Cooking for Six

Moving my recipes

2008-05-16T15:09:00.002-04:00

For anyone who might come here looking for new recipes, I have decided to put any new recipes on my other blog, Little White Schoolhouse. I have a list on my sidebar that will link you to any recipe I have blogged about, on this site or the other, so come on over to LWS and happy reading!

Getting more adventerous in the kitchen

2008-03-24T15:50:00.002-04:00

Amy's Chicken Primavera Risotto

2 chicken breasts
Sea salt
Fresh ground pepper
1 Lemon, cut in half crosswise
1/2 Cup chopped onion
2 clove of garlic, minced
1 carrot, peeled and julienned
1 Zucchini, sliced
2 Plum tomatoes
1 box of organic chicken broth (32 oz)
1 box of uncooked orzo pasta
1/2-1 Cup heavy cream
1/2 Cup+ good quality shredded parmesan cheese

Flatten chicken to 1/2 inch thickness. Season with salt and pepper.
Pre-heat large skillet with EVOO.
Add chicken and lemon halves (cut side down), cook 3-4 minutes each side (do not flip lemons), until no longer pink.
Remove chicken and lemons, cool slightly, slice chicken into 1/2 inch pieces and set aside.
In same skillet, cook onion and garlic until tender, set aside.

In a large pot bring chicken broth and juice of the caramelized lemon to a boil.
Add orzo, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. stirring occasionally to prevent sticking.
Add carrots, zucchini, tomato, onion and garlic. Simmer 1-2 minutes.
Add heavy cream and parmesan, simmer another 2 minutes.
Add chicken, cook until heated through.

Since this was really just me playing in the kitchen, my measurements are not exact. I just added cream until the consistency was right and the pasta done. Everybody loved it in our house, I hope that you do too!

Wirtz Kitchen Classic

2008-03-24T15:29:00.002-04:00

Chances are, if you have eaten more than one meal at our house, you have experienced some variation of this meal. I found the recipe in some sort of motherhood/pregnancy magazine when I was pregnant with Regan. I tweaked in to our liking and have been cooking it ever since.

Chicken Enchiladas

2-3 Cooked, shredded chicken breasts
1 Cup shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1 1/4 Cup salsa, divided
1/2 8oz pkg reduced fat cream cheese
10 taco sized, flour tortillas

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large skillet, place shredded chicken, 3/4 C cheddar cheese, cream cheese and 3/4 C salsa Heat over medium high heat until cheese is melted.
Spoon 1/3 cup of chicken mixture down center of each tortilla.
Roll up and place in 9x13-inch baking dish.
Drizzle with remaining salsa and top with remaining cheese.
Bake uncovered for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted.

I have made this with ground beef, and steak, but chicken is our favorite. You can also make it with corn tortillas and layer it instead of rolling, it requires a double recipe of the chicken filling to do a whole 9x13 pan that way, but it is very tasty! I have also been known to sneak some extra veggies in their, like 1/2 C of pureed carrot and or yellow squash! You would never know the difference in the taste, but it adds a little nutrition for my picky eaters :)

Favorite Foods...

2008-01-28T16:32:00.000-05:00

So, tonight I am making one of my favorite dinners. Flank Steak and Cauliflower covered in Cheese, Yummy. I think I will serve in with a side of red potatoes, probably quartered and roasted in the oven. It looks like my Rosemary plant has not died yet, so I will even have some fresh Rosemary for the potatoes. Is your mouth watering yet? Both the Flank Steak and Cauliflower recipe come from my mom, and I am not sure where I got the potato recipe from.

Flank Steak Marinade

1/4 Cup Ketchup

2TBSP Soy Sauce

1tsp Mustard

1/4 tsp Garlic Salt

1/3 Cup Red Wine Vinegar

2 TBSP Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 TBSP Worcestershire Sauce

Mix ingredients in large zip lock bag. Add Flank Steak and marinate in fridge for at least a few hours ( I put mine in this morning before we started school).

Broil or grill 5-8 min per side.

Cheesy Cauliflower

1 head of Cauliflower

1/2 Cup Mayonnaise

2 tsp Yellow Mustard

Cheddar Cheese, shredded, enough to cover cauliflower, (I am usually pretty generous with the cheese)

Pre-heat oven to 350 Degrees.

Clean cauliflower and cut into florets.

Steam 15 min, or until tender, but not mushy.

Place steamed cauliflower in baking dish.

Spread mayonnaise/mustard mixture over cauliflower.

Cover with cheese.

Cook for 10 minutes, uncovered, or until cheese is melted.

Roasted Red Potatoes

1 1/2- 2 pounds of red potatoes, quartered.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Sea Salt

Ground Pepper

1 TBSP fresh Rosemary, chopped

Preheat oven 425 degrees.

Place quartered potatoes in a bowl.

Add 1-2 TBSP EVOO

Add salt, pepper and Rosemary and mix.

Spread potatoes on baking sheet

Bake 15 minutes, flip, bake another 15 minutes, or until golden brown.

The best chocolate chip cookies ever!

2008-01-26T16:41:00.003-05:00

When I was a freshman in high school, I had a friend named Jenn Kostiuk who made the BEST chocolate chip cookies ever! They were soft and chewy and thick, yum! She would never tell me her secret ingredient and no matter how I have tried over the years, I have never been able to make cookies as good as hers. The only other cookies that have come close to Jenn's are Sara Durose's CC cookies. I have missed those since we moved out of the "Pink Home House" (the kids name for the house we lived in with Sara and Dave). Anyway, a few months ago I discovered these cookies and they have become the replacement for my old stand by chocolate chip cookie recipe. My freshman year of high school was awhile ago, but I think I have finally found a recipe as good as Jenn's!

Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsps baking soda

2 cups butter, softened

1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

2 (3.4 oz.) packages instant vanilla pudding mix

4 eggs

2 tsps vanilla extract

4 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat over to 350 degrees F. Whisk together flour and baking soda, set aside.

In kitchen aid bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar.

Beat in instant pudding mix until blended.

Stir in eggs and vanilla extract.

Blend in flour mixture.

Add chocolate chips.

I use my Pampered Chef, 1 TBSP scoop and drop cookies on cookies sheets covered with parchment paper.

Bake for 12 min. Edges should be golden brown.

Cool on wire rack, and enjoy!

Makes somewhere in the neighborhood of 5-6 dozen cookies. Make sure you share them with your neighbors before you taste them and decide to keep them all for yourself!
Interesting fact: I had to pull out my Freshman year book to remember how to spell Jenn's last name (that is not the interesting fact). When I opened it up I remembered that my Freshman year book was dedicated to the schools head custodian. Now, that is something you don't see too often!

Breakfast in France

2008-01-19T09:17:00.001-05:00

Okay, so I have never really had breakfast in France, actually I have never even been to France, but a girl can dream right? Someday I will sit outside at a little cafe and have croissants and watch the people of Paris go by. But for today, sitting in the kitchen with my family (still in our PJ's), eating crepes filled with mini chocolate chips will have to do.

Crepes

3 cups milk

2 cup all-purpose flour

5 eggs

2 TBSP canola oil

mini chocolate chips

*fresh strawberries and whipped cream are also really yummy in these!

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl. Mix well.

Heat a 6 or 8 inch skillet over medium high heat.

Spray with cooking spray

Remove from heat and use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to pore just enough batter to cover the bottom of the pan with a thin layer.

Return to stove and cook for about 1 min. or until lightly brown on one side

*I usually flip my crepe and cook for a few more seconds, but you do not have to.

It takes awhile to make enough crepe to feed all six of us, so I usually warm the oven and put them on a plate in the oven until I am done.

Once done cooking the crepes, sprinkle each with the desired amount of mini chocolate chips (or other filling of your choice) and roll them up!

They are pretty simple, but tasty and the kids are always begging for more!

Bon Appetite

Getting started

2008-01-18T15:12:00.000-05:00

I have been thinking about organizing all my recipes for awhile now, but have made no progress. I am not sure that blogging my favorite recipes is progress, but it is something!

So, I will start with my new favorite cookie recipe. It makes more cookies than we know what to do with, even with 6 people in the family! Making the dough is the easy part, rolling and icing all the cookies is an all afternoon event, but in the end, so worth it!

Amy's favorite Sugar Cookies

1 1/2 cups butter, softened

2 cups white sugar

4 eggs

12 tsp vanilla extract

5 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

Cream the butter and sugar until smooth (I do it in my kitchen aid :)

Beat in eggs and vanilla

Stir in flour, baking powder and salt

Cover and chill in fridge overnight

Preheat oven to 375

roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/4-1/3 in. thick (I like my cookies thick because they stay softer)

Cut into shapes and place on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake for 7-8 minute

Place on cooling rack and cool completely before icing.

I love lemon icing on sugar cookies and usually just mix powdered sugar, lemon juice and a little milk until I get the right consistency and the right flavor (you need very little liquid, so be sure you don't over do it). It is okay if the lemon is a little strong because the sweetness of the cookies balances it out. I also used a 40% off coupon at Michael's to get a box with 8 different colors of icing coloring so I have lots to choose from when I decorate!

Hope you enjoy the cookies as much as I do!