Jalapeno Cheddar Corn Muffins....these little jewels are delicious with chili as well as any other soup or stew :)

JALAPENO-CHEDDAR CORN MUFFINS

2 (6-ounce) package Mexican or regular cornbread mix(the kind you just add water to)

1 1/3 cup milk

1 fresh jalapeno, seeded and chopped or a small can jalapeno

1 (7-ounce) can Mexicorn

1 cup sharp cheddar cheese

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

2 tablespoon sugar

Mix well and spoon into a well-greased 24-count mini muffin tin or black skillet.   Bake at 375 for 15 minutes or until browned.

 

Praline Chicken, Mashed Sweet Potatoes, Roasted Broccoli & Apple Peach Dump Cake...menu from my cooking show this morning :) Enjoy!

PRALINE CHICKEN

MASHED SWEET POTATOES

ROASTED BROCCOLI

APPLE PEACH DUMP CAKE

 

PRALINE CHICKEN

3 boneless, skinless thick chicken breast

Creole seasoning

4 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/3 cup maple syrup

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 cup chopped pecans

Slice each chicken breast in half to make 6 pieces.  Pound the chicken until flattened.  Season both sides of chicken breasts with Creole seasoning.  In a skillet, melt the heat the butter and olive oil over medium high heat and brown 3 chicken breasts at a time for 2 minutes on each side then transfer to a baking dish.  Cover the baking dish with foil and bake chicken breasts at 350 for 12 minutes.  Meanwhile re-heat the drippings from the chicken and stir in maple syrup and brown sugar and bring to a boil.  Add the pecans, reduce the heat and stir constantly for 1 to 2 minutes or just until the pecans become toasted.  Place a few tablespoons of the pecan mixture onto each chicken breast.

MASHED SWEET POTATOES

4 sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed

2 tablespoons milk

2 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon honey

3 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons white sugar

½ teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon vanilla

Boil sweet potatoes for about 20 minutes or until very soft.  Drain and place into a large bowl.  Add the remaining ingredients and mix well with a hand mixer.

ROASTED BROCCOLI

2 large crowns broccoli washed and dried

Olive oil

Salt, pepper, onion powder and garlic powder

Place broccoli on a cookie sheet and drizzle evenly with oil and seasonings.  Bake at 400 for 15 minutes.

APPLE PEACH DUMP CAKE

2 cans apple pie filling

2 cans sliced peaches, drained

Cinnamon and nutmeg

1 box white cake mix

1 stick real butter, melted

In a 13x9x2 baking dish, place the apples and peaches then sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg.  Next sprinkle the cake mix evenly over the fruit.  Drizzle butter evenly over cake mix, sprinkle with a little more cinnamon and nutmeg, then bake at 350 for 1 hour.  This is delicious with vanilla ice cream J

There are many different ways that Jambalaya is made. My baby brother cooks his in a big iron pot over an open fire, and it's amazing! This is my version, and I like it too :) I call it a "one-pot wonder!" Enjoy :)

Melissa Friday’s Jambalaya

8 boneless pork chops, cubed

1 lb. pack smoked sausage

1 large bell pepper, chopped

2 medium onions, chopped

1 bunch green onions, chopped

2 T minced garlic (fresh is best)

2 cups uncooked rice

16 ounces chicken broth

1 can cream of chicken soup

Water

1 T each of garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper

2 T Cajun seasoning or to taste

 

Slice the sausage and sauté’ in a large pot until browned.  Remove sausage with a slotted spoon, reserving as much grease in the pot as possible, and set aside. (This dish is best in a cast-iron Dutch oven or heavy-duty pot with a tight-fitting lid)  In a SEPARATE skillet, sauté’ pork chops in about 1 T oil over medium-high heat just until pinkness is gone.  Remove pork from skillet and put with sausage to the side.  Now add all chopped veggies and garlic to the sausage grease.  Sauté’ over medium-high heat until the veggies become very dark, stirring often.  This process takes about 15 minutes.  Now take a 4-cup measuring cup and put cream of chicken soup and chicken broth into it.  Now add water to total 4 cups of liquid.  Stir and add to the veggies in the pot and bring to a boil.  It’s important to taste at this point after you have added all the seasonings.  It’s best if it’s a little salty because the rice will absorb a lot of the salt.  Once water is boiling, reduce heat and stir in rice.  Turn the heat down to a simmer and when most of the water has evaporates and the rice starts to come to the top, turn the burner as low as it will go, put the lid on and cook for 30 minutes. Remove lid from time to time and stir so that rice doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot.  Serves 8-10

 

 

 

Recipes from today's show:) Orange Curry Chicken, Lemon Pepper Green Beans, Orange Rice and my Orange Rolls..yum!

ORANGE CURRY CHICKEN

ORANGE RICE

LEMON PEPPER GREEN BEANS

ORANGE ROLLS

 

ORANGE CURRY CHICKEN

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons butter

3 thick boneless, skinless chicken breast cut in half and pounded with a meat mallet

½ cup chopped onion

2 tablespoons fresh garlic, minced

1 tablespoon orange zest

1 cup fresh orange juice

1 cup whipping cream

1/8 teaspoon of curry powder (add more if you’d like)

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon each of salt and pepper

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil and butter.  Add 3 chicken breasts at a time and cook 2 minutes on each side in the butter and oil.  When all six are browned on each side, place them on a plate and set aside.  Add the onion, garlic and orange zest and cook for 2 minutes.  Add remaining ingredients and partially cooked chicken to the skillet and simmer on low for 40 minutes.  Turn chicken breasts from time to time.  Serve with orange rice.

ORANGE RICE

2 tablespoon butter

½ cup green onions, chopped

3 teaspoons orange zest

2 teaspoons fresh garlic, minced

1 cup basmati rice

1 cup fresh orange juice

1 cup chicken broth

1 teaspoon each of salt and pepper

Melt the butter over medium heat and add onion, orange zest and garlic.  Cook for 2 minutes.  Add the rice and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring constantly.  Add the orange juice and remaining ingredients and bring to a slow boil.  As soon as it starts boiling, reduce heat to very low and place a lid on the pan.  Simmer for 20 to 25 minutes or until rice is cook.  Stir from time-to-time.

LEMON PEPPER GREEN BEANS

1 pound fresh green beans rinsed and trimmed

3 tablespoons butter

½ cup slivered almonds

2 teaspoons lemon pepper seasoning

Steam green beans for 10 minutes and drain.  In a skillet, melt the butter and add the almonds and lemon pepper seasoning.  Stir constantly over medium-high heat for about 2 minutes or until almonds start the brown slightly.  Stir in green beans and mix well.

ORANGE ROLLS

9 individual frozen bread dough rolls, thawed

3 tablespoons real butter, melted

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

1 ½ tablespoons fresh squeezed orange juice

6-count jumbo muffin tin

Orange Glaze (recipe below)

In a small bowl, combine butter, orange zest and orange juice and set aside.  To thaw the rolls, place them on a plate and set them on the counter to thaw for 2 hours.  Then carefully cut each roll in half with a bread knife.  This will give you 18 pieces.  You will use 3 pieces per muffin cup.  Spray muffin tin with cooking spray then quickly deep each piece into the butter mixture and place 3 into each muffin tin.  Cover and place in a warm place for 2-2 ½ hours.  Bake 10-12 minutes at 350.  As soon as you take them out of the oven, drizzle orange glaze over the tops of each roll.  Yield: 6

ORANGE GLAZE

¾ cup powdered sugar

1 ½ tablespoon fresh squeezed orange juice

Stir together until smooth.

 

Ice Cream Bread: Are you kidding? I saw this recipe in one of my old cookbooks and set out to prove that it was a misprint and it would not work. Well, I was wrong! It baked up beautifully and tasted delicious! The recipe I saw only called for ice cream and self-rising flour. I added the 2 bananas and a little sugar. I can't wait to experiment with other flavors of ice cream :) Enjoy!

ICE CREAM BREAD

I know this sounds insane, but I promise, it works and it’s delicious! 

1 Pint of your favorite ice cream (I used Butter Pecan)

1 ½ cups self-rising flour

1 tablespoon sugar

2 very mushy bananas (optional)

Mix all together with an electric mixer, pour into a greased loaf pan and bake at 350 for 45 minutes.  Let cool completely before cutting.  I like to wrap the bread in saran wrap overnight and serve it the next day.  You could even toast it and spread your favorite jam onto it.  Enjoy J