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Recipe Challenge

January 22, 2012 By Leave a Comment
kideating

Have you ever been stumped on what to make for dinner? Are you on a tight budget? Do you create a weekly meal menu? We want to see what you are cooking for your family. Are you bored of the regular chicken with cream soup and rice? So are we….and we need your help to come up with other family friendly (picky kid eating) meals. Can you come up with a meal that can feed a family of four inexpensively and still be good? We’re not talking just a box of pasta (.99) plus a jar of pasta sauce ($1.49) and garlic bread (.99) for a total of $3.47 or .87 per person, we are talking something with a bit more substance. Can you do it? Let’s see what ya got!

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Fruit Cocktail Upside Down Cake

January 13, 2012 By Leave a Comment
upsidedownfinished

 

 

Do you like Pineapple Upside Down Cake?  Here’s a similar dessert that uses canned Fruit Cocktail.

My grandchildren, on whom I tested this recipe, liked the Very Cherry Fruit Cocktail the best.

And yes, I bake it in a Pie Pan even though it’s a Cake – first of all, the amount of fruit and batter fits in the pie pan perfectly, and secondly, it’s much easier to turn out onto a Serving Plate.

INGREDIENTS:

1 15 ounce can Fruit Cocktail in heavy syrup
1 Egg
1/4 cup Sugar
1/4 cup Oil
1/4 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Vanilla
3/4 cup Flour
1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Cinnamon
3/4 cup Liquid (drained from Fruit Cocktail + enough Milk to make 3/4 cup)
1/4 – 1/2 cup Brown Sugar
Cinnamon to taste
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) Butter, melted

Toppings:  Granola ~ Whipped Cream ~ Ice Cream ~ Flavored Syrup ~ etc…
DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350

1.   Open Fruit Cocktail and drain it into a measuring cup.  Retain the liquid.


2.   Beat Egg til thickened and light yellow.


3.   While mixer is still beating, slowly pour in Sugar and beat til mostly dissolved.
4.   While mixer is still beating, slowly pour in oil.  Stop beating when all the oil has been poured in.
5.   Stir in the Salt and Vanilla.
6.   In a separate container, mix together the Flour, Baking Powder and Cinnamon.
7.   Add enough milk to the drained Fruit Cocktail liquid to make 3/4 cup.
8.   Alternately stir in the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients (about 1/3 at a time – beginning with the dry ingredients) and stir only until blended.


9.   Pour the Fruit into a Pie Plate.
10.  Sprinkle the Brown Sugar over the Fruit, then Cinnamon to taste.
11.  Pour the melted Butter over top.


12.  Spoon the Batter over the Fruit.


13.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or til done (may be bubbly around the edges).

 

Let sit at room temperature until cool enough to eat.  Serve by removing from the Pie Plate by individual servings and dumping over onto the serving plate (so fruit is on top).  You may also loosen the edges and turn the entire Dessert over onto a Serving Platter.  Top with desired Toppings.

 

Enjoy!  ~ Kyle Owner of Boutique Elli’Ette

 

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Quick and Easy Snacks via Pinterest

January 13, 2012 By Leave a Comment
cookie

Okay, so I think I am addicted to pinterest! I have found tons of ideas for all sorts of things. From crafts to home decor and even food, its all there! So, when I came across these super cute snacks, I knew I just had to make them! They took about 5 min to make and even less for the kids to eat them! Even my husband was a fan.

All you need is:

Mini Vanilla Wafers. I found a huge bag at the Dollar tree, for a buck of course!

Peanut Butter

Bananas

Sprinkles.

1 . Spread peanut butter on the flat side of each wafer.

2. Top half of the wafers with a banana slice.

3. Top the banana wafer with the other half. (Squish down just a dab to squeeze out some PB)

4. Roll the edges in the sprinkles!

5. Eat up!!!

They are the perfect for my toddlers and even my husband!! Fantastic! Thanks to pinterest!!!!

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Pinterest Dinner

January 13, 2012 By Leave a Comment
bread

Pinterest is the “IT” thing right now and all the rage. Everyone, well every female, is checking out the latest and greatest Pinterest has to offer. If you are behind the times, Pinterest is a virtual pin board to save or pin items you would like to try or make or things you dream of or hope have one day.

Crafts and home decor is the hot ticket right now but there is more then just glue and glitter on Pinterest. There is everything from clothes to vacations to food and drinks. After searching hours, seriously, I came across some yummy looking garlic knots that had my mouth watering! I wanted them and wanted them now! I of course Pinned them to my board and then kept my search going for more.

Came across a great looking chicken dish I knew my boys would just love. They are a bit picky, so I knew something like chicken nuggets would entice them. So, that got me thinking. Why not have a Pinterest Dinner? I have seen a Pinterest Craft Party. Yes, someone created a fabulous party around crafts they found on Pinterest. Awesome right? I thought so too! So, I printed out my recipes and got to cooking.

Now, I am anything but a cook. I do not like to cook and if it weren’t for my children, I would be eating hot dogs and mac n cheese, every night. So, finding things that actually excite me to get me into the kitchen is a must try. So, while it’s just me and the boys for dinner tonight, hubby is a get together for work, I decided to try out a few of the items I found on Pinterest and give it a go!

Without further ado, here is my Pinterest Dinner…..

Parmesan Panko crusted chicken breasts
Garlic bacon green beans
Parmesan Knots.

I changed a bit up with the chicken. Instead of chicken breasts, I made them small nuggets for the kids.

Recipe for the Panko Chicken Breasts:

4-6 chicken breasts (enough for your family) – I used only 2 chicken breasts cut into bite sized pieces.
olive oil
panko flakes – enough for breading
1 1/2 cups Parmigiano Reggiano – grated -  I used the grated cheese from the jar.
2 tablespoons dried basil
salt/pepper

1. Trim your chicken breasts of any excess fat. Take a piece of plastic wrap and cover your chicken breasts. Pound them out with a mallet until they’re about 1/4″ thick. (I did not do this step since I cut mine into nugget pieces)

2. In a large deep sided pan over medium-high heat, put enough olive oil to pan fry your chicken breasts.

3. WHILE your oil is heating, place panko into a large dish. Add cheese, basil and season with salt and pepper. Mix together. Press chicken breasts into Panko mixture, breading chicken on both sides. Continue until all chicken is breaded.

4. Place breaded chicken breasts into hot oil and fry until golden brown on both sides. Turning as necessary. Careful not to crowd the pan (do batches if necessary) Roughly 3 minutes per side depending on the thickness of chicken. Allow chicken breasts to rest before serving.

Serve! So yummy and easy! Thanks to Pinterest and bellalimento.

 

Garlic Knots

1 tube (12 ounces) refrigerated buttermilk biscuits (I used Pillsbury Golden Layers Refrigerated Buttermilk Biscuits)
1/4 cup canola oil
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese (I did use the green can stuff)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
  1. Flatten and roll each biscuit into a 12-in. rope and tie into a knot; tuck ends under. Place 2 in. apart on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 400° for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. I had to cook these for about to cook all the way through.
  2. In a large bowl, combine the remaining ingredients; brush the warm knots with the mixture
These were so good. We made them for dinner 2 nights in a row! FAB! Thanks to Pinterest and Real Mom Kitchen

Green Beans
I used a can of green giant whole green beans, added some butter, salt and pepper, bacon bits, and cooked in a small saucepan.
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Caribbean Chicken Pasta

January 7, 2012 By Leave a Comment
chickpastaonions

 

 

 

This recipe was inspired by a dish I had when out with my hubby one night – it was an Irish restaurant with great food and although I seldom order pasta, “Caribbean Chicken Pasta” sounded too intriguing to pass up, especially at an Irish restaurant!

Since I make this dish once a week, and I seldom do it the same way twice, the following is not so much a recipe as a tutorial.

INGREDIENTS:

Chicken Breast – 2 breast halves (1 full breast)
Chopped Onion – about 3/4 cup
Chopped Bell Pepper (I like red, orange or yellow – no green) – about 3/4 cup
Chopped Garlic – 3 good sized cloves
Olive Oil
Caribbean Seasoning
Mascarpone Cheese – about 8 oz
Chicken Stock – about 1 cup
Coconut-flavored Rum – about 1/2 OR several drops of coconut flavoring
Basil
Grated Parmesan Cheese – at least 1/4 cup
1/2 to 1 pound dry Pasta of choice

DIRECTIONS:

1.  First thing is to set your water to boil for the pasta while you work on the veggies and chicken.  Drain the pasta when it has cooked “al dente” (according to the directions on the box) – drain it quickly and return it back to the pasta pot and put the lid on – you want to retain some of the “pasta water” as Rachel Ray calls it as the starch in it from the pasta will help the sauce to thicken.

2.  Chop your onion, pepper and garlic – rough chop is what I use.  The amount is up to you – I used about 3/4 cup each for the onions and peppers and a LOT of garlic – about 3 nice sized cloves.  Start a saute’ pan on low heat, add some olive oil and toss in your onions and peppers to saute’ – NOT the garlic yet.

 

 

 

 

3.  Cook the chicken breasts in another saute’ pan in olive oil.  Sprinkle some of the Caribbean Seasoning on them as they are cooking – not too much as these kinds of seasonings tend to be very salty and you can add more later if you like.

{HINT} Did you know that the key to tender, juicy chicken is to cook it “lo and slow” until just done?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4.   Those veggies should be getting nice and translucent and caramelized right about now.  Toss in the garlic, stir it around and turn off the heat until the chicken and pasta are done.

5.  Remove the cooked breasts to a cutting board to cool slightly.  Retain the pan and all the drippings.  When the chicken is cool enough to handle, cut it into bite sized pieces.



6.  Now, in the same pan you used for the chicken (see all that good stuff on the bottom? that’s full of flavor!), deglaze it with some chicken stock – about 1 cup – scraping up all the good stuff that’s stuck to the bottom.

7.  When your pan is totally deglazed, put the veggies (your cooked onion, pepper and garlic) in then add the Mascarpone Cheese and stir it around til melted – I used about 8 ounces.   Notice in the photo below how nice and dark and rich the chicken stock became after the deglazing :)

8.  Now stir in about 1/2 cup of the coconut rum (the alcohol will cook out – if you prefer, you can use a couple of drops of a coconut flavoring) and at least a teaspoon of dried basil.

9.  Next dump in the chicken and pasta.  Toss to coat with the sauce.  Now you can adjust your seasonings and amount of sauce – add more stock and cheese if you like more sauce.  One tip here:  the sauce will thicken as it cools so don’t be too concerned if it seems thin.  If you just can’t help it, add some more Mascarpone :)

10.  Lastly you will want to sprinkle on the grated Parmeson Cheese – use at least 1/4 cup but this is totally up to you.  Gently stir in the cheese, turn off the heat and let it cool some before serving.


YUM!

NOTES:

I sometimes throw in other veggies depending on what I have in stock – if I use broccoli I will cut it into the same size pieces as the onions and peppers and cook it together with them.  Asparagus tips are really good in it too – if fresh or frozen, add them in when you have deglazed the pan, if canned, gently fold in along with the Parmeson Cheese.  Likewise, stir in canned or frozen Peas at the end just before the Parmesan Cheese.

Changing up the flavorings will make this a totally different dish – omit the Caribbean Seasoning and Coconut Rum for a more traditional Italian flavor, stir in some tomato paste for a red sauce, or even use Turkey or some other meat.

I hope you like this dish!  Let me know if you’ve tried it.  And if you feel like it – give me a holler.

~ Kyle  Chief Mom Editor and Proprietor of Boutique Elli’Ette

 

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Piquant Meatballs

January 3, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Piquant Meatballs

 

 

 

 

 

 

How about some sweet Meatballs?  And I mean sweet as in candy!

This recipe was handed down to me from my mother who served it every year as a side dish with Christmas Dinner.  I serve it as a main course over rice – my family loves it!  It is also great to take along in a crock pot to parties.

Piquant Meatballs

Meatballs:

2 pounds ground beef or mixture of different kinds of ground meats if you like.
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/3 cup dried parsley flakes
2 eggs
2 tbs soy sauce
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup ketchup
2 tbs instant minced onion (or 1/4 cup fresh chopped)

Sauce:

1 can jellied cranberry sauce
12 oz bottle chili sauce
2 tbs dark brown sugar (if you don’t have dark brown sugar, light brown is fine)
1 tbs lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Have a 9″ x 13″ cake pan ready.

Simply mix together all the Meatball ingredients and form them into balls about 1″ in diameter.  Place them in a single layer in the cake pan and bake for 30 minutes.  Cool slightly then remove with a slotted spoon to a serving bowl.

READY FOR BAKING:

Piquant Meatballs

BAKED:Piquant Meatballs

Cook the Sauce ingredients on the stove on low to medium heat, stirring until the cranberry sauce has melted.  (A whisk helps to speed along the process.)  Pour the Sauce over the meatballs.

Piquant Meatballs

Meatballs may be prepared in advance and frozen until needed.  The Meatballs and Sauce can also be served separately, if desired.

Use as an appetizer or as a main course served over rice.

I hope you enjoy!  I’d love to hear how you like it!  Shoot me an e-mail any time.

~  Kyle Travers of Boutique Elli’Ette

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Quick and Easy Chicken Bake

December 31, 2011 By Leave a Comment
050

Looking for something quick and easy to make? In a dinner slump? I came across this super yummy, chicken bake online at Kraft.com and after a few tries at it, I added a little bit of my own version to this tried and tested kid approved and picky eater satisfied.

What you will need:

1 can, 14-1/2oz) diced tomatoes, undrained.

1 package (6oz) stuffing mix for chicken.

1/2 cup of water.

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1-1/2lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut in bite sized pieces.

1 tsp basil

1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese.

 

What to do:

Preheat Oven to 400 F

Place tomatoes into a large bowl, add stuffing mix, water, and garlic. Stir until moistened. (I add just a bit more garlic then needed to give just a bit more flavor. Add more water if needed as well.)

Place cut chicken in a baking dish, 9×13, sprinkle with basil. Again, I add just a bit more to give it that extra flavor. Top with shredded cheese. I love cheese and used 1 and 1/2 cheese. Love it to be super cheesy!

Top with stuffing mix and cover all chicken.

Bake uncovered in oven for 30min.

Serves great with garlic green beans. Just add some garlic, butter, and real bacon bits to fresh green beans (or canned) and enjoy!

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Quick and Easy Fudge Brownies

December 25, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Quick and Easy Fudge Brownies

Quick and Easy Fudge Brownies

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is my go-to dessert whenever I need to whip up something quickly, and it is one of my family’s favorites!

These brownies are so rich and dense, they really need no enhancement – but of course you can stir some chopped nuts into the batter or top them with whipped cream, ice cream and/or candies if you like.

BROWNIE INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp ground espresso (optional)
1 egg
1/4 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup flour

BROWNIE DIRECTIONS:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2.  Spray a pie pan with cooking spray.
3.  Melt butter in a microwaveable bowl in the micrwave.
4.  Stir in sugar, cocoa powder, salt,  and espresso.
5.  Stir in the egg and vanilla.
6.  Then stir in the flour – just til blended.
7.  Spread batter into prepared pie pan and cook at 350 degrees for 18-20 minutes.
8.  Cool slightly before topping.

TOPPING INGREDIENTS:

2 squares unsweetened chocolate
3 tbs butter
dash salt
1 cup powered sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla
1-2 tsp water

TOPPING DIRECTIONS:

In a small cooking pot, slowly melt the squares of chocolate, butter and salt, stirring constantly.  Stir in the vanilla and powered sugar (it will be stiff and hard – just mix it in as much as you can).  Add water, a very small bit at a time, until the powered sugar is incorporated and the topping becomes shiny.  Spread on the warm brownies.  Cool completely before serving.

I hope you enjoy!  ~  Kyle  Owner of Boutique Elli’Ette

 

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Featured Holiday Product: Bella Cucina Pie Maker

December 8, 2011 By Leave a Comment
bellapie

Can I just start off by saying I love the Bella Cucina Pie Maker!

That may have sounded all comercial-like but I truly mean it.  This machine makes me look like a pro at pie making without all the work.  We tested out this product and will be featuring some of our pies made using the Bella Cucina Pie Maker in our Spring issue.

The Bella Cucina is great for sweet and savory pies and only takes 10-12 minutes for 4 individual pies.  You can use either your own pie crust recipe or store bought and these pies come out just as yummy.  We tried the pie maker after Thanksgiving using leftovers and couldn’t have been happier.  Thanksgiving in a pie is AWESOME!

The Bella Cucina Pie Maker is great for the foodie in you life.  Perfect gift for the hostess with the mostess– after all pies are the new cupcake.

You can purchase you Bella Cucina Pie Maker in most department stores, currently the Bella Cucina Pie Makers are on  sale at Macy’s , Sears, and Dillard’s for $29.99.

 

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Maple Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

November 23, 2011 By Leave a Comment
mpcupcakes

If you are looking for something simple and delicious to make this holiday, I’d love for you to try these yummy Maple Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes.  When I made these cupcakes I got so many compliments, and truly they were so simple to make… and yes they are wonderful.  Here is what you need to do :
This Maple Pumpkin Butter is essential to this yummy goodness!  Take your favorite spice cake recipe or boxed cake and make it your own.  Mix cake according to box just decreasing the liquid a bit, and add about 1/4 cup of the Maple Pumpkin Butter and bake.

Make a cream cheese frosting using cream cheese a pinch or two of sugar and add the maple butter, now frost.  These cupcakes got so many compliments and they were so easy to make!

 

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