The Supermom Chef

A sweet friend of mine sent me this recipe quite a while ago, and there it sat not being made. Every time I made my weekly grocery shopping list and meal menu, I’d think about it and then decide not to make it. It sounded delicious and I honestly don’t know why I put it off for so long, because I know first hand that Brittney is a great cook and if she recommended it I knew it would be great. So last week I was at Sam’s doing some shopping and saw the rotisserie chickens. I never go in that place and find myself able to resist those delicious chickens. So I grabbed one up and immediately thought of this pasta. I went ahead and shredded the chicken, bagged it up, and stuck it in the fridge for the next night’s dinner.

I was happily surprised to see how quickly this all came together. Using the already shredded chicken made it super quick, and cooking the pasta wasn’t exactly difficult either. When I tasted this pasta, I was blown away and immediately regreted not having made it before! I lightened the recipe up slightly by changing the original 1 stick of butter to 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick), while increasing the chicken broth to help keep it moist enough. I also substituted penne for the bowtie the recipe calls for because I didn’t have any bowties at the time, and if I remember right I didn’t add the salt either because I felt like all of the other ingredients added enough flavor without the added salt. The sauce that makes this pasta is made up of regular ingredients that most every kitchen has, but combined they make the most amazing flavor! I am putting this recipe on our regular rotation from now on!

Brittney’s Roasted Chicken Pasta

1 (12 oz) package bowtie pasta, cooked

1 (8 oz) package of Velveeta cheese, cubed

1 rotisserie chicken, shredded

4 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes

1 tablespoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon thyme

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup chicken broth

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place pasta in a glass 9×13″ baking dish.  Combine melted butter, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, parsley flakes, black pepper, basil, garlic powder, thyme, salt, and chicken broth. To baking dish with pasta, add cubed Velveeta, chicken, and butter mixture. Stir to combine. Bake for about 20 minutes or until heated through and cheese is melted, stirring once. Freezes well.

The first time I tasted this recipe I was at a meeting and as soon as it touched my mouth I immediately thought of my hubby. He loves strawberries and would rather have a simple dessert like this rather than a fancy layered cake with lots of decorator frosting any day. So I decided that this cake would make the perfect Father’s Day gift for him (we don’t usually buy each other gifts for holidays). The very next day my sweet Adee and I hit the kitchen! We couldn’t stand to wait until Father’s Day so we went ahead and made this last Tuesday afternoon.

This recipe was yet another great one from my cousin Kathy. I’m not sure if it’s an official Pampered Chef recipe or just one that she happened to share with us while at a Pampered Chef meeting. I’ve tried to locate the recipe on their website to try to give credit where credit is due, but cannot seem to locate it anywhere.

Here’s Adee working on her daddy’s cake. Excuse the pj’s and messy hair. She had taken a bath around lunch after playing outside so pj’s were in order for a fun afternoon with Mommy in the kitchen.

John Matthew sat by eating brownies (recipe to follow soon) while we worked on the cake. Silly boy!

Adee sprinkling the marshmallows on our strawberries. She’s such a big help in the kitchen and says she’s going to be a chef when she grows up!

The only photo I wish I had but don’t is one of Matt enjoying his cake with the kiddos. He worked late the night that we made it so when he finally got him a slice, the kids and I were in bed already. He thoroughly enjoyed it though!

Strawberries & Cream Upside-Down Cake

1 strawberry or white cake mix and ingredients to make the cake according to the package directions

3 cups strawberries, sliced

1 cup sugar

2 cups miniature marshmallows

1 cup heavy whipping cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, make cake batter according to package directions. Set a large 12” skillet over medium heat; add the sliced berries and sugar, cooking slowly just until sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat and pour cream over the strawberries, then layer marshmallows on top of berries and cream.  Carefully pour cake batter over marshmallows. Put the lid on the skillet and bake for 30 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool in skillet for 15-20 minutes.  Turn out onto platter and serve. Serve immediately or store in refrigerator until ready to serve. Reheat in a microwave (by the slice) before serving.

We have Mexican food at my house a lot because it seems to be something that everyone will love. So instead of the normal beef tacos that I prepare so often, I wanted to try something new. I hear a good bit these days about shrimp or fish tacos, so I decided I wanted to give them a go myself. Boy oh boy I was ever so impressed with these! They were perfectly flavored and the hubby and I both devoured them! These are also super quick to put together and you probably already have most of the ingredients on hand so it would make a great weeknight meal. I simply made some Mexican rice to serve alongside of these tacos, set out some chips and salsa, and dinner was served! Oh, and one last kicker that’ll sure enough convince you to make them soon…they are actually healthy! So now you have no reason not to make them, and I promise you’ll enjoy every little bite!

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Dress yours how you like, but I like mine with lettuce, salsa, sour cream, and some fresh chopped cilantro.

Chipotle Shrimp Tacos

2 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon ground chipotle chile powder

1 1/2 pounds peeled and deveined shrimp

1 teaspoon olive oil

white corn tortillas

any fixings you’d like to serve with your tacos (grated cheese, salsa, sour cream, cilantro, lettuce)

Combine chili powders, salt, sugar, and cumin in a large zip-top plastic bag; add shrimp, tossing to coat. Heat oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add shrimp mixture to pan; cook about 2-3 minutes, or until done. Remove from heat. Heat tortillas and serve tortillas stuffed with shrimp and any extra toppings you’d like such as lettuce, salsa, sour cream, cheese, and cilantro.

Recipe adapted from: http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/chipotle-shrimp-tacos-10000001854029/

Banana Nut Bread is one of those foods that was quite often found in my home, but I always hated the stuff. I don’t even really remember why. I remember it being dry, overwhelmingly banana flavored, and just in general not very good. Now this comment is not meant to offend my mom, because she was a great cook…but she just hadn’t found the right recipe yet! A couple of years ago someone gave her this recipe, and due to my distaste for banana nut bread I refused to taste it. Here at home the other day, though, I had some bananas that we hadn’t even touched yet that were going bad. I am very frugal and just couldn’t stand the thought of not even eating a single banana out of the pack I bought so I knew I had to make something. My hubby likes banana bread, so I figured I’d give my mom’s new recipe a shot for him.

Let me just say that while this banana bread was cooling it smelled so good (and even continued to fragrance my house for at least 12 hours after it was made) that even I couldn’t resist it! When I tasted it, I was blown away by the taste! It was not dry at all and it had just enough banana bread without being overwhelming. I couldn’t believe I’ve hated banana bread all my life! Needless to say, I’ll be making this yummy bread often in the future. It makes an easy breakfast for the kids. They like it so much that they call it banana cake. Truth be told, they may not be far off with that name given the amount of sugar in this recipe, but I’ll still consider it healthy for them. Heck, it beats them eating a toaster pastry anyday!

Cream Cheese Banana Nut Bread

1/4 cup butter, softened

2 cups sugar

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 1/2 cups mashed bananas (about 4)

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened

2 large eggs

1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt; gradually add to butter mixture. Beat on low speed until blended. Stir in bananas, pecans, and vanilla. Spoon into two greased loaf pans. Bake for one hour, or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

Here in the deep South, it’s very rare that you attend a gathering where there isn’t some sort of finger sandwich tray. We love our sandwiches down here, but what we love even more is tiny sandwiches that are filled with yummy things like bacon and cheese. What’s not to love? Every good Southern cook knows that the secret to keeping finger sandwiches moist between assembling and serving is to cover them with damp paper towels, and to check the paper towels ever so often to make sure they are still damp and, if not, to dampen them again. Nobody likes finger sandwiches made out of dried out bread. I like to use my electric knife (okay, so really it’s my dad’s fish knife that he never used but it does the job!) to cut the crusts from the bread and then slice the sandwiches into three rectangles for serving. I also make my filling a day ahead of time if I have a lot to do the day of serving, and store the cream cheese mixture in the fridge overnight. Take the mixture out a couple hours before you are ready to spread on the bread slices, because you certainly don’t want to try and spread firm cream cheese over bread. I learned my lesson the hard way on that one. So go on and plan a party at your house just so you have an excuse to make these yummy sandwiches. Your friends will love you for it, this I promise you!

Bacon & Onion Finger Sandwiches

2 bunches green onions, thinly sliced

1 (3 oz) package real bacon bits*

2 (8 oz) packages cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

dash salt

Mix together cream cheese, mayonnaise, and seasonings. Add bacon and onion and mix well. Spread on crustless white bread and cut into small rectangles or triangles for serving. This recipe will spread 2-3 loaves of white bread.

*One pound bacon, cooked & crumbled, can be substituted for the bacon bits, if desired.

I know I already posted a fruit dip recipe, but this one got such rave reviews that I had to post it also. After all, one can never have too many creamy ways to fatten up delicious, healthy fruit, right? So this recipe comes to you from my aunt, Margaret. Not Aunt Margaret, just Margaret. I come from a “good ole Southern” family that just happens to forget about the “good ole Southern” tradition of calling everyone by Aunt or Uncle so-and-so. We like it that way and it works so why change things? Anyway, so this is her recipe. Back in April my mom headed off to Georgia with two of her sisters to visit their other sister, Margaret. To say Margaret doesn’t cook is quite the understatement. We tease Margaret about her well-known recipe for a bowl of cereal. HA! I don’t really know why she doensn’t cook because the few recipes that she has shared with me are out-of-this-world delicious (her lasagna is divine but I’ll share that recipe another day)! And this yummy dip is no exception. This past weekend when I visited my mom she had some in her fridge so I just had to try it. I’m blown away by the simplicity of this recipe, yet how delicious it tastes! Don’t just take my word for it, try it for yourself!

Looks delicious, right? Well it is!!!

Margaret’s Fruit Dip

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened

1 (7 oz) jar marshmallow creme

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Mix all ingredients together well. Chill until ready to serve; serve with fresh cut fruit.

Before you all think I’ve gone nuts posting such a long recipe, hear me out. I know that this recipe looks very intricate, but I promise you that it’s not. Honestly, most of the steps involve nothing more than moving the cooked cheesecake from place to place to ensure that it cools down at the right rate. As a matter of fact, it’s so easy to make that I first made this recipe when I was in high school and had absolutely no baking experience (at least no recipe experience). And if I remember right, making this cheesecake was one of the things that sparked my love of recipes back then. The way people carried on over how wonderful it tasted and how beautiful it was really made me feel good about what I had made. So before you just throw this recipe in the “never-to-try” pile, please at least give it a shot. I promise you it’s worth every bit of effort that you put into it (which isn’t really that much)!

There’s actually a funny story that goes along with this cheesecake that I can’t help but sharing. My hubby and I have been together for a long, long time. We are both 29 years old now and started dating when were both just 15 years old and have been together ever since. *awww* The first Valentine’s we shared together I went all out and bought him chocolate everything – the big huge lips, a huge Hershey’s kiss, all the good stuff. Boy was that wrong because I found out on Valentine’s Day that he didn’t like chocolate. Which speaking of…what kind of freak of nature does NOT like chocolate? Anyway, so the next year I had been with him long enough to know that one of his favorite desserts was cheesecake. Well I decided to go all out again and make him this cheesecake, but instead of a regular cheesecake pan I used a heart shaped one. The whole time I baked the cake I was watching it, and it looked great. I was so proud! Then all of a sudden I looked at it and it was cracked about 3/4 of the way down the middle. I never was able to live down the joke of making the love of my life a “broken heart” cheesecake. He still teases me about it to this day! I do have to say though…I’ve yet to witness him turn down a slice of this yummy cheesecake, cracked or not!

Look at the height of this cake! It’s so tall that just a small piece is enough to fill even the biggest cheesecake craving. If you’d like, serve this yummy cheesecake with a topping of fruit (I like cherry) but honestly it’s positively delightful without it. Either way, you’re sure to love it!

New York Cheesecake

5 (8 oz) pkgs. cream cheese, softened

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

5 large eggs

1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

1 3/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 large egg yolks

Make crust (recipe follows). Heat oven to 475 degrees F. Beat cream cheese, sugar, flour and salt in a large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed about one minute, or until smooth. Beat in eggs, egg yolks, and 1/4 cup whipping cream on low speed until well blended; pour into crust. Bake 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 200 degrees F and bake one hour longer. Cheesecake may not appear to be done, and if a small area in the center seems soft, it will become firm as the cheesecake cools. Do not insert a knife to test for doneness because the hole could cause the cheesecake to crack. Turn off oven, leaving cheesecake in the oven for 30 minutes longer. Remove cake from oven and cool in pan away from drafts on a wire rack for 30 minutes. Without releasing or removing the sides of the pan, run a knife along the side of the cheesecake to loosen. Refrigerate uncovered about 3 hours, or until chilled. Cover and continue refrigerating at least 9 hours. Loosen the edge of the cheesecake again with a knife and remove the sides of the springform pan. Serve on the bottom of the springform pan.

New York Cheesecake Crust

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened

1 large egg yolk

Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9×3″ springform pan with shortening; remove bottom. Mix all ingredients with a fork until dough forms; form dough into a ball. Press 1/3 of the dough evenly on the bottom of the pan. Place on a cookie sheet and bake 8-10 minutes or until light golden brown; cool. Assemble bottom and side of pan; secure side. Press remaining dough 2″ up the side of the pan. Fill and bake as directed in the above cheesecake recipe.

Recipe adapted from: Betty Crocker’s Cookbook: Everything You Need To Know To Cook Today

So many children are so familiar with throw-together meals like Hamburger Helper these days that they don’t know what “real” food tastes like. I’m not a fancy cook by any stretch of the imagintion, but I do like to prepare homemade meals for my family when I can. This is one of those meals that doesn’t take much time longer to prepare the homemade version than it does to open a box and cook up its contents. This quick meal is so much more flavorful that its box look-a-like counterparts. And we won’t even mention how much healthier this homemade version is either. If you use the lean ground beef, this meal actually falls into the “healthy” category. As a matter of fact, about 4 years ago I started a very well known diet system and lost over 80 pounds. This recipe was shared with me at one of the weekly weigh-in meetings I attended, and I must say it has been a staple in our house ever since! My kids are super picky when it comes to vegetables, so I always chop mine up super fine so that they don’t even know they’re in there. Sneaky, sneaky!

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I personally like mine topped with a dollup of sour cream, some shredded cheese, and a pickled jalapeno or two. You top yours to your liking!

Chili Mac

1 pound lean ground beef

1 small onion, chopped

1 small green bell pepper, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

5 oz. uncooked elbow macaroni

3/4 cup water

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 (15 oz) can kidney beans, drained

1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes

1 cup frozen whole kernel corn

1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce

1 (6 oz) can tomato paste

Cook macaroni according to package directions; set aside. Meanwhile, cook ground beef, onions, pepper, and garlic over medium-high heat until browned. Drain fat, if needed. Return beef mixture to pan; stir in all remaining ingredients. Simmer until ready to serve. Top individual servings with cheese and sour cream, if desired.

I have been on a tomato soup kick lately, to say the least. I’ve been craving it like crazy! And before anyone asks, the answer to the question is no, I am most definitely NOT pregnant! And yes, I am fully aware that it is about 350 degrees in the shade these days but I just can’t help it. Soup and sandwiches have been on the brain and it ain’t leaving until I fill that craving. So when my mom showed up to my house on Sunday morning with some fresh snipped basil from her plant at home, I had no excuse to not make my own. So that I did! I have never made tomato soup before (except my grandmother’s vegetable soup, which is tomato-based) so I just kind of threw some ingredients together in a pot and went with it. I am happy to report that it turned out great! I don’t think that it’s anything my tomato-hating hubby will eat, but it’s the perfect thing for me to make on a Monday and heat up every day for lunch with a panini. So if you are crazy like me, and are able to stand the though of hot soup on a hot day, go on and make you some. But if you can’t, just file this recipe away on your favorites list because I know you’re going to want to make it come this fall!

Please do yourself a favor and top this soup with homemade croutons, and fresh basil. Thankyouverymuch!

Tomato Basil Soup

3 (14 oz) cans diced tomatoes

1/3 cup half & half

1 1/2 cups water

2 chicken bullion cubes

15 fresh basil leaves, cut into chiffonade

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced or chopped

1 teaspoon sugar, optional

salt & pepper, to taste

Place a medium to large Dutch oven or large saucepan over medium-high heat; add olive oil. Add onion and saute until translucent. Add garlic and saute until fragrant. Add the UNDRAINED tomatoes; allow to simmer for about 10 minutes. Add the water, bullion cube, sugar (if using) and half & half. Simmer until thickened somewhat. Add the basil and salt & pepper, to taste. Simmer for about 10 minutes, allowing the basil time to infuse the tomato soup. If you like your soup chunky, serve as is. If you like your soup more smooth, feel free to use an immersion blender to chop the tomatoes. Serve warm with homemade croutons and additional basil.

As some of you already know, my six year old son has a very serious illness that requires numerous surgeries (17 and counting), and weekly appointments to have his blood counts checked, among numerous other specialists we have to see regularly. We visit the local Children’s Cancer Clinic to have his blood counts checked, and one of the nurses there shared this yummy recipe with me. She just told me what to put it in, without the amounts so I just kind of added ingredients to my taste. I’m a complete sucker for corn dip…no matter what’s in it I always love it so it goes without saying that this is one of my favorites now. It is also so unbelievably easy that you won’t even believe it. I made it for Memorial Day weekend to take to my family’s annual family reunion and it was very well liked. At least I assume it was because there was none leftover for us to take home! I think that the addition of a few pickled jalapeno slices mixed in would send this dip completely over the top of delicious mountain. I added a few to the top for garnish for this photo but didn’t stir them in since I knew kids would be eating this dip and I didn’t want it to be too spicy for them. I know you’re gonna love this one!

I could literally eat this entire dish myself. I’m not even kidding you!

Erin’s Corn Dip

2 cans shoepeg corn, drained

1/2 – 1 cup sour cream

1 1/2 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

Tony’s Chachere’s Creole seasoning, to taste

In a medium mixing bowl, stir together corn and cheese. Mix in sour cream, starting with 1/2 cup and increasing to your desired consistency. Add Creole seasoning to taste. Serve with tortilla chips or corn chips.