Monday, April 25, 2011

Venison Stroganoff

This stroganoff is made with canned tomato sauce rather than with a can of mushroom soup, which was a nice change, and still just as good!!



Venison Stroganoff 

1-1/2 lbs. venison, cut into 3/4-inch cubes

5 Tablespoons flour

3 Tablespoons vegetable oil

7 Tablespoons diced onion

2 (8 ounce) cans tomato sauce

3/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper, plus 1/8 teaspoon of pepper

1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

2 (4 ounce) cans sliced mushrooms, well drained

8 ounces sour cream, plus 1 Tablespoon of sour cream

extra wide egg noodles, uncooked (about 16 ounces)

dried parsley flakes, to garnish the stroganoff


1.)  Place venison in a bowl.  Add the flour, and toss to coat the cubed meat.  Once coated, add venison to the skillet, and brown according to the following directions below.


2.)  In a 10-inch skillet, over medium heat, add the vegetable oil. Cook and stir the venison until it's cooked about 3/4's of the way done; stirring often so the meat doesn't stick to the skillet.  Now add the diced onion, and continue cooking the meat until it's browned evenly.  Once the venison is browned, cover the skillet, and remove skillet from the heat.


3.)  Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.


4.)  In a 2-1/2 quart casserole baking dish, add the tomato sauce, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and the Worcestershire sauce; stir to mix.


5.)  Add the cooked venison to the casserole dish; stir to coat the meat in the tomato sauce.  Cover the casserole dish; place dish in the oven, and cook for 1 hour and 30 minutes, but be sure to stir the meat mixture after the first 30 minutes of cooking time.


6.)  After 60 minutes of cooking time, remove casserole from the oven, add the sliced mushrooms and the sour cream, and stir.  Cover, and place the casserole back in the oven to cook for another 30 minutes.


7.)  About 15 minutes before the meat mixture is done cooking, cook the egg noodles according to package directions.  (I cooked mine with a bit of vegetable oil, and with out any salt, for exactly 9 minutes.) Once I drained off the water, I stirred in a bit of butter, so the noodles wouldn't stick together.


8.)  Once the noodles are cooked, and the meat is cooked, add desired amount of noodles to each dinner plate, and top with the stroganoff. Sprinkle each plate with a bit of the dried parsley, and serve. Refrigerate any leftovers.


9.)  Yields: About 5-6 servings

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Cherry Mocha Coffee πŸ’

This is a delicious chocolate cherry coffee.  Top with Reddi Wip or Cool Whip, and a marashino cherry; which makes for a special treat.  




Cherry Mocha Coffee 

8 oz. water 

1 tsp. instant coffee 

1-1/2 teaspoons Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa
 Powder
1 Tablespoon sugar 
1/4 teaspoon almond extract 
1/4 teaspoon McCormick's Imitation Cherry Extract
Reddi Wip (or) Cool Whip, to garnish coffee 
1 maraschino cherry 

1.)  In a coffee cup, heat water and coffee in the microwave until hot.  (Or heat the water and coffee on top the stove in a small saucepan.)  

2.)  Add the cocoa powder and sugar; stir well to dissolve.

3.)  Now add the extracts, and stir.

4.)  Top the coffee with desired amount of Reddi Wip or Cool Whip.

5.)  Place the cherry on top the whipped topping, and serve.

6.)  Yields: 1 serving

7.) Note: To make 12-ounces of the coffee... use 12 ounces of water, 1-1/2 teaspoons of instant coffee, 1/4 teaspoon plus an 1/8 teaspoon of almond extract, 1/4 teaspoon plus an 1/8 teaspoon cherry extract, 2-1/2 teaspoons of the special dark cocoa powder, plus 1-1/2 Tablespoons of sugar.  This is what I used to fill my glass coffee cup.

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I thought I'd also share a photo of Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa with (100% CACAO), which I usually use whenever I bake a chocolate cake, or brownies, or whenever I prepare this coffee.  It has an intense chocolate flavor which I enjoy! πŸ˜‹















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Monday, February 14, 2011

Chocolate Covered Cherry Coffee

Annacia at food.com, inspired me to make this coffee, but I slightly tweaked the recipe to suit my taste.



Chocolate Covered Cherry Coffee

2/3 cup of water
1-1/4 teaspoon instant coffee (*See Note)
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 dark chocolate, or milk chocolate covered cherry
Reddi Wip, or Cool Whip (to garnish the coffee)

1.)  In a coffee cup; heat water and coffee in the microwave until hot. (Or heat the water and coffee on top the stove in a small saucepan.)

2.)  Add the sugar, and stir.

3.)  Now add the chocolate covered cherry; stir well to dissolve. After the chocolate has dissolved, remove the cherry from the cup.

4.)  Top the coffee with desired amount of Reddi Wip, or Cool Whip. Place the cherry on top the whipped topping, and serve.

5.)  Yields: 1 serving

6.) *Note: If using ground coffee instead of instant, use 2 teaspoons per each 2/3's cup of water in your coffee maker.  Also, I have found that not all of the chocolate from the chocolate covered cherry, dissolves completely in the hot coffee.  You may still see bits of chocolate floating in your cup.
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These were the brand of Milk Chocolate & Dark Chocolate Covered Cherries that I used when preparing this coffee beverage.

















Thursday, January 6, 2011

Cindi's Oven Barbecued Chicken

I love this oven barbecued chicken, and even more so than the chicken that's been cooked on the grill.  I bake the chicken without the skin, so the barbecue sauce will adhere to the chicken.  For this recipe, you can use as many pieces of chicken as you'd like, and the desired amount of barbecue sauce as well.  Total baking time for this recipe will be: 1 hour. 




Cindi's Oven Barbecued Chicken


About 4 lbs. of chicken (6 thighs and 6 drumsticks)

salt, sprinkle on desired amount

black pepper, sprinkle on desired amount 

1 (18-oz.) bottle barbecue sauce (See *Note)
 
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1.)  Line one 14-inch pizza pan in a criss-cross pattern, with 2 layers of aluminum foil, then spray the foil-lined pan with a non-stick cooking spray.  (You can also use a baking sheet with sides to bake the chicken on it.)


2.)  Heat oven to 350 degrees.


3.)  Remove the skin and any excess fat from the chicken, and season both sides of chicken with a bit of salt and pepper.


4.)  Place chicken on the pizza pan or baking sheet (meaty side down), and bake in the oven for 15 minutes.


5.)  Remove pan from the oven, turn chicken over, then place the pan back in the oven, and continue to bake the chicken for 15 minutes.


6.)  Remove pan from the oven, turn chicken over (meaty side down), and top the chicken with the barbecue sauce.  Place the pan back in the oven, and continue to bake for 15 minutes.


7.)  Once again, remove pan from the oven, turn chicken over, and coat the other side of the chicken with more of the barbecue sauce.  Return the pan to the oven, and finish baking the chicken for 15 minutes.


8.)  Place chicken on serving platter, serve, and enjoy!


9.) *Note: The types of barbecue sauce I have used for this recipe... Sweet Baby Ray's, Hunt's, Kraft's, and KC Masterpiece.  All are thick in consistency, and makes the chicken taste great!

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Crispy Herb Chicken

Here's another wonderful chicken recipe, which I use a crispy rice cereal in the coating mix.  The kind of cereal that goes... Snap! Crackle!  Pop! For this recipe, you can leave the skin on, or remove it from the chicken.  The melted butter helps to adhere the coating mix to the chicken, even without the skin. Prepared either way, the chicken tastes great!






































Crispy Herb Chicken 

1-1/4 cups crushed, crispy rice cereal

1 (.06-oz.) packet Good Seasons Zesty Italian Salad Dressing Mix

1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes

3-1/2 lbs. chicken (chicken legs & thighs) about 10 pieces.
 
9 Tablespoons butter


1.)  Line a baking sheet (with edges) with aluminum foil, or line 1-(14-inch) pizza pan with the foil, and spray the foil with a non-stick cooking spray.  (If you should use a pizza pan, be sure to line the pan in a criss-cross pattern with 2 layers of aluminum foil.)


2.)  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.


3.)  In a shallow bowl or 8-inch baking pan; combine the crushed cereal, salad dressing mix, and parsley.


4.)  Melt the butter, then add it to a shallow bowl or pan.  (You can melt the butter in an 8x8-inch baking pan in the oven).


5.)  Dip the chicken pieces (with or without the skin), and one piece at a time, in the melted butter; then roll the chicken in the cereal coating mixture.


6.)  Place the chicken on the foiled lined baking sheet.  (If using chicken with the skin on, be sure to place the thighs (skin-side-up) on the baking sheet.
 

7.)  Bake chicken in the oven for 60 minutes.  "DO NOT TURN THE CHICKEN AT ANY TIME" while it's baking in the oven.


8.)  Once the chicken is done baking, immediately remove it from the pan, so it's not sitting in any grease.  Serve chicken on a plate or serving platter.


8.)  Yields: 5 servings (2 pieces per serving)




Banana Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed these moist Banana Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars. Especially since my husband enjoys bananas, and I enjoy ...