"I ATE THE BONES...I ATE THE BONES..."

Sorry for the long 4 month hiatus... It isn't that we didn't have some great food and great times in between now and then. 

Life was just busy!

But I am back! 

And with a finger licking good recipe...

I was a little skeptical when my Mother-in-Law first gave us this recipe. I really didn't think I could replicate the famous not so great for you KFC chicken. But I am here to say and I still can hardly believe it, but it did taste just like it. The best part was not loosing the flavor when you pealed away the slimy skin, because there isn't any skin on this chicken.

One change I would make for next time I think, is to omit the butter and just spray the pan with cooking spray. I ended up needing 2 pans when I made this, so the second pan got a coating of cooking spray. The chicken in the second pan turned out with a crisper crust and didn't loose as much seasoning in the turning process.

Baked Fried Chicken

2-3 lbs thawed chicken breast tenderloin strips

Milk

1/2 stick of butter

1/2 tsp salt

1 T seasoning all 

3/4 tsp pepper

2 tsp paprika

1 cup flour

1. Place thawed chicken into a bowl of milk and let soak for 20-30 minutes

2. Pre-Heat oven to 400 degrees. 

3. Melt butter in 9x13 pan

4. Spread butter around the bottom of the pan, Lightly spray the pan if needed to make sure that there are no dry spots

5. Combine spices and flour either in a bowl or ziploc bag

6. Shake off excess milk and dip/shake chicken in seasoning mixture and place in pan

7. Bake for 20 min. Turn chicken and cook for 20 more or until cooked through.

Yummy Nummies...

Mr. J-man needed to take snack to school today. I have loved providing snack this year, because I can make/bake the snack! That was one thing I looked forward to doing for my kids when they got into school. Once he starts Kindergarten I won't be able to make treats, because unfortunately in our school system homemade snacks are not allowed.

When I was making this snack mix, my house smelled like I was baking cinnamon rolls. It was like heaven! The perks of this recipe are that you can use whatever cereal you have on hand and it is all done in the microwave.

Cinnamon Snack Mix

(adapted from www.makeit-loveit.com)

• 8 cups popped popcorn
• 4 cups cereal (Chex, Cherrios, Kix, whatever you have on hand)
• 6 Tbsp butter, melted
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

Directions:

Combine popcorn and cereal in a large microwave bowl.  Melt butter and then drizzle evenly over popcorn/cereal mixture.  Then sprinkle sugar and cinnamon evenly over top, tossing and stirring as you go.  Then, place the bowl in the microwave for one minute and then remove and stir.  Then, microwave for 30 seconds, remove, stir again, microwave for 30 seconds more, and then stir once more.  Then evenly spread on wax paper and let cool.

For the Popcorn, I pop it in the microwave using the blow-your-mind-microwave-popcorn technique! 

And for those wondering... here's our menu

Monday- Spaghetti

Tuesday- Omelets

Wednesday- Swedish Meatballs

Thursday- Chicken Noodle Soup

MPM- meal planning monday

Here's what's cookin' in Mi Casa...

Monday- Hot Beef Sandwiches with Mashed Tatos
Tuesday- Eat Out
Wednesday- Lund Po'Chops (crock pot meal)
Thursday- Burgers and Potatoes
Friday- Omelets 

Meal Planning

Monday- Tater Tot Casserole

Tuesday- Tuna and Noodles

Wednesday- Eating out

Thursday- Burgers on the grill!!!

Friday- Subs

A sneak peak at our easter fun...

Brownie Peanut Butter Pie

 With Spring Break last week, the days flew by. So, I apologize for not getting this recipe posted Tuesday like I promised. But hey better late than never, right?!

 

When I saw the recipe for Fudge Brownie Peanut Butter Pie at justapinch, I knew it would be perfect to try on National "Pi"e day! The original recipe says the pie has 8 servings, but this is such a rich pie that we ended up with 16 pieces of pie. Also, we discovered that a sliced banana was a great compliment to this pie.

Ingredients

1 box fudge brownie mix

1 pkg deep dish frozen pie crust

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 pkg (8oz) cream cheese

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 small tub of whipped topping

Directions

-Mix brownie mix according to directions on box. Spread 1/2 cup of the mix into one thawed pie crust ( you can always make brownies with the rest). 

-Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes or until crust is golden brown and brownie is set. 

-While cooling, mix the cream cheese (best mixes if cheese softened to room temp.) with the powdered sugar. Mix until creamy then mix in the peanut butter until well blended. 

-Mix in 1/2 of the tub of whipped topping until well blended. 

-Spread the mixture into the crust when it is completely cooled. 

-Spread the remaining whipped topping over the filling and if you wish you can top it with miniature peanut butter cups. 

-Refrigerate for at least an hour and enjoy. 

 

 

 

MPM

Our Menu...

Monday- Million Dollar Spaghetti
Tuesday- Oven Baked Tacos
Wednesday- Dinner at Church
Thursday- OMG Chicken
Friday- French Toast Casserole
Saturday- Chili
Sunday- Lunch:
              Dinner: Cheese and Cracker Party


Preview of tomorrow... How we celebrated National "Pi"e day!

Monster Cheesecake Brownies

Friday was National Peanut Butter day, so I thought I should finally share with you this wonderful creation. I had made some monster cookie dough dip and surprisingly, I did not care for it.

Unfortunately, it sat in my fridge for about a week before I came up with the brilliant idea to use the dip on top of brownies. What a genius idea! What could be better than brownies, peanut butter, chocolate, and m&ms?

Mix up your brownie mix and put in pan, then drop spoonfuls of Monster Cookie Dough Dip on the top. I only used about half of the monster cookie dough dip on top.

I used the brownie recipe on the side of my cocoa tub. But you could just use a box mix or your favorite brownie recipe. 



Monster Cookie Dough Dip - (I would just mix up half a batch!)

Ingredients

• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• ½ cup butter, slightly softened
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 3 Tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 ½ cups rolled oats, old fashioned or quick (see Note)
• 2/3 cup plain M&Ms (give or take)
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

1. With a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat the cream cheese, butter, and peanut butter until smooth.
2. Add in the powdered sugar, brown sugar, flour, and vanilla.
3. Using the paddle attachment on your stand mixer or just a wooden spoon, mix in the oats. You may want to use more or less here. I really like the oats in it and a thicker dip so I added a lot. Remember that the dip will also firm up a bit in the fridge.
4. Add the M&Ms and chocolate chips.
5. Store in the refrigerator until serving. Serve with pretzels, graham crackers, or apple slices. You can dip or spread this depending on how thick you made your dip. Try not to eat it all like I did!
6. Note: You can use more or less oats to adjust the thickness of your dip. Start with about 1 1/2 cups oats and keep adding until you reach your desired thickness. If you use quick oats you might use less since it's finer and will make the dough thicker.

Toll-House Brownies

Ingredients:
1 2/3 cups of Granulated Sugar
3/4 cup (1 and 1/2 sticks) Butter, melted

 

2 tablespoons water
2 large eggs

2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
1 1/3 cup All-Purpose Flour
1/2 Teaspoon Baking Powder
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
3/4 Cup Nestle Toll House Baking Cocoa 

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
Grease a 9 x 13 baking dish

Combine the sugar, water, and butter in a bowl.
Add in the eggs and vanilla extract

In a separate bowl, combine the Flour, Cocoa, Baking Powder, and Salt.

Slowly add this to the sugar mixture.

Spread into the baking dish.

The recipe says bake at 350 degrees for 18-25 minute or until a toothpick comes out clean.
I have found it takes a little longer unless you like them super gooey!