Happy Thanksgiving!

We are having a pretty low key Thanksgiving this year and since I only cooked enough for the two of us, I decided to try some new recipes. They are updated versions of the traditional side dishes. Have you ever tried Paula Deen's Sweet Potato Balls? They are wonderful! It was hard giving up my Aunt Jo's sweet potato casserole this year, but it was nice trying something new. I also cooked the turkey breast in the crock pot - a first for me. I made my mom's egg noodles, some glazed carrots, rolls, and we had the leftover Thanksgiving Twofer pie from this week's Tuesday's with Dorie.

Glazed Carrots

16 oz baby carrots

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 packet of ranch dressing

Cook carrots until desired doneness. Drain. In same pot mix butter, brown sugar, and ranch dressing. Add carrots and heat until warm. Serves 4-6.

Sweet Potato Balls (Paula Deen)

4 large sweet potatoes

2/3 cup packed brown sugar

2 Tbls orange juice

1 tsp orange zest

1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

2 cups shredded coconut

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

8 large marshmallows

Bake the potatoes until tender, then peel and mash them (the potatoes can be baked the day before). Stir in the sugar, orange juice, zest, and nutmeg. Toss the coconut with the sugar and cinnamon. Press mashed potatoes around each marshmallow, then roll the balls in the coconut mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Watch carefully for the last few minutes of cooking; the expanding marshmallows can cause the potato balls to burst open.

Barefoot Bloggers: Mexican Chicken Soup

Even though today is Thanksgiving, I am posting about a Mexican Chicken Soup for Barefoot Bloggers. I made this earlier in the month (as I sure wasn't going to make it for Thanksgiving and give up all the traditional things) and my husband and I really enjoyed the soup! I scaled it down to serve the two of us and didn't measure the ingredients exact, but that's the fun in making soup, you can alter it as you see fit. I will be making this soup again, especially when I have ingredients around that I need to use up. Thanks Judy for choosing this week's recipe!Mexican Chicken Soup (Barefoot Contessa at Home)
4 split (2 whole) chicken breasts, bone in, skin on
Good olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups chopped onions (2 onions)
1 cup chopped celery (2 stalks)
2 cups chopped carrots (4 carrots)
4 large cloves garlic, chopped
2 1/2 quarts chicken stock, preferably homemade
1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes in puree, crushed
2 to 4 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander seed
1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves, optional
6 (6-inch) fresh white corn tortillas
For serving: sliced avocado, sour cream, grated Cheddar cheese, and tortilla chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place the chicken breasts skin side up on a sheet pan. Rub with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until done. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, discard the skin and bones, and shred the meat. Cover and set aside.
Meanwhile, heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven. Add the onions, celery, and carrots and cook over medium-low heat for 10 minutes, or until the onions start to brown. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the chicken stock, tomatoes with their puree, jalapenos, cumin, coriander, 1 tablespoon salt (depending on the saltiness of the chicken stock), 1 teaspoon pepper, and the cilantro, if using. Cut the tortillas in 1/2, then cut them crosswise into 1/2-inch strips and add to the soup. Bring the soup to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 25 minutes. Add the shredded chicken and season to taste. Serve the soup hot topped with sliced avocado, a dollop of sour cream, grated Cheddar cheese, and broken tortilla chips.

Happy Thanksgiving, especially to our family and friends! Check back later for a post about my husband and I's Thanksgiving meal!

TWD: Thanksgiving Two-fer Pie

I've skipped out on the last two weeks of Tuesdays with Dorie as I wasn't too excited about the recipes, but I couldn't pass up on this week's pie. My husband LOVES pumpkin pie, so even though this is a twist on the original version, it was enjoyed by both of us! What a great way to combine the two traditional Thanksgiving pies, pumpkin and pecan. Of course, we had to top ours with plenty of whipped topping! We are looking forward to eating the leftovers on Thanksgiving!


Thanks to Vibi for choosing a great (and appropriate) recipe for this week! Happy Thanksgiving!

Breakfast Casserole

It was my turn to provide breakfast for my Monday morning Bible study group this week. It also happened to be at my house, as the regular host is out of town. I enjoy breakfast foods, but my husband isn't a fan, so it's always a nice treat when I'm able to make something for breakfast and share it with others. This morning I made a Cheddar-Ham Oven Omelet, along with Orange-Cranberry Muffins. I love egg casseroles as they are so simple to put together, can be made the night before and put in the oven the day of, and are pretty fool-proof. This recipe is no exception to the above!

Cheddar-Ham Oven Omelet (found in Taste of Home Magazine)
16 eggs
2 cups milk (I used some whipping cream!)
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
3/4 cup cubed fully cooked ham
6 green onions, chopped

In a large bowl, beat eggs and milk. Stir in the cheese, ham and onions. Pour the egg mixture into a greased 9x13 baking dish. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting. Serves 12.

It's not the holiday season without....FUDGE

I don't remember when my mom starting making fudge during the holidays....I guess for as far back as I can remember. My favorite part was (and is) licking the spoon and pan after the fudge was poured into the baking dish to cool. My mom always made a batch...or two of chocolate fudge and peanut butter fudge. The peanut butter is my favorite! Since being married and living far away from my parents, I too make fudge every year around the holidays. I remember my mom "hiding" the fudge in large ice cream containers in the garage to keep my dad (and probably us girls) out of it until she needed it for some work function or family affair. I haven't had to start hiding the fudge yet, but it probably doesn't last as long around here as it did at my parents. I always thought the recipe was some BIG secret, until my mom clued me in after I was married and called for the recipe. I'm sure this same exact fudge is enjoyed by many throughout the holidays as you can find the recipe on the side of a marshmallow creme jar....FANTASY Fudge (and it's true to it's name)!

Cookie attempt #2 -- this isn't the chosen recipe!

I tried my second "chocolate chip" cookie recipe this week, only instead of using chocolate chips, I used red and green M&M's. This recipe went straight to the trash! It wasn't what I was looking for at all. Although my husband seems to like flat, crisp cookies, which is exactly how these turned out. So, I'm still on the hunt for my favorite/go-to recipe.

M & M Cookies (1/2 batch)
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 1/8 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
5 oz candy-coated chocolate pieces

Mix butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add egg, mix until well combined. Mix dry ingredients in small bowl. Add to sugar mixture and mix until combined. Stir in candy pieces. Bake in 350 degree oven for 10-12 minutes. (I ended up with 2 dozen cookies.)

Simple Lasagna

On the menu this evening is Simple Lasagna found in the most recent issue of Kraft Foods magazine. The nice thing about this particular recipe is you do not cook the lasagna noodles before assembling. There is enough liquid from the pasta sauce, that the noodles cook and absorb the liquid during the baking process. One less dish to wash and less time spent preparing the meal! My husband said this recipe "is a keeper"!

Simple Lasagna (Kraft Foods Winter 2008 issue)
1 lb ground beef
1 egg, beaten
2 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, divided
1 (15 oz) container ricotta cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1 (26 oz) spaghetti sauce
1 cup water
12 lasagna noodles, uncooked

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brown meat in large skillet on medium high heat. Meanwhile, mix egg, 1 1/4 cups mozzarella cheese, the ricotta cheese, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese and the parsley until well blended; set aside. Drain meat; return to skillet. Stir in spaghetti sauce. Add water to the empty jar; cover with lid and shake well. Add to meat mixture; stir until well blended. Spread 1 cup of the sauce onto a 9x13 inch baking dish; top with layers of 3 lasagna noodles, one-third of the ricotta cheese mixture and 1 cup of the sauce. Repeat layers twice. Top with remaining 3 noodles and the remaining meat sauce. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Cover with greased foil. Bake 45 minutes. Remove foil and bake an additional 15 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before cutting to serve. Makes 12 servings. (I cut the recipe in half and used a loaf pan.)