Thick’n Creamy Chicken Soup

October 9, 2013 by 1 Comment

 

This is a very creamy thick soup and full of comfort. I’ve had a rough week and it’s been mainly soups around here. Soups just speak comfort and this is a favorite one of mine. You can do this in the slow cooker if you wanted, make the roux in a pan and add it into the slow cooker with all the other ingredients then just have it cook all day long. Add in any left over vegetables you have on hand , you can easily throw in mushrooms which is pictured above. Also asparagus works wonderfully!

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Ingredients for Thick’n Creamy Chicken Soup

2 quarts chicken broth or chicken base
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Quick Start Homemade: Book Review

October 7, 2013 by Leave a Comment

I was sent a copy of Southern Living’s Quick Start Homemade to facilitate this review. All opinions are my own.

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It is not very often that a recipe book comes along that contains so many easy and budget friendly recipes in it that I had a hard time choosing which to try out for the review. Quick Start Homemade by Southern Living was such a book.

Quick Start Homemade features recipes that are hearty and delicious. The book allows you to make all the recipes using commonly found ingredients and cooking techniques that are fitting for just about any level home cook. The book contains 101 recipes for commonly made home-style meals with an extra spin on them to break up the ordinary.

 

The Good:

The book included a ton of great photos. I was always told in college when I went to culinary school that the #1 rule of food presentation was “You eat with your eyes, first”. This book gets that. The pictures are bright, bold and you can practically smell the recipes through them.

I enjoyed how the book broke down meals into colored sections so you could easily find the section you were looking for. These were broken down into categories such as pasta, pizza, eggs and so on. There were not only dinners in it, but also great dishes for lunch and brunch.
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Enjoy some Soup! The Soupmaker’s Kitchen cookbook Review

September 18, 2013 by Leave a Comment

 

I grew up in a large family, and we all know it’s not easy to shop or even cook for large families. We find ourselves eager and creative to put dinner together with what we have on hand. I have used this method after watching my mother do it when I was a child. One of my fondest memories was the soups she made, stews or gumbo. They were thick hearty and I really thought for the longest time she went out of her way to buy all this exotic food to create it all. Did she?

No. No my mother did what is shown in The Soupmaker’s Kitchen cookbook- a must for any family but I highly recommend it if you find yourself unsure of what you do with those left over scraps and items you don’t ‘have much of.  So you have a little of this and that, don’t think you can use it up? Wrong, don’t toss them, don’t ignore them –  Use them, all of them to make some wonderful soup! photo (1)

Green takes you through easy steps to stock up the pantry with items ( even small)  to create an entire heart warming soup with ease. Techniques on preparing, when you can sub frozen verses fresh and even how to make some flavors bursts are given throughout the book. Time savings tips, best used pots and other basic tools that will get you through soup season.
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Katsu Chicken

September 2, 2013 by 2 Comments

Katsu chicken is a Hawaiian/Japanese dish that just about anyone likes, including kids!

Katsu Chicken is essentially just Hawaiian fried chicken. It is so simple to make and also, not to bad on the pocketbook. It is served with a special BBQ sauce that can be purchased or made. What is really awesome about this main dish is, it is relatively quick to put together.

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To make Katsu Chicken, you will need:

Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts or Thighs

Panko Bread Crumbs

3 eggs OR 1 cup milk

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Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole

August 19, 2013 by 5 Comments

I am not a morning person. In fact, if you catch me before I fully wake up, you make meet a bear.

However, this hash brown breakfast casserole is so easy to make, even the growliest bear will have no problems making it work.

Its also very filling and not too bad on the pocketbook.

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To make Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole, you will need:

  • 6 Medium sized eggs
  • 3 lbs dice potatoes (I use the frozen “Southern Style” hash browns)
  • 1 1/12 Cups Cheddar Cheese, shredded
  • 4 Small ham steaks
  • Seasonings: pepper, salt, onion powder
  • 1/2 cup milk

1. Start by browning the hash browns. Many recipes for breakfast casserole skip this step, but I really like the flavor and texture browning them adds. Also, pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees F.
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Eggplant Parmesan

June 19, 2013 by 2 Comments

 

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This is a great family dinner that really doesn’t take much time to prepare. The most work comes from slicing, breading and baking the eggplant pieces but that only takes about fifteen minutes of your time before you assemble then heat the dish in the oven. My kids love this so much I rarely have left overs, and the best thing about this whole dish? It’s meatless!

 

Ingredients

3 beaten eggs

About 3 cups seasoned bread crumbs

3 eggplants cut into 1 / 4 slices. I do it length wise.

1 -1 / 2 cups fresh cut mushrooms

1 teaspoons Italian seasonings

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

2 cups spaghetti sauce

Directions

For the eggplant- Place beaten eggs in a shallow bowl, bread crumbs [Read more…]

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Oven Fried Chicken Recipe

June 5, 2013 by 2 Comments

My plan was fried chicken the other night but we were late getting in from some things outside so dinner was on top of us and I didn’t have time! This is when the oven comes in handy and the chicken is still crispy for those who think “oven fried chicken” is not worth it. It is, my kids inhaled the chicken I just barely got a picture before little hands started nabbing all the chicken before my eyes.

It’s quick , it’s simple it’s dinner in under 45 minutes it’s Oven Fried Chicken!

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ingredients

3 to 4lbs of chicken thighs

1/4 cup flour
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An Apple A Day – Cookbook Review

May 15, 2013 by 1 Comment

If you haven’t heard of An Apple a Day by Karen Berman and Mellissa Petitto, you are going to really want to pay attention here!

We reviewed the awesome cookbook the last few weeks and I love everything about it. 365 days using apples whether it’s in a creative craft, fun facts, or recipes this book is jammed pack full of things you don’t want to miss. I tried several recipes including Apple Brownies, Pork Chops Smothered with Mushrooms and Apples ( my favorite!) and a few others which the family really enjoyed! My kids were blown away to know dishes held apples in them but I will admit they like the sweet treats more than anything.

This is the Dark Chocolate and Almond Crisp, it was so good!

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With easy to follow directions tips and facts, you are presented with an easy reading cookbook that uses fairly everyday items that you will have laying around- this is very important to me! As a mother of four my days are incredible busy and at the last minute being able to grab a cookbook that will [Read more…]

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