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The Big Switcheroo

The time has finally come....
I'm entering the unfamiliar and unknown world of Wordpress. Hopefully, this site will be easy to maneuver around for you...
and me.
Ok, confession time:
I'm really a lil concerned
Blame me? I mean....Good grief!!!!!! It's not that long ago that I actually learned how to post a picture on blogger.
Woof.
My website is still under construction so you might be seeing some funky happenings, but I'll get it straight...sooner or later! I'll figure it out, so bare with me as I venture into my new wordpress world...
http://www.sissiedale.com

Chocolate Chip Yum Yums!

PBC came home the other day with a very tattered torn piece of paper.
"Momma, this is a cookie recipe and we need to make these cookies for home economic, it's for a grade."
"Ok, sure, these look like Neiman Marcus cookies because they have the oatmeal and Hershey bar.
 "No they are Mrs. Fields and we have to follow the directions exactly!!!!"
"Sure. No problemo. Where's the directions?"
Da panic sets in.
"Uh oh....I told STAL to slow down on that golf cart ride home!!!!!!!! I thought I saw some papers flying outta my book bag!!!!!"
 "So we improvised.  I looked up Mrs. Fields cookies but never did see a recipe that matched this one and then I looked up Neiman Marcus chocolate chip cookies and the same thing.....so this is the directions for Hershey chocolate chip cookies and the ingredients for maybe Mrs. Fields cookies.
Who knows.
Who cares.
Dern things are good :)
Let's just call them:


Chocolate Chip Yum Yums

2 cups butter
2 cups sugar
2 cups brown sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoon vanilla
4 cup flour
5 cups oatmeal (blend in blender to make powder)
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoon baking soda
24 ounce chocolate chips
3 cups of chopped nuts
8 ounce Hershey bar, grated

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Directions

PREHEAT oven to 375° F.

COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, oatmeal and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in Hersheys chocolate,bar, chocolate chips and nuts. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets. 

BAKE for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Red Raspberry Salad

This salad sounds a lil funky because of the watermelon mixed with bacon, but I promise you, it’s the BOMB!!!!

Red Raspberry Salad
1 small jar of seedless raspberry jam
1 cup of raspberry wine vinegar
1/4 cup of olive oil or salad oil
Melt raspberry jam over stove and add vinegar, and salad oil till all combined.
Pour into container.
Shake it’s booty.  I put my salad dressings in a mason jar.  This makes it easy to store and shake before using.

Toasted Pecans ~ 1/4 cup
Watermelon ~ 1 cup in squares
Bacon ~ 8 pieces
Red onion ~ just a few... thinly sliced
Feta cheese ~ 1/2 cup

Still can’t get past the bacon and watermelon thing?  In in a hurry and think I'm a weirdo for making my dressing from scratch?
That’s cool, try this one:

1 bottle of already prepared raspberry dressing.
add feta, cranberries, and walnuts.
Easy and yummy too!

Suck It Up Lasagna

Suck It Up Lasagna

1 package of lean hamburger meat

1 package of hot sausage
1 green bell pepper
1 onion
Half a package of mushrooms
1 jar of Paul Newman spaghetti sauce with olives
3 cans of tomatoes
Garlic
Spaghetti seasoning
Small container of cottage cheese
Small container of whole milk ricotta cheese
1 egg
1 package of frozen spinach
2 celery stalks
1 cup of feta cheese
1/2 Parmesan cheese

1 box giant sea shells

Cook sausage. Drain sausage from pan.  Sauté sliced mushrooms in grease. Add diced onions and cook.  Cook hamburger meat. Take out and put aside. Sauté celery with some olive oil. Add all cooked items together and let simmer. Cook shells and let cool. Mix cottage cheese, whole milk ricotta, 1 cup of feta cheese, 1/2 Parmesan cheese, 1 egg, and spinach (thawed and drained). Stuff these in shells.

Place in a large Pyrex dish. Pour spaghetti sauce over stuff shells. Cover with mozzarella cheese. Cook in oven @ 350 degrees for about 45 minutes.

Coolio's Spicy Chicken

STAL actually yanked this recipe out of my people magazine.
It's called Coolio's Chicken
4 1lbs chicken wings and drum sticks
1 tsp. seasoned salt
1/2 tsp. fresh ground pepper
3/4 cup balsamic vinegar
4 cloves garlic, diced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 4.5 oz can chopped green chili's
2 10 oz cans condensed cream of chicken soup
2 - 3 green bell peppers, chopped
preheat oven 400
place chicken in a large bowl and sprinkle with seasoned salt and pepper. add balsamic vinegar, garlic and onions, and mix thoroughly.
stir in green chili's, soup and bell peppers. Divide chicken and sauce between 2 baking dishes.
bake until chicken is extremely tender and almost falling off the bone, about 50-60 minutes.

The tired, haggard and unprepared version (my version)
4 chicken thighs.
seasoning salt
salt and pepper
3/4 balsamic vinegar
teaspoon of already chopped garlic
1/2 can of small can of chopped jalapeno peppers (use whole can if daring)
1 can of cream of chicken
1 can cream of mushroom
1 1/2 green bell peppers
I was a lil weary of the two dish thing; considering I make such a mess when I cook, why not one container?  but I did it anyway. I think it helps brown the chicken better.
I don't have a picture of it for you, STAL ate every single bit by the next morning.
Happy cooking!!

A Cheese Ball For The Cheesiest Princess

1 log of peppered goat cheese

1 eight oz package of cream cheese
1 cup of white grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup of grated yellow cheese
pinch of garlic
dash of tabasco
mix all together
1 jar of raspberry jam
spread jam on top
serve with crackers

Yum! Yum!

Buffalo Chicken Dip + Special K Bars

Here are the recipes from last night. Happy blogging!

Special K Bars

1 cup light corn syrup

1 cup sugar

1.5 cups peanut butter

6 cups Special K

1.5 cups semisweet chocolate chips (make sure they are real chocolate - imitation chocolate won't melt correctly)

1 cup butterscotch chips

In a large microwave safe bowl mix sugar and corn syrup. Microwave on high 2 minutes until bubbling. Mix in peanut butter. Stir in Special K. Press this mixture into a greased 9x13 pan. Melt together chocolate and butterscotch chips in a double boiler. Hint - butterscotch chips take longer to melt so I suggest getting them started first - your frosting may end up with small butterscotch chunks if you add them at the same time (still tastes good but not as pretty) :) Frost the bars with the chocolate mixture. Allow at least 1 hour for frosting to set before serving.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

1 large boneless skinless chicken breast

16 oz. softened cream cheese (2 blocks)

1 cup ranch dressing

0.75 cup Frank's Red Hot Sauce (or more for extra heat) - last night I added a couple extra tablespoons

1.5 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Club crackers, carrots and celery for dipping.

Boil the chicken until cooked. I have always wanted to trying grilling it for that extra yummy grill flavor but I always seem to be short on time. Chop the cooked chicken in a food processor until the pieces are very small. Heat chicken and hot sauce in a saucepan over medium heat, until heated through. Stir in cream cheese and ranch dressing. Cook, stirring until well blended and warm. Mix in half of the shredded cheese, and transfer the mixture to a slow cooker. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top, cover, and cook on Low setting until hot and bubbly. Serve with veggies and crackers.

Caramel Cake

Princess Proof Caramel Icing:

2 sticks melted butter
2 cups light brown sugar (packed)
medium low heat till melted and comes to a boil
boil 2 minutes

Add 1/2 cup of half and half
Bring to boil and boil for 2 minutes
Remove from heat and add 2 teaspoon vanilla
4 cups of sifted powder sugar using whisk
Whisk few minutes till frosting begins to crust on top and Frost immediately
3 pans even 12 minutes each
Cool cakes before frosting ~ which could be the secret of WHY our cake was so dern flat!
NOTE: Read all the way through directions before icing a cake

PBC luving her flat Caramel Cake!

STAL finally caves and tries it too.
YUM!

Homemade Slow Rise Baked Bread

Topped with freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Ingredients:
1 1/2 c warm water
1/2 yeast ~ seriously only 1/2 teaspoon
1 t salt
4 c flour (can use all white or a mix of whole wheat and white)

Preparation:
Add yeast to warm water and let bloom. Add 2 c flour, salt and mix. don't over mix! Add enough flour to make dough stiff. Knead dough adding flour when needed. It will be soft. Let rise in well oiled bowl until doubled, about 4-6 hours. punch down. shape into loaf or ball. Cover (if using a dutch oven, just use lid) with a plastic wrap and a towel. let rise until doubled again, this will take less time than the first rising.

Bake 350 (with lid is using dutch oven for 30 minutes and then additional 15 without the lid.) OR for 40 minutes for a loaf pan.

Stuffed Tomatoes

These tomatoes are a great side dish to any meal!


Ingredients:

8 medium tomatoes
3/4 cup of chopped bell pepper
1 cup of chopped celery
1 package of cooked sausage
Cajun seasoning
1 tablespoon of Durkee's
salt and pepper
1/2 cup of mayonnaise
garlic
1 teaspoon of sugar
Ritz cracker crumbs


Preparation:
Cook and drain sausage.
Wash tomatoes and cut a hole in the top. Scoop out the inside and place in a bowl.
Place tomatoes upside down to drain excess juice.
In a bowl, add drained sausage, chopped bell pepper, celery,
mayonnaise, durkees and spices.
Add a couple of crackers to thicken mixture.
Mix together and place back into tomato.
Top with Ritz cracker crumbs and a small pat of butter.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes

Pound Cake

Princess Jean-Marie's
       favorite Pound Cake:

Ingredients:
1 cup of butter
3 cups of sugar, sifted
6 eggs
3 cups of cake flour, sifted
1 8oz of sour cream
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla





Preparation:
Cream butter, add sugar 2 tablespoons at a time.
Add in this order: 1 egg, 2 heaping tablespoons of flour and 1 heaping teaspoon of sour cream. Mix well.
Repeat in this order until all ingredients are used.
Add salt and baking soda with the last teaspoon of sour cream.
Stir in lemon juice with vanilla
Pour batter into greased and floured 10 inch tube pan
Bake at 325 for 1 hour and 20 minutes or until cake tests done.

Princess Jean-Marie donated this recipe from the Junior League cook book. Thanks, Jean-Marie!!

If anyone has any recipes to share, by all means pass them along! Remember to site the cook book's name :)

Homemade Turkey Soup

Glad to see that you're here; considering I was sooooooo what is the word....... graphic?

Ok so assuming it doesn't bother you to remove the package from the turkey ~ pop that thing in the oven and bake her up.... here goes:

After turkey is cooked, pull off as much cooked meat as you can.
Place turkey in large pot and simmer with water for about an hour.
While bird is simmering, chop:
Celery
Onions
Mushrooms
Carrots
and anything else you like to throw in there.
I add fresh green beans and squash.
Those lil green peas are good too.
Dressing ~ leftover from your turkey is really good
Two cans of tomatoes
Pull out your bird and let cool. Once cooled pull off the rest of the meat. add all meat to pot with water. 
Add chicken bullion, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper.
Toss in all your chopped ingredients and let simmer 20 minutes.  add spices to adjust to your taste.
Put in bow tie pasta and simmer another ten minutes.
Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
Voila!

Elk Vomit ~ my fanny!
It's Delicious!

Note: it's always better the next day!!

Squash Casserole

4 cut up squash ~ boiled in chicken broth
8 pieces of cooked bacon
1 cup of sour cream
1 can of cream and mushroom soup
chopped onions
chopped carrots
garlic, salt pepper
2 cups of grated cheddar cheese
1 stick of butter
1 sleeve of town house crackers

Preparation:
Cook bacon and drain
Saute onions and carrots in bacon grease
Add mushroom soup, salt and pepper, garlic
Then add crumpled bacon, squash and sour cream
Pour into your cooking dish

In separate pan, melt stick of butter
Crumble the sleeve of crackers and saute until crispy.
Add cheese on top of casserole
Then sauted crackers
bake at 350 for 20 minutes
Enjoy!!!

c

Nibblings For The Neighbors!

The Messy Chefettes strike again!!
PBC and Flibbertigibbet are let loose in the kitchen
to dip bugles

And chocolate mint truffles

Dipping chocolate by Bakers:
SO much easier than the ole fashion way ~ with chocolate chips, powered sugar, milk, and a double boiler that would get so hot and burn when left accidentally unattended...

Look how cute they turn out

Neighbor Nibblings Galore!

Preparation ~
Truffles:
1 8 oz cream cheese
1 package of mint oreos ~ blend in a mix master
Add together and set in frig for 20 minutes
Take out and roll into balls.
Put back into frig for 20 minutes
Warm up your dipping chocolate
We use tooth picks to stick in the truffle and dip.
Sit in frig uncovered till ready to serve

Bugals and Strawberries:
Take 'em outta the bag and dip em!

Warning: bath may be needed due to excess warm gooey choclate spillage

Egg Nog You Over It's So Good



 Candy canes, whipped creme and Cinnamon
Add personal fave spikage if so desire.
NOTE:
Stay clear of Lucifer until Christmas has passed ~
FYI: Lucifer is my scale.
He's extremely rude and nasty acting.
Especially over the holidays!
Avoid Lucifer at all costs! 

Chicken Sausage Yum Yum!

This recipe is one of our faves!  Out of all the meals I've cooked for my friends, this is one of the most requested! Soooo...If you are wanting to impress your guests, here's the dish for you!

Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts
2 cans of cream of mushroom soup
1 cup of sour cream
Package of country ham
Onion
Mushrooms
Sausage (I use spicey breakfast sausage)
Cajun seasoning
Garlic
Italian seasoning
Thyme
Paprika
Colored tooth picks.

Cook sausage in one pan.
Add a pat of butter to the pan with the country ham.
While sausage and ham are cooking, slice mushrooms and chop an entire onion.
Drain sausage.
Remove ham ~ it doesn't need draining, the juice is yum!

Add mushrooms to one pan and the onions to the other.
Sounds weird but don't be washing out those pans between ingredients!

Take cooked country ham and set it inside raw chicken breast.
Add sausage on top of country ham.
Lately, I've used the chicken cutlets, they are easier to maneuver because you are going to be stuffing your breasts. Ha!
Anyhow, if they are the normal chicken breasts, flatten each breast with a mallet. Sprinkle each piece of chicken with all 5 spices. 
Roll chicken up with ham and sausage inside and pin shut with a COLORED toothpick.
Set chicken inside a baking dish
Meanwhile, add onions and mushrooms to either pan. Add soup, and all the left over sausage and country ham. 
Add all 5 spices again to soup mixture.


Pour over chicken.
Bake for 45 minutes at 400.

Serve with aspargus, salad and french bread for dipping!!!!

Notes:
 ~ I say colored toothpicks so your guests (or peeps) can easily pull them out after the chicken is cooked. Before they even taste a bite, enforce the no choking allowed rule and yank out those toothpicks!
~  save some sausage and country ham out for omelets in the morning :)
~ Best made the morning of or even the night before.
~ freezes well too!

Popper Pasta Salad

Pasta Salad with a Pop!
Spinach and Mozzarella Ravioli
1 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
artichokes
jalapeno stuffed olives
tomatoes
chopped onion
mushroom
salami
garlic
salt and pepper
Italian seasoning
*small package of pine nuts ~ I almost skipped this ingredient but glad I didn't....added lots of flavor!!
Pepper Shooters (cherry peppers stuffed with provolone and prosciutto ~ maybe 10 diced.  You can get these at Costco ...think I've seen them at Mr. Public's store too.

Make your pasta salad the morning of or even the night before so the flavor can soak in.

Death By Chocolate Brownies

This is so good, it's ridiculous.
It's also such a cheater recipe, it's embarrassing.
Ghirardelli Triple Chocolate Brownie Mix.
2 pouches of mix
2/3 cup water
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
Dish size - I used a 10x6 dish. 
Bake 325 for 50 minutes.
The kicker is the chocolate cake icing on top; covered by mini chocolate chips. 
Add black berries, strawberries and whipped cream.
Note:  after your brownies cool off, place in frig.  When cooled, spread entire carton of icing and sprinkle bag of chips on top. Place back in frig until guests come so it won't turn into chocolate glop.
Additional note: Would NOT recommend eating over three brownies in one sitting....

Greek Lemon Chicken

Greek Lemon Chicken is a FAVE around our house....
Ingredients:

Chicken breasts, boneless or bone in.

3 large lemons
2 cups of chicken stock
1 onion
Mushrooms
12 Red potatoes
1 cup of fresh chopped oregano
2 tablespoons chopped garlic
1 tbs Cavenders seasoning
2 tbs chopped fresh parsley
1 cup Olive oil

Preparation:

Cut up lemons and squeeze into mixing bowl. Add olive oil, herbs, garlic.

Slice mushrooms and entire onion.
Season both sides of chicken with salt, pepper and marinade with all ingredients in bowl   
Place sliced onions, mushrooms, potatoes in cooking dish.  Add chicken with marinade
Bake at 400 for 50 minutes               

If the cooks got the night off and you’re wondering weather or not to chop those herbs, you can still use cheater herbs that are in your veggie section in the grocery stores.  There’s always dry herbs but the real deal is just that……

French bread -
2 sticks of butter
3 tbs of 4 cheese mixture
Large tablespoon of chopped garlic
3 tbs of fresh chopped herbs – parsley, oregano, basil

 Note: I get 4 cheese mixture from Sam’s or Costco – it’s huge but you can add it to anything!  There should be lots of left over herbed butter.  If you went through all that trouble chopping those herbs, put that herbed butter in a container and store it up to two weeks.  It’s great to cook with!

TA DA!!!!
YUM! YUM!