Chicken Corn Chili and Cold Weather Recipes

On Monday, it was at least 85 degrees... and then yesterday and today, the temperature hasn't gotten out of the 40's and 50's... welcome to Arkansas! :) But I'm not complaining! I LOVE the cooler weather and it has me thinking blankets, fires, warm drinks and soup! Here is one of my new favorite soup recipes... I found it in the Food Network magazine! Enjoy!

Chicken Corn Chili

Ingredients:

1 T. extra-virgin olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 large jalapeño pepper (1/2 chopped and 1/2 sliced)

1 4-ounce can chopped green chiles

1 t. ground cumin

2 cups chicken broth

2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken

2 15-ounce cans large white beans (I used cannellini beans)

1 cup frozen corn

1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1 cup shredded monteray jack cheese

sour cream (for serving)

Directions:

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until slightly soft, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic, chopped jalapeño, green chiles and cumin and cook, stirring, until the cumin is toasted, about 2 minutes. Stir in the chicken broth, chicken, beans and corn. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 15 minutes. Stir in the cilantro and 1/2 cup of cheese. Divide among bowls and top with remaining cheese, sour cream and sliced jalapeños.

Not very photogenic... but I promise it was delicious!

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And just for fun, here are a few other cold weather (stick to your ribs) recipes that I have posted in the past...

Chicken Tortilla Soup

White Hot Chocolate

My Favorite Macaroni and Cheese Recipe

Chicken and Dumplings

Biscuits and Gravy

Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

Taco Soup

Fettuccine Alfredo

Thank you SO much for all of the sweet words and congratulations on our new addition! We are LOVING life and we just feel so thankful and blessed to be Seth's parents! Speaking of Seth, I promised to answer any questions you had so... He is 14 months old and I will be going back to work (since Evan is still in law school) but I am staying home with him for a month right now... and I will be so sad when this precious month comes to an end! :(

As you have probably noticed, I haven't been doing a lot of cooking lately (especially of new recipes) since I've been busy trying to get this whole mom thing figured out! :) But I did cook a new and SUPER easy recipe last night that even Seth was able to enjoy!

Fettuccine Alfredo

Ingredients:

8 oz. uncooked fettuccine (I used spinach fettuccine)

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup whipping cream

3/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

1/4 t. salt

1/4 t. pepper

2 T. chopped fresh parsley

1/8 t. ground nutmeg (optional)

Directions:

Cook and drain fettuccine. Place in a serving bowl. Meanwhile, combine butter and whipping cream in a saucepan; cook over low heat until butter melts. Stir in cheese and next 3 ingredients; add nutmeg, if desired. Pour sauce over hot fettuccine; toss well. Serve immediately.

-Evan and I had a salad with our fettuccine and Seth had green beans with his :)

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And a few pictures for fun.... we went to Garvan Woodland Gardens this past weekend and I made sure to take a picture of Seth's backside so I could put it on the blog! haha Also.... I have read a few blogs of people in similar situations and some of them photoshop a heart over the child's face in pictures... so I may start doing that... if I can figure out how :) Anyway, here are my sweet boys!

Happy Tuesday!

It's Carnival Time!

My sister's 22nd birthday was last week and we had a carnival themed party for her. The main reason we chose this theme was because she has a huge love for cotton candy and funnel cakes and the second reason may shock you! haha At the age of 22, my sister is the world's youngest Elvis fan. She LOVES him and she has ever since she was a little girl. As a result of this love, she is always trying to get her friends and family to watch old Elvis movies with her. There is an Elvis movie called "Roustabout" that takes place at a carnival so we decided to surprise her and have a carnival themed party and eat her favorite carnival foods all while watching "Roustabout"! It turned out to be a lot of fun!

We had some really heavy foods at the party so we decided to make some of the treats miniature so we could still enjoy the taste of a carnival without feeling sick! haha Here are our precious mini cotton candy bags...

We also made mini carmel apples. We used crabapples and cocktail toothpicks to make them mini and them we dipped them in regular melted carmels. I LOVED these!

For dinner, we had corn dogs and onion rings with pink grapefruit sodas. We put it all in little baskets so we could eat while we watched the movie.

And her birthday cake was, of course, a funnel cake!

We found mixes for the corn dogs and funnel cakes but we made the onion rings from scratch! Here's the recipe we used (from a Southern Living cookbook):

Beer-Battered Onion Rings

3 large Vidalia onions

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 t. baking powder

1 t. salt

1/4 cup yellow cornmeal

2 cups beer

1 large egg, lightly beaten

vegetable oil

Directions:

Peel onions; cut into 1/2 inch thick slices, and separate into rings. Place rings in a large bowl of ice water; let stand 30 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Combine flour and next 3 ingredients, stir well. Add beer and egg, stirring until thoroughly blended and smooth. Chill batter for 15 minutes. Dip onion rings into batter, coating both sides well. Pour oil to a depth of 2 to 3 inches in a dutch oven; heat to 375 degrees. Fry onion rings, a few at a time, 3 to 5 minutes or until golden on both sides. Drain well on paper towels, serve immediately.

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And for your viewing pleasure... the inspiration behind the party and the title of this post :)

Haha! Happy Friday, everyone!! :)

White Hot Chocolate

Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving... We sure did! We got a chance to spend some quality time with both sides of our family and we ate a TON of good food. I already gave you my favorite pie crust recipe so today, I thought I would give you a great recipe that I recently found for hot chocolate.

A few weeks ago, Evan and I had our community group (small group from church) over to our house. I made Paula Deen's "White Hot Chocolate" and set up a "hot chocolate bar" complete with dark chocolate shavings, crushed peppermints, mint leaves, marshmallows and whipped cream. It was really fun and the recipe is definitely a keeper! :)

White Hot Chocolate

Ingredients:

1 cup white chocolate chips

1 cup heavy cream

4 cups half and half

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

In medium saucepan, over medium heat, combine white chocolate chips and heavy cream. Stir continuously until white chocolate chips have completely melted. Stir in half and half and vanilla extract. Stir continuously until heated through. Pour into mugs and serve.

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In addition to our two Thanksgiving celebrations and a little black Friday shopping, we also cut down our Christmas tree this past weekend! Here are a few pictures from our time at the Christmas tree farm! :)

Cheers ;)

White Chili

If you follow me on Twitter then you know that Evan and I went to the Carrie Underwood concert on Tuesday night... and LOVED every second of it! But we stayed up way past our bedtime and we were both exhausted on Wednesday so I needed a SUPER easy recipe for Wednesday night's dinner... and the first recipe that came to my mind was White Chili. I mean, the hardest part is opening the cans... it's almost shocking how fast you can have dinner on the table with this recipe! Oh and it's also delicious and very comforting while being healthy all at the same time! Can we say, "Keeper"? :)

White Chili

Ingredients:

2 cans chicken broth

2 cans great northern beans

2 cans chopped green chiles

2 cans chopped cooked chicken

1 small onion, diced

1 t. garlic

1 1/2 t. cumin

1 can green chile enchilada sauce

Directions:

Pour all ingredients into soup pot and simmer until hot. Serve with shredded cheddar cheese and sour cream, if desired.

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Here are a few pictures... you'll have to forgive this meal for not being super photogenic... since that's it's one and only flaw! :)

If you couldn't already tell, this recipe is definitely one of my favorites! Give it a try on your next busy night! :)

Poppy Seed Chicken

So, the other day, Evan and I were eating lunch and I said, "What do you want to have for dinner tonight?" He didn't know so he said he would think about it. A few hours later, Evan called me and said, "Can we have something with water chestnuts in it?" hahahahahahaha What?? Water chestnuts?? SO random... even more random if you know how picky he was when we first started dating... if it wasn't a hot dog, a chicken strip or a cheeseburger, he wasn't interested!! Anyway, after I stopped making fun of him (and being proud of how far he has come), I decided to make Poppy Seed Chicken... because my recipe calls for (you guessed it) water chestnuts!! :)

I realize that everyone has a Poppy Seed Chicken recipe... but since they are all different, I thought I would share mine anyway!

Poppy Seed Chicken

Ingredients:

4-5 Chicken Breasts, cooked and diced

2 1/4 oz. pkg. sliced almonds

1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms

3 T. poppy seeds

1 (8 oz.) can sliced water chestnuts, drained

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 (8 oz) carton sour cream

1 sleeve of crushed Ritz crackers

1/2 stick of margarine, melted

Directions:

Spread chicken in a lightly greased 9x13 dish. Scatter mushrooms, almonds and water chestnuts over chicken. Mix soups and sour cream together. Pour mixture over ingredients in casserole dish. Spread cracker crumbs over soup. Pour melted margarine over crumbs. Sprinkle 3 T. poppy seeds over crackers. Bake uncovered at 350 for 30-40 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

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I served it over white rice and with steamed broccoli... here's one more picture that really showcases the water chestnuts ;)

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And finally, because the majority of this post has been spent picking on my fabulous husband, I will brag on him for just a minute! :) My birthday was on Tuesday and one of the gifts he gave me was this AMAZING sign for my kitchen. He found the quote and had the sign made just for me... He designed it himself! I. Love. It.

Did I mention that I LOVE it?? In fact, I love it more than Evan loves water chestnuts! :)

Classic Chicken Tetrazzini

As you probably know by now, I am an avid Southern Living Magazine reader. I love everything about this magazine... really, everything. I finally read my way through the September issue last night and I was so inspired! It made me so proud to be southern but it also made me hungry and even made me laugh! Here is the recipe (from SLM of course) that I cooked and LOVED last night:

Classic Chicken Tetrazzini

Ingredients:

1 1/2 (8 oz) packages vermicelli

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

4 cups milk

1/2 cup dry white wine

2 T. chicken bouillon granules

1 t. seasoned pepper

2 cups freshly grated parmesan cheese, divided

4 cups diced cooked chicken

1 (6 oz) jar sliced mushrooms, drained (I used fresh)

3/4 cup slivered almonds

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, melt butter in a Dutch oven over low heat; whisk in flour until smooth. Cook 1 minute, whisking constantly. Gradually whisk in milk and wine; cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, 8 to 10 minutes or until mixture is thickened and bubbly. Whisk in bouillon granules, seasoned pepper, and 1 cup Parmesan cheese. Remove from heat; stir in diced cooked chicken, sliced mushrooms, and hot cooked pasta. Spoon mixture into a lightly greased 13x9 inch baking dish; sprinkle with slivered almonds and remaining 1 cup Parmesan cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until bubbly.

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And now, in honor of both my beloved magazine and premiere week (one of the greatest weeks of the year for a tv lover such as myself), I give you the page in Southern Living September 2010 that made me laugh:

Dear Hollywood: An open letter to our friends in showbiz, bless their hearts

by Amy Bickers

Southern Living, September 2010

Attention, Tinsel Town. As the fall TV season begins, we hope you aren’t tempted once again to dust off those Southern stereotypes that make us cringe. An example: the crime show that featured a cold case in Nashville and depicted the city’s police chief as a man who asked people to call him Big Daddy. Seriously? In a city with right around 600,000 people? We think it’s high time we let you in on a little secret. Contrary to what you might think, it’s really not all moonlight and magnolias down here. It’s not all cats on hot tin roofs, either.

For starters, Southern women do not go around saying things like “Why, I nev-aaaahhh!” or “I do declare!” (Okay, sometimes we do say that stuff, but we’re kidding. The same is true when we yell “Free Bird!” at, say, a Celtic Woman concert. We are in on the joke.) More than 70 years have passed since Scarlett stood on that hill and bellyached about Tara, yet you can visit your local cineplex or turn on the tube any day of the week and hear actresses doing that accent. And frankly, my dears, we do give a, er, care about how very wrong that is, especially when they’re playing truck drivers or steelworkers. But, in your defense, it’s easier to channel Scarlett than to nail the difference between a New Orleans accent, which sounds like Brooklyn on gumbo, and a West Texas accent, which is as dead level as the prairie it came from. Kudos to the HBO drama Tremefor getting it right. Then again, it’s filmed in the city and casts actual New Orleanians, so the real props go to our fellow Southerners for keeping it real. (As for the accents of those Louisiana vampires in True Blood? No. Just no.)

Using actual Southerners doesn’t always help, though. Southern-born celebs are sometimes the worst offenders. We won’t name names, but we’re looking at you, Julia R. Even Reese Witherspoon, who did our beloved June Carter proud in Walk the Line and was just a pistol in her Man in the Moon debut, veered offtrack in a film we won’t name, playing a New York City fashion designer who hides her Southern past because she grew up in a trailer with a Civil War-re-enacting daddy and a mama who makes bologna cake. Who among us has ever heard of bologna cake? Does that take buttercream frosting?

Stereotypes are tempting—we get that. And if you need to telegraph “Southern,” the easy route is to trot out Bubba or Big Daddy and have him drawl like Foghorn Leghorn while driving a pickup and spitting into a dip cup. But the thing is, we love the South. We live in it, and not, for the most part, in rusted-out camper trailers or Greek Revival mansions. You’d be shocked if we told you how few of us have verandas. Are you sitting down? Some of us live in condos.

And one last thing: We have air conditioning. You know, that thing that makes it feel cooler inside than it is outside? We do have it. And that is why we do not sweat indoors. We do not glisten and fan ourselves while sitting in courthouses or hospitals or grocery stores. In fact, because of the South’s obsession with AC, our public buildings are often so cold in the summer that we have to keep a sweater handy in July. Stop showing us sweating, please. Unless it’s Texas native Matthew McConaughey and he’s “lost” his shirt yet again. We’ll give you a pass on that one.

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There's nothing like comfort food and a good laugh to brighten your day!! Thanks to Southern Living for delivering, once again! ;)

My Favorite Macaroni and Cheese Recipe

When I was growing up, my siblings and I always ate whatever my parents ate for dinner... We never really had "kid food" and "adult food". I really appreciate this now that I am an adult because I think that's where my love for food came from... I learned really early on how much of an adventure food can be!

I think there are lots of fun (and easy) ways to make "adult food" fun and approachable enough for kids and ways to make "kid food" grown up enough for adults to enjoy and hopefully I will be able to do this with my own kiddos someday! Call me cheesy, but I feel like food has so much potential to bring families closer together when the whole family is gathered at the same dinner table, sharing the same meal.

To me, this macaroni and cheese recipe (taken from a really old Southern Living cookbook) is one of those recipes that the whole family can enjoy... and fight over the last serving! (You did that at your house too, right? ;))

Macaroni and Cheese

Ingredients:

1 pkg. dried elbow macaroni

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 cups milk

1 t. salt

2 cups shredded American cheese

Smoked Paprika

Directions:

Cook and drain macaroni, melt butter in a heavy saucepan over low heat; add flour, stirring until smooth. Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Gradually add milk; cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thickened and bubbly. Stir in salt and cheese, stirring until cheese melts. Stir macaroni into cheese sauce, and pour into a lightly greased 2 quart baking dish. Sprinkle with smoked paprika. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 25-35 minutes or until bubbly. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

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Now you know what I think, but what's your opinion on "kid food" vs. "adult food"?

Have a GREAT weekend!! :)

Father's Day and Peach Cobbler

This past weekend, Evan, Jack and I went down to Arkadelphia, AR, to spend time with Evan's family for Father's Day. Evan's parents, grandparents and sister and brother-in-law (and all of our dogs!) were all there and I think it was the first time that we have all been together in the same house since Christmas! It was a fun day... even though it was like 180 degrees outside! ha! Hopefully Julee will have some pictures on her blog soon because we forgot to take our camera!

But in case you are just dying to know what we all look like together... here's a pic of the whole gang from Christmas! haha

Even though Matt's head is cut off... sorry Matt!!

One of my favorite parts of visiting Evan's family is when Evan and his papaw play music together. Evan plays the guitar and his papaw plays the fiddle and it is so fun to watch and listen to them! They played again this past weekend... but of course, I only have a picture from Christmas! Ugh.

And to wrap up our visit, we had a big family dinner. We had grilled steaks and twice baked potatoes and my mother-in-law made a DELICIOUS peach cobbler... and I ate way too much of it!! Here's the recipe:

Peach Cobbler

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups self-rising flour

8 T. (1 stick) of butter

1/2 cup water

2 cups sugar, divided

4 cups peeled, sliced peaches

1 1/2 cups milk

ground cinnamon, optional

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine the peaches, 1 cup of sugar and water in a saucepan and mix well. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Put the butter in a 3 quart baking dish and place in the oven to melt. Mix remaining 1 cup of sugar, flour and milk slowly to avoid clumping. Pour mixture over melted butter. Do not stir. Spoon fruit on top, gently pouring in syrup. Sprinkle top with ground cinnamon (if using). Bake for 30 to 45 minutes.

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I hope you had a wonderful Father's Day weekend too!!

Cheeseburger Pie

This is one of my favorite quick and easy recipes and it's pretty delicious too!!

Cheeseburger Pie

(I realize this isn't the best picture but I forgot to take one until we had already started eating!)

Ingredients:

1 lb. lean ground beef

1 large onion (chopped)

1/2 t. salt

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 cup original Bisquick mix

1 cup milk

2 eggs

Directions:

Heat oven to 400. Spray a 9 in. pie plate with cooking spray. Cook beef and onion in skillet until brown. Stir in salt. Spread in a pie plate and sprinkle with cheese. In a small bowl, stir remaining ingredients with a fork until blended and pour into pie plate. Bake 30-35 minutes or until knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

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To answer any questions you may have:

1. I didn't post a "Pray for Us Friday" post this past Friday because I was really busy getting ready for my anniversary and our upcoming vacation. I plan to have it back in action by next Friday but I need your recipes and prayer requests to keep it going!

2. My blog looks really plain right now because it is in the middle of a makeover... so get excited about what's coming and make sure you keep coming back to check out the new look! :)

3. We are going to Bar Harbor, Maine, this week and we are SO excited about it. Hopefully I will be able to learn some new recipes to share with you while I am gone! If you have been to Maine before, please leave suggestions of your favorite things to do, see and of course EAT!!

Shrimp and Grits

Can I just start by bragging on my husband? If you read my post yesterday, you know that yesterday was our first anniversary. He went ALL out. I just kept getting surprised!! We are going on a vacation in a few days and I just thought that would be (other than gifts, cards and dinner) how we celebrated our anniversary but I was so wrong...

He started the day by waking me up with coffee and scones from Starbucks. Then he gave me a gift and the card said that we had an appointment for a couples' massage and we needed to leave immediately! SO exciting!

After the massage, we came home and got ready because I had to go to a baby shower and he "had some things he needed to do." When I got home from the baby shower, he had a bag packed, a blanket ready and Jack was wearing his leash... we were off for a romantic picnic at Pinnacle Mountain State Park.

After the picnic and a long afternoon nap, I was instructed to pack an overnight bag and get dressed up!! I was SO excited again. When I was ready to go, we went to dinner at Ferneau, a fabulous Little Rock restaurant that neither of us had ever been to!

After dinner, we went to the Capital Hotel (where we got engaged and spent our wedding night). And just when I thought the surprises were over... we went up to our room and it was the EXACT same room that we had stayed in on our wedding night and there was dessert and champagne waiting for us inside (also the same kind of champagne that we had on our wedding day!).

I am so proud of my sweet husband for putting such thought and detail into our anniversary. He definitely made it special and memorable!! I just love him! :)

Now, since this is a food blog... I need to brag on this restaurant:

The restaurant is named after the owner and executive chef, Donnie Ferneau. He uses mainly Arkansas ingredients, flies in fresh fish daily and changes the menu seasonally. It was such a GREAT experience. Although the restaurant doesn't make this claim, I felt like the menu had a southern flair to it... which I loved. I ordered Shrimp and Grits and I could not have been more pleased! I am a lover of this dish and I order it often but Ferneau's shrimp and grits may have just been the best version that I have ever had. As I was enjoying my dinner last night, I realized that I have never actually made shrimp and grits at home and I decided that it is time for that to change! So, I looked up a Southern Living recipe and I plan to make it very soon. I'll share it with you in case you also love this classic southern delicacy!

Shrimp and Grits

Ingredients:

2 cups water

1 (14 oz) can chicken broth

3/4 cup half and half

3/4 t. salt

1 cup uncooked regular grits

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese

2 T. butter

1/2 t. hot sauce

4 bacon slices

1 lb. unpeeled, medium-sized fresh shrimp

1/4 t. salt

1/4 t. pepper

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 (8 oz) pkg. sliced fresh mushrooms

1/2 cup chopped green onions

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup chicken broth

2 T. fresh lemon juice

1/4 t. hot sauce

Directions:

Bring first four ingredients to a boil in a medium saucepan; gradually whisk in grits. Reduce heat, and simmer, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes or until thickened. Add cheddar cheese and next 3 ingredients. Keep warm. Cook bacon in a large skillet until crisp. Remove and drain on paper towels, reserving 1 T. drippings in skillet. Crumble bacon. Peel shrimp and devein. Sprinkle shrimp with 1/4 t. salt and pepper; dredge in flour. Saute mushrooms in hot drippings in skillet 5 minutes or until tender. Add 1/2 cup green onions, and saute 2 minutes. Add shrimp and garlic, and saute 2 minutes or until shrimp are lightly browned. Stir in 1/2 cup chicken broth, lemon juice and 1/4 t. hot sauce; cook 2 more minutes, stirring to loosen particles from bottom of skillet. Serve shrimp mixture over hot cheese grits. Top with crumbled bacon.

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Back to quick and easy recipes tomorrow... but it's always good to know how to make the special stuff too!! :) Hope you had a great weekend!!

Chipotle Chili Cheese Dogs

My hubby had a bad day today... so I whipped out his favorite food to cheer him up!! haha Can you believe it? With all of the wonderful food in the world... this man thinks hot dogs take the top spot. (I've heard stories of him eating >8 hot dogs in one meal.) Maybe it's because he's male, or maybe it's because he spent a large percentage of his childhood in a baseball park or maybe it's because his wife thinks they're kinda gross and NEVER lets him eat them... never the less, he loves them and because of this recipe (that I found in this month's issue of Food Network Magazine), I do too!! :) So, whether you're a hot dog lover or you're still waiting to be convinced... here's the recipe for you:

Chipotle Chili Cheese Dogs

Ingredients:

2 strips of bacon, diced

1 small onion, finely chopped

2 t. chili powder

1 t. ground cumin

3 T. Ketchup

1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed

1 can diced tomatoes

3 T. Chipotle hot sauce

4 foot long hot dogs (I just used regular)

4 soft hoagie rolls, split open

4 oz. Pepper Jack cheese, shredded (about 1 cup)

Sliced scallions and sour cream for topping

Directions:

1. Cook bacon in a skillet over medium heat until slightly crisp, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the onions, chili powder and cumin and cook until the onion is soft, about 3 minutes. Stir in the ketchup and cook until it is slightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the beans, tomatoes, hot sauce and 1 cup of water, cover and bring to a boil. Uncover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture thickens, about 20 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, grill the hot dogs and toast the rolls on the grill.

3. Sprinkle the inside of each roll with cheese, then add a hot dog, some of the bean mixture and more cheese. Top with scallions and sour cream.

If you're ever having a bad day, we recommend that you make this recipe... we're all cheered up around here!! :)

I Took a Risk...

And it paid off!!!

Here's the story... when Evan and I first started dating, I was obsessed with food and he was extremely picky. Like the pickiest person that I had EVER met in my life. I was always wanting to cook for him and try something new but I was always afraid that he wouldn't like it. But he was a great sport! He would always say that your taste buds are supposed to change as you get older so he was willing to try anything. Apparently that's true, because over the years he has gone from SUPER picky to an adventurous foodie! However, there was one thing that I cooked when we first started dating that he just HATED. Like wouldn't eat. I think we ended up going out to eat... and I haven't made it since. What is this dish that Evan couldn't even pretend to like?

Chicken and Dumplings

So... after 3+ years of avoiding chicken and dumplings at all cost... he suggested that we try it again. Last night, I made chicken and dumplings (the EXACT same way that I made them 3 or so years ago) and he LOVED them!! I was shocked... I was so nervous while I was making them. I just kept thinking that this was so pointless because we were going to end up going out to eat anyway but we didn't! I was SO excited!

So here's a super easy recipe that I will finally be able to add back into my repertoire:

Chicken and Dumplings

Ingredients

48 oz chicken broth or stock

2 cans cream of chicken soup

2-4 cups of chopped, cooked chicken

4 cans biscuits (the most basic biscuit you can find)

salt and pepper or greek seasoning to taste

Directions:

whisk together the chicken broth and cream of chicken soup and bring to a boil. Add the cooked chicken (I like to use about 2 cups of chicken because I like there to be more dumplings than chicken but it is entirely up to you!). Then pinch the raw biscuit dough into bite size pieces and drop into the boiling soup mixture. ***Serve the chicken and dumplings as soon as you drop in your last piece of biscuit because if you simmer this dish for too long, the dumplings will disintegrate!

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I served them with green beans and fried corn. It was a very comforting meal!

Here's a picture:

I still can't believe that Evan enjoyed Chicken and Dumplings last night...

Is there a food that you hated but now love??

Biscuits and Gravy

Bad news... my plan for tonight was to make gravy on film so that you could see first hand how easy it is to do. However, blogger WILL NOT let me upload the video. So, this post is a little more boring than I planned for it to be.

The reason I was going to show you how to make gravy instead of just telling you is because I feel like a lot of people are afraid of gravy and it's really nothing to be afraid of! The way I made gravy tonight is a really simple recipe that my mom taught me and she learned it from my great aunt. So, needless to say, it has been enjoyed by a lot of people over the years!

But first... the biscuits! This is a GREAT recipe from Southern Living for Whipping Cream Biscuits.

Whipping Cream Biscuits

Ingredients:

1 cup cold butter or margarine, cut into pieces

4 cups self-rising flour

2 cups whipping cream

Directions:

Cut 1 cup butter into flour with a pastry blender or a fork until crumbly. Add whipping cream, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead lightly 3 or 4 times. Roll or pat dough to 3/4 inch thickness; cut with a 2 inch round biscuit cutter, and place on a lightly greased backing sheet or stone. Bake at 400 for 13-15 minutes or until golden.

Easy Breakfast Gravy

Ingredients:

2 T. butter (could also use bacon grease or sausage drippings)

2 T. flour

1 can Campbell's Cream of Chicken soup

milk

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

In order to keep the gravy from getting lumpy, you'll want to keep your whisk going the whole time. So, I suggest that you keep the ingredients that you'll need next to you so you don't have to leave your skillet! First, melt the two tablespoons of butter in a skillet, then whisk in the 2 tablespoons of flour (I also said on the video that it doesn't really matter how much butter/flour you use but you have to use equal parts, e.g. if you use 4 T. of butter, you must use 4 T. of flour.) After you've whisked the butter and flour together, whisk in the cream of chicken soup. Finally, thin the mixture with milk- keep adding milk until you are happy with the consistency of the gravy. When you like the way it looks, add salt and pepper until you like the way it tastes!

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Even though the post was a bummer, our dinner was great! We had scrambled eggs and sausage links with our biscuits and gravy. Here's a pic:

One last thing: We have a difference of opinion in our home as to what condiment goes best with scrambled eggs. These are the two condiments that we disagree over:

and

Which spouse do you think belongs to which condiment and which condiment would YOU choose??

Grilled Pineapple and Onion Salad and Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole

We decided to make this salad because A.) We have a new grill that we really wanted to use and B.) We had a pineapple that was about to go bad. I found the recipe on The Food Network website. It is from the show, "Down Home With the Neely's." It was really different and we really liked it... very summery!

Grilled Pineapple and Onion Salad

Ingredients:
1 large pineapple, peeled
1 red onion, cut in 1/2-inch thick slices
Glaze, recipe follows
1 bag baby spinach
Vinaigrette, recipe follows

Directions:
Preheat grill to medium heat.
Evenly cut the pineapple into 1/2-inch thick slices. Using a small 1-inch biscuit cutter, pierce a hole into middle of pineapple slices. Brush the pineapple and onion slices with glaze, place on the grill and brush again with glaze. Grill for 2 minutes and flip, grilling other side.
Place a bed of spinach leaves on a serving platter and top with the pineapple and onion slices. Drizzle with Vinaigrette and serve.

Glaze:
1 (8-ounce) jar pineapple ice cream topping
1 teaspoon Chinese five-spice
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon salt
Place all ingredients into a medium bowl and whisk together.

Vinaigrette:
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup olive oil
Pour ingredients into a small bowl and whisk together.

This is also a great recipe! I've made chicken and wild rice casserole before, but never this version. It was very colorful and delicious too. This is a Paula Deen recipe but I changed a few ingredients (not because I think I am better than Paula- because we all know that's not true! But because I didn't have some of the ingredients and I didn't want to go to the store!). It turned out really well so I am going to give you my version of the recipe. Enjoy!

Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole:

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter or vegetable oil
1 medium onion, peeled and diced
3 cups diced, cooked chicken
2 (14 1/2-ounce) cans green beans, drained and rinsed
1 (8-ounce) can water chestnuts, drained and sliced
1 (4-ounce) jar pimentos
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 cup sour cream
1 (6-ounce) box long-grain wild rice, cooked according to package directions
1 cup grated sharp Cheddar
Pinch salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Heat butter or oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add onion and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and transfer to a large bowl.
Add all remaining ingredients to bowl and mix together until thoroughly combined.
Pour into a greased 3-quart casserole dish. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until bubbly. Let stand for a few minutes before serving.