Apple Dumplings

Well, I almost never post recipes on here, but I found this one and just couldn't resist.

I found the recipe on A Year of Slow Cooking. My favorite crockpot blog.

She got the recipe from The Pioneer Woman blog.

I made my own wheat crescent recipes using my wheat from my food storage. I just ground the wheat in the wheat grinder on the finest grain setting. Then I used the recipe from cooks.com.

So, now to the goods:

Cescents:

4 tsp. dry yeast (2 pkgs.)
1 c. lukewarm water
1 tsp. honey
6 c. whole wheat flour, plus flour for rolling
1 egg, beaten
1/2 tsp. water
4 tbsp. sesame seeds (toasted 20 minutes at 200 degrees)
1 c. oil
3 tbsp. honey
2 tsp. salt
1 c. boiling water
2 eggs, beaten
1. Dissolve yeast in lukewarm water. Add 1 teaspoon honey.
2. In large bowl, mix oil, 3 tablespoons honey, salt and boiling water. When lukewarm, add 2 beaten eggs, then dissolved yeast. Gradually stir in flour, mixing well, but do not knead. Chill until firm. (Use a big bowl, it will more than double in the refrigerator.)
3. Divide dough into 3 parts and roll each one out on floured board in a large circle, as thin as possible. Brush with beaten egg mixed with 1/2 teaspoon water. Sprinkle sesame seeds over the surface. Cut the circle like a pizza into wedges about 2" wide at the outside. Roll each wedge toward the center. Dip top in egg mixture, then in sesame seeds. Place on oiled cookie sheet, leaving plenty of room for rising. Let rise in draft free place for 1 1/2 hours.
4. Bake at 425 degrees for 25 minutes until golden brown. Leftover rolls keep well in refrigerator. Yield: 4 dozen rolls.

Ok so how to assemble it all...

--2 granny smith apples (I actually rehydrated some of my apple slices from the cannery)
--1 stick of butter
--1 cup white sugar
--1 t vanilla
--1 t cinnamon
--1 cup Mountain Dew

The Directions.

Spray your crock insert with cooking spray.

If you are using the crescent rolls, roll out the little triangles and fill each one with an apple slice or two and roll it up.

If you are using the dough, do the same thing.

Pile the crockpot high with all of your little dumpling guys.

Melt the stick of butter in the microwave, and stir in the cup of sugar, and the cinnamon and vanilla. Pour over the dumplings, making sure to get down in the nooks and crannies.

Then add 1 cup of Mountain Dew, the same way---pour it over the top. It will make a delightful bubbly sound!

Prop lid open with a wooden spoon or chopstick and cook on high for 4-5 hours, or until the dough is brown and cooked through.

Instead of crockpotting, I put it in a 9x13 and cooked at 350 for 30-45 minutes.

I loved how the wheat contrasted the sweet nature of this recipe perfectly. The directions make it sound difficult, but it was an easy yummy treat! Hope you all enjoy!!

Lighter Chicken Salad

I absolutely love this recipe, I have tried a few chicken salads and this is by far my favorite...I used rotisserie chicken instead of boiled chicken. Enjoy!

4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves

1/4 cup light mayo

1/4 cup low-fat buttermilk

1 TB Dijon mustard

1 TB fresh lemon juice

1/2 to 1 tsp hot sauce

2 celery stalks, finely chopped

1/2 small red onion, finely chopped

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1. Bring 1 inch salted water to a boil in a large skillet with a tight-fitting lid. Add chicken, cover and reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer 5 minutes. Off heat, let chicken (still covered) steam until cooked through, 12 to 14 minutes. Remove from skillet; when cool enough, cut into chunks or shred with two forks.

2. In a medium bowl, stir together mayo, buttermilk, mustard, lemon juice, and hot sauce. Stir in chicken, celery, onion, and parsley; season with salt and pepper. Serves 6

Raspberry Cheesecake

It's been a while since I've shared... but this one was too quick and easy and YUMMY not to.

Cheesecake:
2 8oz cream cheese, room temperature
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1/4 c. lemon juice
2 Tbsp. vanilla.

Whip together with a blender until smooth. Pour into your favorite graham cracker crust pie shell. Let chill in fridge until set.

Raspberry Topping:
12oz package frozen unsweetened raspberries, thawed
1/2 c. sugar
1 tsp. lemon juice

Blend thawed raspberries in a blender until smooth. In a small saucepan over medium heat, mix raspberries, sugar, and lemon juice. Stir until the sugar is disolved. Put into a storage container and let chill in fridge until serving time.

Hawaiian Supreme Cake

This is my mom's recipe that I recently made for her birthday. It's very light and fresh. It is delish!

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

Ingredients:

1 yellow cake mix

1 can mandarin oranges with juice

4 eggs

1/2 cup oil

(don't follow cake box directions) Mix the above ingredients together for 2 minutes. Bake in 2 9-in pans for 25-30 min.

Topping:

1 lg can crushed pineapple

1 lg box instant vanilla pudding (again, don't follow box directions)

1 lg Cool Whip

Mix crushed pineapple and vanilla pudding together, let thicken. Then mix in cool whip and coconut. I eyeball the coconut and probably use about a cup.

Refrigerate topping until cake is completely cooled. Spread on layers and over entire cake. Keep refrigerated until just before serving.

Lighter General Tso Chicken

I love this recipe and its easy.

I found it in Martha Stewart's everyday Food magazine

Serves 4 ..... Total time 45 min

1 1/4 cups long grain brown rice

1/4 cup cornstarch

1 lb snow peas trimmed and halved crosswise

4 garlic cloves

2 tsp grated peeled ginger

3 TB light brown sugar

2 TB soy sauce

1/2 tsp red-pepper flakes

2 large egg whites

coarse salt and ground pepper

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast cut into 1 inch pieces

2 TB safflower oil or vegetable oil

.........................

1. Cook rice according to package instructions. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, stir together 1 TB cornstarch and 1/2 cup cold water until smooth. Add snow peas, garlic, ginger, sugar, soy sauce, and red-pepper flakes; toss to combine and set aside.

2. In another bowl, whisk together egg whites, remaining 3 TB cornstarch, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper. Add chicken, and toss to coat.

3. In a large nonstick skillet, head 1 TB oil over medium-high. Lift half the chicken from egg-white mixture (shaking off excess). and add to skillet. Cook turning occasionally, until golden, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a plate; repeat with remaining oil and chicken, and set aside (reserve skillet)

4. Add snow-pea mixture to skillet. Cover; cook until snow peas are tender and sauce has thickened, 3 to 5 minutes. Return chicken to skillet (with any juices); toss to coat. Service with rice. ENJOY!

Grilled Garlic Artichokes

i bought some artichokes from the farmers market for really cheap and wanted to do something different with them than the usual boil method. this recipe was AMAZING! we hardly ate the rest of our meal. i also liked it because we really didnt have to dip them in butter, it had so much flavor on its own.
note: this recipe is for 2 large artichokes which will make 4 halves. be sure to double it if you want more... and you will :)


2 large artichokes
1 lemon, quartered
3/4 cup olive oil
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

Fill a large bowl with cold water. Squeeze the juice from one lemon wedge into the water. Trim the tops from the artichokes, then cut in half lengthwise, and place halves into the bowl of lemon water to prevent them from turning brown. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile, preheat an outdoor grill for medium-high heat. Add artichokes to boiling water, and cook for about 15 minutes. Drain. Squeeze the remaining lemon wedges into a medium bowl. Stir in the olive oil and garlic, and season with salt and pepper. Brush the artichokes with a coating of the garlic dip, and place them on the preheated grill. Grill the artichokes for 5 to 10 minutes, basting with dip and turning frequently, until the tips are a little charred. Serve immediately with the remaining dip.

Mandarin Chicken

this recipe is tangy and delicious. the ingredients are simple and usually i have all of it on hand. my whole family loved this dish, im sure yours wont be disapointed either!


6 chicken breasts (sometimes i cube the chicken)
1/2 C. flour
salt and pepper to taste
dash garlic salt
4 eggs
1/2 C. water with one bouillon cube (i use 1/2 C. chicken broth)
1/4 C. ketchup
1 TBLS worcestershire sauce
3/4 C. sugar
1/2 C. vinegar
Mandarin oranges
slivered almonds


Mix flour with a little salt and pepper an garlic salt. Put flour mixture in paper bag. beat eggs ; dip chicken in eggs then shake chicken in bag with flour to coat. place chicken in a glass baking dish. in a pot, mix chicken bouillon or broth, ketchup, worcestershire, sugar and vinegar. bring to a boil and pour over chicken. bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 1 hour. spoon sauce over chicken during cooking. when done put chicken on a platter or plate. place mandarin oranges and almonds over the top of chicken. pour rest of sauce over chicken and serve with rice.
enjoy!

healthy banana-blueberry muffins

these muffins are from the martha stewart website & they are delicious. my kids devoured them for breakfast and lunch until they were gone. they were moist and filling, not to mention healthy.

make up a batch of these for your family this summer!

1 cup whole-wheat flour (spooned and leveled)
3/4 cup all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
1/4 cup wheat germ
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed light-brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 ripe bananas (about 1 pound)
1/3 cup reduced-fat (2 percent) milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup frozen blueberries
Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners. In a bowl, whisk together flours, wheat germ, baking soda, and salt.
In a large bowl, beat butter and sugars with a mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. In another bowl, mash bananas with a fork (you should have 3/4 cup); stir in milk and vanilla.
With mixer on low, alternately add flour mixture and banana mixture to butter mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture; mix just until combined. Fold in frozen blueberries.
Divide batter among muffin cups. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean, 25 to 28 minutes, rotating pan halfway through. Let cool in pan 10 minutes; transfer muffins to a rack to cool 10 minutes more.

Pasta e Ceci (Pasta and Chickpeas)

This soft pasta and chickpea dish is a cross between and soup and a pasta dish.  It is similar to Pasta e fagioli, which uses red beans instead of chickpeas...but the texture and flavours are very similar.  It is filling, warming and comforting (and yet another way to get children to eat pulses!)...I've made it for the boys I've nannied, and also for my fiance...no complaints!

I use Jamie Oliver's recipe from Jamie's Italy, but he uses that same ingredients and method as my friend's Southern Italian father does. 

Ingredients

1 small onion, finely chopped
1 stick of celery, trimmed and finally chopped
1 clove of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
olive oil
1 spring of fresh rosemary, leaves picked and finally chopped
2x 400g tins of chickpeas
500ml chicken stock
100g ditalini or other small Italian 'soup' pasta
sea salt, freshly ground pepper
parsley or basil chopped for garnish (optional)

Method

Put the onion, celery, garlic and rosemary into a large saucepan with a glug of olive oil. 
Cover and sweat veggies on low heat until soft, but without any colour (about 15-20 mins)
Meanwhile drain chickpeas and drain well.
After 15-20 mins add chickpeas to veggies and cover with stock.
Simmer gently until chickpeas are very soft (about 30 min)

Using a slotted spoon remove about 1/2 of the chickpeas (reserve)
Using a handblender or food processor blitz the remaining chickpeas and stock until pretty smooth
Return the reserved chickpeas to blended mixture and put over med-high heat

Add dried pasta
Simmer until pasta is cooked

Serve with some chopped parsley or basil, and a drizzle of olive oil.

Enjoy :)

Broccoli, Potato and Cheese Soup

we have enough broccoli in our garden to last a life time! i didnt want it to go to waste, so i used it in this wonderful soup! it was hearty and filling. my kids ate it! its cheap. it was so fast and easy to make!

2 Cups chopped onion
2 Tlbs olive oil
2 1/2 lbs peeled and cubed potatoes
5 Cups water
4 Cubes chicken bullion
3 Cups fresh broccoli, cooked and drained
dash of garlic powder
salt & pepper to taste
3 Cups cheddar cheese

in a large pot, saute onion in butter.
add potatoes, water and bullion cubes.
cover.
bring to boil and then reduce heat to med. and cook until potatoes are tender, about 15 min.
cook broccoli and add to soup.
in a blender or food processor, puree half of the soup and return to pot.
season with salt, pepper and garlic powder.
add cheese and heat soup through until cheese is melted.
serve warm.
goes well with homemade biscuits.

stay warm!