KombatKween's Chicken Pot Pie

I saw this recipe on a forum somewhere, and thought I'd post it here. It looks yummy and easy, and as I have recently aquired a ginormous turkey that needs to be cooked and eaten, I will have plenty of meat to put in this bad boy.

6 Tbsp butter
6 Tbsp flour
2 c chicken broth
1 c heavy cream or half & half
2 c veggies (corn, peas, carrots), you can use canned with the liquid drained off
2 chicken breasts, cooked and cut up
4 white potatoes, cubed small and cooked
2 pie crusts

Melt butter in a pot and stir in flour to form a thick paste. Add salt and peppers. Stir in cream and chicken broth. Cook on a simmer until thick.
Add veggies, potatoes and chicken. Pour into pie crust, top with the other. Poke holes in the top to vent.
Cook at 375 for 35 to 45 minutes.If you double the ingredients, you can make 3 pies or 2 really full ones.

Crunchy Fruit Salad

1 banana

1 kiwi

4 or 5 strawberries (depending on size)

1/2 red delicious apple

1 11 oz. can mandarin oranges in light syrup, drained and rinsed

1/4 to 1/2 vanilla yogurt (you can increase or decrease amount based on personal preference)

Grape nuts

Cut the strawberries, kiwi, banana and apple to the desired size and mix in a bowl with the oranges and yogurt. Add some grape nuts and there you have it! A cool, healthy and delicious snack or dessert!

Mini Margarita Pies

1 pkg Refrigerated Sugar Cookie Dough (Pillsbury or Nestle break and bake 20 count)
1 pkg cream cheese
1/3 cup sugar
1 or 2 limes
8 oz container of cool whip
Pretzels (optional)
Strawberries (Optional for garnish)

Cut each of the dough cookies in half. Roll into a ball and place in Mini Muffin Pan. Press with floured Mini Tart Shaper (or something that will form them into little pie crusts). Bake cookies at 375 for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool for about 1 minute, then REPRESS because they will start to collapse.
Remove from Pan to Cooling Rack. Meanwhile, combined softened cream cheese with powdered sugar. Zest lime. Cut lime in half and press with Citrus Press. (Add both limes if you prefer lots of lime flavor!) Mix it all together. Add in Cool Whip. Pipe filling into cups however you can get it in there. If desired, add chopped pretzels to cup before filling (to add a bit of salty flavor), OR stick a pretzel stick into each cup. Garnish with strawberry slice if desired

stalking led to this!

Oreo Cookie Balls - it looks so good!

http://sakurakokitsa.blogspot.com/2007/12/coveted-oreo-ball-recipe.html

Maple Salmon

This recipe is awesome for people who would like to eat more fish but can't stand the fishy taste! Sugar snap peas go great with this recipe!

INGREDIENTS:
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 pound salmon

DIRECTIONS:
In a small bowl, mix the maple syrup, soy sauce, garlic, garlic salt, and pepper.
Place salmon in a shallow glass baking dish, and coat with the maple syrup mixture. Cover the dish, and marinate salmon in the refrigerator 30 minutes or longer depending on how strong you want the flavor to be, turning once.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
Place the baking dish in the preheated oven, and bake salmon uncovered 20 minutes, or until easily flaked with a fork.

Tapatio

Tapatio is very possibly the most wonderful condiment sauce in the world. Of course, all my Latino friends have known about it forever, it is just recently that I have discovered the beauty of such a great sauce.
1. It's spicy.
2. It's not TOO spicy.
3. It's Tangy.
4. It surpassed Tabasco as my father's favorite condiment=Big Deal.
5. It's perfect for fake blood.
6. It tastes good with pretty much everything.

Now, for breakfast:

1 Tortilla (Trader Joe's "homemade" tortillas)
2 Eggs (scrambled)
Enough grated cheese. (Trader Joe's Jalapeno Pepper Jack or any sharp cheddar)
TAPATIO

Warm up the tortilla in a hot pan (no oil) and scramble the eggs. put the cheese on the tortilla until slightly melted. Add egg. Add liberal amounts of Tapatio. A perfect breakfast.

Optional: Add a couple of spoons of Corn and Black Bean Salsa that marina posted awhile ago. It's divine.

Chicken Adobo in Tangy Coconut Sauce

1 lb boneless chicken, cut up
1 bay leaf
1 tsp grated fresh ginger
2 TBSP soy sauce
3 cloves garlic
1/2 c rice vinegar
4 green jalapenos or 1/2 habanero finey chopped
1 1/2 tsp black peppercorns
3 Tbsp Veggie Oil
1/2 C coconut milk

Put everything EXCEPT the veggie oil and coconut milk in the cast iron skillet and turn heat to high. Once bubbly, turn to low and let simmer till chicken is cooked, about 15 minute. Drain the liquid. SAVE IT.

In a wok, or in the skillet, heat the veggie oil over med/high heat. Cook the chicken till golden brown, about 3 minutes. Add the liquid from before. Bring to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer. Let simmer about 20-30 minutes, or until most liquid is gone. Now add coconut milk, and heat until warm, 3-4 minutes. Serve hot, maybe with rice?

Hello Spring! - Lemon-Basil Risotto

Welcoming spring always seems best done with food...

However, after an exhausting week and un-restful weekend, I woke from a 3 hour nap on Easter Sunday afternoon with no idea what to make for dinner, and very little energy with which to whip up something appropriate for the occasion.

Thank goodness for having trekked to farmer's market Sunday Morning! After digging through the pantry and assembling a pile of fresh goodies picked in the fields mere hours before, I found that I had more than enough for a simple and delicious dish that tasted entirely of springtime.

*Note the giant peep bunny supervising in the background - a plush toy that somehow found it's way into the household and has tricked many a sweet-toothed guest*

There can be many variations on this same theme, and the basic template for this risotto is as follows:

• 1-2 cups chopped greens (rainbow chard, spinach, kale...)
• 2 cups water
• 2-3 cloves crushed/minced garlic (a handful of chopped onions would fit well here too)
• 4 tbls extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cups (14 oz) arborio rice
• 1/3 cup dry white wine
• 4 cups stock (your preference, I used chicken)
• grated rind and juice of 1 lemon
• salt and freshly ground pepper
• a hearty handful chopped fresh basil (no basil? try a smaller handful of parsley, thyme, rosemary...maybe a few spoonfuls of pesto...)
• optional top-secret nontraditional ingredient - 1 stalk lemongrass, trimmed to pale green-white section, tough outer leaves removed, smashed slightly with the flat of a knife then cut into approx. 1 inch sections
• more extras - 2 tbls butter, grated Parmesan cheese
  

Bring water to a boil (depending on the size of your steamer, you may need to start with half of the water and add more as it boils off) add optional lemongrass. Over this, steam the chopped greens - when greens are just wilted and tender, remove from heat and set aside. Reserve the two cups water, and add to it the 4 cups of stock - keep this mixture at a simmer.



In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan, saute the garlic/onion in the oil over medium-high heat until it is soft. Add the steamed greens and cook for about 1 minute. Increase the heat slightly and add the rice; stir for 2 minutes. Add the wine, and when it has been absorbed, gradually add just enough boiling stock to barely cover the rice.


Now, all that is required is patience. Stir frequently - as the liquid is absorbed, gradually add more.

After about 10 minutes, add the lemon rind, stirring well.

(I have found with risotto that the trick is to hover. Watch closely and you will see that the process begins slowly, and you will wonder if that much rice can possibly absorb that much liquid, but as soon as you see the rice begin to soften and expand, it will become easier and easier to tell when to stir and when to add more liquid. Towards the end of about 15-18 minutes, absorption will slow, and it is often best to turn off the heat just after adding the last ladle-full of stock. Keep stirring!)

After the last of the stock, add butter, grated cheese, lemon juice, basil, salt and pepper to taste. A slight drizzle of balsamic vinegar can add a nice twist, and I have to admit, it was hard not to wish for some grilled salmon alongside. Next time!

Tirmimousse

(another TJ's recipe)
(also, I don't HAVE my cookbook, so I'm going to try to remember the recipe but it might change after I get it back from my friend)

You will need:
1/2 tub mascarpone cheese
2 tbs Marsala wine
Approx 14 oz of DARK chocolate (I used 71% cocoa)
Instant coffee
2 TBS hot water
1 pint heavy whipping creme

I *think* that is everything. Use the water to turn the instant coffee into coffee. Blend together everything except the chocolate in a blender or food processor. Melt the chocolate. I put the chocolate in a glass bowl, and put the bowl in a pot of hot/boiling water. When the cocoa is melted, dump it into the mixture and stir it until everything is a melty gooodness. Dump it into glasses and refridgerate for 2+ hours. If you would like, garnish with a strawberry or a chocolate truffle from Trader joes!

Steph's Super Fantastic Apple Pie

Pie crust for 9" pie plate-you'll need top and bottom
5 large or 7 small Rome apples, sliced
1 c. sugar
1 tbsp. ground cinnamon
6 slices of butter

Slice Rome apples and arrange into 1st layer in pie shell.
Mix sugar and cinnamon in a bowl (mixture should be dark) and sprinkle mixture over sliced apples.
Repeat until apples are slightly taller than the top of the pie plate.
Sprinkle the rest of the cinnamon sugar mixture over the top, placing 6 slices of butter on the top.
Cover with pie crust, cut tiny slices in the top crust for ventilation.
Bake at 350 degrees for 1-1 hour 15 minutes, top will be brown.

Dessert for Recyclers

After Kelsey made her mocha cream puffs, there was plenty of leftover chocolate cream filling, which had a weird gluey texture. Never one to throw away perfectly edible food (even if it doesn't taste good), I devised a way to salvage these leftovers.


1 batch Chocolate Cream filling from the Mocha-filled Cream Puffs
1 pint whipping cream
1 Tb. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 dash salt
1 pound cake, sliced
Unsweetened cocoa powder

Whip the cream with sugar, vanilla, and salt until stiff but not butter. Mix half of the whipped cream with the leftover chocolate cream filling. Place half of the pound cake slices on the bottom of an 8" x 8" pan, spread with half of the chocolate mixture. Repeat layers, then top the whole creation with reserved whipped cream. Dust top with cocoa powder. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Note: If desired, drizzle the pound cake slices with coffee or liqueur.

Cool fact...

Even though the pictures of my desserts aren't mine...my desserts actually DID look like these ones. Hurrah!

Brownie Pudding Cake

THIS IS THE REAL ENTRY!!!! This recipe is quite deceitful as there is no pudding involved in the process. Hm.... This cake was eaten during an "The Office" marathon with my radical friends. The general consensus was that it's divine when warm, and not as good when cooled down. A quick and easy recipe. Unlike the cream puffs which were terribly hard.

Heat Oven to 350*F.
1/2 Cup all purpose flour
1/4 Cup sugar
3 TBS unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 Teaspoon baking powder
1/4 Cup milk
1 TBS cooking oil
1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla
1/4 Cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1/3 cup sugar
3/4 Cup boiling water

In a bowl add flour, baking powder, 1/4 Cup sugar, and ONE TABLESPOON of cocoa powder. Add milk, oil, and vanilla. Stir till smooth and put in a small baking casserole dishy thing.

Add the remaining TWO TABLESPOONS of cocoa powder and the 1/3 Cup sugar. Gradually add the boiling water.

Pour this mixture over the batter evenly. Bake for 30 minutes at 350F or until toothpick inserted near center comes out clean.

Eat warm with some vanilla ice cream or sweet cream of some sort.

ENJOY...it's bomb.

Mocha-Filled Cream Puffs

I made two desserts for the challenge, but this one I decided should not be considered...

I ate this with two friends. We decided, and tested to prove later, that the recipe turns out better with a few squirts of Chocolate sauce and about 1 cup of whipped cream mixed into the cream filling. You could probably do away with the coffee as well. of course, then, it would just be cream puffs, not mocha cream puffs. But here is the original recipe.

Chocolate-Filled Cream Puffs
Ingredients:
CHOCOLATE CREAM FILLING(recipe follows)
1 cup water
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 eggs
Directions:

2. Heat oven to 400°F. Heat water, butter and salt to rolling boil in medium saucepan. Add flour all at once; stir vigorously over low heat about 1 minute or until mixture leaves side of pan and forms a ball. Remove from heat; add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition until smooth and velvety. Drop batter by spoonfuls into 12 balls (about 1/4 cup) onto ungreased cookie sheet.

3. Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until puffed and golden brown. While puff is warm, horizontally slice off small portion of top; reserve tops. Remove any soft pieces of dough from inside puff; cool completely on wire rack. Fill puffs with CHOCOLATE CREAM FILLING. Replace tops.

CHOCOLATE MOCHA CREAM FILLING

1-1/4 cups sugar
1/3 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
1/3 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 cups milk
1 egg yolk, slightly beaten
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 Tbs Powdered Instant Coffee

1. Stir together sugar, cocoa, coffee, cornstarch and salt in medium saucepan; gradually stir in milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils; boil and stir 1 minute.

2. Remove from heat; gradually stir about 1 cup hot mixture into beaten egg yolks. Return all egg mixture to saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, just until mixture comes to a boil. Remove from heat; stir in butter and vanilla. Pour into bowl; press plastic wrap directly onto surface. Refrigerate 1 to 2 hours or until cold. Do not stir. About 3 cups filling.

February's Challenge: Dessert

It's still cold out most places and this is the month when the store shelves are full of pink and red candy. So what to do?

Let's celebrate our sweet-tooth cravings with some real desserts! The rules are as follows:

1) Make it tasty! - all cooking methods are open, all flavors and styles too. Extra credit for attempting a new technique, or putting a new twist on a flavor we might not usually find in desserts. Remember, The Pudding Incident is about being adventerous in the kitchen!

2) Share it! - we will do away with the scoring on this round, and if you enter a recipe, you are encouraged to also vote for your favorite from amongst your competitors (via comments). That said, feedback from your guinea-pigs is helpful and encouraged.

3) Post your recipe by midnight, the 29th of this month. If you would like to vote, please do so by that time as well.

Winner gets a gift card, and will be asked to contribute ideas for the next month's challenge!

(Note: Please do not add your recipes as tags when posting - we would like to keep the tags as more of a category-sorting method, so if you bake, add the baking tag, but please do not add the name of your recipe as a tag.)

Fig and Date Bread

This recipe is tried and true... and to die for!

Scant 2.5 cups whole-wheat flour
2/3 cup white bread flour, plus extra for dusting
1 Tbl. salt
1 oz/30 g yeast
1/2 stick butter, softened
1 Tbl. Molasses
1.25 cups water
1/2 cup dried figs, chopped
1/2 cup dates, chopped

* Makes 2 small loaves

1. Put the flours, salt, yeast, butter, molasses, and water into a bowl and mix for 5 minutes. Tip out onto a lightly floured counter and knead for 5 minutes, then put the dough back in the bowl and let rise for 1 hour.

2. Line a baking sheet. Incorporate the figs and dates into the dough, then divide into two pieces. Shape the pieces into balls, then place on the baking sheet and let rise for 1 hour.

3. Preheat the oven to 425F/220C. Dust the loaves with flour and, using a knife, make three equidistant horizontal cuts all around each ball. Bake for 30 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool

I made a mascarpone spread and it was awesome with the bread!

1 Small container marscapone cheese
2 Tbl. honey
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract (add more if you please)

Mix all ingredients together well. Spread on bread- enjoy!

and the winner is...

Kelsey and her fabulous falafel!

She adventured out into new cooking territory, trying both new ingredients and a new recipe/cooking style, while making something that is an accessible and tasty winter-time meal.

She wins a gift card to Le Gourmet Chef, and the title of First Pudding Incident Challenge winner!

ALERT! ALERT! ALLISON!

This recipe is in my "Cooking w/ TJ's" Cookbook:

Perfectly Paired Gorgonzola Quesadillas
4 Tortillas
1 (8 oz) Pkg Crumbled Gorgonzola Cheese (or maybe bleu, for the Obsessed?)
1 Pear, thinly sliced (fresh or jarred [preserved, not impacted])
1 Tbsp Butter
1 C Pear Sauce (i guess available at TJs?)
1/4 C Candied Walnuts

(from here there are a lot of instructions, but what they boil down to is this)
1. Assemble Quesadilla
2. Cook quesadilla (preferably in a cast iron skillet)

Make it and tell me how it is. K, thx.

Spinach Pasta with Homemade tomato sauce

Spinach Pasta with Homemade Tomato Sauce

I should clarify that my secret ingredient was: spinach pasta.
But also - though I have used most of these ingredients before, I have never used them together in this manner. This was my first time making sauce and melting the goat cheese.

Served with: French Bread with chive and herb goat cheese
Spinach
Eiswein & Chocolate Vanilla Swirl Cheesecake.

Ingredients:
1 package spinach pasta
4 lage roma tomatoes
1 large red pepper
1 package sliced mushrooms
4 cloves garlic
Basil, salt and pepper to taste
1/2 large yellow onion
1 bag of fresh baby spinach
EVOO
1/2 loaf french bread
garlic and herb goatcheese
2 tsp sugar

Toss the tomatoes (cut up with the red pepper) in the blender until it becomes a liquid solidified mass. Add some EVOO to the pan and diced onions. Let the onions cook until they are almost clear and add the mushrooms and sauce. dice garlic and include that also. Add spices as you see fit, I added salt, pepper, garlic salt, sugar and basil. Cook until it boils and then reduce to a simmer.

Preheat the oven 350. Line baking sheet with tinfoil. Cut french bread into rounds and place on foil. Put goat cheese on top of the rounds.

Put the french bread in the oven for about 20 minutes. Goat cheese will not melt - much.

Boil water and add pasta, it only takes about 4-5 minutes to make it al dente.

I cooked my spinach in a pan with EVOO and salt and pepper on medium until it turns bright green and wilts slightly.

For dessert we will drink Eiswein and eat cheesecake. Good no?

I shared with with Brian - he didn't have anything left on his plate!


Here is Brian's Haiku about the experience:
Cooking with my gal
reminiscent of old world
yum in my tummy

Here is the review::
On a scale of 1-5 (5 being the highest)

1. Was this dish appetizing? (1-5) What were your first impressions? (smell, appearance)
The dish looked incredibly fresh, and smelled fantastic! 5

2. Did it taste good? (1-5) What stood out about it? (flavors, heat, textures)
It tasted better than expected. 5/ All fresh ingredients for sauce; robust, earthy flavors; very warm, not too hot; felt mushrooms, onions, garlic & pasta dancing in sauce. 5

3. Did the cook appear flustered or swear at all while making it - did this dish appear challenging? Were you apprehensive? (1-5)
Cook never felt or showed frustration or anger; dish did not appear challenging; I was not apprehensive at all. 5

4. Was the special ingredient new to you? How special do you think it was? (1-5)
Special ingredient was not new to me(spinach pasta), though I have seldom had it; in this dish, it wasn't too special, though it added extra flavor. 4

5. Would you eat this again? What is the leftover potential of this dish? (1-5)
I would definitely eat this again!; What leftovers? 5

Tasty Bruschetta Bread

More love from the Trader Joe's Cookbook!

You will need all of two ingredients:
1 bag of Trader Joe's Pizza Dough
1 jar of Trader Joe's Bruschetta (I like the sun dried tomato, others prefer the olive or the veggie)

Preheat to 425. On a floured surface, roll or man-handle your dough into a rectangle approx 6x15 inches (or whatever will fit on your pizza stone/cookie sheet). Spoon about a 1/2 cup of bruschetta down the middle of the dough. As a crowd pleaser, I usually make half olive, half sun dried tomato. Pull up and pinch the sides of the dough to make a long loaf-like thingie. Pinch well, every single one I've made so far has unpinched itself. Lay it on pizza stone (or cookie sheet) seam-side down. The recipe says to bake for 30-35 minutes, I say start checking in the 20 minute range. Pull it out when the loaf looks browny/done. Let it cool for a few, slice into sections and enjoy.

Haiku:
Like the Winter Frost
This Bread has something hidden
Just below the crust.

::::CHALLENGE::::
I think this recipe would be an EXCELLENT dessert if you swapped the bruschetta for a peanut butter/nutella mix. If someone beats me to the punch on this one, PLEASE POST IT. I have one bag of dough left, and peanut butter, but no nutella.