Indonesian Peanut Chicken

2 cups shredded chicken
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion diced
1 small red bell pepper diced
1/3 cup of smooth peanut butter
1/4 cup of chili sauce
1 cup of watersalt
pepper
dash of cayenne pepper
Salted, or unsalted peanuts, for garnish
3 stalks green onion chopped

Heat olive oil in a large skillet until hot. Add onion and red bell pepper to hot skillet, and cook until translucent. Add peanut butter, chili sauce and cayenne pepper. Stir until all combined. Add water slowly, while whisking. Sauce will thicken as it cooks. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Add chicken to mixture, and heat through. Garnish with chopped peanuts and green onion. Serve with rice!

Strawberry Pretzel Dessert

STRAWBERRY PRETZEL DESSERT

BOTTOM LAYER:
2 c. crushed pretzels1 tbsp. sugar3/4 c. butter, melted
Pour melted butter over pretzels. Bake in a 9 x 13 inch dish for 8 minutes at 400 degrees and cool.

MIDDLE LAYER:
1 (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened1 c. sugar8 oz. Cool Whip, or whipped topping
Mix and spread over pretzels.

TOP LAYER:
6 oz. strawberry gelatin2 c. boiling water
Let cool stir in 2 cups frozen strawberry pour it over cheese layer chill dessert until ready to eat.

Grand Old Flag Cheese Spread

Prep Time:15 min Total Time:15 min

Makes:12 servings, 2 Tbsp. spread and five crackers each

1 pkg. (8 oz.) Cream Cheese, softened
1/4 cup Mexican Style Shredded Cheddar Jack Cheese
2 Tbsp. sliced pitted black olives
1/4 cup Thick 'N Chunky Salsa
RITZ Crackers

PLACE cream cheese between two sheets of waxed paper. Roll out to 6x4-inch rectangle with rolling pin. Remove top sheet of waxed paper; coat top and sides of cream cheese with shredded cheese. Invert onto serving plate. Remove waxed paper.

ARRANGE three rows of olives in top left corner of cream cheese rectangle for the "stars" of the "flag." Make four 1/4-inch-deep rows, using rounded end of 1/4-tsp. measuring spoon for the "flag's stripes," leaving a 1/4-inch-wide space between the rows. Fill rows with salsa. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

SERVE as a spread with crackers.

Chocolate Bundt Cake

i made this a few weeks ago. it was to die for!!

1 box chocolate cake mix

1 small instant chocolate pudding mix

1/2 C sugar

3/4 C oil

3/4 C water

3 eggs

8 oz. sour cream

1 small package semi sweet chocolate chips

Mix:

cake mix, pudding mix and sugar

add oil and water

blend in eggs one at a time; then add sour cream

blend with mixer for 3 to 4 minutes

stir in choc. chips

bake in greased bundt pan at 350 for 50-60 mins

let cool in pan for about 10 mins and then remove from baking pan and place on a cake plate i didn't let it cool this long because i like my chocolate gooey!

dust with confectioners sugar

**in an effort to make this a little less of an artery blocker, i suppose you could sub in fat free sour cream and fat free pudding. when i made it i was feeling indulgent and made the full fat variety. too good.**

Hummus

this is from the barefoot contessa cookbook. my mom makes it and i have made it once. de-lish!

4 garlic cloves my mom only uses 2. i agree. too garlicky with 4
2 cups canned chickpeas, drained, liquid reserved (also called garbanzo beans)
1 1/2 t kosher salt whatever salt you prefer works just fine
1/3 cup tahini (sesame paste) i found this at the grocery store, you may have to ask
6 T freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
2 T water or liquid from the chickpeas
8 dashes hot sauce like tabasco

Turn on the food processor fitted with the steel blade and drop the garlic down the feed tube; process until it's minced. Add the rest of the ingredients to the food processor and process until the hummus is coarsely pureed. Taste, for seasoning, and serve chilled or at room temperature.

Serve with pita bread or pita chips. Also great with veggies!!

Tortilla Soup

this is a Wolfgang Puck recipe, so you know it's good. in red are changes i made, just cause.

2 ears fresh corn, kernels scraped off i used frozen
4 or 5 large garlic cloves, peeled
1 small onion, peeled, trimmed and quartered
1 small jalapeno pepper, trimmed and seeded
2 T corn oil i only had canola on hand
1 large boneless skinless chicken breast
2 corn tortillas, cut into 1 inch squares
1 pasilla chile pepper, soaked in water didn't use
2 large ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and coarsely chopped i left the skin on, too tricky to get off
2 T tomato paste
2 to 3 t ground cumin
2 quarts chicken stock
salt and pepper to taste

Garnish:pick and choose
2 corn tortillas, cut into strips and baked to crispness i just used chips
1 ripe avocado, diced
1/2 cup grated cheddar
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Using a food processor fitted with the steel blade, or a large knife, coarsely chop the garlic, onion, jalapeno pepper and corn kernels. Reserve.

In a large soup pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat and sear the chicken until just browned on both sides. Add the tortilla squares, and cook over low heat until they are slightly crisp. Stir in the chopped vegetable mixture and pasilla pepper and simmer until the veggies are coated with the oil. Do not brown.

Add the tomatoes, tomato paste and 2 t of the cumin and continue to simmer for about 10 minutes to maximize the flavor. Slowly pour in the stock and cook over low heat until the soup is reduced by 1/3 and the chicken breast is cooked through.

Remove the chicken breast and set aside. When cool enough to handle, slice chicken into very thin strips. (I shredded the chicken.) Meanwhile, puree the soup, in batches, in a blender or food processor until smooth. (I didn't puree the soup. I like chunky tortilla soup. It was great. If you do go the puree route, make sure the puree in batches because too much hot soup in a blender=explosion.)

Ladle soup into bowls and garnish to your heart's content!! Enjoy!