Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic

My Mom's Recipe:

2 (3-pound) whole chickens (I used 1 chicken already cut up--why mess with a whole one.  So the rest of the recipe is aleady cut in half.  You could also make it with boneless breasts, I think that would also be very good )

1 Tablespoon butter
1 Tablespoon EVOO
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
20-30 cloves of garlic, peeled
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup white wine

French bread, sliced diagonally or Italian sliced bread - toasted
Chopped fresh parsley for garnish (optional)

Remove skin from chicken pieces.  Rinse chicken with cold water and pat dry.  Trim excess fat.  Combine butter and oil in a 12" nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Sprinkle salt and pepper evenly over chicken then dredge in a little flour, shake off excess.  Add chicken to skillet, cook about 2 minutes on each side till golden.  Remove chicken from pan; keep warm. 

Reduce heat to medium.  Add garlic; cook 1 minute or until garlic begins to brown, stirring frequently.  Arrange chicken on top of garlic.  Add broth and wine; cover and cook 25 minutes or more until chicken is done.

Remove chicken from skillet; keep warm.  Increase heat to medium-high; cook 10 minutes or until liquid is reduced and thickened.  Serve sauce and garlic with chicken and toasted bread.  Spread the cooked garlic cloves on the bread....delicious.   Serves 4 people.

Southern Pork Chops Dinner

1. Slow cooker BBQ pork chops
2. Salad with mixed greens, pears, glazed walnuts, goat cheese and blueberry vinaigrette
3. Baked sweet potatoes with all the fixins
4. Grands biscuits
5. Baby lima beans

Butternut Squash Carbonara

This looks amazing! I can't wait to try it! Courtesy of: http://closetcooking.blogspot.com/

Ingredients:
1/2 pound pasta
6 slices bacon (cut into 1 inch slices)
2 cups squash (cut into small pieces)
1 clove garlic (chopped)
1 tablespoon sage (chopped)
pepper to taste
2 egg yolks
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1/4 cup parmigiano reggiano

Directions:
1. Start cooking the pasta.
2. Fry the bacon in a pan.
3. Drain most of the fat from the pan but reserve some to cook the squash.
4. Add the squash, garlic, sage and pepper and toss to coat in the bacon grease.
5. Mix the egg yolk, heavy cream and parmigiano reggiano in a bowl.
6. Drain the cooked pasta reserving some of the water.
7. Add the pasta to the pan and toss.
8. Remove the pan from the heat and wait for the sizzling to stop.
9. Add the egg mixture and toss to coat.
10. Add a bit of the pasta water and toss to mix and coat.
11. Garnish with more sage & serve.

Fresh Citrus Cupcakes

Ingredients

Cupcakes:

* 1 French Vanilla cake mix
* 2 TBSP orange juice
* 2 TBSP orange zest

Orange Buttercream:

* 1/2 cup butter, softened
* 1 (3-oz.) package cream cheese, softened
* 1 tablespoon orange zest
* 1 (16-oz.) package powdered sugar
* 2 tablespoons milk
* 2 tablespoons fresh orange juice

Cupcakes:
Preheat oven to 350. Grease small cupcake tin. Prepare cake mix as directed, substituting 2 TBSP orange juice for 2 TBSP water. Add 1/2 of orange zest. Fill each hole small cupcake pans halfway. Bake at 350 for 13-15 minutes. Allow to cool in tins for 6 minutes. Remove from tins, place on cooling rack until completely cool.


Orange Buttercream:

1. Beat first 3 ingredients at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy.

2. Gradually add powdered sugar alternately with 1 Tbsp. milk and orange juice, beating at low speed until blended and smooth after each addition.

3. If desired, beat in remaining 1 Tbsp. milk, 1 tsp. at a time, until desired consistency.

Makes 72 mini cupcakes.

Salted Caramel Buttercream

Ingredients:

* 1/2 cup butter, softened
* 1 (3-oz.) package cream cheese, softened
* 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
* 1 (16-oz.) package powdered sugar
* 3 tablespoons milk
* 15 caramels
* 1 tablespoon milk

Preparation:

1. Beat first 4 ingredients at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy.

2. Gradually add powdered sugar alternately with 3 Tbsp. milk, beating at low speed until blended and smooth after each addition.

3. Melt caramels with 1 Tbsp. milk in a small microwave-safe bowl at HIGH 1 minute or until smooth, stirring at 30-second intervals. Fold caramel mixture into buttercream, creating swirls. (Do not completely blend.)

Slow Cooker BBQ Pork Chops

Ingredients:

* 6 to 8 pork chops
* 1 onion, chopped
* 1 1/2 cups Heinz ketchup
* 1 cup vinegar
* 1/2 cup chopped onion
* 2 small cloves garlic, minced
* 2 teaspoons salt
* 1/2 teaspoon pepper
* 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
* few dashes hot pepper sauce or ground cayenne pepper
* 1/4 c. brown sugar


Sprinkle pork chops with salt and pepper and brown on both sides with vegetable oil. Chop onions. Stir remaining ingredients in crock pot until incorporated. Arrange pork chops in crock pot and cover with onions and sauce. Cover and cook on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours.

Pan Roasted Beef Delmonico with Sweet Green Peppercorn Sauce and Browned Vegetables

Ingredients

* 3 tablespoons green peppercorns
* 1 tablespoon Champagne vinegar
* 3 tablespoons olive oil
* 3 tablespoons honey
* Fresh tarragon sprigs
* 6 beef Delmonico steaks, with bone
* Salt and freshly cracked black pepper
* 1 tablespoons vegetable oil
* 3 tablespoons butter
* 1 bay leaf
* Chopped shallots
* Baby vegetables

Directions

For the vinaigrette, drain and roughly chop the green peppercorns. Place them in a steel mixing bowl with the vinegar. Whisk in the olive oil, and then the honey. Place the mixture in a small sauce pot with the tarragon and warm over medium heat. Do not boil. Cook for about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and cool.

For the steaks, season heavily with salt and fresh cracked pepper. Warm 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a heavy bottom pan. Pan sear the steak on each side for about 4 minutes. Add 3 tablespoons whole butter, 1 bay leaf and chopped shallots to the pan and baste the steaks with the browning butter. Remove the pan once the steaks are at the desired temperature.

For the vegetables, peel and then cut (if necessary) the vegetables to similar sizes. In a heavy bottomed skillet gently brown the vegetables until golden brown and tender. Season with salt and pepper.

To serve place the steak on a large dinner plate. Add some of the vegetables, and finally, spoon some of the vinaigrette over the beef and vegetables. Serve immediately.

Borrowed from: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tasting-napa/pan-roasted-beef-delmonico-with-sweet-green-peppercorn-sauce-and-browned-vegetables-recipe/index.html

Jolene's Chinese Dumplings

Filling:
1 lb ground pork
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 c. green onions, chopped
1 c. chopped cabbage
1 egg
approx. 1/2 cup soy sauce


wonton wrappers

Place one spoonful of filling in center of wonton wrapper. Wet circumference of wrapper and fold to match edges, making sure that edges are sealed completely. Cinch the edges of dumplings.

Boil dumplings in water until cooked through (approx. 7 minutes). If desired, pan fry dumplings in canola oil.

Serve with dumpling sauce (soy sauce, ketchup, sugar, red wine vinegar, minced garlic, pepper).

Aunt Marion's Pizza

2 Fresh pre-cooked pizza shells
Garlic Salt
Dried oregano
Dried basil
olive oil
1 jar DelGrosso pizza sauce
1/2 lb sliced brick cheese
1 green pepper, chopped into bite-sized pieces
1 yellow onion, chopped into bite-sized pieces
1 can sliced mushrooms
pepperoni
sliced black olives
sliced green olives
parmesan cheese

Saute peppers, onions and mushrooms
Drizzle olive oil on pizza shells
Sprinkle shells with garlic salt and spread with hand
Spread approx. 1/2 jar pizza sauce on each shell
Place slices of cheese on pizza to completely cover sauce
Build pizza by layering the remaining ingredients in the following order:
sauteed vegetables
pepperoni
olives
parmesan cheese
garlic salt, oregano and basil

Sara's Sloppy Joes

1 lb. Ground Beef
1 c. Ketchup
1/2 c. Mustard
1/2 c. Brown sugar

Saute ground beef until it begins to brown. Add ketchup, mustard and brown sugar. Play with the amounts of each - doesn't have to be exact. Simmer together until beef is cooked all the way through.

Lemony Orange Roughy

Orange Roughy fillets
Lemon olive oil
2TBS Butter
Unseasoned breadcrumbs
Salt, pepper, spices and herbs

Place fillets in baking dish. Drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle fish generously with salt, pepper and breadcrumbs. Season with spices of your selection (I used garlic salt, paprika, a little basil and oregano). Place slices of butter on top of fish. Cook as directed by butcher (depends upon thickness and number of fillets - I baked 2 fillets on 350 for 20 minutes).

Light and Lemony Orange Roughy

Delicious light and fresh meal!

Lemony Orange Roughy
Lemony Avocado
Lemon Asparagus
Pear Salad
Italian Bread, sliced

Yum!