Broccoli Chicken Divan

This recipe was super easy and delicious and makes a lot. A great recipe for a large family it will last me and the hubbie all week. He loved it.

Ingredients

• 1 pound chopped fresh broccoli
• 1 1/2 cups cubed, cooked chicken meat( I boiled 3 chicken breast with garlic, salt, pepper, cumin.)
  
• 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of broccoli soup
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted
• 2 tablespoons dried bread crumbs

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).
2. Place the broccoli in a saucepan with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, and cook 5 minutes, or until tender. Drain.
3. Place the cooked broccoli in a 9x13 pan. Top with the chicken. In a bowl, mix the soup and milk, and pour over the chicken. Sprinkle with Cheddar cheese. Mix the melted butter with the bread crumbs, and sprinkle over the cheese.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, or until bubbly and lightly brown.

Garlic-Lime Shrimp Quesadillas

So I have been away from this blog way too long. So much has been going on and I really plan to get back blogging. Been a busy little bee lately. But anyways I made these Garlic Lime shrimp Quesadillas and they were so good, quick and easy.

Ingredients ~
3/4 lb medium shrimp, cooked
Zest and juice of 1 lime
1 small clove garlic, finely chopped
2 jalapeño peppers, seeded and finely chopped
1 ounce cream cheese (1/3 of a small package), softened
2 scallions, thinly sliced
4 tablespoons fresh cilantro, finely chopped
3 cups finely shredded Monterey Jack cheese, divided
4 10-inch flour tortillas
Vegetable oil
Guacamole and sour cream

Directions ~
Peel the shrimp completely, including tails. Chop them into 1/2-inch pieces and place them in a medium sized mixing bowl. Add the lime juice and garlic and toss to combine. Set aside for 25 minutes to marinate, then drain off any liquid that has accumulated. Add the lime zest, and jalapeños and mix well.

In a separate bowl, blend the softened cream cheese, scallions and cilantro with a fork. Add in 1 cup of the Monterey Jack cheese and combine thoroughly.

Prepare the tortillas by spreading 1/4 of the cheese mixture onto one half of each tortilla.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add about 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil and swirl the pan to coat evenly. Place one tortilla in the pan, cheese side up. Using a slotted spoon, place 1/4 of the shrimp mixture on top of the cream cheese mixture. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of shredded Monterey Jack on top of the shrimp, fold the other side of the tortilla up over the mixture and press gently.

Cook for 1-1/2 to 2 minutes, or until the cheese on the bottom has melted and the tortilla is golden brown. Flip carefully and cook for another minute until all the cheese has melted and that side is golden brown as well. Transfer to a platter to keep warm and repeat the process with the remaining tortillas. Serve with guacamole and sour cream.

This turned out so good. So quick easy and tasty.

Broccoli & Shrimp Ravioli

This was super easy and so good. I bought a bag of Trader Joes four cheese ravioli and boiled for about 12 mins then set aside. Then in separate pan saute shrimp, 1 teaspoon EVOO, 2 cloves of garlic minced salt and pepper. Steamed a bunch of fresh broccoli and mixed with the shrimp. Then tossed together with Trader Joe Alfredo sauce. And topped with grated Asiago cheese. Total meal took about 20mins tops.

Fuego and Fadi's...

I did a lot of traveling this summer (Houston, Detroit, Chicago, New Jersey, Philly, Virginia Beach) so this is why there has been a big gap in updates to my blog from June-Aug. During this summer I have had the chance to try out a some nice new places while I was on vacay! This pic here is from Fuego's is this awesome Halal Mexican restrauant in Dearborn Michigan. The food is so good and reasonably priced. I ordered a mixed sampler, wings, tortillas , stuffed mushrooms, jalapeno poppers. My brothers ordered tacos and quesadillas which were awesome. Cant wait to go back ! :-)






<----- This picture is from Fadi's Grill in Houston Texas. OMG this was so good. I had lamb almond rice, beef humus and artichoke salad. Fadi's is a must if your in the Houston area. They are 100% halal and serve many organic foods and everything is fresh and delicious. Also you can get a huge plate for around $9. Its a Mediterranean restaurant which everything is served cafeteria style but really fresh and good. They have about 6 different kinds of humus and a dozen different salads to choose from.

Pan Fried Catfish

Quick and easy for nice southern dinner. I made these with mac and cheese , corn bread and cabbage nice southern classic.

Ingredients

• 1 cup cornmeal
• 2 teaspoons ground cayenne pepper
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 4 (4 ounce) fillets catfish
• 1 cup milk
• 4 cloves garlic, minced

Directions

1. In a mixing bowl, stir together cornmeal, cayenne pepper, paprika and onion powder. Mix well. Pour mixture onto a large sheet of waxed paper.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
3. Pour milk into a medium bowl. Dip catfish fillets into milk and hold up and let the milk drip off. Roll the milk-soaked fillet in the cornmeal mixture until completely covered. Set aside.
4. Fry the garlic in the hot skillet, but do not burn. Add the coated catfish fillets and cook for 5 to 7 minutes on each side, sprinkling salt on the fish after each turn. Cook until golden brown and fish flakes easily with a fork. Drain on paper towels.

Gourmet Chicken Salad

I wanted to make something light and quick with some leftover chicken breast I had. This was so good and perfect for lunch. I actually made this for dinner with sweet potato fries.

Ingredients

• 2 (10 ounce) cans chicken chunks, drained
• 1 cup seedless green grapes, halved
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1 (8 ounce) can mandarin oranges, drained
• 3/4 cup creamy cucumber salad dressing

Directions

1. Mix together chicken, grapes, nuts, celery, oranges, and dressing. Chill.

(Chicken can substituted for 1 1/2 grilled chicken breast cubed)

Banana Pudding ..an Eid favorite !!

This Banana Pudding recipe is so easy and good. We usually try to make it for Eid and for iftar dinners. We made some this year for our Eid dinner and it was gone in 60 secs. Another variation of this that I have tried is use shortbread cookies and vanilla wafers and mix as you layer. This is really good.

Ingredients

• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
• 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 (5 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix
• 3 cups cold milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 (8 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
• 4 bananas, sliced
• 1/2 (12 ounce) package vanilla wafers

Directions

1. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Beat in condensed milk, pudding mix, cold milk and vanilla until smooth. Fold in 1/2 of the whipped topping.
2. Line the bottom of a 9x13 inch dish with vanilla wafers. Arrange sliced bananas evenly over wafers. Spread with pudding mixture. Top with remaining whipped topping. Chill.

Red Velvet Cheesecake

I wanted to make a cheesecake for our anniversary since we had cheesecake on our wedding day and red velvet cake for our Walima. But ended up making this a few days after our anniversary today. This cake was really good but takes way to long to make. Plan on making a day prior to the day you plan on serving. The frosting was really good but got kinda messy was my first time using an icing bag. Note to self next time chill the frosting before icing the cake. Otherwise it still was really good but very rich.

Ingredients:

Red Velvet Crust Ingredients:

2 cups chocolate graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted

Red Velvet Filling Ingredients:

3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs, beaten slightly
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon white vinegar
2 (1 ounce) bottles red food coloring

Topping Ingredients:

4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Strawberries for garnish

Red Velvet Cheesecake Directions:

1. Mix together chocolate graham cracker crumbs and brown sugar. Add melted butter and mix well.

2. Press mixture into bottom and up sides of 9-inch spring-form pan. Bake in 350 degree F oven for 10 minutes; cool slightly.

3. In a large bowl combine cream cheese and sugar and beat with a mixer until combined.

4. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

5. Add cocoa, sour cream, buttermilk, vanilla extract, vinegar and red food coloring and continue to beat until filling is smooth and well mixed.

6. Pour batter into prepared crust and bake at 325 degrees F for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until cheesecake looks almost set. Remove cheesecake from oven and cool in pan. Cover and chill in refrigerator overnight (in pan).

7. To make the topping: Beat the cream cheese and butter in a large bowl until smooth. Gradually add powdered sugar and vanilla extract, beating until smooth. Spread evenly over top of cheesecake. Remove sides of spring-form pan and garnish if desired with fresh strawberries.

Chicken and Black Bean Enchiladas

These were so good. This recipe made a lot. The chicken and black bean combination is really filling. Made this with cilantro lime rice was amazing!

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
  
• 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/3 cup prepared sweet corn salsa
  
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
• 4 (8-inch) flour tortillas
• 1 1/3 cups shredded Monterey jack and or Cheddar
• fajita season or taco seasoning mix
  

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and saute 2 minutes. Add chicken and saute 5 minutes,Add taco seasoning mix , cook until golden brown and cooked through. Remove chicken and set aside.

In 2nd pan .stir in black beans, and salsa and simmer 5 minutes, until sauce thickens and reduces. Remove from heat and stir in cilantro.

Arrange 4 tortillas on a flat surface. Top each tortilla with an equal amount of chicken mixture, and black beans, add cheese. Coat shallow baking dish with enchilada sauce. Roll up tortillas and place side by side in a shallow baking dish. Top tortillas with Enchiladas sauce and shredded cheese (1/3 cup per tortilla).

Bake enchiladas 15 minutes, until cheese is golden and gooey!

Easy Chicken Stirfry

Yum yum and then some. This meal was super easy, quick and tasty. I used pre-cooked chicken, and store bought Teriyaki marinade. If you have the time to make your own marinade here is a simple recipe that I've used before that is pretty awesome. But since finals were coming up I went with the bottle.
Teriyaki Marinade

• 1 cup soy sauce
• 1 cup water
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 3 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup dried onion flakes
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

Ingredients

• 2-cups chicken cut up
• 2 cups Asian vegetable medley stir-fry mix (wally world has huge bag for $5)
• Teriyaki sauce
• Basmati rice 1 1/2 cups
  
• 1 tablespoon Garlic ginger paste (from local Indian market)
• salt
  
• pepper
• 1 red bell pepper sliced
• 1/2 white onion diced
• 1 1/2 tablespoon EVOO
  

Directions:
Make small pot of rice ~set aside.
Saute chicken in EVOO , add garlic ginger paste, bell pepper, onion, spices, and cook until chicken is done. Add veggies and Teriyaki sauce, cook another 10mins until veggies are done. Serve over rice. Viola. Using precooked chicken and marinade this only takes about 20-25mins tops. Enjoy!

High protien Parfait

Ok so, I have really been slacking on this amazing blog. But for good reason. This semester has been crazy, and it is finally over. I'm free, free at last. That's cause enough for celebration. Oh did I mention I graduated this past week. Yeah I know , I'm kinda a big deal. Ok, back to reality. I still have been cooking this whole time during crunch time and finals. Nothing extra special, no 5 course award winning meals coming out this kitchen this last month but still tasty. So the next couple of post will be updates of what I made , quick easy dishes, that I had no time to blog about.

Prior to this post, lots of my updates have been filled with chocolate, something fating, or something with melted cheese on it. Its not that I don't eat healthy, I do I promise, its just no time for updates. Anyhoo during this semester this was one of my favorite things for breakfast. Much better than the little .99 cent fruit and yogurt parfait from MickyDs. Start with 6-80z of Greek Yogurt. Must get the Greek kind has 13g of protein in it. Add strawberries, bananas, more yogurt and sprinkle with granola cereal. This little breakfast combo kept me energized and full for hours of studying. And was High in protein, and low in fat, a great combination.

Buffalo Chicken Pizza ..omg so good

Omg this pizza was so good. Ok so if you read the previous post you can see I made Buffalo chicken wraps. If you didn't read the previous post shame on you, because you are missing out on wraps that are borderline amazing. So anyways, although the wraps were oh so yummy they kept falling apart, partly due to the greediness of over stuffing them. (note to self buy bigger wraps next time). So since I still had quite a bit of the buffalo chicken left I decided to make some buffalo chicken pizza. After all you know what they say, a meal is a terrible thing to waste.

Ingredients:
1 Boboli original pizza crust
1 cup cut buffalo chicken strips
1/4 red onion sliced small
*about* 1/3 cup Blue cheese dressing
1/4 cup Gorgonzola cheese
1/4 cup cheddar cheese
Sargento Italian cheese mix (however much you like)
Franks redhot hot sauce
Directions :

• Pour blue cheese dressing onto pizza crust, but do not go overboard, blue cheese dressing does not dry up when baking like traditional tomato base pizza sauce. You do not want a soupy pizza.
• Sprinkle with Gorgonzola cheese. Add chicken and dash of redhot sauce , add onions, and cheddar and Italian cheeses.
  
• Bake at 350 for 12-15 mins depending on oven.
  
• Viola! amazing party in your mouth pizza.
  

Buffalo chicken wraps

I wanted to make something light since it was nice and sunny outside and also didn't feel like slaving in the kitchen for 5 hours. So, decided to go with Buffalo chicken wraps and waffle fries. Yum!

Ingredients:

2 chicken breast
2 tablespoons butter melted
1/3 cup red hot hotsauce
1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
dash salt, pepper, garlic power
lettuce
mozzarella cheese
blue cheese dressing
10in. honey wheat tortilla wraps

Directions:

1. Season chicken with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper and marinate for at least one hour.
2. Remove chicken from fridge and grill in George foreman (or bake if you choose)
3. Melt butter and mix with Franks red hotsauce . Cut chicken into slices and add to hot sauce mix well to all chicken is coated.
   
4. Place chicken in tortilla wrap, add lettuce, cheese and blue cheese dressing, fold tortilla over and wrap to close.
   
5. Enjoy.
   
6. I wanted my cheese melted in this recipe so after I wrapped the tortillas I added them back to the George foreman grill and melted the cheese. YUMM.
   

Baked Ziti

This was really good. I made two big pans of this one for my bestie who just had the cutest little pumpkin baby. This recipe defiantly makes a lot so you should be prepared... or have greedy people on hand. I used ground lamb instead of ground beef and whole wheat pasta, and low fat sour cream for a healthier version.

Ingredients

• 1 pound dry ziti pasta
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 2 (26 ounce) jars spaghetti sauce
• 6 ounces provolone cheese, sliced
• 1 1/2 cups sour cream
• 6 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add ziti pasta, and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes; drain.
2. In a large skillet, brown onion and ground beef over medium heat. Add spaghetti sauce, and simmer 15 minutes.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter a 9x13 inch baking dish. Layer as follows: 1/2 of the ziti, Provolone cheese, sour cream, 1/2 sauce mixture, remaining ziti, mozzarella cheese and remaining sauce mixture. Top with grated Parmesan cheese.
4. Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until cheeses are melted.

Butter chicken and Mac & Cheese

This was so good. The chicken turned out moist and delicious :-)

Ingredients

• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 Italian bread crumbs
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
• ground black pepper to taste
• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• 1/2 cup butter, cut into pieces

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. Place eggs and cracker crumbs in two separate shallow bowls. Mix cracker crumbs with garlic salt and pepper. Dip chicken in the eggs, then dredge in the crumb mixture to coat.
3. Arrange coated chicken in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Place pieces of butter around the chicken.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear.

Mac & Cheese

Its hard for me to give this exact recipe because I just eye ball the measurements. And go based on taste.But this mac & cheese is so good always. The key is the evaporated milk , makes the cheese sauce
taste much richer than regular 2% milk.

Ingredients
1 1lb. box elbow macaroni
2 cups grated sharp or extra sharp cheddar cheese
1 small can evaporated milk
1/2 stick butter
1 1/3 cup shredded muenster cheese
salt, pepper
olive oil
dash season salt.

Directions:

1. Boil noodles in tablespoon of olive oil and dash of salt until done.Drain and set aside
   
2. melt butter in large pot slowly adding the evaporated milk. Once butter and milk bubbly slowly add 1/2 of the cheddar and all muenster cheese. Stirring constantly until cheese sauce is nice consistency. If desired add corn starch to thicken. Add salt and pepper to cheese sauce. Add the noddles and then stir the rest of the cheeses.
3. sprinkle with season salt and serve. Viola!
   

Chicken Tetrazzini ...Pawl loves it LOL

So one day I am watching talk soup on E! and they showed this oh so funny clip of a woman on Maury saying her best friend is seducing her boyfriend with chicken tetrazzini. So naturally I had to go to Youtube and watch it about 10 times, then I thought hmm...well if Pawl loves it maybe my hubbie will too..lol So without further ado here is the infamous chicken tetrazini video and recipe. This was my first time making it, I had never heard of such a recipe until Maury/via talk soup. The wonders of t.v bringing me countless laughs and good eats ... one meal at a time.

Ingredients

• 1 pound cooked and drained spaghetti
• 5 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed
• 2 (10.75 ounce) cans condensed cream of chicken soup (or 1 cream mushroom 1 cream broccoli)
  
• 2 1/4 cups water
• 1/4 cup butter
• 2 cubes chicken bouillon
• 1/3 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
• Fresh veggies steamed i used broccli
  
• 3/4 cups mushrooms sliced
• 1 small onion diced
• 2 garlic cloves crushed
• 1-2 tablespoons EVOO
• salt, pepper, garlic power to taste.
  

Directions

1. Boil chicken breast then cube or shred and set aside.
   
2. Cook pasta and set aside. Saute diced onion, garlic, and mushrooms in EVOO.
3. Steam broccoli season with salt, pepper.
   
4. In medium saucepan heat together soup, water, butter, and bouillon. Bring to a boil and then add pasta and chicken. Add veggies , onion, & mushrooms. Pour into 9X13 pan.
   
5. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese and bake.
   
6. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 25 minutes or until cheese melted.

(I found this recipe at allrecipes then I added a the mushrooms, onion and garlic, and broccoli)
***Video does contain cursing may or may not be appropriate for the workplace ***

Sweet Balsamic Salmon

We love salmon and I like to try new things with it since we eat it often. I marinaded 4 salmon fillets in a sweet balsamic marinade which was super easy to make. If you aren't as awesome as me then you can use any store marinade and it will still taste good. I served this with loaded baked potato and steamed veggies.

Marinade Ingredients

• 3/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 3 teaspoons brown sugar
• 1/4 cup finely minced sweet onion
• cracked black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger paste
  

In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, oil, brown sugar, onion, and pepper. Pour over salmon, and marinate in the refrigerator for 1 to 4 hours, turning meat occasionally.
Directions

Preheat oven to 350. Place salmon in shallow baking dish and add sliced onions. Bake for 15-20mins or until salmon is golden and glazed. Delish!

Strawberry Pecan Salad so good

This salad was so good. I wanted a new salad from the usual boring tossed salad mix so decided to buy a new dressing and try out some flavor combination ...wow this was amazing I am like some salad genius. There should be some best salad award named after me, that's how good this salad is. This salad is a really good kick off to spring, its light and fresh and sweet. The pear Gorgonzola dressing is the perfect combination with the strawberries and pecans.

Ingredients:
4 ripe strawberries
handful of dried cranberries
candied pecans
crumbled goat cheese
Romain lettuce
iceberg lettuce
purple cabbage
Dressing Trader Joes Pear vinaigrette

Directions:
Toss all the ingredients in one large bowl and serve fresh with Pear dressing.

Slow Cooker Chicken Stroganoff

Because I don't have a personal assistant and refuse to eat fast food my slowcooker has become my new favorite little helper. Any busy girl needs a slow cooker, it's a must. We eat lamb stroganoff pretty often and love it so I wanted to see about a chicken stroganoff recipe. The recipe calls for chicken breast, but I made with a whole chicken, next time I will use chicken breast so I wont have to worry abut the bones. Right before serving I sauteed fresh mushrooms and onions in EVOO and garlic and added to the dish. So delicious! I found this recipe at all recipes but it is pretty basic so I added a few things.

Ingredients

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cubed
• 1/8 cup margarine
• 1 (.7 ounce) package dry Italian-style salad dressing mix
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
• 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
• 2 small potatoes cut up
• garlic power , salt, pepper to taste
• 1/3 pack of lipton onion soup mix
• 1/2 onion diced
• 1/2 cup fresh mushrooms
• 1 garlic clove minced
• 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
  

• Directions

  1. Put chicken, margarine and dressing mix, spices, onion soup mix, potatoes, in slow cooker; mix together and cook on low for 5 to 6 hours.
  2. Add cream cheese and soup, mix together and cook on high for another 1/2 hour or until heated through and warm.
  3. Before serving, saute garlic, mushrooms and onion in olive oil until golden brown then mix into crock pot.
     
  4. serve over rice or noodles.
     

Garlic Mashed potatoes

This meal was delish. Here is a quick easy and delicious recipe for garlic mashed potatoes and mushroom gravy.

Ingredients:

• 8 large potatoes cubed
• 1 can chicken broth or bouillon cube
• 1/2 stick butter
• 1/2 cup sourcream
• 1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese
• 1/4 cup milk
• 3-5 garlic cloves crushed
  

Boil the cut potatoes in chicken broth until soft. Drain potatoes then set aside. In medium saucepan melt butter, add crushed garlic and cheese, add potatoes. Slowly pour milk for perfect consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste. I served this with Lamb meat loaf garlic bread and an amazing salad.

The best chocolate chip cookies ever..really

Ok, so it has been quite awhile since I have posted to my blog mid February to be exact. So I figured now is a good time as ever to finally give some updates. These cookies are most defiantly blog worthy so I had to share them. They are so good and so soft, and they bake up nice and big and thick. I think the only thing I will do next time is add walnuts. This recipe makes for 72 cookies so if your not as greedy half it for less. The key with this recipe is the vanilla pudding. Make sure you mix it dry. Do not attempt to make the pudding then add to the mix, just put in in dry and viola! Amazing chocolate goodness.

Ingredients

• awesomeness
  

• 
  

White Cheese Chicken Lasagna

Mmmm Ummm Good! Lasagna is a favorite in our house but I wanted to try something different with it. I am so glad I tried this recipe. It does take a crazy long time to make and you will probably dirty every pot and pan you own but the result is well worth it. I first marinated the chicken in Garlic paste , EVOO and salt and pepper for 2 hours. I then cooked in the George Foreman grill and followed the recipe below. I did make about 1/3 more cheese sauce and added broccoli to the mix. It was so delicious!

Ingredients

• 9 lasagna noodles
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 cups ricotta cheese
• 2 cups cubed, cooked chicken meat
• 2 (10 ounce) packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese for topping

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain, and rinse with cold water.
2. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook the onion and garlic in the butter until tender, stirring frequently. Stir in the flour and salt, and simmer until bubbly. Mix in the broth and milk, and boil, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Stir in 2 cups mozzarella cheese and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Season with the basil, oregano, and ground black pepper. Remove from heat, and set aside.
3. Spread 1/3 of the sauce mixture in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Layer with 1/3 of the noodles, the ricotta, and the chicken. Arrange 1/3 of the noodles over the chicken, and layer with 1/3 of the sauce mixture, spinach, and the remaining 2 cups mozzarella cheese and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. Arrange remaining noodles over cheese, and spread remaining sauce evenly over noodles. Sprinkle with parsley and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.
4. Bake 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven.

Oatmeal Cranberry White Chocolate Chip Cookies

I've been wanting to make some white chocolate chip cookies for quite awhile now but haven't been able to find macadamia nuts. Instead I found this recipe and I had everything else on hand so I made these. OMG so good and not overly sweet. I also added some candied pecans (Trader Joes gotta luv that store)

Ingredients

• 2/3 cup butter, softened (or butter flavored crisco)
  
• 2/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups rolled oats
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/4 cups dried cranberries
• 2/3 cup coarsely chopped white chocolate
• 1/2 cup pecans optional
  

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Combine oats, flour, salt, and baking soda; stir into butter mixture one cup at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in dried cranberries and white chocolate. Drop by rounded teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheets.
3. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in preheated oven, or until golden brown. Cool on wire racks.

Southern Peach Cobbler

Yum. I made this the other day for the hubbie. It was gone in 60 secs. Very easy recipe and turned out delish. Serve with Vanilla Ice cream or cool whip. I got the recipe here at all recipes.

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup margarine, melted
• 1 (29 ounce) can sliced canned peaches, drained
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugars, baking powder, salt and vanilla. Pour milk into dry ingredients and then stir in melted margarine. Mix thoroughly.
3. Grease pan with butter to avoid sticking.Pour mixture into a 9x13 inch baking pan. Arrange peaches on top and sprinkle with cinnamon. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes.

Grilled Mahi Mahi with Mango Ginger Chutney

I wanted to try out something new for dinner so I decided to make some grilled Mahi Mahi. This was so good. Recipe also works well with chicken. Or the pre made Ginger mango chutney that you can buy from Trader Joes. I used the george forman grill since its way too cold to go outdoors for grilling.

Ingredients

2 pounds mahi mahi
1 large ripe mango, peeled, pitted, and pureed 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar 2 tablespoons oil 3/4 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Mango Chutney
2 large ripe mangos, peeled, pitted, and chopped
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
1/2 tablespoon lime zest
1/4 teaspoon allspice

Preparation

Rinse Mahi mahi and pat dry. Pierce surface of fish with a fork and place in a resealable plastic bag with pureed mango, balsamic vinegar, oil, salt and pepper. Seal bag and marinate in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight. Combine all chutney ingredients in a medium saucepan and stir well. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Uncover and simmer over low heat for a few minutes more to cook off excess liquid; let cool. (May be made up to 2 weeks ahead. Store tightly covered in the refrigerator.) When ready to serve, remove fish from marinade and grill over medium coals for about 5 to 7 minutes on each side minutes, or until cooked through. Serve with Mango Chutney and rice.

Edamame...eda what?

Edamame are baby soybeans still in the pod and are so good. I tried them for the first time last week at a place called XS in downtown Baltimore and became instantly hooked. Thanks to the lovely Aidah for putting me on to these. I feel like I have been missing out on these my whole life. They are really easy to make and a great healthy snack. Trader Joe's offers the salted and non-salted kind. They both are 10 grams protein and 5 grams of fiber ! I made these tonight with Mahi mahi and brown rice. I am trying to kick the new year off eating healthier dishes :-)

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups Edamame
Salt - dash of salt

Directions
Boil or steam Edamame of 5 mins.
Sprinkle with salt and serve. Voila! So good.

Buffalo Hot Wings Mmm Umm Good !

I wanted to make some good game night ready food. Me and the hubbie watch a lot of football so decided to make some hot wings and pizza. This recipe was super easy and they were so good. The recipe is supposed to be as close to hooters wings as possible. I cant vouch for that , I have never had Hooters wings but these wings are awesome. These were inhaled at my house, gone in 60 secs lol. Perfect with blue cheese dressing!

Ingredients

• oil for deep frying
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup hot sauce
• 1 dash ground black pepper
• 1 dash garlic powder
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 10 chicken wings

Directions

1. Heat oil in a deep fryer to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). The oil should be just enough to cover wings entirely, an inch or so deep. Combine the butter, hot sauce, pepper and garlic powder in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir together and heat until butter is melted and mixture is well blended. Remove from heat and reserve for serving.
2. In a small bowl mix together the flour, paprika, cayenne pepper and salt. Place chicken wings in a large nonporous glass dish or bowl and sprinkle flour mixture over them until they are evenly coated. Cover dish or bowl and refrigerate for 60 to 90 minutes.
3. Fry coated wings in hot oil for 10 to 15 minutes, or until parts of wings begin to turn brown. Remove from heat, place wings in serving bowl, add hot sauce mixture and stir together. Serve.
   

Chocolate chip banana nut muffins

Omg these were so awesome! I had a few bananas going to waste and I hate wasting food. Wasting food is like some sort of crime ...if not it should be. So I decided to make some banana nut muffins. I used a recipe from all recipes then added a few key ingredients to make it delish! These turned out really really good. Perfect for brunch or dessert even. The chocolate chips are not part of the original recipe but give the muffins a nice chocolaty kick.

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 teas. cinnamon
• 1 teas. vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp. Almond extract
• 4 oz. cream cheese
  
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 1/3 cups mashed overripe bananas (6-7 bananas)
  
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• 1 cup walnuts (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture; stir just to moisten. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.
3. *For extra yumminess place cream cheese squares in middle on each muffin then add more batter to cover.
   
4. Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.

<--- note the cream cheese center in the sliced muffin on the left :-) yum yum

Chicken fried Rice & Crab Rangoon :-)

Yum Yum and dem some! I really wanted to expand my culinary palate and try out cooking some more Asian dishes so decided to try to make chicken fried rice and crab rangoons. Both of these recipes were super easy .The rice was good not 100% like the local Chinese joint , more like 85% but still yummy. The crab Rangoon's omg so so so good, taste 110% authentic

Chicken fried Rice

• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 onion
• 1 1/2 pounds cooked, cubed chicken meat
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 large carrots, diced
• 2 green onion, chopped
• 1 large red bell pepper, diced
• 3/4 cup fresh pea pods, halved
• 1/2 large green bell pepper, diced
• 2 cups cooked white rice (make sure rice is cold)
  
• 3 eggs
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup frozen sweet peas
  

Directions

1. Heat sesame oil in a large skillet over medium heat and butter. Add onion and saute until soft, then add chicken and 2 tablespoons soy sauce and stir-fry for 5 to 6 minutes.
2. Stir in carrots, green onion, red bell pepper, pea pods and green bell pepper and stir-fry another 5 minutes. Then add rice and stir thoroughly.
3. Finally, stir in scrambled eggs and 1/3 cup soy sauce, heat through and serve hot.

Crab Rangoon Recipe

Ingredients

1- 8oz pack of Philly cream cheese
1- 6oz can of Crab meat
2 - green scallions cut small
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
pack of won ton wraps
small bowl of warm water

Directions:
This recipe was really easy , however the hardest part about making these are folding them.

• Mix all ingredient in large bowl.
• Place small amount of mix in won ton
  
• with finger apply water along the bottom of the won ton wrap then fold the top over to seal
• After triangle is made with the won ton, push the middle part in with thumb and add water to left corner of won ton.
  
• Fold over the two corners. Finished product will look like the picture if done correctly.
  
• Fry in vegetable oil until golden brown. Serve with sweet and sour sauce or duck sauce. Enjoy!

I have added this video that shows step by step directions for the crab Rangoon's and the recipe I used. These are super easy once you get the hang of it and turned out so good. These were easy but takes about 1 hr to make the whole batch (around 34 Rangoon's) Another thing to remember when sealing the corners make sure you press down firmly to ensure that there are no spaces where the mix will pop out when frying.

Curried Coconut Chicken

Ok ,wow its been awhile since I have updated my blog. Final exam week was crazy...then I went on a lil tour to visit the fam now I am back. I made this dish new years eve ...kick off the year with a bang lots of spices but so good. I found the recipe of course from allrecipes.com and tweaked it a bit. I served with some Garlic Naan bread and it was Delish!

Ingredients

• 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
• 1 teaspoon salt and pepper, or to taste
• 1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons curry powder
• 1/2 onion, thinly sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 (14 ounce) can coconut milk
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can stewed, diced tomatoes
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 can of sweet peas (optional)
  

Directions

1. Season chicken pieces with salt and pepper.
2. Heat oil and curry powder in a large skillet over medium-high heat for two minutes. Stir in onions and garlic, and cook 1 minute more. Add chicken, tossing lightly to coat with curry oil. Reduce heat to medium, and cook for 7 to 10 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink in center and juices run clear.
3. Pour coconut milk, tomatoes, tomato sauce, and sugar into the pan, and stir to combine. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, approximately 30 to 40 minutes.