Cooking · Dinner

Creamy Chicken and Rice

This basic recipe is on the back of a soup can. I added broth instead of water and a couple other spices, but pretty much I was feeling uninspired last night. This still turned out very tasty (according to my family) - the rice was almost the consistency of a risotto. I used frozen peas… Continue reading Creamy Chicken and Rice

Baking · Bread

Gruyère Beer Bread

I'm making a delicious beef stew for dinner tonight, and thought this rich, cheesy bread would be a perfect complement to the hearty, savory stew. Gruyère is generally known as one of the finest cheeses for baking, having a distinctive but not overpowering taste. It also melts amazingly well. I've used mozzarella in this bread… Continue reading Gruyère Beer Bread

Cooking · Dinner

Dijon Cordon Bleu

I've never tried Chicken Cordon Bleu before, and thought I'd give it a whirl tonight. Traditionally, Cordon Bleu has swiss and ham rolled in flattened chicken breasts. I'm not a big fan of swiss, but figured a little Dijon mustard paired with mozzarella inside would give it that traditional kick. I served this over a… Continue reading Dijon Cordon Bleu

Cooking · Dinner

Chicken Parmesan

Such a simple meal, but so delicious. The key to a great chicken parmesan is to pound the chicken flat. Take out that aggression. Give it a good whacking. I put my chicken breasts into a ziploc bag and have at it. Get it super thin so it cooks quickly. Nice and crusty on the… Continue reading Chicken Parmesan

Cooking · Dinner

Mom’s Meatball Tortellini Soup

This was one of my very favorite meals growing up. The aroma of wonderful vegetables and broth with cheesy tortellini always signified the beginning of cold nights and crisp fall days in my mom's house. She always put kidney beans in this soup, but I don't care for them at all - feel free to… Continue reading Mom’s Meatball Tortellini Soup

Cooking · Dinner

Chicken Pot Pie

A nice fall day calls for a warm, homey meal filled with comfort flavors. Chicken Pot Pie fit the bill for tonight. I started with a recipe from http://www.allrecipes.com and added my own twist. I doubled the sauce, used a homemade crust, added a couple things and adjusted the spices. You could easily use a… Continue reading Chicken Pot Pie

Cooking · Dinner

Buttermilk Cornbread and Honey Butter

I made a delicious BBQ Wagon Wheel Stew tonight - to go with it, what could be more perfect that crusty golden buttermilk cornbread topped with honey butter? Buttermilk Cornbread 1/2 cup butter 2/3 cup white sugar 2 eggs 1 cup buttermilk* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1 cup cornmeal 1 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon… Continue reading Buttermilk Cornbread and Honey Butter

Cooking · Dinner

BBQ Wagon Wheel Stew

We came back from sunshine and 80 degrees yesterday and woke up this morning to blustery rain and a chilly temperature of 55. Seemed like a good night for stew. My daughter saw wagon wheel pasta at the store our last trip and has been begging for it ever since. This stew was the perfect… Continue reading BBQ Wagon Wheel Stew

Cooking · Dinner

Fusilli with Veggie Medley

Happy September! It's officially time to get out my leaf garlands, scarecrows and hay bales. This is my favorite time of year, and as the weather grows a bit chilly at night, I wanted to take advantage of some of the still fresh veggies of summer. So for dinner tonight it was a light pasta… Continue reading Fusilli with Veggie Medley

Cooking · Dinner

Cheater Cilantro Lime Shrimp

Sometimes, I just don't feel like an elaborate meal. Thankfully, I have a secret weapon. Costco. A few days ago I picked up a container of cilantro lime shrimp from there, not really sure what I was going to do with it, but certain it would become the base of a simple yet delicious meal.… Continue reading Cheater Cilantro Lime Shrimp