Chicken Caribe

If you like curry and you like sweet, this is a super easy chicken recipe that I love!  My mom made this when I was a kid and I always loved it-I'm definitely a curry/sweet/savory lover.

3-4 chicken breasts (I usually slice them in half lengthwise so they cook faster)

For dredging:

1/4 cup flour, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp curry powder, 1/2 tsp paprika

Dredge and brown on each side

Meanwhile combine in a pot over med heat:

1 cup pineapple juice

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 tsp cornstarch

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp curry powder

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

Thicken, then pour over chicken in a 9x13 pan.  Add pineapple chunks.  Bake 30 min at 350.

I always serve this over rice

Braided sandwich and a fab new salad

This whole dinner came together in a cinch believe it or not!  I didn't start it until 5 and it was on the table by 6:30.  And de. lish. us.  

The salad is to die for, no snazzy ingredients, all things you probably have on hand.

Same with the sandwich.  It's an old recipe of my moms that I have always loved.  You can fill it with anything you have on hand--leftover roast, deli meat, rotisserie chicken, any type of cheese and/or veggie, and a favorite to add is roasted pineapple!  Or pears or apples!

 

Mix:

3 cups flour

2 tbsp sugar

1/2 tsp salt

2 pkgs rapid rise yeast

Heat to 125 degrees (candy thermometer):

1 cup water

1/4 cup dijon mustard

2 tbsp margarine

Pour liquids into dry ingredients.  Knead, roll into 11x17 rectangle.  Grease pan, spread meat in center 1/3 of dough (lengthwise). Sprinkle cheese and veggies on top of meat. Cut 1 1/2" strips on either side of remaining dough. Fold down top edge of braid. Overlap side strips to the center to braid. At bottom, tuck under ends. Set aside 30 min.  Baste with egg white.  Sprinkle with sesame seeds.  Bake 25 min @ 375.

Broccoli Chowder

Soup Season!  Well sort of.  Around here it's more of a crank-up-your-AC-and-pretend-it's-fall season.  I've been labeled a Soup Snob by some of my friends, and it's totally true.  This recipe is fast, easy, healthy, and yummy.  A keeper for sure.  

*You could add any number of things to this soup to add a little more depth: more potatoes, mash some of them, I added a dollop of cream cheese, but a sharper cheese in addition would be awesome, chopped ham, just to name a few.  This soup was great on its own, but can stand up to some more flavors as well.

Mom's best cookies

One of my favorite cookie recipes ever!

Mother-in-laws are great for a lot of reasons, and secret cookie recipes are definitely one of them!

Pork Tenderloin

This recipe is one of the most fabulous marinades of all time.

I had all of the ingredients in my pantry.

Simple, not too much prep, fantastic flavor.  Can't beat it.

Andes Mint Chocolate Cake

Birthday cake at its best!!!

If I have to make my own birthday cake, you bet your bottom I'm gonna cover it in Andes mint frosting, chocolate ganache, and Fudge mint oreos.

*I used a Devil's food cake mix and mixed in crushed oreos

*I used Fudge mint oreos because they are amazing

*the frosting was a bit too sugary for my taste, but I also royally suck at making frosting

*I would definitely make this again!!!

Sweet and sour meatballs

My mom used to make these for me when I was a kid, and for some reason, I HATED them!!! Now as an adult, I love their tangy, little bit of spicy, little bit of sweet sauce.  And what makes them even better: my kids LOVE them!  I serve them over rice with a side of veggies, and they are always gone in minutes.  Super duper easy, 3 ingredients and no prep work.  You can do crock pot, or just a regular pot on low for about 20 minutes, all the way from frozen meatballs.  Done!

Sweet potato hummus

I LOVE sweet potatoes.  Mostly love hummus, and definitely love me some pita chips and Tzaziki.

So when I saw this recipe, I knew I had to try it.

I didn't follow it exactly, I left out the extra olive oil and the garlic (just impatient and hungry) and it was good!  Would have been better with all the ingredients.  But super healthy and very easy.  An interesting flavor, and I'm all about new and interesting!

Oreo poke cake

It is so cliche, but I just can't help it.  The older the get, the more I love chocolate.

And in the last few years, I've rekindled my love affair with Oreos.  I just can't resist them.

This is an awesome, easy recipe!

Very few ingredients, very little work, and totally yummmmm!

*I used chocolate pudding instead of Oreo

***Make your pudding and pour it immediately!!! It sets up super fast, so if you wait even 2 minutes, it will be gloppy and won't sink in as well.  That's what I did the first time and I let it sit for a good 8 hours before we ate it, so it wasn't a total bust, but it would have been better if I had done it ASAP.  

This recipe can go SO many ways!!! Lemon cake with lemon pudding, spice cake with butterscotch pudding, chocolate with banana, chocolate with mint, I could keep going and going!

Balsamic Pork Tenderloin with Carrot-Cauli smash

I made this dinner for my Mom's birthday, and she literally almost died of bliss.  It was DE-LISH-OUS.   Not too difficult, and the flavor was to die for.  

*The veggie smash was incredible, I almost regretted adding the gouda because it really added a lot of richness and took away from the fabulous flavor of the vegetables.  I also omitted the spinach--we are more of a grilled asparagus family than a wilted spinach one

Breakfast muffins

Easy prep the night before, just threw everything together in the morning!  Can't beat that when you're feeding a crowd!  I added sausage and red bell peppers and they got gobbled up!

S'Mores Diip

Easy.  Delicious.  Finger-licking good.  No leftovers.

Try it!

Puppy Chow Brownies

In the mood for an over the top decadent dessert???

Here ya go!

You may think the Puppy Chow in the brownie is a waste, but it definitely adds to the chewy texture of the brownie.  And I love me a chewy brownie!!! So much that I threw in a few spoonfuls of Marshmallow Fluff--never hurt no one!

Greek Yogurt Cheesecake

If you like cheesecake, this is a must!  Very easy, very light, waaaaay lighter in calories.

If you don't like cheesecake (me) you may like this, it is reminiscent of cheesecake but not so rich

Cinnamon Roll Casserole

This recipe looked so promising...almost there!  A little mushy/raw in the middle, but I'm thinking another try with the oven's convection bake on might do the trick.  But smelled fabulous and looked gorgeous!  An easy crowd pleaser

Blueberry Sauce

Blueberry sauces are easy as pie, but this one had the simple addition of vanilla to make it just a little different.  Yum!

Brown sugar-cinnamon waffles

With me working most Saturdays and Jeremy having Sunday meetings, we rarely get to eat breakfast together.  So when we do, we go all out.  I have been on the hunt for the perfect waffle recipe.  Sorry to disappoint, but this is not it.  It did fulfill one of my requirements for the perfect waffle though: more sugar!  Most recipes call for a Tbsp or so, and that just doesn't sound right for my sweet tooth!  I love anything cinnamon, and this recipe was pretty yummy.  The whole egg white thing (in my opinion) isn't worth the extra step--I didn't taste or feel anything different from just adding whole eggs.

Cucumber Salad

I LOVE cucumbers!!!

Crunchy, a little sweet, so refreshing.

This is a great dressing, and you can tweak it so many different ways too!

A summer winner, for sure

Mexican Pizzas

An ode to Taco Bell!!!

As a teenager, I LOVED Mexican Pizzas from Taco Bell.  Well, I take that back, since I don't think I even went to Taco Bell until I was like 19.  My parents never ate there and I really didn't even know what it was.  I went to grab some food for a boy babysitter we had coming over and I asked him what he wanted from Taco Bell and he said he didn't know because he'd never been there.  Whaaaat??? And then I laughed, because at his age I hadn't been there either! 

Anyway, this is definitely a "splurge" recipe with the fried tortillas, but they brought me right back to those yummy fast food naughties.

Cheeseburger Macaroni

Looking for a quick, comforty meal?

This is a good recipe when you're at home and don't feel like heading to the store.  I would say I have all of these ingredients on hand 90% of the time.  It was very easy, hearty, and came together quick.  It's not an A+, and would be more aptly named Sloppy Joe Macaroni, but how can you really go wrong with any type of Macaroni made from scratch???

Oahu Chicken

An all time favorite recipe here: brings me back to my childhood.  There are a handful of recipes that no matter how hard I try, I just simply can never make this dish as delicious as my mother.  Everyone in my family loves this dish almost more than life itself.  Except my brother, but then again, his name starts with a J and the rest of us are C's and K's, so what do you expect???

If you are a member of my family and dare to make this recipe without doubling the sauce, so help you heaven, may you live to see another day...

4 chicken breasts, 1/3 c flour + 1/2 tsp salt to dredge (rough measurements)

1 can pineapple chunks, 1/2 cup of juice reserved

3/4 cup chicken broth

8 oz tomato sauce

1 tsp ginger

2 tbsp brown sugar

1/2 tsp salt

Dredge chicken, brown on both sides in oil, set aside.  

***Chicken does not have to be cooked all the way through--if you cook it too long during this step it may be dry as it finishes its simmer in the sauce.

Deglaze pan with pineapple juice, add the rest of the ingredients, stir to combine and then lay chicken back in gently. Cover and simmer for 20 min, uncover and cook another 15 or so.  Serve over rice.

Raspberry Basil Lemonade Spritzer

We were on a basil kick for Mother's Day, so I decided to spruce up our beverage a bit basil-like

I threw together a few different recipes, and it turned out delicious!

There are a million ways you can spin this to whatever your mood is!
This recipe was my inspiration, but I added a little of the lemonade element with this recipe

Spaghetti in Garlic Gravy

Happy Mother's Day

I made this for my mother and I'm pretty sure it was the best present she got

And there were no leftovers.

And we are all very full right now.

I think my favorite part of the meal was the chicken--it was absolutely fabulous.

We grilled ours instead of pan sauteing and it was a hit!

Buttermilk Chocolate Cake

It's called AMAZING Buttermilk Chocolate Cake, and it IS!

This recipe fully stood up to its name.  Pretty easy to put together, extremely moist yet light, it's an all around great chocolate cake if you're looking to make something NOT out of a box.  The instructions were spot on, very thorough, so no surprises, which is always a plus.

In looking around for the perfect fluffy and light frosting, I chose this one.

The only thing I'd try different next time is in choosing my cocoa powder.  I've heard Dutch cocoas are delicious and the Hershey's I used left me wanting a little something more...

Coconut Chicken with Apricot sauce

For some reason whenever I volunteer to bring food to someone, my mind instantly goes blank and I can't remember a single thing I've ever made or if anything tasted good ever.  Yes, that is why I started this blog.  But I'm still doing it.  I have a bad habit of making new recipes for guests or people I'm bringing dinner to.  I figured Coconut chicken is pretty basic, I can't screw it up too bad, so I went with this recipe.  Up until the last minute I had Pizza Hut on my speed dial, but it turned out great and so easy!  Definitely flip the chicken a few times to make sure all the coconut gets nice and crispy.  It looks a little funky, but the flavor is great. 

Bird's nest cupcakes

How cute are these guys?

The perfect EASY Easter treat.

Who doesn't like a cupcake???

Death Brownies

Actually they are called Marshmallow Reese's Brownies, but it's all pretty much the same to me

Totally ridiculously embarrassingly good.

I wish I didn't like crap like this.

But I DO.

Sigh.

Spicy Peanut Noodles

This is a recipe I got from my mom that I have made a million times and they are always a crowd pleaser.  For years at my old work, whenever we had a potluck, the sign would ALWAYS be posted in the back room with the #1 entry written by whoever made the sign-up sheet reading: Kelly, peanut noodles.  What more can a girl ask for???

1 pkg cooked spaghetti, warm or cool but drained of all water

Sauce

Chopped peanuts, cilantro, and green onion (about 1/3 cup each)

Red pepper flakes and grilled chicken optional

Sauce:

4 tbsp Sesame oil

4 tbsp honey

3 tbsp soy sauce

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

In a small saucepan, bring all sauce ingredients to a boil.  *Be careful NOT to burn the pepper flakes or you'll have to start all over!  The honey and salt and oil just need to dissolve together, then remove from heat and pour over noodles.  Add toppings.

Thai Chicken Enchiladas

This recipe is a serious KILLER.  I was a little nervous about an enchilada with no cheese, but the first bite in my mouth was serious love at first bite.  These enchiladas are packed with flavor, easy to put together, and on the healthy side.  A total keeper.  I served them with this coconut rice and used this leftover chicken.  My only change is that I used this Thai Curry Simmer Sauce from Fresh n' Easy instead of the sweet and spicy sauce.  The flavor was out of this world.

Oatmal Lemon Cream Bars

This recipe is a total crowd pleaser, and it couldn't get much easier!  Inexpensive, delicious, and a little different.  I love lemon anything, and this one was a keeper.

Coconut Lime Chicken

Totally easy marinade and tons of flavor!

We grilled ours because I doubled the recipe, but I think the pan version would be great too

Lemon Rosemary Garlic Chicken

You don't really need a recipe for this delicious chicken, but if you're the kind of person who likes to read exact amounts, here's a good one.  I had a drawer full of lemons that needed to be used up and I have a gazillion rosemary bushes in my yard so this was perfect for me.  Baked potatoes, salad, and garlic bread?  Dinner is served.

Penne with Roasted Asparagus and Balsamic Butter

This recipe is super yummy, healthy, and easy.  

I say that a lot.

I like yummy, healthy, and easy recipes.

Who doesn't?

*** I cut the brown sugar in about half and (shhh) double the cheese

A little leftover of this chicken sliced up, and you've got yourself a meal.

Asparagus Tuna Casserole

 I was waiting for the dentist, flipping through a magazine when I came across this recipe.

My mom always made tuna casserole on the nights that we were staying home with a babysitter.  If I ever saw one on the counter my first question was, "Where are YOU going???" I'm guessing it was her go-to dish because it was about 5 staple ingredients in one dish.  

I was excited to find a healthier yet almost equally as simple recipe.

A few things I would change: I liked the asparagus but I think I prefer peas.  They add a needed sweetness.  I left out the potatoes and added more pasta and nixed the olives.  I was worried the sauce would be too bland but it ended up being perfect.  And a few handfuls of crushed up Jalapeno Kettle Chips never hurt anyone either :)

Maple Apple Bars

This recipe is a great dessert if you're looking for a chocolate substitute.

It's super easy and not too shabby on the health-o-meter either.

The maple frosting is the best part!

Biscoff Baked Oatmeal

Yummy.  Healthy.  Easy.

What more can you ask for???

I even made the banana glaze, which is something I'd normally skip.

Tip: don't skip the banana glaze.  

Balsamic glazed BBQ chicken

Hello, Balsamic Vinegar.  

I love you.

This is a fabulous glaze.  

I could drink it.

Or take a bath in it.

Roasted Cauliflower Soup

Oh.  My.  Goodness.  Words can not describe how DELICIOUS this soup is.  Easy, healthy, yummy, so so so so good.  This is the best cauliflower soup recipe I've made yet.  My only beef is with the color.  It looks very...beige.  Blah.  Barfy.  But the taste is out of this world, and it's easy too!  I LOVED the little roasted specks of flavor.  Yummmm--my entire family devoured it, even my 1 and 3 year olds!

Corn cakes

I'm a corn lover, and I'd been eyeballing this recipe for a while.  

It was simple and delicious!  The basil added that savory taste that changed the whole meal to the perfect dinner. 

Kerrygold Mac and Cheese

When I saw this recipe, I just happened to remember that for my sister's bridal shower a few months ago, we had bought some Kerrygold cheddar from Costco for the paninis we made.  I knew my mom had saved all the extra slices and put them in the freezer, so I popped over and tried out this recipe.  It was a little funky to make Mac n cheese without a roux, and the sauce seemed really curdly and not smooth and creamy, but in the end, it all came together and it was delicious!  Mostly due to the awesome taste of the Kerrygold.  So nutty and tangy and delicious!

Coconut curry turkey pitas

I was looking for something to serve with an Asian style veggie I wanted to make, and these popped into my mind.  They were super easy and healthy, with tons of flavor!  Everything could be prepped ahead of time, which is a plus.  I served my pitas with some coconut rice and crunchy lettuce for lots of different textures.  And the curry sauce was delicious!

Bang Bang Cauliflower

Jeremy and I took a quick trip to South Carolina and while we were there we stumbled upon a little gem called Bonefish Grill.  I didn't realize it was such a big deal until I started seeing recipes for their house specialty, Bang Bang Shrimp, all over the internet.  It was one of the most fabulous appetizers we've ever had.  I have never cooked shrimp before and I think the farther away from it I stay, the more I'll like it, so when I found this recipe for Cauliflower, I was so excited!  It was every bit as delicious.  I wondered if pan frying the cauliflower raw would cook it all the way through, and it did just perfectly.  It was still nice and crispy and super crunchy from the panko.  The sauce was great too!  Maybe a tad less sugar, but the perfect kick!

Brown butter banana bread cookies

These cookies are a great double for breakfast.  :))))

I ditched the frosting and added some chocolate chips.  I have a terrible relationship with frosting-making and a great relationship with dumping handfuls of chocolate chips in everything.

*Honestly, the brown butter wasn't such a huge deal in this recipe.  My guess is because the banana and chocolate over power it. 

Pistachio crusted salmon

This salmon recipe is amazingly simple and delicious.

AMAZINGLY.

Simple.  Delicious.

I served it with asparagus and a balsamic veggie salad.  

Triple layer mint oreo brownies

Oh.  My.  Goodness.

These brownies have been sent from the devil.

That is all I have to say about them.

Coconut Cookies

I just recently discovered how much I love toasted coconut.  Mmmmm.

This was the perfect recipe for a quick Monday morning baking activity with Cutter!

Finley was down for a nap and I didn't have work until the afternoon, and hello, SIX ingredients!

***I wasn't feeling the raspberry jam part so I threw a few chocolate chips in and subbed 1 tsp Almond extract for the lemon zest.  Delicious!

Here's how mine turned out:

Chicken with Lemon and Capers

Ever since I came home from Costco with this bottle, Jeremy's been teasing me for not buying the Big bottle of capers.  It doesn't look that big here,

But it does here!

So when I found this recipe, I didn't even have to think twice!

Delicious.  So simple.  Perfect Sunday afternoon dinner while both of the kids were napping.  I served it with Balsamic Brussel Sprouts and Yukon Gold mashed potatoes.

***I even pounded out the chicken, which is something I've never bothered to do.  It was well worth the extra and easy step.  Make sure you pound it thin--it definitely helps the chicken cook faster without burning the breadcrumbs, especially if you have more than 4 cutlets to cook.

Crock Pot Honey Sesame Chicken

I'd been eyeballing this little gem for a couple of weeks before I decided to try it.  Cutter loves rice right now so I'm always looking for different things to top it with.  Crock pot recipes rarely seem to turn out better than I expect, so I was pretty surprised and happy with this one!  

***I did make some major changes: I halved the honey, and probably next time would cut it down to 1/3 cup, then I substituted the canola oil for sesame oil.  Much better!  I left out the chili flakes for Cutter but next time I will definitely put them in--it could have used a little kick.  Served with roasted broccoli--yummm!  And so easy!  Made the whole house smell great!  The chicken was a little dry, but isn't that the norm when you cook it for 2+ hours???

Lemonade with Raspberry Ice Cubes

The perfect Valentine's drink

I ran out of time for fresh squeezed, and a little Minute Maid never hurt anyone in a pinch!

Strawberry Shortcake Kabobs

Another recipe from our Valentine Party menu.  Super easy and fancy!  Who doesn't like that?

*I used Angel Food Cake and chocolate chips

Strawberry Bruschetta

Yummm!  This was an easy, healthy, perfectly romantic recipe I used for a Valentine's Party we had this year.  No adjusting necessary--it was perfect as is!