If you've been reading my blog then you already know I love making soup. I tried a new one today adapted from a Pampered Chef recipe and it turned out so good! The aroma from this soup is absolutely delightful. Using a crockpot and frozen chicken breasts made this recipe almost effortless. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
INGREDIENTS
2 chicken breasts (frozen or thawed)
2 carrots, peeled & chopped
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon parsley flakes
1 garlic clove, pressed
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup (10 3/4 oz)
3 cans chicken broth
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 cup dry white wine (not sweet)
dash of salt
1/3 cup orzo
DIRECTIONS
Put everything in the crockpot except for the pasta. Cook on high for 4 1/2 hours. Shred the chicken breasts using 2 forks. Add pasta and continue cooking for an additional 30 minutes. Makes about 10 cups.
Recipe adapted from Pampered Chef Its Good For You cookbook..."Greek Lemon Chicken Soup"
Strawberries were on sale today at the grocery store so that's what inspired me to blog this recipe. I love this salad even in the winter time! Its also a great salad for a party because its simple and already includes the dressing ... plus it looks beautiful. I use an egg slicer tool to cut the strawberries. This saves time and also makes the slices exactly the same size. If you want to serve this as an entree versus a side dish you could top it with grilled chicken breast, feta or goat cheese and maybe a small amount of thinly sliced red onion. Enjoy!
INGREDIENTS
1 bag of fresh spinach leaves (8 - 10 oz)
1/2 quart strawberries (remove stems & slice thinly)
1/3 cup sliced almonds
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup sugar (if using a sugar substitute reduce to 2 tablespoons)
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
dash of salt
DIRECTIONS
Make the dressing first by mixing the vinegar, sugar, mustard, oil & salt. Place the spinach leaves, strawberries and almonds in a large bowl and toss together with the dressing. Serve immediately. If making ahead do not coat with the dressing until you are ready to serve. If you don't feel like making your own dressing, I suggest Ken's Steak House Lite Raspberry Walnut Vinaigrette.
This is a great low-carb/low-calorie breakfast that can be made in advance. You can try the ingredients I used or try it with something you like better. Maybe try replacing the ham with bacon bits or try broccoli vs spinach, swiss cheese vs cheddar, etc. Make it your own! Be creative!
Line muffin pan with papers. Spray the papers with non-stick cooking spray. Combine the ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix until well blended. Divide evenly among the muffin cups. Bake at 350'F for 20-25 minutes, until a knife inserted comes out clean. The muffins can be kept in the refrigerator or freezer and reheated in the microwave.
Happy New Year everyone! I'm sorry I have not been blogging lately. Actually "lately" is not the correct word here ... I haven't blogged anything since July which is super embarrassing!!!! I had 3 people in the last month ask me about my food blog (one of which was all the way from California) ... just when you think no one is out there reading this stuff, BAM!!! So, I'm not going to dwell on my lack of motivation or recipe/story inspiration. I'm just going to jump right into to 2015 with a fresh start.
I'm sure there's lots of you out there who are starting the new year with healthy eating goals or maybe even a weight loss plan and here I am posting a recipe for cake frosting. Its a good one though ...so good I wanted to share it and if you are one of those people focusing on healthy eating the beginning of the year just bookmark this one for later because I promise you will like it!
This frosting is a cross between a butter cream frosting and a cream cheese frosting so it gets the best of both worlds without being too sweet or too cream-cheesy. I hosted a lunch on Monday at my house to celebrate my mom's birthday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!!! I kept the lunch light with Italian Wedding Soup and a garden salad so I could finish things off with birthday cake. The cake was a white cake with seedless raspberry jam between the layers and topped with cream cheese frosting. I think the frosting was what made the cake so delicious. Here's the recipe ...
DIRECTIONS
With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat the butter until fluffy 2-3 minutes. Add the cream cheese and vanilla and continue to beat for an additional 2 minutes. Reduce the mixer speed to low and gradually add the powdered sugar, mix until combined. Increase mixer speed to medium-high and beat for another 1-2 minutes until light and fluffy.
Tis the season for Caprese Salad...my favorite salad of the summer!! A few simple ingredients make this outstandingly delicious dish. My only advice is to use home grown or market tomatoes ...do NOT ruin the flavors of this salad with store bought tomatoes!!!
okay, super simple ...tomato, FRESH mozzarella, basil, olive oil, balsamic vinegar (or balsamic vinegar glaze), salt & pepper. slice the tomatoes and mozzarella and arrange on a plate. drizzle with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, sprinkle with salt, pepper & chopped basil. enjoy!
June 21st was the first official day of summer. Let's celebrate with some sangria! This is a refreshing summer cocktail and very easy to make. Perfect for summer parties! Box wine works just as well as bottled.
Peel & slice mango & peaches. Slice orange. Fill a gallon container (large pitcher or beverage dispenser) with white wine, peach schnapps and add fruit slices. Refrigerate overnight or up to two days. Serve over ice with a splash of lemon-lime flavored soda (sprite, diet sprite, 7-up, seltzer, etc). Makes about 1 gallon. Enjoy!
Father's Day is this weekend. Are you doing anything special to celebrate??
Father-Daughter Dance
I don't want to kick things off on a sad note but I can't help thinking that Father's Day just hasn't been the same for me since my dad passed away 5 1/2 years ago. This holiday reminds me of how much I miss him and wish so badly he could see my little girl. I try my hardest to pick out a nice card from my daughter to my husband but I don't last very long in the section of cards "from daughter to father" before the tears start flowing from my eyes. If I could just bring him back for one day I would love to give him one more hug, feel the warmth of his hand in mine, have one more chance to pour him a cold glass of iced tea and fix him some cheese & crackers at my dining room table, see him meet my daughter and tell him once more how much I love him. I miss him so much it hurts on days like this.
My husband lost his father this past year and I'm sure he'll be thinking about his dad on Sunday as well (I know from experience that the first year is the hardest). They used to golf together on Father's Day and I'd make this lemon cheesecake which they both loved to have for dessert. Sometimes Bob (Chris' dad) even sneaked a second piece when Joan (Chris' mom) wasn't looking.
Moving forward I really need to flip the switch to thinking positively and making father's day be about my husband. I need to put grief aside and show my little girl how to make HER daddy "king for the day" because, just like me, she loves her daddy so much. Whether sharing a breakfast sandwich, getting a piggy back ride to bath time or playing helicopter in the living room, at 3 years old he's not just her daddy he's her hero and he deserves a very nice day on Sunday.
I'm making the lemon cheesecake recipe on Sunday that I've made the past several years on Father's Day. Its one of my husband's favorite desserts. Its also one of my favorite summer-time desserts because I don't have to turn on my oven, lemon flavored desserts are never overly sweet and just about always refreshing ... oh, and bonus ... it always turns out to be beautiful.
Happy Father's Day to all the fathers out there! I hope you all have a very special day.
1. Lightly spray springform pan with nonstick cooking spray. For crust, finely chop cookies using a food chopper. Combine cookie crumbs and melted butter in a small bowl. Press crumb mixture into bottom of pan. Cut 6 think slices from lemon; cut each slice in half. Place lemon halves against inside collar of pan with cut side touching the crust. Refrigerate while preparing filling.
2. For filling, zest lemons to measure 1 1/2 teaspoons zest. Juice lemons to measure 1/4 cup juice. Combine pudding mix, sugar, 1/4 cup of water and egg yolks in a small saucepan; stir until blended. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture comes to a full boil; remove from heat. Set aside 1/2 cup of the budding; cool slightly. Whisk butter and lemon juice into remaining pudding in saucepan; cool 15 minutes, stirring twice.
3. In a large mixing bowl, combine cream cheese and powdered sugar; mix well. Whisk in reserved 1/2 cup lemon pudding and 1 teaspoon lemon zest. Fold in 2 cups whipped topping; spread over crust.
4. Stir remaining lemon pudding mixture and spoon evenly over cream cheese filling, spreading gently. Refrigerate at least 6 hours.
5. Run a knife around the sides of dessert; release collar from pan. Garnish with remaining whipped topping and lemon zest. Cut into wedges.
