Slow Cooker Three Cheese Chicken and Noodles

I have a slow cooker cook book that I have used a few times lately, and have been happy each time.  This one was an easy, macaroni type recipe, with a little bit of a twist.  Peppers and chicken give it a more adult taste, and also a little bit of spice.  I really enjoyed it!

Three Cheese Chicken and Noodles
adapted from: Crock Pot brand cookbook

1 chicken breast
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 c. diced green or red bell pepper
1 c. shredded Monterey jack cheese
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese
1/2 c. diced onion
1/2 c. chicken broth
1 can sliced mushrooms, drained
2 Tbsp. butter, melted
1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 (8 oz.) package of egg noodles

Combine all of the ingredients in your slow cooker, except the egg noodles, and stir.  Cook for 6 hours on low, or 3-4 hours on high.  Take your chicken breast out and shred it and then add it back in.  Cook the egg noodles according to the package directions, and the add them to your slow cooker and stir gently until they are coated evenly.  (The recipe actually says to cook them, then add them to the crock pot at the beginning and cook it all together.  I was afraid of super soft noodles falling apart, so I did it this way.  But it might be worth trying the other way to save a few minutes at dinner time.)  Enjoy!  

Olive Garden's Ravioli Di Portobello (Actually, Just the Amazing Sauce Recipe)

                                           
My hubby and I recently ate at Olive Garden, and I was determined to eat something besides their Stuffed Chicken Marsala (I get it every time I eat there. Literally.).  I chose the Ravioli Di Portobello.  And I have found my new favorite Olive Garden dinner.  Smoked Gouda cheese.  Sun-dried tomatoes.  And... well, not much else.  Not only is this recipe delicious, it is super easy!  I made it for our family reunion, and it got rave reviews.  To make my life ridiculously easy, I just went ahead and bought a big thing of 5 cheese tortellini from Costco and served the sauce over that.  And, for about the same cost as one dish at the Olive Garden, I fed 13 people!

Sauce for Olive Garden's Ravioli Di Portobello
from: food.com

2 c. milk
1/4 c. butter
1/4 c. flour
8 ounces smoked Gouda cheese
3 sun-dried tomatoes, chopped

In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat.  Add the flour and stir it until it makes a thick paste.  Add the milk, stirring constantly.  Cook it until the sauce thickens.  Cut up the smoked Gouda cheese and add it to the saucepan.  Throw in your sun-dried tomatoes and stir it all until the cheese melts.  Serve it over ravioli (or tortellini, or whatever you want).
*Note: this amount serves 2-4, not 13!
                                           

Lasagna Cupcakes

It's been a while since I've posted a recipe, but honestly, it's been a while since I've tried a fun recipe that I've really liked.  This was an easy one Matt and I made together Friday night (we're attempting to eat out less- although I don't know if it worked because we just went out Saturday morning instead:).  I needed to use up the last of our wonton wrappers, and this was an easy and delicious way to do it, in a non-traditional way.  Although, I don't know if you've seen Pinterest and all the ways people are getting creative with wonton wrappers and cupcake tins!  

This recipe is from The Girl Who Ate Everything.  She is one of my favorite food bloggers, so it's thanks to her I have this yummy recipe. 

A few notes about this dish: I hardly ever use real Parmesan cheese, I guess I'm too cheap to ever buy it, but I happened to buy it on a whim the other day, and I loved it!  It also goes a long way!  It might be nearly as cheap to buy it fresh!  I may be sold on splurging for real Parmesan from now on.  Also, fresh basil is one of my favorite things on pizza.  We grow it in our garden during the summer/fall and then I wash, pat dry and then freeze all my extra basil leaves so that I can either make a fresh pesto with it or take a few leaves out at a time and throw them on top of my pizza (or lasagna cupcakes) the last couple minutes of baking.  It tastes just as good as fresh to me!

Lasagna Cupcakes
from The Girl Who Ate Everything

Ingredients

1/3 pound ground beef

salt and pepper

24 wonton wrappers

1 3/4 cups grated Parmesan cheese (7 oz)

1 3/4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (7 oz)

3/4 cup ricotta cheese (3 oz)

1 cup pasta sauce

fresh basil for garnish (optional, although definitely recommended)

Directions

1.    Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray muffin tin with cooking spray.

2.    Brown beef and season with salt and pepper. Drain.

3.    Reserve 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese and 3/4 cup mozzarella cheese for the top of your cupcakes. Start layering your lasagna cupcakes. Begin with a wonton wrapper and press it into the bottom of each muffin tin. Sprinkle a little Parmesan cheese, ricotta cheese, and mozzarella cheese in each. Top with a little meat and pasta sauce.

4.    Repeat layers again (i.e. wonton, Parmesan, ricotta, mozzarella, and pasta sauce). Top with reserved Parmesan and mozzarella cheeses.

5.    Bake for 18-20 minutes or until edges are brown. Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes. To remove, use a knife to loosen the edges, then pop each lasagna out. Garnish with basil and serve.

Leek Macaroni and Cheese

I went to a coworker’s house a little while ago and she had this awesome macaroni and cheese dish for us to try.  I was just going to have a little, as I was eating dinner with my husband later, but somehow couldn’t help asking for a little more, and then a little more.  My husband had to eat dinner by himself that night…  Anyways, I couldn’t wait to make it myself.

A few notes about this recipe.  The original recipe called for chanterelle mushrooms, which were really good when I first tried this; however, my husband is more of a meat-lover rather than squeaky-vegetable-lover so I used sausage instead.  You could use any sausage but I used and love Hillshire Farm’s Chicken Apple Sausage with Gouda Cheese.  Mmmmmm.

Also, it called for milk white cheddar cheese and the first time I made this I used a mild yellow cheddar and it did not have enough flavor for me.  So this time I used a sharp white cheddar and it was awesome!! 

Oh, and I think my favorite flavors in this are the leek and ground pepper.  Who knew?

Leek Macaroni & Cheese

Adapted from A Chow Life

1 lb. macaroni pasta (large elbows)
4 cups whole milk
6 tblsp. flour
4 tblsp. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1 tsp. sweet or smoked paprika
1 chicken (or other) sausage, sliced (see note below)

2 cups thinly sliced leeks (green part only)
kosher salt & fresh ground pepper to taste
8 oz. sharp (or other) white cheddar cheese

Bring a large pot of well salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook at a rolling boil until just tender. Drain. Rinse. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Bring the milk to just a boil in a heavy saucepan. Set aside.

Melt the butter in another pan. Add the flour and whisk over low heat for about 5 minutes. Do not brown. Remove from the heat.

Add the butter mixture to the milk and whisk well to get rid of lumps. Add 1/2 tsp of paprika. Season with salt and pepper. Return to heat. Cook the mixture over medium heat, whisking constantly until it’s smooth and it thickens. About 5 minutes.

Add mixture, sausage, and leeks to the pasta and stir until well coated and mixed. Spread the grated cheese over the top of the pasta. Sprinkle the top with the remaining paprika.

Cover the dish in foil and bake for 25 minutes. Then, remove the foil, place dish under the broiler (about 4 inches away from heat) and cook for another 3-4 minutes until slightly golden.

Brie en Croute

There are not many recipes that I make more than once, and few that I make often. This happens to be one of them. I have made it 3 or 4 times in the last few months for dinner parties that we’ve had, and everyone seems to have liked it as much as we love it! It’s an indulgence that I take every now and then and enjoy every bite! I don’t know how many calories are in this thing, but if calories were based on yumminess (which, sadly, they tend to be) I would be eating my weight in them.

Please, please try this recipe.

Brie en Croute

Adapted from thesisterscafe.com

Ingredients:

One 8 oz. wheel of Brie cheese (see note below)

one sheet of frozen puff pastry, thawed to room temperature

2-3 tbsp. brown sugar

2-3 tbsp. chopped pecans

1-2 tbsp. Craisins

one egg, beaten

Directions:

1. With a knife, gently cut off most of the white rind that is covering the cheese. (You can leave it on if you like, it’s edible. It’s a little easier to cut into if it’s off.) Try not to shave off any of the cheese.

2. Let one sheet of puff pastry thaw at room temperature for about 1 hour before using. Roll out on lightly floured surface and pour brown sugar in the center of the rolled out pastry. Top it with chopped pecans and Craisins and place Brie on top.

3. Fold puff pastry up over the Brie and pinch the seams together to seal completely (you don’t want it to overlap too much to ensure it cooks evenly, and with an 8 oz. wheel of Brie I usually cut off a fair amount of the pastry and use it in a later dish). Flip the whole thing over so the seam side is down.

4. Brush beaten egg over entire wrapped Brie. (Helpful tip from thesisterescafe.com: Be thorough with all the seams- the egg will help seal them so that the cheese doesn’t escape while baking.)

5. Now grab a little of the extra pastry, flatten it out, and using a cookie cutter or a knife, cut out any shape you want to adorn the top. Place on the wrapped Brie and brush with egg.

6. Bake at 400° for 12-15 minutes. Reduce heat to 325° and cook for another 12-15 minutes until golden brown. Serve with crackers if desired.

Side note: I use a small wheel of Brie (8 oz.) which serves about 4 people. If you’re having a larger party, you can buy a larger wheel (say 19oz.). You’ll end up using most of the pastry puff to cover the cheese. Double the brown sugar, pecans, and Craisins, and increase the baking time to 25 minutes at 400° and 20 minutes at 300°.