Chicken Noodle Soup.

We are NOT soup fans. So when I say that we LOVE this soup and my kids ask for seconds and thirds, I mean this is really really good! I got this recipe from here: http://www.pauladeen.com/recipes/recipe_view/the_ladys_chicken_noodle_soup/  (Paula Deen recipe)
But I changed it a little to make it easier to me.
I usually make this when we have a leftover rotisserie chicken; or the last time I just boiled two chicken breasts in the water.



Photo courtesy of PaulaDeen.Com

 

Ingredients Add to grocery list

4   bay leaves
3   chicken bouillon cubes
1   onion, peeled and diced (I sometimes just do 2 T of the dried stuff)
1 teaspoon Paula Deen Lemon Pepper Seasoning (Just regular is fine)
3   cloves garlic, minced
1   2 1/2 to 3-pound fryer (chicken), cut up
1 1/2 to 2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
3 1/2 quart water
kosher salt and pepper to taste

For Step 2:
2 cups sliced carrots
2 cups sliced celery, with leafy green tops (I rarely have celery on hand but it was still good without)
2 1/2 cups uncooked egg noodles
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (I never use fresh, I usually use 1 to 2 T)
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (optional) (NOT optional!!!! THis makes it sooo good)
3/4 cup heavy cream (optional) (I usually just use regular milk)
1/3 cup cooking sherry (Sometimes I put 2T of a vinegar wine I have on hand)
1 cup sliced mushrooms
Fresh parsley (I never use fresh)
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
Paula Deen Seasoned Salt to taste
freshly ground black pepper to taste
crusty french bread, for serving

Directions

What I do is add everything together instead of the chicken, noodles, cream, and parm cheese.  I simmer it for 20 minutes. 
    Note: If you are using a rotisserie chicken then boil in just the water and seasonings for 30 minutes or more. 
Then remove the Bay leaves.
Bring to a boil 
Add chicken
I add the noodles (I make them)
Reduce heat or remove from heat and add the cream/milk and Parm cheese 


For the stock: add all ingredients to a soup pot. Cook until chicken is tender, about 35 to 45 minutes. Remove chicken from pot and set aside to cool. Remove and discard bay leaves and onion. You should have approximately 3 quarts of stock. When chicken is cool enough to touch, pick bones clean, discarding bones, skin, and cartilage. Set chicken aside. 

For the soup: bring stock back to a boil, add carrots, and cook for 3 minutes. Add celery and continue to cook for 5 to 10 minutes. Add egg noodles and cook according to directions on package. When noodles are done, add chicken, mushrooms, parsley, sherry and rosemary. Add Parmesan and cream, if using. Cook for another 2 minutes. Adjust seasoning, if needed, by adding seasoning salt and pepper. Enjoy along with a nice hot crusty loaf of French bread.

Fruit Pizza

I made this for a fun girly get-together. Love it! It was a huge hit! 

(I halved the recipe because I wanted to make 1 medium-size pizza...it made 8 large slices...and it was perfect. But the individual ones they made on their blog is so cute too!) 

FRUIT PIZZA

Found Here: Six Sister’s Stuff

Sugar Cookie Crust
1/4 C Milk

1 tsp. Baking Powder
1 tsp. Vanilla
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1 C Butter or Margarine
4 C Flour
1/2 tsp. Salt
1 1/4 Cup Sugar
2 Eggs

Soften margarine slightly, then add sugar, eggs and vanilla. Stir well, then mix in flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and milk. Chill dough for about an hour and it will be easier to roll out.

Roll out the dough on a floured surface until it's a little more than 1/4" thick. You can either transfer it to an ungreased pizza pan to make a big pizza or use circle cookie cutters to make mini pizzas. (If you make the large pizza size, you will only use about 3/4 of the dough, so you can make mini ones with the leftovers!) Bake at 350 degrees for 13 minutes. Let the sugar cookie crust cool completely before adding the cream cheese layer.

Cream Cheese Layer8 oz. Cream Cheese (softened)

1 C Powdered Sugar
1 tsp. Vanilla
8 oz. Cool Whip

Mix together cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla. Beat until smooth, then fold in the Cool Whip and stir well. Spread cream cheese layer over cooled sugar cookie. Then you can start adding the fruit.

Fruit OptionsStrawberries

Kiwi
Bananas
Grapes
Blueberries
Mandarin Oranges
Raspberries
Pineapple
Or whatever fruit you love!!

Red Velvet Cake Pops

I made you all a treat: Red Velvet Cheesecake Pops...they're even Heart shaped!! :) 

Red Velvet Cheesecake Pops:

1 Red Velvet Cake Mix, cooked according to box directions 

1 recipe (or can) of your favorite Cream Cheese Frosting

Once cake is cooked and cooled, dump entire cake into a large bowl. Stir in your cream cheese frosting to make a "paste"-type substance. I put the mixture into some heart-shaped ice cube molds I got in the dollar-bin at target. You can also use a cookie scoop to make small balls, and just put them on a cookie sheet or onto wax paper. Put in freezer for at least 2 hours (you can leave them in there for several days even, if you need to!). 

Once they're frozen, you can melt some white chocolate (baking squares, chocolate chips...whatever floats your boat). If it's too thick to dip, you can add a small amount of shortening. DO NOT add water!

I put the melted chocolate into a cup, to make it easy to dip. I buy the sucker sticks (they come in packages) at Walmart...usually they are near the wedding stuff. Put your sticks into your frozen cake pops, then dip in white chocolate. Place on cookie sheet or wax paper and allow chocolate to harden. Put back into the fridge or freezer, and enjoy as you desire! YUM!!!!! Hope you enjoy them! ;) 

Restaurant Style French Toast

I know it's silly to post a recipe for French Toast, but seriously this is wonderful! I think I personally make a pretty good french toast without any recipe but I wanted something better. So I googled this and trust me you, yes you reading this, needs to try it! It has really good flavor and tastes just like a restaurant breakfast!

1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup milk
4 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
8 -10 slices Texas toast thick bread or 8 -10 slices French bread
Toppings:
confectioners' sugar , sliced fruit, butter, and pancake syrup for serving
Directions:
1. In a medium-size bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt, and cinnamon.
2. Add milk, eggs, and vanilla. Whisk briskly to remove all clumps.
3. Grease a pan(I just use pam)
4. Heat skillet over medium-high heat until a drop of water sizzles when flicked onto skillet.
5. Dip both sides of bread slice into the batter briefly.
6. Let some of the batter drip off, then place bread in skillet.
7. Cook until golden brown on both sides, about 2 minutes on the first side and 1 minute on the second.
8. If needed, add a little more oil to the skillet to cook all of the slices.9Repeat procedure with remaining bread slices.10Keep French toast warn in a low oven as you cook remaining slices.11Dust with confectioners' sugar and serve with butter, syrup, or fruit, if using.

I'm sure most people don't need directions on how to cook French Toast but ya never know! Hopefully you'll try this cause it's Delish!