Cauliflower Soup

I probably never would have tried this recipe except for the fact that I happened upon it and I had a whole head of cauliflower that needed to be used sitting in the refrigerator. I'm glad I did try it because it is seriously good! Jake wasn't home the night we had it, which was probably good because he would have wondered where the meat was :), but he did try it the next day and liked it. Little Jake pounded a big bowl of it, and Ruby thought it was ok. I found the recipe on The Pioneer Woman's website, and will be repeating it.

1 stick butter, divided

1/2 whole onion, finely diced

1 whole carrot, finely diced

1 stalk celery, finely diced

1 whole (to 2 whole) cauliflower heads, roughly chopped (I halved the recipe and used about 3/4 of a head of cauliflower)

2 Tblsp fresh or dried parsley

2 quarts low-sodium chicken broth or stock

6 Tblsp. all-purpose flour

2 cups whole milk (I used 2% to cut a little fat, and it was delicious...next time I may try 1%)

1 cup half-and-half

2 tsp. to 4 tsp. salt, to taste (I omitted this, and just added a little to our own bowls of soup)

1 cup (heaping) sour cream, room temperature

In a large soup pot or dutch oven, melt 4 Tblsp. butter. Add the onion and cook for a few minutes or until it starts to turn brown.

Add the carrots and celery and cook an additional couple of minutes. Add cauliflower and parsley and stir to combine.

Cover and cook over very low heat for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, pour in chicken stock and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer.

In a medium saucepan, melt 4 Tblsp. butter. Mix the flour with the milk and whisk to combine. Add flour-milk mixture slowly to the butter, whisking constantly. It should thicken up fairly quickly.

Remove from heat and stir in 1 cup half-and-half. Add mixture to the simmering soup. Allow to simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Check seasoning and add more salt or pepper if necessary.

Before serving, place the sour cream in a serving bowl or soup tureen. Add two or three ladles of hot soup into the tureen and stir to combine with the sour cream. Pour in remaining soup and stir.

Serve immediately.

Spicy Honey Chicken Salad

BTW I got this recipe from Our Best Bites

1-2 heads of romaine or red leaf lettuce

2 ripe but firm mangoes, chilled

2-3 ripe but firm avacados

thinly sliced red onions (optional)

Spicy Honey Chicken (from chicken section on left column)

Slice mangoes, avacados, and onions and place them on top of lettuce. When chicken is done cooking, wait 5 minutes before slicing to preserve the juices. Slice chicken and place on the salad. Cover salads with Honey-Citrus Vinaigrette and serve.

Honey-Citrus Vinaigrette

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 Tblsp. grated onion

1/3 cup fresh orange juice

3 Tblsp. fresh lime juice

2 Tblsp. honey

3/4 tsp. cumin

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. ground black pepper

1/2 cup vegetable oil

Place all ingredients in a tightly sealed jar and shake vigorously. Store in the fridge, and shake before dressing salad.

Spicy Honey Chicken

8 boneless skinless chicken thighs, about 2 lbs.

2 tsp. vegetable oil

Rub:

2 tsp. granulated garlic

2 tsp. chili powder

1/2 tsp. onion powder

1/2 tsp. coriander

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cumin

1/2 tsp. chipotle chili powder

Glaze:

1/2 cup honey

1 Tblsp. cider vinegar

Combine the rub spices in a bowl and mix well.

Use kitchen shears to trim off any excess fat from the chicken pieces. Pat dry. Drizzle oil over chicken and rub in with your hands to lightly coat all the pieces. Then toss chicken with the spice rub to coat all sides well. Use your hands to get them coated well. Grill for 3-5 minutes on each side, until cooked through.

While chicken is cooking, warm honey in the microwave so it's not so thick. Add the vinegar and combine well. Reserve 2 Tblsp. honey glaze for later. Take the rest and brush on both sides of chicken in the final moments of grilling. This will make a mess because it will drip, but it is worth it! Leave the grill on for a few minutes after to burn off any excess glaze. (You can also do this on an indoor grill if you prefer)

Once chicken is finished cooking, drizzle the 2 Tblsp. of reserved glaze over top.

Serve over rice or on a salad...delicious!

Rice Pudding

This is the best rice pudding recipe EVER!! If you cool it in the fridge before eating it, it tastes almost exactly like Kozy Shack rice pudding that you can buy in the refrigerated section at the grocery store. I could seriously eat a whole batch. The recipe is from Mel's Kitchen Cafe.

3/4 cup Arborio rice, rinsed

6 cups whole milk

2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup sugar

pinch of salt

1/4 cup heavy cream

In a medium saucepan, combine rice, milk, vanilla, sugar, and salt. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; reduce heat and simmer, stirring frequently, until rice is tender and liquid has absorbed, about 40-45 minutes. (It took mine between 1 hour and 1 hour 15 minutes: I didn't cover it while it simmered because her recipe didn't say to, but I wonder if I would have covered it if it would have been done in 40-45 minutes...maybe next time I'll try that)

Stir in heavy cream and serve warm, or chill it and then serve.

Hoisin Chicken Lettuce Wraps

This recipe is off of Mel's Kitchen Cafe, which is quickly becoming one of my favorite recipe blogs!!

1 Tblsp. canola oil

1 large red pepper, diced small

1 (10 oz.) package baby portebello mushrooms, diced small

2 garlic cloves, minced (or 1 tsp. minced garlic out of the jar)

2 average sized boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced small

1 (8 oz.) can water chestnuts, drained, diced small

2 tsp. teriyaki sauce (located by the soy sauce)

4 Tblsp. hoisin sauce

3 cups of hot cooked rice

romaine lettuce leaves

sesame seeds

scallions, thinly sliced

Heat oil over medium high heat in a large saute pan. Add red pepper and mushrooms and saute for 5-6 minutes until tender. Add garlic and saute an additional minute. Add chicken to pan and cook for 6-8 minutes or until cooked through. Stir chicken and red pepper mixture occasionally while it cooks. Add water chestnuts, teriyaki sauce and hoisin sauce and stir to coat the chicken and vegetables. Continue cooking until heated through.

To serve top pieces of romaine lettuce with a scoop of rice, some of the hoisin chicken, a sprinkle of sesame seeds and scallions, and (this is my addition) some soy sauce mixed with a few drops of La Yu chili sauce. Wrap it up and eat it.

Chicken Fajita Pita

This recipe came from the Platinum Wives Recipe blog, we loved it! I did make a couple of changes in measurements, but it's pretty much the same.

2 cloves garlic, minced (or 1+ tsp. minced garlic out of the jar)

3 Tblsp. oil

1 1/2 tsp. cumin

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, sliced into strips

1 1/2 cups green, red, and yellow peppers, cut into strips

1 small onion, diced

2 Tblsp. freshly squeezed lime juice (about 1 lime)

4 whole wheat pitas, cut in half

Toppings:

shredded cheese

shredded lettuce

diced tomatoes, or salsa

sour cream

diced avacados, or guacamole

In a large skillet heat oil, garlic, and cumin over medium heat. Add chicken; saute on each side 4-5 minutes or until tender. Add pepper strips, onion, and lime juice; saute 4 minutes. Spread chicken mixture on pita bread. Add desired toppings.

Copycat Spaghetti Factory's Mizithra Pasta with Browned Butter

This is the meal I used to order EVERY time I went to the Old Spaghetti Factory...I love it, but I don't think anyone else in my family really likes it, so I don't make it super often.

1 cup butter

1 cup Mizithra Cheese, grated

Spaghetti noodles (or pasta of your choice)

Cook the pasta as directed on package. I can't remember exactly how much I used, but my guess is about 1 lb. (I think I may have halved the recipe, so only 1/2 lb. pasta)

Meanwhile, cut 2 sticks of butter into 8 pieces, and place in a 2 quart saucepan. Place on burner on medium heat. Bring butter to a slow boil.

Once the butter begins to boil, stir constantly to prevent residue from sticking to the bottom of the pan. As the butter cooks, it will start to foam and rise. Continue stirring (about 5 minutes), otherwise the butter foam could overflow and catch fire.

Once the butter stops foaming and rising, cook until amber in color (about 1 to 2 minutes). It will have a pleasant caramel aroma.

Turn off the heat and remove pan from burner. Let the sediment settle to the bottom of the pan for a few minutes.

Pour the brown butter through a strainer into a small bowl. Do not disturb the sediment at the bottom of the pan.

The brown butter can be stored in the refrigerator and reheated in a microwave as needed.

Divide the cooked pasta and put a very small amount of browned butter and mizithra cheese over each serving. (A little sauce goes a long way in this a long way in this recipe...it will be ruined easily by putting too much sauce or mizithra on top).

Caramel Chex Mix

I got this from the Crazy Daisy Blog and made a batch for neighbors/visiting teachees for Christmas...it was delicious and I was just glad that most of it was given away before I ate it all!!

1 pound butter

3 cups brown sugar

1 cup white corn syrup

2 (14 oz.) boxes of Chex cereal (I used one corn and one rice)

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. baking soda

2 brown paper bags from your grocer's checkstand

First, open paper bags and place one inside of the other. Set aside. Cover table or counter top with wax paper. Spray with non-stick cooking spray. Bring the first three ingredients to a boil on the stove in a large kettle, stirring frequently so as not to burn. When everything is all melted and incorporated, take off of heat and add vanilla and baking soda. Stir until foamy. Pour over the double bagged Chex. Roll down top and shake well. microwave for 2 minutes and shake well. Microwave for 2 more minutes and shake again. Make sure to turn the bag on all sides each time you shake to spread the caramel. Open bag and check to make sure the caramel is spread evenly throughout the Chex. If not, shake it up again. However, you should be able to dump the Chex onto the sprayed wax paper. Gently spread the Chex a little. Give it a stir every once in a while as it cools, so that it doesn't dry in one huge clump.

Summer Rotini Salad

This recipe is from Favorite Family Recipes, and great to take to a summer barbeque!

1 pkg. tri-colored Rotini pasta (cooked to al dente...rinse with cold water)

1/2 bottle Italian dressing, or to taste (the recommended dressing is Kraft Light Zesty Italian with extra-virgin olive oil, 16 oz.)

1 Tblsp. lemon pepper (or to taste)

1-2 avocados, diced

2 tomatoes, diced (or 1 can petite diced tomatoes, drained well OR sun-dried tomatoes)

2 small cans sliced olives

5 sticks of string cheese, cut into circles

1 jar quartered artichoke hearts, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese (NOT grated)

Other things you could add:

cooked chicken, seasoned and diced

chopped broccoli

green or red bell pepper

onion

mushrooms

Toss all ingredients together in a large bowl until pasta is evenly coated in dressing. For best results, cover with plastic wrap and let sit in the fridge for at least 3-4 hours before serving.

Meditteranean Pasta

I got this recipe from allrecipes.com.

1 (8 oz.) package linguine pasta

3 slices bacon

1 lb. boneless chicken breast halves, cooked and diced

salt to taste

1 (14.5 oz.) can peeled and diced tomatoes with juice

1/4 tsp. dried rosemary

1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese

2/3 cup pitted black olives

1 (6 oz.) can artichoke hearts, drained

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add linguine and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.

Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until evenly brown, drain, crumble and set aside. (You may also use already cooked bacon if you want)

Season chicken with salt. Stir chicken with bacon in a large skillet or saucepan. Add tomatoes and rosemary, and simmer 20 minutes. Stir in feta cheese, olives and artichoke hearts and cook until heated through. Toss with fresh cooked pasta and serve warm. Garnish with extra feta if desired.

Honey Lime Fruit Salad

I got this recipe from Mel's Kitchen Cafe, it is SO good!

1 (20 oz.) can pineapple chunks, drained well

1 can mandarin oranges, drained well

2 - 3 ripe kiwi, peeled, and cut into thick half moons

1 cup green or purple grapes, halved

1 cup strawberries, quartered

zest from 1 lime, about 1 Tblsp.

2 Tblsp. honey

1 tsp. poppyseeds (optional)

Combine the fruit in a medium-large serving bowl. Add the lime zest, and poppyseeds, if using, and gently toss. Drizzle the honey over the fruit, and again, gently mix until fruit is evenly coated with the honey. Serve.

If not serving this salad immediately, don't put the strawberries in. They will stain all the other fruit red. The salad can be made ahead of time, just don't add the strawberries until right before serving.

Personal Pizzas

The kids had so much fun making their pizzas...the trick was to keep little hands from eating it all before we cooked them!

This is yet another picky eater recipe, my kids had so much fun doing this, and, in my opinion, these are much better than the kind you make with biscuits!

Rhodes frozen dinner rolls

cornmeal

Pizza sauce (I used tomato sauce seasoned with Italian seasoning)

toppings of your choice, which might include:

Shredded mozzarella cheese

Shredded cheddar cheese

Canadian bacon

Pineapple tidbits

Pepperoni slices

Chopped olives

Sliced mushrooms

Cooked Italian sausage

Diced green peppers

Shredded chicken

BBQ sauce

Onions

Set out the rolls a couple hours ahead of time to begin thawing (You can also quick thaw

them in the microwave, just be careful not to cook them). Preheat oven to 350 degrees. The dough should be pliable but still cold. Smash the dough flat on a plate and then let the children stretch each piece out into a wide circle or whatever shapes they like.

Set out all the toppings so the children can put the sauce on, then the cheese, then whatever else they want. Place 1/2 cup of cornmeal on a baking stone or cookie sheet. Spread to cover pan. Place pizzas atop the cornmeal on the stone or the cookie sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, or until dough is lightly browned on edges. Serve, then start all over again until everyone is full.

Enchilada Casserole

This is another recipe from the 52 weeks of recipes for picky kids...our whole family really likes this!! I make the entire recipe, but I freeze half of the meat mixture and half of the sour cream mixture and only make 6 enchiladas, because they are huge! Even with only half the recipe, we can usually eat it for two meals.

1 cup sour cream

2 (10.75 oz.) cans cream of chicken soup

1 (4.5 oz.) can chopped green chilies

1 can olives, sliced

1 lb. ground beef

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. ground black pepper

1 tsp. garlic salt

1/2 large yellow or sweet onion, chopped

1 (16 oz.) can refried beans

2 tsp. minced garlic

2 tsp. dried oregano

1 tsp. dried basil

1 Tblsp. cumin

1/2 cup fresh, chopped cilantro leaves

1 (10 oz.) can enchilada sauce

12 10" flour tortillas

1 pound mild cheddar cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine sour cream, soup, green chilies, and olives in a large bowl; set aside. In a large skillet over medium heat, brown ground beef with salt, pepper, garlic salt, onion, beans, garlic, oregano, basil, cumin, and fresh cilantro. Pour 1/2 of the enchilada sauce in a 9 x 13 inch baking dish; set aside. Fill the tortillas with 1 large tablespoon sour cream mixture, 1 large tablespoon meat mixture, and a handful of cheese. Fill all 12 tortillas and fold in sides. Roll up and place, seam side down, in casserole dish. Put remaining sour cream mixture on top of filled tortillas and the rest of the enchilada sauce. Top with remaining cheese. Bake for 35 minutes.

Panera's Cream Cheese Potato Soup

This is supposed to be a copycat recipe...I've never had Panera's soup, so I have no idea if it tastes the same, but it is good.

4 cups chicken broth

4 cups peeled and cubed potatoes

1/4 cup minced onion

1/2 tsp. seasoning salt

1/8 tsp. white pepper (original recipe calls for 1/4 tsp.)

1/8 tsp. ground red pepper (original recipe calls for 1/4 tsp.)

1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, cut into small chunks

Combine broth, potatoes, onions, and spices.

Boil on medium heat until potatoes are tender.

Smash a few of the potatoes to release their starch for thickening.

Reduce to low heat and add cream cheese.

Heat, stirring frequently, until cheese melts. Serve.

Potato Logs

3 large (or 5 small) russet potatoes

1 Tblsp. vegetable oil

1 tsp. seasoned salt

1 tsp. parsley flakes

1 tsp. garlic salt

1/4 cup grated Parmesan Cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Scrub, but don't peel, potatoes. Cut into thin wedges. Pour vegetable oil in 1 Ziploc bag. In a second Ziploc bag, combine seasoned salt, parsley flakes, garlic salt, and Parmesan cheese. Put a handful of potatoes into the sack with oil and shake to coat lightly. Transfer potatoes to the spice mixture and shake well. Place on a cookie sheet that has been coated with nonstick cooking spray. Bake 45 minutes, until softened, browned, and crispy. Serve with sour cream or ketchup.

Finger-Lickin' Good

I got this recipe out of this recipe book called 52 weeks of recipes for picky kids ($4.99 at Seagull Book), and my kids LOVED it.

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 (10-12 oz.) bag plain, BBQ, or sour cream and onion potato chips (I used BBQ)

1 egg

2 Tblsp. milk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut the chicken into finger-sized pieces. Fill a large Ziploc bag with the potato chips. Seal the bag and crush the chips very small with the back of a wooden spoon.

In a small bowl, whisk the egg and milk together. Dip the chicken pieces into the egg and then add to the Ziploc bag and shake to coat. Remove chicken from the bag and place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, flipping halfway through the cooking time. Serve with BBQ sauce, salsa, or honey mustard.