Crockpot Coconut Curry Chicken

This was absolutely delicious! This only tastes better as the left-overs continue. I highly recommend each of you try this, you'll find your new favorite flavor... that is if you like curry!

4 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 medium sweet yellow onion, sliced
8 oz baby carrots
1 tsp minced garlic (2 cloves)
6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

Curry Sauce
1 can (14 oz) coconut milk
1 c chicken broth, homemade is best
1 T curry powder (or more/less to taste)
1 tsp hot pepper sauce
1/2 tsp.+ coarse salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

For serving:
Hot cooked sticky jasmine rice
Toasted flaked coconut

Spray the inside of the crock-pot with non-stick cooking spray. Place the prepared potatoes, onion, and baby carrots in the bottom of the slow cooker. Scatter the minced garlic over the carrots. The slow cooker is about half-full at this point.

Brown the chicken: Heat 1 T vegetable oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté the chicken breasts in two batches until nicely browned, about 3 to 5 minutes on each side. Transfer chicken breasts to a plate to drain.

Make the sauce: In a medium size bowl, whisk together the coconut milk, chicken broth, curry powder, and hot pepper sauce until smooth. Whisk in the salt and pepper.

Assemble the ingredients:
Place half the chicken breasts on top of the vegetables. Cover with half the sauce. Place remaining chicken and sauce in the slow cooker. Place the lid on the slow cooker. Cook covered on HIGH for one hour.

Turn heat to LOW and cook for another 4 to 4.5 hours. Do not remove the lid. Do not stir the ingredients while they cook.

Serve with hot, cooked rice. If desired, sprinkle with optional toasted coconut.

Paula Deen's Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cakes

Cake:
1 package yellow cake mix
1 egg
8 T. butter, melted (this is why it is sooo good!)
Filling:
1 8 oz. pkg. cream cheese
1 15 oz. can pumpkin
3 eggs
1 t. vanilla
8 T. butter, melted (okay, so this help alot too!)
1 16 oz. box powdered sugar
1 t. cinnamon
1 t. nutmeg

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine the cake mix, egg & butter in bowl and mix well with electric mixer. Pat the mixture into the bottom of a lightly greased 9x13 baking pan.
3. To make the filling: In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and pumpkin until smooth. Add the eggs, vanilla, and butter. Beat together. Next add the powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and mix well. Spread pumpkin mixture over cake batter and bake for 40-50 minutes. Make sure not to overbake as the center should be a little gooey still. Serve with fresh whipped cream.

Variations:
Pineapple Gooey Cake: Instead of the pumpkin, add a drained 20 oz can of crushed pineapple to the cream cheese filling. Proceed as directed above.
Banana Gooey Cake: Prepare cream cheese filling as directed, beating in 2 ripe bananas instead of the pumpkin. Proceed as directed above.
Peanut Butter Gooey Cake: Use a chocolate cake mix. Add 1 cup creamy peanut butter to the cream cheese filling instead of the pumpkin. Proceed as directed above.

Butternut Squash Pasta

1 T.+ olive oil
1 c. finely chopped onion
1/4 t. crushed red pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 c. (1/2") cubed, peeled butternut squash
1 T. chopped fresh or 1 t. dried rubbed sage
1/4 t. ground nutmeg
1/4 t. ground allspice (just equal parts nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon, & black pepper)
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. black pepper
2 c. penne pasta, cooked according to box

Heat olive oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, garlic & red pepper; saute for 3 minutes. Add squash; saute 10-20 minutes or until soft and tender. Stir in sage, nutmeg, allspice, 1/4 t. salt & 1/4 t. pepper and remove from heat. Mix the pasta with the squash/ spice mixture, then add just enough olive oil to lightly dress the pasta.

I mixed the spices with 1 c. half & half, 1 c. ricotta cheese, & 1 t. salt. Then I added that mixture to the pasta. Looking back, I would not add the crushed red pepper. I would put a sweet yellow onion in instead of a white. I would use butter instead of olive oil. I would add 1 T. of brown sugar. I would add parmesan cheese and use fresh sage instead of dried. That would make it. I know, there are a lot of changes there--but hey you don't know what it's going to be like the first time!

Caramel Pumpkin Cookies

These are my absolute favorite pumpkin dessert. They literally just melt in your mouth. Please don't ask me how many I've eaten this weekend. I won't ever tell.

Cookie Ingredients:
2 c. shortening
2 c. white sugar
2 c. canned pumpkin
2 eggs
2 t. baking powder
1 1/2 t. ground cinnamon
1 t. salt
4 c. all-purpose flour
1 pkg. mini chocolate chips

Caramel Icing:
6 T. butter
1 c. packed brown sugar
8 T. milk
2 c. powdered sugar (maybe more)
1 1/2 t. vanilla

Directions
1. Cream together shortening, white sugar and pumpkin in very large bowl. Add eggs (one at a time) and mix well. Sift together twice; baking soda, cinnamon, salt & flour in separate bowl. Add to pumpkin mixture & mix well. Mix whole bag of mini chocolate chips in with wooden spoon.
2. Drop from spoon to cookie sheet. I like to make mini cookies rather than big ones, so just a regular spoon drop works great. Bake at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes, or no longer gooey.
3. To make frosting, cook butter, milk & brown sugar until dissolved. Cool and add powdered sugar and vanilla. Spread over warm cookies.

Yummy Ants on a Log

This has nothing to do with the theme, but I fixed them for a snack, and I swear I blinked and they were gone. Note the little hand already reaching into the picture!

Make them with carrots, celery, or apples, and peanut butter and raisins, or other dried fruits.

Variation: cream cheese and little ham cubes, get creative!

Pumpkin Cookies

These are so yummy and easy, and they are lowfat! I know it sounds weird, but I promise it works.

1 spice cake mix
1 small can pumpkin
1 cup chocolate chips (mini are super cute for these)

Mix the cake mix, dry, with the pumpkin until smooth. Stir in the chocolate chips. Drop by spoonfuls onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes.

Tortellini with Garlic Sage Butter Sauce

I made this for the first time a couple nights ago, and oh man, is it good! It's basically garlic-infused butter sauce with a little spike of sage and pepper at the end. Oh! And the garlic gets crispy! Yummmm!

6 T (yes T!) butter
6 cloves garlic, very roughly chopped
pepper
ground (teaspoon or so)or fresh sage (6 leaves)
tortellini (the Winco bulk kind is really good)

Melt the butter in a small sauce pan and gently simmer the garlic until golden. Meanwhile, cook tortellini in salted water until done. Add sage and pepper to butter sauce, sautee for a couple minutes, then serve over cooked tortellini. Eat lots and lots.

Apricot Salad

This is actually for last month...

This is my grandma's recipe and I love it. You don't use actual Jello, but gelatin and apricot nectar so it has a stronger flavor and a different texture.

Heat in a medium saucepan:
1 (12 oz.) can apricot nectar
1/3 cup sugar
a few grains of salt

In a separate bowl, soften 1 package gelatin in 2 tablespoons lemon juice.

Add gelatin and lemon mixture to nectar and refrigerate until slightly thickened. Remove from refrigerator and put into an 8 X 8 pan (double the recipe for a 9 X 13 pan).

Fold in 2 sliced bananas, 1 can mandarin oranges (drained), and 1 can pineapple chunks (drained). (The pineapple chunks are optional -- my grandma never puts them in, but I like them.)

Chill until firm. Serve with whipped cream on top.

Spider Cake

I found this picture, and it is the closest I could come to what my cake looks like. I like how they used cupcakes on the side of the cake. Cute touch for kiddies.

My recipe is pretty darn easy. Just make two 8 or 9 inch round chocolate cakes and let them cool. Meanwhile, mix pistachio pudding according to the pie directions on the box and chill in the fridge. Once the cakes are cooled, Put one cake on your serving dish and cut out a 4 inch round piece out of the middle of the cake. You can use this piece for a spider head if you want. Take your pudding and put that in the hole. Cover with chocolate frosting and then add the top cake. Frost like you would a normal cake and then decorate it however you want. I like twizzlers for legs, m&m's for eyes, etc. The cool part is when people cut into it, the pudding comes gushing out like the spider's guts. It is pretty awesome. You could do the same thing in cupcakes, just cut out the middle after they are cooled and then put the middle back in, frost, and decorate.

Halloween Tacos

My Grandma LOVED Halloween. Then my mom loved it, which is probably why I love it so much as well. Tacos are a Halloween tradition at our house. We make them every year, and we make them just the way Grandma made them. She died about a year and a half ago and I miss her like crazy, but carrying on her love for the spooky holiday is a way to stay connected. Plus it's just so much fun. More recipes to come, but I thought I'd post this one while I was thinking about it.

Ground beef

Potatoes (somewhere between 1/4 and 1/2 a medium potato per pound of meat)

Taco Seasoning (I like the Taco Bell brand)

Taco Shells

Lettuce, Tomato, Cheese and any other toppings you enjoy.

Shred raw potatoes into raw ground beef in a skillet. The potatoes help the meat stick together in the shell, while also adding bulk to the meat, making it easier to cook for a lot of people. Brown meat and add taco seasoning according to packet directions.

Chop toppings. Toast shells on broil for just a couple minutes. I always burn one batch, so make sure you keep an eye on them. Just broil long enough to make them crispy. Serve.

(Love the new look Leslie! Well done!)

Banana Pudding

Okay, so I got this recipe on the back of a Keebler Vanilla Wafer box, but it was a favorite for us this past summer. Yummy, pretty light, and it's easy! I meant to post this all Sept...I'm just a day late. Everyone's desserts look soooo good!

48 Vanilla Wafers , divided
3 cups milk
1 package (4-serving size) vanilla flavor instant pudding & pie filling
4 medium bananas, sliced, divided
Frozen non-dairy whipped topping, thawed

1. Line bottom and sides of 8 x 8 x 2-inch square or 1 1/2-quart dish with half of wafers.
2. In medium bowl, whisk milk and pudding mix for 2 mins, go by directions on box.
3. Top wafers with half of banana slices, then half of pudding. Repeat layers using remaining wafers, banana slices and pudding.
4. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours or until set. Serve with whipped topping. Garnish as desired. Store in refrigerator. Servings: 9

Chicken & Dumplings

I finally attempted it. Last week I made my own chicken broth. I was really sick and there wasn't anything else that sounded good to eat. It turned out delicious! Last night, I turned it into chicken & dumplings. I used to love to eat these when I was smaller and they were just as good as I remembered them to be.

Chicken Broth:

1 Rotisserie-style Chicken, torn up
3 celery ribs without leaves, cut into chunks
3 medium carrots, cut into chunks
2 medium onions, quartered
2 bay leaves
1/2 t. dried rosemary, crushed
1/2 t. dried thyme
8 whole peppercorns
2 quarts cold water

(I didn't have rosemary or thyme or whole peppercorns on hand, so I just used oregano, ground black pepper, and a tiny bit of basil, also added salt.)

1. Place all ingredients in to soup kettle. It is best to cut vegetables into large chunks, as smaller chunks will lose their flavor faster. When it appears as if stock will boil; reduce heat to low immediately or the fat will never rise to the top to skim off. Skim foam. Cover and simmer for 2 hours. Set chicken aside until cool enough to handle. Remove meat from bones. Discard bones; save meat for another use. Strain broth, discarding vegetables and seasonings. (I always wondered why you had to throw the vegetables away, it's because they are tasteless after cooking for 2 hours.) Squeeze all the juice out of the veggies first though through a small strainer.) Refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight. Skim fat from surface.

** I liked using the Rotisserie-style chicken because all the flavor roasted into that, went straight into the broth. If you don't use this chicken, I would add a small cube of chicken bouillon to the broth, for that kick of flavor.



Chicken & Dumplings:

2-5 chicken breasts, cut into chunks
4 c. chicken stock, recipe above
2 onions, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
2 medium carrots, chopped
3 t. salt
1 egg
1/4 c. milk
1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 t. baking powder
2 T. butter
2 T. chopped, fresh parsley (optional)
1/2 t. ground black pepper

1. In a large pot, place chicken pieces and add the chicken stock, onion, celery, carrots and 2 t. of salt. Put heat on medium low and simmer, partially covered, 15-20 minutes or until chicken is tender.
2. To prepare dumplings: In a large mixing bowl, beat together the egg and milk. Add the flour, remaining salt, pepper and baking powder and mix all together. Cut the cold butter into the flour mixture until the mixture is crumbly. Add 1 T. of chopped parsley and mix. In 6 large spoonfuls, drop dumpling mixture onto the top of the simmering chicken. Cover the pot and let all simmer for 10 more minutes.
3. To make gravy: Remove 2 c. of liquid in pot and place in small pot. Add 1/2 c. cold water to 1/4 c. flour. Stir well until blended. Then add flour mixture to liquid in pot and bring to a boil. It is ready when thick and bubbly and cook 1 minute more. Dish up chicken and dumplings and pour gravy on top. Sprinkle fresh parsley on top.