Paula Deen's Cheeseburger Meatloaf

Every Father's Day, my husband gets to choose the menu from soup to nuts. Although I like to spoil him with cooking for him, in general, Father's Day, I go all out. I had made this meatloaf for him twice before and he has called it the best meatloaf I have made since we have been married. That has been almost 25 years..so I was pretty impressed by it.  Bonus, it is really quick to whip up and comes off as restaurant quality! This recipe is in Paula's Southern Cooking Bible. The pictures aren't as pretty as you would see in a Paula Deen book, but I think it gets the job done!

Second, Paula shows her typical ingenuity in using white bread as a base to soak up the fat from the loaf. The only thing I would do that she didn't mention is to spray the bread with non stick spray prior to placing the loaf on it. This time around I didn't do that and the loaf actually stuck to the bread a little bit.

In my humble opinion, mashed potatoes are a must with this. This just screams pur comfort food!

So, here we go!!

Ingredients:

Meatloaf:

2 lbs ground beef
2 t. Paula Deen's House Seasoning Revamped (see My Favorite Seaonings)
1 t. Seasoned Salt
1 medium yellow onion chopped
1 green pepper chopped
1 c. shredded Cheddar cheese
1 c. finely crushed Ritz Crackers
1 c. sour cream
1/4 c. Worcestershire sauce
8 slices white bread

Sauce:

1 can(10 3/4 oz) cream of mushroom soup
1 soup can milk
1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions:

Meatloaf:

1) Place the first 9 ingredients in a bowl and mix well. I use my hands.

2) Prepare a cookie sheet by covering it with aluminum foil. Place bread on top of that. Shape the meat mixture into an 8x3 inch loaf.

3) Bake in a 325 degree oven for 45 min. to 1 hour. Remove and pull out bread slices. Allow to cool for several minutes and slice.

Isn't it purrty!!

Sauce:

1) Pour all ingredients into a pan and stir until well blended. That's all folks! How much simpler can it get!!

Summer Berrynut Chicken Breast Salad

This salad is SO simple and a staple in my house during the Summer months. I eat this stuff like candy! I have seen this in tons of restaurants, but love my version because I load it down with fruits and nuts.

So, here we go:

Ingredients:

4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
1 Cup Ken's CREAMY BALSAMIC dressing, DIVIDED (see note)
6 cups spring mix (lettuce)
10 strawberries sliced
1/2 cup blueberries
1/2 cup raspberries
1/2 cup walnuts TOASTED
1/2 cup Fresh Gourmet honey roasted pecan pieces
1 cup crumbled blue cheese OR crumbled feta

Directions:

1) Marinade 1/2 cup salad dressing and chicken breasts in Ziploc bag for 4 hours. Drain.
2) Prepare grill and grill for 10 minutes per side or until your chicken is done
3) Combine remaining ingredients in a large bowl and toss. You will toss this with the remaining salad dressing. See Note
4) Top with chicken breast and serve

Note: I am not a fan of salad dressing. I keep my salad kind of dry. My husband usually adds additional dressing, so adjust your dressing as you desire, just make sure to use 1/2 cup for the marinade.

The Sweet Magnolia's Cookbook by Sherryl Woods and Chef Teddi Wohlford

Book: The Sweet Magnolias Cookbook: More Than 150 Favorite Southern Recipes


Author: Sherryl Woods and Chef Teddi Wohlford


Release date (if applicable): August 28, 2012


Synopsis: A collection of excellent recipes "based" off the author's The Sweet Magnolias series.


My rating: 5 Stars


My opinion: OK, I have to be honest...I have never read a Sherryl Woods book, so I don't knw about The Sweet Magnolias series and can't refer to it in this review. I focused much more on the recipes given. I happen to love when authors do recipes and/or cookbooks for their works. I must admit that I have found some rockin' recipes that way and, in my humble opinion, this book will not be an exception.

I loved this book though. I swear I am a misplanted Southern girl cuz I love Southern influence in my recipes and this book has it. Not only does it have it, but it presents it in an excellent variety of recipes. In this book, one will find libations, appetizers, main dishes, veggie/side dishes (farmer's market), ethnic, desserts, and my favorite, a low fat section with yummy looking dishes!

Source:Harlequin through Netgalley


Would I recommend? : All I can say is that it is already in my Amazon preorder cart!


Stand Alone or Part of a Series: Not sure!

Fire in my Belly: A Book to Cook from When You're Stone Cold Hungry

Book: Fire in my Belly: A Book to Cook from When You Are Stone Cold Hungry

Author: Kevin Gillespie

Release date (if applicable): October 16, 2012

Synopsis: A incredible collection of unusual recipes from a finalist in the Food Network's Top Chef series. These recipes range from "foods that you thought you hated" to, I swear, a recipe for Honey Bun Bread Pudding with Peanut Butter Whiskey Sauce, utilizing Lil Debbie Honey buns that he concocted on a dare. There is even a drink recipe in the book where the ingredient is moonshine!

My rating: 5 Stars

My opinion: When I first took a look at this book, I was thinking Paula Deen on testosterone. As I got into it, Gillespie is SO FAR above that. He is in a class of his own! His recipes are unique with awesome pictures, excellent expanations in a layout that screams "FUN".

A word of warning, though, a better chunk of his recipes are not for the novice chef and require in depth preparation. He does give some in depth explanations, but not enough for a beginning cook to comprehend. But be prepared for some fun recipes with nice twists to standard food prep. One thing I did notice is that some of the ingredients might be difficult, depending on geographical area, to find so either give yourself time to locate them or find suitable substitutions.

This is defintely a chef I will be keeping an eye on!

Keep an eye out...I will be testing a couple of his recipes for The Pub and Grub Forum!

Source:Netgalley

Would I recommend? : Yep, and when time, it will be heading into my Amazon cart!

Stand Alone or Part of a Series: Stand Alone

Paula Deen's Hobo Hamburgers

Oh my goodness. This is a grown up version of a dish I loved as a child. There is a bit more prep to this, but, my oh my, it is worth it!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lb ground beef
1 cup cracker crumbs
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup FRESH SQUEEZED lemon juice
1 cup grated cheese
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
2 teaspoon Paula Deen’s House Seasoning (look under My Favorite Seasonings)
4 medium potatoes, sliced thin
1 large onion, sliced thin
28 baby carrots
4 slices bacon cut in half

1) In a large mixing bowl, combine the first seven ingredients. Mix well, but don't over mix.

2) Shape beef into patties.

3) Place 1 patty each on tinfoil sheets that are doubled and sprayed with non stick cooking spary. Top with one potato, a couple of onion slices, 7 baby carrots and a slice of bacon cut in half.

4) Seal tinfoil.

5) Cooking can either be done in a 375 degree oven for 1 hour or on a grill for about the same length of time...you pick.

Paula Deen's Beer Can Chicken (Oven Baked)

During the Summer months, one of mine and my husband's favorite dishes is beer can chicken. Partnered with mashed potatoes because this recipe gives a gravy that IS TO DIE FOR, corn on the cob, fresh tomatoes from my garden and fresh cranberry sauce, this dinner is simply Summer comfort food. I found this one in Paula Deen's Southern Bible. Now, Paula has a BBQ sauce recipe with it that I found to be totally unnecessary. Now, Paula did state in the book that if you would rather use near beer, that is an appropriate substitute. However, the 3 sprigs of FRESH rosemary that she stated are optional in her recipe, I would called necessary! That fresh rosemary gives it a flavoring that is SUPERB! Please note, I have done a couple of changes.

So, here we go...

Ingredients:

Dry Rub:

3 t. Paula Deen House Seasoning, Revamped
2 t. paprika
2 t. light brown sugar
1 t. celery salt
1 t. dried oregano
1 t. dry mustard
1 t. cumin
1 t. chili powder
PINCH of cayenne pepper

Chicken
Whole chicken (5 lbs.), rinsed and patted dry
1 (12 oz) can beer
3 sprigs fresh rosemary

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees

2) Combine all dry ingredients in a bowl and rub all over chicken. I will loosen the skin of chicken and even put the rub under there. Make sure to use ALL the rub.

3) Open can of beer and pour a little bit out. Insert rosemary sprigs in beer can.

4) Place chicken over beer can so that it is almost a "tripod".

5) This chicken can either be grilled or baked in the oven (which my directions are for).  The chicken will cook for about 1 hour and 20 minutes OR until the thickest part of the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 180 degrees.

6) Use drippings to make a gravy that is out of this world. This won't be possible if the chicken is grilled.

Oven Roasted Cauliflower

Served with Paula Deen's Hobo Burgers

I recently had the opportunity to go to a Drunken Zumba party with my friend Erin. Yes, you read it right..a Drunken Zumba party. After a vigorous Zumba session, all the attendees joined together for alcoholic drinks and snacks. I stumbled onto this dish for roasted cauliflower and never left its' side! Poppin' the addicting lil morsels into my mouth at every turn! Add to it that it  is so easy to make that, in reality, it was the easiest part of my dinner that night. It will regularly become a part of my meals. Finicky Pat, who grumbled at it in the beginning of the meal, at EVERY scrap of it! I went heavier on the olive oil and pepper. I am not a fan of salt, so I went light on that. Pat and I ate the whole head of cauliflower between us!

It is 4 ingredients, so you can't really get simpler than that! So, I want to thank the host, Dolly, for a fun evening and a fantastic recipe!

So, here we go:

One head fresh cauliflower
Olive Oil to taste
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

Directions

1) Cut cauliflower head into tiny morsels and place into a bowl, as shown.

2) Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Place on a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray.

3) Cook in a 375 degree oven for about 45 minutes or until "soft". Stir two to 3 times during cooking time.

Captain's Siesta

I have been on a real Captain Morgan's kick lately. I had never had it before and stumbled upon it in a drink I had in a restaurant. From there I was trying to concoct new recipes with this stuff!

Now, most of the drinks I have seen or concocted had more of a Caribbean flare to them, but I am much more of a Mexican girl and love drinks that really have that flare of Mexican cooking to them. I do mucho Mexican cooking and love to "pair" drinks to them. This is one that I thought of.

So, here we go:

Ingredients:

2 oz Captain Morgans Spiced Rum
1 oz FRESH SQUEEZED Lime juice
1 Oz Sweet and Sour
1/2 oz Agave Nectar
Grapefruit Soda, such as 50/50

Directions:

1) Place ice in a tall glass or mason jar (for effect)
2) In a shaker, place a handful of ice, Captain Morgan's, lime juice, sweet and sour and agave nectar.
3) Shake for 60 seconds and pour into glass.
4) Top with soda and stir gently
5) Garnish as desired and serve!

Homemade Taco Helper

OK, I love the concept of Hamburger Helper, but for some reason, all the powders and lack of freshness just really gross me out. "Homemade" Hamburger Helper is "almost" just as easy to make, and taste so much better.

Here is my recipe for Taco Helper, but have many a variation under my recipe belt!

So, here we go...

Ingredients:

1 lb lean ground beef
1/2 cup green pepper, chopped
1/2 cup green onion, chopped
1 VERY SMALL jalapeno, finely chopped
1 t. jarred minced garlic
2 Tablespoons Chili Powder
¼ teaspoons Oregano
½ teaspoons Paprika
1.5 teaspoons Cumin
2 teaspoons Adobo Seasoning (see my favorite seasonings)
1 can (14.5 Oz. Size) Mexican Diced Tomatoes, DON'T DRAIN!
2 cups Beef Broth
8 ounces pasta of your choice. I like rigatoni because some of the beef works its' way into the center!
2 Tablespoons Butter
2 Tablespoons Flour
1 cup whole milk or half and half (you can do skim milk but it is disgusting...just sayin')
1 cup Mexican blend Cheese, Plus More For Topping
1 Tablespoon Sour Cream
Directions:

1) Brown ground beef with onion, green pepper, jalapeno, garlic in a large skillet. Drain well.

2) Stir in chili powder, red pepper flakes, oregano, paprika, cumin, Adobo. Cook for a minute, stirring constantly.

 3) Add the diced tomatoes, beef broth, and pasta. Bring to a boil. Cover pan and reduce heat, simmer for about 15 minutes or as long as it takes for your pasta to be al dente. IMPORTANT: Be sure to stir occasionally to keep it from sticking to the pan and to evenly cook your pasta.

4) While the mixture is simmering, melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk until well blended. Slowly add the milk or cream and bring to a low boil, reduce heat and add cheese. Immediately turn off the heat and whisk until cheese is melted.

5) Add the cheese sauce to your skillet. Stir to combine, stir in sour cream. Top with extra shredded cheese and cover to allow cheese to melt.

Tuscan Pasta with Tomato Basil Cream

Sometimes, my husband and I like to eat really light. Pasta partnered with a light tossed salad, we find is a really excellent way for us to go with this. I stumbled upon this one on Pinterest and was happy. It was unusual and I was able to pull some of the ingredients right out of my garden for extra freshness.

Now, I did make some adjustments to the recipe based on feedback from others who have wandered in to try it and this is what I came up with. All of it was gone by the end of the meal!

Just a note. I don't like a lot of sauce on my pasta so I doubled the ravioli. The original recipe calls for 1 bag of cheese ravioli. If you love your sauce, simply make the one bag!

Ingredients:

1  or 2  (20-oz.) package(s) refrigerated four-cheese ravioli

1 (16-oz.) jar sun-dried tomato Alfredo sauce

5 tablespoons white wine

2 medium-size fresh tomatoes, seeded and chopped

1/2 cup chopped fresh basil

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1.  Prepare pasta according to package directions.
2. Meanwhile, pour Alfredo sauce into a medium saucepan.
3. Pour wine into sauce jar; cover tightly, and shake well. Stir wine mixture into saucepan.
4. Stir in chopped tomatoes and 1/2 cup chopped basil, and cook over medium-low heat 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated.
5. Toss with pasta, and top evenly with 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese.

*1or 2  (13-oz.) package three-cheese tortellini may be substituted for ravioli .

Watermelon Sangria

I was surfing around somewhere, probably Pinterest, and saw a picture for Watermelon Sangria with no recipe. My mouth started watering as I love sangria, particularly on a hot summer day! So, I went exploring, but the only recipes I found were for vodka based sangrias and overpowered with watermelon, which weren't thrilling me...AT ALL. So, as usual, I went to concocting and this is whatI came up with. We all loved this drink!

Ingredients:

1 cup water

1/2 cup sugar

1 bottle white wine (medium/sweet)

1 cup brandy

1/3 cup lime juice

4 cup watermelon chopped

1/2 cup orange juice

1/2 cup Triple Sec

Fruits:

2 cups chopped watermelon

2 limes sliced

15 cherries

2 oranges

2 lemons

1 pint blueberries

Directions:

1) In a small sauce pan, bring sugar and water to a boil until sugar melts. This is the simple syrup. Set aside to cool.

2) In a one gallon container, pour wine, simple syrup, brandy, orange juice, Triple Sec

3) In a blender, blend 4 cups watermelon and lime juice. Pour into one gallon container.

4) Add the chopped fruit to the gallon container.

5) Place in refrigerator for 4-6 hours.

6) Serve over ice and with lots of the fruit. Along with a straw, I give a spoon to eat the fruit which has soaked up the drink!



Mexican Oven Baked Chicken

I think I have talked about my love of Mexican seasoning enough in this blog that people get that I love Latin flares to my cooking!

I was thinking of what I could make for dinner one night. I had taken out chicken thighs, but didn't want the same old, same old, so I came up with these. I must admit, they were pretty tasty!

Ingredients:

1 cup corn flake crumbs

2 T. Adobo Seasoning

1/2 T. Oregano

1T. Paprika

2 T. Cotija Cheese

6 Chicken Thighs

1 Stick Butter Melted

Directions:

1) In a Ziploc bag, combine corn flake crumbs, Adobo seasoning, oregano, paprika, cheese

2) Dip chicken in melted butter then shake in crumb mixture.

3) Place in a 9x13 pan. Drizzle remaining butter over chicken.

4) Bake in 350 degree oven approximately 45 minutes or until chicken is 180 degrees.



Grilled Hot Pads

I know when I throw these on the grill, Summertime is upon us (or at least in my mind). I first had Hot Pads by one of those shops that allow you to prepare and then freeze your meals. I had them prepare mine. The first day I had it, I couldn't believe I had paid $12 for a pan of food that I knew I could pull together for $6 when the brats were on sale, so I set to duplicate this incredibly easy recipe. I saw a similar recipe online and was dead on in what I had concocted.

So, here we go!

Ingredients:

6 Bratwurst

2 onions thinly sliced

6 T. BUTTER

1 T. Paula Deen House Seasoning

2 (12 oz) cans of beer

1 Aluminum pan

Directions:

1) Place onions in aluminum pan.

2) Top with brats, butter, PDHS.

3) Top with beer and cover with aluminum foil.

4) Grill over a hot grill for 1 to 1.5 hours.

5) Remove pan from grill. Remove brats from pan and place on grill. Allow to brown for 10 -15 minutes.

6) Serve with onions and sauce.



Scaloppine Al Limone

Adapted: Food.com

I love, love love chicken in lemon sauce. It is actually one of my favorite dishes and this recipe was SO simple. My husband really enjoyed it too. I served it with a simple side salad and it made a wonderful dish for a really warm day.

Ingredients:

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 t. Paula Deen House Seasonings
2 T Flour
1 T. Butter
1 T. Olive Oil
1/2 cup White Wine
1/2 cup Chicken Broth
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1 large egg, beaten
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice

Directions:

1) Flatten chicken breast and sprinkle with PDHS and dredge in flour.

2) Heat butter and oil over high heat. Add chicken and saute until brown. Flip sides and cook for 3 minutes more.

3) Remove chicken to a oven proof dish and place in warm oven (170 degrees).

4) Add wine to pan and scrape brown bits. Boil to reduce wine by one half. Add chicken broth to pan and return to boil.

5) In a small bowl, whisk egg and lemon juice together. Pour into simmering pan whisking constantly until sauce is smooth and thickened.

6) Return chicken and its' juices to pan and allow to simmer flipping at least once through cooking time. Allow chicken to cook until thoroughly cooked. This should take about 15 minutes. Add Chopped parsley.

Sorry for the color..the sun in my kitchen didn't want to cooperate!

7) Serve chicken with pasta. Spoon sauce over the chicken and pasta.

Agave Nectar Margarita

OK, anyone who knows me knows two things. First, I LOVE margaritas. We are not just talking about liking them, but a deep love and appreciation and think they should be celebrated in all forms! Second, in regards to margaritas, I loathe, loathe commercial margarita mix. I just find it to be one of the most disgusting food products! In addition, I don't think it celebrates the margarita. I developed this recipe so long ago, that I can't even remember what prompted me to think of Agave Nectar except maybe I read an article about it.

I must add when I make these at this point, I am making them by the pitcher and they double, triple and quadruple very easily!

Beware, these have alot of alcohol in them, but alot of juices too, so they sneak up on ya! Last time I made these for Cinco de Mayo, my son and husband each had 3, served in Mason jars, and were asleep for the night EARLY!!

Now, true story about this margarita. When our son was 21, we took him to his first liquor tasting to my favorite liquor store that did some really high quality events. I used events such as this to teach him regarding quality, "acquired taste" and celebration of alcohol in moderation vs the "lets get blitzed" mentality. This tasting happened to be for tequila. So, as we are trying the tequilas, my son announces to the group and the facilitator of the tasting that "my mom makes the best! margaritas!" The host then asked me about the margaritas and I told him how I make them. He seemed impressed. Me, you ask?  I wanted to crawl under a table!!

So, here we go:

Ingredients:

3 oz tequila of your choice (blanco or reposado)
1 oz FRESH lime juice
1 oz FRESH orange juice
1 oz Agave Nectar (look in the health food-ironic, isn't it- section of your food store)
1 oz Grand Marnier or Triple Sec
1.5 oz homemade sweet and sour mix or store bought ( I have done both and either work. If I am lazy, I use Mr.&Mrs. T.'s and it works fine)

Directions:

1) Salt rim of glass of your choice. I have served these in margarita glasses and mason jars. Just note with the mason jars it is about 1.5 to 2 drinks and these go down VERY smoothly! Fill with ice.

2) Place all ingredients in a shaker filled with ice and shake for no less than 60 seconds!

3) Pour into glass and garnish!

Tilapia Baked in Parchment with Tomatoes and Basil

One of my favorite new cookbooks that I have downloaded for free from Kindle has been Simple Easy Gourmet: Fish by Jenny Clark. Now, it is no longer on there so me thinks there is something "fishy" (bahahaha) going on here!

Any how, I loved the freshness and simpleness of this fish. To boot, it was easy to prepare and I was able to just whip it up..throw it in the oven and eat 20 minutes later. To make the prep really easy, I chopped the veggies earlier in the day and when I got home simply threw everything together! Pair it with rice and a veggie to complete your meal.

So, here we go!

Ingredients:

4 (4 oz) Tilapia fillets
4 T. BUTTER
1.5 t. jarred garlic or 3 cloves chopped
2 medium tomatoes, seeded and chopped
4 FRESH basil leaves, chopped
1/4 cup dry white whine
1 T. Paula Deen's House Seasoning

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees and tear off a 12x18 sheet of parchment paper.

2) Place fish on one half of the paper and then top with butter and then veggie mixture (garlic, tomatoes, basil). Pour wine over all. Finally, sprinkle with PDHS.

3) Fold parchment paper to seal. I use staples to make sure it is closed and place packet on a cookie sheet.

4) Bake in oven for 20 to 25 minutes and remove.

Crock Pot Steak Sandwiches



Adapted: Allrecipes.com and Happiness in a Pot Blogspot

One of the recipes I have come across on Pinterest is this awesome Crock Pot Steak Sandwich which has a beer/beef a jus. This was so tasty that my family ate the whole thing in one day. The smells emulating from my house when I got home were unbelievable. Best thing...dinner was done!! Literally, after I sliced the meat, I pulled out onions I had caramelized that morning, butter, my Paula Deen's House Seasoning and Provolone cheese. I threw the sandwiches together and popped them into the oven just to melt the cheese and heat up the onion. Yummers. I think I had 15 minutes of prep left. That is nothing and the sandwiches were restaurant quality!

So, here we go...

Ingredients

4 lbs. Rump Roast
2 T. Montreal Steak Seasoning
1 (10 oz) can Beef Broth
1 (10 oz) can French Onion Soup
1 (12 oz) bottle or canned beer ( I used Leinie's Amber)
6 French Rolls
Butter
Paula Deen's House Seasoning
Caramelized Onions (recipe follows)

Directions:

1) Sprinkle roast with steak seasoning. Meanwhile spray a large frying pan with cooking spray and brown roast on all sides.

2) Place roast in a 6 qt crock pot and pour all liquids around it. Set on low for 10 hours and forget about it!

3) Meanwhile, if desired, slice 2 onions and melt an additional half stick of butter in a frying pan. Place onions in pan and cook until browned and translucent. Mine normally take about 10 to 15 minutes to accomplish this. Sprinkle with Paula Deen's House Seasoning and set aside to cool or refrigerate until ready to use.

4) When roast is ready, remove from crock pot and allow a few minutes to cool. In the meantime, spread French Rolls with butter and lightly sprinkle with PDHS. Slice roast as desired and layer onto sandwiches. Top with onions and cheese. Place in 350 degree oven for approximately 10 minutes to allow cheese to melt.

5) Serve with little bowls of that wonderful au jus and chips. Dinner is done!

Paula Deen's Smothered Chicken

Last week, I had a week from HELL..don't know how else to describe it. Normally, I wouldn't do comfort food at this time of year, but I wanted some comfort food! So, naturally I turned to my Paula Deen Southern Cooking Bible cookbook and came across her recipe for smothered chicken that didn't look too bad if I ate little gravy and chicken. This dish was SO good and it cured my craving for comfort food. Also, made that week go from a boulder to a pebble in its' hellishness!

This dish has a thick, southern flare gravy. The chicken after being pan fried is then placed in the gravy to cook soaking up some of that gravy. My two boys inhaled the rest of the chicken and said it is one of their favorites out of this cookbook of hers. Now, I don't know about that..it was really, really tasty, but there are some that I definitely like better.

Now, as to be expected, I did make some changes because I though, as written, it could stand a bit more seasoning (Paula Deen's House Seasoning, of course!) so here we go!:

Ingredients:

1 cup all purpose flour
1 T Paula Deen's House Seasoning, divided
1 whole chicken (3 1/2 lbs) cut up
4 T. BUTTER!
1 small onion, chopped
1 small green, pepper, chopped
1 1/2 cups WHOLE milk (don't substitute!!)
1/2 cup water

Directions:

1) Place flour and 1 t. of PDHS in a Ziploc bag. Add chicken pieces one at a time. Shaking to coat. DON'T THROW THE FLOUR AWAY!

2) In the meantime, spray large frying pan with cooking spray and melt butter

3) Fry pieces and place in a warm oven to keep warm

4) In the skillet, cook onion and green pepper until translucent.

5) Add 3 T. of the reserved flour mixture and stir. Add remaining 2 t. of PDHS. Add milk slowly and whisk to ensure no flour clumps. Add 1/2 cup water slowly.

5) Return chicken to the pan, cover and simmer on low heat until chicken is tender. It took my chicken about 40 minutes, I think. Flip the chicken several times through out the cooking time to ensure no sticking. I also scraped the bottom to ensure no burning.

Chilpotle Lime Grilled Chicken

Served with Mexican Rice

I don't know why I thought up this chicken recipe. I was laying in bed one night desperately trying to get to sleep and the ingredients just started coming to me. Lucky for me, I remembered it when I woke up in the morning! I did some tweeks and Voila (hmmm, that can't be right!), here it is! This recipe has a sweetness to it while popping with some spiciness. I have to keep my spiciness to a minimum because of my husband. If a more spicy chicken is desired, throw in an extra chilpotle pepper and another tablespoon of Adobo Sauce!

So, here we go!

Ingredients

6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup Canola Oil
2 t. Adobo Seasoning (see my favorite seasonings)
3 T. FRESH lime juice
4 T Adobo Sauce with Chilpotle Peppers (chop one of the peppers and add to marinade)

1 t. oregano
1/2 large chopped onion
1 t. Agave nectar

Directions:

1) Place chicken breasts in a Ziploc bag and set aside.

2) Combine remaining ingredients in a bowl and pour over chicken.

3) Shake bag to ensure all breasts are covered with marinade and refrigerate for 8 hours

4) Grill as desired until chicken reaches internal temperature of 180 degrees. Serve with some lime wedges for extra lime taste!

The Captain's Corruption

I was recently in a restaurant and had a drink made with Captain Morgan's Spiced Rum, pineapple juice and Grenadine that I thought was sickly sweet. When I went home, I kept thinking about that drink and how could I make it better.

Be very careful..there is a ton of Captain Morgans that you can't taste. This drink will bite you in the rear if you drink too many!

So, here is what I came up with

Ingredients:

3 oz Captain Morgan's Spiced Rum
5 oz Pineapple juice
1 oz Blue Curacao
Sprite Topper

Directions:

1) Place ice in a shaker and add first 3 ingredients. Add additional ice into a tall glass

2) Shake drink for 60 seconds and pour into tall glass. Top with Sprite and stir gently.

3) Garnish with fresh pineapple and serve!