Cheshire Fun

I love how things always work out.  When Mitch and I were looking for a house to buy in 2008, we looked everywhere.  I never thought we'd find our home.  We knew a couple of people who lived in Cheshire, and there happened to be a few houses for sale.  We found one that suited our style, and we made the purchase.  Over the next few years, several of our friends joined the neighborhood.  We love being so close to our friends, being able to go through the same seasons of life together, and getting to see each other on a weekly basis.  Sometimes it's just a wave riding down the street, but it's nice to see familiar faces.  When we do get together, it's always a great time.

Amy organized a progressive dinner with some of the couples in Cheshire.  We had a blast rotating to each house, and we definitely ate yummy food.  Since NO ONE took any pictures of the events, I'll just share a few recipes from the night.  We promised to do another progressive dinner, so next time I'll get some pictures.

Here is the invitation Amy emailed us.

We started out at our house for appetizers.  Since we were having appetizer, salad, dinner, and dessert, I didn't want to do too many appetizers.  I was going to just do one, but I decided to do two at the last minute.  Here are the recipes for what I made.  Both were big hits.

Salmon Chips
1 cup smoked salmon
1 tsp black pepper
2 1/2 TBS white chopped onion
8 oz cream cheese softened
1 tsp lemon juice
Grated cheddar cheese
Tortilla scoops
Sliced jalapenos

Combine salmon, pepper, onion, cream cheese, and lemon juice.  Combine well.  Spoon the mixture into Tortilla scoops and place on a baking sheet.  Sprinkle with cheddar cheese.  Place a jalapeno slice on top of each.  (I put a jalapeno on half of them since I knew everyone didn't like spicy foods.)  Broil until cheese melts.

The recipe makes about 25 salmon bites.  They are really easy and yummy!

I wasn't sure if everyone liked salmon, so I also did the delicious Charleston Cheese Dip.  I've had this many times, and it's always just as good.  I did make a few substitutions in the recipe.

Charleston Cheese Dip
1/2 cup mayonnaise
8 oz cream cheese softened
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 cup Monterey Jack cheese
2 green onions chopped (I didn't have green onions, so I just used chopped white onion)
Dash of Cayenne pepper
8 Ritz crackers crushed
8 slices of bacon cooked and crumbled (I didn't have bacon, so I used a small bag of bacon bits with the real bacon pieces)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Mix mayonnaise, cream cheese, cheddar cheese, MJ cheese, onions, and peppers together in a bowl.  Transfer to a shallow baking dish.  Top with bacon crumbles and Ritz crackers.  (I used about 15 instead of 8 crackers.)  Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until heated through.

Serve hot with crackers, scoops, corn chips, etc.

Here is a picture of the dip I found on Pinterest.

After appetizers, we all headed to the Arnold's for salad.  Amy made a wonderful salad that everyone enjoyed.

Ramen Noodle Salad
3 heads of Romaine lettuce
1 package of broccoli florets
1 heaping cup of craisins
4 TB melted butter
1 package of Ramen noodles
1 package of green onion chopped (Amy doesn't like onions, so she may have left these out.)
1 cup chopped pecans

Mix lettuce, broccoli, onion, and craisins together.  Melt butter and saute noodles and pecans.  Drain and let cool.

Dressing
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 1/2 TB soy sauce

Mix all dressing ingredients together and whisk well.

Mix pecans and noodle mixture with the salad mixture.  Add dressing and toss.

After salad, we went over to Charlie's house for the main meal.  Charlie did his specialty, lamb chops.  They were marinated in a Dijon mustard base marinade, and they were delish.  We had baked asparagus, hashbrown casserole, and bread with the lamb chops.

Last, we went to the other Arnold house for dessert.  Mallory made a yummy s'more dessert.  I found the recipe off her Pinterest site, so I wanted to share it too.

Smoresall
3  unbroken Graham crackers
1 roll of chocolate chip cookie dough
Hershey chocolate pieces
Mini Marshmallows

In a small baking dish, place the Graham crackers on the bottom.  Roll the cookie dough flat and place it on top of the graham crackers.  Bake according to package and until the cookie is cooked through.  Place pieces of broken Hershey's chocolate on top.  Spread mini marshmallows on top of chocolate.  Bake until the marshmallows are brown and puffy.  Serve with ice cream.

Here is the picture from Pinterest.

I loved how the marshmallows actually tasted like they were roasted over a fire.  It was a great dessert!

I can't wait for many more memories with our Chesire friends. 

Pinterest Fail....

I love Pinterest!  When I would have to get up at night to feed Ansley, Pinterest was a lifesaver!  I loved looking through the different ideas.  One of my biggest struggles is deciding what to cook each week.  I always run out of ideas.  You can only have spaghetti and tacos so many nights! :)  I love the variety of recipes on Pinterest.  I've tried several recipes, and I just can't get them to turn out quite right.  I'm beginning to think it's me and not the recipe.  Here are some of the recipes I've tried and the results.

Crock Pot Pork Chops - 

6 pork chops, 1/2 inch thick or 1 pork tenderloin

1 packet dry Ranch seasoning

1 can cream of chicken

 **Cook on low for 6 hours or high for 4 hours.

I didn't have all day, so I chose the high for 4 hours.  The pork chops cooked entirely too fast, and they were really dry.  The gravy stuck to the sides of the crock pot, even when I used Pam spray.

I couldn't find a picture of this, but I found it off a link from Pinterest.

Crock Pot Chicken, Rice and Broccoli -

2 pounds chicken tenders or boneless chicken breasts cut in strips or cubes
1 1/4 cups uncooked converted rice
1 package Knorr’s Cream of Broccoli Soup Mix
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
pepper, to taste and parsely for color
Broccoli, carrots or cauliflower

Place rice in a lightly greased slow cooker.  Sprinkle with parsley and pepper. Top with chicken pieces. Mix together the soup, mix and broth. Pour over chicken and rice. You can add vegetables now or wait until about 1 hour before serving if you like them firmer. Cover and cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours.  I don’t recommend cooking this for a shorter time on high.

This was probably the worst one I did.  I didn't think 1 1/2 cups of broth would be enough for the rice, vegetables, and chicken to cook and stay moist, so I even added more.  It was SO dry!  The rice burned on the bottom, and the broccoli soup mix did not give the chicken and rice the best seasoning.  The chicken was also dry.  

Crock Pot Cube Steak -

Cube steak  
2 cans (10.75 ounce size) cream of mushroom soup
1 envelope onion soup mix
3/4  cup water

Salt and Pepper to taste

Mix ingredients and cook on low all day.

Mitch loves cube steak, so I thought this would be an easy way to fix it.  I use the same ingredients to cook a roast in the crock pot, so I knew the gravy would be good.  I started with 4 cube steaks, and when I got home to check on it, I only had 3 in the crock pot.  I guess it cooked all day and just cooked one completely away!  The meat wasn't tough like cube steak can get, so that was a plus.  The gravy was also good, but we both agreed that the meat had been cooked a little too long.  Maybe the recipe should be more specific on what all day means.  :)

Chicken Roll Ups-

1 pkg cream cheese (8oz)

1 pkg crescent rolls (6 ct) (note, you can also use TWO packages of regular sized crescents)

2 shredded, cooked chicken breasts

1.5 C grated cheddar cheese

1 C grated Monterey Jack

1/4 t salt

1/4 t pepper

bread crumbs

1/4 stick melted butter

    

 

Combine chicken, cheeses, salt and pepper. Spoon onto crescents. Roll them up making sure they are  sealed around the chicken mixture. Brush tops with butter and sprinkle with bread crumbs. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes. To reheat, just place in a 325 degree oven for 15 minutes.

I thought these sounded different and yummy.  Who doesn't love chicken, cheese, and crescent rolls?  They honestly weren't too bad.  I did have way too much chicken mixture left over, even after opening another crescent roll package.  I also think it was a little cheesy....cream cheese, cheddar, and monterey...a little much.  I will say that it wasn't as bad as some of the other failed recipes though.  Mine did not turn out as pretty as the final product picture though! :)

    

Creamy Chicken and Mushrooms-

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (about 1-1/2 pounds)

1 8-oz. pkg. fresh button mushrooms, quartered

1 6-oz. pkg. fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, caps sliced

1/4 cup butter

1 0.7-oz. pkg. Italian dry salad dressing mix

1 10-3/4-oz. can condensed golden mushroom soup

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/2 of an 8-oz. tub cream cheese spread with chives and onion

Hot cooked rice or angel hair pasta

 

This recipe was actually delicious!  The chicken was moist, the mushrooms were great, and the gravy was really tasty.  I served rice with the chicken, and we used the gravy for the rice.  I will make this again.  

 

So...I don't know if it is me, the crock pot, or the recipes, but I haven't had the best of luck.  Mom has made several recipes from Pinterest, and most of hers have turned out decent, so maybe it is me.  :)  Oh well, I will keep trying.  Any suggestions on fool proof recipes out there??