Chicken Penne Florentine

Miles and I had a busy weekend with a birthday party, engagement, baby shower, and BABY JOEL being born.  Needless to say I have been neglecting my blog. When I got home from work it was time to break open the cookbook again (really just a printed out recipe from a site called myrecipes.com). Miles had two new client meetings today so it was a great opportunity for me to have dinner ready when he got home from those. 


ON THE MENU TONIGHT: Chicken Penne Florentine - Green Beans - Fruit Salad

Chicken Penne Florentine Recipe

• 1tsp olive oil
• 3 cups thinly sliced mushrooms (which I did not get to use because Miles hates mushrooms)
• 1 cup chopped red bell pepper
• 3 cups chopped fresh spinach
• 1tbsp chopped fresh oregano 
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 (16oz) carton 2% low-fat cottage cheese
• 4 cups hot cooked penne (I used whole wheat penne)
• 2 cups chicken
• 1 cup shredded reduced fat sharp cheddar, divided
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese divided
• 1/2 cup milk (it calls for 2% but I used skim b/c that is all we buy)
• 1 can reduced fat cream of chicken soup

• Preheat oven to 425
• Heat olive oil in a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and bell pepper; sauté 4 minutes or until tender. Add spinach, oregano, and black pepper; sauté 3 minutes or just until spinach wilts.
• Place cottage cheese in a food processor; process until very smooth. Combine spinach mixture, cottage cheese, pasta, chicken, 3/4 cup cheddar cheese, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, milk, and soup in a large bowl. Spoon mixture into a 2-quart baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup cheddar cheese and remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Bake at 425° for 25 minutes or until lightly browned and bubbly.

Chicken Enchiladas - Marbled Cream Cheese Squares - Best Friends

Chicken Enchiladas

We have declared Monday nights as the Post/Boyer dinner night. It seems like there is just never enough time in the week so instead of never seeing our best friends we came up with an excuse to see them once a week. One Monday at our house with me cooking the next at theirs with Ashley cooking. We always make sure the food in yummy because Miles, Ashley, Dustin, Cameron (the baby), and myself watch the Bachelor afterwords. If you bring food you can always talk your husband into watching a show that he claims he hated but really truly enjoys. Week before last I decided Chicken Enchiladas sounded good. These aren't like normal enchiladas. They are closer to baked burritos but delicious none the less. Since I have to cook after work I always try to plan ahead so that it is either almost done (chicken cooked the night before) or easy enough to cook in an hour or less. I served black beans and basmati rice with this dish. 

RECIPE: 

• Chicken Breasts (I used approximately 4-5) - I cook mine on the stove for about 45 minutes in boiling water and then shred by hand while they are still hot
• 1-10 oz can of cream of mushroom soup - I used reduced fat cream of chicken instead because of one picky girl - not mentioning names :) 
• 1/4 cup chopped green chili 
• 8 oz sour cream 
• Tortillas
• 1 cup shredded jack cheese 
• 1 cup cheddar

Preheat the oven to 350. Combine chicken, soup, chili, and sour cream in a bowl. Mix well. Spread mixture into the center of the tortillas. Roll up to enclose filling. Arrange in a greased baking pan. Sprinkle with cheese. I sprinkled cilantro on top for extra seasoning. Bake 30 minutes. 

*I added cheese inside the soup mixture before I filled the tortillas but that is just my preference.

I just had to share of picture of Cameron Allen Post (above)!  Isn't he a doll????

Marbled Cream Cheese Squares

No Post/Boyer night is complete without a desert! This is obviously made the night before as well (hence the pony tail and workout apparel). I know I know...work out clothes while making rich brownies. That is so ME! They were a lot of work but turned out to be INCREDIBLE if I must say so myself. 

RECIPE:

Cream Cheese Mixture:

• 1 cup cream cheese softened
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoon finely grated orange zest (if you don't know how to zest go to bed bath and beyond and get a zester)
• 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice (I bought 2 medium sized oranges to do this)
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 large egg

Chocolate Mixture:

• 8 oz dark chocolate, chopped
• 1/4 cup cold butter
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten with 2 tablespoons of cold water
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Preheat the oven to 350. Butter a 9" baking pan. Beat the cream cheese and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer (AGAIN, LOVE MY KITCHENAID MIXER) at high speed until creamy. Beat in orange zest and juice and cornstarch. Add the egg, beating until just blended. 

Chocolate Mixture: Melt the chocolate and butter in a double boiler over barely simmering water. Set aside to cool. Stir in the sugar and vanilla. Add the beaten egg mixture, followed by the flour. Pour the chocolate mixture into the prepared pan. Drop tablespoons of the cream cheese mixture over the chocolate base. Use a thin metal spatula to swirl the mixture together to create a marbled effect. 

Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until slightly risen around the edges and set in the center. Cool completely in the pan before cutting into the squares. 

*I stored mine in the refrigerator overnight. 

MY FAVORITES: KitchenAid & Williams Sonoma

Normally I blog about the things I cook or craft. Today I decided to tell you about a few of my FAVORITE things to use in my kitchen.

1. KitchenAid Stand Mixer (kitchenaid.com)
On my wedding day everything was absolutely perfect. Since we are wedding photographers we see a lot of gifts from the groom to the bride the day of. The most popular gift choices are jewelry, bibles, sweet handwritten notes. You know the mushy gushy stuff. My husband to be decided to do things a little differently. If you know Miles and I at all you already understand that abnormal is our style. So when they brought in my gift to open from Miles it was a little bigger than I had expected. If you were in the room with me that day you would have known by the look on my face that the KitchenAid mixer I received from Miles was PERFECT! He knew that I had always wanted one and did not get it at any of my showers. Most women would probably be angry that they received an appliance but NOT ME! Any men reading this blog take note...you cannot go wrong with a KitchenAid mixer. Do NOT go the cheap route because it will not be the same. I use my mixer every single week and am truly in LOVE!

2. Williams Sonoma Mixing Bowls and Cups (williams-sonoma.com)
As nerdy as this sounds the other main kitchen gift I had been talking about long before the big day was even in the picture was the Williams-Sonoma mixing bowls. Something about a good mixing bowl just makes baking that much better. One of my best friends knew this about me and for my wedding gift got me  my set of 3 porcelain mixing bowls. These are no ordinary mixing bowls. They are heavy duty with pour spouts and handles. Sadly when I went to write this post, they no longer carry this item. Then for my birthday last year she surprised me with something I didn't even know existed. THE MATCHING MEASURING CUPS (also not available anymore). Ashley Post, if you are reading this, you are the BEST!

What are your favorite Kitchen items???

Cookies with Cade

I got home from work today to be greeted by my sweet little nephew Cade sitting in my dogs crate eating a banana Laffy Taffy. Of course we did NOT put him in there, but every time he comes over we just can't keep him away from it. :) Kim (my sis) needed my husbands help with some invitations so I of course took advantage of having a little time to myself with Cade. I decided it was time to introduce him to the world of baking. What better way to start than Outrageous Chocolate Chip Cookies. These are a family favorite probably because they have every great cookie in one (Nestlé Milk Chocolate Chips, peanut butter, oatmeal, brown/white sugar). Cade had me drag over a chair and we went to work. His sweet little hands made me a nervous reck with my favorite William Sonoma measuring cups but we made it work. Just like his Aunt Missy, his favorite part was the KitchenAid mixer. While the dough was chilling in the refrigerator we paused for some dinner. With Cade in the house it was the perfect night for some Kraft Mac & Cheese and Fish Sticks. After dinner Uncle Miles played with cade ON THE REFRIGERATOR and Kim entertained Jada while I put the cookies on to bake. Warm Cookies and Milk topped of the eventful night with the Phillips.

 I LOVE MY NEPHEW and can't wait to meet my niece Harper Grace in May. 

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Muffins

Taco night at the Boyer's house. It seems like when I don't have time to pull a complete dinner together tacos always seem to be a good dinner to fall back on. The good thing about that is my husband could eat tacos, burritos, quesadillas (you get the picture) EVERY single night of the week if I would let him.

Miles mentioned after dinner that I haven't blogged in a few days so I decided to whip up a new muffin recipe. I LOVE LOVE LOVE packaged muffins. I know that seems like a strange thing for someone that finds great joy in baking but they just taste so yummy. For my first attempt at homemade muffins I went with and EASY recipe from my Better Homes and Gardens recipe book. They were pretty good but could have used a little more sugar (keep in mind that since I love the packaged muffins, the sweeter the better). None of the recipes in this book had chocolate in them so I had to improvise a bit but here is what I ended up with



                                       OATMEAL CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS

Muffins:
1 1/3 cup flour
3/4 cup oats
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup cooking oil

1. Preheat oven to 400. Combine flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and set aside

2. In another small bowl combine egg, milk, and oil. Add egg mixture all at once to the flour mixture. Stir just until moistened (batter is still lumpy)

3. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups (2/3 full).

4. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown

Yesterday Miles and I celebrated our second Valentine's Day as a married couple. We had a wonderful dinner at Bordino's (drinks, calamari, pasta, desert). I couldn't be more in love! As much as I love going out to eat with my hubby, I REALLY love cooking him dinner. So tonight after we took Miss Jada for a walk I decided to make something new. I found a few great recipes and dinner is served.

ON THE MENU

Crispy Baked Cod

Roasted Tomatoes with Garlic and Herbs

Basmati Rice with Edamame 

Raspberry Lemonade

Crispy Baked Cod Recipe

• 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 clove garlic (I used the polaner chopped garlic)
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs (I chose to use the Italian bread crumbs)
• 2 Tbsp minced fresh parsley
• 1 tsp finely grated lemon zest - I am new to using my lemon zester but think it is fantastic
• 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
• 1 Tbsp reduced fat mayo 
• 4 skinless cod fillets, about 6 oz each
• Salt

1.  Preheat the oven to 350. In a small skillet over medium low heat, melt butter. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 30 seconds. Add bread crumb, stir to coat with butter, then cook, stirring frequently, until light golden brown, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in parsley and lemon zest. Let cool. Combine mustard and mayo in a small bowl. 
2.  Rinse fish and pat dry. Sprinkle each fillet lightly with salt, then place on a rimmed, foil-lined baking sheet and brush with mustard mixture. Press 1/4 of crumbs onto each fillet
3. Transfer baking sheet to oven and bake until until fish is no longer translucent and flakes easily, 10 - 15 minutes ( I cook EVERYTHING about 5 minutes longer than it recommends). 

                **I got this recipe from an old issue of all you magazine**

After dinner it was time to make desert for community group tomorrow...OUTRAGEOUS CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES!!! 

Joe's Birthday - More Cupcakes

Due to my recent interest in baking anything that starts with a cup and ends with a cake, my sister asked if I would make cupcakes for Joe (my brother-in-law) for his birthday party. The list started out pretty simple and then she added in all the kids. Of course I told her I would but Joe really loves boring yellow box cakes with simple chocolate icing. So I decided to take a yellow cake recipe I found in one of my cookbooks and then jazz them up with a chocolate butter cream icing.

I had spent the whole day with my sister registering for my new little niece that will be here in May so by the time we finished that and I bought everything at the store I was a little rushed on time to make the party. Then when I got home from the store I realized that I was almost out of flower. Miles to the rescue. While I got things moving he ran to the store and came home with not one but two big bags of flour. Anyone who knows Miles is probably laughing because that is such a Miles move. A few weeks back he went to the store to buy a printer cartridge and came home with a new printer because he saved money. Anyway back to cupcakes...So I successfully whipped up 36 yellow cake cupcakes, iced them all, and made it out the door in about an hour and fifteen minutes! They were delicious. If you don't believe me take a look at Cade chowing down!!!

**Sifting 2 pounds of powdered sugar when you are in a hurry is not a fun task. Miles was really excited to help so he had to be in the post this week! Jada of course helped clean up anything that hit the floor.