A FRIDGE FULL OF FOOD...

Pinterest Recipe: King's Hawaiian Roll Mini Baked Ham Sandwiches

I've been seeing this recipe for King's Hawaiian Roll Baked Mini Ham Sandwiches for a long time. It looks and sounds great, but to be honest, I've been burned on some Pinterest recipes. The more loudly it proclaims "Best (fill in the blank) ever and only (fill in the blank) ingredients!" the more I now tend to ignore it.  But. I will say that this recipe is delicious.  I've seen several versions on Pinterest but I went straight to King's Hawaiian Rolls web site itself to get the recipe and it came out nicely.  The baked on sauce adds a little zing, a little salty crunch, and a little savory to the sweetness of the rolls. Yummy!

Ina Garten's Pastitsio (Greek Lasagna)

It's March which means the "madness" in our family is always the family game we play called "What does James want for dinner for his birthday?"

Since I was a child, the tradition in our family was always that the birthday boy or girl got to choose their birthday menu, anything under the sun they wanted. As a kid, I always wanted my Mom's Chicken Chow Mein and my Nannie's (grandmother) Banana Bread. 

As adults, we've created a slight twist on the tradition with my cousin James where he tries (not very hard, LOL) to "stump" Auntie Miranda and I with his menu choices.  I usually make the dinner and Auntie does his cake from a clue or direction rather than a specific dish.  Last year he said "European peasant food" and since we're Swedish/Norwegian I went to from scratch Swedish Meatballs with cranberry sauce and Jansson's Temptation, while his direction to Auntie was "checkerboard cake" from which she created an incredible Cherry/Vanilla checkerboard cake. Yum!

This year we were told "Greek"  and "Pineapple Upside Down Cake".  Since I had to work the night before, Auntie very kindly created both the cake and the entree:  Pastitsio and Greek Pineapple/Coconut cake.  Holy Crap, she "did good!", as we told her last night.  Today I have Pastitsio recipe and tomorrow will upload the cake recipe and link back.  These are great recipes for anytime but, definitely, any birthday boy or girl would give you tons of hugs and kisses for making these!

 

Snow Storm Comfort: Paula Deen's Hot Chicken Salad

I first had this recipe about 20 years ago at my cousin, Ann's, table and  everyone in our family loves it as a casserole with a salad for dinner, on Liza Ashley's Angel Biscuits as an appetizer, or with crackers as a snack.  Chilled chicken salad is great but hot baked chicken salad is just a delicious and versatile and very warming on a cold winter's day.

Unbelievably, I couldn't find my handwritten recipe card of Ann's recipe but during a quick search I found this Paula Deen version that had one difference:  cheddar cheese.  Hmmmm.... cheese is always a good thing.  I like both versions, can't even pick a favorite, so I think my next time making this dish will all depend on my mood and if I have the cheese handy in the fridge or not.

The recipe is wonderful served piping hot or room temp, and heats up beautifully in the microwave.

Click for the recipe:

Paula Deen's Hot Chicken Salad

 Nutrition per 3/4 cup serving:  Calories:  381.6;    Protein:  20.2;   Carbs:   2.8;   Fat 32;  Fiber:  2.

 

 

 

 

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Pinterest Recipe: Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole (Two Versions)

The greatest thing about the invention of the Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole is the ease of it. I've made cordon bleu from scratch, and while it's not hard, it takes time.  The casserole combines both the basic elements of traditional cordon bleu: chicken, ham, and swiss cheese, along with a built in sauce for that creamy, dreamy, yumminess that is chicken cordon bleu.

I pinned two different recipes for Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole on Pinterest and this was the night I finally got around to moving it from my "wish" list to my "been there/done that/plan to do it again" list. 

This recipe (on the left) from Recipe Sweet was my biggest inspiration. I liked the sauce made from scratch, although I spiced mine up a little differently and I used whole pieces of chicken rather than rotisserie, not that there's anything wrong with using rotisserie chicken, it can be a great time-saver. I just used what I had on hand.  I prefer white meat and Gene prefers dark meat so it was easy to make a His and a Hers side to our casserole, along with a last minute thought on my part of adding broccoli to cook in that wonderful sauce, added to the Hers side, of course, since Gene hates broccoli.  But for non-broccoli-haters, it would be good strewn throughout the casserole to bubble away in the sauce.

My second inspiration was this Pinned recipe from Little B Cooks for a quick put together. The sauce is made from Cream of Chicken Soup which cuts the time down to almost negative minutes putting this one together and there are times when that is a HUGE plus! Both of these recipes call for pre-cooked chicken, rotisserie or other, which can save oven time but I started with the uncooked chicken breasts and thighs I had on hand. Either works beautifully. 

Hot and Cheesy Bacon Dip with Milton's Original Multi-Grain Crackers

       

 All we really need here are two words:  "bacon" and "cheese".

If pushed, I could probably say a few more words: like yummy to the tummy Milton's snack crackers.  I've been a fan of their gourmet line for many years but the beauty of the snack cracker line is that that crackers are smaller so you get the crunch, the whole graininess, and the slight sweet in a smaller version so you also get bacon and cheese with every bite--that's a win every way there is to win!

Out of the six flavors Gene and I, and lots of other family members, tried these were our favorite flavors:  Original Multi-Grain, Honey Multi-Grain, and Honey & Corn, all yummy on their own or as a great base for chips or chicken and tuna salad.

In this area, southwest Missouri, they can be found at Wal-mart, Target, and Sam's Club.

 

Baked Ham & Provolone Roll-up

 Ham & Provolone roll up is one of my favorite weekend night meals.  Even though it takes a couple of hours to make, there's relatively little hands-on time so I can lay the dough out to defrost in the early afternoon, run errands, make the roll-up, and then do laundry or other household chores for the next hour while it raises again.  After that, it's only a matter of baking. By the time we eat, usually serving only a simple salad on the side, I barely feel like I've spent any time at all in the kitchen.  Magic!

It, and its pepperoni cousin, also make great party appetizers, almost always found on my family holiday menu list.

 

The Best Ever Scalloped Potatoes Recipe

Scallopped Potatoes has always been one of our favorite dishes but as a cook it can be frustrating to make sure that the slices of potato are thin enough and get cooked long enough to make sure they're cooked through to nice and soft.  This recipe addresses so many problems with mediocre scallopped potato recipes.  The potatoes are cubed and pre-boiled on the stove top so the texture is that comforting soft, cheesy, richness that everyone loves.  Plus, by adding herbs to the mix instead of just cream and cheese, the flavor pops in a very 3-D way.  I've never served these potatoes that guests didn't ask for the recipe and tell me how much they love this dish. It is the best scallopped potato recipe I've ever made.

Classic Quiche Lorraine for Breakfast

After all the rain and thunderstorms last night followed by a late night of movie-watching and gloriously sleeping in to a chilly fall morning, eggs seemed to fill the bill of fare this morning.  Not just any eggs, not plain scrambled or even the richness of dipping toast into the rich yolks of fried eggs over easy, but the cheesy, bacony goodness of the classic Quiche Lorraine.  With pre-cooked bacon and previously rolled pie crust in the freezer, shredded parmesan in the fridge, and a couple of green onions in the crisper, it took less than five minutes to beat the eggs along with the other ingredients and pour them into the pie shell--so worth it this morning! 

Lucy Approved Chicken Enchiladas with Green Chili Sour Cream Sauce

My cousin, Colleen. posted this collage to Facebook with the caption "Lucy approved!" so I had to blog them. The enchiladas look divine and Lucy's adorable enthusiasm about them say this recipe is definitely a winner!  I'm adding rotisserie chicken and tortillas to my grocery list for this week.

Simple preparation with complex flavor, this a great work night family recipe and could even be prepared the night before for more dinner hour ease the next night or even frozen for a later date.

Thanks for sharing with us, Colleen and Lucy!.

Lisa's Cheddar/Feta Cheese Puffs

 

Three letters describe these little biscuit-like puffs:  O!M!G!  'nuff said!

Okay, also maybe: THANK YOU to my friend Lisa who sent me the recipe for these little darlings. Check out her web site at www.thecardboardschoolhouse.com for more recipes and home-schooling ideas.