Brushetta Appetizer

I've been sick all week with strep throat, and I'm bored out of my mind. So, I started looking through the many, many pictures of food I have not yet put up on this blog, and these are the ones that happened to catch my eye. 

I actually made these on Sunday for my husband, but these pictures are probably from the summertime, when we had fresh tomatoes in our garden. 

I don't even know where this recipe comes from. (I mean, orignially, Italy probably? but I don't know exactly how it got to me). My mom made them for us a few times when I lived at home, and I think she told me how. No matter how these tasty little bites came to be in my recipe repertoire, my husband and I LOVE them, and I wanted to share.

First thing you need to do is get some kind of little bread slices to put your toppings on. We have always been able to find day old bread that is already sliced up at our neighborhood Smiths store. You could also buy a baguette or other similar-shaped bread, or make your own if you're feeling tricky! The most important things are to use appetizer-sized pieces and bread that isn't too soft; you want it a little crunchy.

Next, dice up some tomatoes, shred some mozzarella cheese, and find your Italian Seasoning or dried Basil in the spice cupboard (either or both will do).

Brush your bread with a little olive oil and lay them on a metal baking sheet, layer the tomato dices and then cheese on top, and sprinkle with Italian Seasoning or Basil. Broil in the oven for about 5 minutes, or until the cheese starts to brown.

Voila! Now you're ready to impress all your friends with your Italian appetizers.

Husband's Reaction: He tasted something like this at a wedding reception we went to once, and I thought, "Hey, I can make that!" So I did. And now he will love me forever! He seriously could probably eat these every day, but I like to keep them special and only make them once in a while.

Roasted Halloween Pumpkin Seeds

*from a recipe at Food.com

Ingredients:

• 
  1 1/2 cups pumpkin seeds
• 2 teaspoons melted butter (olive oil or vegetable oil work well) or 2teaspoons melted oil (olive oil or vegetable oil work well)
• salt (This is all I used)
• garlic powder (optional)
• cayenne pepper (optional)
• seasoning salt (optional)
• cajun seasoning (optional)

Directions:

1. 1
   Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
2. 2
   While it's OK to leave some strings and pulp on your seeds (it adds flavor) clean off any major chunks.
3. 3
   Toss pumpkin seeds in a bowl with the melted butter or oil and seasonings of your choice.
4. 4
   Spread pumpkin seeds in a single layer on baking sheet.
5. 5
   Bake for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden brown.
   
   
   YUM!!!!!
   
   Also, check out those pumpkins that these seeds came from. Can you guess which one I carved and which one was Danny's?

Toffee Crunch Grahams

*From a recipe on allrecipes.com*
Toffee Crunch Grahams:

Ingredients

• 12 whole graham crackers
• 1 1/2 cups butter (no substitutes)
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 cups sliced almonds (optional---because I am poor and can not afford such luxuries at this time)

Directions

1. Line a 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan with heavy-duty foil. Place graham crackers in pan. In a saucepan, combine butter and brown sugar bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Carefully pour over graham crackers. Sprinkle with almonds.
2. Bake at 400 degrees F for 4-6 minutes or until bubbly (watch them so they don't burn). Cool in pan for 4 minutes. Cut each cracker into four sections; transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

I cut this recipe in fourths (which means I used 3/4 of a cube of butter and 1/4 cup of brown sugar and about 3/4 pack of graham crackers), because it is completely unhealthy and two people do not need to have that much butter and sugar in one sitting. :) I was happy this recipe worked out so well. Just make sure the butter and sugar combine together when it is boiling. You don't want a layer of melted butter on top of the sugar (this is how it is before it begins boiling). 

Also, make sure you take the grahams out of the pan while they are still warm and malleable. I can just imagine trying to get hardened toffee grahams out of the pan later...impossible! 

These are addicting and terrible for you, so of course I'm putting this recipe on my blog! 

It was that kind of day today. :)

Husband's Reaction: "This is really sugary. They are really good!"

P.S. the little extra toffee pieces are so good. I didn't share many of those.

Potato Chip Chicken Nuggets

Potato Chip Chicken Fingers--From Lisa Summers' mother, Betty

1 whole boneless, skinless chicken breast---adjust amount depending on how many mouths you must feed

5 to 6 oz. potato chips (plain, sour cream and onion, barbecue, or sour cream---I used plain)

1 egg

2 Tbsp. milk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Cut chicken into finger-size pieces. Fill a large sealable plastic bag with potato chips and mash with wooden spoon. . . or your fist if you're feeling feisty.

In small bowl, whisk egg and milk. Dip chicken in egg mixture, then put in bag of potato chip crumbs. Shake to cover chicken. Place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, flipping once during cooking time. Serve with barbecue sauce or honey mustard. (or fry sauce: ketchup, mayo, and Worcestershire sauce mixture)

Husband's Reaction: "Nobody has ever made chicken nuggets for me that weren't frozen."
Me: "That's how you know that I love you more than anyone else, right?"
Husband: "Yes."

We had chicken nuggets, baked french fries, and mango slices for lunch. . . . like 2 months ago! I'm just barely posting it now, because I have not had time or energy to cook many new things lately. Plus, the heat makes it almost unbearable to even think about turning on our oven. Here is what our thermostat looked like two days ago around 7'o'clock p.m.:

I refuse to cook in such conditions! :) Don't worry, we cooled it down...eventually.

This recipe is a winner; it's easy, tastes good, fun, and Danny said it was way better than going out to eat and seemed to feel good that it was *a little* healthier than the fast food versions of the same meal.

Taquitos!

Chicken Taquitos

(10-12 taquitos, 3-4 servings)

Photo and recipe from: http://barefootandbaking.blogspot.com/2011/05/chicken-taquitos.html

3 oz cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup salsa (I used homemade, but use whatever you love)

1 T fresh squeezed lime juice

1 t chili powder

1/2 t cumin

1/2 t onion powder

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 T chopped cilantro

1-2 green onions, chopped

2 cups shredded chicken (about 1 1/2 chicken breasts)

1 cup shredded Mexican cheese (I used cheddar)

10-12 6-inch (fajita size) flour tortillas

cooking spray

kosher salt

1/2 can corn, drained (optional)**
1/2 can black beans, rinsed and drained (optional)**

Preheat oven to 425. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, or spray with cooking spray

In a large mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, salsa, lime juice, spices, cilantro, green onions, chicken and shredded cheese. Mix until well combined.

Briefly heat the tortillas until they are soft enough to roll easily. Place a tortilla on a work surface and fill with 2-3 Tablespoons of chicken mixture down the middle. Roll the tortilla tightly around the filling and place the taquito seam side down on the baking sheet. Repeat until all the tortillas are filled. Space them evenly on the baking sheet. Lightly spray the tops with cooking spray and then sprinkle with kosher salt. (This actually gives a great pop to these, so do not skip this step!)

Bake for 15-20 minutes, until crisp and golden brown. Serve with salsa, sour cream and guacamole, if desired

*To freeze for later use, transfer the baking sheet to the freezer and chill the assembled taquitos for 30-60 minutes. Then transfer them to a freezer safe container or storage bag for storing. To bake them from frozen, simply add a few minutes to the original baking time, until the filling is warmed through

**We made these again and added one can of black beans and a can of corn (both drained), omitted the cheese, left the chicken the same and doubled the cream cheese and spices and it made twice as many taquitos!  We didn't miss the cheese at all and LOVED the corn and beans in them!

I saw this on Pinterest.com and had to make them today! They were very easy. I used ground turkey instead of chicken and lemon juice instead of lime juice (it's what I had on hand), and added onions and green bell peppers to mine. I also cut bigger tortillas in half to keep my taquitos small. This was nice, because it looked like we had twice as much! 

Husband's Reaction: "Mmmm...these are good. Better than the kind you get at the store."

Mine got a little darker than the ones in the picture. I might bake them for less time next time. Also, I didn't add any corn or black beans, but I think that would taste good in these. And I would like to try them with chicken too. I think it would make it taste even better!

Homemade Chewy Granola Bars

Homemade Chewy Granola Bars-from allrecipes.com

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/3 cup peanut butter
• 1/4 cup corn syrup (I've tried using half honey or maple syrup and half corn syrup. Both worked well) 
• 1/4 cup butter, melted (I used oil instead of butter one time I made these...just use a little less if you use oil)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups quick-cooking oats
• 1/4 cup sunflower kernels
• 1/4 cup raisins
• 3 tablespoons toasted wheat germ (never used this. I'm not even sure what it is!)
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• *Instead of using these last ingredients in red (because I never have any around the apartment), I usually throw in whatever crumbs are left in our cereal boxes or anything else that sounds like it would taste good in granola bars. If you leave out the last things, just put in a little extra oats or other dry ingredients so the bars aren't too soft.*

Directions

1. In a small mixing bowl, combine the brown sugar, peanut butter, corn syrup, butter and vanilla. Stir in the oats, sunflower kernels, raisins, wheat germ and sesame seeds. Fold in chocolate chips.
2. Press into an 8-in. square baking dish (It works in 8x11 pan well too. Might be fine in 9x13 as well, but bars will be thinner) coated with nonstick cooking spray. It's easiest to press in the pan if your hands are a little wet. Then the gooey mixture won't stick to them. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15-
3. 20 minutes (I usually do 18 minutes) or until set and edges are browned. Cool completely. Cut into bars.

*If you triple this recipe it fits in a sheet pan. And, trust me, the more you make the better!

Footnotes

• Editor's Note: These granola bars are best if allowed to stand, covered, for 1 day before serving.
• Nutritional Analysis: One bar equals 239 calories, 12 g fat (5 g saturated fat), 10 mg cholesterol, 102 mg sodium, 31 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 5 g protein.
  
  
  I was literally dancing around the kitchen licking the spoon after putting these together and in the oven. I couldn't wait to try the finished product, because my little preview tastes were so so good. I love oatmeal, and I've been craving granola bars (am I weird?) So this recipe COMPLETELY hit the spot.
  
  
  Husband's Reaction: Well, he's eaten probably 20 bars by now, so I'm pretty sure he loves them as much as I do. :) He seemed a little sad when he found out I ate the last one yesterday.

Sweet and Spicy Popcorn

Sweet and Spicy Popcorn-From a recipe on allrecipes.com

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• dash cayenne pepper  this was in the original recipe, but I didn't use it
• 6 cups plain popped popcorn

Directions

1. Place sugar, chili powder, cinnamon, salt and cayenne pepper in a zip-type plastic bag or other 2-qt. airtight container. Mix. Add popcorn. Spray popcorn with nonstick cooking spray. Close bag and shake. Repeat one or two times until popcorn is coated.

Husband's Reaction: "Ah! This is spicy! That can be your popcorn. I didn't like it."


I admit, this popcorn is not for everyone. I'm pretty sure my dad would hate it. But my little brother would adore it! If you're the kind of person who likes spicy-sweet, then this popcorn is for you! (I'm eating some right now...husband is still at work, so it's the perfect time!)