Glazed Ham & Cheese Sliders

these are very tasty! be sure you use the King's Hawaiian Rolls.

the recipe I found calls them:

Funeral Sandwiches
1 package of King's Hawaiian Rolls
1/2-1 lb. good ham deli meat
Swiss cheese, thinly sliced
1/2 c. butter, melted
3 T. worcheshire sauce
2 T. mustard
2 T. brown sugar
dash of onion powder


Cut the rolls in half and line the bottom of a baking pan with the bottoms of the rolls. Layer the ham slices, then cheese and place the top half back on. Mix together the melted butter, worcheshire, mustard, brown sugar and onion powder. Pour the whole works over the buns, drenching each one. Cover tightly and marinade anywhere from 4-24 hours.


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake for 15 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bun tops are a bit golden. *i baked them uncovered for 16 minutes.

Chicken Tikka Masala

Tonight I'm having another fancy dinner party. This one's Indian themed, though the dessert decided not to play along. I should have made cardamom ice cream! Ah well. The recipes are all taken from More Best Recipes. Reproducing recipes verbatim in naughty, but giving the ingredients and summarizing the preparation is okay, so that's what I'll do here.

Chicken Tikka Masala

Chicken & Rub:

2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breast (trimmed)

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. ground coriander

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 tsp. table salt

Cut the chicken into large (~1 inch) cubes and place in a bowl. Mix the chicken in the bowl as you apply the rub. Refrigerate until you need it later. The original recipe actually calls for a normal rub on whole breasts, covering the chicken in a mix of yogurt, garlic, ginger, and oil, then broiling it. It tastes great, but is a bit too much work for me in a recipe that already takes me more than an hour to finish. I'm not sure if spicing cubed chicken does anything, since it probably all comes off when it later goes into the sauce, but I pretty sure that the salt does it's thing.

Masala Sauce:

3 TBSP. vegetable oil

1 med. onion, diced fine (~1 1/4 c.)

2 med. garlic cloves, pressed through a fancy garlic press

2 tsp. grated ginger

1(or more) serrano chile

1 TBSP. tomato paste

1 TBSP. garam masala

1 28oz. can crushed tomatoes

2 tsp. sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

2/3 c. heavy cream

1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro

Heat the oil in a large dutch oven (that you may have purchased at Wal-mart) over medium heat until it reaches that magical shimmering state, toss in the onion and cook for ~12 minutes. The book says to add the garlic, ginger, chile, paste, and garam masala all at the same time and cook for ~3 minutes. Indians typically heat their spices in a dry pan before cooking with them. If you want to try that with the garam masala before you throw it in the pot, that's cool too. Open up the can of tomatoes, and add the sugar and salt. Dump it in before you burn stuff. You can now scrape off anything that may have stuck to the bottom of the pot. Bring it to a boil, then cover it and lower the heat to medium-low, and then let it simmer for ~10 minutes. Stir it a few times in the process. Add the chicken and stir to distribute it in the sauce. Cook until the chicken reaches 155 degrees F. Time will vary. Add the cream after the chicken is done. Add the cilantro and consider adding more salt. After you're cooked this once, you might decide to add more garam masala too. I usually add another teaspoon. Serve with some delicious basmati rice.

Turkey Lasagna (w/ goat cheese!)

i LOVE this recipe....probably because of the goat cheese. i heart goat cheese.

so, the recipe calls for fresh mozzarella and fresh basil. i didn't want to pay extra for fresh mozza so i used shredded, and walmart was out of basil, so i used dried. so its a'ight if you make your own little tweaks. its soo good.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup chopped yellow onion (1 onion)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 1/2 pounds sweet Italian turkey sausage, casings removed
• 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes in tomato puree
• 1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, divided
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 pound lasagna noodles
• 15 ounces ricotta cheese
• 3 to 4 ounces creamy goat cheese, crumbled
• 1 cup grated Parmesan, plus 1/4 cup for sprinkling (i used the stuff in the can)
• 1 extra-large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 pound fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Heat the olive oil in a large (10 to 12-inch) skillet. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes over medium-low heat, until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the sausage and cook over medium-low heat, breaking it up with a fork, for 8 to 10 minutes, or until no longer pink. Add thetomatoes, tomato paste, 2 tablespoons of the parsley, the basil, 1 1/2 teaspoons of the salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Simmer, uncovered, over medium-low heat, for 15 to 20 minutes, until thickened.

Meanwhile, fill a large bowl with the hottest tap water. Add the noodles and allow them to sit in the water for 20 minutes. Drain.

In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta, goat cheese, 1 cup of Parmesan, the egg, the remaining 2 tablespoons of parsley, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Set aside.

Ladle 1/3 of the sauce into a 9 by 12 by 2-inch rectangular baking dish, spreading the sauce over the bottom of the dish. Then add the layers as follows: half the pasta, half the mozzarella, half the ricotta, and one 1/3 of the sauce. Add the rest of the pasta, mozzarella, ricotta, and finally, sauce. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup of Parmesan. Bake for 30 minutes, until the sauce is bubbling.

Homemade Mac n' Cheese

INGREDIENTS:

2 T. cornstarch

1 t. salt

1/2 t. dry mustard (I don't add this)

1/4 t. pepper

2 1/2 C. milk

2 T. butter

2 C. cheese

1 3/4 C. - 2 C. macaroni noodles (more or less depending how saucey you want it to be.)

DIRECTIONS:

Cook macaroni, drain and put in 8x8 baking dish. Set aside. Combine cornstarch, salt, dry mustard (yuck), and pepper in pot, and stir in milk. Add butter and bring to a boil for 1 minute. Stir in cheese until melted. Pour over macaroni noodles and stir up. Sprinkle extra cheese on top to cover noodles. Bake 350 for 30 minutes.

SUUUUPER good. Probably one of my favorite side dishes and my kids LOVE it too. Whoopee!

A Chicken in Every Pot

A crock pot, that is. Making this slow cooker meal is incredibly simple, but the results are so good! It works great for a Sunday meal. You'll need a whole chicken - not the little fryer kind - the bigger ones are better. We get a 2-pack at Sams Club and freeze one for later. Just make sure the bird will fit in your slow cooker, with some room to spare for the veggies. This isn't really a recipe in the sense that you can add whatever you like. Por ejemplo, we don't love potatoes so much so I only add about 3 when I make this for just us. But I love carrots, so I put in at least 6 or so.

Supply List:

a whole chicken

potatoes, peeled if desired & cut into large wedges

carrots, peeled and cut into large pieces

onion and/or old apple scraps

anything else (maybe you like celery chunks, pearl onions... or turnips?)

poultry seasoning

sea salt & pepper

1 chicken bouillon cube*

1/2 cup chicken broth (or water & more bouillon)

Okay, here's how I do this:

1. Turn the crock pot on to high and add the chicken broth.

2. Put all those potato pieces in the crock pot next and crumble the bouillon cube over them. If your crock pot is oval shaped, or larger than your chicken, go ahead and put all the veggies in right now. Our slow cooker is not, so I save the carrots and any smaller veggies for step 4.

*If you are adding lots of veggies to serve more than 4, you may want to crumble 2 bouillon cubes over everything.

3. Take your chicken out of its plastic wrap and get ready to season it. I like to do this in the sink. It's easier to clean up all the nasty raw chicken stuff. If your chicken has giblets stuffed in the hole, get those out and toss them in the trash. Yuck. Stuff the empty cavity with onion wedges or even old apple wedges. Just so it's not empty. Now simply season the bird with the salt & pepper and that poultry seasoning. Season it heavily, especially with the poultry stuff. When it's ready, put it in the cooker, with the breast side on the top. That makes for easier cutting later.

4. Next it's time to stuff any remaining nooks and crannies with the rest of your veggies if your cooker is tight on space. If you have room to spare, let's move on.

5. Put the lid on and walk away for 3 hours. DO NOT TAKE THE LID OFF during the cooking. Just don't.

6. After about 3 hours on high (we've gone up to 4 hours with good results, if you can't make it back), turn the crock pot down to low. DO NOT TAKE THE LID OFF. Leave it on low for at least 3 more hours. 3 hours alone with get you wonderfully soft, succulent chicken that more or less holds its shape when you cut and serve it. If you leave it in for 4+ hours, the meat will fall apart much, much more. Which is fine, if you like that.

That's it. We like eating ours with some gravy on the table. Enjoy!

Awesome BBQ Chicken Chili

INGREDIENTS

2 cans black beans

2 cans kidney beans
2 cans chili beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 bottle bbq sauce (my bottle is probably like 16 oz or so...) - honey bbq is good
1/2 bottle ketchup (again...not the gigantic bottle...probably 16 oz.)
2T sugar
cayan pepper (I hardly do any)
4 boneless/skinless chicken breasts

DIRECTIONS
Dump all cans into crock pot UNDRAINED, and other ingredients except chicken. Mix it all together and then taste a bit of it, so you know if you want to add more of anything. Then add the chicken ( add it after I taste it so I don't get salmonella). Cook on high in crock pot for 4 hours. (I put the chicken in frozen, but you can do thawed chicken too.)

Once the 4 hours is up, you take the chicken out and shred it up, and then put it back in and mix it all up. I like to add a plop of sour cream on top and shredded cheese, and you MUST eat it with fritos. YUUUMMMY!!!

buffalo chicken crescent puffs

INGREDIENTS

12

oz cream cheese (from two 8-oz packages), softened

2

tablespoons Louisiana hot sauce or other red pepper sauce - we added more for more pronounced flavor

1/3

cup crumbled blue cheese (1 1/2 oz)

1/4

cup finely chopped celery (i, of course, omitted this - yuck)

1

cup finely chopped cooked chicken breast - we added between 1/12 - 2 C

2

cans (8 oz each) crescent rounds (16 rounds) or 2 cans (8 oz each) crescent dinner rolls

1/3

cup Unsalted or Salted Butter, melted

1

cup plain or chicken-flavored panko-style bread crumbs

DIRECTIONS

• 1 Line cookie sheet with sides with waxed paper or cooking parchment paper. In medium bowl, mix cream cheese and pepper sauce. Stir in blue cheese and celery. Stir in chicken until well blended. Shape mixture by tablespoonfuls into 32 (1 1/2-inch) balls; place on cookie sheet. Refrigerate 20 minutes.

  2 Meanwhile, heat oven to 350°F. If using crescent rounds, remove from package, but do not separate rounds. If using crescent rolls, remove from package, but do not unroll. Using serrated knife, cut each roll evenly into 16 rounds; carefully separate rounds. Press each round to 3 inches in diameter. Place chilled chicken mixture ball on center of each dough round; shape dough around ball to cover completely.

  3 In shallow dish, place melted butter. In another shallow dish, place bread crumbs. Dip dough balls into butter, then roll in bread crumbs. Place 2 inches apart on large ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 17 to 22 minutes or until golden brown.

Creamy Mexican Chicken Soup

I don't know about the rest of you, but it's getting colder here and time for warm recipes. Hooray for crock pots and things being super easy to make!

INGREDIENTS

1 lb. chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1 - 16 oz. can of corn with peppers, drained

1 - 10 3/4 oz. can of condensed potato soup

1 - 4 oz. can of diced green chile peppers

3 C. chicken broth

1/2 taco mix packet

8 oz. sour cream

1/2 8 oz. block of pepper jack cheese cut into cubes

DIRECTIONS

1. Combine chicken, corn, potato soup, undrained chile peppers, taco mix, and chicken broth in crock pot. Mix well, cover. (duh.) Cook on low for 4-6 hours, or on high for 2-3 hours.

2. Put sour cream in a bowl and add some of the hot broth to mix. (so the sour cream blends in better.) Pour back in and add in the pepper jack cheese. Cover and let stand 5 minutes, and then devour with fritos!

Ranch Chicken

¾ c. cornflakes crushed

¾ c grated Parmesan cheese

1 pkg. Ranch salad dressing

8 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

½ c. butter or marg. Melted (I use maybe 2 T.)

Note: This really does make enough for like 8 whole chicken pieces, so if you're only making 4-5 you can half the recipe. That's what I do.

In a shallow bowl, combine the cornflakes, p. cheese, and salad dressing mix. Dip chicken in melted butter, then roll in cornflake mixture to coat. Place chicken breasts in a greased 9x13” baking dish. Bake, uncovered at 350* for 45 min. or until juices run clear. Makes 8 servings.

I LOVE this stuff. and if I have any leftover crumby-stuff I put it all over the chicken also. I like to serve it with mashed potatoes and sometimes I dip my bites in sour cream just for kicks. :)

Grilled Chicken Quesadillas

Grill 4 or 5 chicken tenders. I used some lemon pepper marinade cause that is what I had and it was GOOD! Italian dressing is also great! Chopped up about a half of a red pepper and half a green pepper and a quarter to a half of an onion. Saute in pan with some olive oil, 1 clove crushed garlic, a little salt and pepper and about 3/4 teaspoon cumin. Chopped up the chicken. Shred half cheddar cheese and half monterey jack. Take a large tortilla, place some cheese, chicken and sauted veggies on half the tortilla and fold. Spray a skillet with oil that is big enough to fit 2 folded tortillas. Cook on medium heat for about ohhh, 2 minutes per side? Watch them! Flip when it is lightly browned.

Serve with salsa, sour cream or Matt's hot sauce :) and my sooooo easy mexican rice ( I will post that tomorrow)

Waikiki Meatballs

*you can make your meatballs or buy them...and we love sauce, so the sauce has been doubled already for this recipe

Meatballs:
1 lb ground beef
1/2 C crushed soda crackers
1/2 C onion, minced or chopped
1 egg
1 t salt
2 T milk

Mix together beef, crackers, onion, egg, salt, and milk.  Shape into balls.  Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes. 


Sauce:
1/4 C cornstarch
1 can pineapple (cut into tidbit size; drain, but reserve liquid)
1 C brown sugar
2/3 C white vinegar
2 T soy sauce
1/3 C chopped green pepper

Mix cornstarch and brown sugar.  Stir in reserved pineapple juice, vinegar, and soy sauce until smooth.  Pour into skillet and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils.  Boil 1 minute, stirring constantly (or it will burn).  Add meatballs, pineapple, and green peppers.  Serve over rice.

Carne Asada

we had this at a Stake Meeting and it was very tasty!
some of these spices you may not have, but i'm pretty sure if you take a walk down the Mexican isle and look at the spices (they're cheap!) you may find them. maybe i'll find them all and mix them together and send you all some if you think that would be a good idea.

This is a "do-ahead dish" make it the night before to marinate for 24 hours.


4 lbs. flank steak (approx. 3-4 flanks)
1/2 c. white vinegar
3/4 c. soy sauce
3/4 c. olive oil
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 limes, juiced
1/2 onion, finely chopped
1/2 jalapeno, finely chopped (optional)
1/2 New Mexico chili, finely chopped (optional)
2 t. salt
2 t. ground black pepper
2 t. garlic powder
2 t ancho chili powder
2 t. chipotle chili powder
2 t. ground oregano
2 t. ground cumin
2 t. ground paprika

Slice flank steak into strips 1/2" wide across the grain of the flank. Then mix all other ingredients into a container. Omit the jalapeno and New Mexico peppers for a milder flavor. Add the meat and knead the marinade into the meat by hand. Let sit for 8 - 24 hours, the longer the better. Lay marinated strips flat on the grill and cook 4-5 minutes at approx. 350*, then flip strips and cook for another 2-3 minutes. This recipe will serve 10-12.

Mini Meatloaves

or should it be spelled "meatloves"...that's so cute.

ok, the ingredients:

for the meatloaf:
1 egg
3/4 c. milk
1 c. shredded Cheddar cheese
1/2 c. quick oats
1 t. salt
1 lb. ground beef

for the sauce:
2/3 c. ketchup
1/4 c. packed brown sugar
1 1/2 t. prepared mustard


Preheat oven to 350*

In a large bowl, combine the egg, milk, cheese, oats, and salt. Add the ground beef, mixing well...wash your hands first, and get in there and knead it all together. Forn this mixture into eight mini meatloaves. Place these in a lightly greased 9x13" baking dish.

In a separate small bowl, combine the ketchup, brown sugar, and mustard. Stir thoroughly and spread over each meatloaf.

Bake, uncovered, at 350* for about 35-45 minutes.

**note: the recipe i wrote down first didn't separate the sauce and the meatloaf; in a rush to make dinner, i added the ketchup and brown sugar...then realized i goofed, so i scooped some of it out, then made the sauce, but some ketchup and brown sugar was, of course left in the meat mixture. I liked it! so.... you just may want to add a bit of ketchup and brown sugar into the meatloaf mixture also.

and i'm sure this would make a mighty fine manly-sized meatloaf too, just increase the baking time by another 20 or 30 minutes probably.

Chicken Divan

1/8 to 1/4 t curry (we love curry so we add 1/2t)
2 t lemon juice
1 can cream of chicken
1 C mayonnaise
1 C milk
2 C cooked chicken
2 C broccoli, partially cooked
Grated Cheddar cheese

Mix curry, lemon juice, cream of chicken, mayo, and milk together.  Put broccoli and chicken in bottom of casserole pan.  Pour sauce over chicken and broccoli.  Grate some cheese on top of sauce.  Cover with foil. 
Bake at 375 for 30 minutes.  Serve on top of rice.

Crispy Coconut Chicken

rispy Coconut Chicken Fingers
Recipe by Our Best Bites

12 chicken tenders (ya know, more or less...)
1-2 eggs (start with one and crack another if it runs out)
1/2 C flour
1 C sweetened coconut flakes
1 C panko bread crumbs
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
3/4 tsp table salt
3/4 tsp curry powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (you can leave this out if you want to skip the spice for the kiddos)

preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Give coconut a rough chop so it's about the same size as the panko pieces


Combine it with Panko and spices in a shallow dish. Mix well to distribute all of the spices.


Place the flour in another shallow dish, and the egg in another. Give the egg a quick beating.

Working with one chicken tender at a time, dredge in flour...


then dip in egg...


And then finally coat in the coconut Panko mixture. Press in with your fingers to make sure the entire thing is well coated.


Place chicken tenders on a foil-lined baking sheet (for easy clean up!) that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. I give mine a teeny drizzle of olive oil on top to help them crisp nicely, but it's optional.


Bake in your 450 degree oven for about 20 minutes or until juices run clear. Try not to overcook them because chicken tenders go from perfect to overcooked really fast! If your tenders are on the small side, they could even be done in about 15 minutes so keep an eye on them. If they're big they can take more like 25. The coconut will be nice and golden and the panko crisp, but light in color still.