Healthy Chicken Salad

This is a great recipe that is a twist on the traditional chicken salad, for the better. It is a much healthier choice because it has added fruit and no mayonnaise! This also has a tangy kick that added with the fruit is dynamite! I first tried this at my sister's house and while it is not my mother's traditional chicken salad that I am used to, it is a completely different dish. Not to be compared!
Source: Biggest Loser Chicken Salad

Ingredients:
3 or 4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
3 tsp of Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
A pinch of Salt
A dash of Pepper, or more if you love it, like me!
9 tbsp Plain Greek Yogurt
9 tbsp Dijon Mustard
1 cup of Chopped Celery
1 cup of Halved Purple Grapes
1 cup of chopped Green Apple

Directions:
First, preheat your oven for 350 degrees.

Put 1 teaspoon of olive oil in the bottom of an oven proof pan. Cook in the oven for 30-45 minutes for raw chicken and 45-60 minutes for frozen chicken, or until the chicken is cooked thoroughly. No pink!

Next, let the chicken cool. Put it in the refrigerator while you get the rest of the salad ready!

In a large bowl, mix together the yogurt, mustard, salt and pepper. Continue making the salad by mixing the celery, grapes, and apples into the yogurt and mustard mixture.

Finally, get the chicken out and cut into bite-sized pieces. Mix this into your other ingredients, and wa-lah! a healthy, fresh, fruity, filling, amazing, need I go on... chicken salad! Serve on wheat toast, croissant, melba toast, by itself, anything really, it is amazing!

Chex Party Mix

This is a classic recipe, perfect for any occasion, Chex Party Mix. It has a better known name, Trash. This is something that my husband loves to snack on. It is perfect for virtually any time of the day when you just need that savory fix! This is an easy snack to add your favorite items and take out some things you don't like, a great addition is Cheez-its! This recipe is the same recipe from the back of the Chex Cereal box except, I double the seasonings and butter. This really does make all of the difference.
Source: The Original Chex Party Mix

Party Mix Ingredients:
3 cups of Corn Chex Cereal
3 cups of Rice Chex Cereal
3 cups of Wheat Chex Cereal
1 cup of Mixed Nuts
1 cup of Garlic Bagel Crisps (broken apart)
1 cup of Pretzel Sticks

Sauce Ingredients:
12 tablespoons of Butter
4 tablespoons of Worcestershire Sauce
3 teaspoons of Seasoned Salt
1.5 teaspoons of Garlic Salt
1 teaspoon of Onion Powder

First, preheat your oven to 250 degrees.

Next, get out a large cooking pan. I personally think it is easiest to just measure everything right into the pan, so get to work! Measure all of the cereals, nuts, bagel chips, and pretzels. Now give them a stir just to mix it all together.

In a tall plastic cup or small bowl melt the butter. I usually put it in the microwave for 30 second intervals until it is melted.

Now, add all of the seasonings and worcestershire, mixing well. Pour over your dry mixture of ingredients on the pan.

Put your pan of party mix into the oven. Remove it every 20 minutes for one hour to give it a quick stir! This will help each piece of party mix get the wonderful taste of the seasonings and bake perfectly. After one hour, remove the pan and let cool.

For the final step, transfer your Chex Party Mix into an air-tight container. Enjoy!

Salted Caramel Turtle Cookies

These homemade cookies are so amazing. In fact, they are even more deadly than they appear. They are the perfect mix of sweet and salty with an added bonus of sticky and ooey gooey caramel drizzle.
Source:Krissy's Creations

Ingredients:
3/4 cup Butter
2 cups = 2 tablespoons Flour
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt
1 cup Golden Brown Sugar
1/2 cup Sugar
1 Egg
1 Egg Yolk
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
1/2 cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
1/2 cup Caramel Bits
1/2 cup Chopped Pecans
15 Caramel Candies
1/4 cup Heavy Cream

Directions:

First, melt the butter in a large bowl. Now, in a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. Whisk these ingredients together until combined.

Next, add the brown sugar and sugar to the butter. Mix this together with a spoon. When well combined, add the egg and egg yolk. Next, stir in the vanilla followed by the dry ingredients.

In a separate small bowl, add the chocolate chips, caramel bits, and pecans. Mix these together and add to the cookie mix. Make sure everything is mixed well so you can get a little bit of everything in each bite! Next, refrigerate the dough for 15 minutes.

Finally, the cookie baking! Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Scoop dough onto a cookie sheet. I used an ice cream scoop, and took the ball and separated it into two balls. Bake for 10 minutes and check the cookies, mine needed to go for 2 more minutes. Let the cookies cool on the pan for 10 minutes and then move them to a cooling rack. While the cookies are on the cooking rack, let's prepare for the drizzling!

Put a long sheet of wax paper (about 2 feet) on the counter. When your cookies have cooled, move them to the wax paper.

Put the caramel candies in a bowl and melt in the microwave for 1 minute. Take the bowl out and stir, put back in for 30 more seconds and then add the heavy cream. Continue heating up for 30 seconds until the caramel is smooth. This took 2 and a half minutes all together for me.

Take the spoon and dip it into the caramel and shake over the cookies! This is by no means the most delicate technique you have ever seen, but definitely the most effective! Let the caramel harden on the wax paper and store in an air-tight container!

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

This is one of the many versatile recipes I was talking about using, Buffalo Chicken. This is a super easy lunch, dinner, or snack!

Ingredients:
1 Philsbury Premade Pizza Dough
1 cup of shredded mozzarella
2 cups of Buffalo Chicken

Directions:
Roll out the pizza dough onto a lightly floured counter. Once you roll it out, try as hard as possible to just make it work. Once you mess up and roll it into a dough ball and try to start again, it becomes unbearable. Really. I wanted to throw it away.

Next, layer the chicken and then the cheese on top. Put as much as you want, just be careful not to make it too heavy! Bake according to the directions on the dough package!

Yummy!

30 before 30

Or what started to be 30 before 30. When I first started making this list I thought I would have trouble thinking of 30 things, I could not have been more wrong. There are so many recipes that I cannot wait to try and many that I am terrified of! Dry yeast being number one! I am confident that I will conquer all of these! I am 23 years old and will be 24 in July. Hopefully, this list will be well completed before 30.

1. Beef Wellington
2. Braised short ribs
3. Meatloaf
4. Meatballs
5. Chicken Cordon Bleu
6. Chicken Noodle Soup
7. Lobster
8. Scallops
9. Gumbo
10. Shrimp Au Gratin
11. Shrimp and Grits
12. Stuffed Shrimp
13. Lobster Bisque
14. Risotto
15. Quinoa
16. Cous Cous
17. Polenta
18. Creamed Spinach
19. Browned Butter
20. Marinara
21. Ravioli
22. Gnocchi
23. Fettucinni
24. Tortilla
25. Pizza Dough
26. Bread
27. Soft Pretzels
28. Donuts
29. Cheesecake
30. Creme Brûlée
31. Chocolate Souffl'e

Bacon Wrapped Lil' Smokies

Happy Fat Tuesday!
Today's post is inspired by my husband. He wonders around Pinterest and finds crazy things that he would like for me to make him. I usually don't, they are just too crazy for my taste. These bacon wrapped lil' smokies have been on his recipe board for a few months. When I found out he was giving up bacon for Lent, I knew what I had to make for him! He has raved about these ever since they came out of the oven, and they are about half gone. These would be wonderful for a football watching party, potluck, or anywhere else you need to bring that appetizer that everyone loves!
Source: Tasty Kitchen

Ingredients:
1 lb. package of Beef Lil' Smokies
12 slices of Maple flavored Bacon-uncooked
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

Directions:
First, the prep work, put the lil'smokies onto a sheet pan, pat dry with paper towels, and place in the freezer for 30 minutes.

Next, cut each slice of bacon into thirds. Put the bacon on a paper plate with paper towels in between each layer. Refrigerate these until the lil' smokies are ready. This is a very important step that you should not skip, even in a time crunch. This will make the wrapping process so much easier because it will not slip out of your hands.

While you are waiting for the lil' smokies and bacon to get really cold, make the glaze! Whisk together the brown sugar, maple syrup, mustard, and pepper. And, wait.

Remove the lil' smokies from the freezer and the bacon from the refrigerator. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Now, wrap each lil' smokey with one slice of bacon and press the lil smokey down, to close the seam. Place each lil' smokey onto a sheet pan that is lined with heavy-duty aluminum foil (two coats.)

Using a spoon, spoon out a little of the glaze onto each little smokey. Bake for 30 minutes. I thought the bacon needed to be a little crispier, so then I put the oven on broil and left them in for another 3 minutes.

These have proven themselves to be worthy, as they are now all gone. Enjoy!

Easy Chocolate Croissants

Have you ever needed a dessert, fast. Unexpected guest? After-school snack? Dessert gone bad? Or the absolute worst.. a full on Chocolate Attack? This will fix all of your needs in just 10 minutes. A serious lifesaver.
Source: My Kitchen



Ingredients:
1 package of 4 pre-made Phillsbury flaky butter croissants
1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Unroll the croissants onto a sheet pan. Distribute the 1 cup of chocolate chips evenly throughout all 4 croissants. Roll them up, pop into the oven for 12 minutes, and voila- dessert! Enjoy!