"The Pioneer Woman" White Chicken Enchiladas

                                                  

My husband took me to meet Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman. I made my first recipe from her book. This is how it began... yum!

And this is how it ended... yummy!

Here is the link to her recipe. http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/11/white-chicken-enchiladas/ 

I used whole grain tortillas and boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Omitted the jalapeno and the sour cream and used only half of the heavy cream. I also added some salsa to the finished sauce. They were beyond delicious and beautiful too. I loved grilling the peppers and trying a new technique. Meeting Ree was an exciting day and she was as sweet and lovely as she seems when you watch her on her Food Network show. It was one homeschooling home cook mama to another. It was a great day!

Maple Toasted Sesame Dressing

This dressing makes salad a delight to eat! I think that may be all that needs to be said.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup olive oil

1-2 tsp apple cider vinegar (depending on your preference)

2 tsp Dijon Mustard

1 TBSP Maple Syrup

pinch of salt, pepper and garlic powder

1 tsp of toasted sesame seeds

Shake ingredients in a small jar (or whisk in a bowl) until combined. Taste and adjust to your liking. Shake before serving.

White Chocolate Blondies

There's a need for baked goods in my house but there's also a need for that baked good to be something that will not call my name until the last crumb has been eaten! Combined with my husbands recent confession of not loving all things chocolate, I decided to bake him some white chocolate brownies... blondies! And I'm happy to report that they did not talk to me once! They sure did smell delicious though. I introduced them to the vanilla bean ice cream and the two were happily accepted for dessert after our Sunday meal with my lovely in-laws. All was well with the world.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Ingredients:

1 stick of butter

1 cup of brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup of flour

1/4 tsp baking powder

3/4 of a bag of white chocolate chips

Combine the flour, salt and baking powder and white chocolate chips and set aside. Melt the butter in a sauce pan. Pour it into the mixing bowl with the brown sugar and vanilla. Mix on medium for a minute, until smooth and cooled a bit. Add in the egg while still mixing. Remove from mixer and fold dry ingredients into the butter mixture until combined. Pour into a greased 9x9 baking pan. Bake at 350 for 30-32 minutes. Check with toothpick. Do not overbake. Some baking will continue as they cool. 

Snickerdoodle Biscotti

It is a sad sad day when the husband tells me that he really doesn't enjoy chocolate as much as I do. To try and make up for usually including chocolate in my cookies, granola bars and cakes I decided to make a granola bar based on one of his favorite cookies. A snickerdoodle. I'll admit, these aren't lacking in flavor without the addition of chocolate! 

Preheat oven to 325 degrees
Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
6 tbsp. softened butter
1 large egg 
1 large egg yolk (save the white for the topping)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 TBSP ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. of nutmeg
1 tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt

For the topping:
Beaten egg white
¼ cup sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
dash of nutmeg

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. Whisk to blend and set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until lightly and fluffy, 3-4 minutes. Blend in the egg, egg yolk and vanilla until incorporated. With the mixer on low speed, blend in the dry ingredients just until incorporated and a dough is formed. Form the dough into a large square form 1/2 and inch thick and 12 inches wide. Whisk together the ingredients for the topping and brush all over and down the sides of the big square before baking.

Bake at 325 degrees for 40 minutes. Remove from oven, cool for 10 minutes, slice into individual biscottie cookies and then return to the oven for an additional 12 minutes.