Monkey Bread

Monkey Bread
■3 cans Buttermilk Biscuits (the Non-flaky Ones)
■1 cup Sugar
■2 teaspoons (to 3 Teaspoons) Cinnamon
■2 sticks Butter
■½ cups Brown Sugar
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Open up all three cans of biscuits and cut each biscuit into quarters.

Next, combine the white sugar with 2-3 teaspoons of cinnamon. (3 teaspoons of cinnamon gives it a fairly strong cinnamon flavor. If you’re not so hot on cinnamon, cut it back to 2 teaspoons.) Dump these into a 1 gallon zip bag and shake to mix evenly.

Drop all of the biscuit quarters into the cinnamon-sugar mix. Once all the biscuit quarters are in the bag seal it and give it a vigorous shake. This will get all those pieces unstuck from one another and nicely coated with cinnamon-sugar. Spread these nuggets out evenly in the bundt pan.

At this point, you’re going to want to melt the two sticks of butter together with ½ cup of brown sugar in a saucepan over medium-high heat. This can be light or dark brown sugar. Cook butter/sugar mixture, stirring for a few minutes until the two become one. Once the brown sugar butter has become one color, you can pour it over the biscuits.

Bake for about 30-40 minutes until the crust is a deep dark brown on top. When its finished cooking, remove it from the oven. If you have the willpower, allow it to cook for about 15-30 minutes before turning it over onto a plate.

Potato Cheese Soup

1/2 white onion, chopped
1/2 lb. bacon, cooked and cut into small pieces
4 cups potatoes, peeled and chopped
2 cups water
1 can of corn
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 cups evaporated milk
2 Tbsp. flour
1/2 lb. cheddar cheese

Cook bacon; drain off grease except for 2 tablespoons, Saute onion. Add potatoes, water, and seasoning. Cover and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes (or a bit longer). Gradually add a small amount of milk to flour, stirring until smooth. Add flour mixture to hot vegetables. Add remaining milk. Heat. Add cheese; stir until melted. Serves 6 to 8.

Raspberry and Almond Shortbread Thumbprints

1 cup butter
2/3 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp almond extract
2 cups flour
1/2 cup seedless jam

1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
3/4 tsp almond extract
1 tsp milk

*Preheat 350
*Cream together butter and white sugar until smooth. Mix in 1/2 tsp almond extract. Mix in flour until dough comes together. Roll dough into 1 1/2 inch balls, and place on ungreased cookie sheets. Make a small hole and fill it with preserves (I used strawberry freezer jam).
*Bake for 14-18 min. Let cool 1 min.
*In bowl, mix together powdered sugar, 3/4 tsp almond extract and milk until smooth. Drizzle over warm cookies.

Fire Roasted Artichokes

Mom,
Can Dad make these for me?

Fire Roasted Artichokes
1. Remove stem- just snip the stem so it's about an inch long

2. Trim the bracts- Take a pair of kitchen shears (or a clean pair of scissors) and snip the tips all the way around. You can take a sharp knife and just cut off the very top.

3. Steam- Bring to boil a couple inches of water in a pot with a steamer insert (a mesh strainer will work if you're in a pinch), place artichokes in stem side up and cover pot with a lid. If you are going to eat your artichokes just steamed then they'll need to stay in there for anywhere from 30-60 minutes depending on the size. For these Fire Roasted Artichokes, just steam for 20 minutes and then remove and let cool until cool enough to handle.

4. Slice artichoke in half

5. Remove the choke- remove purple flesh and use a spoon to scoop at choke. Slicing with a knife will make choke removal easier.

6. Oil and Season- Brush both sides of artichoke with olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt and pepper

7. Grill- place artichoke on a preheated grill (medium heat) center side up. Grill with lid closed for about 10 minutes and then flip. Continue grilling for another 5-10 minutes until you have nice grill marks and the flesh appears soft.

8. Serve and eat! Place on a serving dish with your desired dipping condiments.

Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos

Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos

My Picky Interpretation
3 oz cream cheese
1/4 cup green enchilada sauce
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp granulated garlic
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 cup cheese
Tortillas
Cooking Spray
Salt

Recipe by OurBestBites.com
1/3 C (3 oz) cream cheese
1/4 C green salsa
1T fresh lime juice
1/2 t cumin
1 t chili powder
1/2 t onion powder
1/4 t granulated garlic or garlic powder
3 T chopped cilantro
2 T sliced green onions
2 C shredded cooked chicken
1 C grated pepperjack cheese
about 16 small corn or flour tortillas (we liked flour better)
kosher salt
cooking spray

Heat oven to 425. Line a baking sheet with foil and lightly coat with cooking spray.

Heat cream cheese in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds so it's soft and easy to stir. Add green salsa, lime juice, cumin, chili powder, onion powder and granulated garlic. Stir to combine and then add cilantro and green onions. Add chicken and cheese and combine well.

You can prepare up to this step ahead of time. Just keep the mixture in the fridge.

The corn tortillas are harder to roll without cracking. For the corn tortillas: work with a few tortillas at a time and heat in the microwave until they are soft enough to roll without cracking. It helps to place them between damp paper towels. Usually 20-30 seconds will do it. If you find yours are cracking when you roll them or come unrolled right away, just try heating them longer and try the paper towel thing.

Place 2-3 T of chicken mixture on the lower third of a tortilla, keeping it about 1/2 inch from the edges.

Then roll it up as tight as you can.

Place seam side down on the baking sheet. Lay all of the taquitos on the baking sheet and make sure they are not touching each other. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray or an oil mister and sprinkle some kosher salt on top.

Place pan in oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until crisp and the ends start to get golden brown. Makes around 16 taquitos.

Dip in salsa, sour cream, guacamole, or Tomatillo Dressing. They would be great with black beans and this Cilantro Lime Rice.

Simple Sesame Noodles
These are my favorite! The sauce kinda tastes like chinese chicken salad. Yum! Pioneer woman puts green onions on hers. I put chicken, edamame, and sesame seeds! Next time I think I will toast some sliced almonds, too!

Ingredients
■12 ounces, fluid Thin Noodles, Cooked And Drained
■¼ cups Soy Sauce
■2 Tablespoons Sugar
■4 cloves Garlic, Minced
■2 Tablespoons Rice Vinegar
■3 Tablespoons Pure Sesame Oil
■½ teaspoons Hot Chili Oil
■4 Tablespoons Canola Oil
■2 Tablespoons Hot Water
■4 whole Green Onions, Sliced Thin

Preparation Instructions
Whisk all ingredients (except noodles and green onions) together in a bowl. Taste and adjust ingredients as needed.
Pour sauce over warm noodles and toss to coat.
Sprinkle with green onions and toss.
Serve in a bowl with chopsticks. Yummy!

Grilled Teriyaki Flank Steak

Grilled Teriyaki Flank Steak
2 lbs flank steak
½ cup vegetable oil
½ cup soy sauce
2 Tbs honey
2 Tbs vinegar
1 Tbs fresh grated ginger
1 tsp garlic powder
1 green onion, finely chopped

1. Combine flank steak with all other ingredients in a large freezer ziploc baggie. Marinate for at least 8 hours, or overnight.

2. Heat grill and barbecue steak until desired doneness.

3. Cut steak against the grain in long strips.

Servings: 6

Nutritional Information
Per Serving
Calories 84.6
Calories from Fat 48.8
Total Fat 5.48g
Saturated Fat .39g
Cholesterol 0g
Sodium 709.26g
Potassium 63.37mg
Carbohydrates 8.58g
Dietary Fiber .32g
Sugar 6.30g
Net Carbs 8.26g
Protein 1.26g

WW POINTS: 2