Outback Steakhouse's Steak Seasoning

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons Salt
1 teaspoon Paprika
1/2 teaspoon Freshly-ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon Onion powder *
1/4 teaspoon Garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon Cayenne pepper **
1 dash Coriander
1 dash Turmeric ***

* I didn't have onion powder so I just took dried chopped onion and ground it to a powder.

** I didn't have cayenne pepper so I used chili powder instead and halfed it.

*** I didn't have turmeric, so I didn't substitute it at all.

Recipe:
1. Mix all ingredients together in a small bowl.
2. To prepare steaks with this seasoning: Preheat a flat grill or large frying pan over medium-high heat. Sprinkle some of the seasoning blend over both sides of each cut of beef. *
3. Grill the steaks on each side to your desired level of doneness. Be sure to use tongs to sear all the edges of each steak to a rich brown color. **

* I rubbed each side of the steak with olive oil and then srinkled the seasoning. I then seared the meat on both sides for 1-2 minutes.

** I actually cooked the steaks in the oven after searing them. The oven was at 500 and I had them in for about 5 minutes.

Rating: 4.75 of 5

Yeah, they were that good. So good, we almost didn't use A1 sauce.

Source: http://www.bigoven.com/recipe/164169/outback-steakhouses-steak-seasoning

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:
8 medium russet potatoes (about 4 pounds)
1 head peeled garlic cloves (about 15)
Coarse salt
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup butter (1 stick), cut into small pieces

Directions:
1. Peel potatoes and quarter lengthwise; cut crosswise 1/2 inch thick.

2. In a 5-quart saucepan, combine potatoes and garlic cloves; cover with water (about 8 cups) by 1 inch. Add 1 tablespoon salt.
3. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer until potatoes are easily pierced with the tip of a paring knife, 25 to 30 minutes.
4. Drain; return garlic and potatoes to pan. Stir over medium-high heat until dry, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat.
5. In a small saucepan, bring milk to a boil; pour over potatoes. Add butter and 1 teaspoon of salt. Mash until smooth and creamy.

Rating: 3.5 of 5

I liked these mashed potatoes. I didn't put enough garlic in so that taste wasn't stong, which was too bad. I'll have to add everything next time.

Source: http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/garlic-mashed-potatoes-2?backto=true&backtourl=/photogallery/quick-potato-side-dish-recipes#slide_1

Garlicky Roasted Asapargus

Ingredients:
2 pounds asparagus, trimmed
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
Coarse salt and ground pepper

Recipe:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. On a large rimmed baking sheet, toss asparagus with oil and garlic; season with salt and pepper.

3.Roast until tender and browned in spots, 15 to 18 minutes.

4. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Rating: 3.5 of 5

I love asparagus, so there's really no way that it could have turned out poorly. It was a good recipe, but not the perfect recipe that I have imagined in my mind. I guess I'll still have to hunt for that one.

Source: http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/garlicky-roasted-asparagus?backto=true&backtourl=/photogallery/quick-vegetable-side-dish-recipes#slide_1

Chicken Corn Quesadillas

Now that I am back in town, I decided to get creative and have an experiment night tonight.

Ingredients:

1 can corn, drained

1 cooked chicken breast, shredded

1 shake of coriander seed

a small handful of dried chopped onion

a small drizzle of olive oil

shredded chedder and mozzerella cheese

tortillas

Recipe:

1. Combine corn, chicken, coriander, onion, and olive oil in a saucepan and sautee. Some pieces of the corn should be browned, but not too much.

2. Thrown the corn-chicken mix and cheese between two tortillas in a pan. Cook until cheese is melted to make a quesadilla.

Rating: 4 of 5

I was loving this tonight. It's got good flavor, thanks to the onion, and is just sweet enough, thanks to the olive oil. I felt so, so, so stuffed after eating a whole one of these. I'll have to see how LaDon likes it when he's around. Ally liked the corn and chicken mixture so that is always a plus!! I'm thinkin' next time I'll make some kind of green chili sauce or some kind of tomatillo sauce to dip in or serve over it.....that could be good.

Chili-Lime Chicken Kabobs

Ingredients:

3 T. olive oil

1 1/2 T. red wine vinegar

1 lime, juiced

1 t. chili powder

1/2 t. paprika

1/2 t. onion powder *

1/2 t. garlic powder

pinch ground cayenne pepper **

salt and ground black pepper taste

1 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces

* I used chopped onion.

** I didn't have any cayenne pepper so I just left it out.

Recipe:

1. In a large bowl, combine the olive oil, vinegar, and lime juice. Add chili powder, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, and salt and pepper to taste. Whisk until oil and vinegar are blended.

2. Add chicken to the bowl. Cover and marinate in refrigerator for 1-2 hours. *

3. Preheat grill for medium-high heat.

4. Thread chicken onto skewers. Grill chicken for about 10 minutes or until the juices run clear.

* At this point in the recipe, I just threw everything into a skillet and sauteed the chicken until cooked. We don't have a grill. It smelled really, really spicey....like heartburn in a pot....so I added a can of crushed pineapple without the juice.

Rating: 2.75 of 5

I would give this a 3 but I think LaDon's was probably lower. With the added pineapple it tasted a lot like sweet and sour chicken. I liked it just fine. LaDon really liked it with shredded cheese and sour cream on top and without the rice. With the pineapple it wasn't spicy at all. Maybe when we have a grill I will make the recipe as it is.

Source: All Recipes Dinner Tonight, pg. 145

Zesty Chicken

Ingredients:

6 skinless boneless chicken breasts *

2 packages zesty Italian seasoning **

2 cups water ***

2 cans cream of chicken soup

8 oz. cream cheese

1/8 tsp. parsley

*I usually only use 3-4

**when making a double batch I use 3 packages instead of 4

***I usually cut the water in half to make the sauce thicker

Recipe:

1. In crock pot mix together Italian Seasoning, water, cream of chicken soup, and parsley. Add chicken to mixture.

2. Cook on low for 6-8 hours *

3. 1 hour before serving cut cream cheese into cubes, add to crock pot. You may need to use a fork to break up the cubes of cream cheese.Serve on pasta or rice. **

*I usually cook it on high for 3-4 hours – perfect for cooking while at church!

**I favor wide egg noodles.

Rating: 5 of 5

We LOVE this recipe. It's not new for us, but I still had to share it. It's so easy that LaDon made it when I was on partial bedrest when pregnant with Daniel. We got this recipe from Kristen (who is the Queen of the tastiest and easiest recipes around). Anyways, the seasoning is perfect, it limits the chicken mess you have to deal with, and Ally loves it! Super tasty.

Source: Kristen Lanshe

BJ's Chocolate Chunk Pizookie Copycat

Ingredients(for Chocolate Chunk):

2 1/2 tablespoons butter, softened

1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 tablespoon beaten egg

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

6 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chunks

Recipe:

1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees F.

2. Combine all ingredients for cookie of your choice up to, but not including, the flour, in a small bowl and beat with an electric mixer on high speed until smooth. Add flour and baking soda (plus oats and cinnamon if making the oatmeal raisin walnut cookie) and stir well by hand. Stir in remaining ingredients then press the dough into a small buttered pie pan, cake pan or 6-inch deep-dish pizza pan.

3. Bake for 5 to 7 minutes or until cookie begins to brown. Cool for a minute or so, add 2 scoops of vanilla ice cream, and serve.

Rating: 4.5 of 5

This recipe is pretty close to the pizookie that we love at BJ's. Lots of chocolate, not too sweet, and soft. So delicious. I don't have any ice cream in the house, but it's still so good without it!

Source: http://www.recipesecrets.net/forums/recipe-exchange/20316-bjs-restaurant-brewhouse-famous-pizookie.html (Also has recipes for other type of pizookie flavors if chocolate chunk isn't your thing)

Banana Cookies

Ingredients:

1/2 cup of unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup of sugar
1 egg, room temperature *
1 cup of mashed bananas (about 2 ½ large bananas)
1 teaspoon of baking soda
2 cups of flour
pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of ground mace or nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon of ground cloves
1 cup of pecans (walnuts and chocolate chips are fine alternatives) **

* I didn't let the egg sit until room temperature.

** I definitely used chocolate chips.

Recipe:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the egg and continue to beat until the mixture is light and fluffy.
2. In a bowl, mix the mashed bananas and baking soda. Let sit for 2 minutes. The baking soda will react with the acid in the bananas which in turn will give the cookies their lift and rise.
3. Mix the banana mixture into the butter mixture. Mix together the flour, salt, and spices and sift into the butter and banana mixture and mix until just combined.
4. Fold into the batter the pecans or chocolate chips if using. Drop in dollops onto parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Bake for 11-13 minutes or until nicely golden brown. Let cool on wire racks.

Rating: 3.5 of 5

These cookies are pretty good. I really liked the chocolate chips. One thing I didn't like about this cookie recipe is that the cookies turn out more like muffin texture. They aren't the easiest to get off the cookie sheet and can't be dunked in milk. But, that being said, the spices are great and the banana taste isn't overpowering.

Source: http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/banana_cookies/

Sweet Chicken

Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts

vegetable oil
spoonful of white sugar
3-4 spoonfulls of brown sugar, split
4 shakes of chili powder, split
2 shakes of garlic powder
1 shake of Italian seasoning
1 shake of black pepper


Recipe:
Mix the ingredients together in a sauce pan. Add chicken and cook until chicken is white and juices run clear. Drain out the juices. Add the other half of brown sugar and chili powder. Let simmer 5 more minutes or so.

Remove from heat and shred.

Rating: 4 of 5
We really liked this chicken and the best part of it was that Ally liked it and ate it!! It's sweet with a little spicy kick. It went super well with the Creamy Tomatillo Dressing~Cafe Rio Style. It was strong enough to be tasted amongst all the other things in the salad, but not so strong as to drown out the dressing taste. We will definitely be having this again!

Source: from the wanna-be-inventive side of my brain

Creamy Tomatillo Dressing ~ Cafe Rio Style

(This picture is not of the completed dressing. I forgot to take one, so imagine little pieces of cilantro and jalapeno blended in there and you got it.)

Ingredients:

2 c. prepared Ranch dressing (can use buttermilk ranch recipe) *

1 small bunch cilantro, large stems removed (about 1/2 c. chopped cilantro)

2 large or 4 small tomatillos

1/2 t. minced garlic

2 T. fresh lime juice

1 diced jalapeno pepper

* I made according to the directions on the package, but instead of mayo I used sour cream

Recipe:

Prepare Ranch dressing according to directions on the package or recipe you're following and set aside.
Remove large cilantro stems, then wash leaves and spin dry or dry with paper towels. Add cilantro to food processor fitted with the steel blade and pulse until finely chopped. (If you don't have a food processor, I'd chop all ingredients well by hand and then blend dressing in a blender.) * Add tomatillos, garlic, lime juice, and Green Tabasco or chopped jalapeno to the food processor and pulse until ingredients are finely pureed. Add the 2 cups of prepared dressing and pulse just a few times, until ingredients are well combined. Chill dressing for an hour or two and serve.

* I don't have a food processor and just used my blender. I thought it did a fine job of getting everything all blended.

Rating: 4 of 5
If you are looking for a spot-on Cafe Rio dressing recipe, then this is not it. But it is pretty darn close. I think the problem with my batch of dressing is that I put in a larger jalapeno and not one of the smaller ones. I have never cooked with tomatillos or jalapenos so I'm not familiar with the strength of the taste. Next time I will just use a smaller jalapeno. All in all, we liked it. LaDon kept saying, "This is so good," so I think it's a keeper and repeat. Also, it makes a pretty big batch!

Source: http://kalynskitchen.blogspot.com/2009/07/recipe-favorites-cafe-rio-style-creamy.html

Baked Potato Soup

Pretty lazy job this week. No picture. Just a link to the recipe this week.

http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/baked-potato-soup-i/Detail.aspx

Rating: 3.5 of 5

We liked this recipe. LaDon doesn't like soup but said this was good. It's really, really thick...more like mashed potatoes with baked potato garnishings than soup. Put together pretty quick. Perfect for a bag of potatoes about to go bad, right?

Creamy Enchiladas Verde

Ingredients:

1 can (10.5 oz.) Campbell's Condensed Creamy Chicken Verde Soup *

1/2 t. garlic powder **

1 1/2 c. chopped cooked chicken ***

2/3 c. shredded Cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese ****

8 corn tortillas (6-inch), warmed *****

1/4 c. milk

* I couldn't find this soup at the store, so I just used a can of Cream of Chicken soup and added a few spoonfuls of salsa. Wasn't green, but it worked.

** The only garlic powder I had was garlic powder with parsley.

*** I, of course, shredded it because that's my favorite way to eat chicken.

**** We never measure out the cheese. I put it on until it looks like it would satisfy.

***** I used flour(LaDon doesn't like corn), only 4 of them, and the big ones.

Oh and we garnished it with sour cream and tomatoes.

Recipe:

1. Stir 1/2 can of the soup, garlic powder, chicken, and 1/3 c. of the cheese in a medium bowl.

2. Spoon about 1/3 c. of the chicken mixture down the center of each tortilla. Roll up the tortillas and place them seam-side down in a 12x8x2-inch shallow baking dish.

3. Stir the remaining soup and milk in a small bowl. Pour the soup mixture over the filled tortillas. Top with the remaining cheese.

4. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes or until the enchiladas are hot and bubbly.

Rating: 3.75 of 5

We liked this recipe even though in all honesty.....what I made wasn't the recipe at all. I should probably change the name to something like Creamy Chicken Salsa Enchiladas. It turned out well, we felt full, it was flavorful enough for us and went great with chocolate milk! I'll make this again, and possibly with the actually ingredients it calls for!

Source: Campbell's Cooking Companion, pg. 105

Mom's Frosting

This isn't a new recipe, but I haven't been able to make it set up at all for several years until this weekend. The new thing I tried this week was just making a Jessie doll shaped cake.

(I think it looks like an elephant with earmuffs at this point!)

Ingredients:

2 lbs. powder sugar

1 c. crisco

1/2 c. water

1 T. vanilla

Recipe:

Cut crisco into powder sugar. Add water and vanilla. * Beat 15 minutes with mixer.

* I actually cut the crisco and vanilla together with the sugar. And then added the water by 1/8 c and beat it for a little bit until all water was added.

Rating: 3.5 of 5

Tastes like the frosting a grew up with!

Chicken Squares

I've had a lot of people think these are the same as chicken pillows. They are not, but after all the talk about chicken pillows, I just may have to make them!

Ingredients:

3 oz. cream cheese *

3 T. butter, melted

2 c. chicken, cubed and cooked **

1/4 t. salt

1/8 t. pepper

2 T. milk

1 T. chopped onions ***

1 can Pillsbury crescent rolls

* I use 8 oz.

** I like to shred the chicken, or just canned chicken

***I like to use dried chopped onion and reduce the amount to about 1/2.

Recipe:

In a saucepan blend cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Divide rolls into 4 squares by combining two crescents together and pressing the edges together. Spoon serving of meat mixture into center of each square. Fold and firmly press corners to seal. Bake on ungreased sheet according to Pillsbury package directions (generally 375 for 11-13 minutes).

Rating: 4.5 of 5

Well, this recipe isn't new at all. It's just our favorite. We love it. I discovered a few weeks ago, that you can form the squares and keep them in the fridge until ready to cook. Easy way to take dinner to someone and have hot food still!

Source: cook book with family recipes

Sugar Cookie Cutouts

Ingredients:

2/3 c. butter, softened

3/4 c. granulated sugar

1 t. baking powder

1/4 t. salt

1 egg

1 T. milk

1 t. vanilla

2 c. all-purpose flour

Recipe:

1 In large mixing bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt. Beat until conbined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in egg, milk, and vanilla until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with mixer. Stir in any remaining flour. Divide dough in half. If necessary, cover and chill dough 30 minutes or until easy to handle.

2. On a lightly floured surface, roll half the dough at a time until 1/8 in. thick. Using a 2 1/2 in. cookie cutter, cut dough into desired shape. Place 1 in. apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

3. Bake in 375 degree oven for 7-8 minutes or until edges are firm and bottoms are very lightly browned. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool. If desired, frost with icing.

Rating: 3.5 of 5

I like these sugar cookies because they aren't super sweet and perfect with frosting. I made these tonight to play around with what cookies I want to make for our ward Pioneer Day activity on Saturday. I think I'll stick with trying to make them look like wagon wheels. I like this recipe. Although, if the cookies are too big they aren't as soft.

Source: Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book, pg. 223

Mama's Best Broiled Tomato Sandwich

Ingredients:

2 T. olive oil

2 T. balsamic vinegar *

4 ripe tomatoes, sliced

3 T. mayonnaise

1/2 t. dried parsley

1/4 t. dried oregano **

1/4 t. ground black pepper

3 T. grated Parmesan cheese

4 slices bread, lightly toasted

* I substituted the balsamic vinegar with red wine vinegar + 1 T. sugar

** I didn't have oregano alone, so I just used Italian seasoning

Recipe:

1. Preheat the broiler.

2. In a shallow bowl, whisk together olive oil and vinegar. Marinate tomatoes in the mixture for at least 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

3. In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise, parsley, oregano, pepper, and half the Parmesan cheese. Spread mixture on each slice of toasted bread. Divide marinated tomatoes evenly between 2 slices and sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese. *

* I actually topped with with grated mozzarella as well.

4. Place on a baking sheet and broil for 5 minutes or until cheese turns golden brown. Serve immediately, open faced or closed.

Rating: 4 of 5

Despite not having all of the exact ingredients I think this turned out pretty well. It's light, it's easy, it's quick. The sandwich has a good balance between sweet and tangy. I don't like mayo at all, but I couldn't taste it. Next time I think I will add more cheese, both Parmesan and mozzarella, before broiling. We ate the sandwiches closed. This sandwich would definitely be good with a soup.

Source: All Recipes: Dinner Tonight, pg. 230

Easy Chicken Pot Pie

(It may not looked completely cooked, but it is!)

Ingredients: *

1 can (1o.75 oz) Campbell's Condensed Cream of Potato Soup

3/4 c. milk

1/8 t. ground black pepper

1 c. frozen mixed vegetables, thawed

2 cans (4.5 oz each) Swanson Premium Chunk Chicken Breast, drained**

1 c. all-purpose baking mix***

1 egg

*I doubled the entire filling part of the recipe. Glad I did too.

**I used canned chicken as well as frozen chicken shredded.

***Opps! Used flour instead of baking mix. Don't do that!

Recipe:

1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Stir the soup, 1/4 c. milk, black pepper, vegetables and chicken in a 9-inch pie plate.

3. Stir together the baking mix, egg, and the remaining milk with a fork in a small bowl until the ingredients are mixed. Spoon over the chicken mixture.

4. Bake for 30 minutes or until hot and topping is golden.

Rating: 2 of 5

Not my favorite, but I did mess up the topping since I used all purpose baking flour and not mix (easy to misread that when skimming). It's a little bit of a bland dish. I think it would be better with some other spice or maybe cream of chicken soup instead. I think a non-sweet pie crust recipe wouldn't be too bad as the topping either. The good thing is that the sister missionaries are my guinea pigs and ate it....and liked it enough to have more than one helping.

Source: Campbell's Cooking Companion pg. 197

Fresh Strawberry Pie

(Sorry for the terrible picture - it was already mostly eaten!)

Ingredients:

1 c. white sugar

2 T. cornstarch

1 c. boiling water

1 3-oz. package strawberry flavored gelatin*

2 1/2 quarts fresh strawberries, stems removed**

1 9-inch pie crust, baked

Whipped cream (optional)***

*I didn't have strawberry, so used cherry. If I didn't know I used cherry, I probably wouldn't have been able to taste it.

**I sliced the strawberries so that it would be easier for Ally to eat

***We used vanilla ice cream as topping

Recipe:

1. In a saucepan, mix together the sugar and cornstarch; make sure to blend cornstarch in completely. Add boiling water and cook over medium heat until mixture slightly thickens. Remove from heat. Add gelatin and stir until smooth. Cover and let mixture cool to room temperature.

2. Place strawberries in baked pie crust, pointed ends facing up**. Pour cooled gelatin mixture over strawberries.

3. Refrigerate until set. Serve with whipped cream, if desired.

Rating: 3.5 of 5

We liked this recipe and think it's great with the ice cream. I do think it will probably be better with the strawberry flavored jello instead of cherry. This is a super quick and easy recipe and I didn't feel bad about eating it for breakfast!

Source: AllRecipe: Dinner Tonight book, pg. 319

Here We Go!

This blog is to document my cooking adventures. I have so many recipe books and want to break out of the habit of cooking the same favorites every time. So, I have been trying a new recipe every week and thought I would blog them so that I can remember what I cooked, what alterations I made to the recipe, what it looked like, and how we liked it.

Don't worry about commenting on this one. Just a "what's been done" blog for my own interests. But, maybe some of you will find a recipe that you like.

Happy cooking!