Baked Potato Soup

I found this on Annie's blog , and it looked yummy! I just made a few modifications. Nate and I both love the potato soup at Charleston's restaurant...and this is very close to it! Great for a cold winter day!

INGREDIENTS:
*5 russet/baking potatoes
*4 tablespoons unsalted butter
*2/3 cup all-purpose flour
*6 cups 2% milk
*salt and pepper to taste (I was generous with the sea salt)
*1 cup reduced-fat sour cream
*1/2 cup green onions, chopped
*1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Toppings:
Sour cream
Green onions, chopped
Bacon
Shredded cheddar cheese

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Poke potatoes with fork, then cover with foil. Place potatoes on a baking sheet, and bake in the oven for one hour. Remove from the oven, let cool. Scoop out the insides of the potatoes, discarding the peels. Place in a food processor or mash into small chunks.

2. In a large stockpot or Dutch oven, melt the butter. Add ¼ cup of flour to the pot and whisk into the butter. Cook, whisking constantly, until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the milk and the rest of the flour. Cook until thick and bubbling, about 6-8 minutes. Mix in the potato chunks. Whisk in the salt, pepper, and cheddar cheese and stir until the cheese is melted. Remove from the heat, stir in the green onions and sour cream.

Serve immediately. Garnish with sour cream, cheddar cheese, green onions and bacon as desired.

Sweet & Sour Chicken

I found this on Molly's blog, and it sounded yummy! Had such a great flavor. We served it over white rice with a vegetable side dish of green beans with almonds.

INGREDIENTS:
*3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
*Salt and pepper
*1 C. cornstarch
*2 eggs, beaten
*1/4 C. canola oil

Sauce:
*¾ C. sugar
*4 T. ketchup
*½ C. vinegar
*1 T. soy sauce
*1 tsp garlic salt

DIRECTIONS:
1. Cut boneless chicken breasts into chunks. Season with salt and pepper. Dip chicken in cornstarch and then in egg (I did this, and Nate said I should have reversed it, egg first then cornstarch...which makes sense now). Fry in a little oil until brown but not cooked through. Place in a single layer in a baking dish. Mix sauce ingredients together and pour over chicken.

2. Bake for one hour at 325 degrees. Turn chicken every 15 minutes. If you like extra sauce, make another batch of sauce and bring it to a boil on the stovetop. Stir constantly and let cook over medium heat until thickened and reduced - about 6-8 minutes.

Chicken Noodle Casserole

Saw this on allrecipes.com and had to try it. Was in the mood for some comfort food. This was a perfect meal for Evan too...he loved it!

INGREDIENTS:
*2/3 C. chopped onion
*1 garlic clove, minced (we omitted as Nate doesn't like too much garlic)
*1 T. olive oil
*1.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 3/4 inch cubes
*1 (14.5 oz) can chicken broth
*1.5 C. chopped carrots
*3 celery ribs, chopped
*1/2 tsp savory (we omitted and used poultry seasoning instead)
*3 T. butter/margarine
*3 T. all-purpose flour
*3/4 tsp salt
*1/8 tsp pepper
*1.5 C. 2% milk (we used 1%)
*1 1/4 C. shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese (we used 1 pkg, or 2 C.)
*8 oz wide egg noodles, cooked and drained (we used almost the whole package)

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a large nonstick skillet, saute onion and garlic in oil until tender. Add chicken; cook and stir until no longer pink. Add the broth, carrots, celery and savory. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

2. Meanwhile, in a saucepan, melt butter. Stir in the flour, salt and pepper until smooth. Gradually add milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from the heat; stir in cheese until melted. Pour over chicken mixture. Add noodles; mix well.

3. Transfer to a 3-qt. baking dish coated with nonstick cooking spray. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees F for 15-20 minutes or until bubbly.

Baked Shrimp Scampi

I've had a taste for shrimp...and this recipe looked and sounded yummy! I don't think I've tried a Barefoot Contessa recipe before :) We served it over thin spaghetti along with a salad.

INGREDIENTS:

*2 lbs. shrimp (in the shell)
*3 T olive oil
*2 T dry white wine
*Kosher salt (we used sea salt) and ground black pepper
*12 T unsalted butter, or 1 1/2 sticks (we only used 1 stick, and it turned out fine)
*4 tsp minced garlic
*1/4 cup minced shallots (we skipped this)
*3 T minced parsley leaves
*1 tsp minced rosemary leaves
*1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
*1 tsp grated lemon zest
*2 T lemon juice
*1 extra large egg yolk
*2/3 cup Panko (Japanese bread crumbs)
*lemon wedges for serving


DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

2. Peel, devein, and butterfly the shrimp, leaving the tails on. Place the shrimp in a mixing bowl and toss gently with the olive oil, wine, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Allow to sit at room temperature while you make the butter and garlic mixture.

3. In a small bowl, mash the softened butter with the garlic, shallots, parsley, rosemary, red pepper flakes, lemon zest, lemon juice, egg yolk, panko, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper until combined.

4. Starting from the outer edge of a 14-inch oval gratin dish, arrange the shrimp in a single layer cut side down with the tails curling up and towards the center of the dish. Pour the remaining marinade over the shrimp. Spread the butter mixture evenly over the shrimp. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until hot and bubbly. If you like the top browned, place under a broiler for 1 minute. Serve with lemon wedges.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings

This was a hit...and so easy to make! Found it off my favorite allrecipes.com. I've made it twice, with the second time forgetting to add butter, and it still tasted great!

INGREDIENTS:
*4 skinless boneless chicken breasts (we used about 1.5lbs)
*2 T. butter
*2 (10.25 ounce) cans condensed cream of chicken soup (used 1 regular, and 1 light/low-fat)
*1 onion (finely chopped)
*2 (10 ounce) pkgs. refrigerated biscuit dough, torn into pieces (we only used one can)
*1 (14.5 ounce) can chicken broth

DIRECTIONS:
1. Place the chicken, butter, soup, and onion in a slow cooker, and fill with enough water (we used a can of chicken broth instead) to cover.

2. Cover, and cook for 5 to 6 hours on High. About 30 minutes before serving, place the torn biscuit dough in the slow cooker. Cook until the dough is no longer raw in the center. (I added the biscuits once the chicken was cooked through, and then just kept checking on it until the biscuits looked done)

We served this over egg noodles along with a salad. :)

(NOTE: Cook times vary according to the size of your crock pot. Our crock pot is a 6 qt, so it cooked faster than in the directions)

Cheeseburger Soup

This was the Recipe of the Day at allrecipes.com, and it looked and sounded good. Next time, I will add some bacon to it. Great comfort food!

INGREDIENTS:
*1/2 lb. ground beef (we used 1 lb)
*3/4 C. chopped onion
*3/4 C. shredded carrots
*3/4 C. chopped celery
*1 tsp dried basil
*1 tsp dried parsley
*4 T. butter
*3 C. chicken broth
*4 C. cubed potatoes
*1/4 C. all-purpose flour
*2 C. cubed Cheddar cheese (we used 1 lb Velveeta---2%)
*1 1/2 C. milk
*1/4 C. sour cream (we used reduced-fat)

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a large pot, melt 1 tablespoon butter or margarine over medium heat: cook and stir vegetables and beef , until beef is brown.

2. Stir in basil and parsley. Add broth and potatoes. Bring to a boil, then simmer until potatoes are tender, about 10-12 minutes.

3. Melt the remainder of butter and stir in flour. Add the milk, stirring until smooth.

4. Gradually add milk mixture to the soup, stirring constantly. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer. Stir in cheese. When cheese is melted, add sour cream and heat through. Do not boil.

Banana bread

Had some overly ripe bananas and hated for for them to go to waste. I've been wanting to make banana bread for awhile, and found this recipe on allrecipes.com. Just had a slice, and it is yummy!

INGREDIENTS:
*2 C. all-purpose flour
*1 tsp baking soda
*1/4 tsp salt
*1/2 C. butter
*3/4 C. brown sugar
*2 eggs, beaten
*2 1/3 C. overly ripe bananas, mashed

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.

2. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture; stir just to moisten. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.

3. Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.