BAKED CRACK CHICKEN serves 4 Juicy chicken breasts seasoned with ranch seasoning, crisp bacon and gooey gooey cheese make an addictive and quick week night dinner.
CHICKEN 4 slices thick cut bacon, diced 1 tablespoon avocado oil 1 tablespoon butter 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded to ¼-inch thickness FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper, to taste ½ teaspoon garlic powder ½ teaspoon smoked or sweet paprika
Preheat oven to 400˚.
Lightly grease 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray. Set aside.
Over medium high heat add the diced bacon to a large skillet; cook until crispy.
Remove bacon from skillet and set aside.
Return skillet with the bacon grease to heat and add the avocado oil. Season chicken breast with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika. Add chicken breasts cooking 2 to 3 minutes until golden brown. Add butter and flip chicken, cooking 2 minutes more.
Remove chicken breasts from the skillet and arrange in a single layer in the prepared baking dish. Set aside.
In a small bowl, combine cream cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, dill weed, and chives, mixing until thoroughly combined. Adjust seasoning to taste.
Top each chicken breast with 2 tablespoons of the cream cheese mixture, spreading to coat the surface of each chicken breast.
Take half of the diced bacon and sprinkle over the cream cheese mixture on each chicken breast.
Sprinkle shredded cheese over the chicken breasts.
Bake 15 minutes, uncovered or until chicken is cooked through and cheese is melted and lightly browned.
Remove from oven.
GARNISH FRESH chopped parsley 2 sliced green onions
Garnish with remaining bacon, fresh parsley, and scallions.
I’m joining in on A Simple Life’s BLOGTOBER prompts where I can. Today’s prompt is Fall scents and candles.Coffee brewing, soups and chilis simmering, cakes and pies baking, pumpkin & vanilla spice candles flickering, cinnamon and spice potpourri, fall leaves and dewy mornings, crisp cool evenings…and I know it’s not a “scent”, but the geese honking overhead as they travel south is one of the first fall indicators I see and hear each year.
I grew up on chopped steaks with mashed potatoes or egg noodles and mushroom gravy and canned green beans. I didn’t know then it was a truly mid-western staple meal. Restaurants had in on the menu as a hamburger “steak” which in reality is just a fancy unless hamburger.
Traditionally this calls for ground sirloin which is a lot less fatty so be careful not to over work the mixture when preparing the steaks. Overworking it can lead to dry, tough steaks.
When using the egg noodles you can really oomph them up with this added intense buttery mustard sauce.
EVERYMAN STEAKS serves 2
STEAKS 3/4 pound top sirloin 3 tablespoons FINELY chopped onion 1/8 cup FRESH chopped Parsley 1 clove garlic, FINELY minced 1/2 tablespoon QUALITY Worcestershire sauce 1/2 tablespoon A1 sauce 1/4 cup FINELY crushed saltines FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper
Preheat oven to 350°.
Combine eggs, onion, parsley, garlic, A1 and Worcestershire sauce with the crackers until well blended.
Add in ground sirloin, salt and pepper mixing with your hands JUST until blended.
Shape into 2 oval patties.
In an ovenproof skillet sauté patties 4-5 minutes on one side.
Flip patties and transfer pan to oven for 15 minutes.
Transfer steaks to platter and tent with foil while you make the gravy.
Add mushrooms sautéing 8 minutes or so until golden and moisture evaporated.
Add onions and sprinkle with flour, stirring to combine. Saute’ 2 more minutes.
Add broth and simmer until gravy reaches desired consistency.
Serve over steaks.
MUSTARD EGG NOODLES with GREEN BEANS 8 ounces egg noodles, prepared per package 1/2 pound green beans, trimmed to 1 inch pieces, blanched in boiling water 5 minutes and then drained well
4 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 tablespoon coarse grained mustard
1 tablespoon sour cream 1/4 cup FRESH chopped Parsley FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper, to taste
Melt butter in large sauce pan.
Stir in mustard and sour cream until smooth.
Fold in noodles and green beans.
Season to taste with FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper.
GOOD MORNING!! Welcome, grab some coffee and let’s chat.
We went to the Farmer’s Market and Oktoberfest on Saturday, but it was pretty rainy and we ended up quickly only picking up what I needed for the menu and heading out to a neighboring town for lunch with a stop along the way at a favorite junk store where I scored a few favorite things and a couple pieces of “brand new” vintage ™Tupperware.
WOW, is it really the first Monday in October already? Last week was busy, BUT, I did something yesterday that I’m always threatening to do, but rarely get the chance to. I got up without an alarm, made coffee, threw things in the slow cooker for some soup, wrote some recipes, watched a NASCAR race and a football game before I ever considered taking a shower and getting dressed. It was the most relaxed I have been in months!
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
THE WEATHER OUTSIDE
Today is going to be gorgeous (high 70’s) as is tomorrow and then we take a MAJOR dip in temperatures (low 50’s) and some more rain. I’m good with that as I just finished washing and hanging my cold weather gear.
TO DO, APPOINTMENTS, DVR/TV & PROJECTS
THIS WEEK’S TO DO LIST, PROJECTS, APPOINTMENTS & DVR/TV
LAUNDRY & CLEANING Despite taking and relaxing all day yesterday I was able to do the laundry. Tomorrow is cleaning day after taco Tuesday.
GROCERIES & ERRANDS I’m headed to the grocery store in a bit as well as run errands. I’m hoping to finish cleaning out the rest of the estate sale items today and tomorrow for delivery to the abused women’s center on Wednesday. Our auxiliary is supporting this center this year and going out of our way to send them everything we can.
PROJECTS & TRAVELS I made our reservations for the trip to the Junk Hunt and antiquing with my girlfriend.
RECIPE RESEARCH & MENU PLANNING I’m delving into my new recipe box of tricks with high hopes for some new fall recipes. I’m also going to be joining in on A Simple Life’s BLOGTOBER prompts where I can.
DVR/TV The new season has began, but we have yet to get into a routine. I have been keeping up with Halloween Wars and Halloween Baking Championship so far.
READING TIME
FUNNIES
MENU PLANS
BREAKFAST is always a work in progress for me – it will generally be hot water and a fruit yogurt 😀
10/6 MONDAY
10/7 TUESDAY
10/8 WEDNESDAY
10/9 THURSDAY
10/10 FRIDAY
10/11 SATURDAY
10/12 SUNDAY
DINNER
TUSCAN CHICKEN PASTA SALAD
I’m cooking PORK POZOLE at the Eagles
CHICKEN PAPRIKASH SOUP
CHICKEN MARSALA BAKE
CORN/YOYO Clean out refrigerator night or you’re on your own – cooking GRAN’S CHICKEN & NOODLES at the Eagles with PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE CHEESECAKE BARS
CRANBERRY CHICKEN (SLOW COOKER)
MUSHROOM BEEF STROGANOFF (SLOW COOKER)
DESSERT
MAGIC COOKIE BARS
BLUE CARROT BUNDT CAKE
FAVORITE PHOTOS FROM THE CAMERA
Most of you know how much I LOVE old handwritten recipes and then re-creating them. We are going to a Great Junk Hunt in a couple weeks and I will search for more, BUT we stopped in a favorite little junk store to browse during last Saturday’s rain and I made an early score with not one, but two boxes stuffed full of yummy recipes, most of which were not only dated but had names like Aunt Helen’s… as well as descriptive adjectives like “excellent – make again”. Plus, they were really cute boxes in great shape.
I’ve sorted them out to those I want to re-create for myself and the blog and have an additional stack that will be coming your way Jean. 🙂
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts FRESH ground salt and pepper to taste
Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper on both sides.
MARINADE 1 cup teriyaki sauce 1 cup pineapple juice 1 small pineapple, cored and sliced into rings 2 tablespoons QUALITY honey 2-3 cloves garlic, minced 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger 1 teaspoon sesame oil
Whisk together the teriyaki sauce, pineapple juice, honey, minced garlic, grated ginger and sesame oil.
Pour the marinade evenly over the chicken in a large ziplock bag. Marinade 2 hours.
Preheat your oven to 375°.
Lightly grease 9×13 baking dish.
Place chicken breasts in the baking dish in a single layer. Reserve marinade.
Arrange the pineapple slices around the chicken.
Sprinkle pineapple slices evenly with brown sugar and drizzle with a little pineapple juice.
Bake 25-30 minutes, or until the chicken is thoroughly cooked and the juices run clear and pineapple caramelizes.
2 teaspoons cornstarch Sesame seeds, for garnish Sliced green onions, for garnish
As the chicken is baking, transfer the remaining marinade to a small saucepan.
Whisk in the cornstarch and bring the mixture to a boil.
Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring constantly until the sauce thickens to a glaze.
Once the chicken is cooked, brush the thickened glaze over the chicken and pineapple.
Sprinkle with sesame seeds and sliced green onions before serving.
NOTE: If using canned pineapple rings be sure and drain them really well.
TERIYAKI GLAZED CORN
This recipe has a thick, buttery glaze that resembles salted caramel. This is NOT your average corn on the cob from summer BBQ’s.
1/8 cup Bragg’s liquid aminos 1/4 cup mirin 2 tablespoons sugar 2 tablespoons salted butter
Add the liquid aminos, mirin and sugar to a small pot and bring it to a simmer.
Reduce the heat to LOW and simmer, stirring regularly (DO NOT BURN) for 15 minutes or until the mixture is reduced to half and has thickened enough to leave a ribbon on your spoon. The glaze will thicken as it cools.
Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the butter.
Brush the glaze onto cooked corn on the cob and serve immediately.
Enjoy!
FRESH pineapple ring, FINELY diced
NOTE: I like to use a thawed, well drained frozen corn in the winter that I heat in a skillet with a tablespoon of butter before adding the sauce. When using frozen corn I add a tablespoon of glaze to the pan with the pineapple last and cook 5 more minutes until heated through and well coated in glaze.
I absolutely LOVE doing Happy Homemaker Mondays so extensively. They truly help keep me focused and on track. It helps me summarize the past week and lay out a fairly concise plan for me to follow this week. Be sure to join Happy Homemaker Monday with our host, Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom
LAST WEEK RECAPPED
WOW where did last week go? I still have things to do on last week’s to do list which will make this week incredibly busier when I add them to this week’s list.
I spent several days last week helping a girlfriend with her MIL’s estate sale where I was able to get several things for the foster kid Christmas program and a pretty pink comforter set for the spare bedroom. I did her marketing and strategic placement of many things and fielded the Facebook Marketplace messages as well as local friends.
I also had an antique reseller pick up the last of my stepdad’s things from our house for consignment. There was also an oil change and brakes on my car, brunch with a fun friend, grocery shopping, farmer’s market, laundry, book work, paper work, medical testing, phone calls, yard clean up to get ready for winter and general organization.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
THE WEATHER OUTSIDE
YAY, IT’S RAINING! And boy do we need it! The temperatures have dropped significantly too. I’ve pulled out the flannels too. Highs this week will be in the 60’s and low 70’s (maybe) with lows in the 40’s 🙂
TO DO, APPOINTMENTS, DVR/TV & PROJECTS
THIS WEEK’S TO DO LIST, PROJECTS, APPOINTMENTS & DVR/TV
LAUNDRY & CLEANING I was able to get the laundry done yesterday and much of the cleaning so have at least a good head start this week on the chores.
GROCERIES & ERRANDS I have a pedicure this morning and will stop at the butcher, Staples and WalMart for a few things I couldn’t get at the grocer.
PROJECTS & TRAVELS We began planning a trip for late October with 2 friends and so far one has canceled 🙁 I’m thinking it may not happen.
RECIPE RESEARCH & MENU PLANNING I copied a few recipes yesterday to work on for late October as well as a few for making holiday gifts.
DVR/TV The new season has started, but I’ve only seen a few shows so far: Halloween Wars, Halloween Baking, Amazing Race, The Floor, Law & Order, Law & Order SVU…
READING TIME
Book Club was canceled yesterday, which for me is good because I haven’t even started the book 😂 I’m trying to finish the Book Woman’s Daughter, but keep falling asleep!
FUNNIES
MENU PLANS
BREAKFAST is always a work in progress for me – it will generally be hot water and a fruit yogurt 😀
9/29 MONDAY
9/30 TUESDAY
10/1 WEDNESDAY
10/2 THURSDAY
10/3 FRIDAY
10/4 SATURDAY
10/5 SUNDAY
DINNER
Reuben Braid
Steak Burgers and Potato Salad
CORN/YOYO clean out refrigerator or you’re on your own
Baked Fettuccine and Green Beans
Chile con Carne Queso Cups
French Country Soup and Crusty Bread
Slow Cooker Chicken Pasta
DESSERT
Blue Carrot Bundt Cake
FAVORITE PHOTOS FROM THE CAMERA
I’m not a Bloody Mary drinker, but did have to admire this brunch worthy one at a local haunt!
