Yodeling Chicken

This was originally a recipe for chicken cordon bleu casserole, but I needed to leave out the ham, heehee. So my dad renamed it yodeling chicken (swiss cheese, swiss people yodel.... you get the joke). My husband got very excited when he found out I was making this for supper last night. I had been avoiding putting it on my menu because it involves turning on the oven, but I caved to the will of my family and made it. It is a very simple recipe.

4 boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into chunks
2 eggs
1 cup of plain breadcrumbs
poultry seasoning
salt and pepper to taste
oil
cream of chicken/ celery/ or mushroom soup
1/2 can of milk
6 slices of swiss cheese (more if you like it cheesy)

Preheat oven to 350. Heat the oil to medium high heat in a large frying pan. Whisk together the egg and a splash of milk and soak the chicken in it for 5 minutes. Mix together the breadcrumbs, some poultry seasoning (approx 1 tablespoon) and some salt and pepper.



Coat the chicken chunks in the breadcrumb mixture and brown in the oil. Place in a single layer in a 9x13 baking dish. Once all of the chicken is browned, place the slices of swiss cheese over the chicken. Whisk together the cream soup with 1/2 of the can filled with milk, and then pour over the cheese and chicken.



Bake for 30 minutes uncovered.



YUM! I serve it with rice. The cheesy sauce is delicious on rice.

Chicken Enchiladas

This is a family favorite. It isn't exactly a traditional enchilada, but the flavors are there and it is easy to do substitutions. I made this last weekend, and there are leftovers in the fridge.

1 whole chicken, cooked and shredded
3 cups of chicken broth (I reserve this from the water the chicken was boiled in)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped (you can use a hotter pepper if you prefer spicy)
2-3 cloves of garlic minced
2 tablespoons of olive oil
several tablespoons of chili powder, cumin, and cayanne pepper (if you want it spicy)
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup of butter
1/4 cup of flour
1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can of corn (I use frozen and fill the can of beans after it has been rinsed)
3-4 cups of cheddar cheese
1 package of burrito size tortillas

Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9x13 pan. In a large pot, heat olive oil. Add 1 tablespoon of chili powder and cumin (and cayenne if you like it spicy), then saute the onion, peppers, and garlic until softened. Remove from the pan (I usually add to the bowl of the shredded chicken). In the same pan melt the butter, once the butter is melted completely, add the flour and cook until it is "blonde". To this add the chicken broth and whisk well to get rid of any lumps. Bring it to a boil and thickened. Add 1 cup of the cheese, the chicken, sauteed veggies, beans, and corn, another 2 tablespoons of chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper. Stir until well combined and heat until bubbly. In the greased 9x13 pan, place some of the sauce mixture, then tear apart teh tortillas and cover that completely, layer on several scoops of the sauce mixture, sprinkle with the cheese, and cover with another layer of torn tortillas, repeat layers until the pan is full ending with a topping of cheese. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until bubbly.



Serving suggestions:
Top with a dollop of sour cream, chopped green onion, chopped tomatoes, black olives, guacamole, etc...

Saudi Champagne

To some this name might sound a little weird! Haha... I was confused too, the first time I heard it. Alcohol is strictly prohibited in Saudi Arabia but this drink just happens to have the word 'Champagne' in it, even though it's kind of like apple cider.

This isn't really much of a "recipe" just because there's really nothing to it. And yet, whenever I make it for parties or brunches, I am left going back and forth from the kitchen and dining table making more and more refills! :)

Ingredients:

1 Bottle Perrier (sparkling) Water (or 'water with gas' as they'd call it in Rome! haha) [I usually substitute this with sugar-free sprite/Sprite Zero]

1 bottle apple juice

A julienne cut apple to garnish

A few sprigs of mint

Cut slices of orange/lemon to garnish (optional)

Method:

Mix one part sparkling water with 2 parts of apple juice, you can alter this based on what you feel your diners would prefer.

Pour the mixture into a glass jug and garnish the entire top of the drink with mint sprigs, oranges & apple.

For best results, let the drink sit in the fridge for a little while before serving, so that the scent of the mint gets well-infused with the rest of the drink, it really adds a nice twist!

I've always gotten a lot of compliments with this drink, even though there's really nothing to it!


Enjoy!

Simple No-Bake Cheesecake Recipe

This is a recipe that I had used a few years ago to make cheesecake. Of course, the non-baked cheesecake tastes different than the baked ones but this is a good idea for times when you are in a hurry and yet want to make a good dessert :)

Ingredients: (Serves 6-8)

- 8 oz Cool Whip Free (take it out 10 minutes before using)
- 16 oz 1/3 less fat Philadelphia Cream Cheese (softened)
- 9 inch reduced fat Graham Cracker Crust/Or you can make your own crust by combing butter and cookie crumbs
- 1/4 cup sugar (can do acc. to taste as well, I have found some recipes which state 1/2 cup)
- 1 pack of Halal Lemon Jello/Jelly
- 1 jar/can of cheesecake topping (I don't like tasting big chunks of fruit so I get Smuckers brand 'Toppings').

Method:

1. In a large bowl, combine whipped cream cheese, lemon jello and sugar for a few minutes until fluffy.

2. Add Cool Whip and whip until smooth. You can use an electric mixer too but make sure you don't over beat (you want soft peaks in the mix, s that it's fluffy and not stiff).

3. In the meantime, you can crush 6 or 7 gram crackers and melt just enough butter (this needs to be adjusted according to how thick you want your crust to be and how big your dish is) to nicely pack the bottom of a springform/any other tray to form the crust.

3. Spoon mixture into pie crust and chill for a few hours, until firm. I usually let it just sit overnight when I can.

Cut into 6/8 equal slices.


Alternate serving option:
Serve just the cheesecake mix as a mousse, with graham crackers on the side as opposed to forming a crust with them.


Picture from: http://www.viecouture.net/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/strawberry_cheesecake_squares.jpg

Fettuccine Alfredo

Ingredients:

4 oz. (1/2 of 8-oz. pkg.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, cubed
1/2 cup KRAFT Grated Parmesan Cheese
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter or margarine
1/4 tsp. white pepper
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
8 oz. fettuccine, cooked, drained
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg

Method:

MIX cream cheese, Parmesan cheese, milk, butter, white pepper and garlic powder in medium saucepan; cook on low heat until cream cheese is melted and mixture is well blended.

TOSS with hot fettucine. Sprinkle with nutmeg.

This is basic alfredo recipe and you can put sauteed shrimp or chicken breasts into it as well and adjust accordingly :)