NEW DISHES!!!!!

After all the talk about new dishes on the cooking forum today. I got brad to go on a new dishes hunt with me. I found these at Pier 1. I couldn't find them on the website though. I only got 2 plates and 2 bowls for now will continue to add to the collection as i get a little more money.

Chicken Cobb Burger Turned Turkey

LaKi and I from the nest decided to start a cooking group, called Dinner Divas, with no restrictions, and no expectations, only that you try your best i guess. I picked the first recipe from Food Networks Bobby Flay I choose the Chicken Cobb Burger I made mine with ground turkey b/c that is what i had around the house and it was a little cheaper than the chicken. I have to say i think this is just about the best burger i have ever had. I couldn't get it to stack very well on the bun as you can see.

I think the vineg would be great on a salad, I Think i will make some just to have around. It Was Awsome. I hope you all have fun with this recipe and you make some good looking burgers.

For the burgers:
8 (1/2- thick) strips bacon
1 1/2 pounds ground chicken, 90 percent lean (I used ground turkey 93% lean)

2 tablespoons canola oil

Salt (I omitted)

Freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese

4 burger buns, split

1 large ripe beefsteak tomato, cut into 4 slices

1 ripe avocado, peeled, pitted and cut into 8 slices

For the vinaigrette:
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice (used lemon juice from bottle)

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard (used spicey brown mustard, gave it a nice kick)

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

1/4 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt (omitted)

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons olive oil (canola oil)

1 cup finely shredded romaine lettuce

Directions:

For the burgers:

Heat the grill to medium.
Place the strips of bacon on the grill (lay them across the grate so they don't fall through) and grill for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until golden brown and slightly crispy. Remove the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels. Increase the heat of the grill to high. (Brad said there was no way I was cooking bacon on the grill and making it into a greasy mess, so i cooked it on the stove in a pan)
Form the meat into 4 (8-ounce) burgers, brush with the oil and season with salt and pepper on both sides. Grill the burgers until golden brown on both sides and cooked completely through, about 5 minutes per side. Top the burgers with the blue cheese, close the cover, and continue cooking until the cheese begins to melt, about 1 minute longer.
Place the burgers on the bottom half of each bun and top with a slice of tomato, 2 slices of avocado, 2 slices of bacon and some of the dressed romaine. Cover each burger with the bun tops and serve.

For the vinaigrette:
Whisk together the vinegar, lemon juice, mustard, Worcestershire, garlic, sugar, salt, pepper and oil in a small bowl. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before using to allow the flavors to meld.
Just before assembling the burgers, place the romaine in a medium bowl and toss with the vinaigrette.

Peanut Butter Swirled Brownies

I use this brownie recipe from Hersheys Website all the time, Quick easy and tastey . This time I thought why not add Peanut butter, what is better than chocolate and peanut butter together. So i had brad melt about 1/2C PEanut butter in the microwave to soften it up. and after I poured the batter into the pan I drizzled the peanut butter ontop and baked as directed.

Best Brownies Ingredients:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, melted
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped nuts(optional)


Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 9-inch square baking pan.
2. Stir together butter, sugar and vanilla in bowl. Add eggs; beat well with spoon. Stir together flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; gradually add to egg mixture, beating until well blended. Stir in nuts, if desired. Spread batter evenly into prepared pan. drizzle peanut butter ontop of brownie, and then run knife thru to get some peanut butter into the batter.
3. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until brownies begin to pull away from sides of pan. Cool completely in pan on wire rack.

Chai Brined Shrimp Skewers

I saw this recipe on the Front of Cooking light a couple months ago and thought it looked really good. If you buy the shrimp from the counter don't forget to take the shells and tails off before marinating. haha i kinda wondered why they looked funny til i asked 20 minutes later.
Ingredients
3 cups water
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon kosher salt (I omitted)
2 tablespoons grated peeled fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon white peppercorns, crushed (I used ground it worked fine)
8 whole cardamom pods, crushed
6 whole cloves
1 bay leaf
1 (3-inch) cinnamon stick, broken
2 tablespoons black tea leaves (such as Darjeeling) (I couldn't find these so u just use a tea bag, seemed to work ok.)
1 cup ice cubes
32 peeled and deveined large shrimp (about 1 1/2 pounds)
2 large peeled ripe mangoes, each cut into 8 (2-inch) pieces
'Cooking spray
1/2 cup sliced green onions
8 Indian flatbreads (naan)

Preparation
1. Combine first 9 ingredients in a large saucepan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes. Stir in tea leaves; simmer 2 minutes. Strain mixture through a sieve into a large bowl; discard solids. Stir in ice; chill.
2. Add shrimp to water mixture; chill 20 minutes.
3. Prepare grill.
4. Remove the shrimp from bowl; discard liquid. Pat the shrimp dry with paper towels. Thread 4 shrimp and 2 mango pieces alternately onto each of 8 (12-inch) skewers.
5. Place the skewers on a grill rack coated with cooking spray. Grill for 2 minutes on each side or until the shrimp are done. Sprinkle with sliced green onions. Serve with flatbread.


Note: As pictured on the cover, you can use smaller skewers. Simply thread two shrimp alternately with two mango chunks, and serve guests two skewers each. You'll need to purchase an extra mango (which minimally increases the calories per serving) if you opt for this presentation.

Yield
8 servings (serving size: 1 skewer and 1 piece flatbread)
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Nutritional Information
CALORIES 306(16% from fat); FAT 5.3g (sat 2.9g,mono 1.3g,poly 0.6g); IRON 3.5mg; CHOLESTEROL 97mg; CALCIUM 63mg; CARBOHYDRATE 45.5g; SODIUM 497mg; PROTEIN 20.4g; FIBER 5.1g

Garlic Bread

We got this Cuban at Sam's Club for 84 cents the other day and forgot about it so we sliced some up spread some butter and sprinkled with garlic powder, oregano and parsely, put on the grill for a couple minutes. Turned out really good.

Dark Chocolate MM "blizzard"

4 scoops Vanilla Ice Cream

about 1/2 C Dark Chocolate MM

Place in mixing bowl and turn on, Be careful the scoops will fly out of the bowl if they are frozen solid.

Mix well and dish up. Delious.

Kung Pao Chicken

I found this recipe on Cookinglight.com It was really good i think i will make it again. I'm always looking for ways to cut salt back in my diet So for a Asian Dish this is rather low in Sodium. I forgot to put the peanuts on the dish before serving.

Ingredients
1 tablespoon canola oil, divided
4 cups broccoli florets
1 tablespoon ground fresh ginger (such as Spice World), divided
2 tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1/4-inch strips
1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon cornstarch
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped salted peanuts

Preparation
Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add broccoli and 2 teaspoons ginger to pan; sauté 1 minute. Add water. Cover; cook 2 minutes or until broccoli is crisp-tender. Remove broccoli from pan; keep warm.
Heat remaining 2 teaspoons oil in pan; add remaining 1 teaspoon ginger, crushed red pepper, and chicken. Cook 4 minutes or until chicken is lightly browned, stirring frequently.
Combine broth and next 5 ingredients (through garlic) in a small bowl, and stir with a whisk. Add broth mixture to pan; cook 1 minute or until mixture thickens, stirring constantly. Return broccoli mixture to pan; toss to coat. Sprinkle with peanuts.


Yield
4 servings (serving size: about 1 cup chicken mixture and 1 1/2 teaspoons peanuts)
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Nutritional Information
CALORIES 239(30% from fat); FAT 7.9g (sat 1.1g,mono 3.7g,poly 2.3g); IRON 1.8mg; CHOLESTEROL 66mg; CALCIUM 60mg; CARBOHYDRATE 11.4g; SODIUM 589mg; PROTEIN 30.9g; FIBER 3g

Buffalo Chicken Sub

I had some left over chicken from the buffalo chicken pizza, So I put it on a sub bun with some Swiss Cheese, Green Peppers, Mushrooms, and topped with Blue Cheese Dressing, It was pretty good.