Many thanks to Pioneer Woman!

Oh, Pioneer Woman, you are eternally amazing. You find and/or create the most wonderful recipes and I am forever grateful!

Today I am using the Ryan's Bolgonese Sauce that she raved about. She was oh, so right.

Guest starring in this post is the kitchen of my good friends David and Meredith. Thanks so much, guys!

Mmm just think, these ingredients are going to create amazingness in just a little while!

I improvised and used shallots instead of red onion since the onion I purchased went moldy in 3 days. (Side note: who knew onions got moldy?) I also used butter since I forgot to bring olive oil.

I cheated and purchased a bag of grated carrots because a. it's so easy and b. it's wayyyy less messy!

Browning the ground beef. Delicious, raised by a family friend, locally butchered ground beef!

Post-tomato paste. The carrots looked like unmelted cheese to me at this point.

Adding the red wine. This added an amazing depth of flavor to the sauce. Such a good ingredient.

Letting the flavors meld. Mmm mmm good!

A better picture with less steam.

After adding the garlic and Worcestershire sauce. Oh my gosh, it smelled amazing!

Added some Parmesan cheese which made it even more delicious.

Amazing! God bless you, Pioneer Woman and Pioneer Woman's friend Ryan!

Here's the dirty details:

Ryan's Bolgonese Sauce

1/2 cups olive oil

1 1/2 cups grated carrots

1 whole large red onion, chopped (Like I said, I used shallots. About 3, I think)

2 pounds ground beef

2 Tbsp dried oregano

2 Tbsp dried basil flakes

6 oz tomato paste

5 cloves garlic, minced (Trust me, this is the just-right amount.)

1-2 cups red wine (I used 1 1/2 ish)

2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

28 oz canned whole tomatoes

1 cup milk

salt and pepper, to taste

fresh Parmesan cheese

1. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or skillet over medium heat. Add carrots and onions and cook for a few minutes. Add the ground beef and cook until brown.

2. Add oregano and basil. After ground beef is mostly browned, add tomato paste and heat through. Add garlic and stir to combine.

3. Add red wine and Worcestershire and stir. Add tomatoes and milk, letting simmer 30 minutes-2 hours. Serve with pasta and Parmesan.

I made it with penne which is kind of weird, but it was what I had on hand. I didn't let it simmer very much longer than 30 minutes, but the longer the better with this, I think. Bon appetit!

Sundried Tomato Risotto

This wonderful recipe came from Pioneer Woman, which means it was, of course, delicious! I just happened to have all the ingredients for this and had a craving for warm, homey food earlier this week. This hit the spot perfectly!

It took me 3 tries, no lie, to get a non-shaky shot of the ingredients! I never realized how hard it could be to get a stable picture of non-moving objects!

I am terrible at chopping onions. I'm very sorry Ree, you have explained over and over how to do this and yet I still fail miserably!

Regardless, onions and garlic combined is God's greatest gift to humanity.

These sundried tomatoes were a beast to cut. I definitely wished I had a food processor!

This pot has been the most amazing purchase my mom has ever made on my behalf!

Mmm onions and garlic in butter! It does get better!

Adding the wine

Arborio rice is beautiful! It's so pearly and tiny!

I made a small boo-boo and added the wine to the onions before the rice, but it turned out alright in the end :)

The tomatoes turned much brighter throughout the cooking process

All mixed together

Adding the broth a little at a time is a long process, but so worth it! It turns out soooo creamy, without any dairy products at all!

Adding Parmesan. Yes, it's the bottled stuff, because I lack the budget for the good stuff. Forgive me, culinary gods, for I have sinned.

I did add some 2% milk rather than heavy cream, because that was what I had on hand, and that's what Pioneer Woman said to do.

Heaven in a bowl. Yum!

Sundried Tomato Risotto

4 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons EVOO

1/2 whole large yellow onion, diced

3 whole cloves garlic, minced

2 cups uncooked Arborio rice

7-9 sundried tomatoes packed in oil, drained and minced

1 cup dry white wine (optional, I opted.)

7 cups low sodium chicken broth

salt and pepper as needed

1 cup Parmesan

1/4 cups heavy whipping cream (or, in my case, 2% milk)

1. Heat broth in a saucepan or in the microwave and set aside

2. Heat butter and EVOO in a pot over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and cook 3-4 minutes.

3. Add dry rice, stirring to coat and cooking for 3 more minutes. Add wine, stir and cook over medium-low heat until most of liquid is absorbed. Add sundried tomatoes and stir.

4. Begin adding broth, one cup at a time, stirring until the liquid is absorbed, then adding the next cup. Repeat until rice is done. Rice should have a slight bite, but not be crunchy. I used about 6 cups of broth total.

5. Remove from heat, then stir in Parmesan and heavy cream. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!

Cooking again!

Finally getting back into the swing of things! I've been in my apartment for a little over a month now, and despite a few minor things, I love it!

I was very excited to get back to cooking and blogging about it! Tonight, I made Sauteed Chicken Breasts with Creamy Chive Sauce from www.eatingwell.com. I made some mashed potatoes to go with it, and they were the perfect side because they used some of the sauce too! This dish was delicious and I can't wait to make it again! And the best part is that it's only 244 calories per serving!



Mmm Dijon mustard! Be very excited.



Dredged in flour...



The sizzle when these hit the pan was a good sign of things to come!



I used green onions because they were cheaper than chives. I think they worked just as well!



Mmm shallots!



De-glazing the pan



I only used 2 chicken breasts rather than the 4 called for, because a. there were only two of us, b. I only had two, and c. they were very good sized!



Doesn't that look amazing?



Dinner all set up on my new (old) table!


I was surprised at how well the close-up turned out, considering that I'm still using my BlackBerry to take pictures.



I can't believe I ate the whole thing!



This recipe is Mike-approved!

Here's the recipe:

Sauteed Chicken Breasts with Creamy Chive Sauce

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 pound), trimmed of all fat
1 teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 plus 1 tablespoon flour, divided
3 teaspoons EVOO, divided
2 large shallots, finely chopped
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 14 oz can reduced sodium chicken broth
1/3 cup reduced fat sour cream
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 cup chopped chives (about 1 bunch)

1. Place chicken between sheets of plastic wrap and pound with a meat mallet or heavy skillet until flattened to an even thickness, about 1/2 inch. Season both sides of chicken with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Dredge chicken in 1/4 cup flour.
2. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook until golden brown, about 1 to 2 minutes on each side. Transfer to plate, cover and keep warm.
3. Heat the remaining 1 teaspoon oil in the pan over medium-high heat. Add shallots and cook, stirring constantly to de-glaze pan, for 1 to 2 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon flour, stirring to coat. Add wine, broth and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil, stirring often.
4. Return the chicken to pan, reduce heat to simmer, and cook until heated through and no longer pink in the center, about 6 minutes. Stir in sour cream and mustard until smooth, turn chicken to coat in sauce. Stir in chives and serve immediately.

Dinner & Dessert!

This past Monday, I had planned to make a recent family favorite, White Chili. I was also inspired to make a recipe I came across on the internet, courtesy of The Picky Palate!

The recipe for White Chili came from my handy Taste of Home Cookbook. Here's the recipe:

1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch cubes (I used 3 chicken tenderloins, since that's what I had on hand)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon vegetable oil (this is for cooking the chicken, I just eyeballed some olive oil)
2 cans (15 1/2 oz each) great northern beans, rinsed and drained (I'll be honest, I don't rinse and drain.)
1 can (14 1/2 oz) chicken broth (I used chicken bullion cubes and water)
2 cans (4 oz each) chopped green chilies (I just use one)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup (8 oz) sour cream
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream (I used skim milk because it makes my life easier. You can't really tell if you haven't had it the original way)

1. In a large saucepan, saute chicken, onion and garlic powder in oil until chicken is no longer pink. Add the beans, broth, chilies and seasonings. Bring to a boil.

2. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in sour cream and cream (milk). Serve immediately

See? So easy, even I can't screw it up!



Can you tell I'm a big fan of cooking "whatever" style? As in, "whatever" I have on hand, "whatever" is easiest, etc. :)



The way the onions smell totally makes up for how gross the raw chicken looks



After putting in the broth, beans, etc.



The chicken is no longer pink! (That's a good thing.)



In goes the sour cream!



Mmm a great fall meal!

And now, on to the grand finale: dessert! The recipe can be found here and I'll be typing it below as well. I hope Jenny will forgive my last-minute tweaks!

Roasted Apples & Cream Caramel Topped Brownies

1 box Pillsbury brownie mix, family size, 9x13 (I used a box of Ghiradelli plus a little extra Kroger to approximate a family size)
8 oz softened cream cheese
1/4 cup granulated sugar
4 tablespoons butter
4 small-medium baking apples, peeled and thinly sliced (I used 2 Braeburn and 1 Granny Smith)
4 tablespoons packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (I threw in some nutmeg too, because they always go together in my mind)
3/4 cup chopped walnuts or other nut of choice *insert joke here* (I used pecans, courtesy of my "nuts" from the South :)
Prepared caramel sauce, warmed in the microwave (This was the only thing I had to leave my house to get, which instantly boosted this recipe's rating in my book. Easy peasy!)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare brownie mix according to directions. Pour into an 11x7 pan. (Sprayed, buttered, lined with foil, whatever floats your boat). Mix softened cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Place dollops of mixture on top of the brownie mix. Use a butter knife to swirl without dragging on the bottom of the pan.
2. Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add apples, brown sugar, spices and nuts. Cook and stir for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and pour over brownies. Bake for 45-55 minutes or until center of brownies are just cooked through. Remove and cool, then drizzle with caramel sauce.



A motley crew indeed!



Before mixing



After mixing!



Mmm cream cheese and sugar! Also, can I say how much I adore the KitchenAid? It is a wondrous miracle, to be sure!



Preparing to swirl!



I'm not sure exactly what it's supposed to look like, but this seemed good enough.


I love butter, I really do.



This was one of the most heavenly smells the kitchen had experienced in a long time!



Getting ready to go into the oven



Fresh out of the oven!



Detail shots... Yum. I'm drooling just looking at them!




They didn't turn out nearly as pretty as the ones at Picky Palate, but overall, it was really fun to make! They seemed very gourmet, and the boys around the house seemed to enjoy them!