Baked Oatmeal

As I said in the post before this one, I'm trying to make a warm breakfast for my children a few days out of the week this school year. A friend passed this one along to me and it is a winner! You have to prepare it the night before, but it's easy and all you have to do is pop it in the oven first thing in the morning. I substituted applesauce for the oil, and I don't think it effected the taste at all. My children gobbled it up this morning---and so did Mommy!!! You can alter this recipe to fit your family's needs. You could substitute the raisins for craisins, add pecans, flax seed, ect. (This is from the website, allrecipes.com)

Baked Oatmeal
1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil
3/4 Cups White Sugar (I used Splenda)
2 Eggs
1 Cup of Milk
1/2 tsp Salt
1 Tbsp Baking Powder
3 Cups Quick Cooking Oats
1/2 Cup of Raisins
2 Tbsp Brown Sugar
1/2 tsp Cinnamon

*Beat together oil and sugar. Mix in eggs, milk, salt, baking powder and oats. Beat well, then stir in raisins. Pour into a lightly greased pie pan. Sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon. Refrigerate overnight.

*The next morning, preheat oven to 350 and bake until firm, or about 35 minutes. Serve hot.

Ham and Cheese Muffins

Now that school has started, my goal for this year is to make a hot breakfast for my children at least 3 out of the 5 school mornings. I've been looking at different recipes this week, trying to get many options and I came across this one in this month's Family Fun magazine. I happened to have all of the ingredients on hand, so we whipped up a batch and they are pretty yummy! These would be perfect for on-the-go. They are not a sweet muffin...kind of a cornbread muffin with ham and cheese. We liked them, though! I think next time, I will add a little bit more of the cheese.

Ham and Cheese Morning Muffins

1 1/4 Cups unbleached flour

3/4 Cups Fine Yellow Cornmeal

1/4 Cup Sugar (I used Splenda and it worked fine)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 Cup Milk

2 large eggs

1/3 Cup corn oil (I used Canola, and again, it was fine)

1 Cup finely Diced Ham

1/2 Cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese

1/4 Cup finely chopped chives or scallions (I omitted this)

*Heat oven to 375. Coat a 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray or line the wells with paper liners.

*In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs and oil, then pour the mixture into the dry ingredients and stir until blended. Fold in the ham, cheese and chives or scallions.

*Spoon the batter into the prepared cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake the muffins until their tops are lightly browned, about 20 minutes. Let them cool in the pan on a wire rack for 3 minutes, then turn them out onto the rack and let them cool completely. The muffins can be frozen in a plastic freezer bag up to three months.

Makes-Its-Own-Crust Coconut Pie

We love coconut cream pie and while this isn't quite the same, it's a quick and easy solution to a craving!

4 eggs
1 3⁄4 cups sugar
1⁄2 cup flour
1⁄4 cup margarine, melted
2 cups milk
1 1⁄2 cups shredded coconut
1 teaspoon vanilla (or 1/2 tsp. vanilla and 1/2 tsp. coconut extract)

Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 10-inch pie pan; set aside. Combine ingredients in order given; mix well. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes, or until golden brown.

Middle of pie will appear rather soft. Properly done, the pie will have a delicate crust over the top, sides and bottom. It will be solid enough to cut after it has cooled. The center will be a perfect cream pie.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

Yep. Another Paula Deen Magazine recipe! We love Chicken Cordon Bleu in our house, so I was intrigued by this recipe. It was very easy to fix and everyone loved it. The only rice I had on hand was a seasoned packet. I would definitely use plain rice next time due to the salt in the seasoned packet, and I would omit the salt that the recipe calls for. I think the ham adds enough salt to the dish. This would probably be a good freezer dish, too!

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole
2 Tbsp butter
1/2 large onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups shredded, cooked chicken
3/4 cups prediced ham
1 cup uncooked long-grain rice
1 1/4 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

*Preheat oven to 350. Spray an 11x7-inch baking pan with cooking spray.
*In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; cook until onion is tender. Add chicken and ham; cook until heated through. Add rice and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in chicken broth, milk, salt and pepper; cook for 2 minutes.
*Pour mixture into prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with cheese. Cover and bake for 45 minutes or until rice is tender.

Chicken Divan

I initially made this for a fix and freeze but was worried the broccoli would get soggy upon de-thawing so I sent it unfrozen as the first dish to eat (FNF rule breaker, I am). I'm a "sauce" girl and I LOVE the sauce in this dish so much I could drink it. It is a Paula Deen recipe but I've tweaked a few things which I'll noted in parentheses/italics and I think they're pretty necessary otherwise it'll err on the blander side of the tastebud spectrum.

2 (10-ounce) packages frozen broccoli, chopped
6 cups shredded chicken, cooked
2 (10 3/4-ounce) cans condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 cup mayonnaise (I used cream cheese)
1 cup sour cream
1 cup grated sharp Cheddar (or more~thecheesier, the better)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon curry powder (I double)
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup dry white wine (I used white cooking wine and added an extra 1/4-1/2 cup)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan (maybe a bit more)
1/2 cup soft bread crumbs
2 tablespoons butter, melted
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Remove the outer wrappers from the boxes of broccoli. Open 1 end of each box. Microwave on full power for 2 minutes, until thawed. Drain the broccoli and put into a casserole dish. Add the shredded chicken. (I cut the broccoli into smaller pieces to make a little more kid friendly and make sure the chicken and broccoli are good and mixed).

In a medium bowl, combine the soup, mayonnaise (cream cheese), sour cream, Cheddar (I didn't mix this in sauce but used later), lemon juice, curry powder (again~trust me! DOUBLE!), salt and pepper, to taste, and wine (also trust me~DOUBLE!). Whisk together to make a sauce. Pour the sauce over the broccoli and chicken. Mix well with a spatula.
Place the mixture into an 11 by 7-inch casserole dish or 2 (9-inch) square disposable aluminum foil pans that have been sprayed with vegetable oil cooking spray. Pat down evenly and smooth with a spatula. (This is where I topped it with cheddar cheese). Combine the Parmesan, bread crumbs and butter and sprinkle over the top. (I then sprinkled with a bit of paprika).

Bake for about 30 to 45 minutes.

Enjoy!

Berry Lover's Delight Pie

"I love that the second pie crust is cut in shapes and this was much easier to prepare than the instructions make it appear".

Ingredients:

1 box refrigerated pie crusts, softened as directed on box
Powdered sugar for dusting hearts
4oz white chocolate
3 cups halved hulled fresh strawberries
2 cups fresh blueberries
10 tablespoons granulated sugar
4 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons cornstarch

Instructions:

Heat oven to 450°F. Unroll 1 pie crust in ungreased 9-inch glass pie plate. Press crust against side and bottom. Prick bottom and side of crust with fork. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until light brown. Cool completely; about 35 minutes.

Meanwhile, cut out small heart shapes from second pie crust. Bake them on a cookie sheet for about 5 minutes or until golden brown; cool. (They took about 9 mins. in my oven) Dust with powdered sugar. Set aside.

Melt the rest of the bar in a double boiler on stovetop or in microwave on Medium 1 to 2 minutes or until it stirs smooth; spread in the bottom of the cooled pie crust. (I used white chocolate chips and melted them in the microwave). Refrigerate 10 minutes.

Place a 3 1/2-inch biscuit cutter in the center of the pie shell and surround with 2 cups halved strawberries. Fill the center with blueberries (about 1 cup) up to strawberry level.

Place remaining strawberries in 2-quart saucepan with 5 tablespoons of the granulated sugar and 1 tablespoon of the water. Heat to boiling over medium-high heat. Crush strawberries. Strain the juice from the strawberries, and put about 2/3 cup of the juice back in the pan. Mix together 1 tablespoon of the cornstarch with 1 tablespoon water. Add the cornstarch mixture to the strawberry juice mixture. Cook over low heat about 4 minutes or until thickened. Spoon over strawberries and refrigerate for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, clean out the saucepan; add remaining blueberries, 5 tablespoons granulated sugar and 1 tablespoon water. Heat to boiling, and crush blueberries. Using the same procedure as with the strawberries, strain and return to pan with 1 tablespoon cornstarch and 1 tablespoon water that has been mixed together. Cook over low heat until thickened. Spoon blueberry mixture over blueberries.

Refrigerate pie for 2 hours; remove center ring. Decorate pie with pie crust hearts and chocolate curls or shavings

Pillsbury indicates it would be awesome served with whipped cream, if desired. Make chocolate shavings by pulling a vegetable peeler toward you across a white chocolate candy bar. Press firmly using long, thin strokes.

Herb and Apple Glazed Roasted Chicken

Whole chickens go on sale quite frequently at the grocery store where I shop. I can get them for very cheap! When this happens, I stock up. This chicken recipe is so good--very moist and flavorful. It feeds a family of four very nicely. If you have a larger family, you may need to make 2.

1 (6 lb) whole chicken, giblets removed
1 Tbsp butter, softened
1 Tbsp chopped fresh thyme
1/2 tsp lemon zest
1 1/4 tsp salt, divided
1 1/4 tsp ground black pepper, divided
1 small apple, quartered
1 small onion, quartered
3 Cups unsalted chicken stock, divided
1/3 cup apple jelly
1 tsp spicy brown mustard
2 tsp low-sodium soy sauce
1 tsp water
3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp poultry seasoning (I didn't have this, so I just added a little all purpose seasoning I had)

*Preheat oven to 350. Line a roasting pan with heavy-duty aluminum foil; place rack over foil. Spray rack with nonstick cooking spray. Rinse chicken and cavity with cool water; pat dry with paper towels.

*In a small bowl, combine butter, thyme, lemon zest, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper. Gently loosen skin from breast of chicken, keeping skin intact. Rub butter mixture evenly under skin and over chicken. Place apple and onion in cavity; tie legs with butcher's twine. Tuck wing tips under chicken. Sprinkle 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper over chicken. Place chicken, breast side up, on prepared rack. Pour 2 cups chicken stock in bottom of pan. Bake 1 1/2 hours.

*In a small saucepan, combine jelly, mustard, soy sauce, and water. Cook over low heat 3 minutes or until smooth, stirring with a whisk. Bake chicken 30 minutes longer or until a meat thermometer inserted in thigh registers 170, basting occasionally with apple jelly mixture. Remove from oven. Place chicken on a serving platter. Reserve pan drippings.

*Skim fat from pan drippings. Place pan drippings in a 2-cup measuring cup; add enough of the remaining 1 cup chicken stock to equal 2 cups. In a medium saucepan, combine remaining 1/4 tsp salt, remaining 1/4 tsp pepper, flour and poultry seasoning. Whisk in stock mixture; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook 2 minutes or until thickened and bubbly. Serve chicken with gravy.