The Challenge

I had a chance to explain to some of you, but not all of you.  So here it goes.

I gave you each a cookbook for Christmas.  Nothing overly exciting, but we all love Taste of Home, right?  Each of you got a different edition.  I can't remember exactly who got what but I do know there was a diabetic, casserole, crockpot, shortcut, and penny pinching cookbooks. 

Your challenge is to simply use the cookbooks and post the recipe here.  If you take the time to post a picture, great- and yes, it does count if you just pull the picture off of the TOH website.  Thats fine.  Make sure that you also include any adjustments you make to the recipe- I know that I make them to pretty much every recipe I try.

Get cookin!

Mitch & Deb's Buffalo Dip

This one's from my boss & his wife - we traded it for the sausage dip recipe.  We'll be trying it out this Christmas and let you know how it goes.  I called it Buffalo dip for two reasons:  One is that the recipe looks like it probably comes out tasting a little like the buffalo sauce on spicy chicken fingers or wings (which my boss has ordered for lunch every time we've ever eaten out... for 11 years).  The other is they are from Buffalo (MN, not NY)...

• 2 (10 ounce) cans chunk chicken, drained
• 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup Ranch dressing
• 3/4 cup pepper sauce, such as Franks® Red Hot®
• 1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

• 1 bunch celery, cleaned and cut into 4 inch pieces
• 1 (8 ounce) box chicken-flavored crackers

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat chicken and hot sauce in a skillet over medium heat, until heated through. Stir in cream cheese and ranch dressing. Cook, stirring until well blended and warm. Mix in half of the shredded cheese, and transfer the mixture to a slow cooker. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top, cover, and cook on Low setting until hot and bubbly. Serve with celery sticks and crackers.

Almond Chicken, South Beach Style

Tom and I voted this a keeper. The kids scraped the breading off, and then voted it to be a keeper.

Found here.

1/2 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
1/8 cup (1/2 ounce) grated Parmesan cheese
1/8 cup finely chopped almonds
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1/2 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
Pinch of ground black pepper
1/8 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded to 1/2" thickness and cut into 6 pieces
Sprig Italian parsley, for garnish

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400°F.

In a medium bowl, combine the bread crumbs, cheese, almonds, parsley, garlic, salt, thyme, and pepper. Mix thoroughly.

Place the oil in a shallow dish. Dip the chicken first in the oil, then dredge in the crumb mixture. Place the chicken in a shallow baking pan.

Bake for 25 minutes, or until a thermometer inserted in the center of a piece registers 170°F and the juices run clear. (Do not turn the chicken during cooking.) Garnish with the parsley.

Nutritional Information:
383 calories
16 total fat (4 g sat)
91 mg cholesterol
15 g carbohydrate
41 g protein
1 g fiber
730 mg sodium

Russian Tea Cakes

aka Mexican Wedding Cakes aka "Brushin' your teeth cakes"

1 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup confectioners' sugar (for rolling at the end)

Cream butter ane vanilla. Mix sugar, flour, and walnuts in a seperate bowl. Combine the two together. Mix until it is no longer crumbly. Roll into 1 inch balls. Bake in a preheated 350 oven for 12 mins. Remove and roll in sugar. Makes 36.

Apparently these are very freezable, too. I didn't get a change to try, though, because every time I pulled a batch out, they disappeared.