Steak & Everything Sandwich

NEW FAVORITE SANDWICH. Easy peasy and so good. I'm a sucker for Philly Cheesesteak sandwiches. This is a version of that. I found the recipe here. Yum yum yum yum yum yum (get the picture???).

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

1 lb deli roast beef slices, chopped
8 oz cream cheese (use 1/2 to 3/4 or desired amount- 8 oz seems to be too much!)
1 small bell pepper, chopped
1/3 red onion, chopped
¼ cup chopped mushrooms
French bread or some other long loaf of bread
Swiss Cheese
Garlic salt

Cut bread in half in sandwich style. Butter both pieces of bread and sprinkle with garlic salt. Next layer both top and bottom with swiss cheese. Toast in oven until cheese has melted. While the bread is toasting, combine roast beef, cream cheese, bell pepper, red onion, and mushrooms in a pan and heat until cream cheese is melted. When bread and beef mixture are both finished, scoop beef mixture onto bread. Serve warm.Feeds about 4 adults. It also warms up nicely the next day for leftovers!

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Best Hands Down Sandwich Ever...

My friend Kristen invited me over for lunch the other day to share a new favorite of hers
(with her permission I took a pic and am sharing here).

It's from Pioneer Woman Cooks-you can find the recipe here. ***note- link is fixed- thanks anonymous commenter*****

It is my new hands down favorite sandwich (and I am a sandwich lover btw).

It's the perfect combination.

I love me a good grilled cheese- which this is kind of spin off of.

But so much better.

YUM, YUM, YUM.
Go make it yourself. So good.

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Best, Hands Down Sour Cream Enchiladas

I got this recipe here. She always has great recipes and plans for Menu Plan Monday. So I tried these out...they were good. Kind of a mix between my chicken and beef enchilada recipes I already have. It does make a TON though- I will half it next time.

1 lb ground beef or turkey OR 1 lb cubed chicken

1 can refried beans1/2 onion, diced

1 can diced green chilies

16 oz sour cream

1 can cream of mushroom soup ***Note, I just used 2 cans of cream of chicken****

1 can cream of chicken soup

2 lb cheddar cheese, shredded

12 burrito size flour tortillas

Saute the onion in a large frying pan on medium-high heat until translucent and slightly browned. Add the beef (or chicken) and cook until no longer pink. Add the refried beans and cook on low until mixture is heated thoroughly.In a medium mixing bowl mix together the soups, sour cream and the green chilies.Lay out all 12 tortillas side by side. Place about 1/3 C of meat mixture down the center of each tortilla. Place a generous dollop (about 1/4 C- 1/2 C)of soup mixture on top of the meat mixture. Place a handful of cheese on top of the soup mixture (you will have some of both cheese and soup mixture left).Roll up each tortilla, burrito style (click for instructions). Place each rolled burrito touching one another, side by side on a large rectangular pan (it's okay if you need to use two pans for this). Evenly pour and spread out the remainder of the soup mixture over the top of the rolled burritos. Repeat with the remaining cheese.Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes, or until bubbly and hot.Serves 12.

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Apple-Pear Crumble Pie

(I hate taking pics at night with flash- this does not do it justice...hopefully you get the idea)

I got this recipe here. Have I mentioned before how much I love the Kraft Foods Food & Family free mag? Well I do. They have pretty easy recipes that never seem to fail me. I tried this one out for dessert tonight and it was a hit. Josh wanted vanilla ice cream with his too. So it was a la mode. It takes a lot like a cobbler but with that hint of cream cheese- sooo yummy.
Also, I did double the amount of ingredients for the crumb topping (it is NOT reflected in the recipe below). I just seemed like at the end before I stuck it in the oven there was not enough crumb mix so I made another little batch- didn't take long, it was no big deal.

3/4 cup crushed NILLA Wafers (about 24 wafers)
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted
1 ready-to-use refrigerated pie crust (1/2 of 15-oz. pkg.)
4 oz. (1/2 of 8-oz. pkg.) Cream Cheese, softened
2 large baking apples, peeled, sliced
1 large fresh pear, peeled, sliced
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup flour, divided
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1-1/4 cups thawed Whipped Topping
PREHEAT oven to 375ºF. Mix wafer crumbs, brown sugar and butter until well blended; set aside.
PLACE pie crust in greased 9-inch pie plate. Spread cream cheese carefully onto bottom of crust; sprinkle with half of the crumb mixture. Set aside. Combine fruit in large bowl. Add granulated sugar, flour and cinnamon; toss to coat. Spoon over crumb layer in pie crust; sprinkle with remaining crumb mixture.
BAKE 35 min. or until fruit is tender and crust is lightly browned, covering loosely with foil after 25 min. if necessary to prevent crust from overbrowning. Cool on wire rack. Serve topped with the whipped topping. Store any leftover pie in refrigerator.

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Slow Cooker Tex Mex Chicken

This is a new one. Tried it tonight for the first time. It was good. I knew I'd be gone most of the afternoon with no time to cook so I switched my menu up a bit and decided to do a crockpot meal tonight. I got the recipe here. All kids liked it...it was spicy but not too bad. The picture does not do it justice (looks like chili in the pic but tastes nothing like it). Next time I think I'll top it with sour cream too.

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch-wide strips
2 Tbsp. (1/2 of 1-1/4-oz. pkg.) Taco Seasoning Mix
2 Tbsp. flour
1 each: green and red pepper, cut into 1-inch-wide strips
1 cup frozen corn
1-1/2 cups salsa
1 cup Mexican Style Shredded Four Cheese (I just used regular cheddar)
TOSS chicken with seasoning and flour in slow cooker. Stir in all remaining ingredients except the shredded cheese; cover with lid.
COOK on LOW for 6 to 8 hours (or on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours).
STIR just before serving. Top with the shredded cheese. Serve over rice.

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Baked Tortellini

I got this yummy recipe from Mommy Cooks. She got it from Giada. I tried it tonight for the first time and it was a big hit. I tweaked the original recipe a bit because of what I had available and doubled it because it was meant for an 8x8 but I knew we'd need more. I'll definitely make again.

courtesy of Giada deLaurentiis

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 cups marinara sauce (used Newman's Own Pesto & Tomato Sauce- yum)***

2/3 to 1 cup mascarpone cheese

1 lb cheese tortellini (I used Family size 3 Cheese Buitoni)

2 ounces grated mozzarella cheese

1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 350º.Lightly oil an 9x13" baking dish.Whisk the sauce, mascarpone cheese in a large bowl to blend.Cook tortellini in a large pot of boiling salted water until just tender, about 2 minute Drain.Add tortellini to the sauce and toss to coat.Transfer the tortellini mixture to the prepared baking dish.Top the mixture with the mozzarella and Parmesan.Cover and bake until the sauce bubbles and the cheeses on top melt, about 30 minute.

****Note the original recipe calls for plain marinara sauce & then 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped and 2 teaspoons fresh thyme, chopped but since I used the Pesto & Tomato sauce I didn't think I needed to seasonings. If you use the plain sauce, add the seasonings when you blend the marinara & marscapone cheese.

Also you could probably use ricotta or even cottage cheese in place of the marscapone because it's so pricey. But it made it really rich and creamy!

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Home Run Garlic Rolls

Home Run Garlic Rolls
taken from EAT magazine

Easy (takes a bit of time for the rising of the rolls) and delish on the side with just about anything!

1 16 oz. loaf frozen white or whole wheat bread dough (I used Rhodes rolls), thawed
1 Tbsp. butter, melted
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp. grated parmesan cheese

Lightly grease at 9x13 pan, set aside. Shape dough into 24 balls, place in prepared pan. Cover, let rise in warm place until nearly double (1 1/2-2 hours)
Preheat oven to 350. In a small bowl, stir together melted butter and garlic. Brush butter mix over rolls. Sprinkle with parmesan. Bake for 15-20 mins or until golden. Remove rolls from pans and cool slightly on wire rack. Serve warm. Makes 24 rolls.

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Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Pesto Butter

Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Pesto Butter
from Mrs. Pear and re-worked a bit

This is one of my favorite new recipes that I've tried recently.

6 Deboned chicken breast halves

1/2 cup Fresh basil leaves, washed and dried

1/4 cup Grated parmesan cheese

1 clove Minced garlic

1/2 cup butter

1 eggs

3/4 cup breadcrumbs

Directions: In food processor combine basil, parmesan cheese, garlic and butter. Process until well combined. Cut a small slit in the side of the chicken breast with a boning knife, from that slit form a "pocket" in the chicken to stuff the butter into. (I just pound the chicken flat and roll the ingredients and use toothpicks to secure). Dip the chicken in the egg, dip them in the breadcrumbs. (I always need more egg and breadcrumbs). Place on pan to cook at 350F for about 35-45 minutes.
P.s. I think you could use the pesto butter on some french bread or for something else too...I'll try it out and post about it.

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