Lemon Scones

Today's yumminess - Lemon scones! Now to be fair, I LOOOOVE scones - pretty much any scone. But these did end up being pretty tasty, from my unbiased seat on the couch. Today's recipe is from cooks.com, though allrecipes.com has one that is similar.

LEMON SCONE

2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour 1 tbsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp. salt 8 tbsp. unsalted butter 1/4 c. sugar, plus 2 tbsp. sugar 2 tsp. lemon juice 1 tbsp. freshly grated lemon rind 2/3 c. milk Heat oven to 425 degrees. Lightly grease a baking sheet.In a large bowl blend flour, baking powder and salt. Stir well. Add butter and cut in with a pastry blender, or rub with your fingers until mixture looks like granules. Add sugar and lemon rind. Add milk and stir with a fork until a soft dough forms. Form into a ball and knead on a floured surface 5 or 6 times. Roll dough and cut with a biscuit cutter. In a small bowl combine 2 tablespoons sugar and 2 teaspoons lemon juice. Brush tops of scones with lemon and sugar mixture before baking. Bake 15 to 18 minutes.

Pretty much followed the recipe to the letter, though I did cut them into 8 wedges to cook, rather than biscuit shaped round patties. It turned out pretty well. Definitely a keeper, especially with clotted cream!!

Ingredients

• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/3 cup sour cream
• 1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar

Directions

1. Using a whisk attachment on the mixer, whip heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Remove from mixer, and hand whisk in the sour cream and confectioners' sugar until just combined. Store in refrigerator.

Compliments of K. and she did a FANTASTIC job! I want to try it with clotted cream and jam now. Yay for British Dr. Who night! 

Angela's Awesome Enchiladas

Hey blogging world! Today's creation is enchiladas, chicken ones, because they are my favorite. ;)

Ingredients

• 2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast meat - cut into chunks
• 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
• 1 1/4 cups sour cream
• 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chilies, drained
• 1 (1.25 ounce) package mild taco seasoning mix
• 1 bunch green onions, chopped, divided
• 1 cup water
• 1 teaspoon lime juice
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 5 (12 inch) flour tortillas
• 3 cups Cheddar cheese, shredded, divided
• 1 (10 ounce) can enchilada sauce
• 1 (6 ounce) can sliced black olives

Directions

1. Place the chicken in a large pot and add water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the chicken pieces are no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Shred chicken by placing two forks back to back and pulling meat apart. Set the shredded chicken aside. Meanwhile, combine the cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and chili powder in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, then turn off the heat and cover to keep warm.
2. Heat the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onion; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the shredded chicken, chopped green chilies, taco seasoning, half of the bunch of chopped green onion, and water. Allow to simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the lime juice, onion powder, and garlic powder; simmer for an additional 10 minutes.
3. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Stir 1 cup of the soup mixture into the skillet with the chicken mixture. Spread the remaining soup mixture on the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish.
4. Fill each tortilla with chicken mixture. Sprinkle Cheddar cheese over the chicken filling before folding the tortillas, reserving half of the shredded cheese for topping the enchiladas. Fold tortillas over the filling and place seam-side down in the prepared pan.
5. Pour enchilada sauce evenly over the enchiladas. Cover with the remaining 1 1/2 cups of Cheddar cheese. Sprinkle the reserved chopped green onions and the sliced olives on top of the cheese. Bake in the preheated oven until filling is heated through and the cheese is melted and bubbling, about 25 minutes.

So we didn't even START out doing this recipe as it says. I saw on a review she mixes the chicken with the spices and onion and puts it in the crockpot, which sounded like a much better option to me then the long list of instructions that were listed. so we did that, and added a cup of water to the mixture and turned it on low for 8 hours. Soooooo....we kind of ran out of water part way through this cooking process, so when I got home at the end of that 8 hour period, the bottom looked burnt and was completely liquidless. So I added another cup of water and hoped that it would be ok and shredded the chicken. I tasted it and it doesn't taste burnt, so fingers are crossed. Followed the rest of the directions mostly - combined the sour cream/cream of chicken/chili powder and simmered that, then added 1 cup of that to the cream mixture to the chicken mixture, and the rest to the bottom of the pan, etc. So now to wait while it cooks....

And the verdict! Well, the chicken doesn't taste burnt at all, so that is good. I ended up using 6 tortillas instead of the called for 5, and a change I forgot to mention was that I only used about 3/4 of the can of green chiles - because I don't really like green chiles, or any kind of chile for that matter! :p The flavor is good, but I'm wishing it had a more salty/seasoning substance. I think next time I would add more chile powder, and maybe substitute either the garlic or onion powder for garlic or onion salt. But other than that, the husband says it's excellent, and three servings later, I believe him! 

Tater Tot Taco Salad/Smoky Four Cheese Macaroni Bake

So I'm slightly delayed in posting this, but here it is nonetheless! This was last weeks new creation, compliments of allrecipes.com.

Ingredients

• 2 cups frozen miniature tater tots
• 1/2 pound ground beef
• 2 tablespoons taco seasoning
• 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1/4 cup sliced ripe or stuffed olives
• 1 cup shredded lettuce
• 2 tablespoons taco sauce
• 1/4 cup sour cream

Directions

1. Bake Tater Tots according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Stir in taco seasoning. Divide Tater Tots between two serving plates or bowls. Top with taco mixture, cheese, olives, lettuce, taco sauce and sour cream.

I actually kind of liked this recipe. It's a new take on tacos, and since I love tacos, finding new ways to eat them is always great. My only complaint about this was that the tater tots really need to be good and crispy, and my my oven just doesn't do that! I've heard of some ovens that have speed bake, which sounds like it works well for crisping things. Leftovers were good, but again, the tater tots created a problem of being dry and mushy. I didn't use olives because the hubby doesn't like them, and just applied toppings to taste. 

Recipe #2

Smoky Four Cheese Macaroni Bake

Ingredients

• 1 (12 ounce) package macaroni
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/2 cup minced onion
• 1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup half-and-half cream
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard powder
• 1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke flavoring (optional)
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, cubed
• 1 cup shredded Swiss cheese
• 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
• 1/3 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
2. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
3. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the onion, and cook for 3 minutes until it begins to soften. Add the garlic, and continue cooking until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 2 minutes more. Slowly stir in the flour, and cook, stirring constantly for 5 minutes.
4. Stir in the half-and-half and milk, and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and stir in mustard powder and liquid smoke; simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add 1 cup of Parmesan cheese, along with the cream cheese, Swiss, Monterey Jack, and Cheddar cheeses; stir until melted. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then stir in the drained macaroni noodles. Pour into the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs over the macaroni
5. Bake in preheated oven until bubbly and brown, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to stand 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

I go back and forth about this one! I LOVE the idea of adding liquid smoke, and would increase the amount next time, probably at least double. We followed the recipe mostly to the letter, with only a few changes. We ended up using 16 oz. of macaroni noodles because that's what the box came in, and used 1 cup half and half + 1 cup milk, and ended up adding another cup of half and half once all of the cheese was added. I have NEVER seen so much cheese in one recipe!! Once it was all added, it was the thickest concoction I have ever seen, hence the added of more half and half. Next time, I think I would leave the onion out. I really do love sautéed onion, but it provides a very distinct flavor, and I think the dish would be better complimented without it. I also would change some the different kinds of cheese. Again, it's one of those complimenting flavor things - I LOVE Parmesan cheese - but it gives this kind of weird aftertaste. I stole an idea from another mac and cheese recipe and I would substitute Muenster cheese instead of the Parmesan. It ended up being super cheesy and gooey, but dried out a little bit after it sat for awhile. Not sure how leftovers would be, but I might play around with the amount of flour and decrease it a bit to make it a little less thick. 

I definitely recommend shredded cheese, or if you need to shred cheese, do it before you start things. And don't start the noodles until you get to the simmering the sauce for 10 minutes part, otherwise they just sit there for like 20 minutes or something. 

Zuppa Toscana (Updated)

Update on 4/15/13: So I made this with Sage breakfast sausage, and about 2/3 package of bacon, and extra garlic. Otherwise followed as directed. Using real bacon was DEFINITELY an improvement over bacon bits. Oooh poor pre-cooking me, what was I thinking?! I cooked the bacon and the sausage at the same time, and while it worked out ok, I think I would actually follow the recipe next time and cook them separately. Since they both had to cook for 10 minutes, I figured I would save myself some time. However, the bacon has a hard time getting crispy while being that close and personal with the sausage. I did add a little bit of spinach at the end, and was pleasantly surprised by the results! It wasn't too wilty (I have this thing against cooked spinach, unless it's in spinach artichoke dip, which has more cheese then one could hope for) and provided a nice balance to the meat and broth. All in all, heartily recommended, and I'll probably add more spinach next time. :D 


Hello blogging world! So this blog shall keep track of different and fun recipes that I am trying out. More for my own benefit, so that I can keep track of how the recipe was, what I would have changed, etc.
So today's recipe is called Super-delicious Zuppa Toscana and hales from www.allrecipes.com.

Ingredients

• 1 pound bulk mild Italian sausage
• 1 1/4 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
• 4 slices bacon, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 5 (13.75 ounce) cans chicken broth
• 6 potato, thinly sliced
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 bunch fresh spinach, tough stems removed

Directions

1. Cook the Italian sausage and red pepper flakes in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until crumbly, browned, and no longer pink, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain and set aside.
2. Cook the bacon in the same Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp, about 10 minutes. Drain, leaving a few tablespoons of drippings with the bacon in the bottom of the Dutch oven. Stir in the onions and garlic; cook until onions are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
3. Pour the chicken broth into the Dutch oven with the bacon and onion mixture; bring to a boil over high heat. Add the potatoes, and boil until fork tender, about 20 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and stir in the heavy cream and the cooked sausage; heat through. Mix the spinach into the soup just before serving.

So, as a non-cooked spinach lover, I skipped the spinach part. Changes that I made: I sauteed the garlic and onion in a small amount of butter for a few minutes and then added just hot sausage (no other spices) and cooked them all together. I then added the broth to that mixture and the potatoes. Once those were done, I added the cream and bacon (using bacon bits instead of regular bacon). It turned out pretty well - maybe a little on the spicy side. I think next time I may drain the sausage after cooking and potentially use a milder sausage and just add a little bit of red pepper.