Cinnamon Sugar French Toast

I randomly decided to make french toast this morning because I was craving the sugar, and I had everything we needed. I have actually never made french toast but it was delish, and super easy. This recipe serves 4.

What you need:
4 beaten eggs
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
8 slices bread
2 tablespoons butter
Maple Syrup

What you need to do:
Start heating 1 tablespoon butter in a skillet or griddle on medium heat. In a shallow bowl, beat together eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon. Dip bread slices into egg mixture, coating both sides. Add half the bread slices to hot skillet or griddle and cook 2-3 minutes each side or until golden brown. Repeat with remaining buter and bread slices. Serve warm and with syrup.

Easy Tomato Baked Chicken

Another Rachael Recipe I'm catching up on...

What you need:
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
4 small boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, drained
1/4 cup light balsamic vinaigrette dressing
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 cup parmesan cheese

What you need to do:
Preheat oven to 425. Place onions in bottom of baking dish, top with chicken. Combine tomatoes, dressing, and garlic and pour over chicken. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake 30 minutes.

Squash Corn Bread

Here's a Rachael Recipe for you. Can't wait to try!

What you need:
1 package Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix
4 eggs
2 pounds yellow squash, sliced
1 onion
3/4 cup cottage cheese
1 stick softened butter

What you need to do:
Mix all ingredients together, pour into greased 9x12 pan and bake at 425 for length of time it says on box.

Pork Medallions with Creamy Pan Sauce

I found this picture on my camera, and we cooked this forever ago, but I don't think I ever blogged it. The sauce was great, but I remember being a little wary about the Pork itself because of the fatty parts of it, but once I got around that it was delicious. I don't think we used a tenderloin iike it calls for. Anyway, here you go!

What you need:
2 tsp. oil
1 lb. pork tenderloin, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 small red pepper, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
4 oz.(1/2 of 8-oz. pkg.) Cream Cheese, cubed
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

What you need to do:
Heat oil in large skillet on medium heat. Add meat; cook 4 to 5 min. on each side or until done. Remove to serving plate; cover to keep warm.
Add wine, peppers and garlic to skillet; cook and stir 2 to 3 min. or until crisp-tender. Add cream cheese; cook 4 to 5 min. or until cream cheese is melted and sauce is slightly thickened, stirring constantly. Stir in parsley. Spoon sauce over meat.

Mediterranean Meatballs with Couscous

These were so good! It's from the Philidelphia Cream Cheese Cookbook, which has got some great recipes. I used a box of Mediterranean Couscous because I had it in the pantry, but next time I'll probably use plain.

What you need:
1 lb.ground pork
1 cup dry bread crumbs
1/2 cup (1/2 of 8-oz. tub) 1/3 Less Fat than Cream Cheese
1/2 cup finely chopped onions
1/4 cup finely chopped stuffed green olives (we skipped this)
1 egg
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. dried oregano leaves
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 jar marinara sauce (I think it was 24 ounce)
2 cups hot cooked couscous

What you need to do:
Mix first 8 ingredients until well blended; shape into 24 balls, using about 2 Tbsp. for each. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet on medium heat. Add meatballs; cook 5 to 6 min. or until evenly browned, turning occasionally. Add sauce; simmer on medium-low heat 10 to 15 min. or until meatballs are done (160ºF). Serve over couscous.

Double Chocolate Gooey Butter Cakes

These are basically like a brownie on the bottom, and a chocolate cheesecake on top kind of... but not really. Either way, they are freaking good! You can spice these butter cakes up and do different variations (pumpkin, peanut butter, pineapple, etc.) by clicking here.

What you need:
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, melted, plus 8 more tablespoons (1 stick) butter, melted, plus additional butter, for greasing pan (Hey, its not called a butter cake for nothing...)
1 (18.25-ounce) package chocolate cake mix (I used German)
1 egg, plus 2 eggs
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
3 to 4 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 (16-ounce) box powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped nuts (I skipped this bc Tommy doesn't like nuts)

What you need to do:
Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a 13 by 9-inch baking pan. In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, 1 egg, and 1 stick melted butter, and stir until well blended. Pat mixture into prepared pan and set aside.
In a stand mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the remaining 2 eggs, and the cocoa powder. Lower the speed of the mixer, and add the powdered sugar. Continue beating until ingredients are well mixed. Slowly add the remaining 1 stick of melted butter, and the vanilla, continuing to beat the mixture until smooth. Stir in nuts with a rubber spatula. Spread filling over cake mixture in pan. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Be careful not to overcook the cake; the center should still be a little gooey when finished baking. (I never thought mine was done so I cooked the full 50 minutes. But next time I'd probably only cook 45 or less because I think mine was burnt on the outside, and is just supposed to be really gooey in the middle, but the gooeyness will set as it cools.) Let cake partially cool on a wire rack before cutting into pieces.

Song of the Day

The Once and Future Carpenter - The Avett Brothers

Yeah Yeah another Avett song, of course. Not much variety here. :) This is a great song off the album they're currently working on. I heard it first on the new years run in Asheville and have heard it at probably 3 shows since then. They finally named it "The Once and Future Carpenter." I'm anxiously awaiting the release of their new album with this on it.

Garlicy Basil Shrimp Skewers

You guessed it, a Paula Deen recipe! These were yummy and I didn't feel too guilty eating them. Too bad the hush puppies didn't have the same guilt factor... This makes 10-12.

What you need:
1/3 cup veggie oil
1/3 cup OJ
1/4 cup minced fresh basil
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
4 pounds peeled and deveined fresh shrimp (I just realized we only used 1.5 pounds of shrimp, but a full recipe of the marinade. Whoops...)
1/2 cup butter, melted

What you need to do:
In a large ziplock bag, combine first 7 ingredients, add shrimp, seal bag, refrigerate for at least 2 hours, but 4 hours max. Soak 16-20 (10 inch) wooden skewers in water to cover for 30 minutes; drain. Preheat grill to high heat (500). Remove shripm from marinade, discard marinade, thread shrimp on skewers. Brush shrimp with melted butter and grill for 1-2 minutes per side or until shrimp are pink and firm. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Hush Puppies

Here's a new one from Gun and Garden Magazine. This recipe is from a chef in Atlanta and it is delish!! I had all the ingredients at home except the buttermilk and the scallions, so it was super easy to whip this up. This recipe serves 6-8 so I halved it since it was just us two. Will make again!

What you need:
2.5 cups fine ground cornmeal (white or yellow - I used yellow bc I had that already)
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tbsp sugar
1/2 tbsp ground black pepper
1/2 tbsp salt
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
3 eggs
1.5 cups buttermilk
3/4 cups chopped scallions
Vegetable Oil for Frying

What you need to do:
In one bowl, combine dry ingredients (first 8 ingredients). In another bowl, combine eggs, buttermilk, and scallions. (save oil for fryer). Whisk wet (except oil) and dry ingredients together until batter is just combined. Let rest for ten minutes. While that rests, heat oil in a large dutch oven on slightly above medium. After the ten minutes has passed, the oil should be hot enough (350). Drop small scoops or rounded tablespoons into oil in batches of 8. The cooking process is fast, about 60 to 90 seconds. As soon as the puppies start to float, flip them with tongs. They're done when theyre golden on both sides. Remove with a slotted spoon and let drain on brown paper bag. It is easier than it sounds, and THEY COOK SO FAST, so be prepared...