Coconut Chicken- kid friendly and easy

Coconut Chicken with Apricot Sauce

Yield: 4 servings

• 1 egg
• 1 cup sweetened coconut flakes
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 4 boneless chicken breasts
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1/4 cup apricot preserves
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Preheat the oven to 400˚F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Lightly beat the egg in a medium bowl; set aside.  Mix the coconut, flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper in a shallow bowl.  Working with one chicken breast at a time, dip the chicken in the bowl with the beaten egg and then coat with the coconut mixture.  Place on the baking sheet.  Once all chicken breasts are coated and on the baking sheet, evenly drizzle with the melted butter.  Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, flipping once halfway.

To prepare the apricot sauce, mix the apricot preserves and the Dijon mustard in a small bowl.  Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Freezer Friendly:  After baking the chicken, let cool completely then freeze in a freezer bag for up to 1 month.  To reheat, bake in a preheated oven at 400˚F for 20 minutes.

Source:  Jamie MacDonald, friend of Pennies on a Platter

This was  a good dish!  The chicken didn't end up too sweet, even with the coconut.  It was fun to dip in the sauce, though my kids ate the chicken plain.  Fun.

PW Broccoli Cheese Soup

Broccoli-Cheese Soup from the Pioneer Woman

(from the pioneerwoman.com)

• 1 whole onion, diced
• 1 stick 1/2 cup butter
• 1/3 cup flour
• 4 cups whole milk
• 2 cups half-and-half
• 4 heads broccoli cut Into florets
• 1 pinch nutmeg
• 3 cups grated cheese (mild Cheddar, sharp cheddar, jack, etc.)
• small dash of salt (more If needed)
• freshly ground black pepper
• splash of chicken broth If needed for thinning

Preparation Instructions

Melt butter in a pot over medium heat, then add the onions. Cook the onions for 3 to 4 minutes, then sprinkle the flour over the top. Stir to combine and cook for 1 minute or so, then pour in milk and half-and-half. Add nutmeg, then add broccoli, a small dash of salt, and plenty of black pepper.

Cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, or until the broccoli is tender. Stir in cheese and allow to melt.

Taste seasonings and adjust if needed. Then either serve as is, or mash it with a potato masher to break up the broccoli a bit, or transfer to a blender in two batches and puree completely. (If you puree it in a blender let it cool first, blend, then return it to the heat and allow to heat up. Splash in chicken broth if needed for thinning.)

I have a few other Broccoli Soups on the blog, but of course I have to try Pioneer Woman's version!  I liked how you do everything at once in this soup- no pre-cooked veggies or anything, just all in one.  This was a great soup, I had all the stuff handy in my kitchen (well, not the half-and-half; I just substituted a can of evaporated milk).  Good, warm, fresh-tasting soup.  I'll make it again for sure.

Delicious Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll Cake

Cinnamon Roll Vanilla Sheet Cake

(from picky-palate.com)

• 1 box yellow cake 
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil
• 3.4 oz instant vanilla pudding mix
• 1/2 c. sour cream
• 15 oz. can pumpkin (or almost 2 cups)
• 1 stick unsalted butter
• 3/4 c. brown sugar
• 1/2 t. cinnamon
• 3/4 c. powdered sugar
• 1/4-1/2 c. heavy cream (I just used milk- start with the least amount of milk, then add more if need)

1. Preheat oven to 350.  Spray a jelly-roll pan (sheet pan) with cooking spray.
2. Place ingredients from cake mix to pumpkin in a bowl, mixing a minute or two until blended well.  Pour into pan, spreading evenly.
3. Place butter in microwave-safe bowl, and heat in microwave until melted, close to a minute.  Add brown sugar and cinnamon to bowl, mixing until incorporated.  Drizzle the whole mixture over cake and then use a knife to swirl into the batter.
4. Bake cake for 30-35 minutes.  Mix powdered sugar and milk and drizzle over warm cake.  Cool 20 minutes and serve.

These cake bars are so good!  Our family couldn't keep away.  Easy to make, just read the directions first, then go!  Feeds many...or it should.

Pumpkin Cookies with Caramel Frosting- TRY

Pumpkin Cookies with Caramel Frosting

• 1 cup butter
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt

Cream sugars and butter.  Add pumpkin, egg, and vanilla.  Add remaining ingredients.  Drop spoonfuls onto non-greased cookie sheet.  Cook at 350 for 10 to 12 minutes.

Frosting:

Boil 3 T. butter and 1/2 cup brown sugar until mostly smooth. (Approx. 2 to 3 min.)  Cool and add 1/4 cup milk and 2 cups powdered sugar or until desired consistency, and whip with hand mixer or whisk until smooth. Spread onto cookies.

These were amazing.  Addicting.  Flavorful.  SO good.  

EASY Crock Pot Vegetarian Chili and Taco Filling

Southwest Beans 


1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 can refried beans
1 can diced stewed tomatoes
1 can corn
1 can green chilies
1 envelope taco seasoning
1 envelope ranch dip mix


Combine all ingredients in crock pot on low 2-3 hours or until beans soften.  Great as a dip, chili, burrito or taco filling.


Yum!  We loved this!  We used it as a burrito filling and surprisingly the kids ate it up (with ketchup and sour cream).  I liked it plain, too.  So healthy and easy.  Just open can after can and you're done.

Red Hot Cinnamon Popcorn

Red-Hot Cinnamon Candy Popcorn

• 8 quarts popped popcorn
• 1 package (9 oz size) red cinnamon candies
• 1 cup butter
• 1/2 cup corn syrup

• Place popcorn in a large bowl; set aside. In a large saucepan, combine the butter, corn syrup and candies; bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour over popcorn and toss to coat.
• Transfer to two greased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pans. Bake at 250° for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Remove from pans and place on waxed paper to cool. Break apart; store in airtight containers. 

Fun!  It's not too hot, but it is a nice change from typical popcorn flavors.  Addictive.

Cheesecake Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

Cheesecake Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

Chocolate chip cookie layer:

• 1 cup butter or margarine
• 1 cups brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1 T cider vinegar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Cheesecake layer:

• 1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, at room temp
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tsp vanilla

Directions:

1. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter, shortening, sugars, vanilla, salt and vinegar. Beat in the egg, then the baking soda and flour. Stir in the chocolate chips. Divide the dough into two equal portions and set aside.

2. In a medium mixing bowl cream the cream cheese with the sugar until thoroughly combined. Beat in the egg and vanilla. 

3. In a 9x13 pan, spread 1/2 of the cookie dough mixture evenly across the bottom. (This is somewhat tricky to do. I find it easier to add dollops of cookie dough throughout the pan and then spread all the dollops together. Spread the cream cheese mixture on the top of the cookie dough. With the remaining cookie dough, flatten chunks of dough between your hands into discs, and then place on top of the cream cheese mixture. (The dough discs don't have to touch, just place them near each other so they cover the surface as well as possible.) 

4. Bake at 350 for 35-45 minutes, or until the top is brown and cooked through. Cool completely and store in the refrigerator.

(To make this in a sheet pan double the recipe and press into a 12x17" sheet pan. The cooking time is slightly shorter.)

Of course these are yummy!  And easy to make and very fun.