Thai Chicken Spring Rolls

I was in love with Chinese Lettuce Wraps…until I had the pleasure of trying a Thai Spring Roll.  Albeit some what similar, Thai food is one of my favorites.  With that, I wanted to share with our readers a great recipe I found on my right-hand website for quick meals www.allrecipes.com for making Thai Chicken Spring Rolls.  Every time I make them, they come out fabulous.

Thai Chicken Spring Rolls

Ingredients:

1 cup peanut sauce
1 (1 1/2 inch) piece fresh ginger root, minced
2 teaspoons soy sauce; divided
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into 1 inch pieces
1 teaspoon peanut oil
6 ounces fresh snow pea pods
12 ounces bean sprouts
4 green onions, chopped
1 pound watercress, chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 large carrots, peeled
12 spring roll wrappers
1/2 cup peanut sauce

Directions:

1.  Combine 1 cup peanut sauce, ginger, garlic and 1 teaspoon of soy sauce in a bowl.  Add the chicken and mix until the chicken is coated.  Place in the refrigerator to marinate for 30 minutes.

2.  Heat 1 teaspoon peanut oil in a wok or skillet over medium heat.  Cook the snow peas, bean sprouts and green onion in the oil until heated but still crisp, 3 to 4 minutes.  Transfer to a large bowl.  Mix in the watercress and cilantro.  Use a vegetable peeler to have long slices of carrot into the watercress mixture.  Drizzle remaining 1 teaspoon soy sauce into the watercress mixture; toss to coat.

3.  Heat 1 teaspoon of oil to the wok or skillet.  Cook the marinated chicken until no longer pink inside, about 10 minutes.

4.  Fill a large bowl with hot water.  Dip wrappers one at a time into the water for about 2 seconds each.  As wrappers are removed from water, fill each with 2 large spoonfuls of the chicken and a small handful of the watercress mixture.  Fold in two opposite ends of the wrapper to meet the filling.  Then, fold the bottom of the wrapper over the top of the filling and roll.  Serve with 1/2 cup peanut sauce for dipping.

Enjoy!
Di

A Superbowl Taco Bake

We are big on championship games in our house.  With the upcoming Superbowl just around the corner, I thought I would give you a recipe that is sure to please those hungry football fans attending your home party or even one that you can take tailgating!  It’s super simple and super delicious.  I originally tried this recipe from my super handy Taste of Home magazine.

Beef Taco Bake

Ingredients:

1 pound of ground beef
1 can (10 3/4 oz.) Campbell’s Condensed Tomato Soup
1 cup Pace Chunky Salsa or Pace Picante Sauce
1/2 cup of milk
6 flour tortillas (8-inch) or 8 corn tortillas (6 inch), cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (4 oz. bag)

Directions:

Cook ground beef in skillet until no longer pink , stirring often.  Pour of any fat.  Stir in soup, salsa, milk, tortillas and half the cheese in the skillet.  Spoon the beef mixture into a 2-quart shallow baking dish and cover.  Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes or until the beef mixture is hot and bubbling.  Sprinkle with remaining cheese.  Yield: 4 servings.

You can also successfully double this recipe if you like.  I always have to.

Enjoy!
Di

Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo

This recipe is so comforting and yummy!  I tried it out on my son, Lamont, because he is my resident foodie and will try anything I make.  I originally found this recipe in one of my favorite magazines, Simple and Delicious.  I hope you enjoy this as much as we have!

Ingredients:
1 package (12 oz) of fettuccine
8 bacon strips, cut into 1-in pieces
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, cubed
2 cups sliced mushrooms (optional - I don’t use them)
6 green onions, thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, minced
1-1/2 cup half and half cream
½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon paprika
½ tsp. coarsely ground pepper

Cook fettuccine according to package directions.  In a large skillet, cook bacon until crisp.  Drain on paper towels reserving ½ Tbsp. drippings.  Sauté chicken in drippings until it’s no longer pink.  Add the mushrooms, green onions and garlic; sauté until all are tender.  Stir in cream, cheese, paprika and pepper.  Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 5-10 minutes.  Stir in the reserved bacon.  Drain fettuccine; place in a serving bowl.  Add chicken mixture; toss to coat.  Garnish with additional cheese if preferred.

Peace & Blessings,
Di

Easy Chicken or Turkey Pot Pie

This recipe came from my handy dandy Bisquick cookbook and I love it!  However, when I am cooking, I always make a few changes to suit the tastes of my family, and I encourage you to add your little ways to spice things up as well.  This is a great after Thanksgiving treat with leftovers.  I also double the batch on this at Christmas time and I buy those disposable loaf shaped tin pans and bake them as gifts to give out on Christmas Eve to my friends and family.  I let them cool and wrap them in Reynolds Colored Plastic Wrap and tie a bow around it.  They make great little individual dinner gifts on a cold Christmas Eve night.

Prep time: 10 minutes - Start to finish 40 minutes - 6 servings

Ingredients

• 1 - 1-lb bag of frozen mixed vegetables
• 1 cup of diced cooked chicken (I usually use a little more and I cook my chicken with a few green peppers, onions and a little minced garlic for more flavor). I remove green peppers and onions before adding chicken to other ingredients.
• 1 can (10.75oz) condensed cream of chicken soup
• 1 cup Original Bisquick mix
• ½ cup of milk
• 1 egg

Directions

Heat oven to 400°.  In an ungreased 2-quart casserole dish, mix vegetables, chicken and soup until blended. In a medium bowl, stir all remaining ingredients with wire whisk or fork until blended.  Pour over chicken mixture.  Bake uncovered about 30 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

Peace & Blessings,
Di

Easy Thanksgiving Recipes

Turtle Pumpkin Pie

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, I thought I would share with you readers a few recipes that I make for my family during the holidays.  For those of you who don’t know me personally, I am a foodie.  I love to cook for my family, my friends and my colleagues.  I will be putting out more recipes as the weeks come near to the Holidays; a few are my own original creations and a few I have been given by friends over the years.  I hope you enjoy!

Turtle Pumpkin Pie

¼ cup plus 2 Tbsp. carmel ice cream topping, divided
1 graham cracker pie crust
½ cup plus 2 Tbsp. chopped pecans, divided
2 packages (3.4 oz. each) jello flavored instant pudding
1 cup of cold milk
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tub (8 oz.) Cool Whip, thawed and divided

Pour ¾ cup carmel topping into crust; sprinkle with ½ cup nuts.
Beat pudding mixes, milk, pumpkin and spices with whisk until blended.  Stir in 1½ cups Cool Whip and spoon into crust.
Refrigerate 1 hour and then top with remaining Cool Whip, carmel and nuts just before serving.

The day after Thanksgiving, I usually make a yummy Hashbrown Casserole for the next night’s dinner with the leftover turkey or ham, it’s really simple.

Leftover Turkey or Ham Hashbrown Casserole

Leftover ham or turkey cut or torn into pieces
1 package of frozen country hashbrowns
2 small 10 oz. cans of Cream of Chicken or Cream of Mushroom (your
preference) soup.
2 8 oz. packages of Monterey Jack/Colby Cheese
1 small bag of mixed frozen vegetables

Directions

Combine hashbrowns, soup, vegetables and 2 cups of cheese together and place in a lightly sprayed 10×13 inch glass baking dish.  Cover with tin foil and bake for 45-50 minutes.  Uncover and cover with remaining cheese.  Place back in oven to melt cheese.  Let stand 10 minutes and serve.

Peace & Blessings,
Di

Changing Seasons

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven…….Ecclesiastes 3:1

BFSO readers, do you love Autumn, Fall and Winter as much as I do?  As the leaves begin to fall and change colors and the air gets crisp, I reminisce with myself about growing up off of the George Washington Parkway in Alexandria, Virginia, walking along the Potomac River with my sister and playing in the freshly fallen leaves.  I then begin to yearn for the seasons fabulous flavors.  The first thing that comes to mind is sweet potato and pumpkin pie, hot beef stews and yummy warm casseroles.  Did I mention that this is my favorite time of the year?  Well, as you can see, it is! 

 While some folks are fretting over the arrival of Jack Frost, I am reveling in the anticipation of family gatherings, holidays, comfy warm sweaters and pajamas and fun-filled snowy days.  I even like to do a little day traveling during this season.  I love to explore quaint little towns like Nashville, Indiana, where you can walk along the old- fashioned sidewalks, watch candy-makers craft their magic and eat in old-fashioned country restaurants.  It makes me feel as if I stepped back into time.  It’s really a treat and the kids love it.

I look forward to every season that God blesses me with.  I can’t wait to see the little ghosts and goblins in October.  I, again, am taken back to a memory of Halloween and my mother dressing me and my sister up as Gypsies and my brothers up as Ghosts.  Those were the days!  We didn’t go to the store to buy our costumes usually, we had to be creative and make them!  Then, I am taken to thinking about Thanksgiving and the wonderful memories I have of my grandparents visiting, all the yummy food and reflections of blessings we have received despite any disappointments that may have happened during the year.  I actually picked the beautiful month of November to get married because I absolutely love the ambiance of November. THEN…HERE COMES SANTA CLAUS!!! I absolutely adore Christmas.  Not because of presents (I have actually stopped requesting them) but because of the time I get to spend with my husband, children and now my beautiful Grandson!  I call it “making memories.”  Some of our family traditions include enjoying craft time every weekend leading up to Christmas where we paint ornaments, Christmas village houses, birdhouses, etc.  My children look forward to this time and so do I!  I also look forward to being able to look back at their crafts in years to come and enjoying them over and over.  Oh, have I mentioned football yet?  Well, I won’t go on and on but football is HUGE in our home. 

 Autumn, Fall and Winter bring all kinds off great memories back to life for me and I wanted to share a few of the above with you readers.  In the next few weeks, I will be providing you readers with some great Fall recipes and fun things to do.  BFSO family, take advantage of this beautiful time and season that God has blessed us with.  I promise, you will surely find lots to be thankful for.  Remember, Autumn is a second Spring, when every leaf is a flower.                                  

Peace and Blessings Abound,

Di

Guilt-Free Brownies

In my quest to empower the blended family in a holistic way, I want to share ways that help me take care of my family because at the end of the day we are a family. In doing so, I wanted to introduce one of my blog favorites; In Jennie’s Kitchen!

Jennifer Perillo is a New York mom, wife, personal chef and food editor who shares some mouth watering recipes on her blogs.  I love my NY moms/stepmoms…they totally defy the myth of the rude New Yorker. At any rate, I wanted to share one of her recipes for guilt-free brownies with you! These brownies are made with greek yogurt instead of eggs.  They reminded me of a blended family. Like the blended family sometimes there is an ingredient(s) that you might be a little fearful of adding. You might be scared of how it’s going to turn out, but once you mix it with love the end result is a beautiful final product. I hope you’ll try this tasty treat along with many others from Jennie’s Kitchen. She’s making meals easier, one recipe at a time!

PREP: 10 minutes
BAKE: 35 minutes
YIELD: Sixteen 1 1⁄2-inch square brownies (8 kids’, 8 adults’)

* 3⁄4 cup all-purpose flour
* 3⁄4 tsp baking powder
* 1⁄2  tsp salt
* 6 Tbs butter
* 3 oz dark chocolate, finely chopped
* 3⁄4  cup granulated sugar
* 5.3-oz container Greek-style fat-free yogurt, such as Fage
* 1⁄2  tsp vanilla extract
* 1⁄3 cup dried cherries
* 1⁄3 cup chopped pecans

1. Heat oven to 325°F. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.

2. In a microwave-safe bowl, melt butter and chocolate for 45 seconds. Stir and cook 30 seconds more, or until smooth.

3. Slowly whisk in sugar. Cool slightly. Add yogurt, 1⁄4 cup at a time, whisking as you go. Stir in vanilla. Fold in half of flour mixture. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and fold in other half.

4. Pour batter into an ungreased 8-inch baking pan. For adults: Sprinkle cherries and pecans over half. Bake 35 minutes. Cool completely, in pan, before cutting (about two hours).

HOW KIDS CAN HELP: Measure and whisk ingredients; spread batter into pan; sprinkle dried cherries and pecans.

PER SERVING: kids 128 calories, 6 g fat (4 g saturated), 94 mg sodium, 12 mg cholesterol; adults 155 calories, 8 g fat (4 g saturated), 94 mg sodium, 12 mg cholesterol

Diane’s Enchilada Casserole

I promised I would post a great recipe for Kela to try and all you other readers if you would like.  This is my baked beef enchillada casserole.  Turkey or chicken can be substituted for the beef to make it healthier.  Mexican food is my absolute favorite so I thought I would share with you all:

2 tablespoons of butter
1 large onion
3 cloves garlic; minced
1 pound of ground beef
1 tablespoon chili powder
1- 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 can (4.5 ounce can) chopped green chiles
1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper (i use cayene)
2 (10.75 ounce) cans of cream of chicken soup
2 (10 ounce) cans of red enchilada sauce; divided
1-1/2 dozen corn tortillas; divided
1 (16 ounce) can of refried beans
4 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese; divided

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly grease a 13×9 inch baking dish.  In a large skillet, melt butter over medium heat and add onions and garlic for 5 minutes until tender.  Add ground beef (or turkey, chicken) chili powder, salt and red pepper.  Cook until beef is brown and crumbly; drain.  Stir in soup and green chiles; set aside.  Line prepared baking dish with 6 corn tortillas.  In a medium bowl, whisk together one can of enchilada sauce and refried beans.  Spread bean mixture onto tortillas.  Evenly sprinkle with 1 cup of cheese.  Layer 6 more tortillas.  Cover with meat mixture.  Evenly sprinkle with 1 cup of cheese.  Layer remaining 6 tortillas.  Evenly spoon remaining can of enchilada sauce onto tortillas.  Sprinkle with remaining 2 cups of cheese and bake for 25 minutes or until hot and bubbly.  Garnish with sour cream (if desired).

This is a great crowd pleaser especially during football and basketball season!!!  Enjoy!

Di

A Simple Turkey Burger Recipe

I [Kela] love healthy eating! I feel better after eating a tasty healthy dish and I feel better after feeding it to my family. Many think it’s way too complicated and costly to eat healthy but there really are some tasty recipes out there that aren’t too expensive to make. Below is one of my favorites that I’m sure you’ll enjoy and feel free to share you favorite recipes, too.  I enjoy trying different recipes and I’m certain our readers will enjoy them as well. After all, who doesn’t like to try new things, right?

Tasty Turkey Burger

Ingredients

• Ground Turkey (I prefer the honeysuckle white because it has less fat)
• Onion
• Green Pepper
• Teryaki Sauce
• Worschestire Sauce
• Sea Salt (for those who have high blood pressure)
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Directions

1. Cut up your onion and green pepper (there’s really no set amount; it’s all about how much you want in the burger).
2. Season your ground turkey with the sea salt.
3. Mix the onion and green pepper into the burger as you form it into the size of the patty that you desire.
4. Add a tablespoon of teryaki sauce.
5. Add a tablespoon of worschestire sauce.
6. Put one tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil into your frying pan (you can substitue the George Foreman Grill for the frying pan).
7. Fry the turkey burger patty until it’s well done.

Voila! You can dress your burger as you wish; tomatoes, raw onions, light mayo or mustard, etc. Also, I’m not a fan of french fries, so I usually serve it with a side of garlic new potatoe slices (I’ll save that simple recipe for another post).