Cheesy Garlic Chicken Loaf!

One of the best party loafs every seriously a keeper!

Right off the bat i am going to admit this is not my own recipe I had originally found it on Pinterest as a cheesy Mushroom loaf but as many might know I don't like mushrooms (My father loves them) so I tweaked it to suite my pallet better.

So this is my Cheesy Garlic Chicken Loaf!

Ingredients (serves 4-6: but in my fathers case serves 1 maybe 2)

Filling

• 2 tbsp Diced Garlic
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup Diced Chicken

For the Bread

• 1 unsliced loaf sourdough bread
• 8 ounces Colby Jack Cheese
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1/2 cup finely diced green onion
• 1 tsp Paprika
• 1 tsp Basil
• 1 tsp Parsley

Instructions

For the Filling

Heat a medium skillet on medium. Add the butter. Once the butter is melted, add the cooked diced chicken and Garlic. Saute for 1 minute until chicken is coated.Set aside.

For the Bread

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and cut the bread lengthwise and width wise without cutting through the bottom crust.Place loaf on a foil-lined baking sheet.

Pour the chicken between the cuts and stuff it with the Colby Jack Cheese. If you want it to be extra cheesy place the cheese first them the chicken and a second layer of cheese. Use your fingers to push the chicken down into the loaf. Melt 1 tsp of butter in a small sauce pan and drizzle it over the top of the loaf. Garnish with Paprika, Parsley and Basil and cover with an Aluminum fail hood.

Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Unwrap the bread and bake 5 more minutes, or until cheese is melted.

I would normally have a picture of the final product but it didn't last long at all for a picture :)

Credit for the recipe goes to http://www.beantownbaker.com/2012/01/cheesey-mushroom-pull-apart-bread.html which was adapted from  The Girl Who Ate Everything

One of the most unique flowers - Dutchman's pipe cactus

This is my grandmothers flower it is by far one of the most unique flowers that I have ever seen. It only blooms at night and when the sun comes up the flower has died. Also when it blooms it had a very beautiful and strong smell that makes you just close your eyes and smile.

Dutchman's Pipe Cactus  

      Epiphyllum Oxypetalum or Dutchman’s-Pipe Cactus, is a large floral variety of cactus native from Mexico to Brazil. Plant can grow as tall as 20 feet (6.1 m) in height. It’s branches are dark green and it requires moist soil. It grows in late spring and early summer, somewhere around May 30th. It blooms for only 1-2 days. Individual flowers can be up to 11 inches (27.9 cm) long and 5 inches (12.7 cm) wide. It opens as the sun goes down. It has a very deep and fresh fragrance which spreads as soon as it blooms.

                                         It bloomed at 11:30 pm and will be dead by 4:00am.

What a colorful looking Talapia

Talapia is often a cheaper alternative to Salmon and Tuna and done correctly can be a great tasting alternative to it's flavorful brothers.

Talapia just like Salmon and Tuna is a staple in my house. My family practically makes it two to three times a week so we have to find ways to create interesting meal out of this plain white canvas.

Ingredients:

Fresh of frozen Talapia (We prefer fresh but we also have a great butcher near by)

Green Peppers

Red Peppers

Yellow peppers

Onions

Parsley

Butter

1 tbsp Garlic (A Staple in this household)

Now I know we eat a lot of Peppers but what i usually do is pre-chop them into long slices and place them in a stay-fresh hands free freezer bag. I usually use the ones made for deli meats and cheese. You can find this at any big box store and it is definitely worth the $10.00 it costs.

Steps:

Take the vegetables out and place them in a paper towel to defrost this helps remove the excess moisture from the peppers so that they are not soggy. In a separate small sauce pan melt the butter with a tablespoon garlic. You could either chop it yourself or buy it pre-chopped. You want to simmer them together but only for a minute, The last this you want is to burn the garlic butter sauce. After it is done set aside.

Take your Talapia (If frozen you want to defrost it before hand) and place it on a sheet of Aluminum foil, drizzle a bit of  the garlic butter to give it a bit of flavor. Take you Peppers and onions and place them over the Talapia. The amount of peppers and onions all depends on the individual. In my family more is better especially when it comes to vegetables.

Now if you have any leftover garlic butter you can drizzle the rest over the vegetables but it is not necessary. Take your Talapia and place a second sheet of foil over it creasing the sides together making a small pocket. Place it is a preheated over that had been set to 350 degrees for twenty minutes, but check periodically.

Take it out and Enjoy! You can pair it up with anything you desire but a side salad and steamed broccoli does go a long way.

You know what they say you eat with you eyes as much as your mouth!

An Adventure in Coasters!

Coasters!

When I heard that word I often thought that it was a waste of money. I mean who wanted little cork things that you would place your cups on; to me it wasn't needed until I found a tutorial on making your own. I admit I was intrigued and after reading how to do it I was hooked. I never knew I could make my own coasters and do whatever picture I wanted. It was amazing and eye opening. Here are just four of the coasters I have done (These come in sets of 4 so I have 16 coasters)

Yay and they are just so pretty! So here is the super easy way to make these. The possibilities are endless. So the only things you need for this is Mod Podge (I used Matte), Polyurathane, two Foam Brushes, plain white tiles, felt and scrapbook paper. Now the best thing about this is that is is super cheap.

Cost Breakdown:

Tiles : $0.16 (Home Depot) per tile

Mod Podge: $3.99 for 8oz

Scrapbook Paper: $5.50 for 180 sheets

Polyurethane: $5.00a quart

Felt: $0.99 each

Steps:

1) Find the Scrapbook paper that you like and cut out four 4x4 squares.

2) cover the top of the tiles with a coat of Mod Podge. place the paper on the tile and position quickly. they say Mod Podge dries quick and they were not lying you have about 15 seconds.

3) After the Mod Podge dries take a foam brush and begin covering the top with the Polyurethane. You will need to do about three coats letting them dry between the next but this is one of the most important because it not only seals it but makes it waterproof.

4) After everything is dry cut out four felt squares that fit with the tiles and stick them on. It is best to use the adhesive felt. Some prefer the cost effective way of just putting four squares but my tables would prefer to have the tiles completely covered so who am I to refuse.

You now have a new pretty set of coasters. instead of using scrapbook paper you could use Maps, Pictures, Flowers heck anything that you might want. This is easily one of the easier DIY crafts that will last a decent amount of time.

Just so everyone knows I originally found out about this though a google search and found this tutorial:  http://blueprintcrafts.com/2012/05/weekend-project-tile-coaster-tutorial/

Stuffed Portobello Mushroom

Now this is a favorite in my household. This is a quick and easy recipe for an amazing Portobello Stuffed Mushroom.

Ingredients:
Portobello Mushroom

Imitation crab Meat

Onions

Chives

Red Peppers

Green Peppers

Yellow Peppers

Spinach

Green Beans

Panko 

Tomatoes

Small White Mushrooms
Parmesan Cheese 

Kraft Toasted Sesame dressing
Worcester Sauce

Steps:

1) Take the Portobello and remove the stem making sure the center is hollow. run it under water and let sit on a paper towel. Dice the onions, chives, red peppers, green peppers, yellow peppers and spinach. You can add more if you want but this is the usual for our Portobello. 

2) Mix the diced vegetables, a tablespoon of Worcester sauce and Imitation Crab in a separate medium size bowl.Make sure that everything is mixed evenly. Here is where you might want to add a cream sauce; do to dietary restrictions we usually make the stuffing dry.

3) Place three tablespoons of Worcester sauce and pour it into the cap. make sure to move the sauce so it completely covers the entire cap. Spoon the mix into the dry Portobello and dust with Panko and Parmesan Cheese. Place in a glass pie pan covered in aluminum foil. Overall the Portobello should look like this before it goes in the oven:

Now that you are ready place the mushroom in a preheated oven set for 350 and set in for 30 - 40 minutes depending on the oven. 

Optional: Now if you want to add cheese to the mushroom wait till the mushroom have cooked for at least 20 minutes and lay a slice of deli cheese over the mushroom and let it melt.

Personally we always have a side spinach salad as well as some sort of vegetable. For this meal we had steamed Green Beans and a spinach salad with mushrooms and tomatoes. While most salad dressings are good we have been obsessed with Asian Toasted Sesame Everything dressing from Kraft. 

Take it from the oven and plate it and you have a very tasty and very healthy dinner. Enjoy!