Here's a recipe for easy and FAST chicken fingers. I had dinner on the table from start to finish in 30 minutes. Great recipe for picky kids because it uses Goldfish crackers as the chicken coating!!!
Ingredients:
1.5-2 lbs. Chicken tenderloins
5-7 cups crushed up cheddar Goldfish crackers or pretzels
1.5 cups Buttermilk ranch dressing
Preheat oven to 425 degrees
Line 2 baking dishes (I used a 13 X10 and a 9X9 and it was perfect) with tinfoil and lightly coat with cooking spray. Set aside.
In a Ziploc bag, crush up 5-7 cups of Goldfish crackers and pour into a shallow dish. The recipe calls for cheddar but it might be interesting to try other varieties.
Pour ranch dressing into a bowl and dip the tenderloins in it, letting the excess drip off for a second. Then roll them in the crackers and put them in the baking dishes.
Bake 15-20 minutes, turning over half way through. Serve with ranch dressing or BBQ sauce for dipping!
This made a lot and I brought some with me today to cut up and eat on my salad!
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Stromboli
I got this gem out of my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. Mike and I were both skeptical of the ingredients but it turns out to be delicious! It's a combination of flavors you wouldn't expect to go together but they do!
Ingredients:
Olive Oil (just enough to coat a cookie sheet)
flour (also just enough to sprinkle on the cookie sheet)
13.8 oz. store-bought pizza crust
1 Cup shredded mozzarella cheese (I used more than a cup)
4-6 slices of deli ham
4-6 slices of deli turkey
1/4 cup olives (any kind you like - I used black)
1/3 cup chopped sweet bell pepper, any color
1/2 cup fresh baby spinach
1 egg, lightly beaten
Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Coat a cookie sheet with the olive oil and sprinkle flour or cornmeal on it, set aside
On a floured and clean (Mike insisted I put the clean part in) surface, carefully roll out the pizza dough to a 13 X 10 inch rectangle. I think it comes out of the package like this but if you are me, you mess it up and end up having to roll it out with a rolling pin.
Sprinkle half the cheese on the dough
Layer the ham on top of the cheese, keeping it about 1/2 inch from the edge of the dough
Layer other half of the cheese on the ham
Next, layer the turkey on,
Then sprkinkle the olives, bell pepper and spinach on top of all of that.
Starting on one of the long ends of the dough, carefully roll it up into a big roll. Pinch the seams and edges together and place on prepared cookie sheet. Brush with the beaten egg and bake 30 minutes.
The directions suggest cutting it in to 2-3 inch pieces but....Mike just cut in half and took half...then came back for more. We ate it with a salad made with the leftover peppers, spinach and cheese with Italian dressing. Yum!
Ingredients:
Olive Oil (just enough to coat a cookie sheet)
flour (also just enough to sprinkle on the cookie sheet)
13.8 oz. store-bought pizza crust
1 Cup shredded mozzarella cheese (I used more than a cup)
4-6 slices of deli ham
4-6 slices of deli turkey
1/4 cup olives (any kind you like - I used black)
1/3 cup chopped sweet bell pepper, any color
1/2 cup fresh baby spinach
1 egg, lightly beaten
Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Coat a cookie sheet with the olive oil and sprinkle flour or cornmeal on it, set aside
On a floured and clean (Mike insisted I put the clean part in) surface, carefully roll out the pizza dough to a 13 X 10 inch rectangle. I think it comes out of the package like this but if you are me, you mess it up and end up having to roll it out with a rolling pin.
Sprinkle half the cheese on the dough
Layer the ham on top of the cheese, keeping it about 1/2 inch from the edge of the dough
Layer other half of the cheese on the ham
Next, layer the turkey on,
Then sprkinkle the olives, bell pepper and spinach on top of all of that.
Starting on one of the long ends of the dough, carefully roll it up into a big roll. Pinch the seams and edges together and place on prepared cookie sheet. Brush with the beaten egg and bake 30 minutes.
The directions suggest cutting it in to 2-3 inch pieces but....Mike just cut in half and took half...then came back for more. We ate it with a salad made with the leftover peppers, spinach and cheese with Italian dressing. Yum!
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
No Knead Bread. Don't be scared!
Bread is a scary thing to make. Proofing yeast? WTF? But buying sub-par bread from the grocery store for four bucks a pop started to scare me too. After much inner struggle, I decided to try no knead bread. I'd heard so much about it, but I was still a little wary. Let me tell you. It is AMAZING. And so easy! Just takes some planning ahead! (All my recipes lately require planning ahead! what is this?) And it does require one of those fancy schmancy cast iron enamel pans. I got one for Christmas last year and I love it. Mine is the Martha Stewart line, and you can get them for pretty reasonable prices if you watch the sales. I highly recommend them. So with no further adu, I give you no knead bread.
No Knead Bread
3 c. bread flour (I also highly recommend King Arthur bread flour. I don't know the science behind it, but it does make a difference for some scientific reason)
1/2 tsp. yeast
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 5/8 c. water (basically a little more than 1 1/2 c.)
and my little addition: a few drops of red wine vinegar (opt.)
Throw it all in the mixer, mix it up, (it will be shaggy) cover with plastic wrap, and let it sit about 18 hours. If I am going to be making it for dinner one night, I will mix it all up the night before around bedtime.
18 or so hours later, the dough will be bubbly, smell yeasty, and be suuuuuper sticky. Plop it out of the bowl, dust with flour, and try your hardest to mold it into some sort of shape. Don't get discouraged at this point. Its a sticky ugly mess. Just trust me. Let it raise for about another hour or so.
Preheat the oven to 450 with the cast iron enamel pan in there with the lid on. Let it sit in there and get super hot for about 30 minutes. Take it out of the oven, and plop the bread it. Don't worry about the shape. This is very rustic bread. Put the lid on, and place it back in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes with the lid on, then 15 more with the lid off.
Once you remove it from the oven, try and restrain yourself from cutting a piece right then. It is better if you let it sit and cool for at least an hour, or else the inside gets kind of gummy.
This sounds hard, but I promise its not. And it never fails. This is always what my family wants me to bring to dinner because it is sooooo good!
No Knead Bread
3 c. bread flour (I also highly recommend King Arthur bread flour. I don't know the science behind it, but it does make a difference for some scientific reason)
1/2 tsp. yeast
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 5/8 c. water (basically a little more than 1 1/2 c.)
and my little addition: a few drops of red wine vinegar (opt.)
Throw it all in the mixer, mix it up, (it will be shaggy) cover with plastic wrap, and let it sit about 18 hours. If I am going to be making it for dinner one night, I will mix it all up the night before around bedtime.
18 or so hours later, the dough will be bubbly, smell yeasty, and be suuuuuper sticky. Plop it out of the bowl, dust with flour, and try your hardest to mold it into some sort of shape. Don't get discouraged at this point. Its a sticky ugly mess. Just trust me. Let it raise for about another hour or so.
Preheat the oven to 450 with the cast iron enamel pan in there with the lid on. Let it sit in there and get super hot for about 30 minutes. Take it out of the oven, and plop the bread it. Don't worry about the shape. This is very rustic bread. Put the lid on, and place it back in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes with the lid on, then 15 more with the lid off.
Once you remove it from the oven, try and restrain yourself from cutting a piece right then. It is better if you let it sit and cool for at least an hour, or else the inside gets kind of gummy.
This sounds hard, but I promise its not. And it never fails. This is always what my family wants me to bring to dinner because it is sooooo good!
Shredded Beef Enchiladas
These tasty little fella's are not difficult, but it does take some planning ahead. They are really good for a cold winter night's dinner too.
Here goes:
chuck roast, about 4 ish pounds
2-2 bay leaves
Brown the roast on all sides in oil, then place in heavy pan. (I use my cast iron enamel pan, which I love) Add bay leaves and a small amount of water. Cover pan tightly and cook at 275 for about 5 hours.
When the meat is done, shred with fork and place in large bowl. Add 1 bunch chopped green onions and as much shredded cheddar cheese as pleases you. Stir to combine. Place a small amount of meat mixture in flour tortilla, roll up and place in greased 9x13 pan. Depending on how big your roast is, you may have extra. Last time I made these I had enough meat to do 8 in a 9x13 pan, and then 4 more in an 8x8 pan that I covered with plastic and foil, and then froze.
For the sauce:
1 pkg. brown gravy mix - made according to directions
1 can tomatoe sauce
1 can red enchilada sauce
Mix all together and pour over enchiladas. Bake, covered, at 375 for 15 minutes, then take the cover off and put some grated cheddar cheese on top and bake for about 10 more minutes, until melty and bubbly and delicious.
Feast away!!
Here goes:
chuck roast, about 4 ish pounds
2-2 bay leaves
Brown the roast on all sides in oil, then place in heavy pan. (I use my cast iron enamel pan, which I love) Add bay leaves and a small amount of water. Cover pan tightly and cook at 275 for about 5 hours.
When the meat is done, shred with fork and place in large bowl. Add 1 bunch chopped green onions and as much shredded cheddar cheese as pleases you. Stir to combine. Place a small amount of meat mixture in flour tortilla, roll up and place in greased 9x13 pan. Depending on how big your roast is, you may have extra. Last time I made these I had enough meat to do 8 in a 9x13 pan, and then 4 more in an 8x8 pan that I covered with plastic and foil, and then froze.
For the sauce:
1 pkg. brown gravy mix - made according to directions
1 can tomatoe sauce
1 can red enchilada sauce
Mix all together and pour over enchiladas. Bake, covered, at 375 for 15 minutes, then take the cover off and put some grated cheddar cheese on top and bake for about 10 more minutes, until melty and bubbly and delicious.
Feast away!!
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