Paula Deen's Chicken Noodle Soup

Everyone, even Tater (wow!) went back for seconds, enough said.


Paula Deen's Chicken Noodle Soup
Recipe courtesy of Paula Deen, Food Network


Ingredients:


4 bay leaves
3 chicken bouillon cubes
1 onion, peeled and diced
1 teaspoon lemon pepper
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 2 1/2 to 3-pound fryer (chicken), cut up
1 1/2 to 2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
3 1/2 quart water
kosher salt and pepper to taste

For Step 2:

2 cups sliced carrots
2 cups sliced celery, with leafy green tops
2 1/2 cups uncooked egg noodles
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
3/4 cup heavy cream (optional)
1/3 cup cooking sherry
1 cup sliced mushrooms
Fresh parsley
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
seasoned  salt to taste
freshly ground black pepper to taste
crusty french bread, for serving

Directions:

For the stock: add all ingredients to a soup pot. Cook until chicken is tender, about 35 to 45 minutes. Remove chicken from pot and set aside to cool. Remove and discard bay leaves and onion. You should have approximately 3 quarts of stock. When chicken is cool enough to touch, pick bones clean, discarding bones, skin, and cartilage. Set chicken aside.
For the soup: bring stock back to a boil, add carrots, and cook for 3 minutes. Add celery and continue to cook for 5 to 10 minutes. Add egg noodles and cook according to directions on package. When noodles are done, add chicken, mushrooms, parsley, sherry and rosemary. Add Parmesan and cream, if using. Cook for another 2 minutes. Adjust seasoning, if needed, by adding seasoning salt and pepper. Enjoy along with a nice hot crusty loaf of French bread.

Chocolate Layer Cake

Caleb searched for quite a while before he found the perfect birthday cake for me to make him this year. He chose well, it was delicious AND easy - the best combination ever, if you ask me!!!



Chocolate Layer Cake
(modified from this recipe)


Ingredients:


1 (18.25 ounce) package chocolate cake mix
1 (3.9 ounce) package chocolate instant pudding
4 eggs
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream
1/2 cup cooking oil
1/2 cup water
1 (8 ounce) package semi-sweet baking chocolate, divided
2 cups thawed whipped topping
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1 tablespoon water

Directions:

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Beat cake mix, dry pudding mix, eggs, sour cream, oil and water in large bowl with mixer on low speed just until moistened, stopping frequently to scrape bottom and side of bowl. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes or until well blended. Chop 4 chocolate squares; stir into batter. Pour into 2 greased and floured 9-inch round pans.
Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes. Remove from pans to wire racks; cool completely.
Stack cake layers on plate, spreading COOL WHIP mixture between layers. Microwave butter, corn syrup and remaining chocolate and water in medium microwaveable bowl on HIGH 1-1/2 minutes; stir until chocolate is completely melted. Spread over top of cake, allowing glaze to drip down side.

The Easiest Tortilla Soup in the World

Yesterday I was pretty busy, I didn't get home from work until 3:45 and it was Halloween so I had some things to get ready for that.  But I had it in my mind that I HAD to make tortilla soup, so I modified a super easy recipe I found on Allrecipes.  It came together in a jiffy!! (I'm laughing that I used that word, I don't know if I've ever used that word before.  Jiffy.  heehee)  I was worried about how it would taste, but the worries were unfounded - it's delicious!!!

The Easiest Tortilla Soup in the World
Recipe by Kathee Clifford

Ingredients:

1 (19 ounce) can green enchilada sauce (use Macayo's, don't waste your time with any other brand)
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (16 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 cup frozen corn
1 chicken breast, cooked and shredded (optional)
Tortilla chips, shredded cheddar cheese and avocado for garnish
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

In a pot, mix the enchilada sauce, water and garlic powder.  Bring to a boil, and reduce heat to low. Mix in the beans, tomatoes, and corn. Simmer until heated through. Mix in chicken and cook until heated through.   After ladling into bowls to serve, garnish with crushed tortilla chips (are you loving my orange and black Halloween tortilla chips?), cheese and avocado.  Season with salt and pepper to your taste and serve!!  Fast and easy!!

Carraba's Bread Dip and Bruschetta

Back when we lived in Arizona we used to enjoy going to Carraba's for Italian food.  One of the highlights was the dip they gave you with the complimentary bread; a mixture of spices covered in olive oil that you dip your bread into.  I was so excited to find this copycat recipe.  Just so you know, I put about 10 times as much of the spice mixture into the cup as you normally should because I'm greedy like that.  I also made bruschetta since we had some cute little tomatoes still in the garden I wanted to use up.  I was trying to make it like the bruschetta we had at Sundance.  I'm really, really pleased with this recipe, it was SO GOOD!!


Carraba's Bread Dip
Recipe from Mangio da Sola


Ingredients:

1 Tbsp crushed red pepper
1 Tbsp crushed black pepper
1 Tbsp dried oregano
1 Tbsp dried rosemary
1 Tbsp dried basil
1 Tbsp dried parsley
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt


In a small container, combine all the ingredients together. Store mixture in the refrigerator until needed.

Put 1 Tbsp of mixture per person in a small saucer with raised edges. Pour extra-virgin olive oil over the mixture, and dip warm sourdough or French bread into the mixture. Be as greedy or dainty as you like (I lean more towards greedy myself).
 
 
Balsamic Bruschetta
Recipe from Allrecipes
 
Ingredients:
 
8 roma (plum) tomatoes, diced
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 loaf French bread, sliced and toasted

Directions:

In a bowl, toss together the tomatoes, basil, Parmesan cheese, and garlic. Mix in the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, kosher salt, and pepper. Serve on toasted bread slices.

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Muffins

Several years ago I was on a quest, a quest for a banana bread recipe without oil.  A good one.  Finally I found one I liked, and after years of tweaking I have come up with this.  I think it's pretty great and my family loves it too.  Thus, my long journey, over roads of bland tasting bread and valleys of hard as a rock muffins, is finally complete.


Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Muffins
Recipe by Kathee Clifford

Ingredients:

4 tbsp. butter, softened
1/4 cup applesauce
2 eggs
2 tbsp. milk
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup mashed bananas (2 to 4 medium bananas)
1 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. ground flaxseed
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips


Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Beat butter, applesauce, eggs, milk and brown sugar in large bowl until smooth.  Add bananas and blend at low speed; then beat at high speed for 2 minutes.
In a seperate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and flaxseed; mix into batter.  Add chocolate chips and stir until combined. Pour batter into muffin tins.

Bake in preheated oven until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, about 18-20 minutes.
(this can be made as a loaf also, just put it in a loaf pan and cook it for 55-60 minutes).

Cheesy Hash Brown Casserole

This is another super easy meal for me to make on days I work.  Everybody loved it!!!  It is basically what I call Mormon Potatoes (and everyone in this state morbidly calls Funeral Potatoes), with ham!


Cheesy Hash Brown Casserole
Recipe from Mommy's Kitchen


Ingredients:


1 (26 oz) bag frozen, shredded hash brown potatoes
1 (8 oz) container sour cream
1 (10.5 oz) can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup butter, melted
onion, chopped fine (about 1/2 a small onion)(yuck, I skipped this)
1 (16 oz) package cubed ham
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (or a bit more if you like)

Directions:

Stir all the ingredients together. Place into a lightly greased casserole dish (9 x 13 in). This is optional but you can add a bit more cheese on top if you like. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 min - 1 hour. Let cool a bit and serve.

Crock Pot Sante Fe Chicken

Since I started working part time a few days a week, I have found it makes it a lot easier on me if I put together a crock pot meal before I leave for work in the morning. It leaves me more time with the kids when we all get home in the afternoon, and makes for an easier evening overall. I am SO glad I found this recipe. It is simply delicious. I love it so much. The fact that it is low in calories and fat while high in fiber is just a lucky lucky bonus!!



Crock Pot Sante Fe Chicken
Recipe from Gina's Skinny Recipes

Ingredients:

24 oz (1 1/2) lbs chicken breast
14.4 oz can diced tomatoes with mild green chilies
15 oz can black beans
8 oz frozen corn
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
14.4 oz can fat free chicken broth
3 scallions, chopped
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp cayenne pepper (to taste)
salt to taste

Directions:

Combine chicken broth, beans, corn, tomatoes, cilantro, scallions, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, cayenne pepper and salt in the crock pot. Season chicken breast with salt and lay on top. Cook on low for 10 hours or on high for 6 hours. Half hour before serving, remove chicken and shred. Return chicken to slow cooker and stir in. Adjust salt and seasoning. Serve over rice.

Meatball Stroganoff

I have had this recipe FOREVER.  I have no idea where I got it, all I know it that it rocks!!!


Meatball Stroganoff

Ingredients:

1 egg, lightly beaten
2 tbsp. ketchup
1/4 cup oats
1 tbsp. finely chopped onion
1/2 tsp. salt
1 lb. ground beef

2 cans condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 cup sour cream
1 cup milk
1 tbsp. paprika

1 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. minced parsley
1 pkg. egg noodles (prepare according to package directions)

Directions:

Combine egg, ketchup, oats, onion and salt.   Add beef and mix well.  Shape into balls.  Bake uncovered at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.  In saucepan, combine soup, sour cream, milk and paprika.  Heat through.  Add meatballs, cover and cook until heated through.  Serve with noodles tossed with butter and parsley.

New Year's Meatballs

Our meal yesterday was what I traditionally make on New Year's Day. Since I am a creative genius, I have named it New Years Meatballs. I have had these meatballs on New Year's as far back as I can remember. (I won't comment on exactly how far back I can remember). What I CAN remember is being so excited for my mom to make these meatballs every year. It was the only day of the year she would make them, and they were SO GOOD! I always looked forward to New Year's Day so much more than New Year's Eve, entirely because of these balls of meaty goodness!


I made a double batch this year, since my boys are getting bigger and along with that comes bigger appetites. It was a good thing I did, because my oldest son came home with two of his friends in tow, and they finished off two or four meatball hoagies a piece! It was so fun listening to them talk about girls, muscles they claimed to have (I think my son lied said he had a four pack), and tease each other about who was going to get clobbered when they all start on the wrestling team next month. This is what I've always wanted, to be the home the kids want to hang out in, and if that means I need to make double or triple batches of New Year's Meatballs every year from now on, then I'm all over it!!


New Year's Meatballs

(recipe courtesy of Maxi Patty, a.k.a. Mom)

1 lb. ground beef
1 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1 tbsp. parsley
2 tsp. minced garlic
1/2 cup milk
2 beaten eggs
1/2 tsp. salt and pepper

Directions:

Combine all ingredients and shape into 1 inch meatballs. Fry in a saucepan drizzled with olive oil. Meanwhile, make the sauce. You can use any kind or recipe of spaghetti sauce, but I always use the kind my mom used all those years ago, Lawry's, which is now called McCormick. Prepare your sauce and when the meatballs are browned all on sides and cooked through, add them to your sauce. We like to eat them on sub rolls topped with mozzarella and parmesan cheese.

Macaroni and Cheese

I'm pretty sure the picture above explains how my children feel about this dish.  It was completely gone in 3 point 2 seconds.  It is perfect, I love it!!
Down Home Macaroni and Cheese

4 tbsp. butter, divided
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp. salt
2 cups milk
1/4 pound Velveeta
8 oz. cheddar cheese, shredded (sharp please, if you're boring mild will do.....)
2 cups elbow macaroni, cooked and drained (or any other small pasta)
2 tbsp. seasoned dry breadcrumbs


Directions:

Melt 4 tbsp. of the butter in a large saucepan on low heat. Blend in flour and salt; cook and stir 1 minute. Gradually add milk; cook, stirring contantly, until thickened. Add Velveeta, (cut into cubes) and 1 and 1/2 cups of the cheddar cheese. Stir in macaroni. Pour into lightly greased 1 1/2 quart casserole dish. Melt remaining tbsp. of butter and mix with the bread crumbs. Sprinkle casserole with remaining 1/2 cup of cheese and bread crumbs. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

Vicki's Hawaiian Casserole

So Thom is out of town. I hate it when he is out of town. I miss him so much. He's my best friend, you know. We have so much fun together. There is only ONE positive thing about him being gone and this is it - I get to make things for dinner that he doesn't like. Now he's not a super picky guy, there aren't a lot of things he doesn't like, but it just so happens that he doesn't like a couple of things that I LOVE. One of them is Vicki's Hawaiian Casserole, which he doesn't like because I made it once a week for a year when we were first married. What's the big deal about that??!!

Now Vicki, the lovely lady behind this recipe, lives across the street from my parents, and besides being the sweetest woman around is an AMAZING cook. Is it horrible that I would look forward to one of my parents being sick, so Vicki would bring us over some lasagna, ravioli or this casserole?! (I didn't really look forward to them being sick, I swear!!) The combination might sound weird, but I'm telling you, it is delicious!!


Vicki's Hawaiian Casserole
Recipe courtesy of Vicki Kovalesky


Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts, cooked and diced
1 stick butter
1 bunch green onion, diced
8 carrots, cut into slivers
6 eggs, scrambled
1 package thin pasta noodles (angel hair, fettucinne, spagetti...) cooked and drained
Soy sauce, to taste


Directions:

Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the green onions and carrots. Cook until tender. Add chicken, scrambled eggs and butter mixture to the pasta. Drizzle soy sauce over the top and stir it all together. Taste it to see if you like the amount of soy sauce, if not, add some more. If you think you added too much, sorry. That's a bummer.

Cheeseburger Soup

I love this soup, it is SO GOOD. I could seriously eat it by the vat. And if you could see how big that bowl in the picture actually is, you would say, "Yes, Kathee, I believe you, because that bowl looks suspiciously like a vat to me." Listen, you, don't judge me!!!!


My laugh out loud moment at the dinner table tonight was when my 10 year old asked my 12 year old to go outside after dinner to shoot hoops with him. "Kid..." he said, "I just can't. I've been at work all day and I'm just plain tired." He went with his dad to work today to help out and ended up doing such a good job he stayed all day, the poor kiddo was tuckered out. The way he said it was priceless though, like he was so much older and mature than his brother.


Cheeseburger Soup


1/2 lb. ground beef
3/4 cup chopped onion (of course I omit this because I'm anti onion)
3/4 cup shredded carrots
1/4 cup diced celery (I almost always forget to buy this, not an essential ingredient!)
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried parsley
4 tbsp. butter or margarine
3 cups chicken broth
4 cups diced potatoes
1/4 cup flour
8 oz. processed cheese (Velveeta)
1 1/2 cups milk
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 cup sour cream


Directions:

Brown beef; drain and set aside. In same saucepan saute onion, carrots, celery, basil and parsley in 1 tbsp. butter until tender (about 10 minutes). Add broth, potatoes and beef; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10 minutes until the potatoes are tender. Meanwhile, in a small skillet, melt remaining butter. Add flour; cook and stir for 3-5 minutes until bubbly. Add to soup; bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Add cheese, milk, salt and pepper. Cook and stir until the cheese melts. Remove from heat and stir in the sour cream. Done!! Get out your vat!!!

Homemade Twix Bars

Homemade. Twix. Bars. Yes, you heard right. I'm not going to lie and tell you they come together in a snap, because they're a TAD time consuming, but worth every minute.



Homemade Twix Bars
Recipe courtesy of Not Without the Salt


Ingredients:

Shortbread

5 1/2 ounces (1 stick plus 3 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup sugar
2 cups cake flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons ground rice (rice processed in a spice grinder until it is able to pass through a fine sieve to remove chunks)* (I DID NOT ADD THE RICE - Kathee)

Make the Shortbread:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9-X-13-inch baking pan with pan spray and line with parchment paper. Spray the parchment.

In a large bowl cream the butter and sugar until fluffy. Gradually add the flour, ground rice and salt and allow the dough to come together. The dough will be crumbly but should hold together when you squeeze it.

Press the dough evenly into the bottom of the baking pan. Place in the oven and bake for 12 minutes. Rotate the pan from front to back and bake for another 10 minutes, until the shortbread is a deep golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a rack to room temperature.

Meanwhile, prepare the ….

Caramel

2 cups sugar
3/4 cup corn syrup
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup sweetened condensed milk
1/4 teaspoon salt plus more for sprinkling over the caramel layer

Make the Caramel:

Combine the sugar, golden syrup, water, and lemon juice in a large saucepan. Remove any sugar crystals from the sides of the pan by wiping down the sides with water. You can use your hand or a pastry brush. Place the pot on medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Wipe down any stray sugar crystals that appear using a very clean and wet pastry brush. Do not stir from this point on. Keep an eye on the pan. The mixture will be very bubbly.

When the sugar syrup starts to turn golden brown insert a candy thermometer to check the temperature. When it reaches 300°F, remove the pan from the heat and let it sit for 1minute, or until the bubbles subside. Carefully whisk in the heavy cream. Stir until smooth, then whisk in the condensed milk. Add the salt. Whisk until smooth.

Return the pan to the heat and stir constantly over medium heat until the caramel reaches 240°F. Remove from the heat and pour over the shortbread. While the caramel is warm sprinkle the surface with the best quality salt you have. Kosher is fine, Fleur de Sel is better, Maldon would be my preferred choice.

Allow to set. This will take about 2 hours.

Once the caramel layer has cooled prepare your …

Chocolate Glaze

6 oz bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped (Bittersweet chocolate chips also work)(I USED SEMISWEET BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT I HAD ON HAND - Kathee)
2 tablespoons butter

Melt the chocolate and butter over a bain marie or in the microwave. If using the microwave melt it slowly – in 30 second intervals. Stir well after each interval.

Once completely melted pour over the caramel. Using an offset spatula, smooth the chocolate in a nice even layer.

Place in the refrigerator to set. They cut best when chilled.

Cut into desired shape and size. Serve.