Jalapeno Poppers

Fresh jalapenos, 2-3 inches in size
Cream cheese, softened
Thin bacon, sliced into halves

Cut jalapenos in half, length-wise. With a spoon, remove the seeds and white membrane. Smear softened cream cheese into each jalapeno half. Wrap jalapenos with bacon piece (1/2 slice). Secure by sticking toothpick through the middle.

Bake on a pan with a rack in at 375 degree oven for 20-25 minutes. You don't want the bacon to shrink so much that it starts to squeeze the jalapeno. If, after 20 minutes, the bacon doesn't look brown enough, just turn on the broiler for a couple of minutes to finish them off. These are best when the jalapeno still has a bit of a bite to it.

Mmmmm....these were so good. We ended up buying 12 jalapenos, but only used 6 just to try them out. They were so incredibly easy to make, and SOOOOO good to eat. We didn't have a wire rack to put these on, so they were just a tid-bit soggy on the bottom. Oh, but it didn't matter. They were delicious! I would definitely recommend making these for a party. And make TONS of them! Also, I got this recipe from www.thepioneerwoman.com. I would definitely suggest going to her website and checking out her recipes. Everything that we have made so far from her has been wonderful. Just thought I would let you know :) Now, go try these out!!! You will thank me for this recipe, I promise.

Guthrie's Sauce

1/2 cup mayonaisse
1/4 cup ketchup
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. Worcestshire sauce
lots of pepper

Mix all ingredients together. Let chill for at least 2 hours to allow all flavors to mingle.

So yesterday I made the parmesan-dijon chicken again. However, this time we wanted something a little bit different. Vann picked up some hoagie buns at the store, and we still had some provolone left in the fridge from who knows what. I thought that it would be fun to try throwing some Guthrie's sauce onto the sandwich. So I went online and did a little research and found this recipe. It's ingredients that we already had in the refrigerator (even though I asked him to pick up more mayo because my luck would have been that when we got home there would have only been a smidgen left in the bottle).

These measurements are just something to go by. I ended up doubling the recipe because I know one helping would not last with the both of us. The first time I measured perfectly. The second time I made it I just threw everything together, and it was actually much better (not saying the first batch was bad.... it was actually delicious! but the second batch was closer to how we wanted it). This isn't going to taste exactly like Guthrie's sauce, but it's close. It actually tastes exactly like what my Dad used to make, though. Yum!

I highly suggest making you some parmesan-dijon chicken, melting some provolone on top, throwing it on a hoagie bun, and smothering it with this sauce. I promise you won't regret it :) And by the way, that was absolutely the best sandwich I have ever put in my mouth. No lie...

Brownie Pizza

1 (20-ounce) box fudge brownie mix
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (8-ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
2 tablespoons sugar
2 banana, sliced
1 cup fresh strawberries sliced
Maraschino cherries
Chocolate syrup, for drizzling

Preheat oven to 350°. Prepare brownie mix according to directions on box. Pour into prepared pan. Bake for 20 minutes, or until done. Remove from oven and cool. Beat cream cheese while adding pineapple and sugar together in a bowl. Spread mixture over brownie crust. Arrange banana, strawberry slices, and cherries over cream cheese mixture. Drizzle with chocolate syrup. Add whipped cream on top and mint for garnish. To serve, slice as you would a pizza and enjoy!

I made this for Vann's sister's recipe shower she had this past Sunday, and it went over quite well! Vann picked up a Papa John's pizza box for us to put it in so it looked like we just scooped something up from there, but when everyone opened the box I think they were pleasantly surprised :) The icing for this was so incredibly easy, but it is probably one of the best things I have ever eaten. I had a hard time getting the icing to cover the whole pizza, but that's only because I kept on eating it when I was making it. The only real issue I had was getting the brownie out of the pan. Luckily Vann and his Mom were there to save the day (they are actually the ones that did all of the work to get it out of the pan. I just stood there and watched). That's what I get for actually thinking my non-stick pan would work. You know, I could have "the best non-stick pan in the world", and it still wouldn't work for me? I would get the only one that would have stuff stick to it...go figure. Sorry, I'm done ranting. But it's true... Anyway, by the time the shower was over, there was only a little bit left, which I take as a wonderful compliment. This is definitely a dessert that needs to be tried. And it has fruit on it which means you don't have to feel too guilty when you're on your 3rd or 4th piece, hehe!

Parmesan-Dijon Chicken

1 3/4 pound chicken breasts
1/4 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup bread crumbs (I used Italian....of course)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard

In a bowl, mix melted butter and Dijon mustard together. Put bread crumbs and parmesan into a large freezer bag. Dip chicken into butter mixture, then put into bag, shaking well until chicken is completely covered. Bake at 375° for 30 minutes, flipping once.

I have been wanting to make this chicken FOREVER, but just haven't had the time to due to Vann and I's popularity (tehehe!). I went into this project thinking that we wouldn't be able to taste the mustard on the chicken once it was done, but boy was I wrong! I ended up cutting the ginormous chicken breasts into smaller pieces, which made devouring them so much easier to do since we didn't have to use a fork and knife to get the goods in our mouths (that's what hands are for, right?). The chicken was so incredibly juicy. The flavors were different, but in a really good way. And, as always, we had to think of a way for Vann to make it into a sandwich. I believe he ended up melting some provolone over the chicken, and then added more Dijon to the mix, and placed it on a hamburger bun. However, I'm not quite sure, so I'll have to update you as soon as I get my facts straight.

Pizza Pockets

2 cans crescent rolls
8 slices provolone cheese
shredded italian cheese
pepperoni, sausage, bell peppers, etc.
italian seasoning
basil
oregano
4 Tbsp. butter, melted
Croutons, crushed


Take 2 cresecent rolls triangles and form into a rectangle. Pinch the perforations together well so there are no open spaces. Sprinkle a dash of each seasoning on dough. Then, layer cheeses and whatever toppings you choose. Fold and pinch each corner together until there are no openings. Coat the top of each pocket with butter, then sprinkle with crushed croutons. Bake at 350°for 12-15 minutes, or until each pocket is golden brown. Great dipped in Kroger six cheese pizza sauce.

So yesterday when I got off work, I was bound and determined to try one more thing before Vann's sister's recipe shower. I had a few things in mind, but I was just so exhausted I didn't feel like putting in the time to make them (isn't that awful?). So I sat there and pondered, and thought, and pondered some more. Well, I happened to come across a recipe for Chicken Crescent Pockets. They sounded delicious, but in my opinion they still required too much work (ya'll don't understand, I was feeling the ultimate lazy yesterday....sad, I know). But then I got to thinking about it, and I thought that they would be absolutely wonderful with pizza toppings inside. And there you have it, folks. That is how pizza pockets were born. Sorry there aren't really any specific measurements. This is one of those recipes that you just take and have your way with. I put basil, oregano, italian seasoning, Italian cheese blend, provolone, pepperoni, and dried onions in ours. And for the croutons we bought a $1 bag of Kroger brand garlic and cheese croutons. Mmmmm, they added such a nice finishing touch to the whole shebang. We decided that these are most definitely going into our meal rotation. So, go have fun and make these the way you like 'em! Be careful, though, because these little pockets fill up quick!

Chicken Parmesan Burger

1 lb. whole chicken breasts
1/2 onion, grated
2 garlic cloves, grated
1/4 cup basil, fresh and finely chopped
1/4 cup grated parmesan, fresh
1/2 jar marinara
2 tsp. Italian Sausage seasoning
12 slices sour sour bread
6 slices provolone

Take chicken, cut into large chunks and place in food processor. Pulverize. For some reason the meat sticks together better this way for burgers than store bought pre-ground chicken. Mix chicken with onion, garlic, basil, parmesan, and seasoning. Shape into 6 burgers. Fry burgers up in a pan over medium heat or grill until cooked through/no longer pink.

Turn broiler on high and toast buns & and heat marinara while chicken is cooking. Once chicken is done, place burgers on cookie sheet. Top with a small ladle of sauce, cover with slice of provolone and place under broiler until cheese is melted (not browned). Serve immediately.

First, I would like to say that these were yuuuuummmmmy! Second, I would like to apologize for the mess in the background...but that's what my kitchen alwyas looks like when I cook, so at least I'm keepin' it real. We didn't have fresh basil just sitting around, nor did we have fresh parmesan. So, instead, we used dried basil and Kraft parmesan, which was still scrumptious. I can only imagine how great these would be with fresh stuff! Also, we didn't use marinara sauce, but used Vann's wonderful succa. However, for those who do not have access to such an amazing creation, marinara would be wonderful (and hey, you could even use the marinara sauce recipe given below....now THAT would be some tastey goodness!).


These burgers didn't take long at all to whip up. To be honest, I was a little nervous since this is a chicken burger (you know, just like one would get nervous about a turkey burger...or at least I do...we have yet to venture down that road. But maybe we shall one day...), but they had such a great flavor to them, it would be hard not to like them. Heck, Vann even liked them! Needless to say, these have been added to our permanent recipe collection.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

2 (10 oz.) cans chunk chicken, drained
2 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup Ranch dressing
3/4 cup hot sauce
1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Heat chicken and hot sauce in a skillet over medium heat until heated through. Stir in cream cheese and ranch dressing. Cook, stirring until well blended and warm. Mix in half of the shredded cheese and transfer the mixture to a slow cooker. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top, cover, and cook on Low until hot and bubbly.

I found this recipe at allrecipes.com. We actually made this a couple of weeks ago, but for some reason I didn't even think about posting it. It was soooooo good. This is definitely going to be one that will be made during football season while following my AU Tigers (oh how I love Auburn football....le sigh....). Instead of using chicken crackers like the recipe suggests (even though I didn't put that up there), Vann and I used Tostitos, and believe it or not, onion rings. Meeeeeeeow! It was wonderful. However, I will go ahead and give you a nice little warning that these do make a grand exit, if you know what I mean. Ah, and make sure that when you go and buy your hot sauce that you don't drop it at the check-out counter and break it. I blame Vann.... :)