Look Ma! A new Potato

I have seen pictures of these all over the web and of course we had to try em. I was making a smothered chicken meal and well ya these went GREAT with that.I tweeked these and kind of dumbed them way down. I have seen a couple versions with heavy cream but was not wanting to make another mess after my challening my great great grandmother's baking style yesterday....AKA lots of flour and dishes everywhere. *Grins*  I will try the heavy cream version one day though.   


Ingredients-

 

8 medium size potatoes

1 tbsp garlic powder

1/2 cup softened butter

Salt and Pepper to taste
2 tbsp Olive Oil

2 cups shredded cheese of your choice

 

The fun part -

 

Preheat the oven to 425˚F.

 

• Slice a thin layer off the bottom of your potato.
• Place the potato on a cutting board inbetween two chop sticks and slice through the potato every few centimeters. The sticks will help you to NOT cut all the way through the bottom of the potato.
• Mix the garlic powder and butter in a small bowl.
• Take the potato and gently bend to open up the cuts place some of the garlic butter in between the slices. Sprinkle the tops with some salt and pepper.
• Bake the potatoes for about 40 minutes or until the potatoes turn crispy.
• Sprinkle potaoes with shredded cheese and bake for additional 5 min.

Enjoy!

 

 

Eat your heart out popeye

So I have gone like my whole 39 years wearing the No Spinach for me badge. Well thanks to Artichoke dip and this chicken dinner I had to toss the badge. I seriously am drooling just thinking about how yummy this was and if I could make it again next week I would but I know my family will make me wait because they are looking forward to the new dishes on next weeks menu. Oh and overloading on Turkey and Pumpkin pie on Thurs. LOL!
 
I have for you ......
 
Baked Chicken topped with Cream Spinach and Cheese
 

 
Cooking the Chicken -

 

• 8 boneless chicken breasts
• 1 tblsp garlic powder
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 2 cups shredded cheese

 THE CREAMED SPINACH:

• 1 large bag of spinach leaves
• 4 ounces cream cheese
• 1/4 cup shredded italian cheese blend
• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 tblsp minced onion
• 2 tblsp olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

 

*note*Your Chicken may need to be cut in half length wise if they are thick to make sure they cook evenly.

 

1. Sprinkle the chicken with garlic powder, salt, and pepper on both sides and place in a cooking sprayed baking dish.
2. Bake for 16 minutes.
3. While Chicken is cooking you will be preparing the creamed spinach. 

 

• In a skillet over medium-high heat, add 2 tablespoons olive oil.
• Add the onions and saute 3 minutes.
• Add the spinach and the garlic and toss to wilt. This will shrink down a lot.
• When it is cooked through, stir in the cream cheese and italian blend cheese. Continue cooking and stirring until the cream cheese is melted adding milk small amounts at a time till creamy.
• Remove from heat.

  

1. At the 16 min mark take the chicken out of oven and flip the pieces over.  
2. Top each of the peices with the creamed spinach. 
3. Sprinkle the cheese over each piece of chicken.  
4. Place chicken back in oven and cook another 12-14 minutes or until cheese is browned and chicken is no longer pink. Internal temp 165 degrees

 

Serve with your favorite veggie

 

 

A cheesecake perfect for the season

You all know how much I love cheesecake so it should come as no surprise that when thinking of  a way to use the persimmons we got the first thought in my head was.........FUYU CHEESECAKE!! LOL!

This is a low profile cheesecake and makes perfect bar type servings.

Ingredients -

• 2 8oz packages of cream cheese
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ tsp vanilla
• 2 eggs
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 cup Fuyu persimmon pulp
• 1 graham cracker pie crust or make your own

 

 

Directions -

 

 

Preheat oven to 325ºF.

 

1. In a stand mixer beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla on medium speed until smooth.
2. Add eggs,one at a time, mixing on low speed until blended.
3. Remove one cup of the batter and pour it into the pie crust.
4. Add persimmon pulp and cinnamon to the batter in the mixing bowl and mix on low speed till blended.Pour the persimmon batter onto the top of the batter in the pie crust.
5. Place a pan filled half way with water on the shelf under your cheesecake to help keep cheesecake from cracking.
6. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes or until center is almost set.
7. Let the cheesecake chill in your refrigerator for three hours or overnight.

 

 

My new Love is a fruit

Fuyu AKA persimmons are OH SO GOOD! If you have not tried one I suggest you do. They are called the Greek fruit of the gods and live up to the nickname. Ours were very ripe and super sweet ... like candy sweet. I look forward to getting one a little less ripe and trying it too.
 
So we had 30 of these little gems and that ended up equalling 6 cups of pulp. So yes we were in need of a way to use them and quick. Of course I had to try them in cheesecake and my kids wanted us to try a cookie. My mother in law has an awesome pumpkin cookie she makes and figured I would try and see if I could change it up and use the Fuyu. It was successful and here is what we did. A little note about these cookies... these puff up but do not spread out while baking so take that into account when deciding your drop size. Another note.... make a few dozen cause they will disappear.



Ingredients -

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 egg

1 cup persimmon pulp

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup chocolate chips

Directions -

Preheat your oven to 350F.

In a stand mixer or with a hand mixer,  cream butter and sugar together.
Add the egg and persimmon pulp, mix on low speed.
Mix together the flour, soda, cinnamon, and salt and add to persimmon mixture.
Add in vanilla and Chocolate chips, if using, and mix till Incorporated.
Drop by large spoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet.
Bake for 12 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned.

Life handed us Lemons

Very Bruised Lemons at that.

Well this time if you worried about me and why I have not posted recently then you had reason to. Dustin and I were in a car accident last week. A 16 yr old slammed into the back of us while we were waiting to turn left onto our road home. I had never been in an accident that had that much force to it. I was looking toward Dustin,who was driving, and saw how close he was to hitting the windshield on the forward momentium and holy cow!  Yes we WERE wearing our seatbelts. I have always been a vocal "put your seatbelt on" person. What mother isn't? Now I am singing the praises of the seatbelt because we could have been injured badly if it weren't for that seatbelt. We would have been on our way to the hood of the van if it weren't for that seatbelt is how I feel about it. I do have to say I love my van though and it took the hit without crushing like a tin can. Still going to cost a lot though. :(

The poor kid who hit us. I feel so badly for him.... As I would my own kids. His truck was hardly scratched , thanks to a cattle guard on the front. BUT he is 16 and has been driving only 3 months. I know it is like that most time. Young , 20 min from home and mind somewhere else. The last bit is why I am most worried about this young man and what he had gone through earlier in the day. His friend was found dead from a self inflicted gun shot wound. The word is that he took his life due to Bullying. The young man said that the bulliers were elbowing eachother and snickering while they were gathered by the school to be told what was going on.THIS IS SICK! What the hell have we come to that this is Okay?!? I understand that they are minors in the eye of age and law BUT that is sick and twisted and something needs to be done to get them mental help before they drive someone else to thier breaking point. How can you laugh and find humor in torturing someone to the point they take their life? Grrrrr!!! This makes me blood boil and I feel so angry and helpless. Changes need to happen. This is not the old days. This torture follows them 24 hours a day thanks to social media. If celebrities can file harrassment and stalker charges when they are treated this way....then our children should be able to as well. CHANGES NEED TO HAPPEN!!

Please if you are in a bullying situation and have no one you feel you can turn to please I beg you stop , breathe and know there are people out there that WILL stand up with you. There ARE people like myself  who WILL fight for you and your rights. Please call 1-800-273-8255 or talk to your parents or a teacher or a church. Reach out .... someone is there to take your hand.

A bazaaring we will go

Have you wondered or have been worried about where I have been my freaky darlings? Have I been kidnapped? Or worse... held against my will away from the kitchen? Nope neither of those things. Amazing thing though.... I have had help with making dinner by almost everyone in the house this last week because they all know what this weekend is.... The Bazaar Before Christmas!!! Don Don DONNNNN!
I was not sure if I was going to be able to do this years till last min and that last min has made me get more done in one week then I have in since the dozen hat order of 2011.

So with me being a slave to my hooks the girls have been in my room alot. If you wondered,  my crochet chair is the size of a small love seat and in the corner of my room... I love my little hooken corner. Needless to say we have watched a lot of tv and listened to a lot of music this week and it is has been nice to not be in here all alone the whole time. They keep me laughing and very well entertained. I don't know what I would do with out them and Pandora. LOL! Oh Netflix too. Amazing the shows you can watch while hooken... back to back ... most the whole season even. I remember when you had to wait till summer in hopes to catch reruns of the episodes you missed or when you had to wait for your fav song to come on the radio so you could hit record on your boom box cassette tape. Oh gawd I am sounding so old.

Oh Sadness :(  My lunch time is almost over and we have a couple more hours of class to finish. Then hmmm yup back to hooken. I hope you are all safe and warm and if you live in central Oklahoma send me a message for information on where the Bazaar is at so we can say Hi.

Till then... Later My Freaken Darlings!

My baby girls for halloween this year.