And Here We Are Once Again

Thanks to the wonderful people at CSN Stores for another opportunity to do a review for them.

Have you wished you could carry around a super cute backpack or that your kids had the cutest backpack ever? Well you seriously don't have to look any further with the amazing selection of kids backpacks that you will find on CSN's amazing website!

I simply adore the Beatrix Big Kid Papar Owl Backpack :) As most of you know Ariel's room is all decked out in owls so how could I resist!

Sharing Christmas with Pictures

I simply adore the Good Blessings Card from Shutterfly. Since Ariel is on her way and she is our sweet blessing what better way to share the joy of Christmas and God's blessings with our friends and family than with this sweet card and three precious pictures of our baby girl! I love the message behind this card because every good perfect gift comes from our Father in Heaven and I am truly grateful for that (James 1:17). It is truly amazing to be able to experience the true meaning behind Christmas and that is the celebration of God sending his son to this earth to be our propitiation for sin. I also love how the card uses such soft colors and is not hiding the true meaning of Christmas! I am glad to know that Shutterfly has provided cards that reflect the truth that I believe in. I hope that I will be able to share pictures of our sweet baby Ariel with our close family and friends year after year with awesome heartfelt cards from Shutterfly.

Another great way that Tim and I can share our sweet baby girl with our friends and family and wish them a Merry Christmas is with this awesome birth announcement. How precious would Ariel look?

Since her birth is so close to Thanksgiving we could even give thanks to our God for all that he has blessed us with, with this precious Thanksgiving card. This card would again allow us to share Ariel with our family and friends :)

Another great idea from Shutterfly would be a desk calendar which would be a great gift - especially for family that is not close by so each month they'll get to experience a new picture of Ariel.

I hope that you get the chance to check out Shutterfly and all the great cards and gift ideas they have to offer!

In Baby News

At my Dr appt yesterday he let me know that things are going well - considering nothing much was going on last week!

I am 1.5cm dilated and 75% effaced and he is pretty sure that Ariel will be here in less than 10 days :)

I know I have been slacking on posts but I have been so so lazy!

YAY to Reviews :)

As I have mentioned in the past CSN has so many amazing stores on their one site!

Have you ever searched for an ottoman coffee table and just had no luck due to the lack of options? Well have no fear at CSN you are going to find a plethora of tables to meet whatever need you may have!

I am looking forward to sharing another review with all my readers!

Beef Stew My Way

I love a warm stew on a cold night....this stew is so quick and easy - you won't think you could even call it a stew!

Ingredients:
1 lb cubed beef
flour and corn meal to coat beef
oil to coat pot and cook beef in
salt and pepper to taste
3-4 stalks of celery
3-4 carrots
1/3 of a white onion
2-3 med russet potatoes

3-4 cups of vegetable broth
2-3 cups of water

How To:
Coat a large pot with oil and put heat to medium
Coat beef with flour and corn meal
Add coated beef to warm pot
Place lid on pot after stirring the beef around in the oil and then allow it to cook, checking on it every few minutes - you want the beef to brown nicely and this is the quick way to do it
Cut up veggies
Once beef is browned add veggies, broth and water to the pot
Place lid on pot and cook until the veggies are softened - this can take about 20-30 minutes

Tim and I enjoy our stew with a nice big chunk of fresh bread with some butter on top :)

Enjoy!

Duck, Duck, Goose

So I have never made duck before and I thought well being almost 8 months pregnant at the time why not give it a whorl...what do I have to loose!

I purchased my sweet ducky from Whole Foods and made sure to take out all his innards and rinse him off really well.

Then I poured this lovely soy ginger vinaigrette I had purchased from Whole Foods, as well. I used 2 bottles on this bad boy!

Be sure to set the oven to 375 degrees. Place the marinated duck into a casserole dish with all the lovely soy ginger vinaigrette still saucing him up!

I checked on him every 30 minutes and made sure to baste him so he wouldn't dry out.

He cooked in the oven for 1.5 hours and was so tender!

When it came to what to serve him with I cut up some potatoes and onions and coated them with EVOO and Italian seasoning. I cooked this in the oven at 375 for about 30 minutes. I also added a side of red cabbage - my favorite, thank to my MIL :)

Hansen's Natural Soda Review

The good people over at Hansen's got in touch with me to do a soda review for them.

The first one I tried was the Mandarin Lime. I would say not only does it smell wonderful it tastes great too! I love the fact that there is nothing fake about this fizzy, goodness drink! You actually can smell the mandarin when you give the drink a whiff - awesome! I would totally recommend trying this!

OK now I am not much of a cola person (especially now being pregnant) but I sure did enjoy having this Original Cola especially since it is caffeine free (you heard right)! This tastes a hundred times better than any type of cola you could ever dream of having that already exists! It does not leave a funky film on your teeth or seem to sugary it is the perfect blend of sweetness and cola-ness you just can't go wrong!

Another Review for CSN Stores

The lovely people over at CSN Stores had asked if I would like to do another review for them and of course I said sure!

I had been pondering a steam mop especially with Ariel coming and one day crawling all over the place :)

After my normal research and comparison shopping I came to like the simplicity yet effectiveness of the Dirt Devil Easy Steam Mop Deluxe. So of course I decided to pick this lucky household cleaning tool!

WOW is all I can say when it came to how much junk it steamed off my kitchen floor! I was extremely impressed with the ease of use and the outcome that it provided. You could even tell that I cleaned the floor a different way just by walking barefoot on it!

Below is a pic of the reusable mop pad after I finished my kitchen floor (now keep in mind I used to swiffer and mop my floor on a weekly basis - I'm no dirty lady).

All I could say after I saw this was yuck!

Homemade Bagels

I am somewhat of an adventurous girl however being 7 months pregnant can cause a lack of enthusiasm :) Especially when it comes to a lengthy recipe but what the heck I love bagels (well I just plain 'ol love carbs).

I found this great step by step recipe from Smells Like Home. The recipe was so dead on you just can't go wrong!

The bagel recipe can be found here. Enjoy!

Raspberry Ricotta Mousse

The story behind trying this recipe goes as follows - We had some friends over for dinner and Tim was going to be running a 5k the next morning so no bad dessert was allowed! I opted for this recipe for its lightness and ability to be pretty healthy overall! This recipe is courtesy of Giada at Home.

Ingredients

• 1 (15-ounce) container whole milk ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup raspberry jam
• 1 cup whipping cream
• 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
• 1 cup fresh raspberries

Directions

In a food processor, blend the ricotta cheese until light and fluffy, about 20 seconds. Add the jam and pulse until combined. Transfer to a large bowl.
In a separate bowl, using an electric hand mixer, beat the cream until thick. Add the powdered sugar and continue to beat until the cream holds stiff peaks. Working in batches, carefully fold the cream mixture into the ricotta mixture. Spoon the mousse into serving bowls and refrigerate for 1 hour. Garnish with fresh raspberries and serve.

Personal Pan Pizza - Thin Style

So after making the flat bread the other night Tim said I love this thickness could you make pizza this way but a little thinner...well that shouldn't be too hard I just had to make my quick pizza dough recipe and cut it in half or thirds depending on how thin I wanted the crust to be.

I love having Tim as my food critic! He suggested that I make it a little thinner next time and make the crust crunchier (is that even a word..well it is in my house!). So I will just spread some egg white onto the crust next time I make the thinner than thin crust pizza.

I made Tim a white pizza and I had a red sauce pizza with fresh mozzarella sliced on top :)

White Pizza
Quick pizza dough
Ricotta cheese
Italian seasoning
Cut up chx tender
Low fat Mozzarella cheese

Red Pizza
Quick pizza dough
Favorite red sauce
Fresh Mozzarella sliced into thin slices

Once you have the pizza's assembled be sure to add some cornmeal to the bottom of your pizza sheet or cookie sheet and then place in preheated oven at 425 degrees and bake for 15-20 minutes or until nice and crunchy.

I will be posting the pics later today.

Super Easy Flat Bread

The husband and I were going to be on the run last night so I had to think of a quick dinner idea. So I picked up a rotisserie chicken from Whole Foods and made this, amazing flat bread.

For the pizza dough I used my quick pizza dough recipe and making this flat bread was a breeze and mighty deilish too!

I will be posting photos once I upload them!

Steam Mop Anyone?

I once again have the privelage of being able to do a review for CSN Stores.

If you have not heard of CSN Stores you seriously need to check them out! They have some many products ranging from baby items to Corelle Dinnerware! So have no fear and do check them out :)

As you all know I love cooking and sometimes just sometimes I make a mess and get junk all on the floor!

Well have no fear I will be reviewing the Dirt Devil Easy Steam Deluxe. I am so looking forward to this because this product has good reviews and will be a breeze to use too! It'll be especially good when Baby G begins crawling everywhere!

Here is to fun reviews and great products too!

Baby Girl

Here is Ariel Moriah at our 21 wk ultrasound last week :)

She weighs 13 oz and loves to float and kick in my tummy!

4th of July Poke Cake

So I have honestly never made a cake from scratch...I have made icing but never cake - so this was an experiment for sure! It came out great and looked great too (once I get the pic from the cake cutting I will post it).

The recipe comes from, How To Eat A Cupcake.

Super Easy Stove Top Mac N Cheese

I love, love mac n cheese especially from scratch :) Here is a great recipe that I found - Enjoy!

Necessities:

2 cups large elbow Macaroni, uncooked
2 cups low fat Milk
if needed, additional 1/4 cup milk or water for final cooking
1 tablespoon Butter, for flavor
1/2 teaspoon Mustard powder, I used 1 tbsp of brown mustard
1 teaspoon Salt, plus additional for final season later
generous dash of Nutmeg
1 cup Grated Cheese

Assembly: 


1. Place raw elbow macaroni in colander and quickly rinse under water. Let drain.
2. In medium sauce pan (about 3.5 qt), add milk, raw elbow macaroni, salt, butter, mustard powder and nutmeg.
3. On medium heat, slowly bring milk/macaroni mixture to a simmer, stirring the macaroni frequently as it comes up to a simmer. This will separate macaroni and keep them from sticking together. DO NOT LEAVE THE STOVE! The milk mixture will come to a boil very quickly and leaving it unattended will leave a big mess on your stove stop.
4. Once mixture comes to a simmer, immediately turn down heat to LOW. Macaroni will slowly cook in the milk. Having your heat too high will evaporate the milk too quickly!
5. Continue to stir the mixture frequently so that macaroni will cook evenly and absorb milk evenly. If you don’t stir your mixture frequently, you will get a big clump of macaroni in the end! Stir, stir stir!

6. Cook for about 15-20 minutes or until milk has been fully absorbed. If macaroni is not cooked fully, add a little more milk or water  to mixture ( in small amounts) until macaroni is fully cooked. This will take about another 5 minutes.
7. When milk has evaporated, stir in grated cheese of your choice. Stir the  cheese evenly into the macaroni.
8. Turn off heat. Place lid on top of pan and cover for about 5 minutes. This rest period will allow macaroni to plump up and absorb any excess milk.
9. Take a final taste and add additional salt to taste. Before serving, stir one final time to mix everything together.
10. I mixed together 3 tbsp of melted butter and enough bread crumbs to make a crumbly mix to put on top of the mac n cheese

Strawberry Ice Cream

What better way to celebrate the 4th than with homemade strawberry ice cream!

Necessaries:

2 cups cleaned/hulled strawberries
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups whole milk
2 cups heavy whipping cream

Assembly:

-Mix the strawberries, lemon juice and 1/4 cup of sugar together and put in fridge for 30 minutes
-Add the rest of the ingredients together and then once strawberries are ready food process them to a nice smooth consistency then add them to the rest of the mixture
-Place mix into ice cream maker and mix for 30-35 minutes
-Once done mixing add to a sealable, freezer container and freeze

I have found that the ice cream usually takes a day and a half to harden

Healthy Burritos...Look Out Chipotle

So as I started my new job today all the guys in the office were raving over Chipotle...while I am not a huge fan I do love a good burrito...so tonight's dinner is inspired by the guys :)

The Necessaries:

1 lb ground meat - cooked and drained of most of the oil
Pepper, Onion & Zucchini chopped up to equal about 2 cups ( I used my Pampered Chef food chopper)
2 cups of cooked white or brown rice
Taco seasoning to desired liking
salt and pepper to taste
About 1 cup of sour cream
Toasted burrito shells

Assembly:
Mix all ingredients together
Add mixture to center of toasted shell and then wrap up the burrito

This is so good and since I still like my food spicy and the baby doesn't seem to mind I add some hot sauce to my burrito.

Enjoy

Pizza and Calzone

On Tuesday I was craving pizza oh so bad and Tim was longing for a calzone...so I whipped up some of my  quick pizza dough and voila!

Chicken Pesto Potato with Red Peppers

I found this yummy recipe here! 

4 skinless, boneless chicken half breasts
1 1/2 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon lemon pepper or garlic/herb seasoning
5 cups lightly cooked potato pieces (1-inch pieces, microwaved until just tender)
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
4 tablespoons prepared pesto
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper

Start heating a large, nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat. Coat the outside of the chicken breasts with olive oil and add to the hot frying pan. Sprinkle seasoning over the chicken. When the bottom is nicely brown (about 2 minutes), flip chicken breasts over to brown other side (about 2 minutes).

Add lightly cooked potato pieces to bottom of slow cooker. Pour in low-sodium chicken broth. Spread pesto evenly over the top, and sprinkle chopped red pepper over the top. Gently toss mixture.

Lay browned chicken breasts over the top of the potato mixture. Cover and cook on high for about 3 hours or low for about 6 hours. 

NEW

I will be posting a new bread recipe that I used my KitchenAid Mixer to make!

Happy Tuesday! The bread came out wonderful...you can find the recipe here.

Pictures to come after work!

It's...

A GIRL

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

I had 4 bananas that were no longer edible by means of in cereal so I decided to make some banana bread. I was searching for a recipe and came across this recipe.

I followed it to a T, but I used 4 bananas instead of 2.

Everyone that has had it loves it!

Enjoy

Homemade Macacroni Salad

Who would have guessed that I would have made new side dishes all because I am pregnant :) Thanks baby!

Ingredients:

2 c cooked elbow macaroni (hint 1 c uncooked macaroni equals 2 c cooked)
1/4 c mayo
3/4 c sour cream
1/2 c finely chopped yellow onion
1/2 c finely chopped yellow and/or red pepper (if using both just chop enough for it to equal 1/2 c)
1 1/2 tbsp spicy brown mustard
1/2 c finely chopped dill pickle
1/4 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Cook pasta til al dente, once cooked drain and rinse under cool water
Mix all wet and dry ingredients together
Add macaroni to mixture
Keep in fridge til ready to eat

Baby Gorski

So I am trying to eat healthy...of course I am drinking my 3 glasses of Vitamin D milk a day required by the Dr. BUT it is ok I enjoy milk :) Thank goodness!

Here we are at 15 weeks!

Yummy Potato Salad

I have been craving potato salad as of recent...so I searched through different blogs/recipe sites and concocted this recipe.

Ingredients:
3 small white potatoes
2 medium red potatoes
1 c sour cream
1 tbsp chives
2 tbsp chopped onion
1 large dill pickle
1/2 tbsp paprika

Directions:
Cut potatoes into small cubes and cook in boiling water til fork tender
Meanwhile, mix together remaining ingredients
Once potatoes are done, let cool out of water for a few minutes then add to the sour cream mixture

Enjoy!

Pics to follow later today!

Best Chocolate Chip Cookies...EVER

Here is a tried and true recipe, but I can not recall where I snatched it from :)

Ingredients:

2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled until just warm
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, plus 1 large egg yolk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 - 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

-Preheat oven to 325 degrees
-Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl; set aside.
-If you have a stand mixer use it or just use a wooden spoon or electric mixer, mix the butter and sugars until thoroughly blended. Beat in the egg, yolk, and vanilla until combined. Add the dry ingredients and beat at a low speed just until combined. Stir in the chips to taste.
 -If you have a medium sized cookie scooper, scoop the cookies out onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper
-Bake in the oven for 15-18 minutes, or until golden brown

-Enjoy!

Crock Pot Chicken

You know the saying, "Nothing in life is free"? Well I was asked to post about a product on my blog and then I was given a $50.00 gift certificate to put towards any purchase on this companies website. So I decided to purchase this lovely crock pot .

I used it for the first time last night and I made a 6 lb chicken :)

Ingredients:

5-7 lb chicken, cleaned and giblets removed
olive oil
sea salt
cracked black pepper
Italian seasoning
3 carrots, peeled
1 onion, sliced
3 celery stalks, cut
4 tsp lemon juice
4 potatoes, cut and mixed with olive oil and Italian seasoning

Directions:

Be sure to clean the bird real well
Rub olive oil all over the bird...top and bottom
Season with sea salt and cracked black pepper on both sides and inside, too
Season with Italian seasoning on both sides
Place sliced onion on the bottom of the crock pot
Put chicken on top of the onions
Add carrots and celery to the pot
Drizzle lemon juice on top of the chicken
Cook chicken on high for 4 hours
Cook potatoes in the oven at 425 degrees for 30 minutes or until golden brown and tender

1st Time Chicken Pot Pie

I have been wanting to make a homemade chicken pot pie for quite sometime, but I always felt it would be too overwhelming! This recipe that I snagged was super easy and fun too.

Ingredients:

3 skinless chicken breasts
14.5 oz chicken broth
3 potatoes
1 yellow onion
3 stalks celery
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp all purpose flour
2 cups frozen mixed vegetables
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 package Pillsbury unroll-and-fill pie crusts

Directions:

Cook chicken in the oven, you can cook the chicken frozen too (be sure to set to correct temperature)

Wash and cut potatoes into bite size pieces. Cook til almost fork tender. Drain and set aside.

Wash celery and cut to bite size pieces, do the same for the onion

In a large heavy skillet, over med to high heat, saute celery and onion with olive oil, for 5-8 minutes. Add the frozen vegetables and cook for another 5 minutes. Add the flour and cook for 30 seconds.

Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Once it has become thick add the potatoes.

Once chicken is cooked cut into bite size pieces and add to vegetable mixture. Add salt and pepper to taste and garlic powder at this time, too.

In a 9 inch deep pie plate place the first layer of pie crust. Then add the chicken/vegetable mixture. Then add the top layer of the pie crust and be sure to enclose the edges.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until pie shell is golden brown.

Enjoy!

List...

So I was the happy recipient of a new crock pot...I need to get to cooking in it so I can rant and rave about it!

I have ventured off and made my 1st ever chicken pot pie...I will be posting this too :)

Oh and by the way I am not even close to having this baby yet but I'm just such a napper and lover of comfort that when the bundle comes in November I'll just be snuggling with that cutie all day :)

My new love has some side-kicks

I have always adored milk but my Dr. has made it apparent that I need to drink more Vitamin D fortified milk...like 3 glasses a day! So now my milk has some new friends :)

Unique Opportunity

A few weeks ago I had the privilege of getting an email from CSN Stores, asking me if I would like to try one of their products. I thought well sure why not!

I was looking at their bar stool store website and came across some great finds!

We have 2 bar stools from Ikea that we have in our little bar area in between our kitchen and dining room. However when we purchased it we did not have much of a selection at Ikea. When you go onto Home Bars they have a huge, crazy selection of really neat and well priced bar stools. I really like this one, oh and this one too.

Happy Bar Stool shopping!

Announcement

Ok so I have been partially slacking on my blog because I have been napping and I went on vacation last week.

I have been napping more than usual, as my FB friends would know I love to nap :) because Tim and I are expecting this November :)

We are excited and looking forward to what God has in store for us!

I know I know

I've been slacking beyond words...but I promise there is good reason!

Once I'm back from vacation I hope to get more recipes and pics on here!

p.s. the food processor works wonderfully, haven't used the mixer yet though.

Kitchen Gadgets

I am excited to say that I have finally made my purchase for my KitchenAid Mixer and my Cuisinart Food Processor :)

Stromboli

So I thought if I can make a calzone from scratch why can't I make a stromboli from scratch too?

Ingredients:

Quick Pizza Dough
1 cup low fat mozzarella cheese
1 cup pepperoni slices (or enough to cover the area of your rectangle)
EVOO for coating the top and bottom of the crust (once folded in half)
cornmeal

Directions:

Make my Quick Pizza Dough according to the directions

Once Dough is ready roll out into a rectangle shape, be careful not to make it too thin though

Evenly spread out about 1/2 cup of the mozzarella cheese, being sure to leave a slight border

Coat the mozzarella layer with the pepperoni and then add the rest of the mozzarella to the top of the pepperoni

Brush the border with water

Fold the dough in half, very carefully

Tuck under the excess dough to create a seal

Brush the top and bottom side with EVOO and lightly sprinkle the cornmeal on both sides

Bake in oven at 450 degrees for 15-18 minutes

Serve with a side of marinara sauce & enjoy

To Do List

Ok so I have been slacking off a little bit...but I have still been cooking :)

Last Friday I made Tim homemade crabcakes, Sunday night I made a yummy calzone and Monday night I made some really tasty meatloaves with pureed veggies mixed in.

I will be posting recipes and pics...I promise!

Not So Chicken...Chicken Soup

So the husband has food poisoning and I gave him chicken broth for dinner...I was suddenly inspired to concoct my own chicken soup...only thing is that I don't have any chicken!

Ingredients:

2 tbsp EVOO
1/2 yellow onion
2 carrots
1/2 green and 1/2 yellow zucchini
1 c mushrooms
4 leaves of swiss chard
1 tsp minced garlic
2 tsp Italian seasoning
1 cube chicken bullion
4 c chicken broth
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Roughly cut up all vegetables and then add (except the swiss chard) to a med/high heat pot filled with EVOO

Cook til carrots are almost done and then add the swiss chard

Once swiss chard has cooked down add all seasonings and bullion

Lastly add chicken broth and cook to almost a boil

**You could add some pre-cooked pasta or cooked rice for some starch or just have a nice chunk of bread along side**

Enjoy!

Easy Cinnamon Roll Muffins

Who doesn't love a cinnamon roll? I will post pictures later today :]

This recipe is adapted from Joy the Baker

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
4 tsp active dry or rapid rise yeast
2/3 cup warm milk (100-110F; low fat is fine) ** I warmed up the milk in the microwave for 30 seconds **
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg

Filling/Topping
2 tbsp butter, room temperature
2/3 cup brown sugar
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
pinch ground cardamom

Icing
1 cup powdered sugar
1-2 tbsp milk or cream (you may need to add more)
In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar and salt. Dissolve the yeast in a measuring cup filled with the warmed milk, then stir milk mixture, vegetable oil, vanilla extract and egg into the flour mixture. Mix well, until very smooth. Pour into prepared pan and let rest for 1 hour.
While the dough rests, mix together butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and cardamom in a small bowl using a fork until all the butter has been incorporated into the sugar and mixture is crumbly.  Divide the batter between 12 greased muffin cups ( I used cupcake liners). ** Be sure to only fill 1/2 the cup with the batter because if you fill it higher you'll have a mess for sure, according to Jelli Bean Journals.**  Sprinkle evenly on top of rested dough and press the mixture down into the dough with your fingertips (or swirl in with a spatula.)
Place pan into a cold oven, then set the oven temperature to 350F.
Bake for about 20 minutes, until bread is lightly browned at the edges and the center of the bread springs back when lightly pressed. Some of the sugar mixture on top may still be bubbling.
Cool for at least 30 minutes before whisking the powdered sugar and milk together to form an icing and drizzling it onto the bread.

Swiss Chard and Sweet Pea Stuffed Shells

I was watching Giada last week and saw her make this wonderful recipe! I could not wait to make it myself...it came out wonderful and was so filling :]

Ingredients

• Butter, for greasing the pan
• 1 box stuffed shells
• Filling
• 1 head (about 12 ounces) red or white Swiss chard
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 (15-ounce) container ricotta cheese
  
• 3/4 cup frozen petite peas, thawed
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella (4 ounces)
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan (2 ounces)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  
• 1/4 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• Fontina Fonduta Sauce
• 3/4 cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 3 cups (6 ounces) fontina cheese, grated
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves
• 1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) mozzarella, shredded

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Grease a 13 by 9-inch glass baking dish liberally with butter.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 6 to 8 minutes. Drain the pasta and rinse with cold water. **It is helpful if you place the shells on a plate, they will be so much easier to fill that way**

For the Filling:

Using a knife, remove the leaves from the stems of the chard. Discard the stems. Chop the leaves into 1-inch pieces. In a large nonstick skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook until soft, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute longer. Add the chard and cook, stirring constantly, until wilted, about 2 minutes. Allow the mixture to cool slightly. Place the ricotta cheese, peas, mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, basil, salt, and pepper in the bowl of a food processor. Add the cooled chard mixture and blend until smooth. Spoon the mixture into the prepared pastry bag and fill each stuffed shell with the filling. Place the stuffed shell's in the prepared baking dish.

For the Fontina Fonduta Sauce:

In a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan, bring milk and cream to a simmer, over medium heat. Reduce heat to low. Add the fontina cheese and cook, stirring constantly, until the cheese is melted and the mixture is smooth. Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the Parmesan cheese and basil.

Pour the sauce over the stuffed manicotti and sprinkle with the mozzarella cheese. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until the top is golden. Cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Quick Pizza Dough

Food-Processor Pizza Dough
Yields 2 12-inch pizza crusts

1 c warm water
2 1/2 tsp yeast
1 tsp sugar
3 c all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil

Stir together water, yeast and sugar until dissolved. Set aside.

In food processor, place flour and salt and blend. Stir 2 tbsp oil into yeast mixture.

With the motor running add yeast mixture through the feed tube. You may need add a little extra water to get the dough to stick real well. Allow the dough to go around the bowl until the dough clings together, about 20 to 30 times.

Turn dough onto a floured surface and kneed until dough is smooth and elastic, 5 to 6 times.

Cut dough into 2 equal pieces. Form each piece into a round disk and let rest for 10 minutes. Or you can opt for 1 large pizza.

With a floured rolling pin, roll out the disk into a 12 inch circle.

Then place pizza dough onto pizza pan and add sauce and toppings.

Cook @ 450 degrees for about 10 min or until cheese melts and crust is golden.

Oven Fried Coconut Chicken

I adore coconut and chicken of course so this is a perfect match made in chicken heaven!

Ingredients:

3 lb. chicken pieces, skinned or unskinned
1 1/2 c. flaked coconut, loosely packed
1 c. seasoned bread crumbs
2 eggs, beaten
4 tbsp. butter, melted

Directions:

Mix together coconut and bread crumbs.

Pour butter in bottom of baking dish.

Dip chicken, one piece at a time, in eggs and roll in coconut mixture.

Arrange skin side down in pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Turn chicken pieces and continue baking 25 minutes more.