Carrabba's Chicken Marsala

Marsala Sauce: 1/3 cup unsalted butter 1 slice prosciutto, diced* 2 tsp (1 medium) minced shallot* 2 tsp (2 large cloves) minced garlic* 8 oz sliced fresh mushrooms or 2 - 4 oz cans mushrooms, drained 1/4 cup marsala wine 1/4 tsp ground black pepper 1 cup chicken stock 2 tsp corn starch 1 tsp minced fresh parsley 2 Tblsp heavy cream *If you want any of these to disappear into the sauce, finely dice them! Chicken Spice Mixture: 1 1/4 tsp salt 1 tsp ground black pepper 1/2 tsp dried oregano 1/2 tsp dried thyme 1/2 tsp dried parsley 1/4 tsp marjoram 1/4 tsp garlic powder 4 chicken breasts (small butterfly cut double breasts or large single breasts) olive oil Steps: Melt butter on low in medium saucepan. Preheat grill or get your charcoal grill going. Increase heat to medium high; saute prosciutto in butter 2 - 3 minutes (be careful not to burn butter). Add shallot and garlic; saute 30 seconds. Add marsala wine, cook 30 seconds or so, then add mushrooms (drain liquid if using canned) and black pepper. Cook on medium high 5 minutes. Dissolve corn starch in chicken stock. Add stock to saucepan and cook 5 more minutes. Add parsley and cream to sauce and cook on medium 3 - 4 minutes or until thick. Remove from heat, cover until needed. Combine ingredients for the chicken spice in a small bowl. Crush spices to make a fine blend. (I used my spice grinder for this, which began life as a coffee grinder. You can use a mortar & pestle, or even your fingers.) Brush each chicken breast generously with olive oil. Sprinkle spice blend over both sides of each chicken breast and grill 6 - 8 minutes per side or until done. Give chicken a 1/4 turn on each side while grilling to get those cool crisscross grill marks. Arrange each chicken breast portion on plate. Stir and spoon a generous portion marsala sauce over each. Add your chosen carb and veggie; serve and prepare for yumminess!

Ingredients 1/4 c. soy sauce 1 Tbsp. brown sugar 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 tsp. fresh ginger, grated ground black pepper, to taste 2-3 Tbsp. vegetable oil 3 (5.6 oz) packages refrigerated Yaki Soba noodles (found in the produce section of the grocery store.. usually the 3 packages are sold together in one 17oz. pack) 2/3 c. chopped celery (chopped diagonally) 1 medium-sized onion, thinly sliced 2 c. chopped cabbage Instructions ■In a small bowl combine soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger and black pepper. Set aside. ■Remove Yaki Soba from packages and discard included flavoring packets. Rinse noodles well, drain, and set aside. ■Heat oil in a large wok or skillet. Add celery and onion and saute for about 1-2 minutes or until onions start to become soft and transparent. Add cabbage and saute an additional minute or so. ■Toss Yaki Soba noodles and soy sauce mixture with the vegetables over medium-high heat for an additional 2-3 minutes or until noodles are heated through.

Cinnamon and Sugar Pull Apart Bread Adapted from Joy the B aker:

Ingredients for two 9x5x3-inch bread loafs: For the dough: 5½ cups + 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour ½ cup sugar 4½ teaspoons active dry yeast 1 teaspoon salt 1 stick (4 oz./100 grams) butter ⅔ cup whole milk ½ cup water 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 4 large eggs, at room temperature, beaten For the Filling: 1 cup granulated sugar 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg ½ stick (2 oz./50 grams) butter, melted Preparation: 1. In a large bowl, whisk together four cups of flour, sugar, yeast and salt. Set aside. 2. In a small saucepan, melt together the butter and milk on medium heat until the butter is just melted. Remove from heat and add the water and vanilla extract. Let mixture cool for 2 minutes. 3. Pour the milk mixture into the dry ingredients and mix with a spatula. Add the eggs and continue to stir until the eggs are incorporated into the batter. The batter will be quite sticky at this point. 4. Add the remaining cup and a half of flour and continue to mix with a spatula for an additional 2 minutes, until ingredients are well combined. The dough will still be a little sticky. 5. Place the dough is a large, greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Allow to rise, until doubled in size, for about 1 hour. 6. Once the dough has risen, punch the dough and knead the remaining four tablespoons of flour into the dough. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rest for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, mix together the sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg for the filling. Butter the bread loafs. 7. Cut the dough into two equal pieces, and place one piece back into a bowl and cover with the towel. Working on a lightly floured surface, roll out one piece of dough to 12 inches x20 inches (30 x 50 cm). 8. Use a brush to generously spread melted butter across the dough. Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar mixture. Cut the dough vertically into six equal strips. Stack the strips one on top of another and slice the stack into six equal slices. You should have six stacks of six squares. 9. Place the squares into the prepared bread loafs, so that they are standing up. Repeat with the second piece of dough. 10. Preheat oven to 350ºF. (180ºC). Cover both loaf pans with a kitchen towel and allow to rise for 30-45 minutes, until doubled in size. 11. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the top is very golden brown. The center will be a bit soft. Allow to cool for 20 minutes before serving.

Cajun Chicken Pasta from Skinnytaste! I kept the sauce and noodles separate to help the leftovers stay better. Ingredients: 8 ounces uncooked linguine (I used gluten-free spaghetti) 1 pound chicken breast strips 1-2 tsp Cajun seasoning (or to taste) 1 tbsp olive oil 1 medium red bell pepper, thinly sliced 1 medium yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced 8 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced 1/2 red onion, sliced 3 cloves garlic, minced 2 medium tomatoes, diced 1 cup fat free low sodium chicken broth 1/3 cup skim milk 1 tbsp flour 3 tbsp light cream cheese fresh cracked pepper 2 scallions, chopped salt to taste Smart Balance cooking spray Directions: Prep all your vegetables. In a small blender make a slurry by combining milk, flour and cream cheese. Set aside. Season chicken generously with Cajun seasoning, garlic powder and salt. Prepare pasta in salted water according to package directions. Heat a large heavy nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; spray with cooking spray and add half of the chicken. Sauté 5 to 6 minutes or until done, set aside on a plate and repeat with the remaining chicken. Set aside. Add olive oil to the skillet and reduce to medium; add bell peppers, onions, and garlic to skillet, sauté 3-4 minutes. Add mushrooms and tomatoes and sauté 3-4 more minutes or until vegetables are tender. Season with 1/4 tsp salt, garlic powder and fresh cracked pepper to taste. Reduce heat to medium-low; add chicken broth and pour in slurry stirring about 2 minutes. Return chicken to skillet; adjust salt and Cajun seasoning to taste, cook another minute or two until hot, then add linguine; toss well to coat. Top with chopped scallions and enjoy. Serving Size: 1 1/2 cups • Calories: 323.8 • Fat: 6.2 g • Protein: 25.9 g • Carb: 44.1 g • Fiber: 6.3 g • Sugar: 3.2 g • Sodium: 126.5 mg (without salt)

Pop Up Pancake Recipe – makes 24 muffins or fills a 9×13 baking pan
from make and take

1 cup milk
1 cup flour
6 eggs
1/4 cup melted butter
dash salt
Preheat oven to 400* and grease your muffin tins



1. I like to mix all the ingredients in my blender. I have tried to whisk it or even use my small electric mixer, but a blender seems to do the best job getting it smooth.

2. Pour the mix into your greased muffin tins. Or your baking pan, as my mom likes to bake these in a jelly roll pan.



3. Bake them for 15 minutes in a 400* oven, or until puffy and golden on top. Use a knife to pop or pry them out, hopefully they were greased well enough and should pop right out. They puffiness will die down as they cool, and they become more like a cup.



Now they are ready for toppings. I love syrup, powdered sugar, and fruit. You could even use fresh Strawberry Jam. We usually load it all on and dive in. What do you use to top your pancakes with? Maybe peanut butter or honey?

Sparkly Red Velvet Brownie Bites

from A Farm Girl's Dabbles

INGREDIENTS

for the red velvet brownies:
nonstick vegetable oil spray
1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, diced
3 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1-1/2 c. sugar
3 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. salt
1 oz. liquid red food coloring
1 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder

for the sparkly cream cheese frosting:
8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
4 T. butter, at room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla
1-1/2 c. sifted powdered sugar
white sparkles edible glitter, optional


PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 325°. Fold a 16″ long piece of foil to a 9″x16″ strip and place in 9″x9″ metal baking pan, leaving overhang on 2 sides. Repeat with another sheet of foil the same size in the opposite direction, lining pan completely. Spray foil with nonstick spray.
Stir butter and chocolate in heavy large saucepan over very low heat until chocolate is melted. Remove from heat. Whisk in sugar, then eggs, 1 at a time. Stir in vanilla, salt, and food coloring. Sift flour and baking powder over mixture and stir to blend well. Transfer batter to prepared pan.
Bake brownies until puffed and dry-looking and tester inserted into center comes out with some moist batter attached, about 30 to 35 minutes. Cool completely in pan on rack.
Prepare the frosting by first beating together the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and mix a bit to incorporate. Then add the sifted powdered sugar and beat to combine.
Using the foil as an aid, lift brownies from pan and place on cutting board. Peel foil down away from the sides of brownies. Spread cream cheese frosting evenly over brownies. Sprinkle with edible glitter, if desired. Cut into bites 1-1/4″ x 1-1/4″. To achieve clean cuts, wipe the knife after each slice.


Yield: 50 brownie bites

CINNAMON ROLL CAKE

yourhomebasedmom.com

Cake:
3 c. flour
1/4 tsp.salt
1 c. sugar
4 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 c. milk
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. butter, melted

Topping:
1 c. butter, softened
1 c. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. cinnamon

Mix everything together except for the butter. Slowly stir in the melted butter and pour into a greased 9x13 pan. For the topping, mix all the ingredients together until well combined. Drop evenly over the batter and swirl with a knife. Bake at 350 for 28-32 minutes.

Glaze:
2 c. powdered sugar
5 Tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla

While warm drizzle the glaze over the cake.