Playing catch-up...busy weekend!

WOW! Let me just say it was a SUPER busy weekend! We were gone all day Friday (MOMS Club activity and happy hour play-date at Julia's house), all day Saturday (sunning while the kiddos played at Christy's and then a visit from Lynzy and Conor who we haven't seen since New Year's!), and then the boy helped install cabinets at casa de Kurzeja on Sunday, so Sarah and Critter spent the day with us. By the time Monday rolled around, I was wiped out!

As for dinners...let's see. On Friday we did some quick pasta with jarred sauce (I used Bertolli's Four Cheese Rosa sauce - alfredo sauce mixed with tomatoes...pretty good!).

On Saturday we ordered out since we had company. Scott had stained part of the deck and we didn't know if it would be dry or not, so I didn't defrost anything. We got some Venice pizza and wraps...always a good meal and they deliver, which is nice (and a rarity for us out here!).

On Sunday, we dined at the Kurzeja's and let me tell you, they never disappoint in the food department! Sarah grilled skewers of chicken satay and fillets of salmon, put together a salad with some incredible homemade dressing, and I braised a bag of baby carrots. Topped off with wine and Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches, it was an incredible dinner! I still need to get her satay recipe, but here's the braised carrrot recipe:

Braised Carrots
Ingredients
1 lb. bag of baby carrots
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup water (or chicken broth)
Parsley

Directions

1. Place carrots, butter, brown sugar, salt and water (or chicken broth) in pan over medium-high heat. 
2. Bring to boil. 
3. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes or until carrots are tender and liquid evaporates. 
4. Sear slightly for color and top with parsley.

I don't have any pictures, but suffice it to say - FANTASTIC!!

Breakfast Stuff

I woke up this morning and was starving (which is fairly unusual for me). Linds started asking for pancakes, so I figured, what the heck? Let's do some! I have a giant box of Bisquick, and my favorite pancakes are their "melt in your mouth" kind. They always turn out fluffy and perfect. Even Luke at two!

Bisquick "Melt in your Mouth" Pancakes
Ingredients
2 cups Bisquick
1 cup milk
2 eggs
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Heat griddle or skillet over medium-high heat or electric griddle to 375°F; grease with cooking spray, vegetable oil or shortening.
2. Stir all ingredients until blended. Pour by slightly less than 1/4 cupfuls onto hot griddle.
3. Cook until mixture bubbles. Turn; cook until golden. 
4. To keep warm, place in single layer on cookie sheet. Cover with aluminum foil, and place in 200°F oven up to 10 minutes.

I also made a breakfast for tomorrow's MOMS Club event - a Bisquick bacon quiche. I don't think it's "screw up"-able, but we'll see tomorrow! Here's that recipe:

Bisquick Bacon Quiche
Ingredients
1/4 cup melted butter
1-1/2 cup of milk
1 teaspoon salt
dash pepper
3 eggs
1/2 cup Bisquick
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar
1/2 cup bacon (about 7 slices) -- cut or broken into small pieces.

Directions

1. Mix first 5 ingredients together and beat well (wire whisk works well). 
2. Stir in Bisquick.
3. Pour into 9 inch (deep) cake pan.
4. Put in meat and cheese on top of mixture (do not mix).
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

Apr. 29 - BBQ Chicken Quesadillas

 I thought this was going to be a food fail as I started it. It's an intensely over-complicated recipe that honestly doesn't need to be even half as complex. The buttermilk dressing can easily be buttermilk ranch salad dressing, the smoked tomato relish can be a sweeter salsa (pineapple salsa, perhaps?), and the BBQ chicken could be regular old breasts shredded after barbecuing. But, I went through this step by step...and my god, it took forever. The result tasted pretty good, but nothing exciting. My buttermilk did NOT come out right (probably because of some substitutions) - it was watery and not nearly as creamy as it should have been. Ah, well, not every dinner can be fabulous?!

Bbq Chicken Quesadilla with Smoked Tomato Relish and Buttermilk Dressing
from www.foodnetwork.com
Prep time: 45 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Ingredients
4 chicken thighs, boned (about 1 pound), skin removed
3 cups BBQ sauce, divided
Salt and freshly ground pepper
24 (6-inch) flour tortillas
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
2 cups shredded white cheddar cheese
1 large red onion, thinly sliced
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons ancho chile powder

Smoked Tomato Salsa
8 cold smoked plum tomatoes, coarsely chopped
1/2 serrano chile, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Buttermilk Dressing
1/4 cup sour cream
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions

1. Place chicken in a medium baking dish. Pour 2 cups of the barbecue sauce over chicken and let marinate for 2 hours in the refrigerator. 
2. Remove from marinade, season with salt and pepper to taste and grill for 7 to 8 minutes on both sides or until tender and cooked through. Transfer chicken to a plate and let cool. 
3. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. 
4. When chicken is cool enough to handle, slice. Toss with the reserved 1 cup of bbq sauce. 
5. Place 8 tortillas on a flat surface and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of each of the cheeses and onion slices. Top with some chicken. Stack another tortilla on top and repeat. Top with the remaining 8 tortillas. 
6. Brush the top of the tortillas with oil and sprinkle with the chili powder. Place tortillas on a lightly oiled baking sheet and bake for 5 to 7 minutes or until golden brown and cheese has melted.

For the Smoked Tomato Salsa: Mix all ingredients together and season with salt and pepper to taste.

For the Buttermilk Dressing: Mix all ingredients together and season with salt and pepper to taste.

To serve: Place 1 quesadilla on each plate and cut into quarters. Top with a dollop of salsa and drizzle with the buttermilk dressing.

* I wish these were what mine looked like, but this is just from the Food Network page.

Apr. 28 - Buffalo Chicken Salad

I had a frustrating day yesterday and frantically texted my friend Sarah to see if she'd escape with me for drinks after the kids were asleep. Being the amazing friend she is, she immediately agreed! I didn't feel like fussing with a big meal, so I made some salads and grilled some chicken to top them with. I have a bottle of buffalo marinade which I used to coat the chicken, and then used my bleu cheese vinaigrette to top it. It wasted delicious and was low-cal!

Newlywed Guest Blog!

Remember my good friend, Katie? She was the one married a month or so ago that I used to work with at Drexel...the one who kept me sane during those crazy days! She's also the one who passed along the famed cornbread enchilada casserole. Well, in all of her newlywed glory, she found another dish that pleased both her and her husband! I'm drooling as I type, so I may just have to go and get some Ritz crackers and make this for dinner STAT! Here's the recipe:

True to the magazine's name, this recipe is simple to make and real simple to scarf down before your husband gets off a phone call and the heat is still billowing off the meat and the side dish isn't even finished cooking. The cheesy cracker mixture kept the moisture in and the buttery flavor mixed very well with the small amount of garlic, salt and pepper. I cut the breasts in half because we bought super huge pieces from Sam's. I managed to eat four pieces (probably two breasts) because it was so yummy. I can't wait for noon tomorrow when I can heat it up at work.

This meal was made after a string of mediocre dinners on my part. I hoped it would be good but didn't get too excited in case it turned out like my bland rice and beans or my too-tart-for-my-liking tilapia. Something told me, though, that I should have taken a picture of me prepping it because it would be the next good meal I made and would be good for this blog. Well, then something else told me not to jinx it so i just plodded along, dipping the chicken into the butter and then the cracker mixture and then the cookie sheet (I wanted to be a good guest blogger and offer up a different kind of picture than just the finished product.... but, that will have to wait until next time.. if i am allowed back!)

So, here's to your next favorite chicken dish!

Cheddar Chicken
from Real Simple's May 2010 issue
Prep: 15 mins
Cook: 25-30 mins
Ingredients
16 buttery crackers (i.e., Ritz) crushed
6 oz grated sharp cheddar
1 clove chopped garlic
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
4 tablespoons melted unsalted butter
1/4 tsp each of salt and pepper

Directions

1. Heat over to 350.
2. In a bowl, combine crushed crackers, cheese, garlic, salt and pepper
3. Dip the chicken in the butter, then in the cracker mixture, pressing gently to help it adhere, and then place on a foil-lined baking sheet
4. Sprinkle remaining cracker mixture on the chicken and drizzle any remaining butter on top.
5. Bake 25-30 mins and until chicken is golden brown and cooked through.

CHEAP Sally nailpolish - KILLER deal!

Sally is having a sale on nail polishes - and with summer arriving soon, there will be plenty of toenail exposure, so you need to act on this!

The Sally Girl line is only 99 cents a bottle. Use coupon code 555919 to get 25% off and FREE shipping on your order. Then, use 555135 to get a buy 2, get 1 free deal.

I just ordered 6 bottles of polish for $3.51!

Thanks to Deal Finding Chik for letting me know about this fab deal!

PS: Hot nail polish colors for this season include metallics and pastels (especially in blues and greens) - mix up your order with some fun new colors :)