Lost and Abandoned....

Once again this blog got lost in the shuffle.  Sorry again.
I guess it's a sign i havent been cooking anything new at all.


I do have some to post from earlier in the summer and am getting to those today

Delicious Dessert Spotlight - Pocky

If there is one thing I love in life it's Desserts.  It my downfall and probably will be my demise one day.  However as I sit here typing my head if filled with images of yummy cupcakes, chocolatety snacks and sweet treats.  I'm not lying....Im a certified dessertoholic.

So here is my favorite snack right now. POCKY

So what the heck is POCKY?  

It's actually a Japanese treat from the company Glico.  I discovered these tasty treats in Epcot in Disney World on a trip a few years back.  I was hooked.  And the motto among Pocky fans is "you can't just have one". They are just that good.

The Glico description of Pocky:
"Our efforts to create handy and convenient snacks resulted in Pocky's current design: pretzel sticks coated completely with chocolate except for a small portion at one end to make it easy to handle."

Glico makes several different variations of this snack including a strawberry one that I've tried.

After years of hunting around and searching for this treat in NY, I succeeded recently.  Much to my suprise they sell them in the international food section of my big supermarket. 

If you ever come across this box and are a fan of chocolate....give it a try.

- Sarah

An apology

It seems we let life get the best of us.  Well I didn't take the start of summer vacation lightly.  I went headfirst into relaxation mode.

But im back and hoping to share a few new things Ive been up to with you...which includes my home made hostess cupcakes!!! and banana nut chocolate chip muffins!  yup i've been baking like crazy.

So Im sorry and hoping we didnt loose those of you who kindly have decided to follow us.

- Sarah

quiche or souffle?

As clueless and I am in the kitchen, Im just as clueless at what things are called.  So this is my most recent concoction, a souffle or quiche or whatever it really is called.   I had a few failed attempts at this I might add. ;)

Basically these are egg whites or eggs mixed with your favorite veggie and cheese or anything else and baked in a muffin pan.  They make fast snacks or a light lunch and are easy to reheat and make.

For this batch I used the following:
1. Egg whites in a container and some egg beaters
2. Bacon bits cause I'm lazy
3. Feta Cheese
4. Asparagus

I chopped the asparagus up into small pieces and cooked for a little bit in microwave before using.

1. Add one container of egg whites or egg beaters into bowl.
2. Add in your desired ingredients and mix well.

3. Used Muffin wrappers and sprayed both inside and out

4. Pour in mixture evenly only half way

5. Bake for 375 for about 15 minutes.  You need to really watch these because I burnt a batch or two..

Overall these were good.  But some batches were not as lucky.

My failed attempts

1. Used goat cheese in one batch and nearly gagged. lol  just not a fan I guess once its baked

2. Overflowed a few of them and they started to burn.

3. These are always stuck to muffin wrappers.  

Any thoughts on why they always stick?  I used pam on inside to reduce it and it did from previous batches. A friend of mine does these and never has the problem, so i know its me.

Favorite Fast Find - Rice Sides by Knorr

Favorite Fast Finds are my favorite things that  save me time and stress.  I am not good with finding side dishes for meals  and Knorr  makes it really easy!

Rice Sides are the perfect fast side dish and my favorite is this chicken flavor rice.  I also love the terriyaki rice.

Super easy to make.
Very inexpensive - $1.57 at my stop and shop on sale
Super fast - 7 minutes!

So what are you favorite fast side dishes?

Easy and Tasty Burgers

Given my ineptitude in the kitchen I am always looking for fool proof recipes and when my hubby suggested making these simple burgers I thought, "Why not?" and tried them! I have now made them several times and they could not be any easier.

I am sure most of you are familiar with this recipe from Campbell's Soup. Basically you take 4 burger patties and brown them in a pan. You add one can of Campbell's Condensed French Onion Soup to the party, bring to a boil then knock down the heat to simmer for 6-7 minutes. That's IT!!!!! I melted down some swiss cheese over my burgers and ate mine with some BBQ sauce an tomato slices and my friends there you have the easiest, quickest and tastiest burger!


Recipe:

1 pound ground beef

1 can (10 1/2 ounces) Campbell's® Condensed French Onion Soup

4 slices cheese (I used Swiss but you can use whatever you like)

• Shape the beef into 4 (1/2-inch-thick) burgers. (I bought pre made patties from the butcher, they come out better and are uniform in size)
  
• Heat a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the burgers and cook until well browned on both sides. Remove the burgers from the skillet. Pour off any fat.
• Stir the soup in the skillet and heat to a boil. Return the burgers to the skillet. (I didn't even take the burgers out) Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for 5 minutes or until desired doneness. Top the burgers with the cheese and cook until the cheese is melted. Serve the burgers on the buns with the soup mixture for dipping.

Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken and Sauteed Spinach

Hello everyone! Sorry I have been such a slacker. I haven't really been cooking because I have been being a bit of a baby lately and cooking stresses me out but today I went grocery shopping and cooked some dinner so I thought I'd share with you what I did.

I made goat cheese stuffed chicken with sauteed spinach on the side. Boring, I know... I should have made another side but I am lazy!


The chicken was easy. Not extraordinarily flavorful but not bad at all. All I did was take boneless, skinless chicken breasts and cut a slit in the middle for the stuffing. I stuffed each with garlic and herb goat cheese, dipped each piece in eggbeaters, flour, eggbeaters, flour and stuck them in a pan to brown. After they were brown on each side I transferred them to the oven (on 350 F) for about 10 minutes until they were cooked through.


The spinach was a piece of cake, I should make this more often because it is tasty and easy. I heated a few tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and about a tablespoon of minced garlic in skillet and added my washed spinach to it, some red pepper flakes and a splash of lemon juice. I put a top on it, cooked it on medium heat for 6 minutes or so and it was done.

Spinach cooks down a lot so it looks like a ton when you first put it in but you wind up with a smaller portion. One thing I found is that it gave off a lot of water so I had to drain it before serving. I don't think there's much you can do about that.




So I could have used another side, I know... but it was tasty and pretty decently healthy. Goat cheese is my favorite thing ever. It's so decadent. YUM!

Until next time.....