Bacon Beer Cheese Soup

You had me at bacon!

Ingredients -
6 slices thick cut bacon
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast
¼ cup butter
¼ cup flour
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons ground chile de arbol (or cayenne pepper; to taste)
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 cup beer, Belgian style wheat beer (Blue Moon)
1 cup chicken broth
2 cups half and half
8 ounces mild cheddar cheese, shredded
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
chives
croutons

Directions -
Warm an 8 quart pot over high heat.  Using clean scissors; cut bacon into pot.  Cook bacon until lightly crisp, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, cut chicken into bite size pieces.

Remove bacon from pan and place on a plate.  Add chicken into bacon grease to cook.  Stir occasionally until chicken is cooked through.  Remove chicken onto plate with bacon.

Cut butter into 1 tablespoon pieces and add to pan drippings.  Whisk in flour and spices.   Add beer, broth and half & half.  Whisk to combine and bring to a bubble.  Add cheese whisk to combine, stir until you have a smooth mixture.  Add Worcestershire sauce, chicken and bacon.  Stir to combine.

Allow to simmer until ready to serve, stirring occasionally.

Garnish with chives and croutons. 

Source - The Slow Roasted Italian

Southwestern Chopped Salad w/ Cilantro Lime Dressing

Ingredients
5 cups chopped romaine lettuce
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup canned corn kernels, drained
1/2 cup canned black beans, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1 avocado, halved, seeded, peeled and diced
1/4 cup tortilla strips, for garnish

Cilantro Lime Dressing
1 cup loosely packed cilantro, stems removed
1/2 cup Greek yogurt <-- vegans sub raw cashew dressing
2 cloves garlic
Juice of 1 lime
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup olive oil <-- extra virgin, cold pressed
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

Source - Damn Delicious

Hawaiian Luau

We usually don't have cake for snack time but with the seemingly endless snow I decided it was time to at least pretend spring was on its way. I'm all about quick and simple for snacks and what is quicker and more simple than throwing together some Tropical Pound Cake by Tastefully Simple! I decided to whip this up with the kiddos while we bunker down inside and have a mini luau while it continues to snow outside (will it ever stop?!).

Everything you see pictured is all you need to make this delicious & moist cake. And it really is that easy! Add the mix, 1 cup of water, and 1 1/2 sticks of melted butter. Mix it together and bake for 50-55 minutes. Ta-Da! Don't forget you can order this by visiting my website, here.

So we made flower leis from construction paper, straws and string and watched Lilo & Stitch while snacking on the Tropical Pound Cake. It may only be 20 degrees outside, but for an hour we pretended it was 85 and warm!

Molten Lava Cake

Ingredients

2 sticks unsalted butter, plus more for the ramekins
4 teaspoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Pinch of nutmeg
12 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, plus more for dusting (optional)
6 large eggs plus 6 egg yolks
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Butter eight 6-ounce ramekins and sprinkle each with 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar.

Combine the butter, cinnamon, cayenne, nutmeg and chocolate in a saucepan over low heat, stirring frequently until melted and smooth. Cool slightly. Whisk the flour, confectioners' sugar, eggs and yolks, vanilla extract and almond extract in a bowl until creamy. Whisk in the melted chocolate mixture. Divide among the prepared ramekins.

Bake the cakes until the tops are stiff and the edges darken, 12 to 14 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool 5 minutes. Loosen the edges of the cakes with a small paring knife and transfer to plates while warm. Dust with confectioners' sugar.

Source - Food Network

Potato Puffs

Ingredients
3 cups of mashed potatoes
2 eggs
1/3 cup sour cream
1 heaping cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan
2 tablespoons chopped chives or parsley
Salt and black pepper, to taste

Directions Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly grease with butter 8 - 9 of the wells of a nonstick muffin pan. In a medium mixing bowl whisk the eggs then mix in the sour cream. Stir in both cheeses and the chives. Add potatoes and mix well. Spoon them into the pan filling the cups to slightly below the top. Bake 25- 35 minutes until they pull away from the sides of the cup and are golden brown. Remove from oven and let them cool 5 minutes in pan. Serve with toppings of choice.

Source - Granny Doc's Kitchen

Crockpot Gumbo

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons oil
1/2 pound smoked sausage, cut into 1/2 inch slices
2 cups frozen cut okra
1 large onion, chopped
1 large green bell pepper, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon ground red cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 can (14.5 ounce size) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 package (12 ounce size) frozen shelled deveined cooked medium shrimp, rinsed
1 1/2 cup uncooked regular long-grain white rice
3 cups water

Directions:

In small saucepan, combine flour and oil; mix well. Cook, stirring constantly, over medium-high heat for 5 minutes.This is your Roux. Reduce heat to medium; cook, stirring constantly, about 10 minutes or until mixture turns reddish brown. Place flour-oil mixture in 3 1/2 to 4 quart Crockpot.

Stir in all remaining ingredients except shrimp, rice and water. Cover; cook on low setting for 7-9 hours. When ready to serve, cook rice in water as directed on package. Meanwhile, add shrimp to gumbo mixture in crockpot; mix well. Cover; cook on low setting for additional 20 minutes. Serve gumbo over rice.

Source - Foodies Network TV

Snow Ice Cream

Yes, we had to jump on the bandwagon of making snow ice cream. It's so easy, how could we pass it up?! First collect your non-snow ingredients and mix them together...

1 cup milk
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
a pinch of salt
8 cups snow

I am a horrible cook - hence why I sell Tastefully Simple! The food is easy to make and is delicious and makes me look like I know what I'm doing hahaha. I am also probably the only person that doesn't have vanilla extract in their pantry. So, I substituted with the only other thing I had...chocolate extract. Don't ask me why I have it, I didn't even know it existed but it somehow found it's way to my pantry. Anyway, whisk the four ingredients together and pop them in the fridge while you run outside to grab the snow.

Mix everything together until you have the consistency that you like. I used a spoon and mixed until it easily clumped together and was scoop-able.

The chocolate extract didn't quite give it a standard ice cream chocolate-y flavor, but it wasn't half bad and the kiddos didn't seem to mind at all (and I have some picky eaters!) they were even asking for seconds! Just don't forget to eat quickly before it all melts!

Snow Day!

I don't know about you, but we are in the middle of a nor'easter here in Pennsylvania and what better way to enjoy it then by baking? I don't usually plug about my side business as a Tastefully Simple consultant but the kids really enjoy being able to help make all the delicious treats - and they couldn't be more simple - each product only requires 2 ingredients or less to make!!!

We started off by making Multi-Grain Beer Bread. M had a blast mixing the batter together. It only takes one 12oz can of beer or any carbonated beverage and that's it! Mix and bake and you're done! Next we mixed up some Fiesta Party Dip Mix. Some sour cream, mayonnaise and the mix - stir together and refrigerate while the bread is baking. Snack time was a hit!

We rounded off our day with the best boredom buster around - play doh! Hope everyone stays warm and safe while the foot of snow we already have continues to grow (at 2" per hour!!!) We'll be staying bundled up in front of the fire having a movie marathon! :)

Indoor S'more Sundae

Ingredients

Graham Cracker Crust:
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs (about 5 whole graham crackers)
3 tablespoons butter, melted
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Salt
4 scoops vanilla ice cream
1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows
Quick Chocolate Sauce:
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons whole milk

Directions

For the graham cracker crust: Mix the graham cracker crumbs, butter, sugar, cinnamon and a sprinkle of salt together in a bowl. Firmly press the crust into muffin tins to make individual crusts. Top each crust with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Press the mini marshmallows into the ice cream, covering the scoop completely. You will have 4 s'more "domes". Freeze at least 1 hour.

For the quick chocolate sauce: Immediately before serving, heat the broiler to low. Toss the chocolate chips with the milk in a ramekin or small bowl and microwave 30 seconds, stir until smooth and set aside. Place the s'more domes under the broiler until marshmallows brown, about 30 seconds. Watch them constantly as they burn easily. Place each s'more on a plate and drizzle with the chocolate sauce.

Source - Food Network

Cinnamon Cheesecake Bars

Ingredients

• 2 tubes of crescent rolls
• 2 8 oz. pkgs. cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup sugar plus 1/2 cup sugar for the topping
• 1 Tablespoon vanilla
• 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
• 1/4 Cup butter, melted

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Flatten one tube of crescent rolls in bottom of ungreased 9×13″ pan.
3. Mix cream cheese with 1 cup sugar and vanilla until smooth and creamy. Spread mixture evenly on dough. Place the remaining tube of rolls over filling and with fingers press perforations together.Drizzle melted butter over top layer of dough.
4. Mix 1/2 cup sugar and 1 Tablespoon cinnamon. Sprinkle on top of melted butter.
5. Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool. Refrigerate well before serving.

Source - Busy Mom Blogs

New Look!

Some of you may have noticed that Tasty Tidbits has been undergoing a bit of an upgrade. I've been working hard to add features and customize the look of TT as I also move forward and expand the topics of the blog. On top of recipes from my home and around the web I am going to start including more family related things. Look forward to children's arts & crafts, games, gardening and home decor among other things! :)