Recipe of the Week Archives - Page 27 of 34

Easy Cinnamon Sticks

July 27, 2009 11 Comments

Like those cinnamon sticks you get from the pizza place? A couple of weeks ago I was hungry for something sweet, but I didn’t want to spend an hour mixing and baking, so I decided to make my own cinnamon sticks. And they turned out great!

These would be perfect to have for dessert with any meal, especially your own homemade pizzas! And they would also make a great snack and a perfect breakfast food. Enjoy!

(I apologize for the lack of exact measurements, especially on the frosting. This recipe was an experimental-throw-together type thing. It’s amazing what “a little bit of this” and “a little bit of that” can do!)

Recipe for Easy Cinnamon Sticks

Bread Ingredients:

1 can refrigerated pizza dough

1-2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted

Cinnamon

Sugar (optional)

Icing:

1 8 oz cream cheese, softened

a splash of milk

sugar

Directions: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Unroll pizza dough and place on baking sheet. Take a knife and make nine cuts in the dough (as shown below). This will make 10 bread sticks. Don’t cut the dough completely in to separate pieces. Just make slits in the dough. When the bread is baked, the sticks will pull apart easily. Next melt your butter, and spread it over the dough. Then sprinkle the dough with as much cinnamon as you desire. If you want your cinamon sticks sticks to be topped with sugar, sprinkle it on at this time too. Bake the bread as directed on the package, about 15-18 minutes.

While the bread sticks are cooking, prepare your frosting. There’s no recipe per se for the frosting I made. Just take a block of cream cheese and can cut it into a few pieces and place it in the microwave for 10-30 seconds, or until soft. Then add a small splash of milk and and sugar. Just add a little sugar at a time and stir it until you get your desired taste and consistency. (You can also use confectioner’s sugar if you prefer.)

-Jerri

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I’m posting a link to this post on the following sites:
Tempt My Tummy Tuesday is hosted by Blessed With Grace.
Homemaker Mondays is hosted by 11th Heaven’s Homemade Haven.
Making A Happy Home Monday is hosted by As For Me and My House….
Make Something Monday is hosted by Go Graham Go! and Jolly Mom and Diana Rambles.
Tasty Tuesday is hosted by Balancing Beauty & Bedlam.
I Am Blissfully Domestic is hosted by Blissfully Domestic.
Ultimate Recipe is Swap is hosted by Life as Mom.
Friday Feasts is hosted by Momtrends.
Works for Me Wednesday is hosted by We Are THAT Family
Hooked on Fridays is hosted by Hooked on Houses

Filed Under: breads and sides, desserts, Recipe of the Week

Chicken Poulet

July 21, 2009 9 Comments

Chicken poulet is my favorite recipe to make. We have this about once a month at our house, but if you’ve read my previous menu posts, you already know that! I originally posted this recipe about a year ago, but since this week’s Mcklinky blog hop theme is “favorite recipes” it seemed like the perfect time to post it again. Hope you enjoy!

Recipe for Poulet:

Ingredients:
Stuffing Mixture:
2 pkg. stuffing mix (12 oz total)
1 stick melted butter
1 c. water or chicken broth

Chicken Mixture:
2 1/2 c. cooked chicken, chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup chopped onion (I leave this out)
1/2 tsp. salt

Other ingredients:
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (optional)

Directions: Butter casserole dish. Make chicken mixture in one bowl and set aside. Mix together stuffing mix and broth/water. Melt butter, add to the stuffing mixture, and stir until combined. All stuffing crumbs should be moist. Layer stuffing, chicken mixture and then stuffing mix again. Beat eggs and add milk. Pour over casserole (do not pack or smooth down, leave loose). Let chill in refrigerator for 2 hours or overnight. Before baking, pour cream of mushroom soup over top and bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes. Take out and sprinkle cheese over top of casserole. Bake an additional 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.

-Jerri

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Filed Under: casseroles and quick meals, Recipe of the Week

Barbecue Chicken Pizza

July 12, 2009 18 Comments

I’ve never really been into pizzas that you make yourself. I remember getting frozen pizzas when I was a kid, and sometimes we’d also buy the pizzas that are refrigerated and just need to be baked. They’re usually found in or around the store’s deli. But I always loved restaurant pizzas much better.

Now we usually order take out when we want pizza, or we go to the Cici’s Buffet, and sometimes we get “take and bake” pizzas from Papa Murphy’s. (Their 5 meat stuffed is awesome!)

But occasionally I will make a pizza at home. Red Baron’s are really good, and sometimes I’ll throw my own combination together. For an example, today I’m sharing the barbecue chicken pizza that I made recently.

Recipe for Barbecue Chicken Pizza:

Ingredients:
1 Pizza crust (homemade or refrigerated)
1 bottle barbecue sauce
1 bag cheddar cheese (or other cheese combination)
1 lb chicken (2-4 chicken breasts)
bacon (as many pieces as you desire) or bacon bits
1 onion, diced (optional)

Directions: First cook your chicken. I just boiled mine on the stove, but you can however you prefer. I like to boil it, because this makes it nice and tender; the crock pot would also work well. You can also bake or grill it, but I’d recommend brushing the chicken with some sauce beforehand, to ensure that it’s not to dry. After your chicken is cooked, chop or shred it.

Next preheat the oven. The directions on the crust I used called for 400 degrees. Next prepare crust. If using a refrigerated crust, unroll the crust onto a pizza pan or cookie sheet. (I actually used an 11X7 casserole dish for mine). For a large pizza, you could use 2 crusts and put them together. Next pour the barbecue sauce on the crust; use as much as you desire, and spread it with a spoon, spatula, or brush. Next sprinkle your onion, if using. Then sprinkle on your chicken, bacon, and top with plenty of cheese. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-18 minutes, use whatever baking instructions you have for the crust recipe you are using.

(before baking)

(after baking)

-Jerri

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Filed Under: casseroles and quick meals, Recipe of the Week

Berry Cheesecake

June 28, 2009 15 Comments

Next week I’ll be back with some of my own creations, but till then I have another great recipe from Taste of Home. It is a very scrumptious, delectable berry cheesecake. This is a perfect summertime treat complete with festive coloring for your 4th of July party.

Recipe for Berry Cheesecake:

Ingredients:

8 sheets phyllo dough (14 inches x 9 inches)

6 tablespoons butter, melted

2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 eggs, lightly beaten

2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

1/2 cup strawberry jelly

1 cup whipped topping

Sliced fresh strawberries and additional blueberries, optional

Directions: Place one phyllo sheet in a greased 9-in. pie plate; brush with butter. Repeat seven times; trim edges. Bake at 425° for 6-8 minutes or until edges are lightly browned (center will puff up). Cool on a wire rack. For filling, in a small bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Add eggs; beat on low speed just until combined. Fold in blueberries. Spoon into crust. Bake at 350° for 10 minutes; cover edges with foil to prevent overbrowning. Bake 23-27 minutes longer or until center is almost set. Cool on a wire rack for 1 hour. Refrigerate until chilled. In a small bowl, beat jelly until smooth; spread over filling. Spread with whipped topping. Garnish with strawberries and additional blueberries if desired. Yield: 6-8 servings.

-Jerri

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I’m posting a link to this post on the following sites:

Tempt My Tummy Tuesday is hosted by Blessed With Grace.

Homemaker Mondays is hosted by 11th Heaven’s Homemade Haven.

Making A Happy Home Monday is hosted by As For Me and My House….

Make Something Monday is hosted by Go Graham Go! and Jolly Mom and Diana Rambles.

Tasty Tuesday is hosted by Balancing Beauty & Bedlam.

I Am Blissfully Domestic is hosted by Blissfully Domestic.

Ultimate Recipe is Swap is hosted by Life as Mom.

Friday Feasts is hosted by Momtrends.

Works for Me Wednesday is hosted by We Are THAT Family

Hooked on Fridays is hosted by Hooked on Houses

Filed Under: desserts, Misc Holidays, Patriotic, Recipe of the Week

Patriotic Cupakes

June 22, 2009 10 Comments

This week’s recipe comes from Taste of Home. Their website is full of great recipes for all occasions, and they have great magazines that are very affordable.

These Patriotic cupcakes would be perfect for your Fourth of July party or picnic, and you could use different colors of food coloring for other occasions as well. It’s very easy and fun recipe that all you cupcakes fans should love.

Recipe for Patriotic Cupcakes:
Ingredients:
1 package (18-1/4 ounces) white cake mix
1/2 teaspoon blue food coloring
1/2 teaspoon red food coloring
1 can (16 ounces) vanilla frosting
Red, white and blue sprinkles
Directions: Prepare cake batter according to package directions. In a small bowl, combine 1-1/3 cups batter and blue food coloring. In another bowl, combine 1-1/3 cups batter and red food coloring. Leave remaining batter plain. Fill paper-lined muffin cups with 2 tablespoons red batter, 2 tablespoons plain batter and 2 tablespoons blue batter. Bake at 350° for 20-24 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely. Frost with vanilla frosting; decorate with sprinkles. Yield: 1-1/2 dozen.

-Jerri

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Filed Under: cupcakes, Misc Holidays, Patriotic, Recipe of the Week

Mexican Wedding Cookies

June 14, 2009 10 Comments

To go along with our wedding and shower theme, this week’s recipe is Mexican Wedding Cookies. This is an easy and quick cookie recipe, similar to short bread cookies. Serve them up for a party or a quick snack!

Recipe for Mexican Wedding Cookies

Ingredients:
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1 cup powdered sugar, divided
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
1 cup finely chopped pecans or walnuts

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Beat butter, 1/2 cup of the powdered sugar and the vanilla in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Gradually add flour and pecans, beating on low speed after each addition until well blended.
Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place, 1-1/2 inches apart, on ungreased baking sheets.
Bake 14 to 15 min. or until bottoms of cookies are lightly browned. Cool 5 min. on baking sheets. Roll warm cookies in remaining 1/2 cup powdered sugar until evenly coated; place on wire racks. Cool completely. Store in tightly covered container at room temperature.

-Jerri

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I’m posting a link to this post on the following sites:
Tempt My Tummy Tuesday is hosted by Blessed With Grace.
Homemaker Mondays is hosted by 11th Heaven’s Homemade Haven.
Making A Happy Home Monday is hosted by As For Me and My House….
Make Something Monday is hosted by Go Graham Go! and Jolly Mom and Diana Rambles.
Tasty Tuesday is hosted by Balancing Beauty & Bedlam.
I Am Blissfully Domestic is hosted by Blissfully Domestic.
Ultimate Recipe is Swap is hosted by Life as Mom.
Friday Feasts is hosted by Momtrends.
Works for Me Wednesday is hosted by We Are THAT Family
Hooked on Fridays is hosted by Hooked on Houses

Filed Under: appetizers and snacks, cookies and candy, Recipe of the Week

5 Minute Chocolate Mug Cake

June 1, 2009 22 Comments

I got this week’s recipe back in March from the blog, Cynnamama’s Cafe. This is one of the blogs I found during the Ultimate Blog Party. At that time I’d never heard of the recipe, but since then it’s been on a lot of other blogs.

If you haven’t tried it yet, I highly recommend it! It’s great for a quick snack, but I think if you needed to make a last minute dessert for company coming over, a few of these cakes would be great for that purpose as well.

*This will also be my entry for my Sweet Thursday Cake Round-Up in a couple of weeks. If you have a cake you’d like for me to include in the round-up, email your link to me at simplysweethome@hotmail.com. *

Recipe for 5 Minute Chocolate Mug Cake

4 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
A small splash of vanilla extract
1 large coffee mug

Add dry ingredients to mug, and mix well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly. Pour in the milk and oil and mix well. Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla extract, and mix again. Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes. It’s okay if the cake rises above the mug. Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired. Serves 1-2 people.

I actually made mine in a little bowl instead of the coffee mug, because apparantly I have a problem following directions. lol. If you’d like to see what the cake looks like in the mug you can see it at Cynnamama’s blog.

Tips & Suggestions:

-As you can see, I cut my cake into fourths, and then I placed two of the fourths on to a bowl with ice cream for serving. The ice cream and chocolate syrup really added a lot, and made it look very attractive.

-I didn’t use the chocolate chips, but I bet they’d be delicious. I also think it would be good with white chocolate chips or peanut butter chips. You could also try adding a teaspoon of chopped nuts and even a couple of marshmallows for a rocky road cake.

-This cake reminded me a lot of Betty Crocker Warm Delights. Next time I make these, I plan on topping it with caramel or hot fudge before baking to see if it truly measures up to the warm delights.

-Jerri

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Filed Under: desserts, Recipe of the Week

Country Fried Steak & Gravy

May 24, 2009 10 Comments

When I was a kid, Country Fried Steak was one of my favorite thing to eat. Most of the time we eat this with mashed potatoes, peas, and biscuits. But it would be great with anything. It’s also wonderful to eat for breakfast with eggs, biscuits, and hashbrowns. Yum!

Today I’m sharing how to make the meat and the gravy. We always ate this with white gravy when I was a kid. I don’t really make the gravy much now, because my husband doesn’t eat it, (hence no pic of the gravy), but it’s really good either way. You may also like it with brown gravy, which is especially yummy on mashed potatoes.

Recipe for Country Fried Steak & Gravy
4 (4 ounce) cube steaks (you can also use hamburger)
1/2 teaspoon salt or garlic salt, divided
1 3/4 teaspoons ground black pepper, divided
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup oil (enough so that you have about an 1/4 inch of oil in skillet)
1 cup milk

Directions:
Season meat with 1/4 teaspoon of the salt and 1/4 teaspoon of the pepper; set aside. In a shallow dish, mix flour with 1 teaspoon of the pepper. Dredge each steak in flour. Dip in beaten egg, then dredge in flour again.
Heat oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Fry steaks 3 to 4 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.

Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the fat. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of the dredging flour into oil. Cook over medium heat for 1 minute, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of skillet. Gradually whisk in milk. Cook, stirring frequently, 3 to 4 minutes, or until thickened and bubbly. Add 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoons pepper; gravy should be quite peppery.

Tips & Suggestions:
This would also be a great recipe to use with chicken or pork chops.
If you like shortcuts, in the seasonings section, they have gravy mixes in the white or brown.

-Jerri

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Filed Under: casseroles and quick meals, Recipe of the Week

Recipe of the Week: Chicken Lasagna

May 18, 2009 13 Comments

This week I’m sharing a recipe that I recently tried for Chicken Lasagna. I love regular lasagna, but I only just tried chicken lasagna for the first time last year. I don’t know why I never tried it sooner; I much prefer alfredo and other cream sauces over the marinara…I guess the opportunity just never came up.

This recipe is fairly easy to make, and it was very delicious. I found it on a blog several months ago, and I’m sorry to say that I have no clue where it came from. If you think it came from your site let me know so I can give you credit! Hope you guys enjoy it!

Recipe for Chicken Lasagna:

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken (I used chicken 4-6 chicken breasts)
12 lasagna noodles
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup ricotta cheese (I used cottage cheese instead.)
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheeese
2 teaspoons minced garlic
fresh cilantro

Directions:

Boil the noodles according to package directions. Add about 2 teaspoons of oil to the pan to prevent noodles from sticking together. Rinse and set aside.

Pull chicken from bones (if using whole chicken or bone-in breasts.) Shred Chicken.

Mix the cream soups, sour cream, ricotta, garlic, and cilantro together. (I mixed in the cheddar cheese here as well.)

Layer in a greased baking dish. Spread a small amount of sauce on bottom. Then add 4 noodles. Place a layer of sauce over the noodles, followed by a layer of chicken, and a layer of cheese. And repeat until you have 3 layers of each. Top with cheddar and parmesan cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Do not over bake.

Before Baking:

After baking:

Tips and Suggestions:
-When I made mine, I didn’t do as many layers as this calls for. Instead I did three layers of the sauce (including the bottom layer), and 2 layers of the other ingredients. I didn’t make the layers very thick, but the casserole still filled the pan, and it took more than the 4 noodles to line the pan as well. But it still turned out very yummy, so don’t worry if you’re number of layers don’t match up.

-I also think it would be fine to mix the chicken in with sauce, and it make just a couple of big layers.

– I think you could also change this recipe up a bit by adding your favorite vegetables.

-Instead of using lasagna noodles, you could use macaroni noodles or even rice, and mix it in with the chicken and sauce to make a yummy casserole.

-This recipe would be great to carry to a family get together or a church potluck, and it’s perfect for freezing for later.

-Also, this casserole lasted a while since it’s just the two of us. In the future, I’ll probably just make a half batch. It should be enough for a small family (2 adults, 1-3 children) to eat on a couple of times, possibly 3 if you serve with salad or other sides. And this is a perfect dish to serve if you’re having company over.

-Jerri

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Works for Me Wednesday is hosted by We Are THAT Family

Filed Under: casseroles and quick meals, Recipe of the Week

Recipe of the Week: Smokey Mountain Chicken

May 4, 2009 26 Comments

This week I’m sharing my Smokey Mountain Chicken recipe. I’ve been meaning to post it for some time, and since I had a couple of questions about it from last week’s menu, this seemed like a good time to post it.

This recipe is currently one of my favorites! It’s very tasty and easy. In fact, there’s not really much of a “recipe” to it; it’s just sort of thrown together.

Another great thing about this recipe is that it’s pretty versatile. It would be great to serve at a cookout with baked beans, potato salad, and cole slaw, or you could throw it on a bun and serve with fries or onion rings. Yet it would also go perfectly with steamed veggies, a rice pilaf, pasta, or mashed potatoes.

Recipe for Smokey Mountain Chicken:

Ingredients:

Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts

Barbecue Sauce
Bacon, crumbled. (About 1-2 pieces for chicken breast, depending on size.)

Shredded Cheddar Cheese.

Directions: Rinse chicken and place on baking sheet. (Hint – I line the baking sheet with tin foil first. This makes for easy clean up and it keeps the sauce from burning on the baking sheet.) Pour a little barbecue sauce on each chicken breast. I use just enough to lightly coat the chicken, but you could use more if wish. You can coat both sides or just the side facing up; it’s up to you. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. In the meantime cook your bacon. Take chicken out of the oven and sprinkle with shredded cheddar cheese (or your choice of cheese blend), and then top with bacon crumbles. Place make in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes.

Tips & Suggestions:

-Here’s a great short cut for an effortless meal: use Ready to Serve bacon. I buy mine at Aldi, and it’s really good and cheap!

-Or you could use Real Bacon Bits. (I recommend Kraft Oscar Mayer.)

-I got the name for this dish from something that they used to serve Ruby Tuesday about 10 years ago. In their version, they served it topped with raw, diced tomatoes, and I believe they also used either scallions or those little fried onion straw things.

-And of course you could use other cheeses. But I totally recommend that you try the cheddar first!

-And again, as I said above this is a great dish to cook with so many different side items and for so many occasions. And I just have to mention the idea of putting it on a bun again, because my husband just loves chicken sandwiches. When I make this, I like to do a little extra, so that I can pack him a sandwich for his lunch. It makes his day!

-Jerri

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Filed Under: casseroles and quick meals, Recipe of the Week

Easy Cinnamon Sticks

Chicken Poulet

Barbecue Chicken Pizza

Berry Cheesecake

Patriotic Cupakes

Mexican Wedding Cookies

5 Minute Chocolate Mug Cake

Country Fried Steak & Gravy

Recipe of the Week: Chicken Lasagna

Recipe of the Week: Smokey Mountain Chicken

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