Loaded Baked Potato Soup

Ok, so it's been awhile since I blogged. A longggg while. Moving across country, starting a new job and getting settled into a new house had me reverting back to tried and true recipes and not trying many new things. Obviously, I couldn't blog the same recipes so I drifted away for awhile.

Things are changing here in Mississippi, a routine is forming, and I now find that I have a little more time for my love of cooking. Even better, my little toddler loves to cook with Momma, and it gives us some great bonding time together. He absolutely loved cooking this loaded baked potato soup with me last week, and it made him feel very accomplished when it came out delicious.



My little chef .. he loves the kitchen!

I searched for a potato soup recipe and came across several but I couldn't decide which one looked more appealing. Each had something that I did or didn't like so I improvised. I took the recipes from Paula Deen and Guy Fieri and sort of combined the two, creating my own version.

Ingredients:
5-6 baking potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 C chicken broth
4 Slices bacon
Green Onion, chopped
4 oz shredded cheddar cheese
1 C sour cream
1 t garlic powder
1 C heavy whipping cream
Salt
Pepper

Directions:
In the same pot you wish to cook soup in, fry your bacon. When bacon is crisp, remove to paper towels to drain. When drained, crumble.

In the bacon grease, add diced potatoes and let cook for 1-2 minutes, then add chicken broth. Bring the potatoes and broth to a boil, and let boil for 10 minutes, or until potatoes are soft. Turn heat down to low. Place HALF of the potato and broth mixture into blender and blend until they reach a mashed potato like appearance. Add back to the soup simmering in pot.  (This makes the soup have a thicker consistency - you can skip if you don't wish for it to be that thick).

With a fork, lightly mash the remaining potato cubes. Stir in sour cream, whipping cream, garlic powder, and cheddar cheese. Stir until cheese melts into soup. Add about half of the bacon crumbles and green onion, leaving the remaining for garnish. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve garnished with cheese, sour cream, bacon and green onion.

Feedback:

DELICIOUS! In fact, we are making it again today for lunch!

Seven Layer Cookies

I emailed Brian's Mom a few weeks ago for the recipe to his favorite cookies. He couldn't remember the order of the ingredients or everything that was in them. He couldn't eat much because he is diabetic but he was able to have a taste. As it turns out, I came home from work one afternoon and he had make them himself! They are oh so very yummy and a great holiday treat!

Ingredients:

1 cube of butter (melted in a 9x13 baking dish)
1 1/2 cups of graham cracker crumbs
1 cup of butterscotch chips
1 cup of choc. chips
1 cup of flaked coconut
1 cup of chopped pecans
1 can of sweetened condensed milk (I use Eagle Brand)

Directions:

After the butter melts, layer the other ingredients in the order listed. (no
mixing, just layer)
Bake for 25-30 minutes, cool and cut.

Feedback:
Who needs feedback from a family recipe? Obviously if they weren't fantastic I wouldn't have asked for the recipe to start with :0)

Ricotta, Spinach and Garlic Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Ingredients

4 Chicken Breast
1 Container Ricotta Cheese (I believe it was 16 oz)
1 Handful Spinach Leaves, Chopped
Breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon Minced Garlic

Directions

• Mix Together Spinach Leaves, Garlic, and Ricotta Cheese
• Cut a “pocket” into the thickest part of each chicken breast. Cut deeply, but ensure that you do not cut thru to the other side.
• Take a Tablespoon of ricotta mixture and stuff into pocket. Continue to add mixture until you can no longer add more, but do not let it bulge out. Toothpick pocket closed.
• Roll into breadcrumbs (I like to add about 1 teaspoon of garlic powder and 1 teaspoon of onion powder to these breadcrumbs for more flavor), until chicken breast is coated.
• Bake at 350 degrees until chicken is cooked thru (25-30 minutes typically).

Spinach and Ricotta Chicken Breasts

There was no recipe for this meal, I made it up as I went along. It was GREAT, it was EASY, and it will for sure be on my make again list.

Ingredients

4 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 C ricotta
1 t minced garlic
1 large can breadcrumbs
1 handful spinach leaves, chopped

Directions

1. Mix minced garlic, and chopped spinach into ricotta.
2. Cut small slice into side of each chicken breast, creating a pocket.
3. Place 1/4 of mixture into each chicken breast pocket. Toothpick closed.
4. Roll each stuffed chicken breast into breadcrumbs until coated.
5. Bake on 350 until cooked thru, about 40 minutes.

Corn and Crab Cakes

Cakes:
1/2 cup fresh yellow corn kernels
1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
3 tablespoons chopped green onions
3 tablespoons canola mayonnaise
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3/4 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
8 ounces crab claw meat, shell pieces removed
1 large egg, lightly beaten $
1 1/2 cups panko (Japanese breadcrumbs), divided
Cooking spray $
1 1/2 tablespoons butter, divided

Sauce:
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon chopped green onions
3 tablespoons canola mayonnaise
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
Dash of kosher salt
1 drop hot pepper sauce

Preparation
1. To prepare cakes, combine first 8 ingredients in a large bowl, stirring until well blended. Stir in 3/4 cup panko. Divide mixture into 8 equal portions; shape each into a 1-inch-thick patty. Arrange patties in a single layer on a small baking sheet. Place patties in freezer for 20 minutes or until firm.
2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add remaining 3/4 cup panko to pan; coat panko lightly with cooking spray. Cook 2 minutes or until toasted, stirring frequently. Place toasted panko in a shallow dish; dredge crab cakes in toasted crumbs. Wipe pan clean with paper towels.
3. Melt 2 1/4 teaspoons butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; swirl to coat. Coat both sides of 4 cakes with cooking spray. Add coated cakes to pan; cook 4 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Remove from pan, and keep warm. Repeat procedure with remaining butter, cooking spray, and crab cakes.
4. To prepare sauce, combine parsley and remaining ingredients in a small bowl, stirring well. Serve with cakes.


Feedback:

YUMMMM! There's not much else to say! This was so easy, I had them whipped together within 10 minutes. I ate them without the sauce, so I can only imagine how much better they are going to be when I make that for the leftovers. For sure a make again recipe, and I'll be using it for dinner parties in the future!

Cooking Light Hashbrown Casserole

Wow, it's been awhile! Between work and life my cooking became mostly nonexistant. However, now that I am a stay at home Mom (a lovely way to say I was laid off) I'm back in the kitchen! I am also currently in a weight loss competition because held by Koli Palu and Ashley Johnston - former Biggest Loser contestants!

This means I've been looking for some healthier recipes to cook or try and lighten up. I found this in the Cooking Light magazine and it was AMAZING. I'm not a big breakfast fan but it's such an important meal, especially in a weight loss journey. If I'd known about this recipe I would have been eating breakfast everyday!



Ingredients
6 bacon slices
1 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (32-ounce) package frozen Southern-style hash brown potatoes
1 cup (4 ounces) preshredded Classic Melts Four Cheese blend, divided
1/2 cup chopped green onions
1/2 cup fat-free sour cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 (10.75-ounce) can condensed 30% reduced-sodium, 98% fat-free cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
Cooking spray

Directions
Cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, and crumble. Discard drippings in pan. Add 1 cup onion and garlic to pan; cook for 5 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Stir in the potatoes; cover and cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Combine crumbled bacon, 1/4 cup cheese, green onions, sour cream, salt, pepper, and soup in a large bowl. Add potato mixture; toss gently to combine. Spoon mixture into an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with remaining 3/4 cup cheese. Cover with foil coated with cooking spray. Refrigerate 8 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350°. Remove casserole from refrigerator; let stand at room temperature 15 minutes. Bake casserole, covered, at 350º for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 30 minutes or until bubbly around edges and cheese begins to brown.

Bacon Cheddar Deviled Eggs

12 Eggs
1/2 Cup Mayonnaise
4 Slices Bacon
2 Tbsp shredded cheddar cheese
1 Tsbp mustard

Directions:

1. Place eggs in a saucepan, and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil and immediately remove from heat. Cover, and let eggs stand in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from hot water, and cool. To cool more quickly, rinse eggs under cold running water.

2. Meanwhile, place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until evenly brown. Alternatively, wrap bacon in paper towels and cook in the microwave for about 1 minute per slice. Crumble and set aside.

3. Peel the hard-cooked eggs, and cut in half lengthwise. Remove yolks to a small bowl. Mash egg yolks with mayonnaise, crumbled bacon and cheese. Stir in mustard. Fill egg white halves with the yolk mixture and refrigerate until serving.

Feedback:

These were GREAT! I made them for Mother's Day for something a little different than our usual and they were a hit. The plate cleared in no time and I've now been designated the holiday deviled egg maker!