Baked Garlic Rice Pilaf

Baked Garlic Rice Pilaf
Source: Jessica @ What's cooking in the orange kitchen?

I came upon this recipe a few weeks ago and looked interesting. I wasn't sure if I would like it or not, but decided to give it a try. And I'm glad that I did, it was so so good. I even made it as a side dish to go along with our Thanksgiving Dinner and everyone loved it.
So, Thank You Jessica for the wonderful recipe.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 cup long-grain white rice
2 1/2 cups chicken broth, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375.
Heat butter in a skillet; add garlic and rice and cook until both are golden brown.
Add 1 cup of broth and the salt and pepper.
Bring to a boil and our into a covered casserole: bake for 25 minutes.
Stir in remaining 1 1/2 cups broth: bake for another 45 minutes.

Creamy Black Bean Salsa Chicken

Okay .. so I have to keep better track of my recipes and who I get them from because I am not able to give credit to people. This recipe does come from someone's blog, but is also from a cookbook "101 more Things to do with a slow cooker" by Stephanie Ashcraft.

My husband actually put the chicken together and started up the crock pot, so big props to him. Ha Ha...

The dish turned out really good and I just bought some Adobo Mexican rice or maybe it was Spanish rice in a box to go along with the meal and some tortilla chips.

Ingredients:

2-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts ( I used about 6)
1 cup chicken broth ( I just used the whole can
1 cup salsa
1 can (15 oz) corn, drained
1 can (15oz) black beans, drained
1 pkg. taco seasoning
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup grated cheddar cheese

Place chicken in greased slow cooker. Pour broth, salsa, corn, beans and taco seasoning over chicken. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours or high for 3-4 hours.
**** I actually seasoned the chicken the night before with salt, pepper and some paprika. My husband also said that he mixed the ingredients together before pouring over the chicken. ****

Remove chicken and place on serving dish. Stir sour cream and cheese into sauce, then pour over chicken. Serve with warm tortillas and Spanish rice.

** I took the chicken out after 6 hours and it was already falling apart.. so it probably requires less cooking time**

I usually make a pie crust from one of my cookbook and it uses shortening. But this year I found this recipe from Ladies Home Journal magazine ..

This recipe uses unsalted butter and vinegar .. which I thought the vinegar was a little odd.. but it worked! The crust came out great and tasted really good. I doubled the recipe.. I was using one crust for pumpkin pie and another for individual apple pies, plus I had one crust left over that I froze to use for another time.

Perfect Pie Crust

Prep: 15 min
Start to Finish: 15 min

Ingredients

• 2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1-1/2 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1/2 cup cold water
• 1 tbsp white vinegar

Directions

1. In a food processor, pulse together flour, sugar and salt. Add butter and pulse until largest pieces are the size of peas. In a cup, combine water and vinegar; drizzle, a little at a time (just using amount needed), while pulsing, into flour mixture until a dough just starts to form (mixture will appear dry but will form a soft dough when pressed with fingers). If dough still crumbles, pulse in a little more water mixture.

2. Turn dough out onto a sheet of plastic wrap and quickly form a ball by gathering together and pressing with hands. Halve and wrap each piece in plastic wrap, pressing to flatten into disks. Refrigerate until ready to use.

3. (Can be made ahead. Place wrapped disks in heavy-duty resealable plastic bags and freeze up to 2 months. Thaw in refrigerator at least 5 hrs before using.) Makes 2 single crusts.

Tiramisu Layer Cake

So, my parents 30th Anniversary was on Tuesday and I wanted to bake them a Tiramisu Cake
( my mom's favorite), but by the time I got home from work there really wasn't any time left for me to bake it that night. I had a half day on Wednesday, so I decided to do it that day along with the pies I was baking for Thanksgiving.

I have no idea who I got this recipe from, I know it was from someone's blog.. but no idea who. If this is your recipe or if you know who's recipe this is please let me know, so I can give proper credit to the owner.

This cake was delicious and very easy to make, this recipe is a keeper!

Tiramisu Layer Cake

CAKE

1 (18.25oz) package moist white cake mix
1 teaspoon instant coffee
1/4 cup coffee
1 tablespoon coffee flavored liqueur ( I used Kahlua, the original one)

FILLING
1 (8oz) container mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
2 tablespoons coffee flavored liqueur

FROSTING
2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup confectioners sugar
2 tablespoons coffee flavored liqueur

GARNISH
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 (1oz) square semisweet chocolate

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour 3 (9in) pans.
2. Prepare the cake mix according to package directions. Divide two thirds of batter between 2 pans. Stir in instant coffee into remaining batter; pour into remaining pan.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 min. or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely. In a measuring cup, combine brewed coffee and 1 tablespoon coffee liqueur; set aside.
4. To make the filling: In a small bowl, using an electric mixer set on low speed, combine mascarpone, 1/2 cup confectioners sugar and 2 tablespoons coffee liqueur; beat just until smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
5. To make the frosting: In a medium bowl, using an electric mixer set on medium-high speed, beat the cream, 1/4 cup confectioners sugar and 2 tablespoons coffee liqueur until stiff. Fold 1/2 cup of cream mixture into filling mixture.
6. To assemble the cake: Place one plain cake layer on serving plate. Using a thin skewer, poke holes in cake, about 1 inch apart. Pour one third of the reserved coffee mixture over cake, then spread with half of the filling mixture. Top with coffee flavored cake layer, poke holes in cake, pour another third of the coffee mixture over the second layer and spread with the remaining filling. Top with remaining cake layer; poke holes in cake. Pour remaining coffee mixture on top. Spread sides and top of cake with frosting. Place cocoa in a sieve and lightly dust top of cake. Garnish with chocolate curls. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes before serving.
7. To make the chocolate curls, use a vegetable peeler and run it down the edg of the chocolate bar.

Thanksgiving is over....

I was excited for thanksgiving.. it gave me an excuse to bake and cook as much as I wanted to without people thinking I was crazy. I made the usual pumpkin pie from last year that's in my blog, it turned out really good and I didn't want to risk making a different recipe this year. And then I made individual apple pies using a recipe from a regular apple pie that is also in my blog. They turned out really nice and no one had to fight over a whole pie this year. I just used my muffin pan and lined with pie crust and just followed the rest of the instruction per the recipe. Yum.. really good .. I think I had about 18 individual servings.

Kołaczki

I forgot all about kolaczki's until a friend at work asked me to make some. You would think being Polish, I would have a recipe for these on hand. Well.... I didn't .. ha ha I don't ever remember my mom or even my grandmother making these at home. I don't know why.. but I guess it was just easier to buy them at bakery.

I had to go and search for this recipe online and finally found a simple recipe.
Of course I had to do a trial run before I decide to make them for work. I don't want to disappoint my co-workers or embarrass myself. My family members are always my guinea pigs, but I never hear them complain.

The Kolaczki's actually did turn out pretty tasty, but I added a little too much jam per each serving and it spilled out a little. I used strawberry and raspberry to fill them.

I hate recipes that want you to roll out the dough because I can never do it. It just never works out for me, so I kind of just made them by hand. I pinched a little of the batter/dough at a time and made circles in my hand, and they turned out good either way.

Now on to the recipe.. Enjoy!

Kołaczki

1 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
thick jam or canned fruit filling (apricot or prune)

Mix butter and cream cheese until fluffy. Beat in vanilla. Combine flour and salt. Add in fourths to butter mixture, blending well after each addition. Chill dough until easy to handle. Roll dough to 3/8 inch thick on a floured surface. Cut out 2 inch circles or other shapes. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Make a "thumbprint" about 1/4 inch deep in each. Fill with jam. Bake at 350 for 10 to 15 minutes or until slightly browned on edges. makes about 3 1/2 dozen.

Anniversary

My parents 30th Wedding Anniversary is on the 25th of November and it's also My Name Day!

So, I'm planning on baking a Tiramisu Cake that day. I just wish I could find the person who's recipe I'm borrowing to give them credit. Sometimes when I save my recipes, usually from the girls on thenest.com or allrecipes.com I tend to put them into word and print all at once, but then I forget who I got them from.
I'm also cooking Creamy Black Bean Salsa Chicken which appears to be from 101 More things to do with a slow cooker by Stephanie Ashcraft, but I don't remember who's blog I actually found this one.

I will post the recipes and reviews of both in a few days.

Pasta e Olio

If I need to make something good and quick, I always turn to Pasta e Olio recipe that day. This is one of my favorite pasta dishes because you can pretty much add anything to it and it will turn out great.
I'll usually add some spinach and tomatoes and sprinkle Parmesan cheese. Mmm.. so good..
I'm sure it will taste great with shrimp or chicken too.

INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)

• 1 pound spaghetti
• 2 teaspoons chopped garlic
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup melted butter

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large pot with boiling salted water cook spaghetti pasta until al dente. Drain.
2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet over low heat saute garlic, parsley, and red pepper flakes with olive oil . Cook until garlic turns golden in color, about 10 to 15 minutes.
3. Toss pasta with garlic mixture and butter or margarine. Serve warm.

Best Biscotti

I actually found this recipe in the Womans Day magazine while at work and forgot about it. I was flipping through my binder of recipes and decided to make them today. They are so good.. I did not use the "add-ins" that they suggest. Instead, I used semi-sweet chocolate chips and crushed walnuts and in the other "log" I added some mint chocolate chips. Both turned out great!
I looked it up on the website, so there is a link to the recipe.

INGREDIENTS

3 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened

1 cup sugar

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1⁄4 tsp baking soda

Add-ins:
1⁄2 cup each shelled pistachios and chopped dried apricots, OR

1 grated ginger and 1 cup dried cranberries, 1 Tbsp grated orange zest and 1 cup dark chocolate chips

Drizzle: Melted white or semisweet chocolate, and white sprinkles (optional)

PREPARATION

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Beat first six ingredients in a large bowl with mixer on medium speed until combined. Add your choice of flavors and mix together. Divide dough in two; roll each half into a 12-in.-long log. Place on an ungreased baking sheet, 3 in. apart. Bake 25 minutes.

2. Remove from oven; cool 10 minutes (cool orange-chocolate completely). Cut logs into 1⁄2-in.-thick diagonal slices, place slices upright on baking sheet and return to oven. 10 to 12 minutes until pale golden. Cool completel

Classic Soft Pretzels

I love soft pretzels, so when I was looking though Bakingbites.com blog and found the recipe I couldn't resist making them. These were the best pretzels I've ever made. Such a good recipe.
I made them a couple months back and today just whipped up the dough to freeze for later.
This is such an easy recipe and the dough rises quickly.
Once they were done baking I brushed them with butter and sprinkled with garlic powder, so yummy!

1/4 cup warm/hot water (110F)
1 teaspoon sugar
1 packet active dry yeast
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup water2 tbsp baking soda
1 cup cold water

Combine yeast, hot water and sugar in small dish and leave to foam for 5 minutes. Stir flour and salt in medium bowl. Add yeast mixture and 3/4 cup water and stir until everything comes together. Knead on a lightly floured surface until smooth.
Place in a slightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and leave to rise for one hour.
Dissolve baking soda in cold water. Preheat oven to 400F.
Punch down dough and cut into 8 pieces. Roll out each piece until approximately 18 inches long and twist into a pretzel shape. Dip pretzel into baking soda mixture and place on parchment covered baking sheet. Repeat to make 8 pretzels.
Bake for 15-20 minutes, until golden brown.

Apple Dapple Cake

Mmmm.. Another great recipe from Allrecipes. com

I found this recipe a long time ago on the website, but keep forgetting to post and take a picture of it. This one of our favorite apple cakes and I don't make it as often as we would like because it's very high in calories with all that butter and oil, but it's very delicious.

I only put the apples and chopped walnuts in the mix, because I don't like raisins or coconut and I do not make a glaze
This cake always comes out very good and moist.

Enjoy !

INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)

• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 3 eggs
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups diced apple without peel
• 1 cup flaked coconut
• 1 cup raisins
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 cup brown sugar (optional)
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/4 cup milk

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour one 10 inch tube pan.
2. Combine oil, butter or margarine, and sugar together. Beat well with a mixer. Add eggs, flour, baking soda, salt, and vanilla; mix well. Stir in apples, coconut, raisins, and walnuts. Pour batter in prepared pan.
3. Bake for 90 minutes. Remove cake from oven. Let it cool in the pan for a few minutes, and then remove from pan.
4. If desired, make glaze. In a small saucepan, heat brown sugar, butter or margarine, and milk. Bring mixture to boil, and stir for 1 minute. Pour over warm cake.

Peach-a-Berry Pie

Peach-a-Berry Pie


I had taste for pie and some cans of peaches and strawberries in the cabinet and remembered that I saved this recipe a long time ago from Allrecipes.com

It was really good, so easy to make and I will make it again in the summer when I can get my hands on fresh peaches and raspberries.
I did not have raspberries, but the strawberries tasted just as good in this recipe.

Ingredients:
4 cps fresh peaches-peeled, pitted and sliced ( I used 1 can of sliced peaches)
1 cup fresh raspberries ( I used a can of strawberries)
3/4 cup white sugar
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 (9inch) pie crusts
2 tablespoons butter, softened and cut into pieces
1 tsp coarse granulated sugar

Directions:
1. Preheat over to 400 degrees F
2. Place peaches and berries in a colander for about 15 minutes to drain any excess fluid, then transfer to large bowl. Gently toss with sugar, flour, and cinnamon. Transfer to a pie crust. Dot with butter and top with remaining crust. Cut vents into top crust and sprinkle with sugar.
3. Bake 45minutes in the preheated oven, until crust is golden brown.

Halloween Cupcakes

Bloodshot Eye Cakes




I made these about a month before Halloween to test them out. I was planning on bringing them to work, but wanted to make sure they were good in taste before I did.
I tweaked the recipe a bit to my liking. I'm not a big fan of peanut butter or butterscotch pudding, so I omitted those. I also did not use Chocolate milk, just regular.
In the end they still turned out delicious and were a big hit at work.
The second time around when I did prepare them for work, I made chocolate and yellow cupcakes and I used chocolate pudding and vanilla pudding and pie filling to fill them.
I got the recipe from ladies home journal last year, but I think I also saw the same recipe online somewhere.

I will post the ingredients and directions per the original recipe, but of course you can change it up to your own liking.

Makes 24 cupcakes

Prep time: 25min
Total time: 1 hour 20min.

24 standard paper baking cups
1 box (18.25oz) dark chocolate cake mix
1 1/3 cup chocolate milk
1/3 cup canola oil
3 large eggs
1 box (3.4oz) instant butterscotch pudding and pie filling mix
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups smooth peanut butter
1 container white frosting
1 tube red decorating gel
24 plastic eyeballs ( I bought mine at a Halloween store)

Preheat oven to 350F . Line 2 (12 cup) standard muffin pans with baking cups;set aside. Beat together cake mix, chocolate milk, oil and eggs in large mixing bowl on low speed 30 seconds. Scrape sides of bowl with a rubber spatula increase speed to medium and beat 1 minute more. Evenly divide batter among cups.

Bake until a toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean, 21 to 26 minutes. Transfer cupcakes in pan to rack and let cool completely before filling and frosting.


Whisk together pudding mix, milk and peanut butter in medium bowl until thickened and smooth, about 2 minutes. Refrigerate 30 minutes, for filling.

Spoon filling into a pastry bag fitted with a medium plain tip. Fill cupcakes and squeezing a couple of tablespoons of filling into each.
Spread 2 tablespoons frosting on each cupcake.


Using decorating gel, draw squiggly lines on frosted cupcakes to create blood vessels. Place an eyeball in center of each.