fry it up...country style

Growing up in the South, country fried steak is a staple in a balanced diet!  My mom can make some pretty tasty country fried steak, in fact it is one of my favorite meals she makes!  Since I am now in Jacksonville and can't request it for Sunday dinner at her house anymore, I must make it.  I was so glad when I found out how simple it is to make!

 Ingredients:
Beef Cubed Steak
1 egg
Milk
Flour (I used pancake mix today and it worked great!)
Salt and Pepper
Seasoning (if you want any)

Crack egg in a bowl and add some milk.  The more milk you add, the less thick the mixture will be.  I wanted mine thick because I like more breading.  Mix the egg and milk.  I add salt and pepper to this mixture, my mom always salts and peppers the meat.  If you want extra seasoning add this before you fry it.  Pour some flour, or whatever you chose to use into a bowl.  Dip meat into egg mixture and coat both sides.  Dip coated meat into flour and coat both sides well.

Try adding seasoning to your flour to spice up the recipe a bit.  Pour vegetable oil into a pan and let warm up.  Cook steak in oil, truing over occasionally.  My and I like our steaks cooked well, we like the breading to be pretty crispy.  Once the meat is done, take out of oil and place on a plate or platter covered in paper towels, to soak up some of the grease.
Most people like gravy on their country fried steak.  We use the McCormick brand country gravy mix on ours.  I serve this with either white rice or mashed potatoes.  Either on is DELICIOUS!

me encanta el tocino (I love bacon)

I am just like my mother!  She goes to a restaurant, orders her dish, inspects is upon arrival and declares 'I can make this.'  She often then does.  Some of our favorite family dishes are copycats of restaurant dishes.  Well, my husband introduced me to one of my favorite new dishes, bacon chicken and cheese quesadillas (if you didn't guess that already).
My wonderfully magnificent husband decided to make us some today for lunch.  Might I just say "delicioso!"  Here's how we did it

Ingredients:
2 flour tortillas per quesadilla
bacon pieces
cooked chicken pieces
shredded cheese
*optional: green onions, ranch dressing

We cooked ours on a griddle (got it for a wedding present...love it!).  We first sprayed the griddle down with non-stick cooking spray.  We put one tortilla down per quesadilla and added some cheese, the bacon and the chicken.  Let the tortilla cook, letting the cheese melt.  Add a little more cheese and the top tortilla.  Carefully flip the quesadilla over, letting the second tortilla brown some.  The two should stick together fairly well because of the cheesy glue holding them together.  Once your tortilla is done, transfer to a plate and cut in fourths.  Enjoy your tasty little treat...we sure did!

Tips: Use smaller tortilla shells if you are wanting to cook multiple quesadillas at a time.  Make sure your cheese goes all the way to the edges or you will get bites of tortilla shell.  To  make on the stove, simply use a frying pan coated with a thin layer of cooking oil or non-stick cooking spray

chicken on the rocky side

*not the greatest pic...I was hungry!

My mom is the type who will go to a restaurant and order something, look it over and say "I could make this."  Then she would go home and attempt the dish.  One dish that became an instant hit at my house is Rocky Top Chicken.  I love to make this chicken and love even more to eat it!

You will need:
Broiler pan (looks like two cookie sheets that sit on top of each other but one has slits in it, you put water in the bottom pan)
Oven preheated to 350

Ingredients:
boneless, skinless chicken breast (1 for each guest, thaw before cooking)
bar-b-que sauce
salt and pepper
shredded cheese
bacon bits (we like to cut bacon up and fry it to make fresh bacon bits, super delicious!)

Sallt and pepper the chicken breasts on either side.  Place them on the broiler pan and put in oven for 15 minutes.  Turn chicken over and cook for another 15 minutes.  Spoon or brush bar-b-que sauce on one side of the chicken, cook for 5 minutes.  Turn chicken over and spoon of brush bar-b-que sauce on other side and cook for a final 5 minutes.  Once chicken is done, remove from over and put on a platter.  Sprinkle shredded cheese and bacon bits over top.  There you have it...delicious chicken!

In the restaurants they usually put tomato and green onions on the chicken as well, but I'm not a big fan of either.  Also, if you use smaller pieces of chicken you can cut down on the cook time.

taco night in a whole new light

Taco night has always been one of my favorites.  I don't know what it is but, I can't seem to get enough of it!  I have to admit though, I only eat meat and cheese on my tacos!  Anywhooo...I have a recipe that is sure to quickly become on of your 'need something quick' recipes!  It's a variation on traditional tacos called Taco Ring!

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef (or, if you're like my husband ground turkey...or whatever meat you want)
1 pck taco seasoning (with all the taco stuff at the grocery store, I use Old El Paso..yum)
2/3 cup water
1 can crescent rolls
Shredded Cheese
Toppings*
*optional, they will all be added after the taco ring is cooked.

Preheat your oven according to the crescent roll package, mine is 375.

Prepare taco meat as directed on seasoning package.  While Taco meat is browning, open crescent rolls and separate.  Arrange on a baking sheet, the triangles so that the pointy end is sticking out and the flat bottoms are overlapping slightly, making a sunshine.  Once the meat is done spoon it onto your sunshine on the overlapping flat bottoms.  Don't be afraid to pile it on!  Sprinkle the shredded cheese on top of the meat.  Take the pointy rays of the sunshine and fold them over into the center of the sunshine around the meat.  Tuck it in under the center, you will begin to see the ring!  Once you have your finished ring, bake it as directed on the crescent roll package.  Once your taco ring is cooked you can add other toppings if you wish, or enjoy it as is!  This recipe makes 8 slices of taco ring (8 crescent rolls).  For larger families or hungrier folks, double the recipe.  You don't have to make two separate taco rings, simply make an oval shaped taco ring to fit on your cookie sheet instead of a circular one.  Now, enjoy your taco ring!

instant goodness amped up

So, I got a message from a friend who read my blog and was a long time lover of the potato flake chicken recipe I shared.  She had a variation on the recipe, so I thought I would share it with all...it's selfish not to share a great recipe!

"I personally have been making it for YEARS, and I LOVE it....just thought I might pass on some helpful hints....One if you mix the melted butter with italian dressing you can use less butter and amp up the flavor, and two if you buy the season potato flakes (they come in a little pouch) you also add more flavor and I personally like the texture better than the boxed ones for some reason. Anyways that's all. I love the dish, my husband requests it constantly...and its way easy to mix it up with different seasons and such." 

Mmmmm...sounds tasty!  I never even thought about using seasoned flakes to change the flavor!  What a genius!  I encourage you to absolutely try this one out, you're going to love it!

Oh, and  
Happy Halloween!

instant goodness

Growing up, I never ate instant potatoes.  To this day, I may have eaten them a total of maybe two or three times ever!  Well, a co-worker told me about a recipe for baked breaded chicken using instant potato flakes.  I was intrigued and quite frankly a little grossed out.  Well, I decided to take the plunge and try the dish in an effort to 'be a better wife' by making a better variety of foods for my husband and I.  It turns out the recipe was quite simple and my husband and I both enjoyed it a lot.  I now and no longer prejudice towards instant spuds and I am glad for that.

Here is the recipe I used

1/3 cup potato flakes (half package of Winn Dixie brand)
1/6 cup shredded Parmesan cheese (I just went half way to the 1/3 line on the measuring cup)
(optional - seasonings for flavor)
Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts

1. Preheat oven to 375 and grease baking sheet
2. Defrost chicken breats (if frozen)
3. Melt butter
4. Mix potato flakes, cheese and seasonings in a bowl until well blended
5. Brush melted butter onto chicken breats
6. Coat the butter covered chicken breasts with your breading mixture
7. Bake chicken for 40-60 minutes

I was a tad bit worried that the chicken would turn out dry or just plain taste nasty!  Though, to my surprise the chicken was neither dry nor nasty!  I was in awe and am so excited about having a new dish to serve!