Sizzling Chicken & Cheese

Hey there! Long time no post! I've just been taking a small break from the blogging world :) While I've been away we found on the gender of our baby, and as I wrote in a previous post I was really hoping for a girl, but really just a healthy baby..well I'am so excited to share with you guys that..IT'S A GIRL!!! She is healthy and right on track! She is due on the 4th of July, how funny is that? We are so beyond excited. We found out just 6 days ago and she already has *gasp* about 30 outfits and 4 pairs of shoes..this little girl is going to be so spoiled! Now let's move on to some FOOD! If you've ever been to T.G.I Friday's then I'm sure you've heard of their Sizzling Chicken & Cheese, and they also have one that includes shrimp too. I was asking my husband for dinner ideas last week and he asked me if I thought I could recreate it. I thought about it, then put all the pieces together, and told him let's go for it! I took the easy way out and used boxed mashed potatoes that I doctored up because I didn't know how involved everything else might be, but next time I will make homemade, you just can't beat 'em. I'm SO glad he suggested this dish though because it was amazing and I'm seriously tempted to make it again this week, and why not when the weather has been SO perfect for grilling. Upper 60's-mid 70's..I wish it would stay like this always! I hope you make this dish and enjoy it as much as we did :)

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Ingredients:

4 Pieces Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast, cleaned and trimmed

1 Green Bell Pepper, cut into strips

1 Medium Onion, cut into strips

1/3 Cup Scallions, diced

2 Garlic Cloves, 1 minced

8 oz. Colby Jack Cheese, shredded

1 Teaspoon Ground Cumin

1 Teaspoon Salt

1 Teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper

1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce

2 Tablespoons White Vinegar

3/4 Cup Vegetable Oil

Mashed Potatoes (instant or homemade)

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Directions:

In a bowl, add your oil, vinegar, cumin, salt, pepper, minced garlic and Worcestershire sauce; whisk. Add your chicken and make sure it all gets nicely coated, then cover with plastic wrap and let marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes. Remove your chicken from the marinade and place directly on the grill and cook until cooked through. Once your chicken is done, you can keep it warm by covering it with foil and setting aside. At this point my husband was cooking the chicken and I was inside working on the veggies and potatoes. I added about a tablespoon of oil to a skillet and turned it on medium high heat and added my sliced veggies and sprinkled them with salt & pepper and let them cook until just tender. For the instant potatoes, I just sliced a garlic clove a few times without cutting all the way through, and I added it to the milk/butter mixture that was heating up, and as soon as it came to a boil I removed the garlic clove, added the potatoes, and then I seasoned them with salt & pepper and added about 1/4 of the shredded cheese. Once everything was one, I took 2 oven safe dishes and divided the cheese up and sprinkled it as even as possible over the bottom half of each dish, and I put that under the broiler until it was completely melted, I removed them from the oven and sprinkled the veggies over the cheese part, and them scooped 2 scoops of mashed potatoes onto each dish and then layed 2 pieces of chicken on each. I returned the dishes to the broiler until the cheese was starting to bubble. Remove dishes and sprinkle with scallions. Serve.

Lofthouse Sugar Cookies

Hi there :) I hope every one's week is going good so far. I can't believe I'm about to say this, but we are expecting up to 6 inches of snow tomorrow. This is SO crazy for Texas! I also can't believe I'm looking forward to Summer already..I'm sure that will change the first day it's 100+ outside though, ha! So Valentine's Day is coming up and you know I couldn't let it pass without making some cute goodies. Whenever I have an excuse to make anything pink, I'm so there! I'm sure many of you are familiar with the Lofthouse Cookies you find in the grocery stores. I'm totally guilty of occasionally getting a pack because there is nothing like them. They are soft and have a unique taste, not to mention they always make them so darn cute with all of the seasonal frosting and sprinkles they use..so you know I just had to do mine up the same! I frosted these with my Buttercream Frosting and it was perfect, these were SO addicting! Seriously, if you like Lofthouse's cookies, you will freaking LOVE these and want to make them like..tomorrow! Enjoy! :)

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Ingredients:

1/2 Cup Sour Cream

1 Cup Granulated Sugar

1/2 Cup Butter, softened

2 Eggs

1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

3 Cups All-Purpose Flour

1 1/2 Teaspoons Baking Powder

1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda

1/2 Teaspoon Salt

Buttercream Frosting, to frost

Sprinkles, to decorate

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Directions:

In a large bowl combine sour cream, sugar, butter, eggs and vanilla; mix well. In a smaller bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt, then add to wet mixture and mix until everything is just incorporated. With a cookie scoop, scoop out even size scoops of dough and then roll in a ball in your hand and place on a cookie sheet and slightly flatten with your hand so it's in a circular shape. Bake in a pre-heated 350 degree oven until light golden brown, no more than 10 minutes. They may seem under done but they aren't. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely before frosting.

Super Bowl Recipe Round-Up

Hey guys! Sorry I totally slacked on my last recipe, I won't be sharing it before the Super Bowl, but I will definitely still post it at some point. I'm sure you all understand that life just gets in the way sometimes! Here is a round-up of all of my Super Bowl Recipes, and some links to some that you shared with me. I hope everyone enjoys the Super Bowl and eats some great food!!!

• Grilled Steak & Chicken Fajitas
• Mozzarella Sticks
• Steak & Chicken Shish Kabobs
• Six Cheese Stuffed Garlic Bread Bites
• Sausage Queso
• Sweet & Savory Bacon Wrapped Smokies
• Potato Skins
• Asian Chicken Skewers
• Mini Caramelized Onion, Bacon & Cheddar Quiches
• Chili
• Garlic Parmesan Potato Wedges
• Fronions
• Tortilla Chips
• Cheesesteaks
• Bean Dip
• Tacos Carnitas
• Pepperoni Pizza Balls
• Pico De Gallo
• Chicken Taquitos
• Chicken Bacon Wrap
• Cheesesteak Wrap
• Sausage Balls
• Thin & Crispy Pizza
• Taco Roll-Ups
• Salsa Chili Cheese Queso
• Sticky & Savory Chicken Wings
• Garlic Parmesan French Fries
• Egg Roll Wrapped Salami Mozzarella Sticks

• Patti over at Olla-Podrida shared the following recipes:
• Cheesy Bacon Pecan Spirals
• Mexican Pizza
• Guinness Meatballs
• Scotch Eggs

• Katie over at Katie's Korner shared the following recipes:
• Club Sammy
• Veggie Pizza

Thanks for your contributions ladies!

Egg Roll Wrapped Salami Mozzarella Sticks

Here we go, another Super Bowl recipe! I saw these on an episode of Guy's Big Bite quite awhile ago and have slightly adapted them. As soon as I saw them I knew I had to try them! My husband and I absolutely LOVE these Mozzarella sticks! They are so delicious and such a fun and interesting spin on your typical Mozzarella stick. Served with some ranch dressing and I'm in Heaven! If you're like me and love Mozzarella Sticks of all kinds, try these ASAP..I promise you will LOVE them!

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Ingredients:

3/4 Cup Panko Bread Crumbs

3/4 Cup Italian Bread Crumbs

1/4 Cup Milk

2 Eggs

12 oz. Package String Cheese (should be 12)

24 Slices Thin Salami

24 Egg Roll Wrappers

Oil, for frying

*Note: I'm not sure exactly how many I got out of the recipe, it was about 24 or just under, I just kept making them until I ran out of one of the ingredients)

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Directions:

In a fry pan with high sides, add your oil and set to medium high heat (325 degrees). In a small bowl whisk your eggs and milk until combined. In a medium size bowl mix both of your breadcrumbs until combined. Unwrap your string cheese and cut each one in half. Lay a egg roll wrapper down on a flat surface and brush each side with the egg wash using a pastry brush. Place a piece of salami in the middle of the wrapper, and then 1 piece of the string cheese at the bottom of the piece of salami. Roll the wrapper up from the bottom until piece of cheese is covered, then stop and fold in each side, then continue rolling it and make sure it's sealed well. Repeat until you are done or run out of an ingredient. Place each wrapped cheese stick in the egg wash, and then into the bread crumbs, then carefully place in the fry pan and fry until they turn golden brown. Serve.

Garlic Parmesan French Fries

Hi there! We have been snowed (more like iced) in all day. I had such a hard time sleeping last night with freezing rain hitting the windows..it was crazy. It's only 12 degrees here right now, that is crazy for Texas! It's not supposed to be above freezing until Friday, so it doesn't look like this ice covered snow is going anywhere! My poor little doggie slides around every time we let her out in the backyard to potty, I can't lie though, it is pretty cute :) I have 3 more Super Bowl recipes to share with you guys that I will be done posting by Thursday. Tonight's recipe is SO freaking delicious! We made these along with some chicken Parmesan sandwiches, but I could have totally just been content with these fries, they are insane! They are somewhat similar to my Garlic Parmesan Potato Wedges, but pretty different at the same time. My husband loved these too, which is always a plus! If you didn't want to make homemade fries, you could totally bake up your favorite frozen ones and then do the whole garlic parm thang to those, they would still be out of this world! Hope you enjoy :)

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Ingredients:

2 Large Russet Potatoes

1 Large Garlic Clove

1/3 Cup Parmesan Cheese, shredded

3 Tablespoons Butter

1 Tablespoon Flat Leaf Italian Parsley, chopped

Oil, for frying

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Directions:

Wash your potatoes and cut into strips that resemble french fries. Place your fries in a bowl and add a drizzle of oil over them and cover with a microwave safe lid or plastic wrap and steam in the microwave for 3:00 minutes. I have a glass bowl with a steam lid that are made just for steaming, I love them! They are from Pyrex. While your fries are steaming, heat up your oil on medium high, it should fill a large pot about halfway full. Carefully place your steamed fries in your oil and fry until golden brown and then transfer to a paper towel lined cookie sheet or plate to soak up excess grease, and also season with salt immediately. Unpeel your garlic clover and slice it in half and put it into a bowl with your butter and microwave until melted, then remove the garlic clove. Place fries in a large bowl and pout butter over them and then the Parmesan cheese and parsley. Toss fries to make sure everything is coated evenly. Serve.