Green Beans, Onions, and Bacon

This is a recipe that my Mom taught Kyle when he was younger and first started growing his garden. Kyle told me that it is a recipe that has been around for a long time and that he has seen numerous places. As I was rather picky when I was little there was no way that I was going to sample anything that had GREEN BEANS and ONIONS!! He made it again tonight and I LOVED it! So good and simple.

Green Beans, Onions, and Bacon

2-3 Slices Bacon

1 lb Green Beans

1 Medium Onion

Salt and Pepper, to taste

1. Cut bacon into 1/4 inch pieces, cook until crispy.

2. Chop onions- medium/fine pieces.

3. Remove bacon from pan. Cook onions in bacon fat until soft and mostly transparent.

4. Meanwhile, steam beans for 12-15 minutes until al dente.

5. Combine all ingredients in pan over heat until flavors are combined.

6. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Coconut Curry Soup

Kyle and I made this tonight for dinner, I was first impressed that it was a really good curry and could be made with ingredients that most people are likely to have in their homes (rather than some of the other curries that Kyle and I like to make on a normal basis). We felt though that there were some ingredients missing (aka garlic, ginger, carrots, and potatoes), so we threw them in. That's one thing that I love about curries is that you can throw a lot of different vegetables in and it tastes delicious (I had never put red peppers in my curry before but LOVED IT!). I loved how simple this recipe was and how quickly it came together.

Coconut Curry Soup

Recipe came from Peachtree Cooking

Coconut Curry Soup

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 pounds chicken breasts, (about 3), cut into 1-inch (or smaller) pieces

Salt and pepper for seasoning

1/2 cup chopped yellow onion (about 1/2 medium onion)

1 red bell pepper, finely chopped

2 cups low-sodium chicken broth

1 can (14-ounces) unsweetened light coconut milk

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper or more to taste

1 tablespoon brown sugar

½ tablespoon curry powder

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice (about 1 medium lime)

¼ cup fresh cilantro

3-4 cups hot, cooked rice for serving

In a large pot, heat the oil over medium heat until it is hot and shimmering. Pat the chicken pieces dry with a paper towel and season them lightly with salt and pepper. Add them to the hot oil. Let the chicken cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the onions and red pepper. Cook for 2-3 minutes, until the onions and peppers are slightly softened. The chicken and vegetables don’t have to be fully cooked as they will simmer and cook further in the next step.

Add the chicken broth, coconut milk, cayenne pepper, brown sugar, and curry powder. Stir to combine. Bring the soup to a simmer and cook, gently, for 10-15 minutes. Stir in the lime juice and cilantro. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve a ladle or two of the soup over a scoop of rice and garnish with more cilantro, if desired.

BBQ Chicken Sandwich

This was really delicious, I'm not usually a fan of BBQ sauce but in this recipe it was perfect giving a little bit of added flavor without being over the top. Mom and I thought that

a whole chicken breast was a little too much and that next time we would use the chicken tenders instead. We loved the different flavors together and thought it tasted like a quick/easy version of Chicken Cordon Bleu.

BBQ Chicken Sandwich

Recipe came from Blog Chef

BBQ Chicken Sandwich

Ingredients:

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts halves

¼ cup BBQ sauce

8 slices bacon

8 slices Swiss cheese

2 large tomatoes (sliced)

lettuce

8 slices sour dough bread (to toasted)

½ cup ranch dressing

1 small avocado (peeled, pitted, and sliced)

Cooking Directions

Step 1: Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Brush both sides of the chicken breasts with bbq sauce and place onto the baking sheet. Top each chicken breast with 2 slices of bacon.

Step 2: Bake chicken breasts for 25 minutes or until the internal temperature has reached 165 degrees. During the last couple minutes of cooking top each chicken breast with 2 slices of Swiss cheese and allow it to melt. Remove from the oven. While chicken is cooking in a food processor blend together ranch dressing and diced avocado. Set aside.Step 3: Lay down one slice of sour dough bread. Top with lettuce and 2 slices of tomato. Top the tomato with a chicken breast. Spread avocado ranch dressing onto the bottom of the top slice of bread. Place on top of the sandwich.(Makes 4 Servings)

Roasted Potato Tacos

This is by far one of the best recipes that I have tried in a long time and it has quickly made it to the top as a favorite recipe. The recipe is actually vegetarian based but Mom felt that it should have some form of protein in it so we just cooked up the couple strips of bacon that we had and put it on top...so, so, so good (the house smelled simply divine as it was cooking--we even cooked it in the toaster oven rather than heat the regular oven)! We didn't have the other stuff to do the dressing to with it so we just used sour cream, I can't wait to try real dressing.

Roasted Potato Tacos

Recipe came from Handle The Heat

Roasted Red Potatoes

4-5 Red Potatoes, coarse chopped

1/2 Red Bell Pepper, coarse chopped

1/2 medium sized Onion, coarse chopped

1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt

1 teaspoon ground Cumin

1/2 teaspoon Chili Powder

1/2 teaspoon dried Oregano

1 tablespoon Vegetable Oil

Tortillas

Lime wedges, for garnish

Dressing

Preheat oven to 420 degrees. Combine potatoes, bell pepper, onion, salt, cumin, chili powder, oregano, and oil. Toss until potatoes and other vegetables are well coated in oil and spices. Spread the mixture out on a baking sheet and place on the middle rack in the oven. Cook for 30-40 minutes, or until potatoes are tender and browned. Spread the mixture on tortillas and top with a spoonful of dressing (recipe below). Serve with fresh lime wedges.

Dressing

2 tablespoons Sour Cream

1 tablespoon Mayonnaise

1 tablespoon fresh Goat Cheese

1 clove Garlic

1 teaspoon diced Jalapeno

1/2 teaspoon fresh Lime Juice

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and whisk until smooth.

Gooey Cookies and Cream Double Chocolate Bars

I wonder if maybe these actually ought to be called triple chocolate. These bars were so delicious and actually not that much work. Be prepared with a glass of milk near-by though as you eat these and cut them into little squares so that you don't feel quite as guilty eating them (as I might have eaten way too much of the double batch that I made---I mean who would ever do that?)

Gooey Cookies and Cream Double Chocolate Cake Bars

Recipe Came From Picky Palate

Gooey Cookies and Cream Double Chocolate Bars

1 Devils Food Cake Mix

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1 large egg

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk

14 Oreo Cookies, broken into bite size pieces

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and line a 9×13 inch baking pan with tin foil sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.

2. Place cake mix, butter and egg into a large bowl, mixing to combine. Use your hands, it works much quicker Press into prepared baking pan. Top with broken pieces of cookies.

3. Pour sweetened condensed milk over cookies and top with chocolate chips. Bake for 23-25 minutes, until cooked through. Remove from oven.

4. After 5 minutes of cooling, run a plastic knife around edges to loosen, this makes it much easier to remove from foil. Let cool completely, remove foil from pan, then cut into squares. I cut off all of the edges before cutting into squares (makes for neater squares), but do whatever you’d like!!

Sumptuous Sunday

Brownies with Marshmallow Fudge Frosting

Cherry Limeade Popsicles

Bacon Tomato Macaroni Salad

Pull Apart Pizza

Cookie Dough Magic Shell Ice Cream Topping

Turkey Bacon Bleu Cheese Sliders

BLT Brunch Pie

Cheddar Bacon Ranch Pulls

Watermelon Feta Salad

Chips and Salsa Cookies

Healthy Crunchy Onion Rings

I first clicked on this recipe because I know that my LOVES onion rings and if they were a healthier version that is always a plus. I didn't have any panko which I think might have been a negative, they weren't as crunchy as I hoped they would be, plus I think that next time I would add a bunch more spices because it seemed kind of bland. Mom and Libbey liked them and thought that they were good otherwise.

Healthy Crunchy Onion Rings

Recipe Came From How Sweet It Is

Healthy Crunchy Onion Rings

serves 2-4

2 large vidalia onions

1 quart of buttermilk

4 egg whites

1 cup medium ground cornmeal

1 cup panko bread crumbs

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

12-24 hours ahead of time, slice onions into 1/2-inch thick rings. Season the onion rings with 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper each. Place in a baking dish and pour buttermilk over top. Let soak for 12-24 hours.

When ready to bake, heat oven to 450 degrees F. In a small bowl, whisk egg whites. In a large bowl, combine cornmeal, flour and panko with 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper and 1 teaspoon paprika. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place a wire rack on top. Spray the wire rack with non-stick spray.

Remove each onion ring from the buttermilk and dip in egg whites. Immediately dip in the breadcrumb mixture and press to coat. If bread crumbs won’t adhere, dip in egg whites and try again. Lay each ring on the wire rack. When all rings are ready, give each a quick spritz with olive oil or non-stick spray. Bake for 15 minutes, then gently flip with tongs and spray again with olive oil or non-stick spray. Bake for 10 minutes more.

Sweet Potato Fries

These Sweet Potato Fries are almost like my Oven Fries, so simple and delicious. I'm not sure which one that I like better. I remember when I was little that if anyone mentioned sweet potatoes my face immediately scrunched up and I would give you a very loud "ewwww," who would have ever thought that I would like them and even get excited about them. If you are like I used to be, give sweet potatoes a try (and I would strongly suggest this be where you start!)

Sweet Potato Fries

Recipe Came From Eat At Home

Sweet Potato Fries

Ingredients
Sweet Potatoes

Olive Oil

Kosher Salt

Black Pepper

Wash the sweet potatoes and cut them into sticks. Put them in a large bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss to coat. Place them on a greased baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.

Sumptuous Sunday

I can't believe that it has almost been a month since I last posted...terrible! I have been working almost everyday and as such haven't had as much time for the cooking/baking/blogging world, but I'm working on getting back on the wagon again. I may not have had the time to try new recipes but I definitely have a very long list to share, so here it it...

Strawberry Shortcake Cookies

Mississippi Mud Brownies

Pepperoni Pizza Monkey Bread

Oreo Brownies

Easy Ice Cream Without a Machine

Southern Skillet Corn

Fruited Chicken Pasta

S'More Stars

Corn Potato Chowder

Stove Top Macaroni and Cheese

Pizza Bagel Bites

Berry Poppy Seed Vinaigrette

Chicken Bacon Avocado Quesadillas

Oatmeal Cream Pies

Gooey White Chocolate Fluffernutter Bars

Creamy Swiss Chicken Bake

Mashed Potato Chicken Bowl

Homade Cheeze-Its

Roasted Potato Tacos

Triple Layer Bars

Chicken, Apple, Cheddar Sandwiches

Peach Bread

Grilled Breakfast Pizza