Eskimo Pies

While we were in Utah, Ross and I watched The Best Thing I Ever Ate: Chilled. During the episode one of the “Foodies” described an Eskimo Pie that seriously sounded AMAZING. And to be quite honest the idea was rather simple. So for Valentines Day I splurged and this is what we ate. YUMMY!!

 

Eskimo Pies

1 box brownie mix, made according to package directions
1 half gallon vanilla bean ice cream (we always use reduced fat)
Chocolate for dipping – I mixed semi-sweet with milk.  (see note
           below)
Caramel topping for dipping (I know it sounds like a little much, but believe me it is worth it!!) I made homemade- WOW!

Bake brownies as directed for a 9 x 13. (You really want the brownie to be a thin base.) Cool. Soften ice cream and spoon over cooled brownies. (My ice cream only made it about 2/3 of the way. I wanted a thick layer…) Chill. Once bars have chilled for at least an hour cut into thin bars and chill again. Meanwhile prepare your chocolate. I simply melted my chocolate, but I found that it was a little difficult to work with. The chocolate was too thick. Maybe next time I will thin it… Dip bars in chocolate, covering ice cream. Chill. When you are ready to serve, warm caramel sauce. Serve bars with a bowl of sauce for dipping.

Talk about out of this world!!

Potatoes Dauphinoise

I made these because I had some leftover cream that I wanted to use up. In my book anything with cream is good. I actually put out the money for the fancy cheese and it was good. I am not a big fan of scalloped potatoes because of a dish that my mom made when I was little but these were great and very easy. I would make them again! I got this recipe from the blog, The Sisters Cafe.

3 pounds waxy potatoes, peeled (red or Yukon gold are great)
1 large garlic clove, halved
1 Tb butter, softened
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 cup finely grated Gruyere cheese (or cheddar works great)
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup milk
salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Cut the potatoes into 1/4 inch thick slices. Put them into a large pot and fill with cold water and a little salt. Bring to a boil on high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer for 2 minutes. Do not overcook at this stage or the potatoes will begin to break break up. Drain well.
2. Rub the inside of the baking dish (mine was approx 12 inch circle) with the cut garlic and grease with a little of the butter.
3. Preheat oven to 325. Put half the potatoes into the dish, spreading them evenly. Sprinkle with a little of the nutmeg and some seasoning of salt and pepper. Add half the cheese and then another layer of potatoes, nutmeg and salt and pepper.
4. Beat together the cream and milk and pour evenly over the potatoes. Finish by scattering the remaining cheese on top with a few small pieces of butter dotted over the surface.
5. Bake in the middle of the oven for 40-45 minutes until a deep crisp brown crust forms. Serve immediately from the dish.

Butter Chicken

4 pieces Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts

3 cloves Garlic, Minced

1 teaspoon Salt

½ teaspoons Black Pepper

½ teaspoons Cayenne Pepper

¼ teaspoons Ground Coriander

¼ teaspoons Cumin

¼ teaspoons Cardamom

1 whole Lime, Juiced

1 whole Onion, Diced

¼ cups Butter

1 can (14.5 Oz. Can) Tomato Sauce

1 can (14.5 Oz. Can) Petite Diced Tomatoes

1 cup Whipping Cream

1 bunch Chopped Cilantro, to taste

2 cups Basmati Rice

Combine the first 9 ingredients and marinate overnight (I only did it for a few hours and it was still yummy). Melt butter in pan, cook onions until tender. Add chicken and cook until done. Add tomato sauce and diced tomatoes, simmer on medium-low for 30 minutes. Add cream and cilantro. Serve over rice.

It is a little spicy so if you don't like hot food then decrease the cayenne or omit it completely.

I got the recipe from Tasty Kitchen.

Lion House Rolls

I came across this recipe while thumbing through my mom’s LDS Living magazine. Always up for a new bread recipe I gave them a whirl and they have now become the standby here. These rolls have a “squishy bread” texture that is wonderful! For the first few batches they tasted delicious, but they didn’t look quite right. And then, I watched this video and now I am a pro. The kids LOVE helping me, they beg for the rolls they can flip!

Lion House Rolls

*Makes about 2 dozen rolls

2 tablespoons active dry yeast
2 cups warm water
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup butter, softened
1 egg
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
2/3 cup nonfat dry milk
5-5 1/2 cups flour

In a large bowl, combine the yeast and water. Let stand 5 minutes (no need to do this if using instant yeast – just add the yeast and water together with the other ingredients). Add sugar, butter, salt, dry milk, 2 cups flour and egg. Beat together until very smooth. Add remaining flour gradually (about 1/2 cup at a time) until a soft but not sticky dough is formed. Knead the dough for at least five minutes if using an electric mixer (I simply left it all in my mixer for a good 8 minutes.) and for at least 10 minutes if mixing the dough by hand. When the dough is smooth, supple and elastic, place it in a lightly greased large bowl covered with greased plastic wrap and let it rise until doubled.

Separate the dough into two portions. Roll each section out to an 11X14-inch rectangle. Brush the top with melted butter. Using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, cut the dough into two pieces, the long way. Then slice the dough into five or six strips across so you end up with 10 to 12 small rectangles. Roll each small rectangle up like a snail and place on a  lightly greased baking sheet with the roll resting on it’s open edge. Repeat with the second portion of dough.

Cover the rolls with lightly greased plastic wrap and let them rise until doubled. Bake at 375 degrees for 12-14 minutes until they are nicely browned.

Southwest Chicken

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I got this recipe from E-Mealz.  It's very easy and I thought it was very versatile. 

1 Tblsp oil

3-4 chicken breasts (or chicken tenders)

1 cup salsa

1 can black beans

1 can of corn (I used frozen corn, just over 1 cup)

cilantro

Heat the oil in a frying pan and cook the chicken for a couple of minutes on each side.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Mix the salsa, corn, and beans in a crock pot. Add your chicken to the top and cook on low for 6-8 hours.  Garnish with cilantro.  I added some cilantro at the beginning and then a little more as a garnish.  I thought the chicken would be a bit more moist if it was mixed into the sauce instead of on top of it.  We just ate it as with some cheese sprinkled on top.  But,  I thought it could be very versatile -  it would be good over rice or on tortillas with all the fixin's  or anyway.  It was very good.  I fixed a quick south western salad (greens, cilantro, beans, corn and southwest dressing) and it was a very good and easy meal to fix.  I ate the leftovers for lunch the next day on corn tortillas with some sour cream - very good.   Enjoy!