Beef Stroganoff

I found this recipe on Allrecipes.com. I was in the mood to try something a little different (well, different from what I make time and time and time again...) Well, I just happened to have all the ingredients on hand for this and it hit the spot! I love when you try a new recipe and it turns out yummy the first try!

I actually halved the recipe and it was just right for myself and Joey.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds beef chuck roast (I used some leftover Roladen meat that was already sliced thin)
  
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 4 ounces butter (I used half a stick)
  
• 1 onion, diced
  
• 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 (10.5 ounce) can condensed beef broth
• 1 teaspoon prepared mustard ( I used a little bit more to taste)
  
• 1 (6 ounce) can sliced mushrooms, drained
• 1/3 cup sour cream
• 1/3 cup white wine (I used chicken broth)
  
• salt to taste
• ground black pepper to taste
• I also added a bit of Wooster sauce for taste while it was simmering
  

Directions

1. Remove any fat and gristle from the roast and cut into strips 1/2 inch thick by 2 inches long. Season with 1/2 teaspoon of both salt and pepper and marinade in beef broth for 30 minutes or so (if you want to).
2. In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter and brown the beef strips quickly, then set beef broth aside and add the onions to the remaining liquid in your pan and cook slowly for 3 to 5 minutes.
3. Stir the flour into the juices in your pan. Pour in beef broth and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Lower the heat and stir in mustard. Add the beef strips back to your mixure and cover and simmer for 1 hour or until the meat is tender.
4. Five minutes before serving, stir in the mushrooms, sour cream, and white wine (chicken broth). Heat briefly then salt and pepper to taste.
   

This is so yummy!! Enjoy!

White Chicken Chili

 Mmmm mmm mmm. That's all I can say about this recipe. I found it on All Recipes and it was delish! I had one just like this years ago when I was doing a temp job around Halloween and the company had a party and some lady brought this. OOOooh, it was good. But she was a punk and never brought the recipe, like I asked. Rude, I know. Anywho. I found this right in time for our Halloween get together at my dad's and tried it out. It was good. All the reviews I read said it was a little spicey, so I left out the jalapenos. But to make sure it still had a kick...I might've added a little much cayenne. So if you make it, and don't like your food to bite back, maybe go easy on the cayenne. :)

So here ya go. Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil (I didn't use this since I made it in the crock pot)
  
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 (4 ounce) can diced jalapeno peppers (didn't use this either)
  
• 1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chile peppers
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper (used a little much of this...)
  
• 2 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth
• 3 cups chopped cooked chicken breast
• 3 (15 ounce) cans white beans
• 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

I just plopped everything in the crock pot and let it cook for a good 4 to 5 hours. It was so good!
Photo courtesy of Allrecipes.com

"Chinese Takeout" Lemon Chicken

1 T oil
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
1 pkg (6 oz) snow peas (about 2 cups), trimmed
1 small red pepper, cut into strips
1 pkg. (4 serving size) lemon jell-o
1 T cornstarch
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 T zesty Italian dressing
2 cloves garlic, minced

Heat oil in large skillet on med-high heat. Add chicken; cook 4 min. or until cooked through, stirring occasionally. Add snow peas and peppers; cook and stir 2 minutes.

Mix dry gelatin and cornstarch in small bowl. Add broth, dressing, and garlic. Stir until gelatin is dissolved. Add to skillet. Reduce heat to medium; cook 3 min. or until sauce is thickened, stirring frequently.

Serve over hot cooked rice, if desired.

Jen's variations--I used the Kraft Asian Toasted Sesame dressing instead of the Italian. I wish I would have doubled the sauce in general because we tend to like our food really saucy. It wasn't dry but I still wish there had been a little more to douse the rice with.

A very simple recipe, very quick and easy to make and a huge hit with the whole family!

Apple Sheet Pie

2 1/2 cups flour
1 T sugar
1 t salt
1 cup shortening
1 egg, separated
Milk
1/2 cup crushed cornflakes
7-8 cups apples--peeled, cored, sliced
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 t cinnamon

Sift together flour, sugar, and salt; cut shortening in with pastry blender or two knives. Put egg yolk into a measuring cup and add milk to make 1/2 cup. Add to flour mixture and mix just until dough shapes into a ball. Roll out half to 15x11 inch rectangle; transfer to baking sheet. Cover with corn flakes, then with apple slices. Mix sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over apples. Roll out other half of dough for top crust; place over apples; pinch edges together. Beat egg white until stiff; spread on top crust. Bake at 400 degrees for 40 minutes. While hot, drizzle glaze over top.
Glaze: 1 cup powdered sugar, 2 T lemon juice.



Now we all know this isn't a true "jen" recipe unless there are changes... I did use cornflakes but Alan suggested that I use frosted flakes next time. For the sugar/cinnamon mixture, I also added a bit of nutmeg and a bit of ground cloves. And I didn't use all the sugar mixture either. I didn't stiffen the egg white either. I just beat it a little and did more of an egg wash on the top crust which I then sprinkled with some of the leftover sugar mixture.

Fondant, Baby!

I have seriously been wanting to try something with fondant, forever. It's pathetic. I'm probably the last person out there to try it, but I needed a good excuse to play with it, where it wasn't going to matter how it actually turned out. I decided snacks for Jaxon's soccer game was perfect. I know you're thinking... "fondant... for the 6 year old soccer players?" Ridiculous, but I knew the kids wouldn't care how it tasted or how it turned out and I could try something low key.

I knew I was doing cupcakes and decided I wanted pre-made fondant, just to save a little time and work. That is, until I saw that it would cost me 20 dollars! So, I started looking for a recipe to make my own. I found this recipe on allrecipes and the reviews promised it would taste mildly better than regular fondant. Because let's face it, the stuff is ick. But oh, so pretty!

This fondant is pretty basic and cheap. But it's a ton of work. My arms got such a workout. I wouldn't recommend doing it with a hand mixer. My dead hand mixer would second that. I think a Kitchenaid with the dough hook would do it.

Makes about 2.5 lbs. of Fondant

up to 1/4 cup Crisco

1 (16 ounce) package miniature marshmallows
4 tablespoons water (possibly more)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (I omitted this to keep my fondant white; it'll make the color more of an off white if you use it--granted, that doesn't really matter if you'll be coloring the fondant)
up to 2 pounds confectioners' sugar, divided

Food coloring, if desired

1. Set your Crisco aside. You'll just be using it to grease bowls, spoons, your hands, and workspace.

2. Place the marshmallows in a large , well greased (just spray with Pam or spread some Crisco on it), microwave-safe bowl, and microwave on High for 30 seconds to 1 minute intervals to start melting the marshmallows. Carefully stir the water and vanilla extract into the hot marshmallows, and stir until the mixture is smooth. Add food coloring at this point as well, if you intend to color your fondant.

3. Transfer melted marshmallows to Kitchenaid bowl at this point and begin slowly beating in the confectioners' sugar, a cup at a time, until you have a sticky dough. Reserve 1 cup of powdered sugar for kneading. The dough will be very stiff. I found that I could barely beat in 1 cup of sugar before the batter got too stiff to beat. At this point, I kneaded all the powdered sugar in by hand.

4. Rub your hands thoroughly with Crisco, and begin kneading the sticky dough. As you knead, the dough will become workable and pliable. Turn the dough out onto a working surface dusted with confectioners' sugar and continue kneading until the fondant is smooth and no longer sticky to the touch, 5 to 10 minutes. Add powdered sugar about a cup at a time. I found that I didn't use the entire 2 lb. bag of powdered sugar. Just keeping adding until you have a nice, non-sticky, pliable dough. I added a little extra water to make the dough easier to handle.

5. Form the fondant into a ball, rub it all over with Crisco (it's niice, like a baby's behind...) wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight (I'm impatient... I only waited about 4 hours). To use, allow the fondant to come to room temperature, and roll it out onto a flat surface dusted with confectioners' sugar. Roll it to about 1/4 or 1/8 inch thickness. Now it's time to play with it.

But that's a whole 'nother post. Best check out Bakerella or Pioneer Woman for good tips there. I'm definitely just trying to figure it out myself. But my soccer cupcakes sure turned out cute. And the fondant was surprisingly not horrible. Not my favorite, but I used chocolate frosting underneath, as an adhesive, and the fondant wasn't terrible.

Leftover fondant will keep for several weeks in the fridge.

Chocolate Sandwich Cookies (like "Oreo Cakesters")

When Dacia came down, she wanted to make chocolate sandwich cookies. No particular reason. Just wanted us to gain a couple extra pounds. So we perused allrecipes until we found a combination we liked. We ended up finding two different filling recipes and taste tested them. The cream cheese filling was definitely our favorite, but that may be because we're cream cheese addicts. The cookies tasted just like cream cheese brownies. They were sooo good. The other cream filling sounds a bit weird, but tastes just like the filling in a Twinkie, or Ding Dong. It's sweet, but really good, and makes the cookie more similar to an Oreo Cakester. My kids obviously liked this one best. Both were easy to whip up and these cookies were so pretty! Perfect for giving away because they're quick, easy, and oh so precious.

Cake Mix Cookie: (Double this recipe)

1 box devil's food cake mix (After trying all three main varieties of cake mixes, I definitely prefer Betty Crocker's... they always turn out better)

1/2 bar of Crisco

2 eggs

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix cake mix, Crisco, and eggs, until well blended. Batter will be very stiff.

2. Roll into balls, or use a small cookie scoop. Drop onto an ungreased baking sheet. Before baking, I slightly flatten each cookie. I just the backside of a spoon to give them a very slight indentation.

3. Bake for 7-9 minutes. You want to UNDERbake them so they'll stay soft once they're filled. The cookies will definitely not look done when you take them out, but that's good. (Once you fill them, they have to be refrigerated. So, if you underbake them, they'll still stay soft and chewy after refrigeration)

4. Allow them to cool completely, and then refrigerate them. That way they firm up a bit before you fill them. It makes them easier to fill.

Cream Cheese filling:

1 8 oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened

1/2 c butter, softened

4 cups powdered sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1. In medium bowl, cream the cream cheese, butter, and powdered sugar together until fluffy and fully incorporated. Don't overbeat or it'll become runny. Add vanilla. Refrigerate about 15 minutes before using.

"Other" cream filling:

1 1/2 cups shortening
4 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup milk
1 1/2 tablespoons vanilla extract
2 egg whites, beaten

1. In a medium bowl, cream together the 1 1/2 cups shortening with the confectioners' sugar and 1/4 cup of flour until light and fluffy.

2. Gradually beat in the milk and vanilla until well mixed, then fold in the egg whites.

Assembly:

Once your cookies are cooled, pipe a heaping tablespoon of filling onto the center(you want one big cylinder in just the middle of the cookie) of the bottom of one cookie. I found that by piping my filling on, it was neater once I sandwiched my cookies together. Plus, by piping it on the center of the cookie, it allows plenty of room for the filling to spread out and not leak out. Once the filling is piped on, top it with another cookie and you have a perfectly adorable chocolate sandwich cookie.

Because of the ingredients in the filling, be sure to refrigerate these. The filling doesn't hold up when it's not cooled. We know this from the runny, soggy messes Dacia took up to Joe. Also, they tend to be better the next day. The cookies are a bit softer from the filling and the filling has firmed up so it doesn't squeeze out when you bite into it.

Fresh Peach Pie

1 cup water
1 cup sugar
4 T (heaping) corn starch
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 pinch salt
1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick)
6 whole peaches, peeled and sliced
1 whole precooked 9 inch pie shell

Combine water, sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, and salt in a medium saucepan. Whisk until combined. Stirring constantly, cook over medium heat until thick and almost hard to stir. Remove from heat and add butter, stir until melted and combined. Add peaches and gently fold to coat. Pour into precooked pie shell. Refrigerate for 4 hours to set. Top with whipped cream and serve.


I pulled this recipe from tastykitchen.com. So incredibly delicious!! I wanted to horde the whole thing for myself. I forgot to add the butter and it still tasted wonderful. I also didn't bother with the whipped cream.