South of the Border Open-Face Sandwiches

We are big fans of toasty sandwiches so naturally we were big fans of these.  Fresh tomatoes and avocado, roasted turkey, mexican spiced sandwich spread, and melted cheese = yummy.  I was a little leery of "cooked" avocados but it totally worked.  I'm so looking forward to the leftovers for lunch today!  Also these would be an easy way to feed a crowd and quickly.

South of the Border Sandwiches
{recipe originally from the Lion House}

1 loaf french bread, 1/2-3/4 inch slices
1/2 cup olives, chopped (i omitted these)
1/2 t chili powder
1/2 t ground cumin
1/4 t salt
Fresh ground black pepper to taste
1/3 cup mayonaise
1/3 cup lite sour cream
1/3 cup green onions, chopped
1 lb sliced turkey
2-3 tomatoes, sliced
2 ripe avocados, sliced
3/4 cup colby jack cheese, grated
3/4 cup monterey jack cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 350 and arrange bread slices on a cookie sheet or 2.

In a small bowl, mix seasonings with mayo, sour cream, green onions, and chopped olives (if using).  Liberally spread a tablespoon or so of mixture on each slice of bread.  Top with 2 or so slices of turkey, 2 slices of tomato, and some avocado.  Sprinkle each sandwich with the grated cheeses.

Bake in oven 15 minutes, until cheese is melted and sandwich is warmed through.  Serve!  (8ish servings)

Chicken Salad-My Way

Now we all know there are a million and one recipes for chicken salad out there. And each of us would probably like to think we have the tried and true. So I'm not going to claim mine is the best, but I will say that's it's pretty darn tasty. And it's reasonably quick with just a few ingredients so it's doable for weeknights and lunches not just fancy showers and the like. If you're looking to mix things up a bit or if you really don't have a favorite family heirloom recipe of your own, I can definitely recommend mine in good faith. Plus as you'll see it's open to interpretation. A great basic down home blend.

Chicken Salad

{Makes enough for 8+ regular size sandwiches or several smaller, and it's easily doubled and beyond}

2 chicken breasts

2 stalks of celery, rough chopped

1/2 onion, rough chopped

3/4 to 1 cup miracle whip

1-2 t pure maple syrup

1/4 t + curry powder

Seasoning salt and black pepper to taste

1/2 lemon, juiced

2 hard boiled eggs, finely chopped

1/2 cup or more red grapes, halved

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Optional (if you want to get super fancy): crushed pineapple, minced red pepper, finely grated carrots-(the last 2 would do well to be mixed up in the processor with the onion and celery)

Hard rolls or croissants for serving

Cook chicken however you'd like. I simmer mine in chicken broth and water till shred-dable. (30 minutes to 1 hour). Place cooked chicken in food processor and pulse a few times to remove any large pieces, you can make it as fine or chunky as your palette prefers. We like ours on the fine side. Place into separate large bowl. Add rough chopped onion and celery and pulse till fine. Add to chicken. Mix in miracle whip, maple syrup, curry powder (to taste), seasoned salt and black pepper. Add juice of 1/2 lemon, grapes, walnuts, and hard boiled egg. Once everything is well combined, taste and adjust seasonings. I usually end up adding more syrup, curry powder, and lemon juice. Serve on cut rolls or croissants. May be made up to a day in advance. Keeps well covered in fridge for 2-3 days.

Life-Changing White Chicken Chili

2 recipes today, yay! Pico de gallo follows. Hopefully back on the posting bandwagon, after a bit of a for no good reason break!

This is far and away the best soup recipe I have. It's even award-winning! As in it won first place at our ward chili cook-off one year long ago. However I was not the one who made it then, a friend of mine did and I immediately tracked her down for the recipe.

I usually make it in the crock pot but it can also be made on the stovetop, depending on your time constraints and what really takes it over the the top is a generous spoonful of homemade pico de gallo. A. Maze. Ing.

White Chicken Chili {Crock Pot}

Note: The recipe below is for stove-top directions, but following it are the crock pot directions.

Original Stove-Top Version: (smaller quantity-thicker and more chili-like)

1 lb chicken breast

1 medium onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 15oz. cans great northern beans

1 can chicken broth

2 4 oz cans diced green chilies

1 t salt

1 t cumin

1 t pepper

1/4 t cayenne pepper

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

1 T finely minced jalepeno (or more to taste)

All seasonings may need to be adjusted to taste (salt, pepper, cumin, cayenne)

Cook chicken in broth, remove and shred. Saute onion and garlic until tender. Add to broth. Add beans (mostly drained), chilies, spices, jalapeno, and shredded chicken. Bring to boil, reduce heat, summer uncovered 30 minutes. Turn to low, stir in sour cream and whipping cream. Serve with a generous spoonful of pico de gallo.

Crock Pot Version: (feeds more and is a bit thinner, more soup-like)

2 chicken breasts, frozen or fresh

4 cloves garlic, minced

3 15oz. cans great northern beans

1 32 oz. carton chicken broth (4 cups)

1 small+1 large cans diced green chilies

1+ t salt

2 t cumin

1+ t pepper

1/4+ t cayenne pepper

1 1/2 to 2 cups sour cream

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1 T finely minced jalepeno (or more to taste)

All seasonings may need to be adjusted to taste (salt, pepper, cumin, cayenne)

Place fresh of frozen chicken breasts in crock pot. Pour in 2 cups chicken broth, making sure the breast are immersed-add more broth if neccessary. Cook on high 4 hours, until shreddable. Shred chicken and place back in crock pot. May need to skim the chicken broth a bit. Saute onions and garlic in a bit of oil until tender and fragrant. Add to crock pot. Pour in remaining broth (if any is left), mostly drained beans, green chilies, salt, cumin, pepper, and cayenne. Cook on low for another 3-4 hours, or high 2 hours. 30 minutes before serving add sour cream, whipping cream, and jalapenos. Before serving, taste and adjust if neccessary. I usually always add more salt, pepper, cumin, and cayenne. Ladle into bowl and serve with fresh pico.

Shredded Southwest Beef Tacos {Crock Pot} w/ Chipotle Coleslaw

These tacos were a delightful little addition to our taco repertoire. I usually lean more towards the chicken variety, but every now and then it's nice to have some beef and one of the great things about these, aside from the crock pot of course, is that they make a large quantity of southwest flavored, shredded beef that I imagine could be easily frozen and used in any number of other applications. Homemade baked taquitos, smothered burritos, quesadillas, or some seriously filling nachos come to mind. But what I loved the most about them was the cool, smoky chipotle flavored coleslaw to serve on top. I loved how the crispy, cool, creamy coleslaw offset the warm, somewhat spicy beef. A fabulous texture party going on in my mouth. I definitely recommend trying these and loving all the left over meat options you'll have because of it.

Shredded Southwest Beef Tacos {Crock Pot} w/ Chipotle Coleslaw

{recipe from Cooking like a Champion via Smitten Kitchen}

3 pounds beef brisket or bottom round Kosher salt Freshly ground black pepper 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 5 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed 1 spanish or yellow onion, halved and thinly sliced 1 tablespoon chili powder 2 teaspoons ground coriander 2 teaspoons ground cumin 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar 1 1/2 cups water 1 (14 1/2-ounce) can whole peeled or petite diced tomatoes, with their juices 1 to 2 whole canned chipotle chiles in adobo 2 bay leaves 1/4 cup molasses (optional, I left this out-thought it sounded kinda gross) To serve: Corn or flour tortillas Chipotle Slaw, recipe follows Season all sides of beef roast with salt and pepper. Heat veggie oil in skillet on med-high heat just shy of smoking. Sear meat on all sides. Place in slow cooker. To drippings in pan add garlic, onion, chili powder, coriander and cumin and stir until fragrant about a minute. Add vinegar and scrape up bits from bottom of skillet. Stir in water, tomatoes (crushing them if using whole), chipotles, and bay leaves. Pour all of the mixture over meat in slow cooker. Cook on low for 8-10 hours. Shred beef and add back into crock pot juices a little while before serving. Serve on tortillas topped with chipotles coleslaw. Chipotle Coleslaw 2 t finely chopped canned chipotles in adobo 1/2 cup mayo 2 T honey 1 T fresh lime juice 1/2 pound (about 2 cups) shredded cabbage or coleslaw mix 1/4 cup finely chopped red onion 1/2 cup thinly sliced green onion Combine chipotle, mayo, honey, and lime juice in large bowl. Add cabbage and onions, tossing to coat. Add salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Ham & Swiss Sliders with Poppyseed Sauce

Wanna a recipe for the tastiest little bite of a sandwich out there? Well here you go! I'm telling you these are one of the best sandwiches I've had the pleasure of eating. They are super easy. They can easily be made in bulk and are perfect for a luncheon, church function or potluck, baby shower, wedding shower or just plain weeknight dinner. They go great with soups, or salads, or pastas, or good old potato chips. They're good hot or cold and they will knock your socks off. Have I sung their praises and functionality enough yet?

The secret's in the sauce, although it might seems a little strange at first to assemble a perfectly good ham sandwich and then pour sauce all over it and bake it, it is not. The finished product is sandwich perfection and you'll want to make a boat load because these little babies go fast. In fact, I might just have to put them on the dinner menu again this week. So hurry up and plan a lunch and join your friends in dying and going to heaven eating these!

Ham and Swiss Sliders

{Recipe source: My good friend Tammy M. Note: On the rolls, you can use either King's Hawaiian style rolls as shown above or hard kaiser-like rolls which will be larger and a dozen or fewer will work with the sauce amount. I like them both ways and say try both and pick your preference or mood for that day!}

12-24 good hard rolls or king's hawaiian rolls

12-24 slices good quality honey ham

12-24 small slices of swiss cheese

1/3 cup mayo

1/3 cup miracle whip

Sauce:

1 T poppy seeds

1 1/2 T yellow mustard or honey mustard

1 stick butter, melted

1 T minced onion, dried is fine

1/2 t worcestershire

Mix mayo and miracle whip together. Spread onto both sides of cut rolls. Place a slice of ham and slice of swiss inside each roll. Place prepared sandwiches close together on a cookie sheet or large baking dish.

Mix ingredients for sauce together and pour evenly over all the sandwiches (note: I like to let my sauce cool and slightly thicken a bit, spoon it over the tops of each sandwich, and that way it melts down over the sandwich as it bakes instead of immediately pooling at the bottom). Cover with foil and bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes until cheese is melted. Uncover and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Serve warm.

*Sandwiches can be assembled a day ahead and kept in the fridge until ready to bake.

Eclair Squares AKA Best Dessert Ever!

If there ever were a dessert to make right this minute, it would be this one for sure. Eclair's and cream puffs are most definitely my all-time favorite pastry of choice. There's just something about that creamy custard filling all enveloped by the chewy sturdy shell and dipped in chocolate that truly can not be beat. Their only downfall is the time-consuming effort it takes to make them. Usually I don't mind that part, it's just that it means they aren't made above twice a year. In steps this dessert. All the amazingness of an eclair with almost zero effort in creating it and yet you still get all the elements. Plus it feeds a crowd easily. Don't delay making this delectable treat a standard in your dessert rotation. You can thank me later!

Eclair Squares

{Recipe source: The Sisters Cafe}

Crust:

1/2 cup butter

1 cup hot water

1 cup flour

4 eggs

Dash of salt

Bring water and butter to a boil, until butter is melted. Pour into the bowl of a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Add flour all at once and beat until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time, making sure each egg is well incorporated before adding the others. Spread onto well-greased cookie sheet and bake at 400 for 20 minutes. Crust will bubble up. As soon as it's removed from the oven use a spatula to flatten those bubbles while it's still hot. Allow to cool while making filling.

Filling:

2 large boxes (5.1 oz) instant vanilla pudding

4 1/2 cups milk

8 oz cream cheese, softened almost to melting stage

2 cups heavy whipping cream

powdered sugar

vanilla

Whip pudding with milk and softened cream cheese until mixture is smooth. Spread over cooled crust. Beat heavy cream with 2 heaping spoonfuls of powdered sugar and a dash of vanilla until soft peaks form. Spread whipped cream over pudding layer.

Chocolate Sauce:

1/2 cup chocolate chips

2 T butter

3 T milk

1 cup powdered sugar

Melt chocolate chips over low heat and add all other ingredients. Beat well with wire whisk until smooth. Drizzle over whipped cream layers. Refrigerate dessert before serving.