French Onion Grilled Cheese

 

Okay first things first I love grilled cheese sandwiches. They are among my favorite sandwiches especially when they have extra stuff in them. I also love caramelized onions so putting them into a grilled cheese was the logical step to take here.

 

One of the things I don't like about grilled cheese sandwiches is when the cheese and other fillings don't get hot/melted through in the time it takes the bread to get perfectly grilled. I found this oven method of cooking a grilled cheese a while back and it is a game changer, the sandwiches come out perfectly browned and melty all the way through. I don't think I'll ever go back to cooking them in a pan this just so much easier and better.

The process is simple (and by the way on the occasions when you have to cook a bunch of sandwiches at one time this is a lifesaver) The most important step is to preheat your baking sheet in the oven while the oven is preheating. I neglected to do this step the first time I tried this and the first side of the sandwich just didn't get brown and crispy.

Most of the time I do like to line my baking sheet with aluminum foil mainly because clean up is even easier that way.

You can find a downloadable/printable version of this recipe here.

French Onion Grilled Cheese

1 medium onion, sliced

butter

4 slices of bread of your choice

4 slices Swiss cheese

Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. 

 

 -note I am only making one sandwich in the pictures but the directions are for two-

Preheat your oven to 450° F and place your prepared baking sheet in the oven to preheat with the oven. It needs to be really hot for this sandwich to really work.

Meanwhile melt about 1 Tablespoon butter in a small skillet over med heat. Add the sliced onion and cook slowly until the onions are caramelized, if they start to look crispy turn the heat down. This needs to be a very slow process, it usually takes at least 20 minutes to get my onion the way I like it.

When the onions are cooked butter one side of each slice of bread. 

 

 

 

 

The add a slice of cheese to the un-buttered sides of the slices.

Divide the onions between two to these slices then top with the other two slices. (just like a normal grilled cheese)

Remove the hot baking sheet from the oven and quickly add the sandwiches to the pan and return to the oven.

Cook 5 minutes.

Remove from oven just long enough to flip both sandwiches over. Return to the oven and cook 5 more minutes.

Remove from oven and allow the sandwiches to sit on a cutting board for a couple of minutes before cutting in half. 

Makes 2 wonderful grilled cheese sandwiches.

Loaded Baked Potato Soup

 

I know I've said before on here that I love soup and as soon as the weather starts to cool down I start making my favorites as well as new soups. This recipe is kind of both, I started with a couple of recipes I've been making for years and added a few things, took out a couple of others and this was the result.

For me potato soup is very nostalgic because it was a soup my mom made often. Hers was very plain and I still love it to this day but sometimes I want to visit those memories but have something a bit more special. This is the bowl I am turning to in that situation. This one is rich and creamy and loaded with the things I love to put on a baked potato (another favorite- let's just be honest I love potatoes and pretty much everything they can be made into)

Since I included the things I love on a baked potato I might have missed your favorite toppings. That is where you can make this soup your own add the things you love. Then curl up with a warm bowl of potato soup on a cool fall evening.

You can find a downloadable/printable version of this recipe here.

Loaded Baked Potato Soup

2 large baking potatoes

2 slices of bacon

2 green onions

1 Tablespoon flour

3 cups milk

¾ cup shredded cheese (I used a 4 cheese Mexican blend)

salt and pepper to taste

½ sour cream

Wash the baking potatoes and pierce the skin with a fork then bake as desired. I did mine in the microwave according to the directions that came with my microwave.

Cut up the bacon and cook in a Dutch oven until crispy.

Meanwhile slice the green onions keeping the white parts and the green parts separate.

Remove the crispy bacon from the pan and drain on paper towels.

 

 

 

 

 

Add the white parts of the green onions to the bacon fat in the pan and cook until tender.

Stir in the flour and cook for about 30 seconds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Add the milk and stir to combine, bring to a simmer over medium heat stirring often. Cook about 15 to 20 minutes until bubbly and thickened.

Meanwhile cut the baked potatoes in half and scoop out the cooked potato from the skins. Mash the potatoes until smooth. 

Add the potatoes and about ½ cup of the cheese. Stir and cook until heated through and the cheese melts.

Add the sour cream cook and stir until heated through.

Divide between 2 soup bowls and top with the sliced green onions, bacon and remaining cheese.

Pumpkin Cupcakes

 

For the my cupcake of the month for October this year I decided to go with something so simple but absolutely delicious, pumpkin. In my mind you really can't get any more on point for the month of October than pumpkin so they are perfect. I paired them with a divine cream cheese frosting to make the perfect way to finish off dinner time this month. 

 

 

As always we are starting with a partial box of cake mix. In the blog post you can find here I gave directions on how I divide a standard box of cake mix from the grocery store to make it perfect for small batch baking. If you haven't read that blog post I recommend you go over and read it first then come back and read this one. It will help you get all set to make this recipe.

I find that I normally get 6 cupcakes from these recipes but I have friends that always get 8. You can expect to get 6 to 8 depending on your pan and how full you fill it.

I love this recipe because while it has a bit of pumpkin spice in it, it is much more pumpkin than pumpkin spice. If you want more of a spice twist to your cupcakes make exactly the same recipe using a spice cake mix and leaving out the pumpkin spice that I use today.

I do have to warn you these smell so yummy while baking they are going to have you ready to dig in immediately when they come out of the oven. Please hold off and wait until they are cooled and you have frosted them to get the complete experience.

Speaking of frosting the recipe makes enough to cover 8 cupcakes but if you have some leftover this is excellent spread between a couple of graham crackers for a wonder treat for the cook.

You can find a downloadable/printable version of this recipe here.

Pumpkin Cupcakes

⅓ of a box of yellow cake mix

⅓ cup pumpkin puree

1 egg

3 Tablespoons milk

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

Start by preheating your oven to the temperature your box of cake mix calls for, mine was 350°F. Line your cupcake pan with paper liners or grease really well.

Combine the pumpkin, egg, milk, oil, spice, and vanilla in a mixing bowl and combine well.

Add the cake mix and beat for up to 90 seconds.

Portion into cupcake pan and bake according to instructions on your cake mix.

 

 Mine was baked at 350°F for about 20 minutes.

Cool in pan for 10 minutes then move to a cooling rack and cool completely.

Small Batch Cream Cheese Frosting

¼ cup butter, softened

4 oz cream cheese, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups powdered sugar

Seasonal sprinkles if desired

Beat the softened butter, cream cheese, and vanilla extract until combined and starting to get fluffy.

Slowly add the powdered sugar beating until well combined and creamy.

Move frosting to a decorating bag equipped with a large decorating tip. Decorate your cupcakes as desired.

Herb Swirl Rolls

 

This week I have a really simple yet absolutely delicious recipe for rolls. They start out as a can of Crescent Rolls from the grocery store dairy case but we are going to transform them into something really special. 

 

 

These are perfect alongside a bowl of warm soup on a chilly night and they are very quick and easy to make.

Do be careful not let the dough fall apart too much as you remove it from the can since we need to pinch all those seams together and create two dough pieces to work with.

You can find a downloadable/printable version of this recipe here.

Herb Swirl Rolls

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon dried Italian herb seasoning

¼ teaspoon onion powder

¼ teaspoon garlic powder

1 can (8 oz) Refrigerated Crescent Rolls

Heat oven to 375° F.

Grease 4 cups of a muffin pan.

In a small bowl combine the oil with the seasonings and mix well.

Unroll the can of dough and divide into 2 pieces along the long perforation line. Firmly pinch all the other perforations together forming 2 pieces of dough.

Brush the oil mixture over one piece of dough. You might not need all of the oil mixture.

Carefully place the 2^nd piece of dough on top of the one you spread with the oil mixture.

Cut into 4 long strips.

Twist each strip 5 or 6 times. 

 

 

 

 

Then coil to form a roll.

Place each formed roll in a prepared cup in the muffin pan.

Bake at 375° F for 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown and cooked through.

Remove from the pan immediately.

Serve warm,

Roasted Veggie Soup

 

This week's recipe is for a wonderful soup. I love soup in the fall and winter and actually look forward to the temperature dropping to so I can start making bowls of comforting warm soups. 

 

 

This one I found and played with a bit and decided it was the perfect bowl to start off soup season 2021-2022.

You can change it up a bit and I have some suggestions for you but I look in your fridge, pantry and the local produce market and use what looks good to you.

This time I used a green bell pepper (I always try to find one in the store that is starting to turn either yellow or red (sometimes orange) I like the flavor better but I don't have to pay the extra for the more mature peppers. On other occasions I have used my beloved Poblano Peppers in this soup. They give it just a bit of heat which is wonderful. The green peppers just looked a lot fresher this week at the store so I went with one of them. Pick according to your taste and what is freshest (or what you already have on hand)

You might notice there is no onion in the photo below of the ingredients. I totally forgot about it until I had cut up all the other veggies and checked my notes. Sorry for any confusion that might cause.

The first step is to mix up an herb oil mixture. This is super simple and gives so much flavor. Just mix the oil with some dry rosemary (you can use another dry herb if you wish), salt and pepper. I do prefer to use olive oil for this because it just tastes so much better.

The veggies need to roast until they are soft and just beginning to turn brown around the edges. Watch the mushrooms carefully they tend to get done the fastest and you don't want to burn them.

After the veggies are roasted it is simply a matter of combining them with the components that will make up the broth and heating it through.

Be sure to taste the broth once it is heated through, depending on the chicken broth you use you might need some salt and/or pepper at this point.

Youcan find a downloadable/printable version of this recipe here.

Roasted Veggie Soup

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon dry rosemary, crushed

½ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

2 cups sliced zucchini

1 onion sliced

1 medium green pepper (or 1 poblano pepper) diced

8 oz button mushrooms, cut in halves

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 (14 ½ oz) can chicken broth

¼ cup half and half

2 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Heat oven to 475°F.

In a large bowl combine the olive oil, rosemary, salt and pepper.

Add the sliced zucchini, sliced onion, diced pepper, halved mushrooms and minced garlic to the oil mixture.

 

 

 

 Stir carefully to coat all the veggies in the oil.

Place veggies and oil on a large sheet pan (15” x 10”) in a single layer.

Roast at 475°F for about 30 minutes or until the veggies are softened and just starting to brown. Stir after 15 minutes to aid in cooking evenly.

 

Add the veggies (along with any juices on the baking pan) to a large sauce pan along with the chicken broth, half and half, and fresh parsley.

Cook, stirring often over medium heat until heated through, (about 10 to 15 minutes)

Taste for seasoning and serve.

Makes 2 very nice sized bowls,

Coconut Curry Chicken

 

Coconut Curry Chicken

 

 

This week I dusted off my slow cooker and made a wonderful pot of coconut curry chicken. I have to say I love pretty much all curries so I was excited to share this one with you all.

If you haven't eaten much curry this is a good one to start with because it is a really mild curry and all the ingredients are easy to get. If you are looking for a really pronounced curry flavor add more of the curry powder to the dish, that is what I plan to do next time. I liked this a lot but I do love curry and more curry in here will only make it better. When working out this recipe I was thinking of my friends that maybe aren't used to the flavors in curry but want to try it. This one is perfect for that.

While this is cooked in the slow cooker it is cooked on high for only 4 hours so it is perfect if you have a busy afternoon and still want to get a filling warming dinner on the table. The only things that need to be done last minute are cooking some rice (I used jasmine but any white rice will work great) and squeeze a bit of fresh lime juice into the curry and stir it in. This little pop of acid at the end just rounds everything out and gives a freshness that makes the dish its very best.

This recipe is designed to go into a 2 quart slow cooker. I love this size for small family dishes. And a bonus you can pick one up for around $10 most places. I will be posting a lot more recipes for this particular size slow cooker coming up.

The protein in this dish is some chicken thighs, you want bone-in thighs but pull off all the skin and cut off as much of the fat as possible. The bone adds so much flavor and while you can make this with chicken breast I feel the thighs just turn out more flavorful and more tender.

When you are ready to serve put rice in the bottom of 2 bowls and divide the curry evenly between the two bowls. Use as much of the wonderful broth as you wish.

So yummy and so comforting especially as the days start to get a bit chilly.

You can find a downloadable/printable version of this recipe here.

Coconut Curry Chicken

 

4 bone-in chicken thighs, skin and all visible fat removed

salt and pepper

oil

1 small onion diced

2 carrots, cut diagonally into ½” slices

1 teaspoon minced garlic

2 teaspoons grater fresh ginger (I use the stuff in the tube)

zest of 1 lime

1 Tablespoon curry powder (or more to taste)

2 cups cut up broccoli

1 can (about 13 oz) coconut milk

1 teaspoon Sriracha sauce

1 teaspoon lime juice

2 Tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro

Rice to serve (I cooked about ½ cup Jasmine rice for the 2 servings)

Season the chicken thighs on both sides with salt and pepper and brown in hot oil in a skillet. About 3 or 4 minutes per side.

 

 

 

 Transfer to 2 quart slow cooker.

In same pan cook the diced onion and sliced carrots until onion softens. 

 

 

 

Add the garlic, ginger, lime zest, and curry powder and cook until fragrant.

 

 

 

 Add the broccoli and stir to combine.

 

 

 

 

 

 Transfer this mixture to the slow cooker with the chicken.

In a container combine the can of coconut milk and the sriracha sauce then pour over the mixture in the slow cooker.

Cook on high for 4 hours.

 Just before serving stir in the lime juice and stir well.

Serve in bowls over a bed of rice, sprinkling the cilantro over the top.

Serves 2