Like my last post, I really don’t know what more I can say about Spinach Artichoke Dip.  Everyone’s had it, everyone loves it.  Seriously, have you ever met someone that doesn’t love spinach artichoke dip??  Think about it!  This is my favorite recipe I’ve tried.  The cream cheese makes it really rich and creamy.  Mmm…

I made this for my family’s big Christmas Eve dinner, and everyone loved it!  All my family were making comments like, “excuse me miss fancy nice dish!” and “wow Jasmine when did you learn to cook like this?” (I haven’t seen them in a while…and they don’t need to know that everything I make is so simple!).

Spinach Artichoke Dip

• 1/2 pk frozen chopped spinach, thawed & drained
• 1 pk cream cheese, softened
• 1 c. parmesan cheese
• 1/2 c. mayo
• 1 can artichoke hearts, drained & diced
• 1 squeeze fresh lemon
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• sprinkle of paprika
• tortilla chips or bread

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl (except paprika & chips).
3. Pour into a baking dish.
4. Sprinkle the top with paprika.
5. Bake for 20 minutes, till heated through & bubbly.
6. Serve with tortilla chips or toasted french bread slices (slice french bread, rub with olive oil, sprinkle w/salt & pepper & bake/broil till crispy).
7. I made a double batch of this and was VERY happy that I did!

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I just got done telling you about my family’s recent Appetizer Fest.  Well, I was really excited when my cousin told me we were going to do this because I love appetizers, but I was having a hard time deciding what I wanted to bring.  I knew that most of my family was bringing a dip of some kind, so we’d be covered in that area.  I wanted to bring something a little bit more hearty or substantial so it would feel a bit more like a meal.

Then, the morning before the Appetizer Fest, I was watching Paula’s Home Cooking and she was making an appetizer spread too!  She made these Italian Chicken Sticks and they looked really good.  I realized that I had everything on hand for this recipe (one of the great things about this recipe).  I made it for our Appetizer Fest, and it was a huge hit!  I made a double batch and both batches were literally eaten within minutes of being taken out of the oven! And like I said they really helped to round things and make it feel more like a meal, which I know all the men appreciated.

Italian Chicken Sticks

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Now that it’s WINTER I’m kind of in a fight with the world.  Well maybe not somewhere like Australia where it’s warm right now, but I’m DEFINITELY in a fight with Utah!  Anyone who even remotely knows me knows that I hate winter…I hate the cold and I hate hate HATE the snow!  So to try to ease my pain just a bit I try to make soup and chili once in a while.

My husband and I had a Halloween party at our house and I made chili for it.  A few of the girls asked me for the recipe, so I thought I’d just post it on here for everyone.  I think everyone needs a good homemade chili recipe.  It’s so comforting on a cold day, and it’s so versatile!  Try eating it with sour cream or cheese on top, or have the leftovers over rice or cornbread.  Here’s my recipe for you (got it from my Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook a few years ago and I’ve refused to make any other chili recipe since), if you don’t already have one this is a good simple recipe that everyone likes.  Oh, and my cookbook says that it’s low-fat which is kind of hard to find with a good hearty winter recipe like this one.

Chili

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 c. chopped onion (1 large)
• 1/2 c. chopped green sweet pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 (14 oz) can tomatoes, cut up (undrained)
• 1 (15 oz) can dark red kidney beans, rinsed & drained
• 1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
• 2-3 tsp. chili powder
• 1/2 tsp dried basil, crushed
• 1/4 tsp pepper

1. In a large saucepan cook ground beef, onion, sweet pepper & garlic till meat is brown & onion is tender.  Drain fat.
2. Stir in undrained tomatoes, kidney beans, tomato sauce, and seasonings.
3. Bring to boiling; reduce heat.  Cover & simmer 20 minutes.
4. Makes 4 servings.

**To make in crockpot:

1. Follow step one as above.
2. Mix all ingredients in crockpot & cook on low for 8-10 hours or high for 4-5.

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So, again, once of those recipes that I had at a friend’s house when they had us over for dinner (thanks Emily!), begged for the recipe, and argued with her because I wouldn’t believe it’s that easy! It sounds like a typical chicken casserole, but believe me, the few variations on ingredients (aka curry and mayo…in a casserole? Believe me on this one…delicious!!). Seriously, you GOTTA try this one…it’ll be a new staple in your house!

Chicken Divan

• 2 pkg. frozen broccoli spears, slightly cooked
• -OR-
• 1 pkg. frozen broccoli spears, slightly cooked and 1 1/2 cups cooked rice (see recommendations, below)*
• 3 cooked chicken breasts*
• grated cheese

Sauce:

• 2 cans cream of chicken soup
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp curry powder

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Put broccoli in bottom of 9×13 pan. If using, put rice on top of broccoli. Place chicken on top of rice/broccoli.
3. Mix sauce ingredients together. Pour evenly over top of chicken.
4. Spread grated cheese over top.
5. Bake uncovered for 25-30 minutes.

Recommendations:

• Rice: So the original recipe that my friend gave me called for the 2 packages of broccoli. But after I made this a couple times, I thought that it would taste really good with rice to soak up all the DELICIOUS sauce, and to give it some more filling power. So, last time I made it, I made it with throwing some leftover rice in the bottom of the casserole dish, and I really liked how it turned out (like I said, just made it more filling…and none of the amazing sauce is put to waste!). So that’s definitely how I’m gonna make this from now on.
• Chicken:  I think the recipe calls for them whole, but I dice mine before I put them in.

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You might be surprised to see a turkey recipe in June instead of November like usual, but my brother and sister-in-law recently moved out of state, and they gave me some leftover turkey meat that they had in their freezer. I’m sure you can use turkey as a substitute in any chicken recipe, but I decided to look up a recipe for turkey soup on my favorite recipe site, tried it, and really liked it! Here you go:

Turkey Soup with Egg Noodles & Vegetables (#144905 on recipezaar…& I guess it was originally from Quick Fix Meals on the Food Network):

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 2 leeks, cleaned & chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled & chopped/sliced
• 1 stalk celery, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 3-4 c. cooked turkey, shredded
• 2-3 bay leaf
• 2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper
• 8 c. reduced sodium chicken broth
• 6 oz. egg noodles, uncooked*
• 1 c. frozen peas
• 2 tsp fresh parsley, chopped

1. Heat oil in a large stock pt or dutch oven over medium heat.
2. Add leeks, carrots, celery & garlic; saute 4 minutes, or until soft.
3. Add turkey, bay leaves, thyme, salt & pepper; stir to mix well.
4. Add chicken broth; bring mixture to a boil.
5. Reduce heat to medium-low; partially cover & simmer 10 minutes.
6. Return mixture to a boil & add egg noodles.
7. Cook 10 minutes, until egg noodles are just tender.
8. Stir in peas & cook until peas are just heated through, about 1 minute.
9. Remove from heat, discard bay leaves & stir in parsley.
10. (serves 4-6)

Recommendations:

• Noodles:  This tasted great with the egg noodles, but I think the only way to make this recipe taste even better would be to do this with homemade noodles!  I hear they’re not too hard to make, and I have a recipe from a friend, so next time I make this I’ll try to do the homemade noodles & let you know how it goes!

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So I’ve told you before that one of THE most annoying things to me is having to wait for water to boil! I always have these super quick meals, and half the time I’m stuck waiting for the stupid water to boil! That is why I absolutely LOVE this recipe…it’s super easy…no cutting, washing…and the best part is, you don’t even have to cook the noodles first!! Gotta love that.

I got this recipe years ago in my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook that my aunt & uncle gave me for my high school graduation, and I make it all the time now! The onions make it a lot sweeter than you’d expect.

Chili-Mac Skillet

• 1 lb ground beef
• 3/4 c. chopped onions (about 1½ medium)
• 1 (15 oz) can red kidney beans, rinsed & drained
• 1 (4 oz.) can diced green chili peppers, drained
• 1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
• 1 (8 oz) can tomatoes, cut up
• 1/4 c. water
• 1/2 c. elbow macaroni (uncooked)*
• 2-3 tsp. chili powder
• 1/2 tsp. garlic salt
• 1/2 c. shredded Monterey Jack or cheddar cheese

1. In a large skilled cook meat and onions till meat is brown and onions are tender. Drain off fat.
2. Stir in remaining ingredients (except cheese). Bring to boil.
3. Reduce heat; simmer, covered, about 20 minutes or till macaroni is tender, stirring often.
4. Sprinkle with cheese. Cover and heat about 2 minutes more or till cheese is melted.

Recommendations:

• Macaroni: I tried this the other day with whole wheat pasta the other day (instead of white like usual), and it tasted exactly the same as usual.  So I’d recommend using whole wheat elbow macaroni, because why not get the added health benefits??

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My girl cousins and I get together once a month for a girls-only breakfast (so fun, right?!). We have the best time just talking about what’s going on in all of our lives, it’s so nice for us to have that all-important “girl bonding” on a regular basis (especially with how busy we all are with our jobs, kids, husbands, etc)! We all bring some breakfast food to share, so it’s also fun to cook for each other. Last month I committed to making muffins, and decided a couple nights before that I’d actually make some from scratch instead of a box like usual . Searched recipezaar for muffins, and these were the second highest-rated muffins on the whole site, with 130 ratings & almost all 5 stars (the highest rated were some banana muffins (with 232 reviews & almost all 5 stars), but one my sister-in-law was making banana bread so I decided to try those another time). Made them for the breakfast, and they were a huge hit! One thing I really like about this recipe is that it’s all ingredients that I always have on hand, which is always nice. So, here’s the recipe for you:

The Best Blueberry Muffins: (#50719 on recipezaar)

• 1/2 c. butter or margarine (at room temperature)
• 1 c. sugar
• 2 large eggs*
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 c. flour
• 1/2 c. milk
• 2 1/2 c. fresh or frozen blueberries

• Topping:*
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg

1. Preheat oven to 375°
2. Grease 18 regular-sized (or 12 large size) muffin cups.
3. In mixing bowl, mix butter until creamy. Add sugar & beat until pale & fluffy.
4. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each.
5. Beat in baking powder, salt & vanilla.
6. With large spoon in half of flour, then half of milk into batter; repeat.
7. Fold in blueberries (try to be soft so you don’t break the blueberries).
8. Spoon into muffin cups.
9. Sprinkle topping onto each muffin.
10. Bake 20 to 30 minutes, until golden brown & springy to touch.

Recommendations:

• Eggs: I tried this once with that egg substitute stuff (my husband was craving them & the only ingredient I didn’t have were eggs so I used that stuff instead)…and they turned out ok….not great, definitely not as good as with real eggs, but I’d say that if you didn’t have eggs, or if you prefer the substitute cause it’s lower fat then use it instead.
• Topping: I haven’t made the muffins yet with the topping…I forgot to do it the first time I made them, and they tasted GREAT without it, so I decided to pretend to be a little bit healthy & just not use the extra sugar!

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