June 6, 2011

Sara's Recipes: Chicken Cordon Bleu & Panna Cotta

Sara hosted in June, and served a delicious meal. Here are her recipes:

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Pound chicken breasts
Mix Parmesan Cheese, parsley, salt and pepper. Sprinkle a layer inside each breast. Layer ham and mozzarella (or swiss) cheese and roll, secure ends with toothpick. Roll in whisked egg and seasoned bread crumbs and more cheese mixture. Bake @ 350 for 30 minutes. Serve with sauce. Sauce is sour cream, cream of chicken soup, tsp lemon juice. Spoon on top.
Green Salad with Apples and Balsalmic dressing

FOR THE SUGARED PECANS:
½ cups Pecan Pieces
2 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar

FOR THE SALAD:
6 ounces, weight Baby Spinach
1 head Red Leaf Lettuce, Torn
1 whole Granny Smith Apple, Cored And Very Thinly Sliced
4 ounces, weight Crumbled Feta Or Blue Cheese

FOR THE DRESSING (this is my altered version):
1/8 cup Red Onion, Finely Chopped

1 1/2 Tablespoons Red Wine Vinegar
1 1/2 Tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
1/4 cups Olive Oil
1 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar
1/2 clove Galic, Minced
1/8 teaspoons Salt
1/16 teaspoons Freshly Ground

Place nuts in a medium skillet with 2 tablespoons sugar. Cook over medium-high heat until nuts are coated and brown, stirring constantly, about 4 minutes; set aside.
Toss salad greens, apples and cheese.
Combine dressing ingredients in a small jar and shake vigorously. Pour over the salad just before serving.
Sprinkle with sugared nuts.
Panna Cotta
4 cups (1l) heavy cream (or half-and-half)
1/2 cup (100g) sugar
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract, or 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
2 packets powdered gelatin (about 4 1/2 teaspoons)
6 tablespoons (90ml) cold water

1. Heat the heavy cream and sugar in a saucepan or microwave. Once the sugar is dissolved, remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract.
(If using a vanilla bean, scrape the seeds from the bean into the cream and add the bean pod. Cover, and let infuse for 30 minutes. Remove the bean then rewarm the mixture before continuing.)
2. Lightly oil eight custard cups with a neutral-tasting oil.
3. Sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water in a medium-sized bowl and let stand 5 to 10 minutes.
4. Pour the very warm Panna Cotta mixture over the gelatin and stir until the gelatin is completely dissolved.
5. Divide the Panna Cotta mixture into the prepared cups, then chill them until firm, which will take at least two hours but I let them stand at least four hours. (Judy told me American refrigerators are colder than European ones. )
If you’re pressed for time, pour the Panna Cotta mixture into wine goblets so you can serve them in the glasses, without unmolding.
6. Run a sharp knife around the edge of each Panna Cotta and unmold each onto a serving plate, and garnish as desired. (I used berries maserated with sugar and toasted almonds)

Rochelle's Fiesta Salad & Red Velvet Cake Balls

Rochelle hosted Bunco in April and made a delicious Mexican feast for us. Sorry that I'm getting the recipes to you late, but here they are:

Fiesta Salad- Yields 4 servings

1 15-oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 15-oz can corn kernels, drained and rinsed
1 small purple onion, chopped
1 pint cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1-2 jalapenos, seeded and minced
1/4 cup cilantro
1/2 Tbsp cumin
salt and pepper
red wine vinaigrette, about 8 oz
Combine ingredients in medium bowl. Refrigerate 1 hour to marinate.
    Red Velvet Cake Balls

    1 box red velvet cake mix (cook as directed on box for 13 X 9 cake)
    1 can cream cheese frosting (16 oz.)
    1 package chocolate bark (regular or white chocolate)
    wax paper
    1. After cake is cooked and cooled completely, crumble into large bowl.
    2. Mix thoroughly with 1 can cream cheese frosting. (It may be easier to use fingers to mix together, but be warned it will get messy.)
    3. Roll mixture into quarter size balls and lay on cookie sheet. (Should make 45-50. You can get even more if you use a mini ice cream scooper, but I like to hand roll them.)
    4. Chill for several hours. (You can speed this up by putting in the freezer.)
    5. Melt chocolate in microwave per directions on package.
    6. Roll balls in chocolate and lay on wax paper until firm. (Use a spoon to dip and roll in chocolate and then tap off extra.)

    I also only melt a few pieces of chocolate bark at a time because it starts to cool and thicken. It’s easier to work with when it’s hot.

    You can make this with any combo of cake mix & frosting !

    May 15, 2011

    2011 Hostess List

    January- Shannon
    February- Alesha
    March- Cassi
    April- Rochelle
    May- Sarah
    June- Sara
    July- Molly
    August- Tina
    September- Jennifer
    October- Leslie
    November- Stacia
    December- Jaime

    March 31, 2011

    St. Patrick's Day Bunko!

    Unfortunately, Cassi forgot to take photos at her St. Patrick's Day Bunko Fest. But if you'd like to reminisce, here are the green/Irish recipes for you:

    Green salad:  spinach, fresh greens, and diced cucumbers, green peppers, broccoli, and sugar snap peas with green dressing (Just mix in some pureed spinach!)


    Amazingly Easy Irish Soda Bread: Click here for recipe from Allrecipes.com


    The Stinking Rose's Famous Garlic Rose Relish: Click here for recipe from the Stinking Rose

    Quick Chicken Lasagna:  Click here for recipe from Darigold (note: I used 1lb chicken, fresh spinach and chicken raviolis, and pureed raw spinach into the sauce to make it green)

    Green punch:  1 2-liter bottle of Ginger Ale, 1 46-oz can of pineapple juice, and 1 tub of lime sherbet

    Green Cupcakes: Click here for recipe from Green Lite Bites

    Pistachio Thumbprint Cookies:  Click here for recipe from Taste of Home (note: I used finely chopped almonds instead of pecans)

    December 27, 2010

    Current List of Permanent Players

    Shannon Crain
    Kaylee Crain
    Molly Phair
    Jaime Olsen
    Cassi Stevens
    Sarah Crye
    Sara Davis
    Rochelle Saunders
    Jen Springstead
    Tina Spriggs
    Alesha Earnest

    Shannon Crain will hostess in January and we will make a new hostess list for the year of 2011 that night!

    Salmon Alfredo Rotini

     Here's Cassi's Salmon Alfredo Rotini recipe from hosting Bunko this month!

    Salmon Alfredo Rotini

    1 13.25-oz box whole wheat rotini
    15 oz jar sun-dried tomato Alfredo sauce (I use Classico)
    1 3.5-oz package sun dried tomatoes, julienne sliced
    1 lb wild salmon (I use frozen wild Alaskan)
    1 6oz package shredded Parmesan
    white vinegar, lemon juice, basil, oregano

    Thaw salmon, then place in a glass baking dish. Cover bottom of dish with equal parts vinegar and lemon juice (add more if you like it tangy). Generously cover both sides of fish with equal parts dried basil & oregano.Cover dish and marinate in refrigerator approximately 1 hour (flip fish at half hour). Bake at 425F for approximately 20 minutes, or until fish shreds easily with a fork. While fish is baking, cook pasta and warm sauce on stove. When fish is cooked, shred with a fork. Mix drained pasta, fish, sauce, dried tomatoes, and about 3/4 of the bag of Parmesan. Stir well, then serve with extra Parmesan sprinkled on top.

    December Bunko Pictures!

    Here we are ladies! What a great night of Bunko! Thanks for hostessing Cassi, it was AWESOME! And I'm not just saying that because I won a sweet prize!

    Excited to have some new players! I think we have a great group of girls to head into the new year!
    Molly and Jaime with their newly acquired scarves.



    Molly, Jaime and Cassi, the top three bunko winners! Woowoo! Who will it be next month? Shannon Crain is the hostess and she always throws a pretty spectacular party! Don't forget to get your own sub if you can't make it. At some point, a new list of subs will be placed on this blog.