Microwave Fruit Crisp (Apple Crisp for One)

Another Taste of Home recipe from one of their annual cookbooks, as well as another single serving recipe.  Fair warning, an apple a day, in this fashion, is probably not advisable.  I'm pretty sure, since it was so many years ago that I made it (and hence no picture) that I used the oven directions.  But I have microwaved fruit crisp in the past and it's still decent.

Ingredients
1 medium pear or apple, peeled and sliced
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons quick-cooking oats
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon cold butter

Directions
Place fruit in a small microwave-safe bowl. In another bowl, combine
the dry ingredients; cut in butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over
fruit. Microwave, uncovered, on high for 1-1/2 minutes or until
fruit is tender. Yield: 1 serving.
Note: It can also be baked at 375° for 25-30 minutes.

Mac 'n' Cheese For One

I found this recipe years ago in the Taste of Home annual cookbook.  I think it was the first time I made macaroni and cheese that wasn't from a box.  I wasn't as sure about the mustard and these days I probably wouldn't bother chopping a whole onion for the half teaspoon needed for the recipe unless I was planning something else.  I would guess that dried minced onion would work just fine (generally about 1 teaspoon of dried herbs equals about 1 Tablespoon of fresh).  I love finding recipes that make single serving amounts and figured others might enjoy seeing them as well (no picture as I haven't made it recently).

Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter, divided
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
Pinch pepper
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup diced cheddar cheese
1/4 teaspoon prepared mustard
1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon chopped onion
3 tablespoons elbow macaroni, cooked and drained
2 saltines, crushed

Directions
In a saucepan, melt 1 tablespoon butter; stir in flour, salt and
pepper. Whisk in milk until smooth. Cook and stir for 2 minutes.
Reduce heat to low. Add the cheese, mustard, Worcestershire sauce
and onion; stir until cheese is melted. Add macaroni. Transfer to a
greased 1-cup baking dish. Sprinkle with saltines; dot with
remaining butter. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 15 minutes or
until heated through. Yield: 1 serving.

Biscuit Nugget Chicken Bake

This recipe came from a casserole cookbook from Taste of Home (I've mentioned it previously on this blog - this particular one was *filled* with lots of great recipes).  It's easy to throw together, and definitely a comfort food dish on a cold night.  Similar to a chicken and biscuit recipe, it's different with the extra seasonings and cheese on the biscuits.  Oh, and I used a bigger package of biscuits than it called for because I wasn't paying attention, but it still came out wonderful.

Ingredients
3 cups cubed cooked chicken
1 can (10-3/4 ounces) condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1 cup milk
1 jar (4-1/2 ounces) sliced mushrooms, drained
1/2 teaspoon dill weed
1/2 teaspoon paprika
TOPPING:
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon dried minced onion
1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 tube (12 ounces) refrigerated buttermilk biscuits

Directions
In a large saucepan, combine the first six ingredients. Cook and stir
over medium heat for 5-7 minutes or until heated through; keep warm.
In a large resealable plastic bag, combine the cheese, onion, parsley
and paprika. Separate biscuits and cut into quarters; add to bag and
shake to coat. Place on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 400°
for 5 minutes.
Transfer chicken mixture to a greased 8-in.-square baking dish; top
with biscuits. Bake, uncovered, for 10-13 minutes or until bubbly
and biscuits are golden brown. Yield: 4-6 servings.

Sticky Buns

These JUST came out of the oven.  And they are DIVINE.

All of the woman's clubs around here are known for their sticky buns.  Chris loves them.  So when I was making dinner rolls the other day, I started flipping through Gold Medal's Best Bread Machine Recipes cookbook for other ideas.

The dough for this is very similar to the dinner rolls.  But the finishing process is much different.

This recipe takes a lot of time, but not active time.  There is a lot of waiting for rising.  Since I'm not a morning person, this will never be breakfast for us fresh out of the oven!

I put the ingredients in the order that my bread machine wants them.  Make sure yours is the same.

Sticky Rolls (I call them Sticky Buns)

1 cup water
1 egg
1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
3 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp yeast

Caramel Topping
nuts (if desired)
2 Tbsp butter or margarine, softened
Cinnamon Filling

Measure carefully, placing all ingredients except last three, in bread machine pan in the order recommended by the manufacturer.

Select Dough/Manual cycle.  Do not use Delay cycle.

Remove dough from pan, using lightly floured hands.  Cover and let rest 10 minutes on lightly floured surface.  Make Caramel Topping.

Roll or pat dough into a 15 x 10 inch rectangle.  Spread 2 Tbsp butter or margarine over dough.  Make Cinnamon Filling.  Sprinkle over butter or margarine.  Roll dough up tightly, beginning at 15 inch side.  Pinch edge of dough into roll to seal.  Stretch and shape roll to make even.  Cut into 15 1 inch slices.  Place slightly apart in pan.  Cover and let rise in warm place about 1 hour or until double.  (Dough is ready if indentation remains when touched.)

Heat oven to 350.  Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until golden brown.  Immediately place heatproof platter or tray upside down onto pan.  Turn platter and pan over.  Leave pan over rolls 1 minute.  Remove pan.  Serve rolls warm or let stand until cool.

Caramel Topping

1/2 cup margarine or butter, melted
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup dark corn syrup

Place melted butter in ungreased rectangular 13 x 9 pan that is 2 inches deep.  Stir in brown sugar and corn syrup until well blended.  Spread evenly in pan.  Sprinkle with nuts, if desired.

Cinnamon Filling

2 Tbsp packed brown sugar
2 Tbsp granulated sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon

Mix all ingredients.

Dinner Rolls

I love my bread machine.  And yet, I haven't used since we moved into our house three years ago!  I finally got it out again and made these delicious dinner rolls the other night for dinner.

The recipe comes from Gold Medal's Best Bread Machine Recipes cookbook.  I bought it at least 10 years ago.  I rearranged the ingredients in the order my bread machine suggests.  Check yours to be sure it's the same.

In my machine, the total prep time for this recipe is 2 hours and 10 minutes, so I have to plan accordingly in advance!

Dinner Rolls

1 cup water
1 egg
2 Tbsp butter or margarine, softened
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
3 1/4 cups flour
3 tsp yeast

Measure carefully, placing all ingredients in bread machine pan in the order recommended by the manufacturer.

Select Dough/Manual cycle.  Do not use Delay cycle. (My bread machine takes 1 hour and 20 minutes to do this)

Remove dough from pan, using lightly floured hands.  Cover and let rest 10 minutes on lightly floured surface.

Grease large cookie sheet.  Divide dough into 15 equal pieces.  Shape each piece into a ball.  Place 2 inches apart on cookie sheet.  Cover and let rise in a warm place 30-40 minutes or until double.  (Dough is ready if indentation remains when touched.)

Heat oven to 375. Bake 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.  Brush tops with melted butter if desired.  Serve warm, or cool on a wire rack.

Chicken Parmesan Casserole

I pin a lot of recipes.  But for some reason, I never think to check my Pinterest boards when I'm planning my week's menu.  Last weekend, I did.  And I discovered I had pinned this GEM of a recipe!

It was absolutely fabulous!  And so very easy.  I love a casserole that calls for raw chicken so I don't have to take the time to cook it first.

I used garlic cheese croutons, but any flavor would be delicious.  I didn't have fresh basil, so I used dried.  I might use garlic powder next time. It's hard to "sprinkle" minced garlic.  I skipped the red pepper flakes and used black pepper instead.

The only thing I had to change was I had to cover it about half way through because the top was getting pretty brown.  I was worried to bake it for 20 more minutes without covering the top.  Next time I will cover it first for 20 minutes, then uncover it for the rest of the baking time.

Here is the original link, in case you're interested.  It comes from emilybites.com.

Chicken Parmesan Casserole

2 lbs raw boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
2 cloves garlic, minced
¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
¼ cup fresh basil, finely chopped
2 cups marinara/pasta sauce
1 ½ cups 2% reduced fat shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
2 oz Parmesan cheese, freshly grated, divided
3.5 oz garlic croutons, roughly crushed, leaving some larger pieces

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly mist a 9 x 13 baking dish with cooking spray.

Spread the cubed pieces of chicken across the bottom of the baking dish in a single layer. Sprinkle the minced garlic, red pepper flakes and basil evenly over the chicken. Spread the sauce evenly across the top.

On top of the sauce layer, sprinkle ¾ cup of the Mozzarella and one ounce of the Parmesan evenly across the dish. Sprinkle the crushed croutons across the top and follow with the remaining cheese.

Bake for 40-45 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Beef and Barley Soup

This soup was very simple to make and made a perfect fall meal.  I made a few changes, and next time will make a few more.

First, the recipe calls for 10 cups of water.  No beef broth.  That sounded kinda bland.  So I replaced 4 cups of water with beef broth.  Next time I plan to use 8 cups of beef broth (2 Swanson boxes), 1 cup of red wine, and 1 cup of water.

Second, I have never had a rutabaga.  So I used 2 medium sized potatoes instead.  Not sure that was the right size of  "1/2 a small rutabaga," but it seemed like the right amount!

Third, I didn't have any fresh thyme sprigs, so I used dried.  I used a generous pinch.  I think I will use more next time.

Fourth, I made a mistake when I made this.  You are supposed to leave the beef in 1 1/2 inch cubes, but I didn't realize it said that until I had cut the beef into bite sized pieces.  Some of them were a bit overcooked.  Next time I'll start them out bigger and follow the directions.

This recipe comes from the October 2014 issue of Woman's Day.  I served it with a big salad and homemade rolls.

Beef and Barley Soup

2 Tbsp olive oil
1 lb lean beef stew meat, trimmed and cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 Tbsp tomato paste
4 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 stalks celery, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
1/2 small rutabaga (about 12 oz), peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
6 sprigs fresh thyme
2 bay leaves (optional)
10 cups water
3/4 cup pearl barley

Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat.  Season the beef with 1/2 tsp each salt and pepper.  Working in batches, brown the beef, 10 minutes total.  Transfer to a bowl.

Reduce heat to medium, add the onion and remaining Tbsp oil and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.  Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 minute.  Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.

Return the beef and any juices to the pot along with the carrots, celery, rutabaga, thyme and bay leaves (if using).  Add the water, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer until the meat and vegetables are tenders, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Meanwhile, cook the barley according to package directions (mine had to boil for 45 minutes, FYI).  Drain and set aside.

Discard the thyme and bay leaves from the soup.  Using two forks, gently break the beef into smaller pieces, then stir in the barley.

Easy Chicken Pot Pie

I thought it would be fun to try another version of chicken pot pie (yes, we still have quite a bit of chicken).  This one isn't the same as making a full version of chicken pot pie, but it's quite tasty and makes for a quick weeknight version when it's cold and wintery.

1 2/3 cups Green Giant™ frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
1 cup cut-up cooked chicken
1 can (10 3/4 oz) condensed cream of chicken soup
1 cup Original Bisquick™ mix
1/2 cup milk
1 egg

Heat oven to 400°F. In ungreased 9-inch pie plate, stir vegetables, chicken and soup.
In medium bowl, stir remaining ingredients until blended. Pour into pie plate.
Bake uncovered about 30 minutes or until crust golden brown.

Crustless Cranberry Pie

My friend Erin posted this link on Facebook and said how much she loved it.  She's a fellow foodie, so I had to try it.  And it was FABULOUS!

She said she tweaked the recipe a bit, using vanilla extract instead of almond extract.  I did that too, since I like almond but I don't love almond.  I also used nut topping instead of the walnuts, because it's a nice mixture of nuts.  And walnuts can be too bitter for me.

This isn't really a pie, and it's not really a cake.  The best way to describe it is a muffin.  Next time I think I'll sprinkle some sugar on top of the batter, which is a trick another friend taught me years ago when you make homemade muffins.  It makes them taste like they came straight from a bakery.

It is also ridiculously simple.  I will definitely be making this again!

This recipe is from allrecipes.com.  Click here for the original link, which includes lots of reviews and the ways that people have altered the recipe to suittheir own tastes.

Crustless Cranberry Pie

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup white sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups cranberries (I used fresh)

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (I used nut topping)

1/2 cup butter, melted

2 eggs

1 teaspoon almond extract (I used vanilla)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease one 9 inch pie pan.

Combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Stir in the cranberries and the walnuts, and toss to coat. Stir in the butter, beaten eggs, and almond extract. If you are using frozen cranberries, the mixture will be very thick. Spread the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 40 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted near the center comes out clean. Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream.