Bacon-Chicken Crescent Ring

In an effort to find more interesting quick dinner's for us, and for you I've started to plan my meals again.  This way I can try new things out each time but only go grocery shopping for the needed items once.  We did this last year and it seemed to save us money also.  Not sure why we stopped doing it.  Anyway, found this recipe in Taste of Home magazine.  I always make a recipe exactly as it's written to begin with and then if I make it again I make the changes I want.  The only change I would make here is not using canned chicken.  I have no plans to start making my own crescent roll dough and that would also defeat the quick and easy portion of this menu so in it stays.  My husband loved it.  I loved it.  My daughter did not love it.  But she doesn't count, she won't eat anything.

First you'll need to cook up some bacon so it'll be cook and you can break it up without burning yourself.

Next, mix in all the remaining ingredients (except the crescent roll dough). 

Stir together until well mixed.

I got to use my brand new pizza stone.  I know I shouldn't be this excited about something so simple...but I am. Anyway, if it's the first time you use your new pizza stone, you'll want to spray it with Pam to start it getting "seasoned" properly. 

Lay out the crescent roll dough so that the long sides are on the baking sheet, and the top corner is slightly off the top.  At the end it should look like a sunshine.

Carefully add the filling.  I found that using my hands was the best way to do this.  You sort of need to form it with your hands so it doesn't fall all over the place.

Pull the top corner over the filling and tuck it under.  At this point you might want to make sure the ring part is not too close to the edge so you don't get filling that falls over the edge and makes a mess in your oven.  I'm totally just anticipating that that could happen.  It didn't happen to me at all.  OK, yes it did.

Bake in a pre-heated 375 degree oven for 20-25 minutes.

Recipe from here

2 tubes refrigerated crescent roll dough (8 ounces each)
1 can (10 ounces) chicken - drained
1 1/2 C. (6 ounces) shredded Swiss cheese
3/4 C. mayonnaise
1/2 C. finely chopped red bell pepper
1/4 C. finely chopped onion
6 strips of bacon.  Cooked and broken into pieces
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp Italian salad dressing

Pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 14 inch pizza pan. Unroll the crescent roll and separate into 16 pieces.  Place the wide end of each triangle about 3 inches from the edge; the top corner will be hanging off the edge.  Overlap the dough until all 16 pieces are placed evenly on the pizza pan.  It should resemble a sunshine. 

Place the filling on the dough using your hands to form it and keep it in place until all the filling has been evenly distributed.  Take the top corner of the dough and fold it over the top and tuck in underneath the bottom piece. 

Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown.  Let cool slightly for easier cutting and serving.

How to Freeze Peaches

So, you may remember that several weeks ago I went with my friend Melissa to go Peach and Blueberry picking.

Well, turns out this is WAY too many peaches for me to try to eat while keeping them fresh.  So, I had two choices in my book.  Peach jam (yum) or freeze them.  It sort of takes two people to make peach jam so I decided to freeze them.

Here's how I did it.

First wash the peaches, then give them a quick dip in boiling water. They only need to be in there for 20-45 seconds.

Now put them in a bowl of ice water. This will make the skins come right off.

Peel off the skins and slice.  Put into a container and pour in the lemon juice.  Make sure all the peaches have been covered with some lemon juice so they don't start to turn dark.  Next, add the liquid of your choice.  I used apple juice but you can also make a syrup using water and sugar.

Put them in (I used quart sized) freezer bags and freeze.

This is the greatest resource ever if you want to make jam, jellies, freeze fruit or find a place near you that has fruit picking and so on. Pick Your Own

I found the instructions for freezing peaches here

What you'll need:
5 good sized peaches (make sure they are freestone, or cling-free)
4 Cups of fruit juice
1/4 Lemon juice

What to do:
Wash the peaches
Place them in boiling water for 20-45 seconds
Remove them and place them in a dish of ice water.
Peel the skins off
Take the pit out.
Cut into pieces
Pour the lemon juice over the peaches and stir around to make sure all the peaches get covered.
Pour in the apple juice.
Bag in freezer bags.
Freeze

For much more detail about using syrups instead of juice and other details please view the link above for freezing.

Bluebarb Pie

Blueberries and Rhubarb together? What a great idea!  I wish I'd thought of it. When I saw this recipe in Taste of Home magazine I knew I'd have to make it.  First of all my husband LOVES blueberries.  He's been asking me to make a blueberry pie for a long time so I was happy to see this one that had the little rhubarb twist to it.  Blueberry pie in it's own is very good obviously, but I wanted something beyond "good"; I wanted GREAT!

This recipe is very easy, I did use a different crust because I have tried one from The Pioneer Woman that I just love and use it because I know I already love it.  The filling is perfect; even my husband was impressed and even said (and I quote) "this might even be better then just regular blueberry pie".  That's a pretty big statement coming from him.

To make this crust you simply put the flour and shortening in a bowl and use a pastry cutter (or two forks) to work it until you get small pebble sized pieces.
Beat an egg with a fork and then add it to the flour mixture.
Add the cold water, vinegar and salt and stir until incorporated.  This makes three crusts.  I just put one in the freezer until I need it.

Recipe will be at the bottom of this post.

In a large bowl combine the sugar, tapioca and salt.

Mix in the berries and stir together until all the berries and rhubarb are coated.

Pour the mixture into the prepared pie shell. Dot with butter.

After you put the top crust on, crimp the edges together and cut slits into the top.  Brush with milk and sprinkle with sugar.

Bake at 400 degrees for 40-45 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

I hope you enjoy this as much as we did! I'll be making it again soon!

You can find the recipe for the crust here.

You can find the recipe for the filling here.

Crust:
1 1/2 C. Crisco shortening
3 C. all-purpose flour
1 whole egg
5 Tbsp cold water
1 Tbsp white vinegar
1 tsp salt

Put the flour and shortening in a bowl and use a pastry cutter to work together until pea sized pieces form.  Beat an egg in a separate bowl and then add to the mixture.  Add the remaining ingredients and mix until incorporated. 

Separate the dough into three even pieces.  Roll each segment into a ball, then flatten slightly.  You can either use right away or put each piece in a zip lock bag and freeze for later.

Filling:
1 1/2 C. Sugar
3 Tbsp quick cooking tapioca
1/4 tsp salt
4 cups sliced or frozen rhubarb - thawed. (I only had 2 cups frozen rhubarb)
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries - thawed (I used 4 cups of fresh berries)
1 Tbsp butter
1 tsp. 2% milk (I used 1% and it was fine).
Course sugar or granulated sugar.

Pre heat the oven to 400 degrees.

In a large bowl combine the tapioca, sugar and salt. Mix in the berries and rhubarb and coat well.  Add to the prepared pie shell and dot with butter. Cover with another dough piece, crimp the edges and flute the edges.  Brush with milk and then sprinkle with sugar.

Cook for 40-45 minutes.  Put tin foil on the edges of the crust for the last 15 minutes if needed.

Cool on a wire rack before cutting.

Blueberry Raspberry Cobbler

Just in time for the 4th of July! This has the red and blue part covered, topped with some whipped cream or ice cream and you've got the white part covered.  I modified this recipe from a peach cobbler post I did last year. I just love the crumb topping!

First wash all the fruit, picking through it carefully to remove any leaves or stem, then mix it together in a large bowl. To this, add the brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon juice and cornstarch.

Let the fruit sit for a few minutes and start working on the topping.  Add the flour, both sugars, baking powder, salt, and butter in a bowl and mix with a fork or a pastry cutter to get the butter combined well.  Next add the hot water and mix until just combined.

In a 9x9 inch dish pour the fruit, top with the dough mixture.  Try to spread the dough out as much as possible but it doesn't have to cover the entire surface.  Now sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over the top of the dough mixture.

Let this sit for a little while after you remove from the oven.

Here's what you'll need:

4 C. Raspberries
2 C. Blueberries
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp cornstarch

Topping:
1 C. all-purpose flour
1/4 C. white sugar
1/4 C. brown sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
6 Tbsp unsalted butter
1/4 C boiling water

Sugar:
3 Tbsp white sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
In a large bowl, combine raspberries and blueberries with 1/4 cup white sugar, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon juice, and cornstarch. Toss to coat evenly, and pour into a 9x9 inch baking dish. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes.

While the fruit bakes; in a large bowl, combine flour, 1/4 cup white sugar, 1/4 cup brown sugar, baking powder, and salt. Blend in butter with your fingertips, or a pastry cutter, until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in water until just combined.

Remove the berries from the oven, and drop spoonfuls of topping over them. Sprinkle entire cobbler with the sugar and cinnamon mixture. Bake until topping is golden, about 30 minutes.

Peach Margarita

I'm not sure if I mentioned this or not; but recently my friend and I went with our kids to do some peach and blueberry picking.

We picked these...

And I brought home all this.

So needless to say, it was time to find some recipes and ways to use all this fruit.  Since my birthday is in June I decided it might be fun to have a  little get together and serve up some peach margarita's.  I was right, it was a good idea.

I decided to make the pureed mixture ahead of time, and when guests arrive I could just throw some ice in the blender and add some puree and do the frozen drinks as needed.

First, add a whole peach (that's been washed) into the blender.  I cut mine up a little first. 

Add the Tequila; Peach Schnapps

Next, add the sugar.

Lime juice and Triple Sec (optional)

The picture above is just the pureed mixture.  I blended it with some ice when people were ready for a drink and it came out nice and frothy.  Sugar the rims if you want to get fancy.  If you want to get really fancy you can add lime zest into the sugar first and then sugar the rims.  I didn't do that.  WAY to fancy for me.

 Here's what you'll need (this recipe is only for one drink), I must have made this 6 or 7 times just to fill the pitcher I had for the party.

4 ounces, Silver Tequila
2 ounces, Peach Schnapps
1 whole lime, juiced
2 Tbsp white sugar
1 whole medium sized peach
1/2 C ice, crushed
1 tsp. Triple Sec (optional)

What to do:

Add all the ingredients into the mixer and blend well.  Add water if needed to reach the desired consistency.  If you want to make it ahead of time, just puree all the ingredients (except the ice) and keep refrigerated until ready, then add the ice and blend right before serving.

To sugar the rims of the glasses, you can just use plain sugar or even add lime zest to it.  Get the rims of your glasses wet with a little water and then dip them into the sugar mixture.  Keeping the glasses frozen until you're ready for them is also a nice presentation. Sugar the rims right before you fill the glasses.

This recipe was found here

Pizza Dough

Homemade pizza dough, that rises in the refrigerator? Count me in! Too easy if you ask me.  My hubs is a self proclaimed pizza connoisseur.  Well, other than the fact that he's never made his own pizza. Being from the Boston area he has had some of the best; so I believe him when he told me that this was way better than anything he's gotten from a grocery store or pizza parlor.  Win win!

Put the flour and salt in the bowl of your stand mixer.

With the paddle attachment, drizzle the olive oil in while mixing on low speed. Next, pour in the yeast/water mixture.

Coat a mixing bowl with olive oil and then form the dough into a ball and roll it over in the bowl a couple of times so it's coated in the olive oil. Cover it with plastic wrap.

Now refrigerate it. 2 days is recommended - 3 or 4 days is even better.

This is after 2 days.  I couldn't wait any longer. I had to try it. This makes two pizza's so cut this dough in half.

Drizzle olive oil over a cookie sheet and then rub it around so it's coated.  This caused me to  have trouble getting a very thin crust.  I'm going to try a pizza stone next time.

I made cheese pizza for my daughter, and for my hubby and I we had black olive and artichoke hearts.  It was delicious.  I'll repeat this many times over before declaring my "favorite" toppings.

1 tsp Active Dry or Instant Yeast
4 C. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/3 C. extra virgin olive oil

Sprinkle the yeast over 1 1/2 Cups of warm water.  The water needs to be warm, but not hot.  Combine the flour and the salt.  Use the paddle attachment for your mixer and mix the flour and salt on low speed while slowly drizzling in the olive oil.  Now add the yeast and water mixture until just combined.
Grease a mixing bowl with olive oil and form the dough into a ball, now turn it several times in the bowl until it's coated in the oil.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2-4 days.

When ready to make.  Pre-heat the oven to 500 degrees.  Roll the dough out on a cookie sheet as thin as you can get it.  The thinner the better. Top with your favorite toppings. Bake for 10 - 12 minutes but watch carefully so the cheese doesn't get too dark.  Mine didn't cook for the full 10 minutes and the cheese was plenty dark.  I'm also not sure if a pizza stone cook time or temperature will vary since I haven't tried it yet.

Let me know what your favorite pizza toppings are! Enjoy!

The recipe came from here.

Chocolate Malted Cookies

This was a request by my friend Amanda.  We both love the Taste of Home collectors magazines you can buy and this was one of the recipes from there. 

When making this recipe it occurred to me that I have no idea what malted milk powder really is.  So a quick search on Wikipedia turned this up:

Malted milk is a powdered food product made from a mixture of malted barley, wheat flour, and whole milk, which is evaporated until it forms a powder.


Malt powder comes in two forms: diastatic and nondiastatic. Diastatic malt contains enzymes that break down starch into sugar; this is the form bakers add to bread dough to help the dough rise and create a good crust. Nondiastatic malt has no active enzymes and is used primarily for flavor, mostly in beverages. It sometimes contains sugar, coloring agents, and other additives.

So, there you have it. All I know is it was super yummy in these cookies.

The recipe was very basic and easy to make. You can definitely taste the malted milk powder in these, that is not to say that it's over powering; just different then your usual chocolate chip cookie.  Very tasty!

I found the recipe here