Jalapeño Popper Chicken

Jalapeño Popper Chicken

Awright, I love Jalapeño Poppers. I often buy them in the freezer section and make them for a little snack during those long days. So I when I stumbled upon this recipe .... Let's just say I was excited. When I stupidly forgot to buy chicken at the commissary, I braved dangerous, snow covered, icy roads just for some chicken to try this out. And I have no regrets. It was amazing. When the husband and I were finished eating, and I excitedly asked "What'dya think?" and he replied with a neutral "It was OK." ..... I think we may start to have marital problems. Boy has no taste buds, I swear. So, anyhow~

What You Need:

1/2 cup Panko

1 Egg

2oz Cream Cheese

1-2 Jalapeñno Peppers, seeds and ribs removed

2 tsp Canola Oil

1.5-2 tsp Taco Seasoning

1/4 cup Shredded Cheddar

2 Chicken Breasts

What You Do With It:

Preheat the oven to 375º. Place oven proof rack on rimmed baking dish. Spray with cooking spray.

In a small skillet over medium heat, combine panko and oil. Cook, stirring often, until panko is golden and crispy. Place in shallow dish or bowl. Add taco seasoning. 

In another bowl, beat egg. 

In a third bowl, combine cream cheese, cheddar and jalapeños. 

Using a knife, cut a pocket inside each chicken breast, or horizontally slice through center. Season chicken lightly with salt and pepper. Divide cream cheese mixture evenly between each breat. Use toothpicks to secure, if necessary. Dip chicken into egg mixture, then panko mixture. Make sure to coat completely. 

Bake on rake for 25-30 minutes, or until cooked through. 

Chef's Scribbles:

Despite my husbands lack of enthusiasm for this dish, I told him we were indeed going to have it again, and semi often, so he'd better like it. This is probably one of my favorite recipes, now. Its got a bit of everything I love; crunch, cream, kick, cheese... its just a good package all wrapped up in chicken and baked. <3 Hope you enjoy it, too!

Eggnog Truffles

Eggnog Tuffles

What You Need:

1lb white melting chocolate, divided

4oz cream cheese, softeneed

1/4 tsp rum extract

1/4 cup confectioners sugar

1/4 tsp nutmeg, plus extra for sprinkling

What to Do:

■ Melt 8oz of the chocolate according to package directions. beat cream cheese, sugar, nutmeg and extract in a large bowl until well blended and smooth. Add melted chocolate and mix well. Cover and refrigerate until firm. Shape into 24 (3/4 inch) balls. Place on wax paper covered tray. Refrigerate until ready to dip.

■ Coat only 12 at a time. Melt remaining 4oz chocolate in a small bowl in microwave for 1 1/2 minutes, stirring after 1 minute. Using fork, dip 1 truffle at a time. Tap fork to bowl to allow excess chocolate to drip off. Place on waxed tray. Cover bald spots with fork. Sprinkle with nutmeg.

■ Refrigerate 1 hour or until set. Stores truffles between layers of wax paper for up to 1 week.

Chef's Scribbles:

As far as using the fork to dip the balls (giggity?) it didn't work out so well. When trying to get the truffle off the fork, they tended to start breaking in half, and so a few of the truffles are a bit odd looking. Instead I used a spoon and a fork, and turned the truffle between them to allow the chocolate to drip before I put the truffle on the tray. 

I am not a fan of eggnog, and I find these things sinfully delicious. I have a favorite christmas dessert, now! :)

Slow Cooker Baked Potato Soup

Slow Cooker Baked Potato Soup

 

What You Need:

6 medium red potatoes

4 large garlic cloves, minced 

1/4 tsp salt 

4 tsp chicken bouillon cubes

1/2 cup flour

1 cup diced onion

1 bay leaf

5 cups water

4 tbs butter

1 cup milk

salt and pepper to taste

green onion, cheese, sour cream, bacon bits for toppings

What to Do With It:

Microwave onions (or saute in pan) until soft. Add onion, potatoes, garlic, leaf, salt, water and bouillon to slow cooker. Cover. Cook on low for 6 - 8 hours or on high for 3 - 4 hours, until potatoes are cooked through.

Prepare a roux. Melt butter on low heat in skillet. Add flour slowly and whisk. Then add milk 1 tbs at a time. Whisk. When thickened, slowly add another cup. Whisk until thickened. Do 2 more times (total 4 cups). When sauce is thick and creamy, add back into slow cooker and stir to mix. Salt and pepper to taste. Ladle into bowls and add desired toppings. 

Chef's Scribbles:

At our Commissary here in Germany, we can't get baking potatoes. The potatoes they sell are indeed labeled 'baking potatoes', but are in fact not. I learned this after several attempts to bake them, and a friend stepping in the say "yea, it will never work." So, when I found this recipe online, I was a little more excited than I probably should have been. But come on, its been years.
The potato concoction alone is not fantastic, but you add the toppings and it becomes amazing and flavorful. Which is not that different from true baked potatoes. My husband and I enjoyed this recipe, and I will be making it again!

Also, I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! Mine was full of friends and food, not to mention my husband <3 I'm looking forward to a wonderful Christmas!!

Taco Pie

Taco Pie. This was a delicious recipe, albeit messy, but hey, what tacos don't get a bit soggy and fall apart? This had all the elements of a good taco meal, although next time I feel I should find a way to throw in some lettuce and perhaps some avocados. Make it a great taco meal. :)

What You'll Need:
3 tbs vegetable oil
8 corn torillas, halved*
1 small onion, chopped
1/4 tsp salt
1 15oz can crushed tomato
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
2 cloves garlic, minced
pinch cayenne pepper
3/4 lb ground pork or beef
2 4.25 oz cans chopped green chiles
1 cup frozen corn**
1 cup shredded mozzarella

What You Need to Do With It:
Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add tortillas and cook, flipping a few times, until golden. Remove to towel.
Add onion to skillet and cook until soft. Add garlic and cayenne, cook for 30 seconds more. Add meat and salt and cook, breaking apart meat until browned. Stir in tomatoes, chilies and corn. Bring to a simmer and cook until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and add cilantro.
Arrange half the tortillas in bottom of a 9-10" pie plate. Top with half the meat mixture and half the cheese. Repeat layering. Cover loosely with foil and bake at 400º until cheese melts.

Let's Be Honest:
I'm almost certain I didn't follow this recipe. Mostly on accident. ...Mostly. For one, I only used had 4 tortillas, and they were flour, not corn. And I didn't halve them. Then I used canned corn instead of frozen. I omitted the chilies altogether. And I used double the cheese. Plus, I don't think I grabbed the right pie plate.

I placed one tortilla in the bottom of the pie plate and covered with the meat mixture. All of it. Sprinkled with cheese and topped with a second tortilla. I sprinkled a little extra cheese onto that. I had enough to make two pies.
It was still delicious. But I think the next time I make this I will try a little harder and actually do as the recipe card asks.

Crock Pot Cream Cheese Chicken Chili

An absolutely delicious recipe. This pictures doesn't quite do it justice. But I tend to snap pictures as quickly as I can so my husband won't start picking on me. Haha. ;)
I initially made this recipe a couple of weeks ago, but forgot to take a picture, so this is our second time eating Crock Pot Cream Cheese Chicken Chili!

What you'll need:
2 frozen chicken breasts
1 can corn kernels, undrained
1 pkg ranch dressing mix
1 tsp chili powder
1 8oz pkg cream cheese
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can black beans, drained, rinsed
1 tbs cumin
1 tps onion powder

It takes 6-8 hours to cook. I normally start at about 10am.

What to do:
Combine all ingredients in crockpot and stir. Top with cream cheese. Cook on low, stirring halfway to blend cheese. Shred chicken into large pieces and serve.

Originally, the recipe says to serve over rice. But this recipe is so filling, rice is unnecessary. It goes well with rice, though, or baguettes or just about anything that goes well with chili. Although, I have yet to try it with corn bread. If you try it, let me know what you think!

Cheeseburger Calzones

Apologies for my lack of posts, recently. After returning from a trip to London, UK I got admittedly lazy and only made simple meals for a while. But, we're back on track. Here is a recipe for Cheeseburger Calzones!

You will Need:
1/2 lb lean ground beef
1/2 cup boiling water
2 cups original bisquick mix
1 cup shredded cheese of your choice
1 tsp yellow mustard
1 tsp instant minced onion
3 tbs ketchup
12 dill pickles slices
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp sesame seeds

Here's what you do with it:
In a 10" skillet, cook beef over medium high heat, stirring occasionally, until brown. Drain. Stir in ketchup, mustard and onion.
Stir bisquick and boiling water with a fork until dough forms. Divide dough into fourths. Place dough on a surface dusted in bisquick; roll to coat. Press each piece into 6" round, 1/4" thick.
Spoon 1/4 beef mixture onto one side of each dough, within 1/2" of edges. Top beef with 1/4 cup cheese and 3 pickles. Fold dough in half, covering filling. Press edges together with a fork to seal. Place calzones on an ungreased cookie sheet. Brush with egg and sprinkle with sesame.
Bake at 375º for 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown.

To be Honest:
I used a whole pound of beef, and my husband still complained that he tasted more bread then meat. To which I voiced my thoughts on whether or not that's true with regular cheeseburgers as well.
I also couldn't find sesame seeds in our commissary. Our selection is sad, so I make do with what can be found. It was still good.
Aaaaand while in the commissary, my brain went into automatic. I don't generally like onion, so while standing in the seasoning isle, I automatically grabbed minced garlic, instead of onion. So I switched it up and diced some onion.

You ever have those brain fart days? I've been having a lot of them lately. I'm surprised I can even work a stove, these days. Haha. I'm rather relieved this recipe was edible. <3 I hope you enjoy it!

Cream Cheese Spaghetti

So I've found myself cooking with cream cheese a lot. I'm assuming its a coincidence, but who knows, it could be some strange sign of the apocalypse. But anyhow, I found this recipe online and decided to give it a try.
When I cook new things, I'm often weary, and warn my husband that it may be disastrous and to make sure there's a back-up pizza in the freezer. And, when I cook new things, I have to ask the husband what he thinks, and normally get "Its alright" in reply, and have to press if that means he'd like to have it again, if he would rather have it on rare occasions, and so forth.
This recipe, however, we ate while playing a card game together. And in the middle of my dealing, I heard "Oh, that's yummy." Unprovoked and unrequested feedback. So this is officially a great recipe in my book!

Cream Cheese Spaghetti

Ingredients
8oz uncooked spaghetti
1 can spaghetti sauce (26.5oz)
1/2 cup chopped green onion
8oz cream cheese
fresh grated parmesan
1 lb ground beef
1 tbs butter
1/3 cup chopped onion
2 tbs milk
french fried onion (small can)

Cook spaghetti according to package directions, drain, set aside.
Brown ground beef. Drain excess grease. Add spaghetti sauce to skillet and heat.
In a small glass bowl, combine onions, green onion and butter. Microwave for 4 minuteson high until soft. Add cream cheese and milk to vegetables and stir well. Should mix to sour cream consistency. If too thick, microwave again until desired thickness.
Using a 2 quart baking dish, assemble in the following order;
Thin layer of spaghetti sauce on bottom, spaghetti, cream cheese/vegetable mixture, spaghetti sauce, parmesan cheese (as much as you want).
Bake at 350º for 25 minutes. Add fried onion and continue baking for an addition 5 minutes. Don't let the onion burn!

I'm not a gigantic fan of parmesan, so I used shredded monterey jack cheese instead. Still came out amazing!
In fact, while writing this blog entry, my husband came out during a break in his gaming and kissed my cheek, declaring "Just FYI, dinner was delicious."
O.O seriously. This dish was amazing. Try it.

Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas

This is a recipe I got from one of my best friends through the military. She said it was an old family recipe to make authentic enchiladas. And delicious ones at that!

Ingredients:

4 Chicken Breasts
6-8 Enchilada sized Tortillas
8 Cups Mexican Blend Shredded Cheese (2 Bags)
3 cans Mild Enchilada Sauce
1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup
Vegetable Oil
Optional:
1 can Corn Kernels, drained 
Green Onions
Sour Cream
Guacamole

◘ Put thawed chicken breasts in a baking dish and bake at 375º for 45 minutes. Remove them from the oven and set aside to cool, about 30 minutes. Shred the chicken once cool, by hand or by forks or by whatever means you'd like, I've once considered running them through a paper shredder to save time. Note to self, need new paper shredder. Leave oven on! You will need it later.
◘ Set shredded chicken aside.
◘ In a large pan over medium heat, heat vegetable oil. Fry each tortilla until golden brown and crispy on each side. Remove to paper towel.
◘ Wash out oil pan. (Unless you're super fancy and have many. I use the only two large pans I have for this next part.) Put on low-medium heat and add 2 cans of enchilada sauce and HALF the can of cream of mushroom. Mix together.
◘ In another pan, place shredded chicken and other half of cream of mushroom. Mix together. If you opted for corn kernels, mix them in here.
◘ In enchilada and mushroom mixture, place each tortilla, coating them and soaking them until they're flexible and don't break. Mine usually break anyway, but I'm impatient. This move doesn't take long, but don't leave them to soak too long, or they will be too hot the handle.
◘ Place soaked and bendy tortilla in large 9x13" baking dish. Place small amount (3 tbs?) of chicken and mushroom mixture in center and roll.
Sometimes, I will put a cup of the mexican blend cheese nearby and sprinkle a little cheese in each enchilada. This is not necessary, but I'm an Italian Cheese Lover. We have a club. Its kind of cheesy.
◘ Continue soaking, placing, filling and rolling tortillas until the tortillas and chicken mixture are all gone. It will be a tight fit, but squish all the enchiladas in.
By the way, this step will get your hands amazingly dirty. So don't try to multitask between rolling tortillas and braiding your daughters hair, or she'll attract flies. And enchilada loving friends. Friends are nice, but its weird when they're licking your head.
◘ When all enchiladas are in, pour the two bags of mexi-blend cheese over the enciladas. Top with final can of enchilada sauce. Place back in oven until cheese is melted and bubbly. Garnish with green onions, if desired, and sour cream and guacamole. Eat and enjoy!

Bacon Guacamole Grilled Cheese

Alright. So I found this delicious little number on the internet, decided to make it. Cause Bacon? Yum! Guacamole? Yes please! Cheese? The more the better! And throw it all on a grilled piece of sourdough? Who could resist?? Certainly not me.
Now the credit goes to a mister Kevin of Closet Cooking. I love his stuff. He's so creative! So, Thank you, mister Kevin, for granting me yet another recipe my husband and I love!

Ingredients:  ( for one sandwhich )

2 slices Bacon
2 slices Sourdough Bread
2 tbs Guacamole
1 tbs Butter
1/2 cup Montery Jack Cheese Blend*
1 tbs tortilla chips (optional)

Directions:
Cook bacon until crispy and move to paper towel. Butter one side of each slice of bread. Spirnkle half cheese on unbuttered side, followed by guacamole and tortilla chips, remaining cheese and bacon. Top with second bread slice.
Grill over medium heat until golden brown and cheese is melted.

I added more guacamole, because the hubby and I love it. And we used what was left to spice up our side salads. It was quite delicious. After my first bite I swore, exclaiming about its greatness, and demanded my husband swear in joy after his first bite or he'd be in trouble.

He didn't swear. He's in trouble.

*Original recipe asks for jack and cheddar cheese blend.

Penne Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomato Cream Sauce

This is a recipe I found on the internet via the overrated, time wasting site of 'pinterest'. Decided it would be a good change from my typical weekly meals, I jotted it down on a recipe card and gave it a shot. Husband and I both enjoyed it, but we both agreed that it needs some meat. It's too vegetarian. No offense to you animal lovers out there, but animals wouldn't be so damn tasty if they weren't meant to be eaten. The next time I prepare it, I will have to throw in slices of chicken or marinated steak. Ooh, or even some breaded pork.

The meal yields 7 servings, and took about 25 minutes to prepare.

Here are the ingredients:

8oz dry penne pasta
1 can evaporated 2% milk
1 tsp dried basil
8 sun dried tomatoes, chopped. (1/3 cup)
2 cups italian four cheese blend
1/4 tsp garlic
1/4 tsp black pepper

Prepare pasta according to package directions, adding the sundried tomatoes to boiling pasta water for last two minutes of cooking time; drain.
Meanwhile, combine evaporated milk, cheese, basil, garlic powder and pepper in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium low heat, stirring occasionally, until cheese is melted. Remove from heat.
Add pasta and tomatoes to cheese sauce; stir until combined. Serve.

No Title

Alright, so I've been sitting here at my laptop for a few minutes knowing I've got to make a post to start this blog off. I can't decide if I want to throw on one of my previous made recipes or just make an introductory entry, so we'll see where this goes.
Then I couldn't decide on a clever and witty post title. So it has no title. Deal with it. If you really don't like it, suggest something, and if I like you, I'll change it. You could be all "we're good friends" and then suggest some POS name, and then try the "Your post said if you like me you'll use my name suggestion" but that there will make me like you less, so don't try it. It wont work out in anyone's favor. :P

So, this is my blog "Eat my Words". I had another blog that may or may not still be used, and I would on occasion post recipes I love or recipes often requested by friends for parties or gatherings. When I'm with family I often make food for them and they've often told me I should start a culinary blog so the interwebs can nom on my foods. One of my favorite girl friends has a cooking blog and I stalk through it obsessively to drool over all her delicious recipes, so I finally decided to agree on a blog. And here we are.

Alright, we've established this is a food blog. Hm, what else. No? I think thats it. Oh, so I'm currently in the US of A on vacation. In about a week my military husband and I will return to our home in Germany, and I be able to start cooking up recipes to share online. Until than, this blog will look kind of sad, so bare with me. I do have a cake recipe I made in June I could throw up here just to make this a little more of a food blog, but who knows.

Okie dokie, I think that's officially it. Have a fantasmical day!

PS Thank you to my aforementioned girl friend Jessica of Gettin' Cookin' for helping me with this layout! I appreciate it and like to look at my own blog with the ogling eyes of a narcissistic lover! ;D