I just invented my own taco dip. It doesn't look great, but it's absolutely delicious and Alex and I both love it.
1 lb ground beef
1 cup water
1 packet of taco seasoning
1 cup of cream cheese, softened
Approx. 325 mL mild salsa*
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
In a large skillet, brown ground beef, drain. Add water and taco seasoning, cook until almost all water is gone. Add cream cheese, salsa and shredded cheese and mix well. Continue mixing over heat until cream cheese and cheddar cheeses are melted and mixed thoroughly. Remove from heat and let sit for a few minutes. Serve with nacho chips.
*I used about half of a large jar (650 mL) of salsa. So one small jar or half a large jar will do.
Thursday, 31 January 2013
Thursday, 10 January 2013
Alfredo Casserole
First post of 2013! I hope everyone had a great holiday season and is getting back to normal. I cheated a bit with this recipe (used a bottled sauce instead of making one from scratch) but it was seriously awesome.
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced into small bite sized pieces
5 large mushrooms, chopped
2 1/2 cups of pasta (I used small shells, but other pasta would work too)
1 jar (410 mL) of Classico Alfredo and Roasted Garlic sauce
1 1/2 - 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
Preheat oven to 350F.
In a pot, cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook diced chicken in olive oil until white on all sides, then add mushrooms and cook another 3-5 minutes.
When pasta is cooked, drain it and add it to the chicken/mushrooms and stir. Then pour in the jar of sauce and mix thoroughly.
Transfer mixture to a casserole dish and cover with shredded cheese. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. Let sit 3-5 minutes before serving.
*One thing we noticed after baking was that the sauce had gotten really thick and kind of dry. So I would recommend either using two jars of sauce, or just one jar of sauce but adding 1/2 cup water as well, to keep it saucier.
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced into small bite sized pieces
5 large mushrooms, chopped
2 1/2 cups of pasta (I used small shells, but other pasta would work too)
1 jar (410 mL) of Classico Alfredo and Roasted Garlic sauce
1 1/2 - 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
Preheat oven to 350F.
In a pot, cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook diced chicken in olive oil until white on all sides, then add mushrooms and cook another 3-5 minutes.
When pasta is cooked, drain it and add it to the chicken/mushrooms and stir. Then pour in the jar of sauce and mix thoroughly.
Transfer mixture to a casserole dish and cover with shredded cheese. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. Let sit 3-5 minutes before serving.
*One thing we noticed after baking was that the sauce had gotten really thick and kind of dry. So I would recommend either using two jars of sauce, or just one jar of sauce but adding 1/2 cup water as well, to keep it saucier.
Sunday, 23 December 2012
Macaroons
Just about every Christmas, my mom makes these cookies. This year, I asked her for the recipe so I could make them. They are, I think, my favorite cookies ever. And they are so easy!
2/3 cup condensed milk
3 cups shredded coconut
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Mix ingredients thoroughly. Drop by teaspoon onto a well greased baking sheet (or if you're like me and use parchment paper on your baking sheets, grease the paper first). Bake in a 350F oven for 8-10 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from baking sheet immediately to cool.
2/3 cup condensed milk
3 cups shredded coconut
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Mix ingredients thoroughly. Drop by teaspoon onto a well greased baking sheet (or if you're like me and use parchment paper on your baking sheets, grease the paper first). Bake in a 350F oven for 8-10 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from baking sheet immediately to cool.
Wednesday, 19 December 2012
Candy Cane Sugar Cookies
I wanted to make a special Christmas treat to bring to our staff Christmas party, and after much deliberation, I decided to take my sugar cookie recipe (which is the best sugar cookie I've ever had) and alter it a bit. The result is candy cane sugar cookies.
Here's the recipe. Much of it is the same as my Easy Sugar Cookies from November 2011, but so you don't have to go back and forth, I'll just post it all here. :)
2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon mint extract
5 peppermint (red and white) candy canes, crushed
Preheat oven to 375F.
In a small bowl, mix flour, baking soda and baking powder. Set aside.
In another bowl, mix sugar and butter until smooth. Beat in egg, vanilla and mint. Gradually blend in dry ingredients. Take rounded teaspoons of dough (I used more as I didn't want to make a huge amount of cookies) and place them on parchment paper on a baking sheet, flattening them. Sprinkle with the crushed candy canes, lightly pushing the bigger pieces of candy cane into the cookies.
Bake 8-10 minutes (12-14 minutes for bigger cookies like mine) or until golden brown. Let sit on cookie sheets for two minutes before removing to cool on a wire rack.
*I debated using 1 teaspoon of mint extract instead of just a 1/2 teaspoon, but decided against it as I didn't want the mint to be too overpowering, and since I was putting candy canes on them I thought it would be a bit much. However, if you try this and would prefer more mint, try them with 1 teaspoon and tell me how they turn out!
Here's the recipe. Much of it is the same as my Easy Sugar Cookies from November 2011, but so you don't have to go back and forth, I'll just post it all here. :)
2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon mint extract
5 peppermint (red and white) candy canes, crushed
Preheat oven to 375F.
In a small bowl, mix flour, baking soda and baking powder. Set aside.
In another bowl, mix sugar and butter until smooth. Beat in egg, vanilla and mint. Gradually blend in dry ingredients. Take rounded teaspoons of dough (I used more as I didn't want to make a huge amount of cookies) and place them on parchment paper on a baking sheet, flattening them. Sprinkle with the crushed candy canes, lightly pushing the bigger pieces of candy cane into the cookies.
Bake 8-10 minutes (12-14 minutes for bigger cookies like mine) or until golden brown. Let sit on cookie sheets for two minutes before removing to cool on a wire rack.
*I debated using 1 teaspoon of mint extract instead of just a 1/2 teaspoon, but decided against it as I didn't want the mint to be too overpowering, and since I was putting candy canes on them I thought it would be a bit much. However, if you try this and would prefer more mint, try them with 1 teaspoon and tell me how they turn out!
Tuesday, 27 November 2012
Italian Chicken Casserole
This is something I threw together tonight and it is delicious. I'd like to think it's fairly good for you too, and really simple to make. There is a bit of prep work, but not anything unreasonable. I think, if you wanted to do a dairy-free version, you could probably figure something else to put on the top instead of the cheese, but that would be up to your own preferences. You could also use other peppers (such as red or orange) in addition to the green, for more color.
1 medium onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely diced
3 chicken breasts, skinned and boned, cut into small bite sized pieces
2 cups pasta (your choice)
1 cup Italian dressing (regular, not zesty)
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
Preheat oven to 350F
Cook pasta according to directions on the package, drain
Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook chicken in about 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil (or other oil of your choice) until cooked. Add onion, green pepper and garlic and cook for an additional 3-5 minutes, stirring frequently.
Add cooked pasta and Italian dressing and mix well. Pour into a casserole dish (I used my 2 quart dish and this took up about half the dish, so use what you have).
Cover evenly with the shredded mozzarella cheese and then bake in the preheated oven for 20-30 minutes (until cheese is melted and starting to brown a bit).
Allow to sit/cool for 5 minutes before eating.
1 medium onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely diced
3 chicken breasts, skinned and boned, cut into small bite sized pieces
2 cups pasta (your choice)
1 cup Italian dressing (regular, not zesty)
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
Preheat oven to 350F
Cook pasta according to directions on the package, drain
Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook chicken in about 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil (or other oil of your choice) until cooked. Add onion, green pepper and garlic and cook for an additional 3-5 minutes, stirring frequently.
Add cooked pasta and Italian dressing and mix well. Pour into a casserole dish (I used my 2 quart dish and this took up about half the dish, so use what you have).
Cover evenly with the shredded mozzarella cheese and then bake in the preheated oven for 20-30 minutes (until cheese is melted and starting to brown a bit).
Allow to sit/cool for 5 minutes before eating.
Saturday, 17 November 2012
Cheesecake
At the moment, we can't tell you how this turned out, as it's the first time I'm making it and it's still in the oven (and we can't even eat it tonight...), so I will update this tomorrow after we've tried it. However, the recipe is dead simple and looks/smells awesome. Picture below is the cheesecake just before I put it in the oven.
1 1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup melted butter or margarine
3 packages (250 g each) cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
Preheat oven to 350F.
Mix crumbs and melted butter or margarine. Press firmly onto the bottom/sides of a 9" pie plate (or onto just the bottom of a 9" spring form pan)
Beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add eggs one at a time and mix until blended. Pour into crust.
Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until centre is almost set. Cool completely, then refrigerate for 3 hours or overnight. Garnish with whatever topping(s) suit your fancy and serve.
1 1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup melted butter or margarine
3 packages (250 g each) cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
Preheat oven to 350F.
Mix crumbs and melted butter or margarine. Press firmly onto the bottom/sides of a 9" pie plate (or onto just the bottom of a 9" spring form pan)
Beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add eggs one at a time and mix until blended. Pour into crust.
Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until centre is almost set. Cool completely, then refrigerate for 3 hours or overnight. Garnish with whatever topping(s) suit your fancy and serve.
Hashbrown Patties
Another made-up-by-Alex recipe, something he just did yesterday and dear lord are they ever good.
3 medium potatoes
3 tbsp canola oil (at least)
Peel and wash potatoes. Shred with a standard grater (just like if you're shredding cheese).
Meanwhile heat a cast iron skillet with the oil.
Take 1/3 of the shredded potatoes and press firmly into a patty (we use a plastic hamburger maker device we have, but you could use whatever you would use to make hamburger patties). Continue until you have 3 potato patties.
Gently place the patties in the skillet. Cook on medium high heat for 5 minutes, then flip and cook for 5 minutes on the other side. Remove and use paper towel to soak up excess oil. Serve immediately. I like them with just a bit of salt on them, both Charlie and Alex eat them with ketchup.
3 medium potatoes
3 tbsp canola oil (at least)
Peel and wash potatoes. Shred with a standard grater (just like if you're shredding cheese).
Meanwhile heat a cast iron skillet with the oil.
Take 1/3 of the shredded potatoes and press firmly into a patty (we use a plastic hamburger maker device we have, but you could use whatever you would use to make hamburger patties). Continue until you have 3 potato patties.
Gently place the patties in the skillet. Cook on medium high heat for 5 minutes, then flip and cook for 5 minutes on the other side. Remove and use paper towel to soak up excess oil. Serve immediately. I like them with just a bit of salt on them, both Charlie and Alex eat them with ketchup.
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