Cheese

White Chili

October 17, 2008 by Lynsey Leave a Comment

I love the fall season for many reasons, but one of my favorite things of fall are the foods. There are so many different foods that go along with fall; but I think soups, stews and chilis are among the most popular types. There is nothing better than having a hot bowl of chili with cornbread on a cool, crisp fall day.

Since I live in Arkansas, seasons are very rare and don’t last long at all. It seems like we go from extreme heat to extreme cool with no between period. Any time we get semi-seasonal weather we take advantage of it to the fullest.

This past Saturday was a perfect fall day here and I was craving some chili. I had recently made regular chili so I thought this would be a perfect time to try out White Chicken Chili that I’ve seen on so many blogs. I had really never seen or heard of white chili before I got into the blogging world and started browsing other people’s blogs. I knew when I saw it I had to try it because it looked incredible. Saturday was the perfect day to try out this new found chili recipe (new for me at least:) ).

This recipe was actually pretty easy to put together. It’s also one of those recipes where you pretty much have everything on hand at all times…I love those types of recipes! It was such a hearty chili that I didn’t really need to cook any side items to go with it; so I cooked some cornbread and that was it. The chili was a big hit with everyone, there were barely any leftovers and what we did have left over was gone pretty quickly.

White Chicken Chili

Ingredients:

2 Cans navy beans
1 large onion, chopped
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup chicken broth
2 cups half-and-half
1 teaspoon Tabasco, or to taste
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon white pepper, or to taste
two 4-ounce cans whole mild green chilies, drained and chopped
5 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (about 2 pounds), cooked and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 1/2 cups grated Monterey Jack (about 6 ounces), plus extra for topping
1/2 cup sour cream

Directions:

In a skillet cook onion in 2 tablespoons butter over moderate heat until softened.

In a 6- to 8-quart heavy kettle melt remaining 6 tablespoons butter over moderately low heat and whisk in flour. Cook roux, whisking constantly, 3 minutes. Stir in onion and gradually add broth and half-and-half, whisking constantly. Bring mixture to a boil and simmer, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes, or until thickened. Stir in Tabasco, chili powder, cumin, salt, and white pepper. Add beans, chilies, chicken, and Monterey Jack and cook mixture over moderately low heat, stirring, 20 minutes. Stir sour cream into chili.

Recipe Source: adapted from Epicurious

Chicken Rigatoni with Cream Cheese Sauce

October 14, 2008 by Lynsey 1 Comment

I love pasta dishes; spaghetti, rigatoni, lasagna…pretty much any type of pasta there is I like. It is such a versatile dish; it can be made as a main course, side dish or even an appetizer. I was browsing through the recipes I have posted since I’ve started blogging and I realized I don’t have very many pasta type recipes in my blog. I wanted to change that, so in an effort to add more pasta to my blog I decided I we would have pasta for supper.

After determining I was going to cook pasta for supper I then narrowed it down to the kind of sauce I didn’t want which was a tomato based sauce. From there I started looking through the different recipe sites to see if there was something that jumped out at me and that is when I came across this recipe on All Recipes. After reading this recipe it gave me inspiration for what we would have for our supper.

I made a few changes, added some things and took away others and the end result was quite nice. I also made a cream cheese cream sauce which complimented everything very well. This was such an easy meal to throw together; and will be a “go to” meal for those nights where I need something quick, easy and tasty.

Ingredients:

8 ounces rigatoni pasta

3-4 Chicken cutlets -cubed

Olive oil-for drizzling

Fresh cracked pepper- to taste

Garlic salt – to taste

2 1/2-3 Cups sugar snapped peas-prepared as directed

Parmesan cheese-for sauce and to garnish

Cream Sauce:

2 ounces cream cheese-at room temperature

2-3 tablespoons butter

1/4-1/2 cup milk

Fresh cracked pepper-to taste

Directions:

Bring large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta, and cook about 8-10 minutes. Once finished, drain the pasta and set aside.

Warm some olive oil in a skillet and then add cubed chicken. Stir in chicken and season with pepper and garlice salt. Cook about 5 minutes, until chicken is cooked entirely through. Remove chicken to drain.

Cream Sauce:

In a small sauce pan add cream cheese and butter, melt together over low to medium heat. Continue until the blend is smooth and creamy. Stir in milk, fresh cracked pepper and 1/4 cup parmesan cheese.

Simmer mixture over low heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly.

Once finished combine chicken, pasta, sugar snap peas and cream sauce and mix together.

Serve with parmesan cheese on top along with fresh cracked pepper.

Pasta adapted from All Recipes

Cream Sauce by Lynsey Lou

Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches

September 26, 2008 by Lynsey 1 Comment

You know how there are times where you get in the mood for a specific food? Those times where no other food will satisfy your hunger, let alone your craving? Well, the other night I was in one of those moods. I NEEDED something that had buffalo chicken incorporated into in one way or another. I didn’t have any wings on hand, so hot wings were out of the question. So what is a foodie to do when they are craving something? Make their own recipe to satisfy that craving. That’s how these buffalo chicken sandwiches came about.

From the first bite my craving was satisfied! This sandwich encompassed every single element I was craving. The end result was nothing less than amazing, but there is always room for improvement. I think next time I will not only add the blue cheese crumbles, but homemade blue cheese as well. These would also be good with the addition of scallions or cabbage to give a little more flavor and texture.

My favorite thing about these sandwiches had to be the sauce. This hot wing sauce made the meal. It was the perfect mix of spices, tang, salt with and undertone of butter. It was everything you expect from a buffalo sauce. I loved the spice from the sauce; the heat from the hot sauce as well as the cayenne pepper not only hits you initially but after you’ve finished your bite. It his every flavor note that is desired. This is now our “go to” sauce recipe.

Blue Buffalo Sandwiches

Ingredients:

Chicken Batter-
2 Chicken breast
1/4 Cup flour
Salt and Pepper-to taste
1/2-1 Tablespoon Cayenne Pepper
1 Egg
Oil-for frying the chicken

Buffalo Sauce:

1/4 Cup butter-melted
1 1/2 Teaspoon Cayenne pepper
1/4 Cup hot sauce
1 Tablespoon worschestshire
Dash of soy sauce
Pepper- to taste
Garlic salt-to taste
1 Tablespoon mayonnaise

Directions:

Preheat skillet and oil on medium heat.

Mix flour, salt, pepper and cayenne pepper together. In a separate bowl whisk egg. Roll chicken breast in egg and then in flour mixture, coat well and then place in oil. Repeat process with second chicken breast and place in oil. Cook on each side until thoroughly cooked.

While the chicken is cooking; whisk mayo and melted butter together. Add hot sauce and mix together well. Once butter, mayo and hot sauce are blended add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Take cooked chicken and pour buffalo mixture over it and make sure both sides are coated.

Take toasted hamburger buns, or bread of choice, spread a little mayo on them, place chicken breast on bun and them sprinkle with blue cheese.

Recipe from: Lynsey Lou

Thick and Creamy Potato Soup

September 9, 2008 by Lynsey 2 Comments

This weather is killing me; a couple of days of fall like weather (soup weather) and then it goes back to summer time weather. It seems like about the time I get my mind made up to start making fall type foods the weather goes back to cool, light food weather or grilling weather. As you can tell by some of the previous posts I was in the fall mood and there is a soup or two out there right now. The other night I wanted soup so bad that I really didn’t think about the weather outside and I made up my mind that’s what we were having.

I love potato soup, it’s one of my all time favorites. I think my top two favorite kinds are my Grandma’s and McAlister’s Deli; you just can’t beat them. I have seen my grandmother make her potato soup a lot throughout the years but I couldn’t remember the recipe step by step so I tried to recreate it to the best of my knowledge. It turned out pretty good; I did add a few extra things to mind. This is definitely a great cool weather meal!

Ingredients:

6-8 Medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 Stalk celery, thinly sliced
1 Medium carrot, thinly sliced
1/2 Onion, diced
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2-2 Cups Chicken Broth
1 Cup milk (or more if needed to thin it down…depends on desired consistency)
1-8oz block cream cheese
4 Slices thick bacon, cooked and chopped (for this I used pepper bacon)
1 Cup cheddar cheese, shredded (reserve some to sprinkle on top)
Salt and Pepper, to taste
Scallions
Sour Cream

Directions:

In a large pan, add olive oil and heat over medium. Add the carrots, celery and onions and cook until tender. Add the prepared potatoes and chicken broth and cook until the potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Add the cream cheese and milk and stir to combine. Add the bacon and cheddar and stir until combine. Spoon into bowls, garnish with sour cream, cheese and scallions.

Recipe Courtesy of: Lynsey Lou

BBQ Chicken Pizza

September 9, 2008 by Lynsey 2 Comments

I was craving a different type of pizza one night, so after preparing my drunken pizza dough I started thinking about toppings. I was in the mood for something with chicken and you know with chicken there are endless possibilities; so I started listing all the options in my head and what all kind of chicken pizza I have had before when I thought BBQ Chicken Pizza sounds like it will hit the spot.

This pizza turned out awesome. The flavors of thedoughcomplimented the flavor of the chicken the flavores throughout the rest of the pizza. This would be a great addition to any pizza night, or just for a quick meal.

Ingredients:

6-8 Chicken cutlest

1 1/2-2 Cups cheddar cheese, shredded

1 Bell Pepper, sliced in strips

1/4 Red Onion, sliced (kept in long pieces)

1-1 1/2 Cups BBQ sauce-keep it sweet. (I used equal parts of “Bone Sucking Sauce” and KC Masterpiece honey)

Balsamic Vinegar

Olive Oil

Montreal Grill Seasong-for chicken or steak

1 Recipe for drunken pizza dough (or your favorite dough recipe)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 F.

After dough is made and rising, put 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a medium skillet on medium heat. Season chicken cutlets with salt, pepper and Montreal seasoning. Place is skillet and drizzle with balsamic vinegar. Cook chicken completely and remove from pan. Place sliced onions and peppers in skillet on low-medium heat, drizzle with olive oil and saute until onions begin to clear. Once onions are clear remove both from heat. After chicken is cooled, cut into bite size pieces.

Remove risen dough from bowl and roll out in desired size. Place on pizza sheet or baking stone and form edges of the dough. Spread part of bbq mixture over the dough and then sprinkle chicken, onions, and pepper (I reserved part of the mixture to put on top of the cheese) and then top with the rest of the bbq sauce. Sprinkle cheese over pizza, and then add the reserved onions and peppers then place in oven. Cook for 20-30 minutes, until dough is golden brown.

***I cooked mine for 25 minutes

Recipe Source: A Lynsey Original

Garlic Chicken Omelette

September 8, 2008 by Lynsey 1 Comment

I wanted to cook something different for breakfast, not just the same old sausage and biscuits or other traditional type breakfast foods. I started looking at everything I had and then started brainstorming. I had some leftover rotisserie chicken and thought…Chic-Fil-A serves chicken for breakfast so why can’t I make something with chicken it for breakfast. This turned out really good and was the something different I was looking for. It was so easy to throw together and cooked up really fast.

Ingredients:

1-1 1/2 Cup chicken-shredded

1/2-1 Cup shredded cheese (I used part pepper jack and part sharp cheddar)

1 Clove garlic, finely chopped

1/4 Small onion, finely chopped

1 Small tomato, seeded and finely chopped

Salt and Pepper

Cumin-to taste

6 Eggs

Directions:

In skillet add a little olive oil then place onions and garlic. Once onions start to clear add chicken; season with salt, pepper and cumin. Keep on low-medium heat 3-5 minutes then remove from heat.

Crack eggs over bowl, mix together and then pour 1/2 mixture in skillet over low-medium heat. Once egg is pretty much entirely cooked; add 1/2 the chicken garlic mixture, 1/2 the cheese and 1/2 of the tomatoes to one half and then fold the other half over. Cook until cheese is melted.

***Repeat process for second omlet. This recipe and these amounts make 2 omlets.

Recipe courtsey of Lynsey Lou

Ham & Asparagus Lasagna

August 30, 2008 by Lynsey Leave a Comment

It has been so long since I’ve been able to sit down and actually post something to my blog. I have been cooking quite a bit but it juset seems like time has been passing by extremely fast. After I finish cooking and cleaning up the kitchen, I sit down and chill out for a minute and it’s time to go to bed. Thank goodness for 3 day weekends; I actually have time to sit down and update everything. This recipe is for ham and asparagus lasagna. I came across this recipe in Everyday With Rachael Ray. When I first told my hubby about this recipe that I came across he was pretty skeptical; but I guess if your the type of person that hears lasagna and thinks traditional is the only way to go then it is pretty easy to be skeptical. After I finally got him warmed up to the idea I got all the ingredients and decided to give it a try. It was a super easy and quick recipe. It’s one of those that is great for a night where you don’t have a lot of time to get something together but you still want to eat at home. If you don’t like ham or prefer a lighter meat I’m sure turkey would work just fine. I’m a pretty big turkey fan myself but I stuck with ham for this particular recipe and it turned out pretty tasty.

Ingredients:

1 Pound asparagus, cut into 1 in pieces

1 Pound lasagna noodles
4 Tablespoons butter
1 Small onion, finely chopped
1/3 Cup flour
4 1/2 Cups milk
1 Cup grated parmesan cheese
1 Cup grated colby and monteray jack mix cheese
1 Teaspoon grated nutmeg
Salt and Pepper
1/2 Pound deli sliced baked ham, cut into 1/2 ribbons

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375°. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the asparagus until just tender, about 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the asparagus to a strainer. Return the water to a boil, add the lasagna and cook until tender, about 8 minutes. Drain and transfer to a platter.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes. Slowly whisk in the milk and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Lower the heat and simmer, whisking constantly, until thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in half of the parmesan and half of the nutmeg; season with salt and pepper.

Spread about 1/3 cup of the cheese sauce in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Layer 4 noodles on the sauce and top with 3/4 cup cheese sauce. Sprinkle a quarter of the ham, a quarter of the asparagus, and 3 tablespoons of the remaining cheese over the sauce. Repeat the layering process three more times. Top with the remaining noodles, cheese sauce, cheese and nutmeg. Cover with foil and bake until heated through, about 30 minutes. Uncover and cook for 10 minutes more. Let stand for 15 minutes before serving.

Recipe Source: adapted from Everyday with Rachael Ray

Macaroni and Cheese with Smoked Sausage

July 11, 2008 by Lynsey Leave a Comment

I really didn’t know what to cook last night and I had some smoked sausage in the fridge that needed to be cooked so I started looking around to see if I could find something a little different to make. I looked at a few different sites before checking out www.recipezaar.com; and that is where I came across this one. I really didn’t know what to make of it at first; it sounded really different and I really didn’t know about the smoked sausage in the macaroni.

I thought about it for a while, asked Spencer what he thought and then we decided to try it out and see what we thought of it. It went together really well and I was very surprised at the outcome. I made a few changes in how the recipe was prepared and I was very pleased with it. Hope you enjoy; and remember don’t be afraid to try things that sound a little odd or different at first.

Macaroni and Cheese with Smoked Sausage

14 oz Macaroni and Cheese

Milk (for mac)

Butter (for mac)

1/2lb smoked sausage (cut into chunks)

1/4 Cup onion, chopped

1/2 Cup bell pepper, chopped

1/2 Teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 Teaspoon thyme

1/8-1/4 Teaspoon ground red pepper

Prepare macaroni and cheese according to instructions on the box. While preparing mac and cheese place meat and veggies in a skillet over medium heat. Keep meat and veggies cooking until mac and cheese is almost done.

Once mac and cheese is almost ready drain meat and veggies then add to mix. Mix together then add garlic powder, thyme and pepper.

***I used regular pepper and parsely.

Bacon Wrapped Chicken with Blue Cheese and Pecans

July 3, 2008 by Lynsey 1 Comment

Chicken is a one of the main dishes cooked in our house. We are always looking for new and tasty ways to prepare it. A few days ago I was looking on the internet for different chicken recipes and I came across this one. I followed it step by step for the most part but I did add a few touches of my own.

It turned out absolutely incredible and I know we will definitely be having this again and again!!!

Bacon Wrapped Chicken with Blue Chees and Pecans

Ingredients:

4 Pieces boneless, skinless chicken breast

Salt and Pepper

1 Cup blue cheese crumbles

2 Scallions sliced on bias

4 Slices of bacon

1 Tablespoon EVOO

2 Tablespoons butter

2 Tablespoons all purpose flour

1 Cup chicken stock

1/2 Cup 1/2 &1/2 or Cream

2 Tablespoons grainy mustard

Directions:

Heat oven to 375

Butterfly chicken by cutting across breast (not totally through). Place chicken on parchment or wax paper and open breast up and top with another piece of wax or parchment paper. Pound lightly between. Pull paper away and salt and pepper chicken.

Cover seasoned chicken with bluse cheese, pecans and scallions. (I also added cranberries)

Roll the chicken, wrap each roll with bacon and secure with toothepicks. Season outside of rolls with salt and pepper.

Heat olive oil in skillet, brown chicken evenly all over (5-6 min).

Transfer chicken to baking sheet and cook in oven 10 minutes.

Melt butter in same pan, whisk in flour, cook 1 minute then add chicken stock. Let thicken then stir in 1/2 & 1/2, mustard and salt and pepper.

Pour sauce over chicken and serve.

Recipe Source: Rachael Ray Food Network

Love Birds: Chicken in a Puff Pastry

June 29, 2008 by Lynsey Leave a Comment

Chicken is such an easy and versatile meat to work with and experiment with. I love coming accros new and different recipes that include chicken; to me it’s like working with a blank canvas and it’s waiting to be created into whatever you have in mind. Whether it’s my own creation or something from someone else I always look forward to trying new dishes and flavor combinations.

I found this particular recipe on Food Network and it’s by Rachael Ray. The flavors of this dish are amazing and so savory. I love the flavor combinations, they flow together so nicely; there is the sharpness of the cheese followed by the sweetness of the preserves. These were so good, they would make a great “date night” meal or they could even be scaled down to make the perfect appetizer at your next party! It’s a simple way to dress up chicken and impress your guests!

Love Birds:

Ingredients:

4 pieces skinless chicken breast, boned (about 8 ounces each)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 to 3 sprigs fresh finely chopped rosemary
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 sheet puff pastry (11 by 17-inch), (recommended: Dufour)
8 slices Italian fontina cheese, slices should be 2 to 3-inches square and 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick, cut in 1/2
1/2 cup fig preserves
1 egg mixed with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Season the chicken with salt, pepper and rosemary. Cut each piece of chicken in half across the breast.

Heat the oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Lightly brown the chicken on both sides, 5 minutes total. Remove from heat.

Line a baking sheet with foil. Cut pastry into 8 pieces. Place a piece of cheese on each pastry square and top with fig preserves.

Then add chicken pieces.

Pinch and seal the dough over the meat and cheese. Seal with egg wash, flip the pastry and brush the tops with remaining egg wash. Bake 12 to15 minutes, until golden.

Recipe Source: Rachael Ray, Food Network

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