Cream Cheese and Chive Biscuits

The most delightful addition to any meal are Martha Stewart's Cream Cheese and Chive Biscuits.  I discovered this recipe when a dear friend gave me Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook (it's orange, by the way). I call it my Martha Baking Bible (this is also where I got my Angel Food Cake Recipe).

These biscuits are a must have for any get together.  You can easily make them ahead of time and freeze them.  Once frozen, you can pull them out anytime and bake them just as you would on the day you made them.  You don't have to add any cooking time to the recipe.  I think this is great, because you can make several dozen and only eat a few at a time.  If you're like me and don't have a large family around to eat them, this is perfect.

Cream Cheese and Chive Biscuits

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
1 ¼ teaspoons salt
1 Tbs. granulated sugar
¼ cup finely chopped fresh chives
1 stick (½ cup) unsalted butter, cold, cut into small pieces
4 oz. cream cheese, cold, cut into small pieces
1 ¼ cup buttermilk

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar, and chives. Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter and cream cheese until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs with a few larger clumps remaining. Pour in the buttermilk; using a fork, mix in buttermilk until incorporated and the dough just comes together. The dough will be slightly sticky; do not over mix.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. With floured fingers, gently knead about four times, until all the crumbs are incorporated and the dough is smooth. With a lightly floured rolling pin, gently roll the dough to a 8-by-11-inch rectangle, about 1 inch thick. Using a bench scraper or long offset spatula to lift the ends of the dough, fold the rectangle into thirds (like a business letter). Give the dough a quarter turn. Roll out the dough again (to the same dimensions), and repeat the folding process. Wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Return the dough to the work surface. Roll out as before, and repeat the folding process. Give the dough another quarter turn; roll out dough one more time, again into a rectangle about 1 inch thick. Using a sharp knife, divide the rectangle into 12 equal squares or rectangles. Place on prepared sheet about 1 1/2 inches apart. Refrigerate for 1 hour. (at this point you could also freeze the biscuits…to cook, simply put the frozen biscuits on a parchment lined sheet and proceed with baking)

Preheat the oven to 425° F. Bake, rotating the sheet halfway through, until the biscuits are golden and flecked with brown spots, 15 to 18 minutes. Transfer the biscuits to a wire rack to cool.

As with ALL of Martha Stewart's recipes, the directions are very 'wordy'.  It's actually really easy, don't over complicate it.  These are delicious.  Don't forget that you can always ask questions if you have any.  Enjoy!!

Chicken Monterrey

My coworker, Cindy Kennedy, has been raving about this dish for over a month.  Tonight, I finally understand everything she was talking about.  This dish at first seems intimidating, but as long as you follow the instructions, it's a piece of cake.  Like the Chicken Bryan or any other recipe that has multiple steps (sometimes more than one thing going on at a time), one should always read through the steps several times before starting the dish.  One thing you don't want to do is get ahead of yourself.  Ruining this delicious meal could be very easy if you got carried away.

I paired this dish with saffron infused yellow rice.  I'm sure there are lots of sides that would go wonderfully with this, but the saffron rice just worked so perfectly.  My advice would be to explore the Hispanic (or other) section of your grocery store and just go for what inspires you. Take a chance.  The worst that could happen would be that it doesn't turn out well.  I do that enough without taking chances...why not be bold?

Chicken Monterrey

¼ cup flour

1 envelope taco seasoning

6 chicken breasts

¼ cup butter

½ cup tortilla chips, crushed

2 Tbs. onion, chopped

1 Tbs. cooking oil

2 Tbs. flour

¼ tsp. salt

1 13oz can evaporated milk (do not use low-fat)

¼ to 2 tsp Tabasco

1 cup Monterrey Jack cheese, shredded

1 tsp. lemon juice

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Combine flour and taco mix in plastic bag and coat chicken. Melt butter in 13x9 pan. Place chicken in melted butter turning to coat. Roll in chips and return to baking pan. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook onion in oil until tender. Blend in flour and salt. Add milk and Tabasco. Stir until mixture thickens and bubbles. Add cheese and lemon juice. Heat until cheese melts but do not let boil (may thin with regular milk if needed). To serve, line a platter with lettuce. Top with chicken and spoon cheese over chicken. Garnish with additional tortilla chips.

I wouldn't start the cheese sauce immediately after you put the chicken in the oven.  If you do it will be ready way before your chicken and you will be stuck stirring.  This dish is a must-try!! If you like a little kick to your meal, then you'll love this! Enjoy!!

Honey Roasted Red Potatoes

Recently, I bought a 10 pound bag of small red potatoes.  I bought them because it was much cheaper to go to Costco and get the larger bag for $5.99 than go to Food Lion and get 6 potatoes for $3.99.  I am now posting my third recipe that I have used them for.  I got them originally for the Ham and Potato Soup (that's Ham and Potatoe Soup for Dan Quayle).  I also used them in the Garlic Mashed Potatoes.  I have enjoyed all three dishes.  Last night, I revisited the Honey-Rosemary Chicken and also paired with good old green beans.  The honey flavor was really nice in the two dishes.  Honey is a great way to add a glaze to your dishes.  It adds a touch of sweetness, but will never have the flavor to over-power your meal.  Be careful not to overcook the Honey Roasted Potatoes.  They are just perfect when you follow this recipe exactly.

Honey Roasted Potatoes
1 pound red potatoes, quartered
2 Tbs. diced onion
2 Tbs. butter, melted

1 Tbs. honey

1 tsp. dry mustard

1 pinch salt

1 pinch ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 375ºF. Lightly coat an 11x7 inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.  Place potatoes in a single layer in prepared dish, and top with onion. In a small bowl, combine melted butter, honey, mustard, salt and pepper; drizzle over potatoes and onion. Bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes or until tender, stirring halfway through the cooking time.



New Parmesan Crusted Chicken with Garlic Mashed Potatoes

If you have been reading along, you probably have been expecting a new recipe for the Parmesan Crusted Chicken. I have revamped the recipe and this was much better than the previous one.  I feel like it can be improved even more, but I'll go ahead and let you know how I made this and maybe someone else can help with the next step. 

The garlic mashed potatoes were #2 in a series of "how do I use up all these red potatoes that I got at Costco?"  I bought a 10lb bag of potatoes at Costco because it was much cheaper than getting a small amount at the grocery store.  I have at least one more recipe that I'll probably use this week that will also use the red potatoes.  Last night was actually the first time I've ever made mashed potatoes from scratch.

Parmesan Crusted Chicken

2 Tbs. olive oil

2 - 4 chicken breasts (boneless, skinless)

salt and pepper

Caesar dressing

1 - 2 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup breadcrumbs

Preheat oven to 385 degrees F. In a skillet, heat oil on medium-high heat.  Salt and pepper chicken breasts.  When oil smokes, place chicken in the pan.  Cook chicken on both sides (6 minutes each side).  Place cooked chicken breasts in a casserole dish.  Brush chicken breasts with Caesar dressing.  Top chicken with a mixture of Parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs.  Bake in oven approx. 15 minutes.

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

2 lbs. unpeeled red potatoes, quartered

1 stick butter, room temperature
1 cup Romano cheese, grated
2 Tbs. chopped garlic
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. dried oregano

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add potatoes and cook until tender but still firm, about 15-20 minutes; drain. Stir in butter, cheese, garlic, salt and oregano. Mash with a potato masher or with an electric mixer.

I loved both of these dishes.  I will definitely be making both of them again.  I may modify the chicken each time I make it, trying to perfect the recipe, but I will post as I do so.  If you decide to give these a try, please leave a comment on the post.  I must say that it is difficult to post when most of the time no one says anything.  It would be a much appreciated source of encouragement. Thanks and enjoy!!