22 Jul 2015

Easiest Homemade Chicken Pot Pie

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Easiest Homemade Chicken Pot Pie

I’ve mentioned already this month that we are on a very tight grocery budget so I’m making the most of it by using what I already have.  So, I was rummaging through my freezer – and for this meal I only needed to be 1 can of cream of chicken soup.  How effecient is that?

I love comfort food.  My mister finds that strange.  Do you love comfort food?  I’m talking about mostly foods that you can eat with a spoon: my Granny’s chicken and rice, pie, ice cream, macaroni and cheese, cereal, mashed potatoes, guacamole.  The list could go on.  My mister knows that I have a relationship with food because I’ll sit down on the couch with a big bowl in my hand and sometimes sigh as I dig into my favorite dessert or pasta goodness (I don’t do that as often but the relationship still exists.

The biscuits I used were leftover from a 4th of July cookout I went to.  I just saved some of the biscuits in the freezer and used them here.

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Easiest Homemade Chicken Pot Pie
Author: 
Recipe type: Main Dish
Cuisine: Southern
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 6
 
A homemade comfort food staple in short time
Ingredients
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 T unsalted butter
  • ½ bag of frozen mixed vegetables (no need to thaw)
  • 3 cups shredded chicken (I had some in the freezer)
  • 1 can cream of chicken soup
  • ½ cup whole milk
  • ½ cup sharp cheddar cheese
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 6 Leftover Joy the Baker biscuits
Instructions
  1. Saute your onions in the butter.
  2. Add the mixed vegetables and cook until thawed.
  3. Add everything else (not the biscuits) and stir until combined
  4. Pour into a shallow baking dish.
  5. Top with thawed biscuits.
  6. Bake for 15 minutes or until biscuits are warmed.
So, if you need a quick comfort food meal to put on the table in less than 30 minutes, here is one for you.

15 Jul 2015

Bourbon Glaze for Meat or Fish (and Book Review)

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Bourbon Glaze

You know those little samples of chicken with a toothpick stuck in them that you get from the fast food place in every mall across America…I gobble those up.  Well, I decided I wanted to make my own.

For Fathers Day, instead of going out and overpaying at every quality restaurant you go to – we usually decide to dine in and pick up good seafood from the counter at our local Whole Foods.  I decided I wanted to make my own bourbon glaze and boy did it ever satisfy.  I think I could drink the glaze – but instead chose to put it on fish – then put the leftovers on chicken for the next couple of weeks.

And, soon after that, I got the chance through Blogging for Books to review the book The Art of American Whiskey.  I found it interested because I know nothing about whiskey or bourbon except that the good stuff is made in KY or TN (usually).  This book told me the history of it through the art of it.  I loved learning how people made their craft and how they learned to live when prohibition hit our country and what brands are surviving and thriving today.

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Bourbon Glaze
Author: 
Recipe type: Sauce
Cuisine: American
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 1½ cups
 
This perfect glaze is a hint of spicy and sweet
Ingredients
  • ¾ cup bourbon of your choice
  • ⅔ cup dark brown sugar
  • 1-2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 T worcestershire sauce
  • 2 tsp honey
  • ½ tsp brown mustard
  • pinch of red pepper flakes
Instructions
  1. Combine everything in a small saucepan.
  2. Whisk together and bring it to a boil.
  3. Reduce the heat and simmer for about ten minutes until the glaze reduces.
  4. Pour over your fave meat or salmon
  5. This glaze is great on salmon, chicken, pork chops, ribs, etc.
 

29 Apr 2015

Low-Carb Ham and Cheese Quiche

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Low Carb Ham and Cheese Quiche

I always feel better when I eat low-carb, but it is such a difficult lifestyle to maintain.  When I eat too many carbs I always feel bloated and gain weight (mainly because I eat too much of the yummy bread of baked cheesy noodles – or cookies, cakes, brownies, etc).

These low-carb quiche are perfect for this lifestyle, but also are really quick to cook up one day and have for the rest of the week.  My kids were downing the ham as I was assembling them so they would most likely be kid friendly too.  And you can just pop them in the microwave as you head to school, work, or to the gym.

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Low Carb Ham and Cheese Quiche
Author: 
Recipe type: Brunch
Cuisine: Eggs
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 11 Quiches
 
Ham is your quiche crust and a veggie filled scrambled egg center. These are low carb and very tasty.
Ingredients
  • 22 thin style deli ham (get a saltier ham, not a sweeter ham)
  • 5 eggs
  • ¼ cup shredded sharp cheddar (jack cheese would be good too)
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • ½ cup finely diced veggies (I used carrots and orange bell pepper)
  • salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350.
  2. Spray muffin pans (I made 11 muffins)
  3. Lay out your ham slices as a "cupcake liner" in your muffin tins. I put two per tin.
  4. Mix up your egg filling mixture.
  5. Pour in each muffin tin about ¾ of the way full.
  6. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until egg mixture is set.
  7. Enjoy!
 

20 Apr 2015

This Week in the Charming South Kitchen

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Pink Ombre Cupcakes

I’ve actually made a full menu this week and I’m trying not to eat out as much (especially with the boys).  I’ve also done some things prior to menu planning in order to help us save money.

1.  Start with my freezer.  Since it is my smallest place for food, I don’t like to let it get too crowded (maybe in a few more years I’ll have room for a deep freezer).  Then I plugged in some ingredients into Pinterest and came up with a few meals.

2.  I made a shelf in my pantry for all the items I will need this week.  That will help to ensure I have everything I need and also help in time management.  It is much easier to look on one shelf than 5 shelves, especially with two toddlers wanting to help.

English Muffin Pizzas (Little Chef recipe coming soon)

Chili (freezer meal) and spoon bread

Vietnamese Chicken Salad.  Good thing about this salad is the one thing I needed to buy was some of the produce.  I love having a diversely-stocked pantry and spice cabinet

Fusili pasta with veggie sauce

Oreo Brownies with homemade chocolate sauce and homemade caramel sauce and whipped cream (for a grill out with friends)

Broccoli Chicken Potato bake

TJ Orange Chicken with rice and sugar snap peas

Berry muffin pancakes

Orange Currant muffins

What are you making this week?

13 Apr 2015

This Week in the Charming South Kitchen

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IMG_6020

This is a bit of a different week for us, but I still always want to be about using my creative nature in the kitchen for my family and others.

And lest you think I always cook, the drive-thru ladies at our neighborhood McDonalds and the guy at Wendy’s know us!  And our boys love making them laugh and saying hello!

A pound cake for a special person and a guest coming over (real whipped cream on the way, folks)

Chicken salad with croissants

Carrot Ginger Soup (bc I want comfort food when its supposed to rain all week – where’s the sun?)

 

10 Apr 2015

Dark Chocolate Pecan Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies

by | posted in: chocolate, food, north carolina, The Charming South Kitchen | 0

Dark Chocolate Pecan Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies

I didn’t grow up on homemade cookies.  The closest we got were a couple of Christmas goodies I remember my Mom training me to bake and Publix cookies.  Oreos were always my favorite and of course I was a Girl Scout so the peanut butter sandwich cookies were my favorite thin – now, it is the Thin Mints, hands down.

But, now, sometimes, I wake up thinking about chocolate chip cookies.  Who knows?  But, I woke up this morning thinking about cookies.  It was raining.  I have boys.  Friends were coming over.  No time to go to the store.  This is how these amazing cookies started.

A new friend gave me some toffee on a recent trip to the Triangle.  I had mini chips in the freezer.  My mom always stocks my pantry full of pecans, and I had bars of chocolate in my baking stash.

These are the perfect chewy consistency.  Nice and big but not too flat.  I tweaked a recipe and it turned out great.  I hope you enjoy!

Chewy Cookies

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Dark Chocolate Pecan Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies
Author: 
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: Cookies
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 24-30
 
These chewy chunky toffee cookies will be a crowd pleaser!
Ingredients
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • ¾ tsp sea salt
  • ¾ tsp baking soda
  • 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 cup sugar
  • ⅔ cup packed light brown sugar
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 2 eggs
  • Half cup each:
  • chopped toffee
  • mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • chopped milk chocolate
  • 1 cup chopped pecans
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 375. Lightly spray baking sheets.
  2. Combine dry ingredients and set aside.
  3. Cream together the butter and the sugars.
  4. Add eggs and vanilla.
  5. Add in the dry ingredients and stir together.
  6. Fold in the add-ins.
  7. Do not over mix
  8. I got 6 cookies per baking sheet - so these are pretty generous cookies.
  9. Bake for 12 minutes.
  10. Do not over bake.
  11. Let cool for 1-2 minutes and remove to a cooling rack. If you let them stay on the baking sheets, the toffee will stick to the pan.
 

10 Apr 2015

Cast Iron Macaroni and Cheese

by | posted in: food, The Charming South Kitchen, Uncategorized | 0

Cast Iron Macaroni and Cheese

My husband would quickly tell you that my favorite meal would either consist entirely of macaroni and cheese or maybe just throw a good medium steak topped with onion and mushrooms on the side for some more protein.

So, since my younger son is teething and longs for soft foods, I decided today would be the day to make some homemade cheesy goodness for their dinner – and to have as a side to some leftover bbq sliders for my husbands dinner.

 

 

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Cast Iron Macaroni and Cheese
Author: 
Recipe type: Main Dish
Cuisine: Pasta
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 6-8
 
Southern, baked, double the cheese, heavy cream - how delicious!
Ingredients
  • 1 box elbow pasta, cooked to al dente according to directions
  • ½ stick unsalted butter
  • ¼ cup flour
  • 1 T dijon mustard
  • salt and pepper
  • 1½ cup heavy cream
  • 1½ cup whole milk
  • 7 oz grated sharp white cheddar cheese
  • ¼ cup italian bread crumbs
  • 2 T cold unsalted butter
  • 2 oz shaved Parmesan cheese
Instructions
  1. Cook pasta according to directions. Cook with oil and salted water - so your pasta doesn't clump together.
  2. In a 10 inch cast iron skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add in flour and whisk together until no clumps remain.
  3. Add in milk and cream and spices.
  4. Add in sharp cheddar.
  5. When all is blended together, fold in pasta.
  6. When pasta is all coated, sprinkle on Italian bread crumbs.
  7. Cut the butter in tiny pieces and place on top of the pasta.
  8. Sprinkle on Parmesan cheese.
  9. Bake at 400 for about 20 minutes until cheese on top is melted and browned.
23 Mar 2015

This Week in the Charming South Kitchen

by | posted in: Uncategorized | 1

Spring Peep Cupcakes

We have a busy three weeks ahead of us.  There are two separate trips for us and Eric’s work, and Easter which is always busy for him, visitors coming in town, some art projects due.  Fun times.

Since I’m heading to the Carolinas this weekend with the boys, I want to make sure that the mister won’t starve while we are away.  So here’s what will be in the kitchen:

These with fresh blueberries instead of frozen.

Granola

Black bean and chicken enchiladas

Creamy chicken noodle soup

Breakfast sandwiches

 

16 Mar 2015

This Week in the Charming South Kitchen

by | posted in: food, The Charming South Kitchen | 0

Apple Peel

I have a love hate relationship with Pinterest and Instagram.

Pinterest gives me so many options but sometimes the recipes just aren’t any good. Then I’ve wasted a meal and may not even serve it to my family and resort then to pbj or cereal!

Instagram shows me lovely ways to style food and tells me what food days are coming – and I usually tend to bake or cook something that I don’t need.  But its fun!

We love brinner at our house and I have tons of eggs in the fridge.

I do love to bake with the boys and these will be a fun treat to have in the house.  I just can’t eat them all!

Love fish tacos.  Nothing beats grilled or fried mahi but we have swai so I will use it.

 

 

 

2 Mar 2015

This Week in the Charming South Kitchen

by | posted in: food, The Charming South Kitchen, Uncategorized | 0

Revolution Donuts

I still cook, I promise!  I just don’t post it on here because I have really found hardly any time for blogging!

So, since I still cook, thought I would show you what is going down in my kitchen this week.

Its been 4 years tomorrow that my Granny passed away.  So, I’m making her chicken and rice, her most famous meal, tomorrow.  We’ll see how it turns out.

Two orders of sweet potatoes coming up this week:

Sweet Potatoes with a delicious herb sauce

Sweet potatoes, sausage, and swiss chard – yummy pot when it gets colder again this week.

For breakfasts we have cereal, granola, fruit.

I want to try these this week and see if my boys go for them.

What are you cooking this week?