Cajun Chicken Pasta

Cajun Chicken Pasta - This recipe is good for valentine's day sop that try the Cajun Chicken Pasta recipe. This is an exceedingly yummy, decadent pasta dish with chicken, vegetables, and lots and lots of scrumptious carbs. It’s a cinch to throw together, and if you don’t have prepared Cajun spice in your cabinet, you can just throw a few spices together to make your own combination. Different Cajun spice mixtures use different combinations of ingredients, but if you stick to basics like cayenne pepper (important!), paprika, white pepper (plenty, to help the spice factor), and garlic or onion powder, you’re doing just fine. And you can add Cajun extras to this dish—things like Andouille sausage, crawfish, or shrimp.

          Ingredients:

                   4 ounces linguine pasta
                   2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, sliced into thin strips
                   2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning
                   2 tablespoons butter
                   1 green bell pepper, chopped
                   1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
                   4 fresh mushrooms, sliced
                   1 green onion, minced
                   1 1/2 cups heavy cream
                   1/4 teaspoon dried basil
                   1/4 teaspoon lemon pepper
                   1/4 teaspoon salt
                   1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
                   1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
                   2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add linguini pasta, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, or until al dente; drain.

Meanwhile, place chicken and Cajun seasoning in a bowl, and toss to coat.

In a large skillet over medium heat, saute chicken in butter until no longer pink and juices run clear, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add green and red bell peppers, sliced mushrooms and green onions; cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce heat, and stir in heavy cream. Season the sauce with basil, lemon pepper, salt, garlic powder and ground black pepper, and heat through.

In a large bowl, toss linguini with sauce. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese.

Pumpkin Cake with Maple Cream Frosting

Pumpkin Cake with Maple Cream Frosting - This pumpkin cake is another one of those baked-around-the-Internet recipes, like the ultimate chocolate chip cookies. Blame Deb Perelman over at the fabulous Smitten Kitchen. She turned this light pumpkin cake and its luscious maple–cream cheese frosting into cupcakes.

Pumpkin desserts are especially popular during the fall and winter months. Of course, pumpkin pie is America's favorite pumpkin dessert, but this lovely orange colored Pumpkin Spice Cake, containing both pumpkin and its complementary spices; cinnamon, ginger, and cloves, is sure to please. It consists of two layers of moist and flavorful cake that, like a carrot cake, benefits from being filled and frosted with a cream cheese icing. This frosting does deviate from the traditional cream cheese frosting as it contains pure maple syrup. Now, do not confuse pure maple syrup with the corn syrup flavored with artificial maple extract, sometimes called 'pancake syrup', as it does not come close to the real thing and should not be used here. Pure maple syrup is a reddish-brown aromatic liquid that has a distinctive rich, sweet, nutty, flavor that Diana Henry in her book 'Roast Figs Sugar Snow' says is "reminiscent of burnt sugar and fudge". It is produced from the sap of maple trees (in February and March) grown in Canada and the Northeastern United States.

Chocolate Mint Cookies

Chocolate Mint Cookies - When I came across these cookies, I was busy browsing around Renee’s site, Flamingo Musings, trying to find something for my Secret Recipe Club assignment for this month. While I ultimately decided to make the chocolate mint cookies, I had several others I was tossing around, such as these Hazelnut Shortbread Sticks or these Hazelnut-Butter Cookies with Mini Chocolate Chips. Both of these looked and sounded great, but to avoid the nut-haters, I stuck with the chocolate mint instead.

Chocolate Mint Cookies

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, gently packed
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
6 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped

Apple Dumplings

Apple Dumplings - I was running behind this month since school started and I've been subbing for Yoga so this weekend was the last weekend before the big reveal on Monday morning. The pressure was on, I needed to pick something that was quick and easy. I swear I looked at every single recipe on her blog and then this one popped up - Apple Dumplings! Super easy and looked absolutely delicious! I was hooked and ran to the store to pick up my ingredients. It just so happened we were going to a friends house for dinner and I had the perfect excuse to make this dessert. Although, this has never stopped me before. I will always make dessert even if I have no one to share with!

Apple Dumplings 

2 whole Granny Smith Apples
2 cans (8 Oz. Cans) Crescent Rolls
2 sticks Butter
1-1/2 cup Sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla
Cinnamon, To Taste
1 can (12 Oz.) Mountain Dew Soda

Peel and core apples. Cut each apple into 8 slices each. Roll each apple slice in a crescent roll. Place in a 9 x 13 buttered pan.

Melt butter, then add sugar and barely stir. Add vanilla, stir, and pour entire mixture over apples. Pour Mountain Dew around the edges of the pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Serve with ice cream, and spoon some of the sweet sauces from the pan over the top.

I served this dish with Ben and Jerry's Cinnamon Bun's ice cream. Heaven on a freaking plate!

Low Fat Sauce Recipe

Low Fat Sauce Recipe - It can’t be said enough; eating healthy does not have to mean sacrificing delicious food. If you are willing to experiment, try new things, and learn some simple substitutions, you will see that it is possible to create healthy versions of some of your favorite meals.

The following recipe is a perfect example. What could be more decadent than Alfredo sauce? This is a delicious, low fat version that is just as good as the real thing.

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon butter or Smart Balance
2 cloves of garlic minced
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 cup skim milk
¼ cup fat-free cream cheese
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoon parsley
¼ teaspoon pepper
A pinch of nutmeg

Preparation:

Melt the butter in a nonstick saucepan. Add the minced garlic and sauté over medium heat for 1-2 minutes (you do not want it to brown).

Whisk in the flour and then add the milk slowly, stirring constantly until the sauce has thickened.

Add the cream cheese and Parmesan and stir until smooth.

Finish with parsley, nutmeg, and pepper to taste.

If you toss this with whole wheat pasta, you will have a creamy, delicious and satisfying meal without all of the fat and calories. Also, you can make it even healthier by adding in steamed broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, or whatever vegetables you love. Eat and enjoy!

Tasty Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Garlic Mashed Potatoes - This easy-to-clone dish comes with many of the tasty entrees at the restaurant chain or can be ordered up, pronto, on the side. It's a nice clone to have around since it goes well with so many
dishes, Mexican or otherwise. Just give yourself the time to bake and cool the potatoes. Be here at TSR next week for a big clone request from the same "always fresh ingredients" Mexican food chain. It's for that muy delicious salsa.

Ingredients

4 medium/large russet potatoes
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic (3-4 cloves)
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup cream
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Directions 

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Bake the potatoes by first rubbing them lightly with oil and then baking them in the preheated
oven for 1 hour until they are tender. Cool.
3. Mash potatoes and remove about half of the skin. You want to leave the rest in.
4. Melt the butter in a large suacepan over medium heat, then add garlic and saute for 5 minutes.
5. Add the remaining ingredients to the pan and cook for 5-10 minutes while stirring often until
garlic mashed potatoes are very hot.
Serves 4.

Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Peanut Butter Cup Cookies - Peanut Butter Cup Cookies look like miniature tarts and, in fact, are made in miniature muffin tins. They start with your basic chocolate chip cookie batter, minus the chocolate chips. Once the batter is made, it is scooped into miniature muffin cups.

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 egg, beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons milk

40 miniature chocolate covered peanut butter cups, unwrapped

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Sift together the flour, salt and baking soda; set aside.

Cream together the butter, sugar, peanut butter and brown sugar until fluffy. Beat in the egg, vanilla and milk. Add the flour mixture; mix well. Shape into 40 balls and place each into an ungreased mini muffin pan.

Bake at 375 degrees for about 8 minutes. Remove from oven and immediately press a mini peanut butter cup into each ball. Cool and carefully remove from pan.