Queso Fundido (translation- really, really good cheese dip)

Imagine that you are at a really lame get-together.  The host is playing Michael Bolton's or Kenny G's greatest hits.  (I think I just threw up a little.) They are serving pieces of wheat bread, water, and peanuts.  *yawn*  With a super-excited look on her face, the host comes out with something really fun... a word search.  Man!  I should be a boring party planner.  Then you arrive with this dip.  The party instantly turns awesome!  It'd be like Night at the Roxbury... hopping out of control!  "What is love... Baby don't hurt me, don't hurt... no more"  You can get your head nod on while you take ladles of this dip on your chip.  You put the dip upon your chip, when I dip, you dip, we dip.  Man... I'm on fire.  I'm probably the only one laughing.  :)

I did a couple of changes to the original recipe, so I will post the original recipe with my changes in parenthesis. And yes, this dip is worth the trouble of blackening the peppers.

Queso Fundido:
3/4 lb poblano peppers
3 lg jalapeno peppers
1 T olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 t cumin
1/2 c half and half
1/4 lb pepper-jack cheese (I used colby jack since my kids wouldn't like the heat.  If you buy pre-shredded cheese, the dip will turn out slightly grainy.  I think the fresh cheese would be better.)
2 ounces Velveeta, cut into cubes
tortilla chips

Over a gas burner, char the peppers on all sides.  I love the sound of the skin popping.  There's just something about it.  Place the blackened peppers in a ziplock bag, seal it, and steam for 20 minutes.  The heat from the peppers will produce the steam. 

Remove the peppers after 20 minutes and remove the blackened skin.  Cut open and remove the seeds.  Dice the Poblano and jalapeno peppers into small pieces. 

In a medium saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat.  Add the onion and garlic.  Cook until the onions are softened- about 8 minutes.  Add the diced chilies and cumin, cooking for 30 seconds. 

Add the half and half and bring to a simmer.  Add the pepper-jack (or Colby-Jack) cheese and Velveeta.  Stir until the cheese is melted.  Do not boil.  Serve warm with a basket of tortilla chips. 

When I made this, my daughter tried it and said, "Dang, Mom!  This is delicious!  I'm going to make this for my family when I'm a mom."  Cute.  :)  I'd say it's one of the better cheese dips I've tried.  I don't sit around all day and make dip after dip after dip, but this one is wonderful.  I can't wait to make it again.

Crispy Chicken Parmesan

There are so many people that love Chicken Parmesan, and I am one of them!  After all, it's like a giant chicken finger covered in delicious sauce and cheese.  What's not to like?  We all know that my all-time favorite kid food is chicken fingers.  I was a bit obsessed when I was young.  Back to the recipe.... I've had Chicken Parmesan in several restaurants, and this recipe is just as good or better than all that I have had!  The sauce from this picture is different than the one that we usually use, but I used this meat sauce the same night as the homemade ravioli, and I didn't want to make another sauce.  I would normally use the sauce here.  Either way, it's glorious.  My husband made this for some friends of ours that came over to eat, and they couldn't believe their tastebuds.  They ranted about it all night.  :)

 Crispy Chicken Paremsan
source for Crispy Chicken- America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook

1 c flour
2 eggs
2 c Panko bread crumbs (If you want super, duper fantastically crispy chicken, you cannot omit these magical crumbs)
3 chicken breasts
salt and pepper
vegetable oil

Place plastic wrap over a chicken breast and beat it with a mallet until it's 1/4 inch thick.  Make sure that the shiny side is up with the chicken.  It pounds out a little better that way.  Repeat with the remaining chicken breasts.

Sprinkle them with salt and pepper.

 Place the eggs on one shallow plate and beat.  Add the flour to another plate.  Add the Panko bread crumbs to another.

Dip the chicken breast in the flour, making sure that the whole thing is coated.  Dip it in egg next.

 Finally, dip it in the Panko breadcrumbs.  Place on a clean plate until the oil is ready to use.

 Put the oil in a 12-inch skillet and heat over medium-high heat.  Once the oil starts to smoke a little bit, add the chicken.  Don't crowd the pan.  Also- if the oil is not hot enough, the bread crumbs will absorb the oil and lead to soggy coating. Cook the chicken 4-6 minutes on each side or until golden brown. 

 Remove from the pan and place on a cookie sheet.  Top with marinara sauce and cheese.  Bake in a 450 degree oven for 5-10 minutes or until the cheese is melted. 

Place atop a bed of spaghetti noodles and serve to happy people.  If they aren't happy when they sit down, they will be once they take a bite of this. 

Give Me Some Sugar! Cookies

In the movie "Army of Darkness," the main character Ash saves the day.  He looks over at the girl, and says, "Give me some sugar, baby!" and he kisses her.  Well, I think in the deleted scenes, she actually pulls out some of these cookies and gives them to him.  I'm sure he was cool with that.

I was going to visit a few people this afternoon, and I wanted to take something delicious.  I don't think people answer the door when I come over unless I have something sugary and fattening in my hands.  Well, these fit the bill!  But, boy are they good sugar cookies!  They aren't the sugar cookies that you frost, and trust me, frosting on these would be way too much!  These are great when you want something other than peanut butter or chocolate chip cookies.

 Give me some sugar! cookies
source: my recipe box- I have no idea where I found this recipe.  It was a long time ago.

2 c flour
1 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
1/4 t baking soda
8 T butter, softened (If your butter is salted, omit the 1/4 t salt)
1 1/2 c sugar
1 egg
1 t vanilla
1/4 c sour cream

Preheat the oven to 325 desgrees.  In  bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.  Set aside.  In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar for 2-4 minutes.  Add the egg and vanilla.  Beat well.  On low, beat half of the flour mixture.  Once it's incorporated, add the sour cream.  Mix well.  Add the remaining flour mixture and mix until smooth.  Drop by 3-4 T onto a cookie sheet about 3 inches apart.  Bake until the edges are firm and beginning brown.  15-18 minutes.  Cool. 

You have no idea how hard it was to not make "Army of Darkness" references throughout this post. I'd probably be the only one laughing, so I spared you the quotes.  Enjoy the cookies though!

Cheese Enchiladas

There really is nothing quite like a good cheese enchilada.  And what makes something good even better?  A from scratch sauce that uses blackened chilis.  Oh, snap.  The flavor of this sauce tastes really authentic.  Well, I don't know if "authentic" is the right word, since I'm pretty sure that you won't get enchiladas like like in Mexico.  They are authentic as far as the American Mexican restaurants are concerned.  This is my husband's favorite enchilada recipe, and I think it is mine, too.  It takes some time and effort to make the sauce, but it's worth it.  Is buying a canned enchilada sauce easier?  Of course.  Is it as good?  I don't think so.  "Taste over convenience" is the motto that I will get cross-stitched onto a pillow when a cross-stitched pillow store opens.

Cheese Enchiladas:

source: It's All American Food by David Rosengarten

sauce:

2 Ancho chilies

1 t cumin

1 T olive oil

1/2 c chopped onion

2 t minced garlic

1/2 c tomato puree

1 c chicken broth

3/4 t oregano

vegetable oil for frying

12 corn tortillas

8 c shredded cheese (I used Sargento four cheese Mexican blend- perfect!)

green onions for garnish, optional

grated cotija cheese, optional

Cut the chilie in half and remove the veins and seeds.  Turn on your burner and hold the chilies over the open flames to blacken it.  I love that "pop" sounds when the skin starts to blacken.  While you are blackening (is that a word?) the pepper, boil 2 c of water in the microwave.

*This pepper was from a different recipe, but the method is the same.

 Place the peppers in a bowl and cover with the boiling water.  Let the peppers sit in the water for about 25-30 minutes to soften.

 Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a skillet and add the onion.  Cook for a couple of minutes.  Add the minced garlic and cumin.  Stir well and cook for another couple of minutes.

 In a blender, add the chilies, 1/2 c of the soaking liquid, tomato puree, chicken stock, and the onion-garlic mixture.  

 Puree until smooth.

 Place a strainer over a saucepan and pour in the mixture.  Most of it will drain through the strainer.

 For the last little bit, use a spatula to press the mixture against the sieve.  This will get every last little bit of liquid out.

 Add the oregano.  Simmer for 15-20 minutes while you assemble the enchiladas. 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Pour some of the sauce on the bottom of your baking dish. 

Soften the corn tortillas by cooking them in the microwave for 30 while they are between two damp paper towels. 

Pour the sauce onto a large plate.  Dip a tortilla in the sauce on both sides.  Add 1/2 c cheese for the filling and roll the tortillas.  Repeat with the remaining tortillas.  Place seam-side down in the baking dish.  I actually skipped the step of dipping the tortilla in the sauce. 

 Top with some more sauce.  Sprinkle with cheese to cover the top of the enchiladas.

 Bake in a 350 degree oven for 20-25 minutes 

If desired, garnish with green onions, cotija cheese, and a chopped cilantro. 

I served it with seasoned refried beans, Mexican rice, and guacamole.  Oh, how I love Mexican food!

Homemade Corndogs and Onion Rings

Nothing says healthy eating like a batch of homemade deep-fried corn dogs.  :)  Back in my college days, one of my roommates found this recipe and made it all the time. In fact, I would never eat onion rings, or onions for that matter, until I tried this.  There is something about that sweet cornmeal batter on the onion rings.  I'd never had them like that before, but they are great!  The batter is perfect and obviously meant for the corndogs, but it's great for both.  If you're in the mood for a good corndog, you don't need to go out and buy one.  You can use this, and you'll be loving it! 

As a side note, when I was putting the label on the corndog, I seriously had to stop and think where to put it.  Ha!  I ended up putting it in beef because all beef hot dogs are the only way to go with this recipe. 

I have used the little coctail weenies with this recipe as well.  The kids really love those since they are just their size. 

Homemade Corndogs and Onion Rings

source: a roommate

1 egg

1 t baking powder

1/2 t salt

1/2 c cornmeal

1 1/4 c flour

1 c milk

1/3 c sugar

hot dogs

onions

Heat vegetable oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat.

Combine all the batter ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine.  That's it for the batter!

Slice the onion to whatever thickness you like your onion rings.  Remember that the batter comes on them pretty thick, so maybe keep them around 3/4 inch slices.

Dip the hot dogs or onion in the batter and drop into the oil.  You may want to test the oil with a little batter first.  Drop a little bit of the batter into the oil.  If it bubbles around the batter, the oil is ready.

Cook the onion rings and hot in oil for about a minute on each side or until they are golden brown on the underside.  Flip them and cook the other side until it is golden brown as well.

Remove from the oil and drain on a paper towel-lined plate.

If you have sticks to put in the corndogs, you can use those.  I used shake straws from Bed, Bath, and Beyond.  My kids loved picking the color for their stick.  If you don't have either of those, you can just eat the corndog without a stick.  That'll do just fine.

Cake Batter Ice Cream

Think back to the time when you were a bit and your mom was making a cake, brownies, or cookies.  What was the best part about mom making these things?  The batter or dough!  What is it about licking every drop of batter off of a spatula?  When no one is looking and I'm in the kitchen, I still do it!  I love when my mom would be making cookies, and my brothers and I would just happen to meander into the kitchen around the time the batter was done to "get a drink."  When she wasn't looking, we'd snag some of whatever was in that bowl.  It's the best.  I'm sur[rised she didn't beat us with the nearest cooking utensil every time we did that.  Anywho... this cake batter ice cream tastes just like cake batter.  It's so wonderful.  I had to to share this ice cream with a few different sets of people because if I didn't, I would have polished it all off myself.  The recipe says that you can use any cake mix.  Oh, the possibilities!  I was thinking of red velvet, funfetti, devil's food, and tons of others.  There are so many possibilities here.  Forget cheese whiz- get crazy with the cake batter!

Cake Batter Ice Cream
source: Worldwide Ward Cookbook- Secret Recipes

1 c whole milk, very cold
3/4 c sugar
2 c heavy cream, very cold
1 t vanilla
2/3 c white cake mix

Place the freezer bowl for your ice cream maker into the freezer.  Whisk together the milk and sugar until the sugar is dissolved.  Add the sugar and vanilla.  Mix well.  Add the cake mix.  When I did this, I actually added some of the cream mixture to the cake mix and whisked that together until smooth.  Then I added the whisked cake mixture to the rest of the cream mixture.  I think that will be a better way to prevent lumps from forming after adding the cake mix.  2 cents.

Add the mixture to your freezer bowl and freeze according to the directions for your ice cream maker.  I let mine run for about 30 minutes.  Pour the mixture in a bowl and let it continue to freeze until you're ready to devour, yes devour, it. 

Chocolate Velvet Ice Cream

Oh, how I wish I had a better picture of this ice cream.  You know those little specks of chocolate in Baskin-Robbins' mint chocolate chip?  This ice cream has got some of that going on.  Little specks of chocolate will make any kind of ice cream better.  This was a wonderful homemade ice cream recipe, and I shall be making it again and again. 

Chocolate Velvet Ice Cream
source: Worldwide Ward Cookbook: Secret Recipes

2/3 c sugar
1/3 c unsweetened cocoa powder
3 egg yolks, beaten
2 2/3 c heavy cream
1/3 c chocolate chips

Stir the sugar and cocoa together in a mixer bowl.  Add the egg yolks and beat until well blended.  Add the cream, a little bit at a time.  Make sure you blend well after each addition.  Place the ice cream mixture in the fridge to chill.  At this point, if you have an ice cream container, put it in the freezer so it is well-chilled as well. 

Place the chocolate chips in a food processor or blender and pulse until they are in oh, so fine little flecks.  Can you add the chocolate chips whole?  Sure!  However, you will not get the magical little flecks in there. 

Add the chocolate specks to the cream mixture.  Pour the mixture into your ice cream maker and make the ice cream according to your ice cream maker's manufacturer's directions. 

Mine was still soft when I took it out, but after freezing it for a couple more hours, it was perfect.  And, oh, it was delightful!  We had company over when I made this, and I think the lady over here about karate chopped me in my Adam's apple since she was dieting.  She could barely keep her paws off this stuff!  I can't say I blame her.  It was wonderful.  If you don't have an ice cream maker, you should get one!  There's nothing quite like homemade ice cream on a hot Las Vegas summer afternoon.