a la evie: chicken rice bake

..fun springtime country song from Blake Shelton- Honey Bee

I decided it was time for another recipe, a la Evie special. The joke used to be on my mom when she would "test" her own recipes [usually because we never had the right ingredients, so she was "being resourceful"]. I remember times when these mysterious recipes didn't quite turn out as planned, and my dad would say "well, that was definitely an a la linda" when he really meant "that kinda tasted nasty." Now we use it in everyday cooking lingo to mean we're just guessing what'll taste good without using recipes. Tonight I had the idea for a chicken rice bake: chicken casserole meets chicken pot pie meets chicken and rice. My roommate and I used to buy the Stouffer's frozen ones, but I decided to guess at it on my own. Also, I don't have to worry about the chicken being questionable. [I'm really weird about that.] 

1. boil chicken [1 breast]; boil white minute rice [1.5 servings]

2. cut up the chicken into small pieces

3. gather other ingredients: 1 can cream of chicken soup, 1 can mixed veggies [or just peas or any kind of veggies you want], ritz crackers, 3 spoonfuls of sour cream

4. mix ingredients: chicken + cream of chicken + rice + veggies + sour cream [add salt and pepper to taste]

5. spread it in a baking dish; top with crumbled ritz crackers

6. bake it in the oven on 375 degrees for 20 minutes

7. make a side salad

8. voila! a la! serves about 4

pizza pizazz

..maybe a little Bob Marley- Stir It Up to accompany this little darlin' in the kitchen, perhaps?

I didn't do much of anything creative today. It was a dreary day in Georgia.. however, I DID create a pizza. I like to think that homemade pizzas are one of my specialties, and I love the beautiful colors that go into making them. So I documented the process [cheesey, I know   ..haha.] So here are the steps to making your own pizza that's full of pizazz:

*set oven to 425 degrees
1. cut up the veggies that you want to go on your pizza. they should almost fill up a medium sized bowl. [I used bell peppers, mushrooms, onions, ...and pineapple!]
2. cut up one chicken breast and saute the pieces in a skillet with evoo and minced garlic on low heat.
3. make the crust [either from a pizza kit or a package of mix- instructions on back]. put the crust in the oven for 3 minutes so it's more crisp. add either pizza [marinara] sauce or pesto + evoo as a thin base
4. after the chicken is cooked, throw in the bowl of veggies to soften them. stir all ingredients around for a few minutes. add salt, pepper, & italian seasoning
5. spread sauteed ingredients over pizza crust base and add cheese on top.[italian blend or mozarella]. put in the oven for 12-15 minutes
6. let cool, slice it up, and enjoy

yum-may.



the weekend table setting

This past weekend was too much fun. Six of my all-through college to today girlfriends ventured from Auburn to the icey skating rink that was my driveway to have a "girls retreat." The weekend would consist of a big dinner and brunch at my house and a trip to the Fox to see Beauty and the Beast, so I decided to do something special for the girls. I pulled out all the stops for the place settings: we're talkin' gold chargers, miniature roses, Mom's good china, a designed themed menu (turned bookmark), wine cork napkin strings, name cards, and wine glasses. Check out how it all came together...



my easy [yet chic] weekend table setting:

tablecloth turned table runner

miniature roses in mason jars

name cards and menus on cardstock

old wine corks with ribbon attatched

gold chargers from hobby lobby

glassware - wine glasses and bowls

mom's china

I love, love, love how it [and the breakfast cassarole] turned out!

SO SIMPLE B|FAST CASSAROLE:
1 lb cooked turkey sausage
grated cheese [sharp or mild cheddar]
4-5 eggs
1 c. bisquick mix
2 c. milk
salt & peppa's here
[to kick it up a knotch, add bellpeppers +/- onions]

Cook sausage, drain. Put in the bottom of a 13x9 pan. Sprinkle cheese over sausage. Mix together eggs, milk and Bisquick. Pour over sausage and cheese.
Bake 20-25 minutes, 350 degrees.
[try it with mango peach salsa!]

DELISH FRUIT COMBO:
pineapple chunks
mandarin oranges
grapes
strawberries
blueberries
apple chunks
banana slices
[+\- whatever you like]
SECRET ingredient: peach pie filling

Mix and enjoy!