Monday, April 26, 2010

Honey-Pecan Crusted Chicken

*This Recipe comes from Cooking Light
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
4 (6-ounce) skinned chicken breast halves
8 (4-ounce) skinned chicken drumsticks
1/4 cup honey
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
3/4 tsp paprika
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/1/4 cups finely crushed cornflakes
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
Cooking spray

1.Preheat oven to 400
2.Sprinkle salt and pepper evenly over chicken. Combine honey, mustard, paprika, and garlic powder in a small bowl. Combine cornflakes and pecans in a shallow dish. Brush both sides of chicken with honey mixture;dredge in cornflake mixture.
3.Place chicken on a large baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Lightly coat chicken with cooking spray; bake at 400 for 40 to 45 minutes or until done.
Yield: 8 servings

Roasted Chicken

1 Whole Chicken
2 Celery stalks chopped
1 Onion chopped
3 Whole Garlic Cloves
4 Slices of Lemon

Rub:
½ cup of Butter melted
1 T Thyme
1 T crushed Rosemary
3 Garlic cloves crushed
1 tsp salt
½ tsp pepper

Stock:
2 Cans of Chicken Broth
2 Celery Stalks chopped
Giblets and neck bone
1 Carrot chopped
1 T Poultry seasoning
1 Onion
1 tsp salt
1 T Olive Oil

Preheat the oven to 350. Clean out the chicken and save all of the insides (except for the liver). Stuff the chicken with the celery, onion, garlic and lemons. Mix together the butter, thyme, rosemary, salt, pepper and garlic. Lift up the skin and pour 2/3 of the butter mixture over the inside of the chicken between the skin and the meat and around the thighs as well. Pour the remaining of the butter over the top of the chicken and rub all over. Place chicken in an oven bag and follow directions on bag. Cook the Chicken at 350 for 1 ½ or until the temperature of the chicken reads 180.

While chicken is cooking, heat a stock pan with oil. Add Giblets and bones to pan. Cook until browned on both sides. Add celery, onion, carrot, seasoning and salt. Cook until tender. Add Chicken broth and bring to a boil. Once boiling reduce heat to low and cover slightly with a lid. Simmer for 30 min. Turn of heat. This is what you are going to use to make the gravy.

Gravy:
¼ cup of butter
¼ flour
Stock
Drippings from chicken
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat butter until melted. Add flour cook and stir for about two minutes. Add stock, and drippings from chicken. Cook until thickened.

Homemade Granola

4 cups regular rolled oats
1 cup shredded coconut
3/4 cup regular wheat germ
3/4 cup chopped nuts
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup nonfat dry milk
1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup canola or vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 325 F. Grease a large cookie sheet with cooking spray; set aside. Combine the first 6 ingredients in a bowl; mix well. In a small saucepan, blend honey and oil; heat gently to dissolve honey. Pour honey-oil into the dry ingredients, stirring well to thoroughly coat and mix. Spread the mixture evenly over the baking pan and bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until toasted to your liking. As it bakes, stir the Granola with a spatula every 5 minutes. Cool well and store at room temperature in an airtight container.

(To Skip a few steps I melt the Honey and oil in the microwave for 30 sec. And I stir the mixture once in the middle of cooking time. I stir after I take it out of the oven.)

Homemade Rolls

3 Tbs Yeast
3 cups warm water
1/2 cup sugar
½ cup oil
2 eggs (slightly beaten)
2 ½ tsp salt
Eight cups flour

Combine yeast, water and sugar let sit for 15 min. Add oil, eggs and salt. Add the first six cups of flour let mix for 2 min. Add remaining cups of flour ½ cup at a time. The dough will be slightly sticky to the touch. Spray bowl with cooking spray add dough, cover and let rise for 30 min. Punch dough down. Shape dough into balls (a little bigger than a golf ball) Make tight balls out of the dough by pulling the dough tightly around and pinching it at the bottom. Spray 3 round 8 inch cake pans with cooking spray and place balls in pan (about 7 or 8 will fit). Space so they are close together but not touching. Cover and let rise for 30 min or doubled in size. Bake for 20-25 min at 375. I like to butter the tops right when they come out of the oven. Remove rolls from pan immediately and cool on cooling racks.

Friday, April 23, 2010

April Cooking Group: Munchy Jam Bars

April Cooking Group: Munchy Jam Bars

1 package yellow or white cake mix
2 cups crushed Corn Flakes cereal
1 cube soft butter
1 cup jam

Blend first 3 ingredients with a pastry blender. Reserve 1 1/2 cups for top. Press remaining mixture in greased 13x9 pan firmly and spread jam over the top. Sprinkle reserved crumbly mixture over top. Pat gently and bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes until light brown.

April Cooking Group: Potato Gnocci with Tomato Sauce

April Cooking Group: Potato Gnocci with Tomato Sauce

Potato Gnocchi
1 1/2 lbs. potatoes (peeled, cut in 1/4s)
1 1/4 c. flour, plus extra for kneading
1 Tbsp. butter
3/4 tsp. salt
1 egg

Boil potatoes and drain and mash. Add remaining ingredients and blend. Knead for 1-2 minutes with additional flour. Roll small amounts into "snakes" and cut in 1" pieces. Boil until they float and remove with a slotted spoon.

Gnocchi Sauce
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 cloves garlic
1 can crushed tomatoes (28 oz.)
2 tsp. dried basil
1/2-1 Tbsp. sugar, depending on preference
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

Saute onion and garlic in olive oil. Cook for 5 minutes. Add rest of ingredients and bring to a boil. Cover and let simmer 1 hour.

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Chocolate Marshmallow Rice Krispie Bars

Chocolate Marshmallow Rice Krispie Bars

1 package fudge brownie mix, family size

1 package miniature marshmallows (10 ½ oz)

1 ½ cup chocolate chips

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 T butter or margarine

1 ½ cup Rice Krispie cereal

Greased 9x13 pan

Prepare and bake brownies following package directions for original recipe. Remove from oven and sprinkle marshmallows on hot brownies. Return to oven. Bake 3 minutes longer. Place chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter in a medium saucepan. Cook on low heat, stirring constantly, until chips are melted. Add rice cereal; mix well. Spread mixture over marshmallow layer. Refrigerate until chilled and store in refrigerator.