Lemon-Poppy Seed Cake

I made this for Easter and it was so yummy. Too many desserts @ the Bartlett Easter that not a whole lot of it got eaten so I ended up eating most of it haha!

Lemon-Poppy Seed Cake
Makes 16 servings

1 Box Betty Crocker SuperMoist Lemon Cake Mix
1 Cup Water
1/2 Cup Olive Oil
3 Eggs
2 Tablespoons Poppy Seed
1/2 Cup Betty Crocker Rich & Creamy Lemon Frosting

1. Heat oven to 325*F. Grease and flour 12-cup fluted tube cake pan, or spray with baking spray with flour.

2. In large bowl, beat cake mix, water, oil and eggs with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes. Stir poppy seeds into batter. Pour into pan.

3. Bake 38-42 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 15 minutes; turn upside down onto heatproof serving plate. Remove pan; cool cake completely, about 1 hour. Store loosely covered.

4. In microwavable bowl, microwave frosting uncovered on Medium 15 seconds. Spread over top of cake (I used a knife and drizzled it on so it looked nicer), allowing some to drizzle down the sides. Store loosely covered.

Skillet Rosemary Chicken

Here's the new recipe that we tried tonight. We are venturing out of the normal recipes. We bought a bunch of books and marked up the pages. Now we are trying new things and passing the recipes on!

Skillet Rosemary Chicken
Active Time: 20 Min
Total Time: 40 Min
Serves: 4

3/4 Pound Small Red Potatoes, halved, or quartered if large
Sea Salt
2 Sprigs Rosemary, plus 1 Tablespoon leaves
1 Clove Garlic, Smashed (I used already chopped up garlic)
Pinch of Red Pepper Flakes
Juice of 2 Lemons (save the squeezed halves)
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
4 Skin-on, bone-in chicken breasts (I used 8 chicken breasts boneless no skin)
1 Package of Mushrooms (I used two packages)


1. Preheat the oven to 450*. Cover the potatoes with cold water in a saucepan and salt the water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until tender, about 8 minutes; drain and set aside.

2. Pile the rosemary leaves, garlic, 2 teaspoons salt and the red pepper flakes on a cutting board, then mince and mash into a paste using a large knife. Transfer the paste to a bowl. Stir in the juice of 1 lemon and the olive oil. Add the chicken and turn to coat. (I didn't have the patience to make it into paste so I got as close as I could)

3. Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken, skin-side down, cover and cook until the skin browns, about 5 minutes. Turn the chicken; add the mushrooms and potatoes to the skillet and drizzle with the juice of the remaining lemon. Add the rosemary sprigs and the squeezed lemon halves to the skillet; transfer to the oven and roast, uncovered, until the chicken is cooked through and the skin is crisp, 20-25 minutes.

Montel Williams Sweet Green Smoothie

This mornings Smoothie....

Montel Williams Sweet Green Smoothie

2 Ripe Organic Bananas, peeled
1 Large Organic Orange, peeled leaving pith and seeds intact
1 Organic Mango, skinned (I use frozen mango pieces)
1 Tablespoon Light Agave Nectar
2 Heads of Dark Green Organic Romaine Lettuce, washed
Purified Water
Pinch of Sea Salt

Preparation
Put everything into the blender, fill with water and blend. Serve immediately. Smoothie will keep for a few days in the fridge.

Chicken and Dumplings with Veggies

I got this recipe from The Oregonian This Week (Food Day). I made it in the crockpot the first time and the second time in a pot on the stove. This recipe says to make it in a Dutch Oven but I don't have one. It turned out great both ways however, if you make it in the crockpot you will need to transfer it to a pot on the stove in order to bring it to a boil so the dumplings will cook.

Here's the article and the recipe.

This dish is essentially chicken with gravy and biscuits, which means almost any veggies would taste good in it. Use the veggies in this recipe as suggestions and add, delete or change however you see fit.

Chicken and Dumplings with Veggies
Makes 4-6 Servings

Chicken:
1/4 Cup Unsalted Butter (1/2 Stick)
3/4 Cup All-Purpose Flour
5 Cups Chicken Broth
Salt and freshly ground black pepper (I just used regular pepper)
2 Large Carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces (I used Frozen Veggie Mix with Corn, Carrots and Peas the second time I made it...much faster)
2 Cups Peeled and Cubed (1/2 inch) butternut or other winter squash (I skipped this)
2 Cups diced, boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts, or cooked diced or shredded chicken (I just cooked a whole chicken in the oven)
1 Cup Peas, or small broccoli or cauliflower florets

Dumplings:
1 1/2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
1 1/2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
1 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
1 Tablespoon Chopped Fresh Parsley or Dill (Optional)
2 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter, cut into pieces
1/2 Cup Milk

To Make Chicken: Melt the butter in a Dutch oven set over medium-high heat. Stir in the flour and cook for about 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the broth, a little at a time, letting the roux absorb the liquid and become smooth before adding more. Season with salt and pepper to taste, then add the carrots and squash. If using uncooked chicken and broccoli or cauliflower, add it now (if using cooked chicken or peas add it later). Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes while you make the dumplings.

To Make Dumplings: Place flour, baking powder, salt and herb if using, in the bowl of a food processor (I used my hand mixer); pulse to combine. Add butter and pulse until reduced to tiny pieces. Add milk, pulse to combine. Gather dough into a ball and pinch off chunks the size of a golf ball and roll into balls.

Remove the lid from the pot, stir and then add the dumplings, spacing then evenly. Cover pot and cook, without peeking, for 15 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center of the dumplings comes out clean. If using peas and cooked chicken, stir them in now and continue simmering until they're heated through (I add the peas and chicken right before the dumplings).

My Cousin Tina's Thai Red Curry Chicken

Thai Red Curry Chicken
*This is meant to be spicy

2 T Olive Oil
1 lb Boneless Chicken Breasts, cubed or cut into strips
1 Tbsp Thai Red Curry Paste – A Taste of Thai (I used Thai Kitchen Curry Paste in a jar)
1 C Zucchini sliced
1 Red Bell Pepper seeded and sliced
1 Green Pepper seeded and sliced
½ C Carrots sliced
1 onion, quartered and halved
1 Tbsp Cornstarch
1 14-oz Can Light Coconut Milk
2 Tbsp Cilantro Fresh, chopped

Directions:
1) Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add chicken pieces. Cook and stir for about 3 minutes, until almost all pink is gone.

2) Mix in the veggies and continue to stir fry, about 5 minutes. Veggies should start to soften.

3) Stir in the Curry Paste

4) Dissolve the cornstarch in the coconut milk.
a. I also add 2 T sugar
b. A dash of pepper
c. A few squirts of lime juice
d. 3 cloves of fresh garlic (I used already chopped garlic)

5) Pour the milk mixture into the meat and veggies. Stir fry an additional 1-3 minutes, until the sauce is warm.

6) Add the fresh cilantro right before pulling off the stove.

Other things you can add:
1. Potatoes
2. Squash
3. Mushrooms
4. Yellow and Orange Peppers

**I like to add extra of everything so that way we have leftovers. I put in probably 2 cups of carrots! I made mine in my wok pan since it's huge and can hold more. This recipe is VERY yummy!

Special Thank You to my cousin Tina for sharing it!!

Kourtney Kardashian's Steel Cut Oatmeal

This is what we had for breakfast this morning! It's VERY yummy. I didn't think that I would like it but I love oatmeal and now I love this. It's super simple to make but takes roughly 35 minutes to cook. If you want to eat it on a school day or work day you'd have to put it on right when you get up. Because we both work from home most of the time we can make it more often.

I also have a recipe for steel cut oatmeal I believe in a crockpot...I will post that recipe if it is.

Kourtney Kardashian's Steel Cut Oatmeal
1 Serving

1/4 Cup Irish Steel Cut Oats (I bought a bag of Bob's Red Mill at I think Safeway or Fred Meyer)
1 Cup Light Soy Milk (I use Plain Unsweetened Almond Milk)
1 Teaspoon Raw Honey

Directions
Put milk in a pan, stir in the oats and honey, and heat on high. Once the mixture begins getting thick, turn down the heat and simmer about 35 minutes.


This makes a very small amount so if you want more double it. For Chad and I, I triple it so we have 3 servings. It seems like it takes longer to cook when you double or triple the recipe. I would just watch it though so it doesn't burn and I would stir it every so often.

I also add sliced almonds and blueberries and drizzle some honey on top. You could add whatever you'd like though.

The Plain Unsweetened Almond Milk is the boxed liquid stuff that you don't have to keep in the fridge before you use it...so I can stock up and keep in the pantry.

Saturday Morning's Smoothie

I made this smoothie this morning...no recipe just using what we had and it turned out great. So here's my recipe...I'm going to call it Green Pineapple.

Green Pineapple

2 Handfuls of Raw Spinich
Roughly 2 slices of Fresh Pineapple - I cut it into pieces and it was about 8-10 pieces
1 1/2 Tablespoons of Vanilla Protein Powder
1 Tablespoon Coconut Oil
Roughly 10 Walnuts (more if you want)
1 1/2 Cups Water

7 Ice Cubes (you can add more if you like)

Put everything in the blender and mix. Makes 2 Glasses Full

This smoothie kind of tastes like a pina-colada. You don't really taste the spinich.


***I usually make more if it's a smoothie Chad likes and then I put the remainder in a jar and put into the fridge for later. With this one I put the second glass into a jar for later.***