Arrgghhh....If it isn't one thing, it's another

I had high hopes for posting some recipes this weekend. Goodness knows that I have made a ton recently. But no such luck. My computer isn't working (typing this on a computer I borrowed from my mom) and I can't post any pictues. Who knows when I will be up and running. I'm hoping one of our IT guys can get me back up and running. Sorry to be such a slacker.

Hello, Blogging World

I am still alive. These last few weeks have rocked my world. I haven't been home much, cooking even less and sleeping only a few weeks. I do have posts -- TWD cupcakes, a peanut butter cake I made, some dinners and even a blog award thanks to Priscilla. Give me a few days and I will be back to normal. See y'all this weekend.

The Cake Slice: Cappuccino Chiffon Cake

I am a sucker for fun blogging groups that enhance my baking and cooking skills. So, it's no surprise that when Gigi and Katie decided to form a group called The Cake Slice I jumped right on in. I liked their concept -- bake once a month for one year, from one cookbook. They choose Sky High: Irresistible Triple Layer Cakes by Alicia Huntsman and Peter Wynne and I ran right on out to Borders and bought it.

For our very first post, we all made Cappuccino Chiffon Cake. I am not an espresso fan so I substituted Cocoa and it worked out just fine.

I am not a huge cake maker so I'm looking forward to expanding my skills. I did really well on this one -- it ain't all that pretty, but that's okay...that's part of its charm.

Go visit Gigi or Katie for the recipe. You can learn more about this new monthly blogging community by visiting The Cake Slice.

Onion Baked Pork Chops

If I had realized how easy this recipe is to make, I would have told my husband to make it on a weekday : )

It's so incredibly easy but it takes an hour to bake. I found the recipe on Carrie's Sweet Life and figured that it would come out from the depths of my reader sooner rather than later. I'm glad it did. I am not a pro at pork chops. In fact, I always mess them up and they end up quite tough. Not this recipe. I master it. Yea!

Sorry about the lack of photos....my camera is dead. I'll post them as soon as I find some batteries.

Onion Baked Pork Chops
4 pork chops
1 pkg. Lipton onion soup mix
2 eggs, well beaten
2/3 cup bread crumbs
1/2 to 2/3 stick butter, melted
2 T. olive oil
Salt
Pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Season pork chops with salt and pepper.

Combine soup mix and bread crumbs. Dip chops in egg and then in bread crumb/onion mixture, coating well. Place in a shallow pan.

Mix melted butter and olive oil in a small bowl and drizzle onto pork chops. Bake covered 1 hour, turning once.

TWD: No Biscotti Here

Sorry, everyone. I am not a big biscotti fan so I decided to pass this week. Plus, I have been so busy that it was nice to take a break from baking this weekend. Never fear, I'll be back next week...or at least I hope so. I am not a pumpkin fan either, but I plan to power through.

Chicken Pockets

My two-year-old absolutely made my night. I was in the kitchen making these yummy chicken pockets (more on that in a second) when I noticed my son going to the front of the house. No real concern, he only stays in a room for a second since he much prefers to be with me or my husband. I hear a noise (nothing too loud) and my hubby goes running to see what he is in. I then hear, "You could have hurt yourself." Next thing I know, hubby is bringing in a step stool that our son was trying to pick up so that he could come and cook with me. I couldn't stop smiling and immediately handed him the pepper to start shaking.

Now, back to dinner...this was really good. I saw this a week or so ago on Rediscovering the Joy of Cooking and immediately put it in to my rotation. It's really easy to make. As you will notice, I only used one container of crescent rolls up and just folded them up, rather than making them a pocket. I really liked these and they were easy to make. I'll be making 'em again, especially on a night when I don't have a lot of time to cook.

Creamy Chicken Pockets
2 tbsp olive oil

4 small chicken breasts, diced

1/2 cup minced onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 tablespoon butter, softened

3 ounces cream cheese, softened

1/4 teaspoon seasoned salt

2 tablespoons milk

2 (8 ounce) packages refrigerated crescent rolls

1 tablespoon butter, melted

1/4 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Heat olive oil in large skillet. Brown chicken with onions and garlic.

In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese and 1 tablespoon melted butter or margarine until smooth. Add the chicken, kosher salt, breadcrumbs, pepper, and milk. Mix well.
Separate crescent dough into eight rectangles, firmly pressing perforations of two triangles to seal into rectangle. Spoon 1/2 cup of the chicken mixture onto the center of four rectangles. Top with remaining rectangles and seal edges.

Place pockets on an ungreased cookie sheet or baking stone. Brush tops of pockets with melted butter; sprinkle with bread crumbs. Bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.

TWD: Caramel-Peanut-Topped Brownie Cake

I had hopes for this one, but boy was I an underachiever on this challenge. It was horrible! No reflection on the recipe -- just me. The cake was dry and the caramel tasted like I had burned it. I tried to pawn it off on my mom in hopes that my taste buds were off, but she said she threw it away. Yikes.

Oh well, you can't win 'em all. Thanks to Tammy of Wee Treats by Tammy for picking out this recipe. I enjoyed the baking, just not the tasting. To read about everyone that made this recipe successfully, go visit the TWD Blogroll.

Banana Crumb Muffins

I love muffins and I especially love muffins that have crumbly toppings. In an effort to expand my toddler's taste buds, I decided to make muffins with his favorite food....bananas. Actually, he calls them 'nanas which is so darn cute. Anyway, he is your typical toddler. He liked them on Sunday, wouldn't eat one on Monday. Anyone want to bet if he eats them on Tuesday? Your guess is as good as mine. Never fear, I like them so they aren't going to waste. Did I mention they have a yummy sugar muffin top.

A special thanks to Joelen for encouraging bloggers to make muffins for her September challenge. I was very excited when I saw her post and started searching for recipes immediately. Now, on to blueberry muffins. Yipee.

Banana Crumb Muffins
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 bananas, mashed
3/4 cup white sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/3 cup butter, melted
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon butter

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease 10 muffin cups, or line with muffin papers.

In a large bowl, mix together 1 1/2 cups flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, beat together bananas, sugar, egg and melted butter. Stir the banana mixture into the flour mixture just until moistened. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.

In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar, 2 tablespoons flour and cinnamon. Cut in 1 tablespoon butter until mixture resembles coarse cornmeal. Sprinkle topping over muffins.
Bake in preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean.

Pancakes

My aunt makes fantastic pancakes. She has a great recipe and unfortunately, I don't have it. I am hoping that will all change when I see her for Thanksgiving. In the meantime, I found this easy recipe on Recipezaar this weekend. It was simple to make and delicious. So, until Thanksgiving, I am going to enjoy making these pancakes.

Pancakes

2 cups flour
1 3/4 cups milk
2 tablespoons baking powder
2 eggs, beat them separately before adding to mixture
1/4 cup butter, melted (1/8 of a pound)
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt

Mix the dry items first. Combine the eggs and melted butter to the milk and slowly stir in the flour. Let sit at least 10 minutes while heating the pan. These will be high, but light and fluffy .

Baking Gals Mission: SnickerDoodles

I am a veteran of Operation Baking Gals and just completed my latest baking mission. This is the third month that this fantastic group has been in existence and it's already up to 700 bakers. That's pretty impressive.

This month I sent a few dozen SnickerDoodles. I hope our troops overseas love 'em cause I know that my little boy sure did. In fact, he devoured them. So, you know what that means...I'll be making them again in the future.

I am gonna let ya'll in on a little secret. Before Saturday, I had never had a SnickerDoodle. Crazy, huh? My first batch was a little dry, but batches two and three were delish. I borrowed my recipe from a blog -- no surprise there.

Snickerdoodles

1 1/2 cups white sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 eggs

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon cream of tartar

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons white sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Combine 1 1/2 cups white sugar, butter, vanilla and eggs. Mix well.

Stir in flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Blend well. Shape dough into 1 inch balls. Combine 3 tablespoons sugar and 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon. Roll dough in sugar/cinnamon mixture and place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until set. Immediately remove from cookie sheets

Thanks, Dinner on a Dime, for a new family favorite.