Tonight I decided I wanted to make club sandwiches. But I wanted fancy ones like you get at restaurants. So I got fancy ingredients. 😛 I used toasted sourdough bread, thick cut peppered bacon, oven roast turkey from the deli, muenster cheese, red onion, large leaf lettuce, pickles, tomato and some mayo.  It was sooo yummy and was just like any you’d order at a restaurant. I’m pretty proud of myself. 😛

About a month ago, I decided it was finally time to redo the office and forever rid ourselves of the last room in the house with terrible 80’s wallpaper. So I stripped off all the wallpaper and painted. The window seat had really old, gross, pink carpet covering it. So I tore that off before I painted and just finally recovered it with new carpet yesterday.

The window shades are a project I actually did some months ago right after I got my sewing machine. I found some fabric I liked and cut it so there was about an inch left around the edges. Then little by little I sprayed a spray adhesive on the unrolled shade and put on the fabric, smoothing it out as I went. Then I used my sewing machine and sewed along the edges. All in all, it turned out pretty well.  I wish I would have chosen a fabric with a bigger pattern though.  I also should have gotten a lighter weight fabric than I did. Sometimes they don’t want to roll up too well, but the shades are pretty old and already had some issues to begin with, so maybe newer shades would work better.

I made this for dinner last night. I didn’t realize this is one of the recipes I’ve already made once before.  But it was just as good the second time around. It’s super easy to make too! The husband complained that there wasn’t enough chicken in it, but oh well.  And I forgot to put the green onions on. Booooo.

The Recipe:

1 1/2  pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed
1/3 cup hot sauce ( I used Frank’s Hot Sauce)
6 cups frozen southern-style hash brown potatoes, thawed
1 cup ranch dressing
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 (10 oz.) can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup crushed Corn Flakes or Ritz cracker crumbs ( I used corn flakes)
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/4 cup chopped green onions

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 13 x 9-inch baking dish with cooking spray. In medium bowl, stir together cubed chicken and hot sauce.  In large bowl, stir together potatoes, ranch dressing, cheese and soup. Spoon into baking dish. Place chicken over potato mixture.  In small bowl, stir together crumbs and butter. Sprinkle on top of chicken strips.  Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes; uncover and bake 20 to 25 minutes longer or until potatoes are tender and juice of chicken is no longer pink.  Sprinkle with green onions just before serving.

This is also something I made to take to Thanksgiving lunch at my Grandparent’s house and dinner with my dad.  They were super yummy, although some people thought they were really spicy.  My husband and I didn’t think so, but we like it hot, so maybe we just don’t notice.  Still, they turned out well and everyone liked them.

The Recipe:

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 cup chopped yellow onions
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 8 ounces ham, cubed ( I used thick cut slices of ham from the deli at the store)
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 1/2 pounds green beans, trimmed and halved

Add the oil in a medium, heavy saucepan. Add the onion and saute until tender, about 3 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, and cayenne. Add the ham, garlic, and beans. Add enough water to almost completely cover the beans. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 2 hours. Remove from the heat and serve with the cooking liquid.

I made this to take to Thanksgiving lunch at my Grandparent’s house. I was a little unsure if it would turn out well or not since I have never really made a pie that I’ve had to bake. But it was actually pretty easy and it was good too! I even made another one. 😛

The Recipe:

• 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 egg
• 1 (9 inch) prepared graham cracker crust

• 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 pinch ground cloves
• 1 pinch ground nutmeg
• 1/2 cup frozen whipped topping, thawed

  Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar and vanilla.  Beat until smooth. Blend in eggs one at a time. Remove 1 cup of batter and spread into bottom of crust; set aside.Add pumpkin, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg to the remaining batter and stir gently until well blended. Carefully spread over the batter in the crust. Bake in preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until center is almost set.  Allow to cool, then refrigerate for 3 hours or overnight. Cover with whipped topping before serving.

I tried this recipe out because I thought it sounded good and the Husband likes dark beer and we usually have some of his homebrew on hand. It looked and smelled really good until I put the beer in.  He really liked it, but I thought it tasted too beery (he didn’t taste it at all) and I’m not at all a fan of dark beer. So I sent a crockpot full with him to work. 😛 Maybe it would have been better using a not so strong tasting beer.

The Recipe:

• 2 potatoes, chopped
• 2 onions, chopped
• 3 celery ribs, chopped
• 1 1/2 cups baby carrots
• 2 cups cauliflower florets
• 6 cups water
• 6 chicken bouillon cubes

• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 (16 ounce) Velveeta cheese
• 2/3 cup Parmesan cheese
• 2/3 cup shredded Cheddar-Monterey Jack cheese blend
• 1 (12 fluid ounce) bottle dark beer

   

  Place the potatoes, onions, celery, carrots, and cauliflower in a food processor; puree until smooth. (I don’t have a food processor, so I did it in several batched in my Magic Bullet) Combine the vegetable mixture, water, bouillon cubes, Worcestershire sauce, pepper, and garlic in a large pot over medium heat. Cook until the the liquid reduces to about 1/2 its original volume, about 90 minutes. Add the processed cheese, Parmesan cheese, Cheddar-Monterey Jack cheese, and beer; heat until the cheese is completely melted. Serve immediately. I topped it with bacon bits and green onions.

I made this for dinner tonight, and was pleasantly surprised at how good they were. I kind of was just expecting them to be meh. But they were more flavorful than I thought they would be. Really pretty simple to throw together as well.

The Recipe:

• 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast, boiled and shredded
• 8 square wonton wrappers
• 2 tablespoons BBQ sauce
• 2 tablespoons sesame ginger dressing
• 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro leaves( I didn’t have any, so I left it out)
• 2 tablespoons Mexican cheese
• cooking spray
• 1 red chili pepper, seeded and sliced

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a bowl, combine shredded chicken, BBQ sauce, sesame ginger dressing, cilantro, and Mexican cheese together. In the center of wonton wrapper, place about 1 or 2 tablespoonful of the chicken mixture and pinch two edge corners together. Repeat with the remaining mixture and wrappers. Place prepared wraps on to greased baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the wrappers are golden brown and crispy. Sprinkle with chili red pepper and serve with sesame ginger dressing if desired.

Had this recipe planned for dinner last night, then realized I needed a Dutch oven to cook it. So we had to run out and buy one real quick. I love my new cooking toy. 😛 But anyways, this was reaaally good. I wasn’t sure about the colcannon at first, but it was good. The only thing I would change next time would be to add more carrots.  The husband suggested mushrooms and more cabbage in the potatoes. I don’t think so. Mushrooms are disgusting. 😛 The hubs and I both ended up eating seconds of this one and leftovers for lunch today. Yum.

The Recipe:

Irish Stew:

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 (3 pound) beef chuck roast, trimmed of fat and cut into 1/2-inch cubes( I had a 2 lb. eye of round on hand, so I used that)
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup coarsely chopped onion
• 1 cup coarsely chopped carrot
• 1 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle dark beer
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

  Calcannon:

• 2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
• 2 cups thinly sliced cabbage
• 1/4 cup milk, warmed
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley( I used about a teaspoon or so of dried parsley flakes)

   

  Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).

  Heat the vegetable oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until very hot, and brown the meat in 2 batches, stirring to brown the cubes on all sides. Return all the meat to the Dutch oven, sprinkle with flour, and stir lightly to coat the meat with flour. Stir in onion, carrots, dark beer, bay leaves, thyme, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, garlic, and Worcestershire sauce. Bring the mixture to a boil, and cover.

  Place the Dutch oven into the preheated oven, and cook for 45 minutes; uncover, stir the stew, and cook until the beef is very tender and the liquid is reduced by half, about 45 more minutes.

  About 30 minutes before the stew is ready, make the colcannon: Place the potatoes into a large pot and cover with salted water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain and allow to steam dry for a minute or two.

  Place the cabbage into a microwave-safe bowl, and add 1 or 2 tablespoons of water. Cover and microwave on High for about 2 1/2 minutes; uncover (watch out for steam) and stir the cabbage. Cover and microwave for about 2 1/2 more minutes, until the cabbage is slightly tender but not mushy. Drain excess liquid, and set the cabbage aside, covered.

  Place the potatoes into a large bowl, and add milk, butter, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper. Beat the potatoes with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Stir in the cabbage, crumbled bacon, and parsley until well combined.

  To serve, place a scoop of colcannon onto a plate, make a hollow, and fill with braised beef stew.

I made this for dinner last week. I had been in the mood for pasta. It wasn’t quite as flavorful and I had hoped, but it was still good. I sprinkled on a little extra Cajun seasoning and we were good to go.

The Recipe:

• 1 (16 ounce) package linguine pasta
• 1 pound chicken breast, cut into bite size pieces( I marinated mine in lime juice and cayenne pepper seasoning overnight)
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/3 cup diced red onion
• 1/3 cup diced sweet red bell pepper

• 1/2 cup canned whole kernel corn, drained
• 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon canned chipotle chile peppers in adobo sauce, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 cup half-and-half

  Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add linguine and cook until done, 8 to 10 minutes; drain .Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook chicken until no longer pink and stir in garlic, and red onion, cook until the onion softens and turns translucent, about 4 minutes. Stir in bell pepper, corn, lime juice, cilantro, oregano, chipotle pepper, and salt. Stir in the half-and-half, and bring to a simmer. Toss with the drained pasta and serve.

   

Tried this recipe out a few months ago. It was pretty good, and even Kaden ate it.

The Recipe:

• 1/2 pound whole grain pasta such as rotini
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 1/2 cups diced onion
• 1 large clove garlic, minced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 2 jalapenos, seeded and chopped
• 3 ears of corn, kernels removed
• 1/4-1/3 cup all purpose flour {depending on how much liquid the veggies give off}
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• salt & pepper, to taste
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese
• 2 cups chopped rotisserie chicken
• 1 1/2 cups crushed tortilla chips

Boil a large pot of water and cook the pasta for half the time recommended on the box. Drain and set aside. In the same hot pot, melt butter and saute onions, garlic, peppers, jalapenos and corn until tender, 7 minutes or so. Sprinkle in flour and stir. Cook 2 minutes, then pour in chicken stock. Increase heat to thicken sauce, then sprinkle in cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper, cheeses, cream, chicken and cooked pasta. Stir to combine and pour into large casserole dish. Top with crushed tortilla chips and bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Serve.