.

Scrape batter into greased loaf pan; bake at 350 for 50 minutes.  This dough is very lumpy and thick.  After baking you may also brush more melted butter onto the top of the loaf to soften it a bit.

Remove and cool on a wire rack.







Teacher Appreciation lunch menu and Overnight Blueberry French Toast Casserole

Last week Miss V's class hosted the Teacher Appreciation Lunch at school.  I had asked a while ago on Facebook what would be a good theme.  I was so tired of the huge salad bar that we have done since Kindergarten.  I know the teachers love it, but I just wanted something different.  One awesome teacher suggested breakfast.  That sounded perfect and I got to planning!

We had:
Muffins, Banana Breads, Bagels, cream cheese and Pumpkin Cream Cheese
Breakfast casseroles in crock pots
Bacon, sausage links and patties
Fruit

For drinks we had Orange Juice, a variety of teas and Caramel Apple Spice copycat.


 For my casserole, I made a full size version of Overnight Blueberry French Toast Casserole and skipped the syrup.

3 or 4 loaves of day old french bread, cut into cubes
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, cut in cubes
1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)
12 large eggs
⅓ cup maple syrup
1 cup of heavy cream
1 cup milk or cream
1 teaspoon vanilla

Arrange ½ of the bread cubes in a greased 9 x 13 pan.

Sprinkle cream cheese cubes and blueberries evenly over the bread cubes.

Top and evenly sprinkle with remaining bread cubes.

Mix together eggs, syrup, milk and vanilla in a blender.

Pour over bread cubes. Press the bread cubes slightly down to absorb the milk/egg mixture. Cover pan with foil. Let chill in refrigerator overnight.

Bake covered with foil at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Remove the foil and bake for another 30 minutes or until fluffy and golden brown.

Well, I splurged last week and bought a new crock pot.  I put the casserole together in the crock and baked it in the oven.  When it was done, I put the crock in the base and brought it to school.  Once at school, I turned it on the warm setting.  By 10:30 it was still hot.

I do believe everyone enjoyed it and it was scraped clean!  Skipping the syrup was a good decision, it would overwhelm the casserole with sweetness.


I can wait to use this new crock pot tomorrow when I make Baked Ziti for our Church's Alpha Class.

11/01/2014

Snake Stromboli 2014

1 pound of white bread dough
1 tablespoon sun-dried tomato pesto
1 teaspoon italian seasoning
5 ounces thinly sliced ham
5 ounces thinly sliced salami
3/4 cup shredded provolone cheese
3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
2 egg yolk, divided
2 teaspoons water
red and yellow liquid food coloring or other colors that you would like your snake to be.



1. Preheat oven to 375

2. Line baking sheet with parchment paper; spray with nonstick cooking spray; Roll out dough into 24x6-inch rectangle on lightly floured surface. Spread pesto over dough, leaving 1-inch border. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning.

3. Layer ham and salami over dough; Sprinkle both cheeses over meats; Brush edges of dough with water. Beginning at the long side, tightly roll up dough. Pinch edges to seal; Transfer roll to prepared baking sheet, seam side down; shape into S-shaped snake or coiled snake (leave one end unattached to form head on coil.  This year I pinched off a couple pieces of dough and make eyes that way.  Attached them with a bit of plain egg wash.

4. Combine 1 egg yolk, 1 teaspoon water and red food coloring in small bowl; combine remaining egg yolk, remaining teaspoon water and yellow food coloring in another small bowl. Paint stripes, dots and zigzags over dough to make snakeskin pattern.

5. Let dough rise uncovered, in warm place 30 minutes. (Let rise 40 minutes if using a coil shape)

6. Taper one end of roll to form head. Score tail end to form rattlers, if desired

7. Bake snake 25-30 minutes; Cool slightly.  I totally forgot to make him a little tongue...oh well, it was very tastey.



10/20/2014

Chicken and Dumplings - Updated

I made this for dinner tonight and it was soooo good!


1.5 pounds boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
2 tbs olive oil
3 or 4 large russet potatoes peeled and diced
3 large carrots peeled and diced
1 large sweet onion
3 ribs of celery
3 bay leaf, fresh or dried
kosher salt and black pepper
2 or 3 tsp poultry seasoning
4 tbs flour
2 boxes of Kitchen Basic chicken stock
1 box of Jiffy biscuit mix
1/2 cup of warm water
2 tbs flat leaf parsley chopped
1 small bag of frozen peas

Cut chicken breasts into bite size pieces and put aside.
Heat a large pot over medium high heat and add oil, butter, veggies and bay leaf and cook -10 minutes stirring frequently. Season mixture with salt, pepper and poultry seasoning. Add flour to the pot and cook for another 2 minutes. Stir in stock and bring to a boil. Add chicken and stir.  Let boil for 10 - 15 minutes until potatoes are fork tender.

Mix the biscuit mix with water and parsley. Drop tablespoonful (or medium cookie scoop) of mix into the pot spacing the dumplings evenly. Cover pot and reduce heat to medium low. Steam dumplings for about 10 minutes. Stir in frozen peas and cook for a few more minutes.

Remove pot from heat and serve in shallow bowls.



9/08/2014

September 8th Lunch


Boar's head Oven Gold Turkey, cheddar and spinach on a whole wheat wrap.

Fruit: watermelon

Veggies: carrots, red and yellow peppers with Rand dressing

Snacks: Oreo Yo Crunch, S'mores Grahamfuls and sour Cream and Onion Chex Mix

Capri Sun to drink

9/03/2014

September 3rd Lunch


Spinach Wrap with Spinach, Colby Jack Cheese and Roast Beef

Fruit:  Watermelon

Veggies:  Mini Cucumber slices, Carrots and Ranch Dressing

Snacks:  Pumpkin Spice Rice Krispy Treat, Pretzels and M&M Yo Crunch Yogurt

Strawberry Kiwi Capri Sun




9/02/2014

September 2nd Lunch


Small Croissant with Roast Beef, Colby Jack Cheese and Romaine Lettuce

Fruit Side:  Watermelon Chunks

Veggie Sides:  Snap Peas and mini Cucumber Slices

Snacks:  Iced Oatmeal Clif Kid Z Bar, Oreo Yo Crunch and Cheddar Popped Chex Mix

Orange Capri Sun to drink

9/01/2014

Burger Cupcakes

Another one of Miss V's friends Mom asked if I could make her son some Burger Cupcakes.  I peeked around and put a couple ideas together.

I used two yellow cake mixes for the "buns" and 3 boxes of Betty Crocker Brownies (9x13) size.  I used a round cutter the size of the cupcake and got 15 "burgers" out of each pan.  I made up some of my favorite Butter Cream frosting and divided it into three bowls and tinted them yellow for mustard, red for ketchup and green for lettuce.  If I had more time I could have made fondant cheese and lettuce.  Darn...maybe next time.

Tip:  Cut the cupcakes in half first.  Then with a pastry brush dipped in water, gently wipe over the top half of the cupcake and sprinkle on sesame seeds.  Put aside to dry and assemble your burgers and use a frilly tooth pick to hold them together.












They came out so cute!!!