This weekend was one of the first weekends in months my family didn't have something going on. Let me just say...it was wonderful! Friday we just hung out and got caught up on TV shows online, Saturday I felt like cooking. Not just cooking but making a really nice meal, trying a new recipe and of course enjoying it with friends. The great thing about this meal was I got it all ready in the morning, went out for a little family adventure, came home and were able to enjoy a full dinner party quality meal just an hour later.
The Menu
Carrot Slaw
Whipped Sweet Potato, with Maple Pecan Crust
Bre's Stuffed Chicken (kind of like a signature dish)
Sauteed Veggies
Classic Creme Brulee
Carrot Slaw
Like coleslaw but sweeter and appealing to a wider audience. Its one of the first the recipes I ever made all on my own as wee one, and the other day when I needed to use up the last of a 10lb bag of carrots this recipe came to mind. I made this the day before..
3 c Shredded Carrot
1/2 c Raisins
1/2 cup slivered almonds (optional)
1 c Mayo
1 tbsp vinegar
1 tbsp sugar
S&PIn a bowl mix the mayo (I used Miracle Whip and it tasted just fine), sugar, vinegar and S&P. Set aside. Peel and grate the carrots, pour the dressing over the grated carrot, toss and add the almonds and raisins. Cover and refrigerate 2 hours or Overnight.
Done...that's it! NEXT!
( I apologize for the lack of picture here, I completely forgot oops! )
Whipped Sweet Potatoes with Maple Pecan Topping.
So the other day I was watching "Best Recipes Ever" on CBC and she was making an everyday holiday dinner and this was the side she was making. I said to my husband "I am making this for Thanksgiving this year". I was at the grocery store the other day and thought...I should probably test it out before making it my contribution to Thanksgiving at Mom and Dads. So...here it is. PS I WILL be making this again maybe even before Turkey Day.
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| For the make ahead, I spread the potatoes in the dish, poured the maple syrup on the top then covered it and put it in the fridge to top and bake when I got home. |
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| Baking...and believe me it tastes and smells better than it looks...yes, better. |
Best Recipes Ever--Whipped Sweet Potatoes with Maple Pecan Topping
Do the make ahead method, cover it and put in the fridge and just bake it the extra 10 minutes at the end. Works like a charm.
Bre's Signature Chicken
So next thing I did was cut the pockets in the chicken breast and make up the cream cheese stuffing for the chicken and put it in the fridge.
When stuffing chicken you always cut a pocket in the thickest part of the chicken breast, be sure you don't go all the way through or all of your stuffing will melt out. For this recipe we wrap the cream cheese filling in a slice of smoked Prosciutto, which is an extra little barrier to help keep that filling in the chicken.
for 4 Chix Breasts
1/2 c cream cheese, softened
2 oz chopped frozen spinach, thawed and all the water squeezed out
2 cloves of minced garlic
Chopped Sun dried Tomatoes, as much or little as you like
1/2 tsp Greek Seasoning
S&P
4 Slices of Smoked Prosciutto
Mix all together in a bowl until well mixed, Spread some filling on the slice of prosciutto and roll it up.
Stuff the roll-up into the pocket you cut into the chicken breast. Pull the top part of the chicken breast as far down over the roll-up as you can to keep it from melting out during baking. Repeat for each chicken breast, and place on parchment lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with S&P and Greek Seasoning.
From here you can cover and put in the fridge if you are making this ahead of time, or put it in a pre-heated 375 degree oven, and bake until juices run clear and has an internal temp of 160.
Sauteed Veggies
Well its just that! I took whatever veggies I had in house, added a tsp of minced garlic. (1tsp=1clove..for future reference) some lemon zest a squeeze of lemon juice. Chopped all the veggies before hand and put them in the fridge until 10 minutes before I was ready to serve dinner. This particular night I used baby carrots whole so I steamed them a bit before hand to get the cooking process going. You could always thinly slice them and just throw them right in the pan at the same time as everything else.
Put some Olive oil in your frying pan and get it hot. Add the garlic and swish it around your pan for a minute. Then dump in all the veggies, the lemon zest and give a little squeeze of lemon juice (or 2 tsp), saute until they are tender crisp. You want them to still be bright and a little crunch but cooked.
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| The veggies I used this night were: celery, onions, green pepper, baby carrots and frozen corn. |
And the Grand Finale...Creme Brulee
Super easy, quick and impressive dessert. Might take a couple tries to get the knack of cooking it perfectly, just be sure to experiment at least once before you serve to company. Another great thing about this recipe is it's super cheap to make.
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 egg yolks
1/2 tsp vanilla extract, or 1/2 vanilla bean
1 tbsp, 2 tsp sugar, divided
about 1/4 c sugar for the topping
preheat oven to 300 degree and prepare boiling water.
In a pot over medium heat, combine cream, and 2tsp of sugar. Cook stirring occasionally until you see small bubbles around the edge of the pot. You just want to heat the cream and dissolve the sugar, do not boil the cream mixture. Takes approx 5-6 minutes. Set aside.
In the bowl of your mixer beat the 2 egg yolks with vanilla and 1 tbsp of sugar until smooth and light. SLOWLY and a little at a time, pour the hot cream into the eggs with the mixer running on low. Beat continuously until blended, keeping the mixer on low. If you use high speed your creme brulee will get frothy and you'll lose some volume.
Strain through a sieve, into a measuring cup with a spout for easy pouring.
Put your oven safe ramekins into a shallow pan, and divide mixture between them.
Put your pan into the oven and pull the rack out, now pour your boiling water around the ramekins being careful not to get any water in your creme brulee. Cover the pan with tin foil. This is called a water bath, you are essentially going to cook the custard with the water and steam.
Bake until JUST set, about 25-30 minutes. To check tap or shake the ramekins and if just the center barely jiggles, you're good to go. If the whole thing jiggles or if there is any liquid you need to cook a little longer. Be very careful taking the tinfoil off, there will be steam.
Chill 2-3 hours.
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| When its cooked the top should be smooth and only the center should jiggle the slightest bit |
When you're ready to serve sprinkle the top with sugar and torch until the sugar is brown and bubbly. You want to make a hard crust on the top of your custard. When you eat it the top should be crunchy and warm and the inside smooth and cool. Only torch at serving time!
There you have it a perfect make ahead meal to entertain with or just impress your family. If you do try any of these recipes please come back and leave me some feedback in comment form =) Happy Cooking
