Bacon-Cheese Topped Chicken

This is a new favorite. I almost always get chicken too dry, but this was perfect and it tastes sooo good. I made this as the main part of our Autumnal Equinox dinner that we did last night (even though the Equinox is today). 

Ingredients:

1/4 c. dijon mustard
1/4 c. honey
2 1/4 tsp olive oil (divided)
1/3 tsp. lemon juice
2 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
Salt and pepper
Dash paprika
1 c. sliced fresh mushrooms (we used one small can of cut mushrooms)
1 T. butter
1/2 c. shredded Monterey Jack Cheese
1/2 c. shredded Cheddar Cheese
4 bacon strips, partially cooked (we usually only use ends and pieces because it's cheaper and works better in soups and gravy and stuff, so we just cut of a chunk and spread the pieces)
1 tsp minced fresh parsley (I was going to use dried parsley, but I completely forgot to add it in)

Method:
1. In a bowl, combine the mustard, honey, 3/4 tsp oil and lemon juice.
2. Pour 1/4 c. into a large resealable plastic bag; add the chicken.
3. Seal the bag and turn to coat; refrigerate for 2 hours.
4. Cover and refrigerate the remaining marinade.
5. After 2 hours, drain and discard marinade from chicken.
6. In a large skillet over medium heat, brown chicken in remaining oil on all sides. You're not cooking the chicken all the way, just browning the outside.
7. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and paprika.
8. Transfer to a greased backing dish.
9. In the same skillet, saute mushrooms in butter until tender.
10. Spoon reserved marinade over chicken.
11. Top with cheeses and mushrooms. Place bacon strips in a criss-cross pattern over chicken.
12. Bake, uncovered, @ 375 for 20-25 minutes.
13. Sprinkle with parsley.

Gandolfos Potato Salad

This is the best potato salad ever! My old roommate use to work at Gandolfos and made it in bulk, that's why the recipe is so huge. I halved it and it still made tons! She made it for a pot luck once and I heard about it like a year later from the bishopric. I hadn't ever eaten it, but it's fame has spread abroad. I knew if called for red potatoes, so when my visiting teaching partner gave me red potatoes, I asked my old roommate for the recipe and tried it out. The result was amazing! Nate LOVES this recipe :)

(oh, and please excuse the crude photo, I took it with my phone because my camera is at work)

Ingredients
35 Medium Red potatoes (diced w/ skins)
2 cup mayo
1 1/4 cup sour cream
1 tbs salt
8 green onion stalks, chopped (garnish)
2 tsp black pepper
1 tbs dill weed
1.4 cup parsley
5 strips crumbled bacon

Instructions
Boil the Potatoes for 30 min. Drain. Make cause by combining all ingredients, combine with potatoes. Top with garnish.

Cordon Bleu Bake

I pulled this recipe out of a Taste of Home magazine when we were first married, but I hadn't ever made it. We liked it. It's quick, easy, and yummy yummy yummy. Here's my picture, and then the picture from the website (it's the picture that was in my book too). We ended up having to use more stuffing than the recipe called for because I did 1 c. water instead of 1/2 c. by accident. And I didn't want to figure out how to use the leftover cream of mushroom soup, so I used the whole can and I should have stuck to the recipe (not that it was bad, there was just too much cream of mushroom soup). It probably would have tasted  better with cream of chicken soup too. Those are things to try out next time. 

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup water
• 3 tablespoons butter, divided
• 1 cup stuffing mix 
• 1 cup frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
• 2/3 cup condensed cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup, undiluted, divided
• 3/4 cup cubed cooked chicken breast
• 2 ounces (that's 1/8 lb.) thinly sliced deli ham, cut into strips
• 1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese

Directions 

 

In a small saucepan, bring water and 1 tablespoon butter to a boil. Stir in stuffing mix. Remove from the heat; cover and let stand for 5 minutes. 

 

Meanwhile, in a shallow 1-qt. baking dish coated with cooking spray, combine vegetables with 1/3 cup soup. 

 

Combine the chicken with remaining soup; spoon over vegetables. 

 

Layer with ham and cheese. 

 

Fluff stuffing with a fork; spoon over cheese. 

 

Melt remaining butter; drizzle over stuffing. 

 

Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 30-35 minutes or until heated through. 

 

Yield: 2 servings.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Hunks

These cookies came into creation in 2005. My roommate Olivia and I decided we wanted to see if we could substitute peanut butter for regular butter (or margarine) in cookies and the result was the Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Hunks. These cookies stay gooey and soft and they taste amazing. It was fun to make them last night and remember creating these and to go through roommate memories. Thanks Olivia! 

Ingredients:
1/2 c. + 1 TBS Peanut Butter
7 TBS margarine (or butter) (that's 1/2 c. minus 1 TBS)
1/2 c. white sugar
1 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
1 1/4 tsp. vanilla
2 c. + 4 TBS flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
3 Hershey bars cut/broken into chunks (or 2 Hershey bars and 3 peanut butter cups)
Chocolate Syrup

1. Cream together the butters and the sugars.
2. Mix in the eggs and vanilla.
3. Add dry ingredients and chocolate chunks, mix well.
4. Squirt chocolate syrup over dough and mix in. I don't normally mix in the syrup all the way to try and get a marbled look. The dough will be slightly sticky.
5. Roll into 1 inch balls and place on a greased baking sheet.
6. Bake at 350 degrees for about 8 minutes (or until cooked through). The cookies will appear slightly underdone.