Chicken Cordon Bleu

Chicken Cordon Bleu is my very favorite dish to eat.  The tragic thing about it is that I haven't really been able to make a good one ever.  I have tried since I got married and started cooking (yes I didn't start until then), to make a good one.  Well, tonight for dinner I made a dang good chicken cordon bleu.  I am a fan. The picture isn't great because I hurried and snapped it with my phone before we ate...

4 chicken breasts
8 thin slices of ham
4 stripes of swiss cheese (I add more, but you have to do some seriously secure tying with bakers twine so it doesn't ooze out)
Salt
Pepper
Thyme or rosemary (I chose to use a little rosemary)
3 beaten eggs
1/2 cup of cornflake crumbs

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Pound each chicken breast between two sheets of plastic wrap with a meat mallet until it is 1/4 inch thickness.

Place eggs in one bowel and cornflake crumbs in another.

Lay the chicken breast flat and place 2 pieces of ham and the cheese in the center.  After that I got bakers twine and tied it up like crazy so the cheese wouldn't ooze out.  I then dredged the chicken in the egg, and then in the cornflake crumbs and placed it on a greased cookie sheet.

Bake chicken 40 minutes.

Sauce:
For the Parmesan-Dijon Cream Sauce:
2 tablespoons butter2 tablespoons all-purpose flour1 cup milk1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules (or 1 bouillon cube, crushed)1/2 teaspoon salt1 tablespoon Dijon mustard1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

While the chicken bakes, in a medium saucepan, melt the 2 tablespoons butter. Stir in the flour, whisking constantly, while cooking the flour/butter mixture for 1-2 minutes. Slowly pour in the milk while whisking quickly. Stir in the chicken bouillon granules and salt. Whisk constantly over medium heat until the mixture begins to simmer and thicken, about 3-5 minutes. Once the sauce has bubbled and thickened, remove from heat and stir in the mustard, Worcestershire sauce and Parmesan cheese. Stir until the cheese is melted. Keep the sauce warm until the chicken is finished baking.

Simple Sweet Pork Tacos

Sweet Pork Tacos

1 lg pork roast

2 cans of salsa

2 cups of brown sugar

{I am cooking just for my husband and I, so I split this in 1/2... it still made a lot}.

Place the roast in a crock pot, and pour salsa and brown sugar over the top. Cook for 8 hrs on low heat. When the meat has cooked for 7.5 hrs, take out the roast, shred it with a fork, put it back into the crock pot, and mix it with the juices. Let it finish cooking for 30 minutes. 

Spicy Honey Chicken

I made this for dinner yesterday and it turned out so great! The only thing is that it gets your grill a little messy... but it was well worth it.

From the kitchen of: Our Best Bites

8 boneless skinless chicken thighs, about 2lbs  {I used chicken breasts and not as many. However, Our Best Bites claims that it is better with thighs}.

Rub
2 t granulated garlic
2 t chili powder
1/2 t onion powder
1/2 t coriander
1 t kosher salt
1 t cumin
1/2 t chipotle chili powder {I didn't use this, I added just a tad more chili powder}
 2 t vegetable oil

Glaze
1/2 C Honey1T Cider Vinegar

Directions:

Combine the rub spices in bowl and mix well.

Rub oil over each of the chicken pieces, then coat each piece with the rub. Grill chicken for 3-5 minutes on each side, until cooked through { I love meat on the grill}! 

While chicken is cooking, warm honey in the microwave so it’s not so thick. Add the vinegar and combine well. Reserve 2T honey glaze for later. Take the rest and brush on chicken (both sides) in the final moments of grilling.

 If you don’t have a bbq, try it on an indoor grill pan or use your broiler. Just be sure to open a window in case you burn your glaze.

So simple! Enjoy!

Rosemary Balsamic Pork Tenderloin

I am just barley getting to posting what we had for dinner for Easter Sunday this year.  Our tradition in the past has always been to have ham, but last year we tried pork tenderloin for the first time and loved it so I decided that I would do it again this year.  I tried this new recipe and it was so delicious!  It comes from this cookbook.

1 1/2 pounds pork tenderloin
4-5 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tsp crushed rosemary
1 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 1/2 tsp balsamic vinegar
2 tsp olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees
1. Combine garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper.  Massage the seasonings all over the pork loin.
2. Whisk together the balsamic vinegar and olive oil.
3. Place the seasoned pork tenderloin in a zip-top bag and add the oil and vinegar combination.  Seal the bag and refrigerate for 4-10 hours.
4. Removed the pork from bag and place in foil lined baking dish.
Place dish in preheated oven and bake until internal temperature of the roast reaches 160 degrees F.  About 20-25 minutes.
5. Let stand for 5 minutes and then slice into 1/2 inch pieces.  Spoon pan juices over roast before serving.

Peach and Mustard Glazed Pork Tenderloin

Last year were hosting my parents and a few of my siblings for Easter.  Our tradition has always been to have a ham for dinner on Easter but...I left it for the last minute and there were none to be had the night before.  Well, I had wanted to try this pork tenderloin recipe forever, so I decided that would be a good alternative.  Well, now that I have tasted it I don't think I can ever go back to ham.  It is heavenly!  I just had to share it on here.  Recipe from this cookbook. 
1/2 cup peach preserves
2 TBS Dijon mustard
2 tsp vegetable oil
1/4 tsp dried thyme leaves
1/4 tsp salt
2 pork tenderloins (about 3/4 pound each)

Mix all ingredients except pork.  Place pork in resealable plastic food-storage bag or shallow glass or plastic dish.  Pour preserves mixture over pork; turn pork to coat with preserves mixture.  Seal bag or cover dish and refrigerate at least 1 hour but no longer than 8 hours.  Turning occasionally.

Heat oven to 450 degrees

Remove pork from marinade, reserve marinade in a 1 quart saucepan.  Place pork in shallow roasting pan.  Insert meat thermometer so tip is in the thickest part of pork.

Bake uncovered 25 to 30 minutes or until thermometer reads 155 degrees.  Cover pork with aluminum foil and let stand 10 to 15 minutes, brushing once with reserve marinade, until thermometer reads 160 degrees (temperature will continue to rise about 5 degrees, and pork will be easier to carve.

Sweet Pork Tacos

I made this recipe quite a while ago for General Conference Sunday and I am dying to make it again. Probably going to throw it on the menu for the week. It is really easy, really good and makes good left overs, which is always a plus. It comes from this cookbook.

1 4 to 5 lb pork roast
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 Tbsp. salt
1 can green chili enchilada sauce
1 cup brown sugar

Place pork roast in a crock pot and sprinkle with crushed garlic and salt. Cook on high for 6-8 hours, or until the roast easily pulls apart. Remove roast from crock pot, drain juices, and shred. Place back in crock pot.

In a bowl, combine the green chili enchilada sauce and the brown sugar. Pour over the shredded meat and stir to combine. Cook on high for one hour or low for 3 hours. Serve with corn or flour tortillas, shredded lettuce, black beans, shredded cheese, tomatoes, sour cream and guacamole.

Fresh tortillas are awesome with it too!

Lion House Chicken Parmesean

Sorry it has been such a long time since I have posted. My family and I moved a couple of weeks ago, and with the holiday, things have been a little wild.

I am a huge fan of Chicken Parmesan. The first time I remember eating it was when I was I was on one of the worst dates of my life. It is a good thing that the Chicken Parmesan was good so the night wasn't a total waste :) My mom later gave me the recipe that she uses for it and it is so good. Her recipe is from here.

1/2 c. cornflake crumbs
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 oz dry ranch dressing mix (1 envelope)
6 boneless chicken breasts
3/4 c shredded Parmesan cheese
26 oz spaghetti sauce
cooked pasta

In a shallow bowl, combine cornflake crumbs, 1/2 c. Parmesan cheese, and ranch mix. Coat both sides of chicken with mix. Place in 9X13 inch pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Spray tops of chicken with the spray to keep it moist. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Just prior to serving sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese. Heat spaghetti sauce and serve over pasta and chicken.

Beef Pot Pie

One of my favorite things is to reinvent left overs. To serve it to my family at another meal completely disguised as something else. This is what I do to my left over roast. If it is only roast and no potatoes or carrots, I put it in this stew and just add the potatoes and carrots. If it is roast, potatoes, carrots and gravy, I like to make this little number. When we were in England there was a lot of meat pies, so this recipe always reminds me of England.

It is pretty easy and doesn't really have exact instructions. My mom made it growing up and I always loved it.

2 pie crusts (homemade or store bought)
Left over roast
Left over potatoes
Left over gravy
Salt and pepper to taste
Sauteed onions are optional (I usually have left over onions in my mixture of veggies, but it does need a little bit more onion in my opinion).

I put one pie crust in my pie plate, put in the cut up cooked veggies and meat, pour the gravy over the top, put the other crust over it and cut some slits in it to let the steam out. I bake it with a strip of foil around the edges at 425 degrees for about 35-40 minutes (until the contents are hot). Take off the foil in the last 15 minutes of baking.

P.S. Many people in our family like this dish with ketchup. Just an idea :)

Meatloaf

Please pardon the picture. I am already photographically challenged when it comes to food and taking a pleasing picture of a slab of ground turkey wasn't happening for me. And on that appetizing note, this is THE BEST meatloaf that I have ever had. My boys are really picky eaters and my pickiest (who shall remain nameless), has this as his favorite meal. It really is that good. I of course substitute ground turkey for the ground beef (most of the time).

This recipe comes from a family cookbook that my awesome SIL Amy put together for us all for Christmas. Seriously one of my favorite gifts ever. My other SIL Stacey submitted this recipe and it has become our meatloaf staple.

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef (or turkey)
3/4 c. oats or saltine crackers
3/4 c. milk
1 egg beaten
1/4 c chopped onion or 1 TBS minced onion
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp minced garlic

Mix all ingredients together and put I put it in a bread pan (you could probably use a casserole dish too, never done it)

TOPPING: (Put this over the top of the meat loaf before you put in the oven)
1/3 c. ketchup
1 Tbs brown sugar
1 Tbs mustard
Bake @ 350 for 1 hr and 10 minutes

Bow Tie Lasagna

This is one of our families favorite meals. It is a great fast and easy version of lasagna. I got it from my great go-to ward cookbook.

8 oz. bow tie pasta
1 TBS vegetable oil
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1 (12 oz) jar spaghetti sauce
1 c. cottage cheese
1 large egg
2 TBS grated Parmesan cheese
4 oz grated Mozzarella cheese
8 oz. ground beef (or ground turkey)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Grease an 8 inch square baking dish. Cook pasta according to package directions for half the amount of time given.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat oil over moderate heat. Add onion and saute for 1 minute. Stir in ground beef and cook until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Add spaghetti sauce; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; partially cover the skillet and simmer the sauce for 5 minutes.

In a small bowl, combine cottage cheese, egg, and Parmesan. Drain pasta. Layer half the pasta in baking dish. Spoon the cottage cheese mixture over the pasta. Spoon half of the meat sauce over the cheese mixture and sprinkle with half the Mozzarella. Layer the remaining pasta sauce and Mozzarella. Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake 15 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 5 to 8 minutes or until heated through and serve.

Roast Beast (Roast Beef Roll ups)

I love to celebrate holidays. Dr. Seuss' Birthday seemed like a WONDERFUL excuse to celebrate to me. You can check out our celebration here. I got these fun recipes for the food from this blog.
4 triangles Light Cow Cheese or 1/3 c. softened butter

1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese

1 lb. thinly sliced med. rare roast beef

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 bunch watercress, stemmed

1 red bell pepper, sliced thin

1 yellow bell pepper, sliced thin

Cream cheeses together with a fork in a small bowl. Lay roast beef slices on flat surface. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Spread 2 teaspoons of cheese mixture along the short end of the beef. Pile on the rest of ingredients. Roll the beef into a tight cylinder. Wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate till serving time. To serve, halve the rolls, crosswise.

Fried Chicken

I LOVE fried chicken. We had this dish on Sunday a lot when I was growing up and I always would get excited when I knew we were going to have it. Now some of you are rolling your eyes that I am even putting this on here, but I have a recipe for good fried chicken, and when I was trying to figure out how to do it on my own I had no idea. So, this is for people "Just trying to figure it out..." Found in this cookbook.


3/4 all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 frying chicken (2 1/2 to 3 pounds), cut up or chicken pieces (I usually just buy a big thing of drumsticks as that is my boys' piece of choice)
1/2 cup shortening

1/ Combine flour, salt and pepper in paper or plastic bag. Add a few pieces of chicken at a time. Shake to coat.

2. heat shortening to 365 degrees in electric skillet (this is how I do it, LOVE my electric skillet), or on medium-high heat in a large heavy skillet. Fry chicken 30 to 40 minutes without lowering heat. Turn once for even browning. Drain on paper towels.

Please note that for this type of fried chicken the chicken MUST have skin on it. I have tried it with boneless, skinless and it is very bad...Just sayin'

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

My very favorite food is Chicken Cordon Blue, but it really isn't a quick thing to make. I first tasted this casserole at a ward cook off years ago and the original cook wouldn't give away the recipe! I decided that I wouldn't rest until I had the recipe in my hands and thanks to the internet...it happened that day. This recipe is so good and so easy! I have had this recipe for about 7 years and I have no idea the source...

1 egg
1/2 c. milk
2 lbs chicken tenders (I just cut up boneless skinless chicken breasts)
dried bread crumbs
8 oz cubed swiss cheese (I use more)
8 oz cubed ham
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 c. onion powder
salt and pepper to taste

Bea egg and add 1/2 c. milk. Dip chicken in egg then bread crumbs. Fry until crispy in hot oil, place in baking dish. Sprinkle ham and cheese over chicken. Mix soup and 1 c. milk, onion powder, salt and pepper and pour over casserole. Bake for 40 minutes @ 350 degrees.

Sloppy Joes

Sorry for the blurry picture. That seems to be how I roll lately. Okay so everyone probably has their go to recipe for Sloppy Joes. I actually have never really liked sloppy joes, but my husband absolutely ADORES them. So I had to find a recipe that I could eat. This has been my favorite one. I always think I must like Sloppy Joes, but then I try them other places and I still don't. I guess I just like this recipe. It must be a keeper huh? It is from my old reliable Betty Crocker cookbook.

1 lb lean ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
1/4 cup chopped celery
1 cup ketchup
1 tbs Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp ground mustard
1/8 tsp pepper
6 hamburger buns split

1. Cook beef, onion, and celery in 10-inch skillet over medium heat 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until beef is brown; drain.

2. Stir in remaining ingredients except buns (did they really need to tell us not to put the buns in....hmmm maybe). Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer uncovered 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender.

3. Fill buns with beef mixture.

Creamed Asparagus-Lemon Fettuccinie

I first had this when I was a new married from my ward cookbook. It was so yummy, but I forgot about it for a while. I made it again recently and remembered why I love it.

Juice of 1 lemon
1 Tbs butter
1 C heavy cream
1 lb fresh asparagus, thinly chopped in 1 to 2 inch pieces
1 lb fettuccine, cooked according to package directions
2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 c. sun-dried tomatoes, chopped (I use about 1/2 cup)
ground pepper
Zest of 1 lemon
Parmesan cheese

In a small saucepan, melt butter and add cream; allow to cook at low for 3 to 5 minutes. Steam asparagus until tender; rinse under cold water. Heat oil in a large skillet and add asparagus. Mix hot cream mixture and tomatoes together and stir in lemon juice and pepper. Top hot fettuccine with sauce and sprinkle with lemon zest and Parmesan cheese

Ham Broccoli Braid

I love the blog My Kitchen Cafe. The other day they had a BBQ chicken braid featured on there. I have wanted to do one of these forever. I used her roll dough and instructions on how to do the braid and improvised the rest. I wanted to do a ham, cheese and broccoli braid. I loosely followed a recipe I found on allrecipes.com. This recipe uses refrigerated crescent roll dough, but I prefer the homemade stuff.


2 cups of ham chopped
1 cup chopped fresh broccoli
1 small onion, chopped
1 tablespoon dried parsley
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 1/2 cups shredded Swiss cheese
2 (8 ounce) cans refrigerated crescent roll dough

I add a couple of dollops of mayo so it isn't as dry

# Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
# In a large bowl, combine ham, broccoli, onion, parsley, mustard and cheese. Stir well.
# Unroll crescent roll dough, and arrange flat on a medium baking sheet. Pinch together perforations to form a single sheet of dough. Using a knife or scissors, cut 1 inch wide strips in towards the center, starting on the long sides. There should be a solid strip about 3 inches wide down the center, with the cut strips forming a fringe down each side. Spread the filling along the center strip. Fold the side strips over filling, alternating strips from each side. Pinch or twist to seal.
# Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until deep golden brown

Good Hot Dogs

Okay this picture is one of the worst I have taken. I had to include these hot dogs on my blog because they are to die for. I always like to have a picture, and this is all I had time for. Sorry. You should try these they got rave reviews. I got this recipe from "The Essential Mormon Cookbook" by Julie Badger Jensen

1/2 c. chopped onion
2 Tbs butter
1 bottle chili sauce (Homade brand)
1/2 c. apple juice
2 Tbs mustard
2 Tbs packed brown sugar
1 Tbs Worcestershire sauce
8 hot dogs
8 buns, buttered and toasted

Saute onion in butter until lightly browned. Add remaining sauce ingredients. Simmer 5 minutes. Add hot dogs. Cover and heat through. Serve hot dogs on buns topped with sauce (the sauce is so GOOD!)

Chicken Alfredo

This is one of my favorite meals!

6 oz bow tie pasta
2 TBS. butter
1/2 lb chicken cut into strips
2 green onions
1 TBS butter
3/4 c. mushrooms
2 TBS fresh or 1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tbs garlic powder
2 c. heavy cream
3/4 grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 pepper

Cook pasta according to directions. Drain and set aside. In a large skillet heat butter over medium heat. Add chicken and stir-fry about 5 minutes or until cooked through. In a separate pan saute green onions in 1 tbs butter until tender. Add mushrooms, thyme and sauteed onions to chicken. Add garlic powder, cream, cheese, salt and pepper. Simmer about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until chicken is cooked and tender. Serve over pasta.

Grilled Honey-Mustard Pork Chops and Rice Pilaf

These are so good! I am always looking for different recipes to grill with meat other than beef and chicken. I love this Betty Crocker pork recipe.

Honey-Mustard Pork chops

Honey Mustard Glaze
1/4 c. honey
2 TBS Dijon mustard
1 TBS orange juice
1 tsp chopped fresh or 1/4 tsp dried tarragon leaves (I left these out and it was still good)
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
Dash of onion powder

Mix all ingredients together.

Grilling:

4 pork boneless loin chops, 1 inch thick

Brush grill rack with vegetable oil. Heat coals or gas grill for direct heat.

Cover and grill pork 4 to 5 inches from medium heat 14-16 minutes, brushing occasionally with glaze and turning once, until slightly pink in center. Discard any remaining glaze.


Rice Pilaf:

I always love to get this when I go to restaurants, but never make it. I saw this in the same Betty Crocker cookbook and decided to give it a whirl. It was actually really easy. I don't know maybe you already know this stuff, but I told you I am figuring it all out.

2 TBS of butter or stick margarine
1 small onion chopped (1/4 cup)
1 cup uncooked regular long grain rice
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 tsp salt

Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Cook onion in butter about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender.

Stir in rice. Cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in broth and salt.

heat to boiling, stirring once or twice; reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer 16 minutes (do not lift cover or stir); remove from heat. Let stand covered 5 minutes.