Almond Bars!

One of my most favorite tastes EVER is almond! Anything with marzipan or amaretto immediately grabs my attention! So this little gem of a recipe jumped out at me. It's quick to throw together and always gets raves... if you like almonds. :)

Almond Bars
4 eggs
2 c. sugar
1 c. butter (salted), melted
2 c. flour
2 1/2 tsp. almond extract
Sliced almonds (optional)

1.  In a mixing bowl, beat eggs and sugar until lemon-colored.
2.  Add butter, flour and extract; mix well.
3.  Spread into a greased 9x13 pan, and sprinkle sliced almonds on top. Bake at 325 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack. (Recipe suggests sprinkling with powdered sugar, but I omit that and just go for the sliced almonds).

My mouth is watering!

Chicken Dinners

Lately, I've been liking to do the 2-meals-in-1 thing... saves some time on prep for another meal! As I was flipping through my "Our Best Bites" cookbook, I found a duo that my family loved!

1.  Meal one was easy-- put a whole chicken (insides emptied, chicken rinsed & dried) in a crockpot. I rubbed mine with season salt and stuffed sliced garlic cloves between the skin and the meat. (Book suggests getting foil and making 3 2-inch balls to form a triangle at the bottom of the crockpot to sit the chicken on top of so air will circulate while cooking, which I did.) Cook for 6-7 hours on low. AFTER TAKING 2 CUPS OF SHREDDED CHICKEN AWAY AND STORING IN THE FRIDGE FOR ANOTHER MEAL, I served the remaining chicken with salad for my husband and I, and with mac 'n cheese for the kids... possibilities are endless.

2.  Meal two was more of the tasty one and motivation for the first, so let me share!

Creamy Chicken Taquitos

1/3 c. (3 oz.) cream cheese
1/4 c. green salsa
1 tbsp. fresh lime juice
1/2 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp. granulated garlic (which is equivalent to 1 clove of garlic)
3 tbsp. chopped cilantro
2 tbsp. chopped green onions
2 c. cooked, shredded chicken
1 c. shredded pepper jack cheese (I used monterey jack--for the kids)
corn tortillas

Heat cream cheese in the microwave for 20-30 seconds so it's soft and easy to stir. Add in next 6 ingredients and stir to combine. Add in cilantro, green onions, chicken and cheese and stir.
*For my kids, I did a separate batch where I omitted the green salsa, cilantro, and green onions--they don't like "green things" or onions in their foods.

I put about 10 tortillas in my tortilla warmer at a time, with a splash of water, and microwaved for about 45 seconds.

 If you don't have a warmer, you can wrap 3-4 tortillas in damp paper towels and microwave for 20-30 seconds so they are soft and pliable. If tortillas crack when rolling, use damper towels and more microwave time.

Place 2-3 tablespoons of chicken mixture on the lower third of each tortilla, and roll it up.
This recipe says you can BAKE these at 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray it lightly with cooking spray. Place seam-side down in a single layer and spray the tops lightly with cooking spray or brush with vegetable oil. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until crisp and ends start to get golden brown. My husband convinced me to do it right and FRY them in oil on the stove-top...  We don't fry much so why not?! If you choose to fry, warm about an inch of oil in a frying pan over medium-high and when it's hot, place the taquitos in oil, seam-side down. It doesn't take long to fry the tortillas and warm the insides, maybe 1 minute. When you flip it over, the seam should be securely attached, and a golden yellow color. When taking them out of the oil with tongs, let the oil drip out of the ends, then place on a paper-toweled (I made up that adjective) plate.

Since I already had the green salsa, cilantro and limes for this meal, I went ahead and made THIS dressing to go on a side salad and to dip the taquitos in. YUM!! Guacamole, sour cream, salsa... you pick!

Salmon Chowder

It's finally soup weather here in Texas, so I was excited to make it all day! My husband requested Salmon Chowder, which I have made before from a recipe from my sister. I adjusted it to our tastes/what I had, and we loved it even more, so here is the new and improved soup:

Salmon Chowder
3 tbsp. butter
3/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 tsp. garlic powder
2 cups diced potatoes
2 carrots, diced
2 cups chicken broth
1 1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. dill weed
1 tbsp. corn starch
1 (6 oz.) can salmon, skinless & boneless
1 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk
1 cooked corn on the cob, kernels cut off
4 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

Melt butter in large pot over medium heat. Saute onion, celery, and garlic powder until onions are tender. Stir in potatoes, carrots, broth, salt, pepper, and dill weed. Bring to a boil, and reduce heat. Cover and simmer 20 minutes. In a small bowl mix the corn starch and about 1 tbsp. of cold water to a smooth consistency. Add to the soup and stir in. Stir in salmon, evaporated milk, corn and cheese and cook until heated through and thickened.

Pumpkin Smoothie

I found the Pioneer Woman's recipe for Pumpkin Smoothie's and couldn't wait to try it. It calls for a 15 oz. can of pumpkin pie filling, but I could only find the 29 oz. cans in my store, so I bought a 15 oz. can of pure pumpkin puree. I tried it today and loved it, though my ingredients and quantities differed some. Here's what I threw together (and my version is healthier!):

15 oz. can pure pumpkin puree
3 cups 2% milk
1/2-1 cup vanilla yogurt
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1/2 cup sugar (or less, to taste)

AT LEAST A FEW HOURS BEFORE, put the pumpkin puree in a small freezer-safe dish and place in the freezer. This gives it the icy texture needed for smoothies.

Pull out the pumpkin and scoop it into the blender. I actually only used about 2/3 of the can and it was plenty pumpkiny for me. It wasn't all that "icy" so if you like thickness in a drink, you could add some ice. Add the rest of the ingredients to the blender and blend. Simple, quick and delicious! No pictures because my friends and I drank them up too quickly. :)

Pumpkin Bread

PUMPKIN bars, PUMPKIN cobbler, PUMPKIN custard, PUMPKIN cheesecake... so much to do this season!  PUMPKIN bread was the first this fall, and what a fabulous start! It was my meal for breakfast, lunch and snacks in-between until it was gone. Perfect combo of spices, and dense and sweet... what's there not to like?! 

Pumpkin Chocolate-Chip Loaf

3 c. flour
3 c. sugar
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cloves
1 tsp. allspice
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 c. oil
4 eggs
2/3 c. water
2 c. canned pumpkin
12 oz. bag chocolate chips

Mix everything together except pumpkin and chocolate chips. Mix well. Add pumpkin and mix. Fold in chocolate chips. Divide mixture between two greased and floured 9x5x3" loaf pans.
Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Might make a great gift for someone if you can handle not eating it all. :) Enjoy!

Flan

Mexican food is one of my favorites, and the desserts are surely included! Flan doesn't taste like it should be this easy to make, but it is! All it takes is:

3/4 c. sugar

1 can (12 fl. oz) evaporated milk

1 can (14 fl. oz.) sweetened condensed milk

4 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

 Heat sugar in small, heavy-duty saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, about 5 minutes or until dissolved and caramel colored. Quickly poor onto bottom of deep-dish 9-inch pie plate; swirl around bottom and sides to coat.

Combine all other ingredients in a blender. Blend until well mixed and pour into the prepared pie plate.

Fill a roasting pan with warm water to about 1-inch depth. Place the pie plate in the roasting pan. (The water provides an even, moderate temperature, so the eggs won't curdle.)

 

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Remove flan from water. (This can be tricky since the water and pie plate are hot. You can use a ladle to remove water before taking out flan... just be careful.) Cool. Refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight. When you are ready to serve the flan, run a small spatula or knife around the edge of the pie plate. Invert serving plate over the pie plate, and flip it over (shaking gently to release). The caramelized sugar forms the sauce on top of the flan. 

¡buen provecho

Banana Muffins

What a glorious sight! When my bananas look like these (or even black), my mind immediately goes to my mom's banana muffin recipe. I make them for breakfast or an after-school snack... my whole family loves them!

Ingredients
3 ripe bananas (large)
1 stick of butter
1 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 1/4 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease muffin tins. Mash the bananas on a plate with a fork and set aside.

Add butter to mixing bowl and beat in sugar for about 2 minutes or until it looks whipped. 

Add eggs and mix lightly.  Add baking soda, flour and mashed bananas to the mixer and mix until well incorporated. If I only have 2 bananas, I use a little applesauce to fill in for the 3rd.

Fill the muffin tins about 3/4 full, and bake for 20-25 minutes. If you use mini-muffin tins, bake for 13-15 minutes. Let cool a little, then pop them out of the tin and enjoy!! I like them plain, but my mom would eat with a smear of butter, peanut butter or cream cheese. You pick... bananas have lots of friends!